The massive labor forces across Vol marched to and from their sectors. The beat of their worn boots echoed across the city at all times. Over a thousand sectors were active at any time, over five thousand around and under the whole city. All surrounded a massive drill in the middle of the city, rumbling once every few hours. A massive tower in the center acting as its main piston, in fact, the entire city being the infrastructure for the gigantic tool.

On the north side of Vol, farther from the main drilling operation, was the poorly managed sector 'A0L'. The majority of mining sectors were well supplied with drills, automated drones, and advanced digging technology. A few sectors, especially near the outside of the operation, were supplied with nothing but Axes and Compression storage. The workers swung their axes with no hydraulic help, they manually delivered their hauls back to a large compression box. Even the guards, three that would regularly pass, often expressed their disgust at hearing the grunts of the miners as they threw down their metal.

A certain worker in this sector had the unfortunate privilege of being housed poorly as well. The building he slept in was more akin to an old world apartment, a sore thumb in the brutalist and metallic city. Their designation was A0L5SM-12, working in the A0L sector and living in the 5SM district. The final number was a personal ranking number, used to determine rations and amenities.

At sector A0L, the sound of metal to rock filled the ears of miners, fogging their minds and scrambling their thoughts. A0L5SM-12 worked in a small tunnel closed off by a metal door. The area was tight, with barely any room to backswing. Hopefully in a few days, progress will be made to expand the tunnel.

All of the metal doors suddenly shot open. A0L5SM-12 twitched his head, the loud sound of the door startling him mid-swing. The sector's guards started their routine checks of all the tunnels. Outside his tunnel, this time however, the guards stood staring at him. "Please confirm your worker designation." They demanded, as he dropped his ax and turned around.

"A-Zero-L. Five-S-M, Level 12." He spoke in a single breath, exhaling the rest when he finished. The expression of the guards was flat and stern, though you could rarely see past their dark masks. It wasn't quite a helmet, more of a dark, shapely material around the face. The mask was just tinted enough, had you not heard their voices, you might mistake them for a machine.

They stared him down for a few moments, before the one in the middle tapped his mask, and the two guards on either side left the tunnel.

"Exit the Tunnel. Your shift has finished." The guard gave out his orders in a loud monotone voice, shoving the worker out the tunnel. A0L5SM felt the shift was short, which only ever happened when there was an issue in the sector. Outside of the tunnel, every worker's zone was connected in a much larger tunnel, the opening about ten feet wide. However, the auto-door from every sector was open, all the workers marching out. The tunnel quickly filled shoulder to shoulder, heading towards a giant lift at the end of the tunnel opening.

As they shuffled towards the exit, a few heads turned to 5 tunnels on either side, doors caved in and rocks spilling out. In the wave of workers, it was hard to tell who and if anyone was missing. It wouldn't have been a surprise though, all the workers knew that the rundown A0L was prone to accidents. To A0L5SM's memory, 14 miners had died in similar ways.

The massive lift was painted black, rising straight up into a square gap in the roof. The elevator rose for a minute, before the lights from the tunnel disappeared. It stopped a few seconds later, and two large copper doors opened up, flooding light into the lift area. The doors opened to a massive hub, where 200 other lifts appeared out of the walls, as thousands of workers poured out towards the massive entrances. All the sectors in the area were being short shifted.

Thirty foot high Copper doors slowly opened, as all the miners walked out shoulder to shoulder in an orderly fashion, more formal than the shuffling of A0L. They would all have an hour to get their rations and return to their housing districts.

This building housed all sectors with designations beginning with A0, and sector buildings were scattered across Vol, some in clumps and some seemingly random. Amenities and rations districts surrounded these areas, many housing districts being wrapped around these areas. Clumps of workers split off at every turn down the tall metal corridors. 10,000 turned into 6,000 which turned into 2,000 which turned into 700.

A0L5SM grabbed his rations and headed to his housing district. 5SM was a collection of five or so 3-story buildings, the neighboring districts having much taller housing. Though 5SM housing was made of metal, they were covered in patches of rust and grime, one of them having a caved-in third floor. There were no auto-doors on 5SM buildings either, only a few traditional hinge-doors and a few vent doors. A0L5SM didn't care as much, after all, it was only work, eat, sleep. Work, eat, sleep, survive.

The next day started like every other. A0L5SM arrived at the A0, where a group of miners were stopped by some guards. They informed him that they'd all be transferring to sector A3. Despite its similar designation, it was further to the west side of the city. The workers would have to move housing districts as well, and they would be escorted at the start of tomorrow. It was rare that he felt some form of excitement. Such expression was viewed negatively, with any type of outburst being met with disciplinary action. Though, one emotion he had begun to feel was loathing for that filthy building, the door that constantly got stuck, the cooling that never seemed to work. He wasn't even sure if anyone else lived in that building with him.

"No!"

A0L5S's bliss was cut short by yelling outside of the tunnel. He had just thrown his ax down, letting it fall to the ground as he spun towards the door. It was still closed shut, though the grunting echoing through the tunnel outside gave the illusion of no door at all. Against his base instincts, he walked towards the door, peering out of a gap between the two ends of the doors.

"I c- I can't...!" The voice screamed out again. A0L5SM pressed against the door, his eye barely sneaking through the crack. Across from his tunnel, 2 guards dragged a thrashing worker out of his tunnel, 2 others with guns pointed at them. "Please, just..!" They screamed out again, before thrashing their arm and clocking one of the guards in the face. The other guard grabbed them with both hands as the worker threw him on the floor. The moment they hit the ground, the entire sector echoed a roaring slap and a deafening flash.

The guard on the floor slowly got back up, dusting off his body. They all looked around at the other doors, before walking back to the tunnel entrance. Other workers were also peering through their doors, but everyone quickly resumed operations. Two minutes later, the same routine as yesterday commenced. At the top of the lift, it seemed only sector A0L was ordered early, though two or three had stayed behind. 1,000 only turns into 600, which turned into 200, which turned into 70.

A0L5SM didn't think much of the event, more concerned with his change of scenery. The last shoving on those old doors, the hard wooden floor he slept on at night. Though, one of his amenities was a sleeping smoke, so he rarely felt the cold floor for long. It would be only a night's sleep before he got out of that place. Perhaps his new sector would offer better equipment. Perhaps he could show off his speed and efficiency. Maybe one day, as they all believed, they might get out of those mines, and work at the top of the towers. Some even wondered about being guards.

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A0L5SM lowered down to the floor, pressing a red button underneath a window sill. Nozzles opened from the floor at the other side of the studio room, and filled the space up with a purple smoke. His eyes closed and he faded off, though in an instant his eyes would be open again. Full of rest, but no feeling of rest.

A0L5S headed out quicker than usual that morning. He was unsure if they would be transferring him from his home or from the A0 building directly, but still, he hurried off as he usually would. His door opened with no effort, though the front door seemed jammed shut. Luckily there was a back entrance, and he slid through an alley way back onto the main road. He felt more free, almost swinging his arms. If he hadn't feared it, he might have even put a smile on his face.

The thought wouldn't last long. He had too much space for his hands. A0L5SM slowly broke from his trance, as he looked around him. The glistening walls bouncing the light down silent corridors. The strange sand that was falling from where the sun shined. The lack of rumbling and motion on the ground, and the ever-present knocking of metal.

It was quiet.

A0L5SM ran down the city streets, heading scanning left and right down every turn, but the silence didn't end. All the different sources of fear flooded his already loud mind. That of discipline, of abandonment, of punishment. He concluded there must have been something he missed, perhaps a malfunction in his sleep. It was enough to compromise with the anxiety.

He arrived at the tall copper doors of the A0 building, though the doors shut tight. Two platforms on either side of the door, normally occupied by guards, were empty. The openings behind them gave no sound or echo, no footsteps or even a scream. The tightly placed building to each side of him only brought the sound of wind as the new loudest force. The grand 'dead-end' of the A0 building became a reality. He thought of screaming, and maybe he did, but it quickly faded into the silence.

He ran to the right end of the door, hoping to find something. Not even so much as a spill, this end of the city was clean as ever. He scanned the door up until the left end, finding a console with a blank screen. Tapping everywhere gave no results, it was shut off. A0L5SM banged his hands on the screen, still holding on to his shout. He became aware of his breathing and elevated heart rate, which only fed into his anxiety. He tried to breath, as the wind slowly came to a halt.

"What!?"

Replacing the echoing wind was hints of some man's voice. He turned back behind him, the sound crawling out of a tiny alleyway opening. The voices were muffled, around at least a few corners, but A0L5SM could make out two distinct voices. The fear of discipline clashed with the fear of silence, as he decided what action would end the nightmare the fastest. He tip-toed towards the access alley, and slipped through the pipes, sidling the claustrophobic space. He slowly peaked around the final corner, leading into an empty lot. It was about 20 square feet surrounded by walls of pipe and wire. Two colorful characters put on a show in the center.

A0L5S pulled back around the corner as soon as he saw them. Unlike their typical gray work outfits, or the black suits worn by the guards, these people wore the colors that were much brighter and vibrant, like the shiny stones sometimes found in the tunnels. He tried to listen through the sound of his heartbeat.

"Look, I'm just saying that we're here, and Devon is not. Let's take the opportunity!" A male voice spoke out excitedly. He had a more gritty tone, despite being expressive, and a particularly strange accent that wasn't from anywhere nearby. "You're giving me that look again..."

A0L5SM slowly peeked back out again, to see a sleek figure in blue and white, with long black hair. She spoke out, though A0L5SM could only see her backside. She started to laugh, presumably at the man. "Let's not go through this dance." She spoke out, having a deeper voice for a woman.

He attempted to slide forward a bit, but forgot to look down. He slowly shuffled, unaware that his two feet were between a small pipe on the ground. He began to make out the man, dressed in a sharp red jacket with loose black pants. His eyes widened at the outlandish outfit, and just needed to shuffle a little more to see his face fully. As he shifted one last time, his foot fully caught underneath the pipe, and he flew forward onto the ground, in full sight of the two.

A0L5SM's ears nearly blew, as he was pushed to the ground a second time by fear. A loud gunshot blew off, with a bullet exploding a foot or two away from him. He let out the short scream he had been holding in, and he froze prone on the ground. Waiting patiently for anything, A0L5S kept his breathing in check so as to not move too much. A technique useful when mining involves tighter crawl spaces.

"Hey..." The male voice half-heartedly said. A0L5SM continued to freeze, though he could feel his heartbeat causing his body to shake.

"I know you're not dead..." The man said.

"Oh my god..." the woman whispered to herself, frustrated.

Not knowing what to do, A0L5SM shouted out his worker designation as fast as he could. "W... What?" The man yelled at him confused.

"A-Oh-L-Five-S-M!"

"I... I don't know what that means, mate." There was an awkward silence, as A0L5SM was still laid frozen. "Look, ah, I'm not planning on killing you." After a few seconds, He turned his head quickly to face them. The woman was off to the right side, crouched down towards the wall and pulling wires. The man was staring him down, one hand on a large gun, the other scratching a thick black beard. "Ok, that's a start." He gave a sarcastic smile, and a half-hearted wave. He lifted his gun into the air, as it deconstructed down smaller and smaller until it was nothing but a small strip on his wrist.

A0L5SM slowly rose to his feet, trying to control his breathing. His eyes darted between the two figures. His heartbeat rocked his body, and he couldn't see straight. Through the adrenaline, his legs began to dart to the open end of the corridor as fast as he could. Before he could turn the corner, the bearded man grabbed his shirt and pinned him against the wall. The man stared him dead in the eyes. "Oh no mate, you can't tell anyone about this, alright?"

A0L5SM screamed out, "I don't even know where anyone is!"

The man slightly loosened his grip, a confused look on his face. "Where did you come from?"

A0L5SM began to stutter. "I was at my housing, I walked to work, there was no one."

The man quickly turned around. "Leon!" He yelled, as the woman came and turned the corner. "I think we have a situation."

"What?" Leon said, walking towards them both. "You made the Drone shit himself?"

He chuckled a little, before letting go of A0L5SM. "He's the only one here." He turned around towards Leon. "He's the only one here!" He started laughing, then began slapping the walls. "There's no one here! I was right!" He let out another loud laugh, before turning back to A0L5SM. "And you have no idea where they went?"

A0L5SM looked down the open corridor, wondering if he could make it down, but the man put his finger on the miner's chin and turned his head back towards him. A0L5SM stuttered a bit again, before swallowing his adrenaline, his heart rate falling. "There should be thousands. They're just gone."

Leon approached the man, and put her hand on his shoulder. They had a short glance at each other, before he swung his head back towards A0L5SM. "Tell you what, mate. I've got an offer..." He slapped his hands on A0L5SM's shoulders. "You get to come with me, and we figure out what happened here, yeah?"

"Rhyder..." Leon grumbled.

"Well if you don't want to stay here!" Rhyder yelled back. A0L5SM laughed a bit, he had never really heard anyone's name before. Any word outside what he knew seemed humorous at first. They sounded like gibberish to him. He couldn't tell how sane these circus clowns really were, but considering they shot at him, he wasn't about to tell them that. "So then, what do ya think? I've got some fun plans for you." A0L5SM quickly nodded his head. "Oh and... Can we shorten whatever you screamed at me?"

"You mean..." A0L5SM whimpered out. Rhyder backed away from him and pulled out a tablet from his back. A0L5SM regained his composure again. "... A-Oh-L-"

"Aeo! Yes, that'll do." Rhyder burst out. "I had a second cousin named Aeolus, actually."

"That sounds made up."

"Every name is made up by someone, that's what makes a name anything." Rhyder adjusted his jacket, then slipped his tablet into a slot on his back, under his jacket. "Now, we've got a ride coming, so keep up." He gave one final glance to Leon, before running off down the corridor. Leon gave a concerned look to Aeolus, looking him up and down, before nodding her head and waving him along.

He ran after Rhyder, who was shouting and laughing the entire time, the booming echo's following them out of the city. A strange sense of wonder, the taboo, and determination filled the newly named 'Aeolus'.