Hiro Kuat

Mari leads us through the dusty streets of Delmak, past the rotting buildings and the wary stares of the local beast people. Our path gradually takes us away from the filthy beach and we begin to tack a course towards the town Mari referred to as Rais Land. The Red Rose leads us confidently, sticking to the main roads where cars and the occasional truck trundle by.

"Some of those cars look surprisingly new." I comment while keeping pace with our leader.

"Mostly small and cheap stuff though." Nomi sniffs from beside me, "Can't compare to what we can find back at the Citadel."

"Benefits of having Coalition backing." Mari explains, "Rais Land actually has a meaningful economy, unlike most beast folk villages. The cars you see are part of what they import from the Megacity."

"You been here before?" I ask Mari as our trio walks past a surprisingly well maintained park, lush with neatly manicured greenery and tall majestic trees. The foot traffic here is heavier, with beast folk crossing our path regularly, but there's none of the wary stares or sense of caution that I felt at the beach. We might be the only humans in the crowd, but everyone seems to be minding their own business.

"No." Mari whispers as she suddenly leans close to me, "I got the route to our destination from the classified mission package. We don't want to raise any suspicion, so don't act like you're first timer here."

Nomi hurriedly grabs my arm with a scowl and pulls me back as she speaks, "Where in the world are we going anyway? You said at the beach that we would be perfectly safe?"

"As long as we keep our wits around us." Mari smiles, "Which I am sure you can do, correct?"

"Beast people are weaklings." Nomi waves dismissively, "They try to be funny, we can easily teach them a lesson."

"We haven't recharged our bulwarks yet, Nomi." I remind my friend, "And there a lot of beast folk here."

"So? We still have enough divine energy for a few fights." Nomi insists as I realize she's slipping into one of her moods, "And we can always flee if things go bad. There's nothing here that can catch up with us."

"Rais Land has an independent transmission station." Mari says, "Its the most convenient spot for both our units to recharge if need be. We might very well need to visit again in the future."

"Future? What future?" Nomi gripes waspishly, "How long are we supposed to stay in the concrete desert?"

Its an obvious question and one that Nomi knows the answer. But an answer is not what she's looking for at the moment. I've seen this happen before. Nomi's unhappiness gets the better of her and she starts becoming difficult to let off steam. And for whatever reason, that displeasure is currently being directed towards Mari.

Nomi, whether consciously or not, is trying to bait Mari into a fight. I need to step in now before things get out of hand. Thankfully, I've had plenty of experience being around Nomi, and know just how to calm the situation down.

"When we get back to the Citadel, I'll cook something for you OK?" I console my friend, "So put up with this for now."

"Your cooking sucks." Nomi pouts, "Who would want to eat it?"

"Well, that's alright then." I nod, "We can get something else. Takeaway maybe."

"Hmph. If I don't eat your cooking how will you improve?" Nomi nudges me hard in the ribs, "Just make sure you do a better job of it this time."

"Sure Nomi. Sure." I laugh as both of us go through this well-established ritual. That's the thing about being friends with someone for so long, you no longer really need to directly communicate with words. You just sort of get the other person's moods. Nomi's dark expression clears up almost instantly and she flashes me a coy smile.

An unreadable expression flashes across Mari's face and she simply points vaguely forward, silently ordering us to pick up the pace. The three of us continue our journey, passing the park and approaching a cluster of high rises along the town's main drag. We eventually come to a compound of three buildings grouped closely together in the rough shape of a triangle and penned in by a concrete wall. The three buildings all have exterior facades comprised of colored glass panels, giving the impression of a sea of blue rising from the ground. But the illusion is spoiled by several of the panels being missing and laundry poles loaded with clothes sticking out here and there from gaps in the building's facade.

Parked by the entrance of the compound are several lorries and buses, the type you see used by trade caravans. Many of the vehicles sport enlarged fuel tanks that protrude like humps from their frames. At the end of the row of vehicles are a series of fuel trucks that have been parked and await to be called into action. Armed humans patrol the area around the vehicles with bored expressions on their faces.

"Caravan guards." I murmur, "With all that fuel, they must be making a long journey."

"Damn. I was hoping to avoid these guys." Mari clarifies, "A big caravan being present makes our jobs much harder. Especially one that runs the Rais Land - Citadel route."

"How did you know they ply that route?" Nomi whispers, looking at the caravan with naked curiosity, "I've never seen a caravan this big being admitted into the Citadel."

"Their weapons." Mari replies, "Those rifles are Militia surplus. Also you would never see these guys at the Citadel. Too conspicuous, especially with what they're trading in. They drop the merchandise off at the outskirts and someone else handles the rest of the delivery piecemeal."

"Hey, look, its the limo that passed us at the beach." I remark, catching sight of the completely out of place vehicle parked right by the compound's gates.

"Let me do the talking." Mari says as we approach the pair of beast men standing guard by the gate. A rugged looking lion man notices us and draws himself up to full height as we approach.

"Here to do business." Mari tells the beast man but as he obligingly steps aside, Mari continues, "Not here to buy, but to sell."

The beast man bristles, this time fully alert as he responds, "Don't see your truck. We don't let in tourists, only real business people."

Mari draws out a package from her jacket and shows the contents to the beast man. I peek over her shoulder and realize she is holding a small stack of blank entry passes to the Citadel. The beast man grunts in satisfaction.

"Kay. New here?" the beast man continues, "I'll give you entry chits for the inner courtyard, but mind yourselves. The big traders don't take kindly to newbies taking their business."

"Thanks." Mari responds as the beast man tears of three sheets of paper from a booklet and marks each piece with a red marker. Mari accepts the makeshift tickets and leads us deeper into the compound. I am bursting with curiosity but keep my peace, remembering the Red Rose's earlier warning about not drawing attention to ourselves.

As we pass under the shadow of the buildings, it becomes clear that these structures were originally meant to be used as office space, but had been re-purposed as housing. From the open windows we can see cramped flats and the sheer number of beast folk wandering about speaks volumes of the number of people staying here. Petty vendors have their stalls set up all over the place, selling things that range from trinkets to cheap electronics and fresh food. Flies buzz listlessly about in the air and a faded sign mounted on an arch advertises this place as The Palace.

"What a dump." Nomi snorts in derision, "They can't be serious about the name."

"Stay alert." Mari warns, "I was expecting more trouble at the gate. Something might be up."

"It would help if you would actually tell us what we are doing here." Nomi grumbles but I see her gaze sharpen in response to the warning.

"As I said, let me do the talking." Mari demurs, "Both of you are here as my muscle. Just don't get freaked out later. The docket said that the beast people in the inner courtyard can get enthusiastic."

"Enthusiastic?" I query, but Mari doesn't deign to reply. There's another guarded gate in front of us, this one leading to the open area between the three buildings. Mari flashes the chits given by the earlier guard and we are waved through into the inner courtyard.

"Wow." Nomi breathes as we take in the sight of the mass of beast folk, both women and men, crammed into the open space. Humans stand at the perimeter, inspecting the beast folk with critical eyes before haggling with them. Occasionally the humans will select a number of beast folk from the pack and lead them out of the inner courtyard. A rhino man spots us approaching and immediately runs up to Mari.

"I Marco, strong, can work." the rhino man mumbles to Mari as he awkwardly flexes his biceps at her. Mari walks past him disinterestedly but the rhino man keeps hounding us.

"I can pay. Five thousand credits now." Marco says in a rush, "Willing to work to pay off the rest in installments."

"I can pay ten thousand!" a fox man pushes Marco aside, "You can get me into the Citadel, right? Ten thousand now, cash! Balance in installments!"

Mari leads us around the arguing pair as she begins searching for clusters of beast women. I hurriedly tap her shoulder to get the Red Rose's attention.

"Is this a trafficker's yard?" I ask with a worried look on my face.

"Bingo." Mari graces me with a thumbs up, "Beast folk come here to sell themselves into slavery for the chance of making it big in the Citadel. Though I suppose 'sell' is the wrong term. There's too much supply and not enough demand. Now the beast folk literally need to pay for the privilege of being enslaved."

"This is ... " I mumble, taking in the squalor all around us. Marco and the fox guy begin duking it out in the background while another line of beast people are led out of the inner courtyard by a group of caravaners. I wanted to say something just now, but my mind draws a blank.

"Lighten up." Mari pats me on the shoulder, "We're not here to actually enslave anyone, remember?"

"Yeah, I suppose so." I agree reluctantly, "Wait a second. Where did Nomi go?"

"Damn, wasn't she behind us?" Mari snaps, her patience finally beginning to crack, "I was supposed to be watching her."

"What?" I say absently, my eyes scanning the crowd.

"Never mind." Mari sighs, "I've spotted her. She's up ahead."

Both of us push through the crowd and link up with Nomi who is just staring blankly at a group of incredibly good looking beast men presenting themselves before a handsome human woman in a business suit. The woman is flanked by a pair of muscular beast men bodyguards and she calmly addresses the small crowd in front of her.

" ... and I expect everything you lot earn, until the debt has been paid off understand?" the woman says as the beast folk in front of her nod in silence.

"Good. Then get going, the truck is outside." the woman concludes and her face turns our way. A look of recognition flashes in her eyes and she walks directly towards us.

"Friend of yours?" I ask Mari, but the Red Rose mutely shakes her head in denial.

"Hello Nomi." the woman greets the moment she reaches us, "What a surprise to see you here."

"Hello Madam." Nomi says, but her voice is taut with tension as her eyes dart nervously at me. What's going on here?

"Its nice to see you." Madam responds, not the least bit offended by Nomi's cold response.

"So how about you introduce your friends?"