"A Royal delegation...", he continued thoughtfully. "Must be carrying food and merchandise. Which means there must be several carts in which we could smuggle them."

"What makes you think they're transporting goods for a simple visit?" 

 "Generally speaking, people from the upper classes like to be comfortable."  

 Dod nodded in agreement before speaking again.  

 "In that case, why not steal a cart straight away? They'll probably have supplies inside, so we won't have to worry about food."  

"If we miss, it's life in prison..." Danaée replied.  

 The two boys remained silent for a few minutes, in a certain realization of the ordeal they were about to face. Danaée rose from his chair before extending his hand to his friend: 

"If you go, brother, then I'm with you." 

Dod gave one of his slight smiles and shook his companion's hand.  

 "Until death, Dan", he replied.  

 The two boys performed their special handshake, a form of signature, a pact they'd made years ago now. Two handclaps with one hand, and at the same time two taps on the chest. Danaée and Dod had agreed to leave during the night, a couple of hours after sunset. They enjoyed their boiled potatoes in silence before getting ready for the journey. In two backpacks, they equipped themselves with the necessities of life - they didn't have much, just a few clothes, what little food they had left, and a kitchen knife each. They waited an hour or so; when night fell, their little hut was completely plunged into darkness. Danaée scratched the back of his neck, a habit he'd never been able to get rid of.  

As for Dod, he was fixing his hair in front of the mirror, the young boy paying far more attention to his appearance than his friend. Danaée stood up and walked in Dod's direction before tapping him on the shoulder and whispering: 

"Come on, let's go!"  

The air was light, and Dod and Danaée strode with conviction through the streets of Goliath's slum. Naturally, the neighborhood was still bustling with activity. The din and shrieks could be heard, shrill as a wolf. The reddish moon was out, reflecting the pools of blood on the floor and walls.  

"Do you think they're at the central tavern?" Asked Danaée. 

  "Yes, that's for sure; it's been privatized for the evening", replied Dod in a confident tone. 

The central tavern they spoke of was on the opposite side of town, to the north. On foot, our two companions had a few hours' walk ahead of them.  

Once out of the slum, Dod and Danaée took the central alley before joining the turbo-transportation lane a few meters further on. Turbo-transportation was the most efficient way to get around town. The entrance to the track was marked by a red line followed by a metal circle some ten meters high. The red ring was suspended about a meter above the ground. The surrounding magnetic field prevented anyone from approaching it. Dod took one of his crystals out of his pocket, the same one he'd used to heat the potato water earlier.

He tossed one for Danaée, and the two boys approached the turbo transporter. Fantastic crystals were a major source of energy on the Ordinal continent; they were composed of a special mineral, naturally composed of symbiotic cells. It had a variety of uses, not least for turbo transporter travel, where it was simply indispensable.  

Danaée was the first to jump through the red ring, the boy disappearing before Dod's eyes, who followed in his turn. Danaée felt his flesh disintegrate, his body melting into a thousand pieces at an astonishing speed, the particles of his body being transported to the other side of the city. Gradually, he lost speed, and his body began to reform around the fantastic crystal in a smoke screen.  

Danaée found himself thrown out of the ring before landing face-first against a nearby wall to great fanfare.  A second later, his friend was thrown out of the ring and landed delicately, rolling over as he hit the ground. Danaée groaned and grabbed his face in pain.  

 "I hate these fucking turbo-transporters!" He exclaimed. 

Dod smiled and held out his hand. 

"Are you done playing the clown, Dan?" 

 "I swear, you'll have to explain to me how you manage to land so well every time." 

 Danaée took Dod's hand and struggled to his feet. The central tavern was just a few yards from where they had landed. Danaée, still grimacing with pain, followed in Dod's footsteps as he strided along. At a height of one hundred sixty-five centimeters, Danaée sometimes found it hard to keep up with his friend, who towered over him by some fifteen centimeters. The central tavern ran the length of the street opposite Dod and Danaée. The two boys could hear the sounds of conversation, cutlery rubbing plates, and carefree laughter from several yards away.  

With small steps, they approached the front entrance. Dod looked around before whispering in Danaée's direction: 

 "Let's go to the back; the carts are probably over there." 

Danaée nodded, and they resumed their walk, still taking small steps. Dod stopped abruptly; the two boys were now in the corner of the facade, on the right. A few centimeters from Dod's head was an open window with a small balcony. The two boys stuck to the wall, trying to make as little noise as possible. A man approached the balcony and lit a cigar with a fantastic crystal. Dod motioned to Danaée to remain silent, and the two boys crouched down and continued towards the back of the tavern. The angle of the balcony prevented the man from seeing the two boys from where he stood. 

Once they reached the back of the tavern, the two friends noticed that the delegation included a dozen carts. These rectangular heaps of scrap metal were called carts, and at first glance, they didn't seem to be able to move. They had no wheels and looked more like containers than anything else. Danaée approached, still striding, and entered the first cart, followed by Dod. 

 The interior was much more presentable than the exterior, although the velvet floor was obscured by the various cardboard packages present. Danaée stooped down and squinted, trying desperately to make out the shapes under his eyes in the gloom that engulfed the machine. 

 "Hey, Dod, I think we've hit the jackpot here! It's full of foodstuff over here," exclaimed Danaée, opening several boxes.  

 "Let's set sail (Ordinal expression for: let's go) as soon as possible, then, do you know how to fly these things?" 

 "We'll see right away", replied Danaée.

 The carts were powered exclusively by fantastic energy. Approaching the dashboard, Danaée inspected it and the steering wheel. He sat down in the driver's seat and observed that:  

 "We've got a little problem, Dod."  

 Dod approached and leaned towards Danaée, who pointed to the huge indentation in the steering wheel. 

 "Don't tell me we have to put a crystal in this thing! Not only do we not have much left, but we don't have anything this size," complained Dod.

"No choice, there must be a crystal lying around here; let's look for it."

Only at that moment, both boys heard a simple sound, thin and yet so distinctive, CLICK! Someone behind them had just removed the safety from a revolver.  Danaée was certain of this and barely had time to cast a frightened glance in Dod's direction before the person addressed them.

 "Freeze! Put your hands where I can see them!"

Danaée made a quick assessment of the situation. The person standing behind them was a girl, a fairly young girl. Secondly, and this was perhaps the first thing the boy noticed, the girl's voice was trembling severely; she was frightened.  

Finally, he understood that she didn't want to make a fuss and bait the whole cavalry; she had issued all her instructions to them in an extremely low voice, almost in a whisper. Danaée raised his hands very slowly.

 "Hurry up! Come on, you too can do like him!"

 The girl was now addressing Dod, who hadn't moved a muscle. The girl began to grow impatient, and Dod and Danaée could feel her nervousness soar. Danaée took a deep breath, his hands clenched, and he felt an immense itch attacking him at that very moment. It ran down his spine, up to the back of his neck.

The boy's movement was sudden and extremely swift. He grabbed the last crystal at his disposal and, with a clean, clear gesture, threw it into the air. The crystal smashed into the ceiling of the vehicle, producing sparks so dazzling that the girl lost her balance and, as a defensive reflex, fired two shots, PAN! PAN!

The projectiles, burning with fantastic power, luckily landed on the ceiling, exactly where Danaée had thrown his crystal. Dod turned in a flash before launching himself at the girl who had just fallen, Boom!  

As she fell, she was greeted by a pile of cardboard boxes strewn across the floor. In the semi-darkness, it was impossible to tell exactly what she'd landed on, but the nerves in her back transmitted a sharp message of pain that caused her to let out a slight groan. She was within reach of Dod's hands, which he deployed in her direction; the boy was simply trying to restrain her. The girl showed excellent reflexes and avoided Dod by rolling to her right before bending her arms so that both hands supported the underside of her head. Her muscles tensed, and in a well-timed effort, the girl lifted her lower body and managed to push hard enough with both hands to land on her feet.

Dod didn't let her breathe for a moment, pivoted slightly, and launched himself back at the girl, who this time greeted him with a kick so clean it cut off his breathing. BANG! Dod landed against the wall, still standing and slightly out of breath. Danaée, who had taken advantage of Dod's attention, picked up the fantastic revolver she had dropped on her first fall.

"Not so fast!" Danaée warned.  

 He was now pointing the weapon at the girl's temple. A slight vein throbbed there, and the girl let out a sigh, her jaw set and teeth clenched; she admitted defeat and raised her hands. Danaée breathed back and pointed his weapon in the direction of the cockpit at the girl, who was struggling to catch her breath. The girl walked slowly, too slowly for Dod's liking, who approached her and gave her a slight push on the back. Danaée sat her down in the driver's seat.

 "Start the cart", ordered Danaée curtly.

The girl nodded and reached into the back of her jacket for an object. Danaée hastily thrust the weapon against the girl's temple.

"I'm warning you, one wrong move and I'll blow your brains out, capiche?" (Understand?)