This time, when I woke up, it was to the sight of a nice and very much empty room. I was the sole occupant.

I breathed in deep and let my thoughts settle.

No dream. I wonder why?

I half expected some vague memory of running through forests and great grasslands, but my exhaustion must have been more extensive than I thought.

Yawning, I sat up and tugged at the itchy fabric around my neck. The shirt Astra had given me felt fine, except for the collar. The collar itched at my skin until I nearly tore it off after the first twenty minutes.

Hopefully, one of the worlds will have more modern clothing materials. I refuse to accept that scratchy underwear will be a permanent fixture in my life.

The mention of life triggered a flood of old memories, primarily feelings of happiness, surrounded by people. I understand what the sinking feeling in my chest meant. But those memories carried blank faces, faces I knew belonged to people I cared about.

It didn't occur to me until just now, but I couldn't recall anything from the last several years—snippets, maybe, but nothing more.

And yet, I don't remember enough to know if that's wrong or not.

The hollow sensation began to turn sharp, and my heartbeat started to speed up. I gripped the thin, stuffed mattress and slowly stood up.

Ahh, let's go see if I can survive a trip to the mess hall this time.

I exited the room and took in the familiar tunnel hallway. The place felt like a maze with its winding tunnels, but I knew my way to the food area; it was the one thing I made sure to remember before saying goodnight to Astra.

My footsteps echoed loudly, but no one was there to hear them. For how large the place felt, it appeared relatively empty. The rooms look maintained, with no obvious signs of neglect.

But they feel... unused and unlived in.

Blankets were orderly but in the corners, and few of the rooms had personal touches to them to make them feel anything other than a simple cave hole in the wall.

The emptiness continued until I turned down the main tunnel that led to the food area. When I crossed into the wider tunnel, the smell of meat hit my nose. It smelled amazing, and I found my legs carrying me down the tunnel.

When I neared, the smell intensified, and I had to wipe drool from my chin. The realization made me stop, but it only slowed the struggle.

Wow, okay. Get a grip. It's just food.

My body didn't agree. My stomach felt decidedly empty, and it demanded to be filled.

I stepped into the room and ignored the two groups of people at different tables. My eyes honed in on the sizzling pork cutlets in a large pan. I took two steps forward before a shiny piece of metal flashed before my face.

"Woah there, pup! Back you beast!" a large bald man said as he shook the knife.

I came out of my stupor. "Sorry. I smelled the food." I shook my head and cleared my throat. "Still getting a hang of this. I'm Cain."

He slowly retracted the knife. "So you're the new pup I've been warned about."

My mouth opened and then closed. "Volto? Devon mentioned you, I think."

"Aye. Now, back away from the meat, or I'll gut you. Give me a minute, and I'll have your plate ready."

I quickly did as he asked and found a seat nearby. The placement of the tables forced me to sit either far away or uncomfortably too close to the groups of people. The former felt the best option for a quick eat and dip.

This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

As I sat down, I noticed a boy from the larger table watching me like a hawk. He looked vaguely familiar but so did most faces.

I think he was at the speech.

He turned and left me alone when another boy pulled his attention back to the conversation they were discussing.

With the scrutiny of the others evaded, I had a couple of minutes to myself. Every second, I could smell something new in the room. It threatened to overwhelm my senses, but the experience felt amazing.

And with every new intake of air, I wanted to get up and tackle the bald man. Thankfully, my agony ended when a plate landed on my table, piled with a mound of food. Eggs, pork cutlets dripping with sauce, a few loaves of bread, and to the side, there was even a large bowl of what looked like porridge with bits of golden meat sticking out of the rich gravy. And to finish off the meal, a large mug of what smelled like apple juice clanged down on the wooden table set next to the plate.

"Eat up, don't waste. Don't make a mess," Volto ordered.

"Thank you."

He grunted and lumbered back to his station. With the menacing chef out of the way, I picked up one of the rolls and tore into it. The thing tasted sweet, glazed in some honey. Each bite felt unsatisfying, so I tried another.

Despite my vigorous chewing, the food still left a void of satisfaction. I came close to growling at that final roll but caught myself and turned my attention to the eggs. I might've once thought about savoring each bite, but the food vanished off my plate almost as quickly as I could shovel it into my mouth.

My fingers twitched to grab another, but something hard smacked into the back of my head. The impact drew me out of my feasting frenzy, and I looked down to see a wooden cup roll across the floor.

Slowly, I raised my head, and my eyes met the disgruntled chef staring menacingly from across the room. "Eat. Slower."

I nodded and gently grabbed the cup off the ground. After placing it on the table and deliberately pulling up my hood so the red fabric blocked the sight of the chef, I grabbed the fork and speared a cutlet.

The juice ran down its sides, and I tasted the salt on my tongue. Every instinct told me to rip into the meat. Instead, I brought it to my teeth and ripped a chunk off the fork. The flavour exploded across my tongue.

I can't ever be a vegetarian. This is way too good.

I still finished the cutlet within three bites, but that was progress. Progress I sorely needed. After a few almost desperate moments, I finished my meal without losing control and pushed the plate away.

Only the drink and a single roll remained, and I nursed the cup between my palms, sipping as I leaned back in my chair.

Sizzling pork filled my nostrils, but the scent didn't inspire the same rabid desire the way it had before.

A long sigh pushed out of my lungs. Before I could relax, a person slid into the chair. Her long blonde hair creeped out of her hood, and she stared at me with cold blue eyes.

"If you're here to punch me again, I might throw up on you," I said

Her face contorted into a confused expression. "What? Why would I punch you?"

Does she have amnesia? What the heck?

"You know what? Nevermind. Is there something you need?"

"Yes." Her face returned to being serious. "Let's fight."

I nearly spit out my drink. It went down the wrong pipe, causing a coughing fit. After smacking my chest, I sucked in a breath and stared at the crazy girl. "And why would you want to do that?"

"Because we are going on a hunt."

Ah yes, that explains everything–not!

"And how does that tie in with wanting to fight me?"

She scowled and looked as if I had grown three heads. "We have to rely on each other during a hunt. How could we rely on that person if we don't know what each other can do?"

Her words came out quickly but in a recited manner. It sounded like a rote memory she had drilled into her head.

Yet, surely Devon would have mentioned this. Or he already knows what I can do, so it doesn't matter.

Alice sat upright with her shoulders squared. I ignored her, needing time to process the request.

Okay, let's try to avoid a confrontation.

"Right, I'm sure that's a valid concern, but we'll have Devon with us. And if I'm being honest, I don't think he needs to worry or care about what either of us can do."

The frown lines on her face deepened. "Are you scared? We can heal, and we use training weapons for the fight. What's the issue?"

The issue is, I don't feel like trying to get into dangerous combat with you!

I bit my tongue and breathed. "I'm just not into being a masochist."

Her face scrunched up? "Maso-kist? What's that?"

I officially hate this conversation. Just let me eat in peace.

"Can we, just not right now? I just ate. I need to go see Astra anyways."

"Then I'll join you."

After inwardly groaning, I swallowed another bite of cutlet and egg.

Fine, she can't be too bad. You are going to be working together. Let's just roll with it.

"Fine. Do you mind if I uh…" I held up my last remaining roll and waved it. "Did you already eat?"

"Yes. I'll wait for you to finish."

Okay…

I politely but quickly scarfed down the last roll and drained my cup. I brought the dishes up to Volto, and he cracked a smile.

"Over there, pup." As I went to the basin in the corner, I heard his mumbling. "Finally, someone who's civilized."

Grumbling chef aside, I headed for the tunnel to the Archives. Alice joined me, her steps silent as she kept within an arm's length.

As we turned a corner, she grasped my wrist and placed a hand over my mouth. Before I could scream out in protest, she dragged me four feet and pushed me through the wall.