Though it may be a bit inconsequential, I feel a bit saddened by the fact that I did not get to see the rest of HuedoLupan. I’d heard of many amazing places to visit, delicious foods to taste and awe-inspiring pieces of cinema that were famous. Staying in my own house, finding a scientific breakthrough such as this and studying it for months? It leaves you room to ponder what else you’ve missed out on.

-From Professor Shokolov’s Journal, 22nd Entry

AxEl drove. And he drove for such long periods of time that his back would begin to hurt. He would often pull over just to stretch and get a drink of water, before returning to the road once more. So it went for days on end, as he slowly made his way to the town of Minahret.

“What if you… start using Prophecy but it goes by so fast that you can’t even glimpse the visions?”

“Phantoms,” AxEl corrected.

“That’s what you call them?” Nook asked.

“I had to choose a name, so I went with Phantoms,” AxEl said.

“There has to be something better than that,” Nook replied.

“When you can actually beat me with it, then you can choose the name,” AxEl taunted.

Nook flicked a chip onto his face in response. The sun set soon after. AxEl kept driving as far as he could, however. He only stopped when he noticed Nook was sleeping in the passenger seat. Driving with tired eyes is stupid, a piece of his mind scolded him.

Maybe I should, he thought to himself, then pulled the car into the nearest hotel he could find. It was a bit finicky dealing with the other drivers on the road, but the anxiety of it had passed long ago for AxEl. He aligned the vehicle, turned it off and nudged Nook awake.

They found a room for themselves and left early in the morning after. There was going to be way more of this.

****

The dirt roads that led up to the town of Minahret made controlling the car a pain. AxEl forced the wheel this way and that, trying to keep to the road. Despite that, the people who passed him by looked cheery by all accounts.

The town itself was bigger than he expected it to be. There was giant mounds behind the collage of buildings that had small entrances dug into them. Nook glanced at them for a few moments and could barely make out the figures that were hauling themselves inside. The air around the town smelt like dirt and rocks too.

AxEl passed by a laboratory, the police station and the town hall as he took in the scent. Nook seemed to stare as they passed the police cars, his head filled with thoughts AxEl couldn’t parse. He parked on the side of some building or another, stepping out and immediately drawing the attention of the people walking by.

They had his same complexion, shared his clothing, but still looked at him as if he was some alien being. Nook stepped out as well and drew similar ire from them.

“Let’s go meet Ana as fast as we can,” AxEl said. They started at a fast pace, stepping towards where the woman would be.

Arriving there, they found that for every pair of eyes he and Nook had drawn, Anagen had twice as many. It wasn’t difficult to imagine, but she still seemed pestered by it. Her white hair was tied up in a ponytail and she was wearing a plain shirt and pants. She also had a shawl resting on her shoulders and sunglasses resting on her forehead.

AxEl waved to her, and she stood up immediately from the bench she was sat upon. He didn’t see a car anywhere near but knew that Anagen would have it parked somewhere.

“Enjoying the attention?” Nook said, amused.

“I didn’t account for this. Let’s go somewhere more…private,” Anagen said. She glanced backwards before walking towards somewhere.

AxEl shrugged at Nook and they followed, trying to keep pace.

“You’ve set up the payments to my mother?” AxEl asked.

“They’ll be going monthly.”

“Remind me to increase the amount after a while,” AxEl replied. Anagen nodded and stayed silent for a few moments. She then looked at him and spoke.

“We don’t need to be here,” Anagen said.

“What do you mean? You’re the one leading us?” AxEl replied.

“Not in this town, I meant. Firewire and Prophecy are selling well enough that if you stopped here, you could live a comfortable life,” Anagen said. Nook glanced in her direction, puzzled, before AxEl replied.

“It’s not always about the money, Ana,” he said. His eyes were steeled.

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

“There’s something else you’re aiming for?” Anagen asked.

“Something bigger.”

He picked up his pace and they struggled to keep up. When they’d read a turn, he’d ask Anagen for the next direction. This way and that, she led them to a simple hotel that looked to be in good condition.

Homwell’s Bed and Rest read the sign on the walls. Inside, Anagen didn’t bother talking to anyone. She fished out two pairs of keys from her purse and gave it to him.

“I’ve booked it for a few nights. If you want to stay here longer, just tell me,” she said, before guiding them both towards her own room.

Inside, AxEl felt annoyed by his jacket and took it off. He placed it on the back of the chair and sat down on it. Anagen took the bed, so Nook had no choice but to sit on the carpet instead.

“How’s your training with Firewire going?” Anagen asked. AxEl rubbed at his eyes, confused.

“We’re keeping the doses low,” Nook said proudly.

“That’s good,” she replied, satisfied.

“Anagen, did you learn anything about the Silvertongues?” AxEl asked.

She rubbed at her forehead, then pulled out some documents from her purse.

“Anytime I tried to get near a lead, it would disappear,” Anagen replied.

“They’re trying to stay away from us?” AxEl asked. He leaned forward.

“More than that. I’d brought two agents with me, but both ended up in trouble with the local police. Convicted on charges of possession of illegal materials,” Anagen said.

“That’s their fault. They should have been more careful,” AxEl replied.

“But how would they know? I was careful in covering our tracks. Somebody must have tipped them off!”

Nook was a bit taken aback by her demeanour. Anagen had never seemed to be the most passionate person, and even less so prone to anger.

“So, someone’s in the town, trying to kick us out of it,” Nook said. He looked around at the hotel room, feeling a bit unsafe at their current position.

“When did you book this room?” Nook asked.

“A few hours ago. But we’re not in the biggest city, so news will spread fast. We’re going to have to cycle around hotels if we want to stay out of their reach,” Anagen replied.

“It’s not like they know where everything is going?” AxEl said. “We just need to find out whoever spotted us, and then bait them out into the open.”

“They’re not going to be that easy to find, AxEl,” Anagen responded.

“But there’s something we have to be able to do!” AxEl replied.

Anagen put a finger to her chin in thought, then turned back up to AxEl. “You didn’t bring any Prophecy or Firewire with you, did you?”

“I did,” AxEl replied.

She clicked her tongue in annoyance.

“I told you I would prepare it.”

“I know! I just… wanted to be safe,” he reasoned.

“Is it all on your person or did you leave some in the car?” Anagen asked.

“All on me,” AxEl replied.

“Then hand it over.”

She held out her hand in expectation. AxEl zipped down his pockets and threw the ziplock bags at her. Nook followed, and she placed them in some hidden compartment.

“Now, let’s talk about our plan.”

****

The morning chill crept at AxEl, Anagen and Nook as they walked past and near the mining rig. Men and women grunted as they pushed carts around on tracks into the entrance of the mines.

“Minahret’s mines are its main income, and one of the earliest miners was a woman, so its not uncommon to see them here,” Anagen explained. Nook stared for a bit, feeling inadequate when he saw how wide and strongly built all of them looked.

A few were AxEl’s height or higher, but most were in between him and Nook’s size. And they definitely had more muscles than the both of them. People noticed as they passed, however.

“Are we allowed to be here?” Nook asked awkwardly. Anagen shrugged.

“The miners have their children bring their lunches all the time. It’s not uncommon to just see people making small talk waiting for their shift. It’ll be fine,” she replied. Though he could tell even she noticed the stares.

AxEl was staying weirdly quiet, by Nook’s estimate. He couldn’t ignore the fact that this had become somewhat of a habit in recent times, but it hurt to see.

“So, what should we start with first, AxEl?” he asked his friend. The man simply looked around, until he spotted a group sitting on rocks and talking to each other. AxEl stomped over to their location, leaving Anagen and him dumbfounded.

One of the miners, a middle-aged woman with dark brown hair, looked up.

“Could I help you in some fashion?” she asked, and Nook immediately took a notice of the words.

“What are you chewing?” AxEl asked bluntly.

“It’s what we’re all chewing. Though strangers inquiring about our situation always tend to look oddly at us for it,” she answered. A snicker came from someone else, and she smiled at AxEl.

“Well… where did you get it?” AxEl added. Anagen was in the back of the group, looking on with a blank expression of awe. Nook could sympathize.

The woman sat upon the rock chewed on her bite for a few moments and swallowed.

“I’m not revealing that,” she answered plainly.

“What did the person who sold it to you look like, then?”

“You’re being persistent. Pestering me won’t give you any answers, child.”

“I’ll pay you,” AxEl replied. She eyed him up and down.

“No.”

AxEl grunted and stepped forward. The group looked a bit anxious, all apart from the woman he was talking to.

“How much do you want for the information,” AxEl replied.

“Doesn’t matter. I don’t quite trust people so blunt,” she replied. She dusted herself off and sat up from her rock. She was shorter than AxEl and walked past him while motioning backwards.

Her group followed her, and AxEl clenched his hands.

“What exactly were you expecting to accomplish there?” she asked AxEl. He opened his mouth several times but couldn’t come up with a satisfactory answer.

“An exchange?” he simply said.

“Let’s move somewhere else before you embarrass us again,” she said. They walked through the mine entrance, passing by several more people. No one seemed to engage with them, however. AxEl thought he knew the answer, but no one would admit it.

Whenever they did engage with him, they would stop halfway into the conversation and move away. Eventually they conceded for the day and started towards the hotel.

“I should’ve let someone else do this instead,” Anagen muttered. AxEl caught it but pretended not to.

He stopped in the middle of the road as they walked past.

“I… should go and park the car somewhere closer,” AxEl stated.

“Sure,” Nook yawned. He and Anagen didn’t bat an eye at it. Stupid miners and their games. I’m not here to play, he thought to himself. His every step grew more frantic with his thoughts.

I can’t afford the time to. If what BannIh said about the visions is true… but when he arrived at the parking spot, he found it gone.

He double-checked if this was the correct place. Maybe I parked it somewhere else? He thought as he looked around for more locations. He even clicked the key a few times, but no sound nor light came into view.

AxEl paced around for a few moments, swatting at the flies and bugs that would come near him. In time, he grew tired of that too and just stomped back to the hotel, wondering how he would explain this.

Another damn problem to deal with.