As Rowan glanced around the room, his forehead scrunched. The barren, cold hall was enormous.

'A bunch of school kids. They made a building like this?'

The room was large enough to fit dozens of huge tables scattered around. Their organized layout was contradicted by the nasty gashes and cracks. Their state reminded him of how the Headmaster had rampaged within his office.

"Ha."

Hector's piercing stare dragged him back to reality before a smile could surface. Rowan's eyes sought refuge in the table, but that tattoed, inky face opposite him never left his figure.

Even as another Defected had entered and whispered something in Hector's ears, his dark black pupils had not let Rowan out of their sight.

The Defected he had spoken with had a crude scowl. His defect? It was a pair of ridiculous-looking rabbit ears.

'I'd rather have no Defect than whatever that is.'

Rowan had managed to suppress his laugh in front of the Defected, yet he had received a haunting glare anyway. Since then, the assembly hall had succumbed to awkward silence.

"...The Boss is running late," Hector said.

Rowan straightened on the bench. Why was the leader taking so long? He shuffled on his seat as a more glaring question came to mind.

"Fine. Whatever."

Rowan sighed. "I was wondering, though. Will that Defected, Lux, be ok? Are there healers here or something?"

"There isn't. But, he'll live."

Hector didn't elaborate, and soon, the quiet returned to the room.

As Rowan looked around, he started tapping his hand on the table. That hard echoing sound didn't impede Hector. His posture remained rigid and indomitable. Rowan squirmed under his gaze.

"Creakkkk"

But then the door opened. The squeak of the door saved him. Rowan looked over his right shoulder to observe the intruder, expecting a tall, hardened Defected.

'Is it the Boss?'

However, rather than march in, they lingered in the doorway before stepping in. He was about as tall as Rowan. So short, by the Defected's standards. His nervous aura was apparent at a glance. But, he approached despite being afflicted with two sceptical gazes.

"No reason to look so angry, Sir. Oh, right, that's just how you usually look. Keep it up. Anyways, I assume this is the new guy everyone's talking about?"

With a sheepish grin, he sauntered towards them. His eyes examined Hector as he sat beside Rowan. The man's short hazel hair may have been a tinge darker than his, but it was styled exactly like Rowan's. Not to mention, his curious, dark, auburn eyes were of a similar shade, too.

"I thought I told you to stop calling me Sir. But, yes, this is him. More importantly. Did you get permission to come in here?"

"Ah, sorry, sorry you asked me not to call you that. You're right, Sir." The boy grinned wider. But then he turned to face Rowan.

"Well, anyways, it's nice to meet you, I'm Nero, by the way. It seems the rumours I overheard were really true. Were the same."

Rowan observed Nero and their similarities until he noticed the one that made the others seem inconsequential.

"A Defect? You don't have one?"

Nero paused before nodding with a grin. "Yep, that's right, I don't have a Defect either..." Nero laughed. "I really am glad it won't be just me anymore, and to think the first person to arrive here from the real world was missing a Defect, too. How strange? What's your name, by the way?"

"...I'm Rowan." He looked over Nero again and chewed his tongue.

"Are we really the same? How did this happen to us? Why weren't we given a Defect? Isn't that how the Mist is supposed to work?-"

'This should have been my chance. What the hell happened?'

However, Hector coughed loudly before his questions could be answered as he folded his arms. The dark swirls on his face grew restless as his sharp gaze flickered between the two. Rowan was scowling, but the man paid him no mind.

"Sorry. But hold off on your questions, Rowan. First, I need to know what the freeloader wants."

Nero wore a grin torn between mischievous and awkward as his eyes flickered between the seated two. "I'm just trying to help you out, Sir. You're not exactly suited for conversing with others, are you? I just thought I'd be a better candidate for showing Rowan around camp."

Hector's stiff grimace finally moved as he said, "I'm not good at conversing with others? Nobody thinks that."

Nero winced before catching Rowan's eye and chuckling. He leant across the enormous table and patted the tall, tattooed man on his shoulder. His smile grew wider.

"Haha, I know, my old friend, you're doing your best. But someone should show Rowan around, so why not me, seeing as we have the same condition, and all? Besides, you can't keep pretending. You know better than anyone the Boss won't be waking any time soon."

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

Rowan bit his lip as Hector's eyes found him. "Hmm, well, I admit she could be a while. Alright."

Hector rose to his feet. "I do have other duties to attend to. Rowan, be careful that the freeloader doesn't rub off on you. And you, Nero, go and be useful for a change."

Nero laughed, scratching his head as he climbed out of the pew. Hector did the same, passed them both, and left the dining hall without another word.

Nero watched Hector leave. With no one left to stop him, Rowan said. "Nero, what happened to us?"

He turned to Rowan with a keen smile. "What do you say, Rowan? It's about time someone showed you around camp?

################

"Yeah, all these buildings at this end are just residencies. We can easily construct things, especially with two years of free time. So why not just give everyone their own homes?"

Walking side by side, Nero led Rowan through the clustered dark birch buildings. It wasn't only men littering the flowery plains and buildings. There were women now, too, who turned to look at him with similar fascination. But no one approached.

In the face of all Nero's smiles, Rowan snorted. "You really built all of this in just two years?" He frowned. "Is it because of everyone's Defects?"

Hands rested behind his head. Nero nodded at Rowan's words. "That's right. Everyone has their own uses here. With such a broad range of abilities, they can do amazing things. Each and every person fulfils their own responsibility. Especially the Boss. Anyway, Rowan, you noticed those spears everyone has, right?"

"Yeah. They were hard to miss."

Rowan couldn't help but stare. Only Nero and Hector seemed to be missing spears.

"At least in Sir's case, those with extra peculiar Defects don't need the spears for offence. But it's different for us."

The camp was larger than he had imagined. Even as they passed the wooden structures, the flowery plain stood strong against the tide of creeping trees.

'They must have carved away at the forest to make all this space.'

Lingering around each building were legions of Defected that turned to watch them. Rowan noticed how much they stood out. He shrunk back from their gazes as more and more heads turned to watch them. There was no large body to hide him this time.

Eventually, he noticed Nero was leading him away from the many wooden buildings and their citizens.

"I said we'd explore the whole camp, but this is getting annoying. Let's go somewhere else." He turned to watch Rowan's face with a grin. "Just be patient."

The vast field was littered with flowers that could be found everywhere in this zone. The distance between the wooden homes and the beckoning forest was slim.

"Let's stop here, Rowan. This is as far as people like us are supposed to go. Though there are not as many these days, the Devoured do lurk in there. You can be sure of that."

They had walked quite far. But they were still dozens of meters from the leering forest.

Nero sighed. "You get why don't you? The Defects grant everyone strength, speed, reactions, utility, and powers. They allow them to excel in ways the two of us can't. That's why I was never given a spear."

Arms behind his head, Nero tilted his neck up. "As far as they're aware. I would have no use for a weapon, so why bother making one?"

Though his words were disparaging, there wasn't much reluctance or sadness in his tone, and his eye contact with Rowan was scarce. Facing the swarming mass of branches and trees, he went to sit amongst the flowers.

Quiet Rowan watched. After a pause, he decided to drop to the floor beside him.

Rowan said. "This doesn't really seem like a bad place to live. I could see why someone would prefer it to the real world. Do you hate it here?"

Rowan leaned in as Nero fidgeted with his hands and cracked his knuckles. His dark brown hair fluttered about.

"Hate it? Well, I wouldn't say that. I'm really not sure... At least to me, it's almost like nothing's changed, not since the very beginning. Oh, speaking of. You're supposed to speak with the Boss later. Well, when she wakes up, aren't you?"

"Yes... Why is that bad?

"Well, no. I assume it was hard getting here. Aren't you tired? Seems very unfair to me."

Rowan glanced at his feet and shook his head. "They need information from me. You've all been trapped here a long time, haven't you? I can do at least this much."

Nero watched him from the corner of his hazel eyes. A gentle quiet swallowed the atmosphere as Rowan craned his neck to watch the bustle of the camp, bored.

"...It's a common story from our country," Nero said. "The building and everything was just swallowed whole by the Mist. Some made it here, others didn't. But I assume it didn't go down like that for you? You came alone, after all."

Nero glanced at the stiff Rowan, eyeing his grey uniform.

"Well, whatever. You'll have to go through all of that with the Boss later, so I won't make you say it twice."

"Well, thanks, I guess."

"Don't stress yourself," Nero said. "The Boss is super ordinary, even compared to someone like me. Don't take what Sir says about her for granted. The guy is genuinely infatuated with her. All of them are. For good reason, I guess. After all, they'd be screwed without her, and they all know it."

Content, Rowan sat on the flowers and listened. He was not used to listening, but he felt strangely content to lend an ear to Nero's rambles.

"But Sir is particularly bad. He sucked his way up to her and became her right-hand man. I hardly recognize him anymore. It might have been hard to tell. But we were close friends, once."

Rowan remained seated and amused as he listened to Nero's bitter words. The daunting shadows of the trees remained out of reach as the two were graced with warm light. Nero coughed.

"But whatever, even that guy has his uses. His devotion, deranged as it might be, it's the real deal. He played a really big part in making everything work at the beginning of all this. Back when things were at their worst. That's why he's the Boss's right-hand man. And that's why people listen to him."

Folding his arms, Rowan listened. He went as far as lying beside Nero amidst the flowers. "So they don't listen to you. But it's because you're a freeloader, right?"

Humoured, Nero glanced at Rowan and scratched his head. "Ha. Well, they might be right about that part."

Rowan took the initiative as he stared at the empty, bright, blue sky. "Well, anyways, I think I get it. You don't fit in, and you're worried I won't. Is that what this was all about?"

Nero grinned. "Almost. But you should know I don't worry. Not ever."

Ignoring him, Rowan continued, "Well, regardless, I'll manage. I want to fit in. I do."

Nero tilted his head. Rowan felt that, for the first time, he was really listening.

"Escaping the Devoured, then the fog and the cold. It really might have been the very first thing I ever accomplished. I've been thinking this way for a while. But, in my entire life, I don't feel like I've done anything for someone else. This is a good chance, isn't it? A chance for me to be someone for someone else?"

Nero sighed. Then giggled. "And Alicia says I'm insecure? Look at you." Embarrassed, Rowan looked away, Nero laughed and reached out to pat his shoulder.

"Well, I guess I was wrong. You might fit in here. I don't really agree, though. I don't think you should get hung up on something like that. You're just wasting your energy."

Nero laid back, his gaze cast at the sky. "Still, I hope, fitting in, works out for you. Despite what the others think, we're not on the cusp of escaping. Not at all. Anyway, Rowan, it's time to head back so-"

Nero paused and stared into the distance. Rowan failed to find any suspense in Nero's figure but was unnerved by the sudden silence. He saw nothing as he turned and followed Nero's eyes to the edge of the shrouded forest.

"What is it?"

"You really can't see it? Huh. I must have made some nice progress then."

Rowan stumbled to his feet. Squinting, he still failed to spot the source of Nero's attention. Whilst his body was stiff, rigid and tense, Nero's skittishness was gone.

"Well, this one shouldn't be too much trouble. But the Boss really needs to work on her carelessness."

Before Rowan could interrogate him further, he noticed the flattened flowers. They formed a path leading to the forest. Only after following the trail did Rowan recognize it was the reverse. The trail was heading towards them.

"What is it. What's doing that, Nero?"

Hung low to the floor, a shimmering body fluctuated as it stuck to the ground. Its body was an array of pink and blue, then green and white, as the lizard-like creature moulded to fit with the floor beneath it.

Its jaw was large, and its lower mouth hung loosely, almost touching the ground. It was longer, heavier and wider than Nero. But the dark pink insides of its maw now gave it away despite its impressive camouflage.

"Look's hungry, enough to give away its camouflage. Must have considered us very easy pickings. Even the Devoured look down on us, Rowan."

A pleasant smile took over Nero's face as the Devoured hobbled forth. It was getting faster. Its stubby legs now raced and trampled across the flowery ground. Nero took a confident step forward and glanced back at Rowan.

"Don't worry, Rowan, I'm more capable than I let on. Let's be honest. If I actually needed a spear. I could have just gone and asked for one."

Even as the beast's hindlegs leapt from the ground, flinging its desperate, glinting body towards him, Nero ignored it.

But eventually, he did turn. Calm, he bent and twisted his body. Catching the creature by surprise, he launched his left arm with all his short stature behind it. But his hand missed the creature's head and dove straight into its drooping mouth.

"Nero!!"

Rather than wail, panic, or even lose his arm, Nero stood his ground as his arm was swallowed. As the thing's momentum carried it forward into him, it struck his body and shoulder with a "Smack." But Nero didn't flinch.

A hideous scream erupted. Then a fist penetrated out of the Devoured's back through its mouth. Flesh was flung all across the flowery field.

Stunned, Rowan watched on as blood dripped from Nero's shoulder. Holding the large carcass up with only a single limb, he flicked his arm, discarding the mutilated corpse with a huff.

Smiling away, Nero reached out his clean hand to Rowan. In the gleaming daylight, his bloody half was hidden.

"Rowan. You wanted to change, be different? Was that it? Well, you already are. You just haven't realized it."