I heard gravel being crushed between steel boots and hard pavement. My Companion was screaming warnings in the back of my mind, but I didn’t need to look to know that there were two Peacekeepers approaching me from behind. They had given up all pretenses of stealth. I had no delusions that I would have been able to hear their footsteps if they didn’t want me to.

I briefly wondered how long they had been following me, but it was useless speculation if they had been even half as talented as Catyala.

Sebbit climbed down from the top of the massive transport – it was more of a tank really. His skin was a crimson that was a few shades darker than the blood red of his uniform. His features were given a stony texture, as if roughly hewn from rock, by a number of raised bumps and deep crevices that lined his face.

He carried no weapon, but still held himself with an air of intimidating strength. Sebbit was shorter than any of his soldiers, but I still had to look up to make eye contact and I was generally considered tall – freakishly so even, or so I’ve been told.

Four massive Peacekeepers flanked their captain, two on each side, and several more stood atop the vehicle, each staring down at me. The giant soldiers stood at perfect attention, with one hand resting on the butt of their rifles and unreadable expressions on their faces. They carried their guns in the resting position - strapped to their chest and pointed downwards.

“Sebbit,” I said, subconsciously raising my hands slightly to keep them in view. “Is everything all right? Do you know where Catayla and the others are?”

“My subordinate is fine, Mr. Finn,” the alien said in the dull monotone of his computer translator. “As are the rest of your companions. I understand they are worried about your fate and are most likely looking forward to a reunion. I hope to facilitate that meeting as soon as I am able.”

Sebbit walked closer, his pace slow and measured. He kept eye contact with me the whole time, and even though his body language was relaxed my instincts screamed at me that I was in danger.

“Are they here?” I asked, slightly raising my chin to point towards the massive vehicle that Sebbit had descended from. “I’ve been moving to join back up with them. We got separated after an attack on the River – we were actually trying to assist Catayla with making contact with you.”

“I’ve been briefed, Mr. Finn. Thank you for your assistance.”

“How did you find them?” I asked. “And how did you find me so quickly? I appreciate it, of course, but I’m surprised to find you here waiting for me.”

In answer Sebbit reached down to his belt and unclipped a small disk with a single depression in the center. “Every Peacekeeper carries one of these. I believe you have one as well, yes?”

I nodded. “Yes, uh, Catayla gave it to me in case we needed to communicate. It hasn’t worked since the sky exploded and that pillar of light appeared. She claimed that communication had been cut off due to some kind of interference. She asked us to help find the rest of her people, uh your Peacekeepers.”

The alien captain stared at me in silent appraisal, pausing for an uncomfortably long ten seconds or so before speaking once more. “If you would return the tracking device, Mr. Finn, I would appreciate it. They are generally not loaned to outsiders.”

“Tracking…?” I said. “Sure, uhm here.” I threw it to him with a gentle underhand pass. “I’m just here to help, I’m not looking for any trouble.”

“You seem nervous. Don’t worry, I’ll be asking you to honor that promise of assistance in due time, but for now I’m afraid that it is you who is once more in need of my help.”

“Me?” My voice wavered. There was no threat to be found in the mechanical voice, but I couldn’t help but feel uneasy.

“Yes, Mr. Finn,” he said. “It seems you have been infected, a pervasive corruption that threatens to overwhelm you both mentally and physically.”

He stepped towards me once more, this time coming within arm’s length of me before reaching out a hand and gently plucking something from my shoulder. I could hear the Peacekeepers behind me step forward as well, coming to stop directly behind my back.

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It was a claustrophobic feeling, and I noticed my heart rate increase as I broke out in a cold sweat and every hair on the back of my neck stood straight up.

The alien soldiers that had flanked Sebbit had not approached as he had, and still remained near the transport. They did, however, all subtly change their stances and snap their eyes towards their captain as his hand reached my shoulder.

I gulped and looked away, breaking eye contact with Sebbit for the first time since the conversation had begun.

“I’m –" I started, but the scarlet alien quickly interrupted me.

“Don’t worry, Mr. Finn,” Sebbit said. He held up his hand and showed me a small particle, the blue stood out in sharp contrast against the redness of his palm. “The Tartarus Grass is deadly, and its spores can induce a fate even worse than death, but we’ve had to deal with its likes before. We’ll cleanse it, and you – in good time.”

“Tartarus Grass, I…” I realized that he was talking about the creatures I had fought, and the massive intelligence that controlled them from its hiding place beneath the earth.

I let out a sigh of relief and resumed breathing. I hadn’t even been aware that I was holding my breath. I clenched my hands and squeezed my eyes shut, calming my nerves before looking back towards the alien captain once more.

“Thank you,” I said.

“You are, of course, welcome,” Sebbit said. “I’m surprised how well you are taking the news, you seem almost relieved.” He crossed his arms and raised one hand to his chin before speaking once more.

“It seemed that perhaps you thought I meant something else, Mr. Finn? How many corrupting influences might you be under?” said Sebbit. “Perhaps we will have time to talk about your other secrets soon. For now, I’m going to have to ask that you remain my guest. I apologize that I can’t extend this conversation further.”

He looked over my shoulder and gave a slight nod before turning on his heel with a sharp and practiced twist and briskly walking back towards the transport.

I felt a pair of powerful arms grab me from behind, twisting my hands behind my back as something cold and hard snapped around my wrists. I immediately felt weak and would have fallen to my knees if a pair of powerful arms hadn’t been supporting me.

I yelled out and tried to shrug of my captors, but I found that my arms held little strength. My limbs felt numb and tingled with pinpricks, as if my circulation had been cut off.

“What have you done to me?” I asked.

Sebbit stopped and looked at me. He quickly turned his head and began walking away, as if he was going to ignore me, but he then quickly turned back and looked at me once more. I could see his eyes narrow, and his jaw jut out slightly as he stared at me for the next few seconds.

“I’ve merely isolated you from the system, Mr. Finn. I’ve taken nothing from you that was yours to begin with. You’ll feel weak, but it will pass as your body quickly adapts to your natural level of strength. You are no weaker now than you were before the system, and no permanent harm has been done to you.”

“So, I’m a prisoner you need to chain and cripple, is this how you generally treat allies? I was helping you God dammit. I risked my life to help Catayla. I almost died trying to find you.”

“Allies are those I trust, Mr. Finn. Allies are those with whom I share a common cause, those that don’t lie to me, and those that I can rely on to have my back – you, Mr. Finn, have none of those qualities. You will be treated fairly, and in accordance with the law – I recommend you cooperate fully. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have work to do.”

He turned to leave once more, and I was pulled upwards by my arms, the cold metal of cuffs digging into my wrists.

***

I awoke in a small cell. The walls were made from pale grey metal and the only furniture was the slab I was currently laying on and a metal toilet in one corner. I felt cold, and I recognized the early pangs of hunger. No one had taken the time to give me so much as a mattress, let alone a blanket or food.

I no longer wore cuffs, but the weakness and inability to access the system remained.

There were no windows or bars and the only door was a solid piece of metal without so much as a sliding panel or a slot to pass things through. I was completely isolated. I wasn’t sure how long I had been here, but I was fairly certain that it had been less than a day.

At first, I had yelled out to be released, demanding in the beginning but quickly regressing into despairful pleading. I had also tried pounding on the door, but my fists quickly became bruised and I was surprised by how fragile I had become. I had grown used to feeling like a demi-god capable of superhuman feats.

Now… I just felt human.

The first thing I had tried upon being thrown into this shithole was to try to open my stats, but nothing happened. I had felt a sense of loss, as if I’d lost a limb or even a loved one. I’d only had access to the system for a relatively small part of my life, but already I had grown accustomed to it – dependent even.

After failing to view my stats I had tried casting a spell, hoping that perhaps I was only blocked from viewing my abilities and not cut off from them entirely. It was useless, and I soon gave up. It shouldn’t have surprised me that they would have a way of neutralizing system granted powers.

I still wasn’t sure what the relationship was between the Hegemony, Peacekeepers, and the System but it was obvious they were all connected. It was also likely they’d needed to restrain individuals much stronger than myself.

With nothing to do, and no hope of escape, I closed my eyes once more. I would simply have to wait for them to come to me – hopefully I wouldn’t die of thirst, or boredom, in the meantime.