As the cleaning crew hoists the man's lifeless corpse into a bag and hauls him off, Tom continues to hold Amy. She buries her face in his chest as he looks down at her and talks to her softly.
" I actually came down here to check up on that favor that I asked of you last night… "
Amy wipes the tears from her eyes with her sleeve before looking back up at Tom's blue eyes and giving him an answer.
" Oh… yeah… "
She says as she sniffles.
" I wasn't able to find or get in contact with the owners of the club. I used all of the resources that I had at my disposal, but it didn't lead anywhere… I'm sorry, Tom. "
" Tom? "
Tom says playfully with a surprised look on his face. Amy blushes as she pulls away from Tom and bows respectfully before she immediately apologizes out of embarrassment.
" I- I'm so sorry, Master Guest! I didn't mean to address you by your personal name! It was very unprofessional of me and- and- "
" It's okay, Amy. Tom will do just fine. "
Tom says as he gives her a smile. Amy pauses for a moment before smiling back in admiration and nodding.
You hear the elevator ding once more and a familiar feminine voice shouts from behind you.
" AHA!! FOUND YOU!! "
You hear small footsteps running towards you, so you turn around and see Reylesh running directly at you with her small arms held outwards. As she goes to give you a hug, you hold your arm out and put your hand on her forehead, keeping her at a distance from you so she can't hug you like she wants to.
" Oh yeah? "
She says playfully as she tries to bob and weave past your arm to get close to you, but you effortlessly read her movements and keep her at an arm's distance from you. Amy and Tom both smile as they watch her try to get close while you keep her away. Then after losing the little game that you're both playing, she quickly grows frustrated and gives up, crossing her arms and turning her head away from you as she pouts.
" Hmph. Don't touch me! "
" What brings you down here? "
Tom asks Reylesh in a curious manner. Reylesh shouts as she answers.
" The elevator woke me up and I thought you guys were leaving me! Are we gonna go back to the club or what!? "
Tom shakes his head before responding.
" Not yet, unfortunately. The Monument's staff was unable to get us access to the rooms in the back. "
Reylesh puts her small hands on her hips as she thinks about what Tom said.
" That's strange. Normally a place like this would have no issue paying out billions of credits in order to fulfill its guests' requests… "
Tom adds to Reylesh's thoughts.
" It is strange indeed. There's no way any Voldoorian would ignore something like The Monument trying to contact them. I've thought about many possibilities, and I believe it's most likely that something happened to the owners of the club. "
" So what's the new plan, then? "
You ask as you look at Tom. Tom turns and responds as he meets your gaze.
" We have two options. Break into those rooms by force and blow our cover, or enlist the help of someone who could hack those doors open for us discreetly… "
You immediately pick up what Tom is putting down as you answer.
" The guy who hacked the elevator… Do you remember the location he showed us? "
Tom nods before responding.
" We'll have to take a cruiser. "
" Understood! I'll immediately request a B-Class to come pick you three up! "
Amy immediately speaks up and says before walking back to the front desk quickly.
" What about Gareth? "
You ask Tom in a concerned tone.
" He doesn't need to come with us. Him and his clones can take care of Mimi and Roary when they wake up. "
Tom replies as he begins walking towards the exit of the lobby as you and Reylesh begin to follow him. Once the three of you are outside, a cruiser comes down and its doors open in front of you. The three of you board and make yourselves comfortable before the doors seal shut and an older gentleman who's piloting the cruiser speaks to you from the cockpit.
" Where are we heading this morning? "
" The Barren District. "
Tom replies. The pilot looks at him confused as he questions him.
" The Barren? You sure about that? "
Tom nods his head as he reaffirms what he said.
" Yup. "
The pilot turns back around as he responds.
" You got some nerve, kid… I'll drop you off on the border but I'm not taking my cruiser through Barren airspace. Thank you for cruising B-Class. "
The glass pane separating the cockpit and the rest of the cruiser then turns opaque before the cruiser begins heading to the destination. Curious about the pilot's reaction, you ask Tom a question.
" What's up with the Barren District? "
Tom looks out the window at the buildings passing by as he answers you.
" So far you've only really seen the corporate side of Voldoor. Just like in most societies, not everyone in Voldoor is able to make it on the corporate ladder. The Barren District is for the people who've either fallen short or willingly chose to abandon the corporate life and all of the luxuries that come with it. "
You think back to what Tom said earlier in Moriarch.
" Yeah, I do remember you saying something about gangs in Voldoor but I haven't seen any. I'm guessing that's where all the gangs are? "
Tom looks at you before nodding his head and responding.
" Gangs control The Barren. Corporations control the Inner City. Hence the reason why our pilot didn't want to fly his cruiser out there. If something were to happen to him or his cruiser, the corporation that he works for won't be able to help. "
" I see. And The High Temple sits above it all. "
You say to Tom as you look out of your window to see the futuristic buildings that are progressively getting smaller as you go by. Reylesh puts her two cents in.
" The Barren isn't much worse than the Inner City in my opinion. The people there are just as sinful, but their sins are more violent rather than pleasurable. "
You look at Reylesh as you ask her a question.
" Does that mean you like being violent too? "
Reylesh smirks as she gives you an answer.
" I'm the Goddess of Sin. In my realm, the most violent sinners are condemned to an eternity of tortures beyond what the mind of any human can comprehend. So yes, I do enjoy hearing their cries and wails of agony when they experience the horrors that I've created for them. "
" What kind of horrors are we talking about? "
Tom asks inquisitively as he peers at Reylesh to make conversation. Reylesh looks back at Tom and smiles smugly as she answers.
" I can't really explain it in a way for a mortal to understand… Think about having your entire nervous system covered in acid, every single one of your bones turned to spinning razor blades, your skin boiling and bubbling like it's a liquid, and all of your organs being stretched and torn apart at the same time. That's kinda what it feels like to them, but they just lay there and scream as they get kicked around and mutilated forever by the demons that serve me. "
Tom looks at you with wide eyes as he thinks about experiencing what she just said and responds.
" That's uhhh… interesting. Forget that I even asked. "
You smile at Tom's reaction and Reylesh speaks up in a defensive manner.
" Hey! Don't judge Hinnoahm unless you've been there yourself! Judgemental much!?"
You chime in to tease Reylesh.
" If Hinnoahm is so great, why are you here on Aria so often? "
Reylesh looks at you with a flustered glare.
" I came here for you, actually! I had a whole plan in mind to help Father but you screwed it all up! And since portals aren't working, I can't go back either! "
" That's a lie. "
Tom says as he too chimes in.
" We could kill your physical form right now and it would send you right back. You're still here because you wanna be with Donny. You just don't want to admit it. "
Reylesh's blushes nervously as she looks at Tom at a loss for words. You can tell that Tom struck a nerve by calling her out like that.
Reylesh, not wanting to admit that Tom's right but also not wanting him to act upon what he said, turns her head away from the both of you and passively makes a remark to end the conversation.
" You can think that if you want. I'm done with this conversation. "
The pilot speaks up from the cockpit as the cruiser begins its descent.
" Alright, we're about to arrive on the border of The Barren District. Just a reminder that nobody from the Inner City is gonna be able to assist you once you step foot on Barren territory. You'll have to come back to the border crossing if you want a pickup. "
" Alright, thank you. "
Tom says as the doors to the cruiser open. As the three of you stand up from your seats, you look out the doorway and see several run-down urban buildings on the other side of a futuristic fence with soldiers stationed around a crossing. You step off onto the ground with Tom and Reylesh before the cruiser doors shut and it flies off back into the city. You look at Tom and make a remark about the buildings on the other side of the fence as you approach the crossing.
" That doesn't look like Voldoor at all. "
Tom turns to you as he responds.
" You gotta have poor people in order to have rich people, Donny. If everyone in Voldoor was wealthy, then nobody would be. "
The three of you reach the crossing and a soldier shouts to you with a serious tone.
" Hold it! "
You stop as a beam of light reaches out from the crossing and scans all three of you. Machines make whirring sounds and a few other soldiers look at screens at their stations for a moment before the scan stops and the soldier speaks up again.
" Go on ahead! "
As the three of you pass through the crossing onto the other side, you notice the blatant neglect of the roads and buildings around you. You see rough looking people staring at you from the buildings and the roadside as Tom leads you deeper into The Barren. It's unsettling how everything is in such bad shape and you can feel that there are bad people around every corner.