Episode 23

Making their way through the partially intact structure was exhausting, made even more so by the fact that they were trying to be as silent as possible. The damaged metal workings creaked and moaned beneath them, adding to the sense of peril. They were both relieved to stop for the night. They chose another grassy patch to settle into for some sleep. Helfeirch removed his goggles and stared up at the sky. The sky was filled with a billion stars but only the brightest of them could be seen, for even there, the smog from Lygredd blocked out the heavens.

Looking up into the sky with him, Scarlet wondered what it would be like to see the stars unhindered. Only those who lived on Heaven's Spire, the upper-class district of Llygredd, got the pleasure of that sight. Her eyes dropped to the darkened horizon. She supposed that the same view would also be available from the desert. Her mind wandered back to the dream she'd had, the one that had beckoned her to the barren place. She couldn't help but feel that it had been more than a dream. But then she felt that way about all her dreams of late.

She'd never been prone to nightmares before she was shot. It had made her sleep restless at best, torture at worst. What was her mind trying to tell her? Or was it just trying to process all that she had experienced? Or was something else altogether trying to tell her something? And then what of the voice she had been hearing in her head? She could feel her head begin to throb as it swirled with all these questions, and she remembered why she hadn't allowed herself to really stop and think about these things.

'I can't answer any of these questions… none of them… dwelling on them will only drive me mad.'

She gave her face a good rubbing in an attempt to push all these things from her mind before she laid down in the grass. The breeze was slight and caused the grass to brush her skin. She found there was something calming about that quiet place. Taking in a deep breath, her eyes slid shut and she drifted off to sleep.

Scarlet felt herself jolt awake to some unknown sound. The sky was still darkened as it was still an hour or so before dawn. She instantly looked over at Helfeirch, who also seemed to have heard the noise. Their eyes intently began searching the darkness, but they could see nothing. Scarlet quietly stood and put on her pack and latched her breathing mask on her belt loop as Helfeirch did the same. He walked over to her, gently grabbing her arm.

"Come on. Let's move," he whispered.

With that, the two began climbing up the metalwork. They dared not enter the darkened structures. Once they had been climbing for a bit and the sun had begun to rise, they stopped on some sturdy piping and ate some breakfast. Scarlet was quite nervous about eating in such a precarious place. She felt a stiff wind would blow her right off and into the longest, most horrible fall one could imagine.

Once they were done, it was time to get moving again. It now had come to the point that they had to venture into the toxic darkness of the structure. Scarlet could not lie; she did not want to leave the light of the sun. Luckily, it was not as dark as the previous inner workings had been for sunlight still showed in through cracks and holes. However, the breathing mask reduced visibility in a terrible way.

They passed by the skeletal remains of a body; strange plants Scarlet had never seen grew up through the bones. There seemed to be some sort of gas permeating from them. She couldn't help but wonder if they were the source of the toxin. Regardless, she stirred clear of them, not daring to touch them. The further they ventured into the structure, the more of these plants she saw, all of them leaking mustard yellow gas.

'Well, this is something we were never taught about. Wonder where these plants came from? ...Or if they were created?'

The latter wouldn't surprise her. Lygredd was well known for trying to create various things for use as weapons, though she had no idea why. They'd always been taught that Lygredd was the last surviving city. Although, she knew the likelihood of that being false was high. The only other reason they'd have for creating so many weapons would be to use them on their own people, also a thing that wouldn't surprise Scarlet.

'The people in Heaven's Spire want to keep things running according to their standards. That means keeping complete control of everyone below them by whatever means possible.'

She was all too aware that Lygredd as a whole was a broken place, but like everyone else, it was the only place she'd known, the place she'd called home. She had never wondered about how to fix it, just how to survive and thrive in it.

'I suppose that was pretty selfish of me. But it's not like I have the power to change anything. ...but then, maybe that isn't the point. Maybe the point is to try anyways.'

She knew people in resistance groups. They were some of her main clients, but she'd never really joined their cause. She'd been a thief for hire, nothing more. She couldn't remember how many times she'd heard the words, 'We could use someone like you in our fight.' But she'd always declined, saying she was nothing more than a good thief.

She could not deny that she'd been given a second chance at life. And, though, her journey since waking up in the Scavenger Lands had been hell, it had given her time to reflect on the decisions that lead her here. Maybe things would have happened much differently if she'd made different choices, or maybe nothing would have changed at all. Either way, she could not say. She would not waste her time regretting her past decisions, however, she knew she would consider her future decisions with a different perspective.

'I reckon coming back from the dead does that to a person.'

Her attention was suddenly drawn back to her surroundings upon hearing a noise behind her. Looking over her shoulder, she was met by the glare of two glowing red eyes.