"You work with them?" Javier said, his face twisting with disgust. Junebug, who had been looked at by disgust by many during her mercenary career, merely shrugged. Mercenaries were rarely well regarded in the areas of operations. The local civilians tended to view foreign murders with horror and fear and their local allies tended to view them with hatred born of their own weakness.

"We work for people who can hire us," Junebug replied in a neutral tone. Magdalena laid a hand on her husbands arm, though what he intended to do other than glower Junebug couldn't imagine.

"We all do what we can to survive," Magdalena said. Junebug set down her bowl and took one of the bottles of local booze and swished it around her mouth before swallowing, choosing neither to amplify or deny the statement.

"Ungol makes his lair in the cannery on the far side of town, it dosent operate anymore, seeing all anyone is interested in on this planet is drugs," Magdalena said with surprising anger in her voice. Junebug remembered the skeletal structure from the flight in, assuming it had been some kind of abandoned construction project.

"It is a shame we cannot afford to hire men to clean the scum off this planet," Magdalena sighed. 

"Honestly, other than by controlling the drugs, I don't see how anyone could, there just isn't enough industry here to afford real professionals," Junebug observed. That wasn't strictly true, like any tradesmen, there was a variety of competencies among professional mercenaries, but clearing the gangs of Tsiosinte wouldn't be a job for amateurs. Street fighting to clear out several hundred or thousand armed thugs was likely to be a messy and expensive business.  The armored could have secured the planet in a month or so, though the destruction here in the city where most of the fighting would take place would have been extensive. A low end outfit might just seize control and install themselves as the new gang in charge, and even that assumed that the Cartel on Kimberly would do nothing, and a very likely response was to hire a bigger and better force of mercenaries to take the place back.

"We must hold out for better days then," Magdelena said sadly. Javier sighed in frustrated anger.

"Well let us not weary you with politics, you are tired, we have beds," Magdalena said with artificial brightness. She made a guesture to where a trio of foam pads in the corner with rolled up sleeping pads. Junebug glanced at the bedding and nodded, a little dissapointed that there was no privacy.

"Yeah, I suppose we should rack out," Junebug agreed, pushing the empty bowl back towards her host thankfully.