"Is he there?" a voice of a man emitting from a communication device attached to the captain's buckle disrupted the silence.

"Affirmative sir, he's here", the captain replies.

"Hand him the device"

She detaches the rectangular metallic box on her buckle and walks towards Migai, handing him the device.

"Migai here", he speaks taking the device and bringing it close to his mouth.

"Don't create any trouble for my people now, If you want answers look for me", Ozem's voice explained to Migai.

At the end of the sentence, the device started giving off a static sound. Migai hands the device back to the captain and begins to walk back to the safe area.

***

Martin waited patiently at the safe zone, he observed the men and women receiving treatment while the unfortunate ones succumbing to their wounds and dying. There was a huge ruckus at the outer boundary where the on-lookers had gathered. Many families of the injured and the ones who were living in the localities had arrived, they were all searching for their families and dear ones. But the party members and emergency workers were not letting them pass through. The people were now getting restless, they could see most of their people not being treated and abandoned. Another group of people were seen approaching the outer boundary.

They were very well-dressed and had a few guards with them. They walked into the crowd of people that were in an uproar and the people immediately gave way, they comfortable walked to the front, even the party members and emergency workers let them pass without any trouble. By now it was obvious to everyone and these people were first-tiers and held significant importance. As this elite group of people were making their way some individuals frustrated with the behaviour of the party members started rebelling. They questioned the blatant discrimination and raised their voices, gradually the entire crowd was in an uproar. One of the men in the crowd taking the uproar a step further pulled the outfit of one of the first-tiers who was passing through the crowd. It was hardly a pull, more like a tug caused by overwhelming frustration and anger boiling inside these people.

Even so, the man had dared to cross a line that perhaps he shouldn't have. The man after pulling the outfit immediately regretted it but it was a tad bit late for apologies. A hand grabbed hold of his hair and dragged him out of the crowd then throwing him on the floor. The entire crowd that was in an uproar immediately fell silent. The first tier whose outfit the man had pulled kicked him hard in the stomach after throwing him to the ground. The first-tier then proudly walked off, leaving the fate of the man in the hands of his guard. The guard was a short and healthy man, he took out the whip attached to his buckle and brought it down on the man. The uproar that was in full steam a few seconds ago had completely died down and the only noise that one could hear was that of the whip slashing on the man's skin and his screams. Martin looked at the man with sympathy,

'He had already been punished enough why continue', he thought. But no one bothered to intervene, first-tiers delivering punishment to people belonging to the lower strata in this manner was now a common practice. Almost all the servants and guards of the first-tiers carried a whip with them, it acted as a symbol of fear and reminded people to be in line.

During the early years of the establishment of the tier-system when the Civil war had not yet been fought, the division amongst people was not stringent and there were various counter-measures in place to avoid systematic abuse. In-fact the factions amongst the first-tiers were often divided as many didn't care about their position and wanted to genuinely work towards the re-establishment of society. Some of them questioned this generosity, the first-tier position was something they had earned on their own merit, why did they have to help someone else to climb the same ladder that they did on their own. But the Mezber family didn't think like that, they were one of the strongest families in the country at the time. They had a very good connection with the previous Adhizvara and 'Namik Mezber' who was the head of the Mezber family at the time was also the 'Representative' of the state 'Udayan'. It was one of the most beautiful and fast-growing states at the time, it set a working example for others. Not only was the state prosperous but the people were also happy, the people belonging to upper echelons voluntarily helped the common and unfortunate people, encouraging them to grow. Many members of the council disagreed with Mister Namik's process but gradually they too were beginning to adopt his philosophies as his own. Such was the man's charisma, he was a true leader of the people. A man admired by friend and foe, he even rejected the wise council's advice and married a woman of his own choice. She belonged to the working-class family but Mister Namik didn't care, he loved her dearly. The wise counsel would often try to manipulate him into leaving her, they would often question his dedication to the upliftment of his lineage.

Many prominent families had been established during this era, these families that had created an empire for themselves from scratch. This obsession with one's own idiosyncrasy is what led them to seek the wise council's help. The wise counsel would often intervene in their family proceedings, especially marriage. They would act as match-makers to secure the best outcome from that marriage. What was surprising was that this seemed to work, the child born after consummation would always be the healthiest and possess the best qualities from each family, physical and intellectual. Over time this became one of the duties of the wise council and every prominent family would flock to the wise council for their help in finding their son's and daughter's the right partner. But Namik Mezber was a different kind of man, he was someone who dared fate and forged his own path. His kindness and sharpness were famous all across the country, the current Adhizvara who was only a child then also looked up to him and was extremely fond of him. Thanks to the Mezber family's endeavours, the exploitation of the Kusokans was kept in check. Namik was not a big supporter of the Kelaromed Laws or the Contract of Assurance but he also couldn't dismiss the fact that Kusokan's were dangerous. The approach he took was to ensure that Kelaromed Laws were not exploited, he did micro-manage a lot but it was necessary. Due to his constant interference not only the discrimination was brought to a halt but the growing black market was also suppressed. After all the Mezber family's sigil was a whip, their kindness was not to be mistaken for their weakness.

But this progress soon met its biggest challenge, the benefactor themselves. Humanity is a race that has been famous for creating problems for itself because of the most potent poison ever created; greed. The people of Udayan started asking for more and more, the help that was being given to them started to be taken for granted. They now thought this help to be their right and would act out when not provided with benefits. Similar problems starting taking birth in all the states that were following the Mezber family's model. Even the capital of the country, 'Dhilli' was witnessing an uprising. The common people were not ready to understand that the resources were limited and it took a lot of effort and strategy to distribute them amongst the citizens.

Their wants kept on increasing and no amount of reasoning or dialogue could pacify them. But the state that had it worst, was Udayan. And gradually this uprising started taking a violent turn. The common people started attacking the rich, breaking into their houses and robbing them of their belongings. Namik could not let something like this pass, he ordered his forces to find the perpetrator and bring them to justice but what it turned into was a full-fledged battle in which many common people were seriously injured or lost their lives.

After this incident the uprising began to subside, Mister Namik thought that he had solved things for now but the modus-operandi was wrong, he needed to find a better way. For that resolution, Namik left for the capital to meet with the council and devise a plan for the future. Six days into his departure in the middle of the night his ancestral home was attacked. As soon as he got news of it he turned back and head towards home as fast as he could. By the time he arrived he was too late, the soldiers tried to keep him at bay but he pushed his way to the entrance. The entire area which used to be a garden was now nothing but ash. It was the garden where he had spent his entire childhood, a garden his mother had carefully nurtured. There was nothing left but smoke and ash, after crossing the garden came the entrance to his home which had a beautiful balcony adjacent to it. The bodies of his brother and uncle lay there, their bodies filled with holes, blood dripping from their eyes. He touched his brother's cheek and whimpered as tears rolled down his cheeks. Suddenly remembering his wife and infant son he rushed into the house, he called out for them but no answer came back. The soldiers had already informed him that no one had survived but Namik didn't believe it. He didn't want to believe it. He rushed to the master bedroom and there lay his wife, the woman he loved so dearly. His brother and uncle had fought the raiders off for an entire day but the next day the raider succeeded in their charge. The army was deployed and when the commanders heard the news of the attack they immediately sent out orders. Namik also returned back in two days, he didn't stop anywhere on the way and head back at full speed covering a journey that had initially taken him six days in two days. He arrived the same morning the army did, strict orders were given to soldiers to not touch anything before he arrived.

Hence he found his wife in the exact position she was left by the raiders, her hands were tied to the headboard of the bed, her clothes were stripped off leaving her white skin exposed, and blood flowed out of her eyes, ears and nose. On her bare bosom were carved the words 'Greedy Whore'.

Namik fell to his knees sobbing, he took his wife in his arms and screamed his lungs out. His cries could even be heard by the soldiers standing guard outside the residence. Opening her bonds he placed his wife gently on the couch and covered her body with one of the curtains. He ran to his son's room, he kept muttering "Please don't do this to me", "Please God, no, don't do this to me"

He rushed to the cradle in the room avoiding the bodies of all the servants and guards along the way. Drops of blood were dripping from the cradle. With his remaining courage, he peeped into the cradle. In the cradle was the body of a two-year-old infant without a head.

The massacre of the Mezber family shook the entire country, every stratum of society was stunned by the events, but what this turn of events cemented was that the lower-tiers of the society were not to be dealt with kindly. The whip which was the sigil of the Mezber family became a symbol for the first and second tiers. They carried it as a symbol of justice for the tragedy that was inflicted on the great Mezber family.

The man was now lying on the ground, his clothes torn and his back covered with blood. But the guard did not stop, the silent crowd now started begging for forgiveness but still, the guard did not stop. He kept bringing the lashes down on the man, the man was not even conscious but the guard was thoroughly enjoying himself.

"Stop", a strong voice resounded and the guard finally stopped with the lashes.

Migai walked out from where the periphery was established, heading towards the guard. He passed Martin and taking a few more steps, he spoke again, "He's had enough, and you've made your point"

The guard grunts at Migai but then put his whip back and followed behind his master who had already left as soon as Migai had arrived. He was not interested in unnecessary confrontations. Immediately people came out to help the unconscious man, and Migai turned to Martin, "Where's Ozem?"

"He's head to Dak Bungalow, apparently something really weird is going on there"

Right at the very moment, the communication device on Migai buckle begins to emit static noises. Migai brings it out and presses a button.

"Migai are you there?" it was the voice of the commissioner.

"Yes sir. I'm here"

"Migai, you must reach Dak Bungalow, something really sinister is going on there and Abdul has already assembled a squad and taken charge against my will. You must get there quickly"

Migai puts the device back in its place and starts walking towards the outer boundary, where the mass of people had gathered trying to find their families.

"Where are we going sir", Martin asks following Migai.

"To the Dak Bungalow", he replies

Migai subconsciously turns to look back once, his eyes spot the Atisi captain coming out of the explosion area with her crew behind her. He spares a moment looking at her and then turns and heads.