Ed signed the contract. As he was originally right-handed, his signature was nearly illegible.
Mr. Lee received the contract and smiled, "Good. We'll be heading to Steam Work city tomorrow. Get some rest." He stood up and left the room.
'Steam Work city? Is that where they train new hunters? Or is it just because Reef city was trashed by the nightmare?'
Ed thought back on his history book. After the nightmares appeared, human wars mostly stopped. There were still plenty of internal conflicts and fights between individuals, but there was very little warfare between countries. Fortunately, Ed lives in the United States. The country had managed to hold together throughout the apocalypse and it still stood strong today. Most strong countries had managed to survive the calamities. Some weaker countries united into bigger countries while others were devoured by their stronger neighbors. Some countries experienced drastic changes in their government systems and leaders, but still retained their original name.
…
The next day.
Ed and Mr. Lee got on a train heading from Florida to New York. Reef city was a relatively small city in Florida. However, it was still much larger than the cities of the past. Most humans lived in massive cities surrounded by giant walls. Large amounts of empty space exist between cities. Mutants and nature ruled these wastelands. Florida only had around 20 cities in total, whereas there were nearly 300 in the past. Most of the 20 cities in Florida were new, but some big ones such as Miami, Orlando, and Tampa still existed from the past.
Mr. Lee was reading a newspaper while smoking a pipe. "What did you think of Miami, Ed?"
"It was big." He replied. "I always thought Reef city was huge, but it's nothing compared to Miami."
Mr. Lee nodded, "Just wait until you see Steam Work city. No other city in the states can compare to it."
Ed smiled, "I'm looking forward to it. It was built where New York city used to be before a nightmare destroyed it, right?"
"Right." Mr. Lee nodded again. "New York city was destroyed on Dooms Day when the 7 nightmares descended upon the world. The Water Nightmare completely devastated New York city and the surrounding areas until nothing remained. The land was completely flattened. Steam Work city was built where New York city used to be. Because of this, some people nicknamed Steam Work city as New New York." He yawned, "It will be around 20 hours before we reach Steam Work city. I'm going to go get some sleep. Once we get there, I'll report to my superiors about your father. It should only take a few days for his crimes to be pardoned." Mr. Lee left his seat and headed for a private room to get some rest.
Ed stared out the window. He could see the large stretches of land speeding by. Some areas had massive trees and other vegetation. Other areas were ruined cities that were devastated during various wars. He often saw mutants rush towards the train. Once they got close, the giant spikes on the wheels cut them to pieces. As he watched, he slowly fell asleep.
CHUGGA chugga chugga, CHUGGA chugga chugga, Choo Chooooo! Ed awoke and heard the train still chugging down the tracks. He looked out the window and saw nothing but darkness. Even the moonlight seemed to be blocked by clouds tonight.
Bang! A door at the front of the train cart slammed open. A pink mist spread out amongst the passengers. Their eyelids grew heavy, and they slowly fell asleep. Interestingly, the mist avoided Ed.
A woman walked in through the cart door. She had long red hair and big breast. She wore a long red dress. She walked through the pink mist and sat across from Ed. She gazed at him with her big brown eyes. Then she opened her purse and pulled out a flask. She took a swig and smiled, "Hello. Would you like some wine?"
Ed's eyes widened in surprise. This woman was extremely beautiful. She could easily become a model. The pink mist continued to flow around the train cart. Upon careful examination, it could be seen that it flowed from the woman's red hair. He felt nervous as he saw how this mist put everyone to sleep. 'What does she want with me?!'
The woman spoke again, "Don't want any? That's fine." She crossed one leg over the other. Then she leaned forward, "My name is Jessica. I would like to recruit you. Interested?"
Ed hesitated to answer. 'What organization wants to recruit me? I just awakened. I shouldn't be very valuable… The only possibilities are other countries, a sinner organization, or the neutral alliance.'
It was common knowledge that most countries tried to recruit espers from other countries. The more they had, the better it was for their national strength! Sinner organizations from all over the world also competed for new espers. Last was the neutral alliance. They were an international group of espers that sought to live normal lives and avoid all conflict. They usually invited newly awakened espers, but they wouldn't normally go out of their way to recruit espers. If they did, then it was because the esper had a particularly powerful ability.
Jessica smiled seductively, "I am from Blood-Lust. We could always use handsome young espers such as yourself."
Ed sneered to himself, 'Handsome? I'm a scrawny nerd. Does she think I was born yesterday? Blood-Lust… That should be a large sinner group in Steam Work city.' He shivered when he thought about the reputation of sinners. 'I need to be careful to not piss her off.' He tried to speak calmly, "How did you find me? I just awakened."
"Silly Edward. Do you think people wouldn't find out? We have an esper that can detect any newly awakened espers in the entire world. Plenty of organizations and countries have espers with similar abilities. It won't be surprising if you get a few more invitations soon."
'She even knows my name?!' He clenched his hand in nervousness. 'I definitely won't join them, but I need to show interest to buy time until Mr. Lee comes back. Hopefully I can avoid making an enemy of them as well.' He stared into her eyes. "Can you tell me more about Blood-Lust?"
Jessica saw he was showing interest and smiled, "We are the biggest sinner group in Steam Work city. Murder, drugs, robbery. You can do anything you want to people outside our group. We won't restrain your desires in the slightest. We will also protect you from the authorities as long as you remain in our territory. In exchange, you're expected to do the same for the rest of our members. You will also receive jobs from the boss, but he will pay handsomely for the work."
Ed's fist clenched even tighter. His nails dug into his skin. "Do you like the organization? Any regrets about entering it?"
"Haha!" Jessica licked her lips, "I love Blood-Lust. Believe it or not, I'm our top recruiter. So, what do you say? If you agree, then I can take you out of here right away."
He shook his head, "Thanks for the offer, but I've just gained my powers. It's too early to decide yet. Can you leave me a way to contact you in the future?"
Jessica smiled and twirled her long red hair, "You're sure that's your decision? I know you're here with a recruiter from the US government Hunter Association. Think very carefully before you answer me."
His eyes widened in surprise. 'She already knew?! Shit… What do I do? What about my father? If I join them, then I won't be able to erase his crimes? Besides, he would never forgive me for joining them…' He got lost in his thoughts while Jessica waited patiently. After several minutes, he spoke, "If I join you, then can you save my father?"
Jessica frowned, "What happened to your father? He's part of the military, isn't he?"
'It looks like she did a background check on me. However, she doesn't know everything. She shouldn't be aware of my father being arrested for his crimes. She probably doesn't know anything about what my powers do either… I need to use this to my advantage.'
He sighed, "My father was arrested for desertion during the nightmare attack on Reef city. The government has offered to pardon his crimes if I join them. That's why I'm on a train to Steam Work city." He glared at Jessica sharply, "It's not impossible for me to join Blood-Lust, but I'll need you to rescue my father first. You do that, and we have a deal."
'Hopefully that can buy me time. It will take her and Blood-Lust time to free my father. By then, I'll have already made it safely to Steam Work city. I'll report to Mr. Lee and the hunters about what happened, so they can protect me and my father. I hope this works!'
Jessica leaned back in her chair and folded her arms. She stared at Ed for nearly a minute. "Nope! That doesn't work for me at all! If I leave you here, then you'll just report this to the hunters and gain protection for you and your father. If I take you with me, then the government will make your father a high priority prisoner to blackmail you!" Jessica grinned, "Fortunately, there is a third option!"
Bu-bump, Bu-bump, Bu-bump! Ed felt his heart speed up in nervousness. 'I don't like that smile on her face. How can there possibly be a third option?!'
Jessica slowly stood up. More pink mist began to spread from her hair. Ed hurriedly stood up and pulled his fake steam pistol from his pocket. Even if it was loaded with real ammo, it was far too weak to injure a person. However, he was hoping she wouldn't know it was a fake.
He pointed the gun at her. "Pull the mist back if you don't want to die. I don't know what you're planning, but I have no intention of joining you."
"Haha." Jessica laughed. "So brave, Ed. I like that you can make that scary face while pointing a toy at someone. Do you know why I'm the top recruiter for Blood-Lust?" She smiled brightly, "It's because my mist doesn't just put people to sleep! I just love brainwashing young boys like you!" Whoosh! The pink mist started to swirl towards Ed!
Bu-bump, Bu-bump, Bu-bump! He felt his heart continue to beat faster. Time felt like it was slowing down. His gun started to melt into a liquid. It took the shape of a small horseshoe with pointed ends. Ding! It shot through the air and pinned Jessica's right arm to the train wall. He hurriedly spun around and ran away!
"You brat!" Jessica yanked her arm against the horseshoe and easily broke free. She ran after Ed and pointed at him. The pink mist throughout the train compartment slowly condensed into a long sharp needle. It shot through the air towards Ed's back!
Thwack! A loud sound rang out. Ed turned around and saw Mr. Lee standing in front of him. His brown brief case had blocked the needle. Mr. Lee smiled, "Everything will be okay now, Ed. You did well."
Jessica frowned, "Who are you? I know all the government recruiters in Steam Work city and you aren't one of them."
Mr. Lee made an elegant bow, "You may not know me, but I have long heard of your infamous name Ms. Jessica. I am not from Steam Work city. I'm a bit of a traveler, you see. I don't enjoy spending much time in one place."
"Enough talk!" Jessica pointed at Mr. Lee and pink mist flowed through the train compartment. It moved slowly, but quickly closed in on Ed and Mr. Lee.
When the pink mist got close, a bright light suddenly shimmered. A bright white barrier appeared and covered Ed and Mr. Lee!
Mr. Lee smiled, "Unfortunately for you, Ms. Jessica, my power happens to counter yours perfectly. It's too bad my power is only good for defense. I do believe I'll regret letting a dangerous criminal such as yourself get away."
Jessica repeatedly sent attacks towards the barrier. Pink mist condensed into needles and repeatedly slammed into it, but they failed to do any damage. She slowly tired out. Then she frowned, "It looks like I've lost today." She glared at Ed, "Count yourself lucky, kid." She turned around and walked towards a window. She opened it and easily pulled herself up onto the roof. Thudding sounds rang out from the roof as she ran away.
Mr. Lee smiled, "Well, wasn't that an exciting moment! Let's sit, Edward." The duo took a seat.
"Shouldn't you chase her?" Ed questioned.
Mr. Lee shook his head and sighed, "My power is extremely strong. It can be considered one of the strongest defenses in the world. This power easily lets me go wherever I want in the world. I've never met something that can break my barrier, granted I've never tested it against a nightmare. Unfortunately, my power has very limited options. I cannot use it for offense, nor can I move when using it. It only has a small range of a few meters around me. Because of the limits I face, along with my strong defense, I am an ideal recruiter for the government. There are not many other areas I would be useful."
Ed and Mr. Lee continued to chat while the train moved forward. A couple hours later, they entered a dark tunnel. A bright light shone from the other end of the tunnel. The train quickly sped down the tracks. A Gate could be heard slamming shut behind them. They had entered Steam Work City!
Ed looked out the windows. He was shocked by what he saw. The entire city was covered by a large metal dome! Bright lights covered the ceiling. They formed huge moving images that advertised different products. He saw massive skyscrapers in every direction. Many had huge advertisements on them just like the ceiling.
Mr. Lee saw Ed gaping and chuckled, "I told you nothing could compare to Steam Work city!"
He nodded, "How did they cover the entire city in that dome?!"
"It is a feat of engineering, steam technology, and esper manpower." Mr. Lee grinned, "It will open in a couple of hours. It remains open during the day and closes during the night. It allows the citizens to feel safe from the outside world. Unfortunately, Steam Work city has plenty of internal threats that cause enough problems as it is."
Screech! The train slowly ground to a halt at a station. The duo exited the train. Mr. Lee opened his suitcase and pulled out a rectangular object the size of a textbook. It had a shiny bronze hue and several different knobs and switches. He adjusted the knobs and flipped a switch before speaking to it, "This is agent Lee reporting in. I've arrived at the station with Ed."
A static voice came back, "Roger that. Pickup will arrive in one hour."
Mr. lee flipped the switch again and returned it to his brief case. "We'll wait on the bench over there, Edward."
Ed glanced between Mr. Lee and his brief case. "What was that?"
Mr. Lee smiled, "It's a mana radio. It uses a mana core to transform sound waves into mana waves. Then, those mana waves are transmitted across a certain frequency. Other radios tuned into those frequencies decode the mana waves back into sound waves. Unfortunately, it can only be used within the city. Steam Work city has multiple towers set up for receiving and spreading the mana waves farther. Most big cities have them. There were efforts to set up communication between the various cities using the same method, but it failed due to mutants destroying the towers built outside."
Ed's eyes widened in surprised. 'I've never heard of a mana radio before. It seems that Steam Work city is much more advanced than Reef city. I can't wait to see what else they have!'