Free The Third Eye Initiative by J. J. Newman Page A

hope to see you around.”
    Tsaeris nodded, shook the Ranger’s hand and went up to his room to drink and sleep.
    ***
    Tsaeris lay awake in bed. His bottle of whiskey was untouched. His mind raced over the events of the day, and the fear he had felt in the alley returned. He had almost died, and for what? To save some whore he had just met? He wasn’t sure what had come over him. Tsaeris had always lived by a strict code of survival. His life above all others. Yet there he was, about to die for that girl. Never again, he vowed to himself. He liked Cyra just fine, but she was not worth his life. Nobody was.
    He still didn’t understand exactly what had happened in that alley. Who had killed those men? Why would somebody save his life? He didn’t have any friends, and the only person he even knew in Market was Cyra. Maybe whoever had helped them had been trying to save Cyra, not him. That made more sense, he decided.
    Tsaeris didn’t spend much time thinking about his new found heritage. He really didn’t care. So he was part elf. To him, it was an interesting fact and nothing more. It didn’t change his life in any meaningful way.
    When sleep finally came for him, it was uneasy, and full of nightmares. He awoke in the morning feeling like he hadn’t slept at all. His mind foggy with lack of sleep, Tsaeris dressed slowly, and headed to the common room to buy some breakfast.
    He entered the common room, and stopped. A man was talking to the innkeeper. The man was dressed in a brown cloak, and wore a leather breastplate. Tsaeris could see a dagger hanging on his belt. The man looked to be of middle age, and his rugged face had not seen a razor in at least a few days.
    “He’s a short boy, white hair. Hard to miss. Been told he was staying here.”
    Tsaeris froze. His instincts screamed at him. He didn’t know who this man was, but he had a bad feeling about this. He knew it was time to leave. Without another second’s hesitation, Tsaeris bolted for the door. The man turned at the sounds of the boy running, and quickly gave chase.

Chapter Seven
An Eye for an Eye
     
    Tsaeris ran as fast as he could through the morning crowds. The wind blew his scarf up into his face, and he batted it away irritably.  Surely somebody would try to stop a man chasing a small boy like himself. He looked over his shoulder to see the man not far behind him. What was he thinking? This was The City. He was on his own.
    The streets were full of people heading to work. Tsaeris made for the largest concentration of people, hoping to lose the man in the crowd. It was no use. His white hair made him an easy target to spot. He cursed himself for leaving his cap in his room. He broke from the crowd, and sprinted down a long alley between buildings. The man was faster than him, and was gaining quickly. He had to lose him. The alley split off into two different directions at the end, and Tsaeris ran right. A pile of large crates sat against the wall. He had a few seconds left until his pursuer rounded the corner. Tsaeris ran up the crates as fast as he could, and jumped. His hand barely caught the edge of the roof of the building, and he began pulling himself up.
    A hand grabbed his ankle before he crested the top and yanked Tsaeris hard to the ground. He felt the air burst from his lungs as his body struck the hard alley floor. A heavy foot pressed down on his chest, and Tsaeris cried out in pain.
    “ You best be quiet, kid. I’ll kill you right here and now if you yell again.” The man leaned over and put a sharp knife to Tsaeris’ throat.
    “ What do you want?” Tsaeris spoke quietly, not wanting to anger the man.
    “ Been working the streets, have you boy?”
    Tsaeris shook his head in denial.
    “Don’t lie to me. Not a lot of white-haired boys ‘round here.”
    It must have been Duncan. That son of a bitch.
    “Look. I...I won’t work the streets no more. I just stole a bit. Only enough to eat. I’ll stop, I promise.” Tsaeris hated