Chapter 26: What to do?

To achieve something big one usually has to face obstacles just as tough.

The silence that prevailed in the room was signal enough for this particular obstacle that was to come in Aksel's life.

Aksel had shifted back from where he was sitting on the edge of the mattress and scooted further in as he folded his legs to give Yve an unobstructed view of Krentis as well. He could see that her face was void of any emotions like how she had seemed the first time he had met her but he knew that she was just as nervous as him.

"Since we have made a deal there is no going back now. First let me tell you about how the parasitic bond works," Krentis started to say as he looked at the brand on his arm. Tracing it he continued, "The parasitic bond is fixed topically to your arms or to the next most accessible part of your body if you're lacking hands."

Various questions of how, why and where erupted in Aksel's head at once but deciding to stay quiet he listened further, "We don't have much information on the brand properly yet but we believe that whatever it's made of is unable to infiltrate and reach our brain to control us unlike the case with the real branded. It was a trial and tested method in our case that I had risked doing on myself first and since it worked people who agree to get a parasitic brand do it at their own risk."

Looking at the brand that was glowing on his skin Aksel wondered how he could be so insane as to try a method that might have risked him into becoming a puppet of the system. He therefore couldn't understand whether to call Krentis courageous or foolish.

"This parasitic brand has but ever since become an essential part of our life since because of this we are now able to live an easier life than before. With the help of these brands the Branded don't become suspicious of us when we walk among them and we can easily get in and out of most places," he said, his voice sounding relieved at this discovery and successful experiment that he had done on himself.

Aksel had wanted to ask him how could he still trust him on this but these Rueses had provided him no reason not to trust them as well. In fact, they had saved their lives and provided them with shelter.

"You remember when you both had been first caught by our people? At that time they had been suspicious about your identity as Rueses and therefore they had deliberately stopped you from entering the city to stop you from crossing the main gate. If they hadn't then you would have been recognized as intruders since you have no brand and would have most effectively killed by the drones," Mort quipped in as he came back with a dumbbell in his hand that he was now warming his muscles up with.

Aksel had an inkling about that and nodding at the solidified information he mentally thanked the other Rueses who had saved him that day.

"More detailed information of how it is applied on you will be given to you after you are able to bring a brand back for yourself successfully," Krentis said soon after Mort as if warning him to stop speaking more than what he was needed to.

"Is it painful? Are there any risks?" Yve asked and one would expect her question to be backed with some amount of fear but nothing as such had escaped her monotonous tone.

"Yes, it is painful to some amount but it depends on everyone. To answer your next question, which I was coming to anyways. Yes, there have been two cases as of yet where the brand could not accept the body and the people had died from an adverse reaction that this caused to their interior organs."

The pain was something that Aksel could still deal with but the prospect of death made him think twice about this process.

"Aside from this where do we get the brands from? I suppose we will have to steal it from somewhere?" he asked to divert his mind from the predicament that he had to face.

He had expected a prompt answer but instead of that Krentis remained silent for a few seconds assessing him. He had noted the man's expression change when the topic of death had been raised and it had, therefore, made him hesitant in speaking his mind.

Revealing the next point was usually hard for him since the young and new Rueses are sometimes not prepared to understand the brutalities of this world.

Mort understanding his silence made it a point to not meet eyes with Aksel as he focused on the dumbbells that barely seemed to weigh anything at all to him.

"What is it?" Yve huffed, the silence of the situation making her anticipate situations that didn't form a good picture in her head.

"As you have known people can only get branded in that small room when you first arrive in the city. There is no other place from where you can get a brand or steal it," Krentis said taking a pause again trying to word himself best, "The only way a person can get a brand is by taking it from someone else."

"But how will you do that? I am sure no Branded would ever let you have their brand and how would one even give their brand to someone else?" Yve asked looking slightly confused as she rambled on with her questions.

"Of course, they won't just give it to you and I am sure The Branding System will not let them part with their brands either way," Aksel said as he feared the next words that would probably come out of Krentis's mouth.

"Yes, you can only obtain the Brand one way and that is by snatching it away from someone. You will have to kill a Branded person to get their brand."

The words Krentis had finally spoken had already been anticipated by the two to some extent but actually hearing him say it out aloud was really difficult for them to believe.

Seeing the horrified gazes and their fluttering tensed eyes, Krentis adamantly made a point as he said, "You will have to kill someone to get the brand. I know how cruel it might sound and it's a lord to take in but you have no other option. In this world, in this place, the law of the city is that the strongest gets to survive. So if you don't want to die or get captured in the hands of the System you will have to take certain steps."

Aksel couldn't believe what he was being told to do. He had known and realized the need for power and the value of life to be inversely proportional to each other but to have to kill someone for his own selfish needs was an entirely different thing. He had believed the rest of the old to be like this he hadn't realized that to stay in this world he would have to learn its cruel ways as well.

"Fine, I'll kill someone," Yve said in the same robotic voice that she had been using since the start of this conversation. He couldn't believe how easily she had let those words out of her mouth but he had known that it was always easy for her to turn off her emotions.

She glanced at Aksel once as the others waited for his reply but Aksel couldn't understand what he should do or say.

Was it right to take someone else's life to save his own?