I pulled up the poncho’s hood, to better help disguise my blue hair that would stand out in the crowds.
I should probably thank Dr. Everett again; this poncho was a good idea.
When the elevator doors opened to the third floor, we were met with a commotion of loud music and crowds from every direction. This floor was a lot larger, having higher ceilings and wider halls than the other floors. There were stands lined up along the sides of the walls, ranging from tables, to even just boxes. It was a lot more lively down here during the day and even sometimes into the night. Since there’s technically no day-night cycle in space, we simply just use time. It was around noon, which was one of the busier times of the day with people on break for lunch.
“This way,” Tath said, leading ahead. “Stay close. We’ll take the corridor from the north elevator and make our way to the west elevator, down to level two.
Terra and I nodded in agreement, and we followed suit. It wasn’t uncommon for guards to be patrolling this floor; however, the trio we were in stood out a bit. I secured my hood to cover my face a bit more. Those that witnessed the arena match that day might recognize me.
I shuffled the four silver coins in my pocket and started to think of what exactly I could get Reyna. Given it wasn’t a whole lot, there were still a few vendors that I could go see.
“Wow, this looks a lot better than I imagined,” Terra whispered under her breath.
“You’re kidding right?” I responded.
“Yes, I’ve heard that it was a lot worse here. But all I see are people smiling and having a good time,” she said as she pointed to a young girl and her mother.
Maybe it’s her first time on this floor.
I was surprised. The number of times I’ve been on this floor, squeezing my way through the crowds, wasn’t exactly something to enjoy.
She must’ve been a guard working in one of the upper levels. There weren't exactly many female guards that patrolled these corridors, and due to that, we were getting a bit more glances in our direction as we made our way through the floor.
I glanced ahead at Tath’s back, noting the prominent Corzon Emblem on his uniform, then glanced back at Terra, who was busy sightseeing. I didn’t exactly know these two guards, but they didn’t seem like the ones I’d seen previously. At the first arrival of The Corzon’s and their entourage, the guards were –a bunch of bullies– forceful and strict. At least that was the case with the ones down here on the lower levels, and it’s not like I ever had access to the upper levels.
The activity in the place seemed normal despite my performance in the Arena. The way the Corzons explained it made it seem like there would be chaos. Even the extra precaution of guards escorting me seemed a bit too much now.
I looked over my shoulder behind me, and I could see Terra’s eyes widen as we walked past a vendor selling mini-pies. I thought I saw her salivating, but maybe it was just my imagination.
Things had definitely gotten better ever since the Corzon’s arrived. With a new trade system established between the Antaris and other Castles, our supplies began to slowly increase. We provided people, who probably were sent to other Castles to live their lives out as servants, or worse. Although the number of people on board the Antaris was still a problem and people like Shen and his gang –The Sands– still caused trouble, it was nice to see things slowly get better around here.
“Are you hungry?” I asked Terra, looking back over my shoulder.
“What makes you–”
I chuckled at the sound of her stomach growling. We were only about a foot apart from each other but it was loud enough for me to hear. Tath, still leading the way, didn’t show any reaction, if he even noticed, and kept walking.
We came up to a larger crowd on our right –people listening to musicians– and we were forced left to get around them. On the opposite side of the live concert, was a vendor that had nobody in front of it. An elderly lady wrapped in a red scarf sat behind the table nodding and smiling. Her stand was nothing but a table and a few boxes, full of knick-knacks and trinkets. And a little sign that said ‘old stuff’.
“You there young man, can I interest you in anything today? Perhaps something for your young lady friend behind you?
“Who me? She’s not-” I said as I stopped suddenly, causing Terra to bump into me and make an uncomfortable squeak, giving us a couple of questioned glances.
Tath, noticing the louder sound now, paused and turned around to see what had stopped us.
“Let’s keep moving, the elevators just ahead” he whispered, attempting to avoid unwanted attention.
A couple of people in the back of the music audience gave us glances and I turned my focus towards the old lady and her ragged stand.
“Oh don't worry Mr. Guard, I’ll only be a couple of minutes”, she smiled at Tath.
Tath sighed, and Terra and I walked closer to the stand. On the table were five boxes, filled with who knows what.
What exactly could she have in these old dusty boxes?
The first few boxes had scraps of metal plates, wires, chains, and other oddities. There was nothing that really caught my attention. However, knowing Reyna’s badass nature, she might like one of these weird
“This stuff is….interesting,” I said, trying to not sound rude. In my ill attempt to not hurt the old lady's feelings, I heard Terra let out a soft chuckle.
The last box was filled with orbs and marbles, each looking rusty with chipped paint and losing its original color. An assortment of partial reds and greens reminded me of holiday ornaments.
The lack of seasons in space made it hard for me to remember what time of the year it was as all of our days felt long and monotonous.
As I was about to dismiss the old lady, there was something that caught my eye. In the last box, underneath the deteriorating marbles, I saw a shimmer of light, faint but noticeable. I rummaged through the box to find the shine and came across a pearlescent-looking orb. It was covered in an intricately woven metallic cage, while the smooth inner was like a smooth cyan pearl. It shimmered like a crystal as it reflected off of its cage, and its surroundings.
What is that? I’ve never seen anything like this before.
“Whoah,” Terra said from under her breath as her eyes widened.
Even Tath, who was pretending to be uninterested, was now focused through the corner of his eye.
“May I ask what this is ma’am?” I said, concealing the orb from the rest of the people around us.
She squinted trying to understand the object in front of her.
“I’m not sure. This junk belonged to my late husband. He was a war veteran, bless his soul.
But with his passing and my old age, I thought it would be best to give things away. After all, I may not have much time left.” she said, finishing it with a short cough.
It was unfortunate that she accepted her fate, but it would be better to make use of things that would soon be thrown away.
It looks very interesting, especially compared to the rest of this stuff.
“I’ll take this and one of your uh… chains…How much is it?” I asked while looking for the thinnest piece.
“Not to worry, money isn’t that important to me these days. Please just take what you want.”
“Oh wow, thank you, ma’am.”
I stuffed the orb and chain in my pants pocket and nodded to Tath and Terra for us to continue onward. I looked back over my shoulder to the old lady and her table knowing that I may not see her again. I felt bad for her but it seemed that she accepted her days.
We started walking and weaving through the crowd once more. After about a few minutes of walking, Terra leaned in behind me and whispered.
“We’re being followed.”
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