Chapter 3

The crater was sloped enough to slowly walk down the side of the hole and have a slim chance at survival. Almost a two-mile decline…it would be a treacherous hike up and down for anyone; loose rocks, strange beasts, and other dangers riddled the inside of the mountain.

Disregarding safety, Ivy slid down the cliff face, narrowly avoiding sharp rocks, dead trees, and the occasional mountain beast. She was able to move down the length of the crater with the only harm coming to her already torn clothes and hands.

Ivy stumbled and landed at the crater's base; she got up and pulled the sticks and leaves from her hair. Her originally bright white jacket was now a dusty brown. She was at the colony's perimeter edge, and now that she was so close, Ivy realized how big it was. Judging by the size of the massive tan concrete wall that surrounded it, she guessed ‌it was the size of a small town—about a twenty-mile(32 km) width. Its shape was oval, with openings at its front—the main gate, and the back—the docks and harbor. Bordering the walls was grassy farmland, the length and width of which was a football field's size. Corn, wheat, potatoes, and rice were all being grown.

Ivy looked back and forth and saw no entrances to the colony. "Hmm, right or left?" clicking her tongue. She gave up, flipped an imaginary coin, and circled the wall going left. She trudged through the soggy harvest fields, the mud feeling like quicksand as it tried to hold her in place. Ivy reached the wall, stood on the small brick walkway at the base, and stared toward the top. "Hey! Is anyone up there?" She waited a moment, but there was no response. She highly doubted that she could scale up the side, either.

She reached what looked to be the front of the colony. The surrounding crater dipped down and created a massive gaping opening. An ancient cobblestone road was built right through that entrance from the front gate and leading down the mountain. A log railing was on either side of the lane.

The front entrance was seven meters tall, only being eclipsed by the wall itself, which was seventeen meters. The gate was made from faded brown marble, several feet thick, and weighed several tons.

There was an ear-splitting sound like two metal chunks being ground together, and a plume of dust billowed from the front gate as it swung open. Several people walked through the gateway and quickly surrounded Ivy. Usually, there was no need for in-person watchers; for no outsider would have the will to make it this far through the mountains—on this occasion, though…

Her head swiveled as she took the time to examine all four of the men. They held swords, hammers, and one had a rifle, a bullet chambered but aimed at the ground. Her eyebrows knit together in confusion. Not sure what else to do, she just stood there, staring back at them.

A voice called from inside the gate, "I can't allow you inside without permission or an ID. And I don't recognize you either. So whadd'ya want?" Ivy looked over to see a young man, slightly shorter than the other four, with a camo baseball cap pulled low over his face so she couldn't see his eyes. His right hand hovered over a gun holster on his side.

"My mom told me to come here!" Ivy said. The confusion on her face melted away into a smile.

"Your...mom?" He squinted at her, then looked towards the group surrounding Ivy to make sure he heard her right. "Okay then...Who's your mom?"

"Lilith."

"Never heard of her."

"She doesn't live 'here,'" Ivy said while pulling out the note from her backpack, stepping forward, ignoring the men surrounding her.

He took the letter, reading it over a few times. He pushed his hat up, revealing bright green eyes and a teenage face. Handing the note back to Ivy, he said, "Alright, I'm going to take you to Neph and see what he has to say. Any funny business, or you start acting any way 'I' deem weird, you'll end up right back outside, aight?" He accentuated his statement by tapping his fingers on his gun.

"Or dead," someone mumbled.

Ivy nodded enthusiastically.

One of the four men walked up to him, whispering in his ear, "should we handcuff her, or what?"

Camo-man looked Ivy up and down once more, "Nah, man, I'm not too worried 'bout her."

They all walked inside the gate, and Ivy stopped in her tracks, her mouth hung open and her eyes twinkling with awe. The colony's topography had many small hills, green fields, and a massive forest in the distance. Crater seemed to be in a different season than the outside world; the tree leaves were a deep orange, and acorns and pinecones littered the ground around their trees. A small village was at the colony's forefront, a quarter of a mile from the gate. Modern houses with tiled roofs, square brick buildings resembling schools, and small wooden huts spread over the area. Between the buildings, power lines connected them all; ancient shoes tied together by their laces hung from the black cords. Three towering brick buildings stood adjacent to one another. To the right of that, atop a hill. The one on the left had a large green banner hanging off it; it read 'The house of Cygnet,' with what Ivy guessed was Crater's logo below it—a minimalistic design of a mother holding her child. The middle had a purple banner that read, 'The house of Seeley'—again with the same symbol. The one on the far right had a red banner that read, 'The house of Inez.' Next to them was a cluster of three houses in a circle formation surrounding a fountain. Over the front doors of each house was a plaque that read out the names given to them by the founding residence of its esoteric community, with each home being distinct in its theme.

A broad brown house; one would say it looked "fratty"; a circular home with a Mediterranean style. Its walls were a dull pink with logos of designer brands plastered all along its outside. The last was painted like a blue sky, lifted off the ground, and cylindrical. Near them was an open area with a basketball court, a soccer field, and a low-hanging extended facility made of logs. Surrounding the small village area was a crystal clear stream that led to a lake sat in the middle of Crater, which itself flowed to the ocean. Beyond that was a compact high activity town were homes of white wooden walls and bright-colored roofs.

The center path winded through the middle of the town and branched off in three directions; to the left, it went towards a tall brick oval building, several suburban homes, and what looked to be an old rustic wooden cabin surrounded it.

"This place is ginormous!"

The teenager wearing the camo put a hand on Ivy's shoulder, pointing towards the cabin in the distance. "Ya see that? That's where we're headed."

They continued to walk in silence; the original group of four was still walking behind them, not saying a single word. Most people didn't notice Ivy being led through the streets; some gave quick and confused glances but returned to what they were doing.

They walked past a large pole, with flyers for shops, missing pets, and restaurants stapled to it. What caught her eye, was that all the animal posters seemed fairly recent.

Ivy noticed the fisherman she saw earlier; he was in the middle of a passionate discussion with several others who surrounded him with great interest.

"I'm telling you," the fisherman said, "bottom of my heart; right hand on the bible. It's all true!"

"You're telling us ‌you and some kid caught it?" One asked.

"We sure did. I'll show all of you."

"What y'all did together was more than what seven trained fishermen have been able to manage in the past. You expect us to believe that?"

"Have I ever been known to lie? Look at my leg! You think I did this to myself?"

After fifteen minutes of walking, they made it past the small village district. The guy turned to the group of four and dismissed them. They turned around in sync and walked towards the market area without a word. Ivy turned to the boy. "Are they robots?"

"No, they just act like 'em. Come on, it's the third house here, the one that looks like a cabin." He opened the screen door, the smell of salt and seaweed hitting them like a truck.

"Say, why does it smell like a beach?" Ivy asked, scrunching up her nose in disgust. They turned the corner, and her mouth was left agape at the man in front of her. Tall wasn't a close enough word to describe it. He was muscular with fair skin, a long trimmed braided beard, and impossibly tall. His head, tilted low so as not to hit the ceiling, turned towards them as they walked in, a smile appearing for a second, then disappearing just as quickly when seeing Ivy. He looked her up and down, sizing her up. "So, this is her," he thought.

Behind him, placed in a vase on his desk, a bouquet of flower-like plants; the tips burned lightly, giving off the strange smell.

He turned to look at an awkward girl across the room who eyed Ivy apprehensively; she looked away quickly once Ivy caught her eye. Ivy looked no older than her, about a head taller and not as skinny. She wore an oversized faded orange t-shirt so large and baggy that its bottom seam was only a few inches above her knees. Her long cargo shorts went to her ankles near those dark red dirty light-up sneakers she exclusively wore. She nervously twirled her long, white-blonde hair in between her fingers. Her hair was long enough to reach her shoulder blades and hung down in front of her face; her bright, piercing blue dilated eyes peered out from behind her hair.

"Excuse me one moment, Zoe." (Pronouncing her name as 'Z-Oh'!) The tall man's voice was deep, but felt warm and kind. He turned towards them again, looking Ivy up and down, her large eyes still wide with awe and her mouth still hung open. He extended his hand towards her, the warm look returning to his face. "Young lady, you must be new to this colony. I apologize that I can't give you a proper introduction to everything since the colony has been in a bit of disarray since—well, anyways, my name is Neph."

Ivy shook his hand, happily introducing herself. 

A new voice came from the corner of the room. Ivy hadn't noticed anyone else here, causing her to jump. 

"Neph, as I said before, it's imperative that I get this done as soon as possible. You aren't trying to stall, are you?" A boy said, getting up out of his chair. He was fifteen years old with olive skin and dark eyes. He wore a full-body black training suit with an orange hem and white collar and five large rings on his fingers; two on his right hand and three on his left. The word "clerical" came to mind when Zoe looked at him.

"Marcello, you aren't exactly the top priority right now. I will get to you when I can, but for now, stay patient." Neph lectured, his eyes flashed with a hint of annoyance, but his voice and overall demeanor stayed calm. Marcello bit his tongue and sat back down. "Ken, you are dismissed." Ken, the boy wearing camo, nodded, then exited through the screen door.

Neph turned to the girl named Zoe, "Now, where were we?"

Glancing quickly around the room before speaking; quietly, she said, "I want to know if there's anything I can do to rank up and get my second star."

Neph sighed, "Have you checked the mission board for contracts?"

"Yes, but I can't do any of the ones available because I'm not at least a two-star. It's completely paradoxical; I can't rank up unless I successfully complete a mission, yet I can't even get a mission unless I'm a higher rank…. And another thing, the contracts that I don't need a prerequisite for are being taken almost instantly; I would have to be camping out near the board for days on end to get one!" She got progressively louder as she spoke, but quickly quieted down when she realized the volume of her voice. "I wouldn't mind camping out either, but there's a curfew, so I literally can't."

"I understand your frustration, Zoe, but there are missions available to you right now."

"But those are just D ranks; it won't even move the needle." Dispirited, Zoe slinked past Ivy toward the door. "You could sign off for me." She said under her breath to Neph.

Neph called after her and told her to wait. He walked over to a file cabinet and started riffling through one of the drawers; after a few seconds, he brought out a manilla folder with a few pages inside. He handed that and a pen to Ivy, thinking, 'Such an oddly ebullient child Ivy is. I shouldn't let my guard down, but could she really be…Well, for now, I'll entertain this and go from here. Once Terra sees her, I can make a final judgment.'

"I want you to fill out the paper inside here; it'll be for your ID card." He turned to Zoe, "Once Ivy is finished, I want you to give her a tour of this place."

Her eyes flicked to look at Ivy. She wasn't sure what to make of the girl; she came off as goofy and more than a little strange. Not wanting to make judgments before talking to her, she just nodded.

Ivy sat down and looked over the page. It asked for her name, age, race, and height. She read the questions aloud, but quiet enough so that everyone else only heard a slight whisper. "Name, Ivy; Age, um..." She turned to Neph. "Hey, mister, what day is it?"

"Friday, August third."

"Oh, cool! I just turned eleven today!" She went back to writing on the page, "Age, eleven; Race, white...I think; height, 5 '5". She continued down the page, answering the questions to the best of her abilities. When Ivy had finished, she handed the pages to Neph.

"Dodola Isle… Never heard of that. Where is that located?"

"Uh…" there was a long pause, "not sure," Ivy shrugged.

"You aren't sure?" Neph asked inquisitively.

Ivy reached in her bag and handed him the map her mom gave her. "I just followed the route."

"Huh," he muttered, looking it over. "Still not ringing a bell. Oh well," he gave the paper back to her.

Ivy turned to Zoe and saw her staring awkwardly at the ground. She glanced up when she noticed Ivy was looking at her.

"Oh! Uh, Ivy, right? I'm gonna show you around." Zoe said quickly under her breath as if she was afraid someone would hear her, then shuffled out of the cabin. Ivy looked back towards Neph, who gestured for her to go. Nodding, she followed Zoe outside.

"Oh wow, I'm allowed to talk?" Marcello asked sarcastically, "If you deny me once more, I'm just going to leave, and you won't be getting anything."

Neph sighed, "First, tell me the reason for this mission?" Neph said, giving his undivided attention to Marcello.

"I don't think it would be good for me to give such an answer to someone I don't know. The matter is too personal." Marcello said, standing to his feet. "I need several triple-stars or above that have no fear of death or killing and can follow instructions."

"Well, then I can't help you," Neph said sternly.

Marcello's eyes widened with surprise. "What? With all due respect, 'sir,'" he felt a balloon of anger fill in his chest, his voice strained from keeping his composure, "I will only share the mission details with the people going with me on the mission. Unless you plan on joining me, then that's all I can say. But make no mistake; it's not from lack of funds. I do have the money to pay for this."

"Again, like I said just now, I can't help you. If you want to talk to me about it, I would be willing to see what I can do, but since you aren't with an organization and you don't have any previous relation to Crater, I won't just lend you my colonists without explanation. As far as I'm aware, this whole thing could end up being a suicide mission."

Marcello scoffed, dug his temporary colony ID card out of his pocket, and flung it on the table. "Fine! I'm leaving!" He said, turning towards the front door.

Neph's voice softened, "If you can't answer my fairly simple question, then maybe you aren't doing this for the right reason. This doesn't mean you still aren't welcome to stay here. Your reputation precedes you, and you could be quite the valuable member of this colony."

A smirk crossed Marcello's face as he looked back towards Neph, staring him dead in his eyes. "From what I heard, you guys will do just about anything if the money's right. Regardless, it's really none of your business. And no, I'm not joining your little club, okay?" There was a long silence. Marcello shifted back towards the door. Neph walked beside him, holding the temporary ID in front of Marcello's face.

"You should stay the weekend, and we can talk about this more."

Looking at the card in Neph's outstretched hand… "Whatever," Marcello said, grabbing the card as he walked out the door and slammed it behind him.

Zoe walked towards one of the bridges that went over the stream; Ivy followed, her eyes wide with curiosity, staring at the buildings and people as they walked past. Zoe looked at Ivy and took a deep breath; she always felt nervous around people she didn't know—constantly feeling fidgety, rarely maintaining eye contact—finding it stressful or uncomfortable most of the time. Ivy noticed she was jumpy, too, looking around as if she expected to be mugged at any second. Zoe leaned against a nearby oak tree, its orange autumn leaves slowly descending in the slight breeze.

"Umm, I don't really know where to start; there's a lot to learn. Anything you want to see first?"

Seeming to smell something that Zoe didn't, Ivy sniffed the air and looked around, "Is there food that we can eat around here?" As if on cue, her stomach growled so loudly that it almost made Zoe jump.

She looked down at her wrist, a silver watch with an abstract purple and yellow face, "The food hall will be open in thirty minutes."

When they got closer, the smell of cooking food wafted from an open window in the log building. Ivy realized she hadn't had anything to eat since that morning, and all she had to eat was her last candy bar. Ivy's stomach growled at the thought of the food. It was so loud that Zoe heard it. Ivy shuffled over to the window and peered in, looking at the bustling and busy kitchen staff running around inside.

"That's the dining hall?" She asked, turning to Zoe.

"Yea, well, one of them, the one we use…you'll know when the cafeteria is ready because there will be a loud dinner bell. The bell rings differently, indicating which group's turn it is to eat."

Ivy grumbled, rubbing her stomach, and looked around, "So what do you folks do here?"

"Well, there's lots of different things going on here. But if you're under eighteen, your only job is to go to learn, train, and, in theory, go on missions."

Ivy perked up at the word 'train,' "Train? So that's why she told me to come here. What do you train?"

"Oh, there's training for pretty much everything, but the base thing they train you in is teamwork; well, field-wise, and general combat. You have to sign up and be approved to be trained in other things."

Ivy's eyes lit up, and she walked closer to Zoe, "That's cool! So like, when do we get to do that?"

Zoe gave her an odd look, "You're excited about that?"

"Oh, yea! I think that's why I was told to come here!" Ivy said with a bright grin.

"There's physical training every morning before school. Well, it's still part of school, but before the classroom stuff. Tomorrow, the whole day is dedicated to a training course."

"School…" Ivy said with a slight twinge of disgust. "So we'll get graded on the training?"

"Yea. You have to make sure you pass that class in particular. The other ones don't matter as much."

"How come?"

"In all honesty, I'm not sure exactly, but I heard that's what the owner of the colony values the most. And those who fail aren't around for very long. Well, I guess I can show you where that is going to happen first." She guided Ivy in the direction of the basketball courts.

While walking, they looked at the tennis and basketball courts, behind that, several large soccer fields. Two kids were playing a one-on-one basketball game, but besides that, the court was completely empty.

"Past those," she gestured. "So, how did you even find this place? If you don't mind me asking," said Zoe.

Zoe's eyes widened with surprise when Ivy described to her the note. "Wait! She just left you? For months?"

"She does that a lot. She'll just randomly leave for weeks or months on end."

Zoe gave her an incredulous look, "Oh, that's…terrible," she said.

"I don't think so," Ivy smiled brightly. "If whatever she's doing is so important that her family comes second, then it's gotta be really cool!"

Zoe was at a loss for words, "I mean...I guess that's a way to think about it." The conversation was cut short by what sounded like a church bell, loud and distant. Then the echoes of hundreds of footsteps thundering towards them. "That's the bell."

"Man, I'm starving!" Ivy said, bouncing up and down with excitement.

Neph set down his phone; it had been the third time he had called Orion, but still no answer. He picked up the phone once more and made a group call to the other four chairmen. Amelia, Lummock, and Aye all picked up, but unsurprisingly, Keigh's phone went straight to voicemail. Neph brought the phone to his ear; breathing and crackling from a lousy signal were the only things heard.

He cleared his throat. "I have some news that you all may find interesting. Someone new has arrived today."