Chapter 354: Visit To The Slums

Children with hollow eyes wandered barefoot through filthy alleyways.

Buildings leaned precariously against one another, held together by little more than rusted beams.

Entire families lived inside shipping containers.

Smoke drifted from burning piles of trash while armed men openly patrolled certain streets with modified rifles slung over their shoulders.

No one looked surprised by violence, it was simply another part of life.

West quietly observed everything.

Unlike Misty High City, where crime hid behind closed doors unless gangs were actively involved, Orizon’s slums wore it proudly.

"There isn’t any law here?" West asked.

Sammy chuckled bitterly. "There is."

He pointed toward a group of heavily tattooed men collecting cash from nearby shopkeepers. "The gangs."

He made another gesture toward several masked figures escorting a truck loaded with weapons. "The smugglers."

Then he pointed toward a nearby warehouse. "The traffickers."

West had expected something bad not something this systematic.

"This place generates billions every year," Sammy continued.

"Drugs, illegal awakeners, counterfeit affinity stones, organs, weapons... you name it."

"And nobody stops them?"

"They do."

Sammy smiled humorlessly. "They just don’t win."

...

Nearly twenty minutes later, the SUV stopped before an enormous compound surrounded by corrugated steel walls nearly four meters high.

Watchtowers overlooked every entrance while men carrying assault rifles stood guard.

Several awakened lounged casually near the gate and none of them looked weak.

Sammy stepped out first. "We’re here."

West followed and a guard immediately blocked their path.

"Purpose?"

Sammy handed over a small black card.

"We’re buyers."

The guard inspected it before looking toward West.

"This him?"

"Yeah."

The guard’s attitude immediately softened. "Big spender?"

Sammy simply smiled. "Depends on what you’ve got."

The gate slowly opened and as soon as they got in, West felt his stomach tighten.

Rows upon rows of cages stretched throughout an enormous warehouse.

Some were reinforced with steel bars while others were nothing more than chain-link fences.

Hundreds of children occupied them with some being no older than five.

The eldest ones here looked closer to sixteen or seventeen.

Many stared blankly into space, others cried quietly while some didn’t react at all.

A little girl clutched a worn teddy bear missing one eye and beside her sat a boy with a heavily bandaged arm.

Nearby, several teenagers silently watched every newcomer with expressions that had long abandoned hope.

West’s expression never changed but internally, he was quite astounded.

He had known places like this existed but seeing one in person was another matter entirely. One of the reasons law enforcement couldn’t do anything about this was because the ones truly in charge of these types of businesses were awakened.

Just when he thought awakeners couldn’t be any more villainous, he always got proven wrong in the worst ways possible. It was no wonder why the world hated them.

A tall man wearing an expensive white suit approached with a wide smile. "Welcome!"

His grin resembled that of a businessman greeting valued clients. "I’m Damian."

"The manager."

Sammy shook his hand. "This is the client I mentioned."

Damian’s eyes lit up. "Excellent."

He gestured dramatically. "We have every kind of merchandise."

West didn’t react to the word... merchandise but internally he understood that this was how awakened here viewed regular human beings.

Damian led them between rows of cages. "As you can see..."

He pointed casually. "House workers."

From there, he moved to another section. "These ones can be used for construction labor... they’re healthy and the strongest around here."

He then moved to another where only females occupied. "These ones... if you’re the type that prefer them young and tight... they’ll serve you well."

West felt disgusted but continued on till they finally reached the oldest group.

These were teenagers between the ages of fifteen to seventeen.

Unlike the younger children... these ones looked at visitors differently.

Some had expression of hatred, others looked with dead eyes while several silently prayed to be overlooked.

West carefully studied them, checking for defective ones specifically. He noticed one boy was missing his left eye while another leaned against the cage using a crude wooden crutch.

A tall girl bore extensive burn scars along one arm and another had a badly healed leg fracture.

His eyes settled upon six particular teenagers that had defects.

One had only one functioning arm, another walked with a limp, one girl’s hearing appeared impaired while another possessed extensive scars across his back.

They behind because they were physically damaged and undesirable... exactly the kind traffickers struggled to sell.

Damian noticed his prolonged gaze and felt West was interested in those ones.

"Oh those kids are defective... I suggest going with the ones at the front of the line."

West finally spoke. "How much?"

"Sir, I can assure you, you’d have much better experience picking from the cages at the front," Damien tried to persuade West not to go for those.

"I have made my decision," West pointed at the six. "How much?"

The kids in question were surprised that anyone would pick them. They stared at West in confusion while he glared at Damien who was still trying to persuade him.

Damien smiled. "Well, those six are cheap compared to the healthier ones."

"How much?" West stated once more.

In the end, Damien had no choice but to list a figure. "1.2 million dollars."

Sammy nearly coughed while West merely raised an eyebrow. "That’s your cheap price?"

Damian laughed. "They’re still teenagers."

"They may be defective but they can work for years."

"They’re worth every dollar."

West folded his arms. "I’ve seen better merchandise elsewhere."

Damian’s smile stiffened. "I assure you—"

"No," West interrupted.

"They’re overpriced."

Damian frowned. "We’re talking about healthy—"

West pointed directly toward the injured captives. "Healthy?"

"They’re disabled."

"Injured."

"Malnourished."

"You’re asking premium prices for damaged stock."

Several nearby guards frowned while Damian’s smile completely disappeared. "Ahem, I meant to say young. You drive a hard bargain."

West shrugged. "I don’t bargain."

"I leave."

Without another word, he turned around and Sammy immediately followed, hiding his confusion remarkably well.

Behind them, Damian called out. "We can negotiate!"

West waved dismissively. "If your prices become realistic..."

"I’ll return."

The warehouse doors shut behind them and when they had climbed back into the SUV, Sammy finally asked, "I thought you came here specifically to get kids."

West stared ahead. "I did."

"So why walk away?"

"Because I was never buying them."

Sammy blinked while West’s voice lowered. "I’ve seen enough."

...

...

As they drove away from the compound, West quietly replayed everything he’d observed.

’Three watchtowers... north gate... two side entrances... generator building... security office... cage arrangement... guard shifts... camera positions... vehicle access...’ his mind assembled the information like puzzle pieces.

Sammy glanced sideways. "What exactly are you planning to do."

West simply smiled. "What I always do... cause trouble."

Their return route led through districts even more dangerous than before.

At one intersection... two rival gangsters exchanged automatic gunfire in broad daylight.

Bullets shattered windows while terrified civilians threw themselves behind abandoned vehicles.

Half a block later... three masked men dragged a screaming merchant from his store after he apparently refused to pay protection money and stabbed him repeatedly till his intestines formed a carpet underneath him. Nobody intervened.

The neighboring shopkeepers simply lowered their heads.

Further ahead... an awakened casually punched another man through a concrete wall during an argument over gambling debts.

The defeated man never got back up and people simply stepped around the body.

West watched silently. "The city’s forgotten these people."

Sammy nodded. "Or maybe..."

"They never remembered them."

...

As evening approached, they finally exited the slums.

Only after they had returned to the hotel did Sammy notice something strange.

West hadn’t unpacked... instead, maps covered the hotel table and a notebook lay open.

He had recreated the entire compound from memory.

Every building, fence, guard tower and patrol route.

Sammy stared. "You remembered all that?"

West continued sketching. "I’ve always had good spatial memory."

He marked several locations. "Cameras..."

"Blind spot..."

"Generator..."

Sammy slowly realized what was happening. "...You’re planning an ambush."

West finally looked up. "I never intended to buy anyone."

"I’m no saint but there were situations where I draw the line and selling human beings is one of them."

Sammy lowered his voice. "You intend to take them."

West smiled faintly. "I’m thinking."

Of course, West had his own personal reasons for doing this. He wouldn’t engage in buying and selling of humans but he also wouldn’t try to get involved in situations like this if he wasn’t getting anything out of it.

Silence filled the room and after several minutes... West closed the notebook.

"The asking price was ridiculous."

Sammy laughed. "So that wasn’t real."

"No."

"I needed them to believe I left because of money."

"Not because I was studying their defenses."

Sammy leaned against the wall. "You know..."

"Most people would’ve still bargained."

West picked up a black duffel bag resting beside the bed. "At least it looked believable."

Inside duffle bag was a mask and dark clothing.

Sammy’s eyes widened. "You packed all this before we even visited."