Solution didn’t need to linger long, Karlo came to the door, and she went out immediately shouting behind her, “Keep working, I have a delivery to see to.” She locked the door behind herself and followed Karlo to the entrance.

“So what’s arrived?” Solution asked as he strode swiftly toward the stairs.

“Camp kits, military equipment, packs, basic camping supplies, things like that.” Karlo answered as he walked in front of her.

“Oh. Fine. You have a storage area for it at the hotel I assume?” Solution asked as she looked annoyed over the side of the rail to watch people come and go rather than pay much mind to the snack walking in front of her.

“Ah, yes of course, Lady Solution. You’ll just need to sign for it.”

Karlo walked as fast as he could, but he could feel her eyes on him. ‘She’s eyeing me like prey… like she missed out on… I don’t know, eating me before. What the hell is she? She’s not nearly as human as she looks…’

He kept the shaking at bay, but no matter how fast he tried to walk, despite barely seeming to move her legs from what he could tell in the shining, reflective wooden surfaces, she was always only three steps or less behind him.

‘Could I escape her even if I ran? Probably not… but, as long as I keep quiet, and do what I’m told, I should be safe from her and whatever monster can command a monster like her.’ He felt a lump in his throat form along with the pity in his stomach.

‘Lady Kaiji… what is she going to do with you…?’ he wondered just as he came to the entrance and pointed out the cart that was parked in front of the stable around the side.

Solution tossed him the keys from around her neck, “Here, go get the slaves out of their cages, tell them I’ll need them to inventory their kits and try on anything that needs to be worn. While they’re doing that, go back in and have wash basins brought out. The mistress wants them cleaned any time they’re not in training.”

“I-I’ll see it done, Lady Solution.” He stammered and was about to walk away when he felt her hand on his shoulder, though the pressure was very light, it felt unbreakable as adamantite.

“Ah… yes?” He looked over his shoulder, his nervous brown eyes going from her hand to her toothy smile.

“Make sure you don’t let anything slip about your little… mistake, the other day. It would be a shame if your sudden usefulness became a potential liability through a loose tongue. Tell the stock nothing, ensure they have their blankets, their food, are kept clean, and don’t get out of line, either them… or you. Am I understood, Karlo?” Solution asked him with a soft voice that only went softer as she drew her body close behind him.

He nodded nervously, “Ah, right, yes Lady Solution. Not to worry, I am the soul of discretion and silence.”

“Good, then get to it.” Solution said as she walked past him without another word and began directing the laborers where to unload row after row of heavy looking brown packs weighed down with equipment.

When the mistress was gone and they were back in their corner, Kaiji read haltingly to Priceless as the young woman held her in a tight embrace. It was only when their owner’s bodyguard left, that the demon-elf broke down crying into Priceless’s breast.

“I can’t believe you did that for me…” Priceless whispered and rubbed her back as her arms folded around the night purple skin.

Priceless’s brown eyes sought the red of the demon-elf, trying to get her companion to rise at least a little, “Why… why did you do that…?”

Kaiji sniffled a bit and managed to look up at her, “You risked yourself for me first… I had to, you couldn’t speak, I didn’t know what she’d do to you and… I don’t know what you endured before finding yourself here, but I didn’t think you could take further punishment. And it’s true, I did keep you up. Besides, I guess it isn’t that bad, Demon-elves have both demon blood and elven blood from the ancient ones, our lifespan is long. I guess, two years is nothing. It's only… I’m just crying because it was so frightening, especially to learn she could do… that? I sensed a spiteful evil in that hand from the moment I saw it, a death lover. Now at least we know who we have to fear the worst from.”

“Yes… but it’s worse than I feared in the first place.” Priceless whispered. “We know at least, if we’re good, we’re safe, she can be nice to us… we just… we have to be extra careful not to cross her.” Priceless held Kaiji’s face in her hands, “I’ve been a slave for as long as I’ve lived, you’re new at this, I’ll show you everything I know. You’ll make the best slave, and that’ll make you safest, learn everything that pleases her, make her love you… and… make yourself love her. Lie to yourself, lie to yourself till you believe the lie, and she’ll believe it. That’s how you stay safest.”

Kaiji gave a slow, jerking nod, “When I… when I owned slaves, I wasn’t a cruel owner… rarely had anyone whipped, never beat them for fun, or let it be done. I was forgiving of mistakes, and even set some free. I thought… well, I never really thought of how frightened they were, really, underneath it all. Now? Now here I am.”

“And you’re terrified…” Priceless stroked the ink black hair, “I know. You’ll get used to it, soon you’ll learn her moods, her personality, what she likes and doesn’t like…”

Kaiji stroked Priceless’s hand, “I… yes, when she praised me, I was happy, when she told me I was safe, I felt warm, and when she paid so much, saving my life… I thought she might feel something for me.”

Priceless pressed her forehead to her more ‘novice’ comrade, “That is how it is, and how it needs to be. Just… take what happiness you can, and we’ll manage together for as long as we can. Not often can another slave be trusted to help you, but… at least between the two of us, we have that much, now. Help me, and I’ll help you, and somehow, under the rule of Mistress Nua, we will get through this.”

The silence stretched out, Nua stared at the Prince, and the Prince stared at Nua. She held her posture stiff and formal, her hands folded behind her back and her shoulders squared. Her chest rose and fell for three breaths as she recalled the majesty of her god, ‘No one can be so kingly.’ She thought, and despite the presence of so many armed men, she recalled the woman for whom ‘terror eyes’ had gone from two words to one, full of wrath and set to burn a nation for the sake of her god and her revenge. ‘There is no one here to fear.’ She reminded herself, and spontaneously threw her head back, and began to send her laughter to the sky.

Prince Rasgen looked surprised for a moment, blinking several times, and then his laugh began to follow, slowly, hesitantly. But as it was picked up by others, it became genuine and full blown, till the entire court was in an uproar and Lady Sobella’s warm, throaty laughter finally began to call an end to the humor.

“You had me there for a moment.” Prince Rasgen said politely, extending his hand out and pointing it to Nua. “Let us forego the formalities for now. You won our bet… very handily. So now let me tell you the nature of the problem. A few months ago, some two hundred prisoners escaped custody, murderers, thieves, rapists, lowest of the low. We sent militia out to put an end to them, but…” The Prince shrugged, “Well it didn’t go so well, a handful of militia survived, and these escapees have become a nuisance. Unfortunately…” He rubbed his forehead in annoyance, “Most of the army hasn’t come back from the sack of Komestra, all we got were the advance riders with the tributes to the Tlalmok empire, and some commercial stock. It’ll take weeks before Komestra’s plunder is divided up among our coalition. A lot of damage can be done by a few hundred in that time.”

“I see, is there anything special I should be aware of, Prince Rasgen? Equipment, training, tactics, that sort?” Nua raised an eyebrow and kept her face blank as she squashed the pity inside her when she thought of Kaiji trapped serving in the city that destroyed her life.

“They have swords and hunting bows, but little armor, perhaps fifty full suits, most probably don’t even have swords, just knives, not much more than what they managed to steal. Their leader is a former mercenary of exceptional danger and skill. He’s not from Pas’en, but he’s been here for almost ten years. He knows the land very well. His name is Bracer.”

“I see.” Nua said sharply, narrowing her eyes, she pressed on, “How in a region where war is common, does a mercenary run so short of work that he becomes a criminal?”

The prince’s face turned red with fury. “Smuggling.”

‘OK this is unexpected, he looks really, really angry. Over smuggling? Sure that reduces tax income but… really? That mad, he’s shaking… better ask more.’ Nua concluded, and cocked her head to one side.

“Forgive me, Sire, but I don’t understand, smuggling what?” Nua asked innocently, and Sobella reached over and touched his forearm.

“She’s a foreigner dear, remember that.” Sobella whispered, and his face began to calm.

“Right,” he said without apology for the rising display of anger, “to you, smuggling means trade goods that aren’t taxed. We don’t have a crime like that here, trade goods are only taxed at the final point of sale to reduce the burden on merchants. No city taxes goods in transit. ‘Smuggling’ refers to the theft of ‘people’ to sell to the Tlalmok Empire as food. It’s where people are kidnapped off the road and sold as meat over the border.”

“Oh.” Nua said, and tensed, her own face beginning to match the wrath the Prince displayed a moment earlier, turning purple with fury.

“I see you do understand. Yes, it is true we tribute lives to the Tlalmok to keep them at bay, but we have no choice. No force in the world is strong enough to defeat a Triumvirate army. Nobody, anywhere, is capable of such a feat.” Prince Rasgen said sadly, many faces in the court turned down to the floor in regret.

“That isn’t true, Prince of Pas’en. The Dark Savior killed an entire Devor Harvester party with only one minotaur champion to aid her, and she was only a human. The mother of the dark savior is said to have slain an entire company by herself. The divine lord of the west has the power to erase whole armies with a single spell. I am not a priestess of his faith for nothing.” Nua said with shining golden eyes and absolute pride in every word she said.

Nua extended her hands out as if to embrace the pair seated on the throne, her head tilted slightly up as if seeing her lord before her. “One day… they will come for the Triumvirate. On that day, your downcast eyes can turn to the light of salvation, and you will sing his praises as I do.”

She had them mesmerized at her brief story, but the Prince shook his head vigorously, “Even if that were true… he is not here, and they are. So we must send tribute to them yearly. For that, we use a levy, which functions by lottery. Every house puts the names of all males thirteen and above into the register. We then draw the names out, and the Starspeakers gather them up. If someone is sick, or dead before collection, or the house has enough slaves and they want to keep the chosen person, then an equivalent weight in slaves is provided. If they have no slaves, they must pay for the cost of buying one or more from the market.”

“Men? Not women?” Nua asked, ‘I don’t remember this part…’ She thought as she asked further.

“Yes, we have to keep the population up, therefore we ‘rarely’ give up women. A man can produce a hundred children if he has time, women, and stamina, but a woman will only produce one or two per year. Exceptions exist, for example there was a demon-elf capture in Komestra, demon-elves reproduce very slowly, but their meat is highly valued by the Tlalmok, especially the females. Not many realize this, and grossly underestimate how many we can keep back, by offering a single one of their kind. The elites of the Tlalmok empire will give up a hundred for a male, or even three hundred humans or human equivalents, to have a single Demon-elf female tributed to them.

“Oh… interesting.” Nua said in a hushed voice.

“Sadly someone bought the one that was caught, and at a very high price… but that’s neither here nor there, I’m getting distracted, forgive the tangent.” He waved the distraction away with a jerk of his hand that showed his annoyance with himself, “The point is that ‘that’ is the only way anyone goes west. Slavery, crime, or lottery based levy. Kidnapping citizens or travelers is taboo, and those who do it, are given horrific deaths.”

Nua raised her brow as her conscience over Kaiji gnawed a little at her, “Not sent to the Triumvirate? I mean why not just donate them?”

“Because the Triumvirate doesn’t eat smugglers. Smugglers aren’t just greedy bastards selling lives for money, they’re the worst kind of collaborator. When we catch them, they’re publicly tortured to death. You’d do well to remember that, when some collaborator comes to you, offering easy money for a target.” The Prince fixed his eyes on her, but Nua did not flinch or hesitate.

“That will not be a concern. I will not break the faith of my god by so base an act.” Nua said with finality as she snapped her mouth shut when the last word was said. “I am not doing this job for money, money is nothing to me but a means to an end. No amount of money can bring me fulfillment, and they cannot tempt me with things I care nothing for.”

“I see… well then beware one more thing, some of those who occasionally escape, operate in the no man’s land between the Tlalmok Empire and our cities, more than once have such groups lured their pursuers into these areas, ambushed them… then their captives end up sold to a Tlalmok village over the border.” He swallowed hard and touched his throat, nor was he alone. The lot of them looked a little bit green.

Nua remained stoic and silent until their comfort was restored. “I understand, my small numbers should be armed and equipped tomorrow. They’re not much, yet, but for this, they won’t need to be. The Breakers will put down your bandits, your murders, your rapists, the predators of your city. How would you like the completion of the job to be made known to you?”

“Ears for the commons, and the head of their leader, you can’t miss him, he’s a swordsman of great skill, always operates one handed, and he has a preference for little girls. You’ll probably find he’s kept a few prisoners. They’ll tell you who he is.” The Prince’s mouth scrunched in disgust.

Nua gave a slow bow of her head. “Very well, now, as far as payment, I do not want money, Prince Rasgen.”

The silence stretched so long that Lady Sobella spoke up, leaning forward on the throne she asked in her full, throaty voice, “What do you want, woman of strange desires?”

Nua smiled winsomely, ‘It is just impossible to feel anything but warmly about that woman, damn but the Prince is lucky to have someone like that at his side.’ “What I want is purchasing rights over any slave owned by any citizen or company of this city. I will pay double the buying and training price, of course. But I want to be able to buy any stock I wish, outside of this palace, at will. Offer me that privilege in writing, and I will bring you Bracer alive.”

“And if you fail?” The Prince asked, furrowing his brow at her strange request.

Nua shrugged, “Then I obviously died, but… if I succeed by killing him instead, if I fail to return him alive for public execution… then let me ask for something truly precious, but less costly.”

“Yes?” He asked, leaning back on his throne.

“Your friendship. And this will have been but a favor between friends.” Nua gave him a charming, broad smile and laughed hard enough that the coins in her pouch clinked loudly, echoing through every ear as the rare wealth was made to ring through every greedy heart.

Prince Rasgen slapped the armrest of his throne with a loud clap that bounced off the stone walls of his palace. “Captain Aiwenor, I believe we’ll get along quite well, go with my blessing, with the promise that your price will be met as long as you return alive with ‘some’ form of success!”

“Then I go, sadly it is true what I said before, my faith prohibits any free person from kneeling except for god or for love, but I bow to you in honor of your status, and give my salute to you instead!” She said it crisply, loudly, her eyes of shining gold and her voice pounding like a hammer, she brought her fist over her heart and leaned forward a few inches, before wheeling about to go.

As she departed, lovingly caressing the knives on her belt, she had but one thought, ‘Prince or bandit… nothing will get in my way. Teacher will be proud, Raymond will be back, and I will finally… finally be whole.’