It had been a day since the bombing, and gray clouds blocked out the sun from shining over Grid 0047. Gabriel had cleared out debris from the spot that was once his bedroom. Dried blood was in his finger's cuticles. As soon as he regained sensation in his hands and the pain subsided, he continued digging.

Gabriel believed his mother was alive, probably trapped somewhere, trying to get to him. But then, after failing to find any evidence of a body, he thought, maybe she had left prior to the bombing.

On the way to the park, Gabriel was surrounded by mountains of rubble. Vultures were on a feeding frenzy, eating what was left of charred corpses.

Grids were plagued with more than one type of vulture. Since the bombing, factions of nomads combed through Grid 0047 for food, car parts, jewelry, anything of value that might have survived. These nomads were known as scavengers.

Shadows that snuck up on Gabriel belonged to scavengers just as young as him. A gang of 13 kids not much older mobbed him; one teen managed to run off with her necklace.

As Gabriel fought back, mechanical hands began bursting out of the debris. Buried around them were Peacemakers, who reactivated upon detecting heartbeats. The robots were mangled and beaten.

The Peacemakers grabbed onto any limb within reach, pulling the kids under the debris like quicksand.

 

*****E V*****

 

Gabriel had removed the metal hand from around his throat and pursued the boy who stole her necklace.

Waiting along the riverbank was Norton. He was an older gentleman, with a silver ring on each finger.

"Get on!" Norton said, turning on the motorboat.

Scattered along the riverbank were a couple more Peacemakers. Norton helped the teen over the metal hands reaching out of the water before escaping.

The Peacemakers piled onto Gabriel, blurting out various preprogrammed responses as they tried to drown him. One robot with wires hanging from its eye socket said, "This is for your own protection."

The current was overbearing. With the weight of the machines growing, he felt his knee sinking into the bottom of the river. Running out of air, his hand pulled out a dagger made of copper. He blindly swung, bit by bit, tearing away the veil of metal.

 

*****E V*****

 

A couple stories of water had flooded downtown. Gabriel ran parallel to Norton's boat, jumping from rooftop to rooftop to keep up. Their path converged at the 5th floor of a corporate building.

Gabriel followed in an office suite a floor above the motorboat. Illuminating within the darkness were alligator eyes. Gabriel acrobatically flipped over and maneuvered around the various reptiles hissing and snapping at him. He dove through the window, falling with a cloud of glass and miraculously landed on the motorboat.

Armed with his dagger, Gabriel screamed, "Give it back!"

Around the corner was a naval ship belonging to the ZLV. Onboard, were more scavengers with their rifles aiming at him.

"You might want to put that down," Norton suggested.

Gabriel dropped his dagger, which Norton examined. He came to the logical conclusion: Gabriel was an Eon Viant.

 

*****E V*****

 

The ZLV was a nautical scavenger faction staffed by people of various ages. The only jewelry they could wear were necklaces with shark pendants that signified their allegiance. Only with a promotion was more jewelry permitted.

Waiting in the captain's in-port cabin was Maria, a woman with a few strands of gray hair and adorned in gold, silver, and gemstones collected from the deceased. Everything in her cabin, from the mirrors to clocks, was gold.

"You brought a new recruit?" Maria asked.

"I brought an Eon Viant," Norton corrected.

At Maria's side was her older advisor, Dante, bearing a few gold piercings on his face.

"Why would you bring him here?" Dante asked. "You know how dangerous they are!"

"With a little persuasion, he could serve as our enforcer," Norton said.

Maria pondered over Norton's suggestion. The ZLV was just one of many scavenger groups. With an Eon Viant at their command, Maria could expand her territory.

"Norton, are you absolutely sure you can persuade our guest?" Maria asked.

After Norton assured her, she said, "I'm ordering the Eon Viant under heavy security. I don't want anyone speaking with him unless it's Norton."

"Captain--" Dante tried to reason.

"I'll take your warning under advisement, Dante," Maria said.

 

*****E V*****

 

In an empty cabin, Gabriel was shackled at the joints, and his iron chains were rooted to the walls. Norton flipped on the lights, blinding him.

Norton pulled up a chair, scanned the young Eon Viant.

"I've only ever seen one Eon Viant in my lifetime," Norton said. "The unnatural things you can do is kind of scary yet amazing. And, when you think about it, we're a lot alike."

Norton told him how the ZLV were survivors just like Gabriel. "We live in a world that is quick to condemn us and even quicker to abandon us. With your help, we can expand our territory and give people like us the chance for a better life."

"I just want to find my mom," Gabriel said. "She's waiting for me to save her."

Still not giving up hope in convincing Gabriel, Norton responded, "Where did you last see her? Maybe we could help you find her."

"I don't want your help!" Gabriel blurted. "I want my necklace back!"

Norton reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out her necklace. Its luster was evident under the light.

"It's beautiful," Norton said. "Can't believe you found this."

"I didn't find it, I bought it!" Gabriel said. "Give it to me!"

After setting the necklace on the table, Norton removed the hammer tucked behind his back. As he was about to smash the necklace, Gabriel tearfully pleaded, "Stop! Please, don't break it! It's my mother's."

Norton figured the necklace had some significance since Gabriel pursued him. With it, he knew he could control Gabriel. It was the only reason Norton didn't surrender the necklace to Captain Maria to be melted down into some unimportant trinket.

"Let's make a deal. If you devote yourself to the ZLV, I promise to give back your necklace," Norton said. "I'll give you some time to think over my offer."

Norton closed the door, ignoring Gabriel's pleas: "No! Please! I just want my necklace back. Give it back!"

 

*****E V*****

 

In the operations room, Dante had gathered a dozen men as his firing squad. They all felt that an Eon Viant was a threat to the safety of everyone on that ship.

"What I'm asking goes against Captain Maria's wishes, but it's for her own safety and the well-being of everyone on this ship," Dante said.

Norton had got there just before they departed. He was upset with Dante and his rebellious group.

"I want what's best for the ZLV," Norton said. "An Eon Viant as our enforcer is a game changer. We will become the most powerful force in any Grid."

"You brought that monster on this ship," Dante said. "If I don't do this, you're going to get us all killed."

At once, the guards tied Norton to a chair, taping his mouth. Their mission had begun.

 

*****E V*****

 

It had been hours since Gabriel had eaten. He was weakened, dehydrated, and alone in darkness. His mind kept going back to Norton's request. Even though the scavengers had her necklace, to Gabriel, it was like they had taken Jocelyn herself hostage.

As he sat in darkness, he imagined what advice his mother would give him. Accept the offer? Pretend to accept the offer only to escape? No, there was only one solution.

Gabriel tugged the chains as hard as he could, slowly loosening the bolts in the wall.

 

*****E V*****

 

While Dante and his team headed for Gabriel's location, rock music flooded the ship. Usually, when heading for a destination, one of Maria's favorite songs was played to hype up the crew.

At some point, a boom shook the ship. Dante presumed the ship had passed under a decaying bridge and a piece of debris happened to fall. The trembling intensified; it was sounding less like the music's bass and more like something...destructive.

Ahead of them; however, Gabriel had just broken out of his cabin. They pursued him to the main deck where they were horrified by contorted friends scattered about. Oliath's entire hand was grasped around Maria's waist, squeezing the life out of her.

Frightened, Dante and his firing squad retaliated. Gabriel escaped, but he heard the 200 lbs. wrecking ball destroying everything and everyone. The floor became unstable and gave way for him to fall into the cabin Norton was in.

 

*****E V*****

 

Norton's pleas were drowned out by a guitar solo. Hope had grown when he saw movement in the debris; it vanished when Gabriel emerged.

Norton begged, "Don't hurt me!"

Gabriel searched through his pockets and said, "Where is it?! Where's my necklace?!"

On the table was everything already taken out of Norton's pockets: coins, keys, her necklace. Before Gabriel could retrieve it, Oliath dropped through the ceiling, completely shattering the table.

The silent brute basked in their fear. Then, Oliath's palm engulfed Norton's face, and the bones snapping caused Gabriel to turn away, nauseous. There was a loud thud when Norton was dropped.

Gabriel looked up for what seemed like miles; Oliath was the tallest man he'd ever seen.

The brute said, "My name is Oliath. I, too, am an Eon Viant. I came here to save you."

"Thanks," Gabriel said. "I have to go back home and find my mom."

Upon discovering that her necklace had exploded to pieces, Gabriel fell to the ground, defeated. He desperately tried to reassemble the mangled silver pieces. Some chain links had rolled down the floor grates and some were just pulverized.

"You don't have a home," Oliath said, pitying the young Eon Viant. "You no longer have an earth mother. She's gone, boy. She's dead. You're a fool not to accept that."

Gabriel had nothing left but his weeping. "She was my friend. She was my only friend."

"Humanity knows what you're capable of, and it scares them," Oliath said. "That's why they bombed your Grid. The organization responsible runs deep, and if you're going to avenge your earth mother, I can help. I can teach you how to harness that power so that you can experience the satisfaction of vengeance. Don't you think that'll make her happy, knowing that you—her only son—avenged her?"

For a moment, Gabriel pondered. Would this break her heart?, he wondered. No, he reasoned, if he did nothing, it would mean he didn't love her. And that was a thought he couldn't live with.

All Gabriel could say was, "Yes."