Chapter 53

Luke bet things would have been better if Melia kept her position. Until the landing, that was. Passing above the cheering soldiers didn't take long, and the land turned visible enough for William to exclaim out loud.

“Oh, it is that big?!”

“What else would it be? Tiny village?” Melia commented.“Where else do you think are some reasonable tests, or... anything?”

“Somewhere else?” William shrugged.

“There are some other places, kids, and as far as this topic is concerned, we don't speak of them,” Luke said to William, whose face seemed attached to the window.

“Is that so?” William hummed, seeing a massive island and city as if it were pictures from the old world. There were big streets, large buildings, and streamlined promenades. Was that a shore? Or... skyscrapers? There were some bits of beaches as well, but most of the land was a big bustling city filled with industries, large-scale factories, and buildings. Streets were less notable because of how dense the city was, connecting places he couldn't see.

The whole Federation was not in his sight; just part of it was enough to blow his mind.

From afar, the Federation had five districts with systematic work opportunities and residencies. Approximately a million people lived there, or so William heard from rumors. Now, it might be true because he looked at it.

A million? Sure, it was a big number, considering the camps and everything that William had ever seen. Walkers were in the minority, as their numbers might be in the thousands at best around here, yet it was still an island in the middle of nowhere, and it needed as many people as possible.

Shocked and curious, he looked like a kid coming from nowhere to a large city. Because of that, Melia scoffed at him and felt she might talk and tease him a little because of Luke and this mission. He won't appreciate her work and won't stop her either.

“Federation still has some facilities running Outside, boy. This one is the best place to do it. I did it years ago. It was a passable experience, if one forgot the chair, syringe, pain, and... everything. Yeah. Everything. Sounds about right.” She nodded approvingly, feeling that her words hit the right mark.

Anna heard her and couldn't stop her voice. “It is something special! A work made to help everyone. Don't badmouth the work of the Association or the First Head!” She spoke after a long time of silence. She was glad that the Darks were gone and the safety of the Federation was around the corner. However, her selfish side hoped to see more of Luke's fight. She would love to see more of his Arcalyst and its great visuals.

“It's a pain in the ass. Nothing more.” Melia said. “Wait, who are you again?”

Anna didn't like to hear her. “Anna...”

“Don't care.” Melia waved a hand and changed seats closer to William.

“No fights, girls,” Luke reminded and Melia hissed at him to shut up.

“I am a little bit aware that southern and western North America has some backbone and research facilities for the Walkers,” William tried to ease the situation. It worked so far. He also wondered if Melia had a loose tongue, unlike Luke. Surprisingly, she had and she wasn't as young to be clueless.

Melia was in her mid-twenties, so she experienced enough of being a Walker, which included Forced Awakening in the Federation and plenty of other things. Her generation wasn't as far from William's, and quite far from Luke's.

“They do have some facilities all over the place. Big ones too, in fact. Most are hidden and secured similarly to anything that Walkers touch. The continent is big and many places aren't necessarily taking bad lands for bad places. Walkers can work anywhere, you see, unlike normal people. That might make them mad. Pity. After all, Darks dislike a lot of things and fear is close to everyone. Walkers can take advantage of that.”

Fear? Dislike? Darks?! William didn't believe her every word and kept on listening.

“Despite the distances, those places are closer to us than far. They are all part of the Federation, and what remains of the great United States of America, Canada, or others, is worth knowing, even if it is history. Now, the Federation is all that remains. Be it in name or some connection, that is where the chances are for Walkers. Here?” Melia gestured to the window and the Federation. “Well, there are some points there that make billions of ants good, but are they safe against a flood? Don't think so. Walkers still have to come out and stay where they are good. Rifts help. Outside helps too. The Zone is the same.”

Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

“Fight is growth,” William said in understanding, knowing that dangers meant an opportunity.

“Vagabonds like that asshole over that—by the way, nice beatings—are everywhere out there, but not important. Like rats, almost.” Melia could only chuckle at Marcus's taunting grunt. Thankfully, his wife stopped him from escalating things any further.

Melia continued. “That is that. For youths, the Federation is still good. If you like history, you will find a lot of it here. There are plenty of people who like to keep history going, speaking how precious it is. Why? Can't tell it. It appeals to some people. Not me. It's not like the past can return. They are chasing shadows, so isn't it funny? ”

“It is better than some Hellscape,” Anna added before giving William a chance to respond. This ended up sparking a fierce discussion between her and Melia, which escalated to some tough words.

William took a deep breath and calmed his mind, ignoring their rant. He was ready to face the facts and his new life. Who knew what sort of things would be there for him in the Federation, or where they would led to? Perhaps some place like Melia suggested didn't sound bad at all. Outside of this city, he knew there were survivors. Could there be some other cities left untouched out there?

What did Melia mean by fearful places Darks couldn't touch?

William discovered quite quickly that no Rift was above the land of the Federation, which was puzzling and wonderful.

One way or another, he wouldn't leave this place anytime soon. From what he had heard, he should appreciate and accept this kidnapping.

Helicopter reached the land and William's exclaims intensified. They were less than a hundred feet away from the nearest building, so he could see the place better, but not the whole picture of the Districts.

Federation wasn't in the middle of the ocean, but around a thousand miles away from the nearest mark of North America. A large number of former places were also close. New York City, Florida, Cuba, and proximity to Southern America were relatively close, marking the Federation as a great safe fortress.

Once, it was a series of islands, rebuilt and changed and scaled up due to Walkers, who added more earth's mass and size to this land. That ended up creating a massive change to the terrain, providing land for a million people.

The helicopter approached the military base at South District, close to the corner and starting defensive lines, which were facing the direction of America. There was a large military headquarters and barracks, and this huge chunk of land was suitable and away from the other Districts.

William couldn't see any remnants of the islands. Everything was looking like a big piece of land, but it wasn't that. There was still some water left and many bridges seamlessly connected some islands, making up rivers, or canals. Frankly, he hadn't seen that before, so he wasn't sure what to watch.

Even in the military base, there were streets and wide open sectors. As a whole, it was big enough to house multiple camps, and many sights shook William to his core. It was bigger and much more advanced than camps could ever be.

“I said it, haven't I?” Luke said. “Federation has much more than your imagination.”

Luke was right. Mostly flat and accessible, there were hangars full of machinery and vehicles, and thousands of people in military uniforms. There were even some cars, many motorcycles, jeeps, and all sorts of other military vehicles in rows under the sun. There were warehouses full of military equipment scattered all around this base. Big hangars hid stuff. They were so big, what was inside of them might be wonderful.

He noticed gigantic runways for planes or wide helipads in dozens of rows.

“Isn't it a bit too big?”

“Is it?” Luke teased him. “You saw the former world and the glimpse of the Federation. This isn't much. The military is a strength for people. Walkers can't do everything. We are far too few in numbers, so this whole military department is enormous for a reason. A lot of personnel is also needed, trained, and worked on constantly. Youths like you are inclined to such early ways before their time is up. It is about training, living, and... well, a Calling, some call it. Who knew that when many people stuck together, even more people had to come? It is like a perpetual cycle.”

William nodded at the window. He waited patiently inside when the helicopter landed in the middle of the base. Unfortunately, Luke forced him to sit down before the landing, so he couldn't watch out for the base anymore.

“Alright, now, we have the toughest things ahead of us,” Luke called out and knew things were about to get feisty. He got up from his seat and wondered how to approach what was bound to happen next. Landing was the easy part.

Anna and Melia were less than concerned because Luke was the leader. Anna will soon flee and it wasn't even an issue if someone would see her or not. Things would calm down eventually.

Luke took this precious bike out without looking for his superiors. He might get in trouble anyway Some people were bound to be unhappy even if his reasons were bound to some significant people.

“Are you afraid?” Anna asked him, aware of everything bad they had done.

“I hope you will be of some help, or... something.” Luke glanced at her.

“Nope. Your mission is cleared. Mi-Yung will be happy and that is what matters. The military and Academy will swallow it because of her. It isn't as if you lost something yourself, while your reasons are good. What is some fuel when we have an excess amount of it?”

“Military is about a principle,” Luke reminded her like a boss he wasn't. “Missions and rules make us united. If it wouldn't be for your little missy, I wouldn't care for this mission.”

Anna shrugged and went to get her stuff from the cargo area. “I still trust that it isn't a big deal. You are worried for nothing. The Academy won't care either. How long was this mission anyway? Back-to-back trips took less than a day. Did someone even notice we took it?”

“Why wouldn't they? How many of these helicopters are there?”

“Should've taken a plane,” Zep suddenly said beside him.

“Where would we land?”

“Alright. You've got me,” Zep laughed and patted his back. “I was joking with a plane. How about two helicopters? We got two pilots in a team so...” Zep quickly realized that Luke was in no mood for him and quieted down.