Turning back to watch the kid play, Kist’s eyes squinted and his brow slightly furrowed as the little boy began playing a near-perfect game.

“No, fucking way!” Thinking aloud, he watched in disbelief as the kid soared past his own, and the high score in only a short while.

Now thoroughly embarrassed at his previous outburst, Kist nearly retracted his previous promise until he saw something that forced him to hold his tongue.

“Christopher,” Confused as he watched the child enter his name at the top of the chart, Kist felt his face fall. “So if this kid is ‘Christopher,’ who the hell is Nue, more importantly how the hell am I gonna take my top spot back with both these people ahead of me?”

Sighing, Kist cut his losses and finally made his way out of the arcade.

Exiting the building, he winced as the change from artificial to natural light hurt his eyes, “The star is still up?”

Quickly adjusting to the unusual brightness, Kist began marching along the lively city streets.

Scrolling through his phone while heading nowhere in particular, Kist joined the mindless crowd.

Soon losing interest in what it had to offer, Kist put up his phone, placing it and his hands into his pockets.

Choosing to instead focus on the people around him, the thoughts of what became of those on the train, both the passengers and robbers, occupied his mind.

“I wonder what happened after I left, I hope that the old man didn’t kill them, “Glancing over his surroundings as his thoughts began to wander.

Yet, as he walked in his stupor, in the corner of his eye, at the very edge of his vision, shifting shapes began to unfurl.

In the next instant, as Kist turned to face the odd distortion, a short figure slammed into him, nearly tackling him to the ground.

Swelling with momentary panic, Kist moved to destroy whatever fell upon him until he recognized a small child’s voice.

Looking down, he saw a head of black, shaggy hair nuzzled into him.

“Please help me!” Shouting into him, the child began to sob before raising his head, which housed bright red, teary eyes. “Please, he’s gonna die!”

“Wha-” Rightfully confused, Kist questioned where this kid had come from, as it seemed as if he’d appeared from the distortion. However, that couldn’t be. “Could it?”

Pulling at his clothes, the little boy began to try and force Kist to move, only to realize he wasn’t able to, at least not like this.

Quickly rushing behind Kist, the little boy shoved him with as much force as his little arms could muster, managing to force him to stumble not only forward but within his mind as well,

Snapping out of his trance, Kist looked back at the boy before he stopped himself and turned to face the child, “Stop pushing me, It’s alright. Take my hand, and lead me to him.”

Looking up with wide eyes, the little boy lit up with joy and, without a word, grabbed ahold of Kist and began to guide his path.

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Stumbling forward before catching his stride, Kist grimaced in pain at his injuries that hadn’t had a chance to settle and heal as he questioned the suspicious child, “By the way who is ‘he’ and what’s your name?”

“He’s my older brother, and everyone just calls me Doll.” Replying within a moment’s breath, Doll spoke sharply.

“Huh, I guess the questions will have to wait until we get there.” Unsure about how to handle the conversation, Kist decided to prioritize what he could: helping.

Pushing past the on-looking populace, the two of them wove through buildings and raced towards the forested edge of the city.

“He’s in the forest?” Kist questioned.

“Yes, straight ahead!” Doll answered.

Taking a deep breath before releasing a short sigh, Kist glanced around before speaking, “Alright, I’ll help you and your brother like I said I would, but I need to know what’s going on.”

Visibly upset at the demand, Doll seemed to be at a loss before responding, “I don’t know. There was a small building we’d found; it was empty when we got there but then someone else just appeared out of nowhere, I promise!”

“Okay, okay and what happened to your brother?”

Sniffling in a failed attempt to hold back tears, Doll began to sob as he once again began to utter the words that pained him, “I don’t know; I escaped, and when I looked back for my brother, he was missing, and all I heard was screaming…”

Dropping his head as he finished, Doll, now overwhelmed with shame and regret, took a moment before taking his blurred eyes off the ground, placing them back onto Kist who was now growing visibly upset.

“Something dosn’t feel right about this.” Shifting his eyes from side to side as his thoughts began to race, Kist’s conflicting emotions made him uneasy.

However, once he’s gaze was trapped within the broken look the boy before him held on his face, Kist’s mind was quickly made up.

“Alright, kid, go home. I’ll find your brother and bring him back to you.” Kist said as he place a gentle hand on Doll’s head.

Now beaming with joy, Doll quickly nodded his head as he watched Kist make his way into the forest.

Rushing through the densely packed underbrush, Kist moved with such certainty as he brushed past the dark oaks that his feet seemed to blur along the forest floor.

As he made his way deeper in, the seething anger within him propelled him forward, allowing him to navigate through the uneven and crowded terrain effortlessly. Even as he slid down a slope hidden by vine and bush, he didn’t miss a single stride.

The anger flowing through Kist disregarded not only his injuries, the pain serving as nothing but chains that failed to bind him, but also the fact he’d never been in this forest. However, the sparse rays of light aided him more than he’d care to admit.

With unrelenting speed, he continued to cut through the thick roots and push through the low-hanging branches until his sharpened eyes locked onto an abandoned building in the distance.

The sight only heightened Kist’s fury and urgency, as he knew he had to uncover the truth within its walls. Nothing would stop him from recovering the lost child, and he was determined to leave no stone unturned in his pursuit.

Storming toward the rotten door blocking his path, Kist placed his hand against the center, anticipating resistance that didn’t exist.

Stumbling forward as the door gave way at his touch, Kist looked around and saw the interior of the building was all but stripped bare, with nothing but the four walls and center pillar remaining.

Still on edge, Kist proceeded cautiously, each of his werry footfalls accompanied by the aching whine from the wooden floor.

Circling past the central pillar, Kist stood over the small desk covered in scattered papers, glancing down at them without much interest, as this hadn’t been what he’d come for. However, that all changed when the words’ frozen chimera star’ caught his eye.

Picking up the sheet, his eyes widened as he read through the document, “Whoever this is, was at my evaluation…’ the four arms; broken into three functional, one vestigial headrest, attacks telegraphed via arcane symbols… possible weakness, none. Weakness needed to be made… go after arms’ well that’s helpful.”

Tossing his hand to the side, Kist reached out, grabbing a hold of another page.

Glancing over the sheet, Kist’s brows furrowed, and his eyes widened with shock, “These are schematics for the observatory! Why the hell would someone need these? More importantly, how did they get them?”

Shifting the schematics into his other hand, Kist began sifting through page after page until he’d finally understood what exactly he’d discovered, “Someone’s planning to break into the observatory to challenge the star I’d just fought.”