Excerpt from the journal of Raiza Lennox, scientist on the planet of Thill: 

Quentin has agreed to the insemination process, even though we will both 

in danger if it’s discovered that we did not follow insemination protocol. 

He and I both know this will be my last chance, if I do not carry a 

successful pregnancy to term and birth a healthy child, I will be deemed

hostile and baron and will be repurposed. I do not know what happens

when repurposed humans, but I do know they are not just taken to the 

outer sectors to becoming a working force, there are plenty of people for

that task already. I must do whatever I can to ensure this pregnancy is a vital one. 

Furthermore, I ache for a child to care for. I have lost so many.

I do not know why that causes me physical pain, I know it is not normal,

but my womb aches for a healthy baby to grow inside of it. If I do not 

succeed in this pregnancy I will take my own life before they get a chance.

I will do whatever must be done to have a child of my own. 

“Reconnaissance isn’t an easy task,” Veer said as they walked towards a training course. “We survey the terrain, bring back samples for the science division. We monitor the wall and tail the wall dwellers if they come over to our side.” 

“How often do they come over?” Eli asked, trailing a few steps behind Veer. 

“More often than we’d like.” Veer admitted. He stopped and turned to Eli. “They go out past the plains and into the gas lakes.” 

“Gas lakes?” Eli felt a shiver crawl up his spine, remembering his dreams of huge spans of toxic pools of red and black sludge. 

“We’re not permitted to go there. It’s more than just dangerous. The chemical the gas emits kills even the largest of creatures within minutes. And beyond that, it does something to them.” Veer pulled open a heavy door and stepped inside, Eli following. Another young man was standing inside, sharpening a thick spear of ice. 

He glanced up as they walked in and stood, watching Eli’s every move. 

“This is Drax, he’s the second in command of my reconnaissance team. He’s the best swordsman in all of Moonmire, he’ll be teaching you.” 

Drax looked down at Eli, his white eyes angry slits. The muscles in his face formed into grimace against his translucent skin. 

“I’ll come find you later, I have a meeting I’m required to attend.” Veer nodded to the pair of them before walking out the door they just came in. 

Eli looked back, watching the door for a moment, wishing desperately that he wasn’t left alone with this angry looking person. He cleared his throat. “Hi. I’m… Ghost.” 

“I don’t care.” Drax said, crossing his arms. 

Eli nodded and tipped back and forth on his new boots. They were much ticker than the ones his mother had gifted to him, with spikes in the toes for gripping against the ice. 

“Rogue told me you’d be helping to train me so I can join you all on missions out of the city?” Eli tried again. 

Drax said nothing before turning to grab the spear he’d been forming. “You may be Rogue’s little pet, he may trust you. And you may have fooled Sayer into believing you’re safe, but I do not trust you. I do not think you are safe.” He swung the spear towards Eli, giving him barely enough time to stumble backwards, falling onto the icy floors.

Drax stood straight and looked down at Eli before dropping the spear next to him. “The ice spear is our main weapon, we use it for many different things. We use them to climb to get away from predators, and we use them to kill.” He turned and pulled something else out of a chest, throwing a small dagger towards Eli who flinched at the clatter against the ice. “This is your ice dagger. You’ll use this if we ever get into up close combat.” 

“Does that happen often?” Eli asked scooping up the two weapons. 

“Rarely ever, but you must be trained if it does. The wall dwellers… your people have killed too many of our men with their guns. They run us down even if we do not fight back.” 

“Why?” Eli asked. 

“Because they want us dead. They don’t like that they aren’t the sole inhabiters of this planet. We are a threat to their very existence. At least in their eyes.” 

“You don’t believe they’re a threat to you?” Eli stood, feeling the weight of the dagger in his palm. 

“They’ve become a threat, they are constantly venturing further and further into our domain, trying to extinguish us.” Drax came closer to Eli. He was much taller, towering over him. “And now one has infiltrated our most sacred space.” 

“I’m not a part of them. Not anymore at least.” Eli said firmly. 

“And yet your skin is tanned by the sun, your eyes golden from Knox’s light. If I were to stab you now, you skin would break like paper. You are not one of us, either, wall dweller.” Drax stepped away. “Prepare yourself.” He stood by his arsenal of weaponry. “Because I have no qualms with spilling your blood on the floor.” 

Eli gasped as he fell to the floor. It had been hours of this. Drax would attack with everything he had, and Eli would do everything he could not to die. He had no idea why this man was being trusted with his training, he was clearly insane. 

“Get up.” Drax commanded standing above him. 

“Can I just have a minute, please.” Eli begged, his heart hammering hard in his chest. 

“No!” Drax swiped his spear, barely missing Eli as he got to his feet and leapt out of the way, brandishing his own spear, holding it taut against Drax’s. “Do you think you will have a minute if your precious wall dwellers were after you? Do you think you’d be offered even a second to catch your breath?” 

Eli growled and shoved Drax back. “Enough! We’ve been at this for hours! Don’t you think you’ve intimidated me enough for now?” 

“Not even close!” Drax dropped his weapons and ran towards Eli. Eli tried, really he did, to swipe at Drax like he had been doing for hours, but within moments his weapon was on the floor and a hard arm was being shoved against his throat. 

He gasped for air, trying and failing to push Drax away. “You have no idea the dangers that we face out there. We are not hunters, traveling in packs with their strin to protect them. We are scavengers, scouting the terrain for potential threats. We are only as strong as our weakest link. If you cannot survive a simple training exercise how will you survive any actual danger?” 

Eli clawed at the man’s arm, trying and failing to take a single breath. He could feel his lungs burning for air. He kicked and shoved at the other’s large body, but he didn’t budge. 

“Drax!” Veer’s voice called. Immediately the arm constricting him was removed and Eli fell to the ground, coughing and gasping for air. “I told you not to take it too far.” 

“I didn’t.” Drax said crossing his arms. “I took it just far enough. He’s not going to work, Rogue. He’s small and weak. Do you think he could ever fight against a miom, and what if something worse came along?” 

“Ghost has already successfully avoided death from a heat seeker once. And he survived the trek to the mountains with barely a single layer for warmth.” Veer said. “And besides all that, I trust him. I want him there, Drax. Do you understand?” 

Drax glared down at where Eli was crumpled to the floor before looking back to Veer. “Your trust is going to get us all killed.” He kicked Eli’s spear and walked away, slamming the door behind him. 

Veer waited a moment before reaching a hand out to pull Eli up. “You alright?” 

Eli nodded, rubbing a hand over his throat. “He really didn’t hold back.” 

“Yes he did.” Veer smiled. “If he hadn’t of held back you’d be dead right now.” 

Eli’s eyes got wide and he looked at Veer. 

“Don’t worry. He won’t kill you, he knows its not his right.” Veer picked up the dropped dagger and handed it back to Eli. “Come on, your training isn’t over yet.” 

Eli scoffed but nodded, putting the dagger into it sheath and following Veer out the door.