The dry heat burned. The heavy load made every step worse. Aira didn't care. Pain was the price to break her weak mind, and she took pride in it.

She stopped, eyes fixed on the horizon. A faint hum vibrated in the air ahead.

Behind her, the three survivors dragged their feet in the dirt. Shoulders slouched. Pace crawling.

“Teacher. I think there’s a farm ahead.”

“I see it...”

The old man stood tall, wind blowing his grey hair. He leaned on his staff and signaled the group to hold on.

A roof meant shade. A roof meant walls against whatever dangers were in the wastelands.

They had crawled for weeks across dead dirt.

Dry meat. Warm water. Nights brought freezing winds and a hungry, heavy darkness. Mornings brought terrible things through the heat haze.

Nobody was supposed to survive the dry lands. Yet here they were, staring at a farm

“Brothers, sisters, look!” Aira turned with a bright smile. Surreal against the bleak dirt. “A farm! Just a little further. Come on!”

The Teacher pressed a finger on his staff. No mechanical click. The wood collapsed into the metal, shrinking, hanging it on his belt beside his canisters.

The three survivors didn't blink. Minds too broken for questions.

Only Aira’s voice kept them human.

For weeks, reality had bent around them. In this vast, swallowing void, the Teacher and Aira weren't just guides. They were blinding lights. Blades, shields, and a staff driving back the ancient dark.

A short distance away, a broad-shouldered man stopped them.

Levi raised his rifle. Every muscle tight, waiting for hostiles.

“Halt! State your names and business. One more step and I open fire.”

The weapon hummed, crackling with voltage.

The three survivors threw their hands up, trembling.

Aira stepped forward slowly. Hands high. Face calm.

“We come in peace, brother,” she said, her voice steady in the dry wind.

“My name is Aira. This is my teacher. We found these lost souls along the way. We only ask that you take them in.”

Guard instincts told Levi she spoke the truth.

His finger didn't budge from the trigger.

“Cricket, scan.”

[SCAN RESULT // LEVI 0009 HUD READOUT]

TARGET 01 (AIRA_??):

Network Bio-ID: [NOT FOUND]

City Registry / Sector Affiliation: [NONE // NEGATIVE]

Corporate / Military Signature: [NONE // NEGATIVE]

Threat Matrix: UNBOUND AURA DETECTED // ZERO CONCORDANCE RECORD

TARGET 02 (TEACHER_??):

Network Bio-ID: [NOT FOUND]

City Registry / Sector Affiliation: [NONE // NEGATIVE]

Corporate / Military Signature: [NONE // NEGATIVE]

Threat Matrix: ANOMALOUS HARDWARE DETECTED // ZERO CONCORDANCE RECORD

TARGETS 03–05 (SURVIVORS!):

Network Bio-ID: MATCH FOUND [SOUTHERN ARCHIPELAGO // SECTOR 12 REGISTRY]

Affiliation: CIVILIAN

Origin: SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE [ISLAND CHAIN CLUSTER 12]

Status: UNKNOWN

Threat Matrix: NONE // CRITICAL MALNUTRITION // HEAT STRESS

NOTICE: TARGETS 01 & 02 RETURN NEGATIVE FOR ALL KNOWN SECTOR REGISTRIES. TARGETS 03-05 ORIGINATE FROM SOUTHERN ARCHIPELAGO JURISDICTION.

“You two have no identification implants,” Levi said, his voice flat and unyielding.

Aira winced. Flushing with embarrassment, her hands dropped toward her belt—a sudden movement that instantly caused Levi to respond.

“Halt! Hands where I can see them!”

“Don’t be alarmed, brother!” Aira searched her belt pouches frantically, ignoring Levi.

“I’m just getting our tags—”

When her belt turned up empty, she unbuckled her massive payload.

It hit the dirt with a bone-rattling thud. Levi’s eyes narrowed as he caught sight of the heavy metal strapped to the frame: a broad shield and a short sword.

“I said stop!” Levi tightened his grip on the rifle.

“Hold on, brother, I know I put them in here somewhere...” She unzipped her backpack, rummaging inside.

“Stop!” Levi barked.

The Teacher let out a tired sigh.

Reaching slowly for his own belt, he pulled two metallic identification tags and held them up between two fingers, his other arm raised high.

“Here are our tags, brother,” the Teacher offered calmly, stepping between the rising tension.

Levi pointed his rifle towards the teacher, closing the gap with slow, measured steps to snag the tags.

In an explosive blur, metal slammed into the dirt. He didn't notice Aira move.

Her heavy steel shield cut off his path, her fingers already around the hilt of her short sword.

“Point that rifle at me all you want,” she growled, her eyes burning into his.

“You don't disrespect the Teacher.”

Levi froze. The air went still.

Is a blade faster than a trigger at point-blank range?

The sudden drop in air pressure broke the three refugees.

They dropped to their knees in the dirt, sobbing frantically.

“Please! They’re good people!”

“We come in peace—please don't shoot!”

“We’ll work! We’ll compensate you!”

Then, the Teacher slowly spread his arms wide.

The shift was instant. Heavy, unnatural silence hit the dirt.

The dry wind stopped dead. Pulses slowed. Heartbeats dropped.

An invisible gravity pulled every eye to the old man.

“Peace be with us, brothers and sisters,” the Teacher said gently.

He lowered one arm and extended the tags toward Levi. “May we know your name, good brother?”

Levi’s rifle lowered an inch. Confused but accepting.

His fingers reached out and took the tags.

[Network Bio-ID: [NOT FOUND]]

[Scanning . . .]

[BUILT-IN AURA ENGINE UNABLE TO SCAN // MISSING UPGRADE]

[Suggesting Main Network Engine]

“I am Farmer Levi,” he replied, his voice unnaturally polite.

His mind wrapped in a haze he couldn't quite shake. He opted for a peaceful resolution.

“This is my farm. You may all come inside.”

Aira shifted her stance, strapping the broad shield back onto her pack and hefting their luggage over her shoulder.

She leaned closer to the older man, keeping her eyes fixed on Levi as he escorted them inside his farm.

“Teacher, I don't trust him. He smells.”

“Hush, child,” the Teacher replied softly. “Clear your mind.”

Color rushed to Aira’s cheeks. She bowed her head to her master, mumbling a quick apology, then turned abruptly back to face the farmer.

“I apologize for my mistrust, Farmer Levi,” she said, offering a stiff, formal bow.

“Please accept my apology.”

Levi’s ears turned red. He scratched the back of his neck, his posture instantly melting from a trained, rigid guard into a thoroughly flustered twenty-four-year-old.

Five years of total isolation on a dry farm had prepared him for plenty of things—having an attractive girl bow and apologize directly to his face wasn't one of them.

His threat matrix collapsed entirely.

“Uh, right… yeah. Sure,” Levi stammered.

“I’ve got some cold soda and sweets inside, if you… want.”

Aira’s eyes lit up instantly.

Weeks on the dead trail with nothing but stale water made the word soda sound like a divine blessing.

“Thank you, Farmer Levi!” she beamed.

“You are truly generous!”

Levi rubbed his neck, his brain short-circuiting as he tried to play it smooth.

“Uh, so… are you… single, or—”

“Paladins do not marry!” Aira shot back cheerfully, charging right past him.

“Thank you for your hospitality!”

The bunker hatch hissed open, sliding wide just in time to match the sound of Levi’s heart shattering into a thousand pieces. He stood frozen at the entrance, hand still hovering in a welcoming gesture, staring blankly at the dirt.

The Teacher patted his shoulder as he walked past, offering a quiet, sympathetic nod.

“Walk with peace, good brother.”