Black Kitties. 

A bizarre name for a weapons and gear shop isn’t it? I think so too.

In fact I have no idea why Rostar had named it so. Is it because I never asked or is it because I had forgotten?

If it’s the second option then jeez, I’m a bad person.

Do people still use ‘jeez’ these days? I wanna be hip with the kids. I mean adults.

Random miscellaneous thoughts like these ran rampant in my mind as I strolled down the wide paved roads of Brikard. The city was grand, much more so than I remember. A towering cathedral marked the centre of circular metropolis; from there layers upon layers of concentric, metre high walls separated each specialty district. It was very well designed and subsequently the city looked very neat.

Want delicious gourmet food? District 3, look for the blood red walls.

Want some fashion clothing? District 8, look for the sky blue walls.

Want armour and weapons? District 5, look for the black and gold walls.

I smiled and patted the black and gold bricks for good measure. I’m sure if someone had OCD, these chest-high separators would make them go red with ecstasy.

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Black Kitties was exactly where I remembered it. Well not quite… 

The shop had expanded exponentially since the last time I’d visited it. The cute, little, cat lady spray paint that used to hold up the sign for Rostar’s store had spread across five extra blocks. Now, a lively litter of animated kittens ran at the bottom of the wall, guiding stray customers into the expansive armour and weapons store.

I guess Bobby wasn’t completely lying when he said “the best” huh.

Shyly I knocked on the imposing double doors and almost immediately a girl dressed in black business attire rushed to my service and invited me into the store with a charming smile and deep bow. I nodded my thanks as I entered and discretely took note of the fact that unlike the smaller stores these attendants didn’t make any attempt at selling their sexuality.

How refreshing.

I mean. How unlike ten years ago.

As I eyed the armaments up and down for their quality my helper would constantly pace behind me in tight semi circles, checking for my size and figure, perfecting her numbers even before confirming my purchase. Impressed at her earnestness I shot her quick smile when her eyes caught mine.

Oh? A blush? Guess even little old me can pull when the time is right.

“Sir, you have a very well built body.” The attendant smiled, “Correct me if I’m wrong, but I suspect that you’ve been working out as of late?”

“Um…” I paused, thinking.

“Yeah…Uh…I had a lot of free time?” I said, and then laughed awkwardly.

The girl frowned at my sketchy response but had enough professionalism to let it slide. Continuing from where she had left off, she asked me question upon question as though the flood gate to her inquisitive mind had been opened. Eventually I realised that the questions weren’t personal inquiries, but rather data collection for my gear selection. It made me slightly disappointed, but not enough to send me into despair.

At the end of the tour, my poor attendant had begun slouching in depression, muttering quietly. The amount of information I could garner and give was dismal. I apologised profusely in my head, but couldn’t hold back a quiet chuckle at her cute self reprimanding. Perhaps she was a new employee?

Either way, after that half an hour of navigating through the maze of racks and show cabinets I found myself at the main counter thanks to my helper’s guidance. At the desk stood a familiar face and an unforgettable voice.

“Hello Sir, have you decided on your purchase?” asked Rostar, despite noting my arrival his head was still buried in a pile of paperwork.

He stood tall and proud, dressed in an elegant penguin suit with an immaculately positioned, marine blue bowtie. What an image he projects…

“Ah Shop manager, I heard you have a dragon infestation problem in this area?” I smiled nostalgically, “I came from the adventurer’s guild down at Atuan.”

The well-dressed man froze as fond memories rushed through his head, reminding him of the glorious days of adventure.

“You think you could take down a frost dragon?” He looked up and at my face, doubting himself over and over as he ran the possibilities.

“You think you can afford me Rostar?”

Identities confirmed, I laughed with relief and dragged him into a deep embrace over the counter. Rostar coughed in surprise at my intimacy, but grasped my shoulders firmly as he came to terms with my return.

The girl who had guided me through the store reared back in surprise at the indescribable situation that had unravelled before her. Still relishing the touch of an old friend, I winked at her from behind Rostar’s head and signalled that it was all okay.

Rostar on the other hand did not take well to my attempted wooing of his employees and pinched my spine. I jumped instinctively as the shock resonated through the entirety of my body and hopped around in circles and attempted to dull the pain with quick-fire rubbing.

The girl giggled at our exchange then excused herself shyly, returning dutifully to her position by the door. Rostar watched her walk out of hearing range then turned to inspect my face.

“Kastri is that you?”

“Y-yeah it’s me.” I stuttered, embarrassed under his glare.

“What’s the matter?” Rostar said, “Ten measly years made you forget how to talk?”

“Haha…”

Eager to continue the conversation in somewhere more private, Rostar checked the surroundings then opened a hidden door behind an unkempt stack of second hand clothing. When the opening was just wide enough to enter, he quickly dove in. I followed closely and shut the door behind me.

As far as I could tell, we stood in a dark tunnel with walls made of solid stone. The surface was smooth and flat giving away their man-made nature, but the darkness made it difficult to discern anything further than that. Having spent that time in jail, my eyes quickly adjusted to the brightness, presumably giving me a slight edge over Rostar in navigation. However I quickly realised my stupidity as he glided his hands along the wall and an unseen row of lanterns suddenly burst into flames, leaving the tunnel without a single shadow, apart from mine and Rostar’s.

As I looked upon the mechanisms of each lamp with wonder, Rostar glanced over and shot me a smug smile. In response I acted unimpressed and shoved him jokingly, encouraging him to get moving.

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While we walked down the well-lit path, Rostar chatted nonchalantly about his life since I had left Brikard.

“So what do you think?” He asked gesturing at the tunnel walls and, I assume, his shop in general.

“What do you mean what do I think?” I joked.

He paused and turned around, looking at me with a serious expression.

“Well. I did it didn’t I?” He patted the solid walls.

 “I said I would make it big and ten years was all it took.”

“Ahh…Yes.” I scratched my head.

“I wish I could’ve been here to see.” I said.

“Yes me too.” He replied. “It’s a shame you were busy.”

We covered the rest of the way in silence.

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It was only after five more minutes of walking that we arrived at the bottom of a set of stairs leading to a heavy wooden door. On it was five inscribed symbols. I watched carefully as Rostar pressed his hands on to each symbol. The first he pressed with his right, the second with his left, the third with his right, the fourth with his right again, and finally the fifth with his left. Each time his hands touched the lacquered surface of the door, the area around his fingers would glow blue. As the light intensified, a tendril of smoke covered Rostar’s hand seemingly identifying his authenticity. I raised an eyebrow and nodded to myself as I observed this process. It was very impressive technology.

When each of the symbols activated the door finally clicked open and revealed to us a lavishly decorated living room with doors no doubt leading to equally extravagant bedrooms and kitchens etc.

“You’ve made it big huh?” I whispered in awe.

“Yes. Yes I have.” Rostar beamed in response.

“Now let me get you to a room so you can finally put down that hideous knapsack of yours and get some rest yeah?”

I nodded happily.

“Actually I’ve had plenty of rest, but I guess I should go and put this thing down.”

At my response, Rostar gave me a quick thumbs up and guided me to a palace of a room up on the second level. When I finally got over the fact that this was in fact a bedroom, Rostar gave me a hearty punch on the shoulder and left me to have some time to myself.

Feeling alone once more in the quiet room I opened my swag and let the contents fall freely into the bed. As I inspected the objects, a wave of Alice’s familiar scent reminded me of my instructions.

Your mission definitions are in the top right pocket of the leather vest.

Huh.

I quickly took of my coat and hanged it up on a nearby clothes rack.

Now let’s see here. Top right pocket…um…ah here.

I clenched my fingers and pulled out the envelope anxiously. To my surprise it was the same envelope old man Rhazul had handed me a few hours ago. I guess this might be what he means by ‘the right time’?

I could feel the envelope buzzing with energy as I inspected it back to front. Hoping for the best, I ripped it open in a swift motion and voila the contents were revealed. No energy draining bullcrap this time.

As the paper dropped onto my lap it slowly unfolded itself, surprising me. Worried for the message inside, I chucked aside the envelope and quickly glazed over the letter.

It read like a politician:

Mr. Rachez, we are proud to inform that you have been chosen for an exclusive test program authorized by the World Health Committee. Having an A-Zero such as yourself taking part in our experiment is a huge honour and we are extremely thankful for you cooperation.

Now that you are part of this program, the first rule that you must abide is that no one under any circumstance must know of your history in the past ten years. No matter how great of an experience you’ve had exploring Alexstrasia’s many natural wonders, we are afraid you won’t be able to tell your friends about them, if you want to continue participating in this program.

Knowing you, Mr. Rachez, we are confident that you will continue to participate in this program no matter the circumstances, and once again we would like to thank you for assisting us in this project.

The second rule is to follow the instructions closely. This is so that our results will retain their accuracy. Failure to follow instructions will result in immediate expulsion from the program. Thank you for your understanding. 

Rules aside, your objective in Brikard is to purge 4000 personnel of their existential crisis and provide them relief from daily stress. Given the grand scale of this charitable task we have given you a time limit of three years. Consider this a social experiment.

With that said, do your best Mr. Rachez. The world relies on you to become a better place. 

What the fuck?

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Hey guys BeeBaBoop here with a new chapter, if you bothered to read the title then you should have realised that this is not a duel chapter. So no votes. J0nn0 is a bit under the weather and in a writing slump, sooo I'm posting this chapter and we can maybe duel on the next one. I've put some pressure on J0nn0 and I feel kinda bad for it so don't put pressure on him guys. Do as I say and not as I do right? Anyway hope you enjoyed reading, if you did please come to my website: https://aspiringnewbie.wordpress.com/ for a good time <3 and slgihtly earlier chapters. Thankyou for reading and if you are a honourable man, leave a review and a comment. Cya :D