Femi and Arwan briefly looked at each other before walking towards the cargo and leaving the ship.
As the ramp extended down, Femi and Arwan were welcomed by a bunch of people from the Alliance's official force. They were all pointing different guns at the duo standing on the ramp.
"What's the meaning of this?" Arwan questioned.
"Your hands up. If you're with any weapons, drop it. Don't cause any problem for yourself," the voice sounded again but without the amplifier this time.
"Hey. Why the—" Femi said with indifference.
"Just raise them," Arwan interrupted Femi.
Femi acquiesced with his decision.
'What's with all the gun pointing though? Waste of time.' Femi thought.
"Scanners, proceed." The owner of the voice said as she walked to the front of the bunch of official forces. Behind her were two other officials who were holding some kind of baton.
Seeing the duo's reaction to the approach, the woman spoke up again as she showed herself.
"Fret not. It's just a detector. These are part of security measures."
"Well, you should have said this earlier. Your approach was rude, y'know," Arwan retorted.
The woman remained silent, but her gaze was more piercing than before, making Arwan shiver.
"No holograph or similar device detected, ma'am." One of the persons with baton said.
After the officials used their detectors to check whatever and confirmed safety, the officials brought their guns lower.
"Good. We're done here. Back to post, everyone," the woman instructed. "You guys are also free to go now."
"Ish," Arwan hissed as they were about to enter Rimora.
"Hold on."
The woman's voice brought beads of sweat dropping down from Arwan's head. As he saw her approach them, he screamed internally. 'Did she hear me? I wasn't that rude though!'
"Yeah?" Femi, who answered her, walked down the ramp to stand on the same footing as her. He wasn't one to be scared. Not like Femi could even feel fear if he wanted.
'Kick me in the ass! That dude can say something that'll get us killed. I just know it. I've not even done the things I want to do yet! It's way too early to be in a situation like this,' Arwan's heartbeat began to rise.
He quickly walked down the ramp to catch up to Femi. But he was already too late; he had been caught in his thoughts leading him to be slow, and they had begun conversing.
"Hahahaha."
Her laughter echoed around the port, making Arwan gulp a huge amount of spit.
"Humm... What are you guys talking about?" Arwan's voice sounded weakly.
"She was telling me about the city, Moribus, as an apology for her rudeness. Apparently, crime rates have risen recently, that's why she's on the edge. Anyways, I just asked her where I could get some things. I don't know what I said that made her laugh," Femi replied.
"Hahahaha. You have a weird friend here, kid," The woman officer said to Arwan. "Hey, it's Femi, right? You must be from the Arbor Sector. There are a lot more delicacies you'll find in the city compared to that excuse of a sector. I advise you to try them. You guys have fun. Don't die. Abductors exist."
She continued laughing as she walked away.
"All of you underestimate coated fruits and every other traditional food!" Femi spat at her.
'They were talking about food? I thought he'd say something that'll threaten my stay,' Arwan was dumbfounded.
"Oi Arwan. Why were you acting all weak and scared in front of her?" Femi's voice, filled with curiosity, snapped Arwan out of his thoughts. "You were acting boldly back when you met me on Mars and even bolder against the officials. Is that... Fear?"
Arwan was taken aback by the sudden question. "Ahh, she could make us dead if she wanted to. I had to be careful."
Femi looked at Arwan with a tilted head before saying, "Doesn't mean you should put on a weak act... Does it?"
As Femi wondered how to react to 'Fear', Arwan wanted to retort, but nothing came out of his mouth.
"Ah, I guess you're... you're right," Arwan scratched his head. "Acts of the subconscious."
"Anyways, we should visit the city first. We'll go to the HQ when it's daybreak. The old hag said night lasts longer than day on this planet." Femi walked back into the ship.
Arwan still stood weakly, watching Femi enter the ship. Suddenly, he slapped himself. 'Snap out of it. You're not in the past anymore. You're out of the damn cell, you're not under anyone again!'
"Oiii. You coming?"
"Of course... I'll be right there." Arwan followed Femi back into the ship.
"What exactly do you want to get in the city?" Arwan asked curiously.
"Food hunt," Femi said with a satisfied smile. "One of the pleasures of exploring is getting to eat different food. Don't you agree?"
"Y-Yeah. I'll also want to check out the different types of technology that's in the City of Adventurers. I read some things here are even better than Mars'. I'm salivating at the thought of it." Arwan had a grin on his face as he rubbed his hands.
"Haha! Let's go!!" Femi yelled as he dashed to his quarters to get ready.