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Chapter 4

"To the Gem area, Sir. To the shopping district," I answer, ignoring the fact that they were very brief.

"Mr. Oakley, are you... perhaps not informed of what happened in the Gem and Diamond area about an hour ago?" I shake my head.

"A hundred Rust rebels came out on the streets, threatening Gem commoners, hijacked main buildings, both in the Diamond area and the Gem area as well-" It takes a few seconds for me to process the information. He says those words like they are daily news, even though it's clearly a blow to the Republic's top class security.

"In short, shopping district's closed, son. And we don't know if you just wanted to window shop or add fuel to the fire, because it seems to me like you will most likely do the latter," his partner, a bulky man with thick mustache throws a condescending hiss.

"My sister went to the shopping district this morning. She's still only 17 years old and I haven't gotten any contact from her since. Would I be able to go to the area just for that purpose?" I grit my teeth. I still try to keep my tone as calm as possible even though the way they respond to this situation is infuriating me.

17 year olds are obviously not permitted to own a gun yet.

"The Gem area is secured, everyone was evacuated just in time the moment the attacks happened."

"Is that what appears to you or do you purposely leave out Rusts in your judgment?" I snap at him, and he looks taken aback by my question. "You know you're all too fucking good to worry about that,"

Bullseye. This bastard was only doing lip service.

The police I was talking to shuts his mouth and looks at me dumbfounded, blood rushing to his face and the tips of his ears. He then gapes his mouth, not even making a single effort to close it. Instead, the other one snorts and laughs as if I am simply worried about a rodent that got caught in a mouse trap.

"Who is there to save when most of them are involved in the attacks?" The other police asks, rhetorically. "We all know who'd be rebels. Those who can't do anything but leech off the government. It's your people." He sneers. The desire to punch them to release my anger fuels me, but my words come out faster.

My words were along the lines of 'government dogs' and 'overpaid sons of bitches' but just as I am about to complete my sentence—

They point their gun at me, silencing me in an instant. They're not one of those guns that can store few ammo, in fact, they're one of those commercially unavailable guns that I commonly see in the black market.

Seeing I only have the weakest of all the guns I have, or, one of the legal guns so to say, I shut my mouth from saying any single word.

"I've let you run your shitty mouth for too long. Scram or I'll make you shut up forever," The bulky man threatens me, finally having enough of me correcting his anti-Rust views. They're servants of the most powerful people, so they think destroying those who are on the bottom of the chain would be their own equivalent of having a little taste of power.

Heart beating fast against my chest, I clench my fist as I stay frozen in place. The temperature seems to drop lower by the second. I can't outcompete them, not when I'm not on a mission and on a crisis at the same time.

I guess the wisest option would be to back out and-

I don't know what happens next. I'll figure it out somehow.

The bullet accelerates toward the huge metal pole behind and I feel my heart beating a millisecond late. I bite my lip strong enough to draw blood, taking hesitant steps backward as I see the effect it has on the pole. It leaves a huge dent in the center of the pole. It's enough to incite fear in most Rusts' heart, except for me and possibly those Rust rebels. We're an entirely different breed.