The day was dragging on, and with each passing minute, I was beginning to regret the suggestion of swapping girls. We’d spent a lot of time at several tables pushed together to form long, narrow lines. Reminded me a lot of the school cafeterias back when I was a kid.

The trade wasn’t as simple and easy as we’d hoped. Sorentina didn’t lack for crafters or gatherers, and they were certainly stretched thin for their combat efficiency. It turned out they weren’t too happy with the prospect of losing some of their girls with tradecrafts to their name, especially those who knew how to farm or cook. And training new military recruits was on the lower end of their priorities.

“I’m just saying, wouldn’t it be a better idea just to hole up the rest of your gang into Sorentina?” The girl who’d been arguing with Jazz and the rest of us for the last hour was named Mercy. Pretty sure she had no understanding of the word.

“You wish for us to abandon everything we’ve done, go back, then travel back here with dozens of girls with the potential to get ripped apart?” Jazz replied with an incredulous stare. “I’ve lost six already; how many more will it take? A pox on you.”

“You wench!” Mercy pounded the table, dribbling the tankards on top. “We cannot simply give away our people at your beck and call! We’ve spent the better part of a year fighting against the Defiled, and now that we’re finally starting to gain some ground, you want us to part with our livelihoods?”

“That’s not what we’re saying,” I said before Jazz could reply. “What we’re proposing is a one-to-one trade.”

“I heard the terms just fine the first time, fool,” Mercy spat back.

This bitch was wearing on my nerves. Each attempt at diplomacy felt like it was just surrendering every chance we had to get on their good sides. I thought it sounded like a great deal. Clearly, they were not in agreement.

“My time is precious, so I’m not going to waste much more of it on you if you aren’t willing to listen,” said Jazz. “If you’re gaining so much damn ground, then why the hell did you go crawling to Badyron for reinforcements in the previous scuffle?” Jazz tapped at her elbow, awaiting an answer. Mercy went silent.

“How did you hear about that?” asked one of the girls behind Mercy.

Jazz gestured over to where me and the rest of the girls were sitting. I opened my mouth to deny it, but it was already too late.

Mercy eyed the girl behind her. She clammed up afterward.

“Catania is a lost cause,” Mercy said in a gentler tone. Well, gentle for her, anyway. “I can’t throw away good arms just because you all thought it was a great idea to trade bodies.”

“You keep saying that, but what exactly do you think it is you’re doing here?” Ravyn unfolded one of her long legs and stood. “You can bottleneck them for now. But without the proper training, the proper plans, and more soldiers, it’s not going to go well. For now, why—”

“Don’t talk down to me!” Mercy pounded her fist against the table. “I’ve been leading these girls for years!”

“Don’t interrupt me, cunt!” Ravyn shouted back. “You’re just a wrinkly old nyapple who can’t get with the times!”

“Say that again, you insolent girl!” Mercy stood up, and the bench behind her screeched backward from her weight. She drew a cutlass that hung around her belt, then pointed it at our snappy [Sorcerer]. “I’ll cut you down.”

“You won’t lay a finger on her.” I rose to my feet and glared at her. “We all want the same thing, but all you’ve done so far is yell at my girls and point weapons at them.”

“I’ve nothing to say to an idiot!” The candlelight flickered against Mercy’s eyepatch. She was built a lot like Espada, and I wondered if she’d been in the pirating business at some point.

Nah. Too easy.

Ceres, who’d perfected interjecting only when there were more than three seconds of silence, held up one armored hand. “Mercy, you agreed that you would hear them out and consider their offer.”

“Heard. Considered. Found wanting,” Mercy snapped.

“Right. So, then keep barking like a dog,” said Jazz, seemingly incapable of succumbing to anger. “It suits you.” Before Mercy could spout another word, Jazz looked over the crowd and called out to them. “Do you tire of holding up in one area? Being imprisoned in your own city?”

A few sheepish nods followed. As the seconds passed, however, more and more girls joined in and voiced their grievances as well.

“I’ve heard your leader say that she sees progress,” Jazz continued, her stare scanning the room like an apex predator. “Yet the walls are no less chipped, the homes vacant, the roads torn asunder. I’ve seen only a handful of kittengirls running around, and the looks in their eyes tell me a different story from the one your leader speaks of.”

“There’s much we can do!” Cannoli added her sweet voice to the chorus. “I’ve seen it! I’ve cooked for these girls! I watched how my friend, Keke, helped teach them to hunt and trap!” Cannoli put a hand to her chest and looked several of the girls directly in the eye. “It can be done! There is fertile soil, Encroachers to hunt, reliable water sources, and sanctuary!”

“Way to show me up,” Ravyn whispered with a scoff.

Cannoli didn’t seem to notice and instead pressed on. “We can take back the rest of Shi Island! I’ve seen Jazz and her girls do great work!” Cannoli came down a few notches, but continued to speak loudly enough for all to hear. “I know it’s tough. I was scared too. I still am. But even someone like me who can’t fight very well or come up with great ideas found a way to contribute.”

“Um, she’s actually made the best meals I’ve had in a long time. Maybe since ever,” one of Jazz’s tribe, a dark-skinned girl with a scar beneath her left eye, spoke with her hand raised. Tears threatened to fall. I couldn’t imagine how they felt if a home-cooked meal could stir such emotions in a person.

Cannoli blushed. “Th-thank you! Ehehehe.” She smiled wide and curtsied.

“You want me to give up three of my girls based on some foreigner’s cooking?” Mercy raised an eyebrow. “You’re all daft.”

Ceres cleared her throat. “You divert from the heart of the matter on purpose, Mercy. We are trapped in Sorentina until the surrounding cities improve, not ours alone. This trade benefits everyone. Your name would go down in history as a savior of Shi Island.”

Damn. Smooth.

Mercy clicked her tongue and let the cutlass fall to her side. “Fine, take off for all I care. You’ll see though that the grass is no greener over there than it is here.”

“No one ever claimed it was,” Keke said with a sharp glare. “I think you’ve been taking this personally. No one has ever questioned your judgment, nor your leadership for that matter. If that’s what you got out of this, then, like Ceres said, you’re not seeing the whole picture. If Shi Island doesn’t unite, then it’s only a matter of time until the Defiled threat takes Sorentina and then Badyron.”

Mercy shrugged. “And what, Catania would do any better in this onslaught?”

“No,” Jazz said, whipping a lock of her hair behind her, “we would die.”

“Then why can we not unite here? Together.” Mercy’s voice had fallen to a reasonable level now. Perhaps she was at last growing tired from the constant bickering and yelling.

“If we abandon Catania, then we surrender any hope of restoring it. At least, for a very long time,” said Keke.

“Took the words out of my mouth,” said Jazz. Jazz leaned and rested her arms on the table. “I understand what you want to do. Sorentina’s efforts have been noticed, believe me. We’ve watched from a distance back in Catania your struggles and victories. Even if we can’t see the details, we’ve seen them repelled time and time again.” A sneer tugged at her features. “What I wouldn’t give to be on the frontlines more often.”

“We owe a lot to the hill and the gate,” said one of the girls stationed behind Mercy. “Since we can funnel them, it’s a lot more manageable.”

“Until a hoard of small Encroachers sneaks the fuck in,” Ravyn spat. “Then you’re really truly fucked.”

Mercy opened her mouth to speak, but thankfully I was quicker.

“We wouldn’t take all of your girls. Just enough to get by. One for one. We have six girls who are willing to stay, and we won’t take more than that. Maybe one day you can perform a pincer attack and connect Catania and the surrounding area.”

“Maybe?” Ara chimed in. “A pincer attack? Speak with conviction, Matt.”

Or I’m just talking out of my ass. I don’t know; cut me some slack! I thought it sounded smart. I chewed on my lip. Though, I thought splitting up sounded smart, too.

“There are a number of battle strategies we could attempt and carry out with more numbers and an allied city,” Ceres said, saving me from myself. “But that is for future consideration. As of now, even one safe road established from Sorentina to Catania could reopen a modicum of trade. One that our economy desperately needs. More girls well-versed in farming and foraging across the land will stimulate more food for all and more Bells in the pockets of those who need them.”

Mercy drew a deep breath. “Fine. You’ll have your gatherers and your crafters. And you will be personally sure that not a single hair on their heads is harmed.” Mercy pointed her cutlass at Jazz. “You got that?”

The point of the blade was only a few inches away from Jazz’s face. And yet, she was entirely unfazed. She used the tip of her finger and guided the sword away from her, lapping at the droplet of blood provided. “You have my word.”