The girls headed home to gather what they had before going back to report to the Agency. All the intel and clues they had gathered from this mission.

  At the building, they were brought to another meeting room, like the one they were in when they received the mission. The Agency was as empty as the day prior; it meant that most of the Hunters were on field missions. Karina paced back and forth and tapped her feet.

  “Do you think we’ll have to wait much?”

  “I don’t know, maybe it’s because there aren’t a lot of people here today.”

  May spun the coin in her fingers. She thought about how such an odd thing, like a casino coin, ended up in the Old Factory. Maybe someone was…

  The door opened, and they were met by the same guy as before. He tried to catch his breath while he adjusted his shirt and suit. He had bags under his eyes, and his clothes were dirty.

  “Good morning, girls, I’m sorry…” He stopped. “You know, there haven’t been a lot of people here lately; it means a lot of work to do for those who stayed.”

  The man adjusted his suit and sat right in front of Karina and May. He organized his papers before saying:

  “So, what do you girls have?”

  Karina and May both explained how their mission went. They talked about the first day and the strange energy in the port. And then the investigation in the historical building and all the monster fighting that came with it. They also explained the things they observed and the stuff they gathered. The man just nodded his head every once in a while, taking notes of some of the things they said.

  “Is that everything?” He said after a pause, May and Karina took off after they explained everything.

  May stood in silence for a minute, frowning, before she placed the coin in front of her.

  “We found this at the Old Factory.”

  Something glimpsed in the man’s eyes flickered for a second before it disappeared.

  “Oh, this is interesting, very interesting.”

  He pulled some of the paper and showed it to the girls. It was newspaper clippings. May skimmed through most of them.

  “What is it? How is it related to the coin or the mission?”

  “Well, allow me to explain it.” He picked up some of the newspapers and said, “James A., 47 years, disappeared; the reports say he had an addiction problem.”

  He picked another paper from the pile.

  “Take a look at this one, Sheila R., 29 years, disappeared, no traces left. Friends told the police she had accumulated debts from gambling. Antonio P., 55 years, the last time he was seen… at the bank, trying to apply for a loan. Could you take a guess at the reason?”

  “Are you implying that there’s something wrong with… the Casino?” Karina asked.

  “The connections are there, so the conclusion is obvious. But we can’t be sure, unless we investigate it further. You know the rules, you know the game.”

  “There’s something strange about it all.”

  “You’re right, to be honest, the Agency has been investigating the Casino since the opening night, a few months ago.” The man showed some papers and reports about the place. “While nothing substantial has been found yet, we have motives to believe that there’s something off about the place.”

  Karina moved in her seat. May looked again through the papers, most of which were also newspaper clippings, but those were about the Casino and its games. The reports caught the girl’s attention. They reaffirmed the fact that nothing strange was found at the place, and yet, some kind of energy was felt. May also saw reports similar to the one Karina and her had just made: investigations on some shady places that had things tied to the Casino, like a coin.

  The man cleared his throat before adding:

  “This is why the next mission on the Casino will be an undercover one. We need agents to go to the Casino and spend time there. The place also functions as a hotel, organized so that clients can stay there for any time they want, or while they have money. The agents will need to pretend to be rich people partaking in the partying and gaming.” The man smiled and added. “And frankly, I believe two young women are the best fit for it. And thus that will be your next mission.”

  May was caught by surprise. She looked at Karina, and her friend had her own brows raised.

  “It seems a little above our league. I mean, I would appreciate having an important mission, but we’re still Base-Hunters.”

  “You’re correct, but according to studies made by the Agency, if there’s a threat, it doesn’t seem to be…” The man stopped. “It doesn’t seem to be something you wouldn’t be able to deal with. If you accept this mission, you’ll be granted permission to use the guns in the fight and to recharge the ammunition.”

  Stolen story; please report.

  “If the Agency feels like it’s in our scope, we’ll take it,” May said, but Karina heard her friend’s voice shake a little.

  “Excellent. We will provide funds for this mission. But there’s something that needs to be brought to attention: if anything is to go wrong, don’t send your familiar to request help from the Agency.”

  “What is the problem with the familiars?” May stood and asked.

  “There have been reports pointing to the disappearance of familiars around the region. We wouldn’t like it if sensitive information fell into enemy hands.” He moved closer to the girls. “Everything clear about the mission? If so, I would advise you two to buy or rent gala attire. That would also be on the Agency.”

  “Alright, then. I don’t have any questions. Is that everything?”

  The agent seemed like he wanted to add something. But whatever it was, it stayed in his mind. He just smiled and nodded his head in agreement. May didn’t feel sure about everything, but she knew Karina and her team needed to prove themselves.

  ***

  They walked in silence to the designated room to get more ammunition. While the man took notes of everything, they still hadn’t shared a word. Once they got to the street, Karina said:

  “You know this is batshit crazy, right? I can’t be the only one thinking What the hell is this mission? Can you imagine like, a month undercover in a freaking casino?”

  “Calm down, K. We’re gonna be alright. If they assigned us for that mission, it’s because they believe it’s a good fit for us and our power level.”

  “You give too much credit to the Agency, May. I don’t trust them, not at all.”

  “Me neither. But what can we do? Say ‘Oh, I’m sorry, we won’t take that mission’? We can’t do that. And above it all, we desperately need to rise in the ranks. We won’t know shit if we’re still Base-Hunters.”

  “I know, but it’s nice, staying alive, right?”

  May pondered for a moment. Everything about the mission was odd. But the more she thought about it, the more it connected to everything they had been investigating. Especially taking into account that she knew something Karina didn’t: the Casino was built over a historical building. Just like the ones they had visited, the Casino was once a prestigious hotel. It was destroyed after some incidents, then the rest of it was demolished to build the new hotel and Casino.

  “May, there’s something else… You heard what he said about familiars and that place. Do you think the incident with Otto is related to that mission?”

  “Now that you say it… It’s a little strange, but it must be a coincidence.”

  “I don’t know, there are too many coincidences about everything,” Karina said, her voice faltering a little, enough for May to understand her friend's feelings.

  “You shouldn’t worry much, Karina. We’re strong together, and there’s no monster that can win against us.”

  “You put it like that, but I bet you’re worried too.”

  “I am, but you know, I trust in us.”

  ***

  The girls talked about everything and anything. They decided to go to fancy stores, as they looked for clothes and other things they would need for the mission. They had a special card, given to them by the agent, that they could use for shopping. They went to places they had never been. Most of them were filled with gowns and attire that would cost them months of work. To May, Karina spent a suspiciously large chunk of time staring at an obscenely expensive dress made of sequins.

  “Look at that, May. Can you believe how expensive this is?” Karina said as she put a long beige dress in front of her. “Would I look good in it?”

  “Honestly, I believe you can pull off anything you want.”

  They also bought some cheap jewelry. They couldn’t risk buying something expensive and then losing it. And after all, it just needed to be something that could fool the rich people at the place. And using the dresses they bought, May was sure the people at the Casino wouldn’t even question the jewelry.

  “Well, there’s at least a good side about this mission, huh?”

  “Yeah, right. I hope they let us keep everything after the mission’s done.”

  Karina’s eyes lit up with the idea.

  “That would be amazing!”

  If they needed to pass as rich people, they sure got into the spirit of money and wealth. By the end of the shopping spree, they had so many bags that they almost couldn’t carry everything by themselves.

  May looked at Karina and noticed that her friend smiled. The girl hoped her worries had faded a little. The gun in her purse trembled.

  ***

  On their way back home, something caught their attention. It was a billboard with the Preacher’s face. He looked angry, and his eyes seemed to be watching over everybody who passed through there. There was a group of people under the billboard, they were of all ages: children, adults, and elders. They held their hands together and had their eyes closed, praying. As soon as the girls got closer, they heard what the group said:

  “Please, please, bless our Preacher, may he become the mayor that this city needs. May he bring this place back to its right path…”

  Their voices faded in the background as Karina and May moved forward.

  “This will never stop giving me the creeps…”

  “Me too. He is strange. And we keep seeing things about him all over the city. I mean, at this point, it’s clear he’s probably going to win.”

  “Yeah, I think so too. And I’m afraid of what this will represent for the city and monsters hunting. I’m sure he will be a headache to deal with.”

  “Don’t even start. Can I hope that anything different will happen at the elections?”

  “Oh. I wouldn’t be so hopeful…”

  ***

  The girls talked about the elections and the mission all the way home. Their arms were heavy with the bags they carried. Inside, they kept talking about the mission, the Casino, and what they would wear for their first night.

  “And we will stay there for like a month? We’ll need a lot of dresses. Rich people never seem to use the same clothes twice.”

  “Or we just need to be creative, Karina. And I don’t believe we’ll be out and about every night. Maybe we’ll need to investigate in hidden places there, we never know.”

  “I guess you’re right. But as you said, we never know. We might need more than we think.”

  “Yeah, I just hope the ammunition we have will be enough. But in a place crowded with people, we’ll need to be ten times more careful about it.”

  “Do you think we’ll get in any fights there? I thought it would be just an infiltration mission.”

  “I’m not sure, I thought so too. But they gave us ammunition. So it’s safe to assume they expect that we face some creatures.”

  “I really hope we don’t, May,” Karina said, but something in her voice made May think that her friend wasn’t so sure.