Chương 115: Chapter 116: Unyielding

"Victory is within our hands!" A bold man yelled out, fist raised in the air. He wore a ripped white shirt and loose grey pants. Behind him stood two other figures: a handsome man in regalia with sharp features and a beautiful young woman with a long gown and thick eyelashes. The three figures stood on a stage in front of over a hundred audience members. Evel was one of those guests, intermittently crunching down on popcorn as he watched.

With too much free time, he'd decided to do some market research and watch some of Prachar's renowned plays. The title of this one was simply called: 'Unyielding,' and it was nearing its end. The popcorn was also for market research, so he could see how much it improved his experience at the play. Suddenly, he heard a massive explosion. The Emperor stepped forward on the stage, closer to the audience.

"I've received a transmission," he boldly proclaimed.

"Isrem City is under attack by Ultor's Archon himself, along with his elite squad!" The girl gasped. The muscular man in the ripped white shirt stepped forward, bowing low.

"Nobody else can stop him but you, my Emperor."

"But then…" The girl trailed off.

"Fiore," he snapped.

"We shall not allow this great city to fall. With you by my side, who dares stop us?" The emperor's head turned to both of the figures, then solemnly nodded.

"Anybody else, I'd have my doubts. But you, Alaric 'The Fist', and you, Fiore 'The Palm', may be the only ones who can hold this area down. Serve the Imperium well."

"We won't disappoint you!" the two saluted. The emperor flew into the sky, yanked by some rope, and disappeared from the stage. Alaric and Fiore looked deep into each other's eyes before facing towards the right, where a brand new figure had arrived. A strange figure wearing a fully black outfit and a shadowed face. If the spotlight weren't on him, he would blend right into the background. The two actors jumped back.

"You fools," the new figure yelled out.

"We used our Emperor as a distraction, and you've fallen right into our trap!" Evel munched on his popcorn faster. It was his third bag already.

"As long as our hearts beat, it's never over!" The two sides clashed in the middle but never actually hit each other. Anytime they were about to clash, a thin cardboard cutout popped out from the ground depicting a fight. The music got louder, and the crowd gasped as the intensity increased with each new image. Finally, the shadowed figure backed off, streams of fake blood pouring out of him.

"Fiend, you have no chance of winning!" The shadowed figure cackled maniacally.

"Oh? But I've already won!" The figure backed off, disappearing into the background curtains. Alaric was practically untouched, scanning the stage for more enemies. After confirming no further foes, he looked over to Fiore. The spotlight went on the girl. The crowd gasped. Fiore's head was spazzing, and half her face was covered in a shadowed mask. She held her head in her hands and fell to her knees.

"Fiore!" Alaric exclaimed.

"No," she rasped, "Don't get close..." From behind the stage, ten more figures appeared with shadowed expressions. Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

"Just hold on for a bit longer," he whispered, just loud enough to get amplified.

"Run... away... please..." The crowd leaned in.

"You promised me that we'd r--""Alaric…" she interrupted.

"I can't stand the thought of hurting you. Please." Fiore's whole body spasmed. Alaric stepped back, a dark expression on his face. The music grew louder. Evel swallowed quietly, reaching into his bucket for more popcorn. He was already out. His eyes darted to the vendor, then back at the play. It was late to get a fourth. The music stopped. Fiore stood up, her full body shadowed. Alaric wiped off his tears with his forearm as he stepped back.

"I'll save you, I promise." The figures slowly approached him. He slowly retreated. Just then, a small kid was revealed in the background, stuck under some fallen rubble.

"Help... me..." Evel tightened his fist. Stupid kid! Why did he just now have to show up? This was the kid's first appearance in the show, and the playmakers hadn't hinted there was anyone in the rubble until now. It was stupid! Alaric's head snapped to the boy, then back at the figures.

"You can't win…" Fiore's voice creaked out, corrupted with something doused in malice.

"Eleven foes at your own stage is too much, even for 'The Fist.'" Evel's heart quickened as Alaric slowly raised his fist to the sky, his face full of unyielding determination.

"Today I failed once." His words ripped out.

"But I won't fail again!" The music boomed. The stage darkened. Evel eyed the popcorn of the person seated beside him. Booms. Crackles. Cries. A few minutes later, the lights came back on. Ten shadowed figures were on the ground. The eleventh, Fiore, was in Alaric's hands. Her face was no longer shadowed. The music grew sombre.

"I'm sorry." Tears rolled down his face. She shakily raised her palm and placed it against his forearm.

"No... I'm sorry." Her figure slowly slumped, and the music got softer. Evel heard a few sobs from his right as he chewed on their popcorn. The kid trapped under rubble crawled his way out.

"Thank you, sir. Who are you?" Alaric placed Fiore on the ground, and he stood up tall, facing the crowd.

"Just a man who wants to try a little harder." The lights slowly dimmed, and the narrator returned.

"In saving the city, Alaric lost something far more dear. Far more personal. Upon hearing of his achievements, the Emperor recalled him to the capital and awarded him the title: UNYIELDING FIST! But the world works in mysterious ways, and Fiore's sacrifice wasn't in vain. Nobody could ever have known at that moment that the little boy he saved would grow up to become the renowned hero: Damu, 'The Cog.' The curtains closed, and a chorus of cheers spread amongst the crowd, and a few people even stood up.

Evel joined the applause. The play was quite good, despite a few stupid decisions. He also strongly doubted the validity of all the events, but that was to be expected for a show. He pushed himself off his seat and exited in an orderly fashion with the rest of the audience. On his way out, a worker approached him with a form.

"If you have any suggestions, or anything you especially enjoyed, just fill this out and leave it in the ballot!" Evel nodded, and the worker went to the next person. Pretty smart… we could maybe incorporate that. In the past week or so, he'd had a lot of free time, and this was one of the ways he found to spend it: watching plays. Initially it felt a little strange, wasting so much time, but after his third or fourth play, he'd grown used to it. Ultimately, he wasn't wasting his time anyway.

It was valuable market research, and he'd already taken a lot of key insights. His favourite so far was popcorn. He paid so much Riak for something so cheap otherwise. A market model created of pure genius. Stretching his body, he made his way back to the slums. Today was the day he planned to make a certain proposal to Yuna, and he was pretty confident she'd agree. He'd taken a good look at the circus finances and disposable income, so he knew it was feasible.

Body bursting with energy, he crossed the bridge without interruption and quickly found himself in front of the massive tent in the slums. It had grown a lot since its initial size, and they constantly added new compartments to it. Realistically, the most efficient thing to do would be to move all the workers to Upper Ichoris and just use the behemoth of a structure Agent built, but nobody wanted to leave since they all lived so close. From outside the tent, he could hear a chorus of laughter and chatter.

Because most people had lived in terrible conditions before working at the circus, almost every single worker was extremely enthusiastic about their job and worked hard to create a better workplace. Taking a long breath, Evel walked in. The temperature dropped. Many averted their gazes, while others put on polite smiles while remaining distant. Evel internally sighed. It had been like this for the past few days, and something he was yet to grow used to. He scanned the room and found Yuna.

She was already walking to him, head held low. Evel couldn't help but internally sigh a second time.

"Everything is going as scheduled," she calmly reported. Evel nodded and walked with her to an empty area where they had a bit more privacy.

"I want to talk about a possible expansion for the Circus, and to see if you think it's feasible."

"Are you planning on expanding to nearby cities?"

"No. Well, eventually probably. What I mean right now is expanding it further within the slums." She paused and raised her brow.

"I've looked through the records, and it's not as expensive as I first expected, but you know the business better than me." He paused.

"Could we provide free food to anyone who comes to the event in the slums, even if they don't pay?" She raised her eyes to match his.

"Well, yes, actually." Evel raised his brow. She'd answered far quicker than he imagined.

"I... I wanted to bring this up, but it never seemed like a good time. I've... we've actually already drafted a plan."