1 Prologue

Night of the New moons

Year 125F

19th Matvek

Marble Town

Izora's heart pounded as he walked hurriedly through the noisy crowd. He kept looking over his shoulder as if searching for something. His face showed fear and a bit of pain. He had been travelling from Lincrest city without resting. He needed to get to Silversnow, the next city after Marble town, where Kara was waiting for him. She knew what to do with the information he had on hand. That is why the people from The Burrow could not let him get away. Their orders were to kill on sight and then retrieve the information. It was too important to get lost. They had already shot him once and he had only had time to dig out the bullet and dress the wound before they almost caught up with him. They were almost catching up again and that is why he could not afford to rest but he had to. His breathing was becoming heavier and his wound had opened. A few drops of blood fell to the ground and he could feel his body going weak. He knew he did not have much time to walk now and would have to make it quick.

It was the festival of the new moon today and that means most of the streets were lit. People in Gaia were not used to the dark, especially in Vindr Federation. The three moons have been a source of light every single night with only one day in a year where there was not a moon in sight. That had become the new moons festival where lights would be lit the whole night as if to compensate for the lack of moon in the sky. The new generation grew up surrounded by the festivities and loved to celebrate. Even the older generation who lived through the Great war loved the joy and peace that the festivities brought. they were like a unifying force that brought them back together after the fall.

Marble town was packed with people walking about, lovers, children, teens and old people, everyone seemed excited and was taking part in the festivities apart from him who was running for his life. He hoped the crowd threw off the men sent after him because he could not hold on for much longer. He ran and tried his hardest to get away until it was like all of a sudden the streets had been abandoned.

There were one or two people in sight but it seemed as if all of them were rushing towards the town. The lights were fewer here. It seemed as if hiding in town where the crowd was larger was a better idea but he was in no condition for thinking. He was working on instincts now which told him that he could have the darkness as a cover until he found a proper hideout. His injuries were on their way to becoming infected and the night air wasn't helping either. His eyes stung and he wanted nothing more than to curl up into a ball somewhere out of sight until tomorrow when he would have a chance to look for supplies. As he walked along, there were heavy footsteps behind him which made him think that he was probably not alone. They might have caught up with him but it didn't matter though because he was determined to keep going and not let his body slow him down.

Over a fence along a deserted road, he saw a structure, he hurried and climbed over the fence. He had to struggle a bit because of his wound but he successfully went into the property. He was not afraid of being caught for trespassing since he thought that the owners had all left for the town for the festival and he could climb out of the premises early the next morning before he was found out. He walked into a large open field that seemed empty except for some tall grass and the structure he had seen earlier on. This was his destination for the night; it looked like they had built something similar to a barn. It had a large wooden door that was unlocked, he quickly opened it and entered. Tools were lying around and a few metres in there were rows up in rows of hay stacked up high. some were even covered by sheets. His eyes darted as he moved around until he spotted an unoccupied section. There, he set himself down, removed his jacket and began pulling at his shirt to remove it to assess his injury. His hands felt heavy and he could not master any more strength. He was completely drained. He tried to lift his head but it was too heavy for him to hold. it didn't take long before he fell unconscious just as a gunshot went off.