Chapter 22


Casnar approached the asari security heads with James trailing behind him, "….Anyone know where I can pick up a few packs of Camfydora Bloom?"

Ulysses's eyes grew round as he looked up from the diverted gazes of the asaris….As if by that two-worded utterance, Casnar had cast a spell on the lovely blue faces in the hangar bay….Every pair of Asari eyes were triggered to Casnar.

"What's Camfyd—" Casnar gave James a kick in his boot's toe.

"Have you a license to distribute?…." One of the asari security heads left Ulysses and came over to Casnar….He raised his arm and moved down his cuff-sleeve, revealing an omni-bracelet by which he activated a glowing screen to pull up a display that featured a listing of his credentials, Casnar's face/"mugshot" alongside all of these now scrolling through the window of light….The officer saw what she needed to see in order to verify that he was authorized to request seeing such a special product there on Thessia….and it so happened that Nohman was the port for acquiring the rare and expensive flower….The second asari security head joined the first in front of Casnar, gave him a "closer appraisal" before checking the credentials herself and smiling with a hint of satisfaction.

§

What's a Camfydora Bloom….Kasumi stood in front of a display featuring some unique four-petaled flowers with a specialized anti-theft barrier protecting the plants housed inside the husbandry store….The price converted from Asari currency to between ten-thousand and sixty-two-thousand credits each, depending on the size of the flowers in bloom.

She read the conversions for the signs with a programmed lens she had over her eye, that and the rest of her cloaked with invisibility and refraction fields as she stood on the floor of the marketplace just downtown from the docks.

Kasumi scanned each barrier wall for weaknesses, and thought she might want to bring a few flowers home….A search conducted by her omni-device popped up a message in her hidden lens, "….Camfydora flowers used in Asari medicine promote uninhibited sexual response in…."….Oh.

She stopped her scanning of the barriers for weaknesses over the plant displays, having identified a "flaw".

§

Casnar was escorted by an asari head of security from the Luminos, and came down the ramp, the rest of the security team finished with their task and already filed out ahead of them, "….My buddyJames back there, needs to come along, too….if you want me to cut you and your friend in on the purchases I intend to make."

"That guy?"

Casnar turned and walked backwards with the asari officer turning, too, so to see him wave for James to come with them, "….Yes….He's a vouch for my buyer….He needs to see I'm purchasing the quality I promised, and not something that could easily be mistaken for Camfydora….It's often confused, as you know, with a variety of florae in the galaxy and, well, my buyer's been burned before by adulterated knock-offs…." Casnar winked at the asari, "….Don't worry…." He pivoted when he saw James heading down the ramp, neatly placing his feet into an uninterrupted pace with the asari's own pair, "….I know what to look for, and James is just a second opinion….He won't worry you, either, if he sees me paying you with some skim…." The asari walking with him stopped and waited for James while Casnar walked ahead into the crowd of security waiting for him….The second head officer put her hand on his arm and led Casnar left, away from the group as James caught up with the other who escorted him on the tail of Casnar with her colleague….They walked along the docks, heading into downtown.

§

The barrier around the large vase of Camfydora blossoms disappeared as Kasumi had failed the program with a hack into the equipment's software protecting the store's particular display section….She used a dagger to cut off a few buds, and dropped these into a small felt folder that she could easily hide in her suit by rolling up….Her cloaking technology hid everything—from the dagger to the felt folder, and her especially….However, at the moment another flower disappeared into her folder's hidden pocket, someone noticed the vanishing flowers as these fell from beneath the main mass of leaves with their fellow periwinkle buds and lavender blooms in the store window, "….What the…." A husbandry clerk came over to inspect the spark of a barrier field re-aligning over the blooms in the display, and the asari noticed something moving through the air that was not quite visible, but causing a soft imitation of the surroundings refracting through it, and being prepared to expect such deceits by the clever and resourceful thieves who could appreciate the value of her product, "….I'll be damned!….There's a burglar in the market!…." And the air moved….away from the store.

Kasumi ran….She took off like a deer, jumped up on the first railing she encountered, and turned to do a backwards leap—somersaulting gracefully through the air (she knew she was doing well, even without anyone able to see her)—and landed on the next balcony below in the markets, taking off with her victory and an invisible grin.