The sun rised in the country. The sounds of vehicles and other kind of machines filled Zone 2. Shift, as usual, woke up and went to work, following his everyday path... until he remembered Hyla's words, how she had told him directly not to go to work that day. Curious, Shift decided to go anyway, trying to understand why Hyla had said that.

  At the left side of the factory entrance, Shift decided to wait in one of the many food places. He waited for minutes and then hours, thinking about how he had messed up a day of work, and how that would cause him trouble in the future. With nothing else to do, he walked back home, thoughts filling his mind. The Line check was approaching, and he knew it. With resignation and a sigh, he arrived home. Shift sat on his couch and stared at the city. For him, something as simple as missing one day of work felt like a thousand bricks falling on him. The situation wasn’t good enough to miss days, every second mattered.

  Hyla's words echoed in his mind, a reminder that he should not have listened to her. But something was off. What was the real reason behind her strange request? Shift thought about calling Hyla, asking her the real reason for that particular favor, but still felt he couldn’t. It had been a long time since they last met. The alleyway encounter was already unusual, and that made him wonder: sabotage? A twisted joke? Or something deeper?

  Shift's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of something exploding in the distance, first one small explosion, then two, then several, coming straight from The Dot.

  Wasting no time, Shift immediately ran toward The Dot, jumping over roofs and other structures, a dangerous move in a city full of precipices where one could easily fall and die. Once he arrived, he found a scene of panic, gossips and wispers beside the hint of people scared, looking everywhere, and all kinds of vehicles stuck in a traffic jam. Once more, Hyla's words filled his mind, making him sprint toward the factory through the same alleyway he used as a shortcut. When he arrived, the scene was devastating. The massive factory was now several floors below the surface, lying at the bottom of Cannizont’s underground streets. Everything was gone, every wall, every room, now turned into scraps, blocked by a strange green smoke.

  Crowds gathered at every layer of Cannizont’s streets, all staring at the ruins.

  > "This is terrible... Who could even imagine something like this happening?" some in the crowd whispered.

  Shift decided to go down, descending trough staircases and hope leaps until he stood at the bottom, stepping over the ruins. This wasn’t an accident, he knew that for sure. With a shaky breath, shocked and thinking of all his lost coworkers, he looked around the wreckage. He saw nothing but dust, rocks, metal shards, broken wires and fragments of what once were the machinery of the factory, beside that, there was as something that caught his eye. A strange device lay on the ground, metallic and unknown. Carefully, Shift picked it up, burning himself at the first touch. On the second try, he managed to grab it. He analyzed it briefly and decided to store it in his bag to examine later.

  There was no sign of survivors. With a complicated expression and small tears on his face, Shift bowed in respect and walked away.

  New thoughts filled his mind, not only about what or who caused the disaster, or why Hyla knew something was coming, but also why. Why would anyone blow up a simple potato chip factory? Debts? Internal problems? A cruel act of violence? Shift was scared, like everyone else. He had nothing now, no money, no status, no useful contacts. But despite it all, he felt the need to bring justice for every single one of those workers, his coworkers, his friends.

  Once home, he sat by his table and immediately made a call to the only person he thought might know something, Hyla. How could anyone know anything about that incident? How could she know? When the eight liner didn’t answer, he sent several messages, desperate to understand the device.

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  > "Hyla, please answer the phone, I need answers and I know you know something, please Hyla, what’s going on?!" Shift said as he kept trying to contact Hyla.

  Minutes passed as he tried to contact her and understand the device, without any hint of further success.

  He didn’t sleep that night. Without a job, without friends, all he had was an unknown device and the vague idea of someone who might know more. The next morning, Shift took the device and headed out to get some food, maybe restore a bit of energy. The Dot had many shops, but only one in particular caught his attention. With a small outdoor stand with the name "Little Mika" the shop had a shimmering neon sign, surrounded by the scent of homemade food and that nice mood that only could be given on a place to call home. Shift sat down and ordered a meal.

  The store owner was a humanoid machine with red and gray detailing, skilled enough to make a decent meal, enough to help Shift forget everything for a short while, at least that's what he hoped.

  > "If you don’t mind me asking, why so depressed?" the machine said.

  > "The place I worked at exploded..." Shift replied.

  > "Oh, you were one of the workers at the chip factory? My apologies. An accident like that is never easy. I heard there were no survivors, guess you’re a lucky one." the machine said.

  All Shift ever wanted was a better life. No one could’ve expected something like this to happen. His heart felt heavy as he took another bite of food.

  > "Yeah... lucky, I guess..." Shift muttered.

  > "If it helps, maybe you're alive for a reason. Maybe it's a sign?" the machine replied.

  More thoughts filled Shift’s mind. In the end, he decided to put things aside for now and focus on his next step. Without a job and with the Line check coming soon, he needed a work and quick.

  > "You're right. Thanks for the food, can I know your name?" Shift asked.

  > "Oh, it’s not important. Just come here whenever you want," the machine replied.

  After the meal, Shift walked alone once again through Zone 2. When he arrived home, two CSID workers were waiting outside, an odd sight, especially since the Line check was still three days away.

  Shift cautiously approached. Before he could speak, one of the workers, a woman in a black suit and a strange horned mask, addressed him.

  > "Shift Nyxen, I suppose." The woman said.

  > "Is something the matter?" Shift asked.

  > "We’re investigating the potato chip factory incident. It wasn’t an accident. We’re looking for this device, have you seen it?" She asked.

  The other agent, a man with a similar mask, projected a hologram showing the exact device Shift had found. He knew it, this artifact had a very important meaning, and it was the most important thing he now possessed.

  > "I’m sorry, but I haven’t seen anything like that," Shift said.

  The CSID workers didn’t believe him. They glanced at each other, then back at him.

  > "Lies won’t be tolerated, Mr. Nyxen. I’m afraid we’ll have to neutralize you," the woman said.

  Their fingerless gloves shimmered, forming claws out of thin air. Shift knew what was about to happen. He had to act fast. He raised his hands slowly, gripping a pen.

  > "Hang on! I’ll tell you what I know. The device you’re looking for, it’s upstairs!" Shift said.

  Still unconvinced, the woman ascended toward Shift’s home.

  > "Keep an eye on the two liner. If he tries anything, kill him. No one will remember his name anyway," she told her partner.

  Ignoring the cruel and surprisingly not new words, Shift stood still with hands raised. The male agent lowered his guard for a second. That was enough. Shift clicked the pen, releasing a small ion burst that injured the agent, just enough for Shift to escape.

  Shift ran through The Dot, survival instinct taking over. He darted between walls and down into lower levels. Eventually, he reached an alleyway, dark and covered in graffiti. There, he finally felt safe... until he turned around.

  A hooded figure stood before him, taller than him, their body entirely hidden. The only visible detail was the same gloves the CSID agents had and a spray can in hand.

  > "Please, I just want to go home. I won’t tell anyone anything. Please, have mercy!" Shift begged.

  Only two options crossed his mind, neither of them ending well. The figure walked closer, step by step, until they were just inches away. Shift was trapped against an iron net. Panic and fear consumed him as the figure reached for their hood, and pulled it back to reveal the one behind it.