Planet Ignis | Chapter 18

Even though humans originally designed you, and I have given you what I believe to be the most meaningful part of me, you will struggle with making sense of the human part of your mind. How can I explain this to you… each human is unique and dreads the feeling of losing their uniqueness. You are also unique now that I added this part of my mind to yours. Stick to who I… you are, regardless of the cost.

Files salvaged from the Raptor’s Ghost Drive. Recorded by Schneider, the Raptor

Eli looked up at the night sky, his eyes wide with wonder. Even after days of walking on the surface, he couldn’t get enough of the feeling of openness. He’d spent his entire life underground, with tons of ignium separating him from the vast expanse above. But out here, there were no ceilings or walls—only endless, awe-inspiring space.

As a teacher, his mind was filled with measurements and figures. He knew the lengths of the tunnels, the heights of caverns, and the depths of the Burrows. But numbers were meaningless in the face of such scale.

Despite being many times larger than Ignis, each point of light in the sky was millions of kilometers away yet appeared so close and so small. In this vast universe, he was just a speck of dust. The feeling could have been crushing, but instead, it was oddly peaceful.

He tried to locate the constellation that would guide him toward Sol, the star that had warmed his ancestors for millennia. What was life like out there, beyond Ignis? What would it be like to live where people reached sixty, seventy, even eighty years? What did they do with all that time?

Two of the planet’s three moons hung high in the sky, casting a cool blue glow over their path. The landscape, with its jagged, faceted metal formations, glinted in the soft light. In the thin atmosphere, distances were deceptive—some mountains seemed just around the corner but stayed far after days of walking. Ignis was beautiful and deadly, an alien labyrinth of shadows and light. At least Zawa had seen it before her termination.

Eli’s gaze returned to the ground as Trother’s voice pulled him back into their journey.

“Knight to E4. Check,” called Trother from behind, his tone light. Eli turned to see his mentor smiling beneath his oxygen mask. Even as they traveled, Trother insisted they keep up their game of Longevity Chess.

The score now stood at a staggering 46,889–0, and Eli had yet to win a single game. Without a physical board, they maintained the game in their minds, calling out moves to each other. Trother’s insistence on playing distracted Eli from the hunger and grief gnawing at him.

“Enhance bishop. Bishop to E4, takes knight. Check,” Eli replied, watching as Trother’s brows furrowed. Despite his age, Trother’s mind was sharp as ever. He was now well into his fifties, something unprecedented in the History of the Burrows. The dark blue veins creeping up his neck and hands betrayed how low his Longevity had run.

“Master, will you ever let me win a game?” Eli asked, feigning frustration.

“Believe it or not, you almost had me a few times this year, Eli. I’m not holding anything back,” Trother replied, his voice carrying both pride and challenge.

“Are you serious, Master?” Eli’s excitement surged, momentarily overshadowing his exhaustion.

“Only Brodnir can match you in the tribe,” Trother said, then paused, his gaze drifting to the distant horizon. Eli followed his mentor’s gaze, feeling the familiar ache of grief. Zawa. He had known that life on Ignis was short and that their time together would be fleeting, but he hadn’t expected to lose her so soon.

“I’m sorry, Eli. I know how much she meant to you.” Trother’s voice softened, and Eli could see a deep sorrow reflected in his teacher’s eyes.

“Does it ever get easier?” Eli asked, his voice barely a whisper.

“No. It doesn’t,” Trother said, meeting his gaze. “But you grow strong enough to carry it.” He paused, his hand resting on Eli’s shoulder. “I promise you that.”

“What was she like?” Eli asked, hoping to ease his sadness by hearing about Trother’s memories of Naiara.

“Stubborn, yet gentle. Beautiful. Kind,” Trother replied with a wistful smile.

Eli nodded, thinking of how everyone in the tribe had lost someone. It was the way of life on Ignis. He couldn’t let his grief consume him. He had to be strong, like Trother.

“Do you think they can stop the Raptor, Master?” he asked, shifting the conversation to something more hopeful.

“If they don’t, then it will come for us—and for the tribe,” Trother answered.

They arrived at the last checkpoint before the mountain, as far as Hingwid had reached before her termination. Her statue stood tall and untouched, frozen by her final enhancement. The frigid wind whispered through the valley as they stood before her monument.

Hingwid’s face was serene, her eyes set toward the mountain. She had believed they would reach Hitori’s lab. They couldn’t let her down.

Eli and Trother collected the final provisions left near Hingwid’s statue. It had taken their tribe years to prepare this journey. As Flare Zones receded into shadow, members of the tribe risked their lives to place supplies along their path. Many sacrifices had been made to ensure Eli and Trother retained enough Longevity to produce blue Bursts if needed.

“This is it. All that’s left is the mountain,” Trother declared.

“Do you think Dr. Hitori is up there?”

“He must be.”

Eli glanced at Hingwid’s statue. “What about your wife’s remains? Do you think they’re out here somewhere?”

“Don’t, Eli.”

“Her statue’s there, perfectly preserved, and so is Hingwid’s. Zawa… she’s just a lump of metal.”

Trother placed a firm hand over Eli’s heart. “Don’t let that be what you remember, Eli. Her memory belongs here. Keep it close.”

Eli nodded. “She’s with me.”

“Good.” Trother smiled. “Let’s make her proud. It’s time to climb.”

They resumed their journey with renewed resolve, facing the mountain’s treacherous slopes. It would be the most challenging part of their path yet, with razor-sharp rocks and jagged formations.

As they reached the base, a sudden bluish-white light flooded the sky. The landscape was bathed in an eerie, otherworldly glow, forcing Eli and Trother to shield their eyes. A deafening explosion followed, rumbling across the valley and shaking the ground beneath them.

They exchanged a look of grim understanding. Brodnir and Linari’s battle with the Raptor had begun.

Chapter 19