There are moments when Pax feels lucky for being mute. Sneaking out without being noticed by others is one perk. The Vitares and Hydradon neytives have their own problems to deal with. If they end up using their triggers, that’s on them.

He’s the first one out the doors and turns to make sure nobody is following him. Pax decides to take his own tour of Auroris.

As he walks through the corridors, he unwinds the layer of linen covering his hands. Wrapping and unwrapping is a tick that he has grown accustomed to in the past. It’s usually out of curiosity and nervousness. Underneath the cloth is a bronzed hand like the rest of his body. He wraps it back up once his skin is hit with cold air.

The detour leads him to a pair of doors, three times bigger than the Celestial Chamber and merging with another level above him. On the wall to the right are the words ‘Integration Cube’.

It’s a vast cube-shaped room that is equally the size of the pyramid he was imprisoned in. The walls are smooth, but warm to the touch. The heat punctures through the cloth on his hand. The room itself is white with a tinge of green along the edges of each panel. At the center of the room is a thin podium with a holographic interface. The screen displays sixteen individual orbs making a circle around the Myalón symbol.

Pax lifts three fingers to the interface and an orb moves to the center. It reads ‘Isle of Ra-Dimar.’

Instantly, the floor changes from a polished white to sandy dunes. A blazing sun is placed on the ceiling and a clear sky is draped along the walls. The room then spits out large molds of objects in random places. The Integration Cube is recreating the landscape of his isle. Pyramids, spires, bridges, temples and other monuments rise out of the sand.

The screen reads ‘Ra-Dimar Integration Complete.’

He’s bewildered at how the cube is an exact replica of his island. The heat radiating from the walls makes it feel like he never left the island. In the far off corner of the cube, there’s a pyramid that brings back a flood of memories. A place he once called home.

Before he was imprisoned, Pax remembers using his claws to make that home along with his father. His mother would carve their family insignia along the exterior of the pyramid, while his sister would work on the altar at the top. They would lay out foundations and etch prayers on the walls. His father would give him the task of painting their pyramid. Both his parents knew how much he enjoyed painting. To ask him to cover their home in vibrant colors was an unforgettable memory. It was one of Pax’s best moments before the Trybal War began.

The cube has a cruel sense of humor. The home that was built by a family now lies in ruins.

He was hoping to wander around the cube for a little while longer, but that’s no longer an option when an uninvited guest shows up.

A neytive is crouching on top of a support beam for a bridge that stretches diagonally across the cube. Pax remembers the neytive speaking Trillician in the chamber. He’s not wearing his new jacket but his old clothes, and his untamed pitch black hair points in all directions.

Xen crawls down the bridge vertically, head first, and doesn’t take his eyes off Pax. Once he is halfway down the bridge, he stops and turns upright to greet him. His fingers and toes dig into the stone like nothing. He begins trilling, but Pax doesn’t understand what he’s saying.

The Wavotio takes his right hand out of the sand and points to his ears. He’s asking if Pax is hearing impaired.

He shakes his head no.

Xen smiles at the response. He points his hand to his throat and back to Pax. His tail swings eagerly behind him.

Pax is getting bothered with Xen’s presence in the room. He reaches behind him and grabs a small leather pouch attached to his pants. A stream of sand pours out and levitates in the air. He draws his hand out and twitches his fingers.

‘I am mute,’ he sunacates.

Xen tilts his head in a bizarre way. He pushes himself off the structure and slides to the ground. He then asks for something that Pax was hoping wasn’t leading to. The Wavotio collides his fists twice, forcing an echo around them. The Myalón gesture for a fight.

There’s some hesitation in Pax and he’s too distracted to notice Xen moving backwards to the entrance. His tail swings across the podium and it hits an icon. The room glows red and the climate turns cold.

Pax watches Xen disappear into the gust of sand building up in the room. He covers his mouth with linen and forces his metallic claws to come out.

The cube replicates a sandstorm that’s severe enough to cause damage to the structures. He stays alert through sound and sight, the only parts of him that are heightened. He catches the sound of footsteps behind a column and runs toward it, clawing at the wall of sand. A small cloud of sand clings to his new jacket.

There’s no one there, but Pax feels a pair of hands pull him back. He’s tossed to the ground and is picked back up by Xen.

The Wavotio climbs up a spire with his hands, while holding onto Pax with his tail. He tries to claw out of the vice grip, but it’s no use.

Pax claws at the spire to slow them both down.

Once they reach the top, Xen stops and pushes himself off the spire. He leaps away from the spire and reaches out toward the bridge. He successfully clings to the beam, but Pax’s body braces for the impact. Everything in his body starts to radiate a burning pain in his neck, back and shoulders.

The Wavotio lets go of Pax and he’s sent tumbling down to the ground.

He thinks quickly and uses his claws to dig into the bridge. He still falls and takes in the full brunt of hitting the ground with a thud. The air is knocked out of his lungs and a sprain forms in his wrist.

Pax looks up to see Xen crawling down to him, but keeping his distance. A small smirk spreads across his face before he takes a deep breath. A high pitched scream escapes his throat and shatters everything in its path.

He rolls away from the bridge and dodges the scream before it hits him, but the impact it makes is much larger than he thought. Chunks of stone break apart from the bridge and more sand kicks up.

Xen reaches the ground and produces another scream.

Pax isn’t ready for it and his eardrums almost rupture.

The scream forces him to crawl across the sand to a nearby structure. He looks up to see a wide smile displaying Xen’s true intentions. He purposely wants to hurt him.

The Wavotio prepares to scream again, but is forced back when a wall of fire appears between them.

The cube changes back to its original polished state. All of the structures and sand dunes dissolve back into the floor and walls. The sun and sky disappear from view like they never existed. The only things left in the empty cube are Pax, Xen and their second uninvited guest.

Standing next to the podium is the Inphernos neytive Pax saw earlier. He stands there with a blank expression, like he is neither excited or angry after watching the fight that took place.

The Inphernos neytive walks toward them. “Leave. Now.”

Xen tucks his tail between his legs and raises his hands in surrender. He’s acting as if they were just practicing their trigger in a mutual match. He flashes his signature grin at the Inphernos before sprinting out of the room on all fours.

Pax is too injured to notice a hand reach out to him with a monotone voice. “Are you alright?”

Even after a brutal fight with a deranged Wavotio neytive, he’s reluctant to accept any offer from him. The promise he made to his Preeminent and the Chancellor rings in the back of his mind. A part of that promise involves an Inphernos neytive.

Pax pushes himself up, refusing to take the neytive’s hand or answer his question.

“Your injuries look serious,” the neytive continues to talk. “I can escort you to the Medical Wing if you want.”

Pax keeps his claws out and reaches for more sand in his pouch. He flinches at the stinging pain in his wrist.

“Do not move so much. Xen’s sound trigger was very powerful…” the Inphernos neytive grazes his arm, and that’s enough for Pax to shove him away.

Sand floats between them and mold into words. ‘Do not touch me! Stay away from me!’

The Inphernos goes quiet and takes a step back. His body expression doesn’t change, but he’s respecting his boundaries.

Pax tries his best to avoid eye contact with the Inphernos. He has felt nothing but disdain for anything related to the Inphernos trybe and its neytives. Now he can’t think with both of them in the same room.

He reaches underneath his sleeve to tighten the linen on his wrist. 

Without even thinking first, Pax looks up to see the Inphernos. His eyes are glowing a deep scarlet red, matching the streaks in his hair. He also notes his average build and demeanor. Nothing about him matches his facial expression. He can’t help but feel repulsed at how collected the Inphernos is compared to the other neytives on Auroris.

Pax turns and walks out of the Integration Cube, leaving the Inphernos to do whatever he wanted to do in the cube. When he turns the corner, he takes his time unwrapping his linen and wrapping it again in his good hand. The interaction with both neytives unnerves him.