The mountainous region of the Izar Empire had artistic features that could captivate the heart of an attentive observer. And through the window of his vehicle, Xi Zhang watched the landscape unfolding before his eyes.
Along the long imperial roads carved into the mountain rocks, a small convoy of five massive metallic vehicles made its way toward the peak of the great Mount Fuu. Xi Zhang, who was quietly admiring the scenery, had his attention momentarily stolen by the vehicles following his when they entered a curve. These were all walkers, magnificent machines with four long mechanical legs that raised the main body over ten meters high. The shape of the legs strongly resembled those of a spider, and the way they moved only reinforced that comparison. Xi Zhang's eyes wandered across the massive metallic body, recording every detail that might be useful in the future.
"Recognize your place, Bronze!"
Startled, the young man turned to see the commotion inside the cabin of his walker. Standing near the front seats, two young men glared furiously at each other. The two boys were like polar opposites of the Izan people.
The one who had spoken was like most Izanites, a slim young man with fair skin and slightly slanted eyes, of average Izanite height between 1.60m and 1.70m. His straight black hair fell freely to the middle of his back, and his dark eyes looked at the boy in front of him with disdain. That was Muh Xao, a damn conceited Silver-line heir.
Facing the Silver stood Bo Sum, towering with broad shoulders and a muscular body. Rare were those among his people with large bodies and tall stature, but once in a while, someone appeared who surpassed the short Izanite height or worked their body until it became a massive wall of muscles.
"Go back to the middle rows, Bronze," Muh Xao said again, sneering at the big guy. "The front rows belong to the Silvers."
Muh pointed one hand to himself and the other to a beautiful girl sitting by the window, observing the landscape outside and ignoring the commotion in the cabin as if it had nothing to do with her.
"Where do you think you are, Xao?" Bo Sum crossed his muscular arms in front of the young Muh Xao. "Here the castes mean nothing."
"You really believe that, Bronze?" The Silver mocked, staring at Bo Sum with a strong look of contempt. "You are more foolish than I imagined."
"The fool here is you, Xao! From now on, talent is what matters."
"And who has more talent than a Silver, Bronze? You think your family invested in you more than mine in me?"
"I have a name, Xao! And it is not 'Bronze.'"
"As if I cared about the name of an inferior Bronze."
With every word that came out of Muh Xao's mouth, the mood of the young men in the walker grew darker. Even calm Xi Zhang pierced the conceited Silver with his gaze of contained hatred.
"I am Bo, from the Sum Family, of the Cutting Rain Province," the big guy proclaimed, spreading his arms to display his full size. "And I warn you, you better respect me, Muh Xao."
"Respect you?" The Silver let out a dry laugh devoid of humor. "Why the hell would I, a Silver, pay my respect to a mere Bronze like you?"
Faced with Muh's total lack of respect, Bo's face turned a deep red, and even from where he was, Xi Zhang could see the veins pulsing on the Bronze's muscular neck.
An uncomfortable silence reigned in the cabin as the Bronzes slowly rose from their seats. Xi Zhang was halfway to standing when a cold, uninterested voice broke the silence.
"You must pay respect to him, Muh Xao," said the young woman sitting near the Silver, turning her gaze from the window for the first time on the entire journey. "Just as any noble must pay respect to another noble."
The girl then turned her gaze from Muh Xao to the irritated Bo Sum, who still stared at the Silver furiously.
"The only difference is the degree of respect to be paid by each noble caste," she added in a slightly softer voice.
"What is this, Ling?" Muh Xao asked coldly, looking at the girl with an air of superiority. "Are you taking the side of this Bronze?"
"I am not taking anyone's side, Muh Xao," the young woman replied, looking back outside the walker. "From now on, only the strongest and most capable will prevail. And with the way you two are behaving... I doubt either of you will last long."
Muh Xao and Bo Sum looked at each other in a moment of mutual disdain and hatred before turning their eyes simultaneously to the girl.
"What do you mean by that?" the muscular young man asked, now calmer.
Seeing that things had settled, Xi Zhang sat back down, though he kept his ears alert for any trouble that might follow.
"She's referring to the Academy rules, you idiots."
Hearing the scorn in the voice that insulted them, the two young men turned, ready to resort to violence, when they realized who had spoken. Xi Zhang quickly stood, as did all the other young men, including the beautiful girl named Ling.
Because of the argument between the two young men, no one had noticed that the steel door leading to the pilots' cabin had been opened and that a man dressed in black was leaning against the doorframe.
"Discipline, my young ones! Discipline is everything for the Empire," the man commented calmly.
"We pay our respects to you, Instructor Lee Bay," all the young men said at once, bowing to the man before them.
Lee Bay was a veteran of the imperial army. At forty-two, he had black hair as dark as the night, tied in a long braid down to his waist. He had an average height but a well-built body. The right side of his face was covered by a black leather mask, as was his uniform, and a white eye was painted where his right eye would be.