Dressed in a sharp, flowing black dress the head of the communications division, Camarin, stepped out of the arena. She walked swiftly and paid little attention to the two members who were trying to keep up.

“Have we announced the date for the next tournament?” she asked over her shoulder.

“Yes, we already sent out the broadcasts.” answered one of her flustered assistants, a portly young man who had recently been assigned to Camarin’s entourage.

“We also received a message from the church, ma’am.” said the other assistant, a young woman who was currently Camarin’s longest tenured assistant. “They acknowledged the results of the tournament and requested that we allow one of their arbiters to interview our newest members.”

“Tell them they can but that they’d have to wait until after the next tournament.”

She passed the gathering spot that Nima liked to frequent. As she passed she noticed how the few members who were taking a break stiffened. They were all well aware of who she was.

“Have the Faifekau finished itemizing the recovered loot?”

“No ma’am. They said it’ll take some time due to the amount that the group had brought with them.” answered the portly man. Despite having a hard time keeping up the man was determined not to lag behind.

Camarin clicked her tongue in annoyance. She didn’t like how slow the Faifekau could be sometimes. Because she was the head of communications she was also heavily involved in the sale of any and all artifacts and items that were recovered from tournaments.

She was one of the driving forces behind the Conglomerate becoming a large, financially stable organization. If it was left up to the Tu’i and the Kāinga they wouldn’t have any income.

“Any of the leftover new members suitable for communications?”

“A few have been marked and will go through the interviewing process within the next few days.” answered the young woman. She opened a folder she was holding and held it out so her superior could see. “This one was with the foreigners, they have the most promising background.”

Camarin glanced at the folder and quickly read the provided information, still walking briskly. She wasn’t worried about running into anyone as she knew all members would avoid crossing paths with her.

“Vet him and keep me updated.” 

The trio were now bearing down on the communications office. The building was large and spacious and completely out of place when compared to the surrounding buildings. It shined a brilliant white and stood out in comparison to the earthen tones of its surroundings.

Camarin had chosen the location specifically because it was far enough away from the arena. She couldn’t stand the stench of the candidates and the Faifekau. And she didn’t like running into any of the Tu’i. While the common member was completely oblivious to the identities of the Tu’i, she was intimately aware of who they were because of her position.

She knew exactly where each one liked to hang out when they would leave the arena. She was always well aware of their whereabouts at any given time. And thus, she chose this location to ensure she didn’t have to deal with them more than she needed to.

As they entered the building a crisp, refreshing artificial breeze greeted the three. The office was bustling due to the recent tournament as they had much work to do to prepare for the next one.

“Anything else?” Camarin asked. The two assistants shook their heads.

The receptionist sitting at the front desk took the opportunity to chime in. “You have a visitor waiting in your office ma’am.”

Camarin shifted her quizzical gaze from the two assistants to the receptionist. The two assistants felt a rising panic, they were supposed to take care of any appointments well in advance. The head of communications hated being surprised.

The receptionist handed Camarin a note. “He identified himself as a messenger of the Kāinga and showed himself to your office.”

She took a look at the note and recognized the writing. She absolutely hated surprises, even welcome ones.

“Clear out the entire floor.”

__________________________________________

Nima sat in the large, leather chair and smiled to himself. This office really did suit her. It smelled really nice. What he enjoyed the most about leaving the Domain was being able to actually sense things. Being a Tu’i for so long had led to him taking a lot of the small things for granted.

As of late he found himself spending more and more time observing the island physically. The feeling of his humanity slipping away was starting to gnaw at him. 

He could hear various footsteps outside and he had a feeling that Camarin had ordered all the members to vacate the floor. She always was very thorough. She enjoyed her charade a little too much but he didn’t feel it was his place to speak on what she did with her time. 

After all the footsteps died down he could hear a lone set of footfalls approaching.

The fierce young woman hurriedly entered the room, shutting the door behind her as if someone were trying to sneak in.

For a moment she gave Nima a fierce look before her features softened and she smiled.

Reverently she bowed her head and held her right hand to her heart. “Tamai.”

Nima smiled softly as he stood and walked over to her, folding her into a warm embrace. “Fiti, I got tired of waiting for you to visit, so I came.”

Camarin, or rather Fiti of the Tu’i, nestled her head under his chin much like a young girl would to her father. 

“I’m sorry Tamai, I’ve just been really, really busy.” she said into his chest, hugging him back ferociously. No matter how long she spent away from him she couldn’t help but act like a little girl when he was around. “Plus, you know I can’t stand being around the rest.”

Nima had found and adopted Fiti before he had become a Tu’i. Of any of the surviving original Conglomerate members Fiti was one of the few who knew anything about his past. 

The two released their embrace and sat on one of the fancy couches that she allowed only the most important guests to use.

“What brings you here?” she asked, a slight tone of chastisement in her voice. “I didn’t even notice your marker leaving the Domain.”

She held his grizzled hands in both of hers, playing with his fingers as they talked.

“I just wanted to see you and I needed some fresh air.”

He completely ignored the comment about her marker. He didn’t want to tell her that he had been aware of it ever since she placed it on the rest of the Tu’i.

“You’re lying. You don’t do anything without a real reason.” she replied. She playfully tugged on his fingers making the joints pop. This was their secret little ritual ever since she was a child. 

Nima smiled gently as he used his free hand to wipe at her face. “Honest, I just missed my little Marin.”

It had been a long time since she’d heard his pet name for her and it brought back memories of her childhood. She playfully pushed his shoulder and said “I told you I’m too old for you to call me that.”

Nima laughed a truly genuine laugh. This was one of the things he enjoyed about being in a physical form. 

“I can call you whatever I like.” he said as he tugged one of her ears. “But, I do have some business I need you to take care of.”

“I knew it.” replied Fiti, scrunching up her face in mock anger. Nima lightly caress-slapped her face as they both chuckled.

“What do you need Papa?”

“I need you to double the announcements for the next tournament. A new Tu’i will be among the next candidates.”

_______________________________________

In his corner of the Domain, Taha sat stewing.

His Domain was nothing but a dimly lit grassy field. No stars in his fake sky, just a fading fake sun in the distance.

In the middle of the field he sat, cross legged with his head down in deep, angry thought. 

He was still upset about being passed over for ‘Ekolu. If there was anything Taha was good at it was stewing in his own rage. He had been so absorbed in being upset that he hadn’t even been aware that a tournament had come and gone.

Not that he would have been interested. He was much more interested in female combatants. His sexual deviancy ran deep and he loved asserting his dominance over strong women.

“I hate them” he thought as he angrily punched the ground. “I really fuckin’ hate them.”

He hated how the rest of the Tu’i treated him. ‘Ekolu barely tolerated him. Wha scared him shitless. Nima ignored him. Rua detested him. The others didn’t even come around enough to have an opinion on him. Being the noob really sucked.

Tears began to well up in his eyes again as his thoughts continued to wallow in the mire of his self-pity. 

“It’s not my fault.”  he thought as he jammed a bloody, misshapen finger into the dirt. “I’m just like this.”

Taha hated being a Tu’i. He hated it because he missed doing whatever he wanted before he had become one. Deep down he wished he had never taken the challenge.

He wiped at his tear streaked face, mixing the dirt and blood with his tears.

Before he had taken the challenge Taha had been a notorious serial killer throughout the Seas. He had been a rumor, much like the Tu’i, and few knew what he had actually looked like. At the height of his killing spree he was invited by the Conglomerate. Somehow they had known his true identity and had sent a Faifekau to personally deliver the invitation.

He could still remember the freedom he’d had before becoming a Tu’i. 

“I’m so stupid.” he thought as he slapped himself repeatedly. He deeply regretted accepting the challenge. Nima would never admit it but he knew, in his gut, that they had meant to trap him here.

The ugly little man rolled around in the dirt for a little while longer, allowing the rage to roil in his gut. He rolled around so long he ended up throwing up all over himself. And still he rolled.

His frustration renewed itself over and over again.

“It’s all so fuckin’ unfair!”