Sol walked through the heart of the megacity-ship, his footsteps lost beneath the hum of the streets. This place was alive in a way he had never experienced before. The slums of Galvaris Prime had been a world of suffocating walls and desperate whispers; here, everything stretched outward and upward, an endless sprawl of neon lights, towering skyscrapers, and pathways suspended midair, threading between floating districts.
This was freedom. And yet, he wasn't sure if it felt real.
The air was thick with a blend of manufactured freshness and the scent of sizzling food from street vendors, mixed with the occasional sharp tang of ozone from the energy fields that kept the city's structures aloft. Massive holograms loomed over the streets, advertising everything from cybernetic enhancements to the latest star-racer tournaments, their colors shifting with the artificial daylight cycle. Above him, ships of all sizes weaved through designated flight paths like an intricate dance, some docking into floating hubs while others shot off into the void.
It was too much to take in all at once.
Sol slowed his pace, letting himself simply observe. His mind was still buzzing from everything that had happened—from the slums to space in a matter of days. He had spent years trying to claw his way out, and now that he was finally here, it didn't feel like he had escaped.
What now?
For the first time in his life, there was no immediate danger, no gang hunting him, no job he had to complete just to survive another day. He was no longer a nameless slum rat scraping by on stolen parts and back-alley deals. But then, who was he now?
His hand instinctively brushed against the side of his head, near his ear, where the ACE System had been implanted deep into his brain. That piece of stolen technology had changed everything. His teacher had died for it. DreamCorp wanted it back. The Vultures had chased him through the streets for it.
But there was something bothering him. The way things had gone down, the sheer chaos of it all—it felt too one-sided. He knew DreamCorp wanted him. He knew the Vultures were after him. But what if there were others? People he hadn't even realized were watching? His escape had been too clean, too decisive.
A thought lingered at the back of his mind, but he pushed it aside. He had more pressing things to worry about. For now.
And yet, he still didn't fully understand what it was.
His grip tightened for a moment before he exhaled, forcing his fingers to relax. There would be time to figure it out. Right now, he needed to understand the world he had stepped into. If there was one thing the slums had taught him, it was that knowledge was power—and he was in a place filled with more knowledge than he had ever imagined.
As he walked through the ever-shifting streets, his dark green eyes flickered over the people around him. There were aliens of all kinds, from towering crystalline beings whose bodies refracted light like prisms to smaller, more delicate creatures that hovered off the ground, their bodies trailing luminescent mist. Augmented humans with glowing circuitry woven into their skin passed by, their eyes displaying data in real time.
It was overwhelming. But it was also thrilling.
As he wandered, the city revealed its eccentricities. A group of children zipped by on customized hover pads, weaving in and out of pedestrian traffic with reckless glee, their laughter echoing through the air. One particularly daring kid flipped midair before narrowly dodging a fruit stand, earning a mix of cheers and exasperated shouts from nearby vendors.
Further ahead, a cluster of elderly beings, some human, others alien, sat at a floating café table, engrossed in a high-stakes game of 3D mahjong. The translucent tiles shifted in midair, rearranging themselves each round as holographic dragon-like figures swooped over the board, reacting to the game's flow. One of the elders, a four-armed reptilian, let out a victorious cackle, sending his tiles into an automated victory dance, much to the frustration of his competitors.
On a nearby street corner, a street performer juggled six glowing orbs that morphed into different animals midair—one second, they were birds, the next, shifting serpents of neon light. A robotic dog, its plating gleaming with a pearlescent sheen, barked excitedly at the display, its tail wagging in delight.
He had always wanted to see the stars. Now, he wasn't just seeing them—he was part of them.
A massive skybridge stretched before him, its surface transparent, allowing him to see the bustling lower levels beneath his feet. He stepped onto it, pausing for a moment to glance down. Thousands of people moved through the city's arteries, each with their own story, their own purpose. It made him feel… small.
But that wasn't a bad thing. It meant there was room to grow.
His thoughts drifted to Candy's words. This journey? It's yours to take alone this time.
Alone. The word lingered in his mind longer than he expected. He had always been alone in some way, but now, for the first time, he had options. He could go anywhere, be anything. No one was telling him what to do.
That was both liberating and terrifying.
A flashing holo-display snapped him out of his thoughts. It was an info-terminal, offering real-time updates on different districts of the city. Sol glanced at it, his curiosity piqued. As he navigated through the map options, he suddenly felt a sharp, tingling sensation in his head, just behind his ear. His vision momentarily blurred, and then—
Data flooded his mind.
The ACE System had automatically downloaded the map directly into his brain, bypassing the need for external interfaces. It was an intrusive, unnatural feeling, like something foreign was crawling through his thoughts, organizing information without his permission. He winced slightly, pressing two fingers to the side of his head as the sensation faded.
He still wasn't used to it. There were so many places to explore, so much to learn.
He scanned through the options until he found it—
Luminara District: Restricted Access. Proceed at Your Own Risk.
A slow smirk tugged at the corner of his lips.
Sounds like a good place to start.