Author's Note: Unedited Chapters ------------------------ "Officer Crimson," Officer Darkmark suddenly called out to him. Gustav paused and turned to the side while raising an eyebrow. "There's something we need you to do," Officer Darkmark stated. Gustav turned to face them once more with an expression of curiosity. "I'm all ears," --------------------- Minutes later Gustav sat within a small spaced room with the others surrounding him. "They're just needed me to verify some things. The operation will be starting in two to three days time and like i mentioned earlier, we will be assigned a specific area in the city as a group," Gustav stated. "Oh nice," "Is there anywhere to train during this time?" "Yeah you can use the Brain emulator to train here in the meantime," Gustav responded. "They are most likely going to give us a location they consider the least dangerous but my goal is to make sure not a single one of the Genxodus members escape from the city... alive," Gustav added. "Hmm? Did something happen?" Aildris could sense that there was more about this declaration than met the eye. "Nothing much... those bastards got on my nerves so now they have to pay the price," Gustav didn't inform them about the attempted abduction or the assassins they had been sending after him in the past few months. "Looks like these fuckers are gonna get it," E.E was already feeling bad in advance for the Genxodus members that would fall into Gustav's hand. "E.E you're coming with me," Gustav suddenly voiced out. "Uh? What?" E.E said with a look of confusion. "I'm infiltrating your city... I need you to join me," Gustav revealed before standing to his feet. "But... why?" E.E asked. "They didn't agree to get your family out of there so we'll be doing it ourselves... in secret," Gustav replied. E.E face turned serious upon hearing that. E.E wasn't initially bothered since Gustav said he would take care of it but upon hearing this he understood. "We might need to also check the city out because I want you to identify any escape points after we've gotten your family out. Also just to make sure things run smoothly we'd spy on suspicious areas till the operation begins," Gustav revealed. "You guys will need to cover for both of us while we're gone. We will get back before the operation begins," He added. "Understood," Angy and the others responded. "When do we leave?" E.E inquired. "Now," Gustav answered. [Flesh Warping Has Been Activated] ---------------- Two dark skinned men had arrived within a run down part of Aribia city many minutes later. They looked like twins due to their similar appearances but they were both clad in ragged clothes. This area was one of the slums within Aribia City. Despite the city being one of the poorest in the world, it still covered a large area of land. Everywhere both of them passed, beggers could be sighted along with people dressed just as bad or even worse. Adults and children living in the streets under tent like structures or just laying on the bare ground. Bang! Bang! Bang! Arriving at one of the corners a teenage boy was being beaten up in front of a stall. Gustav and E.E paused and stared in that direction but none of them moved to help. "You bastard thief," Bam! "This will teach you not to steal from me again," Bam! "Worthless just like your siblings!" Bam! E.E wanted to make a move at this point but Gustav placed his hand on E.E's left shoulder and shook his head. E.E clenched his fist as witnessing such a scene brought back unpleasant memories. However they couldn't make a move as it would potentially blow their cover. After a few more seconds, a middle aged woman jumped in front of the boy with tears in her eyes. "Marcus! Please leave him be!" She cried. "He's a thief he should be dealt with," The bald store owner said after pausing his blows. "Please he won't do it again," She kept begging. After some time the stall owner got tired of the woman getting in the way and left after letting out a 'Hmph' "Next time I will beat him to death!" The woman proceeded to carry her half dead teenage son away from the premises while Gustav and E.E remained in place for a few. "Nothing has changed," E.E muttered with a dispirited tone. Gustav had never seen E.E look this down before, he was always in high spirits. It was no doubt that E.E was the like the light of the team since he would always find a way to cheer everyone on and make jokes out of serious situations. It was quite unbelievable that someone with such a personality originated from such a gloomy and despairable environment. "Is that a normal scenario?" Gustav already knew the answer but still asked. "Pretty much," E.E let out a sigh after responding as his mind travelled back to the past... ################ "Big brother, I'm hungry," A two and the half feet tall kid yelled out in the middle of an area with demolished structures. His big brother who also happened to be a four feet tall scrawny looking black kid, smiled at him and proceeded to touch his head. "What do you wanna eat Emma?" He asked. "I want some cornbread please," Despite his tattered looks Emma had an excited expression after responding. "One cornbread coming up, wait here," Emma's big brother said before turning around and running in the opposite direction. Emma waited for about an hour before his big brother returned. "Big brother," He had an excited look upon spotting his brother approaching from up ahead. His excited look quickly died down as he noticed his big brother looked way roughed up than normal. Bruises and visible bloodstains that were absent initially could be spotted on exposed parts of his body. Emma was a kid that didn't know any better but seeing this, he could tell something was wrong. "Big brother... what happened?" He asked. "Nothing Nothing," Emma's big brother managed to hide the pain in his eyes with a smile as he arrived before him. "One cornbread as promised," He added while passing a triangular shaped piece of bread to Emma. "Wow thanks Big brother," Emma excited expression returned as he accepted the bread and jumped into his big brother's embrace. "Ugh," Emma's big brother grimaced in pain upon the collision from the hug but he quickly masked it once more. "Haha make sure you enjoy," He added. "Have some big brother," Emma split the bread in half but his big brother declined... ################ "Why is it this bad?" Gustav question brought E.E out of his reminiscent state. "The world abandoned this hellhole and the government as well as the rich decided to hold on whatever profit can be dredged out of this place without sharing," E.E answered before they proceeded to resume walking. Gustav was still curious as to how E.E managed to join the MBO test phases and become an MBO officer despite originating from such a place. He was curious but he didn't ask because he could tell E.E's mood was affected by this place and didn't want to dig into things E.E might find uncomfortable. A side of him was bothered that after all this time they had been friends, he never tried to find out more about E.Es background. They both kept walking silently past a number of places where fights broke out or people were scrounging for any little piece of food they could find. It was not a pretty sight within these slums. The number of teenage kids were far greater than the number of adults. Gustav had never witnessed such a sight and wondered if they hadn't gone back in time. Despite observing the environment Gustav couldn't tell if there was something out of place or find suspicious situations since this environment was not one he was familiar with. Everything here was practically out of place and it seemed this was a normal thing. Only E.E would be able to make better observations since he was a native of this city. "We're close," E.E stated. "Hmm," Gustav looked up ahead as they arrived in a street. This place was fairly better than the other places they had come across on their way here. More buildings could be spotted in this area and if one kept going further, they would arrive in the more luxurious part of the city. After walking for a few more minutes they arrived before a bungalow house by the left side of the street. Kom! Kom! Kom! E.E knocked thrice and waited. "Coming," A feminine voice resounded from within. Kachum~ The instant the door opened, they spotted the muzzle of a energy gun pointed at them. ------------------------------ Join my discord server: https://discord.gg/up6VHdMJZc