Opium Dreams

The Fifth unit of the red army started regrouping around nightfall.  On paper, their mission was simple. Arrest a young woman, sitting alone, in a hut.  5 minutes ahead of the action, Idir, the youngest of the unit, felt uneasiness in his chest. In fact, ever since this mission was announced, he felt it was a bad idea. Although they maintained a confident facade, he could sense that his comrades were starting to fret. Something was oozing from that hut. Some sort of waves. Not particularly malevolent, but not inviting neither. It was clear that the girl was not keen on company, and Idir and his unit felt it in their bones.  Freda, referred to as the red witch, was an emblematic figure in Darkhen. She was allegedly a descendent of the legendary Khen, and -most importantly- she was the sister of the dissident Chi, the most wanted individual in the red government’s bounty list in all of the Ghentii region. Together with Chi and their brother Mao, they were the ultimate threat to the red g