Elion ran his fingers along the spines of the books on the shelf. He'd only ever heard of them in history class. They were ancient artefacts. They had information about many people who came before him. Some of them held factual information about a specific subject, while others had things completely made up. His hand landed on one with a yellow spine. "The Alchemist," he read aloud.

"You've read it before?" the man asked. He was busying himself mixing green sprigs in a bowl.

Elion shook his head. " No."

"You can borrow it."

Elion palmed the book, flipping through its pages. An overwhelming sensation radiated through his chest. Like a balloon about to burst. This is how they lived. There was so much to see on the other side of the city, hidden by a veil of grey.

There were footsteps above them. The man stopped mixing and put his finger to his lips, signalling him to be quiet. Elion shuffled to the farthest corner of the tiny space. His eyes darted around the room, hoping to find something he could use to defend himself.

The man approached with a knife in hand when the door to the room above opened. He was about to swing when a familiar voice spoke.

"No need for all of that," the lady warned. Her white hair came into view before her face did.

"I told you to knock in the rhythm." He knocked on the wall on tap, tap, tap-tap-tap. Elion knocked on the wall next to him, memorising it.

"I told you an old woman like me has no time for—" Her eyes landed on Elion. "What is he doing here?"

"Oh, he saved me from an RP and was almost caught himself. He followed me here, so I figured I'd treat him to a meal."

"Kaelan, you fool."

Kaelan's smile disappeared.

She pushed past him and pointed at him. "Do you know who this is?"

Kaelan's eyes narrowed. "He's just a kid who joined our cause."

"Would you like to tell him?" She directed at Elion. Did they know who he was? His name? Who his father was? How deep did the Artisan's knowledge go?

Elion stood at attention. "My name is Elion Str— Elion." He bowed his head. "I'm a student at the academy."

Kaelan's features darkened; was that anger? He cleared the room in two giant steps and swung at him. Everything in Elion's world went dark.

~~~~

"How was I supposed to know where he was from?" Kaelan whispered.

Elion's head pounded. This pain was a constant throb at the side of his head, unlike the burning he'd felt when he got his memories back.

"Look at him, he's young, lifeless eyes, he had to be one of them," the lady said.

His vision was blurry, but he could barely see the two people before him. The room was smokier than before, and there was a distinct smell that burned his nose.

"You couldn't be sure,"

"I spoke to him right before, he has a neurolink."

Elion groaned. They turned their attention to him.

"Hey, I am sorry about earlier," Kaelan said as he approached him. Elion shifted on the couch to get away from him.

"Hey, it's ok," Kaelan reassured, "I'm not gonna hurt you—again."

"What time is it?" Elion asked.

"Why? Are your RP friends going to come barging in soon?" the lady asked. She looked less frail compared to earlier in the day.

Elion knitted his eyebrows. "No. I don't like those things."

"Hear that, Misha, he doesn't like RPs," Kaelan said.

"Don't say my name," Misha warned.

"You said my name in front of him, it's only fair that we're both added to the memory card," Kaelan responded.

They spoke of him like he were a threat to their existence.

"Why did you follow him?" Misha asked, "Speak."

"I just wanted— I needed to escape," He cried. "I couldn't live like that anymore."

When they didn't respond, he looked up. They were communicating with their eyes, but he couldn't understand. Finally, Misha nodded, and Kaelan turned to him.

"Alright, we're going to feed you and let you go. It's 7 pm. You might make it back home before lockdown."

"Why feed him? Let him go now."

"Look at the kid, he's skinny," Kaelan pointed out. "At least I'm going to make him taste actual food before sending him back."

Kaelen gave him a small white bowl with a fork. In it was rice and a piece of chicken. What could be so different about it? He swallowed a forkful of the rice. His eyes widened with shock. It tasted much better than the food he'd had all his life. When he bit the chicken, an explosion of flavour danced around his mouth. He couched as if he weren't prepared for the onslaught.

Kaelan handed him a cup of water. He swallowed eagerly. In minutes, the bowl was clean.

"Wow, that was quick," Kaelan quipped.

"Do you have more?"

"Sorry, fresh chicken is rare nowadays."

"Enough of this, time to go," Misha grabbed his collar.

"No, I can't go back, please," Elion begged. He explained everything to them. How his memories had been erased, how he got them back, but he has to constantly sort through every thought. He told them about how lifeless he'd felt since he was born and how he didn't think he had a true place in society.

They listened without interrupting. Misha's gaze had softened, and Kaelen offered an understanding nod ever so often.

"I just wanted to join the Artisans and be free. I can't imagine what they'd do to me if I went back," Elion continued, "And having met you, they might use that against you. "

"The bruise forming on your eye wouldn't help either," Misha added.

"Yeah, they'd think you were beat up," Kaelan laughed.

If they didn't accept him, he didn't know what he'd do. Live on the outskirts, away from modern society. No, it would be impossible to hide with the chip behind his ear.

"So what do we do, Kaelan?" Misha asked.

"I have an idea," Kaelan offered, "We'll have to hit you some more."

~~~~

*May 9, 2125*

Elion limped up the stairs of the POLARIS building. He pushed the glass door, leaving a blood-stained palm print. Once inside, he collapsed at the feet of the students before him. No one touched him except for one of the white coat CANAs.

"Collapsed student in the lobby," it reported. His classmates watched as he was carried away into the elevator. They didn't so much as mutter to themselves but returned to their usual debriefing before filing into their respective Sectors.

Elion was placed in a room on the ninth floor, where several CANAs busied themselves with connecting him to machines and attaching a monitor to his arm. His entire body ached, so the pinch of the needles paled in comparison.

Soon after, his father entered with the dark-blue-coated CANA in tow. The GED glasses sat high on his nose.

"Where have you been?" His father asked, lacking concern for his well-being.

"I—ugh, I was in the city centre," Elion answered simply.

"Yes, and?" His father asked.

"There was an explosion, and yellow smoke. I don't remember anything else except people scattering and then—." Fragments of events flashed through his mind, but he couldn't piece them together. There was a fallen plastic hand, a random man, and he remembers eating something. He didn't remember being hit or beaten up, but woke up in front of the POLARIS building, bleeding.

He explained all of that to his father and CANA. Quinn only listened. Checking with CANA, which held a holographic device in its hand.

"The scan shows that his memory is fragmented. We cannot find out who did this using his memories," CANA explained.

"Alright," his father said before turning on his heels to leave.

"Elion," a message came through on his neurolink. It was from Kira.

Elion looked at CANA, who was still observing his scans.

"Do you see our messages on those things?"

"Messages through neurolinks are private." It gave the programmed answer.

Elion nodded. He would have responded to Kira, but he'd wait until he was out of the company.

"You will stay here for a few days for observation while we restore your memories," CANA said. Then it left.

Elion lay on the bed, trying to do the same. The flashes gave him a headache. How did he get from the city centre to here? The wristband displayed the date, it had been five days since he'd gone to the city. The Artisans staged an attack. There was one more thing: a savoury taste on his tongue. He didn't remember what it was, but it lingered, and he liked it.

Then, a group of students with a different CANA came into the hospital room. At the back of the group was Kira. She was just as benevolent, with her hair tied back from her face.

"This new patient was just admitted," CANA said, "patient #100245. What are the standard procedures to follow?"

All the students answered without hesitation. ALL except Kira. She was looking everywhere else in the room except in his direction.

"What's wrong?" He asked her through their link.

Her eyes snapped toward him, but she didn't answer. There was a brief change in her eyes, a glimmer of concern, but she hid it as quickly as it appeared. Elion blinked. Maybe it was just his imagination.

"Kira, perform the standard eye response test," CANA instructed.

Kira held a small light in her hand. She leaned over him, shining the light in his eye. He was blinded for a second.

"I'm glad you're okay," she whispered so softly that it tickled his ear. He looked at her with amazement.

"Shouldn't we report him to the RPs?" one student asked, noticing the obvious display of emotions.

The CANA didn't answer but instead ushered everyone out of the room. Kira stole a glance at him before they were led further down the hall toward the white door.