Faint hissing and bubbling noises. Chemical smells that never faded.
In one direction, stretching endlessly, was a sea of chemicals with twisting shades of orange and green. Dotting it were metal sheets, pipes, and containers marked after being scavenged.
And in the other?
A smog-covered city, separated into districts by rivers of toxins and piled wastage. Barely visible through the haze was a towering citadel with blinking lights, carved and built out of a mountainside. The mountain range stretched endlessly into the distance with peaks that couldn't be seen from the Chemical Sea or the elevated city.
The sun rose from behind the mountains. It illuminated the vapors rising from the sea in the far distance, gradually creeping toward the city until it finally crested the peaks. A third of the day was lost before the city ever saw the sun.
Some, however, never saw the light at all.
In the darkest depths of the city, made of metal and dim lights, wails echoed. Prison bars lined the walls. Tanks filled with substances bubbled with sickly hues of red, green, and blue. Scientists and doctors briskly walked between stations and returned with babies who were lined up across a table.
A masked man walked down the row feeding each one an unknown substance with a small spoon. Most babies glowed a strong shade of blue. The ones that didn't, a shadowed man placed them onto a cold, metallic cart.
High-pitched squealing echoed as the cart was driven away. Men and women passed by to grab babies and sign documents. Later, a few more.
And a few more, and more, until there were only three left.
A gruff man arrived to pick them up and signed off on the remaining documents. In return, a different man wearing a longer tunic handed him a large metallic card and smaller similar ones.
"Ration cards. Fifteen years and low class. Swap these small cards out every six months for the next five years. Once every year after that until they are fifteen."
"And if they don't survive?" the gruff man asked.
"Your ration card will be revoked. Two must survive."
"My business is dangerous. The mortality rate is high."
"This has been assessed. You may still receive extra ration cards and coins should you scavenge any high-value relics or materials from the Chemical Sea."
"With what time?" he snorted, gesturing at the babies. "I won't have time while taking care of these things."
The shadowed man pointed at his ration card before signing off a few sections on his clipboard.
"I should note, Mr. Fenrik, should these three have another 'tragic accident,' future rations and profits will permanently be reduced by half."
Fenrik snarled and grabbed the man by the scruff. His glare remained fixed on this man who remained unfazed while the shadows around them began to glow ominously. A tense moment passed before Fenrik exhaled sharply and let go.
Without speaking any further, Fenrik loaded the three babies into a metal basket.
"Feel honored, Fenrik. You have children to pass your knowledge onto! You may yet become the father figure of students who succeeded where you have failed."
Fenrik snorted. He refused to look back as the metal sheet basket, with copper metal handles, swung haphazardly at his side as he left.
Connected by a metal pier, Fenrik returned to his home. It was a grungy home made of metal with a large intake and exhaust fan slowly turning. A small metallic boat was tied off beside it. It didn't matter what he touched, everything complained when forced to move.
His door squealed, the floor groaned, and the fans whined as they turned. A thin foam acted was the filter between the interior and the fan and the air smelled only mildly cleaner. The filter needed to be replaced soon.
The metal basket clanked onto the metal table and the babies bounced inside. Their crying had been non-stop and Fenrik sighed. He lay on the bed trying to ignore their incessant cries.
"Damn it," Fenrik cursed.
He ground his teeth as before sitting up and one by one, he fed them liquid nutrients from a bottle supplied by the city. They continued to scream however and veins began to visibly show in his neck and forehead as he became more frustrated.
"AGH! Only two need to live!" Fenrik snapped to himself, standing abruptly and noisily dropped the spoon.
Grabbing one of the babies at random, he kicked open the door and stepped over to the pier's edge.
It hovered in the air above the bubbling toxins, screaming and writhing in his grasp. Fenrik breathed heavily through his nose while his glare snapped between the baby held with one hand and the Chemical Sea below.
Fenrik closed his eyes and his grip loosened before he slowly retracted the baby back into his arms.
"Lucky little bastard."
The baby continued to scream and Fenrik groaned with continued frustration. He stared at it for several minutes before returning inside, not noticing the brief blue hue glow after he turned away.
The one he almost killed, Fenrik named Noland.
As time passed, the other babies received their names. He tried scavenging once with them in his boat when a large bubble expanded and popped. It sprayed the basket and some of the toxic chemicals splashed inside.
One of the babies shook violently, its finger crackling as the chemical turned it bubbly and inflamed. Fenrik was forced to cut it off and after seal the wound with a small magical flame from his fingertip before they returned home.
A dark and guilty expression lingered as Fenrik stared at the baby still crying and shaking in his arms from the trauma. He ground his teeth again, a habit born out of frustration and stress, before staring out at the Chemical Sea.
A small, red jade floated across the film surface, attracting Fenrik's attention. After setting the baby back into the basket, a weak magical wind pulled the tiny gem closer and with a glove, he plucked it from the chemical waters.
He cleaned it and locked it between threads to create a necklace. Jade, the name of the little lady who lost her finger, from then owned a red jade.
The last child? Unharmed and untouched? Fenrik named him Lucky.
It would be several years before Fenrik began expeditions in the Chemical Sea searching for relics. With three children, however, they never reached as far as they once did. His solo adventures had come to an end.