It was a long and exhausting walk back to the abandoned mattress warehouse, and by the time he was at its doorstep, the sun was already beginning to paint the sky a variety of colors. He hadn't been bothered by anyone on his trip, aside from a few head turns, but if anyone had recognized him, they must not have done anything to alert Syndra.

The Clockwork was standing right at the door as he walked in. He hardly paid any mind to it as he went to the back offices, dusted off one of the desks, and set the radio and bread down. He cracked into a loaf, still soft on the inside, and turned on the radio.

The reception was fuzzy, whether it was because of being in the warehouse, the quality of the radio itself, or because of the area of the Industrial District he was in, but he eventually found a station with enough coverage for him to actually hear. All the chairs in the building had been taken out, so he stood at the desk as the radio played.

"Good evening, Carmsborough," the radio host said. "We are, of course, keeping you up-to-date on all the news around the city, following Syndra's takeover. Sounds like the old military general, McIntosh, has touched back down at his home base in the Engineering District, the Gearmaster's workshop, which hasn't been operational for a few years.

"And, of course, the hunt is still on for Orion Muldane, who has avoided their capture. Our earlier reports about him on the run in the Agricultural District seem to have been true, but his current whereabouts are completely unknown. Although, with that Clockwork following him around, it's just a matter of time before somebody gets a hold of him again. What's your opinion on all of this, Bob?"

"I think it's all a lot of fuss for just one kid who doesn't want to be involved anyway," a second host said. "I think Syndra's primary worry was that somehow, the kid was going to stop his takeover, but clearly, he has no interest in doing that."

That's not true anymore, Orion thought.

"No, it's more about the fact that he has the Clockwork to begin with. I think Syndra needs it for something. It's likely part of his big plan, whatever that might be."

Engineering District. That's where General William McIntosh was, and that's where Orion was headed.

The bread was nowhere near enough to fully sustain him, but at least it took some of the pang of hunger away. He moved to a different room, dust still on the desk, and began drawing up his plans for the night.

-◦=[ ]=◦-

After a quick pit stop at a pop-up government building for a map, he started on his way to the Gearmaster's old shop. He wasn't completely sure where in the Engineering District it was, but that was a problem for later Orion.

The Clockwork had once again been left behind at the warehouse. The things that the girl had said about treating steambots with respect were ringing in his ears, but for the moment, this had to be a covert mission. He couldn't afford to go barging in to hostile territory.

And so he walked alone, the spring air growing colder as the night progressed. He estimated about a forty-minute commute to the edge of the district, and from there, it was anyone's guess.

Leading up to the district line, which he figured would be as drastic as the line between the Housing and Industrial Districts, he was a lot less cautious. There weren't many people out and about on the road, and a lot less that seemed to be tied to Syndra, but he was still sure to retreat to the shadows when he needed to.

Otherwise, it was his worn shoes tapping against the worn streets. They were at least paved, unlike the cobblestone streets of the Housing District, but they'd certainly seen better days. Once he'd reached the dividing line, everything changed drastically.

Gone were the rundown factories, smoky walls, and crumbling infrastructures. Metal-lined offices stood as tall or taller than the smokestacks nearby. Everything had a brassy look to it, with a lot of curves and even more windows. The road was almost new, the paint was bright, and there were cars.

Though it was all businesses around this particular section, it was obvious everyone here was much better off than those in the Housing or Industrial Districts. Even a market square showed more attention to disposable income than the bare-bones of the one that his family had frequented.

Every now and again he'd pass a family walking by, who would usually end up giving him weird looks. He was sure to try not to bring too much attention to himself, but hiding in shadows was no longer an option. The streetlights actually worked on these roads.

This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

It was disheartening to see the radical difference between the districts like this. Over seventy percent of the population of Carmsborough lived in the Housing and Industrial Districts, and apparently didn't receive the same amount of care. He wondered what the Biomed District looked like compared to this.

He eventually stumbled upon a crosswalk with some sort of bulletin board on one side and a map on the other. He searched it up and down to see if it had the Gearmaster's shop listed anywhere on it, and as luck would have it, it was only another twenty minutes away.

As he got closer, he saw actual Syndra men wandering around on patrol. He waited for one of them to walk completely past him before changing alleys, inching further ahead until the shop was on full display.

And so was the small army in front of it. They must have been expecting him or something.

What was he going to do if he had to fight someone? The last time he had to think about it, the Clockwork was there to take care of it for him. He wasn't so lucky this time. Even a one-on-one was tilted in favor of the other person.

Rather than go in from the front, Orion made a large loop around the building, diving behind alleys and walls, until he had sight of the back. There was a door, which had two guards, guns in hands, and radios on their hips.

Fighting that wasn't much of an option, but this was the easiest way to get in to the building. So how to actually do it?

He sat and racked his brain for a while, but everything he came up with was futile and involved a physical altercation. When a third person arrived, he'd decided to give up. Maybe this wasn't the plan. Defeated, he turned around to head back.

Until nearly kicking a large rock in the alley.

If the third person went away again, he might be able to distract the other two with the rock by throwing it down another alley, making a noise to draw them close, then slipping in through the door. What he was going to do after that was later Orion's problem.

He watched as the three talked, and out of pure luck, two of the three walked away to go patrol elsewhere. The last of the three sat down on the ground, leaned against the brick, and lit a cigarette.

If he could sneak up on the man, he could grab his pistol and hold him down while he entered the building.

No, that wouldn't work. Neither would the rock thing. This wasn't a cartoon. He had to think of something else.

Fortunately for him, that something else was also in his alley. He leaned into a dumpster and found a mostly clean box of donuts inside. He wiped the box down with his sleeve, and as a just in case, placed the rock in his pocket.

He quietly approached the man, who watched him approach with cautious eyes. "Who are you?"

"Everyone calls me Freckles," Orion said. "Saw you sitting out here alone, and thought you might want a bite."

"I can't let you come over here, kid. Security reasons."

"Oh. Okay, then. Thanks anyway."

"What's in there, by the way?"

"Assorted donuts. Parents own a shop. These technically expire today, but I find if we warm them up just a little, they're good as new."

Orion moved to walk away as the man got up. "Alright, you've convinced me. What kinds of donuts?"

"Chocolate, normal glazed, birthday cake. All the usual goods."

"Can't go wrong with chocolate. Here, come follow me. We'll boot up the microwave in the kitchen inside. A quick in and out, and we get to eat a donut or two. No telling."

"Works for me, sir."

He couldn't believe it worked that easily, and yet, there he was, following the guard into the building. They passed a few different hallways and rooms, including a big sign down a hallway marked as the armory, until eventually reaching a simple-looking kitchen in the heart of the building. The guard took the box of donuts and placed two of them on a napkin before throwing them into the microwave.

"You know, kid," he said, focused completely on watching the donuts spin around, "you came at just the right time. My wife has been getting onto me about all the..."

Orion, however, was long gone by that point, and headed to the hallway with the armory. By this point, there was no hiding the fact that he shouldn't have been there, so he ran down the halls while still trying to exude confidence. Like he belonged and knew where he was going.

The floor sloped down, and soon the surrounding atmosphere changed. He was underground. It went on for a little while until he made it to the armory. There wasn't anyone inside, but there were a few rows of outfits that would let him actually blend in with the people here. He grabbed a set, including a radio, and went into a side room to change. When he flipped the light switch on, a man was staring back at him.

"Are you..." Orion started.

"I could ask you the same thing," the man said. "Orion, huh? That's your name? I'll be honest, I didn't expect things to go the way they did the other day."

"Mr. Gearmaster, it's an honor to meet you. I am incredibly encapsulated by your work. The steambots are fantastic."

"Thank you. I'm always pleased to meet someone who has been directly impacted by my work. And, frankly, I knew you'd be the one to come and rescue me. So is this it? You're the whole welcoming party? Where's the Clockwork now?"

"Yeah, it's just me. Me and the machine aren't exactly on good terms right now."

"What on earth do you mean by that? Is this not all over? Where is the Clockwork?"

"Look, sir, I'm sure you have a million questions, but I have to get you out of here. I wasn't even expecting to run into you. I was here to take out the general."

"You haven't stopped him yet? Oh, no, Orion. This is not good. You shouldn't be here."

"What do you mean?"

"He'll be back any minute now. He's having me build him another Clockwork. One that will only listen to him and Syndra. If he finds you here, you're toast."

Orion changed quickly into the soldier garb. "No. I'm going to get you out, because I need your help with the Clockwork. We need to figure out how to have it protect everyone, not just myself."

"I don't think you understand," the Gearmaster said. "We're going to be in very serious trouble if you don't leave right now."

"And all of Carmsborough is going to be in serious trouble if I can't change how the thing works so that we can stop Syndra."

The Gearmaster geared up to say something else, but the door behind them opened. The general appeared on the other side, with three armed guards surrounding him, including the man Orion had duped with the donuts.

"We meet again," the general said. "I think it's about time you get your just desserts."