Chapter 1: Intro

"Zakir!" called the Flower Girl. Zakir lifted his body from the mossy bed of flowers. Zakir smiled as he saw the young girl's face, her smile sweeter than any sugar.

"Zakir, let's go for a walk," the beautiful creature invited Zakir, who nodded with a small smile. Zakir stood up, leaving the shade of the oak tree, and reached for the girl's hand, holding it gently. The girl immediately pulled Zakir down the hill towards the village.

In the village, children were running around, cows were being led to and from the market, and several women were washing clothes. The lively village scene seemed to amaze the girl.

"Why? Is this your first time in a village?" Zakir asked the girl, who was awestruck by the view. They kept walking.

"Yes, actually, it's the first time I've seen other people besides you," the girl said with a smile.

"Thank you for bringing me here, Zakir," said the girl. Zakir scratched his head, speechless. His mind was in turmoil from the nervousness. But the dream ended abruptly when a voice, echoing out of nowhere, called his name.

“Zakir…”

"Zakir!! Wake up!" Ember shouted. Zakir tried to open his eyes and escape from his beautiful dream. While Zakir struggled to wake up, Ember scolded him, "Zakir... Why is it so hard to wake you up? You've been living here since you were little; you should be used to getting up at this hour by now."

It had already been 10 years since his parents had left him at The Vex. This place, the safest sanctuary in the Fourth World, was also considered the harshest shelter, at least according to most people here. It was where someone named Black Boss gathered most of his wealth.

As inhabitants of Dunja Ke-Empo & Jimena, the monsters roamed like stray cats, and Zakir and many people here barely had any memories of the world outside The Vex. Some of the older inhabitants believed that the outside world was much more beautiful, lush, and cool compared to life here, in the confines of The Vex.

"Zaka! Continue your work!! Stop daydreaming!" shouted Senior Resident Mater Bachang, who acted as the overseer in Mine 2093.

Zakir couldn’t fathom how someone brought to this place could immediately be given heavy labor. Even a seven-year-old was forced to mine. This place felt more like a prison. Old Man Seny had said that, though Zakir wasn’t quite sure what a prison was like, he believed The Vex was similar: people were forbidden from leaving for work and faced deadly punishments for homicide and theft...

Minimal food rations, strict rules, 24-hour surveillance, and fights between barracks. At least, that was The Vex is to him, a 12-year-old boy. He wondered how Ember and his friend Lev are like now. It had been 2-3 years since they all last played together.