The rest of the day was middle-class normal rather than the luxury that was found in the Blue Cockle. I spent most of it exploring the town with Niake, showing her what few points of interest tourists might find interesting. I found my integrated memories amazing, that I knew where everything was simply part of who I was. I remembered conversation and history with some people I met while giving the tour, memories that gave depth and context to my surroundings.

When we passed the school I'd attended, I remembered the affection for a teacher I had, one that had given me lessons in basic reading and arithmetic. The memories weren't vague; they were nuanced and detailed, and in some instances so vivid, I seemed to be re-experiencing the event as part of my recall.

The one that stood out. The young girl who was tripped and had her arm broken by a boy that was teasing her. It happened. I was there. I could remember the screams of fright and fear from the young girl. The tears on both children's faces in the aftermath of his actions. It made this life, this experience more authentic and meaningful.

Our last stop was back at Cyntyne's Shop. The Merchant that had sold me my Hunter's pack was still on duty and greeted me warmly. Niake spent an inordinate amount of money on nothing more than miscellaneous garbage. Expensive garbage. But items that she would never have any use for. A fire focus that helped with meditation when she was water aligned? What was the point?

Once she realized that this store sold gathered and looted items she was enthralled and there was no stopping her. Despite her family's status and wealth, I think she was too isolated and protected at her family's farm. And by a farm, I had realized they meant country manor. It was an estate that only someone who was among the wealthy could afford.

The farming was secondary. An incidental occurrence that was more indulgence than necessity.

"What about this one?" Niake asked me as she presented a dimensional storage bracelet that was more intricately composed for inspection. Filigree, almost lace-like in appearance, held the links of the chain together. A high-quality emerald had been enchanted as the actual storage space. It was a beautiful piece of work, but I wondered about durability.

"It looks amazing," I agreed, "but will it hold up to training and fighting? It looks like these links would break easily."

"It's crafted from ombrium, the setting may even be mithral. And it probably has enchantments against breaking," Niake answered distractedly as she examined the bracelet minutely for any imperfections.

The bracelet was an astounding three inferior quality spirit stones. That amount of wealth would take my parents over two years to make. And she considered that money insignificant. This on top of the other purchases she had made only highlighted the vast difference in not only our wealth but how we valued that wealth.

"Old man," a vaguely familiar voice sneered, interrupting my musing. Niake and I both turned to see who was talking. There were three people, two of them seemed indifferent to what was going on. The third, the one in speaking with the floor attendant, I recognized.

He was the Sect Novice that had escorted us out when we had finished bathing once we had cleaned the gunk from our bodies after we discovered our affinities. The young man that had not been happy when Niake insulted him by returning his perfunctory bow with one of her own. He wasn't much older than we were, probably only inducted into the Sect in the previous session. Still, he was a full member, and we would have to give him face if he noticed him.

I pulled Niake back, moving us away from the display case and more towards the shadows hoping that we wouldn't be noticed. She allowed me the liberties and adjusted her stance to be as unassuming as possible. We watched from our position as the Novice berated the poor merchant, finding some minor fault with an item he was interested in. His voice was loud enough that everyone on the floor could hear his demands and accusations.

"Honorable Sir," the merchant tried to explain, "all the goods and items on this floor have been sold to us or placed on commission by Sect members. The item you are examining was crafted and offered for sale on commission by one of the Sect's Inner Member.

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"I apologize if the item does not meet with your standards, but the Sect member has left specific instructions as to a suitable price. Perhaps, I can suggest something that is more in keeping and falls within your price range. If the Honorable Sir can share what his budget is?"

"Are you suggesting that I cannot afford five Spirit Stones?" the Novice Sect member berated the merchant. "The price is not the issue. The quality is. This is substandard, damaged, and clearly, the price has been inflated."

As the two of them were arguing, I glanced at the two that I had noticed earlier. I wasn't sure what it was that drew my attention to them, a hand gesture between them, a surreptitious glance to make sure the Merchant was engaged fully in his discussion. Whatever it was I realized what was going on.

These two men were working in tandem with the Sect novice. He kept the merchant busy while they pilfered and stored items they were absconding within folds of clothing, equipping them, or pocketing the smaller more portable items.

I used my elbow to jab Niake's side gaining her attention. I signaled for her to watch the other two men and was pleased to see her eyes widen in surprise and understanding as she too noticed them stealing.

The drama was well acted. Their choice in using a Sect Novice increased the odds of their success, the Sect member too important to ignore, allowing the thieves to stay unnoticed. The Merchant didn't dare offend the Novice by ignoring him or seeming to treat him offhandedly.

I thought the plan itself idiotic. Any respectable shop, especially one in the better district would have anti-theft arrays and prevention measures in place. Perhaps they thought they had a way to mitigate those preventive measures, maybe someone had de-activated the protections the shop might have installed. But I doubted it.

More likely the Sect Novice had found some piece of esoteric script, Dharmic spell, or array spooler and thought this bit of knowledge would fool detection. But this shop was frequented by High-Level members of the Sect. Members that sold items and loot they gained while on Mission. Items that they no longer needed or produced with their skills in their secondary professions could be sold, bartered, or traded easily and efficiently.

The theft protocols installed by the shop would be the best any Merchant could employ. It would have to be. Theft of items left on commission by Higher Realm Cultivators may mean the destruction of the store itself if an item placed by a member was stolen.

Eventually, the drama played out. The two men who had been pretending to ignore and not know the Sect Novice headed for the stairs. The Sect Novice followed quickly after. Niake and I glanced at each other before following, the bracelet returned to the display case, any intentions of purchasing it forgotten in our haste to see if the thieves would be successful.

I had every intention of reporting them if they made it out of the building and managed to suborn the anti-theft arrays. I knew how hard my parents worked to earn money, and although theft had never been a large problem for them, herbs and poultices were harder to abscond with, they certainly had their share of deadbeats to deal with. People that promised to pay and then made every excuse possible when it came time to settle their debts.

The floor near the door must have been embedded with the monitoring device. Store Merchants would 'tag' items that were part of the inventory with a resonating stone, a stone chip that was injected with a bit of proprietary Qi, a signature that was unique and could not be reproduced.

The stone chip when deactivated was removed as part of the sales process after the merchant had scanned and collected monies or trade goods for the item. Without that stone chip being removed, the theft-array would activate when any item passed a certain threshold.

The Sect Novice had been walking close enough with his two partners, that when they crossed the threshold and were about to exit, the place where the thieves triggered the fail-safes, he was caught as protocols unfolded. An energy field snapped into place, barring the entrance and sealing the space for those customers that were interested in entering or exiting the store.

Another energy field cocooned everything within a certain radius. The three men were trapped in that cocoon, suspended in a Qi bubble, a green construct that was all angles and sharp cuts. Like bugs trapped in amber, the three men were placed in stasis, unable to move or speak.

A warning clarion began sounding, strident, and loud. The floor lights began strobing, and the entrance was flooded with a powerful light that reflected off the cocoon the idiots were trapped in.

Niake and I couldn't help our reaction, and as the rest of the staff and customers looked at the three idiots in confusion or indignity, we began laughing. That they thought they could outsmart or trick what had to be the best array a Merchant could purchase and install was laughable.

Perhaps not the smartest thing to do considering the Sect Novice outranked us, but I doubted the Sect Novice would notice our actions, he had larger things to attract his attention.