Dinner in the middle of nowhere

Clemen reopended the glass door for Foors and Deroga, as the dimly illuminated moon shone down on them as night fell. After what seemed like an unending walk, they arrived at the nearest restaurant. The sign read "The Delca".

"We're in luck," Clemen said, a relieved smile spreading across his face. "They seem to be still open"

Foors exchanged a perplexed look with Deroga, but when Deroga stared back he just shrugged his shoulders and put his hands in his pockets.

The two followed the boy into The Delca.

Inside, the Delca was poorly lit and had just around 6 patrons and 2 servers. A single waitress sat behind the counter. She stopped her gaze off into the distance and smiled.

"Clemen! "Back again, I see," she murmured, waving to him. Her name tag read 'Kika, Delca Server'

Clemen welcomed her enthusiastically, but a scowl appeared on his face. "I couldn't stand another fight from my parents Kika!"

Kika frowned. "It's not even been a month, Clemen! But I am glad to see you. Are these your friends?

"This is Foors and Deroga. We all met in the Dollo Region," Clemen replied.

After seating them at a corner booth, Kika took their orders, though only Clemen opted for the burger as Deroga and Foors opted for a pizza.

"Wow, I didn't know this type of food would still be around" whispered Deroga to Foors.

"I guess so, did you eat this stuff back when you were a kid?" Foors asked a little to loudly.

Clemen looked up from his phone and Deroga shook Foors under the table, signifying him to stop being so loud.

"It's also weird to see everyone with phones, I also used to have those as well" Deroga mentioned to Foors whispering again.

As the two were exchanging back in fourth in secret, Clemen turned to his companions, his expression suddenly serious.

"So what brings you all the way out here to the middle of nowhere?" he asked. "You're a long way from Generos."

Foors and Deroga exchanged another surprised look.

"You know about Generos?" asked Foors hesitantly.

Clemen tapped his ear. "Enhanced auditory sensors since I'm one of the Gen 9 Lites. I accidentally overheard you talking about it earlier."

"Generation 9, how many types of these AI or Lites or whatever they call them are there?" wondered Deroga as he sipped his iced tea which he ordered as a drink.

Foors sighed, seeming to deflate a little. "I guess there's no point trying to hide it. I am-uh, we both are. From Generos. We came here just to look at life outside of Generos" 

He couldn't let Clemen know that Deroga was a human from 300 years ago, in fact he couldn't let anyone know.

Clemen's eyes pierced. "Full humans? Hmm, interesting. I knew you were outsides but that is a little rare" He said with a smirk on his face, his tone a little to mature for his age. "However, I can't believe I'm talking to real full humans it is a rare occasion"

Foors gave a feeble smile. "Okay, trust it. However, I felt that Lites did not like people."

Deroga reclined back in his chair, eyes closed, drinking his iced tea.

"Yes I would suppose most don't, that's why I made sure to tell Kika that you were Lites as well." Clemen added.

Deroga opened his eyes, piercing them on Clemen. He set his iced drink down on the table and ruffled his hair.

"We were trying to get back home," Foors explained. "Humans aren't really accepted here. We were afraid after hearing reports that Lites murder and torture humans. However, we were really fortunate to encounter a kind and helpful young lad like you."

Clemen whistled and grinned. "That was really hazardous; what if you met someone awful. But I assume you're OK now that I met you. Don't worry; your secret is safe with me."

"You didn't come here because of your parents, did you?" Deroga said, gazing deeply into Clemens' eyes.

Deroga's unexpected statement caught Foors and Clemen off guard.

Just as Kika returned with their dinner and discussion, Foors attempted to shift the topic to a lighter one. Foors warned his new acquaintance Clemen that Deroga wasn't a typical person, so he could be a little unusual.

"You didn't come here because of your parents, did you?" Deroga said, gazing deeply into Clemens' eyes.

Deroga's unexpected statement caught Foors and Clemen off guard.

Just as Kika returned with their dinner and discussion, Foors attempted to shift the topic to a lighter one. Foors warned his new acquaintance Clemen that Deroga wasn't a typical person, so he could be a little unusual.

"We got a tip that a kid has been involved in some suspicious activity around these parts," one cop said sternly. "We were unsure about his name. Have any of you seen him?

Foors froze, shocked. Deroga's eyes flashed to their youthful companion, and his smile widened slightly.

The cops located Clemen and began approaching them. Foors' thoughts raced; he needed to think quickly.

"What do we have here?" said one of the cops, a smile spreading over his face as he peered down at Clemen.

"Clemen is our friend," Foors stated calmly. "We were all going on a trek together when we decided to stop for a snack. Isn't that correct, Kika?

The waitress stared, surprised, but soon nodded in accord. "Oh, certainly, Clemen is a regular here. I've known him for years. "He's a good kid; his father serves on the town council, you know."

The cops appeared to hesitate when given this information. One looked down at his tablet. "It does say here he was registered as being alone" he said with a smirk. "Well, if he shows up, tell him we want to speak with him, and I'll make sure to stop by sweetie," the officer added, smiled at Kika, who appeared to be around 18.

With a nod to Kika, the cops turned and left. Foors and Clemen gave a joint sigh of relief.

Just then, Clemen gestured to Foors and Deroga. "I'm sorry about that, people. I honestly don't know what that is."

Foors exhaled and glanced up. He'd inquire what Clemen had done, but it couldn't have been that horrible because he was only 12 years old.

Clemen said, "Listen, I have to use the restroom, but I will be right back." He leaped up from his chair and began to walk towards the restroom, but tripped.

"Are you ok?" Foors stated as he stood up from his chair to assist him.

Clemen thanked him and ran away.

They waited for Clemen to return, but he didn't for a full 10 minutes, and Foors became concerned.

Kika returned for the cheque, but when Clemen searched his pockets, he found nothing.

"Foors you really can't be this much of an idiot, right?" Deroga replied coolly. "Clemen just tricked you easily"

Foors' face dropped. "What? No! How could he—" He looked up at Kika. "He wouldn't do it correctly. Kika, you've known him for years, right?

"Hehehe" Deroga chuckled and drew his hands out of his pockets. His fingers groped at the empty air. He flung his hand towards Kika, pointing at her. "You would know since you are working with him"

Kika's face, which had been joyful the entire time, switched to dismay. "I don't know what you're talking about, what do you mean?"

Deroga sprang up from his chair, looking directly at Kika with wide-open eyes and a large smile.

"Before we got here, I knew that Clemen would do something horrible to us. Since we were heading to the nearest location to eat and recover, I called and asked who the newest waiters were, because if you were trying to conduct a theft plan, you wouldn't do it all at once."

Deroga smiled and proceeded. "When I first met Clemen, I felt he was a little suspect; a youngster ran away from his parents, which appeared like an elaborate fabrication. Anyway, The Delca said that a woman called Kika was the newest hire. When we came, Clemen went in to speak with you first, stating he was checking to see whether you were open, but he was actually rehearsing your lines to rob us. I know this because when we first met, I slipped a transmitter into Clemen's pocket while pretending to pet him.

Kika's severe stare fixed the companions in place. She went completely still. "Who is this, human? "How could a human figure out their plan," she wondered.

Deroga hesitated, narrowing his eyes even farther. "He was already on the run and needed to confirm with you to let you know what was going on. He was smart, though, and prepared for something like this, which is why he always selected people. He would vouch for them and ask you to check their statements, and they would, in turn, vouch for him. In the end, he would acquire their trust and steal their cash."

Kika glared and backed up a step. "So if you knew from the very beginning, why didn't you stop us?"

Deroga grinned, and his eyes lit up. "That would be no fun, wouldn't it?" He stated, tamping the side of his head and grinning, before turning away from her.

Kika paused and wavered. Finally, her shoulders dropped in defeat.

"Please do not turn me in! I was only doing this because he pushed us to. Kika answered, almost tearing up.

Foors cast a worried look at Kika. "Who is forcing you, Clemen?" he inquired.

Kika glanced at them both, her tears had stopped, and she appeared terrified. "No, I can't mention his name, but Clemen is headed for him right now. Some of the individuals who try to follow him to get their money back wind up participating in his game.

Foors looked at her with incredulity. "What is this game?" Anyway, Deroga found out what had happened, and they didn't wind up being stuck." he pondered.

When Deroga turned around, a gleam appeared in his penetrating brown eyes.

"So, let's see what this game has to offer," he said, a smile growing over his face.