With a heavy breath, I plopped down on the toilet.

  Let’s hope a dwarf doesn’t need to use the bathroom anytime soon.

  — — —

  I don't know how long I’ve been sitting on this toilet. But it had to have been hours.

  Because when I peeked out the curtains, I saw massive airships sweeping the ground with light.

  Iron hounds crawled the perimeter and dwarven soldiers waved their lanterns in all directions.

  I blinked in disbelief as I closed the curtains.

  All of this.

  For me?

  What the hell kind of trauma did humanity put these dwarves through?

  My thoughts were cut short by the sound of heavy footsteps.

  Thump. Thump.

  Thump. Thump. Thump.

  Thump.

  Multiple people. I heard a loud sigh followed by the sound of a loud plop and hiss. *“Ah,”*a dwarf groaned without the muffled sound of his helmet. *“Still no sign of our illegal buddy, huh?”*

  *“Nope,”* a softer voice replied. *“Honestly I don’t mind the detour though, better than where we were headed, right?”*

  Someone laughed deeply.

  *“Yeah, the last thing I wanna deal with are these so-called revolutionaries.”*

  Another round of laughs.

  *“Those idiots just don’t understand how good they have it. They want better wages? Have they seen how humans live? Or the elves? We have a paradise here and they can’t even appreciate it.”*

  *“Perks of being spoiled, we get our hands dirty and their delusions stay pure.”*

  Someone else climbed aboard.

  Thump. Thump.

  *“Bad news, they’re calling off the search.”*

  A wave of disappointed groans filled the car.

  *“What for? Did they find the guy already?”*

  *“No, things in the capital just went from bad to worse.”*

  A long pause.

  *“What do you mean? The royal guard said—“*

  *“The royal guard just fired on the revolutionaries, in response, they stormed the palace.”*

  Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

  An even longer pause.

  *“Fuckin’ Hell.”*

  More rushed footsteps onto the train car.

  *“Stop talking and get in gear! We’re continuing to the capital as intended!”*

  *“MOVE! Damn it! I said move!”*

  The train hissed loudly as it lurched forward. It quickly settled into a fast pace. The familiar sound of steel wheels against the tracks filled the air.

  Clack-clack. Clack-clack.

  I had no idea what got the dwarves so spooked but none of them uttered a word after the train started.

  I rested my head back on the wall as I breathed a sigh of relief.

  Whatever happened I’m glad to catch a break.

  Still, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t worried about what made them stop looking for me.

  I closed my eyes.

  But none of it mattered now, my eyes grew heavy and my adrenaline began to fade. The warmth of the train helped lull me to sleep.

  I really do fall asleep at the worst times.

  — — —

  CRACK-BOOOM!

  The bathroom shook and rattled me awake.

  *“STAND DOWN! THIS IS AN ORDER FROM HIS MAJESTY!”*

  *“LONG LIVE THE REVOLUTION!”*

  *“FIRE!”*

  CRACK-CLACK-CLACK-CLACK!

  I could barely hear my own thoughts over the shouting and gunfire.

  I quickly stood to my feet and peeked through the curtain at the chaos.

  Buildings burned and the streets were cluttered with rubble and overturned carriages.

  Dwarves in uniform rushed about as they cycled their bolt-actions and dove for cover.

  Dwarves in civilian clothes with purple arm bands waved large purple flags. They fired upon the loyalists and chased them down in the streets.

  I blinked.

  Was this a civil war? Talk about a lucky break, it couldn’t get better than this. A stray bullet cracked against the window and bounced.

  I flinched, but the window managed to stay intact. It’s probably best I get outside instead of waiting for something that could actually break it.

  I crouched low and opened the bathroom door. I eased through the train car and slowly slid the door open. I peeked my head out and came face-to-face with a revolutionary.

  A young dwarven woman.

  She blinked in surprise at my presence.

  I too, blinked.

  She slowly raised her pistol before she quickly lowered it. “You human slave? Join the cause, brother!”

  She then charged off in the direction of the fighting and was gunned down by a loyalist.

  *“They’re everywhere!”* He shouted, before he sprinted off.

  I dusted myself off and jumped down from the train car.

  After a quick sweep of my surroundings, I realized this train was parked in the base of a tower.

  Four thick steel columns held up the building, with a track for trains going out and one for trains coming in.

  Some stairs led up to the second floor as well.

  I had a choice to make.

  Up into the unknown tower or out into the chaotic streets.

  Considering I had no idea of the city’s layout before the civil unrest, it’ll probably be beneficial to get a bird’s eye on things.

  So up it is.

  I began my ascent up the heavy steel steps with a deliberate slowness. I didn’t know what I’d be running into afterall.

  I opened the door to the second floor and was greeted with a mess of corpses, blown-out windows, and scattered papers.

  This looked to be a security office of some sort. I stepped over the bodies and continued towards the next set of stairs.

  This time when I opened the door I spotted a dead sniper who was lying over the window. Along with more scattered office material and furniture.

  The lights flickered as the ground below shook with another explosion.

  Up the next set of stairs I went.

  When I reached the fourth floor I was greeted with a room that had prison cells. About four in total.

  Two of them were empty.

  One of them held a beastwoman with the features of a fox and the other held a well-dressed human with a bruised face.

  Between the cells were three bodies. Two rebels and a loyalist.

  When the prisoners spotted me their eyes widened in unison. But while the well-dressed man looked bewildered, the fox-girl raced to the edge of her cell.

  “Please! Let me out!” She spoke with an accent I’ve never heard before. “Hurry up!”

  I snickered. “Wait, wait, wait, what are you guys even doing here?”

  The well-dressed man stood to his feet and approached the cell bars. “Isn’t it obvious? We’re prisoners.”

  “Well, what did you do?”

  The well-dressed man hummed. “Well, I was here to steal weapon schematics. It seems I picked the absolute worst time for that one.”

  Why am I not surprised the human is here to steal? “See, this is why they don’t like us.”

  The man shrugged.

  “You can either be right or rich.” He sounded strangely calm for a man who was in a war zone. “I made the obvious choice.”

  “Hey! Hey, why are you chatting like there’s not a war going on outside!” The fox woman cried. “We should flee! Please human, don’t waste this precious opportunity!”

  I looked over my shoulder with a frown. “I’m talking, you’re being very rude.”

  The fox woman didn’t back down. “That’s so dumb, human! We should go! We should go now don’t you think? We can always talk later but not if we’re dead! I like living, don’t you?”

  She gripped the bars of her cell tightly as her tail wagged with impatience.

  She’s so damn annoying.

  “Agreed,” the dragon purred. “Let us leave them and continue on our way to the vantage point.”

  I was just about to continue my way up the next floor when the well-dressed man spoke up. “Do you know where you are? Or where you're going?”

  I paused. In all honesty, I had no idea.

  Originally I had a planned route, but after I’ve been turned around so much I lost my sense of direction.

  Still, “The last thing I wanna do is rely on anyone else for instructions.”

  The well-dressed man chuckled.

  “Then think of it like this, we’re both human and I assume we both want to escape this place alive. What’s the harm in walking in the same direction?”

  Hm…

  “I suppose you have a point.” I turned around and stepped to his cell. “Give me your hands.”

  The man extended his hands to reveal that his wrists were bound with Ouro suppressing weave.

  I sighed as I pulled out my knife. I cut through the weave and released the man.

  He smiled before he raised his hands and crushed the clock to his cell from the outside.

  A gravity user?

  He stepped from the cell and instantly healed his wounds. “Refreshing.” He placed a hand on his hip and looked down on me.

  “Oh, and by the way, I’m Julian Kiu Gravitas. Agent of the RBA, a pleasure.”

  I blinked.

  This guy was from Kotal…

  “My turn, please?! I promise I’ll be good! If you let me out I’ll… I’ll be your mate! I’ll give you many children! Dozens, that’s what men like, right? Please?”

  My right eye twitched.