ACT 1: HAINO CITY,

CHAPTER 2. DRIPPING GOWN

“I’m going out on leave tonight, don’t bother me,” declared Wone standing over Taps as he paddled away at his terminal keyboard.

Taps was completely unbothered by Wone’s declaration and continued at his keyboard as if he wasn’t there.

“What, not gonna say anything?”

“Nah,” replied Taps standing from the terminal. He put his hand on Wone’s head and gave it a shake before walking out of the room, apparently done with his work.

“I have some business of my own to attend to tonight, I won’t be in town so stay out of trouble,” he said walking off to his room.

The two of them were staying in a three-room apartment in a greater complex that held twenty such living spaces. Inside the complex were four other hunters and thirty-three regular residents. The other hunters’ names are Blast, Hiroh, Myra, and Swift.

Blast was the oldest of the six, being in the business for so long that he could barely remember his own face, according to Taps. His manner reminded Wone of the tales of elite hunters who wore shifting black veils and traveled with blind dogs through the ruins of abandoned towns and cities in search of monsters.

But in Blast’s case, he’d be searching for people since most of the jobs he and his partner Myra would take involved hunting criminals. The wicked thought of hunters chasing down regular people made Wone shake his wicked amusement.

Walking to his own room Wone found himself thinking about the letter he had been given the day before. His meeting with Song had dominated his thoughts all morning and the anxiety was starting to get to him.

“I gotta get my mind off of this,” he muttered.

He pulled his leathers and boots from the wardrobe he kept all his work gear in and tossed them on.

After he squeezed into his boots, he departed the apartment complex and set his mind to finding something nice to wear for his meeting with Song. He had a good chunk of money saved from previous jobs and the hostage rescue had netted him an even greater sum to spend. His mind wandered to memories of an expensive district of shops known as The Silver Cloud. That’s where he would find his outfit.

He walked a few blocks down the street and waited to catch a bus from his neighborhood to the City Center Station which was a short walk from The Silver Cloud. He stood around for about fifteen minutes basking in the sunlight until he saw the blue and white paint of the city bus roll in.

He climbed on board after it came to a stop and picked an empty window seat near the back of the vehicle. The ride to the city center took forty-five minutes, so Wone stared out of the window and allowed his mind to wander to pass the time.

Outside, townhouses and apartment complexes turned into groves of palm trees, crowded streets, bustling storefronts, and finally the tightly packed concrete of the inner city. Crowds of people ambled by going about their daily lives. From his seat, Wone could spy policemen scolding kids for misbehaving, and the surge of foot traffic caused by businessmen heading home for the day.

Could I live a life like that, Wone wondered leaning up against his window. No, I couldn’t.

Such a life was simply too mundane. He was too used to the thrill of being a hunter, not to mention his rampant greed. For Wone, it was either be rich and famous one day or stop living, and he had barely exhausted any of his options. There was much more life for him to live and he hoped precious little of it would be spent in the obscurity of simple living.

The bus came screeching to a halt, pulling Wone from his thoughts as the driver called: “City Center.”

Wone rose to his feet and followed behind his fellow passengers onto the orange concrete platform that made up the Hibiscus district central station. He scanned the station for a moment before heading toward where he knew The Silver Cloud was.

As he made his way to The Cloud, he picked up various pieces of conversation from passersby.

“This whole war hysteria is getting out of hand, I hope the families have a plan for the future,” said an older man in black and red.

“I hear the families are starting to draft up armies, apparently the Republic is about to kick Wei out of Heina and now they’re coming here,” gossiped a wealthy looking woman. “It might be time to head to the Empire.”

“Did you see what they published in today’s paper? Apparently, Lord Ngo is negotiating with those war mongers, he’ll sell all the states out for scraps off the table,” seethed another man, he looked like he was a soldier in his youth.

A war? Wone thought to himself. It was the first time he had heard about it, although he knew that the countries neighboring Taipan had been in constant conflict since the Republic’s inception. However, the conflicts never boiled over into Taipan. Wone began to consider what the Order might do in the event Taipan was turned into a battlefield when a disheveled looking man approached him.

“Hey there mister, would you mind sparing a match for my cigarette,” asked the man completely invading Wone’s personal space.

“Sure,” said Wone annoyed at the closeness of the homeless looking man.

He searched his belt for a match and found none. He had used his last match to burn the letter Song gave him.

“Sorry friend, I’m afraid I’m all out,” Wone said patting his belt.

“Aw c’mon don’t be like that mister, I know you have a match,” the man persisted. “Everyone’s got a match.”

Everyone but you, Wone thought to himself.

“Well, if that’s the case ask someone else,” Wone replied curtly before shoving the man aside and continuing on his way. He laughed to himself thinking about the gall of the man.

He was close to The Cloud now, the normal bright colors of the City Center turned into the elegant and deep colors of the Taipan nobility. Oranges, greys, and pinks ditched in favor of royal blues, deep reds, and elegant black. The weathered concrete of refurbished and old buildings turned into the polished woods of newly constructed stores and miniature palaces.

Many stores even had silver and gold etched into their support beams, some sported columns with tigers and dragons carved into them, and others had statues of fierce looking animals on display. Holograms projected from crystal balls and electronic projectors danced through the air of The Cloud, permeating the block with images of fine clothing, beautiful and handsome couples, as well as a variety of different accessories and jewelry for sale.

It was the perfect place for Wone to find something extravagant to wear for his meeting with Song. He wandered around The Cloud, ogling the beautiful clothing on display via holograms and admiring the deep blue and crimson covered nobility that wandered the strip as if it were the Royal Palace of Wei.

“Hey there friend, you look starstruck,” called out a voice from behind Wone. He turned and saw a young nobleman, wearing a golden rooster upon his red shirt, signifying he was a So. The revolver on his hip signified that he was also a soldier.

“Is this your first time in The Cloud,” he asked.

“It is in fact,” Wone replied suspiciously. Who was this man?

“I can tell,” he laughed approaching Wone and giving him a slap on his back. Wone accepted it, still cautious of the man. “What brings you here? Work or leisure?”

“Leisure, I’m looking to buy,” answered Wone curtly. “Do I know you; this is awfully forward.”

“No,” replied the man still standing cozily close to Wone. “But you look like an interesting guy and it’s a hobby of mine to meet random people and pick their minds for some fun.”

The man punched Wone softly on the chest and offered his hand. “My name’s Davita it’s nice to meet you.”

“Wone,” Wone replied accepting his hand still bewildered. “And I’m a hunter if you hadn’t noticed.”

“Well duh,” replied Davita making a face like such a thing was obvious. “Don’t know anybody else with eyes like those and a frame as wide as yours.”

“You never know in this city…” Wone replied. Taipan is home to people from all over the world, it was easy not to stick out.

“Here, to show you I’m serious, how about I take you to where you want to go,” offered Davita turning Wone’s gaze to the shining holograms floating around them. “Uh, where is it you want to go?”

Wone considered Davita, what a strange guy, he thought.

“Okay,” Wone drawled, his suspicion relenting. “I’m looking for something expensive to wear. Something no one else would be wearing but everyone would know is the style.”

“Hmm,” Davita stroked his chin in thought as he considered Wone’s request.

Wone knew what he was asking for would be difficult to find. Haino fashion was Wei fashion, all about uniformity and the hierarchy of colors that mimicked the hierarchy of class within Taipan. Sticking out wasn’t popular among the elite and wearing royal red or blue was forbidden by those not enlisted or related to the families that governed Taipan.

“I think I know a place,” said Davita motioning for Wone to follow him as he began to walk off into the strip.

Wone followed Davita as he guided him to a smaller shop a short way from the main strip where all the popular stores were. They found themselves in front of a smaller, but no less beautiful building with its own unique style. Rather than the extravagant columns and statues of the main strip, this store had its own color scheme of red, yellow, and green. Its walls looked like the scales of a dragon and its green tiled roof was reminiscent of an old temple. There was a green jade statue of a fox set between the red wooden entrance doors with lettering beneath that read: “The Jade Fox”. Aside from that, the store bore no signage, just the statue between the doors and dress adorned mannequins displayed behind the front windows.

“This place looks quite nice,” mused Wone. “Unique.”

He looked on intrigued at the building that seemed to come straight out of a history book. The colors and the styles of the clothing were that of the old Taipanese royalty, a people who have long since assimilated to their neighbors’ cultures.

“It’s the oldest store in the district,” remarked Davita who carefully watched as Wone ogled the colorful building.

“Let’s head inside,” declared Wone pushing open the wooden doors of The Jade Fox.

He was immediately met with a mural depicting an old Taipan royal palace beneath a dragon filled sky. Beams of golden sunlight bore down through the clouds and onto the palace and fields depicted below. In those fields were the painted silhouettes of toiling peasants working the crops as a nobleman dressed in green watched from a palace tower above. The palace was painted in the same colors as the store, green walls and ramparts, red beams and columns, and yellow highlights on the parapets. Wone found himself mesmerized by the artwork.

“Like what you see,” asked Davita from behind an entranced Wone.

“Yeah, I do,” he responded still taken by the mural.

“I think, considering I’ve done something for you, you ought to do something for me,” said Davita. “Tell me a story about one of the monster hunts you’ve been on.”

Wone nodded his head still examining the mural, but his mind traveled into his memories to search for a story to tell Davita.

“Sure, sure, I can do that,” answered Wone wetting his lips in preparation for the long story he was going to tell. “This is my favorite story to tell, it happened a year ago up in Wei during the winter months…”

Wone became lost in his memory of the event as he recanted it to Davita, as if he were there in that place once again with his master.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

It was bitterly cold up in the mountains, but luckily there wasn’t any snowfall this early in the winter. Wone and his master trudged along a dirt path up the mountain to the village that had issued the Order their job.

“A man-eater,” uttered the gruff old voice of Wone’s master. His veil was folded over his head, draped along his cap, and hanging just below the back of his head. He was one of the few old hunters who still wore the face they were born with.

“Go ahead Wo, tell me about the creature we’ll be hunting today,” demanded the old man as they continued to climb the mountain.

“Just as you said, it’s a man-eater. A mutant that feasts on flesh, its lifespan extended by magic or mutation.” Wone paused. “Or both.”

“Is it dangerous boy or is it harmless,” the old voice snapped.

“Very dangerous, especially if it’s lived a long time,” answered Wone. He had gotten lost in the semantics and forgot to assess the actual threat the creature posed.

“Indeed,” his master said pleased with Wone’s response. “Man-eaters are among the most dangerous creatures a hunter can face because of their intelligence.”

They were once human after all, their minds and bodies warped in a way that made them more physically and mentally gifted. But also twisted, unable to control their hunger for flesh and killing. This man-eater that Wone and his master were hunting had made its home in an abandoned castle above the village they were heading into, feasting on its inhabitants to sustain itself.

They approached the village from the south, walking into a collection of dark wooden houses built inside of a clearing between the dense thicket of tall green trees that covered the mountain. Men, women, and children went about their lives seemingly unbothered by the creature they wanted Wone and his Master to slay.

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“Hey where’s your elder, or anyone that can tell me about that beast up the mountain,” asked Wone’s master to an older woman sat rocking on her porch.

“Just as you’ve said, it’s made its home up above,” replied the old woman, her voice slow and rich. “You’ll find it in the old lord’s castle. But be careful, that place is haunted by the victims of that wicked man.”

“Haunted,” scoffed Wone’s master. “that’s impossible.”

The old woman continued to rock back and forth in her chair, unbothered by Wone’s master’s declaration.

“Just be careful when you enter that place,” the woman warned, her eyes closed. “It’s not right, the spirits of those tortured people still remain.”

Her eyes remained shut and she continued to rock back and forth in her chair. Wone’s master looked annoyed at the mention of ghosts, but his face softened after a while.

“Let’s head up there and kill this thing,” Wone’s master declared, disinterested in investigating the village any further.

The two of them continued north until they left the village and ended up on a cobblestone paved path to the castle the man-eater was holed up in.

“Ghosts, how stupid,” muttered Wone’s master as they marched along in the howling wind.

“What’s so wrong with believing in ghosts,” Wone asked.

“There’s nothing to believe,” his master replied. “Just idle superstition from the masses. Once a thing is dead that’s the end of its time on this world. Nothing can change that.”

They continued in silence until they reached the deserted castle of the old Lord. Its front gate was wide open, its outer walls still in good shape despite the years. It did not look like it had been left to time for very long.

“Let’s search the perimeter,” said Wone’s master pointing for him to scout their left while he scouted their right.

Wone did as his master bid and searched along the walls for any signs of life, discovering nothing. He then began to inspect the actual castle itself, examining the bricks for any entrances. Once again, finding nothing, he continued along the wall until he met his master standing over a hole in the ground.

“What’s this,” Wone asked.

“Perhaps an entrance into the castle,” his master replied. “And look, it’s been used recently.”

The grate covering the entrance was loose, and on the stones beneath Wone could see a faint trail of blood.

“I suspect this is where our beast drags its victims,” his master said lifting the grate and descending into the damp passageway below. “Stay here and watch my back for a while, I’ll come by and grab you once I figure out what we’re dealing with.”

Wone nodded and watched his master disappear into the darkness below, now alone in the cold. He scanned the old stones of the castle for movement as he awaited his master to return, sensing nothing suspicious in his surroundings. Just the sound of the harsh wind howling as it blew through the castle walls. After what seemed like ten minutes of waiting Wone’s master finally returned.

“The passage leads into the kitchen, it’s where the beast has been preparing its meals, but it isn’t where it keeps them,” said his master appearing beneath the grate. “Come with me.”

Wone climbed down into the passage and followed behind his master along the dank and dark path to the castle kitchen. His eyes adjusted to the darkness, allowing him to notice the growing blood trail beneath his feet. It seemed not all of the man-eater’s victims made it to the dinner table completely alive.

What a morbid thought, Wone remarked in his mind.

The gore got worse when they entered the kitchen. Corpse parts from people of all ages were strewn about countertops and tables, some wrapped in cloth, or chopped up beside other mundane ingredients.

“Seems this thing is quite the chef,” muttered Wone’s master heading toward a door at the far side of the kitchen. He was unbothered by the spectacle around him.

Wone himself was somewhat disgusted at the scene, but such sights were just a part of being a hunter. He compartmentalized the experience and continued on, trying not to think too hard about what he was seeing.

He followed closely behind his master as he carefully pushed open the kitchen door. Quietly, the two of them stepped out into an empty red carpeted hallway and began to search the castle for the man-eater.

“This place smells disgusting,” said Wone’s master, now speaking through the transmitter embedded in the back of their heads. “Keep your gun handy this thing might find us before we find it.”

Wone nodded and pulled the shotgun he had slung on his back into his hands. He flipped the safety but kept the gun unchambered so as not to draw attention. The two of them wandered through empty halls and rooms until they heard a woman sobbing down one of the hallways. Silently, the two of them tracked the noise to its source and came upon a man with an unhealthy complexion dragging a struggling woman by her hair.

“Get off of me, please, let me go,” she shrieked in anguish.

The sick skinned man paid her no mind and continued dragging her along, striking her when she struggled too hard.

“Firing,” transmitted Wone’s master sending three bullets from his pistol toward the strange man.

The first bullet found its mark, burrowing into the man’s black cloth covered back and sending strange dark colored blood spraying from the wound. The next two bullets were caught by brown, hair covered arms that erupted from the wound. Countless more limbs sprouted from the man’s back obscuring his sick looking skin and black tunic.

The man smiled at the pair of hunters and threw the woman at Wone. He quickly flung his gun over his shoulder and caught the woman, coming to a halt from the force she was thrown with. Wone’s master brushed passed them and continued to fire shots at the monstrosity of a man, each bullet caught by the arms protruding from its back and flung back at him. He dodged and continued to pursue the creature down the hallway.

“Are you alright, can you stand,” Wone asked the woman in his arms.

“Yes,” she nodded trying and failing to rise. “Give me a moment.”

Wone didn’t have a moment and chose to instead follow behind his master with the woman still in his arms. He couldn’t leave her there; the beast might have returned to kill her before they could catch it.

Wone cautiously followed behind his master as he pursued the man-eater, taking cover when the hands on its back would send bullets flying back at them and closing the distance when he could. Finally, they cornered the unhealthy-looking creature of a man in the castle meeting hall. Wone and the woman remained in the hall, watching from the cover of the entryway as Wone’s master drew his saber and charged at the man-eater.

It pulled four swords of its own from one of the ruined benches that littered the hall and commenced battle with Wone’s master, quickly gaining the upper hand. Not only did it have more arms and swords, it also seemed to know how to use them. Wone’s master’s superior skill kept him alive, but dealing with so many hands and blades was a task too difficult for even an elite hunter.

Wone made sure the woman was secure and called out to his master through his transmitter: “I’m firing move aside!”

His master quickly dodged away from the creature with a practiced motion he and Wone had executed hundreds of times and Wone sent pellets hurdling at the man-eater from his shotgun.

To their surprise, its new arms caught each and every ball of metal from the air and quickly flung them back at Wone. He ducked behind a wooden bench and winced as a few pellets bounced off his vest.

“I thought so,” said Wone’s master from within his head. “That old woman wasn’t lying, that lord was doing some strange things in this castle. Those arms on his back are from a spell, he must have found a book or scroll on it lying around in this place.”

Despite the shotguns failure to strike the creature, the distraction allowed Wone’s master to rush in and lop off one of the man-eater’s sword arms. Wone drew his own saber and took a place behind the creature, striking in tandem with his master to overwhelm the three remaining sword arms on the man-eater.

Wone slashed, his master stabbed, the man-eater parried, and they continued to exchange blades over and over, growing more impatient as they awaited an inevitable slip-up, the mistake that would bring this dance closer to its end. Finally, Wone caught another of the beast’s sword hands with his saber as it focused on his master, allowing it to be overwhelmed.

Wone’s master hacked off one of the man-eater’s main hands and grabbed a hold of him, seeing the opportunity, Wone quickly ran his saber through the man-eater’s chest piercing its heart. It grunted, falling to its knees after Wone’s master released it. Blood seeping through the wound, the man-eater collapsed and silently slumped over as it went unnaturally still and died.

The hands that had grown out of its back shriveled up and crumbled to dust, its already dark blood beginning to run completely black as it seeped from the unmoving corpse.

“The end,” Wone’s master huffed.

The two of them stood over the now dead creatures’ body for a moment to make sure it was truly dead, the woman they had saved earlier now standing beside them.

“Are you from the village,” Wone asked.

“No, I’m a trader. That thing abducted me from my caravan last night,” she replied.

“Well, you have nothing to worry about now,” assured Wone’s master. “That guy is no longer with us.”

The three of them wrapped the man-eater’s body in cloth and carried it off to the village to signify they had completed their task.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

“Afterwards we took the girl to the village and told them to go bury the man-eater and all of its victims,” Wone said. “Then we went home and collected our reward.”

“Amazing,” said Davita astonished. “That spell, it’s called interception if you didn’t know. It’s used by warlocks in the army.”

“It’s very rare to find creatures capable of such things as an apprentice,” Wone said his eyes still fixed upon the mural.

“Yeah, I’m amazed it was able to learn such a thing.”

“When these creatures are intelligent and live long enough, they become very dangerous,” said Wone in a serious tone. “Monsters like that are the most important to kill, since they pose the greatest threat.”

The two of them had stood there alone in the lobby for over ten minutes now. Davita had been silent during Wone’s tale, listening with keen interest. It seemed he was very satisfied with what he heard.

“Let’s head inside and see what they have in store for me,” said Wone finally finished with his examination of the mural.

Wone walked through the entryway on the right side of the wall and met an extensive assortment of fabrics and clothes on display. Mannequins clothed in elegant dresses and gowns stood proudly alongside tables filled with fabrics. The room was full of beautifully designed silks and comfortable looking garments that Wone found tantalizing.

This’ll do, Wone thought.

As he began to make his way around the room, investigating every piece of clothing as he went, a woman’s voice called out to him from the far side of the room opposite the mural wall.

“Hello gentlemen,” the soft voice called. “What bring you to The Jade Fox this evening?”

“I have a meeting with a noblewoman this evening,” answered Wone. “I’m looking for something unique and somewhat extravagant to wear tonight.”

“Oh my, a noble,” exclaimed the woman, her voice dripping with faux admiration. “This is an important occasion indeed, and I must say you’ve come to the right place.”

The woman marched up to Wone and began to look him up and down.

“Hmm,” she made a worried noise and started to pick at Wone’s arms and legs. “I wish you would have come in sooner; I can already tell you’d need something custom made, but I know we have something that’ll fit you. Follow me.”

She released Wone and motioned for him to follow her to another room deeper within the store. He obliged and with Davita in tow crossed through multiple rooms with clothes and garments for different ages and sexes until they reached one filled with clothes for larger males.

“If you wanted to call me fat you could have just said so,” joked Wone noticing the sizes of all the clothing.

“You most certainly aren’t fat my dear,” answered the woman with a feline look. “But you aren’t thin either. Here try some of these.”

She handed him a few tunics and gowns to try on, first a black one, then an orange one, and after that a white one.

“None of these are really my style,” said Wone to his own reflection in the mirror. The white gown looked good, but it lacked the uniqueness he was searching for.

He blew some air out of his nose and began to do his own searching. He passed his hands over an extensive selection of fine silks and comfortable fabrics until he found one gown covered in little stars. Intrigued, he pulled the garment from the rack and looked in wonder at a miniature night sky woven into a pitch-black silk gown. If he put it on it would look like he was wearing space.

“I like this,” said Wone showing off the gown to the woman.

She nodded in approval and motioned for him to step back into the dressing booth he had tried on all the previous outfits in. He stepped in and pulled the gown on over his shirt, then fit his arms through each of the sleeves.

“How do I look,” he asked appearing from behind the dressing room panels.

“It fits you quite well,” answered the woman.

She smiled at Wone and moved in to adjust his gown and see if the sleeves needed any tailoring. They fit well, hanging loosely around his forearms without obscuring his hands.

“This is actually a special piece made by the Jade Fox herself,” said the woman pulling away from Wone.

Which means it’ll run my pockets for quite a sum, Wone thought. Ah well, it does look good on me.

“I’ll take it, as well as some black pants and new shoes to go with,” said Wone determined to buy the twinkling silk.

“Splendid,” said the woman unable to contain her excitement. “Come with me.”

She led Wone with Davita in tow to another room full of shoes, boots, and slippers. As Wone began to inspect the assortment of footwear, the woman pulled out a measuring tape and tapped Wone on his hip.

“May I,” she asked grinning.

“You may,” replied Wone shaking his head.

She wrapped the tape around his hips to take his pants measurement. When she was finished there, she moved to his right thigh and pulled the tape tight.

“Handsy woman,” Wone muttered quietly.

“What was that,” she asked, clearly having heard him.

“I said, hurry up,” replied Wone.

He feigned obliviousness and the woman grinned and rose to her feet, putting the tape back into her dress.

“I’ll be back with some pants for you, please feel free to peruse the shoes while I’m away,” she declared, turning, and walking out of the room.

Wone picked out a pair of feet looking shoes with silver metal covered toes and soles.

“Those are an interesting choice,” remarked Davita from behind Wone.

“Well, I’m an interesting guy,” replied Wone.

“Indeed,” interjected the woman who had silently returned holding a pair of black pants.

Her sudden arrival nearly made both Davita and Wone jump, and a surprised Wone snatched the pants from the woman.

“By the way, what’s your name,” asked Wone eyeing her suspiciously.

“My name is Adara, sir,” she answered. “I’m sorry, I thought your friend here already introduced me.”

She shot Davita a curious look and he simply smiled and shrugged.

“You two know each other,” Wone asked.

“We do indeed, he and his mother used to shop here all the time when he was a boy and I was a young woman,” she replied, her eyes traveling somewhere distant. “I see he’s become a fine young man who keeps even better company now.”

Wone shook his head at the flattery and Davita waved his right hand in protest.

“Oh, this is just someone I met not even an hour ago,” said Davita. “I just figured he’d like what you had for sale is all.”

So that’s why he brought me here, thought Wone. He enjoyed what he had seen in the store, so Davita’s scheme didn’t bother him too much. But still, he was annoyed at having been taken for a ride.

“Well, I’m glad that you are here,” said Adara. “Now try on those pants and come out so we can see how the outfit looks.”

Wone walked back into the changing area and pulled on the pants and shoes he had picked out. He shifted around in the shoes for a minute before stepping out of the changing area and heading to the mirror where Adara and Davita were waiting.

“I look fantastic,” Wone cried out after seeing his reflection.

“It fits you,” said Davita.

“I’m glad that gown has finally found a home,” said Adara.

Wone continued to admire himself in the mirror until he figured it was time to pay.

“Alright, let’s ring all this up,” said Wone reaching for his coin purse.

“Wonderful, follow me,” said Adara. She led him back into the first room they entered and stood him and Davita in front of a register while she went through her ledgers.

“That’ll be 3200 credits,” said Adara, as if it were a small sum of money.

Davita scoffed, but Wone looked unbothered. He fished out thirty-two gold marks from his purse and set them on the table. Davita grew even more astonished watching Wone place the coins on the register table, his expression growing ever more mortified.

“Heavens,” he muttered.

Adara slowly counted each mark and examined them to make sure they were real. Pleased to discover they were, she pulled out a little white jade fox from her dress and handed it to Wone.

“For our most treasured customers,” she said in a sultry tone. “And of course, we can’t allow you see a noblewoman without first grooming you, follow me.”

She walked off and motioned for Wone and Davita to follow along. She led the two of them to a small grooming area that seemed to be meant for women, but apparently Wone warranted an exception.

Money above all, Wone thought.

“If you would disrobe, I can take your clothes and scent them while you wash up,” said Adara.

Wone found her smile somewhat off putting but complied, removing his gown and shirt, but keeping his pants on.

“Touchy woman,” Wone muttered.

“Hmm?” She turned and gave a sly look.

“I’m counting on you,” said Wone with two thumbs up.

She turned and strode off with Wone’s gown and shirt leaving him to wash up with the large basin and faucet of the washroom. He turned on the hot water and started to wash his face, then reached for the lotion bottle resting beside the basin and began lathering his upper body in the pink cream.

“Adara is an interesting woman,” said Wone as he rubbed the lotion into his chest and stomach.

“Yeah, I think she’s just stir-crazy, doesn’t get out much,” replied Davita from the washroom door. He was leaning against the wall idly watching Wone wash himself with a bored look on his face. “So, who is it your meeting?”

“Ah, I don’t think I should say,” answered Wone. He didn’t think it was too big of a deal to say, but without knowing what Song thought, spilling that he was meeting with her would be unwise. He thought it better to exercise caution.

“I see, I see,” said Davita nodding his head.

Wone finished washing his body and hair then dried off and waited around in the washroom for Adara to return. She did ten minutes later with freshly scented and pressed clothes.

“Here you are,” she said handing Wone his gown and shirt.

“Thanks,” he said quickly pulling the shirt and gown on.

Finished with Wone’s fitting, the three of them walked to the front of the store and began to say their goodbyes.

“It was a pleasure to have you here mister Wone, I hope you’ll stop by sometime soon,” said Adara with a bow.

“I suppose this is where we part ways, since I can’t accompany you to this date of yours,” joked Davita.

“No, you cannot,” said Wone seriously, clapping Davita on his shoulder. “I’m sure we’ll see each other around Adara, it was a pleasure meeting you.” He took her hand and kissed it, getting a grin from the woman.

Wone walked off alone waving at the two as he left.

Look at the time, Wone thought realizing the streetlamps had come on. It must have been past seven o’clock and he was a little over a half hour away from the spot he was to meet Song at.

“Better get going,” he mused aloud, hailing a ride to take him to his destination.