“You really are useless, brat.”

Edward frowned and looked away. He didn’t think Eiden was wrong in saying that but did he really have to say that in front of all the Patriots. Alexa threw a dirty look at the young leader.

“Now that SCIL and the Scots are my allies, I don’t need you,” Eiden went on.

Edward sat in the corner of the bar, curled up in an armchair. Percival wasn’t in any state to scold him for wrinkling his clothes. The young teen scribbled into his notes, waiting to be taken to the State University. Edward’s eyes shifted towards Alexa. She made no effort to help him, or at least divert his attention.

It confused the boy. One moment she was saving his life another she refused to defend him. He buried his head further into his parent’s journal. If Percival wasn’t injured then he wouldn’t have to deal with Eiden.

There was far too much uncertainty with a black hole, with the technology they had currently would create one too small to exist beyond a fraction of a second. There was nothing on the planet powerful enough to stabilize it. If a large enough black hole was created to sustain itself, it would have cataclysmic consequences. Either something was missing from the equation or it was impossible. The latter is more plausible.

Mother and Father had mentioned a new type of collider, yet only talked about it. Its schematic was elsewhere, according to page three eighty-two. They described it as a vertical collider, with many arcs and helixes coming to a central point.

A door slammed shut somewhere below him. Seconds later he heard heavy footsteps coming from the backroom. A tall slender man appeared, pulling the attention of the entire room. Edward closed his book and gathered himself. He nodded at the boy and turned his attention to Eiden. “Master asks for you.”

The teen chuckled, “Maybe Master has seen that I can lead on my own.” Eiden left the room, much to the boy’s relief. He paid no mind to Alexa, who tried her hardest to get his attention.

“Wait in the car,” the man ordered.

Edward nodded as he was on his way out he passed the bar. Alexa took him by the arm. His face was inches from her’s. He averted his eyes. “Why don’t you stick up for yourself?” She asked.

He remained silent. The boy didn’t feel the need to justify himself. Least of all to a person he barely knew. The girl stared at him a bit longer before letting him go. Edward ignored the eyes fixed on him. He made it to the backroom and subsequently the adjacent hallway. To his right were the lifts and the left lead to the underground garage. He pulled open the steel door, his footsteps echoed down the aluminum stairwell.

Master’s limo was the only vehicle in the enormous garage. It was the same one they took to the Gala, save for the tires, paint job, and license plate. He sat down in the leather interior, it made him feel uneasy. At least he was alone.

It didn’t last.

Within ten minutes he heard loud stomping from the staircase. He didn’t have to guess who it was. No matter how much he wanted his eyes to deceive him, Eiden was going with him. A wave of tiredness swept through him, the other teen looked even less enthusiastic. He didn’t even look at him when he entered the car.

Edward looked at his hands as the car pulled out of the garage. No matter what he thought or said, he didn’t hate Eiden, he just couldn’t understand why the other did. There were plenty of things not to like about him, but why? The other looked out the window, either pretending he didn’t exist or too angry to acknowledge him.

The car picked up speed. The morning sun shone through whatever gaps in the skyline it could find. The vehicle stopped and started, way more than it should have. Edward glanced out the window, he frowned. Cars on cars were lined up in front of them. Strange, traffic shouldn’t have been that bad, it was past rush hour. Eiden looked confused as he was. Slowly but surely they progressed through the sea of steel. Before long he saw the reason.

Police were in the midst of redirecting traffic, and the reason horrified the boy. Eiden was all too thrilled. A horde of people had taken to the streets. They marched on the gates of Carolina’s military headquarters. Their chants were muffled and distorted, but their signs were very clear. Some bore the Dame’s face with a large ‘X’ crossing it out, others had a face of a man similar in age to his brother.

“Funny how the death of a nobody can turn people so quickly,” Eiden said aloud. “This is what real progress looks like, not your useless invention.”

He couldn’t refute the latter statement, he had made so little progress. The only thing he could find comfort in was the fact Master had no other person but him to work on it. He had heard that his victory over Cornelia was a resounding success and it showed. A victory over the Empire was one step closer to his brother, that’s how Master put it. Master wasn’t wrong, but it still felt wrong. By the second the crowd grew more volatile.

Carolinian flags started to crop up, but not in the usual fashion. Red was towards the sky and blue below. His parents would call it heretical and his brother would mock them. His father had told stories of people who did the same, they had thrown the South Territory in chaos. Police, along with guards, stood face to face with the enraged mob.

“SCIL,” Edward whispered. He could never understand why it was so important. It was just a flag. But, he was wary of Eiden’s new allies. Their reputation was shrouded in violence, against civilians and military alike.

The mob turned on the police directing traffic, breaking through the riot police. They advanced on the cars and the gate. The driver laid down the horn; that only drew attention to them, the boy thought. A few moments later he heard fists banging against the hull. The boy gulped. He clutched his parent’s journal close to his chest. Their faces… he’d never seen anger like that. The longer he stared, the more he saw how aimless it was. No matter what they declared together, there was strife within the mob.

The car lurched forward, taking a sharp right. The people turned to blurs and their chants into screams. The boy pressed his face against the window and looked ahead, people jumped clear of the advancing car.

Why did the driver hit the gas? Edward looked back to see the answer. The encroaching mob was in retreat. Police from behind their shield wall lobbed grenades. They landed amongst the crowd, spewing out white gas.

Tear gas…

The car raced down New Bern Road escaping the violence. A column of armored trucks passed, going to where they had come from. The trucks didn’t have the normal Carolinian emblems. An eagle wore a crown while it gripped a sword and scepter within its talons. No one could mistake it. Federal troops.

Eiden’s smile faded just a bit. “The feds are getting involved too soon… doesn’t matter. I will win,” he grumbled to himself. The older teen side-eyed him.

Edward felt himself shaking, did he help in causing that? The vehicle turned off onto University Avenue, leaving the Capital District behind. Sirens continued to wail in the distance.

***

Buildings turned into trees, green returned to them at a slow pace. Blue overtook the clouds. Azaleas, from pink to white, started to bloom. The boy frowned, images of azaleas on his mother’s desk flashed. When he was little his parents had brought him to work often, the flowers were the only thing that stood out in the otherwise foggy memories.

Amongst the flora and fauna were buildings that belonged to the eighteen-hundreds. Each had its own Imperial Banner. Stone paths wove through the campus, on which people strolled. The car passed a few more buildings where students lingered.

The next visage made Edward gasp. A sea of flowers of all colors and varieties. It almost hurt his eyes. The flora swayed back and forth. The breeze took some petals from their place and pushed them into the air like confetti. Eiden rolled his eyes. The other side was filled with limestone arches. Windows of crystal broke up the stone. Dull blue painted the shingles. Spires rose out of the steeply pitched roof. This was nothing like the Tower nor was it his parent’s laboratory, the boy thought to himself.

The vehicle came to a stop in front of a large staircase, they led to a large set of double doors. A man and a woman stood at the base.

The man wore the clothes of a nobleman. His hands were folded over a cane of dark steel. The most unnerving thing was his face. Half of it was covered by a mask, sunlight gleamed off its gunmetal. A thick gold strip bisected the mask from his chin to head.

The woman on the other hand wore a lab coat. Light reflected off her monocle; she adjusted her beret and placed her hands behind her back.

The driver opened his door, then Eiden’s. The spring air ruffled his hair. Edward swallowed hard and stepped out onto the hard concrete. The young teen was wary of the man, but the woman looked no more inviting. Just like his parents, he thought.

The driver nodded towards the unknown pair, they returned the gesture. The man returned to the vehicle, leaving Edward with his new captors. He looked at it as it sped away. It confused him, there was a lot more to Master than the Tower. He turned back towards the pair, he wondered how they knew Master. The boy kept his distance from them.

“Welcome to the Carolinian State University and Research Center, Prince Eiden and Lord William,” her words were more robotic than not. Wait, Prince and Lord? He turned to Eiden, he looked about as uncomfortable as he did. “I am Dr. Heisen, Chief Researcher of the Particle Accelerator and Collider Research Laboratory, P.A.C.R.L. for short. This is Director Gloucester, he is the head of the University.”

Edward stared at their stone faces, the woman’s lips barely moved. He felt an odd familiarity with them, he had seen them before. He couldn’t remember if he had seen them at his parents' work.

“It is rude not to respond to their allies,” the woman reprimanded.

He gulped. “Yes,” the word barely left his lips.

“Now. Now. There is no need to demean our new lead for the Empire of Eden Project,” the man spoke up. It was Eden’s turn to look at him. His voice sounded similar to when he gave that god-forsaken speech. He still didn’t understand completely what had happened that night, it's like he had to pick up the pieces of himself while whatever was left had carried on Master’s will. “Come with us, both of you.”

“Yes,” he raised his voice just a bit. He stepped onto the staircase. The Researcher and the Director walked ahead of him. Unseen forces opened the double doors. He walked up, he had a passing thought of running away and had gotten him there. Edward stood at the entrance and stared down a hallway that didn’t end. Eiden didn’t hesitate. His feet stood inches from the divide of the in and out. His nails dug into his palm. It would be so easy, he could get far. Master would find him, no matter how far he got. He looked back, there always was a chance…

No.

He was a coward. His brother would never give up. Leo would save him no matter what. He stepped into his assignment. Edward quickened his pace, just barely able to catch the group.

“I am surprised that Master wanted to observe this side of the project, given your ‘popularity’. We’ve had to make many preparations,” the Director said.

“I don’t know why either. It has nothing to do with my revolution,” Eiden complained.

“I must disagree, it is a critical component. To weaken the central government’s legitimacy is straightforward. But this dying Empire stands upon its economic base,” he looked down at Eiden. “One cannot violently tear it apart. It must be beaten at its own game.”

Edward turned away from his gaze. So that is what Master’s intentions were, to take hold of the entire Energy Sector. A black hole could out produce any other energy source. But to challenge the oil barons? Master had a lot of faith in him to accomplish that. It terrified him.

“You really think the kid who’s afraid of his own shadow could do all that? When the Emperor and the Council die, then the rest will kneel anyway,” Eiden scoffed.

Gloucester gave him a look of indignation, “What happens if they don’t? What happens if Texas’ or California or even New England resist? What happens if they leverage their entire economic might upon you and crush your Empire? What reason would any state or people have to kneel to you?”

Eiden bared his teeth but remained silent. Edward pondered the Director’s questions. He never had considered how each State would react. So far everything was about Carolina, the Council, and most importantly, his brother. There was a lot more than just the States too, the Viceroys of the Empires many territories, many of which were of royal blood. Thinking of the sheer scale of everything made him sick to his stomach.

The four of them walked through the winding corridors, never passing a single soul. Dr. Heisen walked with conviction, yet to him their pathing was aimless. “Where are we exactly going?”

“We are headed to your main research area, the Particle Accelerator,” Heisen responded as if it was obvious.

His own laboratory… he had never had anything like it. The group came upon a heavy steel door with a card swipe on each side. Dr. Heisen pulled out a black card the size of a credit card and swiped the right side. He heard the door unlock, but it didn’t open.

A few seconds went by before the Director took action.

With a gloved hand, Gloucester pulled out a white card and swiped the left side. It unlocked again and swung inward, revealing a long hallway.

There was something off about how his right arm and hand moved. They were stiff and had a slight shake to them. He wondered how old the man was.

The right wall was made of pure glass. The corridor ran parallel to a large atrium, Elevators flanked a grand staircase on the far wall. A glass dome let natural light filter in. Researchers and students milled about. Student’s lips moved, yet were silent. “Can’t they see us?” he asked.

Heisen shook her head, “One-way glass. This will be your entrance to the Collider.”

The boy nodded, continuing to observe the crowd. Each one of them wore the same uniform colored in red and blue. He wondered if he would have to wear one. He looked at his own dull attire, consisting of a white long-sleeve button-up shirt and black dress pants. It wouldn’t hurt to blend in better, even with the private entrance. Edward wondered what it’d be like to be one of those students.

Eiden growled, “This is wasting my time. I should be recruiting new members, god knows what Kevin and Baethan are doing.”

The Director sighed, “As obstinate as your father.”

Eiden stopped, “What did you say?”

Edward couldn’t see his face, but his tone and the clenched fist were all he needed. The Director turned back, “No matter how much you hate him, you cannot deny the fact he is your family.”

The teen shuttered and froze for a brief moment. Gloucester started to turn forward. Eiden lunged at him. Like lightning, the man turned back. The man evaded Eiden’s fist, and with his right hand, he gripped the teen’s throat. He raised the struggling boy into the air. Eiden choked for air and legs flared about.

Edward gasped, his mouth hung open. The Director’s suit sleeve rolled down his arm. What was supposed to be flesh was instead metal pipes. His wrist was nothing more than wires and steel.

Edward swallowed hard and grabbed at his own neck. He could feel cold metal brushing against his throat and squeezing it. Air was denied entrance to his lungs.

“Aldred, let him go,” Dr. Heisen barked. “Master would have you with two bullet holes in the back of your skull and declare you committed ‘suicide’.”

Gloucester released his vice-like grip. Eiden collapsed to his knees, gasping for air. Lacerations already started to appear on his neck.

The boy walked over to the older teen. He stretched out his hand. Edward was not unfamiliar with his ordeal. Eiden coughed a bit more before noticing his hand. His face was blank, Edward wasn’t sure if he had recovered. The dazed teen batted his hand away. “I don’t need your help,” he sneered. The young teen was left behind, again at the back of the pack.

They arrived at the steel box that sat at the end of the hallway. Before entering he looked back at the crowd of students. There was one in particular that sat alone on a bench, face deep in a sketchbook. He wished he was her.

The girl looked up, their eyes met. No, she must be looking at something else, he reasoned. The elevator doors shut, silence took hold. There were a greater number of levels than he had first thought. The building rose a mere three stories, yet it lowered fifteen stories underground. Dr. Heisen pressed the negative second level. “P.A.C.R.L. is built completely underground, taking up the negative Second through the fifteenth.”

“Don’t colliders normally take up a few floors at most?” he questioned. The collider west of Washington, almost in the mountains, was far underground, but the collider itself took up two levels at most with elevator shafts taking up most of the depth.

Heisen nodded, “A standard one yes, however in order for us to complete the E.E. project we must have an unorthodox solution. During regular hours you will be working in the observation deck on the negative second floor. Off-hours you will be on negative fourteenth. It is imperative that you stay away from most of the researchers until our position is more… secure.”

Eiden rolled his eyes and muttered, “If this project is so secret, you don’t seem to be hiding it at all. Built the thing to be noticed.”

Gloucester chuckled, “You miss understand. Master is not the only one who wants to weaken oil barons. Governor Talin made it very clear that he wanted Carolina to be the lynchpin of the Empire. Where do you think we get our funding?”

Edward was taken aback. Wasn’t Talin the enemy? He thought Master had funded the project. On the other hand, Eiden didn’t look phased, he even cracked a smile. “No wonder Master seems to have infinite resources,” the older teen commented. Before the boy could mull over new information the doors opened. The room was vacant of any person. Control stations lined the wall. A low hum lingered in the air.

Yet, he was concerned with none of that. The wall made of glass mattered far more. His feet took him closer.

“Master has had this prepared all of this for you, even had our old collider replaced. We have reached a roadblock in the project, you will finish it.” The Director announced.

Edward ignored him, fixated on the structure before him. His hand brushed against the glass. Many arcs and helixes coming to a central point. He felt as if he was back in the other world, alone in the infinite void. Each blow, whether physical or mental crashed against him. Never fully breaking him.

This was definitely the work of his parents.

“Maybe you are of some use, brat.”