Allice in Mysterious Land (ON HOLD)

18: Anxious

"You may feel like you're smarter than Ax, but you're not."

I hiss at the persistent pain on my elbow, where Da-Xing's lightning once snapped. Again, for the several time in these few days, I meet more antiseptics.

Instead of greeting us, Sandra tweaks our ears with fussy complaints, like how a mother hen scolds her chicks for ignoring curfew.

"I'd done the same if I were him, Sandra," Roy chimes in from the bar stool, twirling his metal straw on the cup of juice.

"He should've escaped with me instead."

The throb in my head feels like icicles against my skin. I lie on the couch, leaning on the armrest. I've lost count of the painful and sore spots, also of the overweighting facts that I've gained from The Office so far.

Miro is the one feeding me with some water and a bowl of soup since Sandra refuses to. At first, he chides me for the heavy wounds, but his annoyance cools down as soon as Roy begins a topic about his game consoles.

Xin-Yo stretches next to the door, jerking awake after hours of charging. The white smoke, which was so thick, is gone now. "Lin-Roy can dispatch Xin-Yo." The corner of its eyes tip up, as if beaming.

Roy adjusts its freshly-repaired arms. "Are you ready to talk?"

"More than ready. Xin-Yo will spill out everything like a cannon."

"Go on then." Sandra opens her notebook. "What have you found?"

"Jorge Zaragoza has planned Lowlifes' genocide since six years ago, when the previous mayor, Kaya Hua, raised both the sales and personal incomes tax by two percent, regardless of one's revenue. Back then, Biliya Republic and many others were suffering when civil war broke out at our neighboring country, Okauri—"

The terms are foreign to my ears, but my mind can grasp the concept.

It was when Dad, Mom, and I almost never came home, except for sleeping. It was also when Miro was born—when Auntie Morgan borrowed our money since Uncle Oregon hadn't accepted his military pay yet.

"What did the tax raise have to do with Jorge?" Sandra quickly scribbles down.

"Jorge Zaragoza's criticisms to The Office and Biliya Republic's President, Benjamin Kamal, were supported by those with power and money—including some of The Office's influential staff—but scorned by those lacking them. Mrs. Kaya Hua might've feared Jorge Zaragoza's cunning reputation, and that was why the regulation was allowed."

Roy rolls his eyes, scowling. "Was the high taxes meant to remove the Lowlifes?"

Xin-Yo bows its head, as if bearing the sins of its previous master. "There was a huge exodus to Humbass Village. After this, Jorge Zaragoza will surely divide Dogson City. Then the Lowlifes are forced to move out... or banished."

"The Zoo-break was an experiment," I croak out. "They simulated the damages those rabid animals could cause. It was pretty successful. Schools are yet to reopen, and so are some public facilities—"

"He's misusing bioengineering." Roy's narrowed eyes reflect his bubbling anger. "If that's his objective for being a scientist all along... well, he's wrong to assume some biological substances will successfully kick the minority off this city. We'll have our own version of Chiroquin—"