Bolo Maghreb clicked his tongue as the transport truck rumbled toward the horizon and into obscurity. With his enhanced eyesight, he could see the man lying atop it with perfect clarity. Of course, that also extended to the middle finger that was held up and aimed his way. He scoffed, but otherwise took no offense.

In fact, he found it quite amusing.

With his calloused thumb, he rubbed the handle of his gun. The metal was rough and worn and was warm to the touch. It was his great-grandfather’s. Good ol’ reliable. Fortunately, it hadn’t been the revolver that was cleaved through. The other was just one he’d picked up along the way and had enchanted also.

Briefly, as he narrowed his eyes and drove his attention to a point, he considered taking another shot. Even at the current range, he was fairly certain he could land a fatal blow on the terrible thief. He shook his head, deciding against it. A grin spread across his face.

He hadn’t met someone with that much fight in them in a long while under the System. Unpredictable, innovative, fun. It was only a short brawl, but dearly, Bolo hoped they met again. And since the man had stolen one of the Harakat’s trucks, he knew they would.

The boss didn’t particularly like it when things didn’t go his way, after all.

**

The form of the cowboy faded as the distance between them grew, and Brock finally got himself to his feet. His body bled and his various bullet ached, but he managed. Mostly, he was surprised that the driver had endeavoured to keep the vehicle straight, though from the fact that it was slowly slowing down, Brock assumed that they were aware that their little transport had been thwarted.

Sighing, he took his middle finger back into his palm and instead nursed the bleeding wounds across his body. They weren’t bleeding too bad, and the pain wasn’t terrible either, being only brief flares of agony any time he moved, but still, he’d taken quite a beating from the sharpshooter.

And make no mistake, he knew well that if he hadn’t dodged that first attack, his brain would currently be oozing out his skull in a ditch on the side of the road. Brock had no idea who that man was, but he was fucking dangerous. He sighed once more, this time in relief.

Hissing in pain, Brock stomped over to the cab of the truck and lowered to his haunches. His hand gripped the metal of the doorframe, and with one swift motion, he dropped down and swung through the window, landing in the passenger’s seat in a storm of glass. The driver, a young woman, squealed and the vehicle swerved, threatening to tip and roll.

Brock’s arm flashed out and he regained control of the wheel, and the woman shrunk back in her seat as though he was the plague itself. With a wry smile, he met her eyes, “You… uh… wanna change seats?”

She nodded. They swapped as the vehicle sped down the path. Twice Brock knocked the wheel and almost sent them barrelling off into the wilderness.

The new driver eased on the breaks and slowed the vehicle to a stop, before reversing and turning around. He placed his phone on the dashboard, the GPS app already opened and calibrated to lead him back to New Paris. Silently, he was rather thankful for whoever in Genesis had managed to access the satellites. Though he did wonder how they were still functional.

He glanced at his GPS. It was a two-day drive. Or a two-day run, for him initially at least.

Brock sighed and turned to his passenger. She was shaking, and glancing his way fearfully every few seconds, “You got any music?”

She shook her head furiously.

The man clicked his tongue, “Well, this is going to be a really awkward drive.”

**

“He’s… what?” Fon said, shaking her head in disbelief.

Jane shrugged, clearly conveying her helplessness to the scenario. She clicked her tongue, well aware of how they felt over Brock’s actions; seeking out a most probably powerful monster for knowledge while severely weakened. Needless to say, it was an endeavour in idiocy, though she had said ‘it might work’.

On the other side of Fon, stood Harry. His brows were furrowed, and he looked quite worried. He hissed a breath through his teeth, “that… sounds like something I would do…”

The sister of the man in question nodded hesitantly, “I’m his sister, and… well, I still don’t understand why he does some of the things he does.”

Jane steepled her hands in front of her, finding it rather relatable at how baffled her brother’s friends looked. He had told her not to say anything before he’d left, but she knew that they deserved to know. Carrie stepped in and placed a hand on her shoulder for reassurance at her actions. Her short golden locks billowed in the wind. She smiled.

“Brock will come back,” there was a faint tremor in her voice, “he… he’s pretty reliable like that, I guess. He’s got a good track record of doing so. One for one.”

Fon seemed to calm down somewhat, but was still rather agitated, “Still… he just… he’s always been kind of reckless. But this…”

The big reveal of the true intentions behind Brock’s abrupt departure went just about as Jane had expected it to. Of course, she’d told Carrie first, as she was her best friend, and she knew she’d need the reinforcement for her actions to go against her brother’s wishes to tell Harry and Fon. The blonde had reacted with shock, and no small amount of fear for his survival, but she’d understood and let the matter be how it was.

Jane had hoped to catch each of them by themselves, but the two seemed to be joined by the waist. She had no idea if they were romantically involved, or if they had just gotten used to each other’s company, as she didn’t know them very well at all, but she felt confident in it being the latter.

People you could trust were hard to come by these days, she knew that well, so it was good to hold onto those you could tightly.

“Have you consumed the Treasures from the box yet?” Jane nodded toward the hotel they were standing outside of, probably where they’d stored the stone container. It was where Harry and Fon were staying currently, after all.

Idly, she wished it was here so she could witness the myriad of colours that would have rose up from the cracks in the box.

Harry shook his head, as did Fon, “Brock didn’t exactly tell us a lot about them, so I’ve been asking around before we eat them. Harry’s had one before, but he doesn’t know much on the topic.”

“Well, it’s good to be prepared.” what followed from Jane’s mouth was a five-minute-long exposition on how Treasures seemed to work, as well as all Meiyo knew on their functions; namely, the advancement of race levels and the chance of gaining an Augment.

Immediately afterwards, both their faces lit up and Harry seemed just about ready to sprint inside the hotel and up to his room. Fon too appeared to be rather eager to get going. As Jane couldn’t sense an Augment in her aura, she assumed that was the main allure for her.

Though, not everyone ended up getting an Augment, she knew. She herself hadn’t gained one yet, and she’d almost reached level 100 in her race.

“Can we…?” Harry trailed off, glancing once again at the hotel.

Jane chuckled and nodded, “Go ahead.”

The duo glanced at each other, and their eyes met. Without warning, they exploded into motion, speeding off and cresting the doorway to the building within seconds. Carrie followed suit and chuckled, and Jane cracked a smile. She turned to her friend and let out a breath.

“Talking to people I don’t know… is harder than I thought.”

Carrie shrugged, “It’s alright, I guess. A leader does need to talk to people well enough though.”

“I’m aware.” Jane responded. She did a brief check of her status, finding her race level to be at 85.

She, and most members of the Dojo had decided to keep of the Treasures once they hit fifty levels granted by them. It assured stocks for other members and let them nurture more warriors. If she wasn’t mistaken, Carrie herself should have a race level nearing 80.

Idly, she wondered what Brock’s race level was. Probably higher than her own. He’d given her a brief recount of his early days under the System, but she doubted that just Titles were the reason he was so strong for someone of his level.

There had to be more to it, right? Mentality. Grit. Resolve. Strength alone wasn’t all that saw a warrior thrive.

Jane felt her thoughts pause as her stomach rumbled. She glanced at Carrie instantly and saw the woman grinning teasingly. She sighed, “Yes, Carrie. I’m hungry.”

“I know just the pl-”

“Is it Koi’s bar?”

“…no…” the response came a few seconds late. Jane sighed once more. Carrie’s shoulders slumped, “Come on Jane! It’s only Thursday. And it’s almost night-time! Plus, we both know Koi’s makes good calamari. It’s beer-battered too.”

When she saw the expression of indecision on Jane’s face, Carrie pushed further, “I know it’s your favourite.”

Jane clicked her tongue, “Fine.”

**

Fon veritably tore up the stairs, one hand on the rail, and the other keeping her balance steady as she moved. Harry followed close behind, his powerful legs pumping him up the staircase and letting him keep pace with his more agile friend.

They’d been granted a pair of hotel rooms on the top floor - where the best view was - and both were eager to divvy up the loot and lock themselves in their rooms. They’d heard in passing that Treasures had the potential to knock you out, and that the first one usually always did – it happened in Harry’s case - so the hotel seemed like the perfect place to do it.

As their feet touched the discoloured carpet of the top floor, they rushed over to Harry’s room, and he entered. A minute later, he returned with a stone box cradled in his arms, and he placed it on the ground. His fingers dug under the lid, and he promptly ripped it off.

Fon grinned and took a glimpse within. From what her eyes could see, the energies of each fruit were relatively even, regardless of size, though there were a few more powerful outliers.

Harry pulled out his shirt from under his armour and used it to create a basket. Shrugging, Fon began to place fruits from the box into his impromptu basket. They ended up getting twelve each, and she was fairly certain that the total amount of energy was almost identical for both of them.

Harry bid her a quick goodbye as she placed her hands around the box, and he charged off down the hall. He shouldered his door as his hand slammed down on the handle, and he slid into his room. The door slammed shut a few seconds later, and Fon shrugged.

Excited, but determined to keep it under wraps, the woman strolled to her own door and entered the room. Her arms strained under the box’s weight, and she thought they might break, but she managed to heave it atop her bed.

Gazing at the Treasures within, she took in a whiff of her room. It smelled of sweet cherry blossoms and was well lit around by the very candles that gave it that scent. A wide window overlooked the city, showing traditional architecture, the stream, and the forestry beyond. Fon felt herself relax at the sight.

Eager, she quickly tore her eyes away and crawled onto her bed. It was soft, and cosy, a far contrast from what she’d been used to as of recent. She’d definitely enjoyed having a proper bed the past few nights. A grin broke out on her face, and she peered into the box once again. The glow of each fruit shone in her iris.

What looked like apples, oranges and even strawberries revealed themselves within, illuminated by various colours. That, combined with the sauna of energies it created, made for a rather beautiful sight. Fon leaned down and took in their smell, although she found the energy to lack a scent entirely.

“Here we go.”

Giddiness welled up inside her and she carefully reached into the box. Her thin fingers wrapped around a strawberry, its skin a pulsing black and seeds a shining ivory. It felt soft, yet rather firm to the touch. Oddly enough, it was also ice cold and strangely weightless in her grasp.

It absentmindedly reminded her of the strange energy that wafted off of Brock and had threatened to drive her to madness. Undoubtably, it was different and nothing like that enigmatic energy, but still, the similarities were there.

With great reluctance, she plopped it into her mouth, and began to chew.

Flavours burst on her tongue, and she felt her eyes well with tears at the sheer vibrance of it. It was… incredible. She had never tasted a flavour so sweet and divine. She felt the energy contained within wash down into her stomach as she savoured the taste and swallowed. She sensed she energy quickly pass through the walls of her stomach and enter her bloodstream.

They roared with energy, and her cells screamed with excitement. It felt like her entire body was alive and it was utterly intoxi-

She passed out the next second, and her head slammed into the pillow.

**

Fon awoke an hour later to find her brows beaded with sweat and her body hot. Despite that, she felt better than she ever had in her entire life. Her insides felt like they pulsed with purpose and power, and she felt like her body coursed with boundless energy. She felt like running, like climbing a mountain and yelling from the top.

Grinning, she checked her status, and her smile froze.

Then it widened so far that she feared it would cut her head off.

“…Augment of Gusts, huh?”

She looked to the box and reached for another.

bol