Gun of Ashes

The morning was a constant cacophony, an adult endlessly complaining by his ear, followed by the rustle of clothes, and then the shaking of the iron bed.

Lorenzo lay with eyes closed, trying hard not to let this annoying noise disturb his delicate meditation. He lay flat on the bed with his hands clasped, like a deceased person basking in holy light.

After a brief shake, Lorenzo could hear heavy breathing; this guy probably slipped and stepped in the wrong place.

A foot missed the step, resulting in a startled cry, which thoroughly snapped Lorenzo’s tense nerves.

”Red Falcon, can’t you roll over and sleep somewhere else?”

Lorenzo glared at his new roommate with bloodshot eyes.

”Huh? But there’s only the warehouse left.”

Red Falcon, wearing pajamas, had one hand on the railing and used the other to scratch his back. He appeared only half-awake, with hair sticking up, unable to grasp what Lorenzo was saying.

”Are you praying?”

He pointed at Lorenzo’s clasped hands, wondering if these believers had something wrong with them, praying even while lying on the bed.

To Red Falcon, the bed was a rare sanctuary, and anything besides sleeping was a desecration.

Unfortunately, Lorenzo didn’t know Red Falcon’s inner thoughts. If he did, he would definitely cry and accuse the Purification Mechanism of turning people into ghosts. The once good Red Falcon had become numb like this.

In truth, Lorenzo held his breath, wanting to curse but unable to.

Ignorant of Lorenzo, Red Falcon opened the wardrobe beside him, put on fresh clothes, and ruffled his hair to make himself look decent.

Lorenzo got up as well, scrambling out from under the covers, only to find this guy already dressed, which surprised Red Falcon and made him ask.

”Are you like this at home too?” Red Falcon exclaimed in wonder, ”Is this Holmo? Even sleeps fully armed.”

”Afraid of being attacked in pajamas, huh?”

Listening to Red Falcon’s voice gave Lorenzo a headache. In hindsight, leaving him at Maruri Port might have been better.

”I woke up early!” Lorenzo retorted, ”I just want a quiet moment to lie down.”

He sat on a chair beside him, glancing at the damn bunk bed, and looked around at the not-so-big dormitory. The whirring fan above made Lorenzo even more irritable.

This was the dormitory Arthur arranged for him, deep underground in Old Dunling’s Perpetual Motion Pump.

Lorenzo strongly requested a single room, but Arthur said real estate was scarce in this godforsaken place, so he shouldn’t be picky... Lorenzo suspected he was being targeted.

”What’s on the agenda today? Still checking those massive Geiger Counters?”

Lorenzo asked.

This was his third day here, and with Jiuxia’s Anonymous arriving, they started further modifications of Old Dunling. For example, Lorenzo was responsible for installing Anti-Meme weapons on the large Geiger Counters throughout Old Dunling. When excessive erosion is detected, the Anti-Meme weapon would be triggered to reverse the erosion of the entire area.

No idea how effective it was, but it was far more efficient than the previous methods of the Purification Mechanism.

Lorenzo remembered all too well the Purification Mechanism’s tedious procedures. Eroded areas would be declared polluted zones and subjected to varying isolation periods.

”Yeah, might as well find something to do.”

Red Falcon had completely turned into a workaholic, and even he was getting used to it.

Looking at the dedicated Red Falcon, Lorenzo felt a wave of emotion, then said, ”Can you not drag me into it? I’m not even on your payroll.”

”No way, you must come!”

”Why?! Just because you’re working overtime, you’re not happy seeing me idle?” Lorenzo argued, realizing after three days he didn’t have to do any of this.

”You’re free anyway, better to do something meaningful than loaf around!”

Red Falcon pulled Lorenzo along, not wanting to suffer alone and cloaking his responsibilities in righteousness to make sure Lorenzo tagged along.

In the middle of their tussle, someone knocked on the door.

The two stopped their scuffle, tidied up, and opened the door with serious faces.

”Yo, good morning,” Eve leaned against the door, glanced at Red Falcon at the door, then looked inside at Lorenzo sitting on a chair, and asked, ”So, who won?”

The dormitory’s soundproofing was poor.

...

The elevator slowly ascended; shadows from the drop fell across their faces, flickering.

Eve sneezed beside them, as old dust floated in the air with the machinery’s movement.

Lorenzo breathed, and all around was quiet. Nobody spoke, waiting for the elevator to reach the surface. After a while, the iron gate slid open on both sides, and blinding sunlight streamed in.

”Let’s go.”

Red Falcon gave Lorenzo a push from behind, finally hauling him along for work.

”Good morning!”

A cheerful voice rang out; through the blurry light, Lorenzo saw someone waving at them. The person was speaking in broken Western language, which sounded amusing, like a child learning to talk.

Shao Liangxi and Shao Liangye had been waiting here, as the work in recent days was a collaboration between both sides, so Lorenzo had become somewhat familiar with these two strangers from Jiuxia.