Humayre: The Chronicles of Ronin Wilder

“Please. Just one more time,” said Mike. “I swear. I won’t ask again. Just once more. Come on.”

“Okay, Okay,” said Ronin, with a smile. “But this is it.”

Mike, Kevin and the other ten kids surrounding Ronin cheered out. They all held their wooden mugs filled with Mr. Bean’s famous cider into the air and chanted Ronin’s name. Cider splashed everywhere as kids jumped up and down hooting and hollering.

“Arrg, matey. These fans of yers be hungry fer a show,” said Bubba Bean, the owner of the fine establishment Ronin and company were standing in. Bubba wore an eyepatch over his right eye, though it was rumored his eye was fine. His pale head was cleanly shaven. The eyebrow was missing over his piercing blue eye. Tattoos wrapped around each muscular arm. Pictures of anchors, kittens, a couple hearts and a big smiling face of a woman with the word Mum underneath it covered his left arm. His right arm was covered with a similar motif, minus the picture of his Mum. He wore bell bottom jeans and a tight black shirt. Definitely the oddest looking pirate Ronin had ever seen.

Bubba Bean stood before Ronin with two wooden broom handles. “Let’s try fer two shall we.” He put the brooms together and held them in front of Ronin. He braced himself and squinted his one eye. “Give er all ye got, matey.”

The fake pirate accent still threw Ronin off, even though he’d been listening to it for past hour. The guy either really thought he was a pirate or he was one heck of an actor. A broken piece of broom, an earlier victim of Ronin’s, lay just to the right of his foot. He kicked it away. The chants continued to build. Holding his right hand in the air he focused on his fingers. Five claws extended. He swiped across the wooden broom handles. They sheered in two. Little bits of wood flew everywhere. The room erupted into cheers. Cider splashed on Ronin’s head and face.

“Arrrr, matey. A true buccaneer yar be.” He slapped Ronin on the back and returned behind the bar.

“Told you you’d feel better if you got out,” said Kevin, leaning into Ronin so he could hear over the crowd.

“Thanks,” said Ronin. Kevin was right. It did feel better. And he was right about something else. Most of the kids seemed to be accepting him. It was hard to believe that only three hours earlier he was walking out of the cinder-block hospital wondering how people were going to react when they saw him. Turns out his fears were all for nothing. Well, mostly for nothing. A few kids were giving him a hard time. They sat in the back corner of the pub glaring at him as they talked amongst themselves. It was obvious they were talking about him. Can’t please everyone. He glanced around the pub once more. His eyes couldn’t get enough of the medieval goodness.

Bub’s Pub. The outside walls were cobblestone and the roof was a thatched wood. Just above the door swung a huge wooden sign that read Bub’s Pub. It looked like something straight out of the Dark Ages. The inside continued the theme. The floors were a dark wood and the ceiling was vaulted with dark wood beams. Two massive fireplaces warmed the pub. They too were made of cobblestone. The walls were a rich honey colored wood, same with the bar. A chandelier with hundreds of candles hung at the center of the pub. The delicate candlelight bathed the room in a soft glow. It was exactly how Ronin imagined a medieval pub would have looked.

“You alright?” asked Mike. He grabbed Ronin’s shoulder.

Ronin jumped. “Yeah. Just checking this place out.”

“You sure, Bro? You kind of zoned out there for a bit.”

“Yeah I’m fine.”

“Okay everyone,” shouted Mike. “Shows over. Let’s give the guy some space.”

No one left, they were all too busy staring at Ronin’s hands.

“What’s it like?” asked Kevin, eyeing Ronin’s nails. “Do they hurt when you claw the wood like that?”

“Forget the nails,” said Mike. “What about those wicked looking teeth. You try biting anything yet?”

Kevin looked to Mike and shook his head. “Seriously?”

“Bro. I would be biting the crap out whatever I could put in my mouth.” He looked to Ronin. “So freaking amazing. You’re like a vampire, or a cat man, heck, you could be Catman. You’re like a super hero or something.” His eyes lit up with excitement. “You try climbing a tree yet? Man. I bet you could climb the crap out of a tree.” He raised his eyebrow when Ronin didn’t respond.

Noticing none of the kids had left yet, Mike said, “Guys. You can leave or I can make you leave.”

The crowd slowly dispersed leaving only Kevin, Mike and Ronin. One of the last kids to leave had eaten some kind of cheese. The stench burned Ronin’s nose. Soap, toothpaste, detergent, under-arm deodorant, the onslaught of smells started to overwhelm him again. The same thing had happened when he left the hospital. Focusing on one smell and pushing all others out was how he fixed it before. The toothpaste, the least offensive of the scents, he concentrated on the sweet minty smell. It worked, but it wasn’t easy. The focus it took mentally exhausted him.

Ronin plopped down on a wooden chair. The round table in front of him had dents and dings all over it. Old cider, or liquid of some sort, stained most of its surface. Thirst beckoned him. He grabbed his wooden mug and sucked down a large gulp of cider. The bubbles burned the back of his throat.

“You sure you’re okay?” asked Kevin.

Both Kevin and Mike looked concerned.

“Yeah, Bro. You’re looking super pale. Even more than usual.”

“I’m fine,” said Ronin. “Anyway, I’m sick of talking about me. What’s up with you guys? You feel anything different after the Awakening?”

A smile stretched across Kevin’s face. “Check this out.” He tapped the circular wooden table with his fist. “How much do you think this thing weighs?”

Ronin furrowed his eyebrows. “I don’t know.” He knocked on the wood. “It’s solid.” It was an odd question that frustrated him. He was tired and didn’t want to waste his energy on such things. “Why?”

“Seriously. Just guess,” said Kevin. “It looks heavy right?”

Ronin tried to push the table but it felt like it was nailed to the floor. “I don’t know. It’s heavy, that’s for sure. Maybe a couple hundred pounds?”

“Nice guess, matey,” said Mr. Bean “But that be Black Ironwood. Heaviest wood thar be. That table you lads’s be sittin at weighs at least four hundred pounds.”

Mike leaned forward and whispered, “The crazy pirate is stalking us I think.”

Ronin smiled, Kevin laughed.

“Watch this,” said Kevin. He grabbed the side of the table with two hands and bent down. His face scrunched up as he lifted the table. He held it just in front of him and smiled. “That answer your question?”

“Show off,” said Mike. He chuckled and took a swig of cider from his wooden mug. “Not sure how I feel about all of this. I’m usually the strongest guy around.”

“Woah,” said Ronin. He shook his head and sarcastically laughed. “Yeah. I get back scratchers and you get super strength. That’s fair.” He looked to Mike. “What about you?”

“Hercules here has me beat,” said Mike. “We already had a contest. I’m stronger than I was. A lot stronger. But I can’t compete with Zeus Jr. here.”

Kevin set the table down. He walked over and put his hand on Mike’s shoulder. “Don’t worry big guy. I won’t tell anyone.” He and Mike laughed.

A smell struck Ronin smack in the face. Jasmine. It was the smell he couldn’t place earlier. The scent on Grace. She was coming, he could smell it. The scent was weak at first but seemed to grow in strength. Ronin guessed she was getting closer. The sweet flowery smell mingled with her natural scent. It was unmistakably her. Something was off though. She was in distress, or sad. Ronin wasn’t sure how he knew, his only guess was that the smell seemed to be telling him.

“Grace is coming,” said Ronin.

“Who?” asked Mike.

Kevin glanced around the Pub. “I don’t see her.”

“She’s not here yet,” Ronin opened his nostrils and sucked in a deep breath. “She’ll be here in a few seconds.” He focused on the front door. “There’s something wrong, I think she’s sad or something.”

Mike and Kevin gave Ronin confused looks.

The door opened. In walked Grace. Her focus went straight to the back of the pub. For a moment she met Ronin’s gaze but quickly averted her attention. She walked past Ronin’s table. She seemed to be searching for someone.

“How did you know she was coming?” asked Kevin.

“That is weird bro. You psychic now too?”

“I could smell her.” Ronin was more preoccupied with what Grace was doing and didn’t want to answer any more questions.

“You could smell her?” asked Mike. “That’s just weird.”

“Grace,” said Ronin, in a raised voice.

Grace turned around. “Have you seen Cyrus?” She looked desperate.

“No. He hasn’t been here,” said Ronin. “Is everything okay?”

Grace took a deep breath and exhaled. She looked disappointed. “It’s fine.” Correcting her posture she made her way to Ronin’s table. Her straight blonde hair swayed back and forth as she walked. With shoulders pulled back and her chin held high, she was graceful and elegant. Maybe the closest thing to a princess Ronin had ever seen.

“How are you doing?” asked Grace. Her eyes were compassionate. It was obvious she really cared. “You gave everyone a scare.”

“I’m okay,” said Ronin, balling his fists to hide his claws. When he spoke he held his lips tight so she couldn’t see his teeth. “Although it was kind of strange waking up in the hospital with no idea how I got there. But other than that I’m good. Once they gave me the all clear, I just headed back to my room.”

“Do they know what happened?” asked Grace. “I talked to Mr. Wetstone. He said it was the first time anything like that has ever happened in the history of the school.”

“They didn’t really tell me much. I heard them talking to each other though. They said something about the Mayre in my blood being different. Apparently I won’t be getting any of the abilities normal Humayre get.” Thinking about what Dr. Storm had told him started to make him mad again. Ronin folded his arms and glared at the fireplace. “Apparently it’s going to be much harder for me here. Dr. Storm doesn’t seem to think I’ll be able to cut it. Seems he’s all but sure I’m gonna fail out.”

Mr. Bean filled the three boy’s mugs and set a new mug down for Grace. “Thar you go, lass.”

“Thank you.” Grace smiled at Mr. Bean.

As Mr. Bean walked back to the bar Mike nudged Kevin. “Did you see that?”

“See what?”

“The scar on the back of the crazy pirate’s head. Maybe that’s what’s wrong with him?”

“It’s not nice to talk about people like that,” said Grace.

“I know, I know,” said Mike. “I’m just messing around is all. I don’t mean anything by it.”

“Normally I wouldn’t talk about someone behind their back. But maybe if you knew what happened you would be nicer to Mr. Bean.” Grace gave the three boys a stern look. “He was just like all of us at one time. A Humayre I mean. He was a Heiri, one of our best. He was badly wounded when his team went to investigate a murder. They didn’t think he’d survive. As you can see he did, but not unscathed. He suffered massive brain damage. The little pirate routine is real. He actually thinks he’s a pirate. Anyway, as a sort of payment for his service, Dr. Storm decided to make him this pub. So now you guys know.”

“Man,” said Mike. His face turned red. “If I would’ve known I wouldn’t have been rude to him earlier.” He shook his head. “I feel like a jerk now.”

A strange smell slapped Ronin’s senses into overdrive. His heart raced and his ears tuned in for any sounds out of the ordinary. The scent was pure, angry, and focused. Somehow he was able to identify every smell as long as he had a reference from its original encounter. His mind was like a scent library. But this scent was different. He had no knowledge of it.

“Something’s happening outside,” said Ronin. He stood up and stared at the front door.

Grace, Kevin and Mike all looked at each other.

“I don’t’ know,” said Mike, holding his hands up. “He has a super sniffer or something.”

Grace looked confused.

“Never mind,” said Mike. “We’ll explain later.”

Looking to Ronin, Kevin asked, “What is it?”

“I don’t know,” said Ronin.

A loud bell rang outside the pub.

“That’s a perimeter alarm,” said Grace. Her eyes were wide. She looked concerned. “That means someone has breached the perimeter.” She stared at the three boys. “We are being attacked.”