Two separate worlds. Outside it was calm, serene. The wind blew softly, shaking the trees and grass causing the air to be filled with the hymns of rustling leaves and swaying grass. Inside the mansion, it was completely different. From the buzzing of machinery to the beeping of various apparatus to the static Qi build-up due to the holograms that were everywhere.

He moved carefully through the heaps of material that had been littered all around.

Fria-al was in the hall, a block of metal was floating beside her, small pieces occasionally breaking off of it, morphing into different shapes, and then finding their place in the framework of a metallic arm that she was on her workstation.

“So?”

“P.ass. An..oth.er ga.th..er ma.ter..ial ou.tsid..e.”

“Other than the word ‘pass’, I didn’t understand anything. Use the damned device that I gave you please.”

[Another test. Harvest material outside.]

“Oh? What kind?”

In response, his Qi flowed into the data stone causing the hologram of the worm to appear.

“Oh, that… that thing is very bothersome from what I have heard so be careful, got that?”

Nod.

“When will you leave?”

“To.mo..rr.ow.”

“What do you need? Give me the list and I will get it prepared.”

Nod.

Receiving the list, Fria-al scanned through it.

“They will be here tonight. Anyway, are you going alone again?”

Nod.

“Will you ever learn the lesson? Look! Look at you now. If they hadn’t found you at the right time you would have died. Died! When will you start listening to anyone? Or do you want to die? Is that why you act in such an idiotic manner?”

Silence.

Her eye narrowed and her glare became ever more piercing but it did not affect him. Seeing that, the anger that had been bubbling inside her suddenly cooled down. Deflated.

“Fuuu… I don’t really know why I even bother…”

She whispered, feeling irritated. He was like that, she knew it, she had become used to it. But seeing this same pattern repeat over and over again, she could not help but get angry. Unfortunately, her anger had never been able to change him.

“At least take care of yourself. If you feel like it is impossible then just leave. Living is more important, you understand?”

Silence

“Sigh… Anyway, I have serviced the armor but keep in mind that it is only a prototype. It will break down if you push it too much.”

Nod.

She left the frame on her workstation along with the block of metal and went into another room. In the center was the prototype armor suit.

Even though it was her creation, it was still a prototype in the end. Even though it did not have any major problems, being that it was a prototype, it had been made quickly and she had mixed whatever came into her mind into this armor suit. That meant there were chances of malfunction, something that would become deadly during a fight.

***

“Big sis! When did you return?”

“About a month ago.”

“Where are you then? Mom and dad are anxious that you did not return for such a long time.”

“How are they?”

“Good. What about you? Did you put some sense in that kid?”

“Somehow brought him here.”

“Really? How did you get the permits?”

“It's a long story, I will tell you later. Anyway, I have sent a list of materials, get them ready and send them to the address.”

“Ay ay, sis!”

“Bye then.”

“Hey! Hey hey! It's been such a long time, when are you coming home?”

“Busy with a project at the moment. Will come later.”

“You can take out a bit of time right? I am jealous, you spend that much time on that kid and have forgotten your baby brother.”

“Haha, don’t you feel ashamed calling yourself a baby?”

“Nope! Not one bit!”

…

***

“?”

When he regained some sense he was standing in front of a lift. He stood there, confused, wondering what he was doing here. Qi circulated inside his head, bringing with it a momentary burst of wakefulness as the sleepiness was pushed away. With his head cleared up again, he headed towards the exit gate, leaving the lift behind.

It was strange. It was uncomfortable. The exit gate should be on the lowest layer of the settlement. That was what he was accustomed to and that was why his sleep-deprived body automatically headed toward the lifts. This place though was completely opposite from his settlement, each new layer being added down instead of going upward.

Everything was strange here. Settlements were supposed to be narrow, and suffocating. They were supposed to be isolating, dreading, further strengthening the afflictions of his mind. It felt strange. This place was spacious, it was calm and soothing.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

The HQ of the harvesters was a massive building and as much as it was massive, it was also that much crowded. The few threads he had left were overloaded as he passed through the crowd without a single collision. His eyes closed throughout the journey.

He headed directly towards the Info Booth.

Sitting on the empty chair, a hologram flickered into existence showing the worm.

“In.fo.”

“Basic. Intermediate. Advance?”

“Price?”

Sensing another hologram, he opened his eyes, checking the prices and then closing them again.

“Advance.”

“ID.”

He handed his id to the masked individual.

“Transaction complete. Thank you for coming.”

***

“How did it go? Did you get the info?”

Nod.

“Good. I have already replaced the refined core within the armor suit and the things you needed are in your room. Place them in your dim storage.”

“Th.an..k yo.u.”

“If you really mean it then stop doing such dangerous things and learn to take care of yourself. You can’t stay trapped in your shell forever.”

Silence.

***

The armor had been serviced, and the items he needed were all in dimensional storage along with the storage that would contain the harvested fluids. With everything prepared, he set out.

Relief. He felt it with each step but it never became less. The noises, both inside his head and outside faded away and with it the need to maintain the void.

The moment he dissipated the void, he felt his mental sharpness returning. Then came the waves of sleep.

As he moved, he kept surveying the area, looking for a place to sleep. Now that he no longer needed to maintain the void, he could finally get some sleep.

He woke up, his mind feeling even sharper. Eating a nutritional biscuit that was delivered into his mouth, he resumed the journey. Everything was crisp and clear.

Frown.

Something was following him.

He did not stop and continued monitoring the feeling. It was unlikely to be a monster especially when he was this close to the exit gate. A monster also would not have waited for him to wake up.

‘Another harvester?’

***

“Harlev, how are the preparations for the auction proceeding?”

“Smoothly, sir Revensol. This time we have acquired some really good material. The results are predicted to go beyond the set goal.

“Good! Excellent! We will be needing quite a large amount of funds soon so make sure this auction is extra successful.”

“Yes.”

“Have you gotten any reports? When will those noble brats leave the settlement?”

“Within a cycle, sir.”

“Have everyone start preparing. We will strike once those kids get out.”

“Yes sir. But is it truly the correct course? Even if we set aside the families, it will be difficult to bear the wrath of Mus-Draik. We have already antagonized them with our actions previously.”

“Harlev, are you afraid now? Even after all that happened?”

“Not afraid. I just feel we should be cautious. If we fail, what will happen to our revenge? What will be the use of spending all these cycles out here in these freezing wastelands?”

“Don’t you worry about that. We have just one objective. We have to capture those kids and everything else will work out. We will be able to address the injustice that we have faced.”

“How would capturing those kids get revenge? Those bastards will most likely abandon those kids rather than suffer a loss.”

“Hahaha, you are right about that. Those rotten bastards will surely do that but not the Mus-Draik. They will have to get the children back else their reputation will be dragged to the ground. Just trust me. You just have to bring me the kids.”

“I have always trusted you, sir, that is why I am here even now.”

“That I know. Now start the monster extermination. There should not be a single monster within the vicinity. If anything happens to our guests, the name of our Desolate Market will be blemished.”

“As you wish, sir.”

After a bow, Harlev soon left the room. Revensol stood there for a moment and then a grin stretched across his face and his eyes were filled with madness.

“Soon… soon you will all pay… soon…”

It appeared no different from any other but once he stood near the wall, it slid down revealing a path. It closed once he stepped in.

Inside was a vast space, filled with equipment of all kinds. Some were jumbled on the ground as though a pile of junk and then there were other pieces of equipment, all stored separately. He headed towards his workshop where a vehicle was standing on his workstation.

He had been working on it for many cycles. A vehicle that would make it easier to travel through these wastelands. Even though it had been difficult, he had been able to finish almost everything except one thing. There was one reason the harvesters still traveled on foot outside. The Qi signatures of these vehicles were like flashlights in the darkness. Everything would be able to sense them.

It had taken a long time but he had finally been able to crack the problem. The diverse set of fresh materials that he had access to due to this market allowed him to do research that would have been impossible to perform inside.

Various equipment floated around him as he started working on it again. It was now in the last stage. Just a bit more and it would be ready for testing.

Just the thought that he could soon take his revenge filled him with vigor. He would not forgive them. He could not forgive them. How much could he have achieved, how happy he could have been? All of it had been robbed by those bastards, those envious bastards.

‘They will regret it soon… how will they feel when their flesh and blood do it…hehe’

***

“Harlev, have this tested and report back the results.”

“Is this the thing you were working on? Did you manage to control the Qi signature? Amazing.”

“Hahaha, that is right. Aren’t I amazing? We will be using these during the operation so make sure only the trusted ones get to see it.”

“We could make a killing selling it though.”

“Money is just a means to the end, don’t forget that.”

“I know…”

A silence descended inside the room. Revensol kept performing the final tweaks on the vehicle.

“What is it? Your stare is distracting.”

“I am worried about the Mus-Draik.”

“Why are you so worried? Just this core barrier is so massive we can just hide for a few cycles if things go wrong.”

“Still, they haven’t done anything to us so I don’t think we should make another enemy.”

“It is because of them that all this happened. They lord over this many settlements. They say they care for all, and especially for all those that walk the path of Seeker but look at us now. If they were true to their creed then we wouldn’t be here. Harlev, do you remember the massacre that took place in that settlement?”

“? The recent one? Where they killed a whole sector due to the spread of an epidemic?”

“Hah! That bastard of the Noyb family is through. That bastard spread the epidemic because a pair of commoners were going to become Seekers. He will have a surprise waiting for him soon though.”

As the memories that he could not forget replayed like a movie, Harlev trembled with rage. The rage that had been sleeping within him threatened to break out.

“Just because of that? They killed hundreds of thousands just because of that?”

“Harlev have you become naive spending so many cycles outside or have you forgotten your dead wife and children?”

The grinding of teeth echoed inside the room.

“That’s right. Don’t forget what those bastards took from you, what they took from us. We will have our revenge and for that capturing those children is vital.”

“As you wish.”