Author: Stephen R. Smith, Staff Writer

The factory hadn’t been used for anything legal since before the wars, and beyond the smell of the place, there was a feeling, one that settled deep into one’s bones that made even the hardened criminal want to throw themselves through the nearest window to escape.

This is where Yuniker found himself collecting his cargo.

The sex trade was booming, and fresh meat was getting harder to come by. His clientele demanded services that few would dare to provide, and the money they were prepared to pay meant he could afford to go to exorbitant lengths to secure product without consideration for cost.

He would, however, have preferred a pickup location that was more aligned with his status and his taste.

Sometimes sacrifices must be made, so it goes.

The Dealer, someone whose real name he need not know, was waiting next to a small tanker in the shadows, a long metal cylinder on wheels with a large vault door on one end. The door was open, and inside the dimly lit tube, huddled at the far end were a dozen or more frightened individuals, cowering together on the floor, staring down the length of their prison at him. The shimmer of the security field made them appear even more jittery than they would be, uncertain as they were of their fate.

These would do nicely.

“Payment first,” The Dealer spoke, a genderless, emotionless voice echoing through the cavernous room.

Yuniker was already doing the mental math, working out his profit on this shipment alone, and extrapolating how lucrative future shipments might be.

He palmed a datapad from a pocket, accepted the handshake from The Dealer’s device, and transferred the considerable sum.

The Dealer moved to close the container door, perhaps a little too hurriedly.

“Wait,” Yuniker barked, “I want to inspect them.”

Reluctantly, The Dealer backed away from the door and disabled the security field.

Yuniker stepped up into the container and took several steps towards his purchase before the scene changed.

The huddled mass of people flickered and disappeared just as the static snap of the security field behind him made his stomach drop.

As the door closed slowly behind him, The Dealer spoke.

“My clientele has a particular taste for purveyors of harm and cruelty such as yourself. The money they’re willing to pay allows me to go to exorbitant lengths to secure the likes of you without consideration for cost.”

Just before the door closed completely, and darkness settled absolute, he added, “I’d happily do the likes of you for free.”