Brooke’s eyes fell on the largest of the group. He was at least two feet taller than Brooke, and was built like an ox. He had a mean face and evil looking eyes and Brooke instantly felt complete disgust towards him. She couldn’t help it, but she felt her anger build up in her gut as she stared at this hulking brute. This man had thrown a glass bottle at her which could have seriously hurt her. The most heinous crime under the Republic had been committed against her, but she took comfort in knowing that his punishment would be just. As she stared at him, he lifted his head and looked directly at her. What he did next almost made Brooke lash out against him. He licked his lips and winked at her. This must be a big joke for him, Brooke thought. Rian had been right about the intelligence of the red class. He would learn soon enough though, his sentence would be all the revenge she would need. She wished she could be there when his fate was decided. Visualizing his body being shrunk down to mere inches and placed at the complete mercy of the Republic’s beautiful women would be like a dream for Brooke. Suddenly an idea came to her. She remembered the shrinking device in her purse, the whole reason why she had come down in the first place. As she placed her hand on her purse, her stomach began to rumble.

“Tower, this is Rian 692. We have runners in custody. Requesting pick up and transport over.”

“Roger that 692. Teams have been dispatched and are on their way. Good work!”

Rian placed her radio back and waved for the girls to come forward. There was no more danger now that the men had been caught. Even if they all ran in separate directions there was enough lights and surveillance on the area that each man could be followed without being lost. The security was so tight in the Exhibitions that once you had been pinpointed you could do nothing to escape.

“The pick-up squads are on their way. These four won’t be causing any more trouble.” Rian said to the girls. She took a few steps towards the men who all remained still and in complete submission. Even the large mean one Brooke saw did not move. Rian stared directly at the four men.

“Hope your attempt was worth it,” she said coldly. “You’re not going to be seeing this place for a long, long time.” She turned and walked back to the girls, Brooke moved towards her and two women met between their friends and the four men.

“I was wondering,” Brooke inquired.”My friends and I came here to try our shrinking devices. It was really the whole reason why we came here. Would it be possible for us to try on these four?”

Cali and Sara joined them in the middle street.

“Yes please, it’s perfect.” Cali said.

“They’re easy targets, they’re not a danger anymore you said it yourself.” Sara echoed.

Rian looked at the three girls in turn. Then looked over her shoulder at the four men, all lined in a perfect row in the middle of the street. Their hands remained on their heads and their eyes did not leave the ground.  Rian gave the girls and smile and a shrug.

“Sure why not, they were getting shrunk anyway. Doesn’t really matter who does it. Just let me get their information so we can scan them out of the manifest.” Rian walked back to the four men and took out a small electronic terminal. She went down the line one at a time, punching out their names and information from the Exhibition registry. It was all part of population control; there were now four vacancies that could be filled. When Rian had finished, she took out her radio and told the tower that they were going to handle it, and that the pick-up squad was not necessary. She then moved to the side leaving the girls directly in front of the men.

“When you’re ready,” she said.

Brooke, Cali and Sara all took a few steps forward and removed their devices from their purses. The four men knew what this meant. Two began to shuffle uncomfortably and the big mean one darted his eyes around trying to find a way to escape. He must not be so stupid after all, Brooke thought. Even he knew it was all over. Brooke made sure she stood in front of him and gave him a cold stare. It was a sight all too well known under the Republic. A group of beautiful young women standing triumphant over defeated men. If the Republic could be represented with one image, this would be it. Their power was unconditional and unquestioned. The men were not even bound, but under the eyes of women they were helpless to do anything.

It was time. Brooke aimed her device at her target; the mean brutish man who threw the bottle at her; the man who looked at her like she was nothing but a sexual object. She felt her emotions and desires get the best of her. She pushed the button. A bright red laser shot out of the optic and hit the man square in the chest. His body went rigid and his hands fell to his side. The red laser began to trace an outline of his body, along his arms, down his legs and across his shoulders up to his head. When the outline was complete, the man let out a yelp and began to shrink. Brooke watched in fascination as this man who was once so physically imposing was now equal to Brooke’s height, and was continuing to get smaller. It was all over in a few seconds. Three of the four men had disappeared, leaving only a lone man with his hands still over his head. In place of the other three were a pile of clothes. Brooke had assumed they would shrink out of their clothes but it was still a surprise to actually witness it up front. None of the girls moved, but Rian walked over to the clothing pile and removed three tiny men, each one no more than an inch tall. She handed the girls the man they had shrunk and asked what they planned to do with them.

“I know what I’m going to do,” Sara said.

She held the man to her face, examining him with great interest. She then lowered him to the ground and in one motion brought her entire boot down on his body. There was a loud squishing noise and the girls all made sounds of disgust coupled with laughter. Sara simply wiped her boot along the ground to remove the remains. Cali had decided to keep hers for a little while longer. She would need him for certain “things” around the house, but she did not specify what that really meant. Brooke stared at her man. This tiny figure wiggling from her finger tips. This man who once filled her with great disgust was going to be filling her in other ways. Although she had seen this man in his original form, she would have no reserves towards killing him. He was evil and the Republic would be better off without men like him living under its greatness. The least he could now do was serve Brooke and her beautiful body until the end of his days. She contemplated telling him what she had in store but decided against it. She put the man in her purse and turned to her friends, but answered loud enough so she knew he would hear.

“Let’s just say I’ve already picked up something for supper.”

The girls all laughed, including Brooke. Rian gave her a smile and a shrug.

“Hey he’s all yours now. Do what you want!”

They had almost forgotten about the lone man still standing in the street. He had just witnessed three of friends be shrunk, one was already dead and the other two would follow soon after.

“Should we let him go?”Cali asked Rian.

“Absolutely not,” Rian answered sternly. “The towers will keep him in place and we’ll deal with him later. I’ll show you girls out.”

The four women began to walk back to the main gate. Brooke turned and saw the man still standing there. She wondered what would happen to him once they were gone. She thought about asking Rian if she could shrink him but she didn’t want to come across as greedy so she kept mum about it. Her thoughts went to the man in her purse. He was the first man she had shrunk herself and better yet, she was helping the Republic by serving legal justice. Her hand went into her purse and pulled the man out. She dropped him into her palm and stared at him. Horror was written across his face. All Brooke did was give him a cold smile and dropped him back into her purse.