After Kita and Raya walked for two nights with only a few hours of rest each evening, they finally arrived at River City where the sun highlighted the city's edges as the multi-layered haven sat amongst the barren arroyo carved into the landscape. The city was suspended on massive pillars protruding from the earth beneath, consisting of three floors with sloped walkways leading between them. Each story of the city was filled with houses and stores made of wood that were split between homes, inns and storefronts. From what Kita could see, there were no tents. Everyone here was too wealthy for that. Each wooden home was large enough to house at least two dozen people if the space was used for such.

  "I was expecting a war," Kita said, surprised by the relaxed townspeople.

  "War begins in the shadows," Raya responded. "We must find Jan before it comes to the light,"

  “Alright Warrior Princess, enough riddles,”

  "We should find a hotel," Raya chuckled.

  "Can we afford it?" Kita asked, gazing at the nearby homesteads.

  "Hopefully," Raya answered, counting their coin.

  They made their way through the streets and walkways, dimly illuminated with light bulbs hanging from the floor above. The sun wasn't yet at its peak, but it was at the right angle to shine through the side of the town and cast a soft, golden glow throughout the city. Most of the buildings they passed were homes. Each had a unique design with different shades of wood for the front door. Some had artwork placed on or beside the door, sealed within glass containment to prevent theft.

  "Here we are," Raya said, pushing open the door to meet a staircase leading to its second floor and two more paths beside it. One path had a sign for the lobby and another with room numbers. At the front desk, a pretty woman with short black hair and a formal uniform stood smiling at Raya and Kita as they entered. Kita noticed the lobby extended into a restaurant with many wooden tables scattered around the room and a series of chefs in the kitchen.

  They live in luxury, Kita couldn’t help feeling envious of the comfortable lifestyle the inn exuded.

  "Hello," Raya said politely to the concierge.

  "Hi Ma'am, how can I help you today?" The concierge smiled.

  "We would like to book a room,"

  "Sure thing. We have a lovers package on special at the moment if that would interest the two of you,"

  Raya blushed at the concierge's presumption, "We-"

  "Would love it," Kita interrupted, winking at Raya to make her more uncomfortable.

  "Excellent," The lady said, "The lover's room is currently eighteen hundred coin,"

  "Woah," Kita stared in confusion. It was the first time she'd heard of something so expensive.

  "How many nights is that for?" Raya asked, almost as bewildered as Kita

  The concierge giggled, "One night of course,"

  Kita and Raya passed an awkward glance at one another. Without a word, they both agree that it cost far too much.

  "Do you have anything cheaper?" Raya asked, trying to hold her embarrassment at bay.

  "Our cheapest one bedroom is twelve hundred coin, Ma'am,"

  "Per night?" Kita asked.

  The concierge nodded her head. Prompting Kita and Raya to glance at one another again, both shrugging.

  "We'd like the room for twelve hundred, please," Raya asked politely before reaching into her bag to take out a few pouches of coin.

  Without much warning, Kita felt a sudden urge within her. A longing that tugged at the void of her soul. It was much more intense than she was prepared for and in her attempt to look at Raya for assistance, she didn't see Raya's blue hair, but the pure white hair of a woman about Kita's height. In her confusion, she tried to locate Raya- turning to scan the hotel lobby but only to find walkways of greenery surrounding her. The white-haired lady was standing at a stall, in what seemed to be an outdoor marketplace. Kita could feel her memories shifting. Her mind was transitioning into this unknown set of circumstances and yet she could barely remember what she was doing before she was here. Hotel. She tells herself, trying to cling to reality. Hotel. Hotel.

  "Kita?" The lady with the white hair asked.

  Kita ignored it, repeating the word in her mind. Hotel. Hotel. Ho-

  "Kita!" The lady's voice called out forcefully, pulling Kita's attention.

  The lady glared at Kita with her deep, brown eyes and skin, outstretching a hand and signalling Kita to place something in it.

  "Mom?" Kita asked, knowing the answer but needing confirmation for some reason.

  "Daughter?" The lady asked sarcastically, prompting a chuckle from Kita.

  Hotel. Her mind echoed, trying to remind herself of the situation but as she recalled the word. Why am I thinking about a hotel? Kita reached into the basket at her hip to pass the large fruits to her Mother.

  "If I didn't know any better, I'd think you're going crazy, Kita," Her Mother chuckled.

  "Sorry," Kita said, "I was daydreaming again,"

  "What about?" Mom asked as she placed the fruits on the counter of the stall.

  "I don't know," Kita said, struggling to recall any details. "Something about a hotel,"

  "A hotel?" Mom reiterated. "That's a strange thing to daydream about,"

  Kita had partially hoped for answers but didn't know why. The void still sat in her core but wasn't as noticeable. Kita couldn’t figure out why she felt it or what it was and reasoned that it must simply be hunger. A literal pit in her stomach that can easily be resolved with a meal.

  "I think I just need something to eat," Kita said.

  Mother handed Kita two, bright red fruits that sounded a satisfying crunch when Kita bit into them. Food was the solution- The discomfort slowly slipped away as she concentrated on the sweet taste of the fruit. Once her Mother finished trading with the stall owner, she placed a few slices of bacon into the basket Kita was carrying. Kita glanced into the basket to count the vegetables and meats Mother had traded for, walking away with much nicer foods than they’d started with.

  "You're good at this," Kita said, glancing up at her Mother who walked ahead of her with bright blue hair.

  Kita tilted her head in confusion, blinking her eyes to correct her vision. Upon opening her eyes, the face of a young woman was right in front of her, with both her hands on Kita's shoulders- startling her as she noticed her Mother's white hair walking away without her.

  "Kita!" The woman with the blue hair called out to her.

  "Who are you?" Kita asked with frustration, slapping the blue-haired girl's hands away as she tried to keep an eye on her Mom. "I need to go," Kita said, desperately wanting to follow behind her Mother.

  "Kita, snap out of it!" Raya yelled at Kita.

  A shiver passed down Kita's spine as she could no longer see her Mother, leaving Kita blinking in confusion as the faint image of a village-like marketplace faded from her mind.

  "Mom," Kita mumbled, glancing over Raya's shoulder as the faint image of her white hair swaying from side to side vanished.

  "Are you okay?" Raya asked with concern.

  "I-uhh," Kita stammered, struggling to gather her thoughts.

  "We'll be heading to the room," Raya said to the concierge at the front desk, reaching out to grab the key to the room.

  “Would you like us to send the Doctor?” The concierge asked.

  “She just needs some rest,” Raya tried holding a calm smile, guiding Kita out of the lobby.

  "I just saw my Mom," Kita muttered, still dazed, "I look just like her,"

  Raya swung the room door open, guiding Kita to the bed and sitting her down.

  "Listen, Kita. I understand how important that is to you, but it's a bad sign,"

  "What?" Kita's head whipped to Raya. "How?"

  "I think Ari is correct. Your soul is calling to you, Kita,"

  "How's that a bad thing?" Kita asked.

  "Because that means it is close by," Raya said. "When this happened to you in the past, the dark one was not far away,"

  Now that Raya mentioned it, Kita could feel it calling. The sense of longing that plagued her only got more intense once she arrived in the city.

  "I can feel it," Kita said with a shudder in her voice.

  Raya's attention suddenly turned away from Kita, drawing a blade from her hip as Kita continued pondering.

  "The dark one is here too," Kita added, looking up at Raya to find her facing off with two strangers who'd made their way into the room.

  "Who the hell are you?" Kita asked in a moment of panic as she stood to her feet.

  Twins. Two pale-skinned twins with golden locks and purple eyes glared at Kita and Raya. Their eyes were hypnotizing and without a shred of emotion. The young man had his locks flowing down his shoulders, whereas his sister had a short side cut with a fluffy fringe covering her eyebrows. Both were dressed in clothing designed for travelling amongst shadows.

  "Hurtful," The lady twin responded with a monotonous snarl.

  "How did you get in here?" Raya asked with frustration.

  "We've been following you since you arrived in the city," The brother answered.

  “You didn’t answer my question,” Raya stepped forward with her dagger primed and ready to strike. But as her foot shuffled, both twins stood back and raised their hands.

  "We aren't here to fight," The brother added.

  "Sneaking into people's bedrooms is a pretty good way to start a fight," Kita scoffed.

  "True," The sister scoffed in her monotonous voice.

  "Is that her thing?" Kita asked, slightly irked. "Being grumpy?"

  The male twin chuckled at Kita's remarks.

  "Some things never change," He smirked. "I’m Alex. This is my sister, Myra,"

  "What are you doing in our room?" Raya asked.

  "Our bed only fits two," Kita added, trying to be cheeky.

  Myra simply pointed a finger at Kita.

  "We came to talk to her," Alex said.

  "Then talk," Kita said, raising an eyebrow at the room invaders.

  "Relax," Myra said, "We're trying to help you,"

  "She speaks in full sentences now," Kita said snarkily.

  "Chevo knows you're in River City," Alex said.

  "So?" Kita scoffed.

  The twins glanced at each other in confusion before looking back at Kita.

  "He wants you dead," Myra said with a blunt, emotionless tone in her voice.

  "Why would Chevo want Kita dead?" Raya asked.

  Both twins' eyes shifted from Raya to Kita, expecting Kita to explain the situation. She suddenly felt anxious under the pressure of their gaze as they waited for an explanation she didn't have.

  "Well?" Kita asked, a little frustrated by her discomfort.

  "You don't know?" Alex asked.

  "Hmmm," Myra mumbled.

  "Know what?" Kita asked.

  "To make a long story short. You were one of his assassins. He trained you many rotations ago, And… You stole from him and ran away," Alex said.

  "Huh?" Kita responded, stunned.

  "He treats his crew like family," Myra added, "He doesn't take kindly to traitors,"

  "Well, my to-do list is already filled up, so thanks for stopping by. Don’t hurt yourself on the way out,"

  "We just wanted to check on you," Alex added.

  "We were friends or something?"

  "Something like that," Alex said, scratching behind his head. "He used to send the three of us on jobs together,"

  "Hmph," Kita grunted, unable to recall what she was being told.

  "What is Chevo doing in River City?" Raya asked.

  "Is that why you're here?" Alex asked Raya. "For Chevo?"

  "We're here to help out a friend," Kita interjected.

  "A lot is going on right now," Alex levelled with them. "It isn't safe for you to be here,"

  "What am I, a child?" Kita barked. "I don't need some strangers trying to babysit me,"

  "Same old Kita," Myra smirked, placing a few leaves into her mouth and chewing incessantly.

  "We'll help you," Alex said. "What exactly are you doing here?"

  Kita glanced at Raya, trying to get a read on what she was thinking but Raya simply returned a shrug.

  "There's a kid named Jan, he was about to get sold off by Vlad,"

  "A kid?" Alex raised an eyebrow. "Why would you care about some kid?"

  "I'm not the asshole you knew," Kita said.

  "You sure about that?" Myra asked, chewing obnoxiously.

  Kita raised her hand at Myra, contemplating shutting her up for good. It'd be quite satisfying to take her soul right about now.

  "Woah," Alex panicked, stepping in front of his sister to calm them both down.

  "We'll help you find him," He added. "Anything else we should know?"

  Kita lowered her hand, still eyeing Myra over Alex's shoulder.

  "He's soulless, like me," Kita responded.

  Both twins' eyes widen with concern, "Shit," Alex mumbled under his breath.

  "What's the problem?" Raya asked.

  "Chevo's in River City because there's some soulless kid he's looking for," Alex answered.

  "What?" Kita asked, now more concerned about Jan. "Why would Chevo want a soulless kid?"

  "I don't know," Alex answered.

  "This doesn't sound good," Raya added, "We need to figure out what's going on,"

  "I agree," Alex nodded. “Myra and I will see what we can find from Chevo. He's been real secretive about his plan but if we hear about Jan we'll let you know," Alex said.

  "I was thinking we should invade Vlad's group. Sneak in there and see what we can find," Raya said.

  “I could punch a couple raiders,” Kita grinned, “Maybe get some souls too,”

  "Ok," Alex confirmed, "Let's meet back here in two days with what we find,"

  "Hmm," Kita mumbled, staring at Myra as she approached her, "I'm not so sure I trust you,"

  "Pfft," Myra scoffed.

  "Alright," Raya nodded, stepping in between them, "We'll meet you back here in two days,"

  °?°?°?

  "Do any of these assholes look like one of Vlad's goons?" Kita asked as she and Raya walked through the first floor of the city, trying to figure out where Vlad's group was hiding.

  Many of the townspeople in River City were beyond wealthy. Most of them wore robes instead of regular clothing and most of their robes were navy blue with golden buttons or zippers. Kita and Raya stuck out like a sore thumb with the clothes they were wearing, attracting a few distasteful glares from the rich citizens who passed them by.

  "No," Raya answered, "Unless his raiders dress in robes, I don't see anyone,"

  "Shit," Kita scoffed. "How do we figure out where they are?"

  "You said they robbed homes in Canyon City?" Raya asked.

  "Yeah, wealthy ones," Kita responded.

  "We'll need to intrude on one of their robberies,"

  "Really? They'd be doing that even when there's a war building?" Kita asked.

  "War is the best time to commit a crime," Raya said, "People care less about their property when their lives are at risk,"

  "Easier said than done," Kita said.

  "How did you find them in Canyon City?"

  "By accident. I just wanted to take some coin and a few souls. But, I intruded on one of their raids,"

  "Of course," Raya chuckled, "That seems to be the result of your luck,"

  "Yeah Yeah, just point me in the direction of the wealthiest homes and I'll use my 'luck' to find them," Kita chuckled.

  "I presume the third floor of the city is where the wealthiest reside," Raya said pointing towards the slope that leads to the second floor.

  Kita and Raya make their way to the absurdly wide, glass ramp in the distance. Positioned at the edge of the city, overlooking the hollow river beneath the suspended city. Guards in white uniforms were peppered all over the place as they passed homes, stores and hotels of the first floor.

  "Do they count?" Kita asked, nodding her head in the direction of a few guards ahead of her.

  "What?" Raya asked.

  “I can take their souls, right,"

  "Well, considering that they are law enforcement, they can't exactly be considered bad people," Raya raised an eyebrow, smirking at Kita. "But, it depends on who you ask,"

  "So, that's a yes?"

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  Raya laughed, "How many did you get from those raiders we put to bed?"

  "Put to bed," Kita chuckled, "God, what a strange way of saying you massacred a large group of people,"

  Raya shook her head in her laughter, unable to find the air she needed to respond.

  "Is that what Royal families say when they conquer cities?" Kita laughed, "We lay over three thousand enemy soldiers to rest, sire," She announced in her formal voice.

  "That is exactly what it used to sound like," Raya held her belly and hunched over. Sipping on air between her cackling.

  Kita smiled, enjoying the second-hand laughter from Raya. "Twenty-three," Kita replied.

  "Ooo," Raya straightened her back and eased her laughter. "That's usually a big one for you,"

  Kita passed an embarrassed glance, surprised that Raya knew the digits in which Kita experienced more… Pleasure.

  "Uhh," Kita stuttered, "It… was," She responded before planting her face into the palm of her hand.

  "Don't be embarrassed," Raya teased. "You should see what happens at two hundred,"

  "Oh no," Kita sighed, "What happens,"

  "You'll see," Raya chuckled.

  As they approached the glass ramp leading to the second floor, they noticed a checkpoint at its base. Five armed guards stood amongst two small gates, two of whom were checking the ID of entrants whilst the last three scouts were amongst those in the queue, presumably conducting searches on any suspicious individuals.

  "Crap," Raya scoffed, noticing the same thing.

  "Can we take them on?" Kita asked.

  "Most likely. But I don't want us drawing attention to ourselves,"

  "Hmm," Kita mumbled, "I can make us go invisible,"

  "I'd prefer you hold onto those souls," Raya said, "We'll need them when we find Vlad,"

  "Then what's the plan?"

  "There is nearly nothing that coin cannot purchase," Raya winked. "We learn that in the royal family too,"

  As they joined the queue at the checkpoint, they tried their best not to be conspicuous. There were many tourists in the queue as well, reducing the obvious difference between them and the general public. Kita glanced over at Raya, scanning her from head to toe, then mumbling under her breath.

  "We're going to get searched," Kita said in a monotonous frustration.

  "Why's that?" Raya asked.

  "Have you seen yourself?" Kita raised an eyebrow. "You didn't even cover up your hair,"

  "I'm not the only one with coloured hair," Raya scoffed, pointing at a man and woman with a green and pink-haired combination.

  "They're getting searched," Kita said as a guard approached the couple with the colourful hair.

  "Where are you from?" They heard the guard asking loudly, attracting a lot of attention in the process.

  The couple was flustered by his aggression as the man stuttered in his response, "We're tourists,"

  "Where are you from?" The guard repeated, aggressively stepping closer to the man.

  "We roam," The lady answered, momentarily locking eyes with the guard as he menacingly glared at her.

  "IDs" The guard ordered, towering over the nervous man.

  "We don't…" The man swallowed his words as he reached into his back pocket to pull out a pouch of coin. "We were hoping to, uhm. Purchase a ticket,"

  "No tickets here. ID's," The guard sternly ordered.

  "Oh, well then we should go," The nervous man stammered, putting the pouch back into his pocket.

  But the guard grabbed his arm, and raised it up before squeezing it so tightly the man released his grasp on the pouch. The guard took the pouch from the panicked man's hand and let go of his arm.

  "No ID, no entry," The guard said, putting the pouch into his own pocket and turning to walk away from the couple.

  "W-wait," The man called out, trying his best to speak confidently, "We need that,"

  Before the man could react, a cracking sound ripped through the checkpoint. Everyone reacted with a startled gasp as the guard clobbered the man in the face with the butt of his rifle.

  The tourist dropped to the floor, whining as he clutched his bloody nose with his hand. The lady he was with dropped to her knees to attend to the man as she looked back up and yelled, "How must we pay for healing? That is our money!"

  The guard stopped in his tracks, sighing as he turned to face the woman crouching beside her partner.

  Kita glanced at Raya and noticed the twitch in her eye as she glared with rage at what was most likely to ensue. If Kita didn't know any better, she'd assume the guard was going to take out a first aid kit and kneel beside the man whilst apologizing for his behaviour. But, she knew way better than that.

  "What?" The guard said, slowly walking towards the lady. "Scum like you isn't allowed on the second floor," He added, reaching for the dense Baton at his waist.

  Kita noticed Raya step forward and rolled her eyes considering Raya had just said they should keep a low profile.

  "That is all the coin we have!" The lady cried out before her husband raised his bloodied hand to grab her shirt, shaking his head as he whispered to her- Probably something along the lines of 'Shut the hell up'.

  "You cannot treat us this way!" The lady bellowed, ignoring her husband's warning.

  Before anything else was said, another crack whipped through the area. The guard's Baton collided with the woman's chin as she almost dropped to the floor.

  "Say it again," The guard said, raising his Baton to smack the lady.

  "Yes," Raya said, still staring at the guard.

  "Huh?" Kita grunted.

  "They count,"

  The dense sound of the Batton beating the tourist woman rang throughout the checkpoint. The guard's baton smacked into the woman's back as she assumed a fetal position on the ground, using her hands to cover her head as best she could.

  She whined in pain whilst her partner tried his best to get onto his knees and protect her from the guard's attacks- putting himself in harm's way for the baton to crash into his skull, throwing his head against the ground.

  Both of them were bruised and bleeding as they lay on the ground, wincing in their attempts to move their body. As the guard raised his baton to beat them again, a woman's hand grabbed his arm before it could strike.

  Kita glanced beside her, noticing Raya snuck away and then glanced back at the guard to see Raya's blue hair wafting in the wind as she held the guard's arm.

  "This just got interesting," Kita said under her breath, turning her head to see Raya had caught the attention of the two other guards.

  "How dare you!" The guard yelled at Raya.

  She chose to respond by snapping a quick punch to the guard's gut. He hunched over, struggling for his breath before another swift punch crashed into his nose. Raya released his arms allowing him to lose his footing and fall to the floor. Like a magic of its own, Raya was suddenly holding the pouch of money and playfully tossing it in the air with a satisfied grin plastered on her face. Kita eyed the approaching guards and started walking towards the incident, trying to cut off their path to Raya.

  "Excuse me," Kita said, putting on a panicked voice as she stepped in front of them.

  "Out of the way," One of the guards ordered.

  "Something is happening over there," She added, pointing in the opposite direction of where Raya was.

  Both guards turned their heads to the crowd, prompting Kita to grab both of them by the face. The guards raised their arms to react but Kita had cast her spell by then. Consume. Kita successfully hid the clouds of smoke escaping their mouths as they lost consciousness and fell to the floor. The civilians around her all stepped away from the downed guards, isolating Kita in a circle with their two bodies lying on the floor. Twenty-five.

  Kita turned her head in the direction she'd pointed. Noticing four more guards heading in their direction amongst the scattered observers.

  "Raya!" Kita yelled across the crowd, grabbing her attention and then pointing to the approaching guards.

  Raya confirmed the information with a quick nod before tossing the pouch beside the beaten man attending to his wife.

  "Leave," Raya instructed the couple. Receiving a grateful nod from the husband as he lifted his wife to her feet and supported her as they stumbled away.

  Kita wouldn't mind taking on a few more. She's itching for a fight since that Myra chick got on her nerves. What should I use on them? Kita wondered, trying to come up with a new spell.

  She thought about casting a simple slice spell but then noticed the crowd of people she would harm in the process. Damn. If she hurt them, Raya would give Kita an earful.

  "We'll lose them on the second floor," Raya said, suddenly standing by Kita's side. "Well take out the guards at the gate,"

  They both dashed to the gate where two guards were standing, checking IDs and providing entry. But, they noticed Kita and Raya's approach and had their rifles raised in their direction.

  "Stop right there!" yelled one of the guards, aiming down the sights of his rifle.

  Civilian casualties will be inevitable if they start firing. Kita placed her hand on Raya's shoulder and decided to try something new.

  "What are you-" Raya stammered.

  The both of them momentarily blink in darkness before they find themselves halfway up the ramp.

  "- doing?" Raya stuttered as her face turned pale.

  Kita turned her head to see the back of the two guards, now flustered by them suddenly disappearing as they rapidly scanned the area trying to locate them.

  "Nice," Kita said, excited by her new trick.

  "Teleportation?" Raya mumbled.

  "Yep," Kita chuckled. "How'd you like it?"

  "A warning would have been nice," Raya said, still trying to deal with her discomfort.

  It worked perfectly. But, Kita could feel the mass reduction in available souls- It cost twelve. It would be useful to know how much a spell cost before casting it. But, she presumed it didn't work that way. As they reached the top of the ramp, Kita looked behind her again and noticed four guards making their way onto the ramp to give chase. Fortunately, there wasn't a checkpoint at the top, allowing them to slip into the crowd. Raya gracefully unravelled a lady's headscarf as she ran past, using it to cover up her hair and the lower part of her face. She slipped another one to Kita.

  "Cover up," She said.

  Kita quickly covered her head and face with the scarf and both of them stopped running and walked casually amongst the crowd. As Kita came to a sudden halt, the skid of her boots prompted her to glance at the ground which was tiled in one enormous piece of white marble. Glittering as bits of sunlight reflect amongst the waving details. She looked up to notice all of the buildings were covered in light grey marble, with gold lining the edge of each building.

  "Holy shit," Kita said, basking in the sheer wealth gap between the first and second floors. The majority of the people on this floor were wearing sunkissed thoub's, glistening like a muted gold. With a few of the Navy blue robes sprinkled as a minority amongst them. The occasional tourist in regular clothing could be seen too- They probably have IDs.

  Raya tapped Kita on the arm, tilting her head in the direction of a store. They both scurried through, momentarily startled by the jingle of a bell.

  "Welcome," said a middle-aged woman, smiling to flare her golden teeth. "What can I do for you?"

  Kita glanced around the store trying to get an idea of what the place was for. There were shelves full of specialized jars carrying a plethora of plants and flowers.

  "Woah," Kita and Raya both mumbled as they ogled at the spectrum of colour painting the store.

  The store owner's smile grew bigger, "Quite the sight, isn't it?"

  "I thought all of the vegetation had gone extinct," Raya said.

  "We have the finest remnants of the past, in the River City," The owner said as she walked over to them. "Many of them can be used for consumption or even healing. Whilst others can be nurtured to grow and share their place in your family," she chuckled. "Like that of a pet,"

  Kita walked over to a jar that caught her attention. A red flower with a green stem extending into a small plume of dirt stood tall as it hypnotized her with the spiralling formation of its petals- her eyes travelling the pathway as it led her to the centre.

  "That one is more of the pet variety- It is called a Rose," The lady said.

  "Rose," Kita mumbled, extracted by the bright, blood-red head of the flower before noticing the name engraved on a gold plaque at the base of the display.

  "Feel free to look around the store," The lady said, "And let me know if you would like to see the ones in the back," She added before walking away to attend to her other clients.

  Kita took a step back to take in the whole shelf. So many colours and sizes. Light blue, pink, and yellow with all sorts of gradients. White ones, green ones and so much more, all displayed like works of art. At the bottom of the shelves, she noticed large, steel boxes with a symbol imprinted on the face. Kita squinted at them, as they appeared familiar, but she couldn't put her finger on it.

  "This is crazy," Raya said, still in awe of the life before her.

  "It all looks so familiar," Kita said.

  "Have you seen them in that village you dream about?" Raya asked.

  "Some of them," She answered, still glaring at the boxes.

  Raya stood beside her and followed her line of sight to the boxes below.

  "Those look familiar too?" Raya asked.

  "Yeah, I-" Kita suddenly remembered where she’d seen them. Vlad's storage room. There was a massive room filled with steel boxes like these.

  Does Vlad own this store? Or does the store own him?

  "She works with Vlad," Kita said, eyeing the store owner.

  "Her?" Raya asked, glancing over at the lady as she hosted a few clients. "How do you know?"

  "Those boxes. Vlad had a supply room filled with them in Canyon City,"

  "Hmm," Raya responded, glancing between the boxes and the store owner as she presumably devised a plan.

  The bell of the front door dinged, drawing their attention away from their discovery. They turned to see a guard had entered the store. He was breathing heavily and had his rifle in hand- he was probably one of the four that were chasing them.

  They both turned their heads back to the shelves of flowers ahead of them, analyzing the plant life but constantly peeking over their shoulder to track the guard as he walked towards the till. Their headscarves should keep them unrecognizable if he didn't see their faces.

  "Hello there, officer," The store owner greeted him heartily. "How can I help you?"

  "Sorry to bother you, Ms Eeve," The guard said politely- who'd have known these guys have a shred of decency in them. "Have you seen any suspicious individuals recently?"

  "Do my guests seem the suspicious type to you?" Ms Eeve asked, raising an eyebrow and frowning at the guard.

  "N-no, Ma'am," The guard stuttered, "I do not mean to insult your clients, I-"

  Ms Eeve walked over to the guard at the front door. Her high-heeled shoes clattered against the floor with each step she took as she approached the guard in frustration. She stepped right up to him and lowered her voice to whisper to him.

  "What is she saying," Kita asked under her breath.

  "I don't know," Raya answered.

  "Everything is in place, Ma'am," The guard said loud enough for them to hear.

  "Excellent," She said, turning to walk back to the till. "Leave my store,"

  "Yes, Ma'am," The guard nodded before raising an eyebrow and glancing over at Kita and Raya, who suspiciously turned their heads back to the shelves. Shit. The guard looked back at Ms Eeve, opening his mouth to say something but then looked back at the scarves of Kita and Raya. Choosing to exit the Ms Eeve’s store instead of causing a commotion.

  "We need to see what's in the back," Raya said.

  "Yeah," Kita grunted.

  They both walked over to the till, queuing behind a few clients. Once they reached the desk, Ms Eeve glanced at the both of them before asking, "Did nothing take your fancy?"

  "Actually, we'd like to see what's in the back," Kita said.

  Ms Eeve smiled, "Excellent, make your way through the door," She said, pointing to a door behind her. "I will join you shortly,"

  They both nodded and walked to the door she'd pointed to. Once they passed through it they entered an empty room with another door at the other end. A lone security guard was seated in front of it, with a much higher-quality weapon on his lap as he read a small book. He glanced up at the two of them, raising an eyebrow before closing his book and rising to his feet. The man was a giant, muscular thumb- his body towered over Kita and Raya as he strapped his gun over his shoulder. Shaking the floor with the two steps it took him to cross the room.

  "I'll have to conduct a search," The guard's deep voice rumbled.

  "Uh, ok," Raya said, raising her arms. Kita followed suit and the man patted them both down. Drawing a blade from Raya's pants.

  The man scanned the inscriptions on the dagger and admired the silver handle with patterned bevels at the grip.

  "Nice blade," The man said. "It will be returned once you exit,"

  "Thanks," Raya said as he proceeded with the search. Finding nothing else, he moved on to Kita, who had nothing on her.

  "You'll leave your bags here," The man grunted, "They will be returned once you exit,"

  They both nodded and removed their backpacks. Leaning them against the wall as the man removed a ring of keys from his pocket, and unlocked the door. It swung open and the man gestured for them to enter.

  "Happy shopping," He said.

  They stepped into the dimly lit room to find a small, circular table in the centre. It had a small bowl in the centre that held hundreds of tablets of the same ‘colour’. Each one of them was transparent, their hues appeared as tinted glass with a glow passing through the centre of them- As if they each held a star within it. Kita could feel a pull from them. It was subtle but noticeable. "What are these?" Kita asked.

  "They seem to be medicine," Raya said, walking around the table.

  "They are beautiful, aren't they," Ms Eeve said, as she entered the room. "Quite mesmerizing," She chuckled. "We've spent a very long time perfecting the dosage of each of these pills. You see, each one is a perfect blend of ingredients that have required much struggle and pain to create. But, the sacrifice has allowed us to create the next stage of humanity,"

  She took one of the pills from the bowl, holding it up into the soft light that passed through the pill, brightening the glow in the centre of the pill.

  "I call them. Evolution,"

  "Are they a cure?" Raya said.

  Ms Eeve chuckled. "Medication is an archaic technology. Although, you could consider them a cure,"

  "Then what are they," Kita asked.

  "Immortality," She responded, dropping the transparent blue pill into Kita's hand. It was warm to the touch. An energy lay within it that she felt more drawn to now that it was so close.

  "It calls to you, doesn't it?" Ms Eeve asked, with a grin on her face.

  Kita looked at Ms Eeve and then dropped her eye contact. Discomforted by the read Ms Eeve had on her she put the pill back into the bowl.

  "Sounds too good to be true," Kita mumbled.

  "Death is a curse we've only just broken," Ms Eeve responded.

  "How much is it?" Raya asked, picking up one of the pills to hold in the light.

  "Seven hundred and fifty thousand coin,"

  "For the rack?" Raya asked, startled by the price.

  "For one," Ms Eeve smirked.

  "How many does someone need?" Kita asked.

  "They would only need one every fifteen thousand rotations. With it, your body will be capable of healing itself under any circumstances. It will stop ageing, and revert one's body to its prime,"

  "This can't be real," Raya said.

  "Buy one, and find out for yourself," Ms Eeve quipped.

  "Most of you clients can make such a purchase on a whim?" Kita asked.

  "Not all of them," She responded, "It is a new product. One that will take time to prove itself,"

  "Unfortunately, we aren't quite ready to spend such an amount," Raya said, "But we may return once it has proven itself,"

  "Very well," Ms Eeve nodded. "But be prepared to pay more than triple the original price,"

  "Triple?" Kita stammered.

  "It is a miracle," Ms Eeve’s smug smile spread across her face, "The current price is nowhere near its true value,"

  "Then we will prepare ourselves," Raya said, "Thank you for the display,"

  "It is a pleasure," Ms Eeve said, gesturing for the two of them to exit the room.

  They collected their bags in the next room, and Raya received her dagger from the guard before Ms Eeve escorted them to the front door of the store. Before opening the door, she bowed.

  "Please, return at your leisure,"

  "We'll be waiting to hear news of the miracle drug," Raya said.

  Ms Eeve smiled at Raya’s comment before looking into Kita's eyes. Locking in an intense, momentary glare before she said, "You have wonderful eyes,"

  "Uhh," Kita stammered, "Thank you,"

  "Would you like to join my collection?" Ms Eeve chuckled as she opened the door.

  Kita awkwardly chuckled without responding as she made her way out of the store. Raya followed behind, passing one last nod of appreciation to Ms Eeve. As the door closed behind them, four guards stepped out from the passing crowd with their rifles raised.

  "Hands in the air," The guard from earlier yelled out.

  Kita and Raya both raised their hands in the air at the guard's request. He must have noticed them and waited out here to pounce. Cheeky. Kita glanced at the four guards surrounding them, then briefly at the rifles in their hands. Using her remaining thirteen souls wouldn't be ideal. She'd much rather consume theirs, and the busy street of civilians cleared the way for the guards to handle the situation so Kita had some space to work with. A few meters away, there were swarms of people gawking and spectating.

  She looked over to Raya, who was standing focused on the four guards. She probably had a plan, but since Kita didn't know what it was she, opted into improvising.

  "Kita," Raya said as Kita stepped forward to make a move. "I think I know how to find Vlad," She said, staring at the guard who had entered the store and spoken to Ms Eeve.

  Kita looked at the same guard, before nodding to herself and prioritizing the other three guards.

  "I got two," Kita mumbled under her breath.

  With her hand raised she targeted two of the guards ahead of her, and casually cast a consume spell. As the black smoke escaped their bodies, Raya threw her blade into the third guard's forehead before he could fire his weapon. All three guards dropped to the floor before Kita cast a shield around herself and Raya- catching the twelve bullets fired by the fourth guard. As he reached to reload his weapon, Raya stepped out of the shield and kicked the rifle out of his hands. Kita then raised her hand at the guard-

  "No!" Raya yelled, "He’s mine,"

  Raya proceeded to punch the guard in the nose, causing a stream of blood to flow down as he clutched his nose in his hands. But Raya didn't allow it and pushed away both of his hands to punch him in the nose again. The guard fell to the floor, groaning in agony as Raya crouched down to grab him by the shirt.

  "Where's Vlad?" Raya said, raising her fist to punch his nose again.

  "Fuck you," The guard spewed.

  "You didn't talk to Ms Eeve with that potty mouth," Kita said.

  "Where's Vlad?" Raya asked again before punching the guard in the nose.

  "Fuuuck!" The guard yelled, "It's already broken, you bitch!"

  "Duhh," Kita jested as Raya raised her fist again. "Just tell us where Vlad is," Kita said. "Or that nose of yours will be left beyond repair,"

  "He'll fucking kill you, little pieces of-"

  Raya punched him in the nose again, this time letting the man's body fall to the floor. He wailed in pain as he hesitantly tried to subdue the river of blood.

  "We'd rather not be violent," Raya said, unsheathing her dagger.

  "I think it's too late for that," Kita said.

  "He's here. On the second floor," The guard said, holding a hand up in submission.

  "Where on the second floor?" Kita asked.

  "In shop two six three,"

  "What?" Kita asked.

  "It's a store number," Raya said, glancing above the doors in the surrounding area to see triple-digit numbers above each.

  Raya stood up from her crouched position and sheathed her dagger. "How many raiders did he bring with him?"

  "A couple hundred," The guard answered "If I'm not mistaken, he brought almost all of them,"

  Raya looked over at Kita, then tilted her head, signalling Kita to deal with him. Kita raised her hand at the guard on the floor, smiling before saying- "Thank you for your cooperation,"

  Fifteen. Amongst the bewildered spectators, Kita and Raya noticed a few more guards shoving their way through the mayhem. They both fled the scene, covering their faces with their headscarves as they squeezed through the crowd. Kita peeked over her shoulder at Ms Eeve's store- six two five, Kita noted. As they walked past the stores they peered above the front doors, noting the number as they tried to find the store with Vlad's people. Five-fifty.Five thirty-two.

  "This is all the way on the other side of the city," Kita said.

  It wasn’t as busy over here. The end of the walkway split to the left and the right, where more stores were positioned overlooking the dried-out river from the edge of the city. As they arrived at this part of the walkway, a red glow beamed from the stores and onto the path ahead. The stores had women and men standing in the mirrors, playfully waving as Kita and Raya passed by.

  "Ah, of course," Raya said.

  "Oh wow," Kita said, admiring the eye candy teasing her as they walked by. "Do we need to find Vlad right now?" She asked.

  "Yes," Raya said, rolling her eyes.

  "We can take a break though,"

  "You really can't restrain your lust?"

  "Look at her ass and tell me about lust," Kita said, pointing at a nude woman in the window. "Or even his, since you prefer men,"

  "How do you know I prefer men?" Raya asked.

  "I figured we'd have had sex by now if you didn't," Kita chuckled.

  Three seventy-one. Three twenty.

  "It's just up here," Raya said.

  As they approached store two sixty-three, they noticed the windows hid the interior with velvet curtains, and the door was closed with a bell beside it.

  "See anything?" Kita asked as Raya tried to peek through the gaps in the curtains.

  "No," she responded.

  "Let's go inside," Kita said, walking over to ring the bell.

  "Wait," Raya grabbed her hand. "We don't know what's in there,"

  "Well, hopefully, Vlad is,"

  "Sure, but we can't just walk in there looking for a fight," Raya said, "There could be too many people to deal with. And you only have fifteen souls,"

  "Lend me some of yours," Kita said, smiling with a little too much excitement.

  "No," Raya scoffed, "These souls would go to waste in your hands. We need to blend in, and go in there looking like rich, sex-obsessed clients,"

  "So, sex isn't off the table, Princess?"

  Raya blushed, slapping Kita's hand away from the bell. "Shut up, and listen,"

  Kita heard the sound of a rumbling, consistent kick, "What is that?" She asked.

  "Music," Raya answered. "There's a party in there and something tells me it isn't savoury,"

  "Huh?" Kita grunted.

  "It's a sex party, Kita,"

  "Look, I'm all about a good session. But I'm not getting dressed in latex or whatever to go in here," Kita raised an eyebrow.

  Raya sighed, stepping away from the door. "We need to look like wealthy clients. Not sex workers,"

  "Ooo," Kit hummed, nodding her head. "You sure I can't just take their souls? They're all heathens in God's eyes, right?"

  "What makes you think you're worthy of doing god's bidding?" Raya jested as they walked away from Vlad's store.

  "I'm an angel," Kita stated.