The girls decided to go back home before investigating the port. They weren’t strong enough yet to deal with multiple threats without spending all their magical power. On the way back, Karina twisted and turned the coin in her hand.

  “I swear I saw something like this before, I just don’t remember when and where…”

  “Maybe we can try searching on the internet.”

  “I don’t think we will find anything searching for ‘mysterious gold coin found at abandoned place’.”

  “Yeah, you’re right. Maybe at the Agency they’ll tell us what the meaning is.”

  “But do you trust them? I mean, don’t you think all of this mission is strange and completely messed up?”

  “Yes, I do. But what can we do? We’re still Base-Hunters, there’s a whole world above us.”

  “I’m just saying, we need to be careful. Even talking about it, like we’re doing right now, could be dangerous.”

  “I guess you’re right, I just don’t know for sure.”

  As soon as they got to their home, May decided to try to check the future again. It didn’t consume much magic, and what did she have to lose after all?

  She took her deck and something caught her attention. She didn’t need to take a card; there was one already facing her. The Wheel of Fortune meant decisive and unexpected moments. Something was just about to change, but what could it be?

  “Tomorrow, let’s go back to the port. Full energy, May.”

  “Do you think they might still be waiting for us, in the trap?”

  “I don’t think so, but we gotta be careful, I don’t believe they’ll be as weak as the hell hounds were.”

  May pondered for a little while, trying to place all the pieces together.

  “But what do you think it means, everything?”

  “I don’t know, it’s odd. The hell hounds, the hole to hell, the rituals, that strange coin. I don’t know for sure.”

  “And do you think the Agency knows?”

  “If they know and are hiding from us? I guess it’s possible, I don’t trust them completely, and you would be a fool if you did.”

  “Maybe there’s another hunter involved. Maybe this is why they are hiding things from us.”

  “We won’t know for sure, at least not until tomorrow, when we investigate that old port. After that, we go back to the Agency and report to them everything that happened.”

  The girls debated over and over again about everything they saw. Coming up with a hypothesis about everything and anything. Before they went to sleep, May looked at Karina.

  “You know, there are still a lot of things happening, and we don’t know anything for sure. Like what happened to Otto and the message, I’m still unsure about it.”

  “I hope we find out as soon as possible. I don’t like this feeling.”

  “Yeah, me neither. And not only the magical world, but also about that crowd earlier…”

  “Don’t even talk about it, ugh, let’s not deal with it for now,” Karina said, frowning.

  ***

  At home, May decided to search and read more about the port, just in case anything unusual happened. Something caught her attention on a news website, an article about the Preacher.

  “Let’s see what it's about.”

  It was a piece about his political trajectory and rise in popularity before the elections, the girl noticed.

  “The face of a new movement, the Preacher has been captivating crowds with his fiery speech and charismatic looks.

  The mysterious figure that came into prominence just a few years prior has been gaining quite a lot of followers in the last months. Speaking about violence and crime, while also defending the position of religion in the political sphere, the politician seems to say just what people want to hear. And while his speeches are a good means of knowing the man, little is known about his life prior to.

  In the last interviews, the candidate spoke about the importance of the balance between traditional and futuristic elements in Neo Victoria City. He also seems to take a deep interest in the questions about immigration and development.

  But if there is one thing to worry about, it’s that his fans and supporters appear to be getting angrier and more violent. It has been reported that crowds have attacked people they considered ‘enemies’. The police are investigating the case, and we still wait for the Preacher to say something about it.”

  ***

  May thought it was funny that they didn’t know anything about his life prior. She tried searching more about it on the internet, but didn’t find anything.

  A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  “Hey, are you reading about that man?”

  “It’s just something I found, it’s pretty curious how he was a complete unknown before everything.”

  “Yeah, right, nowadays in politics it’s always like this. I bet he says he’s the new stuff against the old politicians.”

  Karina was about to leave when she saw the coin again on top of the table. And then it clicked for her, what it was.

  “Wait, wait, I know where this coin is from!” The girl said, her eyes wide.

  “How so, please tell me.”

  “It’s from the Casino! I’m sure I saw it on the TV once; they have this exclusive coin and currency that you can use there.”

  “Are you sure, K? What a casino coin would be doing there in the old factory?”

  “I don’t know, May, but I’m sure about it.”

  May flipped the golden coin in her fingers; it didn’t seem to have anything out of the ordinary in it.

  “It’s pretty strange, how it ended up there in the first place. And there’s another thing bothering me about it. I mean, everything was covered in the dust, but this coin, it’s shining new. How so? It should be covered in blood, like the rest of the room. It doesn’t make sense. Whoever brought it to the factory… It was recent, I guess, but there was no sign of anyone. I don’t know.”

  “Right, and the Casino just opened up a few months ago, so…”

  “Do you think there’s something shady about it?”

  “I don’t know, May. I just saw it on TV. I’m not very interested in these things.”

  They discussed till late at night about the Casino and the possible implications of the coin being found in the factory.

  ***

  It was a cloudy morning when the girls woke up. May felt that she had recovered most of her magical power. She needed to learn how to control her magical output better. Still thinking about the port and everything, she decided to take a card. But as soon as she took it out, Karina woke up and bumped into her. The card fell and landed in such a way that she couldn’t tell if it was upright or reversed - the Wheel of Fortune. Strange.

  “Ready to investigate that old port?” Karina asked amidst a yawn.

  “Yeah, but I’m not eager to confront any kind of monster that might be hiding there.”

  “I bet they’re weak, and the trap was probably to disguise that. Wait and see, we will get there and find no monster. I hate those kinds of creatures. If I could choose, I would rather fight the strong and confrontational ones.”

  “If I could choose, I would not fight any kind of monster.”

  “But then you wouldn’t have a job and would be living on the streets. ‘I’m just a poor girl, give me some money, please, kind stranger. ’

  “Oh, shut up!” May said, laughing, but she knew Karina was right. Fighting monsters was their way to survive.

  This time, unlike yesterday, the streets were emptier. Everything was calm and silent. The girls were grateful because that meant they wouldn’t have to deal with any kind of angry crowd again. They guessed that most people were using the cloudy weekend to do house chores. In fact, if they weren’t hunting monsters, they would be doing the same.

  “You know, I have the feeling that you should fight this one, I mean, if they’re waiting for us there.”

  “Me? Why? You’re much stronger than I am, K.”

  “It’s an intuition about this one. It will not be about strength. Your powers are versatile, May, and you’re as capable as I am.”

  May looked to both of her sides and gripped the gun holstered on her leg. The gun was warm to the touch, and it trembled a little. It felt like it was answering to her feelings. She murmured all the offensive spells that she could remember.

  “But you know that my gun will only be effective if there’s more than one enemy.”

  “I know, but I’m sure I felt more than one presence that other day.”

  ***

  The port, like when they had investigated earlier, was completely empty. The decay was noticeable, and it made May question why the prefecture let it stay that way. She knew that the port was once very important for the city. And it represented a lot of things historically.

  “Do you feel anything, Karina?” The girl asked, and she hoped her friend would offer a negative answer.

  “Yes, they are here again.”

  This time, May was responsible for leading the fight. She took a small crystal ball that she had brought.

  “Show yourself now.” She lifted the ball above her head and the sunlight glistened through the thing. It was so shiny that Karina couldn’t look right to it.

  At first, it seemed that nothing had happened, but the shadows that were cast by the crystal started to simmer. From them, shapes formed, and they took a human appearance.

  “Evil spirits! I should’ve known; this is why they were trying to trap us. They wanted to steal our bodies.”

  May agreed, nodding her head. Evil spirits were known to inhabit places with dark magic flow.

  “You know, I’m starting to think that there was also a ritual here.”

  “I believe so, too, K. But let me deal with those spirits. I won’t need my gun, not that would be of any help…”

  May jumped ahead, muttered some words that Karina couldn’t distinguish, and started fighting the spirits. She pressed her palm against one, and it exploded in light. The others noticed it and tried to overwhelm the girl with numbers. But she dodged them with a jump and stepped behind them. The palm in place once again, she exploded one by one. When they disappeared, they left a trail of shadows and magic behind.

  The evil spirits tried to pull her from below the ground, yet she was unfazed by it. The light passed through her body, pulsing with each of her heartbeats. When the light touched the ground, the spirits there exploded with a deafening screech.

  “Why do they have to be so scandalous?” Karina asked from afar as she covered her ears. “It’s like popping balloons.”

  May ran through the old port, and the spirits behind her moved like a wave in the ocean. They screamed at her, but once again, she flicked the light against them that destroyed most of the spirits in a single motion.

  An evil spirit touched her for a second, and she felt its cold and disgusting touch. She turned on her heels and pressed her palm against it, exploding the spirit. But others came behind it.

  “I wanna finish it fast, before I run out of magical power again.”

  “You know you just need to refine your output, May.”

  May jumped, and in mid-air, she clapped her palms, letting a single flash of light illuminate everything in sight. Most of the spirits dissolved with this blow. But some had hidden behind others and crawled in the direction of the girl. She didn’t hesitate as she struck the remaining creatures.

  “I guess this is it here. Do you feel anything, Karina?”

  “No, there aren’t any creatures left here.”

  “I believe whatever happened here… It was powerful, powerful enough that these magic scavengers are here trying to feed off anything that’s left.”

  “You’re right. And we need to go back to the Agency, this was the last place we needed to check. I don’t know how everything will tie up, but…”

  Karina didn’t need to finish her phrase, as she knew her friend shared the same worries as her.