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  We headed across the boulevard to the other camp: a much less organized smattering of ramshackle tents and lean-tos. Tents of various sizes and conditions clustered together haphazardly, with makeshift training areas and supply depots squeezed into whatever space remained. The only thing that seemed organized was their determination, evident in the intense focus of everyone we passed.

  We made our way through the camp. At the center stood a weathered table covered with maps and requisition forms - the quartermaster's station, where players normally donated resources to fund the removal of resource gates inside the Citadel.

  I approached the NPC quartermaster, a harried-looking woman with tally marks inked on her forearm. "Excuse me, we were sent here on an errand for the Prince - he was wondering if there's any news regarding the welding machine."

  Behind us, someone scoffed loudly. We turned to see a woman approaching, her long blonde hair stringy and tangled. Livitha, the Resistance's equivalent to Lieutenant Anderson.

  "Tell the high-and-mighty brat to stay to his own affairs. It will be here when it's here."

  Cherry said, "Hey, don't shoot me, man! If I had my way, I'd've joined you guys first thing! But I had to find this guy, so we hedged our bets on staying neutral!"

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  I added, "We're just doing a favor for the good of the entente here."

  Livitha looked us over more closely, her eyes narrowing slightly. "I see. Sorry; those uptight snobs think they have the right to be the senior partner here - they constantly try and tell us how to do our jobs. I already told them the welder has been delayed."

  "Well what's the issue?" I asked. "The Prince said he wants to help bring it in as soon as possible."

  Livitha said, "It's these new perimeter controls on the city - we're having trouble smuggling all kinds of supplies in right now."

  I blinked at that. Something about the timing of this problem struck me as a little too... coincidental. "Perimeter controls? You don't mean the World Guard's checkpoints, do you?"

  "Yes, the civil government's gate security." Livitha confirmed with a scowl. "We haven't had any luck bypassing their new protocols."

  "Do you have any ideas?" I asked. "We're also looking for a way to bypass them. They're a little too... you know, Kingly about cracking down on us."

  Cherry jumped in, "We can't even go outside after 10 o'clock! What am I supposed to do the rest of the night - read?!"

  "We have theories, yes." Livitha said. "Actually... there's something those Loyalist dogs could help with - why are we the only ones risking ourselves here? We have a plan to get the machine into the city tonight - tell the Prince we could use his people's help to avoid the police."

  Cherry's face lit up with excitement. "Now we're talkin'! I've always wanted to be a smuggler!"

  And so we left to inform Lieutenant Anderson of the plot.

  As we walked, Cherry said, "I thought these things were a hivemind - why do they need to pass information to each other?"

  "I don't know, flavor? And that was just a theory, remember."