The market was at its usual best today: loud, annoying, and uneventful. Frequenters frequented, browsers browsed, and hagglers haggled. Nudged between an exotic carpet vendor and an air conditioning repair store was a small gun shop. It has a large neon fixture of two bear heads sharing a dialogue bubble that read: [i]Ence's![/i] 

The owner sat behind the counter, tinkering around with weapon modifications per usual, half-listening to Dotax like always. Dotax was a short, scaly Cradeenes. He was also a bounty hunter; The type that let's everyone know they're bounty hunters, especially when no one cared to ask in the first place. Dotax dropped by in the morning to pick up his power rifle. Dotax paid, left, then came back in 120 minute intervals. Everytime he came back he asked Ence to add something else. Lime green tiger-striped grip holders. New papyrus fonts for the holo interfaces. Gold and pink camo paint schemes. A decal of a Cradeenes pin up model laying on the barrel side. Ence dutifully obliged without a single complaint. Internally? He wanted to shoot Dotax in the head with his own stupid-looking gun. But good paying customers were hard to come by these days, and if there's anything Dotax was good at, it was spending money at Ence's store. 

"So, I go in there and hip fire all five of those bad hombres, square in the chest. And, not to brag or anything," Dotax said, grinning as he leaned over the counter to let Ence in on his secret. "But I did it with both eyes closed. Literally. Easiest bounty ever, I tell ya." The Cradeenes slapped his thigh, clearly entertained with himself as he let out a hearty chuckle. 

[color=red]"Exhilarating."[/color] Ence said, flatly. 

Just then, the shop door flew open.

"Boss!" Ojan called out, panting frantically. 

"Look what we got!" Ulri said, finishing his brother's sentence. Before they dropped their piles onto the counter, Ence scanned each part and material, analyzed their condition, model, and make, all at the blink of an eye. Something was missing. 

[color=red]"Where's the gunship circuit boards?"[/color] Ence's voice was stern.  

Ulri pretended to shuffle through his pile with a confused look on his face, but Ojan had no intention of running that farce with Ence.

"Scavengers got to it before we did." Ojan said, deflated. Ulri punched his brothers shoulder for fessing up. "All that was left was the frame, maybe some scrap metal here and there. But hey, two bounty hunters cleaned up shop down the street from here. Left this stuff lying around. Not a complete loss, right?" 

Ence put Dotax's power rifle down and stared long and hard at the twin bears.   

[color=red]"No, not a complete loss. Those gunship boards are out there somewhere. I'm pretty sure the scrap merchants off Sandlot's Ridge know a thing or two about their whereabouts. Of course you can forget the whole thing all together, and I'll pay you less than a quarter of what was originally offered for those boards."[/color]

Ojan and Ulri sighed in unison, hanging their heads low as they made for the exit. 

"We'll be back..." Ojan groaned.