Jennifer walked across the red sand, the dry ground shifting beneath her feet.

After a while she reached the horizon, seeing the brown dry ground. She stepped over it, but as soon as she did the world around her spun, and before she could react, she was thrown forward.

She landed hard on the ground.

Her head spun as she pushed herself up, trying to steady herself. When her vision cleared, she saw a blue twister in the distance, twisting violently in the air, sending dust into the sky.

Jennifer stood, breathing heavily, her mind racing. The twister was the same color of the gate area. Well, the gate area wasn't visible anymore since the twister was over it.

Gates were known for having twisters, pulling the unexpected into them. She assumed she had simply got lucky when she entered the gate without dealing with the gate twister.

She swung the bad on her back and walked back to the city. There was something above the city that she usually ignored because of how normal it was to her.

It was a floating white orb. Because gates appeared anywhere and at anytime, inventions were created to protect certain areas from becoming gate lands/areas.

Jennifer made her way through the streets, passing familiar sights. The hub wasn’t far now.

She could already see the guards stationed near the entrance, their eyes scanning the crowd.

Before she could reach the entrance, a man in light armor appeared, his footsteps quick and urgent on the gravel. He glanced at the guards first, his eyes darting around until they landed on her.

“Jennifer?” he asked, his voice laced with a hint of panic. “I’m supposed to meet a Jennifer.”

Jennifer wiped some dust off her clothes, glancing up at him. “That’s me.”

He blinked in surprise, then let out a relieved sigh. “Sorry for reaching late. I was dealing with some issues. Oh, my name is James by the way.”

Jennifer nodded. “Gotcha. Nice to meet you.”

She lifted the bag, showing him it. "I already got done collecting some heads so I'm going to show it Marcy."

"Right right."

They entered the building together. The man was tall, his broad shoulders accentuated by the polished armor.

He glanced over at her. “So, where are you from?”

"Here. Born and raised in this city." She paused, then added, "Raised here mostly."

He gave a nod. “I see. You ever travel outside the city?”

Jennifer looked up, her expression unreadable. "No. You can say I never really had the chance."

His gaze flickered toward her, a hint of curiosity in his eyes. “Must’ve been... quiet, huh?”

She let out a soft, humorless chuckle. "You could say that."

The man nodded again, a slight frown on his face as if he didn’t quite know what to say to that. The silence between them stretched for a moment, broken only by the hum of the building's machinery.

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“So, uh,” he began after a moment, trying to change the topic. “What made you decide to join... all this?”

"Wanted a more interesting life. Nothing deep."

"I see I see..."

Jennifer narrowed her eyes slightly. “And you? Why did you join?”

“Well I'm from a small village far from here,” he began, the words coming slowly, as though it wasn’t something he liked to share. “My brother, he’s the one who pushed me into it. He’s a slayer too.”

Jennifer raised an eyebrow, her interest sharpening. "Oh?"

“Yeah. He’s the reason I’m here. He’s... always been the one to push me to do things. To follow him.” His voice softened, and for a moment, Jennifer could see the weight in his eyes. "He believes in all this... the slaying, the fighting, the whole thing. I guess I didn’t have a choice."

Jennifer couldn’t help but sense the underlying tension. “That must be frustrating. Not having a choice in a life decision.”

He let out a small, mirthless laugh. “It is what it is.”

The silence stretched again, thick with unspoken thoughts. Jennifer considered pressing him further, but something in his posture made her hold back.

“I get it,” she said softly. “Sometimes life pushes you into things you never asked for.”

Their conversation was interrupted when the door opened with a soft click. Marcy stepped in, clipboard in hand. She glanced up at Jennifer, her eyes quickly moving to the bag slung over her shoulder. She stopped in her tracks.

“That’s…” Marcy said under her breath, narrowing her eyes. “That’s impressive,” she muttered, taking a few steps forward. Her gaze was fixed on the bag, inspecting it like it was something alien. She reached out cautiously, her fingers hovering just above the opening of the bag before she glanced at Jennifer.

Jennifer shifted the bag slightly, raising an eyebrow. “Is there a problem?”

Marcy didn’t respond immediately. Instead, she opened the bag just enough to get a good look inside. Her eyes narrowed even further as she examined the sharp claw lizard heads.

“They’re real,” she said, more to herself than anyone else. Her fingers lingered over the heads, as if feeling for any signs of trickery or mimicry. Satisfied, she finally pulled back, wiping her hands on her pants like the touch had left an impression.

Jennifer, sensing the scrutiny, remained calm. “What, you think they’re fake?”

“No,” Marcy replied quickly, almost defensively. She straightened up and held up her clipboard, scribbling something down furiously. “People tend to take longer.”

Marcy handed over a ID to Jennifer. “Here,” she said, her tone softer now. “GrassQuartz. Lowest rank, but a start.”

Jennifer took the ID, turning it over in her hands. It was an odd thing, its quartz-like surface shimmering in the light with hints of green and brown.

It almost looked like it was made of plant material instead of stone. She slipped it around her neck, letting it hang in the center of her collarbone.

James said, “Let’s get you checked out. Then we’ll move on.”

James led Jennifer to the medical area. A door slid open, revealing a small, no-frills medical room. It smelled faintly of antiseptic, the scent sharp and clean.

A tall woman in a white coat stood at a counter. She looked up as they entered, giving a brief nod.

"What do we have?" she asked, her tone flat but efficient.

Jennifer said, "Cuts and bruises from a few beasts. My neck, arm, torso."

The woman didn’t waste any time. "Sit here," she instructed Jennifer, gesturing to the reclining chair that faced a series of medical instruments.

Jennifer took a seat, removing her armor and lifted her shirt for her to see the torso wound.

The woman cleaned and disinfected the wounds. Her touch was quick but practiced, applying salves and bandages where necessary. The sharp sting of the disinfectant made Jennifer wince, but she didn’t react beyond that.

“Lucky you didn’t take a deeper hit,” the woman remarked, peeling away a bloodied cloth from a scrape on Jennifer’s side. “That could have been worse.”

"Yeah..."

After a short while they were done.

Jennifer stood, feeling the faint twinges of pain as she stretched her limbs. She could still feel the throb of the cuts, but it was bearable.

"Thanks," she said, nodding at the woman.

"Next time," the woman said as she began to clean her tools, "try not to get yourself torn apart by monsters."

Jennifer gave a small, tired smile, her lips curling at the edge. "I’ll keep that in mind."

Jennifer left the hub along with James.

He asked, “So what exactly can you do? Your skill. I should probably go first. I can summon and control iron disks.”

Jennifer opened her mouth to answer but stopped when a sudden pain shot through her back.

She winced, her vision going blurry for a moment, and just as quickly, everything froze.

Time snapped back to normal with a jarring whoosh.

Jennifer’s pulse raced in her throat, her heart pounding in her ears. She was still trying to make sense of what happened, but there was no time to dwell on it. She forced a smile, though it felt awkward, and raised her gooey hands. “Uh, sticky blasts. I can do... sticky blasts.”