There were many counters in the hall. The hall seemed to be a place where many administrative and overhead operations took place. They sporadically chose some counters to hold the bone cross holographic projections, and the counter the suited woman sat on was only one of many.

The holographic projection was no doubt placed there to draw the eye of any Camper. In fact, it would draw the eye of anyone who saw it, but none but Campers would approach it. It was the symbol of the Campers’ eternal desperation; a constant reminder of the gruesome reality they lived in. So much so that it was emblazoned on their clothes, marking them out from others no matter where they went.

It was a constant reminder of their shame in society.

However, the Campers had long gotten used to it. Years of wearing the symbol had desensitized them to it. Disregarding the sidelong looks, they went to the closest counter with the holographic projection—the one where the suited woman sat.

The woman took out the cigarette from her mouth, spewing the smoke at them with pouted lips as they grew near.

Smiling, she asked, “Here for supplies?” She pointed at the item projecting the bone cross. “Place your Alohad devices in there. It sounds stupid, but there have been a few abnormals attempting to pass for Campers hoping to enter the Quartermaster’s Store. If you fall under this category, this device will fish you out.”

Eldon inspected the item. It was an amalgamation of spinning silver metal circles, intertwined through one another and hovering over a block of silver metal. Eldon couldn’t recognize the character boldly etched in the center of the silver block, and he saw a series of other smaller unfamiliar characters all over its body. Together, the contraption emitted a light that interwove into the holographic projection they saw.

With nothing to say, Zachary approached the contraption to scan his Seeker. As he did, doors opened again, drawing Eldon’s attention. It was another team of Campers.

Eldon met the eyes of one of them, a petite black-haired girl, but it was only for a second. The girl pointed towards the next closest counter and her team went there, leaving them alone with the suited woman.

Eldon returned his attention to the ongoing inspection. Hollie went next after Zachary was through. Eldon watched as she pushed her hand into the spinning blades until her Seeker was right inside the twirling metal circles. A moment later, the item emitted a beep, and the suited woman nodded, sucking in another breath of noxious smoke.

Ray went next, then Logan, and then it was Eldon’s turn. He stepped forward and pushed his hand in, just like the others had done. As he did so, Eldon felt uneasy.

He could not help but wonder if the contraption could somehow expose his loss of strength. The Seekers had an additional purpose of monitoring the Campers’ actions, so it was possible that the inspection could reveal it.

He held his breath. Was the scanning taking too long? It didn’t take so long for the others. So why was it taking so long for him?

Just as Eldon’s anxiety reached its peak, the item beeped, just like it did for the others.

He let out the breath he’d been holding. He stepped back. Looking up, he thought he saw the woman quickly glance away, but he could have been mistaken.

The woman squinted at the contraption and said, “Looks like you’re all good. No impostors here.”

From the corner of his eye, Eldon saw one of the red-robed guards step forward as she said that. However, the woman waved him back.

“I’ll take them there myself. No worries.” She jumped to the ground. When she saw that the red-robed guard still hadn’t returned to his post, she turned to glare at him.

“You heard me right, so don’t stare at me with that face!”

The guard didn’t move.

She sighed. “Alright, alright. I’ll have a word with that pot-bellied grandpa. Happy now?”

The red-robed guard remained motionless for a moment, then he slowly stepped back.

“I can’t believe they won’t even listen to me…” she muttered, loud enough for Eldon to hear. “Looks like if I don’t teach him a lesson or two, he won’t give his cronies the right instructions!”

Eldon exchanged glances with Zachary, who shrugged.

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

The suited woman seemed to come to a satisfying conclusion as she nodded and turned to them. “You. Follow me.”

They complied. Eldon turned and swept the hall with his gaze as they left. The team with the petite girl had also completed their inspection and was being led by a red-robed guard through another passageway. A few other teams had also entered the hall, taking their places.

As the woman led them through winding hallways, they met many diverse groups of people wearing different attires and suits. Most of them stopped and saluted the woman as she passed them. Others either ignored her or greeted her with a nod.

Seeing all this, Eldon had the thought that there was no way that the entrance they came through was the only one into this building. It also didn’t seem likely that only those two red-robed guards were guarding the entrance. Other hidden abnormals had to be protecting it.

After all, if those two guards were the only ones guarding the entrance…

Eldon’s serene mind shook. His inability to tell the strength of abnormals was proving to be more troublesome than he had expected. It was comparable to losing his sense of sight. It was only after losing it he realized just how much he was reliant on it.

“Is it just me, or have we been heading downward all this time?” Zachary whispered to the group.

“I thought so too,” Hollie said. “I think we’re underground now.”

“Not again,” Zachary murmured to himself.

Unable to sense it, Eldon stayed quiet. Soon, the woman led them to a flight of descending stairs. Eldon looked down. The stairs seemed to lead down into a yawning abyss.

The woman pointed down. “That’s where you have to go. Just head down these steps and walk straight, and you should see it. Don’t turn any corners. Just go straight. Okay? And you shouldn’t get lost.”

She was obviously trying to escape her duties.

She stared in every direction, making sure they were alone. Covering her mouth with her palm as if she was taking a drag, she leaned forward.

“Look, I’ll just give you a heads-up so you know what you’re getting into. That place is miraculous. Anything you can think of, you can find there. I’m completely serious. Soldiers as weak as ants and as hopeless as Campers have emerged from there and became strong abnormals. If you make prudent choices, there’s no limit to the benefits you can get.

“Just make sure that, in anything you do, you don’t anger the Quartermaster.”

She raised her eyebrows for emphasis’ sake. “Do not anger the Quartermaster. He’s the ultimate authority in there. Not even…” She lowered her voice further. “I didn’t tell you this, but not even the president can control him. If you take one misstep, you’ll lose this golden opportunity.”

“Uh, senior,” Zachary raised a hand. “Do you by chance know…”

“Don’t ask me. I don’t know.” The woman leaned back and smoothened her jacket. She removed the cigarette and blew it out. “Anything you want to ask, I don’t know. That’s all. Have fun!”

She left, skipping through a doorway different from the one they went through on their way here. Everything she did showed Eldon that she was definitely running away from her duties, using the information she gave them to keep them quiet.

Logan stepped forward and peered down the stairs. “It’s so dark. Why is it so dark?”

Hollie laid a hand on the railing and pulled. A series of clacking reverberations resounded, traveling deeper underground.

“Well,” Zachary said when the sound died down. “It’s not like we have a choice.”

The stairs led to a dark, dungeon-like passageway. There were several offshoots off the main corridor, but sticking to the suited woman’s instructions, they walked as straight as they could. As they walked, they met other groups. Unlike them, red-robed guards accompanied these groups, striding ahead of them.

Soon, they burst into a wide cavern. Opposite them were gigantic stone doors that connected the ground to the ceiling. Glowing swirling patterns adorned the stone, setting the doors apart from the grey walls to either side.

The glowing patterns shone light down, illuminating the campers that occupied the cavern. They sat in groups, their voices mere murmurs. The gravity of the situation must have been weighing hard on them, because there was not the least sign of restless battle intent among them.

“Looks like almost everyone is here,” Zachary noted. By now, most would have found their teams. Taking too long meant they may not have enough time to prepare for the upcoming war.

The group went down into the cavern after observing a moment longer. They had to leap down, but none of the Campers, except Eldon, would have noticed it. He also didn’t notice it at first until he landed and found that he almost broke his knee. Thankfully, his physique had already been strengthened by Abyss Eye’s formula and was strong enough to endure the fall.

They searched around for a bit, wandering among the waiting groups until they found a suitable spot. They found a spot that had enough space for all of them to sit and was distanced enough from the other teams. The ground was cold and hard, but the Campers had experienced worse. They simply sat down and waited for whatever everyone else was waiting for.

Groups after groups of Campers continued to arrive, the red-robed guards that led them here leaving immediately afterwards. While they waited, over time, fewer and fewer groups arrived. Hours later, Aiken strolled in alongside Galen. He didn’t see them, leading Galen to wait on the other side from where their group was.

Eldon wondered if Aiken had solved the situation with Galen. Galen had allowed Eldon to stay on the roof, but Eldon had abandoned him there to chase after Abyss Eye, and now the boy hadn’t joined Abyss Eye’s team. Eldon felt a little guilty about it.

Perhaps this is a karmic recompense for my trickery, Eldon thought. It was a foreign thought, one that Eldon never expected to have. Karma? Trickery? These concepts were distant to Eldon; far too distant from the thoughts that normally weighed on his mind.

Karma did not exist, and trickery was only a part of life. This had been Eldon’s conclusion, but it seemed it was now wavering. Losing his abnormality was changing him in many unexpected ways.

While lost in thought, Eldon felt someone nudge him.

“Look who’s coming,” Zachary said, gesturing forward. Eldon followed his gaze and raised an eyebrow.

Aiken had seen them and was leading Galen over. However, that was not the most interesting thing. There was something in Aiken’s gaze that gave Eldon a funny feeling. He couldn’t believe his eyes.