Rachel strides through the city, keenly feeling the absence of her skeletal companion. Lord Reud and Lady Lilia had taken Bo on some expedition yesterday, along with the other combat-focused skeletons, off to investigate something they called a dungeon.

However, despite the Lord’s absence, the city goes on. Rachel’s morning had been spent conferring with the other administrators to discuss the development of Srinaber, covering everything from food supplied, to housing developments, to the formation of places of leisure. One topic that had come up was that there was a strange pattern of requests coming from the Farhaven district, a section of the city populated mainly by new arrivals from the surrounding villages. The things they had been asking for were goods for skilled crafters, from polished bone to fabrics to metals. However, there hadn’t been any new goods using those materials appearing throughout the city.

The others didn’t think it to be worth much thought, but Rachel wanted to investigate nonetheless. If people were stealing from the city, from Lady Lilia, hoarding goods that could help everyone, she wanted to find them. Such blatant disrespect of Lady Lilia’s goodwill would not go unpunished, not whilst she had a say in the matter.

However, there was no way she could just walk into the district and demand the truth. If there really was something shady going on, then there was no way they would open up to her. No, she had to go in a disguise.

It was actually kind of exciting, making her feel like one of the heroes in the books her father had bought for her back in Littlestream. She’d blackened her hair with ash, hiding the shimmering blonde. Her normally neat clothes had been replaced with a formless, ragged smock. She’d even affected a stooped walk. She was about as far from her normal appearance as she could get. Hopefully, it would be enough to allow her to blend in.

Turning off Littlestream Road, the name given to the main road from the southern gate of Srinaber, she arrives in Farhaven district. Crude, blocky buildings line a square section of roads, constructed from wood and stone in the fashion the undead have become so proficient in doing over the past months. The building fronts, however, are missing the personalized touches that adorn those in the other sectors of the city. Beyond a small amount of paint here or there, the buildings look identical to how they did when the district was first completed.

Rachel ducks her head and walks along towards the entrance to one of the building blocks, passing groups of people leaning against the walls, chatting to one another in low voices. Entering the large building, she heads up to the second floor, clutching a key to her chest, trying her hardest to look like a new arrival in the city. She was so engrossed in her act that she walks straight into a middle-aged woman coming out of a door.

“Hey! Watch where you’re walking!” The woman shouts in surprise, flicking her raven hair from her face.

“I’m s-sorry, I wasn’t looking…” Rachel stammers out.

The woman looks her up and down, her expression softening. “New arrival?”

Rachel nods.

“In that case, I guess I can forgive you.” The woman says. She peers at the key in Rachel’s hands before a smile lights up her face. “Hey, looks like you’re living beside me!”

Rachel smiles back at her, looking at the door the woman emerged from. On it is carved a number and a letter, one less than the one on Rachel’s key. A system put into place by the city to aid with assigning homes. When Rachel had decided on this little investigation she’d just given herself one of the unclaimed rooms in the Farhaven district.

“It’s nice to have a friendly face as a neighbour.” Rachel says.

The woman nods. “You’re right there. I was worried I’d be placed beside some creep. It’s a little disappointing we don’t get to pick where we live, the city seems to have so much space. But I guess this isn’t so bad. I’m Maria.”

“Ra-” Rachel begins to respond reflexively, before stopping herself. What’s the point of going undercover if she’s just going to give out her real name? “Raina, nice to meet you.” She eventually goes with.

“Welcome to the neighbourhood, Raina,” Maria says. “Where are you from?”

“A tiny village, Rivenfall.” Rachel says, quickly making up a name. There were enough remote little communities throughout the forest that anything she said would be believable.

“Hmm, I can’t say I know it,” Maria says. “I’m from Eastrest myself.”

“What do you think of Srinaber?” Rachel asks.

“A big step up from Eastrest, that’s for sure.” Maria says, smiling. “I even have my own room. I don’t have to share it with anyone, and it doesn’t cost me a thing. Isn’t that amazing?”

Rachel tries to look amazed.

“You also get food and clothing, and almost anything else you desire. It just requires a little bit of waiting, as the lines can get quite long.” Maria pats Rachel on the shoulder. “You’ll quickly get used to it, it’s a pretty great place to live.”

“Wow.” Rachel says, not really knowing what to say to the woman’s onslaught of words.

Maria lets out a little laugh. “Oh, sorry. I’m talking your head off. I’m sure you’re dying to get a look in your new room, so I’ll leave you alone for now. Just grab me if you want to know anything, I’ve been here for over a month, so I know how everything works.”

With that, Maria locks her door behind her then strides off down the corridor. Rachel watches her go, before unlocking her own room and stepping inside. The room within is dominated by a bed, with a wooden chest beside it. Simple and functional.

Sitting herself down on the thin sheet covering the packed-straw mattress, Rachel stretches. So far, it seems the infiltration had been a success. Now, with her cover as one of the residents, she can start to find out what is going on around the place.

***

Well, it seems that spying is a more complex process than her books had let on. The sky overhead was a deep red as evening falls, and so far she’d come no closer to finding out where the goods were.

The people in the district seemed to be living frugally, none of them sporting the small decorations that adorn the clothing and hair of people in other districts of the city. Beyond Maria, no one else seemed all that interested in talking to her, glowering at her when she tries to strike up a conversation with them. The only sense of community she’d felt had been when the building she was staying in had communally cooked a pottage, pooling their oats and beans into a single shared meal.

Dejected, Rachel walks along the road again, ears open for anything of interest. If she found nothing then tomorrow she’d likely have to give up on the whole enterprise. It wouldn’t do to be absent from her duties for too long.

Then, a familiar voice drifts to her ears. It’s coming from an alley between the buildings, its depths shrouded in shadow. Rachel glances around, but beyond her the street is empty. Slipping across the road, Rachel presses herself against the wall, ducking into the shadow thrown by the roof overhead. Carefully, she peeks around the corner.

Three bulky men surround a cringing fourth. Their arms are covered in spiralling tattoos, depicting a coiling serpent. Instantly, Rachel recognizes them. It was Aldsville’s ‘Beast Slaying Band’, the group of thugs who claimed to be the village's monster-slaying experts. In practice, however, they acted as Farlin and his father’s muscle. If they were here, then Rachel would bet that Aldsville is at the bottom of the missing goods.

“... You know the rules.” One of the band is saying to the cringing man. “Everyone here has to pay their dues, no exceptions.”

“B-but, I d-don’t think it’s right to-” The man stammers.

One of the band slams his fist against the wall, making the cringing man jump. “We said no exceptions. People who won’t do their part can some to all sorts of nasty little accidents around here.”

“B-but L-lord Reud said…”

One of the band places his hand on the cringing man’s shoulder, pulling his head in close. “Look, friend. Around here, we are the law, not him. You ever seen any of them ‘toffs come over here?”

The cringing man shakes his head.

The man gripping his shoulder smiles - a wide, toothy affair. “Exactly. They don’t care about you. We, on the other hand, do care. You do right by us, and we will do right by you.”

Releasing him, the man steps back. “You have till the end of the week. If you still haven’t got it by then, then we will have to assume you don’t want to be our friend any more. After that, who can say what’ll happen to you?”

Rachel ducks back from the alley as the group turn back towards her. Hurrying off, she turns over what she saw in her head. If the Beast Slaying Band were here, shaking down people for the craftsman goods the city were distributing, then they were likely spiriting it off back to Aldsville somehow.

Clenching her fists in anger, she heads back towards her actual home. She was disgusted with the people here. Why weren’t any of them doing a thing about these thugs! All they’d have to do is say a single word about this to the administration, and Lord Reud would have his skeletons clear out the thugs in moments. Was there really not a single person willing to speak up?

No, that was unfair. What the man had said was correct. The city administration really didn’t have a presence here. Ever since the district had been completed, there was no reason for them to return. Not even the undead had any reason to pass through the district. It was no wonder the people felt abandoned.

In any large city, the guard would perform the task of cracking down on operations like this, along with giving people a feeling of protection. Srinaber had yet to establish anything like that, leaving it vulnerable to being exploited.

An idea starts to form in Rachel’s mind. It would take some work, but with any luck, they’d be able to crush any problems like this in the future before they grow.

All she needed was some undead.