The Biotope 5 Public Order Enforcement building was bathed in harsh white light that burned against the eyes. Inside the interrogation room, the atmosphere felt sterile… suffocating.
Edward sat upright on a cold metal chair. Across from him, two officers stared him down as if trying to peel back his thoughts layer by layer.
"So… you went out there to scavenge and sell what you found, right?"
The question came sharp. Direct. Uncomfortably so.
"Yes. I search abandoned houses and buildings for anything valuable. It's just a side income."
Edward answered honestly.
"But that's not illegal, is it? Scavenging in the Outlands."
"It's not. There's no issue with that."
The officer leaned back in his chair, voice calm, too calm.
"Parking your motorcycle outside isn't a problem either. We understand living costs inside the dome are high. That's unrelated."
"Then if I didn't do anything wrong… why am I being interrogated?"
Edward shot back, confusion creeping into suspicion.
"We're not questioning you because you did something wrong. We're questioning you because we need information."
The officer leaned forward, his eyes sharpening.
"In case… you might have a lead that helps us track down the remaining suspect."
"The stuff he brought in? Just an old safe. The internal lock's busted, couldn't open it normally, so it had to be forced."
The other officer cut in, tossing a report onto the table.
"Nothing suspicious inside. Just some gold and scraps of decayed paper. Probably banknotes from the old world."
"So there was nothing of value inside, then?"
The interrogating officer raised a brow.
"Well, sure two hundred years ago, gold meant something. But these days, it's just another rare metal. People don't really care about that stuff anymore. And banknotes? Completely worthless."
"But if you're done examining it… I'd like it back."
Edward quickly interjected.
"It might not mean anything to most people, but antique shops still buy things like that. There are collectors who value old-world items."
"That won't be a problem."
The officer waved it off, then leaned in, locking eyes with Edward.
"Now… let's get to the point. What exactly did you see regarding the P-Type unit and the suspect who was neutralized?"
His tone shifted heavier, more pressing.
Edward fell silent for a moment, organizing his thoughts before deciding to answer truthfully at least, the version he could recall.
"I'm not sure. I just remember the suspect charging at me with inhuman force… and then a P-Type unit stepped in and helped me. By the time I came to my senses… it was already over."
"Hm… so you didn't witness any of the actual apprehension process?"
The officer pressed further, narrowing his eyes.
"Not really. At that moment, all I could think about was how terrifying everything was. If the P-Type hadn't shown up… I probably wouldn't have made it."
Edward replied, his expression mixing lingering fear with visible relief.
"And what about anything else? Regarding the P-Type unit, what do you remember?"
Edward paused, pretending to think.
"Hmm… I think one of them was a woman. She introduced herself, but… I can't really remember her name."
"Alright. Then you're free to go for today. If anything comes up, we'll contact you. And if you remember anything, anything at all, come to us immediately."
The officer closed the file, signaling the end of the interrogation.
After retrieving his belongings, Edward wasted no time leaving the Public Order building. He had no idea that, on the other side of the one-way observation glass, Alicia, 23, and Dr. Nicolas had been watching his every move through a monitor the entire time.
"Pulse stable. Eye movement steady. No pupil dilation… no signs of deception. That means Alicia's intervention was successful. He truly doesn't remember the details."
23 reported, eyes fixed on the biometric graphs displayed on the screen.
"Hm… in that case, let's wrap it up. We still have plenty of work to deal with."
Dr. Nicolas concluded, turning and walking out of the observation room.
Edward lugged the safe and its contents straight to an antique shop not far from his apartment building.
Inside, the place was packed with remnants of a lost civilization rusted scrap metal, faded plastic containers, and piles of 20th-century electronics stacked high, waiting for a second life.
"Well, well… what've you got today, kid?"
The shop owner's raspy voice cut through the stale, recycled air.
Bang!
Edward dropped the metal safe onto the table with a heavy thud.
"Got this."
"Huh… a safe, huh? Looks like it's been butchered pretty badly. Must've been pried open by someone who didn't know what they were doing."
The owner picked up a magnifying glass, inspecting the torn metal surface.
"Yeah… there was a bit of trouble with Public Order."
Edward answered vaguely.
"But what's inside is pretty interesting."
"Let's see it."
Edward carefully placed a dull yellow object on the table.
"Here, solid gold. A bit old, but still in great condition. And these… old-world banknotes. They're worn out, but if you could take them too, that'd really help."
He met the shop owner's gaze, a flicker of hope in his eyes, hoping these scraps could turn into enough credits to get him through a few more days.
"If this were two hundred years ago, kid, you'd be filthy rich."
The owner let out a low chuckle, lifting the yellow metal to examine it.
"From the looks of it… this batch weighs around five pounds."
"So how much would that be? Could you give me an estimate?"
Edward asked, unable to hide his eagerness.
"Hmm… I'll take the gold at a flat one thousand credits. Those banknotes maybe ten credits at best. But the interesting piece here… is the safe."
He tapped his fingers against the thick steel.
Thud. Thud.
"Why's that?"
"Rich folks these days are into safe hunting. They crack open old safes just to see what's inside treat it like some kind of game. The thrill of it, you know? Prices have been pretty good lately. But…"
The owner paused, his eyes tracing the warped, battered surface.
"This one's in rough shape. I'll probably need to source parts to fix it, but that's my problem. Tell you what… I'll give you two thousand credits for the whole lot."
"Whoa… two thousand?"
Edward blurted out, clearly caught off guard by the number.
"Well… next time you find one, try to keep it in better shape. If it comes in clean, you could get four maybe even five thousand credits."
The owner shrugged as he tapped on his digital transfer device.
"I've sent it to your account. Three thousand and ten credits in total."
Beep.
A notification chimed from Edward's wrist. He glanced down at the balance, a smile breaking through before he could hide it.
That amount was more than enough to keep him comfortable inside the dome for weeks.
"By the way… do you have any good dust masks?"
Edward asked, recalling the orange haze he had run into.
"I heard the AQI's gone past 750 lately."
"Yeah… it's getting pretty bad."
The owner nodded.
"Give me a second."
He disappeared behind a thick plastic curtain. Moments later, he returned carrying a sleek, full-face dust mask.
Click.
He set it gently on the counter.
"Here, this one. Brand new model."
The shop owner tapped lightly on the lens.
"Carbon fiber body. The visor's laminated with a special coating durable, flexible, resistant to scratches from dust or impact."
A faint blue glow flickered across the surface.
"It runs on the latest operating system. Projects data right onto the lens your vitals, air quality, chemical levels, even radiation. Triple-axis sensors, sonar and infrared detection… crystal clear vision, even at night. It's got thermal tracking too. If you're heading out there… this is the best you're gonna get."
Edward stared at the high-end piece of tech, eyes gleaming.
This wasn't something a regular scavenger would normally be able to afford.
"And… how much is it?"
He asked carefully, running his fingers along the smooth carbon surface.
"New model or not, it's not as expensive as you'd think."
The owner let out a dry chuckle, patting the strap.
"Fewer people are heading outside these days. Most criminals just run off and hide in the Outlands after they screw up, so demand's dropped. Prices aren't what they used to be."
A small shrug.
"For this one… I'll let it go for two thousand credits."
Edward fell silent for a moment, weighing the decision. Two thousand credits wasn't a small amount, not for him. But this was the kind of technology that could keep him alive longer in that orange hell outside. In the long run… it was probably worth it.
"Hmm… alright. I'll take it."
Beep.
The transaction went through, credits deducted from his account. Without wasting another second, Edward packed the new gear into his bag and headed straight back to his room.
Click.
The door locked behind him as he returned to his cramped little space. Dropping into his chair, he stared at the carbon fiber mask resting on the table.
Under the dim light, the laminated visor reflected faintly almost like the eye of something alive. He lifted it and placed it over his face.
Whirr…
A soft mechanical hum followed. The mask adjusted itself automatically, tightening to fit the contours of his face perfectly. The interface came alive. Data flooded across the display heart rate, blood pressure, blood sugar levels, indoor air quality… along with layers of submenus packed with features that felt far beyond its price point.
Edward began cycling through the modes, testing each function, checking whether the sensors and detection systems truly performed as advertised.
Beep… Beep…
A red warning suddenly flashed across his vision. The sensor system had detected movement, within a three-meter radius.
Edward froze.
In this cramped room, where he was supposed to be alone… the display was now marking the presence of something someone moving behind the shelf of salvaged junk.
[Distance: 3 meters - Heart rate: 178 bpm]
No way… who the hell works out in someone else's room?
His eyes locked onto the spiking heart rate on the interface. Step by step, he moved forward slow, silent toward the marked location.
The bathroom. The deepest corner of his run-down space.
Creeeak…
The door slid open. And from the shadows, a man in a hood stepped out. The same man he had encountered in the alley.
"You're Edward… right?"
The voice was low. Rough. Heavy with pressure.
"My name's Drago… we need to talk."
Edward stood motionless beneath the carbon fiber mask. His own heartbeat had begun to race climbing fast, almost catching up to the numbers on the screen.
"Who are you… how did you get in here?"
Edward's voice came through the carbon fiber mask, strained with suspicion.
"I already told you. Name's Drago."
The hooded man shrugged, completely unfazed.
"As for getting in… nothing special. This is the cheapest tier of housing. Security's nowhere near as tight as the premium units."
"Drago… are you P-Type too?"
Edward pressed, his eyes still locked on the man's racing heart rate displayed across his interface.
"Not exactly. But you… don't you feel like something's off?"
Drago shot back, his gaze beneath the hood digging deep like he was searching for something.
"Off? I don't see anything strange… other than you being here."
Edward answered without hesitation.
"...Yeah. Figures. Looks like they got to you first."
Drago let out a long sigh, shaking his head.
"What are you talking about? Who would get to me?"
"You seriously don't remember… what happened in that ruined house out there?"
Drago's voice dropped lower, the air in the room turning noticeably colder.
"I remember. I got attacked by someone like you, and then the P-Type showed up and helped."
Edward replied, stating exactly what he believed to be true.
"That's it?"
Drago pressed, his tone short and pointed.
Edward fell silent. His heart began to race strangely, uncontrollably. Because the part that unsettled him the most… was that he truly only remembered that much.
As if something had been cleanly carved out of his memory without a trace.
"Listen to me carefully. That woman, Alicia… she has the ability to erase memories."
Drago's voice dropped, his gaze boring straight through the mask's visor.
"For all you know… what you think, what you saw, what you remember… might've already been wiped clean by her."
The words hit. And Edward froze.