“Looking at the evidence, I pronounce you, Aaron Hassan, guilty of the crimes of breaking and entering, theft, destruction of property and murder. You will be sentenced to Tartarus.”

The young man, with his messy black hair and tanned skin, stood in front of the judge, instead of frowning and looking worried at the words of the judge, the young man named Aaron was instead smiling and nodded.

“Great, that’s a lock that was never opened… I’ll enjoy trying.” Some people in the jury couldn’t help but smile at his words while others frowned, knowing Aaron to be a strange teen.

“Well you will fail. Tartarus has remained standing for over fifty years without a single break-out or riot.” The judge was getting a bit annoyed with the young man at this point, having learnt of his personality over the course of this admittedly short trial.

Aaron was seventeen, a young age, and, had it been soon after the turn of the twenty first century, he would have still been in school…

But the year was currently 2076, and Aaron was no ordinary teenager. Circumstances weren’t exactly the same for the young criminal.

“We’ll see… if I manage to escape, I’ll stop by to visit. Just to say I could, for no other reason of course. I don’t support murder.” Aaron stated and once more the jury was a bit mixed on their opinions of his words.

“I hope to never see you again, brat. Take him away.” Aaron was guided away by a guard-bot, a small thing that shot tranquilizer darts, and the judge pinched his nose in annoyance while taking his glasses off, the appearance of the courtroom vanishing as he did so.

“That brat… I really don’t think he murdered that person.” The judge had a shot of whiskey in front of him, and downed the drink with annoyance before looking at the open file in front of him.

Aaron Hassan. His trial only lasted one week, whereas most in his situation would at least go for a month… but in just that short week, he was able to show his personality and his nature to those around him.

To put it simply, Aaron was a friendly adventurer. He liked wandering around and enjoyed going into places he wasn’t allowed to go into, and despite the charge ‘breaking and entering’ he never really broke anything…

Aaron was a master lock-picker, and as long as it was a lock, he could open it. Just looking at the skill, he was likely to be a thief, and that is why he was charged as one, but looking at his reports and testimony, he wasn’t one…

Rather, he just picked locks to go to places he hadn’t been, and to see things he hadn’t seen, if Aaron’s words were to be believed.

A strange disposition, but one which ensured that he wasn’t truly a criminal beyond the whole ‘being in restricted areas’ bit… in fact, Aaron was so likeable he had won almost half the jury into siding with him, at least inside their minds…

But Aaron wouldn’t get away from Tartarus… the judge, and the jury, had orders, and Aaron had to go… the judge poured himself another glass and downed it again… now if only he didn’t feel so guilty…

As the judge drowned his complaints in alcohol, Aaron looked around in wonder at the steel box he was placed in… a simple construction, and simple was actually better in his opinion, less chance of complications ruining the mechanisms.

It’s why Aaron enjoyed opening complex locks, making the owners fumble in confusion wondering why their ‘high-tech protection system’ didn’t stop a kid with a few miscellaneous tools.

Not that a Hassan is a ‘kid’ when it came to locks… lock-smiths and thieves, his family was in the business for generations, though at some point in the twentieth century they tried to go straight, instead only being lock-smiths…

The issue with that was the same problem known to true professionals when it came to medicine.

If one knows how to cure, one would also know how to poison, so was it any wonder that Aaron would learn easily how to break into his own creations, and later others?

By the age of four, Aaron had already learnt how to pick standard house locks, and by age six/seven he had entered some restricted areas in some factories… not that he was caught often.

Hiding is an important skill for a lock-picker to go undetected after all…

But right now his lock-picking skill was useless, seeing as this was a metal box with no openings beyond the air-holes, the top part welded on after he was placed inside, standard procedure for someone entering Tartarus.

That didn’t make it impossible to enter or leave the box though, just impossible without the correct tools, Aaron estimated that a sledgehammer could have gotten him out if he hit the right points… he didn’t have one, so he was stuck at current unless he was willing to break a few bones slamming his own body into the box.

Aaron really wasn’t willing to do that. He disliked pain, to put it lightly.

Nothing stopped Aaron from removing his cuffs though. He’d go willingly into Tartarus, unlike most of the others sentenced to that place, but he didn’t want to chafe his wrists.

Tartarus, the world’s first and only prison country, completed in 2020, and only improved since then, it existed on the land once known as Australia, made with the agreement that Australia would be given land elsewhere.

With the technology of the Chinese and the blueprints provided by a few NAC scientists, and resources provided from the European Kingdom, the place was impenetrable and inescapable.

Aaron had always wanted to visit.

How could he not? The ‘world’s most secure prison’; wasn’t that just a fancy way of saying that it just hadn’t been broken out of yet?

Aaron would have fun breaking its ‘inescapable’ reputation, but beyond that, Aaron was just happy to be going to Tartarus.

Aaron had always wanted to see Tartarus, see what was inside, then leave, proving that he could open any lock in existence, even one that hadn’t been picked or opened in over fifty years.

There were stories told about Tartarus, that it was the lawless zone of the world, that the conditions in there were unbearable for the modern man, and it was filled with the scum of the world… most of that was probably true.

Not that Aaron cared for how bad the place was; he just wanted to see as much as he could. To do that, he had to open locks, open doors, and step through.

And doing things like that was his specialty… he did frown at remembering why he was going to Tartarus however… murder?

Aaron did not kill, he disliked the idea of ending the lives of others… without reason.

As for how he ended up being accused of murder, Aaron had been going on another one of his nightly outings to see places he had never been to before, and when he had unlocked that door…

Finding a dead body on the floor was not a nice experience, and it had stopped Aaron in his tracks as he tried to catch up to his thoughts.

‘Unluckily’ though, a security guard happened upon Aaron, and he was quickly captured, and his trial happened so fast he barely understood what happened…

Not that he cared for the trial beyond the knowledge that he would visit the one box he had always wanted to try and unlock, but the reason for him visiting was not what he had expected, and he disliked that fact…

By the way, he thought he would eventually break into the prison, not out, or worst case scenario, get sent there for being in a restricted area, in other words, breaking and entering.

“Prisoner Hassan, we’re arriving.” Aaron blinked in surprise before a grin was on his face… talk about travel, having flight easily within reach with most vehicles made things nice and simple.

Aaron missed his hover-bike already…

Ignoring that, Aaron barely felt them touch-down before his very impressive cage was cut open and he was lifted out using a mechanical arm… robots are awesome.

“…Why isn’t the prisoner cuffed?” An old man appeared that Aaron thought looked kind of constipated… that angry, but unable to do anything about it look?

The old man wore a lab-coat, spectacles, and was thin and weedy, but that stern frown and his glare just made Aaron think that he had a poop that didn’t want to come out.

“I think there’s a toilet over there, you look like you need to go.” Aaron was quick to say his piece as one of the guards, surprisingly an actual human, covered his mouth, clearly hiding a laugh…

At least some people appreciated his humour, for the past week people around him had been a bit too serious for his tastes… sure, he was now a ‘murderer’ but he wanted to laugh a bit too.

“…Answer the question, Prisoner code 63977387.” Aaron blinked his eyes at the long number… he wasn’t sure if he could remember it, but he’d probably remember it if he said it over and over in his head.

“Oh, the cuffs… yeah, those hurt my ankles and wrists a bit, so I took them off to stretch a bit. Don’t worry, I left them there.” Aaron replied honestly and cheerfully…

And his words got the stock of a gun to his face causing him to groan in pain as he fell to the floor… that same guard that almost laughed was the one that did it.

“Respect, prisoner 63977387, respect… it’s important, especially in Tartarus… now, follow, and you’ll be given the explanation on how Tartarus works. Should you wander off or move to slowly, you’ll be encouraged to step in line.” The order was spoken in a dull, slow tone while the old man turned away from Aaron.

Aaron didn’t need to question what the old man meant by encourage when he heard the click of a bullet sliding into the barrel of a gun.

“I understand sir.” Aaron knew when he could joke around, and he’d take it as far as he could go before he’d stop, but at least he had that filter… even if it was a bit damaged.

Being forced to follow behind the old man, Aaron kept his head still, letting his eyes wander in his limited field of vision, taking note of pipes, air vents, a few handholds… then the old guy started talking again.

“Right… Tartarus is split into multiple districts and areas, your crimes determine where we drop you usually. Inside Tartarus, your prison number doesn’t mean anything beyond letting us know if you died or not.” As Aaron was about to question what was meant by that, he was grabbed and felt a needle enter his neck, wincing at the pain when the security guard removed the needle and stepped back.

“What entered your neck just now was a single Nano-bot, not capable of doing anything really, and we don’t need to anyway. What it does is let us know if your heart still beats, or if it has stopped beating.” Aaron was a bit surprised at this point, before the old man turned, glaring at him.

“Know this, Tartarus is a prison in name only… in actual fact it is the world’s only sanctioned lawless zone. What happens in Tartarus is none of our concern. Kill each other, rape someone, deal in drugs, it means nothing.” Aaron blinked in surprise at the words of the man, before the man turned and walked away again, Aaron having to move quickly to keep up.

“Tartarus is given supplies for the people inside to survive, even luxuries for those criminals such as drugs are provided in air drops… but once its inside, whether or not you get it or get nothing is up to you.” The older man shrugged as he spoke, leaving Aaron to just follow and listen.

Aaron was a bit lost in thought for a bit, making sense of what the man was saying… what he was describing was basically a place of no law and no jurisdiction.

While the murder and drug use didn’t really appeal to Aaron, everything else about it seemed… kind of okay.

No one could complain if Aaron was in a place he wasn’t supposed to be, and no one could complain if he happened to be looking inside a previously locked container.

Seemed nice in that aspect at least, and Aaron was kind of thankful for that… but as far as everything else went, Aaron would try and take the ‘it’s not my business’ point of view…

That view wasn’t always an option though, especially if others went after you first.

Aaron didn’t use drugs, he didn’t know much of fighting beyond some knowledge of how to take things from people trying to hurt him, and beyond that, he just liked moving around and going where he wasn’t supposed to be.

Though doing that had gotten him here… eh, it was worth it in Aaron’s opinion.

“Now then, since your worst crime is murder, you’ll end up in section seven… that would be that way.” The man pointed in a certain direction, and Aaron smiled… oh, he was so thankful for the tip.

“Of course, that’s for normal prisoners, but you are kind of unique… where did he go?” the old man turned and Aaron was no longer there, and the man who had held a gun to his back was now on the floor, holding his… tender bits.

Taking a moment to just stare in confusion at the situation, the man’s frown deepened before he roared loudly.

“…Why is it so difficult to get competent guards? Well, someone, after him!” the old man shouted, and a few guards who were quite a bit further down the hall responded by running towards where they presumed Aaron to have ran…

Well, if they just looked a bit closer they would have noticed that Aaron wasn’t that far… just a bit to the left, then upward. Knowing how to scale walls and such helped him in his pursuit of finding new things, so it was easy for him to hide himself in this manner, especially with such easily used handholds…

And lucky for him, the Nano-bot injected into Aaron was not a tracker… though he wondered why they didn’t just include a tracker; hindsight is 20-20 apparently.

“Well… seeing as my stop is that way… I only needed help getting in; I’ll find my own way from now on.” Aaron whispered to himself as he moved away using the overhead pipes, crawling above them.

Getting out of Tartarus was next to impossible, seeing as it was an island prison and he had no transport, but Aaron wanted to get in anyway. The guards didn’t know this, and so they moved to where the exit was instead of further inside.

There was a good reason Aaron left that man behind, instead choosing that moment to escape… Aaron acted silly, he knew he did, but he was far from stupid.

They, as in that old man, were leading Aaron away from his designated place, Area seven… that gave Aaron a feeling that something wasn’t quite right going on. Add in the facts that his trial went by in only a week as opposed to a month or two, his testimonies were generally ignored, and false evidence had appeared…

Anyone could tell Aaron was framed, and dragged here for a reason, what the reason was, he didn’t know, but he wouldn’t let them just do as they pleased. He had remained quiet during his capture to get to this place, but now that he was here, he sure didn’t need to listen to them anymore.

With all that being said, Aaron knew he had to at least get away from wherever that old man was taking him because that old man was definitely suspicious. Perhaps the man could be a prison doctor if it was a normal prison, but Tartarus, which did not need a dedicated doctor?

Yeah, Aaron was definitely suspicious of what they were doing here, and he really didn’t want to find out what that was when it was too late.

As it was, he couldn’t even find out what it was given that it was too risky to go wandering… no, Aaron’s best bet was to escape into the prison.

Now wasn’t that a strange thought?

Aaron moved within the shadows, making him difficult to see even if someone happened to look up, where they would find him crawling along piping and vents, but Aaron also didn’t believe that he could be left alone for long like this, detection systems were too advanced for something this rudimentary to work.

Aaron’s suspicions were answered about ten minutes into his crawling and manoeuvring, when a massive robot noticed him as he was crawling above it…

Unfortunately for Aaron, the robot was placed near the entrance to Area seven, that doctor looking guy and a tired looking man standing nearby and talking about the robot. It was a lucky break for Aaron that he could strain his hearing to listen to their words.

The robot apparently had limited search and destroy abilities, no ranged or close range weaponry just yet due to it still being in the testing phase of its use.

The robot’s codename was ‘Enforcer’ the prototype version, and Aaron didn’t really think it to be that impressive from his point of view, disregarding that it was four or more metres tall… after all, Aaron understood most structures from sight, and well…

The Enforcer impressive, from the viewpoint of good weaponry, yes, but the issue was that Aaron could see quite a bit of how it worked just from looking at it, including the systems that allowed it to stand on two legs and move fast in a straight line due to tank-like threads beneath its ‘feet’.

So Aaron now knew how it could be dismantled just from seeing how the parts integrated, the exposed wiring… that information didn’t help him when the thing punched towards the ceiling and he almost fell in a very painful manner, were it not for him grabbing onto its arm as he fell.

So here Aaron was, hanging onto the arm of a giant killer robot which could move faster in a straight line than he could run, and the people in charge here were clearly planning on hurting him in some way for them to be this uptight about Aaron going to his designated area… they should know he was going there though.

“Enforcer, capture prisoner number 63977387!” the old man shouted as the hulking robot tilted its head, showing four tiny red cameras along its head, flaring a bit as it stared at Aaron removed a hand from his hanging position to show it a peace sign.

“Directive accepted, Doctor Lionel.” Huh, so now Aaron knew the old man’s name as Lionel, though he didn’t recognize the name… beyond remembering some football player from a couple decades ago of course, but Aaron was reasonably sure they weren’t related.

“Uh, doc, can’t we talk this through, I just wanted to get to my spot in this place quicker?” Aaron asked, even as the Enforcer tried to swing him off the arm, Aaron having to let go and fall into a roll, if he hadn’t let go he’d probably go flying into a wall and end up with broken bones or worse.

“No, we can’t. You are to be taken to the Ascension Chamber, not released into Tartarus just yet.” Aaron blinked at the words of the doctor… before dodging a massive swing from the Enforcer, Aaron stepping forward and sliding along the ground to dodge the metal arm.

“Uh, doc, are you a Bond villain?” Yes, despite the author being dead for roughly a century, those books were still famous, as well as their movies… the villains were iconic for explaining their plans though.

“No, I am not a Bond villain. That being said, you don’t know what the Ascension Chamber is, let alone why I wanted to take you there, so no harm was done.” Aaron couldn’t fault his words, even as that lazy looking man next to the doctor tried to raise a gun to shoot Aaron, only for the doctor to raise a hand to stop him.

“Don’t, despite how annoying he is he has been determined to have a ninety seven per cent compatibility with the Code. Also, the boss is interested in him.” The doctor stated, even as he watched Aaron dodged another swing, clenching his fist in annoyance.

“Alright, don’t blame me if this comes to bite us in the ass though.” The lazy man said, holstering his gun.

Aaron, barely listening to their conversation, was thankful for the fact that as long as he stayed near the robot, it couldn’t capture him because the Enforcer was unable to turn quickly after all.

Aaron was less than thankful for the fact that one hit would likely lead to extreme pain, death, or capture, so he was jumping and rolling as if… uh, because, his life depended on it.

Aaron was focused enough to hear what the doctor was talking about though, so he was glad he wouldn’t be getting shot while taking apart the giant robot.

“Well, sorry to say this doc-” Aaron dodged under another swing, then rolled to the side as the robot almost got him on a return swing.

The Enforcer honestly could have stepped on Aaron or something, but that would definitely kill him so the robot would not do so.

Focusing on the doctor’s words, Aaron was apparently very suitable for something the doctor wanted to check out, and that meant that he would not be killed, thankfully… at least, not yet.

Aaron wasn’t going to wait for that though, Aaron stepping forward to the Enforcer’s leg, the robot attempted to move back only for Aaron to jump and grab onto one part of its leg.

“-But I have places to go!” Aaron shouted to Doctor Lionel even as he held onto the leg, which couldn’t quite shake him off as he reached into its wiring…

Now, normally this would be dangerous and lethal without protection, but, thankfully for the near 22nd century, they had very safe and insulated wiring.

It didn’t help here; in fact, it only made this move easier for Aaron to do as he snapped some of the wiring, making the leg twitch before it stopped moving entirely, allowing Aaron to climb higher and onto its back, ripping into some of the wiring and circuits there as well, surprising the two watching.

Aaron knew he wouldn’t get shocked though, standard safety implements, damaged or loose wiring automatically stopped sending current through them for safety.

Very soon, the Enforcer twitched, whirred and shut down, now offline while standing as Aaron jumped down with a smirk, ready to take off again while holding a metal covering he had removed from the back of the robot after it powered down.

“Sorry doctor, but this robot was really faulty. The wiring was very easy to access, and because it wasn’t trying to kill me, I had the advantage… that being said, bye!” Aaron waved and ran, carrying the metal covering with him even as one of the guards attempted to shoot Aaron’s legs, only for the bullet to be stopped by the metal covering.

“…That boy might be more suitable for the Code than we realized.” Doctor Lionel said to himself with a smirk even as he walked away, the lazy man following with a sigh, the other guards following behind the two looking awkwardly behind them as Aaron ran away followed by a few guards.

“Sir, shouldn’t we go after him?” One guard asked nervously, only for the doctor to shake his head, looking over his shoulder to see Aaron turn a corner.

“No need… he isn’t trying to get off Tartarus, and as long as he is inside we can find him again… by the way, tell the engineers that the Enforcer needs a few upgrades.” The doctor walked away with little worry… Aaron would be captured eventually, he was sure of it, Tartarus could not be escaped… worst come to worst, the Warden and the operatives would find him.

“Oh yes, and get more guards. Normally this wouldn’t happen but this is clearly a bad security flaw… we need very little guards so we haven’t gotten many, but still, fix it.” The lazy man next to the doctor agreed to the request, though both of the men hoped that the management wouldn’t be mad.

With Aaron, he had successfully evaded the last few guards chasing him, which had Aaron wondering how Tartarus was secure with so few guards, but ignoring that bit of fortune, he was now at a small door labelled ‘Area 7’

The issue would have been that it was locked, for any person other than Aaron, but he instead just looked to it, and back to the metal sheet he still carried with him, feeling along the edges until he felt a protrusion, a very thin, almost needle-like pin nail.

“Khul ja Shem-shamayim.” Aaron stated the motto of his family, the Hassan’s, with pride as he slammed the metal that held the pin to the floor, releasing the pin.

Taking the pin to the lock, knowing the make and age of the lock, and with the pin entering the lock, and a few deft flicks, Aaron had already figured out the lock.

Be opened in the name of heaven. The motto of the Hassan family sounded arrogant, and not suited for a thieving family, but Aaron didn’t care, he took pride in the motto… because to Aaron, it wasn’t about heaven, or religion… to him, it meant that, wherever Aaron chose to go, he would not be barred.

Barely a few seconds after stating his family motto, Aaron had the door unlocked, and he pushed it open, walking with pride and confidence into the place considered ‘hell on earth’.

Aaron’s confidence vanished shortly after as he looked at the derelict buildings, the spray-paint on more than a few, a lot of people moving about within view doing something which would be illegal outside of Tartarus, whether it was the guy brutally stabbing someone already dead on the floor, or the man trying to sniff cocaine only to be attacked for the white powder, and there was even a woman who led a man away into an alley way where a scream was shortly heard…

“Well… I knew this place was messed up even before I came here.” Aaron said to himself, keeping the pin nail with him just in case it needed to be used, and then Aaron noticed that he really needed to get rid of his white prison jumpsuit quickly.

Everyone else in Aaron’s view weren’t wearing such eye-catching clothing, sticking to ‘non-descript’. Speaking of eye-catching though…

“Hey, there’s a newbie…” Aaron heard nearby and looked to the side only to see someone holding a knife, a few people behind the man in front also holding weapons, be they bats, chains or knifes as well… luckily, there seemed to be no guns…

Aaron was sure he’d die if there was a gun involved, leaving him to smile awkwardly, already backing off slightly away.

“Listen guys, we don’t need to have a problem… I’m just going to be leaving now…” Aaron was quick to say, not wanting to deal with a gang of some type…

Unfortunately, even as Aaron spoke the man in front stepped forward, wearing a hoodie and jeans, and some faded sneakers which was not very fashionable in the 2070’s… maybe the 2010’s or 2020’s.

“Oh, we’re going to have a problem, ‘less you join us, little Muslim.” Aaron took minor offense to that, knowing that he wasn’t a Muslim… he didn’t follow religion really, beyond hoping that a higher power did exist.

“Uh, I’m not Muslim… though I also don’t want to be joining you… I’ll be too busy travelling to stay with you guys anyway.” Aaron, as mentioned before, wasn’t stupid, despite what he’d say or do.

Aaron knew that saying what he was would likely get him hurt or possibly killed, something that would ruin that doctor’s plans, but he just needed to keep them busy as his eyes snapped around, looking for a place to run to…

“Well, you aren’t joining us, so you must be dying today I guess.” The man said, and everyone prepared to kill Aaron… yeah, Aaron didn’t want to die today, so understandably he ran.

“Get him!” Aaron rolled his eyes at the standard playground bully catch-phrase, even as he registered that this was much more dangerous than a play-ground squabble, so Aaron ran as quickly as he could.

Not that Aaron had ever been in school beyond internet schooling, of course.

Remember how running on roofs and climbing walls helped Aaron get to inaccessible places? Well, others could do it as well, as Aaron cursed under his breath noting four still chasing him of the twenty odd that were originally in that crowd.

While running, Aaron was making sure to move towards a strange white building. All the other buildings looked slightly broken down or grey, so he assumed the building was important.

The gang members couldn’t catch up, though they could stay within sight as Aaron jumped onto the strange domed roof of the white building, turning to see the people who had been chasing him staring at him with wide eyes and frowns.

“Well… let’s go boys… he’s dead.” The gang members turned and went away without much more than that, and Aaron had to wonder what they were talking about… before he could think too deeply about it though, the roof below Aaron cracked, and he widened his eyes even as the roof caved in.

With a crash and a scream that most certainly did not sound girly, Aaron landed awkwardly on one of his legs, wincing as he then fell onto his back, wincing at the pain.

Those gangsters were really sure that Aaron would die for even being on this building, let alone inside it, so he had to assume someone really dangerous lived here…

“Argh!” After hearing that strange roar/groan, Aaron was willing to change ‘someone’ into ‘something’, even as he slowly got up, limping slightly from the pain to his back and right leg, to see what was making the noise…

Aaron looked, only to find a short boy wearing plain white clothes with white hair making him look older than he appeared, and green eyes chained to a wall, yawning… oh, the sound echoed strangely in this place for Aaron to mistake a yawn for a roar of some kind.

“Uh… hi there?” the white haired boy looked up to see Aaron, and widened his eyes… and then sat up; lunging forward, and Aaron knew pain before he blacked out due to a kick to the head.

Well… despite how strange their first meeting was, Aaron had just met one of the most important people within Tartarus…

This was person who would help Aaron eventually escape Tartarus…

This boy with white hair and green eyes was simply a part of it, but he was an important part of what would eventually make up the key to unlock Tartarus.

Before that though, Aaron was lucky he fell too far for the boy to continue attacking… yeah, it was going to take a bit of effort before anything would happen though…