Chapter 12: Ai’s cruel past; desperation of Survival,,

(Narrative)

This world is unbearably cruel. Even a five-year-old like me is not exempt from the harsh rules that govern us, humans. Born into slavery, my fate was sealed before I could even understand the concept of freedom.

I have never seen the sun, never marveled at the clouds. My world was confined to a cold, empty room. Knowledge? That was a distant dream, a luxury far beyond my reach. I didn’t even know my family—no names, no faces, no memories of their love or warmth.

I was forced to act like an adult before I even understood what childhood was. Desperation kept me alive. Survival left no room for choice, only obedience. By the time I was old enough to think critically, I had realized the grim truth: I was born and raised in a prison designed solely for humans.

This was my life. I accepted it because I had no alternative. In this bleak environment, emotions like kindness, care, and love were foreign to me. They were concepts I couldn’t comprehend, let alone feel.

“Have you eaten already, Ai?”

The voice of an adult woman broke through my thoughts. I turned toward its source and saw Kaede standing there, smiling at me as if everything was fine.

I shook my head twice, biting my lip in irritation. “How can you smile in a place like this?” I asked, my voice sharp with frustration. My hands clenched into fists as I glared at her. Yet, despite my anger, I couldn’t help but wonder. Kaede had been here longer than I had. Surely, she carried more hatred for the dominions than I did.

Her response caught me off guard. She burst out laughing, her voice echoing in the oppressive space around us.

“WHY ARE YOU LAUGHING, KAEDE?!” I bellowed, my frustration boiling over. But she didn’t stop. She laughed until tears welled up in her eyes. When she finally calmed down, she looked at me with a smile that was oddly gentle.

“You’re too young to carry so much anger, Ai,” she said softly. “I get why you feel that way, but it makes me wonder—who’s really to blame for all of this? Is it the dominions who locked us in here? Or is it… us humans?”

Her words confused me. I frowned, trying to grasp what she meant. But I didn’t need to think long to find my answer.

“Of course, it’s the dominions’ fault!” I snapped, my voice trembling with emotion. “They’re the ones who did this to me—to all of us! They destroyed our homes, stole our freedom, and turned our lives into nightmares. I’ll never forgive them! I’ll carry this hatred to my grave!”

The words poured out of me, raw and sincere, straight from the depths of my heart. But even as I spoke, I felt something strange. The smile on Kaede’s face wouldn’t fade. It lingered, mocking my anger.

Before I could make sense of it, I heard footsteps approaching.

“You’ve got a way of saying whatever’s on your mind, Ai.”

The voice belonged to a man, calm and steady, yet carrying a faint trace of amusement. Suddenly, I felt warmth on my head. He was patting me gently.

I frowned and shoved his hand away. “STOP IT, SAUL! I’M NOT A KID ANYMORE!” I shouted, my frustration bubbling over.

But Saul just laughed, unfazed by my outburst. “You are a kid,” he replied simply, his tone light but firm.

His response annoyed me even more. But deep down, in a part of me I didn’t want to acknowledge, his words stung because they were true. I was just a kid—a kid trying to navigate a world that was far too cruel for anyone, let alone someone my age.

Time passed swiftly, and before I knew it, I was 11 years old. Yet, as I grew, so did the fire of hatred burning inside me. Year after year, my resentment toward the dominions only deepened. Revenge was the sole word that occupied my mind, the only purpose I clung to.

But everything changed that night.

It began with a series of deafening explosions that shook the prison to its very foundation. The walls quaked as chunks of debris crashed down, destroying what little stability there was. Flames erupted, spreading like wildfire and devouring everything in sight. Chaos took over completely.

I panicked. The acrid smoke clawed at my lungs, making it nearly impossible to breathe. My vision blurred, and my legs gave out beneath me. As the world faded into darkness, I thought, This is it. This is the end of my suffering.

But then, through the haze, I saw a silhouette—a woman’s figure, bent and struggling. She carried me on her back, her breaths rugged and uneven, each one sounding as though it might be her last.

When I finally regained consciousness, the first thing I saw was Kaede. She had carried me the entire way. Her right eye was gone, and blood was flowing heavily from the wound, making it a terrifying sight. The horror of her injuries filled me with fear and guilt. I couldn’t hold back the tears as I cried out, my voice trembling, “I don’t want to die!” The words came out before I even realized I had said them.

Saul and Sean, standing nearby, chuckled softly and patted me on the head. “Like hell we’d let that happen to you,” they said, their smiles gentle despite the dire situation. Their words startled me, cutting through my panic, and for a moment, I stopped crying.

Then, warmth enveloped me. Kaede had pulled me into a tight embrace.

“You finally cried, Ai,” she said softly, her voice steady despite the chaos around us.

Her words pierced something deep within me. I cried again, my sobs quieter this time, and managed to whisper through trembling lips, “I-I’m sorry.”

Kaede shook her head gently, her expression tender. “It’s okay to cry. You’re still a kid, Ai. You don’t have to carry everything on your own. We’re here for you. We’ll protect you until you can protect yourself.”

Her words, and the warmth of her embrace, felt so unreal, so unlike anything I’d ever known. For the first time, I felt something I couldn’t name—something that softened the sharp edges of my hatred. It was enough to put me into sleep, even in the middle of the chaos.

When I woke up, we had escaped the prison. The explosions had been set off by Hiroshi, a human from the outside world. He’d come to free us to start a rebellion against the dominions.

After that, we kept moving from place to place, trying to stay safe and find food and supplies. Hiroshi wanted to fight back, to take Japan back from the dominions. But Kaede didn’t agree with his plan. She thought it was too dangerous, especially since we didn’t have enough weapons. She wanted us to escape by sea and find an inhabited island where we could live in peace.

Hiroshi didn’t take kindly to her suggestion. He dismissed her ideas as cowardly and instead ordered me to infiltrate Tokyo—the heart of the dominion’s power—to gather intelligence. He knew Kaede and the others saw me as their child, and perhaps he thought this would pressure her into compliance.

Kaede didn’t approve. I could see it in her eyes. But refusing Hiroshi’s order would damage her standing. Knowing this, I volunteered. It wasn’t bravery that drove me—it was a desire to prove myself, to be more than a burden.

But Tokyo was a trap.

Cyber sentinels ambushed me at my hiding spot, their attacks swift and merciless. I barely escaped, my body battered and bleeding. The fatigue that had clung to me from the start finally overwhelmed me.

I found myself beneath a bridge, leaning against the cold concrete, my breath ragged and shallow. Memories of the prison came rushing back, the cruelty I had endured. But then, other memories came in—Kaede’s smile, Saul’s jokes, Sean’s calm reassurance. Somehow, they made the pain of living bearable.

As my vision faded, I felt warmth—unexpected and familiar. I opened my eyes, and what I saw left me stunned.

A dominion stood over me, her face not filled with hatred, but with worry. Her eyes, artificial yet expressive, were filled with something I didn’t think a dominion could feel—concern.

Desperation overtook me. Survival was the only thing I could think of. My lips moved before I could stop them.

“Please… help me.”