The alley was dark, narrow and stank of urine. The door to the Geckos’ tavern was hiding at the bottom of a small staircase that no one was guarding. Not that it needed surveillance. Macha and his captain were in the middle of Gecko territory and no one who was a threat to the gang would dare to venture there.

Before entering, Em put a hand on his shoulder. “Are you sure about this, son? The Lady can handle them as soon as she arrives. She will grant your protection.”

“Nay. I need to do this. I need to show them I’m not scared.” Macha said. Em patted him on the back and opened the door. The old man’s face, beaming with pride, infused him with a shot of courage he needed for the occasion.

The Black Geckos owned many joints in the city, and that tavern was the place where their Buccaneering branch met and from where the Swan oversaw their operations. It was a gloomy place that smelled of sweat and tobacco where you could barely see the faces of the men filling the tables because of the large amount of smoke. With the tinkling of the doorbell, everyone present stopped playing or drinking to fix their terrible gazes on them.

Macha couldn’t help but pause. His legs, frozen by fear, would not let him move forward. “Are you sure she will come?” he whispered.

Em helped him move with a discreet shoulder touch. “Sure. She has promised me. Now let’s show them we are not scared.”

Macha sighed deeply and stepped into the tavern, only to be stopped by a stocky man of terrible appearance. The buccaneer crossed his arms and pointed his chin at the side, where there was a small window next to the bar. From within, a voice followed by a finger invited him to approach. “Barrels and blades ye’leave here.”

Macha frowned after seeing the large number of daggers, swords and pistols adorning tables and belts throughout the premises. “Ye deaf, little rat? Weapons here. Now.”

Em opened his coat and handled his revolver while the stocky man frisked him. “This’ a nice one,” said the voice from the window. “Ye hiding something, ye dead men. Savvy?”

Hesitatingly, Macha left his folding knife. “We came to see the Swan,”

“He’s waitin’ for ye. Corner table. No tricks or ye-”

“Dead men, got it.” Cut Macha, moving away, straight to the wolf’s mouth. As each step, the air felt thicker and his own weight heavier. The feeling of his heart pumping blood through his entire body helped him focus, helped to forget about all the threatening whispers and stares around him.

The Black Swan was sitting alone at a round table filled with papers, pouches and piles of coins. Behind him, two of the biggest geckos followed Macha’s movements with hands on saber hilts.

Depending on which job they had, each lizard had their membership tattoo in different parts of the body, some hiding it and others wearing it at clear sight. The Swan, a huge beast with a reputation for being petty and bloodthirsty, was a fearless man who cared little, and had a huge lizard painted from the side of his forehead to the neck, staining half of his face in a darker tone than his already swarthy skin.

“All my men were put to dance with the jack in Wei. All except you and…”

“Chew,” said a man from behind. “This one is the Macha.”

The Swan grimaced and ate a piece of cheese with his mouth half open. “Aye. You look like a rabbit, but appearances are deceiving. We know well that you are a rat. And we don’t like rats.

“Of the two rodents in the Yew-Te, most bet that you would be the best hiding vermin, and it was an amazing surprise you showed up in my city so cheerfully. I was even more surprised when they told me you were coming here.”

“We have a deal to propose.” Macha said with a trembling voice that he could not hide. He grabbed the top rail of a chair and pulled it closer.

“Did I tell you to sit?” asked the Swan, casting a look of hate on the boy. Macha let go of the chair suddenly and swallowed hard. Em crossed his arms and snorted. “Your friend does not seem well aware of the danger you are surrounded by.”

“I’m terrified,” Em said with a defiant sarcasm that amused the Swan. He chewed and swallowed slowly, taking his time to speak. “It is only because of your friend that you are still alive. And I’m still considering sending you to the Black Rock. ”

With the bell of the door, the Gecko’s mouth froze and with it, the hubbub of the entire tavern. The Swan squinted his eyes towards the newcomers and his bodyguards tightened their grip on the swords until their knuckles turned white.

Two men of formidable stature, both dressed in white tunics and red turbans, with long black beards reaching to their chests, approached slowly from the entrance. None stopped at the window to leave the huge scimitars hanging from their belts or the blunderbusses slung over their shoulders.

In between the two, a slender figure clad in a golden cloak and a hood that covered the entire face moved at the same watchful pace, but with a grace the two behemoths lacked. The entire crowd of lizards, tensed and curious, brazenly stalked their every step until they were in front of the last table. The silence was tense, and both the swan’s bodyguards and the two bearded men seemed to fight with their imposing presences.

“Have a seat on my table as a guest,” mumbled the Swan, who didn’t seem so threatening anymore. The Lady took off her hood, revealing thick and intense red lips and large penetrating eyes that stood out the most in an overall gorgeous face. She was young, not much older than Macha and her skin, black as the night and her extremely short coily hair, were definitely characteristics of the Red island people. That stunned Macha, who expected the daughter of the Harpy, a woman known to be from Hanan, to be just that: Hanan.

His shock turned to stupefaction when she took off her cloak. Her silk dress and her plethora of jewelry barely hid a perfectly proportioned body a head taller than him, and with all attributes a man could desire in a woman, Macha could barely take his eyes off. Only when she sat with her bangles and pendants tinkling did he wake from her spell.

With her seated, the Swan politely invited them to sit next to her. Macha glanced sideways to find his captain, who rolled his eyes at him and talked to her. “You are late.”

The Lady kept her stoic posture motionless, eyes fixed on the Swan, although Macha could see how the muscles of her jaw clenched for an instant.

“What did I miss?” She asked with a soft, melodic voice.

“The Swan wants to send my boy to the Black Rock,” answered Em. The Lady shook her head and snapped her teeth repeatedly. “That’s a nasty place. Why would he do that?”

“A rat is a rat. Ma’Lady,” answered the Swan.

“As I heard, my associate here was pushed to leave by force and caught by storm. And he came back to his fellows willingly. That’s no ratting. Am I wrong?”

“No Ma’Lady. You are not.”

“I know. Now, I’m here to make an alliance. Do you know how to play my game, Mister Gecko?”

The Swan bent over, showing a terrible grin of avarice. “I do.”

“Fantastic.” The Lady said, putting on the table a small wooden box Macha couldn’t guess in where of that dress did she hide it. “To go forward, though, I’m afraid we need to settle the deal with my partners first.”

Without waiting for another word, Em spoke. “We need your men for a night raid on the main island of Muet Siam. The boy knows a route to enter the central village without going through the bay. Take one person and return unseen.”

“You don’t need my men for that.” The Swan popped a piece of cheese into his mouth and rested the head on his arm. “and the Lady wouldn’t be here making deals for such a menial job. So, my question is: Why not take the fortress straight away? There is a big booty there I’ve been considering for a long time to put my hands on.”

“You will provide men and resources if that assault has to be done.” Said the Lady. “But that’s the last resort. And to be sure your fellows don’t succumb to their greed, I will pay you double of what’s in that fort only if the rescue goes successfully unnoticed.”

“That’s a lot of gold.” The swan said, raising an eyebrow.

“You know who I am. You know I have that and much more. Now, the kid here and anyone of my friend’s men that follows your lizards will come back safely or I won’t be happy. There is no need for treats. Like I said, you know who I am and what I do to who annoys me.”

“I cannot guarantee their safety,” said the Swan between chews. "That will be a dangerous incursion. But if what you expect is none of my boys to harm yours, I’ll give my word of honor that won’t happen."

The Lady looked askance at Em, who nodded slightly. “Very well then,” she said. “Anything else before I proceed with my own games?”

“How many men can you provide?” Asked Em.

“Enough for what it needs to be done.” Answered the Swan, with eyes only for the Lady. “Send me your details when the time comes and I will assemble the best of them. All ready for anything you ask them to do. Now, shall we play some cards?”

The Lady opened the wooden box and took four cards with exquisite drawings surrounded by shiny edgings that seemed to make the malicious stare of the Swan shine.

“These cards, unlike the nonsense you use here, have a great meaning in my homeland.” Slowly, the Lady put the cards in front of her one by one. The first two had two male figures surrounded by gold filigree. One was of an old man with a long white beard holding a very large writing feather. The other, a warrior from ancient times, was holding a huge broadsword half stuck in the ground. “Each face of the Dual Hanus may demand you a price to pay. One of the faces of Ise may reward you with a gift from me. Choose.” The Lady put the other two cards, painted with two women's figures surrounded by silver. One, holding a giant red heart over her chest and the other holding a leaf of similar shape and size as the heart, but upside-down.

“We don’t need to see this.” Em said, pulling Macha’s shirt from behind. The kid held onto his seat, gawking at the deck, ignoring the old captain and letting him leave first.

“I chose the leaf.” The Swan licked his lips and chuckled. Two actions repeated randomly by some men gathering around them. The Lady put the card of the heart back to the box and turned the remaining three down.

“Macha!’’ The scream from the other side of the tavern spooked him up, and he rushed towards Em, who hit him in the chest with the dagger while holstering his gun. “Let’s go.” Em whispered.

“Bring me the chopping knife!” shouted the Swan from the guts of the tavern. Filled with curiosity, Macha turned to see but a grabbing hand dragged him outside and ,before he realized, they were halfway to the alley’s end.

After the hustle and excitement of the Gecko joint, the silence outside felt strange. Em stopped to light his pipe and blew smoke over his head. “Damn, that was a scary one.”

“You didn’t look too scared,” Macha said.

“Of course I was! Anyone not finding that place terrifying is either a Gecko or a nut job. But we both hide it pretty well. I’m proud of you, son.”

Em’s words sat well with him. Still, Macha couldn’t help but think he failed to appear brave and that they’d be laughing heartily at him right now. He tried to cast away his thoughts of shame and the Lady came first into his mind. The spell she cast was powerful and Macha soon realized he was not freeing from it anytime soon. “How old is she?”

Em coughed loudly and answered after a moment to recover. “Nay.”

“Nay to what?”

“You know what, masher. I have to talk to her so, when she comes, hands in your pockets and eyes on the ground. And put a stone in your big mouth or one of her bears will rip your tongue out as soon as you say something inappropriate.”

Macha complied and remained silent, but since the Lady wasn’t there yet, he spoke shortly after, causing the captain to groan in discontent. “What’s the thing with the cards? Did the Swan lose?”

Em hit the pipe over his arm and blew out the remaining ashes. Then he squished more tobacco in and lit it. Em was as good at hiding nerves as he was at hiding fear. But Macha already knew him well. When the captain was nervous, he smoked much more than usual, and now he was putting out more smoke than a factory chimney.

“The Swan will get what he wants, same as the Lady. That stupid game is to decide what is the price to pay to seal the deal. And to decide who pays for it.”

“I think someone paid with blood,” The door behind them opened and Macha switched to whispers. “I heard shouts asking for a knife.”

“I’m sure the Swan paid. She’s great at cheating.” Em mumbled, observing the Lady and her escort approach. Her steps, slow and determined, didn’t stop for them, so they joined as she passed. The guards, one behind watching the rear and the other rushing forward to check the street corner, were clearly worried by the dangers of the streets, but still gave them some space to talk in privacy.

“You were late.” Em grunted.

“I heard you the first time.” The Lady turned her head slightly at Macha’s side. “You should get a proper name. Rabbit’s monikers are not for handsome grown ups.”

Suddenly, the idea of ​​still using the shared name of all Rabbit Hole’s kids did not seem as good as it always had been. “Is he mute too?” she asked, due to the boy’s silence.

“Nay, I told him you’ll cut his tongue if he speaks.”

“You must be the funniest fella at parties. I never do the cutting by the way: they always do.”

“Aye. What finger did he choose?” asked Em.

“The pinky. They always hope to win the leaf, and they always end up losing the little one.”

Em let out a growl of discern and loaded his pipe once again. “Well, that’s not so bad considering he gets to be the new godfather of the whole lizard’s gang, isn’t it?”

“Easy to say for a man who can replace his fingers at will.” The Lady stopped in front of a golden palanquin and handed her cape to a well-dressed maid who was standing next to the transport door. “I’m sorry I cannot help you with Ivy. I truly am.”

Em looked at the floor and kicked a pebble. “Aye, aye.”

“The Harpy has been struggling with a painful, slow death for months. We all have been enjoying the delightful drama, but ma’sisters have started their political tricks already.” The Lady paused to find Macha’s eyes. “She’s not ma’real Mama. You know? I’m not a monster. I have a beautiful heart.”

“I’m sure you will handle them.” Em said, opening the palanquin door. Following the slam, the maid clapped to four half-naked servants that rushed to grab the hand rails.

“Of course I will.” she said, letting a guard help her onto the transport with a gentle grip. “And when I win, we will celebrate. Bring your gang to my palace, especially Ced. I wouldn’t mind letting him win the leaf. And bring Ivy, of course. I bet she has grown to be a delicious woman. Wouldn’t mind letting her win either.”

“You are not her type.” Em said.

“I’m everyone’s type, Chief. Every… one.” As she emphasized on the last word, she gave Macha a head-to-toe sweep, which made him feel extremely uncomfortable and aroused at the same time. “You can play my game if you decide to find a proper man’s name.”

“Told him you cheat,” Em pointed out.

“Like I said. The funniest fella.”

Em chuckled. “I’ll tell AhLong you invited him to your victory party. He misses you.”

As the Lady sat, her eyes narrowed and she let out a snake-like hiss. “Oh, how I hate you right now. Do you know how difficult it is to forget that hideous man?” She bit her lip and tried to hold back a squeak of disgust. The two bear-men stared at each other, confused about what to do, while Em closed the door with a guffaw.

“I hate you!” she added with a high pitch voice that did not fit the sobriety she’d behaved since arrival. Her reaction, more similar to that of a normal girl than to the daughter of a pirate Queen, made Macha smile. The moment, for a strange reason, felt special. Em’s sincere laugh. Her pretty reaction. Being alive after entering the Gecko dump. Everything seemed fine, everything was going to be fine.

Em’s expression suddenly gloomed. “Sandree, how is your Pa?”

“Every time I have to remind you, my birth name is as dead as yours. The Harpy gave me another.”

“Like you, I don’t like it, and like you, I’m not gonna use it.” Em said, grumpily.

Sandree sighed with resignation. “Pa’s getting old… Same as you,” she paused, and for a moment Macha could see an ephemeral hint of sorrow on her. “He remembers you sometimes. Then he remembers the others and talks, and talks, and talks about the old days. That brings him joy. And sadness. Those moments are the best and the worst. Sometimes I hate you for all of it.”

“Why?” Asked Em.

“Because I see the love in his eyes. Deep and true love. And that makes me jealous.”

“Sandree,” interrupted Em. “He remembers you every day, doesn’t he? That should tell you who he loves the most.”

Sandree’s lips pulled slightly to a line. An endearing little grin that engraved forever in Macha’s mind. “You may be right… Farewell Chief. And get your lovely Ivy back and safe.” She hit the side of the door with one of her rings and the servants pulled up, trotting away at good speed.

Em slowly exhaled a long, thick cloud of smoke and slapped his arm to clear the ashes one last time before pocketing the pipe. “Shall we?”

Feeling great about how everything had turned out, Macha couldn’t help but pat Em on the back, something he’d never done before, and that felt very inappropriate right after doing it. Still, Em didn’t bother and returned the affection with a nudge. A slight gesture that filled Macha with joy, motivation, and hope. “So, what’s your dead name?” He asked playfully.

Em huffed out a laugh and shook him from side to side. “Maybe I’ll tell you one day. If you get yourself a proper man’s name.”