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[We’re here.]

“Hm.”

Julian snapped out of whatever stupor he was having as MEGAN’s voice whispered in his mind. From the colorful neons of the Sky Net and some parts of The Below, the place where the taxi parked was completely devoid of any of that.

The taxi parked next to the tunnel, it was old—incredibly so. MEGAN told him that it was once used for vehicles to travel from one island to the next, but now it was home to squatters… and criminals. And as Julian stepped out of the taxi, he immediately felt the weight of all the stares of the people there… and there were a lot.

People loitered around the taxi, some even following him as he made his way to the tunnel entrance; all of them, watching him with suspicion and curiosity.

“Oi!”

One of them even started to approach Julian, perhaps to ask why he was there… or perhaps to borrow money. But as soon as they saw Julian’s blue eyes glow through the dim lights of The Below, they all quickly backed off.

And it would seem everyone just took that sign to leave him alone, as they all scurried away like cockroaches—not wanting to be involved with whatever was going to happen.

They knew it. These people may be the lowest of the lows, but they were very much survivors too. And they could feel it… they needed to avoid Julian as much as they could.

Julian could hear all of their footsteps as he stepped inside the tunnel; the noise, all mixing in his ears. And it was weird—even though the club was a lot noisier than the tunnel he was in right now, it was almost as if he felt himself even more drowned in this place.

The tunnel itself was… intoxicating.

The tunnel had become a sanctuary for the desperate—and it was a perfect place for the loan sharks that hurt Ellie to be in. The squatters all huddled in the dark, using whatever scraps they could find to build their homes.

Julian knew it. He knew that he would be one of these people if it weren’t for Ellie. After his parents died, the planet would have surely thrown someone like him here… and he would have died the very same night they would do so.

He continued to walk through the passage, trying to ignore all the whispers of desperation that almost deafened him. Fortunately for Julian, MEGAN’s voice replaced all of it soon enough.

[There, Julian! 2 O’clock!] MEGAN whispered loudly in his mind. [I recognize the man walking ahead of you. Let’s follow him.]

“Hm…” Julian hummed as his senses focused on the footsteps of the man MEGAN told him to follow. It wasn’t that hard to follow the man at all—because unlike most of the people in the tunnel, his steps actually had a destination, a purpose.

MEGAN guided him through the tunnel’s winding paths, almost like a maze. But soon, however, they reached some sort of clearing where one structure stood above the rest. Unlike the other houses which were made of scraps and debris, the structure was a real building.

[He entered a house, Julian,] MEGAN confirmed. [That’s most likely their base of operations.]

“...Can we enter through the windows?”

[...There are no windows. The only door is the entrance.]

“Oh…” Julian tilted his head slightly to the side as if trying to listen to something. “...I think I hear a generator somewhere.”

[Ah, good thinking!]

“But… I can’t really pinpoint where it is with all the echo,” Julian shook his head.

[Let’s survey the house, then.] MEGAN hummed, [Be careful not to be seen by anyone. Although… I don’t think anyone really cares about you right now, they’re even avoiding me. Well, your gaze, but you know what I mean.]

“Hm…” Julian just casually walked toward the side of the house, quickly placing his palm and brushing it across the wall. And very soon, his hand led him to where the quiet and subtle vibration was coming from.

It was a large, metallic case attached to the side of the building. And without even waiting for anything else, he grabbed the cover; his hand, very slightly denting the sides of the panel.

He placed his other hand on the wall as he put all of his strength into prying the cover open—and after what seemed like a quarter of a minute, he was finally able to pull it out.

[Alright!] MEGAN quickly cheered. [I see the fission battery, Julian. It’s cylindrical and placed horizontally inside the case—careful not to pull it out too quickly.]

And even though Julian’s fingers were still tingling and in pain from having pulled out the thin metal cover from its hinges, he quickly but carefully patted the inside of the case until he felt something warm… and cylindrical as MEGAN described it.

[Carefully, Julian. Be very careful.]

And even more carefully, he pulled out the fission core with the help of MEGAN.

Julian lightly grabbed the cylinder with both hands, his movements as slow and deliberate as possible as he began to slide it out of the case. The hum of the generator grew louder for a moment, then suddenly stopped as the fission battery came free.

The lights in the tunnel flickered for a brief second… before all of it plunged into complete darkness.

“What the!?”

“Oh man, I was trying to work on my portfolio!”

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“Repent! Everyone repent! The end is near!”

[...Oops.] MEGAN’s voice echoed in his mind along with the groans and frustration of the people in the tunnel. [Looks like the entire tunnel’s power source was connected to this. No wonder no one’s stealing it.]

“We’ll return it once we’re done…” Julian sighed as he placed the battery in his pocket. The sounds of confusion of the people, getting wilder and louder by the second due to the darkness that now surrounded them.

For Julian, however, it didn’t matter at all. The darkness that he had been trying to detach from his entire life… was now his ally.

[Let’s go, Julian. I will turn off my lights for a bit.]

Julian walked back to the front of the building, and just right in time, as the door creaked open.

“I bet it’s one of those fucking cocksuckers again! And why didn’t any of you bring a flashlight!?”

“Can you stop complaining!? Just go, go!”

Several men stumbled out of the door, cursing and swearing as they clumsily rushed to check the generator. None of them even noticed Julian as he kept the door open and entered inside.

Inside the house, the air was musty, the scent of sweat and cheap alcohol clinging to the walls. It was eerily quiet now, with only the faint sound of voices coming from deeper within.

Julian’s hand brushed lightly against the walls as he moved, feeling the subtle vibrations of the building. He was halfway down the hallway when a loud voice broke the silence.

“What are you idiots doing!? Why are the lights not on yet!?”

The voice came from the end of the hallway—gruff and irritated.

[Oh? That’s probably the boss, Julian.] MEGAN whispered.

Julian followed the voice, but as he neared the door where it was coming from—he ducked.

Wiing!

A sudden whoosh of air cut through the darkness, and Julian just ducked in time to avoid the massive fist that made it. It was then followed by the sound of metal scraping against the wall.

And just with that, Julian knew what—or who—he was actually dealing with.

It was one of the thugs from the hospital—the large man with the cybernetic arm.

“Who the hell are you!?” the thug growled. His eyes, glowing red.

[Careful, Julian,] MEGAN sounded amused, [His eyes are enhanced—he can see you.]

“Hm…” Julian only tilted his body to the side as the thug took another swing at him. This time, however, he also moved ahead and grabbed hold of his cybernetic arm. He then placed his foot on the man’s thigh while the fingers of his other hand dug through the metal joint near the shoulder.

Julian might not be able to rip apart whatever material the arm was made of just yet… but flesh and bone were a different matter entirely.

With a sharp, brutal twist, Julian ripped the arm clean off the thug’s body. The sound of tearing flesh and grinding metal echoed in the hallway, followed by a guttural scream of pain.

“G…Graah!”

The thug howled, stumbling backward as blood and oil poured from the stump where his arm used to be.

“You—” And before the man could make any more noise, Julian lightly slapped him with his metal arm; lightly, but enough to cause him to slam toward the wall.

“What… what was that!?” A different voice came from what MEGAN and Julian assumed to be the boss’ office. The door soon creaked open, revealing a man who was holding a large, portable bulb that effectively lit up the entire room.

The man was about to step out when he saw Julian suddenly block his path. And since Julian was holding a severed metal arm, the man completely froze in shock.

“What the—” And before he could utter the words he wanted to say, Julian’s hand slowly and very casually reached out for the bulb he was holding… and crushed it even more casually.

And just like that, darkness once more.

“H…huh…?” The man could really only take a step back as he heard Julian step inside the office. Julian completely ignored him, however, as the sound of him closing the door creaked in the air—it was then followed by a click.

“Derek!? What’s going on!?” The boss’ voice resounded in the darkness, “Who was that!? Who—”

And before the boss could finish his words, a loud rumble exploded inside the room. He didn’t know what it was at first, but as he reached his hand out to get the gun from beneath his desk… he realized that the sound came from his desk crashing through the wall.

“Who… who’s there!?” The boss stammered as he took several steps back until he couldn’t anymore. “What… what do you want!? Don’t you know who we are!?”

The boss was starting to panic, and yet Julian remained quiet the entire time; the only sound he heard from him was a small whirr as MEGAN’s lights turned on again.

“W… what the!?” The boss’ terrified expression revealed itself; his eyes trembling as he stared at Julian’s. “What do you want!? Money? We have money!”

Still, Julian remained silent. But after letting the silence persist for several seconds longer, he finally spoke up.

"I want you to operate as far away from this area as possible," Julian whispered, but the boss heard his words loud and clear.

“What…?” The boss blinked in confusion, sweat dripping down his face. “What do you mean? Who sent you? Wait… are you Bulldog’s man!? We have a truce, why are you—”

“I don’t know who that is.” Julian tilted his head slightly, his focus unwavering.

[Found him, Julian. Wow, these criminals really shouldn’t be using social media.] MEGAN whispered.

“Then who—”

“Move to the other side of the planet,” Julian’s voice started to turn cold as he heard MEGAN’s words.

“And forget your business here… Edward. Take Fatima and Linette with you and get as far away from here as possible.”

The boss, Edward, trembled as he heard his name being mentioned, but it wasn’t until he heard the name of his wife and daughter that he almost choked there and then.

“H-How do you know their names?” the boss stammered. “Don’t… don’t you dare bring my family into this! They have nothing to do with—”

Julian placed his hand on the boss’ shoulder—he didn’t grab it, he just lightly placed it there to cut his words off. “I won’t harm them, Edward. That’s against the law. But I will visit them tonight... just to let you know I’m serious.”

“W…what?” The boss’ breaths became heavy. “I’ll… I’ll go. I’ll leave, tonight. Just… don’t go near them. Please, you… you won’t even see me tomorrow.”

“Then you don’t mind me staying with you until you leave, Edward?” Julian hummed.

“Ye—”

And before the boss could respond, the lights suddenly flickered back on. The boss could not help but just squint his eyes from the harsh light, but after a few seconds, he fully opened them again… only to see the large metal arm that Julian was carrying with him.

And he knew there and then… this threat was very real.

"Y…Yes!” The boss raised his voice and nodded several times. “You…you can stay and watch me leave. You can even tell me where to go! Just… just don't hurt my family."

“Okay…” Julian just moved away from the boss and made his way to the side of the room; resting his back close to where he threw the desk.

“Let… please let me call my wife first. She would—”

"Wait a minute…"

And before the boss could finish his request, the other man in the room stepped forward and pointed directly at Julian.

“...I know who you are! You’re that woman’s retarded boyfriend!”

“Oh…” Julian quickly removed his back from the wall as the thug’s words hung in the air for a couple of seconds.

And soon, it was followed by the boss’ loud gasp; his face, pale and twisted.

“Are you fucking stupid!?” The boss screamed; his voice, filled with an intense desperation.

“H…huh?” The thug blinked, confused at what he had done to deserve that. But then realization dawned on his face as he looked back at Julian, his own expression shifting to one of fear.

He just said something that he shouldn’t have.

Julian let out a slow, deep breath—it was quiet, but it carried a weight with it that made both men freeze.

“W…wait, wait! Wait!” The boss' throat cracked as he faced Julian, “I… I don’t know who you are, okay!? I don’t deal with clients myself! If… if you want to kill someone, kill him! I don’t know who you are!”

“Hm…” Julian took a half step forward. His head tilted to the side as he could hear MEGAN scream inside his mind over, and over, and over again.

“I’m… truly sorry that it has to come to this,” Julian sighed.

“Then don’t do this!” The boss kneeled and raised both his hands in front of his face. “If you’re sorry, then don’t do this! You don’t have to do this!”

“Oh…” Julian tilted his head once more.

“I’m sorry… I wasn’t talking to you.”

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[Julian…]

A few hours later, Julian was standing in front of a mirror; water dripping from his hair as he stared at his reflection—no. As MEGAN started at his reflection.

[...You still have blood on your cheek.] MEGAN’s voice was weak, incredibly so.

“Hm…”

[The other side.]

Julian washed his face, careful not to drip any of the red from touching the towel hanging on his neck. No, he didn’t just wash his face, he was scrubbing it. Hard.

[...It’s clean, Julian.]

“Okay…” Julian whispered as he slowly leaned away from the mirror and stepped out of the bathroom.

And the hotel, well…it was as he left it. Ellie was still sleeping, she hadn’t even moved. This time, however, Julian did not approach or go near her at all and just moved toward the chair that was facing the bed.

[Julian… talk to me,] MEGAN’s voice cut through the silence, her tone softer than usual, almost hesitant.

“I will…” Julian breathed out as his hand reached for the LinkGear that was resting on the table beside him.

[What are you doing? Are you seriously thinking about going to Artemia right now?]

“No…” Julian hummed. “I’ll just let my clone eat something there and come back. I’d like to be beside Ellie for now.”

And he did as he said. He transferred his consciousness to his clone in Artemia, he ate at the inn, and just immediately came back.

[Julian…] MEGAN whispered as soon as Julian removed the LinkGear from his head. [...What we did tonight, it’s—]

“I… want to sleep for now,” Julian rested his head back on the chair. “Is that okay?”

[Of… course, Julian.] MEGAN slightly hesitated. She wanted to say more, but she knew it would be useless for now. [It’s been a while since you’ve truly rested your mind.]

“Hm…” Julian let out a slow breath, his body relaxing for the first time that night. “Goodnight, MEGAN.”

[Goodnight, Julian,] MEGAN whispered, her voice soft, almost unsure.

And as Julian drifted off to sleep, MEGAN’s last words whispered in the darkness of his mind.

[Julian… what have we done?]

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