The floating familiar finally answered her, as though its owner was taking his time coming out of a stupor. The see-through image of the announcer had lost some of its joviality, and what Pithy had taken to be the machine’s eyes were conspicuously angled away from the badger’s carcass.

She felt a swell of irritation at the thought that the young man overseeing these deathmatches could be having a pang of conscience. [i]You who risk nothing and stand to gain everything through the sacrifices of strangers, and yet can’t stand to lay eyes on the price paid. How dare you cheapen this struggle so?[/i]

Still she managed to hold her tongue, understanding there was little to gain and much to lose from antagonizing the boy. When she was offered congratulations and an unexpected boon, she accepted them with an impassive gaze. 

She gave the image she received a cursory inspection, but her heart skipped a beat when she recognized the larger figures. A slow breath escaped her nostrils, and she put away the small family portrait as though pouring cold water over her apprehension. The people of the Inquisitional College had already proven they knew more about her and the other competitors than they had any right to. Examining the matter could wait.

And so she found herself listening to the wistful words of the young announcer. 

“I’ve often found myself wondering: do animals have noble souls? We think of them as so far beneath us, but in my experience, animals can be every bit as noble. It might seem silly to ya, but ya know, for a while I lived in the wild with ‘em. Wolves, ravens, rats…”

Pithy did not know whether to take the boy’s words at face value. She supposed it did not matter. Whether he had been raised by wolves or not was not the crux of the issue.

“If they have souls, some of those souls may be noble,” she admitted. Even then, the distinction meant little to her. Her concerns were ever more practical. “If they do not, I nearly died for nothing.”

The announcer let out a restrained laugh. She was not sure if her matter-of-fact words had roused him or if he had caught himself, but he quickly recovered the irritating persona he had first greeted her with. Pithy sighed, forcing herself to listen through the forced plays on words for whatever useful information the young man saw fit to give her.

Soon enough, the announcer had said his piece, and the image fizzled out, the familiar hovering back and studying her through mechanical eyes.

Pithy promptly spun on her heel and began to walk away from the burning storehouse, heading for the illuminated path. 

The announcer had outlined her options. West to the coast. North to the city proper. East to her next enemy. South was out-of-bounds, whatever that meant. Would she find some kind of barrier or wall were she to head that way, or would she be disqualified from this tournament, whatever that entailed? She did not feel eager to see what would happen if she tried. However, not matter what she chose, there was a simple matter the announcer had neglected to consider in his explanation.

Under the cloudy skies of an alien world, Pithy had no immediate way of knowing the direction of the cardinal points. 

It was because of this that she was making her way back to the citadel she had first appeared on. She had lost her bearings while chasing her previous opponents, but she had seen the beach from the rooftop of the building and as such could use the structure to orient herself.

Pithy allowed herself to consider her options as she walked. 

The announcer had hinted at another ‘gan’-wielder. Whether they were as proficient as the badger had been remained to be seen, but the words of their overseer led her to believe they had the tools to be even more dangerous. 

Staying in place and preparing for an assault brought its own difficulties. Even if she had time to prepare within this military facility, how likely was it that her enemy might find ways to turn the battlefield against her, as the badger had done? If the roiling skies above her finally caved and released a downpour, she might be able to take advantage of it. Would the water affect the weapons? It turned the shooters from her world even more unreliable, but she doubted that would apply to the ones the competition wielded. There were also plenty of places to hide from the rain. 

Would the open space of a beach make for a better battlefield, then? She found herself recalling the final moments of the fight with the badger. The hastily conjured shield she had brought up had been destroyed by the beast’s shooters. Simply standing in an open space while facing an enemy with this kind of ranged weapon would be the height of stupidity. The sand would also make for treacherous terrain. If she could lead the enemy into such a position, however…

A pang of pain interrupted her thought, and she brought a gloved hand to her head. The cut she had sustained ached, but it was small. A burst of cold like ice numbed the wound.

The citadel was not far away now. She could see it rising over the buildings before her, but she kept walking. She recalled the corridors with words signaling underground access in the citadel’s ground floor. 

The announcer had also asked a favor of her. Ordinarily, she might have placed more weight on the idea of being owed by an organization whose work seemed rooted in the study of mysterious machines and magical artefacts, but ordinarily she would also be working under the assumption that she would be able to call on those debts at a later date.

[i]There will be no later if I am killed by whatever is down there. Or by another competitor. Should that not be my priority?[/i] 

There was, however, no telling what she might find in the Justice Hub’s underground. There very well might be a device capable of aiding her below. Or at best hinder her next opponent, should they find her. She would not be surprised to learn the announcer had already informed her enemy of her position. It was possible that if she chose to explore the underground, she would have to fight her enemy in this area once again.
 
Her footsteps eventually drew her back to the citadel’s doors, the drone hovering a few paces behind her. She placed her hand on the swinging door, then grunted, the words of an old fable running through her head. If she did not know where she wished to go, it did not matter which way she turned.
 
“Announcer,” she called, pulling her hand away and turning to the watching familiar. Belatedly, she realized she had no clue as to the young man’s name. Asking had not so much as crossed her mind. She had a good idea as to the reason for that. “Hey. Kid.”

Her words went unacknowledged by the unthinking droid for a few quiet moments. The rumble of distant thunder resounded through the heavens, and a moment after, a nigh-indiscernible [i]beep[/i] accompanied the illumination of a tiny green light next to the drone’s main optic. Something that sounded suspiciously like the slurp of a drink reached Pithy through the communicator, and after it came the voice the cryomancer had come to know and hate. “I gotta name, ya know. Don’t wear it out. They ain’t paying me the big bucks to be a living F.A.Q.” He likely realized that she had no clue what he meant, but did not seem too bothered by it. “Oren. Erumel. My old buddies—and yes, I did have buddies—called me the Genie, ‘cause I always tried to help people out. Nothing like the Wishing Machine, though. What’s eating ya?” His image leaned back in its chair, and he clasped his hands behind his head in a position of relaxation.

[i]Oren, then.[/i] Whoever had given this one an affectionate nickname had clearly been armed with more patience than her. “I’m thinking of checking underground, but I expect some support if I do. There’s no point to doing work that’s already been done. I want a guide to the ‘generator’ room and help with the machines I’m not familiar with.” Namely, most that she had seen so far, but she felt that should best remain unsaid.

The easygoing smile on Oren’s face broadened. “Neheh, that’s funny. As it happens, I’m not privy to the College’s inner workings. Truth be told, I don’t think they like me. Can ya imagine?”

[i]Oh, I can imagine.[/i]

“There should be lots of signs around to guide ya, and I saw ya use the elevator, so help yours-’elf’. I think you’ll be just fine. As for support, you’ve seen everything my drones can do, and they’re not all that great indoors.”

Pithy clicked her tongue. She had not expected armed help, but if the boy had no knowledge of any previous expeditions to the facility, he would be of limited use.

“I imagine your bosses won’t be too enthused by how little you did to convince me to do the College’s work for them,” she prodded nonetheless. There was little meaning to the jab at that point. She was merely fishing for reactions or information.

“Meh!”

[i]Gods I hate him.[/i]

“It’s all bonus.” Oren evidently took the woman’s reaction as dismissal. “Guess ya don’t want any reward. Favors aside, coulda been anything down there, like more artifacts.”

“Or more turrets. Or more of what spooked the College’s teams. I suppose if I die in that hole the tournament can keep going without a hitch, then. Or are you that confident in the abilities of the freaks you brought here?”

“Are you? I thoughtcha guys were supposed to be strong enough to claim a wish--the best thing there is. Handling a trigger-happy badger wasn’t the best showcase of your abilities, but ya seem tough enough. Tougher ‘n me, that’s for sure.” He shrugged. “Whatever. Means more for us!” The announcer chuckled for a moment, then leaned forward into the camera, his voice growing low. “Speaking of which, since you’re free...if ya ever make your way to the Governmental Hub, where your next opponent is, there’s another little something ya might busy yours-’elf’ with, neheh.”

Pithy rubbed at her temple. “Stars, quit that. I heard you the first time.”

Oren’s eyelid twitched. Had he really already used that one? He needed to pay better attention, lest his humor begin to grow annoying. “A-ah, I see. Well. Better deal than poking around beneath the fort if ya ask me.”

She sighed. Her enemy would have fought their first round somewhere in the Governmental Hub. They would have some knowledge of the terrain and the possibility to prepare ambushes for her if they chose to wait. 

“I’ll keep it in mind. Thank you, Oren,” she added to her dismissal, if only to maintain the pretense of civility. The announcer’s face faded out, and the little light by the main lens went with it, leaving Pithy alone with the soulless automaton once again.

The relief she felt at her solitude in an alien military facility was more than a little telling. Still, that had not been as productive as she had hoped. All that talk had earned her was a headache, and the knowledge that there were more opportunities for her to risk her life to the east. [i]Fantastic. Just what I needed.[/i]

It did not make choosing a course of action any simpler. Which also meant it was the simplest thing in the world. If she already stood to lose everything, how much meaning was there to hedging her bets? If she was to find a shaved knuckle in the hole, her most immediate bet was what was under the Justice Hub.

With that resolution, she entered the building and headed for the elevator as Oren had suggested. The wait that ensued once she had pressed the button afforded her ample time to reflect on how many ways her plans could go sideways.