371 A Quiet Afternoon (1/2)
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1300 hours the following day. Goralpri City
Nix should have been surprised when Beta and Commander Mtui stepped through a newly created breach in Goralpri, but he wasn't. The albino rogue seemed to have no difficulty keeping tabs on him. Nix greeted the pair with a smile. ”You're trespassing.”
Mtui nodded in agreement. ”Seems like you have some work to do here.”
Beta looked around at the overgrown city, Nix had joined it to the others, but the gating platform was not yet active. ”What a mess. Was this placed in a jungle?”
”Yep.” Nix already knew why they were there. Tai had told him in no uncertain terms, once he started connecting the cities together, he would be approached. There wasn't enough space to go around in the Sky Kingdom. ”Let me guess; you want to buy the city.”
Mtui didn't deny it, his face growing serious. ”Not the entire thing.”
”No.” Nix glanced around for his friends. After Alpha team had left, he brought in a second team to help him clear the city. He spent the last few hours burning large piles of foliage that the group was pulling from the buildings.
”Cousin!” A slim, white-haired girl emerged from a large pile of vines. Yuli had been a scout in Core'dium. She was nearly identical to her cousin, Beta.
Beta offered her cousin a reserved smile. ”Official business, Yuli.”
”Hmm...” Yuli was curious by nature; she heard stories about her cousin's boss. ”You must be Commander Mtui?”
Unexpectedly the Commander's face creased into a wide smile. He shook the small hand that Yuli presented him. ”Yes. It's nice to meet Beta's cousin finally.”
Yuli nodded in agreement. Beta was spending a lot of time with other Drahk; her demeanor was slowly changing. ”Same here, Commander. Beta mentions you all the time.”
Mtui glanced at his operative, in the last few months she had been reunited with her best friend, found family she didn't know she had and started seeing a rogue from Inferno. ”After we talk with Nix, you can stay if you wish.”
Although Nix liked Mtui, he was on a deadline since he was supposed to meet Morti at the Nescari Fortress in Titania. ”I'm in a hurry. What's your offer?”
”An Arena.” Mtui stared a the few buildings the clearing team uncovered. All the wood was rotting away, leaving only the stone foundations. ”Each of the Dragon Cities has smaller arenas. Since no one lives here yet, we could build something much bigger.”
”A partnership?” Mtui glanced at Beta; she told him earlier that Nix would say no.
Nix nodded. ”Jun Li will handle the details.”
Beta noticed that Nix's naturally yellow eyes were deep orange, a sign that he was using Dragon Eyes. ”Finding a lot of friends in the city?”
Yuli laughed at the question. Nix had been attacked by different predators all morning. All sorts of jungle dwellers decided to make their home in the abandoned city. His thermal vision was the key to finding them. ”Ask him about the goat.”
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1600 hours, Nescari Fortress Grounds.
A dozen Titan cubs occupied the bright glade. Half of them were sleeping in the late afternoon sun while the rest played. Most of them were different shades of brown or reddish-brown.
”Morti? Are you even listening?” A light brown male cub sat next to the Inferno tank, although they were the same age the giant black cub was near twice his size and already as strong as most adults.
Morti huffed his nose once and continued to stare. ”Hey, Toc... Who is that cub?”
Toca turned slightly so he could see the object of Morti's interest. ”I forget her name. She's too small and kinda weak.”
Morti tried hard to remember what his mother had said. A new Titan family had moved into the area; they were from the far edge of Titania, the polar region. They were the only white bears in Nescari. ”Is my helmet straight?”
Toca glanced up at the tiny helmet that was strapped to Morti's head. ”I think so. Why? Are you gonna pick a fight with her?”
”Nope. I'm gonna go talk to her.” Morti stood up and started waddling toward her. ”You stay here.”