Chapter one, Army of dolls.

As I lied facing her cold eyes, my hands shivered, I held my recorder as I realized that at last her weary old lips would reveal her words to me, her wrinkled eyes had stared at the blank room for hours, those eyes carried the most vital memories that I wish to know.

"Have you decided to talk yet?" I said, I received no reply, her eyes were lost somewhere, maybe another world I cannot see.

Silent. Almost dead. The smell of gloom infested the empty room already I could feel it devouring my soul, my passion for unraveling the lady's words was endless, but so was her forlorn and numbness.

"What else do I need to say?" She sighed as her voice stuttered, that voice ripped my heart apart striking me with excitement and joy, but also worry and distress, I reached my hands out for her holding my recorder, "Tell me about it! Tell us what you saw!" I trembled as my sweaty hands almost dropped the recorder, she kept the same expression.

"The divinity of nature crumbling in the hands of hot steel, the core of humanity corrupted by immorality, and for the most part, faces..Faces were monochromatic masks casted from the same mold, I've seen a world of impossibilities, a world of odds and iron magic, but it's all chained by something, something you and I know, isn't it quite ridiculous?" 

Seven years ago, Ilusia, the Industrial city.

Under thick clouds of steam, in the heart of the industrial city, there was nothing but endless work hours and dull faces, ticking clocks and a black sky, a life of repetitive work and routine, for some it was the utopia, but for a dreamy youngster it was nothing but a prison they were cornered in, after all, these people never owned their lives, always masters and slaves, this time in disguise.

The streets smelled of dirt fused with smoke and classy perfumes, all of them belonged to the different classes that walked this amusing city, sky was no eye pleasure, towers were so huge your eyes can never catch their top. As for technology, the higher class was accompanied by their own prototype robots that fulfilled their pleasure and desires, whatever you could imagine. A thick wallet can do wonders.

It's just another dreary day for her a tiny wanderer's heart. Through the crowded streets of the city her legs kept walking with no destination for a few minutes, her mind strayed away somewhere else above the sky, the world was painted in black and white. The industrial rivalry reached its climax, grayish smoke faded her dreamy vision away, It was when she accidentally hit someone's shoulder her mind at last awakens, "Watch your steps, idiot" Muttered the man, she sighs and finally breaks free out of her daydreaming. The sweetness of imagination leaves her again. "I'm sorry.." She whispers to herself, she's shy, or to be more precise she's uninterested in joining the league of pretenders. 

Collars and suites, suitcases and busy businessmen, all these people running through the streets like maniacs without even realizing, she portrays them in her own mind as rats rushing through tunnels in the sewers, so down below they could hardly realize where they are. She sees that woman shouting at her son for dropping his candy, or the man hitting his phone in anger while cursing, "Damn machine!" he screams, all these people fueled her small legs to push through the crowds as she holds her bag tightly.

In that small bag lied her dreams, that small camera she stole from her former abusive foster-parents, the locket she had stolen from her orphanage that presumably contained an image of her mother, some say it's worth a thousand, others say it won't give her a warm drink in the cold icy alleys at the unmerciful night of the grand city, but, what would a nine year old vagrant understand?

Her tangled messy braids caught the eyes of the surrounding, such an underling shouldn't be walking in the streets of the rich, such an underling shouldn't dream of ever reaching their so called success, but, does she even need it?

She hummed an old song vagrants sings as she walked, She opened that small bag of hers and takes a peek at that small camera she had invested all of her tiny dreams in, "It should do it" She said, it was all until another worker bee busted into the youngster's shoulder in the rush hour of the city's robotic so-called humans, her opened bag let out its contents and in fright she leans down with her ripped stockings hurrying to grab the locket and making sure that her stolen precious camera is fine.

The strong wind faced her weak body, at a sudden moment, all these annoying and irritating sounds vanished, the essence of the roaring cars and machines and the emphatic voices was what made the city is, all of it disappeared, the gentlemen stopped their precious time with eyes wide opened gazing upon something she couldn't see, the grand clock's ticking was all that could be heard.

Breathless, they were. It was the sky. 

Her eyes saw nothing but her own scattered belonging all until flashing lights roamed the area, the air smelled of fear and terror, what the sky carried was unusual, as soon as she moved her sight to it, the people ran in fright with no destination unaware of what terrifies them or what they are running from, who can hide from the sky?

The scent of fear triggered the heartless' emotions, it was the fear of the unknown, the never seen sky was visited by the weary eyes of the street walkers who hardly could speak or let out a word, hearts were captured all together and pulled by a chain of fright that soon drove them into madness, what was that frightened them that much?

The sky, It was all black, grey dots in certain areas, flashing white lights, It looked like a broken computer screen, the city's billboards started stuttering as well as phones and security bots, the small girl's heart bounded so fast in fright, she couldn't get up due to the insanity that broke out in the streets, instead, she held her belongings so tightly and leaned into a wall.

"It's not real" She whispers to herself, the grand city knew no such a thing as a sky, their boundaries where their offices' windows, the bots were programmed to compensate for human fears, but the sky didn't spare them for the moment.

"Maintenance in action, please take your positions"

A voice broke through every speaker hung on each building, a humanoid voice kept repeating the same sentence for few times.

"RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!" Screamed a man standing in the same corner she had taken a shelter in, she gave her back to him, but couldn't bear avoiding his voice as he seemed to be rather mocking them than being terrified, as she looked, it was a tall man with black circular glasses, he wore a black coat as well and had a bot by his side, his hat covered almost half of his face, but his wicked smile was all she could see in the distorted vision she had, the aroma of maliciousness reached her nose, his state of excitement was a noticeable one, it was wickedness and bravery, brave enough to face such terror, that man was no ordinary man. He had no fear, no annoyance or anything, he was somehow able to see the people tripping over each other as the loud sirens busted her ears; it was like the world has finally come to an end.

"ALL OF YOU ARE NOTHING BUT MACHINES! RUN, RUN YOU COWARDS!" Laughed the man again as he kept jumping and moving in excitement, she kept looking at him even more for that she somehow found comfort in his act of madness, he didn't notice her, her sharp eyes saw the broche he had on his right shoulder, it was a silver eagle broche.

There was nothing else she could do, she picked her camera and as her hands trembled in fright she breathed heavily and took a photo of him, the flashing light of the camera captured his attention, he looked at her, "What do you think you're doing?" He asked, his voice tone changed into anger as she took one more photo of the sky and put back her camera into her bag, "You piece of shit!" He screamed, "Give me this camera now!" He rushed towards her, she got up and ran somewhere into an alley, he kept talking but she couldn't hear or see him due to the absolute darkness and the piercing sound of the sirens, only her hands is what led her out of the dark alley but she heard his footsteps behind her, "GIVE IT BACK" he screamed, "I can't hear you" She screamed back, somehow, she did feel the thrill of this situation to be an enjoyable one rather than being a fearful chase, she knew she had nothing but these pictures, but at last the humanoid voice that kept repeating that sentence stopped.

"System back up in 10..9...8"

She stopped at last, she knew he was behind her already, she looked at his shimmering blue eyes in the absolute darkness, she tightly held her camera and breathed heavily.

"You think you can escape me? I'm superior, you're nothing, give me the camera, your time..it's running out" He leaned down to her, whispered in her ears and reached out his hand for the camera, she stood still and took the camera out with a teary eyes, "But it's mine.." She cried, "I'll get you a better one, although you're a pathetic girl"

In the climax of the panic, the runners and the screamers, he held her arm tightly and starred into her eyes as she trembled and almost gave him the camera, but in a matter of two seconds, she came to a conclusion, it was a dream, nobody dies in a dream.

"NEVER!" She shouted and pushed him back, she joined the crowds and disappeared, the bot failed to track her for her short height, she ran holding the camera and the photos, and she felt excited and terrorized but at last thrilled.

"3 ..2..1 System is fully repaired"

The crowds stopped. Everyone returned into their previous state, the mum shouting at her son continued doing so, no one noticed anything, it's as if nothing ever happened, the man with the black hat was nowhere to be found and the billboards were back up, she found herself staring at the sky in the midst of the rush hour to work, the normal smoky sky, she was holding the camera and felt confused, "Why is it here?" She asked herself, she felt unease and troubled, but she again continues walking with no destination daydreaming once again among the crowds in the world she hated the most, another day goes by, the cycle goes on.

No one remembers a thing. It was true, the system was fully repaired, the dolls are back in work. This have happened a thousand times now, do you remember? Probably not. The photos in the camera, the black sky and the man in the black hat, would they be of any use?

Eyes were deceived, hearts were coated by a thick layer of unawareness and ignorance, a world ruled by iron and steam, smoke and rust and abandoned dreams and desires was no playground for her, for Merit.