"Don't tell me you're going to eat all of that," Svetlana said, raising her brow at the full roasted lamb that kitchen staff had placed in front of Annie. Along with the six-legged lamb, Annie also bought three tall glasses filled with orange juice, two loafs of bread, and six liver patties. Sveta only ordered a small apple pie and tea for herself, "Cause, to be honest with you, sis, I'm on a diet. Have to look good before games begin."
"Less talking, more eating," Annie said, ignoring the knife and fork in front of her, slicing one of the lamb's legs and gulping it mid-flight, crushing bones with a loud sound and swallowing the leg whole. One of the patties followed the fate of the leg, thrown up with a careless move of the claw. Sveta giggled and used her fork to eat a small part of the pie before herself, "Svet, are you sure that you are feeling ok?" worriedly asked Annie, crushing ribs and one more lamb’s leg in between the jaws, enjoying the sweet taste of sauce on her tongue. The scout dared not close her eyes, not even for pleasure, childishly afraid of losing her sister again, "You look… Sorry, but you look weird! Where are your muscles!? You look like someone starved you and… I don’t know what else. Are you sure you are healthy? If you need some medical health, I can…" The scout stopped once Sveta leaned back on her chair, wrapping her paws around her waist, and laughed with a ringing and gentle sound.
Two were in the student café of the UNU, one of many such cafes spread around the territory of the educational establishment. Windows replaced walls, allowing everyone to see the bright day outside, a podium with music instruments on it was currently empty of staff. The white tables were placed close to massive windows, allowing students to feast their eyes on the lush garden filled with countless exotic flowers just outside the dinner area. Several white birds were nestling in the trees in the garden, filling the area outside with melodic singing.
Annie was concerned that her eating habits would make her appear strange or out of place, but after seeing the couple a few tables ahead, she realized that her concerns were unfounded. The orais couple in the clothes of the students were busy finishing the second full-grown cusack and looking hungrily at the kitchen area in anticipation of the third. From gossip that Annie overheard, this rich lunch was a reward for them by the professor for scoring the best among their group. Their loud chomping could be heard all around the café, but even aside from them, there were several new breeds, busying themselves with eating lamb meat and fried potatoes. Despite her concerns, Annie realized that she felt perfectly fine here, even in such a civilized place as the Core Lands, after all, people were not that different from those of the Wastes.
While the sisters were waiting for the food, Svetlana told Annie how exactly she ended up living in the Core Lands. She woke up under the rubble, weakly calling for someone for help. After spending what looked like hours, she was saved by a passing trader, who managed to sneak her out safely from the ravaging monsters back in the village. The trader took the bleeding and scared cub with him, dropping Svetlana off at one of the orphanages in the Core Lands. After medics cleaned her wounds and found her a place to sleep, the psychologist asked the young girl about events that happened before. Upon hearing about the attack and reading about life in the Wolf Tribe, doctors in the orphanage committed a crime. Instead of contacting the Wolf Tribe, they added wolfkin to the list of orphans of the war. Nowadays, after finding Svetlana, it has caused quite an uproar in the legal system. This crime has well passed the limits of the statute of limitations, technically meaning that doctors involved in this will get out of this situation without a prison sentence and would probably even keep their medical licenses unless either Wolf Tribe, Annie, or Svetlana press charges. Captain Ivar had already contacted Svetlana, trying to convince her to press the charges. With a guilty expression, Svetlana explained to Annie that she had refused this idea and will not press the charges. The Wolf Tribe as a whole will most likely ignore this situation, and after listening to the plea of her sister, Annie agreed to let bygones be bygones as well. Although this situation stings something deeply in her heart. She knew this orphanage. Dad nearly reached it once, only turning back because of the sandstorm. Spirits denied the reunification of the two sisters. Hiding pain behind a fake smile, Annie forced herself to admit that it was for the better. Sveta did not deserve to see the kind of man that their father ended up being.
After spending a whole month in the orphanage, scared and confused Svetlana was picked by a pair of people from the Core Lands, who were looking for a child to call their own. Svetlana herself was unsure why she was chosen out of all the other cubs in the orphanage, but she ended up as their daughter. Some confusion did happen, as Svetlana was growing up far faster than other cubs, but her new family helped the wolfkin with getting into school early and adapting to the strange new environment. Svetlana finished school five years ahead of the regular age, and no university was willing to accept such a young student, wolfkin or not. In the past, some parents pushed their genius cubs to excel, forcing them into universities at a very young age. Many such people ended up suffering mental scars from the stress, and the government banned admission of anyone younger than sixteen to the university. Svetlana ended up helping her parents around the farm, travelling across the Core Lands and having enough time to choose her future profession. After some consideration, the young wolfkin decided to follow in the footsteps of one of her parents and become an architect.
"Now you sound just like dads, Annie! They always read one too many books about the Wolf Tribe and try to fatten me up, worrying that I may be starving in secret. Trust me, I am not, I quite like my current self, although it took me a couple of years to get used to the local climate," Svetlana elegantly pointed at her whole body with one paw, before reaching for Annie’s wrist and gripping it gently, "I am sorry."
"For what?" Annie blinked in surprise, nearly choking on the lamb’s head.
"I… was afraid." Svetlana admitted, looking at Annie’s arm, "I should have filed a search warrant to locate you with the police earlier, I should have searched for you myself… But I was so afraid of what I could have found. I was afraid that you…" The wolfkin stopped, biting her lips and unsure how to continue..
"I know," Annie softly responded, grinning like a madman. She found me on her first try, huh? Svet, you are awesome! "There is nothing to forgive. All that matters to me right now is that you are alive and part of me is alive again."
The scout meant exactly what she said. She had no idea why, but for the longest time in her life she was unbothered by looking stupid, unbothered about saying the wrong word. Even admitting something as selfish about feeling herself alive was just fine for Annie, looking at Svetlana before herself the scout no longer cared if anyone overheard her weakness or if her sister will judge her. Annie half expected Svetlana and her to be stuck in awkward silence, unsure what to say to one another. They were cubs from different worlds, after all. To her surprise, the Core Lands were not that different; sure, they had more of those stupid laws, and their people appeared fatter and... frail. But at the same time, the Core Lands produced countless important things for the Wastes, while people in regions like the Wastes, Ravaged Lands, and so on were responsible for the protection of the Core Lands. However, the two regions were not exactly completing each other, because the Core Lands were roughly made up of more than two hundred regions the size of the Wastes, and the Core Lands' contribution dwarfed everything the Wastes could ever hope to add. And yet no animosity could be seen between the two sides, for two will eventually become one. Wastes will also have proper cities, proper safety, and "weak" people on the streets one day. Annie found that to be good. She and her sister were two sides of the same token, Svetlana was the symbol of the future, while Annie was the relic of the past. That too felt fine, for one can’t exist without the other, and therefore they now spoke with each other so easily. That and of course, blood ties.
A shadow ran across the face of the student, and she looked in the eyes of her sister, "I can feel them even through the clothes. I read about pits and… Other things. Just how many scars do you have, An? Did… people hit you?"
"Eh, lost count after the first dozen," Annie said, slamming the lamb's spine between her fangs and squeezing bone marrow out into the open. "As for beatings, nah, it's not that bad. In the first week, my wolf hag cracked my ribs, cracked my head, and gave me nose bleeding, but I got better and can even punch back now. My ears are still right here, bones regrown, still here in short."
"Scars… Beatings… It was all true then," Svetlana reached out with her paw and ran her fingers around the scars on Annie’s face, looking sad and worried. Finally, all worries were gone from Svetlana’s face, giving place to determination, "Annie, if you only agree, we can find a way to get you ou…"
"Here you are!" Svetlana turned around, hearing a loud voice coming from the doors.
Annie looked suspiciously at the two newcomers, quickly gulping down the remains of her food. These two were normie students, with worried looks on their faces. Scout could sense no threat or danger from them and relaxed her strained muscles. Humorous thoughts ran in the head of Annie, she understood that she was about to leap in front of Sveta, ready to protect her.
Now this would be an incredibly embarrassing event for everyone involved. Annie smirked to herself, drinking her first glass of juice.
"Your mom?" One of the students nodded at the scout and Annie laughed, ignoring the fiery gaze of her sister. The scout only now fully comprehended the sheer difference in size between her and Sveta, no wonder that these boys got it wrong.
Still, I am not that old. Asshole. Annie started giggling against her will, the implication was inane beyond all reason. At least they see kinship. That's something, I guess.
"No, she is my sister. What happened?" Svetlana demanded to know, lightly hitting Annie under the ribs with her elbow. The scout barely felt the touch of the hit, but pretended that it affected her, turning her laughter into coughing and greedily reaching for the remains of the lamp.
"You promised to help with unloading stuff for professor Ingo! We waited for you to show up…" Quickly said the first youth.
"We tried to find you," Corrected the second youth, "And now we are late for our own studies and that box is still in the same place."
"Shit, I completely forgot!" Svetlana slapped herself across the muzzle in annoyance, checking the watch on her wrist and panicking even more, "Training sessions is about to start! Damn it, damn it, damn it… Boys, could you please find Zeke? He still owes me…"
"Not a chance. Zeke is already in the sport hall. He ain’t leaving." The first teen shook his head negatively.
With the corner of her eye, Annie looked at the increasingly concerned Svetlana. She wondered what the problem was. Surely even UNU had staff and workers, why should the students, of all people, work? Then she remembered the board in her own base, where you earned tokens for doing some tasks around the base. Warlords ignored such things, as soldiers were free to use their free time as they saw fit. Could it be the same here?
"I can help." Annie quickly offered, finishing her drinks and food. She started to lick the fat and sauce from her paws, but upon seeing the strict look of her sister, used a napkin instead of her tongue. Sveta’s den, her rules.
Is it true that I look so much older than Sveta? Annie wondered, surprised and amused by the fact that the words of the youths about her possible age annoyed her.
"Annie, this thing weighs nearly one hundred and fifty kilos."
"Baby numbers. Leave it to me." The scout looked for her wallet to pay for the lunch, but her sister had already moved to the cashier.
"I am paying, An."
"But this food was quite costly. That’s a lot of money, and you don’t even have a job. You are a student." Annie tried to argue.
"That’s where you are wrong, sis," Sveta flashed a white grin, showing a perfect set of chompers, "I do work from time to time to earn my keep. But this time, dads are paying for us. Wait for me in this café once you're done, you can’t get into the sports hall without a proper ID and it will take hours to get one." Svetlana finished paying for her food and turned to her sister, frowning and worried, "You... you won't just vanish on me, right?"
If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
"Never," Annie swore and jokingly placed one paw on her chest, "We haven’t even got to the part where you scream at me! I am going to annoy you for a while longer, sis."
****
It seems like the right door. Annie decided, looking at the brown door with the markings C-9N on it. This room is located on a wide balcony, positioned right before a square of empty space within the building. Glass windows from above allowed light to shine on the small garden on the first floor, guard rails protected students from falling.
The scout carried a human-sized rectangular wooden box on her back, holding it carefully with both paws. Students showed her where to pick this up and explained to her where exactly to put it on the third floor. Despite their protests, Annie commanded them to leave for their studies, the stupid normies were worried that she might throw out her back. That was bullshit, of course, Annie regularly lifted far more during her training and, in fact, carrying the box along with two other people was a drag, because she had to adjust to their limits. The moment the students left, Annie picked up the box and used the stairs to walk on the third floor, instead of using the elevator. Several people looked at her in surprise, one, someone who introduced himself as a Rector, whatever this title meant, even offered to help Annie, but she just smiled to them, thanking them for their offers to help and easily carrying things onward by herself. Really, the people of the Core Lands had a nasty habit of worrying over nothing. Locals should have known how strong the new breeds were by now, as some ice boys studied at UNU and orais were clearly present.
Furtively looking around to ensure that no one was present in the corridor, the scout opened the door before herself with her left leg, using her nimble foot to press the door handle and open the door itself. Even in the Wastes, some people freaked out when wolfkins walked on all fours, thus it was better not to create any confusion here or someone would probably call a police officer.
The room inside was a spacious studio, filled with various mechanical devices. There was a huge harness keeping the half-assembled droid upright, the upper part of the machine was already assembled, only the legs were missing. Chairs were almost absent from the room, only tables with assembly lines were present inside. Glass cases across the wall contained several mechanical devices, spacious windows allowed the bright light of the day to come inside. At the center of the room was stood a civilian walker, its engine was taken out and disassembled underneath the great machine. Standing upright, this vehicle would no doubt break through the ceiling of the room, try as she might, Annie had no idea how this machine appeared here. Two giant metal doors were at the north end of the room, a cluster of mechanical appendages and arms hung from the ceiling, capable of moving around the room via a network of iron rails that ran across the top of the room.
At the south end of the room was a podium with a wooden table on it. Behind the table sat an elderly-looking man on a single chair, resting his head and arms on a table. On a desk behind him were written countless short instructions about safety and several numbers indicating the percentage of achieving goals in the current semester. According to what Annie could understand, students had to learn how to maintain, repair, assemble, and control civilian droids and walkers within the current semester.
Ultis would probably feel herself at home here. Annie thought and coughed once to attract the attention of the man. She had to step aside to dodge the bottle of cough medicine that the elderly man threw in her direction almost automatically. The teacher kept his head pressed against the desk, even when the bottle connected with the wall behind Annie, "Sir? Are you fine, or should I call for medical help?"
"I am merely experiencing a hangover," The man raised his head, looking at Annie through a pair of green lenses that served as his eyes. His forehead was scarred, some machinery glowed visibly underneath his surprisingly healthy-looking skin on his forehead. The entire right arm of the man was replaced with skillfully crafted silver augmetics, looking so elegant that it could easily pass for a natural arm from afar. The eyelids of the man were removed, wrinkles covered his elderly skin. He was dressed in a simple brown jumpsuit of an engineer. He reached for a metal flask at the edge of his table and took a sip from it, "Put the duplicator by the table to your right."
“Duplicator?” Annie asked in surprise, putting box where man said her. She knew something about these devices. Extremely expensive, they could recreate an exact copy of the object, biological or otherwise, if correct materials are provided. However duplicator could not create a proper copy of a living being, even if provided with enough energy and materials, clone will expire in a few moments after creation at best, at worst it would forever be a brain dead creature, “Is it for studies here?”
The arm of the man shot forward like a whip, extending like a rope. Gleaming silver reached toward the upper end of the box, five fingers spread wide, shredding wooden parts away from the box, tearing out the safety wrapper around the metal structure inside. The elderly man rose to his feet, his silver arm extended itself nearly three times at his side, the elongated metal fingers nimbly connecting the device to the energy source with the cables. Countless buttons and screens on the device came to life, once energy flowed into the device, a square-shaped opening appeared on the right side of the device. The man walked toward the machine, his arm flowed back to normal size. With a careless gesture, he threw a silver flask into the opening and closed it, pressing a couple of buttons with quick precision. The opening closed itself, machine made a sound similar to that which the stomach of the scout once gave in when she tried to digest the rotten meat of the insectoid, before spitting out a few identical silver flasks from the new opening in the bottom. The man picked up one flask, opened it and drank the liquor inside.
"I am allowed to bring just one flask of alcohol per day with me. Technically, I only had one upon arriving," The man hiccupped, spreading the drunken smell from his mouth and pointing at the several flasks in the machine. Finally, he touched his forehead with his silver arm and all signs of pain disappeared from his face, when he spoke again, not even a trace of alcohol was in his breath, his words were clear as day, "Apologies for childlike behavior. Just tested if it works. My name is Till Ingo, or teacher if you refuse to use my name. I suppose you are a new student here. It's good to see that more and more of the Wolf Tribe come to learn. Come, I’ll show you around. Don’t worry if you break something, happens to everyone during the first few days. First thing first, you need to change your clothes for the working uniform and learn safety instru…"
"No, no!" Annie put her paws forward in panic, "Sir, my name is Annie, I am simply a scout of the Wolf Tribe. Not a student, I am too dumb to ever hope to enlist here."
Till Ingo, now that was a living legend. Annie saw several times how Ultis eagerly read journals and biographies about the man. The silent scout was not the one to share information or have small talk with others, but out of boredom, Annie too read a little about this man from the journals left behind by Ultis. Originally born into a poor family some two hundred years ago, Till joined the First Army as a researcher and unearthed many wonders of the Old World, inventing quite a number of new ones himself. Seeker class walkers, for example, were made by him. The weaponized hand of the warlord Janine was also his doing, although ever since then he deemed this weapon crude and ineffectual, sending countless requests to the warlord, begging her to allow him to change it. Janine has refused all requests so far. According to journals, this man left military development at least a year ago and now works for UNU. This man was also partially responsible for including augmentation in the free medical healthcare provided by the Reclamation Army. By finding a way to produce stable, easy-to-maintain, and cheap mechanical limbs and organs, he kick-started a new era in the production of artificial limbs.
"What is your basis for this claim?" Till demanded to know, "We have another wolfkin of the Wolf Tribe here, she is not half bad as a student. Given enough time, you too…"
"I know her! She is my sister! Sir, listen, I never even went to school. Trust me, university is way beyond my abilities." Annie tried to back up to the door, when the silver arm of the man moved past her, shutting it tightly. The man slid across the floor like a snake, hovering just an inch above the ground. The quicksilver-looking limb produced no sound upon extending itself, making the whole situation look unnerving to Annie’s eyes.
"Svetlana is currently still busy with her training," The forehead of the man shone even brighter, while his green lenses nearly became dark, as if all energy had been sucked out of them somewhere. Slowly, light returned to his lenses, while the glow on his forehead returned to normal, "According to the schedule of classes, she will be there for another forty minutes. We have plenty of time to talk," Annie looked at him with wary eyes while the man searched for something in the pocket of his jumpsuit, before finally giving a metal card to Annie, a card with several numbers on it, "If you ever feel brave enough to try and get into university, call me anytime. I’ll help you through online school and, if you are good enough, eventually a place in UNU. If not, don’t worry, there are tons of colleges and other universities around the country, we will find something for you. This proposition is free of charge, of course."
"But… Why would you do it for a stranger?" Annie asked in surprise, putting the card in her pocket.
"Because I can and because I can put two and two together. According to information on her file, Svetlana became an orphan at a very young age. I suppose this is what explains her forgetfu… Nevermind. I can figure out the rest easily enough. That and I am a bit tired of crafting tools for war." The man shrugged his shoulders, sizing up Annie from head to shoulders, "I also have another proposition for you, one that ironically enough partially involves war. Do you want power? True power, enough to beat down anyone and to… Dominate anyone." The man’s face frowned in disgust as he said the last words.
"Who doesn’t?!" Annie laughed at his proposition, "Having enough power to protect everyone is the best!" The man's face softened slightly as he heard her words. The scout raised her paws, opening and closing them, looking at her palms, "Alas, I am not strong enough. If not for others, enemies would have killed me with ease by now."
"And that might be true for the entire rest of your life," The man nodded, pointing at the limbs of the scout. To the surprise of Annie, mister Till was the only one in the Core Lands so far who wasn’t shocked by her admission that she was in actual combat, "Biological bodies have their limits. In their pursuit of power, countless members of the Wolf Tribe suffer injuries and often suffer loss of limbs in battle. Members of the Wolf Tribe are known to refuse gifts of modern-day technology, each year dozens of your kind end up dying or end up as cripples simply out of fear of metal. I am a person who has dedicated my skills to the development of affordable and suitable mechanical parts for people, my work as a teacher and as a researcher for the First Army is just a minor hobby of mine in comparison to my greater duty. People around the entire Reclamation Army no longer view people like me as freaks and are no longer afraid of augmentation on a whole. People who lack funds to buy vat-grown limbs or organs can survive through augmentation. But can you imagine…" The calm features of the man broke, his lips showed yellowed teeth, his hands closed into fists, veins of anger appeared on his lean neck, "Can you even begin to imagine my humiliation, my annoyance, when we have a whole group of people who refuse to accept artificial organs, even if it means saving their blasted lives! Kidneys, lungs, hearts, or even simple arms and legs, all paid for by the state, all for free, and these stubborn bastards refuse because of the fea…" The build-up of his scream stopped as suddenly as it had began, the features of the man becoming calm once more, "Apologies for my behavior, this is a heated topic for me. Yet some of you, warlord Janine, for example, or the shaman known as Scarred One, accepted artificial body parts as replacements for the lost parts of their own bodies. But such minor wins are not enough to persuade others, for both of them were already strong to begin with," Till rubbed his hands together and smiled to Annie, "How about it. If you agree to give up a significant part of your body, I promise to make you the strongest warlord in the entire Wolf Tribe."
"No." Annie answered in shock, backing down from him.
"Please, don’t be afraid and think about it. Imagine the benefits, if you, a simple scout, will jump in the ranks to become a warlord and still be fine, still be yourself, a fear before technology will disappear in your tribe," Till raised one finger, "Imagine the number of lives this fact alone will save. Next, imagine how many people you will save with your newfound might." He started to raise another finger.
"I already said no." All that Annie could see was his unnatural eyes, his silver arm… Just imagining losing the warmth of her body to the cold prison of steel was enough to make her start to suffocate. Bodies were sacred to the Wolf Tribe. It was, and will always be, insane to sacrifice them for the sake of machinery! Some might agree to it out of despair or need, but is losing part of yourself voluntary? To sever one's connection with the Spirits willingly?
"If you say so," Till turned around, walking toward the duplicator and putting something inside and tinkering with the device, "Although, if you know someone from the Wolf Tribe who might be interested in this…" He noticed the horrifying expression in Annie’s eyes and sighed, "No means no then. Here, catch this."
Annie caught a metal card in front of her nose. She realized it was an ID card after closer inspection, the only things missing were the owner's inscription and a photo of the card's owner.
"This gives you the same access around the facility as it gives to me, but it works only for today. Go on, training halls are on the first floor in the left wing. Cheerleaders are training in the hall next to the swimming pool" He waved his hand teacher before raising a single metal finger. "I know that I might have seen something strange to you, and that is only fair. Keep something in mind, though, miss Annie. Training halls were closed from the public eye at large during the days of the "open doors", because some of our guests "stumbled accidentally", so to say, into dress rooms meant for the students…"
"I got the general idea," Annie said, playing with a card in her paw and calming down a little. "Trust me, sir, I have no desire or thirst for any males so far," she added. She saw how the man raised his brow and sighed, "And for females as well, sir. I will never break into any private places."
"Fine, let me show you how to get on the first floor faster, then…" Started to say Till, walking toward the door. He opened it and stopped in surprise when Annie leaped out of the room and jumped over the safety rails, making a somersault in the air to arrest her fall and gracefully landing on the stone of the first floor, "Well, there are some merits to your claims, then…" grumbled the old man from the third floor, while Annie smirked at the surprised looks of the people on the first floor.
"Sorry for the scare, first day in civilized society." The scout scratched the back of her head, walking past the people and pulling on the hood of her jacket.