Staring death in the eye

~2~

-Base Point-

I pull my mask off my face and hook it onto the back of my bike.

My hands work quickly to unhook the elephant from my hover bike.
I let it drop to the ground as I dig through my pack for my beanie. My head feels bare with out it.
I pull it on and push my hair behind my shoulders as my focus moves back to my kill.

I grab the net and trudge the heavy animal towards the selling post.

Gravel and debris crunch underneath my boots as I wipe some of the runny makeup from under my eyes.

The town is busy with people even though it's late into the night. Base point never closes.

Base point is on the outskirts of the city. It's where all bounty hunters and scavengers go to turn in their prizes for food or money.

The thing that sets bounty hunters apart from scavengers is scavengers are just hunting to survive. Working the land to find anything that will earn them enough money to eat. Bounty hunters can be hired, scavengers can not.

Unfortunately for me I haven't been hired in a while so the only thing that keeps me alive is hunting and scavenging.
My bounty hunting license feels like a bit of a waste but I keep telling myself that eventually someone while need me for something.

I take in my surrounding as I pull my kill through the crowds. It's important to be on guard. Everyone is here for there own selfish reasons, you can't trust anyone.

I wait in line behind five people and roll my eyes as I look behind me at my sack of meat.
It's body is just beginning to rot.
I sigh as I pick at my black nails and wait for everyone to turn in their prizes.

"Five tokens!" The alien at the front screams as he slams down five gold coins on the table.

"Only five? this took ten hours to find," the woman grumbles.

"This is trash. Not nearly worth anything. Five is generous, take it or leave empty handed," the alien growls.

The woman rolls her eyes and grabs her small coins as she walks away.

I walk up to the counter and look up at the purple alien.

"Ricky! What have you brought me today," He smiles as he looks down at me.

I resist the urge to roll my eyes. Last time I was friendly with him I got scammed out of thirty tokens.

"I'm not in the talkative mood today," I tell him as I step aside so he can see my kill.

"An apex elephant," he smile as his eyes get big.

"Seventy tokens," he says as he looks at me.

"Seventy!?! That's a joke. Last time you gave me seventy for an old transporter. Make it one hundred," I yell at him as i ball my hands into a fist.

He smiles at me. He loves playing these games. Every time I come he makes me bargain.

"One hundred for that? It's been rotting," he smile as he looks at the elephant.

"It's only been out for thirty minutes, it's not rotting and it's cold as hell out here, consider it refrigerated," I grumble as I stare up at him.

"I'll give you eighty," he says as he crosses his arms.

"One thirty," I argue as I look at him.

His smile gets even bigger.

"Ninety," he says as he plays with one of his long snake like hair pieces.