Chapter 4 : Planned Fate

Maxim boarded the helicopter, pouring out the gritty sand he had collected in his boots from walking through the sandy landing area. The wind blew the sand into the place. With only a brand new mining hazmat suit he donned and bottled water, he prepared himself for the takeoff. He buckled his seatbelt and put on his noise-cancelling headphones. He fanned himself as the desert emitted torrid heat, the smell of his sweat suffocated him inside his stuff. He looked around the landing area, helicopters were flying in and Rhodes Island engineers would rush in and do a maintenance check. He could see one small group of Rhodes Island members boarding in a black Chinook. He looked down on his feet and saw a bunch of sand under it.

Maxim : "Fuckin hell."

He dusted off the sand that was stuck on his feet and swept in out of the helicopter. As he relaxed on his seat, the helicopter's blades started to turn and, producing a blowing away the dust and debris nearby. He leaned outside of the helicopter and saw a bunch of operators wielding weapons and swords walking towards the helicopter from the front, crouching. Instead of his brown suit, they wore a black and blue one. The logo and the company's name, 'Rhodes Island', displaying boldly on the front and back. On the top right of their chest were their name tags, Maxim tried to read them and squint but stopped before anyone mistakes him for a pervert.

As the group coming towards him got nearer, Maxim could hear some recognize the voices. Knowing from broadcast, overhearing conversation in Rhodes Island, and just asking around, the group consists of Blaze, GreyThroat, Liskarm, Franka, Jessica, Vanilla, Meteor and Platinum.

Maxim's thoughts : "Wow, they really need some boys here."

GreyThroat : "Geez, it's unbearably hot in this hazmat suit."

Blaze : "Ok guys, let's get in the helicopter!"

Meteor : "Well, hello there!"

Blaze and GreyThroat moved to the front of the cockpit.

Maxim : "Kazmimierzian both of you guys, I presume?"

Meteor : "Was from there, but I got kicked out because I was infected."

Platinium : "Same but I left for Rhodes Island to improve my abilities."

Maxim : "And the 4 of you guys, Blacksteel?"

Liskarm, Franka, Jessica, Vanilla : "Yes."

Intercom in helicopter : "Alright, buckle up. We're getting ready for takeoff."

They buckled their seatbelts and did a pat down to check for equipment. As they shut the sliding helicopter doors, the helicopter began to take off. They waved back at the people onto the ground who wished them a safe trip, the people slowly turned into dots.

Maxim sat back and relaxed in his seat. He looked outside the window, greeted with blue skies painted on with soft, white clouds. The serenity of the skies clashes against the bright, beaming yellow sand. He perched his head on the window, his vision starting to fade, tuning out the background noises and conversations around him.

As the lights dimmed, he woke up in an abandoned mineshaft, surrounded by miners digging the rocks out of one end of the tunnel and others transporting the rock back to clear the space. The bulbs lit up the surrounding area, hanging and dangling on loose wires that were bolted onto the rock wall with hooks and subpar nails. He smiled. He turned around to a young miner looking around his 20's beside a wooden table, waving at him, his Ushanka tilted onto his head. Maxim went towards him and adjusted his hat.

Maxim, pulling out 2 wooden chairs : "Hey there, Akim. Let's sit down."

Akim, passing him a ruble coin and sitting down : "You're going home?"

Maxim : "Never dreamt of it, till now"

Akim : "But do you still remember me?"

Maxim : "Yeah, I do. And everyone here too."

Akim : "Even remembered the days you watched me withered and die in front of you?"

Maxim : *chuckles* "No shit.."

Akim : "Good."

Maxim tucked his legs back in and felt he kicked something. He looked under and noticed a bunch of empty fruit baskets with torn-off wrappings.

Maxim : "No fruits left for us?"

Akim : "You still remember we stole them?"

Maxim : "Those sweet and delectable Galatian fruits. How we managed to steal 522 of them is beyond me."

Akim : "29 fruit baskets, each containing 18 fruits. 15 of us carried two while Tenk struggled to carry even one. Anyway, catch."

Akim tossed something at him. Maxim barely caught it, bouncing around in his hands. It fell off his hands and watched as it rolled across the floor and out of reach. Akim laughed.

Maxim : "Fuck! Lemme go get one."

Akim, quickly grabbing to sit back down : "No wait, stay here! I'll grab it for you later."

Maxim : "You have a Galatian for yourself?"

Akim : "I wish I had one. But you sod decided to give them out. I even helped you steal them, but you freely gave most of them away."

Maxim : "Aw come on... they deserve it"

Akim : "Tell me what they did."

Maxim : "The 5 Ursus kids, Lyudmila, daughter of a dead policeman I used to know, gave them to an Elafian girl who shared it with her group, and there's also this girl called Misha I met while I was on my move to Lungmen, 2 young boys, was gonna give it to a general but Lyosha deserved it more."

Akim : *laughing* "But she's a cat."

Maxim : "But she has been adopted into our blood. She knows our pain as much as us. She is like our kin. Unlike some who have been born in it and are still rats."

Akim : "And what about those two boys? Those other failures."

Maxim : "That boy wanted the best for friend."

Akim, patting him on his shoulder : "And you gave him an Originium shard and fruits?"

Maxim : "Told him to say he stole it, from an, quote-on-quote, 'abandoned' mine."

Akim : "And what happened to them? Was it worth it?"

Maxim : "Don't be like that. At least I put a smile on his face, maybe his friend."

Akim : "Wrong smile for that one kid."

Maxim : "The only reason we managed to get out was because of him. He's a good shot too."

Akim : "Better than the Elafian girl?"

Maxim : "Fuck would I know?"

Maxim then examined the coin, Akim looking attentively. After a careful examination, he noticed a bloodstain on it. Maxim stared at Akim, his heart sank. Akim looked back at him, an evil grin washed over him.

Akim : "Flip the coin. You didn't get to last time."

Maxim sat there, wide-eyed, looked back at the coin.

Maxim's thoughts : "That fucking bastard."

Whilst it appears to be a normal ruble, the faint blood stains made it special and scary to Maxim. He could even hear the faint loud screams and cries for help from within, the Ursus logo on the coin gl Maxim, took a deep breath and flipped the coin, letting it hit the table. It bounced a bit before landing on one side, the sound echoing in his head. He looked at what side he was facing. Anger and dread rushed through him.

Maxim : "Blyat!"

Maxim angrily stood up and threw his chair towards the rock wall. It shattered, the wooden chair breaking into pieces and left a sizable dent on the wall.

Akim : "Soon you will be able to see me."

Maxim : "Fuck! Fuck fuck! I thought I just get my tail shaved off."

Akim : *chuckles* "It'll happen if you go there, but it's not like you back out? Would you want to be back in that unfamiliar land or die with your friends."

Akim then flipped the coin, landing on the same side as him. He flipped it over and over again, but it always landed on the same side as him.

Maxim angrily stood up and punched the wall. He took a huge bite out of the fruit. Its flavour calmed him down, but the adrenaline rush he still had made him angsty. He picked up a nearby pickaxe and walked towards a mineshaft that leads to another area. He could see his friends moving in and out, giving their blessings and heart-warming welcome to him. But for Maxim, he could only give out his condolences. He put on his helmet, equipped with a flashlight. He tucked his sleeves. He then stopped, face-to-face with the grey wall.

He could see Akim facing him from his peripheral vision, not daring to look at him. From the corners of his eye, He could tell that his clothes had been tattered and torn apart. Blood leaking from his head.

Akim, singing : "Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. I've been a believer, blessed with the waters and been well behaved, waiting to ascend. But why do the non-believers go unscathed and I descend. Mark my words."

Maxim lifted up his heavy pickaxe. He took one deep breath, and swung it against the hard rock wall. The rocky dust flew into his face, suddenly suffocating him. Maxim suddenly woke up, punching the helicopter door.

Franka : "Woah! What has gotten into you?"

Maxim, murmuring : "Nothing, it's nothing..."

He looked outside the window. Still in the air, he could see the familiar sights. Whilst it has been a few years since he came back, he could recognize the familiar landmarks. He could see smoke coming out from a chimney in an abandoned building, layered with random decors.

Maxim's thoughts : "Ah yes, I remember those posters."

As the helicopter lowered, people soon started to come out of the building. They started throwing sticks and stones at it, shouting them to go away. He wiped the window with his hands and started waving at him, but no one noticed him. Maxim then opened the door and shouted back in annoyance.

At first they didn't recognise him, shouting back at him to get off the area. But as they looked more closely, shock and excitement spread across the group. Franka and Liskarm, each tossed out a rope. One of the members seemed to not realised what was going on and still kept shouting at them to go away. Two other members went towards him and calmed him down.

Liskarm : "If his brains were dynamite, his ears wouldn't blow out."

They rappled down and greeted them.

A big, bulky dude came out of the hut. His feet stomping the floor. Black shards were protruding out of his torn miner uniform. The Rhodes Island hazmat members looking around and greeting the other former miners.

Maxim's thoughts : "That uniform has been issued for 30 years. Has he not changed his uniform since I left? Stinking fucker."

A random member : "Leader, he's back!"

Maxim's thoughts : "Oh shit, he's the leader? Wonder what's his name."

Maxim : "Hello, what's your name."

Unknown leader : "Have you forgotten? It's Tenk."

Maxim, slightly taken aback : "I'm sorry who?"

Tenk : "Tenk."

Maxim's thoughts : "Oh shit, he is buff as fuck."

Maxim : "Oh hey, been away for a long time. My memory got fuzzy.

Tenk : "What brought you here?"

Maxim : "So I'm assuming you heard about the O.R.K incident?"

Tenk : "God, your friends wouldn't shut up about it."

Maxim : "But it's important stuff."

Tenk : "What's in it for us? It's just dangerous work for us. We dig up coal and anything shiny not dead bodies"

Maxim : "Do you even see this suit? We can give you these."

Tenk : "We will die if we go there."

Maxim : "And you will die slowly later slowly and painfully."

Tenk, taking in what he said, turned around to his miners who were looking at the two or minding their business. He looked back at Maxim and said,

Tenk : "Spinning tales or winding us the truth?"

Maxim : "Have I ever lied? Also the whole of Terra is gonna get fucked if no one does it."

Tenk : "Can't they just send other miners to do it?"

Maxim : "All the miners ghosting us or are just idiots. And I'm pretty sure you are not a ghost or an idiot."

The other miners , having heard what he said and were concerned, began discussing their next move. Tenk sighed, thinking what he should do next. He took up his pickaxe and held it up high. Maxim moved aside, the other miners diverted their attention to him. He slammed it towards the ground, cracking and it held up the pickaxe. He put down one of his feet on the pole of the pickaxe. He held his hand up high in a fist, and shouted to the miners.

Tenk : "Let's mine one more time! For us, your wife and kids, and most importantly, for Terra! "

All the miners began to cheer loudly for him and chanted 'For Terra!" over and over again.

Maxim : "A Chinook will be coming to pick all of you up for you to collect your equipment in R.I and send you to the site."

Tenk : "Well, it's gonna be a hell of a job and painful."

Maxim : "How would you know?"

Tenk passed him a bloodstain coin. Tails facing him.

Tenk : "Heh, I know."

Maxim : "Lucky."

Vanilla : "Let's go back, we need to tell Kal'tsit we got their cooperation."

Maxim : "Sure."

Tenk, whispering : "So which girl do you like?"

Maxim : "Remember that group we met in Wolumonde? The leader?"

Tenk : "She's a girl?!"

Maxim : "Oh and she's hot. But she is quite short though, the armor added to her height."

Tenk : "Has anyone ever said you sounded cool inside those suits?"

--------------------------

Time - 07:10 / Weather - Fog & Rain / Visibility - Low

Mission : "Excavation:

Days : 24 days after the meeting

*muffled voice* "There it is, the entrance to the mines. Hey, don't I look cool in these? It's like in the Age of Pioneers.

Maxim : "Yeah, we will be drifted off into space."

Tenk : "Did you see the way girl stabbed those slugs, it was amazing!"

Maxim : "That's Fang."

Tenk : "And the way that other girl with the shield slammed those slugs with her Arts!"

Maxim : "That's Dur-nar."

Tenk : "Nope."

He kicked down the entrance door, the metal door folded and slammed into the railing. Inside greeting them with caverns of underground pipes, fitting onto the rocky walls. Maxim went inside the control room, and tried to turn on the light. The lights were still off. Maxim tried to turn it on again, flipping the switch on and off. The lights suddenly lit up, but began flickering and burst. He looked at Tenk who just shrugged and turned on his flashlight and walked towards one of the paths and looking at the map he had, following him were the other members. Maxim sat down on one of the dusty chairs inside the room, he looked back at his map.

He flipped the coin again, still landing head. He looked around the room and open an overhead compartment. Inside there white cigarette boxes with a corner of a blue ring on the top left with Ursus in Ursusian, and the map of Ursus outlined red with blue lines representing the rivers.

Maxim : "Haven't seen them in years."

He took off his hazmat suit top and grabbed a cigarette from one of the boxes. He lit it up with his makeshift bullet lighter and let out a thick puff. It was time for him. Suddenly, Blaze and Greythroat, along with other Rhodes Island members, came in.

Greythroat : "Hey! Put back on your hazmat suit! Didn't Dobermann tell you not to take it off?"

Maxim : "My bad!"

He quickly put on his hazmat mining suit and put out the cigarettes, but not before taking some of the cigarettes. He noticed a drawer opened ajar. He opened and saw some photos. He examined them

Maxim : "Ah, the Prigard city. Not far from here."

He picked up his pickaxe and began walking down to the mines. The darkness enveloped him, his flashlight only lighting his way. He could feel something trying to grab him in the darkness, not coming close because of the light. All he could do was do his job and prayed for the best.