2425, EARTH
New Geneva, the jewel of the Allied Planets, hung above the shadowed guts of the Dredges like a gleaming Elysium. The metal-slatted faux sky that split the two worlds cast its silent taunt down onto the grime-choked underbelly below
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The neon lights of the cracked, ruined alleyways flickered like dying stars, casting sickly shadows of green and purple across the darkened brick and concrete of the under-city. A rumbling hum of industry permeated the air in an unending cacophony, a constant reminder of the dismal inevitability of cheap labor that fed the utopian ideals that loomed above them. 238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgrHt5MMAJ4
Among the dark streets and ruined buildings, the shanty Scragtown stood with rusted corrugated sheeting and rotting, moss-covered wooden beams that threatened to collapse under their own weight. The endless sea of shanties lay as a testament to the squalor of those who dwelled here. The criminals, revolutionaries, and runaways of Scragtown often quoted the popular mantra, “The rest of the Dredges are for the workers, the slaves of the AP. Scragtown is for us, the true dredge of society.”238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCB1nkPlIJf
In the dim, gray light, sixteen-year-old Elara Vayle hunched on the rotted sill of a filthy window. Tangled blonde hair hung around her shoulders, a single violet bang falling across her forehead. The panes that weren’t boarded up with cracked, worn wooden wood were covered with a thick layer of filth that made it nearly impossible to see through. Her bright, emerald eyes peered through a strip of smeared grime, staring up at the faux sky of the Dredges. Slim fingers toyed with a silver locket, engraved with a starfield, that hung from her neck on a tarnished chain. Along the rusted walls behind her, loose pieces of scrap paper were plastered, displaying complex technical schematics and calculations, drawn by hand.238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7mTcRJgeWp
“It’s time, Elara,” a familiar, snarky voice buzzed in her brain, “they’re not going to return.”238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5hciQniTkF
Elara averted her eyes from the cold steel grating that made up the Dredges’ sky and glanced down at the threadbare doll that had been carelessly cast aside. Her eyes were swollen and dry, she couldn’t produce any more tears, even though she desperately needed to. She exhaled, her voice low as she whispered, “Oh, Milo…” and stepped away from the window, lifted the doll to her reddened eyes, then let her arms fall, the little rag figure dangling limply between her fingers. With a sigh, she set it gently on the teal-painted dresser, her fingertips lingering on the greasy fabric. 238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFdDC7PWaGw
“It’s no use fretting about them, Elara,” Pulse hummed, “they’re gone, we will be too if you don’t make up your mind, now.” 238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQHTmJwrAI2
She returned to the window, her gaze returning to the sight of the cold, slatted surface, and her tenor shifted—soft, detached, “How long until she departs, Pulse?” she hummed to herself.238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrMcIqhbhyv
“It’s going to be a rough go of it, the streets are buzzing with enforcer drones,” Pulse grumbled, “you waited too long, the odds of reaching the ship now are low…” he ticked with a cold precision in her brain, calculating the exact odds, “... let’s just say it’s really low.” 238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1e4hoi3FUT
It’s so dangerous out there, especially after what happened to Jax… and Tess… she glanced back at the doll … and Milo. The stupid thing looked like it was judging her, like everyone always did, as if to say, “You should’ve gone after them, it’s all your fault.” Her gut twisted, and she shoved the thought down, hard, then frowned as she silently mouthed the words to the abandoned doll, “I know…” her voice cracked, she couldn’t manage even a whisper. Her frame shuddered under the imaginations of what perverse horrors might have befallen poor Tess… poor Milo. There was nothing she could do about it, her ship had literally come in...238Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡciKPnDHcht
and then Add to home screen.