I squinted my eyes, observing my new surroundings. Shin Hayato sat cross leg in front of me, heads down. I stretched my body, feeling a little sore.
Sheng Yue jumped on her foot, gasping for air before calming down.
Cassandra crossed her arms, staring at Sheng Yue,
"Took you long enough."
Shin Hayato finally glanced at us all,
"We have been held hostage. They're going to come sooner or later."
Sheng Yue analyzed our surroundings,
"Hostage ? Then why are there no beds ?!"
Cassandra sighed and shrugged,
"It's because they're using us to increase their manpower. They won't care much about bed or anything. Get use to it, Sheng Yue."
I raised my hand, still hazy from the sleep,
"Any... plans ?"
Shin Hayato shook his head while frowning. I felt a small thing moving inside my pocket. Instinctively, I pulled the object out, revealing IRIS with an "(っ˘̩╭╮˘̩)っ" expression on its screen.
I wrap my hand around IRIS tightly, giving it a warm embrace.
Sheng Yue shouted, making everyone look at her,
"I have a plan !"
Cassandra shook her head and pinched the bridge of her nose,
"No. We're not following your plan."
Sheng Yue pouted and widened her eyes,
"But why ?"
I cradled IRIS in my arm and poked IRIS a little,
"It's because whenever it's you, it's always disaster or it's the best thing to exist. There's no in-between and it's always a gamble."
Shin Hayato took a deep breath and nodded,
"Fine. Let's hear what Sheng Yue has to say."
Sheng Yue grinned, standing proud while her tone got louder by each sentence,
"Alright. Listen up ! I'm going to distract the Russian woman !"
Shin Hayato finally perked up,
"And how ?"
Sheng Yue pointed at herself, shouting on top of her lungs,
"I'm going to flirt with her !"
Shin Hayato's body slumped against the wall, facepalming while muttering,
"I shouldn't have a high expectation..."
A door clicked open, revealing the Russian woman and the two teenagers who were still rubbing their faces.
The Russian woman pulled out a clipboard and informed,
"All of you will be sent to do a task."
She pointed at Cassandra,
"You. Handle the weapon maintenance and patrolling."
She threw the confiscated Vibro Dagger and Energy Bow at Cassandra. As she turned to face Shin Hayato, he raised his head and stared at her.
She tapped her clipboard while browsing through it,
"You'll deal with heavy lifting and organizing supplies."
She flipped a page and gazed at me, pointing to the other side of the door,
"You'll be tasked with fixing machines. And as for you..."
She noticed Sheng Yue who was grinning like a Cheshire cat,
"You'll be tasked to send letters and packages across district."
Sheng Yue leaned to a wall, smirking and raising her brows,
"So, can I come visit you every time to send you letters ?"
Shin Hayato covered his ears and pretend that he didn't hear anything. Cassandra muttered something while punching her own head in distress. IRIS and I stared at Sheng Yue who is still acting smug.
One of the teenagers whispered,
"Yeah... I think she was indeed from the mental hospital—"
THUMP
Another shoe went flying flat on his face. The Russian woman sighed and swung her hand, signalling us to get going. Sheng Yue followed them behind, winking at us while making finger guns.
I hid IRIS in my pocket, lowering my voice,
"Hey... Can you roam around this place ? Collect datas and everything."
IRIS let out a confused BEEP while showing "(๑•﹏•)" and rotated its arm rapidly.
I gave it a gentle pat and chuckled, letting it hovered in the air,
"Go on. Don't worry. If you want to hide or find comfort, just make sure to find me."
IRIS' expression changed to "(≧▽≦)", flying pass everyone without making a distraction or directing attentions. I caught a quick glimpse of Cassandra taking a paper from Shin Hayato.
Rushing pass by me and bumping to my shoulder. I flinched and pressed where I just got bumped. Shin Hayato threw a piece of paper while walking away, taking a last glance before going to the door.
I snatched the paper and hid it in my pocket. Along the hallway, a bunch of HoloSign were stamped to the wall. The small ones told us where we were heading while the big ones are to difference the district.
Most of the people glared at us, mumbling as they continued to do their job. I followed one of the two boys as they whistle and placed their hand behind their head.
A guard strolled past by, their armor colliding with my shoulder. I opened my mouth to ask them yet the guard only walked away without looking back.
The boy pressed a button beside a door,
"Hey ! We're here ! Also if you need any help across the bunker, just call me. I'm the guide to this underground bunker. My name is Efim."
He slapped my back with all his force,
"And since you're now a worker here, I guess I can't hate you anymore. Anyone—from Earth or Elysium Ark—that works here are no longer bound by status but rather seen as one of us."
He waved at me and pushed me inside the room,
"Have fun ! Also don't forget to tell your friend to stop acting like a patient !"
The door slammed shut, leaving me alone with people who are staring at me as if they wanted to hunt me down.
A man with a short beard and tattoos around his bald head pointed at his beside,
"Hey rookie ! Clean that car over there !"
I took a step forward, pushing my body forward to peep at the car he meant. The familiar six tires and cargo racks, it gave me a sense of safety in a room filled with people who I never knew.
I walked to the TerraRider, fidgeting my hand and being cautious of the men around. A group of them boastfully laugh and cheered, gulping a whole glass of beer.
Some were paying full attention to the machine they're fixing. While the rest continued to chug down beers and played card games to relax.
I reached to the TerraRider, dragging my arms across its steel plating. A traditional bucket was placed underneath it. I pulled the bucket out, a floating handkerchief was waiting for me to pick it up.
The minute I touched the handkerchief, I threw it back to the bucket. It felt like as if I had dipped my hand into the freezing waters of Antarctica. Cold and fresh, yet enough to freeze you if you dunked your hand for too long.
I twisted the handkerchief, the water dropped into the bucket. While wiping the windows, a smoke came from nearby. I coughed violently and covered my mouth with my other hand.
I narrowed my eyes to see where it came from. A man was smoking, throwing the cigarettes without a care. The Gas Mask wasn't strong enough to filter the smoke.
I continued to cover my nose and mouth with my arm while wiping the windows quickly. I'm lucky enough since they had fixed it, reducing the time I needed to spend in that room.
I threw the handkerchief back to the bucket. I bolted to the door.
The bald man from before yanked me from my back,
"Hey ! Have you finished your task yet ?!"
I nodded quickly, shivering under his grasp. The bald man finally let go of me and walked to the bucket. He picked it up and opened the door, throwing his hand to tell me to follow him.
I followed from behind closely, not wanting to be further ahead or further behind. Eventually, we arrived at a huge tunnel further away from the rest.
Its entrance was wide enough to fit in a spaceship. The tunnel's entrance was covered by a transparent wall. In the inside, a few ice blocks and glaciers were there alongside a calm current of freezing water.
The man pressed a button that split the floor before him a little. He poured the water from the bucket into the narrow pit. The water trickled and joined the huge wave.
The man smashed the button before turning away.
I stood there and observe the tunnel,
"Hey... A little question. Is this the source of where the water and are there any buttons to open the whole tunnel ?"
He continued to walk without a care, lightning up a cigarette,
"Yes for question one and no for question two. Hurry up, that noisy teenager is probably waiting to guide you around this maze."
I sprinted behind him, slowing my speed when my distance is close.
Perhaps we could escape from this tunnel even if we have to freeze.