Rogue. (IN REVISION)

20

Fallon and Faris walked around for a while until they ran into someone, it was the black-haired woman who looked at her when she arrived, "Oh! sorry." Fallon stepped back from her.

"It's okay." She smiled. "Where are you from?" She asked.

"Desolate."

"Illuminasia, my name is Oro."

"Fallon. It's nice to meet you." she gave the woman a nod. "This is Faris, my wolf."

"I know Faris." She smiled stooping down to pet him. "Leo must have given him to you?"

"Something like that." She stared down at the woman, Illuminasians were famous for their beautiful olive skin and deep green eyes. The small country also had a small legacy like Desolate, they stayed out of wars and altercations with other countries. They were a peaceful nation and Fallon wondered what happened to the tiny country after The Divide. "I've never been to your country; I wish I could've visited before...you know. "She shrugged.

Oro stood and her eyes, "You would've loved it," She smiled. "White grass and trees that bear blue pearls. Ponds of crystal blue and birds of all variety of colors. The music and the food weren't bad either."

"Blue pearls? I didn't think they existed. "We had white ones where I'm from. the inside juices dripped a blood red."

"Our blue pearls were deep blue all the way through. We would have blue lips for weeks." She laughed, her accent thick. Fallon gave her a slight smile. "Well, I am getting a bit tired. It was nice meeting you."

"You can stay in my place, no?" She asked. "I can make you comfortable." She flirted.

"No, I'm sorry. Leo will be wondering where I am." She left without waiting for an answer from Oro, with Faris following behind. Fallon walked back up the steps to Leo's room where Hawk had fallen asleep in his corner. She looked over at Venner's bed, which was empty, she rolled her eyes and walked out of the room and back down the stairs.

"I'm sure that red headed bimbo has him in her clutches." She looked down at the ghostly looking wolf who followed her again. "Do you think you can find him?" She asked.

Faris tilted his head before he sniffed her, looking for some sort of scent from her that resembled his since they had been close to each other earlier that day. Faris sneezed for a second and shook his head, "Some help you are."

"Fallon?" Leo had come from around the corner. "I thought you'd be in bed." He looked at her with concern.

"Venner has vanished. I've been out looking for him."

"Well, I never took the Olori (Leader)of Desolate to be such a...passionate man."

"Okay, never say such a formal title in that sentence again." She chuckled. "He doesn't know anyone here, and he is too kind of a man to be out on his own. Someone may take advantage."

"Have you ever thought that is probably what he wants?" he asked. "Since when do you babysit him?" He looked at her curiously and she looked up at her father with her green eyes, "I have that feeling...something isn't right."

"Hmm..." Leo thought about it, on one hand Venner could want the privacy, he was a grown man, and he could take care of himself. The other, Fallon's gut was never wrong...he remembered that."

"Alright, Let's go and find him." He walked beside her and let out a shrill whistle to call his fluffy companion. "He was last seen with Tiras, right?" He asked.

"Yeah, tell me about her, is she safe?" Fallon asked him, concern lacing her words. Leo glanced at her from the corner of his eyes.

"I don't know. She usually keeps to herself unless there are newcomers like you three." Leo replied. "How's Desolate?" He changed the subject, wanting to know what had happened to their home.

"I'm sure you can see it from Derelict, but the Great Pearl Tree is dead. The bots didn't tend to it or anything, they just let it die. Most of the people are either dirt poor, are addicted to Elate or sell it. Even during The Divide, Desolate still tries to make ends meet." Fallon had her own question. "Where are all the bots in Derelict?"

"There are none." Leo answered. "Once the Tompers poisoned the air and ground with Silver Crypt, they let us fend for ourselves. We must keep the food growing in this impossible soil to keep our stomachs full and make sure the animals aren't sick from the poison before we eat the meat. Most of the time the animals die, we haven't mastered that system of keeping the animals alive enough for them to be eaten. we did however, master how to grow fruits and vegetables in the soil."

"So... they just decided to create a gas chamber and leave you here to die?" She asked angrily, the fire rising in her belly could be heard in her voice and her father merely smiled hearing her, some things never change. "Let us focus on finding your friend." He placed a loving hand on her back to calm her as they walked. Faris stopped in his tracks and sniffed the air, letting out a low guttural growl from his throat. Leo looked down at him and stooped down next to him, "That is impossible."

"What?" She asked. "Has he picked up his scent?"

"No, but he has picked up another scent." Leo watched as Faris took off running and the both of them followed him down the narrow alleyways and around the sharp corners. Fallon matched her father's pace and glanced over at him, "What did he find?"

"Elate. I've trained him to detect the drug within the compound."

"Brilliant." she mumbled under her breath.

They followed the animal who had leapt and bounded through the large camp, their sore feet trying to keep up. By the time the wolf had found the location, he was scratching at the door, growling anxiously. Fallon saw the look on Leo's face, "What?"

"Tiras' home." His eyebrows furrowed furiously, and he grit his teeth. "She better not be doing what I think she's doing."

Fallon thought about it and her eyes widened, "What?!" She pulled out her knife and didn't hesitate to kick the door down, Faris came barreling in, plundering through the home to find the source of the scent, "Venner?" She shouted. Leo came in behind her to see a slumped blonde man upon a weathered sofa, patches of Elate stuck to his body.