I stood there perfectly still. There was no doubt in my mind, staring at this incredible towering monstrosity, that its alure was intoxicating. Having worked here for three years now, I know this is my life. I will live, work, and die here. The creed of TimeSun is to further humanity and protect our species. I take another moment to just take in my new work area. It is loud, machines are humming everywhere and take up almost all of the space in this claustrophobic mess.

I return to my work of fixing a broken packing machine. My job turned from working on junk and learning about TimeSun to finally being inside the first Sector, which is where energy cells and other contained energy are brought and packaged for storage or use. I squeeze myself between some large pipes and disable the power to the packing machine I was assigned. I make my way back to my toolbox at the front of the machine as I dab the sweat off my forehead and eyes. It is unbearably hot and unbearably loud in here. We do have headphones that double as communication and noise canceling, but being a Tier 4 they are very low budget.

I write down on my checklist I successfully disabled power to the machine and have located the issue. One of the holding cylinder's welds had snapped. It is fairly worn and I make the call to replace it entirely. It is not easy to remove as the bolts have nearly heat welded themselves to the casing but with enough elbow grease I remove each one before prying the entire cylinder off. It snaps into two pieces as I pull it off and I set them and the bolts by my toolbox.

The cylinder I brought is also used but in much better condition and I slide it into the holding case before ensuring the size is correct. It seems a slight bit larger than needed but that will more than likely wear down overtime and not be an issue. I make as many notes as needed on my clipboard before finishing the job and bolting the new housing and cylinder together. I crawl my way back and restart the power and turn the machine on.

"This is Zetrex, go ahead and power on Packager 41 please," I stated into my microphone.

"Affirmative, restarting power in 1 minute to Packager 41," our lead replied.

He is very cautious for a Tier 4 lead. Typically most want to pump through as many orders as possible to get their promotions. Arthur is not one of them though and prefers to see us in one piece after every order. I await the minute, leaning against a pipe as I watch the system reboot and the guard slide into place before the humming of the machine reverberates through my body. Suddenly an energy core enters the cylinder before the protective casing is applied and it is sent to a large drum housing for storage. I let it repeat this process three times before I consider my job done.

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"This is Zetrex, Packager 41 is operational again," I reported.

"Excellent! Thank you much," Arthur commended.

I made the last of my report and still was annoyed at the paperwork needed. Tier 3 has all automated and digital footprints. Having to jot down everything is such a hassle from labor time, supplies used, work done, and anything else relevant to the project has to be logged. I feel bad too for poor Allyson. 

With a sigh I make my way out of the packaging staging area and head to the reporting arena. It takes nearly thirty minutes to get there and I see Keenan standing by the gate playing with his arm band and lanyard.

"Zetrex! What's gooood!" he blurted.

"Hello Keenan, just here to deliver my report to Allyson."

"Groovy," he laughed, throwing his long brown hair back. "Card pleeeeease."

I obliged and handed over my ID. He did his fancy little twirl and swipe thing he has to do EVERYTIME, waiting for it to affirm me with a little beep and green light. Which is does.

"These corporate checks, am I right? HA!" he chuckles to himself as he hands over my ID back. "See you."

"Later."

Conversations with Keenan are hard but not as hard as with Allyson. I make my way down the hall, passed the dorms, and to the reporting office at the end. I give the door a knock and hear audible groaning and something falling. This is followed by more noise of falling papers, books, and I am assuming Allyson. I take a few steps back as I hear the menagerie of sounds continue. Finally Allyson opens the door, her hair a mess, he shirt completely unbuttoned and skirt drifting.

"Oh, Zachary, greetings," she awkwardly says, trying to smile but her face contorts oddly.

"Zetrex, Allyson. I am Zetrex Halborgen," I corrected her.

"Sorry, Zane," she replied, taking the report I held out. She is such a bright girl, but just can't remember names nor be sociable. It is so odd how Keenan and her got partnered up for my area. She slipped making her way back to her desk and she slammed the door closed as she was holding the handle.

 "Right then. Good night," I said to the door before retiring to my room.

I am not sure how my dad did this for eight years before moving to Tier 3. It was mind numbing just going three years in. Can I handle much more? For as big as this tower is and ever expanding, I fear for the future. More and more low tiers are coming in and if something breaks horridly down here at the bottom, how will the top survive? I collapsed on my bed upon entering and just looked at the ceiling. No matter what though, I must see this through. This is more than a job. This is my life.