[Lukas's POV]
Reginald: "Captain Reginald, at your service, how can I help you?" I curiously approach the guard, seemingly watching over another citizen as they build something in the middle of the square.
Lukas: "Uh, hey, so, what are you guys up to?"
Reginald: "Oh! Just supervising this citizen while she does her build."
Girl: "The Founder finally approved my petition!"
Lukas: "The Founder?"
Reginald: "That's her palace up there!" The guard points to the giant egg-shaped building. "She is the Keeper of the Eversource, builds everything you see!"
Lukas: "Huh. So that's where the Eversource is..."
Reginald: "Yep! Right by the Founder's side, so she can protect us from it. That's why she gets to make the calls about what does or doesn't get built."
Girl: "Like my build!"
Lukas: "Wait, protect us from it? And why isn't it allowed for everyone to build? Doesn't the Eversource have an infinite supply of resources?"
Reginald: "Ha! What a sentiment. I mean, it is a good thought, but that's crazy! I'm sorry, but more information about the Eversource is strictly confidential."
Lukas: "Ah, I see. Well, I'm looking for an 'Inn'. Do you know where it is?"
Reginald: "Uh, yeah! It's back over that a-way. Milo's place." Reginald points to a small street going away from the square.
Lukas: "Milo, huh? Thanks."
Reginald: "No problem!" I smile back as I walk away. Man, this place keeps getting weirder and weirder. Well, at least now I know where this Inn is, but I'm still not sure what the deal with this Founder is. I hope the others have found out more about that. I guess I'll report this back to the others...
[Jesse's POV]
Guard: "Don't step on the grass, please."
Jesse: "Okay... I was just looking." I hesitantly stepped a block back from the garden fence.
Guard: "Sorry. I just take my job very seriously because it is, in fact, serious business."
Jesse: "Wow. This garden must be really special or something to get its own guard. What's the deal?"
Guard: "The dirt here is very precious. This garden feeds almost everybody in town. If even one block were to drop over the edge... Whew! Catastrophe!"
Jesse: "Huh? I never heard dirt being this valuable." The guard raised an eyebrow.
Guard: "In case you didn't already know, everything that drops off the island is gone, forever. And with the limited resources we have here, even the most common items are a very big deal."
Jesse: "Wait, can't you get infinite supplies from the 'Eversource?'"
Guard: "I don't know where you heard that, but it's not that simple, you know? Also, information about the Eversource is very strict. I'm sorry, but I can't give away more than I already did."
Jesse: "Okay, fine... I'll just leave then."
Guard: "Have a good day." The guard waves as I move away to another part of the garden fence where no one can bother me. I've spoken to a few other people before this, but it didn't go anywhere, so I gave up and went to the place we promised to regroup. Not long after, Ivor, Petra, and Lukas return as well, some looking more confident than others.
Jesse: "Did you find anything out?"
Ivor: "Not really, except that this place..." Ivor nervously looks around before coming closer to whisper the last part. "This place is probably run by a dictator."
Lukas: "What!? That's a bold claim."
Ivor: "Just look around! No place has this many laws restricting even the most normal things! What purpose do these rules serve!?"
Jesse: "Okay, let's not immediately jump to conclusions."
Petra: "I mean, so far, everyone here has been really hesitant to talk about this subject. Ivor does have a point; maybe the nervousness actually comes from this exact reason?"
Lukas: "Hmm... I dunno. The guards do bring up that it's enforced due to the limited resources they have here."
Ivor: "Is that really an excuse to repress the people's freedom like that?" Lukas began to rethink.
Jesse: "Well, I guess I have to admit, your statement isn't unreasonable. They also keep any information about the Eversource hidden too. I still have no idea what this thing even is!"
Ivor: "Well, I can't really help you out here. All I heard about was that it's some sort of thing that can produce resources."
Jesse: "Oh well, anything else?"
Petra: "This 'Inn' is apparently owned by someone named Milo. The only hint Egghead provided is that 'he's a messy guy and suspenders always falling down or whatever.'"
Lukas: "Egg-what?"
Petra: "Egghead!"
Jesse: "Head-what??"
Petra: "The guy from earlier! You know? The one who ran away like a coward back at the entrance?"
Lukas: "Oh, that guy. But isn't it a bit mean to call someone like that?"
Petra: "Whatever. Point is, we still don't know where the Inn is!"
Lukas: "Well, actually. I did manage to get a guard named Reginald to show me." Lukas points to the off-side path leading away from the town square.
Jesse: "Then what are we waiting for? Let's get to that Inn!" The four of us head over there. Walking into the small alley, you know it, we find a building hidden in plain sight with a big sign in front saying 'Inn'. Just outside the entrance, we spot two people having a suspicious exchange. One of them looked just like the vague description Petra gave. I assume this is Milo.
Guy with Glasses: "...And where should I put them...?"
Milo: "Yes, just give them here! I'll deal with them!" Milo, having spotted us, quickly grabbed the few sticks the other guy had and hid them in his pocket before instructing the guy to flee. "Get out of here, go, go!" After the guy left, Milo turned to us, smiling and acting like what we just saw didn't happen. "Uh, why hello there. What can I do for you, four?" We looked at each other, confused.
Ivor: "Um, are you just going to ignore that we just witnessed you making a totally not suspicious deal?"
Milo: "Gosh! Shh, I don't know what you're talking about. None of that here! It's not stick allowance day, after all! So why would I, a humble innkeeper, have sticks? Haha!" Milo chuckled as we stared at him in disbelief. Wow. I thought I was the worst liar of all time.
Lukas: "Uh... okay then. Um, sorry to bother you... are you 'Milo?'"
Milo: "Yes, yes, that's me. A pleasure to meet you. As I've never seen you before, I assume you must be new arrivals here in Sky City. Don't see many of those. Haha! Now. What can I do for you?"
Petra: "I heard the Blaze Rods came here. Do you know where they are right now?"
Milo: "'Blaze Rods?' Hm, hm, hm. 'Blaze Rods'... Sorry, I... I don't know any Blaze Rods. You must have been misled."
Petra: "Oh, sorry, let me rephrase that. I heard three outsiders with matching armor came here to your Inn. Do you know where they are right now?"
Milo: "Oh! THOSE people! I'm sorry, but I can't help you out here. They just came here for directions and left already."
Ivor: "Hmm... really?"
Milo: "I'm sorry. I'm just an innkeeper; I can't help you out here!" Milo tried to keep his facade of an innocent, chill dude, just leaning against a wall and minding his own business. But it was clear it wasn't working the longer the conversation kept going.
Petra: "How can we trust you that you're not hiding anything?"
Milo: "I told you, I don't know anything! So please stop pressuring me! And can you tell your friend to stop staring at me so intensely? It's making me uncomfortable!" Huh? Oh, I just realized my stare was probably unknowingly making him nervous. Initially, I planned to stop, but realizing I could corner him with this, I only started to stare even more intensely. Eventually, it broke through Milos facade. "Okay! Okay! I'll tell you what I know! Just stop staring at me because it is seriously freaking me out!"
Jesse: "Thank you."
Milo: "This guy, 'Aiden' DID come talk to me earlier, alright? But it wasn't for directions; he wanted to know where the Eversource was."
Ivor: "Called it!"
Milo: "I just told him what everyone else already knows -- the Eversource is in the palace with the Founder. That's all that happened, I swear!"
Petra: "Ugh... what a bunch of creeps!"
Milo: "Yes, I wasn't terribly fond of them."
Lukas: "So where is Aiden now?"
Milo: "The group left for the palace, and I haven't seen them since."
Jesse: "Okay, well, thanks for the hint."
Milo: "Yes, yes. Just please stop the line of questioning, please!"
Jesse: "Okay, okay, we'll leave you alone." I turn to the others. "Welp, guess we're heading to the palace next." Right as we're about to leave, a sudden announcement interrupts us before we can move.
Reginald: "Attention! Attention, everyone! Just a moment of your time, please! Emergency meeting in the Founder's Garden! Attendance is mandatory!"
Milo: "Oh, slime blocks!" Milo, with an annoyed look, begins walking out of the alley towards the town square, where the garden is.
Ivor: "Curious. I wonder what that's all about." We join Milo and head towards the garden as well. Peeking out of the alley, we could see that the town square was now filled with people waiting curiously.
Brown-haired Girl: "Oh! It's the Founder!" A random citizen shouts. Our eyes all turn to the palace entrance. There, a woman wearing a weird yellow robe and black hair comes walking out, accompanied by a dozen guards.
Ivor: "(It's the dictator!)" Ivor silently whispers to us.
Petra: "(Zip it! This isn't the time to make such remarks!)"
Lukas: "(W-Wait! Guys! Look!)" To our surprise, also walking out of the palace behind the Founder, were Aiden and his gang, the Blaze Rods. The guards stopped their march right before they reached the crowd. The Founder and Aiden exchanged friendly glances as they stopped as well.
Jesse: "(Shit. This might be a problem...)" The Founder turned her head and addressed the crowd.
Founder: "People of Sky City! I'm sorry to pull you from your duties, but something urgent has come to my attention. A crime has been committed."
"A crime?" "What kind of crime?"
Founder: "Please, please remain calm!" The Founder silenced the crowd. "Earlier today, outsiders built a bridge into our fair city from a distant island!" A gate opens from the outer wall, revealing the bridge and the hideous thing Ivor created when we first came here. "Now, whether these outsiders know it or not, this is a violation of Sky City's most sacred law: No unauthorized building!"
Milo: "(Wait. Was that you? Are you the bridge builders?)" Milo whispered to us.
Jesse: "(We didn't know it was against the law! It was just a bridge!)"
Petra: "(This is nuts!)" Around us, we could hear the crowd going nuts.
"Obscene!" "Illegal builders! Atrocious!"
Founder: "Everyone! Everyone! Please!" While the Founder calms down the crowd, Aiden suddenly whispers something into her ear. I couldn't make out what it was from so far away, but it definitely made our situation worse. "Jesse, wherever you are, step forward now. I have already been informed of your identity. I appreciate that you may be ignorant of our laws, but I will warn you: Sky City is small, and I promise that if you try to hide, I will find you."
Like a signal, the guard started dispersing, presumably on the hunt for me and my group. Shit. They're really trying to corner us, aren't they? Damn you, Aiden. At that moment, Ivor pulled us closer.
Ivor: "(We need to get to that Eversource at whatever cost! This is clearly our fastest way into the castle!)"
Petra: "(By getting arrested?!)"
Jesse: "(Hold on! Are you sure about this? We'd play right into Aiden's hands like this!)"
Ivor: "(Do you have any other great plans? I'm already on a watchlist anyway, so it'll only be a matter of time until I get arrested either way.)"
Milo: "(Wait!)" Milo suddenly barges into the conversation. "(Don't be fooled by the Founder's lies. I can help you come up with a plan to get into the palace!)" Milo suddenly deciding to help us caught me by surprise, but at that moment, it made me a little relieved to see we at least now had a plan to get around this problem. Unfortunately, Ivor didn't buy it, and then he proceeded to turn around... and do the unthinkable.
Ivor: "Here I am! I built the bridge!" Ivor waved his hands around, blowing our cover completely.
Petra: "What the fuck, Ivor?! Are you crazy?! Does she look like she's going to help us!?" Before I realized it, everyone was staring at us now, and worst of all, all the guards were coming in our direction as well!
Jesse: "Sorry, Ivor, that's a bad plan. The best bet now is to go with Milo!" Ivor was about to shout something back, but a guard suddenly grabbed him by the robe, catching him by surprise.
Guard: "Come with me!"
Ivor: "Hey, unhand me! This is completely unnecessary!" In response to Ivor's resistance, the guard only began pulling harder. "Hey! Hands off my robes!"
Milo: "Over here!" Milo and Petra have already retreated to the alley and are now calling out to me and Lukas. Sorry, Ivor, we'll have to ditch you for now. I'll promise to come back for you later. Up till now, the guards assumed Ivor was the only perpetrator, but it probably won't take long for them to realize we're in on it too. The best bet now is to flee the scene before this happens.
Jesse: "(Let's get out of here!)" I whisper to Lukas before making a run for it.
Aiden: "They're getting away!" Shit! Aiden probably noticed us. And to think we'd have a head start -- now the guards are already on our tail!
Guard: "Hey! Hey! That's them!"
Reginald: "After them!" I tried to sprint as fast as I could, but man, these guards are fast!
Lukas: "Jesse! Watch out!" Eh? A guard's hand reached my armor at that moment. But in the next split second, Lukas tackled him to the ground before the guard could grab me.
Jesse: "Lukas!" I stopped and looked back at the scene that had just unfolded.
Petra: "Jesse!" Huh? When I realized my mistake, another guard was already in front of me, tackling me to the ground as well.
[Petra's POV]
The moment Jesse froze on the spot, one of the guards rammed into him, knocking him to the ground. Shit! Just the moment of me looking back made the other guards catch up to me already. Urgh... I'm starting to have enough of these eggheads! Like hell, I'd let myself get caught as well! A guard closest to me tried to grab me, but I intercepted his arm and kicked him to the ground.
I continued running after Milo, who was in front of me. But right then, two guards with swords appeared between us from a side street, trying to cut me off. I pull out my own enchanted sword and violently swing at the guards. They tried to block it, but their rusty stone swords were no match for mine. The swing knocked the guards to the side as I slid through the opening.
As I fled further away, the distance between the guards and me started to get bigger. It may have been because I dispatched most of the guards or because their attention was on Lukas and Jesse. Milo turned a corner in front of me; I did the same, but the moment I turned, I lost sight of him. Huh? Where did he go?
Milo: "(Over here!)" Milo whispered from a small blind spot hidden behind a building. I quickly rolled into the hiding spot as well. Fortunately, the guards that came after us lost sight of us at that turn, causing them to run past the spot we were hiding."(We need to reach my Inn! We're safe from the guards there!)"
Petra: "Okay, just lead the way!" Milo peeks out, and after making sure no one is around, he gestures for me to follow him. We make a run for it, slipping into the Inn while no one notices. We burst through the door, causing a guy behind the counter to jump.
Milo: "Just in here!" Milo pants as we enter a lobby of some kind. It looked like a typical inn, but other than that, it didn't look like we could hide anywhere.
Petra: "Wait! There's nowhere to hide in here! It's a dead end!" Milo stops just before a wall before turning to face me.
Milo: "Before I can take you any further, you must take an oath. You must swear to never reveal what I am about to show you. Do you swear that?"
Petra: "What!?" Milo's sudden question caught me by surprise. "What the hell are you talking about?!" At that moment, we were able to hear guards talking outside.
Guard: "I think they went this way!"
Milo: "It's really important! I need to make this promise!"
Petra: "Uh, yeah, sure, whatever. Can we please get on with it?! We're on the run!"
Milo: "Urgh, not QUITE an oath, but it'll have to do..."
Petra: "JUST DO IT!"
Milo: "Phillipe?" Milo looked at the guy behind the counter. Phillipe nodded and activated a lever behind the counter. In response to that, the wall we were next to opened, revealing a secret room behind it. "Right this way." We ran through it. Right after that, Phillipe closed the door again. I let out a breath, knowing we were out of danger... for now.
Petra: "You should've told us before you had this secret hideout."
Milo: "I can't just give this place away to random people! It wouldn't be so secret now, would it?"
Petra: "Fair enough." Finally taking the scene in, I realized that we weren't the only ones in here. I looked around; this place is larger than I imagined. There were a dozen people here hanging out in some kind of lounge room. In contrast to everywhere else in this weird city, they had crafting tables, furnaces, piston tables, jukeboxes, paintings, and other decorations. "Whoa..."
Milo: "This... is Build Club."
[Meanwhile - Jesse's POV]
The knock to the ground made my head spin, and before I knew it, I was handcuffed along with Lukas and brought back to the front of the palace. There, I heard Ivor seemingly still resisting arrest.
Ivor: "Let go of me this instant!"
Reginald: "Excuse me! Excuse me!" Reginald moved the crowd away as the guards escorted the three of us to right in front of the Founder and Aiden. When I glared at them back, I could already see Aiden and his group holding in their laughter. That bastard really is enjoying every second of this, isn't he?
Founder: "We meet at last." The Founder looked us dead in the eye. "Would you be kind enough to explain why you committed such a serious crime?" Tsk. Just seeing Aiden is already making my blood boil.
Jesse: "Listen! I don't know what that guy's told you, but you can't listen to him!"
Aiden: "Oh. Jesse, I'm hurt! Wounded." Aiden remarks sarcastically. I roll my eyes. The Founder, not pleased with my response, however, makes a gesture at the guards before walking back into the palace along with the Blaze Rods.
Guard: "Get a move on!"
Jesse: "Alright, Alright! I'm going!" The three of us were also escorted into the palace. Oh boy... I can only wait for what's going to happen...
To be continued...