I give a dead glare as I'm asked to breathe in as deeply as I can, hold it for a few seconds and then let it out again. Even with the pain killers flooding my veins, I still feel my ribs protesting at the movement.

"Stop sulking," Seth nudges my shoulder as he commands me to breathe again.

"I'm getting cabin fever," I grumble.

I've been here for god knows how long. X went off on a "secret mission" that he hasn't come back from for -Hours? Days? -I don't have a clue.

"We can go for another walk," Seth offers.

I shake my head, standing up, "Thanks but...I need fresh air." When was the last time I even felt the sun?

I haven't heard anything back from Oz either. I guess I'm on edge.

When am I not on edge?

More on edge than normal then.

I let out a breath, ignoring the routine that I was doing. "When's X gonna get back?"

Seth shrugs, "Sorry mate, Siem isn't exactly one to spew all his little secrets unless you're directly involve at the time."

"Aren't you a hacker?"

He grins, "Barking up the wrong tree. Oz is the one who created the system for Siem and he's made a deal that I get his car for keeps if I ever break his codes."

"And?"

"Does it look like I own the car?"

Not helping.

"Not like it stops me from joyriding." Something suddenly brightens up on his face. "Hey, there's an idea!" He then switches this hopeful face to mine, "Let's take the car out for a spin!"

Say what?

He walks out into the tunnels, towards what I would guess be the elevator. I stand there like an idiot for a second before walking after him, Lady not far behind me.

'Where go?' She asks, keeping just a step in beside me.

I dunno...Seth is showing me the sky, I guess...?

She seemed to like the idea but when she sensed that it meant flying, she snorted and I felt her stop in her tracks, 'Lady wants no part in sky flight...Lady will explore dark caves...see if another way out can be seen.'

I look back at her, 'Why?'

'Better to know all exits...cannot rely on human contraptions all the time, Dreamer.' The then look at me keenly, "Dreamer go. Might be...'  She sent a sensation of a breeze that made her feel giddy and happy.

'Refreshing', I gave her the word for it.

' 'Refreshing'...Dreamer go.' She nudges me walks passed me, going deeper into the tunnels. 'Lady here when return. Tell Lady what above looks like when Dreamer comes back. Lady will tell what dark caves look like. Two places...more ground covered...Go on...' With that that, she disappeared into the dark. I felt a little puzzled as I went in the opposite direction...even Lady is feeling a little riled up since I described to her the dream and the warning that came with it...

But I follow Seth anyway. What she said was right, if I can say when the City looks like above and she knows what it's like below...we won't have to rely on Siem and his band of pouty assholes, if everything turns to shit.

Besides, if it meant getting out of here for even a second...I couldn't help walking just a little bit faster.

Seth was waiting at the elevator, waiting for me to get on before the doors closed behind me and Seth pressed for the carpark.

"How much trouble would we both get into for this?" I ask, half amused-half serious.

Seth shrugs, "I do this all the time."

"With...me?"

Seth grins, "That's twice the fun, Outsider."

The doors open into the sticky heated darkness that I could firmly associate with the feel of the city that Bolin had. "Can't you feel this...oppression?" I ask as I step out of the lift. "Like something is always watching you..." I couldn't really put it into words...But it was uncomfortable and it wasn't because of the tar-like humidity sticking to my skin...I never felt this heavy air underground or in Siem's building...but the minute I stepped into the city's air outside...it was like walking into a wall. A thick, heavy wall that was a mix of dejection, rejection and hate...

"...I'm not as sensitive to the air like X is...But I think I know what you mean...It's very "Big Brother" out here." Seth walks over to the car, opening the door and didn't hesitate getting into the driver's seat. "The big City-States all feel like this."

"All of them?" I ask while getting into the front passenger seat.

He nods, "Everyone and everything is kept on a tight leash...It's a controlled environment that helps everyone up top feel 'safe'."

"And everyone down the bottom stays there?" Because society loves gaps between its poor and rich. Between the haves and have-nots...like my mum used to say.

"You catch on quick. There are a lot of little secrets in the background that keeps everyone oblivious...it's not that much different from before Fences and Miasma even existed. It's just more obvious now because there are set roles in this new society's existence and because we are on the other side of society....and you've been away from it for so long that it would look suspicious from the get go since you haven't been conditioned to take this bullshit."

Like an everlasting dream...one that most wouldn't want to wake up from since relising the illusion meant acknowledging all this shit...and die for it. Zoe was someone born into the everlasting dream and was forced into waking up into the nightmare...

I look out the window to try and push the rising sorrow back down.

I felt the engine come alive again, it was something I don't think I'd ever get used to...it was like feeling life blood waking up...a heart beating. Just what is this that they're using. I felt it in the Hollow Kite but because the engine was so close in the car...my awareness of it intensified.

"Alright, enough with the doom and gloom and just ignore it for a second, Kae. You probably haven't had anything like fast-food for the last decade am I right?"

"No..."

"Then buckle-up my friend and be amazed!" He controls the car to pull up from the ground and before I knew it, he forces us out into the sky within a matter of seconds.

The sky was overcast but I was so fucking relieved to see it that if I was by myself I would probably tear up a bit. The Fence made the sky take a glass tinge but I didn't care. Down below was the same hustle and bustle of a thickly congested city, jampacked with tall and short buildings and so many people.

"Just how many people live in this snow-globe?" I ask, peering down at the ants waiting to cross a busy road at some traffic lights which cars were bumper to bumper waiting for lights as well.

"Like...maybe twelve million...But officially there is about eleven million officially registered and tracked within the city."

It was so...congested, like it would fall apart at the seams. And that claustrophobia was sort of rising again just thinking about it. Twelve million lives all packed away in this bubble...

"We're passing Chinatown district...it's relatively the same as it was back when this was Hong Kong."

"Bolin was Hong Kong?" I whipped my head back at Seth.

He nods once, slowly. "Yeah. I don't know why they changed names either...But whatever, we're looking for chicken nuggets not discuss world politics. It's really cool now, the drive thrus all cater for this type of car model now as well."

I stare at him in disbelief as he pulls up to a random skyscraper with a black speaker box and holographic menus appeared on either side of the car.

A young, peppy girl's voice came out of the speaker, "Welcome to Downtown Orchid, what is your order?"

Seth says to me, "Don't worry, I'll keep it simply," before yelling out of the car window that he rolled down, barking the orders.

After he was finished, the peppy voice said, "That's all for today?"

Seth confirmed and the bodiless voice asked us to drive further along the side to the 'next window'. Seth drives the car a little further down and stops in front of a generic drive-through window were a guy about our age was waiting for us, his eyes looked half dead as he asked for the money in an almost monotoned voice.

After that whole experience and was forced to hold the drink tray and the paper bag with the food between my feet, Seth pulls away and demanded that I find the onion rings and hold them out for him to eat.

"We'll find somewhere to eat. There is a park not too far from here. Not a lot of people go there and they won't notice us that easily."

I love how I have a choice about my first proper public appearance, fuck no. "Uh Seth...I'm a little uncomfortable...you now about the whole claws and tattoos thing I have going on?"

"Would you relax, mate. Most city folk would take you for a cosplayer. All you need is a sword."

...I feel a sense of foreboding and déjà vu all mixed together as the pit of my stomach rises uncomfortable as we descend.

Just how much trouble are we gonna be in exactly?