Chapter 5: New plans

'Guess I'm spending the night in the woods again,' Jerry thought as the last car passed him on the road, his hand signaling to hike for a ride. He couldn't see the sun sinking; all he could feel was a sudden sense that darkness was returning. It was a distinction that his sense of touch had conditioned his body to perceive as night fell; the cool air made him shiver slightly, and there was no hot surrounding impact that made Jerry feel warm like the sun. 

Jerry wasn't born blind; his vision was taken away as a result of his mistake. A permanent sentence if he did not discover a masterful healer among the afflicted, and he had learned about a woman known as Mother Spell, who can heal all injuries and afflictions. She was a wanted infected person by the registry because of her powers, which they consider to be wicked and should be removed from humanity.

So, Jerry was tracing her routes to determine where she could have gone into hiding. Jerry has been traveling the country for the past few months looking for any evidence of the woman; he has been visiting from town-to-town inquiring about an infected with a certain skill, but he has always received the same response. They had no idea who he was talking about; truly, who wanders throughout the country seeking for someone wanted by the government?

People would get suspicious of Jerry for inquiring about an infected, so they avoided him for fear that he, too, was infected, which he was but did not demonstrate his powers. Jerry pushed a silver trolley loaded with a huge brown bag full of the unknown, carefully leading it to the appropriate area to sleep tonight.

 Using his cane to direct himself to a place to put the trolley, he felt something soft and smooth when he walked for a long after he stopped pushing it and continued walking. He hit a tree and came close to it.

He caressed its rough barks, texture, grooves, and traces of leaves, heard a crunch when he traveled the opposite direction, and walked over dry leaves on the ground while touching them with his cane.

 He smiled and said:

 "Perfect"

He quickly retraced his ways to locate the trolley as he returned to the tree with the leaves on the ground. There were no automobiles to be heard, the road was calm, and the woodland beyond resounded with nighttime life.

 Jerry took two belts with seals to tie anything out of his bag of unknowns, placed one around his waist and the other across his shoulder, and began climbing the tree he had identified. Even without sight, Jerry ascended the tree with ease, avoiding dangerous branches.

He used his hand to lead himself to a sturdy and thick branch, knocking on it to see if it was hollow and old enough to break or strong enough to hold him, so Jerry had found his strong branch. He arrived and promptly sat atop it. He placed the belt on his shoulder to tie his lower body, which included his legs and behinds, so he wouldn't fall.

 He finished tying his lower half and moved on to the next belt, which he wrapped to his chest around the area where he will lean onto like a chair. Some thought this was unusual, but Jerry was simply performing what he had taught himself.

He was doing it as if it was nothing to him, but he didn't miss it at all. He preferred the mound of wet sand to this trash on a tree to sleep on; he felt relaxed as Jerry sighs and moves his head up.

 If he had his eyes, he would like to observe the stars again. They always offered him comfort when his parents were still living; they enjoyed stargazing and hated telescopes like the plague.

Jerry's father would advise him by saying:

 "If you stare at them with perfect eyes, they will stare back at you, and you will know true fright"

 Jerry sneered at the notion and memory as he yawned and became comfortable, saying out of habit:

 "Sleep tight Allie, enjoy your parents while you still have them again together"

*** 

City of Carllo, the flea bottom district 

A man in a huge coat, with his slim tall body, was navigating the street vendors, loud music, corner men and women, and eventually the scent of food, which caused him to cover his mouth and nose with a white handkerchief with an insignia.

 He wandered into an alley with no visible light or dancing shadows, just a flickering light that turned on and off. Beyond the light, a voice spoke:

 "Step away from the light" sounded deep, distorted, and crackling like it came from a radio.

 The man agreed and added:

 "I am, so what did you call me here for Ruen?"

Ruen was hidden behind the shadows opposite the light, and they added:

 "I have some news about the sons and daughters of Jericho's business ventures in the Carllo. They have huge intentions for this city, and they are making moves."

 "What kind of moves?" the man said, curious.

 Ruen took a breath and said:

"One of their current projects was exposed when police received a tip about their mining operations on the other side of the country, so they are sending some of the big powers to this city to expedite the process of taking the city before cops become aware of the situation." If you would like, I can provide the names and ranks of the guys who are traveling from the south.

 The man smirked in the darkness and said:

 "Go ahead"

Ruen then listed the names, ranks, and occupations of the upcoming powers:

 "We have Lucky Duck, AKA Shirley Max. She is a cult intelligence operative with close ties to the mayor of this city, having been a past mistress who defrauded many of the elites. Many people dread her not because she is in Jericho, but because she has access to all of their secrets, which forces them to comply with any request she makes. The good news is that she is not infected; however, don't let your guard down around her because she bites fiercely.

Next up comes Bob low tech, also known as Wilfried Mahonney. He is their computer person; for a huge bloke to be that clever about combat and technology is terrifying. He will fly to the city with his wife in the morning, just to let you know.

"The last one is one of the top lieutenants of the cult's leader, April of truth. She is infected with the ability to erase a city from the map; her skills are unknown, but I have been a good guy at my job. Here"

 Ruen threw a yellow envelope at the man who caught it; he opened it and read the information Ruen had told him about the three people who were coming to the Carllo, as well as some files that could hint at April's infected ability.

Then the man inquired:

 "You haven't been discovered yet right?"

 Ruen remained silent for a long as they stated in an electronic-like voice:

 "Not yet, but they're wary about how a hunter like you gets their information. So, they believe an upper-level member is participating in this, rather than one of their lowest-ranking soldiers like me. Anyway, you're sure the register won't blow my cover, right?

The man stated in a casual voice:

 "Ruen, you will be able to obtain citizenship with just this information after I submit the rest of this. Right now, we need some more evidence to assure us a bust and an army, and you will be released and returned to the society that misses you."

"Cut the brainwashing bullsh*t on me; it only works on kids, and I'm not one anymore, Captain. I'm just going to keep doing my part in the mission and receive my vacation from the registry for a half-decade, I believe."

 "In your dreams," the man grinned slightly.

 "That is where it is and where it shall remain until reality is to accept it, see you later boss"

Ruen stopped speaking, and the light stopped flickering and shone again; the man placed the envelope in his coat pocket and left the scene satisfied.