Now that they were inside the compound, Nito and Zoey needed to find out where Doris was without causing too much of a fuss. They propped up the unconscious gate guard on his chair and carefully made their way into the compound.

They quickly found themselves looking into the main area of the compound that was buzzing with activity. Mercenaries were moving about all over the place, packing up everything in sight and hauling it towards the Kreppelin landing platform further in. Leather-lunged sergeants bellowed orders while the clerical staff tried their best to keep up with documenting everything. It looked like the rumor that Doris was planning to leave Sand Pit were true.

"So what do we do? Should we just walk in there?" Zoey asked Nito as they covertly watched the scene.

"Well, I don't see any way around," Nito said. "And I'm certain Doris will be on his airship already... That may be our only choice. By the way where is Viridi? I have not seen her since we got back."

"It's hard to explain, but she is in my inner world. She is itching to get out though." Zoey replied.

Nito shook his head. He was still not used to the strange things that Zoey was capable of. Just when he thought he had seen everything, she would surprise him again.

After a moment, Zoey spoke again. "I have a plan. Here what we will do..."

After listening to her plan, Nito was a little skeptical, but he didn't have a better plan, so he just shrugged and agreed to go along with Zoey. She had not steered him wrong yet after all.

A few minutes later, Zoey walked out and straight into the compound by herself with confident strides, heading towards the Kreppelin landing platform. She was no longer wearing her disguise, instead donning her usual featureless mask along with her hooded poncho that she normally wore. She was not trying to be secretive, nor was she hoping to slip in unnoticed. These mercenaries would only respect the strong, and Doris's company adhered more to that than anyone else in Sand Pit. So Zoey would earn their respect with her own strength.

Nobody noticed her at first, but once the first person saw her and realized that something was wrong, all the mercenaries slowly stopped what they were doing to stare dumbfounded at the small human walking through their midst without even giving them a glance. Their first reaction would normally be to stop this intruder from going any further, but there was a strange pressure coming from this person that stopped them from taking action. The aura that surrounded her was strong, strong enough to make them hesitate before getting in her way.

Zoey was unhindered all the way through the suddenly silent mercenary compound as the mercs cleared a path for her. She had never said a word, but the confidence that she showed in her stride and the dangerous glint in her emerald eyes behind the mask gave her a clear path through the mercenary compound.

She was unhindered up until she reached the entrance to the Kreppelin landing platform. As soon as she approached the entrance, two rather large Vekt stepped out to block her path.

One look and you could tell that these two followed in their boss's footsteps. Each of their four arms were well muscled, and they had the same bodybuilder physique that Doris had, if a little smaller. The two of them stood in Zoey's way and crossed their arms as the intruder approached.

"Who are you? What purpose do you have for coming here unannounced?" one of the Vekt asked with a powerful voice.

As Zoey stopped in front of them, the mercenaries behind closed off her escape while maintaining a respectable distance.

Zoey looked up at the two broad shouldered Vekt for a moment before replying. "I am here to see your leader. Take me to him, or get out of my way."

This was the first time since coming to this world that Zoey was throwing her weight around like this. She preferred not to have confrontations if they could be avoided, but she realized now that if she wanted respect from the people of Darren, then she would have to take on some challenges face to face.

"You who hide your face has no right to meet our leader!" The Vekt on the right growled angrily. "Only those who have proven themselves strong can stand in his presence! You! You are nothing but a nameless whelp. Leave now, or we will have you thrown out with the dogs!"

As the Vekt finished his threat, the two big guards stepped forwards menacingly, trying to intimidate Zoey. Behind her mask, Zoey only smiled. This was a great opportunity to try some of her new gear. The guards lost patience with her rather quickly, and stepped forwards to grab her. The moment they reached out to her, Zoey finally reacted.

Under her poncho, hidden from view, she held in one hand a metal rod about ten centimeters long. All Zoey did was inject her magic energy into the rod as the two guards approached, making the rod hum to life. The effects of this item were instantly apparent. The two burly Vekt guards reaching out to grab her suddenly lost their footing and dropped to the ground as if something extremely heavy had landed on them. As the guards lay on the floor, unable to move, Zoey simply stepped over them and walked past them into the landing area without a backwards glance. The only thing she left behind was two stunned Vekt climbing slowly to their feet,

The mercenaries standing back from the scene had no idea what had happened. All they knew was that they heard a strange hum coming from the girl, then two of their strongest warriors had dropped to the ground as if something had stepped on them! Who was this strange person? Their minds were filled with many questions that they did not have the answer too.

However, one thing was certain. Despite her size, that human female was not to be taken lightly!