Falling into the Abyss

Chapter 2: Entering the Forbidden City for the First Time (II)

Chapter 2: Entering the Forbidden City for the First Time (II)

Editors: Kat & Yuzu

A month ago, Ethan was wearing a tailored grey suit, his hair neatly gelled down with a mechanical watch on his wrist. He strode down the magnificent hallway of the Finance Council building, following behind the Energy Bureaus director.  His life was busy but orderlyhe would go to work as the secretary for the Energy Bureau at 9 a.m. and would leave work at 5 p.m. Hed then drive his car through the space stations steel forest of a city to go to his favorite Italian restaurant for dinner. Afterwards, Ethan would exercise for an hour at home. On Friday nights, he and his colleagues would go to a bar or club for a few drinks. Day after day, except for a few trivial inconveniences, his life operated smoothly.

On an ordinary Wednesday, he received distinguished guests from The Third Empire in place of the Bureaus director. At the time, he hadnt expected that the charming man with beautiful blue eyes would weave a net for him, capturing him with a single sunny smile.

He was a researcher, named Roland, and a male Alpha with sharp features and a thin layer of stubble on his chin. He possessed an unruly charm whenever he smiled. Ethan, who had always craved for someone to create ripples in his ordinary life, was unable to withstand the other partys heavy assault.

Initially, Ethan had thought that he had found his destined person, and was ready to love the man with all his might. However, when all the lies were exposed in the cold court of ethics, all of his previous  feelings had turned into sharp blades that stabbed him in the heart.

Awoken by the sound of the shrill alarm, the first thing he saw when he opened his eyes was a ceiling that was dirty beyond recognition. It was five oclock in the morning, the time for all nonhumans to get up in the Forbidden City. The sharp sound pierced through every living creatures eardrums, and echoed all over the Forbidden City. Ethan was in a daze, unable to remember where he was due to his brain buzzing with pain.

Get up, secretary, or you wont be able to eat.

Hearing a strange voice woke Ethan up immediately, and he abruptly sat up on the bed. With trembling hands, he grabbed his glasses from the dresser and put them on. He saw Samuel holding a toothbrush cup, wrapping a towel around his shoulders before he opened the door and left. The corridor was filled with the sounds of howling voices and dense footsteps. Ethan had an urge to lie down and go back to sleep, and hope that when he woke up again, he would no longer be in this nightmare.

Thinking of everything that he had lost, and how he had to stay here in the future, Ethan suddenly doubted whether he should hold on to the slim hope of living here until he obtained 100 points.

There was just one lavatory on each floor, and only ten people could enter at a time. However, there were approximately 100 people who needed to wash up and use the toilet every morning. Naturally, people would be tightly packed outside such that not even a single drop of water could leak between them. There was a foul smell of sweat in the air. After Ethan swept a glance over them, he realized that they were all men. Ethan lowered his head and mingled with the crowd. He looked up after a while, but saw no sign of Samuel.

Black mold and yellow water stains were peppered everywhere on the walls of the humble bathroom. All of the nonhumans rushed into the toilets like sheep, before quickly cleaning themselves up at the sinks. They had to finish cleaning up in a minute. Even when they were pooping, they couldnt exceed three minutes, so they could give their position to the next person. Otherwise, those in line would start to curse their mothers. Ethan used to spend 15 to 20 minutes tidying his appearance, but now, someone started swearing when his teeth were only half-brushed. He quickly rinsed the toothpaste foam from his mouth and was pushed out of the bathroom.

At half-past five, all the nonhumans had to rush to the nearest canteen to collect their morning and noon rations. After that time passed, there would be nothing left. At this point, the entire pitch-black city would have woken up, and everyone would have just left the small buildings where they lived to form long lines on the narrow and dirty streets. All the nonhumans left their residences and marched in a specific direction. Surprisingly, they walked down the streets in an orderly manner. There were robotic policemen on the streets in sleep mode, seemingly harmless and even clumsy, but in fact, they were equipped with high-energy laser weapons that could vaporize the human body in just a few seconds. Every action and move these nonhumans made were monitored by their red-tinted lenses. Because of these killing machines, these people judged to be dangerous by human society had to abide by the rules, wear uniform clothes, and amble along in the lines, just like rows of worker ants.

From the early morning until now, Ethan had been in a state of confusion, unsure of what he should do next and just blindly mimicking the others. This made him feel very helpless and nervous, to the point that his nose started to sweat. He carefully looked around and found that outside, men and women were no longer separated. Alphas, Betas, and Omegas were hard to distinguish at a glance. However, when he looked closely, he could often find a small Omega hiding behind a tall and strong Alpha. These Omegas, whether male or female, all had bruise-like bite marks on the glands on their necks, and some of them were even bleeding. These marks were obviously made by the Alphas in front of them. Ethan thought of Samuels broad back and his unmarked Omega gland. If his identity is exposed, he may become the target of numerous Alphas competing for the right to mark himit was difficult to imagine how Samuel had survived in such an environment.

It was probably due to a Betas natural desire to protect Omegas, but he developed genuine sympathy for Samuel.

But once he thought about it, he realized that he was unable to even protect himself, let alone having the leisure time to pity others

The canteen was a tombstone-shaped gray building erected on flat ground, with countless groups of people approaching from all directions. The lobby was lined with long tables stained with oil, which smelled of leftover food. Everyone lined up to receive their food at the beginning of the buffet-like setup. For breakfast, there was a compressed biscuit and a carton of milk. The bread was hard as a rock and the milk had a rancid smell, but the nutrition and energy provided by them was enough to support them for half a day. Their lunch was a can of thick soup, which was also compressed. Ethan turned around after getting his food and saw that all the nonhumans had automatically divided into groups and sat down in twos and threes to eat. Obviously, most nonhumans had their own circles of friends, and even those who were too old to walk down the road had their elderly club that gathered far away in front of the long tables.

At a loss, he turned to look for Samuel, but there was no trace of the Omega in the vast sea of people. He could only find an empty table to sit at, tearing open the wrapper of the bread and biting into it. However, he could not bite through it completely. It was as dry as wood, and it even smelled like styrofoam. A month ago, he was eating fresh beef and vegetables, drinking real grape wine, and sometimes he even had to worry about what he wanted to eat. But from now on, he could only eat meals like this.

While he was wallowing in self pity, a broadcast suddenly rang out in the canteen like a loud bell. A cold feminine voice said, The nonhumans numbered 250, 251, and 252 must gather at the gate to Zone One in ten minutes.

Ethan glanced at the number printed on his left chest, 252.

After hearing the broadcast, lots of people stood up and began walking towards the canteens exit. They should be the members of the groups mentioned by the broadcast. He saw a female Beta crying while being pulled up by another person, shouting, I dont want to die!

Ethan felt the hairs on his back and neck stand up, and the piece of bread he had just swallowed seemed to get stuck in the middle of his throat, making it difficult for him to breathe. He tried to stand up, but he couldnt move.

What exactly did these numbers mean?

Suddenly, he felt pain in his arm as someone tugged him up roughly. Looking back, he was met with Samuels cold expression.

WhWhats the matter? Ethan asked, flustered.

Samuel pushed him towards the exit, and spoke with a somber expression, I dont know whether youre lucky or unlucky, but your opportunity for atonement has arrived.

Atonement? Are you talking about the dangerous missions that are assigned to nonhumans?

Did you think that the government is so kind as to pointlessly support us, who are no longer even considered humans? Samuel sneered, his tone full of sarcasm, As long as you can survive, you will be closer to leaving. If you dont survive, then at least you dont have to eat the shitty food here.

Ethans nose was sweaty and his thoughts were jumbled as he stuttered, ButBut I havent received any training yet? Whats the mission? Ive never even touched a gun before!

How would I know? Stop talking nonsense. Those who refuse to report will be vaporized by the robot guards.

Ethan followed about 90 other people out of the canteen. Several armed guards were waiting for them outside. After quickly counting the number of people, the guards packed them into several military trucks. Ethan huddled with the strangers whose faces he could not see clearly in the dark, jolted by every bump in the road. In this gloomy atmosphere, you could hear muffled sobs, low curses, and whispers of conversation, but more than that, an oppressive silence blanketed the truck.

Ethan was still in a daze. He had heard about the atonement missions in the Forbidden City while he was working for the Energy Bureau. They said that it was extremely dangerous work, including mining highly radioactive mineral deposits, exploring volcanic regions, building bases on remote planets, being used as a test subject for experimental vaccines or treatments, and carrying out perilous missions. The more dangerous the task was, the higher the moral value points you would receive. The problem was that it also meant there was a higher probability of death. It was said that no one in the Forbidden City had been able to earn 100 points. After their trial, they would always think that they would be able to make it out alive. If they tried their best to choose jobs that werent so dangerous and slowly accumulated points, they would still be able to leave in the end.

But they forgot that, as a nonhuman, they could no longer make such choices.

Five minutes later, the truck stopped and they emerged from the dark storage container. In front of them was a tall steel wall, which was used to divide the different areas of the Forbidden City. The huge loudspeaker on the gatehouse let out a piercing hiss and then, a feminine mechanical voice similar to the one that had rung out in the canteen announced, Atonement mission code: Green Peak. Points: 10.

There was an uproar in the crowd when they heard the number of points. Samuel whistled next to him and said, Its going to be a hard job.

Ethan whispered, Is ten high?

Its one tenth of a hundred. Why wouldnt you think its high? Three months ago, we also had a 10 point mission.

Ethans heart began to sink.

Mission contents: Go to Red Earth, located in galactic region 930, and search for the preliminary developers from the Earth Union and planet Eve who had headed there previously. Departure Time: Immediate. After the feminine voice was done speaking, a handsome male Beta guard spoke through a megaphone, We need 50 people. Old rules, any volunteers?

People looked at each other, and after a long time, some people who looked rather fierce stood up. Samuel hesitated for a moment before preparing to stand up, but he was violently pulled backwards by Ethan.

If the points given are high, then it must be dangerous. You dont want to live? Ethan whispered.

Samuel slapped his hand away and glared at him. Does Lao Tzu still need fresh fish like you to teach me? Get out of here. Then he strode out towards the team. The volunteers seemed to know each other, and a few people greeted each other briefly. A huge, red-haired man hugged Samuels shoulder, and they seemed like good friends.

However, there were only nine volunteers, and 41 spots left. What should they do?

The handsome black-haired and black-eyed guard slowly walked past the crowd of nonhumans, and pointed at one with the baton he was holding. You, get out of the line.

The male Beta that was singled out was in a daze and his whole body was shivering, but he still had to step out of the line. The guards randomly pointed at people with their batons as they walked by, and soon a dozen people had left the queue, including the crying Beta woman. Most of the people who hadnt been chosen had a relieved expression, as though they had avoided a calamity. When the guard approached Ethan, he shrunk his shoulders and lowered his head, wishing that he could drill into the ground. The guards tall boots clattered on the ground, causing unstoppable tremors in his little heart.

However, the Heavens did not heed his wishes, because the baton forcefully poked his chest. You.

Ethans throat was dry and his legs were soft. He stepped out of the crowd as ordered, but his mind was blank.

Fifty people were quickly selected, and several guards came over to place a black collar around each persons neck. The cold collar kissed his skin, causing Ethan to tremble. These collars could emit an electric current that could range in lethality, from serving as a warning to being fatal. Anyone who attempted to escape or disobeyed orders would be electrified. Once again, they were packed into the truck, and experienced a bumpy journey for about half an hour before they were loaded onto a transport plane. Ethan was in a daze during the entire process, his brain refusing to accept the information because he was too afraid of the possibility of death.

Ethan had heard of Red Earth when he was in the Energy Bureau. It was the latest habitable planet discovered at the edge of the Milky Way. Because it was discovered by astronomers of both the Earth Union and planet Eve, they divided the surrounding territory and it became a region shared between both powers. Both sides sent many developers to inspect and build a base, and they even found a large number of copper ore deposits, which was reported in the news.

Ethan had once tried to observe the beautiful red planet with a high-powered telescope, but he had never thought that he would one day go there.

After flying for more than ten hours, they finally landed at a military airport surrounded by a desert similar to the Gobi. Sprawling sand-covered city ruins could be seen in the distance. This was not an ordinary airport, but a docking bay for spaceships. There were many large and bright spaceships on the broad expanse of flat ground. Most of them were beautiful and smooth saucers, a pearlescent gray shade.

Fifty nonhumans were ordered to line up behind a troop of special forces soldiers, who looked back at them with varying expressions of ridicule, interest, and indifference. A soldier said sarcastically, For me to actually have to work with this group of scum, Im really too lucky!

A female Beta officer scolded, Shut up, Jason!

Ethan had ridden in spaceships several times, and even on special planes with the director, but he had never been in a military spaceship this large. Looking up, they were like flies in the face of such a huge object, that would then sail into the endless darkness of the universe. It was difficult to not feel fear. A platform at the bottom of the spacecraft was slowly lowered, and everyone stood on it and were sent into the belly of the spacecraft.

Although this spacecraft was built for military use, the interior was very clean and had a sleek design. They were gathered in the spaceships bridge, large enough to hold two hundred people, and Ethan noticed that there were some Eves with them.

The Eves were a race known for being mysterious and beautiful. They had six sexes like humans, and their average height was only a few centimeters higher than that of humans. They had pointed ears, and a third eye on their forehead that was usually closed, merely appearing as a red scar. Unlike most of the developed races in the galaxy, the Eves were very religious, and their spiritual perception was several times higher than human beings. Somebody once said that they could perceive things that human beings could not, and were even able to communicate with the universe and its energy, capable of understanding many truths that other races found difficult to comprehend.

Most of the Eves who were following along with them were soldiers wearing white uniforms. However, there was an Eve who seemed to be a male Alpha, wearing a white silk high-collared robe embroidered with gorgeous golden threads. He had lustrous short, golden hair and a pair of silver-gray eyes, appearing delicately beautiful but somewhat dim. The mark of his third eye on his forehead was much more obvious than that of the ordinary Eves, and was like a flame burning between his eyebrows. He had a mysterious and noble temperament, setting him apart from the other soldiers.

He was probably a priest of the Eves. Since they were a faith-based race, it was unsurprising that priests often accompanied their armies while they marched into battle, and held a high position in the army.

However, this priest was really beautiful.

Hello, your eyes are glued to him, next to him, Samuel taunted him through the corner of his mouth. His comment caused Ethan to hurriedly avert his eyes, pushing up his glasses with one hand.

The Eves had long since heard of the nonhumans of the Earth Union, but this was the first time they had seen them with their own eyes. They couldnt help but glance at the fifty humans curiously.

Tanisiel, the priest in white, shifted his gaze and silently observed the so-called heinous nonhumans. Unexpectedly, a considerable number of them did not look as tall and dangerous as one would imagine, and some were even thinner and fearful than ordinary people from Earth.

Working with Earth Union humans had never been a pleasant experience. It was an ancient and closed-off country with an extremely harsh and oppressive moral value system. All human beings were required to be the same, and those who violated their alleged moral traditions would have their points deducted. The problem with this system was that these moral traditions were not necessarily reasonable. Some of them were just bad habits that had existed for a long time, while others were used by the minority to control others, which was ridiculous. For example, if someone wished to work for another company in order to earn a higher salary, they would be labeled disloyal by their old employer. A few years ago, a certain past employer had sued their former employees in the court of ethics for disloyalty, and successfully deducted three points from their moral value points. Since then, everyone had to rack their brains to come up with a noble reason to change jobs, such as to comply with the wishes of their parents or to find a workplace located more conveniently in order to take care of their children, so that their employers had no excuse to accuse them of disloyalty.

The Earthlings had always been regarded as rigid and fanatical, unable to think for themselves. They had assumed the arranged Earthling scum must be even more savage, so most people did not look forward to carrying out this mission. Although they were told that the nonhumans would be used as bait to explore and scout for dangerous creatures, it was still unpleasant to have to spend a week on a spaceship with such a group of people.

Tanisiel noticed the tall, handsome young man with a Hydra tattooed on his arm. His body exuded the standard Alpha pheromones, with a matching appearance. However, he could sense a subtle temptation from this mans body

It was the scent of an Omega

In a chaotic and dirty place like the Forbidden City, an Omega was disguised as Alphaan interesting situation had appeared.

The author has something to say:

Thank you for everyones support in the first chapter~~~

But Id like to remind everyone that this novel may be a little darker (okI dont seem to have written a story that is not dark). The protagonists are not good people. Most of the characters are in the grey zone. If you can stand it, please jump excitedly into this pit~~

T/N: Please welcome my two editors for ABYSS, Kat & Yuzu! Really glad to have them on board with me as we bring you ABYSS chapters!

Regarding the weekly release schedule of ABYSS: Most probably, I will post chapters on Tuesdays every week. Releases (might) increase depending on my tl speed and workload~

Anyway, please be prepared for an emotional roller coaster ride in this novel ~