Before they could lead Tymon away, he stopped to ask who the Deviants were.
"The Deviants are a group of 100 klevonians led by me–er, well, you now. We disagree with the laws of Pneuma City or Forgeton, so we've chosen to go on our own. Old Pneuma City is our home," Gahiji told him.
"Unofficially...," one of the klevonians added.
"Isn't Forgeton supposed to be a place for klevonians, though?" Tymon asked as the wolf pup trotted around his feet, sniffing the shaded ground. The area was still covered in shadows. Tymon didn't release his dark clouds, just in case he'd need to act. "You mentioned them forcing most of the klevonians that live there to join the Klevonian Army. Take it you were once one of those klevonians."
Gahiji looked down at the ground, regretfully.
"Yeah, I was. Then, after some time, I was someone responsible for recruiting of-age klevonians to join the army. I say 'recruit', but it was more of a forceful push of expectancy that every able klevonian is responsible for contributing to the safety of the nation. There was no refusing. Eventually, I grew sick of it and left. I've been marked as a deserter since."
"That's your reasoning; what about the others?" Tymon asked next.
"We all believe the Klevonian Army will be wiped out by the Pneumarian Forces someday," Gahiji answered. Tymon noticed the winds went still as there was a shift in his tone. "The pneumarians are a powerful and paranoid race; it's evident throughout cindarian history. Did you happen to read into Cindar's history?"
"Yeah, I saw the old monument," Tymon replied. "There was an entire era dedicated to pneumarians invading other worlds to spread their influence. Eventually, some conflict called the Dark War took place, killing most of the Primeval Pneumarians."
"Exactly. They tried to wipe out an entire race because they rivaled them in power. And texts don't tell you that, though it was their last, it wasn't their first time. There were once plenty of occasions where pneumarians would be sent in teams, not to subjugate, but to wipe out life on planets that had the potential to surpass them someday. That paranoia is still rooted in pneumarians today."
Gahiji exhaled steadily.
"And klevonians aren't any better. We're brutes and desperate for survival, resulting in many of us who don't want to be marked having to fight each other to steal power from anything we can. Sometimes even the young..."
"What makes you think the Klevonian Army will be wiped out?" Tymon asked him.
"As the klevonian population in Forgeton continues to increase, so does the threat they pose to pneumarians. Someday, the pneumarians will attack the klevonians, just as they've done so many times to other races in the past. They'll whittle the klevonian numbers down and force the remaining into subjugation with their marks. Our Celestial, Auryn, and the astronomical casualty numbers that'd result from a war like that are likely the only reasons it hasn't happened yet. But their paranoia will inevitably cloud their better judgment one day. As more and more klevonians approach the end of their lifespan and choose to submit rather than die, once the Pneumarian Forces numbers dwarf the Klevonian Army's...it's only a matter of time, which is why we Deviants separate ourselves from both groups and live quietly deep beneath Old Pneuma City. Yeah, we steal from those we can, but never from the young, never anyone that'll bring attention to us, and never friends. We do this, hoping someday we'll obtain enough power that we'll be left alone. We could start our small nation for those who want nothing to do with the inevitable war between the two nations."
"That's unlikely to happen," Tymon said flatly. "You'd just be targeted for either becoming too influential or simply on a whim. Should your small nation grow too big, you'll be seen as a threats yourselves. Why not just leave? Find another planet to go to."
"Because Cindar is our home," Gahiji answered with conviction. "We won't abandon it."
"I get that," Tymon nodded solemnly before moving on. "You said there was something you wanted to show me."
"Right, follow me," Gahiji led Tymon somewhere nearby. They stepped into a destroyed building where they eventually approached a hidden entrance that led underground. After stepping through the doorway, it shut behind them, and the dark area lit up with lights. They were in a hall that led down. It was old, having been there for ages, and mold-scented.
As they traveled deeper into the hideout, Gahiji made small talk.
"So, you've got a vuoto wolf," he waved a hand at the pup that walked ahead of them, sniffing the walls and floors.
"A what?" Tymon replied.
"A wolf of the void," Gahiji clarified. "No relation to the Celestial. They're extremely loyal once they get attached. They're not native to Cindar, though. Little guy must've been imported at some point."
"Your gain, I guess," Gahiji shrugged. "Careful though; they eat the shadows of the dead to grow stronger, but they get their real stride in evolution by eating their master's shadow. Unfortunately, that usually consumes some of the owner's life as well once the shadow is completely devoured."
"My shadows are bottomless," Tymon stated, still alert.
"Then that's probably why it chose you despite being so young," Gahiji laughed. "As it stays in your shadow, you'll notice it'll grow in size over time."
The pathway opened into a vast area where Tymon saw several other klevonians going about their day.
Gahiji stopped and instructed the three klevonians that were with them to heal themselves.
"We don't have any more droplets, so you three need to go heal yourselves. We'll be laying low for a while, so you've got time," he told them, then looked at Tymon. "No droplets. No floral users to help with healing. We do what we have to, to survive, but we try to limit injuries as much as possible."
"Hence, you going for a four-to-one advantage earlier," Tymon remarked without looking at him as he scanned the area for traps or suspicions.
Gahiji let out a small chuckle and then introduced Tymon to everyone else. He told them how he'd found someone his guts told him would be worth following. The klevonians had so much faith in Gahiji that they had no qualms about the change in leadership.
Before the greetings and questions could start, though, Tymon insisted Gahiji get on with showing him what he wanted to show him.
After leaving the others, a couple of new klevonians tagged along, trailing behind them as they went through several twists and turns, but Tymon made sure to remember the way out.
"Why are you leading me deeper underground?" Tymon asked.
"What? You think we're trying to set you up?"Gahiji joked.
17Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjLJmz68wWG
