01 The Day Starts

She gently sent her off on her way.

This has been the division they have decided. Her travel buddy is the one who fetches most of their supply while she mostly stayed inside or nearby this metallic monstrosity they call home, a lumbering beast of a machine perfect for their travel.

It’s about time to set up her shop. Might as well advertise by the waves though she does not know how effective that will be. The towns in the dessert, especially this part are not known to be technologically advance – atleast in comparison to where she is from. The Technological State of 8D after all is the pinnacle of advancement in The Great Plains. Her skill is greatly regarded there – she has quite a comfortable life, well until that day.

Here she is now though, travelling around – her skill… still handy. In a place where outlaws, raiders, bandits are rampant, and someone losing a limb or two is almost normal, making her skills become invaluable. With it, she an expert in advance arm prosthetics and mechanism finds enough pods and then some to pay for food and supplies.   

She does think so that it is heartbreaking to monetize such, but she needs live too, to eat too. Where she is and where she is going it is important to survive – atleast until she fulfilled that request.

She set up her tools, screws, springs and gears. Planning to tinker on that last mechanical arm she has on her working table and just above that is her driver’s license, a reminder of where she was from.

Before she starts, she needs that. She went and fetches that small device hanging on loop on another ID. The one near the driver’s seat, she look at the tiny picture – that made her smile but also almost cry.

She went back to her working table, inside this monstrosity of a vehicle. Today is a start of another day, and like any other day she starts it by plugging her earphones into that device.

Listening to the voice – she used to listen to everyday, the voice she longed to listen to – to this day, cheering her on her day.

“You can do it, Hyewon-ah!”  

02 The Desert and Kim Chaewon

Dust and dust everywhere.

She thought she is used to it already after living most of her life in this devilish place. Apparently not, she try her best breathe under that heavy gas mask as a slew of devil dust was sent her way by the gusting wind.

The hellish heat of the sun is irritating her as well.

For why this place is collectively called the Mint Desert she has no idea, if only she is born in the Sky mountains – she hopes to visit that place - for maybe atleast once in her life she can breathe a better air.

She drags her feet to the guard stationed at the entrance. Trying her best to be polite, she showed him – her ID.

“Kim Chaewon – a citizen. You may go in Ms. Kim”

She nods to him as he gestures that she can go inside the town, an almost ruined town. Must have been good for a certain someone not to see this place, or grow in one. Her previous situation is much better, she have a home and a work – not like her work today.

 Switching from being an inn keeper to a mercenary is hard but necessary. How can she be an inn keeper if there is no more inn to keep, yes one day everything just disappeared – including her - her dear older sister.

That is the reason why despite hating the sun, the wind and the dust – she always volunteers to be the one buying the supplies. Towns is where she can start looking for clues where she went, inns keepers and barkeeps specially – at the right price you get what you want to know.