Where Stars Can't See

2| Picking up a Stray Kid

Solenia determinedly dug through the garbage with her bare hands as swiftly as possible, not caring about the cuts her hands suffered during the process. A life was at stake here.

In about five minutes, she had dug deep enough to see the face of the child who immediately coughed and tried to get up.

It was a small boy who seemed to be around ten years old, his pale little face was covered in dust and black oil, making it hard to see his features. His dark black hair was in a mess and his white shirt-like top was ripped in places. His legs were still buried in the garbage.

Solenia let out a sigh of relief.

"Thank god kid, you're still alive."

The little boy looked at her in confusion, then his eyes lit up, sparkling with unshed tears as she dug the garbage around him and tried to pull him up. Seeing him crying, she panicked.

"Does it hurt somewhere? Did I pull you too strongly? Is your leg stuck?" She asked him a barrage of questions as she gently put him down.

The kid stuttered, "No." He shook his head. Her tense shoulders slumped in relief at that.

'Maybe he's just in shock.'

Solenia continued to dig through and in another two minutes, the child was out and safe. Well, they were still in a garbage dump that had begun to rot and were at the risk of catching diseases. She decided to put the questions and lectures about safety for later.

"Hey kid, if you have nowhere to go, just follow me. You can stay while you recover then leave," She told him awkwardly. She then realized how suspicious she sounded, and was about to say something else when the boy quickly nodded.

The smart boy had seen how much effort the big sis had put to take him out when he hadn't even screamed for help. She didn't seem to be a bad person in his eyes, so he decided to follow her for now.

Solenia was happy with his decision. Even though she had another mouth to feed now, she was satisfied with the company. She could finally learn some basic things about this world. It was even better that it was a kid she saved, he wouldn't question her about being suspicious.

She gestured to him to follow her and took the lead on the way back to her wagon. They both walked in silence, carefully stepping on the trash and safely reaching it.

The boy looked in wonder at the weird contraption before him, but before he could ask the lady what it was, he was lifted and sat near a huge bag of what seemed to be garbage on the sheet of metal attached to the wheels.

Solenia made sure that the kid was without injuries and was healthy when she lifted him. He wasn't malnourished at all even though he looked like a kid from the slums around here.

'Maybe he has parents.'

Seeing the boy looking at her wagon in wonder, she felt a little pride. The things she had found here were so advanced which made her think that her wagon might be regarded as an antique item.

"I made this to make it easier for me to transport the things from the dump," She explained to him.

The shy boy once again nodded as if he understood.

She got on it and slowly pedaled her way back to the building she lived in. She gritted her teeth as she rode her wagon since the weight of the boy and the day's scraps combined were much more than what she was used to.

She wanted to make it an electricity powered wagon, but it seems that the energy of this world was very different from her previous one. It was a pity that she had no one to ask. Her mood brightened up at that. She had someone to ask now.