Given more time to take in his surroundings, Matteo tore his eyes away from the mysterious beverage and let his gaze wander around the smoky parlor, trying to distract himself from the sudden dryness in his mouth. The smell of tobacco, bold as red wine, filled his lungs with each breath. The shoulders of his fellow recruits (they might not know for what yet, but Matteo had a feeling they didn’t have much of a choice based on how they’d been ushered inside) bumped against him as the group reacted to the new information in a ripple of uncertainty. 

[i]If you believe the world is flat?[/i] It seemed like odd humor for the situation, but the dark-haired young man dismissed it in the face of a greater disappointment. [i]I don’t recognize...any of that. Well, there goes that idea.[/i] Frustration welled up in him again as he cast his eyes again across his fellows. [i]The real question is why we’re all like this, and why these other people don’t seem surprised. [/i]Could they be the instigators of whatever had robbed them of their pasts? [i]Even if they are, I can’t do anything about it.[/i] Some hidden agenda didn’t make them less loss or helpless, and Matteo definitely felt both. Perhaps a braver man might set out on his own and damn the consequences, but not him.

[b]“Ah— me again,”[/b] the curly-haired youth spoke up again mildly, calling the recruiter's attention back to himself, [b]“Natural residents?”[/b] He made quote-marks in the air and hesitated. [i]The way he says it makes it sound like they’re hostile, either way.[/i] [b]“Additionally, it sounds like you’re already aware of our—” [/b]Matteo stopped to indicate the group as a whole, his tone still puzzled, [b]“—circumstances. Our... ignorance, rather.”[/b] Why was this guy already prepared to give a bunch of kids a crash-course in what sounded suspiciously like common knowledge?