The words passed around the mob like gasoline on a flame, enraging the mournful yet discouraged the weak. The king had an indisputable power, one they feared since this city had its first flight. The propaganda had always been strong, and they were under the impression that Irongate was the freest of countries. Little did they know that the lineage of the corrupted power freaks knew no mercy, and whoever dared to swim against the tide would be sliced down by the king's pawns ruthlessly.

The mob was divided. Some swallowed the words and dissolved into their fear, and others rallied in secrecy, letting the white sect feed them a spoonful of lies and truth merged into one.

It was the human nature at best, turning over each other was what they mastered skillfully.

I. Abigail's world.

Abigail's haven was the attic, given to her by her dear brother. It was the only place where she could lock the door and be naked of the fake shell she was encompassed in.

In the last few days, Abigail found peace in her solidarity. She found it comforting to be in the attic and disconnect from the ongoing chaos. But that wasn't the only reason. Abigail was merely a teenager, and at that point of her life, she was discovering her femininity, and being in a house full of men, she began to drift further away, preferring the company of the books Carvo had given her.

Carvo wasn't complaining about Abigail's isolation. In fact, he believed it was for the best. Lalo's interactions with her were troublesome, and Luther's intentions were never crystal clear. Carvo feared that his sister was a part of something bigger that he couldn't tell.

In the warm attic, Abigail laid on her bed in a loose pajama, exposing all of her mechanical limbs. She was smiling as she started touching the short young hair sprouting of her scalp. It was a wonder, how come some of her biological functions ensued while others ceased. Abigail never got her period again, yet, her nails were growing as well as her hair. Carvo's explanation was that Abigail was a very high order creation that was meant to preserve a high percentage of her human body.

"When I grow hair, it will be so different." She chuckled. "Nothing is more attractive than a cyborg with hair.." She commented on her newfound appearance. It had been a month since she woke up in this godless city, and five decades after she had been brutally kidnapped, and murdered.

"I hope it works.." Abigail sighed, remembering what she was about to experience in a day. Carvo had decided it was time to sever Abigail's ties with the Mooncallers just like Lalo. It was a risky procedure but the two agreed it was the only safe option after what happened at the white church. Abigail was terrified of the idea of another metal entering her body, or the thought of having her insides exposed again. But she had to think reasonably and analyze the outcome. "One step closer to being normal, perhaps?" She thought. The insatiable desire for flesh was dormant inside her, awaiting the fullmoon.

Downstairs, Carvo sat after a long day on his leather chair, holding his hot cup of coffee in a hand and an anatomy book in another one. He sighed as his boned ached him, he was old and weary. He can no longer withstand standing over an experimentation table for hours, but for the sake of Anysa's request, he did so.

Luther had left. He didn't inform Carvo of what he would do, but he assured him that once he's back, he should have good news. Lalo stayed in the kitchen, following a recipe book Carvo gave him to cook human flesh for both him and Abigail. The two of them managed to get their hands on a wealthy supply for the coming month.

The wooden stairs crooked as Abigail slowly descended, clearing her throat to make sure there are no strangers. "It's safe." Carvo assured her with a warm smile as she eyed Lalo who was still in the kitchen with malice.

"What's he doing?" She sniffed the delightful scent. "Cooking. You two must eat." Carvo took a sip from his coffee. "Why didn't you ask me instead?" She frowned. "Well. You need to rest for tomorrow. And he isn't going to live here for free after all." Carvo chuckled as he continued reading the book, but something about him was different and only Abigail could tell.

His forced laid-back attitude was apparent to her. It's as if he was hiding something, but was too exhausted to do it well. Her powerful hearing led her to eavesdrop Anysa's conversation, but she was confused about what she meant.

She didn't know Carvo made a game-changing discovery.

"Something strange is happening.." Abigail walked around Carvo in an attempt to distract him from his book. "Many things, my dear." Carvo commented without paying attention to her.

"No, but.. Really really strange.." Abigail walked closer to Carvo but he was engulfed by the great drawing of a human cyborg drawn by a scientist called Alice Langley in the 18th century. Carvo suspected that Alice might herself be a Mooncaller, one of the originals, due to her profound understanding of futuristic technologies in an Era where heretics were those who believed in a round earth.

"Stranger than a man cooking another man's leg for dinner?" Carvo eyed Abigail from his monocular. She rushed to him with a grin from one ear to another. "Touch it." She smiled, Carvo raised an eyebrow. "What's it?" He was intrigued. "Just do it." She ordered him.

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Carvo sensed the growing hair but instead of smiling his eyes were wide open. On the doorstep of the kitchen, Lalo stood with the same reaction, gulping and wiping his sweat. "That's not possible." The two said in one breath. Abigail was uncomfortable with their reaction.

"I guess I'm special!" Abigail laughed, Carvo nodded as he didn't seem to think this was a sign of something bad but on the other hand Lalo knew exactly what this meant, and he didn't hold back.

"I don't think you should be too happy about this." Lalo spoke.

"Why shouldn't I be?"

"How do you think a dead body can grow nails and hair?"

"Perhaps it's not dead?"

"This wouldn't be good news."

"I think it would be."

"I'm afraid not. You have already died, you know that."

Silence ensued among the three of them as Carvo took his time to analyze the situation, but Lalo's reaction pointed towards something grim. All along Carvo believed Abigail was a resurrected body, one that's powered by an otherworldly mechanism inside her. That mechanism had limits, and although it could be very close to a human, it didn't mimic it perfectly. There were troops of mindless Mooncallers who didn't have the ability to think on their own, others who exploded after one fight as they couldn't digest food. All these incidents led Carvo to believe that their mechanism was limited and still under development, the closest he had ever seen to a human was Abigail and Luther. And it wasn't about the looks, but it was about the very well-preserved human nature they exhibited.

Lalo was different.

He was always disoriented. He wasn't smart, and he was easily challenged. This led Carvo to believe that he was mentally limited unlike the other two. His play as Brando was what led him to believe he was something, but once that connection was severed, Carvo was met by a very simple-minded man with a vortex of memories he can't comprehend.

But he knew.

"Spit it out." Carvo talked to Lalo who was throwing puzzles left and right.

"Well.. If I remember correctly.." Lalo scratched his feminine hair. "There's a hierarchy of Mooncallers." He continued. "The highest were the worst." He sneakily eyed Abigail. "The closer to a human, the closer you were to an original." Lalo spoke. And Carvo suddenly began to digest the large information he was given.

It wasn't about the hierarchy as he knew all along. But the originals? That was an entirely new story.

"Go on." Carvo asked him.

"If Abigail was at the top of the hierarchy, it means she's chipped." Lalo said.

"Chipped?" Abigail inquired.

"You're a slave to an original." Lalo fearfully spoke. "And they know everything about you. They know you're here.." He continued.

"And if they want to, one day, they'll direct you back behind the borders where your memory will be reset.. Again.."

Carvo and Abigail stood in disbelief.

This was indeed bad news..

II. Eyes.

Anysa was planting her watchful eyes in every suspicious area. The most suspicious one was Ivanka and her surroundings. Anysa was unaware of the chaos that occurred at the white church, but she was aware that Ivanka didn't find the chip easily. Julies was a good choice, or so she believed. He was cunning, and his persistence about his cause made him willing to do anything just to reach the top.

In Ivanka's hangar where she kept all of her books, work, prototypes and maps, Julies introduced himself after a note was sent to Ivanka. She was rightfully enraged as if she was a child that needed a companion. But she was told that Julies would be more of an apprentice. "Julies knowledge of mechanics was spectacular but he needed more guidance." Wrote Anysa. A council member under the hands of a mere former military woman? Ivanka was confused, but she wasn't willing to let this hold her back.

"I've heard a lot about you." Julies strolled around the hangar while Ivanka fixed the shattered glass of the Twilight Reverie. "Of course you did. On the other hand, I had no idea who you are." Ivanka rudely replied. "No need for hostility." Julies said. "Your presence serves me no purpose young man." Ivanka told him as he walked closer to the Twilight Reverie.

"You need to pass on your knowledge to a younger generation after all." Julies was about to touch the glass but Ivanka stopped him with a deathly glare. "Fine, fine. I'll stay in my lane." He removed his hands. "Anysa's were clear." Ivanka left her work. "You are my apprentice." She lightly smirked. "See this stack of blueprints over there?" She pointed at her table. He nodded.

"Pick those blueprints up and write me a detailed manual of how we can build it." She challenged him. Julies raised an eyebrow, he felt disrespected. He went over and grabbed the first blueprint of the stack. He inspected it carefully with great confidence in his abilities but then the more he read, the more he became even more intrigued. "Impossible.." He whispered.

"Is that a.." He went through the blueprints, confirming his doubts.

"A Thunderbird." Ivanka replied.

"But this.. This is impossible, this thing.. It's deadly, it could kill humans as well!" Julies said. "Not if we do it right. This could be a ticket to the white lands outside this fortified prison. Show me how good you are, Julies." Ivanka challenged him.

Julies grabbed the blueprints with a thousand thoughts on his mind. The woman he was supposed to watch shares his ambitions, and unlike Anysa, she saw a life beyond the city. He was shaky and hesitant, but he knew he can execute this blueprint although it would take miraculous effort.

"Thunderbird." Was the new beast of humans.