Chapter Text
Returning to Rosewell and Amara, they had their way to the River. As the name would suggest, it was a large river that was used to transport the raw crystals that were taken from the Pit to the labs where they could be processed. The water was sparkling from the assortment of crystals that were flowing through the current. The sound of water flowing and the tingling of crystals created a serene, elegant atmosphere. On the right side of the river was a slope. At the high end of it is a path that is used for tourists to walk through. While on the path, before going any further into the history of the River. Reece, the tour guide, was very adamant that all patrons of the tour take notice of the red line demarcated on the left side of the path. They were instructed not to cross that line under any circumstances to stop them from falling down the landslide and into the river, since the path had no railings. After explaining all that, Reece would continue with the tour.
As they continued down the path, Amara scoped the area, looking around for anything that would be of relevance to their operation. She took notice of a Steel scaffolding on the opposite end of the river, and at the top of the river was an office-like structure.
“What’s going on up there?” She asked the Tour guide.
“That is the Minery control room,” Reece responded. “In there, we can monitor every inch of the facility and communicate with personnel. The control panel is capable of analyzing crystals, controlling lighting in the mines, managing power, and if necessary, alternating the current flow of this river. In the latter parts of the tour, we’ll be taking y’all up there to get a better look, so hang tight.”
Upon hearing that, Amara whispered to Rosewell that that place would be an ideal spot for their stakeout. Meanwhile, two children who were uninterested in the tour decided to entertain themselves by playing tag with each other. In doing so, one of the children bumps into Rosewell, but with Rosewell weighing more than 300 lbs, it was like running straight into a wall. The child falls fast, but Rosewell catches him before he hits the floor.
“Whoa! Careful there,” Rosewell says as he sets the child back up.
“Sorry, mister,” the boy says with a smile. As Rosewell checks to see if the boy got hurt anywhere, the boy looks at the slave seal on Rosewell’s hand. “Whoa, cool tattoo,” he says.
Rosewell does not respond; rather, he doesn’t know how to. At that moment, the boy’s parents rushed to the scene with the other sibling in hand.
“We are so sorry,” They exclaimed, “Rashid! What did we say about horseplay with your brother?”
“No, no, it's alright,” Rosewell exclaims
The parents apologize again and grab their son. Still, before they leave, the son expresses how he would like to get a tattoo like Rosewell's for himself.
“That’s not a tattoo, son,” the father says, embarrassed
“Then what is it?” The boy asks
“If you stay in school and out of trouble, hopefully, you’ll never have to know,” the mother interjects as she pulls them away.
Amara, visibly offended by the slight dig at Rosewell, was about to give that woman a piece of her mind, but she was stopped by Rosewell, who did not want the situation to escalate any further.
The tour continued without much fuss, but as they got closer to the end of the river, those two boys started causing mischief once again, restarting their game of tag, only this time their chase was even more chaotic, going as far as crossing the red line. At this point, the father yelled at the boys. His furious roar caused one of the boys to halt at the spot. Still, the other son (the one doing the chasing) tripped over himself, pushing his brother down the landslide and into the river.
Recce immediately radios to the control room to have the current for the river to halt, which they do. The boy knew how to swim, so his parents were more crossed than worried. However, the landslide would make it impossible for the boy to get out alone. Recce goes to put on a rope and harness to use to get the boy, but at that moment, he and everyone else notice the water beginning to ripple more aggressively. From afar, they say a large chunk of crystal shards is hurling towards the boy. While the current flow had been halted, this batch had already been in motion, and its momentum wasn't allowing it to slow down. Fear started to drench everyone. The mother screamed for her child, and the father tried to jump in but was pulled back by other patrons telling him going in without a rope was suicide and should instead let Recce go, but in actuality, there was nothing that Recce could possibly do, he would not be able to save the boy in time the crystals were to close. Just then, a powerful gust of wind blows past Recce. Rosewell jumps in, scaling the entire landslide and diving into the water. He swims towards the boy with great haste, grabbing hold of him. There is no time for hesitation or second-guessing as the cluster comes speeding towards them. Rosewell makes a beeline for the steel scaffolding and, with the child in one arm, begins to climb. The cluster of crystals is closing in. Rosewell sees that there is room for error, so he lifts the boy up as high as he can and clings to a steel pole to make himself as small as possible. As such, the cluster passes them, only giving Rosewell a few scratches on his back.
The crisis is averted. The boy is returned to his parents, and Rosewell has his injuries treated. The family immediately rushes to Rosewell, profusely thanking him for saving their son. They begin to leave the mother, but the mother hesitates; she turns to Rosewell with a look of regret and remorse.
"I'm really sorry for what I said earlier; it was wrong of me to make such a comment at your expense." She says
"It's alright, I'm just glad your son is safe," Rosewell replies with a calm smile.
The mother returns to her family while Recce walks up to Rosewell and Amara.
"Dang, you guys just can't catch a break, can you?" he jokes. “You aight?”
Amara and Rosewell were initially put off by the tour guide now speaking in an informal tone.
“Eh, a few cuts but nothing too deep, I'll be alright,” Rosewell replies.
“So, we’re gonna have to end the tour prematurely,” Recce explains.
“What?” Rosewell complains
“Yeah, sorry, it’s policy, and a child almost dying kind of ruins the mood, doesn’t it? We can reschedule for you if you want,” The tour guide replies.
“We’re kind of on a tight schedule, so this was a now-or-never type thing for us,” Amara explains. The tour guide, in response, offers to give Amara and Rosewell a refund, which they are not too enthusiastic about.
“Dang! And Balto went through all that trouble to get these tickets in the first place,” Amara mutters to Rosewell, but catches the tour guide’s ear.
“Wait. You guys are friends of Balto,” he asks. To which they nod. “Well, damn, you should have led with that. Tell you what, I’ll see to the other patrons exiting the mine real quick, and when I get back, I’ll give you guys a private tour of the remaining facility.”
As the tour guide walks away. Leaving Amara and Rosewell to do nothing but just look at each other, amused at the stroke of luck they just got.