Aria spent the next several hours talking with the Milago, collecting information and gauging the all-around mood. She wasn't the most outgoing person – socializing wore her down pretty quickly – but she did manage to get what she was looking for.

She learned that the Tryptite shortage had been going on for several years; it was only in the last one or two that the high council decided that they needed to regulate it more strictly. The regulations included rations and a curfew. Almost no one personally owned any Tryptite – it was all used for public goods and services.

No one had argued over the rationing. It was the curfew that had people riled up. The Milago hadn't had to deal with a curfew since the days of their enslavement, and while the younger generation was merely annoyed, the older generation ranged from suspicious to downright umbral.

It seemed that another issue that had the Milago on edge was the increase of Bedoowan guards. Although they said they were here to enforce the curfew and keep the beasts at bay, several villagers had told Aria about various incidents of abuse; one old man told her about how his daughter had been arrested without cause. A child told her about his father being badly beaten over a mild argument with one of the guards. One of the vendors had had his goods confiscated. He was never paid for them, nor were they ever returned.

Such injustices had been common during the Bedoowan years – as had other, far great cruelties.

Aria felt ill after having listened to all the tales of bloodshed and misery that the Milago had suffered at the hands of the Bedoowan. She met a few people who had lost family members in the Glaze mines, and one whose son had been lost to a Transfer. She also learned about the arena Chariti had mentioned before they parted ways.

One elderly Milago villager had recounted his own experience.

"The Arena used to sit up on the bluff," he had told her, nodding in the direction of the new Bedoowan town. "They would gather us up – people who couldn't pay their debts, petty criminals, conspirators, or anyone they didn't like. Some of us were just forced to watch; that was bad enough to scare us into obedience. We were given a place in the stands apart from where the rest of the Bedoowan would gather to watch the…show," he had said this a pained scowl. "They gave the Milago nothing more than a small spear to defend himself with. Then they opened the gates."

The Bedoowan had kept quig-bears at the ready to use for sport. Just as the Romans used to feed Christians to the lions, the Bedoowan fed Milago to the quigs. What had sickened her most of all, however, was not the old man's description of the massacre. It was the description of the crowds.

"They laughed," he said simply. His eyes had been dark and sad.

Bedoowan, of all ages and genders, even children, she was horrified to learn, gathered to watch the bloodbath. It was like Sunday television to them. They would laugh and cheer as the defenseless Milago was ripped apart.

She had thanked the old man for recounting the tale; she knew it couldn't have been easy to remember. He had replied, "I tell people the way it used to be in the hope that it will never happen again."

"Those who fail to learn their history are doomed to repeat it," she had said. He had looked at her shrewdly and nodded, then walked away.

By the end of the day, she had learned a few key concepts:

One: The way the Bedoowan had treated the Milago was beyond cruel, and while the younger generation – anyone younger than 20 – was largely unaffected by it, the older generation was still scarred.

Two: The Milago were beginning to suffer similar injustices and constraints, though not on nearly as large a scale, and the Bedoowan were again to blame.

Three: All the current problems could be traced back to Tryptite.

The general mood amongst the Milago was one of angst and suspicion, though not everyone shared that viewpoint.

Many Milago had friends and family who were Bedoowan. They believed that while the regulations on Tryptite were difficult, they were also necessary. All they wanted was for things to calm down again and go back to the way they were a decade ago – peaceful and prosperous.

But, Aria thought as she walked in the direction of the Bedoowan barracks, they seem to be the minority. They were almost exclusively young. The only cruelty they had experienced at the hands of the Bedoowan was through the stories told them by their parents.

On a more positive note, she had learned that for a Bedoowan knight, Alder was a pretty popular guy. He often settled disputes in the village, and he was generally well-respected by everyone. Unfortunately, while everyone claimed to like him, no one actually knew where he was.

Aria sighed heavily and honestly felt like crying. It had been a hot day – the climate was usually cooler, she'd been told – and she had been out in the sun, or suns as it were, for hours. She'd had nothing to eat since the bread Chariti had given her, and if she hadn't had that to tide her over she probably would have collapsed by then.

She had a high metabolism, and tended to eat frequently. She didn't handle hunger well.

The suns were getting lower on the horizon. Shadows were finally inching along the grass-strewn ground, and Aria figured she probably only had a couple of hours until sunset, and curfew. As she turned another corner, heading towards the barracks where she hoped to find Alder, a rock flew past her face.

The stone had been thrown from behind. She turned around slowly and saw three people standing in the shade of one of the buildings.

They were the same girls she had seen earlier while walking with Uncle Press to the edge of the village; the ones who had given her the stink-eye. She had hoped that they were just the kinds of people who looked at everyone that way, and that they weren't singling her out for punishment.

Silly her.

They looked like your typical clique, with one ringleader and a couple of lackeys. The leader of the bunch, standing in front and giving her a thoroughly intimidating glare, had dark brown hair that fell in slight waves to her shoulder. It would have been rather beautiful if it hadn't been so frizzy and stringy. She had small, black eyes and a somewhat tiny nose. It wasn't a very attractive combination.

That being said, standing between the other two, middle girl looked like Miss Milago. The others were on opposite ends of the ugly spectrum. One of them was bulky, with asymmetrical features and a large, square forehead covered in short, shaggy blonde hair. The other was extremely tall and very scrawny, rather rat-like. Her eyes seemed to be permanently crossed and her brown hair was extra-long, and so oily it could have been greased with yak fat. In her nose was a small wooden ring.

Together, these girls managed to encompass a nearly comprehensive collection of unattractive physical features. Not that she was usually judgmental - she had been raised with the firm belief that it was what was on the inside that mattered, not the outside.

Of course, if their actions so far were any indication, they weren't much prettier in there than they were out here.

"Er, good evening. Can I help you?" Aria asked politely as she glanced around at her surroundings. Hopefully they just wanted to talk. If not, she was in trouble. She was hot, tired, hungry and thirsty. If it came down to fight or flight, she wasn't sure she was capable of either.

The girl in the middle scowled at her, presumably aggravated by her polite disposition and seeming lack of fear. Then she smirked. "Well, it would help an awful lot if you closed your mouth and kept it that way," she said, cracking her knuckles. An unpleasant grin stretched across her face, and Nose-Ring started to chuckle.

Wow. These had to be the most generic bullies in the world. Aria hadn't realized people behaved this way in real life - she thought that kind of stuff was only in the movies. She quickly glanced around, looking for help. Her heart sank. There was no one in sight. She was hoping there would be a guard nearby to keep a fight from breaking out, but no such luck. It was an open kind of area, with large huts spread sporadically around and a few light posts and fences. There were plenty of places to run, but fat lot of good that did her - she didn't know where anything was. She knew the general direction of the barracks, but it was a large village. She could easily run past it.

She decided to stall for time. Everyone was complaining about the increased guards. Hopefully one of them would walk by. "Have I done anything to offend you? I'm terribly sorry if I have." Hopefully her pacifistic words and calming demeanor would keep them off balance.

They began stalking towards her. She decided she needed a new strategy. The one in the middle began speaking, "Yeah, you've done something to offend me. You might have gotten off easy if you had just kept to yourself, but I don't like –"

Aria cut her off. Looking off behind the approaching girls, she called out, "Excuse me, guard? Could you help me, please?"

The three girls whirled around, looking frantically for the knight. By the time they turned back, Aria had a pretty decent head start.

She heard a strangled cry of rage from behind her, followed by a sound she thought sounded vaguely like a bellowing quig. They were coming after her.

Aria did not like her odds. She was lost and alone, it was less than two hours to curfew, she was outnumbered, and she hadn't eaten all day. She hadn't even been running for a minute and she already felt faint. Normally she could handle a good sprint - but with no energy? No chance.

They were starting to gain on her. Aria decided to try for cunning above speed. She made a sharp turn behind a building and made a dash for a nearby horse corral. Her pursuers followed, close behind. Aria hopped the fence and began darting in and out of horses, rolling under them, and making her way to the stables on the other side of the small paddock. The three girls behind her were having less luck making their way through, and the horses were getting agitated, tossing their heads and letting out urgent whinnies.

Aria heard someone call out, "Ay! You girls! Get outta there! What do ya think you're doin'?" She hoped that the presence of an adult would send her pursuers running, but she didn't want to assume. Instead she ducked inside the stables when she reached them, hoping that there would be a window of some sort she could get out of. Sure enough, there were several lining the structure, about five feet from the ground. She nimbly leapt onto one of the sills and glanced behind her to see how close her pursuers were. They were still in the corral, and it didn't sound like they had been dissuaded by whoever had called them out. Aria swung out her legs and fell to the ground. She bent her knees against the impact and sat on her haunches for a few moments, regaining her breath. She looked around to try to regain her bearings, and took a guess as to which way may take her to the barracks. She stood up to continue running, glancing behind her again.

She heard one of the girls in the stables shout, "She got out! She went through one of the windows!" Then a head popped up in her previous portcullis – Nose-Ring. She sneered, then began clumsily trying to pull herself up and out of the window.

Aria didn't give her any time to catch up. As she turned to run, she saw the big girl come barreling around the side of the stables. Adrenaline flooded Aria's system again, and she sprinted in the direction she hoped would take her to the barracks.

Her detour through the stables had bought her a bit of wiggle room, but she noted with despair that she had run herself into a further unpopulated area, with fewer buildings and no people. The edge of the forest was just a little ways off to her right, and she realized that she must have missed her destination. She was told it was just on the outskirts of the village in this direction, but she saw nothing that looked like the building they described to her. Her lungs were burning and her pulse drummed loudly in her ears. Her breath whistled from her throat, and she realized that there was no way she could keep running. She glanced behind her.

The girls had largely regrouped, big girl in the lead, with the other two close behind. Aria was panting with exhaustion now, and while she was looking back, she went off balance. Her ankle twisted beneath her. With a breathless shout, she pitched forward, curling her head to her chest and hitting the ground with her shoulder. She rolled rather than sprawled, something her uncle had taught her. She tried to use her momentum to get right back up and keep running, but she was spent. Her muscles had turned to jelly, and as she regained her footing, her legs buckled and she skidded to a halt on her knees. She simply sat there for a few moments, head hung, panting heavily, sweat making her odd leather clothing cling and chafe. She heard the footsteps pounding towards her slow, then peter off as the three girls positioned themselves around her. The big one was panting like a dog, and Nose-ring was wheezing slightly, but the ringleader seemed pretty much fine.

Not fair.

Aria glanced up at her, then huffed out, "Huh. You caught me."

The girl glared down at her with a scowl on her face. She obviously didn't like having to work for her beatings. "Yup. You're fast, brat. But that ain't gonna help you any now. You may have worn them down, but I'm still ready to go, and let me tell you..."

She trailed off as Aria held up her finger, signaling that she wanted to speak. The girl just stared at her blankly, obviously confused by the fact that Aria still didn't look the least bit intimidated. "If you don't mind my asking," Aria began, still panting slightly, "Who exactly are you?"

At this the girl started to grind her teeth. Aria couldn't help but think, that's unhealthy. You'll wear down your enamel doing that. Finally she spat on the ground and cleared her throat. "That," she said, jerking her thumb at Nose-Ring, "Is Rill. She," she continued, nodding at the big girl, "Is Dakka. And I," she said, drawing herself up to her full height and smirking, "Am Jani."

Aria glanced around. By this time she had mostly regained her breath, though she didn't bother getting up. She was still feeling faint with hunger and fatigue, and was probably about to get knocked right back down in any case. This is not going to be fun.

She sighed, "Look, Jenna…"

"Jani," she snarled.

Aria continued as though she hadn't heard her. "Listen, I don't know what I did to piss you off, but–"

She was interrupted. Nose-Ring – Rill – broke in and said, "We been watching you. You been digging around in our business. Outsider."

Dakka, who was standing to Rill's left, growled, "Jani doesn't like outsiders." She cracked her knuckles and spat on the ground, obviously prepping herself for a fight – not that Aria was going to put up much of a struggle.

Aria decided to try for diplomacy one more time – after all, what did she have to lose?

She cleared her throat and said, "I apologize. I didn't realize I was doing anything wrong. I swear I'm not here to cause anyone any trouble. I'm only–"

She was cut off by Jani, who did not sound the least bit placated. "I don't care what you're here for. When I'm done with you, you're gonna be running out of this town. As soon as you're able to walk, that is." With that she began stalking forward, fists clenched, muscles taut.

As Aria watched, Jani's face lost its expression of conscious anger, and fervor appeared in her eyes. Aria stilled. Her attacker was about to go on a violent autopilot. She felt a genuine chill up her spine. This wasn't going to be one of those schoolyard tussles that ends with a few bruises and a black eye. She could really get hurt.

She thought the other two had moved in behind her, but she was so focused on Jani that she couldn't be sure. The sun was now backlighting her, making it hard to see her face. Aria saw a fist come up, and she pulled her head in, raised her arm, clenched her jaw, and prepared to take a hit.

Jani let out a small huff of air as the blow came down – then a startled, angry screech. Aria glanced up, hoping that the next thing she saw wasn't going to be a collection of knuckles. When she peered through the sunlight, she felt a flood of relief.

A tall man in black armor was standing behind Jani, holding her arm and keeping her from throwing the punch. Aria glanced behind her and saw the other two girls backing off quickly. Then the knight said in a deep, calm voice, "I don't think that's a good idea."

Jani was glaring at the man and almost shaking with pent up adrenalin. She had obviously psyched herself up for a major beating, and was having trouble reigning herself back in.

Aria stood slowly, legs wobbling from exhaustion, and got a good look at the knight. He was at least six feet tall, but there wasn't much else she could tell about him, since he was completely clad in armor. A sword rested in a sheath on his hip, but he obviously didn't feel the need to use it. He simply stood, holding Jani's arm in a secure grip, waiting to see what she would do next.

For a moment Aria thought Jani might actually fight; then she snarled something incoherent, and snatched her arm back. She backed off from both of them without turning away, moving to stand beside her two friends. The other two were looking down at the ground, shuffling backwards and seeming eager to get out of there. Jani was glaring daggers at the knight, and as Aria watched, the glare turned to her.

Jani didn't need to say anything. Her eyes promised punishment. The knight looked at her sternly, and Jani gestured to her friends. Without another word they turned and stalked away.

Aria turned to the knight, her breathing a bit labored. She had psyched herself up for a fight, too, but not nearly the same one Jani had had in mind. The knight looked down at her, then relaxed and took his helmet off. He had kind eyes, and concern etched his face. "Hello. My name is Alder. Are you alright?"

Aria just looked at him for a few moments, speechless; then she said weakly, "You couldn't have shown up an hour ago?" She didn't want to sound ungrateful, but really. Talk about dramatic timing.

The knight looked surprised. He opened his mouth to reply. If he said anything, Aria didn't hear it. At that moment she collapsed.