The Life We Know: Fortune

By C. Lamerichs

'Stick to what you know and let someone else take care of the rest'. The great nation of Concordia prides itself on its harmony, born of dependency. Each zone has its own specialty, all thanks to the trade secrets which are meant to stay within their wall. The citizens are encouraged to stay within that wall as well.

Nicholas Setmore, still aged 29, continues on his journey through Concordia with his best friend, Jesseminah Whitfield, and the questionable eccentric Silvian. Now more determined than ever to stop the impending revolution, the trio has to hurry to their destination before the radicals find a way to set their dangerous scheme in motion. But just what is the plan to change Concordia forever, and how much of a hand does the mysterious man known as Otto have in all this? As Nicholas and Jesseminah travel towards their goal, they not only learn more about their enemies; they learn more about their friend.

The third installment of a series, The Life We Know: Fortune centers on just what it means to be fortunate and how easy it is to lose that which holds a dear place in one's heart.

• Language: English
• Publisher: C. Lamerichs
• Release date: Feb 3, 2021
• ISBN: 9781005781576

C. Lamerichs

Born in the summer of 1988, C. Lamerichs was raised in a rural village in the Netherlands. As far back as she can remember, teachers have accused her of being a loner and a dreamer. Why that was considered to be a bad thing, she still can't say. Nowadays, she still resides in her country of birth, inhabiting a nice house with her three cats. She juggles a full-time factory job with staff duties for the J-POP Foundation (which hosts the largest anime convention of the Netherlands) and of course writing. After more than a decade of dabbling with fanfiction in her spare time, she decided to write an original story as a means of balancing out her monotonous, monochromatic job.When the life you know fails to bring true happiness and instead only leaves you content, it's up to you to take that first step outside your comfort zone, or so she would say.

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Copyright

The Life We Know

Fortune

By C. Lamerichs

Copyright © 2021 by C. Lamerichs.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

ISBN 978-1-0057815-7-6 (EPUB)

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your favorite ebook retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

Cover Illustration Copyright © 2021 by Sabrina Kooijmans, Sappig-art.com.

Table of Contents

Wanderers

The Troupe

Verner

In Agreement

Branding

Old Anger

Stories and Fiction

Silvian's Story

Farewell

Harmless Fun

Rex Montes

Tremors

Otto

The Destination

Family Reunion

The Whole Truth

You're Welcome

Silvian's Continued Story

Frequencies

Perfect Imagery

The Revolutionist

Debts to be Paid

Wanderers

Never in his life, not even after all he'd been through, had Cole felt so utterly lost. It was as if he were surrounded by darkness with not even the faintest idea of where to go, nor even whether he should be going at all. Jess was there with him, of course. Much as she pretended otherwise, she was just as lacking in guidance as he was. She was still in control of their vehicle, the stolen motorized carriage, and Cole allowed it because he had no better ideas. He could barely think at all. Whenever he closed his eyes, flashes of the day's events invaded his mind, ready for viewing. With the focus on such a limited time frame, it became difficult to see the greater picture. Reminders had to be repeated to himself over and over in hopes of serving as a distraction.

His name was Nicholas Setmore, though his two closest friends called him Cole. It was part of a name pact they'd made, in which they'd sworn to help each other out and never surrender. He'd grown up a citizen of Suffitio, the industrial zone. He was 29 years old. He loved to draw. His lifelong dream of joining the Defenders had come true, only for everything to become disrupted five years ago by the betrayal of his partner, Vincent. No, not Vincent. Silvian.

-Silvian was hurt. He'd fallen and hit his head and now he was hurt. No, no, don't think about that.

Cole had turned to the profession of factory worker instead, playing his part in radio assembly for several years. That was where he'd met Jesseminah Whitfield, who was five years younger than him and had attempted to befriend him with such tenacity, he couldn't possibly have fought it. Cole was thankful that she'd stuck with him for so long. She was strong and handy, growing ever more adept at improvising her way out of a tough situation.

-If it hadn't been for Jess's quick acting, they wouldn't have gotten away in the mines. They could've died, just as one of their captors was now dead. … Focus.

They'd come across Sneaks and revolutionists, both radical and pacifist. They'd traveled to Aqualux, tracked down Silvian and against all odds, befriended him as well. They'd lost their rights as citizens and become Wanderers after a dreadful misunderstanding. They'd set out into the open space between the zones, the Wasteland, in hopes of reaching Clareo. Millicent Whitfield, Jess's twin sister, might still be able to assist them. Clareo was the zone of progress, of brilliant minds, of Concordia's salvation.

-It was also the zone which had given birth to people like Otto and Ethan, who were planning something big with the radicals. There were pistols involved, along with enough resources to put them to a horrible use. Not only that, there was some sort of amplification device with a very special coil, which the radicals were desperate to retrieve after having allowed it to fall into Jess's hands. What was the point of trying to evade that notion?

They shouldn't have stopped in Crepido, the zone providing Concordia with raw materials. Had they not gone there, they wouldn't have come into contact with the radicals. They wouldn't have been tempted to investigate. They wouldn't have been forced down into the mines and no one would have gotten hurt.

The Wasteland was moving along outside the window in an insignificant blur. There was nothing out there Cole wanted to see at the moment. Not until they were in nomad territory, anyway. They were heading north west according to the compass. They'd been speeding there for many hours already. Clareo was to the north west. Or perhaps more to the west and less to the north. What Cole wouldn't have given for a map, should such a thing even exist of Concordia as a whole, Wasteland and all. They'd relied on their guide for more specific directions all this time and in hindsight, that'd been foolish.

How long did a person need to be unconscious before it could be defined as a coma? It was the sort of question Cole had never thought he'd need to ask. Silvian was still unresponsive and it worried him. He'd made the man as comfortable as possible on the floor by allowing his head to rest on a pillow, with the sleeping bag to serve as a mattress. He'd cleaned Silvian's face of dried blood and wrapped Jess's new scarf around his injured head with her permission. Not only would it help with further bleeding, it hid the swelling that preluded a bruise. Perhaps other areas would be bruising as well. Cole didn't want to verify it, as he couldn't bring himself to go near Silvian at the moment, let alone touch him.

He was slumped over in the row of seats behind Jess, head in his hands. Eddie was sitting by his side, paws planted firmly on the floor and snout resting on the seat cushion. While the dog was a comforting presence, it wasn't enough to stop his mind from tripping over the obstacles of utter defeat.

They'd broken so many laws today. They'd been in an explosion. A man had fallen to his death right beside them. Much as Cole wanted to blame the radicals, they themselves were at fault for getting mixed up in matters of the revolution. Aside from that, they'd been betrayed. Every shred of reasoning led back to the same conclusion; Leron Cooper, an outwardly kind man who was meant to have retired as a pacifistic revolutionist, had told the radicals about the amplifier with the prolixium coil. There was no other explanation as to how their enemy could've known that it'd been taken to Crepido.

They couldn't go back there. Certainly not for a good, long while. The Defenders would have spread information about them and they wouldn't even make it through the gate.

A quiet groan was the first sign of progress. Cole looked up just in time to see Silvian's head roll to the side, his face scrunching up with signs of evident pain. … Was that progress? Surely, being conscious was an improvement.

"He's awake. … Stop the carriage- he's awake," he heard himself breathe.

Jess wasted no time with bringing their vehicle to a halt, then hopped out from her seat and came in through the side door two seconds later. Eddie, in turn, leaped out into the fresh air behind her. The both of them kneeled down beside Silvian, watching him closely. If discomfort wasn't evident from his features, it was further substantiated by the erratic movements of his fingers.

Silly? Jess asked quietly. ... Can you hear me?

Silvian's muscles eased into a more relaxed demeanor, then tensed up all over again. His jaw was set and his eyes appeared to be twitching behind their lids. Jess placed a hand on his shoulder, squeezing it. There was a flinch and a pained whining sound, which was all it took for her to back away again.

... Silvian, Cole said. There was a note of hoarse sadness to his voice that he attempted to wish out of existence for a multitude of reasons.

When green eyes finally opened to meet his own, they were unfocused. Silvian blinked and attempted to bend one of his arms, only to let it fall to the floor again. Unngh... What...?

Are you all right? Jess leaned in closer, though this time, she made no attempt to touch him.

Everything... hurts.

Of course it does. You suffered a nasty fall, she replied.

Cole's gaze swerved to Jess, taking in her own appearance. She'd suffered that very same fall, after all. The only difference was that she'd been pulled into Silvian's arms. He'd protected her. Stains of dark red were still visible in the fabric of her clothes, located in particular spots such as over her knees and one of her arms. That she hadn't breathed a word of her pain proved just how strong she was.

Silvian looked mildly confused, nothing more. I... I what?

In the mines, remember? There was an explosion.

What are you... This time, Silvian succeeded in bringing his hand up to his aching head. His eyes closed again. Why is everything spinning...?

Spinning?

"... 'S like... rolling."

The explanation was so slurred and vague, Cole began to suspect this was more than just a slow awakening. Indeed, Silvian was lying so still that nothing could possibly be 'spinning' or 'rolling'. The way his eyes were consistently drifting sideways implied a severe case of vertigo.

How many fingers am I holding up? Cole interjected, raising three of them a fair distance away from Silvian's face.

Ughh...

"Silvian. How many fingers?"

I don't know! Shut... Silvian trailed off quite suddenly, as if he'd forgotten what he was going to say halfway into the sentence. Then he made a second attempt with renewed energy. "Shut up!"

As if to further prove a point, he rolled his head away from Cole, only to flinch when his bandaged injury came into contact with the pillow. This was bad. From the dazed expression to the disorientation, to even the irritability, there were enough signs to indicate a concussion.

Perhaps a breath of fresh air will do him some good, Cole suggested, knowing very well it was farfetched.

They moved him into a sitting position with difficulty, as Silvian protested all of the way. It was a good thing he lacked the strength to fight them off, though at the same time it was tragic. They moved him over to the edge of the carriage and allowed his legs to dangle over the side. He squinted against the light of the sun, which was already lowering itself down the sky. Following that was a meek attempt to shield himself with his hand and, finally, he attempted to turn away altogether.

No, no. Come along. Up you get.

Pulling Silvian into a standing position had been a mistake. His knees buckled almost immediately and while Cole could catch him with both arms, there was still an awkward stagger followed by a tumble. Jess failed to stop it as well. Silvian was lowered onto his hands and knees, where his fingers clawed at the dirt.

Guh... 'M gonna be sick... was not so much a hypothetical situation as it was a warning.

Cole was just in time to grab Silvian's braid and pull it out of harm's way. Luckily, the man's stomach was virtually empty regardless. Dry retching went on for several minutes. When at last it'd passed, Cole crouched down behind Silvian to pull him up into a proper sitting position. Sniffing and trembling were even more ominous symptoms being displayed, as was the suspicion that he was now drifting off into unconsciousness again. The only thing Cole could think to do was to wrap his arms around Silvian's chest and hold him.

Jess looked just as concerned as he felt. She pressed the back of her fingers against Silvian's cheeks, which were oddly flushed compared to how pale the rest of him had gone. ... We have to take him to a doctor.

Even if we could make it to Clareo fast enough, no doctor would treat him without citizenship, Cole reasoned in turn. It was a sad truth he'd been mulling over for several hours already.

No, but... Masika said there might be a nomad settlement north west of Crepido, didn't she? Jess retracted her hand and sat up a bit straighter. "Troupes have someone who acts like a doctor and they'll help whoever needs it. That's how it works out here."

Cole's hold on Silvian's body tightened. It was true; Masika had alluded to a settlement. It was the context, however, that gave him pause. 'Raulo's troupe had likely moved there'. Even with how prone Silvian was to keeping his old life to himself, Cole had heard enough to know that he wouldn't want to be reunited with the nomads who'd raised him. Asking them for help might even be considered an insult.

Then again, Silvian never did do what was best for himself.

Then, let's continue into nomad territory.

------

The motorized carriage must've been faster than a horse-drawn one. The only reason Cole could suspect this was because it'd taken them very little extra time to reach land touched by nomads. When they'd traveled with Masika and the others, it'd taken about ten hours for them to travel to Crepido from where they'd made camp. That place had been located in an area where nomad territory had already ended and the Wasteland had begun to rob them of surrounding plant life. In this motorized carriage, it'd taken about five hours to reach the first trees and another three to spot a proper forest. Of course, they were headed north rather than south, which may have contributed to the difference as well.

The motorized carriage had not been built to drive on anything that wasn't flat, steady road. There was creaking and bumping whenever Jess decided to pass over terrain which was anything less than gentle. Still, they pressed on.

Unable to maneuver through thick forest, they made attempts to stick to grassy fields and minor hills. The sun had set by now, making it extremely difficult to see where they were headed. The carriage's lights illuminated only their path, not their surroundings.

Silvian had awoken once or twice, only to be as out of touch with reality as before. He'd drift back into unconsciousness within a minute, leaving Cole with a feeling of cold anxiety.

All the way through the night, they drove on. Every so often they would stop the carriage and climb a hill to assess the view, only to admit that there was nothing to see. It wasn't until the sun once again became visible on the horizon that Cole realized they hadn't slept. More importantly than that, Jess hadn't slept. He asked her to stop the carriage again.

Over the past hour, the amount of orchards and fields in their surroundings had increased. Cole thought that was a very good sign. He reflexively picked an apple from a tree beside the carriage, even if he had no intention of eating it. It would be safe inside his backpack. Jess was uncharacteristically quiet, leaving it to him to break the silence.

We can remain here for a few hours if you need rest, he said.

Jess shook her head. I don't need rest.

You've been driving for hours now.

I'm fine, Cole, she insisted, taking her first step towards a nearby hill. He decided to follow.

There was a forest nearby. It lay at their feet like a distant carpet, a mesh of green with some yellow and even small patches of red mixed in. Cole acknowledged it, then dismissed it as irrelevant. Interesting sights of nature were not their priority right now. He cast his gaze all around in hopes of spotting something that would indicate a nomad settlement, only to fall short.

Jess sighed and sat herself down, pulling her knees up to her chest. Perhaps we already passed it...

Do you wish to turn around and find another route in Crepido's direction?

I don't know... The carriage's battery is beginning to run low. We have another two hours at the most, I believe.

That was unfortunate news, to say the least. How were they supposed to carry their luggage and Silvian around? … They couldn't. The moment the carriage's battery ran out, they'd be stuck wherever they halted until further notice. Cole sighed and took a seat as well, staring towards the horizon.

What... Jess began, only to fall silent for a few seconds. ... What if Silly won't recover? What if we lose him?

We won't lose him, Cole said immediately. He insisted on it because he needed it to be true.

Jess raised both hands to slide her lucky headband backwards, out of her hair. She held it up, allowing Cole to note that its original yellow color was virtually hidden beneath smudges of black and gray. It'd been donned this entire journey and only now did it begin to show signs of being worn out.

Some good this has done me, she remarked bitterly, stretching the fabric between her fingers.

You're still alive. I would consider that lucky.

Not only had Silvian gotten hurt in the aftermath of the explosion, someone else had died. Dune Munro had been an arrogant, awful prick of a human being, yet Cole wouldn't have wished that end upon him. He must've still had family back in Aqualux. He'd had a girlfriend of sorts in Crepido as well. His death could've been avoided so very easily. Then again, this was what radicals did, wasn't it? They were willing to sacrifice anything- even lives- for the sake of immediate change.

A pitiful sound came from Jess. Something like a very brief, bitter chuckle. I'm alive because Silly shielded me. He could've tried to run away, but instead he jumped forward to grab me.

I'm quite certain that if he'd allowed you to fall alone, I would be having a very similar conversation with him at the moment, Cole pointed out. The sentiments struck a chord a second later and it felt as if something had become lodged in the back of his throat. He... doesn't want to see us hurt.

There was a chance that there was something far more sinister at play, though. It was the sort of thought that Cole didn't wish to entertain for too long, as to mull over the darkness meant to acknowledge without a doubt it was there. Surely, Silvian was only being an idiot whenever he put himself in the center of danger to draw attention away from his companions. Surely, it was only spurred on by misplaced gallantry.

"Well... That's selfish, because we don't want to see him hurt," Jess said.

... Exactly.

Jess stretched the headband between her fingers again, staring down at it. Do you remember the day we first met?

It was a difficult question. He remembered because all the important facts about that day stood by him. He knew that he'd been ordered by their superior to guide Jess around the factory. It wasn't the sort of thing that he'd usually be asked to do, but the person who was meant to take on a task like that had been sick for the day. Anyone with enough experience could've taken their place, really. Trouble was, Cole had happened to walk through the door at the wrong moment. His place by the assembly line, in turn, had been assigned to a colleague who'd only been with the factory for a few weeks. When it came to actually seeing the day inside his head and recalling the details of conversations, he was drawing a blank.

I remember, he said.

Heh... At first I thought it was really frustrating that I was being partnered up with a sourpuss like you. I thought to myself that it was just my luck; out of all the people they could've picked, they chose the one who doesn't want to be here. But... As time went on, I realized it. I didn't want to be there either. I could understand why you were being so cold to everyone, so... Maybe that's why I kept trying to befriend you. I was glad that we met.

For a long while, Cole was silent. He couldn't quite grasp what he'd done to deserve a friend like Jess, especially when he'd spent most of his time actively pushing her away. Ultimately, he procured something of a smile. I'm glad that we met as well.

Jess brushed some of the dirt off her headband, then slid it back where it belonged. For about five more minutes, they simply sat there, looking out over the Wasteland that surrounded them. It seemed to go on forever. When they finally got back to their feet to continue the trip, Cole cast one last glance all around. Just as he'd been doing for hours already, he willed there to be something worth noting. Anything that would help.

And then he saw it. It was only the faintest of disturbances, drawing a hazy line from the treetops up into the sky. There. Is that...?

What? I don't see anything. Jess stared into the same direction as Cole, her eyes narrowing.

Hold on. He dug through his pack to find the monocular Jess had given him only a few days ago. Up until this point, he'd never thought to use it. The smallest end was held to his right eye and with the magnification to aid him, there was no mistaking it. ... It's smoke. There's at least one fire, perhaps more.

It was difficult to say exactly where the fires were and how far away they would be, as the forest line hid the smoke's source from view. But then... There was an odd break in the blanket of greens, oranges and reds, wasn't there? A clearing. As he did a grander sweep of the area ahead, Cole noted there were paths leading up to it as well.

There was no certainty that they'd spotted the nomad settlement they'd been searching for, but it was enough for now. Where there were fires, surely there would be people.

------

There was a wall.

… Of course there was a wall. They'd discussed settlements with a small group of nomads before and had been outright told that there was a wall to keep animals and thieves out. Even so, Cole found himself looking up at it with a certain amount of surprise and awe. It was nothing like the wall that surrounded zones; this one was a very odd mixture of materials. Rusty metal plates, wooden boards, old bricks, new bricks... The nomads must've used whatever they could've gotten their hands on at the time. Its height was only about ten feet, perhaps a bit more.

Jess allowed the carriage to circle the wall, sticking close to the tree line, before at last they found the gate. It looked as if it opened outward, much like a very large pair of doors. Once they'd stopped and left the carriage, Cole was struck with humility before such an amazing sight. 'Uncivilized' Wanderers and criminals had banded together to build something like this without any assistance from the government or even from experts. Eddie ran up to the gate and pressed her nose against it, tail wagging. Cole wondered whether they should knock.

Um... Hello? Jess called.

-Second! One second! … Or three! a voice from the other side of the wall replied.

There was an odd metallic tapping sound that Cole couldn't quite place until he saw a man appear above them, by the edge of the wall. He must've climbed a ladder leading up into a platform, or a tower or something. Whatever he was standing on, it certainly gave him the high ground in more ways than one, as he looked quite unimpressed to see strangers standing before the gate. His eyes, which were already rather small in comparison to the rest of his features, narrowed even further.

Ah! G-Good morning, Jess said, though she sounded rather uncertain on whether she believed her own sentiments.

The nomad shrugged and ran a hand through his hair. It was pitch-black, just like that of Cole and Jess. Closer inspection from a sideways angle revealed that the back of it was tied into a very short ponytail. Guess so, he replied.

Silence.

Um... Do you think you could let us in, please? Our friend's hurt- he needs to see a doctor.

The nomad looked over his shoulder and gestured at someone who must've been standing below. Whatever it meant, it was not an indication to open the gate. When next he turned his attention back to Jess and Cole, it was full of skepticism. Where'd you get the carriage?

Hah? Oh, we... We had to borrow it from Crepido. We're not thieves, though! I promise!

"Borrow? So, you planning to return the carriage? Imagine that. Here I thought it was illegal to take a carriage out of its zone, but hey. If you say you're just borrowing it..." the nomad quirked his brow. By now, Cole had pegged the man's accent as mostly Crepidan, soft Rs and all, though a certain amount of years within a troupe must've marred it. If indeed he was a former citizen, just like them, there was no need to look down on them.

Well... Err, there's a bit of a complicated story to that... Jess trailed off awkwardly and laughed.

"Hum... Carriage stolen from Crepido, completely different dialect... And a dog. Only Clareans keep dogs as pets. If that's not an unusual mix, I don't know what is."

"We found Eddie! Her old owner died, so- … I mean, he was already dead when we got there-"

At this point, Cole decided he might as well take matters into his own hands, as they were frittering away precious time. "Listen. I understand you may be suspicious of us. The Wasteland is supposedly full of untrustworthy individuals. However, nomads are meant to be the ones we should be able to rely on. That's what our friend told us. He said that you would lend your aid to those who need it, criminal or no criminal. Sharing is caring."

Sharing is... the nomad looked startled for a moment, then shook it off. Look, if you're afteh our supplies-

No! We've got plenty of supplies! Jess shouted immediately. Much as the accusation offended her, she still managed to keep her eyes on the goal. Please, just come and take a look at our friend! We won't even need to come inside your settlement if you can help him out here.

Fine, fine. Wait there.

The nomad disappeared from view and another round of tapping indicated that he was clambering back down the ladder. There was murmuring on the other side of the gate that Cole couldn't quite hear. When it finally opened at a crack, the nomad came sidling out with an odd contraption in hand. It looked like a cross between a pistol and a bow that'd been planted across it horizontally. Without a doubt, it was a weapon.

A second nomad followed him out into the open, looking far less brutal and far more uncomfortable about the whole ordeal. Her hands were clasped together and her hair was so long, it reached down the entire length of her back. It was not entirely graceful, as there was a good amount of frizzing and split ends to it. She closed the gate behind herself.

Eddie approached the duo to sniff them and while the woman didn't seem to mind, the man resorted to shooing. He waved the pistol-bow-thing as he did so.

Is that truly necessary? Cole asked, gesturing at the weapon in question.

We've lost some good things to an ambush before. I'm not taking any chances.

An ambush? Honestly... With how pleasant the Wasteland had been so far, Cole had almost forgotten that literal criminals were banished to this place. Silvian had never breathed a word about groups attacking one another, though that could very well have been to stop his companions from worrying.

They led the two nomads to the carriage and Cole stepped inside first, knowing they wouldn't trust the situation otherwise. He crouched down beside Silvian and waited. While the woman remained outside, the black-haired man grew just a bit more rigid at the sight of their wounded companion and clambered inside for a closer look. The expression on his face wasn't limited to shock over Silvian's condition; it held recognition.

What...? the nomad asked, and though it hardly qualified as a question, Cole understood the gist of it.

He fell and hit his head. I suspect he may be concussed. He's been drifting in and out of consciousness for almost a day now. I can show you the injury if you like. Cole's hand drifted towards the makeshift bandage, but as it turned out, there was no need to remove it.

No. That's not... The nomad drowned in his bewilderment for a bit longer before turning to address his fellow. Open the gate, then find Niall and get him to the medical den. We'll wait for him there. If you see Raulo, send him too. Tell him Silvian's back.

---------------------------------

The Troupe

The inside of a nomad settlement was not at all what Cole had expected it to be. Much like the wall surrounding it, the buildings were odd meshes of materials. Some were mostly brick wall with an improvised roof, others were more like tents. Some were round, some were square. Some were pointy on top, some were flat. Some had wooden stairs leading up to a higher floor from the outside, others had pillars beside their front door to hold up an additional roof.

Despite how small the settlement was, the diversity contained within it made it appear much grander than any zone Cole had visited before.

As the carriage moved towards their destination, Cole found it hard to distinguish dirt from street. Apparently, people just walked wherever they wanted without set paths to follow. There were patches between the houses where they grew things like vegetables and potatoes, which were so small that they couldn't compare to the fields that existed outside the wall. These crops must've been here for emergencies, or perhaps only for fun.

Nomads stared as they passed. Some of them might never have seen a motorized carriage before, Cole supposed. A child who'd been moving back and forth on a swingset came to an abrupt halt and leaped off so she could hide herself behind the tree instead.

The nomad guiding them hadn't breathed a word about Silvian, nor what was going to happen. Jess maneuvered the carriage exactly where