Iunnet had heeded the stranger’s advice about the Federal forces up ahead; she didn’t see much reason for them to lie about that. Her bigger concern was how she was going to approach them.

    It was nearing midday now, and the sun was particularly harsh during this time. Even though it was nearing winter, the cool windy chill could not surface above the piercing heat of the sun -- but it felt nice to Iunnet as she was not a cold-bodied person.

    The tanks were visible from ahead. Iunnet took a stake in the harsh and high grass, as she was a soft and low person. In her unique hiding spot, she glanced at the roadblock from the north with a roughly crafted spyglass. She had counted two pieces of armor, and from the way the roadblock was set up, using high grass as a cover was not an option. They had constructed a further watchtower to the north and directly east of Iunnet, disallowing an easy workaround. Iunnet was just outside the range of the watchtower, and so she did not expect them to see her anytime soon.

    In her deep mental thought on how to escape this obstacle, it did not occur to her that the forces that be would instead do it for her. As she stared at the barricade, an object of unknown proportion fell straight from the sky and right onto one of the armored vehicles on overwatch to the interstate. The loud boom of the explosion deafened Iunnet in her right ear, and the shockwave pulverized her chest as the air was taken right out of her. She fell backwards, quickly resurfacing to find the aftermath of the catastrophe.

    Ammunition sparked in different directions, and Iunnet was hardly quick to regain her composure. In the instant she had, a stray shell fired to the north and straight into the prospecting watchtower. Adrenaline took over Iunnet, and she instinctively took off in a sprint towards the chaos of the watchtower, watching as the destruction demolished a hastily crafted fence -- an inning for Iunnet.

    There, she hopped right over to find two soldiers dragging another, of which had lost both of his legs in the chaos. Iunnet stopped for a brief second to make eye contact with the two before bolting eastward, diving into the grass. The soldiers did not pursue, preoccupied with the impending chaos, and all that was left of Iunnet were blood-stained footprints that obscured as the grass recaptured its strength.

    Iunnet ran for much longer than she could have thought, until the disorder was nothing more than dim booms in the distance. She fell to her knees in an attempt to regain composure, but ultimately keeled over onto the ground from exhaustion. Iunnet laid for several minutes, before two footsteps approached her from off the highway she had been following.

    As soon as they got near, Iunnet reached for her pistol and pointed it in the direction of them. Still exhausted and nearing outright unconsciousness, she looked up at the visitor.

    “Are you alright, ma’am?” an older gentleman spoke. This man, with pale skin and a slightly graying muttonchop, did not flinch or react whatsoever when Iunnet pulled the pistol; he instead looked with concern. Iunnet, too exhausted to speak -- and perhaps either on a whim or a loss of will to live -- lowered her pistol and fell backward onto her pack. “Fuck…” were all of the last words she managed to mutter, before falling unconscious.

    Iunnet awoke suddenly to find herself in a small shed somewhere deep in the woods. It was rustic and rundown, with a small stool next to her bedside. The bed was hardly comfortable either, lacking in cushion besides two taped together bedspreads.

    Iunnet shot up in an instant and scanned her surroundings. There, the same man stepped in and promptly sat on the stool beside her with a loud sigh. “‘Ello,” he greeted her, “Juggie.”

    He held out his hand to shake hers, and she initiated, interpreting the last word as his name. “Iunnet,” she replied, shakily.

    “Yoo-net,” he said to himself, butchering the pronunciation completely. “Interestin’ name.” He paused for a minute, lighting a pipe full of unknown herbs. “You took quite’a tumble over the highway. No doubt tryna’ escape the mayhem that ensued. You see what happen?”

    Iunnet kept searching her surroundings as the man spoke, and upon the question she snapped back to meet him in the eyes. “What happ-... No. No, I didn’t. I’m just trying to get somewhere.”

    “Where?” the man asked sharply, which surprised Iunnet.

    “S-Some place called the ‘ard’? A.R.D. It’s a supply town east of here.”

    Finishing his bowl, he tapped the pipe over the end of a table next to Iunnet’s bed. “Nope.”

    “Nope?” Iunnet asked, “What does that mean?”

    “It ain’t there no more.”

    Iunnet blinked twice. Was what the other Scholars told her, invalid information? “It’s not there? What happened to it?”

    “Occ-yu-pied. The Feds took it.”

    Iunnet sighed and slumped back in her bed in defeat. Though, previous anxieties resurfaced, and she sat back up. “Why did you pick me up?”

    “You mean why did I save ya’? Because yer’ someone who needed help, that’s why. Not much else to it,” he said, standing up from the stool. “I don’t expect ya’ to stay, neither. Soon as yer’ able, pack yer’ shit up and go.”

    Once Juggie had left the room, Iunnet wasted no time standing back up. Her legs felt weak, exhausted from the day’s events, and she struggled to stand fully. Eventually, she made it on her own, and limped towards the outside.

    Juggie had situated a pot over a large campfire, where some mystery stew was brewing. The smell was enchanting, but Iunnet kept her composure.

    At this point, the day was nearing an end. The sun had already fallen beneath the horizon, with the last of its golden light churning the sky above. Iunnet tilted her head back and could see the stars in half their glory, before one of which had started to slowly streak across the sky. This, Iunnet knew, was the Galagon -- the colossal space station that the Humans had constructed in orbit of Ciphrus. It had seemed so insignificant in this frame, yet Iunnet knew its size was larger than any construction created in her knowledge of Ciphrus history. The embezzlement in this thought was broken by Juggie.

    “What?” he asked, looking up in unison. “What’re ya’ lookin’ at?”

    Iunnet, still partially dazed, hesitated to answer the question; Juggie’s intense and intimidating demeanor didn’t help either.

    “The stars… and that one,” Iunnet replied, pointing towards the sky. Juggie looked up and watched as it slowly creeped along. “What is that?” he asked.

    “It’s the Humans,” Iunnet explained, “that’s their home.”

    Juggie looked at her with confusion, then scoffed as he returned his attention to the stew. “Yeah, thas’ their home and this is ours. Best stay off it,” he expressed.

    Iunnet didn’t include herself verbally in that argument -- on one hand, Juggie was correct; on the other, the Mediators had shown kindness to Iunnet before. Nevertheless, she approached the warmth of the flame with a newfound fire in her heart. She asked, basking in this confidence: “Is it fine if I stay the night?”

    Juggie looked up at her and furrowed his brow, as though he was attempting to decode her motive. “Why?” he asked.

    “I can barely walk and it’s been a… long day. Night is almost here and since the ‘ard’ is gone, I need to rethink my plan.”

    Juggie inhaled deeply for his thoughts, then took up his pipe which was sitting on the ground just beside an old dining chair. He sat down on it, prolonging the judgment of Iunnet’s question. He did not answer until he lit the pipe and puffed it once.

    “Fine. Yer’ gone by morning,” he said, “now sit. Stew’s almost ready.”