The next morning, Lucius prepared himself to leave for the mines with the other men. He reluctantly put on the slave bracelet under Lia's confused gaze, she had seen the same bracelet on their parent's wrists. It beeped every morning and after a while two soldiers would come and take them away, so seeing Lucius do the same caught Lia's attention.
"Brother Liu, are you going somewhere?" She asked with puppy eyes.
Lucius smiled and stroked her hair gently for a short while before responding.
"Yeah, I will be going out to get us more food, just like Dad and Mom did." Lucius said, which made Lia frown.
"But we still have some food and water here." She pointed at the remnants of their food and water.
Without their parents, the daily rations were enough for two days. She held on to Lucius's hand and stared deep into his eyes.
"Don't go." Lia muttered. She was scared Lucius would not come back, just like their parents.
Thud!
At that moment, heavy footsteps could be heard coming up their floor in the dilapidated building. Lia hurriedly hid behind Lucius in fear, while Lucius shielded his sister with his body, his heart beating loudly.
Seconds later, two men walked up to their floor, they were dressed in sleek, black and white battle suits that shimmered with an otherworldly sheen under the harsh glare of artificial light.
Embedded within the sleek contours of the battle suits are layers of advanced armor plating, designed to tank blows from beasts, absorb energy blasts, and mitigate the force of explosions. Yet, despite their formidable protection, the suits remained remarkably agile, with integrated exoskeletons and advanced joint mechanisms augmenting the wearer's strength and mobility.
At their sides, the soldiers carried weapons unlike anything seen before. The guns themselves are sleek and streamlined, their contours honed to perfection to fit snugly into the palm of the wearer's hand. Embedded within the sleek frame of the weapon were intricate patterns of circuitry, pulsating with a soft, ethereal glow as power coursed through their veins.
At the heart of the energy gun lay its power source: a compact energy cell capable of storing immense amounts of raw power. These cells are nestled snugly within the gun's frame, visible through translucent panels that offer glimpses of the pulsating energy contained within.
Running along the length of the energy gun were a series of sleek, elongated vents, designed to dissipate excess heat generated during prolonged use, and towards the gun's muzzle, a series of emitters protruded. When the weapon is fired, these emitters come to life, unleashing torrents of searing energy that streak across the battlefield with deadly accuracy.
The soldiers ran up the floor but were shocked to see only two kids, leftover food, and cardboard papers used as a bed. They shared confused glances before looking at Lucius' hand where the beeping of the slave bracelet originated from, but he was clearly not old enough to be a laborer.
"Where are your parents, kid?" One of the soldiers put away his gun and asked.
Lucius frowned as he felt Lia's grip on his clothes tighten as she buried her face in his back.
She was scared…
"They said my dad got sick and was killed with my mum. They didn't come back last night." Lucius tried to be as brave as he could be for his sister.
The soldiers froze and shared another glance before looking at Lucius again, it was clear they knew of that incident. To think an underage kid would have to work to feed himself and his sister was something he found deeply disturbing.
"Alright, come with us." The soldier let out a defeated sigh.
Constantly hearing stories like this was becoming tiring even for him. However, when Lucius was about to move, Lia held on to his clothes tightly.
"Don't go." She muttered under her breath.
"You…" The second soldier was about to move forward, but the one ahead signaled him to stop with a simple gesture.
He walked up to Lia, but before he could get close, Lucius blocked his part with his body. His fist clenched, and his face reddened as he did his best to look tough. The soldier could only chuckle at this display and slowly brought out a lollipop from his pocket.
He knelt down to meet Lia's gaze, gently passing the candy to her with a gentle smile on his face.
"Don't worry, little girl. I will make sure your big brother gets the easy jobs." he said.
His gesture and words were successful in making Lia cutely stick out her head from the side, but her eyes were still filled with suspicion, regardless she reluctantly took the lollipop away before hiding away.
'They really bought her with a lollipop?' Lucius didn't know whether to laugh or cry as he was taken away.
Lia just stood there, waving at him as he went downstairs with the soldiers. No words were spoken as he was led out of the building only to see people lined up while military vans lined up around them with soldiers barking orders.
Lucius was made to join the line, not before getting his neck, legs, and hands put in shackles like every other slave. They stood under the scorching sun for minutes as the soldiers did a check to make sure everyone was accounted for, this lasted for about thirty minutes.
"MOVE OUT!" A loud voice boomed and their journey to the mines began.
This was Lucius first day working as a slave.