Heindrich gestured for them to sit on the sofa. Cole, Celes, and Cyrus sat in a row, while Heindrich sat directly across from them. Bradley took a position standing at attention behind Heindrich, his hands clasped behind his back.
"So? Do you like our city?" Heindrich asked straight away.
"Cut to the chase. Why did you bring us here?" Cole retorted.
"Ah... so you don't stand on ceremony. Good. Very well, I'll explain," Heindrich replied.
Heindrich pressed a remote in his hand. A screen dropped from the ceiling, and the room lights immediately dimmed. "Klik," the screen displayed what looked like a satellite image: an extremely deep, massive threaded hole with fog visibly spiraling down into the pit, located in a snow-covered land. A dark metropolitan city, saturated with red lights, was visible near the hole, and the giant undead foot of a man was also partially captured on the right side of the photograph.
The photo shifted, displaying the inside of the hole. Countless Draugr of various forms were visible walking along the sides of the pit. There was also an undead, dinosaur-like flying monster soaring out of the hole with a Draugr rider perched on its back. But the most terrifying sight was several giant humanoids climbing up from inside the hole, being careful not to step on the edges where the Draugr were moving up and down. The photos were utterly grotesque and completely unbelievable to the eye.
"Klik," the screen retracted, and the lights came back on. Cole, Celes, and Cyrus remained silent, still unable to speak after witnessing the horrifying images.
"Alright, what are your thoughts after seeing those photos?" Heindrich asked.
"Where is that?" Cole asked.
"On an ice-covered continent, the main Draugr headquarters and lair. That city is theirs," Heindrich replied.
"Okay, and? What does this have to do with us?" Cole pressed.
"Here's the thing: you know we've been defending ourselves against them all this time. Now, we want to launch an attack, and we expect you to take part in our offensive," Heindrich answered, cutting straight to the point.
Celes immediately gripped Cole's arm, and Cyrus turned to look at Cole in the middle. Cole leaned his head forward.
"I'm sorry, but we're not interested in your war against the Draugr," Cole stated, smiling faintly.
"I expected that. I won't force you, but I am asking you to at least stay in this city with the rest of humanity," Heindrich said.
"Hmm... may we have a moment to think about it? I still have school, and I have to go back the day after tomorrow. Celes too," Cole asked, offering a flimsy excuse.
"Fine, there's a school here as well; you're welcome to enroll," Heindrich countered.
"No, I like my school," Cole replied.
"Just think about it, then give us your decision. If you genuinely want to return, we'll escort you," Heindrich promised.
"I have one more question, then," Cole asked.
"Ask anything you like," Heindrich replied.
"Are there any Draugr here?" Cole asked. Celes and Cyrus nodded and stared intently at Heindrich.
Hearing Cole's question, Heindrich and Bradley glanced at each other, then immediately burst into loud laughter.
"My apologies, but seriously... your question is hilarious. Of course, there are no Draugr here. This is a human city floating on the ocean; it's impossible for Draugr to be here," Heindrich insisted.
"Alright, if that's the case, may we leave? We want to look around the city that you say might be our new home," Cole said.
"Be my guest. I hope you'll have your answer tonight or tomorrow," Heindrich replied.
"We will," Cole confirmed.
Cole, Celes, and Cyrus stood up, then walked out of the room. Once the door was closed, Bradley sat across from Heindrich.
"Is it really okay to let them wander around the city unescorted?" Bradley asked.
"Relax. As long as they're wearing those chokers, they can't do anything, and we can track their every movement—there's a transmitter in the choker," Heindrich replied with a relaxed smile.
"Hmm... understood, sir," Bradley replied, also smiling.
***
A little while later, Cole, Celes, and Cyrus had left the building and were standing outside. They were amazed by the sheer number of people passing by on the sidewalk, the cars parked along the street, and several food trucks in the park across from the G.D.A. headquarters.
Yet, despite the sights, they hadn't lowered their hands from their noses. They crossed the street to the park. Standing in the center of the park was a giant robot, its weapon held ready, seeming to watch over the city. The robot's head turned to look at them, then swiveled away. Cole, Celes, and Cyrus froze, staring at the huge robot without dropping their hands from their noses.
"Is this the first time you've seen a G.E.A.R?"
Cole, Celes, and Cyrus turned to see an old man standing next to them, looking up at the large robot.
"GEAR?" Cyrus asked.
"Guardian Earth Assault Robot, that's what GEAR stands for," the old man explained.
"Oh, gotcha. That's new to me," Celes said.
"Are you new to New Leviathan, then?" the old man asked.
"Yeah, Gramps, we just got here," Celes answered.
"Exactly how many floating cities like this are there, Gramps?" Cole asked.
"Hmm? Where are you folks from? As I recall... there are eight cities, and they all have their own armies. Since this is your first time seeing a GEAR, you must be from Neptune, right? Neptune's the only one that doesn't have a GEAR," the old man replied.
"Yeah, that's right, Gramps, we're from Neptune," Cyrus chimed in.
"Are you here for school? Or work?" the old man asked, clearly nosy and wanting to know everything.
"We're here for work, of course, Gramps," Celes replied.
"Well, alright, glad to see young folks with such hustle. I'll be off now, good day," the old man said.
"Good day, Gramps," the three replied in unison.
After the old man left, Celes and Cyrus immediately turned to look at Cole, who was standing between them. Cole looked back at the two.
"What?" Cole asked.
"Don't talk next time; you're too stiff," Celes chided.
"Yeah, seriously, Big Brother Cole, you blew it," Cyrus added.
"Hey, I just asked a question, didn't I?" Cole countered.
"Your question could have gotten us grilled. Humans are supposed to know how many floating cities there are," Celes replied.
"Hmm... good point. But it went smoothly, didn't it?" Cole said.
"That's only because the guy talking to us was an old man. If it was someone more suspicious, we would have been scrambling to answer," Cyrus retorted.
"How are you so quick, though? Haven't you been stuck in that robot for five years?" Cole asked Cyrus.
"I talked to myself a lot because I had no one else to talk to in the robot, and I also sang to myself a bunch... so I'm pretty confident when I meet people, get it, big brother?" Cyrus said.
"Okay, okay... let's move," Cole conceded.
They walked away from the park, continuing along the sidewalk. They saw plenty of uniformed high school kids hanging out, a packed arcade, a whole street of restaurants on both sides, and all the usual city sights. But throughout their entire tour, Cole, Celes, and Cyrus never dropped their hands from their noses, and finally, in the late afternoon, they were standing back in the park.
"This... something's wrong, right? Why won't this smell go away? We've been walking all over the place," Cyrus asked.
"You're right, the stench is sticking around, but we haven't run into a single Draugr," Celes replied.
"Yeah, because this scent isn't coming from the city itself... it's coming from beneath the city," Cole said, looking down.
"Really?" Cyrus asked.
"Hmmm... he's got a point," Celes murmured, also looking down.
"Yeah, something is clearly screwed up with this floating city. We need to head back right now and give them our answer. Obviously, we can't stay here," Cole declared.
"Okay, agreed," Celes affirmed.
"Me too... I totally agree," Cyrus added.