C. Schmidt - Hock City

“Ok, see – I tried to be nice.”

“No one has business in this part of the city. Please go around to the main gate.”

“I have special business. Why you think I came this way?”

The voice laughed, “Everyone in here believes their business is of importance. Go around before we have you removed.”

The patrols performed an about-face, as they reconvened their performance as loiterers.

“I don’t like threats, but I will let that one pass,” Kinth dug in his pocket and removed the gold pin, “Is this special enough for you?” he replied as he held up the pin for the mysterious person behind the voice to see.

Security regrouped in front of Kinth in formation, after hearing a loud whistling sound. The barrier behind them started to separate, causing the ground to shake. Dust filled the air, darkening the area momentarily. Kinth coughed as he looked around, surprised at what was happening.

The group moved to the side upon the dust settling; a being appeared between them. The Praying Mantis. It walked toward Kinth, with an elongated back, and a partially human face. It had several antennas which hung to the side of its head, and it wore a long white jacket and a tie.

“Where did you get that pin?” the Mantis asked with a concerned tone as it walked toward Kinth. “And – my goodness, why do you have one of the Guardian’s table cloths around your face?! Who are you?”

Kinth, slow to respond, put the pin back in his pocket.

“My business. None of your concern.”

“Not quite, sir. See – any business you have must come through me. Or, your journey ends here.”

Kinth grumbled to himself while the Mantis looked him over.

“There is something familiar about this man. Let him in. If he tries anything, remove his head and retrieve the Guardian’s items.”

The patrol group moved to the side as the Mantis walked through the barrier. Kinth followed, surprised that he was granted access so easily. A blow to the chest was the smallest act of violence he had imagined.

“I’m looking for someone. I believe he –“

“I can let you in, but with that pin and that cloth, there is only one place you can visit. So, save your questions. We have our own, like how and why you have things that belong to the Guardian.” the Mantis interrupted.

“Oh joy,” Kinth replied.

The Mantis continued to walk, ignoring Kinth’s cynicism. Mantodea soldiers joined the group, pushing Kinth to the front of the line. The group walked for miles, down a long, winding road. The road was paved in cobblestone with trees planted on both sides. Every so often they would have to stop, in order to fend off wild desert birds which flew over the walls at times to feed.

Kinth pulled the pin out of his pocket, and looked at it again. He held it up in front of him; he was amazed at how much of the design resembled the view in front of him. The design was an exact representation of the path by which he was traveling.

Though he walked inside the walls of Hock City, the area was much different than near The Line District. Cleaner air, greenery – peace.

The sound of a scream sliced the air. The high octave penetrated the ears of Langston and Jesse. They remained nearby on the bench.

“Get off me! Get your hands off me!” a woman hollered. “Help, someone help!”

People in the area looked on, baffled, as the woman argued with a clueless bystander. She fussed, cursed and pointed her finger at a man while accusing him of stealing. She pulled and yanked away from the man, pretending he had a hold on her. A crowd started to form nearby.

“That’s the signal!” said Jesse.

He spun around the back of the bench, pushed himself off and walked quickly in the other direction. Langston was glued to his seat; his thoughts had him consumed. He didn’t know if he should follow Jesse, go in another direction, or do something else.

“C’mon, Mr. Langston. We gotta go!”

“This was your plan? We could have done better than this.”

“Just c’mon!”

Guards made their way back outside after acquiring various weapons and survival gear. They returned with short and long arms, ropes and netting. They strapped on vests and other tactical wear.

One of the men noticed the disruption and immediately knew what was happening.

“Stop!” the guard shouted. He pointed in the direction of Jesse. His counterparts, who were previously preoccupied with the distraction, saw Jesse and Langston escaping. They began to run after them.

“This way, Mr. Langston!”

Jesse cut through small buildings, alleys and a market. He bumped into pedestrians and vendors. He knocked over trash cans, boxes; anything he could to slow them down. After several zig zags and turns, he stopped abruptly, seeing a large sign that read:

Water Collection

He pressed on with Langston close behind. Pearl’s henchman were on their tails – shooting thermal energy bolts from HeatMods they gathered from the armory.

“Shit!” Langston shouted as a bolt flew pass his head. “What are those?!” The heat from the bolt fried a portion of the hair on his arm.

“HeatMods. They target body heat but don’t work too well because of the desert atmosphere! Everything is hot! Just keep moving and don’t run straight! Keep your head low! Hurry!” Jesse replied.

One of the guards stopped running, closed his eyes and clinched his fists. He reappeared a few feet away within seconds, directly in front of Jesse.

Jesse hollered as he was caught off guard but had enough time to slide through the guard’s legs. The guard turned around in an attempt to grab him, forgetting that Langston was headed in the same direction. A collision followed after Langston use this moment to tackle the guard. He then struck him multiple times before regaining his footing. A tussle ensued before Langston was able to break away.

“Go!” Langston screamed to Jesse, pointing in the same direction in which they were running.

Jesse ran a few more yards and stopped again. He looked up at the large Water Collection building. Langston caught up with him, leaned forward and rested his hands on his thighs to catch his breath. He looked up and saw the building. Langston took point, running to the side of the dwelling.

“Where are you going, Mr. Langston?”

“See all those pipes on the side? They should lead to drains. Drains leads to tunnels. Whether the tunnels are safe or not, we gotta go. We gotta take a chance.”

Both of them ran along the side of the building, following the pipes with their eyes. Most of the pipes ran through the walls and ended outside. At first, it didn’t seem as if any ran into the ground near where they were. People inside the Water Collection building watched on at the events happening outside.

“Found one!” Jesse shouted, as he used his foot to kick the sand that rested on top of the steel drain cover. The sound of guards running towards them could be heard in the distance.

“How are we supposed to open it?” Jesse asked.

The sound of boots hitting the gravel grew closer. Langston looked around and nervously grabbed a stone that sat near the wall. He took the stone and slammed it on a rusty pipe, near a joint. Bang, bang, bang. Nothing. Bang, bang, bang. Success! He forced the pipe loose, but a gust of gas filled the air. He coughed, covering his mouth and nose with his shirt. “Okay, let me get the other end.”

Langston twisted the opposite end of the pipe, releasing it fully.

“I’m going to pry open the drain cover with this pipe. When I get it open enough – push one of those stones right there to keep it open. Then, we have to work together to slide it all the way off.”