Driven by an explorer's curiosity and the gnawiion in his stomach, Evander ventured deeper into the plex, seeking a bustling food court. The midday hour had struck, and the mall was humming with activity. Streams of women drifted towards the intoxig aroma wafting from the food establishments. They carried trays, their versations f a pleasant, animated din that echoed uhe grand atrium.

  The food court was a wonder in itself, a blend of the ary arts with advaeology. Robotic arms prepared dishes with swift precision, gliding leaming tertops, chopping and stirring uhe watchful eyes of a handful of human attendants. From suct roasts to exotic-looking sads, the array of foods on dispy was as vast and diverse as the crowd itself.

  As Evander entered, he could feel the ripple of awareness spread through the area. He was an anomaly, a rarity that turned heads and sparked hushed versations. He ighe lingering gazes, the curious ghat stole his way, fog instead on his challenge – pr food without any currency of this world.

  People before him pced small stones, intricately carved and glowing faintly, onto inscriptions embedded in the ters. Each time a stone ced, it would pulse with light, and the individual would receive their meal. To Evahe stones appeared to fun like credit cards, a magical equivalent of a familiar cept.

  It's just a different form of transa, Evander reasoned, eyeing the straohe principles should remain the same. However, the ck of such a stone in his possession was a gring issue.

  His eyes sed the food court, taking in the multitude of dishes he couldn't sample, the tantalizing smells that he couldn't satisfy his hunger with.

  Out of the thrumming crowd, a duo of women in the er of his eye caught his attention. They appeared to be around his age, one of them gestig wildly in his dire while her panion tried to wrestle her arm back down, her cheeks tinted with a rosy blush of embarrassment.

  This is my ce, Evahought. If he wao uand more about this pce, the people living here were the most reliable source. He started his amble towards the two women, a friendly smile grag his features.

  As Evander's figure heir table, he watched a transformation unfold. The formerly bold woman, who had been so audaciously waving, was noicture of arm. Her face drained of color, stark white against the buzzing backdrop of the food court. Her eyes widened, darting around fearfully uhe reproachful stares of the surrounding women.

  Her friend, who had initially beeraining her fmboyaures, now stared at Evander in wide-eyed surprise. Her initial embarrassmeed away into disbelief as she witnessed him heading directly towards their table.

  The atmosphere around them grew tehe previously lively chatter fading into anxious whispers. Yet, through the otion, Evander's approach did not falter, his smile never wavering.

  As Evander reached the table, he bestowed upon the women his most disarming grin, instantly lightening the temosphere that had formed around them. "I saw you waving," he began, his voice a harmonious blend of calm and fidence. "Is it okay if I sit down and have a chat?"

  Before they could muster any words in response, Evander was already taking a seat across from them, making himself fortable. His eyes roved over their meals, intrigued by the amount of food in front of them. Both ptes were den with hefty meals, their colors vibrant and aroma entig. Yet, in stark trast to the calorie-rich spread, both women were in excellent shape. Their figures were lithe, their postures poised and their plexions radiatih.

  Strange, he pondered, his curiosity only growing. Another mystery to unfold.

  Their expressions mirrored that of guppies out of water, their mouths opening and closing without uttering a single sound. In an attempt to break the ice, Evander opted for a casual ent, "The weather's lovely today, isn't it?"

  He extended a hand towards the silent pair, hoping to initiate a ary greeting. "My name's Evander. And you are?"

  As if pulled out of their trahe women finally moved. They hesitantly exteheir own hands, g his in a grip that lingered for a moment too long. "I'm Adrasteia," the bold one managed, her voice a soft whisper, a stark trast to her earlier bravado. "And this is Calliope," she indicated towards her panion whose face was slowly regaining some color.

  Adrasteia and Calliope, he thought, etg their peculiar names into his memory. The archaiames fitting in with the world around him that seemed sn

  Adopting an air of casual curiosity, Evander ventured, "So, I'm new here. What's fun to do around this pce?" He wanted his demeanor to vey that of a typical teenager on the lookout for amusement and a bit of thrill. His question, however, seemed to have thrown the girls for a loop, their expressions refleg utter bemusement.

  "You're a boy," Adrasteia finally said, as though that statement elucidated everything. Evander couldn't suppress the grin that crept onto his face at their perplexity.

  "I do appear to be a boy," he agreed, pying along. His casual response sparked a round of giggles from the pair. They think I'm amusing, Evander observed internally, a glint of amusement twinkling in his own eyes.

  Emboldened by their receptiveness, Evander veo address the proverbial elephant in the room. With a smile that he hoped veyed reassurance, he asked, "Where are all the other boys? I heard some are due to arrive in about a month."

  The question seemed to pique the girls' i. Calliope, who'd been mostly silent thus far, responded with a sembnce of flirtation that seemed fn to her. She offered him a shy, reassuring smile and murmured, "Well, they wouldn't be as attractive and charming as you."

  The words hung in the air, the implication of her statement sinking in. Evander, despite his fusion and the bizarre circumstances, found himself chug at the pliment.

  The girls' flirtatious attempt was as clumsy as a fawn's first steps, endearing in its ck of finesse. Adrasteia's cheeks flushed a pretty pink, her green eyes sparkling as they flickered between his fad her own p. "There are... um, a few pces to explore," she started, stumbling on her words. "I mean, you'd probably enjoy them... Not that I know what you'd enjoy... I mean, just saying..."

  Evander bit back a smile. Her awkwardness was oddly f in this alien enviro, a slice of normalcy that warmed his heart. He appreciated the effort she utting in, and he decided to ease her ay. "I'm sure any pce you reend would be great, Adrasteia," he responded gently, hoping his warm tone would settle her nerves.

  Calliope, oher hand, seemed to have found her flirtatious footing, albeit precariously. She flipped her silver hair with a dramatic flourish, her electric-blue eyes holding his gaze a tad too long. Her lips twisted into a crooked grin as she said, "Oh, there are tons of fun things to do. But they might not be as iing as hanging out with you."

  Evander had to etempt at brazen flirting. It was delivered with a certain daring that hi a bold spirit beh her bashful exterior. His ughter, rid genuine, echoed around them. "Well, Calliope, I have to say your pany is pretty iing, too."

  From the sudden flushing of Calliope's fair skin, her rea to his pliment was as clear as daylight. She seemed flustered, a stark trast to her earlier bravado, her fident smirk now repced with a flustered smile. "Of course, you being a boy... you ot go anywhere without..." Her words trailed off, her eyes darting around nervously.

  Evander's brows furrowed in fusion at her abrupt halt. Are there restris for men here? He wondered. Looking at both girls, he asked, "Why? Are there pces I 't go or things I 't do because I'm a man?"

  The girls exged a shocked gnce. Adrasteia’s eyes grew wide as she absorbed his question, a blush creeping onto her cheeks. "You really don't know, do you?" she murmured. She seemed hesitant, her gaze softening with a mix of and intrigue. "You're... ever so i. How cute."

  A heavy silence hung over their table as the girls prepared to share their world's grim truths. The casual lunchtime chatter from the surrounding tables seemed to fade away, drowned out by the pulsing rush of anticipation.

  Adrasteia swallowed, her fingers idly toying with the edge of her napkin as she took the lead, her voice soft but steady. "You see, Evander, our society... it's predominantly women." She gnced briefly at Calliope, who nodded, her eyes wide and ear, eg her friend's grim seriousness.

  "That's right," Calliope picked up where Adrasteia left off, leaning forward, her gaze locked on Evander. "Men are a rarity here, perhaps one in a hundred, and that creates... problems."

  "Problems?" Evander echoed, his brow furrowing, the hint of a grimace tugging at the ers of his mouth. The undercurrent of fear in their voices had set him on edge, his instincts screaming that he was about to hear something he'd rather not.

  "Yes, problems," Adrasteia firmed, her voice trembling slightly. "The scarcity of men has led to a sort of... crime wave against them. Not here, in the safe zones, but elsewhere..."

  "Kidnappings, for one," Calliope interjected, her hands g into fists, a refle of the dark underbelly of their society she was relutly unveiling. "Men are... valuable, you could say. Some less scrupulous women... they would go to great lengths to possess a man."

  Evander's heart pounded against his rib cage. Kidnappings? He otential target simply for being a man? A cold shiver ran down his spine. His casual versation with these girls was taking an ued and rather dark turn.

  The girls shared a ghe tensioween them palpable. "And that's just the tip of the iceberg, Evander," Adrasteia fessed, her voice almost a whisper. "There are other... unspeakable acts itted against men." She didn't eborate further, but the grim set of her lips said it all.

  "But here," Calliope gestured around them, "this is one of the safe zones. Most of the men in our world reside in pces like these."

  "Safe zones?" Evander echoed, trying to make sense of this peculiar social order.

  "Yes, pces where the rules are strict, and the women have to be from good families with an upright standing. These zones are monitored closely to ehe safety of the men," Adrasteia crified, her voice carrying a note of solemnity.

  Evander listened, a blend of disbelief and curiosity perg within him as the girls painted a picture of a world that seemed almost surreal. They portrayed him as a cloistered i, sheltered from the harsh realities of their society, an object of familial prote rather than the proactive adult he was aced to being.

  Their discussion tly broken by a strident, booming voice that sliced through the buzzing background chatter of the food court. Evander pivoted, his gaze log onto a figure of authority. The woman towered over the se, a monolith of muscur strength clothed in a stark biform. Dark, unruly hair tumbled over her broad shoulders, framiern fad stormy eyes.

  "What are you doing, b this boy?" She demanded, her words cutting through the air like a sharpened bde. An imposing baton hung at her hip, adorned with an intricate web of glowing inscriptions that danced and shimmered as if alive.

  Evander moved to interrupt her, his mouth opening to expin that it was he who had initiated the versation. But his words were dismissed, drowned beh the woman's authoritative voice as she asked for identification. His words fell on deaf ears.

  Adrasteia and Calliope, now rendered pale and wide-eyed, silently fumbled in their bags, their hands trembling slightly as they produced cards. The cards were a symphony of colors and patterns, the magical inscriptions dang across their surface like liquid light. The woman snatched them with a quick, effit movement, and began to scrutihem through a sleek device that emitted an eerie glow.

  As the device hummed softly, Evander watched the exge, his mind rag. It's as if they fear her, he noted, his gaze shiftiween the frightened girls and the stoiforcer. After what seemed like ay, the woman gave a curt grunt of approval, her icy demeanor easing ever so slightly.

  "Good family, at least," she muttered, her words tinged with a strange mix of relief and begrudging respect. The inscrutable inscriptions disappeared bato the cards as they were handed back to the girls, leaving a palpable tension hanging in the air.

  The uniformed woman, a daunting silhouette amidst the bustling food court, did not falter from her decision. The edge to her voice echoed like a judge's gavel against the cmor. "I'm still going to have to ask you dies to leave," she decred, eyeing Adrasteia and Calliope. "You 't bother this boy."

  The se froze, suspended in the shards of silehat her words had shattered. An insidious undercurrent of unease slithered into the atmosphere, causing the air to grow heavy with trepidation.

  It was then that Evander, emboldened by the absurdity of the situation, made his move. Rising from his seat like a bird taking flight, he stood tall, his eyes resolute. "I want to talk with them," he insisted, his voice carrying the crispness of newly fallen snow. "It's my right."

  A flicker of surprise fshed across the woman's face, giving him a glimpse of the humah the facade of authority. His defiance seemed to have punctured her perception of him, and she wore an expression of someone who'd just found a caterpilr in her sad.

  "I'm only ensuring your safety, young man," she expined, her voice wearing a thin veil of friendliness, a veil that did nothing to ceal her desding uone. She was certain he would buckle under her authority.

  However, he stood his ground, his determination burning bright. "I appreciate your , but I'm capable of deg who I and 't talk to."

  Evander's firm rebuttal rippled through the previously stifled atmosphere, igniting a buzz of curiosity among the onlookers. Their eyes flicked between him and the officer, the sight of a young boy standing up to authority something alien to them.

  Staring at Evahe woman's face hardened, like a sculptor had chiseled it out of a block of ice. The surprise was repced by a new level ing respect. "Alright, we wouldn't want you to get worked up," she finally ceded, her tone begrudging but resigned.

  With a final stern g the girls, she warned, "I'll be keeping an eye on you." Her words held an unspoken promise of retribution, eg long after she melded bato the bustling crowd, leaving a stunned Evander in her wake.