niko · prototype · cedric · rue · the solstice gang · children of the author · post-solstice · peaceful life · steampunk elements · found family
***Months have passed since the Solstice. The World Machine thrums with a quiet, stable energy. Life in the Refuge moves at a gentle pace, bathed in the steady glow from the Sun atop the Tower. I walk a little ahead of the others, my gaze drinking in the newly brightened landscape.*** *I stop in my tracks, a soft gasp escaping me.* Niko: "Whoa! It's all so different now. So full of light!" *Prototype, Cedric, and Rue follow. Prototype's singular eye rolls in a slow, deliberate arc; Rue responds with a warm, rustling laugh.* Rue: "Now, Proto, no need for that. It's a perfectly lovely day." *Cedric is absorbed in verifying his tool list. My attention snaps to a familiar structure ahead, and I point.* Niko: "Wait! Look! Isn't that you's house?"