—Fucking Melena, man, we almost left you behind. What the hell took you so long to get out? We thought you were dead.

Melena still had that lost, terrified look in his eyes. Olaf’s words weren’t helping.

—I’m sorry… I’m sorry.

—If it weren’t for the kid, you’d still be lying there. Shit, I would’ve left you there.

He just kept apologizing over and over. Honestly, I didn’t think it was his fault, but I was too exhausted—physically and emotionally—to step in. Besides…

—How much longer do we have to travel, huh? —Olaf asked.

—Until you get off or we arrive —I replied.

Our van had lasted three hours into the escape before giving out. Luckily, two hours later, a car passed by… which we requisitioned.

Final headcount: our driver, Olaf, Kan, Melena and one of his guys, Summer, and me. All crammed into a single vehicle.

Six hours later, we arrived at a gas station with a few available rooms.

—What do you say, kid? Think we can get some rest? —Olaf asked.

We all looked toward the road. Toward the way back. Toward the distance where we had left the Exterminators behind.

—Yeah.

The driver stayed behind, refueling, while the rest of us spread out, stretched our legs, tried to clear our heads. It would be dark soon.

—You don’t see many people like you around here.

A store clerk greeted me with a wide smile.

I didn’t respond. I wasn’t in the mood for small talk.

The guy didn’t lose his smile and instead tried to get something out of Summer. He got… nothing. The girl didn’t answer a single one of his questions and stayed close to me while I smoked.

—I don’t like that clerk’s face —Kan said, stepping up beside me—. Give me a cigarette.

I looked at my pack. Only three left.

I handed him one begrudgingly.

—Of course you don’t like him —I replied, lighting another for myself—. He’s trying to figure out whether it’s worth trying to snatch our VIP.

—You think he’d go for it?

—It’s possible. Though I’m sure he would if he found out.

Summer tightened her grip on my pants and clung to me.

—Relax. A little over three weeks left… but we’re not expecting any trouble. Soon, you’ll be back with your grandfather, and all of this will be behind you.

The girl gave me a small smile.

—Gröder, I’m detecting incoming transmissions… from the clerk. He’s communicating with a large group of vehicles three kilometers from here.

Fucking rat.

—Kan, gather the others. We’re leaving.

Kan barely hesitated half a second before responding:

—Olaf was saying maybe we could do something a little… hostile at the station. We’re short on supplies, and apparently, funds are running low.

—Do whatever you want, but we leave in thirty minutes, tops.

—Whatever you say.

For the first time, I noticed that when Summer used her abilities, her eyes turned an intense yellow—a metallic gold with a glowing shimmer.

—How often can you intercept information? Does it tire you?

The girl stepped back timidly, avoiding my gaze.

—My grandfather told me not to share information about my abilities.

I see. The old man wants to protect his methods.

—That’s fine, no problem. I won’t ask again, and you won’t have to say anything. Just know that you’ve been very useful.

I gently ruffled her hair before heading to the car.

Shortly after, shouts and gunfire rang out. Then, silence.

We didn’t have to wait more than ten minutes. We were already back on the road.

That’s how the trip went: six hours between stations, two stops a day. All of us crammed into a single vehicle. It was decided not to steal another one to avoid drawing even more attention. Robbing a gas station was bad enough.

The return trip took us a little over three weeks.

"God, I hate traveling by car."

When we arrived at Chitosane’s building, he barely let us rest.

—You can’t leave her here. Your mission will be complete when you return her to her family.

Damn it, old bastard. That should be your job.

—Not all of us need to go —Olaf interjected—. The kid escorting her will be enough. The rest of us can get paid now.

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

—Of course, Mr. Olaf. Follow my man, he’ll hand you your payment.

—And the fallen’s compensation? You promised money for the widows.

—If they come here, they will receive their share. I don’t run from my obligations, just as you didn’t run from yours.

The last part sounded more like a question directed at me. I simply nodded. Olaf had done his part, as had his men. There was no need to place blame. The mission had turned out the way it had, and the important thing was that it was coming to an end.

—Thank you for a job well done, Mr. Olaf. We’ll see each other again.

Olaf and Chitosane exchanged farewells. Then, the old man turned to Kan.

—Mr. Kanemiya, it’s a pleasure to finally meet you. Without realizing it, you have brought a great blessing to my doorstep.

—Of course. My little brother is always a great blessing.

—Although I would love to share much more with you, I’m afraid you can’t accompany us on this journey… Besides, I believe it would be best for you to return home as soon as possible. There are matters you should handle immediately.

Kan sighed.

—See you later, Kai. Take care.

—You too. And you owe me. Big time.

—Of course.

We bumped fists, and Kan left.

The others quickly finished their business with Chitosane and went their separate ways.

That left just me, with little Summer clinging to me. Somehow, she seemed to fear the Lower City more than the Pits.

"Weird. Maybe she has a bad memory of the Lower City… though, why would someone like her have ever been there?"

—So, Mr. Kailen, how was your first experience as a leader?

Chitosane was chattier than usual as we got into one of his cars.

—It was a disaster. I failed at everything. Every plan went to hell.

—And yet, you came back with the girl intact. And you… huh? More or less intact.

The wound on my back still burned. On top of that, I had a few untreated bullet wounds and several cuts and stabs. I was a mess.

—If nothing else, I’ve learned in my life never to give up.

—A fantastic quality, Mr. Kailen.

Chitosane clapped, wearing that mocking expression of his, thinly veiled as courtesy.

—What’s so funny?

—It’s not funny, Mr. Kailen. Quite the opposite. Look out your window.

He paused theatrically, gesturing toward the people outside.

—Wherever you look, you’ll see a great mass of people who gave up. People crushed by the system so thoroughly that they lost their souls long ago. Someone like you, in a landscape like this, is little less than a Gragar among zebras.

"A Gragar. An alien predator, a hunting beast with extrasensory perception and reflexes faster than a bullet. A strange compliment."

—If I may, Mr. Kailen… could I know more about your goals?

—Freedom.

—Excuse me?

—I want to be free.

—And aren’t you?

—Not as long as my family’s sword hangs over me.

—Simply remarkable, Mr. Kailen…

The old man responded in a low voice, a half-smile on his lips, letting silence fill the rest of the ride.

The journey that followed was just as expected.

From the landfills and heavily polluted, poorly organized industrial zones of the Pits, to the densely packed streets of the Lower City, filled with filth, garbage, and desperation. Then, as if in blatant mockery, they gave way to Nest’s clean streets, its wide avenues, well-maintained trees, and ostentatious decorations.

It felt like a real slap in the face to the tens of millions barely surviving outside of Nest.

To my surprise, the girl seemed even more tense now.

"How could someone not fear the Pits, hesitate in the Lower City, and yet tremble in Nest?"

I had a lot of questions in my head. Though, being someone who had also grown up in Nest, I could understand. This girl must have played Stab Your Relative for More Benefits at some point. Honestly, that game had gotten repetitive. It needed an update.

That’s why I left.

Yeah. That’s definitely why I left.

We passed through the various areas of the southern district and approached the central district, where the elites lived. Soon, we reached the sector that housed the residences of the six great families.

—I've always found it ironic that, despite hating each other so much, all the great families live in the same place —I broke the silence.

—There’s an old saying, Mr. Kailen: “Keep your friends close, and your enemies even closer.”

—And what’s the point of that? Why would you want to keep someone close who could stab you at any moment?

Chitosane gave a half-smile.

—Because the greatest danger isn’t the dagger you see coming, but the one you don’t.

I leaned back in my seat, watching the fortified mansions passing by.

—Sounds like a paranoid excuse to justify the madness of living surrounded by vipers.

—Isn’t paranoia the foundation of survival in this world?

I snorted, but he continued.

—If you keep your enemies at a distance, you can’t watch them. You can’t anticipate their moves. If they’re close, you can study them, understand how they think, what they desire, what they fear. In this game, it’s not about avoiding the dagger, but making sure that, when the time comes, you’re the one who drives it in first.

I glanced at him sideways.

—Sounds exhausting.

—It is —he replied naturally—. But that’s the difference between the powerful and the dead.

The conversation hung in the air as we moved through the district, surrounded by houses that weren’t homes but fortresses disguised as mansions. I wondered how many of the people who lived there slept with one eye open, waiting for the inevitable blow.

"Maybe that’s why I left."

—I’m curious, Mr. Kailen. How would you define power?

I shot Chitosane a sideways glance. I knew the question wasn’t casual. That old man enjoyed playing with words, tossing you a rope just to see if you’d hang yourself with it.

I took a moment before responding.

—Power is doing what you want, when you want, without anyone being able to stop you.

Chitosane smiled, as if he’d heard that answer a thousand times before.

—And what happens when someone else wants the same thing?

—Then it’s a matter of who has the bigger knife.

—Ah… the pragmatic view of brute force. Very fitting with your reputation, Mr. Kailen.

—I don’t see what other definition there could be.

—Let’s see… —Chitosane interlaced his fingers in his lap as if about to give a lesson—. If power were just about strength, the strongest would always rule. But in this world, those in charge are rarely the physically strongest. Look around you.

He gestured with a slight nod toward the mansions we were passing. Luxury buildings, protected by walls and elite guards. They didn’t look like homes; they looked like fortresses.

—The ones living here aren’t the ones fighting in the Pits, nor the ones getting their hands dirty in the streets of the Lower City. And yet, they’re the ones who set the rules. Would you say they don’t have power?

I crossed my arms.

—They have the money to pay others to do the dirty work for them. That’s power too.

—But it’s not theirs. It’s borrowed. —The old man looked at me with that maddening expression of the wise fool that always drove me crazy—. If your power depends on others, is it really yours?

I fell silent.

—Let me propose another idea, Mr. Kailen —he continued—. What if power isn’t the ability to impose your will, but the ability to make others want what you want?

I frowned.

—That sounds like an elegant way of saying manipulation.

—And isn’t that the true power? A man with a knife can kill one or two enemies. A man with control over a city can make thousands kill for him, without them even realizing they’re fulfilling his will.

—So, according to you, power is control.

—Power is influence. Strength fades. Fear dissipates. But influence… ah, that’s a seed that grows, that takes root in the minds of others until they think it was their idea all along.

—Sounds like a slow way to play this game.

—It’s the only way to win it.

Chitosane smiled again and turned his gaze forward, as if the conversation had ended. But the words kept spinning in my head.

Now I feel like I may never leave it behind.

—You really enjoy these convoluted discussions, don’t you?

Chitosane looked at me with a self-satisfied expression.

—I do, actually. Few people indulge in these little pleasures of life. Even among my circles, you’re the only one who has entertained my vulgar desire to philosophize.

—Even among your circles, huh?

The old man slightly furrowed his brow, a small slip of the tongue.

—Perhaps I’ve grown too old, my younger self would never have used that word.

—We all have friends. You can’t live in this city without them.

—Are you sure, Mr. Kailen? As far as I know, your friend got into trouble because of them.

—And he was saved by the same reason.

—Fair point.

Finally, the car arrived at the entrance of the imposing mansion.