“Alfie, up! I want up!”

Alpha-1 smiled as it hefted the energetic toddler up with both hands. It held the toddler steady for a moment before placing him on its shoulders.

Seeing this, the other three children were visibly jealous, also wanting to ride on Alpha-1’s shoulders. However, since it couldn’t accommodate them all due to its own small stature, they could only grasp and climb up its limbs while giggling.

Alpha-1 tolerated their behaviour, playing along to entertain them, but also made sure to be aware of its surroundings to ensure the children did not get hurt. After many months of taking care of them, it had become an expert nanny and caretaker. The job was exhausting and frustrating at times, but in the end, moments like these made up for it all.

In the distance, the sound of footsteps drew closer. One pair was swift and smart, clacking like a soldier on parade, while the other was slightly disjointed, one footstep heavy and dull while the other was lighter and sharper.

Hearing this, Alpha-1 quickly pulled the toddler from its shoulders, setting him down gently. At the same time, it shook off the other three as well. The children seemed intimidated by the incoming footsteps and clustered timidly by Alpha-1’s scaly legs.

“You four, behave yourselves,” Aelfred said sternly.

He had not changed much over the last few years. While he physically seemed elderly, he carried himself with the energy of a confident younger man. He wore the same robe and black necklace as always, carrying a familiar air of scholarly authority.

“Aelfred, go easy on them,” Peregrine sighed, “they’re only children.”

In contrast to his senior, Peregrine sported a few more wrinkles than before. At least from what Alpha-1 could tell. Otherwise, he was still just as smartly-dressed and well-groomed as always.

“Heavy machinery and carcinogenic chemicals do not discriminate between age or innocence,” Aelfred grumbled. He turned to scowl at Alpha-1, “why are the children outside of their designated area?”

Alpha-1 bowed its head, “I have been negligent, Lord.”

Aelfred frowned, “Escort them back, then. Make sure this does not happen again, or you’ll be missing out on meals.”

Alpha-1 nodded thankfully, “Come, children. Let’s not tarry.”

The 3-year-olds were surprisingly obedient, clearly intimidated by Aelfred and Peregrine. Once the imp had led them sufficiently far away, Peregrine turned to look at Aelfred.

“I feel you have been too harsh on them. A laboratory is no place to raise children,” he advised, “Those few rooms you’ve given them cannot contain their budding curiosity, and they will only become more daring as time goes by.”

Aelfred sighed reluctantly but still relented, “It will just be for three more months. I have already enrolled them into a nearby school.”

Peregrine was surprised at Aelfred’s agreement, but felt immediate concern upon hearing his words.

“You plan on sending them to school this early? They’ll face a lot of discrimination from student and teacher alike - why not entrust them to someone trustworthy for homeschooling instead?”

“External pressure is necessary for growth,” Aelfred shrugged, “Besides, who is trustworthy enough to raise the fruits of my labour on my behalf?”

The two stopped walking. Aelfred turned to look at Peregrine doubtfully.

“You can’t mean… you?”

The latter raised his hands in mock surrender, “All I’m saying is that Anne and I have children of our own. Besides, Anne spends all day looking after ours, a few more couldn’t hurt.”

Aelfred raised an eyebrow in response, “She’s still unemployed?”

Peregrine seemed to deflate slightly, “She insists on their strange aristocratic tradition of staying at home. I’ve tried to explain to her about the rising cost of living but it’s like talking to a wall.”

“Well, you’re definitely one of the least affected. I hear military contracts have been quite lucrative lately,” Aelfred chuckled, “I remember reading something in the paper about that mechanised Titan armour your company has been developing.”

Peregrine visibly perked at the mention of new technology.

“Well yes, after seeing the success of the Vanguard powered exoskeletons we’ve developed, I decided to go bigger. The first wave of Mark 1 Titan Armours have already been produced and tested,” Peregrine gushed excitedly, “The current main issue is power supply and operating time, as well as armaments. I’ve been trying to set up a deal with…”

As Peregrine spoke, Aelfred smiled slightly.

‘Topic successfully averted.’

———

A few months later.

“Is Lord Aelfred not coming to pick us up today?”

Alpha-1 shook its head, “The Lord is busy today, so it will just be me again. Be good and play nicely, okay?”

The 4-year-olds nodded obediently, making sounds of affirmation. The eldest by a fourth of a second, Aleister, stepped forward to hug Alpha-1’s leg.

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

“Bye bye Alfie!”

The other three followed suit and cutely bade their caretaker farewell. They watched Alpha-1 disappear around the street corner for a few moments before immediately turning to look at one another.

“Alright, let’s ditch class,” Aleister snickered mischievously.

The only girl and youngest of the four shook her head vehemently, “And do what? We’re just kids, we won’t be able to do anything and we’ll just get in trouble. Again.”

The second oldest, Han, pushed her playfully.

“Anything is better than rotting in there. Let’s go already. Sol, back me up.”

The third youngest, Solomon, had not been paying attention. Hearing his name, he blinked disorientedly.

“Uh, yeah, sure. What am I agreeing to, by the way?”

Ignoring him, Han grinned.

“Three against one. It’s been decided, let’s get out of here!”

Aleister had already begun running the moment Solomon agreed, while Han grabbed Solomon by the sleeve and took off right behind him. Only Lillian let out a frustrated growl before chasing after them.

“Wait up you guys!”

———

Han eventually let go of Solomon’s sleeve to catch up to Aleister. As Solomon didn’t want to leave Lillian behind all alone, he slowed down to let her catch up. As such, they got lost.

Lillian huffed and puffed as she ran, slowing down to stop beside Solomon who didn’t seem to have broken a sweat.

“We were all artificially created, yet you guys are always faster than me! It’s not fair,” She complained.

Solomon smiled with a light shrug, “If you’ve got a problem with that, take it up with Lord Aelfred.”

Lillian shook her head again, “Impossible. The only thing I’ll get from that is a spanking.”

“Then I suppose your only other option is to exercise more. Or take supplements,” Solomon jested.

Lillian looked at him from the corner of her eye with mock disgust.

“Sol, we’re four years old. Supplements and excessive exercise will only be detrimental to our development.”

“Wow, you’re incredibly articulate for a child.”

“Shut up. Let’s go find the other two.”

“Where do you think they went?” Solomon asked smilingly.

“Probably went gambling.”

“What, again? I thought they got banned for cheating. And also being underage.”

Lillian shrugged, “They’ve been using proxies to circumnavigate those restrictions.”

“Oh. Okay. Well, should we go after them or do something else?”

“Follow them, duh.”

“As you command, milady.”

The two quickly made their way towards the nearest gambler’s den. Looking at it from a distance, Solomon felt his head begin to ache as he observed just how lively the location was. More than that, though, were the bouncers and other security on the premises.

Getting inside would be difficult.

“How do you think we can get past the guards? Even just the number of people nearby will make it difficult for us to get in. It’s too obvious that we’re children,” Solomon said.

There was no response.

Solomon turned with a puzzled look adorning his youthful face, only to be met with a man of average stature who wore a trench coat and top hat. In his left hand was a large leather bag containing the writhing figure of Lillian. The man gave Solomon a crooked grin as he reached down to grab the boy.

Solomon’s survival instincts kicked in as soon as he saw the unfamiliar face. He quickly ducked backwards while yelling, “Help! Kidnapper!”

The moment he shouted, the kidnapper realised the mistake he’d made. He didn’t expect such a young child to be so nimble, nor did he expect him to shout that loudly. Regardless, the man decided to cut his losses immediately, backing away into the alleyway from which he’d initially emerged.

‘I can’t beat an adult alone. I need to get help!’

Solomon watched as the trench coat wearing man disappeared with the bag that contained Lillian, a feeling of helplessness taking hold. While he did want to give chase, the other party was a full grown adult, while he was just a child. Even if he did manage to catch up to the kidnapper, what was he even to do?

Solomon turned back to look at the gambling den and crossed his arms in thought as he began to formulate a plan.

“Hey, misters!”

The bouncers looked down to find a small child at their feet. The first bouncer couldn’t help but chuckle upon seeing the boy who was waving his arms mid-jump, attempting to catch their attention.

“What can we do for you, little man?” He asked kindly.

Solomon pointed back to the alleyway which the kidnapper had used to escape.

“A man wearing a brown trench coat and top hat kidnapped my friend!”

The bouncers shared looks. Huang sighed and crouched down to look at the boy more evenly.

“I’m sorry kiddo, but we’re on duty. I want to help you, but I’ll lose my job if I leave my post.”

Solomon pulled a small pouch from within his child-sized waistcoat. He shook it, producing a jingling sound.

“20 gold coins. They’re all yours if you help,” he offered.

Huang blinked first in shock, then in disbelief. The thought of this being a trap or some kind of prank crossed his mind, but the allure of wealth was too great. After all, 20 gold coins was enough for a man like him to quit his job and invest in starting a small business.

He took the pouch and looked within.

“Holy sh*t. 20 gold coins!” He exclaimed subconsciously.

His colleague’s interest was piqued, “Seriously?”

“No kidding! Hey, kiddo, where did you say that guy ran off to again?” Huang asked.

“That way.”

The other bouncer, Johan, raised his hand. “Excuse me young master, can I come too?”

Solomon sized the man up before nodding hastily, “Sure, but that’s all the money I have on me. Quick, before the kidnapper gets away.”

Huang and Johan glanced at each other again, both seeing the bags of money floating in each other’s eyes gleefully. Huang picked Solomon up with ease, carrying him in one arm.

The two bouncers quickly deserted their posts and charged into the alleyway, weapons at the ready. Solomon was like a living compass, pointing them around various corners.

The trio soon stopped at a crossroads at the end of the alley. Huang and Johan looked at the short, black-haired boy for directions. Solomon folded his arms for a moment before pointing a certain direction.

As they carried Solomon and ran, Huang couldn’t help but scratch his head.

“Kid, even though we haven’t seen the kidnapper, why is it that you seem to know exactly which direction he’s gone?” He asked.

“Are you just randomly guessing which paths to take?” Johan added.

Solomon shook his small head, “I saw his face for a brief moment when he tried to catch me. He has long brown eyelashes, blue eyes and greying hairs, yet he doesn’t appear to be too old.”

The bouncers and impromptu rescuers were visibly puzzled.

“By matching these features and assigning them based on phenotype, I can roughly estimate which ethnicity he belongs to. Immigrants tend to move into the same neighbourhoods, so I can determine which direction he’s heading,” Solomon explained.

Huang and Johan shared a confused look but eventually shrugged and continued running. Either way, they were getting paid. Even if they just had to run around in circles for an hour, for 20 gold? It was worth it.

“Also, those other two paths lead to the city centre and police station, so it could have only been this path,” Solomon admitted sheepishly.

As soon as they turned another corner, they caught sight of a medium-height man wearing a brown top hat and trench coat strolling in the distance. Squinting his eyes, Solomon could make out a bump beneath the coat that appeared to be squirming.

“That’s the man!” He whispered, “but don’t make a fuss. Quick, put me down, don’t let him see me.”

The two bouncers slowed to a walk and Huang obliged. It was as if they were soldiers and Solomon were their commander-in-chief, obeying his every command.

“Why don’t we just go and apprehend him now?” Johan asked.

“To find wherever he’s taking Lillian to. I’d rather weed this problem out now once and for all while we have the opportunity to do so, rather than have to grow up in fear,” Solomon explained solemnly.

Johan felt chills at this small child’s calculated ruthlessness but said no more. It didn’t matter if the boy was talking big - the key was that appearances were truly deceiving. Who knew a kid could be so pragmatic!