I board the hover bus and ride to Keystone Province, home of Lux and the rebellion. Lux was good friends with my parents, especially my mother, so will be saddened to hear of her passing. Meanwhile I connect the canister Ace gave me to my monitor, and watch as the percentage slowly increases. A young woman with two children stares at me and my monitor, a look of hunger in her eyes. Unfortunately I can't spare her any, but hopefully after I complete my plan, there will be no more of such.

It's about a 20 minute ride to Keystone, and when I get there my monitor reads 89%, which should last me the next week. I dismount the hover bus and walk down the streets of Keystone, feeling like a foreigner in this place. The conditions in Keystone are slightly better than Brentwood, where I come from, but the streets are still rife with beggars and thieves. Almost all areas are crime-ridden, except from the richer provinces, like Scarsdale and Evergreen. The houses there alone are the sizes of apartment blocks, and the people living there have oxygen to last them decades.

After navigating through some market stalls and over a bridge, I find myself at the opening of the underground tunnel that is the Rebellion's base. I knock loudly and wait for a response.

"Password?" Grunts the guard

"Free to breath, free to live."

The guard unlocks the gate and lets me in, probably unaware that this is the first time I've been in their base. Lux has visited my parents numerous times, and they've come here too for meetings, but I've never been in person. Thankfully, Mother left me a set of instructions of how to get here and what to say upon entry.

The setting seems surreal, like something you would see in a movie. The tunnel, which was formerly a coal mine, had been redeveloped into something of a sanctuary. My expectation was a shadowy, gloomy place, but I was shocked to see light streaming into ever corner of the place. Old-fashioned lamps were hung from the ceilings, and twirling, colourful decorations adorned the corners. There were men and women of various ages talking and laughing. I hadn't heard a laugh so hearty in some time. How could they laugh so comfortably knowing their days were probably numbered? These people were wearing some peculiar clothes: some sort of trousers that looked blue and textured, strange compared to the thin shawls and skirts I wore. However I spotted no one my age, which was expected, I'm probably still a bit too young to be here right now.

In the distance I spot a mop of blond hair that I knew well, and I made my way over to the person.

"Hey Lux."

"Oh hi, Adira. What are you doing here?"

"Er, well." I didn't really know how to say it "My... My mother passed away two days ago."

"Joyce? Oh my goodness, what a tragedy. She was a huge asset to the Rebellion, I'm so sorry."

Lux stretched his arms out for a hug, and I embraced them. He smelled of soil and crops, and for some reason this smell was comforting. When he released me, I looked into his ice blue eyes and saw nothing but warmth, ironically.

"Do you need anything from us? We have food and oxygen."

"No, I'm ok. I actually came to talk to you about something."

"Oh really? Well, let's find someplace quieter."

He leads me to a small room at the far end of the tunnel filled with pipes and gears. This must be something like a utility area.

"So, what's up?"

"So, I know the rebellion has been raiding government oxygen dispensaries of late, but I have a plan to do something bigger."

"I'm listening..."

"I was thinking we could lead a coup in Newman's house? Get some media involved? Then we could raid his oxygen supply and dispense equal amounts to those who need it-"

"Wait, hold on. Newman's house? As in state leader Newman?"

I watched in silence as he grasped my basically impossible idea.

Wells Newman is the state leader for all the provinces in the West. He lives in a huge mansion in Scarsdale and has one of the largest oxygen supplies in world.

"Adira. Raiding Newman's house is a death mission, and you know that."

"But-"

"As much as I would love to, I can't risk losing my people to something like that. It would be like sending lambs to the slaughter."

"But raiding local dispensaries doesn't get the media coverage we need. We need more people to see who those rich oppressors really are. How they claim that oxygen is scare, but rather they're just holding it all for themselves."

"Believe me, Adi, I really want to do this."

"Then why won't you."

"Because..."

"Because what?"

"Because some thing are just too dangerous."

I was shocked. Truly. This isn't the Lux I know.

The Lux I know would've jumped on this idea at first mention. The Lux I know laughs in the face of danger.

The Lux I know would do anything for justice.

"Adira. Don't be disappointed, please. Just think rationally."

"Think rationally? You should hear yourself right now."

"Ok and what's that supposed to mean."

"You know what I mean. What happened to the old Lux? The one with a roaring spirit ready to fight anything."

Lux sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose. I notice the stress lines along his forehead and around his cheeks. He's aged.

"Listen, I get it. You're just a kid, you have your whole life ahead of you. But I'm not getting any younger and I've got other priorities now. Plus, well... I wasn't planning to tell you so soon but... Shona's pregnant."

Bombshell.

Shona's pregnant?

Most people don't even try for kids anymore because they don't want to bring them into a world where they can't even breath. Birth rates are the lowest they've ever been in history, and infant mortality rates are high.

"Wow. Well, I would say congratulations but-"

"Yeah, I know having a baby is probably the last thing we need right now, but I've always wanted a family and we're hoping that maybe someday things will get better."

Yeah, they would get better if we stormed Newman's house

"I hope you understand, Adira. I really can't do that kind of thing anymore."

I looked into his ice blue eyes once again, and I almost felt a wave of sadness washing over me. Whether it was his or my own, I couldn't tell.

"Well, I better be off then." I say

"I guess so. Be sure to visit again soon. And here." he pulls out two canisters from his pocket, smaller than the one I used before. "Take these."

"Thank you Lux." I take them gratefully, before heading out the way I came in.

I was annoyed that I didn't have the Rebellion's help in my plan, but I did have a plan B.

But I do not like one bit of it.