Chapter IV

Trader

The man in a white coat pulls the last stitch on Zane's lower abdomen, he grimaces, some drops of sweat rolling down his face when he puts his shirt down to cover the wound, his hands then clutch the bed sheets to attenuate the prickly pain.

"Summoning high level monsters with a deep wound can get you killed. A skilled summoner like you should know that." The man raises a brow saying in a calm, but stern voice. "Someone did a good job healing your last injuries and not let your organs bleed you to death, but a bit more effort and you'd throw their work down the drain."

"I've had worse and survived."

"I've seen tougher men cry like babies when they told me that and got a nasty internal tissue infection later." He snorts as a reply. "Take your medicines and please, follow the recommendations of your doctors."

"I'll take care. Thank you."

The man waves the back of the hand briskly, in disbelief of how arrogant one could be, as soon as he leaves, someone else enters the hotel room. Serenity holds a clipboard with documents.

"How is the wound?"

"I won't die. Did you find out anything about the 'cargo'?"

"All the crates were carrying slaves. I think this should go without saying, but Kaiba Corporation was carrying raw materials when the ship departed, we weren't lying about it and now we have the problem: where are the materials and why there were slaves being trafficked in one of our ships? Thanks to you, three of the summoners were caught, we'll interrogate them."

"Don't thank me, Weevil Wonderwood escaped intact. What about those people…?" His eyes become foggy as he tries to mask his emotions.

"We've calmed them down, but they're all confused. Many don't even remember how they ended up there. Some escaped, but our people are already searching. After we've taken care of their wounds and they're healthy, we'll send them to their homelands in the south." Her gaze flickers for a moment. "Some of them do not want to go back, they've asked to be employed in any of our factories here in the east, but it's a complicated matter."

"I doubt anyone would want to go back to that hell. Why slaves, though? I would expect weapons or even gems, anything that could power an army…"

There's a pause, she stares at him, bracing herself for his reaction after a revelation, closing her eyes for a moment, and trying to be as placid and succinct as possible:

"They're not simple slaves, Mr. Truesdale. All those people, they're human catalysts…"

His face darkens, wrinkling, his mouth opening unwittingly as he glares at her, his irritation is not directed towards her, but she still feels intimidated.

"All those crates were full of… Human catalysts?" He takes a deep breath, his blood simmers and it makes his wound ache again. "So they are gathering 'resources'... I can't believe it… They have no limits…"

"Those summoners were in the ship, we will try to trace back when exactly the cargo switch happened and where they got their hands on those people."

"I'd like to hear when you have the information."

"Sure. Now that you finished your mission, you're free to go back or stay a few days more, we will pay for the costs of the trip, of course."

"Thank you. But this isn't necessary, I'm on my own here. Do call me when you know more about this 'incident'…"

"I'll talk to my superiors about it. Have a safe stay and a speedy recovery."

She bows sleekly and leaves the room. Zane stands up, supporting his hand on the armchair near his bed and sitting there, his face sweating, the damn painkillers haven't kicked in yet. He's no man to waste time with self-pity. Taking his PDA, he makes a call, it rings a few times before it's picked.

"Zane! Are you alright? I've got news that a fire happened at the port of Emir, Kaiba Corp. erased evidence and paid the media to sweep it under the rug! Are you in trouble?!"

The loud voice of his brother makes his ears ring from inside, he grits his teeth slightly, growling low in pain:

"Can you stop shouting? My head hurts."

"Ah… Sorry. I was worried. What happened at the port, did you find something out?"

"Something? Yeah, you can call it that. The Shadow Riders are in this, Weevil Wonderwood was there making sure the cargo wasn't lost, I still got it and he was forced to escape."

"They still had the cargo? Hm… I figure they'd send it somewhere else and use the ship as bait to make a trap for KC, why did they come to Emir?"

"This is the smallest zone in the Empire, easy to cross by train to all regions."

"So you're telling me they intended to distribute the cargo after refining it? How many tons of gems and raw minerals did you save from their claws?"

"Truth to be told, they did have cargo, but it wasn't the same the ship was loaded with when Kaiba Corporation lost contact with it. The containers the ship was carrying were full of people, Sy." He says the last part with dread in his tone.

"People? You mean slaves?!" He gasps.

"Not only slaves, they were all human catalysts…"

"I thought they… You don't think the Kaiba Corporation is…?"

"I doubt it. They're trying to help those people now, but this is worse than I thought… They're mass producing human catalysts again…" He combs his hair with a hand, a deep sigh coming out of his dry lips. "The same nightmare… Over and over…"

"I did hear that the experiments to produce those catalysts never died out fully even after the war, but to think a bunch of criminals got hold of it now… This is terrible!"

"Yes, and that's why I will stay here a bit longer and investigate it."

"What about your underground duties?"

"I can skip them for now… But now that you mention…" His eyes twitch once, he covers his jaw with a hand. "Some days ago, Shroud said something strange…"

"Your manager? He does have a fishy profile and is involved in many sorts of shady trades, but I thought that was your aim by having him near? For the connections and information he could leak to you…"

"Yes and it has been working so far, but something bugs me, Syrus… The other day he offered to sell me a human catalyst…"

"What?! Why?"

"He pushed some forceful talk of not needing gems and that I'm a nice guy enough to not exert a human catalyst and kill them, but… What if… It's somehow related to the incident with the ship? I'm pretty sure he could get one for me if I asked, not only that, he most likely has ties in the south and traders that could sell him catalysts…What really bothers me is… The timing… Why did he offer it to me now of all times, when this ship full of catalysts arrived here a few days after…?"

"That's true… I'll try to look into that, but for now we work with what we have."

"This is certainly not the first time a ship with catalysts is sent, they just got too bold by involving KC and ended up with the short end of the stick…" He trails off for a brief minute before continuing. "I need you to tell me intel about human trafficking around those parts and which black markets I should be going into. This is getting out of hand too fast for my taste."

"Hm…" The typing clacking accentuates as he quickly reads through some lines. "It won't be necessary to go into the black market this time… I know someone you could ask about this…"

"An information broker?"

"No. He's a noble with titles given by the Empire and also a big name in the East, one of the war generals that were sitting while you all gave your blood and tears in the battlefields, he's just working on diplomatic duties nowadays… There are dark rumors about him, though, while having open ties to the Empire, he's known in the underworld as one of the biggest slave traders in the East, so if you want to know about slaves or any sort of matter related to human traffic there, you certainly will have to contact him…"

"Why am I not surprised he has connections to the Empire and gets a free pass for slavery?"

"He's exactly the type of guy you hate, Zane, the guy has sold even kids to some perverts and treats slaves as his goods to put a price tag on. But please, don't do anything rash, I beg you." His eyes focus on the camera lenses, as if his gaze could pierce the screen and reach Zane's orbs.

"Don't dramatize it too much."

"The last time I sent you to meet a noble like this, you were almost arrested under the laws of the Empire for not only threatening a high ranked officer but giving him a few scratches and using your Cyber Dragons to make him pee his pants in public. We don't want to deal with that mess again. I don't want to." With a finger, he adjusts his glasses.

"You're crystal clear. I'll try to be nice even if he's a jerk, okay? I'll focus on getting info."

"I'll try pinpointing places he's often seen at, you'll approach him to negotiate. I'm sure he won't refuse the heir of the Truesdale family, even less with your fame as underground king. But I must warn you he's a shrewd man, be careful with your words. You'll figure out what to say to not look suspicious, won't you?"

"Leave that to me."

His younger brother nods confidently and they end the call. Zane slouches on the armchair, leaning his head against the neck support, his gaze stares idly at the beige ceiling.

"A noble that controls the slave traffic around here, huh? What a lovely person to meet… I'm so excited…"

A huff. That job is really taking a toll on him, all he has seen lately is blood, misery and those annoying battles for power between the Empire and the extremist rebels.

This impatience swelling inside him tells him to never stop until the Empire has fallen to the ground in smithereens, that will be a day to feast, celebrate and rest. But this future is far from his grasp.

"One day when this all ends, the souls of the dead will rest in peace…" He closes his fists tightly. "Wherever you are my friend, I hope you're also fighting for a better future."

At the southern region

A wasteland lies ahead. A single flower blooming on the dry, cracked soil, it shakes, threatened to be snapped in two by the violent gusts of wind blowing the grains of dust into the air.

The rest of the scenery is no different, no drop of water, or greenery or flowers, everything consumed by the monochromic brown of the soil, a horizon of ravaged lands. A place once known by its spring, now reduced to a desert and ruins that remind of the cities and the society that once existed there, lost forever in the war.

The flower stalk breaks, one of its white petals taken by the wind. A dark-mantled figure squats down, her delicate hand approaching the plant ominously. Another gust of wind dashes past, sending the plant flying, her hand skillfully draws a trajectory, grabbing the flower before it's taken away.

"Cleah, what are you doing?" A grave, earnest voice inquires from behind her.

She stands up, the hood of her mantle falling over her shoulders, revealing her young face, she could pretend to be a teenager; her short and light jade-green hair spikes smoothly to the sides, matching her chin height, the strands of her bang fluttering subtly at the wind.

Her eyes make a line towards the man, they're big, the same color as the night sky, a gradient dark-blue, many shiny white dots populating the void in them, like a cluster of stars. She could as well be a creature of another dimension just like a duel monster in an innocent human's disguise.

"Nothing."

The answer is as impassive as her expression, her voice sounds a bit older than her face lets on. A last glance at the flower before she releases it from her grip, in a blink of an eye, it's set on fire and turns into ashes mysteriously, her sight does not wander around even for a moment while observing it.

"Don't waste your powers like that." He reprimands gravely.

"Where is the hidden base?" She ignores his warnings.

"Not too far from here, half a day walk at most. We must deliver the card to them and there, we will receive our new orders."

The man turns around walking straight to the direction of their objective, she tags along, beside him. He's much taller than her, her head barely comes a centimeter up his shoulder and this with the help of the small heels on her black shoes, his brow hair is longer, his dark cloak flapping loudly with the incessant wind, one could guess he's older than her if his face could be seen.

An uncanny dragon-shaped mask covers most of his features, not letting more than his mouth and lower face appear, instead of his eyes, only two blue gems with sharp corners are visible, and a bigger diamond-shaped red gem on the forehead, near one of the pointy edges the mask had.

Her orbs glance around, cold as they were, he could sense her curiosity. The sun sets behind their backs, the wind grows freezing and stronger.

"Can't we get a ride?"

She takes a duel monster card from her inner chest pocket, flipping it to him. A Red-Eyes Darkness Dragon, his lips curve down as he grabs her wrist, enveloping it with ease, yanking her arm closer and using his other hand to slip the card out of hers, letting go of her when he acquires his belonging back. His contempt is palpable as he places his card in the inner chest pocket of his overcoat. It's his fault for being careless, though, she shrugs off.

"We're conserving our powers."

As she walks, her mantle lets on some of her garments underneath and her figure, the slim curves on her body, not too petite, but not voluptuous, a perfectly trained body with agile limbs to pickpocket even him.

She's dressed in a fully black set of a thin sleeveless shirt that could as well reveal the lines of her bones; a sleeveless upper shirt that draped in above her undershirt covering down her upper ribs, adorned by belt straps crossing her shoulder bone; a long-sleeved glove that barely let on a portion of her skin of her right upper arm appear, fastened by two belted straps it left half of all her fingers uncovered; a thin cloth elbow protector on the other arm; black shorts girded by two belts overlapping each other, the white one at the front had a trail of blue diamond-shaped small gems imbued, a small sheathed dagger hanging onto it.

Her legs had mismatched stockings, one of them reaching the upper thigh, encircled by two straps keeping it in place, the other leg was less covered, the sock barely came to her knee's area and a strap with a small pocket attached to the back of her thigh.

"Have you been here before…? During the war?"

"Yes." A concise, short reply, he was not one for conversations.

"Was this place always like this? I haven't been to this area before… I heard the whole south was like a beautiful garden."

"Not anymore."

A pity, it's what she thought of saying, but she saved those words for herself, no word can change the past or revert the destruction caused here.

"What will they do with this card, Atticus? I mean, 'Darkness'…" She corrects as his head turns to her in a stiff posture.

From the pocket hanging on her leg, she takes out the card Elemental Hero Neos. Atticus' lips unseal softly, his hand touches his chest aplenty under the cloak over his shirt, confused, then his face is cast at her again, an exasperated exhalation coming from his throat. She could argue he had a scowl too, and he wasn't amused that her thief hands stole it from him.

"They'll seal it until we find a way to control it."

Snatching the card back, he tucks it into his pocket nonchalantly. Unsatisfied at the boredom, her mouth in a light-pink lipstick continues frivolous blabbering in a neutral tone:

"Why is it so important? It's just a card."

"You're not allowed to ask for details."

There's a minute of silence between them, he can almost hear a sigh of disappointment coming from the side, he lets out a heavy sigh himself.

"You should know why this card is special… Its spirit was bathed by a power unseen in this realm, something ancient that has existed even before humans and inhabited space eons before men reached out to it."

"You're talking about…" Her eyes flash to him, narrowing slyly. "The Light?"

"The organization wants to find a way to control it. We would be unmatched if they succeed."

"They cannot." She contests skeptically, like a child arguing back at a parent, convinced they're right.

"It doesn't matter what you think, they'll try. You know they won't stop at any cost."

"The Light does not comply with anyone's will. They can try all they want, this is unchangeable and destruction awaits them. Regardless, it's not officially in my competence to say that. I'll do as I'm told if they order me."

"If you are aware of that, stop wasting your time with trifling questions and do your job. Soon we will play a bigger role as well."

He threads stronger, his pace increasing, leaving her behind. Silently, raising the hood, covering her head once more, she hurries to catch up to him. The sun is long gone and the night air stirs an ominous feeling, their steps resonate as a gust of wind makes a cloud of dust arise, occulting their silhouettes that disappear on the vastness of the scenery.

Edit: I know Neos was not bathed by the Light of Destruction, to not cause confusion with the anime here, this is going to take a different direction.

Hours later

City of Deltora, East

Right beside the port city Emir is Deltora, a city on the coast illuminated by fancy hotels and resorts with private access to the beach. Although the place is also a popular destination for tourists, only the richest can afford a trip as the expenses can amount to absurdity easily just by staying in a simple inn or hotel.

The main square of the city located at the coast has as its main attraction a golden fountain adorned with gems, a beach paradise for anyone who is on vacation as well as the lair for many nobles who carve for vanities and pleasure. Deltora also possesses one of the most famous red light districts in the Empire, mostly frequented by the highest nobles themselves.

Near that square, there is the entrance to the bar of a beach resort, the gates are nothing but thick poles of gold wrapped with small lights blinking at different intervals and colorful tropical flowers.

There are guards at the entrance, even they wear flowery patterned shirts and swim shorts, while still keeping the sunglasses and communicators on their ears. Zane is dressed in a dark attire, a black beach shirt with dark-green palm trees as pattern and dark swim shorts.

He lifts an identification card to the guards when they are about to step on his way, they recoil to their spots and look ahead as he enters the area. There is a stone road that leads to a big building, it forks to the sides.

The reception and insides of the building are the size of a mansion, from the glass windows, he can see seizure inducing lights flashing out, and the muffled sound of the disco escapes the walls. He passes by the side of it, two more guards awaiting before yet another entrance made with golden poles.

Flashing his identification to the guards again, he's allowed to come through. A few wooden steps lie ahead. Now, the way is fully constructed of wood planks over the sandy ground, each side has a big rounded perimeter with a table and some benches covered by a straw ceiling in a dark ambience illuminated by candles or nothing at all.

From the sideways, the smell of incense mixes with the smoke of unknown drugs in a nauseating manner and some moans that he'd rather forget about.

His head moves around to find his target, he stops upon visualizing the man: a short and chubby middle-aged man with brown hair that curls like low horns to the sides and a thin curly moustache, his cheeks folding near his mouth; his exorbitant beach shirt is filled with flowery patterns and it's the most eye catching scene under the dark area lighted only two smelling candles besides the fact that it's open and he can see the hairy chest of the man.

He's sitting beside two muscular men in nothing more than swim shorts massaging his chest and thighs, his guffaw echoing as a woman in a red bikini and a beach skirt around her waist and some sort of dancing accessories on her arms and legs serves him another cup of wine, bending onwards, her cleavage becoming more apparent, her breasts almost jumping out of the attire, Zane turns his face away clearing his throat in discomfort.

The man slaps her butt as she serves the drink, laughing and the two men beside him laugh along, she remains composed through it all. Zane had to hold the urge to cringe at him, emptying his emotions and remaining calm. Those people are trained to be hosts, escorts or whatever they're doing here. The man soon noticed his presence as he approached inconspicuously.

"Jean-Louis Bonaparte?"

"Yours truly…"

"I am-"

"The heir of the Truesdale family." He sniggers, bobbing his head to show the seat across him. "What is a man of your caliber doing here?"

"I got a bit tired from work and decided to go on vacation…" Sitting down quietly, he stares blankly at the other one, receiving a scrutinizing glance back.

"Oh, I do understand…" He looks at both his side, then slaps the butt of the woman again. "Where are your manners? Serve the guest some wine!"

She prepares to pour more, but the teal-haired man raises his hand in a motion for her to stop, averting his gaze, his lips in a sour curve down. She steps back to the dark corner, awaiting for more orders, astounding Bonaparte.

His mouth gapes open and immediately one of the men by his side feeds him a grape that he chomps it down, not avoiding his gaze from the newcomer.

"I'm surprised you would come all the way to the east for vacation."

"Why? Isn't this the most popular tourist destination?" His green orbs squint, the guy is more cunning than he expected.

"You see… I never took you as a man that would go on vacation to such lively places like this… Or go on vacation at all." He adds the last part with a cackle. "The king of the underground came in person to see me, I'm elated."

"Any man needs a restful break, don't you agree? Even the most fearsome, secluded gentlemen like a king of the underground."

"Indeed. How do you like the place? I'd think the central region has its own variety of pleasures and distractions." He rubs the arms of the men beside him.

"The central region's pleasures are too mild for my tastes, boring. Nothing happens, even in the underground. I wished to adventure myself in deep, dark waters…"

Getting a cue of where the conversation was heading, he suddenly pushes the men caressing him away and smirks deviously.

"I think I had plenty of fun tonight, my babies. But don't worry, I'll come back tomorrow for more, now if you would be nice and let us gentlemen have a private talk…"

The hosts stand up and the three of them giggle and bow before leaving, he sends in a kiss with his hand, his expression changing as he turns his orbs to Zane.

"You Truesdale are all business. I must say I didn't expect you'd reach me of all people."

"Why not? If you're making deals, always search for the best. At least, that's what my grandfather taught me."

"A wise man." He nibbles on a pipe letting out some smoke. "Now, will you tell me exactly what you are interested in? Huh? Like you, I'm on vacation, official vacation from the Empire."

"I'm not here to talk about your job as an imperial, mister Bonaparte." A shrewd glint forms in his orbs. "I have been in the underground for some time and I keep having this problem, you see… That I don't have enough satisfaction anymore."

"Satisfaction?" He raises a brow.

"Yes. The life and death matches, the opponents, even the electric shocks can't make my blood boil anymore, the adrenaline is all gone and I'm stuck in a throne of nothingness. So I thought, maybe, I should spice up things by making those duels more… Interesting."

"You want to trade with me? Is that why you came all the way to this place?" He opens his arms, showing it around.

"I heard you come here a lot, since I was nearby, I thought of dropping by. Perhaps I'll leave here a happier man if I get a good deal."

"Who told you about me?"

He smokes more of the pipe, analyzing the proposal. It was written in his profile that Syrus sent not long ago, his motto was "being too careful is never enough".

"The underground has eyes and ears everywhere, Mr. Bonaparte. You should know that as well." His lips stretch into a wicked smile, he leans back on his seat confidently.

"I have many things to trade, but I'm unsure of which you'd want…"

"I want an unbreakable gem." He runs his eyes the palm of his own hand, closing his fists tight as if already grasping victory. "One that will make my duels more exciting… And one that I cannot find anywhere else… A gem of the south…"

Jean straightens his posture, his smirk enlarging. A quick look around, everyone else is too enthralled by their own delights to see or hear anything, yet, he suggests:

"Good, Mr. Truesdale. I might have just what you need, however… I think this is not a place to discuss business, so how about you come to my mansion and we can talk about this trade in detail, in the privacy of my home?" He stretches his hand over the table.

"Very well, that works for me."

Zane complies with the handshake, a nasty shiver running down his spine after feeling some sort of oiliness transferring to his skin, he has no idea what or where that man touched and he better not know.

"I'll see you tomorrow at 10 PM, you must come alone. I'm looking forward to making a trade with you, Mr. Truesdale."

"Me too…"

He forces a cynical smile as the man orders drinks for both of them, he studies the movements and gestures of Bonaparte callously, he has been trained for that. Now that the preparations are set, all he needs to do is get the info about the slaves and human catalysts.