The pair of hunters looked ill at ease as they sat down near the fire under Rex’s eye.

“Are you sure that dragon wont attack us? He’s some sort of variant dragon, right? Variants are usually more dangerous, smarter, and less friendly.”

Idea filed this fact away, thinking that perhaps they could explain away how Rex differed from other dragons by simply claiming he was a variant of some sort. Rex had a different thought, he wondered if other dragons saw him as a variant too? The only time a dragon had ever talked to him, it was to complain that he smelled like a horse. Was he doomed to be an outcast dragon?

It was Karla that replied. “Yes, he’s smarter than other dragons, and he wont do anything to you two unless you try to attack me.” She threatened.

The two brothers nodded. They had some suspicion that the dragon would react that way, which explained why they were being more careful than was normal for them. They both wondered if this cat girl had the beast tamer class, that would be the only reason she could have trained a dragon on her own. The other more likely scenario was closer to the truth. Was the dragon stolen from some nobleman? But, they would try to verify the truth before taking action.

“You’re fleeing from the kingdom?” The younger brother asked, “Escaped slave perhaps?” He had noticed that the skin around the catgirl’s neck was slightly paler than the rest of her slightly tanned skin, as if a slave collar had only been removed within the last month.

Karla frowned. The question seemed a little over eager, as if the hunter wanted her to say yes. She hesitated. “I am looking to become an adventurer. Could you tell me about them?” She asked instead of answering the question, pausing to offer the two hunters each a piece of cooked rabbit meat to help her pretend she had forgotten the question she’d been asked while busy cutting rabbit meat.

The older brother considered the cat girl’s question before deciding to reply. No need to be antagonistic just yet, he thought to himself. “We are hunters, we belong to a different guild.” He replied with a faint smile, “but I doubt the adventurer’s guild will take a girl like you. They normally require that you be sixteen and at least level five, so usually that means you need at least some training before joining.”

Karla did not like the patronizing tone, and replied hotly, “I’m level 10 already, I made it over the mountain pass with just my dragon Rex, killed a fair share of beasts on the way.”

The two hunters glanced at each other. They had been convinced that the girl was with some family, but she claimed she was alone. Was that even possible, a girl like her successfully made the long journey from the Kingdom with only a dragon as company? But this was even better than the possibility that there were other members of her group that might show up. The two hunters silently nodded to each other, they were good at detecting lies, partly due to their keen noses, this last statement from the catgirl smelled honest.

“But you are an escaped slave, and that dragon, stolen perhaps?” The younger brother pressed.

Karla did not like where this conversation was going. “The dragon came with me of his own free will,” she replied, “And what if I am an escaped slave, aren’t I free the second I cross the border into the Republic?”

The two brothers relaxed a bit, that was all the confirmation they needed. “Well, who's to say exactly where the border is, and where we found you?” The younger brother said with a wider grin, “Turns out there’s a small outpost of the kingdom’s Merchants Guild not too far from here, right on the other side of the Republic’s borders, and they don’t ask too many questions about any escaped slaves that get turned in.” The two hunter’s hands fell to their swords.

“So you hunt escaped slaves? I thought you were the other kind of hunters, not slave hunters.” Karla said with disdain.

“We do some of both, not enough slaves to really keep us busy full time.” The older brother replied. “But, maybe we'll make a deal. Come with us quietly, tell the merchant guild which noble you stole that dragon from, and we’ll tell them we found you past the border. They’ll take you as a thief, make you a slave again as punishment, then sell you, but at least you’ll avoid the salt mines or the gladiator pit.”

“How generous,” Karla said with something close to a sneer. “What if I refuse?” Karla was not by nature a cruel or angry person, but her capture had left scars. This time, she vowed internally, she’d not be taken easily. These two slave hunters were the worst of the worst, in her opinion. Beastmen who captured and returned the few of their own kind that had managed to escape slavery? They deserved nothing but contempt.

“Give up being an adventurer, you’re not old enough to survive on your own. Besides, there’s no way you will keep that dragon, someone strong will take him, there's a market for beast parts, and it’s extra lucrative to sell variant beasts like that dragon. He’s worth a lot dead. If you turn him in to the Merchant’s Guild they’ll either send him home or if the noble who owns him doesn’t want him back, they’ll send him to the wilds. The kingdom’s laws protect all dragons. In the republic, only dragons with owners are protected, which doesn’t help you, since you can't prove you own him.” The younger brother explained, earnestly.

“So I need to prove he’s mine to keep him safe? What does that entail?” Karla asked, trying to gain more information.

The younger brother sighed, he’d tried to reason with the cat girl. Really, this was for the best. The Republic wasn’t a place for the weak. Unlike the Kingdom with its strict laws that served to enforce the social structure and keep everyone in their place, the Republic was a place where money talked. While it was true that this meant that a poor man might someday rise up to become a powerful merchant prince or retire as a wealthy adventurer and be as influencial as those who inherited their wealth, it also meant if you bribed the right person, you could get away with the murder of one escaped slave and her valuable dragon. Only the strong and or the rich prospered in the Republic, especially in the frontier towns where the rule of law was weaker. Better to live as a slave, than to die in some alleyway, the slave hunter reasoned, justifying his actions as for the cat girl’s own good.

“Thanks for the rabbit,” He said instead of answering, “Now come with us, it’s for your own good.” His hand fell to the hilt of his sword, the hand of his brother fell on the hilt of his own sword and the both stood up.

“What if I don’t agree? What if I’d rather die than go back to being a slave?” Karla asked.

“Not my problem.” The slave hunter replied.

Karla patted Rex on the shoulder. The unspoken signal wasn’t needed, Idea had already begun to release the sleeping gas. Rex allowed his mouth to fall open as the telltale hissing noise began to sound, the only sign that the invisible, odorless gas was being released.

The two hunters looked a bit confused as they noticed the noise, stared at the oddly hissing dragon, then at the grinning cat girl next to the dragon. What was going on? They swayed slightly, then fell down in a heap, unconscious. They had barely had enough time to be confused and gasp out a “What’s going on?” before collapsing. At close range, aimed directly at the target, the sleeping gas was very potent. Though if the gas had a weakness, it was that since it was chemically targeted at the neurons of humans, it was far less effective on non humans. Luckily, the differences between beastmen and normal humans was only skin deep, an alteration caused by a hereditary magic, not genetic differences.

“Come on,” Karla said, a bit angry still, “let’s go before these traitors of their own kind wake up.”

Idea told the group.

“Good, more time for us to leave them behind then,” Karla said, standing up and packing the few belongings they’d set aside. “We’ll have to travel in the dark, and sleep somewhere safe in the morning”.

Rex hesitated, but kept quiet, choosing to follow Karla. Idea read Rex’s emotions and the unspoken thoughts that had made him hesitate. Idea chose to put the thoughts into words, mostly to see what Karla would say.

Idea suggested.

“What are robofleas?” Karla asked.

“Um…” Rex wasn’t sure Karla would like the answer to that question.

“Doesn’t matter, don’t bother. If they get eaten, it will only be what they deserve.” Karla said, harshly. “Don’t waste anything on them. They’re lucky we’re not just killing them.”

“That seems harsh,” Rex opined. “Killing them, I mean. I guess leaving them asleep is ok. I mean, if they die like that, would it really be our fault?”

Idea argued.

“Not my problem.” Karla replied.

Idea had nothing further to add to that.