"Do you remember what our old teacher once told us?" asked Hana, her voice carrying a softness that echoed in the quiet room. She was standing in front of Lando, her hands deftly fixing his black suit tie. Her hair, which had grown considerably longer, framed her face elegantly.
His reply was a subdued, "Yeah... I do." He didn't meet her eyes, choosing instead to look aimlessly around the room.
"He told us about how the world may have come to this," Hana said, finishing her task with his tie and stepping back to inspect it. With a small nod of satisfaction, she dropped her hands.
"Do you mind sharing that tale once more?" Lando asked, finally looking up at her. She agreed, her hair swishing around her face with her nod.
She began to unravel the story as she adjusted her hair. "The year was 2045. Earth, pushed beyond its limits, finally retaliated." As she spoke, she worked her long hair into a neat ponytail.
"On November 18th, 2045, the world as we knew it came to an end. Natural disasters engulfed us, and to survive, we relied on the Nephalems." Her voice echoed in the silent room, adding weight to the grim tale.
Once she had finished securing her hair, Hana turned back to Lando. "You don't seem particularly thrilled about your promotion," she observed, her eyes twinkling with unspoken amusement.
He shrugged in response, offering a non-committal, "It's fine." But Hana shook her head, her smile widening.
"You have to be excited! You're the 5th Founder!" she insisted, her enthusiasm ringing clear in her voice.
His return smile was a faint one. "Yeah, I am," he admitted. He then moved to open the dormitory door, turning back to her to suggest, "Let's go check on him."
A frown flickered across Hana's face at his words, but she nodded. She knew it was time for their regular visit to the clinic.
As Lando and Hana navigated the austere hallway, a heavy silence enveloped them. Closing his eyes briefly, Lando was drawn back to the painful memories that still haunted him.
"AQUA!" his voice echoed in his mind, as vivid as the smirk on Renan's face in his recollection.
Snapping out of his thoughts, Lando looked at Hana. "Have you spoken to the new recruits yet?" Her answer was a shake of her head, prompting a similar response from him.
As they walked on, they discussed their concerns about Erik's prolonged silence and the repercussions of Aqua's death. Despite the serious nature of their conversation, Lando's demeanor remained unchanged.
Upon their arrival at the clinic, a nurse greeted them warmly, congratulating Lando on his promotion. His nod in response was polite, yet lacked any trace of a smile. Without wasting any time, he walked over to a room and gently pushed the door open.
Inside, Zander lay motionless on his sterile hospital bed. Lando's voice filled the room, laced with hope and longing, "I'm the 5th Founder now. It's been over a year since we last spoke, Zander. I hope you wake up the next time I see you."
As Hana observed from the doorway, a deep frown crossed her face. The nurse whispered to her, "How is he coping?" Hana sighed heavily, "Not well. He's shattered. I'm struggling to find ways to help him heal."
In agreement, the nurse responded, "He's not ready to mend yet." Hana simply nodded, her voice thick with worry, "I miss the old Lando. His joyful spirit... it's gone." As she said this, Lando gently rested his hand on Zander's shoulder.
"Please wake up soon, buddy..." Lando turned towards Hana, a faint smile forming on his lips as he saw her. "Let's head to the Founders' meeting." Hana extended her hand, and Lando took it, nodding in agreement.
They walked together, hand in hand. Lando felt a pleasant warmth from her touch, a feeling that was mirrored on his face with a small smile. Noticing this, Hana's smile broadened, adding a dash of warmth to the austere clinic.
In another part of the world, a figure garbed in a cloak and mask was hard at work, shovel in hand. A blast from a horn interrupted their task, signaling a gathering of similarly cloaked individuals.
The figure ceased digging and joined the assembly. A group of eight figures of various heights stood around a towering man. His stern face broke into a smile as he announced, "It's time to eat!"
A young boy, the smallest of the group, removed his mask, revealing a head of stark white hair and bright red eyes. His silence was met with a sigh from the towering man, "We still don't know the boy's name. He hasn't spoken a word since he got here." A woman named Rachel joined in, "You're right about that, Adrian." The group started removing their masks, revealing their faces.
The cloaked figure dropped their shovel and took off their mask, revealing the face of Mara. The towering man, Adrian, smiled at her, "Mara, you did an exceptional job with those holes yesterday. Your contribution has set us up for a profitable month."
Mara smiled back at Adrian, her hair cut short in a boyish style. She nodded in response to his compliment, "Thank you, I hope I did well today too!"
A girl took off her mask and turned towards Mara, "You're too fast for us, Mara." She laughed, playfully nudging Mara's shoulder. Mara couldn't help but chuckle in return, her laughter a light note in the growing evening.
"I try to do my best to contribute to our life here," Mara explained. Adrian looked at her, an unspoken question in his eyes. "You've never shared your full story, Mara. You've been here for several months now."
Mara looked at Adrian, her eyes holding an unreadable expression. "Umm… it's for the best that we don't talk about it," she responded, her gaze falling to the ground.
Rachel laid a hand on Adrian's arm, her voice firm, "She can share when she's ready, Adrian." The burly man only responded with a slow nod.
The girl who had playfully nudged Mara earlier extended her hand. "Your name is Ashley, right?" Mara, shaking Ashley's extended hand.
"Nice to meet you, Ashley. You're the new girl. But you already know me," Mara responded. Ashley's gaze was drawn to the black ember in Mara's eyes. "Your eyes…"
"What about them?" Mara tilted her head, curiosity lighting up her features.
"They're nice. The black ember makes them unique. Were you born with it?" Ashley asked, her eyes never leaving Mara's.
Mara simply nodded in response. "I don't know why, but I was born with it for some reason."
Ashley smiled brightly, her blue hair shimmering in the setting sun. "Oh, I see. That's cool." She turned to the others - Lucky, Nancy, Ray, and Elvy, who had also been taken in by Adrian and Rachel.
"It's time to head back for food," Adrian said, his announcement met with an enthusiastic cheer from Lucky. Elvy snickered, pointing an accusing finger at Lucky, "So finally you can eat now, fatass?"
The red-eyed boy with white hair made his way to a metallic house nearby, entering his sparse room. His only possessions appeared to be a box labeled 'crayons' and a stack of papers.
The boy grabbed a sheet of paper from the stack and took out a crayon from the box. He began to draw, huffing as if drawing was necessary for his survival. After several minutes, he paused, looking at the drawing.
The picture depicted a cave with numerous green eyes glowing ominously from within, lava at the very bottom. The boy stared at the picture, his red eyes reflecting the eerie glow of the drawn cave. His intense focus remained undeterred, never leaving the image he had drawn.