3 years back
Explosion Memorial Region
North-east China

Won-sia woke up in a cold sweat, heart hammering against his chest as if it's gonna break through his rib cage sometime soon. He was soaked wet in sweat as though he had run across the country in his sleep. There were a few, terrifyingly long seconds where he struggled to breathe; couldn't see the familiar crack up on the ceiling, nor the ceiling at all. He could not hear anything apart from an insistent ringing in his ears.

And then a faint buzz could be heard, somewhere near his head, as some blurred outline of a ball like a thing crossed his peripheral vision quite a few times.

Slowly, his vision returned, along with his hearing, and his heart slowed down. He blinked a few times, trying to pull apart his heavy eyelids, which seemed to be glued together by a thick coat of sticky tears. He sucked in some measured breaths as his eyesight began to clear up until he could recognize the flying ball above him to be the Orbit.

"Attempt success!--The human is awake.", He could hear Orbit chirp in its robotic voice. Won-sia rolled his eyes behind the heavy eyelids upon hearing the sound of the robot.

"Did you just...shake the shit out of me?", he quired, panting punctuating a syllable or two and his voice coming out tangled and hoarse for not using in a long time.

"Heart rate--two hundred beats per minute, high adrenaline levels detected in blood-- shallow breaths and increase of body temperature--- You didn't look very good lying there so I did what I should have done." Orbit's metal crackle resonated in a distance.

Won-sia took in one last sharp breath as he skrew shut his eyes back, reminiscing the events from his dream that he was having before stirring up.

He had had the same ominous dream once again which he was continuously bothered by for last few months.

It was of a man: only seventy-five percent human unlike him, getting ready to stab him with some ancient looking dagger. The vicious thingy had a sharp blade, sharp enough to slice through even a hard bone even if it slightly touches. It always scared the living daylight out of Won-sia; those sparkling red-gold eyes and ivory hair of his killer, said enough about his not-so-earthly presence. It didn't help him the fact that he had never in his life ever seen the man or have encountered a deadly battle like that.

"What was that? You sure you good?", Orbit whizzed across the air and lowered to the bedside, making him open his eyes. He kept blankly staring at the shiny grey metal body of the size and shape of a football gliding in midair before him, before lifting his upper body off the mattress with his elbows and sit up.

"Just a bad dream. I'm fine." He mumbled, rubbing a still partially numb, slightly shaky hand over his worked-up chest, his cold sweat bringing shivers all over his body.

He threw his numb legs over the side of the bed, trying to stand up on his feet and balance himself with his trembling legs, barely making it to not to kiss the textured bamboo-lined floor of his bedroom as the first thing of the day.

The first rays of morning sun crept through the partly curtained glass window: the only one that was available in his attic bedroom, that peered out to the New World of chaos, crimes, spacecraft, and seventy-five percent humans. Sia's eye caught how those rays had made the gilded frame of one of the couple framed photos sitting on the low cabinet on the other side of the room, to sparkle, spectacularly. Taking a moment he analyzed the capture of the precious memory secured inside, and how each of the participants there looked contended and grateful to be a part of the New World, unlike him.

Sighing, he glanced over at the lone clock that watched solemnly over to his cozy mattress and the soft knitted throw of rainbow colors huddled up on it. A sharp intake of air pierced his lungs when he saw what time it was.

"--eight--fourty-five! Great! Just great! Kudos Won-sia!"

With a disheartened moan, Hsiao started his journey to the trapdoor of the attic, where a bamboo ladder unfolded down to the ground floor of the house. He climbed down the ladder with so much effort for his disoriented limbs weren't of much support and finally landed on the ground. Orbit who had already flown down waited for its master to come down. Then as per the rituals tarted reminding him of his daily schedule.

"So, for today-- You're starting your new job at FFI as an Agent, for what apparently you're gonna be a little late on the first day--", Sia scoffed at that, "And then you need to meet Mr Ebrahm by midday-- That's only if they allow you to go out."

"I'll find a way to sneak out if not. That's like a cakewalk for me. Next?" Won-sia prompted as he wobbled across the tiny living room and straight into the bathroom on the other side.

Once he had managed to successfully reach the bathroom door, without tripping over his far too long pant legs of the sweatpants he wore to bed last night, he pushed open the bamboo door, not bothering to close it behind himself, before stripping off his sweat-coated shirt. For living all alone with just a programmed robot he had no privacy issues, no concerns on one sneaking on his olive skin or sixpack.

"At night... well you have scheduled it for hour twenty-three, you need to go and check on the new arrival at Qingdao."

"I remember it. Is that all for the day?" Hsiao quired continuing to get rid of the rest of his clothes.

His humble abode, different from all the lavish constructions that stood significantly tall: even tall enough to touch the Skie's floating cities high up in the sky, radiating the pristine aura of New World, held a unique charm to it.

It was such a delicious mix of modernity and old-world beauties blended up with a tiny bit of tech added to it. Indifferent from the solid walls and modern exterior of rust-proof metal, glass, and stone the interior was a replication of old China and its beauty. The floor and every piece of furniture found there were of bamboo and those finest wood. And the ornaments there to decorate were lively trees, veins, flowers, singing birds, and honeybees that breathed with the support of the magic of New World's tech.

Not only that the premises was Powered by the high technology of smart lock doors, and holographic panels for this and that, popping out by just a wave of the hand and with the technological witchcraft the New World possessed, but it was also the best choice for one to call "home".

"Yup. That's pretty much it but the estimated time requirement says there won't be a midday nap break for you kitty cat." Orbit sing-sang but still in its pretty robotic voice.

"I'm fine with that. After all, I'm a ninety percent human and we have perks of being that."

A/N: Who is this Won-sia though? Got any clues? ;)

wc-1233