Months ago

Of course you probably want to know what happened to Elisheva's family. For starters, Samuel and Zev were taken to a secret facility in the heart of Dugtown.

Even though he and his father were transported within the dreaded Black Carriage, it was nothing compared to being separated his older sister and the constant nightmares from the day the Fangs broke into the Bennet's family apartment.

Zev awoke with a gasp, wheezing, his body trembling with a mixture of fear and unease. His eyes darted around the dimly lit room, his eyes searching for any signs of danger. He and his father were still in the Carriage being taken to who knows where.

"Still having bad dreams from that night?" Samuel asked his son, spoke with a mix of concern and weariness.

Zev nodded, sitting up and wrapping his arms around himself. "Yeah, Dad. I can't shake off the memories. I just hope Elisheva is safe."

Samuel's gaze softened as he placed a comforting hand on Zev's shoulder. "Me too."

From the glimpses they got from the barred windows, they saw they were in a city which... looked like slums of London during the 1800's.

If not for the reptilian Fangs and other peculiar factors, both father and son would have thought they'd gone right through a time machine.

As the Black Carriage slowed down, Samuel and Zev exchanged bewildered glances. They had been taken far from their familiar surroundings of modern-day New York City, transported to the heart of Dugtown—a place that seemed ripped out of the pages of a bygone era.

Gazing through the barred windows, they caught glimpses of the cityscape that stretched before them, resembling the dilapidated slums of 19th-century London. The cobblestone streets, dimly lit gas lamps, and rickety buildings painted a picture of destitution and despair.

"Where are we, Dad?" Zev asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

"I don't know, son," Samuel replied, his voice heavy with worry. "But if we're gonna get out of this mess, we better first figure out what they're gonna do to us."

Zev nodded, his face set in determination. They knew that the Fangs were dangerous, but they also knew that they couldn't give up hope. Not with Elisheva somewhere out there. As they huddled together in the darkness, Samuel and Zev listened intently for any clue.

When the carriage finally came to a stop, muffled voices reached their ears.

A baritone voice with a cockney accent grumbled. It was a sound that didn't belong to a Fang. One of the Fang guards then barked to the prisoners, "Move along! The Overseer's waiting."

Once father and son stepped out of the carriage, they got a good look around. Standing in front of one of the bigger Fangs was a round-faced possibly Caucasian man wearing a black velvet top hat, he wore fingerless gloves and a tattered suit with tails and purple lapels. He was the one the Fang was talking to. When he smiled, his smooth face creased into too many wrinkles, and a wide set of crooked teeth gleamed.

As Samuel and Zev caught sight of the imposing figure of the Overseer, they exchanged a whispered gag, careful not to attract attention.

Zev, his eyes widening with a mix of surprise and amusement, leaned close to his father. "Is that the hatbox ghost if he were alive?"

Samuel, a hint of a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth, nodded with a frown. "Definitely the Hat Box Ghost. Only if he were human. We'd better not let him catch us laughing, though."

They stifled their laughter, knowing that any outward display of amusement could have dire consequences. Above all, they needed to find out where they are and what's going on.

The Overseer stood and spread his arms wide. "A child! And a healthy one too! Where did you find him?" He straightened and put his hands on his hips. "And do you have another?"

The lead Fang snapped, "You'll make do with this outsider man too! The Mighty one wants him under strict watch."

Samuel is then shoved forward, nearly stumbling. Zev stuck by his father worriedly, helping him up.

"Y'know I take only young ones…" The Overseer began, narrowing his eyes at Samuel suspiciously.

"You questioning orders?!" The Fang snarled.

The Overseer scowled. "No."

Neither Zev nor Samuel could hear the rest of the conversation as other sounds drowned them out. Finally the shady man grunted in annoyance. "Alright! Ledger!"

The two Bennets saw what looked like a short person – but he was too bony, and with too many pointy features to be someone with dwarfism. He had scruffy black hair and beady brown eyes. The small man skittered out with a thin, leather-bound book in his arms. The little creature was dressed like the Overseer, in a tattered black suit and top hat, and it was plain he was uncomfortable in the human clothes.

The Overseer snatched the ledger from him with a show of great impatience. "Thank you, Mobrik," he droned, while he flipped through the pages of the ledger. "Name?"

The man glowered at both Samuel and at Zev, who stared back bewilderedly. Samuel spoke first. "Er… Samuel Bennet." He could sense the man analyzing him and his son.

"Z-Zechariah Bennet, but everyone calls me Zev." Zev replied.

"Samuel Bennet and Zechariah Bennet," the Overseer muttered, jotting down their names in the ledger. He peered at them, his dark eyes studying them intently. "Outsiders, are you?"

Samuel nodded, his voice tinged with caution. "Er, yes, we're from New York City."

The Overseer's lips curled into a sneer, betraying his clear skepticism. He closed the ledger with an audible thud and handed it back to Mobrik, who scurried away with it, his eyes never leaving Samuel and Zev.

Doubt lingered in dark the man's dark eyes, and he scrutinized the father and son before him. He seemed unconvinced by their alleged origins.

"You claim they're outlanders from further than Aerwiar?" the Overseer questioned, his voice laced with skepticism.

Before Samuel or Zev could respond, the Fang interjected with a hiss of warning, redirecting the Overseer's attention.

"What about my sister?" Zev's voice rang out, filled with a mixture of concern and desperation.

Samuel also glanced over, the exact same question in his eyes.

"The Key is no longer your concern!" The Fang hissed at Zev, then told the Overseer. "Take them to the factory, and do not let them out of your sight!"

A wicked smile played at the corners of The Overseer's lips, revealing the delight he took in their captivity.

Samuel's heart sank at the dismissal of his plea about Elisheva. He knew he couldn't push further without endangering himself and Zev. His jaw tightened, his protective instincts flaring as he sensed the danger emanating from these two sinister characters. Zev clung tightly to his father's hand, his hazel-green eyes filled with a mix of fear and defiance. They knew they had to tread carefully in this den of exploitation and cruelty.

Abruptly, Samuel and Zev were shoved into another carriage. Mobrik, the ridgerunner, (neither Zev nor Samuel knew that's what Mobrik was) squatted in the shadows in the far corner of the carriage, paying them no attention. Samuel just lowered his eyes, silently praying while Zev gazed out the window at Dugtown as it passed by. He saw Crempshaw Way approaching, the hill descending to the river on the left.

When the carriage turned right and the horse strained uphill, away from the river and deeper into Dugtown, Zev spotted the street sign on the corner that said Tilling Court.

"Where are we going anyway?" Zev asked.

The ridgerunner looked at him with surprise. "Why," he said, "to the Fork Factory."

Dugtown was a much bigger city than Zev thought. The clop of hooves and the creak of the carriage settled into an eternal drone, broken only by the occasional crack of the Overseer's whip.

The way the Dugtowners hurried by meant there must be a strict curfew. The Overseer didn't seem to care, even when clusters of Fangs prowled past. They paid little attention to the carriage. The horse plodded on at the same slow pace, even when the bells sounded. At once the busy city went to sleep.

Now and then a Fang passed the carriage with a grunt of greeting, and the Overseer could be heard grimly saying, "My lord," in answer. Finally, the carriage squeaked to a stop. The sad brown horse snorted.

Mobrik stepped past father and son, opened the door, and leapt to the ground. The door closed before Zev could even think of tugging his father out.

The ridgerunner approached a rusty portcullis in the center of an immense brick building. With a great racket, the iron gate slowly rose. The vertical bars of the gate ended in points, which made the building look like a monster opening its mouth to swallow the horse and carriage whole. Above the gate, a big metal sign bore the inscription, in bold, rusty letters, FORK! FACTORY!

With another snap of the whip, the carriage lurched forward into the mouth of the brick monster. Tucked in the shadows just inside the gate stood two children. Their clothes were tattered, their faces blank. They stared at Samuel and Zev as they passed, then turned away and, taking hold of a fat chain, lowered the portcullis under the watchful eye of Mobrik.

Far above, rafters and planks crisscrossed the ceiling. Chains and ropes dangled down into the light of lanterns on the lower walls. Except for the carriage, the floor of the vast room was bare.

The Overseer, still wearing his top hat, appeared. He grinned wickedly and pinched Zev's cheek between his thumb and forefinger, making a sarcastic arm spread in Samuel's direction. "Welcome, gentlemen!" he said, then examined Samuel and Zev, getting a good look at their arms and hands. "Yes. Good arms. Good hands. Even the grown one here might still make some use yet." The top hatted man mused critically. "I'm the Overseer. You're tools in my factory, no different from a hammer or a rake. The difference is, unlike a hammer, I have to feed your greedy faces to keep you alive. Did you enjoy the ride here?"

Neither Samuel nor Zev said anything just yet. They could hear the sounds of machinery and the clanging of metal all around them, but they had no idea what those lizard creatures had led them to or who these strangers were.

The cacophony of machinery and the metallic clangs reverberating around them only added to their unease. They had no inkling of what awaited them in this strange place or who these enigmatic figures were. It felt as though they had stepped into a nightmarish realm straight out of one of Stephen King's novels.

"All mum, then? Good. Fast learners. The finest tools are fast learners." The Overseer smiled, revealing every one of his crooked teeth. He then gave a dismissive wave of his hand to Mobrik. "Tell them."

"Tools don't speak. They nod, like this." Mobrik nodded his tiny head up and down. "Or they shake, like this." He shook his head from side to side.

"Now then. Did you enjoy your ride?" The Overseer glowered at the two.

Samuel and Zev exchanged nervous looks before slowly nodding, too wary to speak for the moment.

The Overseer then disappeared through a door in the far wall of the chamber and left the horse harnessed to the carriage. Mobrik led Samuel and Zev to a set of double doors at the rear of the room.

"So er, do we get to speak, or just use head motions, Mr. er… Mobrik, was it?" Samuel asked carefully, this whole setup felt like something he read in a Charles Dickens novel.

Mobrik glanced at him. "Speak if you like. But don't expect an answer, unless you carry a sack of apples I can't see. The Overseer enjoys having me around to boss, but he and I both know the only reason I'm here is for the sweet yellow apples he gets from upriver."

Zev shrugged. "We got no apples, Mister. Sorry."

"Then no answers." Mobrik replied curtly.

Mobrik pushed through the double doors and led them down a long, dark hallway. At the far end was another set of doors with two square windows that glowed yellow. As they approached, the two Bennets heard an awful racket, and the temperature rose. When they opened they were greeted with a sight seen in History books explaining the Industrial Revolution.

Flames sputtered from pipes and smokestacks, roared in black ovens, and curled from vats of molten iron. The newcomers noses stung with the stench of sweat and smoke. In the center of the enormous room squatted an enormous black furnace. Red-hot pipes rose from it and snaked through the room in a senseless knot. Some of the pipes spewed smoke from ruptured joints, and others dripped black, steamy liquid. Smoke gathered at the ceiling like a storm cloud. Beside the furnace stood a contraption that shuddered and clanked. It wasn't clear what the machine did besides make an awful racket, but the turn of its gears and the steadiness of its chugging made it clear it was doing something.

In front of the mouth of the furnace were three piles of coal. After their eyes adjusted, father and son saw figures with shovels trudging the distance between the coal and the furnace. They were children!

On the left of the great room were seven aisles divided by long narrow tables. Trenches cut in the center of the tables caught the glowing liquid that poured from spouts hanging from the ceiling. Children tended to the molten steel with pikes and tongs. Both Samuel and Zev saw even more children, hundreds of them, gathered around tables and anvils and large stone bowls, hammering, carrying buckets of water to and fro, and stirring the burning liquid with iron poles. Everywhere they looked there was movement.

But what were they making in this place? Samuel was the first to find out.

Everywhere they looked, they saw children. Some were old enough to pass for young adults, but most were young teenagers. A few glanced at the two newcomers as they passed, the whites of their eyes the only clean spots in the factory, but most kept their heads down, either shoveling coal, hammering a hot sheet of metal, scraping fragments of debris into a wheeled barrel, or pushing carts piled heavy with lengths of steel—

Swords. The graceless curve of a Fang blade, though the hilt hadn't yet been attached.

"Oh my Lord. It's a weapons factory for those creatures!" Samuel whispered as he's lead away.

These kids looked tired and exhausted. This reminded him of the dark periods in Victorian times before children's rights were reinforced in 1924 and before UNICEF was created.

Who knew how long they were forced to work in the factory? Some were old enough to have whiskery fuzz on their chins, and others were barely Zev's own age. Samuel just couldn't understand why the Overseer used only children for the labor. Couldn't an adult work longer and faster?

"Come on! To the back, tool," said a voice from behind Samuel. Mobrik the ridgerunner stood at Samuel's elbow glowering. "It's my job to make sure the new implements learn the system. You eat soup, then you wash your face, then you head back to the factory floor to do your job. Understand?"

"Yes, I think so."

"Then go," Mobrik said, turning away.

That same day, they were separated and put to work in different areas of the factory. Samuel was assigned to a crude packaging area. Although he was away from all the heat and coal, the smell wasn't doing him any favors, and he struggled to keep up with the demands of his 'job'.

Meanwhile, Zev was assigned to the assembly line, where he had to work alongside other children his age.

Mobrik led him through several more turns before he stopped at a long table. A girl stood in front of the table, holding a pair of giant rusty scissors. On the table before her lay what looked like a Fang sword, but it was shaped wrong.

"She's paring the sword, see?" Mobrik said. "Cutting away the bit of metal that isn't supposed to be there. The machine gets it right most of the time, but now and then there's a bad cut. So it takes tools like this one to fix what isn't right." Mobrik pointed a thumb at the girl. Her face was covered with streaks of dirt. She wore an apron and had her hair tied in a bun on top of her head. She cut another inch of the metal with every grunt. Her teeth were bared, and though she looked tired, she was making progress. When they approached, she stopped and straightened without a word. Zev waved a little. She stared back, expressionless.

"Knubis! The Overseer says you're either to be moved to the coal piles or it's the Black Carriage for you. Do you think you can keep up at the coal piles, girl?"

At the mention of the Black Carriage, the Knubis girl's eyes widened and she redoubled her efforts with the scissors.

"Too late for that, girl. It's the coal piles or the Carriage." Mobrik was enjoying himself.

"She's working hard enough, what's the big deal?" Zev questioned with a frown.

"Don't," she said, looking at Mobrik, but Zev could tell she was talking to him.

"What?" Mobrik said.

"Don't...call the Black Carriage. I'll go to the coal piles, and I'll work faster. It's just, my hands..." She held out her hands. They were covered with oozing blisters.

"More gloves coming tomorrow." Mobrik shrugged. "It's a shame you should be abused so. Hard to work if your hands are worn through. The Overseer should take better care of his tools."

"Dude! She's not a tool, she's a person." Zev said, unable to contain himself.

"Don't!" the girl was shaking her head at the younger boy.

Zev actually laughed derisively. "Why? What's he gonna do? Feed me to a giant man-eating plant?" He couldn't help but make the sarcastic joke, referencing "Little Shop of Horrors," as he didn't perceive Mobrik as an immediate threat.

Mobrik was rather apathetic with Zev's bold-faced joke, but didn't do anything.

Figures burst from the shadows and corners and from under the tables. They dropped from chains that hung from the ceiling and rushed at Zev. They shoved him to the floor and punched and kicked and struck him with all manner of blunt weapons. Zev curled into a ball, clenched his teeth, and waited for the torment to stop. Stars swam in his vision, white pain sizzled through his spine and neck. Finally the blows subsided. Zev lay on his back, staring at the ceiling, the chains above swaying to and fro like the pendulum on a clock. His mouth was bleeding, he'd lost a baby tooth, and his ribs hurt with every ragged breath he took.

A face appeared above him. He expected it to be the Overseer, grinning his crooked grin beneath that dumb top hat, but it was an older boy. With the mean look in his eyes, the dirty face, and the smirk on his lips, he looked like a villain from those police shows on T.V.. But instead of a gun, the boy held a length of chain.

"We're always watching, tool," the boy said. "So do as you're told, and get to work. Understand?"

Zev glared. "My name is not Tool, it's Zev—YIPE!"

The boy had let fly with the chain. It struck the ground beside Zev's head so hard that sparks stung his cheeks.

"You're a tool," the boy said. He gestured to the other boys and girls standing about, all of them looking at Zev with hatred. "We all are. Now get up and get to work."

A shocked Zev got up, feeling his face, despite the pain. He worried about his father's health and his sister's whereabouts. And just where did those things take her?

During dinner, he tried to make friendly conversation with the other children. "Hey." Some looked at him but kept eating without saying a word. "I'm Zev, my dad and I just got here."

"We can see that," said the boy directly across from him. The boy raised his bowl to his mouth and sucked up the last drops of soup. "You'll find there's not much to talk about after a while."

"So, what's your name?"

"Doesn't matter. I'm a tool, just like you."

Zev made a face. "I'm not a tool, they don't have a pulse." But the boy shrugged and left the table.

Below the main Factory floor where the furnaces roared lay a dormitory. Bunk beds lined the walls. Samuel saw hundreds of children, either snoring in a deep sleep or climbing wearily out of bed to face another day in the factory. No one spoke or laughed or even made eye contact. Mobrik allowed Samuel a drink of water from a cistern, then pointed him to an empty bunk and left.

"Dad." Zev's face lit up at his father's presence.

"Slugger, what's happened? What did he do to ya?" Samuel was aghast to see Zev's injuries from the Maintenance Managers, though they weren't fatal they were still painful.

Zev winced as he sat down on his bunk. "Some of the older kids they call the Maintenance Managers beat me up," he said, gingerly touching his swollen cheek. "They didn't like it when I stood up for that girl, Knubis."

Samuel's face twisted in anger. "I knew this place was bad, but I never imagined it was this bad. We gotta get out of here, son. We can't stay in this insane asylum."

"I know that, Dad," Zev said, nodding. "But how? We're trapped here, and we don't even know where Elisheva is."

Samuel sighed heavily. "We'll figure something out, Zev. We have to keep our heads up and stay strong. We'll find a way to escape and rescue your sister, I promise you that."

Zev nodded, his eyes shining with determination. "I believe you, Dad. We'll make it out of here together."

Samuel smiled weakly, his hand on Zev's shoulder. "That's my boy. We'll do this, no matter what it takes."

Inevitably, as with their trip in the Black Carriage, Zev has nightmares about the day the Fangs dragged him and his family out of their apartment. Every time he hears a hiss, his heart jumps.

When he woke, he smelled food. But it wasn't the smell that woke him. A bell clanged and clanged and clanged, and it was several moments before Zev was awake, thinking it was his alarm clock.

"I'm up! I'm up!" Zev jumped right out of bed.

Then he saw it was a boy beside his bed was making all the racket. The boy had pudgy cheeks and wore a tattered red cap that seemed about to slide off the back of his head.

"Time for breakfast, tool," said the boy, and he marched off to annoy someone else. The dorm room was busier than it had been that evening when Zev and Samuel collapsed into bed.

Samuel Bennet possessed a keen sense of observation, and he hadn't forgotten the details from Elisheva's confession before he and Zev were forcibly separated from her. He knew that Gnag the Nameless, the mysterious tyrant who had conquered the continent of Skree ten years prior, was in pursuit of the Jewels of Anniera. These jewels, rumored to hold immense power, remained undiscovered.

These facts left Samuel and Zev quite perplexed. If Gnag sought the Jewels of Anniera to gain dominion over all of Aerwiar, why would he go to such lengths to capture a family from another world? If eliminating any potential challengers to Gnag's authority was the objective, the Bennets would've joined Rivka in the hereafter. Yet, they remained alive, albeit separated.

Samuel relayed the information he remembered to Zev that night. They were now in Dugtown, located on the continent of Skree, which was currently under the rule of the Fangs of Dang- dangerous and disgusting reptilian creatures known for their dangerous fangs. The very same creatures that had dragged the Bennet family right out of their own homeworld and into Aerwiar.

But something about all this bothered Samuel. If the enigmatic Gnag the Nameless and his lizard mercenaries were seeking the famed Jewels of Anniera, said to hold great power... then what would he want with a family from another world? What's the thinking?

So many questions, it was quite the conundrum.

As the days turned into weeks, Zev and Samuel's situation grew worse. Zev was constantly bullied by the older kids the Maintenance Managers, who saw him as an easy target. Samuel struggled to walk without his stick yet kept saying his prayers every night more focused on the wellbeing of his children.

Samuel couldn't ignore the subtle but unmistakable signs of the Overseer's deep-seated animosity. The man's glares were like daggers, piercing through their resolve. They had become frequent targets of his rage, enduring harsher punishments and grueling tasks that were designed to push them to their limits. It was as if he saw them as personal challenges, determined to break their spirits and make them submit to his authority.

The Overseer's little stooge, Mobrik, the ridgerunner was no better. A small humanoid who worked in exchange for fruit. Though his motivations may have seemed peculiar, his true nature was far from benign. Mobrik was just as mean-spirited as the Overseer, a treacherous figure lurking in the shadows of the Fork Factory.

Whenever Zev or Samuel attempted conversation with the children, they never answered or met their eyes. Zev was almost half tempted to pull a crazy stunt just to get a reaction. Emphasis on almost. It was one thing to anger that jerk with the whip and the goblin wannabe, but he wasn't about to put his weary father at risk.

Zev shook his head stubbornly. "Sometimes I feel like pummeling those jerks."

Samuel smiled sadly at his son. "I know you do, son. But sometimes we have to be brave in other ways. Even if something goes wrong, you need to keep fighting, for our family."

Zev nodded. "I will," he promised. "I won't give up, I swear it."

But despite their dire circumstances, Zev and Samuel held onto the belief that they would break free somehow, and that they would one day be reunited as a family. And little did they know, their fate was about to change, as Elisheva had broken free from her own imprisonment, just as determined to find her family.

Four months later something had changed, a few Fangs arrived one Summer day talking to the Overseer. The two Bennets didn't think much of it at first, until Mobrik went to fetch Samuel. "Follow me, outlander. The Overseer has visitors."

Samuel was confused. Who? And why would the Overseer want him present?

Mobrik led Samuel down the long hallway and into the big, empty room. They crossed to the door in the far wall, and Mobrik knocked. They entered an office with a large desk, where the Overseer sat, still wearing his black top hat.

As Samuel entered the office, a sense of foreboding settled over him. The Overseer's smile, accompanied by the presence of the Fangs, indicated that something significant was about to unfold. The room felt heavy with tension, and Samuel couldn't shake the feeling that this encounter wouldn't end favorably for him and his son.

The Overseer's gaze lingered on Samuel with a mix of disdain and sadistic pleasure. His fingers caressed the whip that lay coiled on the desk, a symbol of his authority and the tool he used to enforce his cruel will.

For some reason, this didn't bode well, usually this stone-hearted lout would glare daggers at Samuel and Zev alike.

Despite the passing months, the Overseer's animosity towards Samuel and Zev had only grown stronger. Their refusal to succumb to the harsh conditions and their relentless spirit of resistance had irked him deeply. He saw them as a challenge, as defiant outliers who refused to break under his iron grip.

Samuel blocked out most of the Overseer's condescending words before he heard this important piece: "Good news, you're being transferred."

"But to where?" Samuel was baffled, more so when he heard the answer.

Samuel can't help but feel a mix of confusion and apprehension. Call it intuition or something else, somehow he knows that Castle Throg is not a place he wants to go, even if he's not fully aware that it was the lair of Gnag, the Namless. Despite his fears, Samuel maintained his composure and tried to keep a level head, knowing that he needed to stay strong for himself and for his children.

Due to this, he was sent to the paring station next to Zev, but not out of compassion. Samuel knew full well it was because that scoundrel wanted to try to break his spirit and Zev's before he was taken away, but Samuel wasn't about to let these precious moments go to waste.

He turned to his son Zev with a heavy heart. "Listen to me, Slugger," he said, his voice low and urgent. "You need to be strong now. I don't know where I'm going, and it doesn't sound like I'll be able to take you with me."

Zev's eyes widened in terror. "What are you talking about?" he cried. "Where are they taking you?"

"I don't know, son," Samuel admitted, his voice trembling slightly. "But I have a feeling it's far away, across the sea."

"They can't do this! It's not right!" Zev protested.

Samuel put a hand on his son's shoulder, trying to calm him down. "I know, but we got no choice. You have to be strong now, for both of us. I love you, Zev."

Zev is shocked when his father was being taken away.

"Come on, you!" Mobrik barked.

With a heavy heart, Samuel turned to follow Mobrik. He could hear Zev's sobs echoing behind him, and his own heart felt like it was breaking in two. All he could do was pray to Messiah that they would be reunited someday, and that their family would be whole once again.

"Leave my dad alone!" Zev had inadvertently followed them and intended to stop them from taking his father. Despite his bravado, however, Zev felt a sense of helplessness and despair as he watches his father seized by the Fangs, and he wondered if he'll ever see his whole family again.

"Will someone quiet the outlander boy, please?" The Overseer grumbled as he followed the Fangs outside, not even sparing Zev a glance.

One of the Maintenance Managers then grabbed Zev by the scruff of his T-shirt and dragged him away.

"Thank you. Hard to think around here with all the racket."

The Fangs half-led and half-dragged Samuel by the arms outside, the Overseer followed with Mobrik. Probably hoping to see Samuel dissolve into tears. However the man remained solemn, there was just one thing he needed to know.

"Please, I beg of you," Samuel implored, looking round at the Overseer, Mobrik and the Fangs. "At least, tell me what's become of my daughter, Elisheva?"

Mobrik waved his hand in cold dismissal. "Whoever she is, it's not our concern. You're the one they're after."

The Overseer merely sneered at Samuel. "I think you should be more worried about your own fate, outlander."

The Fangs, however, snapped at Samuel, their voices sharp and menacing. "You'll learn soon enough what's become of her. Now come on, we don't have all day!"

Samuel's heart sank, knowing that he would have to leave without knowing if his daughter was alive. He could only hope that she had managed to escape the labor camp and was somewhere safe, waiting for him and Zev. He also hoped his son doesn't do something drastic in his absence. With a heavy heart, Samuel allowed himself to be led away by the Fangs, knowing that his fate was uncertain. All he could do was pray for his own safety and for the well-being of his family, and hope that they would one day be reunited.

Meanwhile Zev was being dragged back into the factory. He knew those Maintenance Managers will probably beat him up or the Overseer might whip him, but he didn't care. He had to save his father.

"You can't take my dad away!" Zev yelled, he began to struggle as hard as he could. "I won't let you!" he said fiercely. "I'll fight you, I mean it!"

The boy fought like a madman, struggling desperately to break free and rescue his father. "I won't let you take him!" Zev shouted, his voice hoarse with rage.

But it was no use. The bigger kids were too strong, and Zev was quickly overpowered. In a moment of desperation, he lashed out, striking one of the Maintenance Managers in the face.

To his horror, he was hit back, hard. The blow immediately knocked him unconscious, and he was dragged away to the dreaded "box", a sort of coffin that served as a makeshift prison.

For two days, Zev lay unconscious in the box, his body battered and bruised. When he finally awoke, he was disoriented and terrified, trapped in the dark, cramped space with no idea of where he was or what had happened to his father.

But even in the darkness, he could hear his father's voice, urging him to be strong and to never give up hope. With those words ringing in his ears, Zev vowed to escape from the factory and find a way to rescue his father, no matter what the cost.

As Samuel was suddenly sent away, Zev's situation in the Fork factory grew more desperate. He was left alone, without his father to support him, and he felt more trapped than ever before. But instead of giving up, Zev's spirit grew fiercer. He refused to let his captors break him, and he became more aggressive/rebellious in his actions. He'd kept calling Mobrik "Mr. Goblin". He even furiously injured one of the barbarous "Maintenance manager" out of spite. Zev meant to hit the older boy with a crowbar, but had mistakenly grabbed a red hot poker instead. This got him locked in the box again for three whole days, Zev felt a little bad for he'd only meant to break the other kid's arm, not burn him.

But he wasn't giving up. The youngest member of the Bennet family was ferociously determined that somehow he had to get out find his sister and father.

There was a touch of stubbornness to go with said spark. Whenever someone doubted his abilities or told him he couldn't accomplish something, he would channel that determination into proving them wrong. For example, if someone were to tell Zev he'll never pass all his exams, he will study his hide off and ace them all just to prove that naysayer wrong. And for what he's going to go through, he knew he was going to have to master his courage and use some hidden ingenuity.

In some ways, Zev blamed himself for their situation. After all, he had once wished that he and his family were "a million miles away," but he never imagined it would lead them to a whole different world. He carried the weight of that responsibility, and knew he had to make things right.

But escaping the Fork factory was easier said than done. The Overseer and his Ridgerunner Mobrik kept a close watch on the children, same with the Maintenance Managers, and any attempt at rebellion was met with severe punishment.

Despite the danger and the odds against him, Zev refused to give up hope. He knew that his sister and father were out there somewhere, waiting for him to find them. And with his newfound determination and rebellious spirit, he was ready to do whatever it takes to make it happen. He just needed a plan, or an opportunity.

And he got it one day when Zev was roughly shoved into a crate by one of the older kids.

Zev shook his head, regaining his senses. His hands touching some small objects. He was about to throw it angrily, but noticed something about it. Wait…this wasn't coal. Its…

His hazel-green eyes gleamed with excitement as he quickly hid the objects in his socks. He remembered a Science lesson in school and a TV documentary that talked about this once, but if this was gonna work, he needed the rest of the components.

So for the next few weeks, Zev put on a stoic act, but was smirking like a sly fox inside. He was secretly gathering ingredients for the break out and a little payback to those bullying jerks. He carefully stashed them in his mattress and would work on them in the dead of night. Right now he found one, upon finding the other ingredient proved to Zev that he and his father had to have someone watching out for them up there.

The third ingredient was used in many fertilizers, as part of science projects, and in certain recipes. He also knows that…

"Tool!"

To Zev's barely hidden delight: He was assigned kitchen duty, perfect!

But he had to be careful, otherwise he might get caught or worse. This was gonna take careful planning.

To be continued…

Author's note: Yes things look dark for Elisheva's father and little brother, but they're not giving up anymore than she. I've decided to separate Elisheva's adventures into four-parter arcs like the Wingfeather saga books. But in the meantime, while Angel studios works on the second season to the Wingfeather saga animated series, aside from other fanfics, I'm gonna work on a collection of oneshots that has to do with my main Wingfeather saga fanfiction - that'll explore flashbacks, original character backstories, untold tales that may not be covered in the main narrative and/or delve into alternative scenarios. It will be titled "Key and Wingfeathers". Keep an eye out.