(Continuation of events in the village)
Jesse rose from his place quietly, with an air of seriousness dominating his features. He took a deep breath, then asked Mira, "Do you know where Marcus is right now? Perhaps he has an idea of their whereabouts."
The other replied as she got up from the chair, saying, "Yes, he's at the main gate as usual, overseeing its repair."
And without another word, Jesse set off towards Marcus's location.
Mira stiffened for several seconds, looking up at the ceiling with a mix of sadness and tension, thinking to herself, "I feel ashamed that I allowed this to happen... I'm supposed to be the leader and I must ensure the safety of the others, even if they are skilled like them. But I won't give up and I will help them no matter what it costs me."
Mira shifted her gaze back towards the door to find that Jesse had already left the place, so she immediately ran towards the same destination, hoping to meet him halfway.
But even though he was far ahead of her, it didn't take her more than a minute to reach him.
She stopped beside him quietly, patting his back with a small but tired smile on her face.
Jesse turned towards her with tired eyes and said in a calm tone, "I thought you would stay there."
Mira replied in a joking tone, "Hahaha, I just got lost in thought."
Jesse nodded quietly, and they continued walking together along the snowy path, their footsteps passing silently, with only the sound of their shoes hitting the piled snow audible.
Upon reaching the gate, they encountered a group of men working hard trying to repair it.
Ropes were around the huge gate, being pulled to reinstall it. Sounds of shouting and orders echoed around the work site.
Jesse approached one of the workers wearing heavy winter clothes, dirty with soil, carrying a box full of nails in his right hand and a hammer in his left, calling out to him, "Excuse me, friend."
The man didn't hear him at first, but Jesse grabbed his shoulder and asked to talk to him, which made him turn towards him in surprise.
The man said with a mix of fatigue and inquiry, "What do you need?"
Jesse replied, placing his hand on his chest, "Sorry to bother you, but can I ask you about Marcus's whereabouts?"
The man replied, with anxiety and disgust evident in his eyes, "Yuck, why would you want to go to that sicko?"
Jesse replied, "I just want to ask him about something important."
The man replied, his eyes showing more worry, "I don't know what you want from this person, but listen, take this as advice from an old-timer in this place, stay away from him if you have a shred of sense. That man knows nothing but violence and intimidation, so be careful dealing with him."
Jesse replied, trying to end the conversation, "Okay, thanks for the advice, but I really need him now."
The man took a deep breath, then pointed towards one of the nearby shacks, saying, "He's probably in that shack."
Jesse nodded quickly in thanks, then proceeded directly towards his location.
Upon reaching the shack, Jesse entered directly without introduction, with a mix of anger and suspicion in his eyes.
And on the opposite side, Marcus was sitting in something resembling an office, his fingers interlaced as he looked towards the door, from behind his mask, like a soulless doll.
Jesse advanced towards him with steady steps, placing his hands firmly on the table and saying in a tone full of suspicion towards him, "Marcus."
The other raised his head slowly towards him, saying in a calm tone devoid of any expression, "Jesse... I see you're in a hurry—"
Jesse interrupted him, saying, "Ethan and the others, where are they?"
Marcus answered him with the same coldness, "And how should I know?"
The other continued his speech, "You speak as if you weren't the one who kidnapped us in the first place."
Marcus sighed quietly, then replied, "You say you suspect that I kidnapped them, then... Your thinking is good, but hasty. Why would I kidnap you all again anyway?"
Jesse answered him, "Who knows what's going on in your mind, but I wouldn't be surprised if you repeated that deed."
Marcus was silent for a moment, before rising from his chair quietly and starting to walk out of the shack, saying as he did so, directing his words to Jesse, "I don't think talking to you will lead to any result, so I prefer to give you material evidence so you can believe me. Come, follow me."
Marcus left the room, while Jesse followed him, with confusion and suspicion still looming in his heart.
Outside, Mira was talking to a group of workers, laughing and chatting with them.
As soon as the workers noticed Marcus, they apologized to Mira and quickly returned to their work before he noticed them.
Mira turned around to find Jesse following Marcus, which puzzled her, so she stopped what she was doing and headed towards them.
Upon reaching them, she asked in a joking tone, "Did you reach a solution this quickly?"
Marcus replied calmly, "No, we're still trying to build trust."
Signs of confusion and worry appeared on Mira's face, but she didn't ask her question directly, instead saying in a puzzled tone, "Jesse, what does he mean?"
Jesse looked at her for a few seconds, then shifted his gaze to Marcus and said, "You know that Marcus kidnapped us before, so I suspected that he might have done it again. I don't know why, but the probability is high."
Mira shook her head in confusion before replying, "Well... that seems somewhat logical."
After a short walk, they returned to the village center, which made Jesse feel somewhat surprised. They went inside.
Both Jesse and Mira remained standing at the entrance, while Marcus continued walking towards the desk at the end of the room.
He directed his gaze towards Jesse and said to him in a cold tone, "What are you doing standing there? Come closer."
Jesse hesitated for a few seconds, during which he exchanged a quick glance with Mira, then slowly advanced towards Marcus while traces of caution were still etched on his face.
Suddenly, Marcus moved as if pulling something heavy, immediately followed by a loud opening sound, which surprised Jesse.
He quickly approached his place, only to be shocked by a circular iron gate under the desk.
Marcus continued opening the iron gate with a grating, annoying metallic sound, then pointed with his hand downwards where a straight metal ladder appeared, descending into a dark depth where a small dot of light was visible at the end.
Then, quietly and without introduction, Marcus descended inside, disappearing into the darkness of the abyss.
Jesse turned towards Mira in shock, to find Mira also heading inside.
Then she said, trying to reassure him, "No need to worry, the place is safe down below."
Then she too descended inside, leaving Jesse alone, looking cautiously into the depths.
Then he took a deep breath, preparing to descend, and began to climb down cautiously, step by step, until the faint light below began to widen in his eyes with each step.
The air below was heavier, saturated with the smell of dampness and old concrete. Moments later, Jesse reached the stone floor beneath the ladder.
Where he found a wide underground passage containing two staircases extending downwards in opposite directions. The walls and floors were made of raw concrete. Strange circles provided strong lighting along the ceiling, and various doors were located on different steps of the staircases.
Upon his descent, he found both Mira and Marcus waiting for him in front of the stairs.
Marcus directed his gaze towards him and said in his usual tone, "You took too long, come on, let's hurry, I have work to do upstairs."
Jesse whispered as he approached, with shock filling his features, while he looked around curiously. "What is this?... How did you build all this underground?"
Marcus replied as he descended the stairs downwards, "We didn't build any of this. They are old war shelters, worn down by time."
The sound of their footsteps echoed in the place, and with each step, Jesse's curiosity grew and his fears gradually melted away with his desire to understand what surrounded him.
Marcus stopped at one of the doors, in front of a huge metal door covered with a layer of rust. He opened it slowly, revealing a square room with metal walls of a dark gray color, with a door of the same color at the end.
As soon as Jesse saw the place, his memory was revived, remembering it. He then said with a kind of stifled shock, "Wait a minute, this is the same place you imprisoned us in last time."
The other replied, "Yes, but this time... you won't be imprisoned here. You have complete freedom to explore the place until those suspicions of yours disappear."
Jesse advanced inside, walking with his eyes scanning the corners of the room as if recounting heavy memories.
He began searching the place, opening every door in his path, observing every corner, remembering the day he was here with Ethan, and their first meeting with Jenny and Nicholas.
Suddenly, during his search, he opened one of the doors, to find himself in a room like the previous ones but larger, with 3 other doors besides their door and a huge door at the end.
He immediately remembered that it was the same room where Marcus had forced them to fight the Walkers to the death.
Blood was still spread around, and the smell of corpses dominated the place.
Jesse said, with disgust on his face, while placing his clothes over his nose trying to stop the smell from reaching him, "(Strong cough), what is this smell? Didn't that bastard clean the place? (Cough) Man, even the stranger's corpse is still rotting here."
Suddenly, Jesse spotted from afar the corpse of the man with the winter hat, still covered by his scarf, which angered him because no one had respected his body and buried him at least.
Jesse slowly approached his body, stepping on the intestines and blood of the Walkers in the place with every step he took.
He knelt beside him, gently removing the scarf from the face of the headless corpse, revealing the man's features which seemed to have begun to decompose.
Jesse looked at him for several seconds, then whispered regretfully, "Forgive me... your end shouldn't have been like this."
He heard Mira's footsteps behind him as she slowly approached him, then she said with a mix of sadness and anger while putting her hand on her nose and waving her other hand because of the smell, "Seriously! Didn't that son of a b*tch Marcus clean the place?"
Jesse turned to her quietly and then said to her calmly, "Mira... can you use those abilities of yours and try to get this person out of this place... and give him a proper burial?"
Jenny simply nodded her head in agreement, with sadness and pity on her features, and suddenly transformed her right arm into something resembling a huge hand, similar to the hands of monsters, then transformed her left hand into something resembling tentacles, under Jesse's gaze mixed between dread and amazement.
Jenny carried the corpse with her left hand, while using the tentacles to climb the hole she had dug earlier in the ceiling, leaving Jesse alone.
Jesse got up from the ground, wiping his clothes stained with some old blood.
Jesse left the room, dragging his heavy steps, greeted by the dampness of the corridors with their usual coldness, but his mind was burning with countless questions.
Outside, Marcus was waiting for him, leaning against the wall, looking at the ground as if he had fallen asleep.
He said to him quietly without looking at him, "Did that remove some of your suspicions?"
Jesse replied, with anger in his eyes, "It removed some... but the place is still wider than just random rooms."
Marcus pushed himself away from the wall to reply to him directly, "So what do you plan to do now? Search every inch of this place?"
Jesse remained silent without an answer, after realizing that it wouldn't be that easy.
But, suddenly, the two began to hear the sound of footsteps on the stairs, and the conversation between Marcus and Jesse stopped immediately, and they directed their gaze towards the source of the sound.
They found the owner of the mushroom soup stall, leaning on the stairs slowly, sighing with every step as if he had come a long way to get there.
He took a deep breath, then whispered in a tired tone, "(Breathing tiredly) I hate these damn stairs."
Jesse narrowed his eyes, trying to distinguish his features, then said in a surprised voice, "Khalid?! What are you doing here? How do you know about this place?"
The old man raised his head towards him exhaustedly, showing a mix of shock and joy on his face as he approached them, "Oh Jesse! Hahaha (deep breath) I heard your voices downstairs, so I got a little curious to know what was happening, but I didn't expect to find you here... especially with this one."
Jesse advanced towards him with two steps, signs of suspicion still drawn on his face, then said in a tone carrying some sharpness, "Khalid, this isn't an area that just anyone can wander in... How do you know about it?"
Khalid laughed a short laugh, then put his hand on his back with a groan, saying, "Hahahaha, what do you mean, man? Everyone knows about this place, and anyone can wander in it as long as they have a useful project for the village here."
Jesse's features changed to surprise before he continued his speech in confusion, "Wait a minute, what do you mean by everyone knows? I haven't seen anyone mention it throughout my stay in the village."
The other replied in a sarcastic tone, "Hehehe, just follow me, I'll show you something wonderful."
Jesse looked at Marcus with cautious eyes, but Marcus just turned away in the opposite direction, saying, "I have nothing to do with you, I'm going back to my work. Khalid knows the place well, so good luck in your empty search."
Then he started walking out of the place.
Jesse tried to stop him, advancing towards him angrily, saying, "Where do you think you're going? We haven't finished searching yet."
The other replied without looking at him, "Search with Khalid, he knows the place better than me. And if you find something, come back to kill me or whatever you want to do."
Jesse's steps froze for a few seconds, he stared at Marcus's back as he walked away without turning back, then turned his head to Khalid, who was still standing with his usual smile, waiting for him.
While they were walking, Khalid initiated the conversation, breaking the silence in the place, "The place may seem to you like an empty, outdated shelter from a long time ago, but this place is considered the greatest economic center of the village."
Jesse replied, trying to understand more about the place, "Explain more, please."
Khalid continued his speech in a cheerful tone, "No need to rush, I'll tell you everything you want. The important thing is, as you know, the area we are in is a dead area agriculturally. The soil is not fertile and is not suitable for cultivation. No animals or plants, which makes it a worse place than bad to create a place where renewable food supplies can be provided for the citizens. But on the other hand, being a dead land, the monsters outside rarely visit these areas, which makes it almost completely safe."
Jesse interrupted him in surprise, "I've always wondered why this village was built specifically in this spot, and your words seem strangely logical. But what does this have to do with the underground shelter and the economy anyway?"
Khalid replied with a mix of cheerfulness and sarcasm, "Stop being hasty, man, I'll get to that now. Okay, where were we? Ah, I remember. And here comes the role of this shelter. Fortunately for us, this old shelter had an excellent ventilation system, in addition to being apparently connected to an unknown water source. Some suggest it stems from an old underground reservoir or remnants of infrastructure dating back to the pre-collapse era, but that's not important at the moment. The water comes anyway, and this alone was enough to make us build the village directly above the shelter."
He paused for a moment, then continued in a low voice but with a tone of pride, "And so the experiments began. At first, we tried planting simple plants, fast-growing vegetables, but most of them failed due to lack of suitable soil and limited space. Until I came up with a brilliant idea. We needed something that didn't need light, didn't need fertile soil, didn't need wide space... only moisture, suitable temperature."
Jesse raised his eyebrows with a small smile, then replied, "Let me guess, mushrooms."
The other replied with a wide smile and rising excitement, "Exactly, Jesse, mushrooms. But the biggest problem was, how would we plant them if we didn't have any in the first place? And here came my role. I used to be a farmer even before the end of the world, so it wasn't strange for me to keep various seeds for emergencies. And here began my profitable project at the end of the world."
Suddenly, the old man turned towards one of the open doors nearby, entering it while Jesse followed him.
Entering a wide room, with slanted edges on the concrete walls, with openings the size of pipes, spaced 5 meters apart from each other. And in the corridor extending to a point where the wall area expands, where nothing can be seen but the path surrounded by water in all directions. At its end was a rusty elevator that looked old, and men in the place, each one attending to his own work. Some of them were carrying boxes with various contents.
Potatoes, onions, mushrooms, and lettuce.
As soon as they entered the place, looks were directed towards them for a moment. Some averted their gaze after a few seconds, and others showed various positive expressions towards Khalid.
One of the men from the left side raised his voice, saying in a cheerful tone, "Khalid, what did you find there? A snooping child or what?"
Khalid replied, with a smile not leaving his face, "No, just a friend who needs some help."
One of the men approached him, extending his hand to shake his hand, with respect and appreciation evident in his actions, saying formally, "Mr. Khalid, thanks to your work and the work of others, it seems our food harvest is the largest since its establishment. The current harvest rivals the total of the previous 3 years. At this rate, we won't suffer from any famine for years."
Khalid extended his hand towards him, shaking his hand with all respect and appreciation, replying kindly, "This gladdens my heart, my friend. Now everyone can eat as much as they want, like in the old days, without worrying about quantity. You all did great!"
The other replied, with a slight smile forming on his mouth, "None of this would have happened without you, sir. You taught us all how to farm, and you provided us with the seeds for the crops, so the credit goes to you first and last."
Khalid let out a cheerful laugh mixed with a intermittent cough, then answered him, "Don't exaggerate like that, I'm not that useful. The credit is for you. Without your hard work, those seeds would have been of no use except as food for the sparrows. I'm an old man as you see, and it's clear that I can't do this by myself."
The man shook his head respectfully, under the gaze of the other men around him who shared the same look towards Khalid.
During all this, Jesse was in the background watching all this with a mix of respect towards Khalid and worry for Ethan, saying afterwards in a resolute tone, "Sorry for ruining your fun with your friends, but there's no more time to waste."
Khalid and a group of men turned to him in surprise.
Jesse continued his speech, "Have any of you seen a person here, short in stature, about this height, bald head, looks like a 13-year-old boy, his name is Ethan, if you've met him? With a girl, and Joseph."
Most of those who heard him replied in the negative, that they hadn't found anyone with those specifications, and that the last time they had seen Joseph was going out on the same night of their disappearance, which increased Jesse's despair and worry. He tried to describe them more, asking each one individually, but he didn't reach any result.
Finally, Jesse leaned against the concrete wall, putting his fingers over his eyes, feeling deep inside despair and helplessness, as all the solutions in his hands had completely ended.
He suddenly whispered in a tone of surrender, "The situation is hopeless. It's happening everywhere you can think of. I intruded on the citizens' huts. It's happening far outside the village everywhere. And now in the depths of the village itself. And I still haven't found a single clue..."
Khalid noticed Jesse's sadness, which made him worry about him.
He approached him slowly, putting his hand on his shoulder, "3 days without stopping and you're searching for the missing. I must admit you are a truly persistent man."
Jesse replied quietly, "And I haven't reached any useful result."
Khalid scratched his head, and discomfort began to creep into his old body.
After several seconds of deep thought, Khalid suggested a final solution, "Listen, what do you think about asking one of my friends about them? He recently talked to me about that child Ethan, praising him every time I meet him. He might have some information that could help you."
Jesse looked at him for a moment, before getting up from the wall, clinging to any hope of reaching them, saying quietly, "There's no harm in trying."
Khalid shook his head quietly, then turned around, starting to move forward. Khalid entered the corridor leading to the rusty elevator, his steps slow and steady, their echo heard around, and Jesse following him closely, the mixture of fatigue and anxiety still clear on his face. They approached the elevator, its metal doors partially corroded by rust.
Khalid looked towards one of his friends in the place, and their eyes met directly upon that. Khalid gestured to him to operate the elevator.
The man nodded in agreement, then started walking towards one of the rooms, disappearing inside it. After 40 seconds, a strange sound was heard around. Sounds of moving pipes, whistling of accumulating pressure, and the gurgling of water echoing in the concrete corridors.
Suddenly, the man's arm appeared from the place he had entered, signaling for them to go.
They entered the elevator, and the doors closed slowly behind them. The iron structure began to shake slightly and rise, accompanied by the gushing of pressurized water flowing through the pipes.
Although Jesse was seeing this type of machine for the first time in his life, his worries blocked any astonishment or curiosity from him. Instead, his eyes were covered with worry and despair.
Khalid started talking, trying to break the silence between them, "What do you think of this elevator? It's a rare type of hydraulic elevator, operating on water pressure. It was invented during the Great War by the Northern countries, because their opponents used to deliberately cut off their electricity, which made them think of making it. It consumes more time but was safer in war."
But his words didn't stir anything in Jesse, who only replied coldly, "Nice."
Khalid looked at him in surprise, then shrugged his shoulders with a long sigh, saying to himself, "It's better if I remain silent."
The minutes passed quickly, and the elevator suddenly stopped with a slight jolt, then its doors opened to reveal a small room, normal in shape, like any hut in the village, except that it had a metal door and the windows were closed, preventing light from entering. Only small cracks through which light crept in illuminated the darkness of the place.
Khalid walked towards the door, opening it very quietly, letting the sunlight into the hut.
Khalid started walking with confident steps towards the empty village square, his eyes wandering curiously towards the flower field on the side of the road. He inhaled its refreshing scent, filling his lungs with pure air as if regaining his spirit.
He turned towards the back of the square, heading purposefully towards the door leading to the blacksmith's room. He began descending the steps downwards, one step after the other, until his feet reached the bottom.
He found the old man sitting on his chair, his clothes full of sweat and dirt, wiping the sweat from his forehead, with fatigue clear on his face.
As soon as they entered, the old man focused his gaze on them in surprise, which then changed to joy upon seeing Khalid.
He got up from the chair and headed towards him, hugging him strongly, saying with laughter and delight, "Hohoho, welcome again, my dear friend. I was feeling bored, so your coming is wonderful."
The other replied with a mix of joy and confusion, saying, "No problem, old man, but we need your help a little."
The blacksmith laughed a rough laugh, mixed with the sound of a cough that reflected his years of work in an atmosphere saturated with the smoke of fires. He said in a tone with some humorous sarcasm, as he rubbed his exhausted hands, "Ask whatever you want, you toothless one."
Jesse approached the old man, with a face full of seriousness, saying, "Both Ethan and Joseph and Nicholas have been missing for about two days during a night watch when the main gate broke. Do you have any useful information about their disappearance?"
The old man paused for a moment, remembering all the events that had happened to him recently, hoping something would be useful.
After moments of silence, charged with anxiety and tension from Jesse's side, signs of worry began to appear on him, as if a wave of dark memories had swept over him.
The old man raised his head towards them nervously, saying in a voice carrying some regret, "I'm not sure if it's related, but it might be useful to you."
Jesse's eyes widened with attention, saying in a tone full of interest, "Tell me everything you know!"
The old man let out a faint cough before he began narrating what happened to him, "Everything was normal. I was practicing my hobby as usual, doing blacksmithing, making various weapons that I like. Until that child appeared... I think his name is Nicholas. As soon as our eyes met, I could see nothing but hatred and anger in his eyes, which made me think he was after me for a reason I didn't know. I grabbed one of my swords and asked him to tell me his purpose, and what he wanted from me. He immediately told me afterwards that he wanted me to make weapons for him. At first I refused, thinking he was seeking to commit some crime, but my opinion of him quickly changed when he quickly told me the real reason for his request."
The old man sighed for a few seconds, adjusting his sitting position, before continuing his speech, "He is one of the victims of those savages, the Katoran. He told me everything bad they did to him and his people, and the miserable life he was forced to live all his life... which made the matter clear. He carries in his chest endless hatred and loathing towards the Katoran, and a sense of responsibility being the only person capable of saving his enslaved people... even if his goal is dangerous. But that doesn't give me the right to prevent him or not help him. I haven't suffered like him. I tried at first to convince him to abandon his idea, but I quickly realized that I was trying to convince him to leave all his loved ones and family in continuous torment, while he remains alone, selfishly enjoying his life. And so I decided to help him. For who am I to prevent him from this?"
Jesse wiped the sweat resulting from the heat of the place from his forehead, with confusion and discomfort dominating his features, then said immediately, "So according to what you said, Nicholas headed towards the Katoran for revenge."
The old man replied, "Exactly. And for that, I have two possibilities. One is the worst and the second is just bad. The first is that he tricked me into making weapons for him and he killed them, but I don't favor that because I saw him spending good time with them all the time. In addition, his anger couldn't have been born only in that short period. As for the other option, they either went with him trying to support him, or he took them with him by force."
As soon as Jesse heard his words, despair evaporated from his face, reigniting the spark of hope again in his tired heart, shouting in a decisive tone, "Now their location is clear, and my destination is set. I will go towards the Katoran."
Khalid looked at him in shock, saying with a mix of worry and shock, "Wait, what?! Do you realize the amount of foolishness you just said? The road alone to go to them is considered a death sentence, let alone going to them which is another death sentence!"
He was immediately interrupted by the old man in a resolute tone, with seriousness and confidence carved on his features, "Let him go, Jesse... I heard that one of the missing is your brother, so don't hesitate and go search for him."
Jesse shook his head firmly, then ran out of the place.
Khalid reached out his hand towards him, trying to stop him, but he had already gone out. Khalid closed his eyes in regret before turning towards the old man, saying to him with a mix of anger and surprise, "Why do you encourage him to go, you fool?! Among everyone, you are the most aware of how dangerous those savages are."
The other replied quietly, while getting up from the chair and heading towards the iron table, "And everyone in the world knows how bad the feeling of loss is."
Khalid sighed in surrender, saying, "Damn you, you wrinkled old man. He must have already reached his car, so let's chat a little."
On the other side, Jesse was running through the village alleys, with eyes full of seriousness, clinging to his last hope.
"Thank you, Khalid. Thanks to you, I finally found what I was looking for all this time."
While he was thinking, suddenly Mira appeared in front of him, also running, following him, saying immediately in a worried tone, "You idiot, where were you? I've been searching for you everywhere!"
Jesse replied, "The Katoran. Ethan and the others have gone there."
Mira replied to him in shock, "They went to what?! What brought them there?! Are you sure of what you're saying?"
The other replied with all confidence, "I'll explain to you later, but now there's no time to waste."
After a short while of running, both Mira and Jesse reached the destroyed main gate, where snow was falling gently, covering the ground with a fragile white layer that cracked under their feet.
While the workers and citizens around were looking at them in surprise.
Mira turned towards one of the workers and said to him quickly, "Tell Marcus that I'm going with Jesse to the Katoran, so the responsibility is on his shoulders now. Goodbye!"
The duo went outside the village, heading towards Jesse's car nearby.
As soon as they got in, Jesse started the car, ready to set off, when Mira let out a tired sigh and rubbed her arms to warm them from the bitter cold.
Then she suddenly enlarged her head hair, until it covered every inch of her body, planting warmth in it.
Jesse looked at her in surprise and amazement, saying to her, "Make sure to fasten your seatbelt."
Mira mumbled in agreement, putting it on immediately.
For Jesse to ask her a final question, "Oh right! I almost forgot. Mira, you know the way to the Katoran, right?"
Mira took her arm out of the hair pile, gesturing in agreement. Jesse accelerated at his maximum speed, leaving the village behind him, aiming to retrieve what he considered his brother.
In another place, at the Katoran colony...
There were two guards, standing in front of the main gate, wearing iron armor, decorated with red colors at the corners and in the middle drawn like the known Katoran flag.
The first guard sighed nervously, saying in annoyance, "Why do they even put us to guard the gate? The place is a dead land, there isn't even any living creature walking around!"
The second guard replied, laughing, "Who knows, maybe the king is bored again, and just decided to bother us with his decisions."
The first guard turned to him with a mix of tension and seriousness, whispering to him, "Hey! Lower your voice when you utter this talk. We don't want what happened to those slaves to happen to us."
The other moved his hand mockingly, "Don't worry, the king won't bother himself to come to us."
While they were talking, they stopped speaking as soon as they heard the sound of a car approaching the place, focusing their gaze on the car approaching them.
The first guard initiated the speech, "Oh look! The water collectors have finally come."
The other replied, "Yes, I see them. I hope they found anything good besides water."
The two guards continued their conversation, ignoring the car that was approaching them faster than usual more and more.
After a few seconds, the first guard turned to the right, wondering that the sound of the car had become closer than it should be, as if it was rushing towards them at an unnatural speed.
And before he had any chance to react, the car hit him with a horrific violence, breaking his rib cage in seconds. Shards of the iron armor he was wearing scattered, mixed with his blood whose spray filled the air.
At the same time, the second guard froze in his place from the shock of what had just happened, not comprehending what had happened.
He tried to run but stumbled because of the dense snow.
The car, which hadn't slowed down, continued advancing at full speed towards him, but he rolled to the right with all his strength, avoiding the imminent death.
With the remaining strength he had, he got up from the ground, taking out something resembling a small whistle from a small bag he was wearing on his waist.
He held the whistle with a trembling hand, and blew into it with all his strength, releasing a sharp sound tearing the silence of the dead land. The sound was an alarm signal for the other guards inside the colony.
The guard took a last look at the car with terrified eyes, only for his eyes to suddenly widen when he found a rifle pointed towards him from the car's front window.
A loud gunshot sound was released around, immediately exploding the back part of the guard's head, scattering fragments of his brain and blood on the gate behind him.
He fell dead on the ground.
Under the gaze of the terrified gatekeeper, who saw everything from A to Z, from a small opening in the middle of the gate.
Watching the car disappear from his sight as if nothing had happened.
His body trembled as he tried to control his rapid breathing. He tried to scream but fear had taken control of him. All he could do was wait until the soldiers came to handle the situation.
After 6 minutes had passed since the crime, the gatekeeper heard the sound of footsteps approaching the gate. He turned quickly, with signs of anxiety and horror on his face.
He found 4 soldiers, all wearing the same armor as the guards. Two of them carried a shield and a sword, and the other two carried a mechanical bow.
One of the soldiers said in a condescending tone from under his iron helmet, "O gatekeeper of gatekeepers, inform me about what happened."
The gatekeeper sighed nervously, starting to speak with all caution, narrating everything that happened to them in tedious detail.
The soldier remained silent for several seconds, then raised his hand towards the gate, saying in annoyance, "Open."
Without wasting time, the gatekeeper headed towards a mechanical handle, pulling it with difficulty.
The huge gate began to open with a heavy slowness. The huge gate opened, emitting a metallic screech that echoed in the barren land.
The four soldiers advanced with confident steps, while the gatekeeper remained standing in his place, trembling as he watched their decisive movements.
They were met by the mutilated corpses of their comrades thrown on the ground.
One of the soldiers took off his helmet in shock and sadness, opening his mouth a little in disbelief at what he saw, saying in a weak voice, "Bobbs... Ariol...".
One of the soldiers exhaled, with worry clear on his features, "Don't lower your guard, the criminal could be anywhere around."
At the same time, the first soldier was looking at the corpses with disgust and contempt, saying with all arrogance, "What stupid weaklings, they couldn't even do their job properly, what a disgrace."
One of the soldiers turned to him with contempt, but his features were hidden because of the helmet, saying to him in a cautious tone with feigned respect, "It's not entirely their problem, Commander. You know, the gatekeeper told us they were attacked off guard. In addition, the intruder possesses advanced weapons."
The other replied to him, with excessive arrogance on his face, "Heh! If I were in their place, I would have subdued the intruder in the blink of an eye. All it takes is an arrow shot at the wheels of their car, and thus the driver would lose control and crash, and the matter would be over."
The other looked at him in surrender, saying, "You're right, it's easy."
One of the soldiers interrupted their speech, saying, "Come on quickly, the intruder won't wait for us until we reach him."
The narcissistic soldier replied to him in a condescending tone, while adjusting his iron armor decorated with pride: "Well, let's end this farce quickly. It's not fitting for the likes of us to waste time chasing a trivial intruder. Quintus, Decimus, Gaius, don't be useless like those and finish the task as it should be."
_Quintus is the one who spoke to him just now.
_Decimus is the one who grieved for the death of the two.
_Gaius is the soldier who holds a grudge against the narcissist.
The soldiers gathered with each other, after noticing the traces of the car wheels carved on the icy road, following their only clue towards the criminals.
On the other side of the same place, Nicholas and the others were outside the car, stopped in front of the huge walls of the colony.
Jenny was leaning against the wall in terror and horror, putting her hand on her mouth trying to prevent herself from vomiting, her face pale from the horror of the scene.
She shifted her gaze towards the car full of blood, then immediately started vomiting.
Ethan approached her with worried eyes, trying to reassure her.
Jenny shifted her gaze towards Ethan, whispering to him with fatigue and tension dominating her voice, "Don't worry about me... I'm just, not used to these scenes like you are, sorry."
Ethan's features changed to a mix of pity and understanding, to pat her to ease her a little.
At the same time, both Nicholas and Joseph were in front of one of the walls.
Nicholas put his ear to the wall, telling Joseph, "Son of a b*tch, they expanded the place since the last time. I can't hear anything but the sounds of pigs."
Joseph took a deep breath, replying to him in an indifferent tone, "Just finish what you're doing, you madman."
Nicholas opened the bag he had brought earlier, revealing various tools.
_Two long ropes, each with a metal hook at the end.
_3 gasoline canisters
_An electric gun
_A box of roses
Joseph scrutinized the contents of the bag, then shifted his gaze back to Nicholas with half-closed eyes revealing confusion, saying with a kind of sarcasm and inquiry, "Are you going to smuggle roses or what?"
Nicholas stared at him with a slight smile of pleasure and excitement, "No, man, it's a gift for my mother. I haven't seen her for years, I think it's a good idea."
The other replied with a mix of shock and teasing, "Hmmmm, well, seems good."
As soon as their conversation ended, Nicholas grabbed the metal hook, and began spinning the rope hook until it reached the appropriate speed, then with all skill and strength threw it to the edge of the high wall. The metal hook embedded itself in the stone with a faint sound, leaving the rope swinging a little before settling.
The other pulled the rope several times with force, making sure of its stability, then closed the bag, putting it on his back, then said, directing his words to Ethan and Jenny, "Listen, you two. Nicholas and Joseph will climb the rope first. Once we reach the end, I want you to hold the rope separately, and we will pull you inside. Understood?"
Jenny stared at him with eyes red from excessive vomiting, saying to him, "Yes, we understood."
Nicholas, with all confidence and readiness, began climbing first, holding the rope tightly while Joseph followed him closely, watching the surroundings cautiously.
They reached the edge of the wall after great effort, where Nicholas settled first and extended his hand to help Joseph.
As soon as they settled, Nicholas pointed to Ethan and Jenny from above.
Jenny, despite her pale face and hesitant hands, grabbed the rope with Ethan's help, who stood behind her to give her support.
Nicholas and Joseph began pulling the rope with coordinated movements, raising Jenny first slowly, until she reached the top. Then Joseph threw the rope again for Ethan to use.
Ethan grabbed the rope and began to rise bit by bit, and with great speed, he heard a sharp scream to their right, "Stop, you sons of b*tches!!!"
Ethan turned his head towards him to find the four soldiers had reached them.
The narcissistic soldier ordered the rest of the soldiers, saying, "Arrest them quickly before they escape."
Both Gaius and Quintus aimed their bows in harmony towards Ethan, and began to release as many arrows as they could.
At that moment, Ethan grabbed the rope more tightly, ignoring Nicholas's previous words, and began to climb by himself, fearing that he would get hit.
While both Nicholas and Joseph began to pull the rope faster and stronger, with anxiety and terror rooted in Joseph's chest, while Nicholas was looking at them with all hatred and the fires of anger burning in his eyes.
Ethan reached safety, lifting himself to them with all his strength, causing both Joseph and Nicholas to move away from his path due to the narrow space.
The soldiers tried to shoot arrows at them, but the vast distance between them was an obstacle for them.
Nicholas and Joseph and Ethan and Jenny quickly descended to the other side of the wall, where they disappeared behind the dense shadows of the colony.
At the same time, the narcissistic soldier pulled off his helmet in anger, throwing it on the ground with all nervousness, revealing his thick, wavy red hair, with a medium-sized forehead, and gray eyes, with a long, straight nose, while his lips were drawn in an angry line, then saying, "You pile of filth, can't you even aim normally at that idiot, what's wrong with you exactly?"
Gaius replied to him, with anger controlling his heart, "They were far away, Commander. We couldn't do anything to them from that distance."
The narcissistic soldier approached him nervously, hitting him on his iron armor, saying, "Yes, that's all you can do, excuses. Stop making excuses and do your job properly."
Gaius replied to him in an angry tone, losing his patience with him, "Excuses? We are the ones doing everything here, you arrogant fool! I try to be nice but you don't stop talking nonsense, without doing anything significant!"
The fires of anger flared in their eyes and hatred in their eyes, for the other to scream at him with a mix of arrogance and nervousness, "It seems your tongue has become longer, you scoundrel. I think you forgot that I was appointed Commander by the King personally, so it's better for you to show some respect."
Gaius replied, pushing the other strongly, "If one of the slaves were a commander, he would be better than you. And also, you wouldn't have been a commander without our help, you ungrateful one. Just because you're a little handsome made you become our commander, Andreas."
Andreas replied to him with mockery and arrogance, "Your words show the truth that you're just jealous of me, hahahaha."
While the quarrel continued to ignite, both Quintus and Decimus were looking at them in regret and surrender.
Until Quintus spoke, alerting them, "Stop wasting time, let's go catch them before they do anything."
The quarrel between Andreas and Gaius stopped, glaring at each other with hostile looks.
Andreas gave Gaius his back, trying to ignore him, saying, "Move, you useless ones."
(End of Chapter)
A request from the viewers who are reading the novel.
First, thank you (:
Second, can I have comments? I feel like I'm writing chapters by myself (: