INTERWOVEN ADVENTURES | Circadian Earth: Book 1

Chapter 30

Chelsey wasn't happy about Astrid and Berria being missing. Mainly because she didn't want Berria getting hurt, which she saw as a real risk up on the surface. Melissa wasn't around much, as the Nasric typically saw it as her duty to make sure everyone in the tunnel network remained somewhat sane. Most of her time was spent with most recent addition to the community, a sky blue rabbit Trialian, who had seemingly come to Pronio in search of some kind of revenge. She owned a staff that looked similar to that of the Ember Witch, and she was known to attack anyone who got too close to it. Chelsey and Melissa made a good team caring for those in the network, but this one was a challenge.

A noise went off in her room, where she had camera feeds that scanned every entrance to the network to make sure nobody she didn't know got in or out. Either someone was entering, or someone was leaving. Rushing over to the screens, she saw a pair of unfamiliar Trialians alongside a strange-looking Nasric. Nearby was Yellow, who she recognised, as they'd brought several other Trialians to the network before. Excited to meet newcomers, she rushed out into the main tunnel and towards the main entrance, opening the door with an electronic key.

Yellow noticed her first. "Alright you three, this is Chelsey. She basically runs the place. Underground is the safest place for Trialians like you."

"What about any plans we have that require us to be on the surface?" Azaleah asked.

"Chances are you're not going to get to follow through," Chelsey replied. "The rumours about Pronio are mostly true. There's a lot of robots that live in the main city that will just kill you on sight if they believe you to not be one of them."

"Right... Well, thank you for bringing us here, Yellow."

"Just doing my job. I might not necessarily like Trialians, but I believe in letting people do what they want. Good luck finding your sister." Yellow then sped off.

"Sister, huh?" Chelsey asked.

"Yep!" Josie replied. "Our sister Layla is in the city, but Yellow claims they never brought her here. Do you know anything about her?"

Chelsey scratched her head. "I know of one Trialian who looks like you, but if she is your sister, you might as well go back home the next time Yellow shows up, as there's no chance you're getting her out of here."

"She has silver hair like us, and light purple fur like Azaleah," Josie explained. "And we last saw her wearing orange clothes."

"Yeah, you're definitely not getting her back."

Azaleah frowned. "Why not?"

"She's been taken in by the leader of the city. And when someone joins the leader, they stay with the leader."

"Who is this leader? I thought Bitobia was supposed to not have one."

"Pronio is different," Chelsey replied, leading the three of them into the tunnels. "We Trialians have to stay down in these tunnels, as it's the only place where we're safe from the more hostile robots on the surface."

Azaleah turned to Josie. "You're staying down here for the duration of our stay."

"What?!"

"You're not even supposed to be here in the first place!"

"If you could be a little quieter, that'd be nice," Chelsey said. "You never know who could be listening."

Seven finally spoke up. "Hey, Chelsey? Do you know of any other prototype Nasrics?"

"Prototype Nasrics? First I've heard of their existence."

Azaleah looked around as they walked. The tunnel had doors on each side every several metres, most of which were closed. On each door was a sign with one or more names handwritten on. "How are things run down here?"