After the chat with Jose, I went to find Lifta. I hadn't seen her in a while, and though I hadn't known her for long, I got the feeling she was going to have a lot of trouble adjusting. She used to live at a swamp, and her kind, the lizard-folk, tend to get very antsy in dry environments.

I asked around if anyone saw a lizard-woman with a lot of flowers and I was told to check the dining hall. I could see Lifta and other Bungaren sitting in a circle around a withered flower. They chanted their prayers through soft voices, and I sat down to watch their ritual.

The Bungaren group were a mix of lizard-people and rat-people, citizens of both Zymos and Scarvino. All of them were scarred and scared, seeking comfort in their gods who came to the mortal world in the guise of flowers.

Lifta noticed me, and invited me to sit next to her. I politely declined, preferring to watch from the far end of the room. Lifta looked a lot better than I thought she would. She's found her fellow faithful in this nightmare country.

After a couple of minutes I got bored and walked around the dining hall. I looked at the cans of tainted food that hadn't been opened. Guess we could just throw these at our enemies. Fill them with oil or gunpowder, some nails maybe.

There was another pile of canned food, labelled 'luncheon meat, genuine animal'. Didn't say what animal.

As the day grew darker, our team and the rebels grew closer. We shared a common enemy, and we all understood the pain of loss. A few even became infatuated, and us being inside a hotel just made things convenient for those who wanted some privacy. Everyone was trying to distract themselves from the war.

A few people pulled out a card game, a Zymogi invention called 'Grotto Gold'. I didn't really understand the rules and lost every time, but I still had fun. That game was the only thing the ZPP published that the Eric Front didn't hate.

There was a cat-man in the rebel ranks who caught my fancy, but Hilda got to him before I could say anything. His name was Calvin, a man in brilliant golden fur somehow unstained by the battles he'd been through. Covered in scars here and there, yes, but his clothes were improbably clean. I wasn't angry at Hilda, though. I hoped Calvin would treat her right. Maybe after this war is over one of them can migrate to the other's home.

Or maybe they would just separate and forget about each other after all this is done. There was, of course, the darker possibility that one or both of them wind up dead, but I'd rather not consider it.

The two cat-people, Calvin and Hilda, sat on the grand staircase in the lobby, smiling and speaking with soothing tones. Using my stealthy ex-thief skills I was able to eavesdrop on them and learn a bit more about this golden-haired guy.

Calvin himself was a lumberjack of some kind, until the Zippers arrested him for opposing the massive deforestation of the northern forests. The politicians wanted more wood to make more rifles and buildings, and Calvin lost his job and his freedom. He was imprisoned and tortured.

They talked about the differences between Zymogi and Scarvinian forests. The animals, the plants, the mushrooms, even the nature of the dirt. They lived in different places but they bonded over their love for living a life close to the natural world.

I noticed Drew was watching Hilda and Calvin from afar, still in her little wheelbarrow. I walked over to Drew, who didn't greet me or even turned her head to look at me. She was fixated on her sister. Was it jealousy? I spoke up.

“Hey Drew,” I said, with a hint of concern.

Her eyes unmoving, she answered back, “Hey Sam.”

“What's the matter?” I asked as I sat next to Drew.

“Him”, she replied with a voice that could sting.

“You don't like Calvin?” I asked her.

Drew answered me with a question of her own “That's his name? Calvin? In any case, it's not HIM specifically, but it's more of a problem Hilda's had with men in general. She always warms up to anyone who shares similar interests-”

“That's pretty normal, you know”, I pointed out.

“Let me finish! Hilda's all smiles and giggles until she realizes she's a nervous wreck when it comes to intimacy,” explained Drew.

“She looks okay to me”, I said as I looked back at the couple.

Drew spoke again “Yeah, because she's not alone. She's in full view of everybody in the lobby. Once she gets alone with goldilocks there? She'll just melt into a quivering mess and kick him out, leaving both of them confused and frustrated. I'm almost 100% certain she likes the fantasy of sex and romance more than the act itself. Unfortunately, most men don't understand that, and some get... really mad when she tells them to leave.”

“Uhh... please don't tell me she's, ever been, uh-” I struggled to say the word.

“No. Never came to that, but I do worry about her, especially in this case. Sam, look at Calvin again”, Drew said, pointing towards the pair.

I turned my head to look at the cat-man. I wasn't sure what I was looking for, and Drew seemed to realize I was having trouble figuring it out. She spoke again.

“Sam, note his build. He's really, REALLY strong. Hilda is pretty strong too, but the way Sam moves, it's all... frighteningly efficient. He doesn't waste any energy. Also, notice the hidden weapons under his clothing.”

“Notice the HIDDEN weapons?” I said incredulously.

“Sorry, I mean... look at his calves and his scarf. He's hiding things in them, maybe daggers or guns, possibly grenades, not sure. One last thing; anytime Hilda mentions her past boyfriends, Calvin... licks his lips. Don't you think that's creepy?”

Once I noticed all these things, I could see why Drew was worried. Calvin was handsome as hell, but who knew how ugly his heart was? Drew and I quietly agreed that perhaps we should keep an eye on both Hilda and Calvin for now.

As morning drew closer, less and less people inhabited the lobby. In the end, it was me, Drew, Hilda and Calvin, and the two flirting cat-people were moving upstairs. After I was certain they wouldn't notice us, I signaled to Drew that I was moving up to check. She gave me a thumbs-up, and I carefully climbed up the carpeted stairs.

I followed the pair to the second floor. Room 211. I snuck into the opposite room and listened through the thin wall. Instinctively I lay my hand on my rifle, just in case. A knife would probably made more sense for an indoor fight, but considering how huge Calvin's muscles were and the way he moved, I did not think I could beat him in melee even if I had a weapon.

A lot of purring and whispers, too quiet to hear. No screams or shouts, or the sound of a melee...

And then silence.

What the hell?

Fearing the worst, I decided not to knock, and checked the doorknob first. It wasn't locked. I slowly opened the door. It didn't creak. I must have had really good luck with doors.

I peeked in.

Calvin and Hilda were just lying on the bed, fully-clothed. Their heads propped up by pillows, both facing out the window which had a wonderful starry view. They didn't snore, but from their slow, deep breaths, I could tell they were sleeping.

I wished my ears were sensitive enough to hear what they were whispering about earlier. In any case, Hilda didn't seem to be in any danger. I supposed I should tell Drew that everything seemed okay.

When I walked down the stairs, I couldn't see Drew. Did she move somewhere else? Did someone else take her?

Then I noticed the front door to the lobby was open. I immediately ran forward and saw someone outside on the street pushing a wheelbarrow into the distance. Someone's abducting Drew!

It was dark out there and I couldn't see who it was, but they were definitely pushing a wheelbarrow. All drowsiness left me and I sprinted towards the figure in the dark.

Before I reached three feet away from the hotel's entrance, I could hear Drew speaking to me.

“Sam? Where are you going? Is my sister okay?”

I turned and saw her sitting in a proper wheelchair. A fancy one. The frame was bronze and the seat had a rose-patterned cushion. Drew seemed much more comfortable with it than her previous mode of transport, and now she was able to move herself around.

I had to ask. “Drew? Where did you get that wheelchair?”

“Oh, it was in the penthouse. We couldn't open the door yesterday but the rebels had a sledgehammer and they were able to break in. There was a wheelchair inside and they were bringing it downstairs. They saw me, and... well, you can tell what happened next.”

“Huh. That's nice of them”, I noted.

“Yeah! Oh, so, how's my sister? Is Hilda okay?” Drew asked with a bit of suspense.

I told her everything I saw and heard upstairs. Drew was shocked and relieved at the same time. Calvin was definitely unlike any other man Hilda had been with before.

As the night grew darker I walked to the most comfortable-looking couch in the lobby. Drew still kept asking me questions about what was going on in Hilda's room. It was only at around 2 AM that she was finally satisfied that Hilda was not, in fact, in any danger.

I fell asleep on the fancy couch in the lobby while Drew rested peacefully in her wheelchair.

I dreamt of Mark. Just me and him, lying down on a sandy beach. No war, no shooting, just relaxing at the beach with the sun above us. I missed him. I was starting to forget whether or not his eyes were blue. I hoped I could go home before I started forgetting what Angel looked like too.