Upon enrolling Boriss and Gino into the tournament, the group exit the building to the sight of approaching dusk. With the world dimming, Gladius seems to come to life in colored firelight. The streets, formerly smothered in your everyday worker, are now replaced by those who excel when darkness reigns above. Women walk the streets in skimpy outfits while men stride about with purses bulging. Rich jewelry glistens from the firelight, attracting both wanted and unwanted attention.

“I’m getting some Las Vegas vibes right now.”

“Is that a city?” Gond asks.

“It is.” I look at the old man. “Gond, before I forget, how common are skills that can tell a class? I’m not keen on having people knowing I’m more than just a kitten.”

“Extremely rare. Gladius only has three who can tell classes under their employ- Lynette being a very rare case on account of her class.”

“Which is?” I urge.

“Something that she prefers to keep to herself.”

Of course she does.

“Fine. Just tell me where I can gamble on Boriss winning.”

“Tomorrow in the coliseum before the tournament starts. There will be betting booths. You can make a lot of profit if you win.” Gond explains.

Gino chuckles. “After the thirty percent cut to Gladius. If you really want to make money, gamble in the undercrust. They barely take any cut.”

I perk up. “The undercrust?”

“Illegal gambling den that can get you arrested.” Gond warns.

“The [Guards] don't care what goes on down there.” Gino frowns slightly. “They never care.”

“I should mention that I am to report anyone that gambles illegally to Gladius authority.

The smart thing for me to do is to ignore the kids words and avoid the Undercrust- whatever that very interesting place is. It would be stupid and illogical to involve myself in such a clearly illegal location where clearly illegal and dangerous activity is happening.

“Gino, how’s your wounds? Are you still sore?”

The kid shifts his shoulder with a grunt. “U-ughhh. Yea, a bit. But I’ll be good tomorrow.”

I shake my head. “You don’t look good.” I hop off of Gond’s shoulder and land on the kids.

“W-what?”

“Relax, you’re clearly not at your best. And I, the magnanimous cat that I am, will escort you back home. In the meantime, Gond, you escort Boriss back to my ship. He needs to rest.”

Gond rolls his eyes while Boriss gives me a grin. Boriss, the smart former prisoner that he is, removes his coin-bag from his hip and throws it at Gino. The kid catches it, nearly dropping it from the unexpected weight. “Comrade Fluffy is hungry, yes? Snack is good, yes?”

“Good idea Boriss. I can't exactly escort poor Gino on an empty stomach, now can I? Gino, take me to a restaurant, preferably one a bit underground that serves something with a nice crust.”

Gond shakes his head, though he does have a slight smile. “I’ll make sure Boriss returns to the Timbergrove. Just try to keep out of trouble. There are a lot of Buxon who find cats to be a delicacy.”

“I’ll keep that in mind. Gino!” I tap the side of the kid's head, “Onwards to adventure!”

_______________________________________________________

Sore and tired, Gino wants nothing more than to steal something to eat and go to sleep. Unfortunately, the cat on his shoulder clearly has a different idea in mind.

The thought of pushing the cat off and running away with the coin pouch does come to mind, but so does the bloody grin from Boriss. The man won a fight he shouldn’t have, just to make sure Gino can enter the tournament. As much as he needs the money, it’s not worth it if he betrays the person who gave him that chance.

“So, you mentioned you need money to buy your sister's freedom, right? What's the deal with that?”

Gino frowns and looks down as the guilt hits him. “It's complicated.”

“Kid, you’re giving me I screwed up big time vibes right now. I hope you realize my curiosity just keeps on increasing.”

“I said it’s complicated. You wouldn’t understand.”

“Of course I would. I’m a cat, remember. There's a reason why cats have nine lives, and it’s absolutely, completely, undeniably not because we make safe, perfectly sane decisions that we never ever Ever regret. Understand?”

“Cat’s have nine lives?” Gino asks.

“... right. Different worlds, different sayings. Look, Gino, you’re clearly guilty as fuck. You ooze guilt like diarrhea oozes out of my ass. It’s messy, it stinks, and if you don't wipe it away with a conversation, it’s going to attract flies. So just do the right thing and tell me what ails your puckered butthole.”

Gino stops as his brain attempts to comprehend what he’d just heard. “What?” he look at the cat that grins expectantly on his shoulder. “You’re weird.”

“Yea, but I’m not the one with an inflamed ass.”

The absurdity of the situation and what he’d just heard gives way to laughter. A pained laughter that slowly shits to tears. Gino trudges to a nearby wall and sits down with his back to it. “I screwed up.” The kid cries. “I shouldn’t have been so greedy!’

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The cat is no longer grinning. Instead, his paw is affectionately petting the kid's dirty-brown hair.

“I stole. I stole the wrong thing from the wrong person and I got caught. It was supposed to be simple.”

“I fucked up and my sister had to pay the price. I-if I’d only not taken the fucking job.”

“There there.” Quasi continues patting. “I hope you realize you’re lucky.”

The kid looks up at the cat with his tear-stricken face. “How am I lucky?”

The cat raises a paw. “Well, you’re alive. Your sister is alive. You clearly have a unlikely, but no impossible way of saving her, but most importantly you have an adorably cute kitten on your shoulder. That alone makes you the luckiest person alive- and it is only your ignorance that keeps you from appreciating that.”

“You’re an ass.”

“At least mine isn’t inflamed.”

The kid snorts at the comment. He wipes his face with a dirty sleeve and stands up.

“Feeling better?”

“Yeah.”

“Good. Now lead me to food and then this Undercrust.”

“How about both?”

“At the same time? That sounds absolutely Purrfect.”

Snorting again, Gino makes his way into one of the numerous entrances to the undercrust.

“So what exactly is the undercrust?”

“It's the city under the city.”

“That’s not an explanation.”

“Well, it's hard to explain. It might be better for you to see it first.”

“Fine.”

Turning into a dark hallway, two men can be seen standing guard over a closed door. They glance at him as he approaches. Reaching into his pocket, he flashes a black card to the two guys.

Seeing the card, one of them turns the handle, activating numerous runes which allow the door to open. As Gino moves to enter, an arm moves in the kid's way. “The boss wants to see you as soon as possible.”

“Later. I need to get-”

“No. Now. You know how he is.”

Gino glances at the cat on his shoulder.

“Meoowww.” The cat replies.

“Just go. The boss doesn’t mind cats.”

“Fine.”

The guard removes his arm. “Good. Now go and mind your step.”

Gino takes one last look at the guy and starts heading down the stairs until he is far enough away.

“So, who is this boss? I hope you’re not planning to sell me- not that he could afford me. I’m kinda one of a kind.”

“He’s the gang-leader that screwed me over.”

“Oh? And you still work for him?”

“Once you’re in a gang, there's no way of getting out.”

“Pshhhh. That's loser talk. Have you tried slaughtering the entire gang? If you kill every member including the leader, then the gang ceases to exist. It’s not hard. I did it a couple months ago- though it did take me a while.”

“You're crazy.”

“Not the first time I’ve been called that, and it won't be the last. By the way, why is this so far down?”

Gino doesn't answer because he can already see the bottom of the stairs. At the bottom, he opens the door and walks through.

“Oh shiiit. You weren’t joking when you said there is a city under the city.”

The undercrust is a massive underground cavern spanning nearly a quarter of Gladius in size and twice its height. Firelight blazes throughout the entire system, enlightening the entire cavern, making even the fighting rings all the way at the bottom visible.

“Welcome to the real Gladius- where dreams are made and destroyed on the regular.”

Quasi continues assessing the cavern- consuming each and every detail like a child at his first candy store. Not that Quasi hasn’t seen underground cities before- but it has been awhile since he’d seen one built underneath an actual city.

“Aight. Where to now? Food or Gang?”

The kid sighs. “I have to see the boss. I’d rather not get punished for taking my time.”

“Aight. I’ll back you up if things turn violent.”

Kid frowns. “It might be best for you to wait. He doesn’t like it when people are brought to him without him knowing.”

“Yea, but he likes cats. The guard guy said so.”

“But you’re not a cat.”

“Of course I am. I mean, sure, I’m superior to every single cat you’ve probably ever dealt with before, but I am a cat.”

“Cat’s don’t level or talk.”

“What don’t you understand about me being superior? Anyway, enough talk. Let's go see the boss.”

Gino groans but compiles. He strides through the cavern, filled with all manner of sights, sounds, and vices. Drugs and women line the streets like cocaine at a rapper's home. You can’t unsee it, though you can ignore it.

“So, where is this gang and how many are there?”

“There are three major undercrust gangs and seven minor ones. I’m part of the Vultures, which is one of the minor ones.”

“Name them all for me,” Quasi orders.

Gino yawns a little. “Sure. The major gangs are the Royals, the Crusts, and the Warriors. The minor ones are the Hogs, the Locust, the Fish, the Fox, the Flamingos, the Lions, Gambino, and the Vultures.”

Quasi chuckles. “I love how the minor gangs have this animal theme going, and then there's Gambino - a literal Mafia.”

“The Gambinos are new- they’re not part of the originals.”

“Alright, you’ve gained my interest. What's the story with Gladius? How is there a city underground and how did these gangs come to be?”

Gino shakes his head. “I don’t know the story too well but I know someone who does. We can go meet her after I deal with the boss. We’re almost there.”

Almost is an understatement, for the two walk a good five minutes until they reach Vulture territory. The gang members notice our arrival, but a single look turns their interest away. They eventually arrive at a stone building carved halfway into the cavern.

“Gino, you look like shit.” the [Guard] at the entrance comments.

“I’m fine. Just had a bit of a tussle. I heard the boss wants to see me?”

“He does- what's with the cat?”

“Meooowwww.”

Gino sighs. “It’s complicated. Can I just go see the boss? I’m kinda tired right now.”

“Yea, yea.” The [Guard] opens the door and Gino makes his way up some stairs and stops at what seems like an office room. Gino knocks. “Boss, you wanted to see me?”

“Come in!”

Mount and cat enter inside the spacious room where bookshelves don the walls and a single desk sits in the center. Behind the desk is your typical tall, bony, gaunt, man with a black suit that matches the goatee and the toupee. Yes, the man is bald, probably balding, and a skilled feline eye notices the minor discrepancies with ease.

Staring at the man, his job title pops out as much as the gaunt look in the man's eyes.

Vulturan Gallinae: Level 49 [Gang Leader]

Then Quasi notices it. A ball of fluff on the man's desk.