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Shu sighed softly to himself as he sorted through his chests, inventory and backpack for about the fifth time now. He thought he had more items to be able to craft the slightly better spells… but sadly, he didn’t. I was so busy with all the town meetings and small group meetings with the others, I didn't really get to prepare enough, he thought to himself.
Just then, he saw a message appear in his telepathic communications interface that a certain engineer was now awake. Per usual, people said Hi, calling the man of many names by his most famous nickname, ‘Zaddy’. Shu knows his actual name but for sake of keeping up his facade of being a mystery man, he’ll usually just call him zaddy too.
Then, Shu suddenly just a second after gets a jumbled message from the engineer, the telepathic capabilities of the non-magic user being well… less than good, to say the least.
Heryd, soevrry txo botvher! wodydkd yegdou misndld ifer wela tashslk ffhdor a byit?
Shu couldn’t help the faint smile that tugged at the corners of his mouth, chuckling softly at the message. Don’t ask him how, but he’d honestly learned to decipher the cryptic-looking messages now that they were on day 12 of being in this world. He had grown used to the other, learning his habits and learning how to read them rather than asking questions.
He typed back, probably faster than he’d like to admit.
Yea, sure c: where?
And while waiting for a response, he went ahead and grabbed his elytra and spellbook so he could fly over to wherever they were meeting. As he stepped outside the church, he couldn’t help but take in the nice fresh air. It felt so oddly peaceful… even after everything that happened the other day.
He then got another message, or… scramble of text? Who’s to say. It was words of some-sort, and Shu was able to understand it.
Lests meeagkst oqsver atsk tvnhe uslavual plaksgsqce:)
With a small nod and a quick ‘c:’ sent to the engineer, Shu then took off into the partly cloudy skies, flying away from the church and towards the engineer’s house. As he got closer, he saw the destruction once more and his heart tightened almost immediately.
He landed down at the back of the workshop, machinery rumbling distantly underground, he looked at the now partially destroyed home of the blonde. It felt weird still, only seeing one machine up and running rather than all of them. The hole in the floor, the missing bed, pillars, and blocks. It honestly made Shu angry just to even think about it.
He couldn’t help but pull out his deathnote, looking at it as he narrowed his eyes. Vetruvius’ name was still written over and over again on the pages. He was still angry about what happened yesterday and the day before. Vetruvius II’s attack on the meeting that day, even if by accident, caused several people including the engineer and Nabubu to get injured. Then fighting the engineer at the station because of a disagreement(?) He was still confused about that one. And of course, as if trying to kill the engineer when no one was around wasn’t enough, blowing up part of his house and machines… Go figure.
After contemplating the week's events, he walked out the back of the workshop, going down the dirt steps to the super fast moving walkway, and taking it down to the opposite end where the engineers' public farms were. He saw the blonde working on fixing one of the machines. Shu smiled faintly, speaking up. “Zaddy?” He called out as he walked over, shoes crunching underneath the cold wet grass.
The engineer raised his head really quickly, forgetting he was crawling under one of the belts. His head hit the bottom of the conveyor belt, the blonde muttering a small “ouch!” As he pushed himself back so he could stand up properly, wiping the grease on his glove and mechanic arm onto his pants. “Sorry about that,” He apologized, scratching the back of his head. “I realized the washing station wasn’t working again and Crimp needed it for the circus.” He then removed his glove, sighing softly. “Also, you can call me by name… no one else is around.”
Shu chuckled faintly at the comment of fixing the washing station for the pink haired girl. At his statement of saying his name, Shu pulled out his tuning fork from his pocket and tapped it against his palm. The object emitted the usual loud ring, echoing through the cave behind them. Thunder rumbled distantly as a faint glowing outline appeared around the two boys, both of them looking around to make sure they actually were alone.
Once he was sure they were alone, Shu looked back at the engineer. “What did you need to talk about, Christopher?” He asked him, the first drops of rain starting to fall from the suddenly cloudy sky.
Luca looked around again, wanting to check a second time that they were alone, before looking at the ravenette again. “It’s kind of complicated,” He laughed awkwardly. “I feel like in order to get to the main point of this, I have to explain some things first.”
The engineer sighed after a second, looking into Shu’s eyes as he said the next part. “Do you mind if we take a little longer than ‘a bit’?” He asked awkwardly.
Shu didn’t even hesitate, shaking his head before he spoke. “I don’t mind at all. I don’t really have much to do today.” He kept a neutral tone and face, but in reality on the inside he was smiling, glad he got to spend some time talking with the blonde, even if it was only going to be for a small amount of time. To him… every second with the other made him happy. Not that he’d ever admit that out loud, but he had no complaints about this in the slightest.
Luca smiled, glad to hear the other was willing to spend a little longer than usual. Then, he launched into an explanation of who he really was, where he came from and why he was in New Witchington. The science kingdom, his troubled past, almost all of it. Of course, he didn’t give him everything, but enough that the Church of Chat member could understand what was going on.
Luca took a deep breath as he finished talking, uncrossing his arms. “And that’s basically the gist of who I am. Oh and uh… My name is Luca, by the way.”
Shu was a bit overwhelmed with the information. It was a lot… and he wasn’t sure why the engineer was even telling him all this. He looked at Luca. “Christopher- i mean, Luca, can I ask something?” He questioned folding his hands in lap as he spoke.
Luca nodded, smiling at the raven-haired male. “Yeah, sure.” He chuckled, leaning back against the stone wall of the cave entrance and tucking his hands into the front pockets of his pants.
“So you are from a place called the Science Kingdom, which is responsible for why you know so much about engineering. But you ran away because of ⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎ ⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎ ⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎ ⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎. And since you ran away, they’ve been going after you and you’re constantly moving towns. Right?”
Luca frowned but nodded. “Pretty much, yeah.” He sighed. “Despite how many times I told them I wouldn’t do it, they won’t take no for an answer.” He muttered, sounding less than happy about the subject. Which Shu couldn’t blame him for, in all honesty.
“I won’t let them use my technological advances for ⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎. It’s just… messed up.” The engineer added, looking out at the rain. “All ⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎ does is cause pain and suffering… And I refuse to have a part in it.”
Shu nodded in understanding, looking out at the rain as well, which had begun to pick up a bit. He could see the rainwater collecting in the grass, deep puddles forming all over the place at this point.
He looked at Luca again, his voice gentle as he spoke. “Well, I’m glad you left.” He muttered. “You’re too smart to have your technology reduced to a ⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎. It’s better off getting used to make better things like better public transportation.”
Luca chuckled softly, sighing again. “I wish they would see it that way.” He muttered. “Being an engineer that’s knowledgeable in a city like that is… a curse more than a blessing. I just want to help people, but I was constantly told I’m not allowed to.”
Shu frowned, shaking his head. “That doesn’t really make any sense.” He agreed. “I can see why you left, to be honest. Pretty sure I would have done the same in your situation.”
Luca sighed, taking his hand out of pockets. “Anyways, I called you here to talk not to talk about me, but because of a favor I need to ask of you.” He looked over at Shu, lavendar eyes shining with worry.
Shu felt his heart softened, having to clear his throat before he spoke to swallow down the urge to want to hug the other male just by that look alone. “Depends on the favor.” He joked, smiling at the other.
Luca laughed softly, rolling his eyes. “Well… It’s kind of a big ask.” He admitted, reaching his mechanical hand up to rub the back of his neck. Luca then lowered his hand, looking back out at the rain as thunder rumbled distantly again, the sound of water dripping off the edges of the cave’s entrance echoing in the large space.
“Can you do something for me, father Shu?” He asked in a soft yet serious tone, glancing back over at the ravenette, who now had droplets of rain sticking to his bangs.
Shu stiffened a bit at the other’s sudden tone shift. He was so used to hearing the engineer just laugh, joke around, or talk about his inventions excitedly. Only other time he heard him being serious was during the meeting with Nabubu, Yuta, and Willerton the other day.
He cleared his throat again, before nodding at the engineer. Luca then continued after a second, and honestly Shu didn’t know what he was expecting, but it certainly was NOT this.
“I need you to promise me you will do this no matter what.”
The ravenette froze. There was a flicker of lightning and a crack of thunder followed not long after, the moderate rainfall now starting to really come down, water droplets bouncing off the ground and splashing harshly into the collecting puddles. Father Shu rarely felt fear, but this… he’d never felt his throat close up like this before.
He hesitated. “Can I… ask what this favor is before I agree?” He asked the blonde, looking up at him again.
The engineer hesitated before shaking his head. “Just…” He paused, taking a breath. “Promise me?”
Shu felt like the rain suddenly weighed a thousand tons, his stomach churning with unease at the serious look in the blonde’s eyes. He nodded again, sighing softly. “I promise.”
Lightning flickered again, the engineer turning to face Shu fully. “First of all, we should move so we’re not getting soaked.” He chuckled awkwardly, gently grabbing the ravenette’s shoulder with his real hand, taking a few steps back so that the two of them were now sheltered by the entrance of the train track tunnel.
“Second of all,” Luca spoke up as he let go of Shu’s shoulder. “I should also let you know that I will more than likely be leaving New Witchington… and going back to the science kingdom.”
Shu wanted to throw up all over again. He knew it wasn’t his place to say anything, he was just a member of the church afterall, but… his heart clenched and he spoke up before he could.
“But why?” He took a small step forward, looking at Luca in confusion. “Didn’t you *just* say that you’ve been running from them to avoid going back?”
Luca sighed, nodding. “I did but… the problem is, the science kingdom had bad people looking for me.” He explained, looking at Shu again with a nervous look in his eyes. “And the last thing I want is for those said people coming here… and ruining things.”
He sighed, looking around for a second, watching the rain pour down. “This town has enough problems with Vetruvius II, I shouldn’t add to it.” He added quietly under his breath. But Shu heard enough to guess what he meant.
The ravenette walked forward, hesitating before putting a hand on the blonde’s shoulder. He’d never felt the metal arm before, but geez. It was even a little warm, probably from the gears turning inside it. “Don’t say that. You’ve been super helpful to everyone in this town.” He said quietly, glancing outside for a second then back at the blonde. “And you didn’t ask for any of this anyways… you’re not a problem.”
Luca looked back over at the church of chat member, the way the lingering droplets of rain in his hair clung to the individual strands. A small smile pulled at the corner of his mouth. “Thanks, Father Shu.” He said quietly, then looked back out at the rain. “But I think Vetruvius would disagree with you, to be honest.”
Shu wanted so badly to just take Vetruvius II and… no. He can’t think like that. That would be unwise. No matter how much he wanted to see him pay for his crimes. He’d be no better than the man himself if he did something like that.
“Vetruvius doesn’t know what he’s talking about.” Shu argued in a slightly firm tone, looking at Luca again. “Don’t listen to him.”
Luca looked back at Shu, his eyes widened a bit as he noticed the peeved expression on the ravenette’s face. I knew he was angry with him… but geez. Luca thought to himself as he scratched the back of his neck. “I don’t let his words get to me, don’t worry. I was only joking.” He laughed nervously, feeling a bit bad for inadvertently making Shu upset. But uh, he was about to make him twice as upset.
“Anyways. Since I’m leaving, I need you to do me a favor.” The blonde’s voice quieted as he looked into the ravenette’s with a hint of worry in his own. “It’s a big ask… but I don’t know if I can trust just anyone with this.”
Shu frowned. He didn’t trust anyone else… No one but Shu. He felt his heart skip a beat again, the ravenette crossing a hand over his chest and slightly gripping onto the fabric of his cloak before looking over at Luca where a nod. “What do you need?” He asked, starting to have a bad feeling towards whatever would come out of the blonde’s mouth next.
Luca hesitated a second, looking away awkwardly. “I need you… to burn down my house and make sure there’s absolutely no traces of my belongings after I leave.” He muttered it quietly, thunder rumbling.
Once again, Shu felt his chest twist. But not for the same reason this time. His eyes widened, and he held back the urge to want to… cry? Wait… am I crying over this? He thought to himself as he felt his eyes start to sting a little.
He quickly averted his gaze, wiping his eyes to rid himself of the evidence, glad Luca was looking away. Because as if crying in front of the person he cared about most in this world wasn’t embarrassing enough.
After a second Shu cleared his throat, looking at the engineer. “Define… belongings.” He asked, his voice softer and an octave lower than usual.
Luca looked back at Shu, noticing the sad look in the ravenette’s eyes. He suddenly felt really guilty for even asking him of this. Was this even fair to Shu? He’s just a priest in the church of chat, in hindsight. Maybe… maybe he wasn’t the right person for this? But then again, Luca chose Shu because he was the only person he could think of to trust something like this too.
“Everything I own.” Luca muttered, his voice a bit more firm than before. “Every blueprint, machine, diamond, material… anything and everything.” He explained.
“I cant… I can’t let them find my things and use the knowledge to benefit the ⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎⬛︎.” He murmured, his voice a bit quieter as he looked outside again. “You’re the only person I can entrust this to… since you and I have no real ties to each other, you have no reason to want to keep anything of mine.” Shu felt his heart clench again, but he was quiet as the blonde continued.
“If I asked Omiass or Crimp, they’d keep something to remember me by. But I need everything destroyed to avoid the risk of the science kingdom finding out the secrets to my engineering.” Luca finished, looking back at Shu. “So… can you do it?”
Shu frowned. No kidding this was a big ask… especially since the priest did have more ties to the engineer than he’d ever openly admit. But also, his curiosity was strong.
“What happens if I say no?” Shu asked, looking up at the other again.
Luca studied the ravenette’s expression, smiling faintly. “I always have a plan B.” He chuckled. “I just would prefer to avoid blowing things up, that’s all.”
Shu clenched his hands under the sleeves of his robe. He wanted to say no. He wanted to scream. He wanted to cry. He wanted nothing more than to just wrap his arms right around Luca’s waist… and never let go. He wanted him to stay… so goddamn bad. But it wasn't his place to say, or change his mind.
He doesn’t know you like him. And it’s better off that way. He told himself in his head.
So reluctantly… Shu nodded. “I’ll do it.” He muttered, voice back to its usual calm cadence.
With that, Luca gave him a flint and steel, giving the ravenette specific instructions. That was until Crimp called him to go help her, and then he darted off.
Leaving Shu, standing in the rain holding the flint and steel.
***
It was raining that night too. Shu stared at the flint and steel. Everyone had gone home after the town bonfire, the battle against Vetruvius II won, people’s stomachs full and words of thankfulness and emotions shared.
Now, with no one outside, everyone asleep, Shu lit the wooden pillars of the house, and stepped back as he watched the house turn to ash, all of the engineer's belongings with it. He threw the flint and steel at a tree, the item clanging against the ground, then Shu turned around and flew off into the night as tears fell from his eyes.
Gone was the place the engineer once lived. And with it, the memories Shu held of him. And a bubbling feeling of regret at not just telling the blonde that he had feelings.
Only the phantom sensation of the last hug Luca had secretly given him before leaving for the science kingdom.
END