Lena's First Experience: Part 1

Foreword by Benari -

         Hey there readers! I'm sure you're wanting to get into the story, but let me take a few minutes of your time first to explain one or two things. The world of Terra differs in a few ways to Earth, but the important ones so you don't get confused are dates and times.

         First off, the time. A Terran day is 27 hours, divided into three cycles; P.C. (Prenoon Cycle), A.C. (Afternoon Cycle) and N.C. (Night Cycle). Each cycle is 9 hours. Every hour is 36 minutes and every minute is 90 seconds. A second is the same as an earth second. I'll leave it to the maths heads to actually work out how different that makes our days, kay?

         Secondly, the days. A week is six days and goes like this: Golria, Culveria, Mortharia, Quantria, Rhelria and Rassalian. Rassalian is a global day off, kinda like Sunday.

         Third, the races. Now I've thrown in a few here, but that's not all Terra has to offer. Still, for those who're interested, the main four are humans, elves, dwarves and orks. Aside from that, the main ones are the daemonborn and the fey-kin. Lena, our protagonist, is a serilya. A harpy/angel hybrid. Meri, when you meet him, is essentially a gargoyle, a being made of living rock... or something... something purple-black anyway.

         Aside from that... AR is augmented reality, clones grow, serilya fly, and brother, I write things. Enjoy!


Lena's First Experience:

"So, I trust you'll be available right away?" The dwarf, one "Rufero Morthal", leant forward, wearing a big cheesy grin and looking over the top of his sunglasses. Lena smiled softly, inclining her head. "I would indeed. I am aware that I can only seek part time employment at this time, but I am eager to demonstrate my skills and work for your establishment."

           "Brilliant! Well that's definitely points in your favour my dear." The dwarf flashed another winning smile, before sitting back in his chair, his eyes dancing over the young woman before him. Part of the Serilya race of daemonborn, seeming to be mostly human, but with the addition of a number of avian features. The name Serilya had come from an old Vardik religion, who had viewed the creatures as some sort of messengers from a long dead god. That view was old now, but they creatures had stuck with the name.

         Lena was a lovely example of the species, he thought, rubbing over his chin and the short fu-man choo he'd grown there recently. About average height, 6ft 3, and with that typical, slim and almost wispy form with the wide hips. Her face was soft, her skin pale, possibly even with a shine in the right light, emphasising that old image of an "angel". Her hair was a dark silvery shade, the tips black, the fringe framing her face, with the rest of it tied back up in a neat bun held with two long pieces of jet. Her eyes were a soft, icy blue that seemed to swirl slightly in the light, locked away behind those thin, rectangular glasses she wore.

          In addition to this, the more obvious Serilya features stood out, namely the two pairs of angelic wings that fell from her shoulders and slightly further down her back, the lower pair smaller but just as functional. The wing structure was silver, fading to black along its length, the feathers the same silver as her hair, apart from the ones at the edge, which were a metallic rose colour. And who could miss the feet, that combination of human and avian. A rare breed, but then in a way all daemonborn species were. But would she be...

         He pushed the thought to the back of his mind, and smiled at the girl again. In interview, she had come across as very intelligent and organised, but softly spoken. She definitely came across as capable for the job, but the hours she could work... then again, equal opportunities. He pressed his fingers together and chuckled.

         "Well then... Ms. Nygard. I did get that right, right?" He chuckled as Lena nodded, a smile appearing on her lips. He carried on "I believe you are exactly the sort of person we are looking for here at Vortex. I'm sure we'll be able to work out your hours. Part time, not Culveria or Rassalian, afternoon cycles, and some night cycles if possible. No worries." Her face had lit up upon hearing this.

         "Now, I'll give you a call on... Rhelria, sometime late A.C?"

         "Yes, of course." She bowed her head softly.

         "Great!" He beamed, before suddenly growing slightly more serious, leaning forward. "Just, one last thing before you leave Lena." She blinked, looking slightly confused at the change in attitude, but nodded none the less.

         "You'll be working in Nova, as you know, one of our drinking establishments. You'll notice that I've got a map of the building behind me." He turned in the chair, tapping a cane against the large map. "Vortex" was emblazoned in large capital letters over the map. The lobby was highlighted in a light blue, and off to each side were the various establishments in white. At the back of the building though, there was a highlighted red area.

         "You'll be able to use some of the offices and staff facilities through out the building, but..." He paused. "Until you're more experienced with the company, your clearance will not allow you access to the Red area here. But don't worry about that." His mood returned to that jolly nature. Lena still looked a little confused, but smiled and nodded.

         "Excellent! Well, I should expect a call from us in the near future Ms. Nygard. Thank you once again for your time."
         "Thank you sir, for offering me this opportunity. If picked, I promise to be everything you hope for." Her voice was entirely sincere, with not a hint of kiss-assing, or boredom as if it were a line just to grab attention. Rufy grinned as she left, opening a draw and removing a glass tumbler and pouring a small measure of an amber liquid into it.

         "She'll be perfect." He said, chuckling again and turning back to the wall, the map now a clear pane of glass overlooking the lobby.



         "Vortex huh? Can't say I've heard of it." Simoune raised an eyebrow, swirling his glass around casually in one hand. "What, some sort of night club?" Lena rolled her eyes at the elf, before chuckling.
         "Social club... well, more like a complex." She swept a bit of her fringe back over her hear, taking a sip from her glass. "I just saw the sign on my AR. Looking for jobs, I thought I'd try. Amazingly I got an interview straight away. I didn't think anyone did that these days." Her voice was soft, but filled with a passion and a vein of excitement. Around the table, her friends all looked pretty amazed to.
         "Wow." Jice commented, looking up at the ceiling tracing some sort of imaginary line there. "Sounds like... old school, you know?"
         "Yeah, and I haven't heard of it. that's what confuses me the most." Simoune cut in again. The slick elf was down on most of the party scenes in Escarivor, and quite the girl magnet, even amongst his own species. A pretty hard achievement considering just how female dominated elven society still was. "I mean, did they have like a guest list or something?"
         "I'm not sure. Mr. Morthal wasn't entirely clear on the matter. I believe the white listed areas are general entertainment open to to public, but quite high end from the look of it." Her wings fluttered softly as a finger traced over one of them, causing that one in particular to unfurl slightly. The high pitched giggle of Caroline swam through the air as the energetic girl bounced into her seat, snatching up Simoune's glass and downing the last of the contents with a satisfied glug.
         "Who cares?! It's super duper awesome that you've got a job Lee!" The Serilya sighed, but couldn't help smiling.
         "Carol, I've told you. I've only been in for interview, but the job wasn't guaranteed." She said.
         "Ah, come on silly, where are they going to get a bird as attractive as you?"
         "Hey, Caz, that's a bit..." Jice sat back up straight, running a hand through his long dark hair, before scratching at one of his tusks. The ork's eyes were slightly unfocused, but they eventually settled on the bouncy human girl.
         "It's fine Jice, she's right after all, I'm part avian. It's my heritage." She chuckled softly, giving her upper wings a soft beat before folding them away again.
         "H'if you say so..." The ork settled back down. Caz looked a bit apologetic at the comment, but quickly recovered.
         "Don't worry Lee, you'll be fine, brilliant, wonderful!" She giggled a bit, before hiccuping. Simoune shook his head again, before chuckling.
         "Anyway, I've got to scoot. Caz and I are catching that new flik, New World or something." He grinned and pulled Caz up, who promptly jumped up on his back like a kid. You'd have hardly known she was a university student.
         "Have fun you both." Lena called after them, waving. Jice also stood up, heaving his massive frame out of the seat.
         "I'll be going too... gotta meeting with the guys from creative writing soc."
         "Alright Jice, have a good evening." She smiled and waved after the hulking ork, before sitting back to enjoy her glass of wine.

         An hour or so passed, before she noticed her commlink beeping. From her glasses, extended a microphone and and earpiece, which were in position in seconds. She tapped the earpiece, and in her AR vision through her glasses, her father appeared.
         "Oh, hey dad! How've you been?" She said, almost chirping in surprise.
         "Hey sweet-wings. Just got the news. Congrats! I'm glad my little girl's got herself some work." He chuckled a bit, the creases of laughter on his face showing.
         "Wait, seriously?"
         "Yeah, your profile on TU is updated with it... urm, let me... Ahah! Nova, at the Vortex complex. Assistant manager no less!" Lena blinked again, before noticing another call coming in, this time a text message. She brought it up over her other eye. It simply read. "Nova, 5-AC. Congratulations, I know you'd be the right person."
         "Wow... I'm kind of amazed you learnt before me though dad." She said, her father now taking up the screen again. She smiled happily, and he returned it.
         "Ah, don't worry about that, it's great news! Oh, my little angel is fast growing up. No need for this old feather brain for much longer hey?" He chuckled. "Look, I'm actually meant to be heading out for a meeting, but I thought I should drop you a line first. Congrats honey."
         "Awww... thanks dad, you're the best." She said, blushing softly. "Love you."
         "Love you too angel, take care. Gotta fly!" He said, as the link closed.
         Lena sat back again with a smile, her heart pumping. [I got the job! YES!] She screamed internally. Outside though, she got up, paid the bartender, and started heading back home. On the way, she pulled up her TU page, and just as dad had said, there was her new job title, and her employer. This digital age really was something. She smiled again, looking forward to the next day, and finally earning some pay.



         The afternoon storm was just breaking, as it did almost everyday on Koracolis, the isle at the centre of the world. Sitting slap bang on the Equator, the climate barely changed all year round, just the general cycle of sun in the prenoon cycle, cloudy early afternoon cycle, then thunderstorms, just clearing up before the night cycle to enjoy a crystal clear, sweet smelling evening.
         It really was hammering it down when Lena swooped down to the pavement outside Vortex, shaking herself off as she slipped inside into the lobby. Rufy was there, in a sharp suit, grinning at her. The Serilya pulled her weatherproof jacket off and hung it on the top of one of her folded wings, before turning and smiling at the manager.
         "Looking great." He said, chucking, before beaconing to follow her. She did, closely, as they headed towards the rather future-retro looking bar that was entitled Nova. "Early by a whole six minutes too, I'm impressed. Nothing like a keen employee to reinforce the fact I made the right call." He turned and smiled again at the entrance. "You'll be working with a small, multicultural team as you probably remember, and you will be assisting Meriket, or Meri as we like to call him. Lovely fellow, if a bit stone faced." The dwarf was obviously suppressing a chuckle at that, and Lena's mind settled on her new boss being a Garavort. She smiled curtly as Rufy quickly recovered.
         "But seriously, Meri's a good lad, and he'll be fine with you calling him that as long as you don't... you know." He smiled awkwardly. Lena again nodded, her unburdened wings fluttering slightly.
         "I know what you mean sir." She acknowledged. Rufy's face softened again.
         "Good, good. Great even! It is a joy to work with so many varied citizens." He smiled kindly, before showing Lena inside. The styling was a bit hard on the eyes at first, black, white, grey and silver surfaces, crossed with lines of neon colours that seemed to pulse and flow, the colours changing with the mood of the surprisingly quite music. But then again, it was early days yet. And as of yet, there were no customers.
         Mr. Morthal pointed to a table on the balcony area where a number of people were sitting, happily chatting, joking and generally sounding like they were making merry.
         "I'll see you at the end of your shift Ms. Nygard. Enjoy your first night." He said, taking her hand and shaking it firmly, before striding off.

         Lena made her way up the staircase, slightly put off by the way each step seemed to de-stabilise around her talons, but once she glanced it without her AR glasses, she could see it was just an effect. As she... or more noticeably, her wing tips emerged, the conversation slowed as people turned. The group was indeed a mixed bunch. Three humans, two orks, two elves, a catgirl, a mimic-girl (She guessed) and the garavort. Everyone though seemed to be smiling, some of the boys watching her with rapt attention, the kitty looking at her with a more of a predatory glance, but it was only natural.
         "Hello. I'm Lena Nygard, the new assistant manager. I look forward to working with you all." She said softly, inclining her head to the group. The garavort, a tall guy with a well built physique stood up, reaching out with a hand. His head was incredibly horned and decorated, and he was wearing a suit that blended in with the décor and his purple-black body nicely, his eyes a burning glow of amber.
         "I'm Meriket, current team manager of this establishment." His voice was deep, but smoother than she had been expecting. "But call me Meri, or boss. Whatever ya fancy."
         "Right on, boss man!" chuckled one of the humans, getting a laugh out of everyone. Meri flicked him a hand gesture, which just had the room in more of an uproar.
         "That human muppet is Gaz, the other two are Yensin and Avice. The orks are Zaz and Cral. We've got Helvera and Jaycine on the elven front, kitty here is... well, we all call her Fur ball but." He blocked the swipe with his arm, chuckling. "But her name is actually Mikuru. And this here, our newest member bar yourself is Pelle, a mimic and our sound mistress. And yes, that DJ kit is her bunk, so no messing." Pelle flashed her a toothy smile, all her teeth canine like and sharp, but happy none the less.
         "So yeah, we've got Avice, Yensin, Hel and Miku as front of house, Zaz works security, Cral's our cook, Jaycine and Gaz run the bar, and I make sure the entire place actually runs." He grinned, his teeth ivory white against his dark body. "And now I've got some help in that. You'll be with me half the time, and the other half you'll help out whoever needs it, you cool?"
         The seraph nodded. "Yes sir."
         "Drop the sir girl, boss or Meri, your pick."
         "Well... alright, boss."
         "Ey! That's the spirit!" He patted her on the shoulder, causing the girl to wince a bit. "Hehe, sorry. I keep forgetting my own strength. Anyway, best get you suited up. Clients start pouring in here around 6 ish, so we've got a good half an hour yet. Anything you want to ask before you start."
         Lena though about it for a second, before something came up from the interview. "Just one thing." She started. "When I was being interviewed, Mr. Morthal mentioned something about the Red area being off limits. I was just curious to know if anyone here knew any more about it."
         The response... was odd. The room went quiet, and there were a few glances between people. It was obvious that a few people; Pelle and Cral to name a few, were also in the dark, with Pelle showing more interested. Meri chuckled a bit, and rubbed the back of his neck.
         "Sorry kid, you'll have to find that one out for yourself. You will in time though. Oh, yeah. Before I forget." He held out a white arm band. "This is your electronic pass-key for our facilities on site. It'll link up with your AR set. It's already coded for you and your use." He chuckled and walked off. "Come on, we'll get you fitted out."

         A few minutes later, Lena was changed into her outfit. It was very well made, and tailored to her body surprisingly well, especially the consideration for allowing her wings freedom. It did mean that the top had little to no back, but she could live with that for comfort. It was in the same style as everyone else's though, functional shapes of silver, grey, black and so on, with ribbons of a single hue of neon light running through it. Hers was a blue, almost perfectly matching her eyes. She walked out of the changing rooms to find Zaz standing there, leaning against a wall.

         "Oh, hey." She said, clawing for his name.
         "Lena, don' go askin' bout Red, okay?" His tone surprised her. Not threatening, not angry, but concerned.
         "Why?"
         "My advice; just don'. Better if you jus' work the bar, pretend it don' exist, kay?"
         "But..." The ork held up a meaty hand, looking her in the eyes.
         "Trust me. It's not'ing wrong, jus' different to what yas may know. If yas were Takan from down South, ya's probably 'ave no trouble, but ya' Vardik, ey?" Lena blinked, before shaking her head.
         "Scalvar actually."
         "Tis da same ta me babe. But ma point stands." He smiled, before turning and walking off, his suit she now realised, more like armour... and that was definitely a service handcannon in the holster at the side.
         "Koracolis is sure a weird place." She said to herself, before heading out for the evening's work.

         She didn't notice the girl passing outside the bar as she emerged. She was human, five ten, long black hair and a cheeky, tomboyish face. What was more interesting though, was the red armband she wore, as she strode confidently to the back of the lobby, the doors opening silently, showing a glimpse of the room beyond. Even as she was through, the doors slowly closing, a long tendril, or maybe tail seemed to be curling around the girl's waist, tightening just as the doors closed.


         Within the first few weeks, Lena really came into her own, slipping into the work pattern incredibly well, working four late afternoon shift, and a night shift on Mortharia. Her place in the team was, as Meri had said, a combination of office helper and manager, along with aiding whatever area the staff were currently short in.
         She did meet a few other members of the group. A dwarf replaced Zaz on night cycles, seeming to have literally sprung from the rock. He was quiet and solemn, and didn't really interact much. Mikuru had Rhelia off, which meant Lena was performing more front of house work on those evenings, and the elven pair always seemed to take time off together. Rumour was that they were going out, but no one commented on hours.
         So, that was how Lena's life went for a while. Studies during the prenoon cycles on Golria, Quantria and Rhelria, labs on Culveria, day off on Mortharia from uni, and Rassalian to just relax on. Things were good.

         It was a late, getting on for 3. NC when Lena finally closed down shop. Meri had bolted earlier today because his partner was coming back from a short trip to Terra's neighbour Yan'Varheim. Meri hadn't exactly had time to go over the details. More just threw out “Katanga, coming back, need to go, orbital, close up, great, bye!” as he bolted past, a massive grin on his face. Lena had softly chuckled and assumed the normal managerial duties. The evening had gone well and everyone was on their way home. Mikuru had held back to wait for Lena as she finished up the log and was standing outside, her tails flicking softly though the air. The catgirl pulled a face, before smiling, flashing her teeth at the sera.
         “You know, you've really got a knack for everything haven't you?” She said, full of energy even at this time.
         “I wouldn't say that.” Lena blushed softly, looking away.
         “Ah, come on Lee-lee.” The cat's hand brushed over her shoulder. “You don't build yourself up at all. You got real talent. Maybe a lack of the more feminine grace, and a tad on the serious side.” Again another face. Mikuru loved being playful. “But spirited, you've got tons of that.” She giggled, before noticing Lena was still looking away. The catgirl blinked, walking back to her friend, and waving a hand before her eyes. “Hellllllooooo?” She said, giggling again.

         “A girl just came out of the red zone.” Lena said, turning to look back at Mikuru. The cat looked too now, before letting out a somewhat awkward chuckle.
         “Lee-lee, you've got to drop this Red business. Come on, let's go grab the Lev*.” Her hand reached out for Lena's shoulder, but the she was already walking off. Mikuru hovered there, eyes wide, blinking for a second, before shaking her head with a smile and shrugging, walking towards the exit.

         The girl was sitting down on the steps leading up to the red area, her hair damp and falling down her back like she'd just gotten out of a shower and not spent the time polishing up. Her clothes fitted her tomboy aesthetic, some khaki trousers, a plain black tee with some sort of military webbing vest pulled over it, the red armband on her upper arm seeming to have merged with the shirt as they tended to do. She was busy putting piercings back into her slightly pointed ears.
         As the Serilya approached, she looked up, quizzical for a second before a smile broke over her face.
         “Oh, hi there!” She greeted.
         “Good evening to you too. I'm Lena, I work at Nova?”
         “Oh, Nova huh? Sweet!” The girl grinned a bit more, before sticking her tongue out as she pushed the last stud into her ear, fastening it in place, her tongue curling up the side of her mouth in concentration. “I've been meaning to try the place out, but I don't have much free time at the minute.” She said, standing up and grabbing the jacket that had been sitting next to her.
         “It's quite a nice place, even if the styling is somewhat...” Lena sought for the right words.
         “Late 630's, the trilodea movement. Came and went in around a decade, but some people hung onto it. Most clients found the aesthetic a bit too jarring for prolonged exposure, but these days some casual joint with it is a rare treat.” The girl grinned. “Sorry, my old arts course popping up there.” She suddenly blinked, before giggling awkwardly, rubbing the back of her neck and then holding her hand out.
         “I'm Karyn, Karyn Urtsakar.” The girl's violet eyes stood out most on her naturally tanned face, and Lena guessed she was from Eretak. A quick memory flash back put two and two together, the red armband and the heritage...
         “It's nice to meet you Karyn.” Lena shook her hand, bowing her head softly. Karyn returned it a lot more vigourously, prior to straightening up again.
         “Let me guess though, you want to know more about Red huh?” Karyn laughed. Lena liked the sound of it. A nice clear tone, that was full of warmth. “Don't worry Lena, nearly everyone does who works here. I've told Rufy that he should just stop mentioning it, that it only makes people more curious, but does he listen? Noooooo.” She stuck her tongue out again, before giggling a bit more. Lena nodded along in silence to this, not advancing her questioning any further. Karyn smiled a bit, before looking around.
         “Look, to be honest, I shouldn't be the one telling you this. I'm sure Mr. Morthal told you that you'd learn in time and you should give it time and find out on your own.” Karyn's smile was kind, but held a hint of concern. “It's honestly more for your peace of mind. I mean, you're... not Vardik, to easy. Scald? Scalvar?” Lena inclined her head, and Karyn gave a quiet whoop, punching the air. “Oh yeah, I'm awesome!” She grinned, before turning serious again.
         “You seem to be an innocent girl, and yes, I know you're probably almost my age, but just think about it for a little bit. The colour is a big hint.”
         Lena pondered this for a second, before her eyes began to widen slightly, and she raised a hand to her mouth. “No...” Karyn blushed slightly, giggling a bit. “You're in the right area I think.”
         “But... but...”
         “Ah! No buts girl. This is Korac. Rules here are different to a lot of the world, mostly thanks to the dragons. Bloody Nymphos I tell you... but yeah. You're on the right tracks, but it's a little different and more specific that what you probably expect. Now, I'm not saying any more on the subject.” She grinned again, before putting an arm around Lena's shoulder.
         “Anyway, let's go get a nightcap. I want to learn a little more about you Ms. Nosey.” She grinned. Lena didn't have time to protest, before her new companion was pulling her towards the exit. Karyn seemed nice enough, but that she was tied up in such an enterprise? Still... a nightcap would be nice the sera reasoned. What was the worst that could happen?


         The nightcap was just that. A warm drink, some quiet and in fact very nice conversation, before the girls had parted ways. Karyn had slung Lena her contact details and vice versa. The next morning, a note was in Lena's inbox from Karyn.
         “Hey Lena, cute little serilya you. Had a great time last night with you, would love to get to know you more and hang out. You free this Rassalian? Have a good day! XxX” Lena blushed slightly, but sent a reply, pointing out a place to meet up, and a time. Almost immediately a reply came back. Karyn must have had an integrated commlink she figured.
         “Awesome! I'll see you there then. -Hugs!- XxX”


         It wasn't long before the pair were hanging out a decent amount, chatting via commlinks, social networking and all that. Karyn even came over and visited Lena and her friends one evening, that lead to a lot of probing questions about the Red zone, most by Simoune who was obviously looking for an in. Karyn though just managed to deflect each pass with a lot of care and skill, and at one point, probably owing to a few drinks and the relaxed atmosphere, pushing her tongue down Simoune's throat. The elf, to his credit, simply went with it, emerging with a grin, and asking if Karyn may wish to show him her profession in private. She leant forward and whispered something in his ear, pulling away softly and smiling. “Sorry, I don't work commission, pop by the club if you're interested though... and capable.” She winked.
         Simoune was a bit quiet for the rest of the evening, seeming to be in thought, and make his excuses early. Lena was a bit worried for her friend though, and quickly headed out after him. The elf was a lot more grave than normal, but he still made an effort to smile.
         “I've just got to check something out. Might get Jice in on this, him being a computer whiz and all that.” He smiled and shook his head as Lena asked about the whisper. “Like I said, I need to check this out.” He said, before striding off.
         
         The rain of the thunderstorm hammered against the window of Len's room as she read through her lab notes from the day. A crack of lightning sheered the sky, an electric blue white flash of raw power. Lena though was used to it after over a year in the tropical region. The buzzing of her commlink however, almost made her jump out of her skin. She pushed her glasses up and looked at the virtual wall of her room, which filled with the faces of Jice and Simoune. Her windows darkened automatically, and the additional soundproofing came into effect, the thunderstorm reduced to an almost inaudible rumble.

         “Hey guys, something you need?” She asked.
         “You know, you look so pretty without you glas...” Simoune started, before Jice cut him off.
         “Lena, there's something I like, think you should know about Vortex.” He said, sounding more alert than usual. Simoune also seemed to sober up, nodding.
         “We checked out Vortex and found areas of the site and stuff are fire walled to Yan and back, nearly everything focusing on this elusive Red area. So, Jice went about scouring the hypernet for anything useful, any tidbits. Turns out this is one of a chain of places up and down Koracolis, one in each big city.” The elf paused. Lena leant forward a bit, wondering where this was going.
         “Well... eventually, we found some obscure community site, after following a load of random pathways and all that, and there we found an entire section of the chats devoted to this red area. It's definitely an adult site, but until we signed up, we had no idea what it was.”
         “I like... used one of my aliases to scoot in, you know.” Jice said slowly. “But we got in. And... we were pretty shocked.” Simoune leant forward a bit.
         “Lena, you ever heard of something called vore?” The sera shook her head.
         “It comes from an old Stell word, meaning to consume, to eat...” He let it hang there for a second. Lena's eyes again began to widen. “Lena, the Red zone of Vortex, as far as we can tell, is a private club for what are called voraphiles, people who get off on... well, eating others alive whole, or being consumed themselves.” His face was slightly blanched, but he carried on.
         “The waiting list is big, and apparently it take about two years for authorisation to become a member... well a registered predator anyway, with background checks, ability issues and all that. Registered prey take less time to process, about three months. Once you are though you can...” He swallowed, somewhat ironically Lena thought. “Ahem... “Visit our variety of luxurious locations and enjoy the range and selection of wonderful, sensual predators, exploring wherever pleases you, and sampling our wide selection of delights from our prey range, all willing and able to fill you up just as you desire.”” He shivered again. The room was silent, only broken by the occasional thumps of lightning outside.

         “Lena, people go there to eat other people, other Terrans! And to be eaten! And they enjoy this!” Simoune was panicking slightly. Lena was... simply baffled. Surely something like that couldn't be...

         “Da strangest thing is though... it's all legal. Has to be. See the massive waiting list. And somehow, but ah ain't sure, it's not fatal to dems that gets eaten.” Jice said, obviously still at work looking through the mountains of data.

         Lena leant back, a cold sweat on her face. She wiped over her forehead softly before standing up. “I need to talk to my manager about this.” She said. Jice nodded encouragingly, but Simoune suddenly started yelling.
         “Talk!? Talk?! What's there to talk about? How can you even think about still working there after this?!” He exploded. Lena winced as the auto-dampener kicked in sluggishly, before shaking her head and closing the link. She locked her commlink, grabbed her coat and took off out of the door, swooping down the corridor and out of the building, gunning straight for Vortex. Mr. Morthal would have to have some good answers for her...



Lena's hand rapped smartly against the door. Despite the emotions bubbling and seething inside her, she felt it necessary to remain professional. She waited, still holding her jacket, her talons clacking impatiently against the floor. Again, she knocked on Rufy's office door, but after another minute, it was obvious the dwarf wasn't in. She turned to leave, before halting. Her mind raced for a second, but her mind was made up. She turned back and grabbed the handle, twisting it. To her surprise, the door opened easily, and with a quick glance around, she slid inside.
         The office was how she remembered it, nicely decorated, smart, sleek. In keeping with one of the classic styles that never seemed to go out of fashion. She walked over to the desk, a hand running along the cool wood. On the desk, there was an open folder, that had a red tag on the corner. Lena picked it up, flicking to the front, not entirely knowing what she expected to find.
         As it turned out, this was a file of a new member of the Red zone. Lena felt slightly sick for a second, but continued to read on. The first page was some sort of CV, a personal statement it appeared from the predator who'd been applying, followed up by an interview transcript between this person and a committee. After that though, came a ton of legal documents, declarations, examinations and tests, reports from biological augmentation labs and what appeared to be a signed certificate from some branch of the unified government. Embedded in the folder too, were electronic copies and backups, even a few testimonials and video logs.
         Lena hesitated, before loading up the one labelled “Live test.” The screen on the inside of the folder came to life, showing a comfortable looking room that was dominated by the predator in question, a lamia from Stellnir. She was looking calm and relatively relaxed, considering there was an armed team of what for all purposes appeared to be marines around her, all carrying loaded and armed weaponry, along with a plasma cutter and two stun devices.
         From the balcony view she had, the film swept around to show a human male wearing nothing but a pair of short for modesty walking into the room. He passed through the fire team and nodded at the lamia with a smile. She too was smiling, sliding down somewhat and taking his hand, kissing it.

         “In your own time then, Ms. Vaernheim.” Came a voice. The lamia looked up and nodded, before removing the skirt that covered her join. She leant back softly, resting on her own coils as... what could only be described as a mouth opened up at her waist, like that of a normal snake, only wide enough to easily fit a person. The human took a small tablet PC in what appeared to be a water resistant coat and smiled up at the lamia. At this, she leant forward and gently picked him up under the shoulders, hoisting him high in the air a s a soft hiss filled the room, a forked tongue sliding out of the mouth at her waist and snaking around the legs of the human.
         Lena found that she couldn't look away, a morbid curiosity compelled her to continue watching the spectacle as the mouth closed around the humans legs, slowly seeming to suck him inside. She did however notice, from outside, the booming sound of Mr. Morthal's voice as he cracked up at the punchline of some joke. She looked up, suddenly very worried, snapping the file shut and placing it back in the desk in roughly the right position. She quickly dived for a seat, noticing with a relieved sigh that the audio had died out, and just about got herself looking calm and relaxed, when the door swung open. Rufy stepped inside, grinning jovially and turned to the side to allow his companion in.
         His eyes fell to Lena for a second and flashed with confusion, before he nodded to her in a way that said “Just let me get this out of the way, you don't mind waiting?” She nodded at this, before letting out a tiny gasp as through the door flowed a lamia, having had to bend down to fit under the doorway.
         Lena's eyes darted over the girl, who was dressed in a camo pattern top, somewhat ripped, with a bullet belt slung over it, and a leather jacket. Her waist was covered with a snake-skirt, but one that was belted at regular intervals to pin it to her undulating body. She also was carrying a some form of rifle on a sling over her back.
         There was no doubt about it. This was definitely the same Lamia from the file, only geared out like a bounty hunter from one of those Takan flicks. The serpent girl's gaze swept around the room approvingly, before noticing the serilya. She blinked, but smiled in a surprisingly warm way. She turned back to rufy and whispered something which sent the dwarf into another wave of rich laughter. “
         “No, no. This is Ms. Nygard, one of my employees from another of Vortex's establishments.
         “Oh! A fellow employee! How sssimply delightful.” It was obvious to Lena that the drawn out ess was put on, but her accent seemed to be Takan.
         “And in anycase, Lena, would you mind waiting outside while I have a quick chat with Ms. Vaernheim here? Should only be a few minutes.”
         Lena stood up and nodded, forcing a smile, before heading out the door, sliding around the several meters of tail that still were out and twitching in the corridor. The tail quickly however receded, snaking into the office and coiling up before the door shut. Lena exhaled, not realising she'd been holding her breath, before taking off and swooping through the corridors towards the lobby. As she flew in, a familiar voice called up to her.
         “Lee!”          
         She looked around and noticed Zaz on the door of Nova. She dropped down, landing before him, still somewhat out of breath from earlier.
         “D'int think ya worked on Cul.” He said casually
         “I don't... I just... urm, dropped in to see Mr. Morthal.”
         “An' why were ya doin that?” His eyes danced over her, before he sighed, rubbing his head a bit. “Ya found out, d'int cha?”
         “Zaz, how!?” The ork sighed a bit, checked his wrist, before waving inside. “Six minutes guys.”
         “Come on, employee lounge.”
         The two quickly found themselves in one of the shared lounges for Vortex's workers. Zaz leant across the table.
         “Lena, ah can understand that yas probably real freakin' out right now.” The serilya simply nodded, her face paler than usual. He sighed again and continued. “Look, seriously.” He put a finger under her chin, so he could get eye contact.
         “Da world is full o' different types a people. For dem, this is normal... okay, normal-ish. Ah mean, t'ink of da lamias. Dey's snake people, dat's how dey role in da wild. For dem, tis only natural.”
         “But... I mean, I can... I think, understand them wanting to...” She swallowed again, shivering. “to eat live... prey. But why would someone volunteer for that? It's crazy!” Her voice was beginning to attract attention, but most people seemed to realise what was going on.
         “Da pay is good...” She fixed Zaz with a glare, and he held up his hands apologetically. “Not da main reason, but is one regardless. Good pay, an da people who gets eaten are into it. Ya don't do da job unless ya want to.”
         “But... you're being eaten!”
         “Girl, t'ink about it for a mo. If deys were gonna die, would dis be legal?” He stared pointedly at Lena. The Serilya gulped a bit, but slowly shook her head.
         “Course not. I cain't give yas all da info, course ah don work dere. But if yas ask Rufy, ah'd be sure he'd tells ya.”
         “How can you work here when that's happening two doors away?”
         “Cause it's none o' ma business Lee. Ya's got ta realise this. Korac is different, massively so at times. Ah'm sorry girl, but ah got ta go back on duty.” He heaved himself up and walked to the door, before turning back to Lena. “Promise me one t'ing though.” Lena looked at him, her eyes slightly red.
         “Don go quittin' cause of this. Understand it, learn t'ings about it. You'll see t'aint so bad. And da team would miss ya.” He said. Lena looked away, but the ork had sounded completely honest. As she heard him leaving, she rested her head on the side of the sofa, crying silently. Maybe she was jumping to conclusions... maybe, as long as it was safe, it was alright... but...
         “Mother...” She whispered softly, her shoulders shaking. All her father had told her, was that she'd fallen prey to a wild arachne when Lena was only six years old. She'd left one day, and hadn't returned for several weeks. She could remember the pain on her father's face, the worry, her own tears, hot and salty running down her cheeks as they were now, asking where her mother was.
         Two months afterwards, some members of the Scalvar'd internal security force had shown up, had told her dad what had happened, they'd recovered the remains, and were asking for identification. The leg ring was hers... little did her dad know, that she'd been watching the whole thing silently, hidden away. She'd never let on to it, and had disappeared upstairs before the officers had come in.
         After a few minutes, Lena pushed herself up, drying her eyes softly and standing up, walking purposefully out. Talking to Rufy would get her nowhere. She needed to get ahold of someone who worked in Red and give them a piece of her mind, and demand answers as to how this sort of thing was legal. She almost didn't notice her commlink buzzing.

         “Hey there! It's Kari, just checking in. You aren't doing anything tonight? I was wondering if I could tempt you with Pizza! XxX” Lena smiled coldly, before replying.

         “Actually, I'd like to see your place for once. Mind if I pop around first? L.”

         “Oh? Well sure! Flat 6B, building 4...” She stored a copy of the address and put it into her GPS system.

         “Good... I'll be the in about half an hour as I fly. L.”