Year 2542, Continent Africa, lives an unknown species; half biological and

half bionic. Having a very thin humanoid body; arms and legs about four center-meters thick, and because of this appearance, they became known as Stickmen.

They are civilized and highly intellectual beings who follow order and law. Classified into different groups according to physical appearance and abilities, which later became clans. For safety purposes; crossbreeding was forbidden among clans. Stickmen have been under an economic system that has brought stability and a peaceful society for centuries.

#

It is midday, Talib, a male Stickman aged twelve, with robotic round eyes,

short light-green messy hair and two thin warm glowing lines running

down his neck, one on each side. He sat in a class of sixteen third year

students on the back row facing forward, but certainly not paying

attention. The teacher throws a paper ball at him then asks, "Why are you

not listening to what I'm saying! do you find biology boring?"

"My apologize Mr Carlson," Talib replied as he bent over to pick up the paper

ball, then proceeded to speak, "It's just — I have a question I've been

wondering all day. If I may ask..."

"don't!" Mr Carlson interrupts before Talib could finish, "You will ask when

the lesson is over." he added, turning around to point at a humanoid figure and began to explain: "Stickmen only needs two things to survive, electricity

and organic food. Consuming food alone without electricity for long periods of time will cause some of your electronic parts to malfunction over time, and the same thing applies to consuming electricity alone, only this time its your organs that malfunction over time."

Mr Carlson went on to explain howStickmen work, and how each clan has its own unique abilities derived from a specific animal DNA, mutation level and so on... After a while he stopped and turned to Talib, "The lesson is over, you may ask now," he said, in a firm voice. Talib hesitates for a moment, then pulls himself together and asked, "Where do Stickmen come from?"

"That is a good question, but a question for another day, another lesson. Class dismissed." Everyone got up and walked towards the exit. Gizara a plane, grey stickman with no noticeable features, approached Talib and began talking to him as they went. "hey, now that you've mentioned it, I'm quite curious too. I've never thought about that before. I must say; it's a really good question," he

said.

"Thanks, we're still kids, but we've reached an age where we must

question a lot of things," Talib replied.

"I like the way you think. I'm Gizara, we should hang out sometime," then a

slight pause, "I know I'm from the Worker clan, and you're from the Intel

clan. We probably have nothing in common, but I really admire your clan

and its skill sets, it's almost like you're destined for success. Unlike me — my clan has no special abilities or anything that sets us apart."

"But that's what sets your clan apart," said Talib, who quickly realized what he had said might come off as offensive to Gizara, "I don't mean it in a bad

way!" he added.

"No offense taken. I never let that get to me. I wasn't complaining about my

clan, I was simply admiring yours," Gizara replied with a smile on his face, "So, where do you think we come from?" He asked as he turned towards

Talib, awaiting his answer.

"I don't know. Maybe some higher being created us," Talib replied

"If that's the case than who created that being, and where is that being?"

said Gizara now more confused than before. "I guess we'll have to wait for the next lesson. Hey Gizara do you want to come over at my place today? I'll give you my address," Talib invites his newly found friend.

"Thanks, but I can't. I live on the far South of the City, it's too far. Well, here

comes my dad, I'll see you tomorrow," Gizara apologized, then ran off.

"Alright see you then!" Talib waved good bye.

#

Later that day, just after sunset the Mayor received a call from the City's

main database building; he has been informed that three unidentified

stickmen in grey cloaks have breached in, and security was down.

Reinforcements have been requested, and the Mayor has decided to

come with.

"Reinforcements will be here soon. Faraji and I will stay here and hold them

back. Based on the readings I got, you need to descend two floors down

and you'll find it there. Be quick about it, this time they will be heavily armed."

"Yes Sir!" Zaire replied to her commander whom she had known for over forty years. She began running down the stairs thinking to herself. She

knew she had to proceed with caution retrieving the information they had

come for, but Faraji was only a ten-year-old boy on his first assignment,

who had been having difficulties with the embedded code, and resists its

commands. "That boy is a liability," she said to her self as she reached her

destination and saw a computer like structure, two meters wide, mounted on the wall. "Commander I found it. Starting data extraction now," said Zaire as she stretched out her left arm with the ends of her finger tips morphing into USB ports which she plugged in on the wall mounted computer, then began extracting data. Blue, green and purple glowing lines formed on Zaire's arm from her finger

tips all across her arm to her shoulder as she sucked out whatever

information was on that computer. Zaire then gave a status update, "Extraction started. Status: 2% complete, moving at two-terabytes per second. Data has 632bit encryption. Estimate five minutes, six seconds, till process is complete."

"They've arrived, and there's too many, I don't think we can hold them back that long. Zaire you need to get that info back to the others at all cost!" -Commander.

"Yes Sir!" Zaire replied.

"Get ready boy, its about to go down," the Commander removed his cloak, dropping it on the floor.

"I will do my best Sir!" Faraji replied, not sure how to feel, but knows he

should keep his emotions in check. Four aircrafts surround the building. The first wave of sixteen heavily

armed, brute force soldiers, make their way down to the fiftieth floor for a

take down.They split into four groups and began searching the area.

Faraji, now well hidden among the shadows, blew ice cold steam from his

elbows and neck, cooling his body to evade heat sensors. He remained

silent and lifeless as if he was one with the background. Memories of his

past training came flooding in, almost as though he could hear the

Commander's voice, "If the enemy has not spotted you. Hide and execute

as many silent take downs as you can. We usually fear what we do not

know, especially the unseen, and that will be your greatest weapon against

the enemy, fear."

Two soldiers in pursuit walk past Faraji. His arms slowly mutate into large

sharp blades. As he attempts to move in on the soldiers, an alert comes in on one of the soldiers coms, "Six men are not responding, everyone regroup, repeat — regroup. Send in backup. Heat sensors ineffective, we have no sight of the enemy." The two solders move back in a fashionably order, to join the others. As Faraji remained hidden, he heard multiple gun shots from the passage east of the building where the soldiers had regrouped. He rushes to the scene, comes up from behind, opposite his Commander who had his arms stretched forward maintaining a light-blue, flat square shaped force field one meter away from him, blocking the

bullets and energy blasts fired at him. Quickly analyzing the situation, Faraji pulled out two grenades from his cloak

and threw them at the soldiers, then stretched his arms forward forming the

same force field as his Commander.The Commander grinned, and uttered the word, "Nice!" as the solders realized they were trapped in a passage with two live grenades about to explode.

"Careful! I felt that explosion all the way down here.You could have cut the

power to this computer," Zaire yelled.

"At this point, we can't be holding back. More of them are coming, brace for more explosions. Boy, kill anyone and anything that moves on sight." the

Commander replied as his irises turned purple.

Faraji looked at the Commanders eyes then looked down in Shame, and

replied, "It's best I stay back at this point, I don't want to get in the way. I'll

provide backup."

"Ahh yes! I forgot the codes don't respond well on you. Wise decision, you would make an accomplished Mungsa if you didn't have DNA issues." The Commander teased Faraji as he moved in to intersect the backup soldiers. After three minuets of slicing and dicing in full blown combat, the

Commander was finally overpowered by sheer number. He then called on

Faraji who was providing long distance support, and chanted three words

followed by three sets of 4-bit binary digits, "0110 1011 1101" responding

to the code, Faraji's irises changed colour from dark brown to purple, and as if Faraji had lost his mind, he began viciously attacking everyone and

everything in front of him, with his arms morphing into a number of

different weapons, mainly two large blades. After brutally killing most of the soldiers in a short span of time, his ireses began to flicker from purple to brown, brown to purple and back to brown, then he collapsed. The Commander finished off the remaining few as more came flooding in. He rushed to Faraji and held out a small force field with his left arm as he knelt on one knee, stretching his right arm down to Faraji's small body, and with his finger tips, sent out a shock of electricity, instantly waking Faraji as though he had just been resurrected. Fully conscious, in great pain he let out a loud scream.

"Zaire, Status report?" Asked The Commander who still held up the force field that was now receiving multiple shots.

"78% complete," Zaire replied. "leave with the info you have. Faraji is on his way to you." -Commander.

Faraji looked at the Commander, knowing what was about to happen, he

nods his head and runs for the stairs that lead to Zaire, who was now

concerned about the mission's success, "The data is encrypted, I can not say for sure if what we're looking for is on the files I've collected. I can not detach!" she said.

"If you do not go now, this mission will be a guaranteed 100% failure, but if

you do, there's a 78% success probability. Now detach! that's an order!" Said the Commander, charging towards a wave of solders that probably would be his last. Zaire detached her limbs from the computer and ran for the passage facing

west of the building.

Shortly after, Faraji enters from a passage door and starts running behind Zaire. Two floors above them, the Commander is now pinned down on the floor. The DIA squad has been sent in along with the Mayor to intercept communications between the Commander and his accomplices, in attempts to identify them. "What kind is he? I've never seen one like this before! Never even heard of it," said one of the men who had just arrived, in shock of what lay before him pinned to the ground.

"Stop feasting your eyes and get to work! time is of the essence," The

Mayor shouts.

"Zaire, I've been compromised," the Commander signaled through a non

verbal communication device as he set a ten second count down, "I will self

destruct. I'll probably take down this whole floor with me, then the rest

above will come tumbling down upon you. You have seven seconds to exit,

good luck!"

"I can't get through to him! there are too many firewalls and traps, one after another. It's infecting my system as I try to get in, injecting malware

automatically deleting all info I manage to retrieve." said one of the men who

had arrived with the DIA, using a thin tube connected to his nape which he had stuck onto the Commanders chest. Just as he was about to unplug, he

intercepts the message sent by the Commander to Zaire. Without saying a word he detached from the Commander, turned around, grabbed the Mayor and ran for the nearest window.

Zaire looked at the next building through the window while running, then

looked at Faraji on her right side, slightly behind. "He won't make it," she

thought, then the lower part of her arm morphed into a pistol. She fired three

shots at the window, top to bottom on the go. As it began to crack, she

grabbed Faraji by the arm and swung him around once, then launched him

straight at the passage window. Faraji broke through with great momentum

as Zaire followed with a powerful jump.

On the North side of the building,

Jumped out the Mayor, confused and shocked, now in mid air with a member of the DIA squad.

"All hail Malimor!" the Commander spoke his last words followed by an

explosion, demolishing half the building.

One of the aircrafts that surrounded building rushed to the Mayor's rescue while Zaire and Faraji safely landed on the next building. Zaire looked back after landing, "Well you did take the whole floor, several others along with it. I hope your death was not in vain — Commander," she said.

They head out westwards as the aircrafts pursued them along with a number of solders who were quickly catching up on them. Zaire's irises

turned purple and her speed increased significantly, but Faraji began

falling behind, unable to keep up. She stopped, looked back at the soldiers,

then down at Faraji who was still running towards her. "They're gaining on us, l won't outrun them with you. You've always been this

huge liability to the clan! The least you can do is buy me some time." Zaire

spoke these words, then pulled a flash grenade from her cloak and threw it

at Faraji. "I must get back at all cost," she said as the grenade detonated

with a flash of intense bright light. Faraji lost balance and fell on both knees, covering his eyes while Zaire ran a few steps and set up a strange looking square shaped device on the floor. She began disintegrating top to bottom as purple binary digits shot up at the night sky from her body like a pill dissolving in a glass of water.

As this took place, Faraji held out his arm with an open palm gesture followed by a sad voice, "Don't — leave me!" In five seconds, Faraji had forgotten everything that had happened up to that point and began losing

consciousness. As the soldiers moved in on Faraji, a long bearded stickman grabbed Faraji and jumped on to the next building, then back to the previous one in a descending zigzag motion and in a few seconds he was gone.

"Negative on sight, we lost them." One of the aircrafts reported.

"Get every man out there and search this area!" the Mayor replied.

"So we're taking orders from the Mayor now?" whispered a squad member.

"If you want to keep your job, just shut up and do as you're told," He's team mate replied as they spread out searching the area.

#

A few miles South from the incident that had just happened, a group of

masked men gathered on an abandoned building. "Whats going on? why have we all been summoned at once?" asked one of the men. "It probably has something to do with the data building." another replied

as they continued to speak amongst themselves.

"Gentle man, a moment of silence." Said a man under a golden skull mask

who stood in front of them on a slightly elevated platform. "This is the first

time we've all met in person," he continued, "Due to the incident that just

happened, most of security and law enforcement agencies have been called in. Whatever is happening at the Main Database is a blessing in disguise. An opportunity has presented itself and we will make use of it. We'll head out further South. It's the furthest away from the from the MDB and by the time the authorities arrive we'll be long gone."

"Are you supposed to be our leader or something?" said a voice from the

small crowd.

"Yes! you'd think that was plainly obvious. I'm even wearing a golden mask." He replied with a sarcastic tone, then proceeded to address the crowd, "A mask does not hide a man, but reveals his true nature. Give a man a mask and he will be unbound by the rules of society, he becomes faceless and shameless with no consequences or responsibilities. Only then will you see his true nature. I am here to lead the way! To save the blind from this

system, and this mask is a representation of that. The revolution starts today! now go! Bring me as many body parts as you can carry." All the men raised their weapons followed by shouts of war cry as they headed South.

#

Gizara is with his father on their backyard. His father, Armin, runs a small shop where he repairs electronic devices and business equipment.

"Mom isn't back yet, I guess she's working the night shift again," said Gizara.

"Yes, she left two hours before we arrived," his father replied.

"So I won't be seeing her for a couple of days?" Asked Gizara.

"Yes, two weeks. Now go to bed, it's school tomorrow, I'll finish up the

rest," his father said, with his attention drawn to the wild fire on a building

not far off from them.

"Dad look!" Gizara points at the building through the window. "It's right next

to Mom's workplace," he added. They saw Stickmen running the opposite

direction. His father stops one of them and asked the cause of this

sudden panic. The man replied in a terrified voice, "It's the Snatchers! they're here, they're killing everyone, ripping them into pieces for bionic parts!" He then ran off as quick as he spoke.

"I don't understand! Why are they running? If they could all head there, they could easily overpower them. There can't be that many," said Gizara.

"Yes that is true, but no one wants to be the first to arrive. They know they

would surely die, so in fear for their lives they run. In such cases, fear

trumps logic," his father replied. The fire spread quickly with screams of

agony everywhere and panic struck, "If it's bionics they're after, then

definitely they will come here. We need to go," his father worried.

"But Mom is at the center of it! I'm going! I'll be the first one if I have to." Gizara insisted, attempting to find his mother, but his father quickly held him by the arm and slapped him.

"Listen to me! If you want to live, don't be a hero. There's a big village

further South, Blackrock. Go there now and when you arrive at the gates,

tell the guards you're Armin's son. Don't come back until we come for you.

I will go find your mother," he reassured Gizara, then they went opposite

directions.

As Armin ran in desperate search of his wife, he ran into the leader of the masked men. "looking for someone? they're probably in this sack. Why don't you come take a look," said the leader in a sinister tone, holding a half full grey sack. "Don't be afraid, I am your savior," he teased while slowly moving towards Armin. He continued to speak, "About to save you from your miserable life. Your body parts will be of greater use to me than they ever were to you. They will be part of a bigger picture that will pave the path to a new life of

free minds. You should thank me for giving you such glory." he pulled out a

large rectangular shaped sword and pierced Armin's chest.

"Why are you doing this?" Armin asked

"I will not waste my breath explaining. You will be dead in a few seconds. Thanks for your corporation and kind donation, it will bring great change," he

replied then, proceeded to decapitate Armin.

#

Back at the City streets, Faraji now hangs on a strange man's shoulder. He slowly regains consciousness, "What's going on? Who are you?" He jumped off, landing on the ground.

"You can call me Cray," the man replied, "Come with me you'll be safe." he

added.

"Why should I trust you? besides I can take care of myself," Faraji replied.

"How can you take care of yourself when you don't remember anything," said Cray.

"I don't know what you're talking about. I'm gonna go home now," said

Faraji. Turning around, he took a few steps, then stopped as he realized he

had no idea of where he was going.

"Like I said, you can't remember anything. At least most of your past life. That lady, she threw a flash bomb at you. It targets specific memories

and erases them," Cray explained "They are very rare and hard to

produce..."

"You mean Zaire," Faraji interrupts, assuming his memories were returning, "Yea — that's the furthest I can remember. Before that I can only remember a few minor details like my name and hers, but I don't know anything else about her or why I was with her."

"well then what's your name?" Asked Cray.

"Its Faraji. So what's gonna happen now?" He asked.

"Come with me," Cray replied as he walked the other direction.

"Where are you going?" Faraji asked not out of curiosity, but of distrust.

"Home," Cray replied. Faraji hesitates for a moment, then follows Cray

till they arrived at a middle class apartment just outside the City. As they

walked in, two kids the same age as Faraji rushed to welcome Cray.

"Old man Cray you're back!" said Enzo, one of the two kids, "And you

brought someone with you." he added, looking at Faraji.

"This is Faraji, he'll be staying with us for now," Cray introduced the new boy.

"He's a dude! awesome! I'm Enzo and this is Desta, she's a girl." He said,

dragging his voice at the end.

"So?" said Desta, wanting to know the meaning behind Enzo's statement.

"I'm just saying that its gonna be nice having a boy around and... you know — we can do dude stuff, it's gonna be fun!" said Enzo who could barely contain his excitement.

"Let me see your face," said Desta as she pulled back Faraji's hoodie. She

stops for a second, then pulls off the rest of the cloak to get a clear look. "What kind of stickman are you?" she asked, followed by silence she

proceeds, "What kind of animal DNA is your kind or clan derived from?"

"Ohh, we have human DNA." Faraji replied.

"What's a human?" asked Enzo.

"I — I don't know, I don't remember much," Faraji replied.

"Let him rest, you will speak with him tomorrow." said cray who was now

deep in thought.

#

The following day, the news had spread everywhere. Everyone was

starting to feel unsafe. Some students did not attend school, but everything else seemed to proceed as usual.

"Gizara did not attend school either, it's not like him." said Talib, sitting

alone in class while all the other students were in groups discussing the

previous day's incident. He was not interested, he already knew most of

the details. His father experienced it first hand and saved the Mayor. He

knew more than the general public had been told. He sat on his chair thinking to himself, then he remembered Gizara mention that he lived on the far South of the City.

"Uhh! I didn't realize. Gizara was affected. I wonder if he's alright — is he

even alive?" Talib spoke to himself, now concerned for his new friend. He was really liking him, though they had just met, they seemed to connect, if

there ever was such a thing.