Lunch didn’t take long. Shortly afterward, they both entered the large hall. Immediately, Seishin recognized the airlocks as he spotted a stage at the other end of the great hall.

“That’s where you’ll be standing tomorrow. Everyone else will gather down in front of the stage,” Kenko announced, excitedly waving his hands in the air. Seishin smiled and walked with Kenko to one of the booths at the end of the hall.

Several small tables stood next to each other. Sheets prevented one from looking underneath. Some books lay stacked on the tablecloth, and next to them were several pistols and other firearms. Guns were plentiful, but the vendor was absent.

“Trap?” asked Kenko cautiously, nudging one of the pistols. It spun dangerously close to the edge of the table until it fell behind it. A clang rang out, then silence reigned. “Trap? Are you here?”

Following Kenko’s words, a head emerged from behind the table. Hazel, fuzzy hair almost hid the pair of narrowed brown eyes, whose gaze darted swiftly across the table. Without further warning, the stranger leaped onto the table with a leg propped up on the stack of books and yelled with all her strength, waving her pistols wildly. “Help! The aliens are attacking! Run for your lives!”

Kenko stood in front of her, unfazed. “Trap, no.”

Seishin tried his best to look as calm as Kenko, but the sight of the pistols in the hands of this madwoman made him a little uneasy.

Trap tilted her head, then lowered her weapons. “No? No aliens?” Kenko crossed his arms and shook his head wordlessly. “Whatever,” the madwoman replied, “I’m Trap. Early twenties, female, and super-duper-mega-giga-cool.”

Seishin eyed her closely. Trap was taller than him and well-trained, as shown by her toned arms.

Her white top revealed her ID tattoo, Grey1023. Trap had put her weapons in the pockets, each attached to the left and right straps she wore over her shoulders.

Her pants seem to be cut up a bit oddly, but it somehow suits her, Seishin thought.

Trap watched Seishin inspect her clothes and tossed her hair back as if she were modeling. Only then did Seishin notice that her hair color was as unusual as his. The thick braid held her long hair together; however, the tips were bright blue instead of brown.

Kenko chuckled at the thought of aliens and Trap’s obsession, but Trap didn’t seem to be amused by Kenko’s silliness. Threateningly, she raised her index finger and bent down with a grim expression. “Why are you laughing? They are here. They are among us.”

And then, Seishin saw a second tattoo on Trap’s other upper arm. Several curved lines, squiggles, and corners seemed to form a word in another language. Could this have been alien-ish? Although Seishin was still a little creeped out, curiosity led him to ask Trap about it. “What’s that thing on your arm?”

“That’s my name. Cool, right?” A grin spread across Trap’s face.

“What language is that?”

“The alien language.”

Seishin silently chuckled in delight; he had been right.

But before Trap could convince Seishin of the aliens’ existence, Kenko replied, “Made it up herself. When strange things happen, she investigates the scene thoroughly. Even if she has to set a room on fire to do it. I wish she wouldn’t do that.”

“I must do that! Someone has to catch the aliens, after all. Most of the weapons for that are still in the alien lab.”

“Alien lab?”

Kenko explained to him what she meant. “Weapon stash.”

Trap led them past the stage and stopped in front of a locked metal door. Green slime stuck to the door in some spots, and several deep scratches showed that this room was Trap’s property.

“Hey, cool hair color, by the way,” Trap commented as she opened the door with several codes. “Probably need to re-dye it soon, though.”

”Re-dye?”

Finally, Trap unlocked the door. She looked at Seishin in confusion, then grinned and said, “Don’t tell me that’s your real hair color. Nobody has purple hair.”

“Yes, I do. It’s my real hair color,” Seishin replied.

Trap opened the heavy door and entered. The room was chilly and dim. “Now I’m jealous. I need to dye my hair strands every now and then.” Before disappearing into her stash of weapons, she poked Seishin’s nose. “Boop!”

Seishin stared into the darkness where Trap had disappeared. Kenko leaned forward a bit, hesitantly holding onto the doorframe.

“Come in.” Trap’s voice echoed through the darkened room.

Seishin muttered, “Should we?”

“Probably not. But whatever.” The light flickered on.

“Welcome! What weapons would you like?” The walls to the left and right were crowded with huge shelves stacked with boxes. Construction plans hung on the other walls, while some weapons were on display. “Feel free to look around.”

“Smells like Topas’s sick bay,” Seishin countered, wrinkling his nose.

“Oh, you’ve met Topas already?”

Seishin wandered around the storeroom, looking at the weapons on the walls. “Yes, yesterday. How long have you known him?”

“For a few years now. We’re a couple.” Seishin wasn’t really listening; his attention was caught by a sword on the wall. Wordlessly, he stared at the shiny metal until Trap’s words finally reached his brain.

“Oh, for that long?” He turned away from the sword, his eyes roaming the room. “What’s that?”

Meanwhile, Trap waited with Kenko. She grinned as she looked down at him. “You’re so cute, you know?”

“Don’t,” Kenko warned. Seishin snuck up from the side.

“Trap? I want those weapons.” He handed her a roll of tape and a bundle of zip ties.

“Sure, you can have them.” Trap’s gaze drifted over to Kenko.

”I’ll pay for you, Seishin.” The young organizer handed Trap some coins, while Seishin put his new property in the inside pocket of his coat.

Trap had almost closed the door, but stuck her head out into the hallway, her gaze following the two visitors. “Goodbye! Come back soon.”

Kenko uncertainly laughed as he pushed Seishin down the hall. “Sure,” he called back, then turned and whispered, “If Trap ever invites you to her lab, run away. She likes to run little ‘tests’ on people.”

“What’s her special ability?”

 “She doesn’t have one,” Kenko promptly replied. “No experiments have ever been done on her. Her natural intellect is outstanding. She can tinker and she’s creative. A terribly dangerous mixture.”

By now, they had reached the door to the newbie room. Kenko paused, then turned to Seishin with a smile. “There aren’t many people in the TP yet. I’ll come back for you later when it’s busier, okay?” Kenko suggested.

“Okay,” Seishin replied smiling. Kenko waved at him, then disappeared around the next corner.