028

Noah woke up with Sven and Jori on either side of him. They were all sharing a small bed. He didn’t think he had gone to sleep in the middle, but he was in the middle when they woke up. Sven was already sitting up in bed, rubbing his eyes.

“Ah, you’re up. Good. Wake Jori up. I don’t want to waste any time.”

“Okay,” said Noah, shaking Jori.

Sven walked into the hall, saying, “I’ll wake up the girls.”

Soon, they were all down the stairs and standing in the spacious lobby of the luxurious Dunk Towers. Their group halted awkwardly in the middle of the lobby.

“So, where should we go? How do we make money for the tickets?” asked Noah.

“I yet hold ‘twould be expedient for me to sell more nude photographs for porn tokens,” said Berenice.

“I don’t want you to do that,” said Noah. “It’s not fair to you. There has to be some other way of making money. The tickets weren’t that expensive.”

“But we cannot acquire transportation tokens by selling our artifacts,” said Berenice. “What option remains? The sole tokens that convert to transportation tokens are porn tokens and drug tokens. How else will we procure them?”

“Let’s leave the option open as a last resort, but I’m with Noah. We have all day to explore our options. If we find nothing, then tonight, we can have you sell some pictures to a lonely gnom. They’re hardly in short supply.”

“Very well,” said Berenice. Noah noticed Berenice and Cardi were holding hands. They had sure become friendly lately. He was glad. The drama between Berenice and Kirsa had been a headache.

“Pardon the intrusion, esteemed ladies and gentlemen,” spoke a small, gruff voice behind Noah. Noah turned to see a short gnom wearing a red concierge outfit. “Might I have caught wind that you are in desperate need of financial resources?”

“Uhh, yeah. Why?” asked Noah. “Do you know where we can make some money?”

“The context is simply that I’m in possession of a business opportunity that may or may not pique your interest. Post-divorce, the alimony payments to my wife have nearly driven me to bankruptcy and have encouraged me to explore alternative, somewhat less official income streams.”

Cardi spoke to the man. “You divorced your wife? How come?”

“Ah, the reason? Well, my performance in the marital relationship was quite suboptimal, I would say. I was neither hearty enough in my approbation nor lavish enough in my praise. A mistake I regret duly.”

“Aww,” said Cardi.

“What’s the job?” asked Noah.

The gnom looked around to ensure nobody was listening, and then replied. “Well, there’s a task involving the transportation of pharmaceuticals. I overheard you saying that you need drug tokens, correct? Don’t fret; these are completely legal recreational drugs. The problem is they’re located in the ghettos, and I need a team to retrieve them and deliver them to a high-profile client. Absolute discretion is required, understand?”

“So we’ll be drug dealers?” asked Noah.

“He doth claim the drugs are lawful,” said Berenice.

“They are. One hundred percent. As are all drugs in New Gnom City. Your task is simply a legal delivery, nothing more. I can’t do it myself – gnoms are prohibited from entering the ghettos. Plus, I’m tied up here at work. Are you in?”

Noah looked at the rest of the group to gauge their interest. Sven nodded. Jori shrugged. “Alright,” said Berenice, prompting Cardi to say she was in, too.

“Very well. Here’s the manufacturer’s address in the ghettos,” said the main, passing Noah a slip of paper with two addresses on it, and pointing to the first one. “Find the elf named Simplicity. Make sure to mention Rongar Ploke sent you. After securing the goods, exit the ghettos and proceed to the client. This is where discretion is critical: The client is Kibon Osk. He’ll pay on delivery. This stays between us. Are we clear? Head to the second address on the sheet, and inform the secretary you have a delivery from Rongar Ploke, understood?”

“We got it,” said Sven. He shook the man’s hand, prompting Noah to do the same.

They left the hotel. They already knew where the ghettos were – they passed them on the way to the hotel. Surprisingly, they were similar to the rest of the city, aside from the fact that they hadn’t been maintained in decades. Massive iron gates rusted. Brick facades crumbled. Cobblestones were missing from the street. And the colourful, pastel banners and awnings decorating the rest of the city had rotted away. They had to pass through a checkpoint to enter the ghettos – no gnoms were allowed except city officials.

The city was well-organized, and finding out where the correct address would be was straightforward. There seemed to be no people in the ghetto, but when Noah looked through the cracks of a boarded-up bay window, he saw a pair of icy blue eyes staring back at him for a moment until they disappeared into the dark building.

“Creepy,” said Cardi as they walked through the empty-seeming ghetto.

“It seems we have company,” pointed out Sven.

With a quick look over his shoulder, he indicated to the group that they were being stalked by a group of youths. They had paper-white skin, no mouths, and the same cyan eyes. They were dressed in rags and carried makeshift weapons.

They picked up the pace of their strut through the ghetto, hoping to reach the address before there was any trouble. Noah held his Tesla rod in his hand for comfort.

Bang! Noah ducked and then turned to look at the group following them. One of them was holding a trash can lid and had smashed it with a pipe. Another was holding a sign – hastily constructed. Get out!

“Shit,” said Noah.

“We had best make haste,” said Berenice. Noah wasn’t sure they actually needed to run from these thin, pasty teenagers, but he went along with the group and sped up.

They passed by a factory which, unlike much of the ghetto, was bustling with activity. The newly painted sign on the side of the building read “Lectra”. Through the broken windows, Noah could see children with sooty white skin and no mouths carrying heavy bags and metal parts. He also saw a well-dressed gnom in the factory who was smoking a cigar. The teenagers following them gained a few extra members as they passed by the factory.

They reached the address. Noah had pictured a grungy drug den, but at the address was some kind of apothecary. A nice building, aside from cracks in the stone and boarded-up windows. The rotting wooden sign said, “Edwin’s Elixirs and Tinctures”.

Noah opened the door. The expansive inside of the building was lit by two candles and was a mess of knocked-over shelves and mostly broken alchemy equipment. Standing by a desk near the front of the room was a tall, dark-skinned elf with a longbow pointed directly at Noah.

“Hail, strangers. Did Ploke send ye, or do ye seek yer deaths?”

“Ah!” said Noah, staring nervously at the arrowhead pointed at his face. “Ploke sent us!”

“Ah, I see,” said the man, still brandishing his longbow. “So, yer here to pick up the shipment of weapons?”

“Uhh,” said Noah. “Weapons? We were told it was drugs.”

The elf lowered his bow and smiled, but his eyes showed no kindness. “Ah, so Ploke did send ye after all, nie?” The man’s ears were long, and Noah noted that Chastity’s long ears were much shorter than his. No wonder she had said her ears were short. This man’s ears were nearly six inches long each.

“Yeah, great, so can we get a move on then?” asked Jori from behind Noah.

“Shush, Jori. Noah is conducting business,” said Sven.

The elf stepped toward Noah, tilting his head slightly as he inspected Noah. “Before I give ye the drugs, I must ask: What manner of elf be ye? Yer skin is pale, and yer ears round. Yet ye look elfin, nie? And ye do business with soulless beasts.” The man’s eyes flitted briefly to Berenice. “What kind of elves would keep such company?”

“Uhh,” said Noah. “I’m not an elf. I’m a human.”

“But what manner of human?” asked the elf.

“Just a human. True human, or whatever. Look, can we just get the drugs? We don’t have time for your racism right now, okay?”

“Racism? Ye accuse me of racism against the beast ye clothe and arm and call a person? Ye might as well take a visnake for a friend or a wode-dog for a lover.”

Noah felt annoyed. “Yeah, yeah. Stuff it. Give us the drugs.”

“This is no manner to do business, friend,” said the elf.

Noah sighed. “Just give us the fucking drugs already.”

“Fine. Here,” said the elf, handing Noah a bag with a shoulder strap. “It’s all there. Ye know where to take it?”

Noah nodded. “Yeah. We got it. Thanks.”

“Pleasure doing business with ye,” the man said, bowing. Noah didn’t bow back. They turned to leave, but the man shouted at Noah. “Will ye nie bow in ending of our bargain? Will ye make me a foe?”

Noah turned and saw the man was holding up his bow again. “Calm down,” said Noah, raising his hands again. “There’s five of us and one of you. Just put down the bow and let us deliver these drugs for you.”

The elf flashed a sinister smile. “Oh? Only one of me? So foolish of me to come alone! Why take the drugs only? Why not rob me blind, if I am yer foe? Come! Take mine enchanted bow, and mine coin. Find out how alone I truly am!”

Noah swallowed. His eyes darted around the dark insides of the apothecary. Was the man bluffing, or were there others in the room besides him? Were those eyes staring at him from a dark corner or just his imagination?

Noah sighed. “Calm down, okay? We’re not your enemy. We’re just doing business, that’s all.”

“If ye intend to do business rather than engage in a fight to the death, then lead yerself in a manner accordant with business. Bow to me, paleskin.”

Noah rolled his eyes. He bowed at the elf. The elf nodded, lowered his bow, and bowed back.

“There. Perhaps I am the first elf ye’ve met, adventurer, so take heed: We nie jape. Act with due decorum, or learn the smake of death.”

This man was a lot harsher than Chastity. Were most elves like him? Chastity had a sense of humour, but this guy was touchy. “Whatever,” said Noah.

The group left the apothecary and headed to leave the ghettos. The second address was in a rich part of town, thankfully. After they left, everyone in the group looked at each other in disbelief at the elf. Cardi was the first to speak.

“Can you believe that guy? I mean, get a grip!”

Berenice spoke. “Aye, he is distasteful. Though, methinks ‘tis his culture that renders him so. I regret to say it, Noah, but Chastity was no better.”

“What?” said Noah. “What are you talking about? Chastity is nothing like that guy. He was so touchy and racist and horrible.”

“Perchance thy love hath clouded thine memory, but Chastity too was tainted by prejudice. She saw me not as a person, and declined to dine at my table.”

Berenice was right, and she didn’t even know the half of it. It was Berenice’s memory that was faulty: Chastity had murdered Berenice’s husband without a second thought. Even now, Berenice’s past brainwashing still kept her from remembering, but it was true. Chastity was a murderer. Lovestruck Noah had forgiven her instantly. He had attributed her racism to her culture and not to a fault in her personality. You could hardly blame someone who had never known anything different for being a racist. But it was still murder. Even if he still loved her, Noah couldn’t forget that.

“It is her culture,” said Sven. “Vampires are much the same, I’m afraid. They see themselves as exceptional, and by extension, they see others as inferior. It’s part of why I left.”

“I know ‘tis her culture. ‘Tis why I hold her not at fault, and why I cast no blame upon the elf man we just spoke with. Yet, bigotry remains bigotry. They may speak foul words, but when it comes to action, I shall not tolerate it.”

“Yes, let’s be glad it didn’t come to action,” said Sven. Noah was glad Berenice couldn’t remember Chastity’s evil actions. “When I saw he was an elf, I was hoping to ask him about Hoomtree, but he ended up being a bastard, so I thought better of it.”

The teenagers were no longer following the group, and when they turned the corner, they found out why. Over a dozen white bodies lay on the ground. Most were dead, but some were still twitching and clawing at the ground. Two gnoms in gas masks were spraying them with a greenish liquid.

“What the fuck!” screamed Cardi. “Stop them! Noah, stop them!” She turned to Noah, tugging on his armoured arm.

Noah stood with his jaw slack. What were they doing? Why were they killing them? Cardi was right – he needed to intervene.

“Hey!” shouted Noah. “Hey!” The two gnoms looked at him but kept spraying the teenagers. “What the fuck are you doing?”

They finally stopped spraying. It was too late – the teenagers were all motionless. One gnom pulled his mask over his head. “Excuse me, pal?”

“What the fuck are you doing?” repeated Noah.

“Minor pest control operation,” replied the man. “What is your business in the ghettos?”

“We’re asking the questions here,” replied Jori, cracking his flaming fists together.

The man seemed frightened. “Oh, ah, it’s like I said. We’re exterminating these pests. Need to move on swiftly; there’s another group to handle a couple blocks east.”

“They’re people!” yelled Noah. “You’re killing people! That’s evil! Do you not realize? Are you slow?”

“Uhh…” replied the man, stepping back from Noah’s anger.

The other gnom took off his mask and spoke gruffly to the group. “We’re executing city-sanctioned business. If you have an issue, file it with the complaints department, also known as my rear. Got it?” The other gnom smiled.

“What is wrong with you people?” asked Noah. “Why are you killing these kids?”

“Uhh,” said the man. “I don’t actually know. Bilt?”

The other man – Bilt, apparently – spoke. “No clue. It’s just what we get paid to do. Spray the vermin.”

“Look,” said the nervous gnom. “If it wasn’t us doing it, it would be someone else. We’re just doing our jobs here!”

Noah looked at Berenice and noticed her hands were balled into fists. She looked back at Noah with hard eyes. “Methinks we should slaughter these two men. I favor not the act of killing, but I do endorse justice.”

“Slaughter?” said the meek gnom. “Wait a minute…”

“No!” shouted Cardi. “More killing won’t solve anything. It won’t bring them back!”

“But it will stop them from killing more,” said Jori matter-of-factly.

Sven spoke. “I am with Cardi. No killing. Definitely not of common men like these. If we find the people responsible for the orders, then I would understand. But not these two.”

“Hey, don’t we get a say in this?” said the gnom, his voice trembling.

“I don’t know, Berenice,” said Noah. “It doesn’t feel right.”

Berenice spoke again. “I must insist, Noah. Such as these cannot be allowed to live. Think of their victims. It matters not that they are weaker than us. They are wicked.”

Noah sighed. “Fine, you can do what you want, but I’m not getting involved.”

“Hey!” said the gnom. “I can spray you with this poison!” He held up the sprayer, pointing it at Berenice, who was taking steps toward them.

“I’ll help,” said Jori, angling around the two gnoms, keeping his distance in case they sprayed their poison toward him.

“You can’t!” Shouted Cardi. “It’s evil! Don’t you see it’s evil!”

Sven put his arm around Cardi. “Come this way, Cardi. You don’t need to see this.”

“No! No!” she cried as Sven walked her away from the gnoms. “It’s evil! It’s evil!”

Noah walked with Sven and Cardi and watched from a distance. Berenice batted the poison sprayer out of the hands of the nervous gnom. Noah thought he could see urine dripping down his leg. He didn’t feel comfortable about this. It didn’t feel right. Cardi’s screams echoed his own conscience. But he wasn’t going to fight Berenice to stop her. He wasn’t even sure she was wrong. All he knew was he felt bad about it. But maybe he was too empathetic. These men were evil incarnate. He agreed with that much.

“Stand back!” said the second gnom as Jori inched closer. Berenice grabbed the smaller, frightened gnom by the neck, lifting him off the ground like he was made from paper-mâché, and snapped his neck with her other hand, twisting his head until a sickening crunch made his body go limp. The corpse went still, and she dropped it on the ground.

Upon seeing his comrade killed, the other gnom tried spraying Berenice with the poison, but it had no effect. Poison didn’t work on Berenice Steelwool, for she was made of metal. That mistake gave Jori the time he needed to dash toward the gnom with a burst of flame and tackle him to the ground. The man was taller and bulkier than small Jori, but with an “oof!” he was knocked to the ground anyway.

Jori didn’t need an invitation to start bashing in the skull of the gnom. The gnom went still as Jori repeatedly smashed his face, cracking open his skull and spreading blood and brain matter on the cobblestone road.

Noah heard Cardi was crying. He hoped she didn’t see the gore. He felt tears coming to his own eyes. He looked at the two dead gnoms and felt pity. But then, he looked a few feet to the left and saw the bodies of the mouthless teenagers who had died in twisted, silent agony. He saw the peeled-back fingernails of a young girl who tried to claw her way to safety. Her fearful cyan eyes were still open. He saw the melted, bubbling flesh of the innocent teenagers. The bones and broken lives. No, Cardi was wrong. What Berenice and Sven had done was not murder. It was ugly, but it was justice.

Berenice and Jori rejoined the group. Both of them had blood on their hands. Literally – their hands were dripping with blood. Neither looked happy, but they did what they had to do.

“Let us now deliver the drugs,” said Berenice.

The group started toward the entrance of the ghetto. Noah put his arm around Cardi, who was quietly crying.

“Why? Why would you let them do it?” she asked him.

“Did you see the dead teenagers? You saw them spraying them, right? It was horrible. It’s one of the worst things I’ve ever seen. What Berenice and Jori did looked awful, but I am sure the world is a better place now.”

“Really? You really think that killing like that can lead to more people being happy?” sniffled Cardi.

“Yes,” said Noah. “I do.”

Cardi carried a puzzled expression to their destination outside the ghetto. Lectra Headquarters, 124 Main Drive, New Gnom City. It was a tall building next to a parking lot where dozens of ornate metal automobiles were parked.

“Lectra,” said Noah. “This is the same as that factory we saw.”

“Aye,” said Berenice. “The one that did employ children.”

“Let’s not linger,” said Sven. “In and out. We’ve got a job to do.”

They entered the double doors and spoke with the secretary, who directed them to the twelfth floor. There was an elevator – an old-timey one with a metal grate and an operator – and after riding it, they found the office of the man they were supposed to speak to: Kibon Osk, CEO.

They knocked. “Come in!”

Noah and the group entered the office. It was large, but nothing special. There were no paintings on the walls nor bookshelves. Just a simple, wooden desk with a stack of papers on it, and chairs and a couch. Sitting at the desk was a gnom – presumably Kibon Osk – who was wearing glasses. Sitting across from him was another gnom. This one was bulky, and short even for a gnom. They were both laughing about something.

“Hey, you’re here with the delivery, right?” asked Kibon.

“Yeah, we’ve got it right here.”

“Great, just put it on the desk.”

“Oh, shit,” said the muscular gnom. “Is this that new shit?”

“Shh,” said Kibon, putting a finger to his lips. “It’s not supposed to be out of trial yet. But we’re men – we should enjoy life, right? Eh eh eh,” he laughed a short, choppy laugh at Noah placed the pouch on his desk.

Kibon rotated his chair and looked at Noah with narrow eyes. He paused for several long seconds like he was going to say something. Then, he finally asked, “What species are you? I haven’t seen anyone like you before. You look like a white elf or something.”

“No, I’m not an elf. I’m human. True human.”

Kibon stroked his chin, considering the new information. Then, he reached out a hand. “Kibon Osk, obviously. And this is Gogo. Why don’t you guys sit down and stay a while? I’d like to hear more about you and your species. And your pink companion over there,” he said, smiling at Cardi. “You can try the new drugs with us. We’re gonna have some virgins brought up later, too, if you want to indulge.” He said it as if it would make his offer more tempting.

Noah shook Kibon’s hand, but shook his own head as well. “I think we’re good,” said Noah. “You can pay us now.”

Kibon laughed. “So direct! I love it!” Gogo, the other gnom, also smiled. Kibon replied, “Of course. A deal’s a deal. Here. I don’t know how much is in there, but it should be more than enough. Drug tokens, of course.” Noah took the pouch of tokens. It felt like a lot.

“You guys don’t want to stay for a bit?” asked Gogo, standing up. “You don’t have to try the drugs if you don’t want. Just stay and chat for a bit. It’s not every day you get to talk to the CEO of Lectra, right?”

“Or Gogo Grogan,” said Kibon, smiling.

“Nice to meet you all,” said Gogo, shaking Noah’s hand first. “What’s your name?”

“Noah.”

“Noah. And you?” he asked, shaking Sven’s hand. He went around the room, greeting each person, even little Jori, and they all told him their names.

“Come on, sit down! Just for a bit!” said Gogo, sitting in the chair he was in before.

Noah looked at the rest of the group, and they looked blankly back at him. He shrugged, and sat down on the couch.

“There you go! Good man!” said Kibon. “Wine? Whiskey?”

“I’m good,” said Noah.

“I’ll take some whiskey,” said Berenice.

“Me too!” said Cardi.

“And me as well,” said Jori.

Gogo laughed. “The little man wants some too. Is that okay?”

“Call me little man again, and you’ll regret it,” said Jori.

Gogo put his hands up. “Sorry li- Sorry, Jori. I didn’t mean to offend you. What about you?” he asked Sven.

“Eh, blood if you have it. Otherwise, I’m good.”

“Blood?” asked Kibon as he handed out glasses of whiskey. “Sure.” He touched an artifact on his desk. “Shara. Bring up a bottle of silent blood.”

“Sure thing,” a female voice echoed from his desk. Soon enough, a gnom woman in a white dress scurried into the room and handed Kibon a bottle, from which he poured Sven a glass of blood.

Sven took the glass happily, smiling at his drink. “Thank you,” he said, sipping the blood merrily.

“So,” said Gogo, “You must be adventurers, right? Not like those bullshit beta-males in the adventurer’s guild, but like real adventurers from far away?”

“Yep, pretty much,” said Noah.

“Wow, so what are you doing running drugs in my city?” asked Kibon.

“We needed some transportation tokens. We need to get to Hoomtree. Sven has lots of gold, but apparently, that’s no good here.”

“Yes,” said Kibon. “We’ve moved to a plastic-based economy. It’s better for business.”

“That’s all you guys need? A ride to Hoomtree? You guys can take my personal blimp if you want. The transportation union won’t take you close to Hoomtree anyway, so you’d have to leg it for a while afterward. But my blimp can go right into the city, if you want.”

“Really? Into the city?” asked Kibon.

“Well, it’s better not to, but I don’t think the elves would shoot it down, at least.”

“We would be happy to accept your offer, Mr. Grogan,” said Sven, smiling wide as he finished his glass of blood. Kibon gave him the bottle, and he poured himself more.

“What business do you have in Hoomtree,” asked Kibon.

It was better not to tell these strangers about Antimogne and the golgotha and so on, so Noah responded vaguely. “We’re on a mission. One that could affect the entire world. Also, I’m going there to meet a girl.”

“Oh, a virgin?” asked Gogo.

“Of what importance is that?” asked Berenice.

“Well, a man would hardly risk his hide going to meet with a used-up whore, right?” smiled Gogo.

“Virginity is a crude concept forged by men,” said Berenice.

“How can you say that?” asked Gogo. “Virginity has been a valued concept for thousands of years. All the best historians say people have valued purity since the dawn of time. How can you say it’s just made up?”

“‘Tis not the sole absurd notion that has survived the ages,” said Berenice. “Yet it matters not. Forget I spoke aught.”

“No, no, how can you say that?” pressed Gogo. “Every scholar I’ve spoken to says virginity is a core part of gnom relationships. It’s part of our biology. Once a woman loses her virginity, she changes. Do you deny that? Are you going against hundreds of scholars?”

“Please, Gogo. Stop interrogating our guests.”

Gogo’s mouth opened for a minute to protest, and then he relaxed. “Sorry, sorry. I’ll save it for the audiocast.”

“Good. Anyway, I was wondering how someone claiming to be true human ended up in New Gnom City in the present day. I thought your kind were extinct.”

“Apparently not,” said Noah. “I wish I knew more, but I just woke up here one day.”

“Hmm…” pondered Kibon. “And what about you. What was your name?” he asked Cardi.

“Cardi,” spoke Gogo for her.

“Right. What is your species, girl. You seem human, too, though you’re pink.”

“Well,” she said. “I don’t know. I’m the avatar of the Heart, if that helps.”

“What? Are you serious? You can’t be,” said Gogo.

“It explains the marking on your forehead. A heart. That is interesting. I wonder if it’s true.”

“Well, I wouldn’t lie!”

“Wait, so can you talk to the Heart or something?”

“No, nothing like that,” said Cardi. “I wish. My lady created me with certain knowledge, but that is all. Though I pray to her every night, I never hear back.”

Kibon was stroking his chin again. “That is most curious. What a strange band of adventurers. Why did the Heart send you to travel with these people? A true human I understand the importance of, and a vampire is a person of significance, too, but why do you travel with two sheeple, and one flame-blooded at that?”

“I don’t know, they’re my friends!”

“Friends?”

“Sounds like the Heart to me,” said Gogo sarcastically. “Heart Heretics aren’t allowed to kill. They’re always denying that killing is part of the circle of life. It makes sense an avatar of the Heart would be all hippie-dippie, all about making friends and stuff. Are you all a bunch of kumbaya pacifists?”

“Hardly,” said Jori. “We just killed two people like twenty minutes ago.”

“Jori!” chided Sven.

“What? Who?” asked Kibon. “Not gnoms?”

“Yes, gnoms,” said Jori calmly. “We caved their fucking faces in.”

“Hold thy peace, Jori,” said Berenice.

“What happened?” asked Gogo, shifting in his seat, leaning closer in interest.

Jori looked at Berenice, silently asking permission to speak, but Berenice answered instead.

“Nothing happened beyond what justice demanded. We saw some gnoms slaughtering poor teenagers in the ghettos, and we slew them. If you have quarrel with that, then we’ll dispatch you as well.”

“Whoa, relax!” said Gogo. “You don’t have a problem with me. I don’t know those people.”

“I do,” said Kibon. “They probably worked for me.”

“What?” said Noah.

“I have a contract with the city to keep the gangs of silent youths in check. Otherwise, they cause too much trouble. They start messing with the factories.”

“So thou art the one responsible for the deaths of those youths?” asked Berenice with a firm voice.

“Not really,” said Kibon. “It’s the city that forces the silent into the ghettos. I believe in freedom. People should be able to live wherever they want. A silent or an elf takes your job? Work harder! But the city doesn’t see it that way. So you get ghettos, and in those ghettos, you get gangs. And you can either combat the gangs, or they start killing each other and my factory workers. It’s death either way. The real source of the evil is the municipality.”

“But, correct me if I err, thou art the one arming the gnoms with poison-spraying artifacts and instructing them to slay hordes of youths, correct?”

“Yes, it is me who gives the orders.”

“Then thou deservest to die. Thou meritest to be slain.”

Noah saw Berenice’s fists were balled up again, and her eyes were steel. She would attack at any minute.

“No!” shouted Cardi. She stood up from the couch and pointed her finger at Berenice. “No more violence, you hear me! No more killing! I don’t care if it’s justified. I don’t care if you’re angry. No more! Or else… Or else you’re not my friend anymore!”

Berenice stared daggers at Cardi for several seconds before her expression softened and her fists relaxed. “Oh, Cardi…” She broke her eye contact and looked at her hooves. “I’ve been a poor friend. In my quest for justice, I neglected thy feelings. One must act with virtue, but above all, one must serve their friends. I am sorry, Cardi.”

Noah internally sighed with relief. He was not looking forward to more bloodshed either, especially in a building with numerous armed guards.

“It’s okay, Bee,” said Cardi, wrapping her arm around Berenice. “Thank you, Bee.”

“You are probably lucky you decided not to resort to violence,” said Kibon. “Gogo here is quite dangerous when he transforms.”

“Yeah, that wouldn’t have gone well for you. But let’s not worry about that. Want to try some drugs? They make you completely forget English! Temporarily, of course. It’s supposed to be a strange experience, like you can see the world without any of the labels we attach to things.”

“We’re good,” said Noah, standing up. “We should probably just go.”

“Fine,” said Gogo. “My offer to use my blimp still stands. I’ll let the union know you’re coming. They’re just finishing repairs, but it should be good to go sometime tomorrow.”

“Alright, thank you very much,” said Sven. The group got up and started to leave.

“If you’re ever in town again, Noah, I’d love to have you and Cardi on the audiocast.”

“Uhh, sure. Maybe,” said Noah.

They left the office and headed to the main floor. When they entered the elevator, a group of four young gnom women in frilly white dresses exited the elevator, heading to Kibon Osk’s office. They were quiet and looked worried.

They left the Lectra offices with a bag full of drug tokens they could exchange for transportation tokens or any other tokens besides porn tokens, and Gogo Grogan’s blessing to use their blimp. And Sven brought with him the rest of the bottle of blood.

They decided to do some shopping with their extra tokens, walking around town for hours, talking and buying snacks and trinkets. Cardi got a pair of heart-shaped clip-on earrings she adored. Cardi and Berenice seemed to forgive one another. Sven seemed happier than usual – giddy from drinking all the blood. Noah followed along with the group, mostly staying quiet. He was shocked at the dumb shit gnoms would buy if it was advertised as being on sale, and none of the stuff interested him besides a jar of Chocolate Whiz he ended up buying. He thought about Chastity, and elves, and Hoomtree. Tomorrow, they would board the blimp, and they’d be in the elven capital within a day after that. Then, he would finally see her. What would he say?