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Faith in the Spirits Arc 1: To Align the Stars


Mercenary on the Winds
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Cini, huh? Cinaed couldn't help the laugh that came out at the nickname, smiling down at the boy who had somehow managed to lift the weight completely off the Clouded's shoulders. He nodded to the shopkeeper, "We're just stopping by, really. That fight this morning wasn't exactly our plan but we'll be heading out this afternoon. But I'll be back some day. I've got some promises to keep in this town, the one to Tonio most of all." 

He knelt down quickly to look Tonio in the eyes before leaving. "I mean that, ok? I won't break my promise. I'll be back to see you some day, so keep growing up to be a good man." Standing back up he made his way to the door before pausing and calling back, "Oh, and Tonio? I like it when you call me Cini. It's a good nickname." And with that, he set out to try and find a place to buy some thread.

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"This is fine. I have other stops I need to make anyways." Gean called back to Nyx as she made her way over to the dresses.

It didn't take long to find Miria, but instead of her company being a small pink haired healer, she was with... no Tasha didn't have any family in the area. At least, not that she had spoke of before. Gean took a few seconds to assess this situation. Miria didn't seem to be in trouble though. It might have been her imagination. Gean decided to speak up, but approach slowly.

"I thought I heard a cub yelping, but I guess I was worried for nothing. Everything good over her Miria?" Gean had her hands on her hips, unknowingly showing off her new outfit at first. Huh, me and Miria have similar tops now. I might be taking this sister thing a bit far. Remembering that they weren't alone she turned to the cat that was with them. "Sorry for interrupting, just checking up on our little sunshine here."

 

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Tanya heard the new voice chime in, and nearly fell over herself at the sight of the seafolk girl. Hot damn! What is it about Miria and her friends that brings out all the cute girls?! Trying and failing to hide the rapid rush of red to her cheeks, she tried a different approach - namely, just actually talking to the girl.

”O-oh, yeah! We’re good here, all good. Totally. Uh, wow, that looks really good on you, I gotta say.” Smooth, girl. Smooth. “Ah, hell, where’s my manners today? Name’s Tanya. Good to meet ya.” Especially because she was cute as hell. Tanya always did like the kind of person that could kick her ass, and even if she was taller than the seafolk girl, she definitely fit the bill.

Tanya just had to hope she wasn’t going to be made to foot the bill instead. Her coin purse might not be able to handle it.

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Getting her armor off was the easy part; she'd done it what must have been hundreds of times. No, there was a bigger issue...

This dress, isn't it kind of... daring...? I mean... it's practically... when am I going to even wear this?!

Her train of thought on the dress was interrupted by Alvira finally poking the heels through the changing room curtain. She nearly dropped the dress in surprise; it had been so long that she'd alnost forgotten what Alvira had gone off to get.

"Thanks... I'll be out in, uh, just a moment...?" She took the heels, hurrying to get them and the dress on.

There were definitely a fair few people she hadn't been expecting to be here when she'd agreed to find something new for herself, but who knew when they were going to leave... It was looking like she'd just have to deal with it.

Well, here goes...

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"Sure, sure... You, finding it all okay? The dress, I mean. You've got a good figure and good legs, so I wanted to pick something that would show that off... Maybe I should've went for something more practical?" Alvira was having second thoughts about her decision now, hoping she wasn't putting Lani on the spot or anything.

"Well... I'm sure, at least, you'll look good. Looking forward to it and all... I hope the heels fit too." Alvira took a step back and clung onto the tome--

"Oh." She just realized she'd practically stolen Tio's tome... But she was off talking to... I don't have the courage to bother her in front of her fan girl, yet. I'll talk to her about it later.

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Miria wasn't ready to be left alone wirh Tanya. She didn't know a lot about her, "W-W- R-Rena--" She already left, but, Tanya instead was showering her with praise regarding defeating the Crow's leader. So, it seemed fine.

"I-I... It's fine Tanya, it wasn’t that much, and, I had some help." Speaking of help, Gean came in, and Miria approached her.

"We're fine, Gean, sorry, she spooked me when we met. And oh! Tanya, this is my big sister Gean."

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She had a feeling it was magic, Tio certainly was on a whole different level. 'Makes me wonder if I can turn my hair a different color too...' It was a small idea, but a fun one at least. She then pointed out her own dress and how it wasn't too far off from the one she had. "Well, I guess we have a lot in common there. I didn't want to...make things too distracting for some you know." She giggled a bit. "Ah, well...since I picked out a dress for you I thought maybe you could pick one for me?" She turned her eyes to the side. "No one's grading you on it, well except maybe me since I'll be the one wearing it but...well up to you, Tio."

Edited by TheRoon
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I feel... kind of exposed. And I have no idea how to walk properly in these... Laniva shuffled a little in the changing room, suddenly quite self-conscious; it was just Alvira talking to her now, but once she stepped out, who knew how many of the Tigers she'd be in view of...

"Yeah, it's okay... I think I managed to get things on right. Mostly. I guess I'll... just come out now."

She took a couple hesitant steps, fidgeting a little, trying to be mindful of how she was walking. It was a vast difference from her plate boots, and as she slipped out from behind the curtain she stumbled slightly.

"Well... here I am. Don't... stare too long, you'll make me feel weird..."

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"... Whoa." Alvira felt herself blushing more and more as Lani walked out, even with her stumbling. It had been the right sort of dress, for sure. Had she not already committed herself to Natalya, she'd have been swooning something fierce. "That's... that's a really, yeah. Good dress. On you... Gosh, Lani. I figured you were just a muscle head with how much armor you were wearing, but... Woooow... You're really working that dress." From all angles...

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"I guess that'd be nice, yeah. I felt that was self-explanatory enough by itself, but if there's a different reason for that, I might as well tell Tio as well once we meet up again." Elisa leisurely crossed her arms, now a bit curious as to what Syndra was actually after. "But if it's a bit of both columns, I wonder what the matter is. Do you maybe have some secrets you believe might be a problem for our mission?"

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Ingverd departing... and before the ice mage had the time to respond, Elisa made a rapid about-face toward the arena entrance, purely on reflex from feeling a very familiar pulse of magic. A sigh as she relaxed back to her previous stance, turning back to Syndra with a slightly worried expression. "I don't know what's pissed her off, but I hope that it isn't something or someone she can see. That wouldn't end nicely." Thankfully, it didn't seem like Tio was actually casting any magic, with how quickly the feeling started to pass.


This sounded similar to Alvira's experience, but in a different way. Was the fortune teller just really good at fishing out unfortunate futures for everyone, or was that a coincidence? She'd just have to find out for herself. Or maybe it's not even what Aly saw that had her hesitant. "Something have you spooked from the visit, or what? Alvira told me she had a pretty disturbing vision, so if it was the same for you, I'll always listen if you want to talk. Or if you just want a pat or a hug," Natalya said with a small grin, happy as ever to provide comfort where needed. "I won't make you come with either way, if you'd rather just have some time for yourself."

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Gean raised an eyebrow at the catgirls stumble over her words. Maybe Nyx was right about catching eyes. Gean had a feeling of the older woman saw this she wouldn't hear the end of it, but she'd just have to deal with that. "Well as long as you're fine cub. Hello, name's Aegean, but friends call me Gean." Miria called her big sis, which earned the bookworm a poke on the cheek. "I just finished finding a new outfit with Nyx, as you can see on me right now. Once you and Rene are good I wanted to head out to our next stop. Where is our healer anyways?" 

 

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Aegean, huh? Tanya would have to remember that one for later. She certainly liked what she saw from Gean, that much was clear, and the way she interacted with Miria reminded Tanya of her own little sister. Ah, Yuria… she wondered if maybe the littlest cat of her family would be interested in any of these dresses.

”You talking about the pink one? Because I’m pretty sure she left to go find that Tio person and show her the dress she picked out for her.” Tanya chimed in, hoping it wasn’t too presumptuous of her. Hey, it helped! She was answering the question! “Honestly, I hope it goes well for her, she seems like the kinda girl who really- OH MY GOD WHO IS THAT.

Tanya’s full sentence died in her throat as she had to cover her face up to hide the growing red hue on her cheeks. Apparently, because whatever God was up there had decided she hadn’t suffered enough today, another cat girl came out from the changing rooms, wearing a striking dress that brought out all of her best features - at least, Tanya thought so, anyways. She only hoped she wasn’t so loud that the whole store could hear.

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Even though she didn't name names, Syndra assumed the person Elisa was talking about was her wife. "Well, you know her better than I do so I'll take your word on that." She noticed Ingverd walk off, but didn't say anything. "I suppose I should just ask, since he didn't mention the two of you when I brought it up. Did Ingverd tell either you or your wife what he was up to last night?"

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Good. They managed to find the dress for Tio it seemed. That was good... and now Tanya was freaking out and huddled on the ground. Is she always like this? 

As Gean turned her head towards the source of the cat's distress, her eyes widened and she grew the silliest smile on her face. "Oh my goodness Lani!?!" Grabbing Miria's hand Gean quickly made her way over to where the Lani and Alvira were. "Geez girl, look at you ready to take the town by storm. I figured you were packing some muscle under all that armor but wow!" To say this was a welcome surprise would be a massive understatement. Seeing one of the more reserved Tigers trying something new did put some excitement into the Seafolk girl.

"Whoever chose this dress for you has got an eye for fashion. Like, damn you're killing it with this one."

Edited by Bluemask 96
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"Wh-Whooooa...!" Suddenly Miria was pulled away after some shouting from both Tanya and Gean. When they were back in the main area, Lani was... "Wow..." Now I need a dress so I could look that pretty.

"Wow Laniva. You're... super pretty." She turned a bit, finally noticing Alvira too. "You look wonderful too, Alvira." She acknowledged with a big smile, whether she'd be ignored or not.

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There were a few others besides Alvira who met her as she stepped out - Gean, Miria... some other cat clouded she wasn't quite familiar with, but who looked pretty shocked nonetheless. She bristled slightly under the attention; they were saying good things, and it was nice, but it was... unusual, unexpected. 

"O-Oh, uh... h-hey, Miria, Gean... thanks..." There was a heat on her face; she couldn't see it, but she was pretty sure she was blushing, and rather fiercely at that, too. "I, um... Alvira picked it out, thank her, I just..."

She was suddenly finding it quite hard to make eye contact with anyone right now. The floor, that spot over there, nothing particularly special about it - was quite interesting, though. She was really missing her armor, about now. This kind of thing was something she saw noble ladies on their way to some party or another wear around the castle; she never thought she'd be the one in it...

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As the rest of the Tigers noticed Lani, including some... Stranger? Alvira smiled, only losing it a little as Miria complimented her. She did her best to ignore the little human, leaning over into Lani's line of sight and smiling wider. "See? You look amazing. Wanna buy it and go for a walk around town in it? Or is the attention too much for the pretty kitty~?" A little tease couldn't hurt...

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Tanya was only just barely recovering from the shock of the cute cat when she ended up blindsided by yet another cute girl - this one a dragon! Seriously, how many of them were there here?! And why was she going gaga over all of them, having only barely met a few of them? Seriously, it was just absurd.

Well, she supposed pretty begot pretty, and thus Tanya set back to her initial goal of finding a killer dress for herself. Maybe she could turn a few heads with a knockout outfit. Besides, she wanted to find something for Yuria, too… maybe something similar to Miria’s current outfit? Something told Tanya that her & Yuria would get along great if they ever met up.


Huh, seemed like all the Tigers found Lani’s outfit to be a hit. Nyx wasn’t too surprised, really; a lot of the girls in the group had their charms. She figured she had hers, too, but it might have just been the tits. Almost definitely. And she wasn’t even the biggest in the bunch! Damn Nattie, outclassing her in every facet.

”Ah, fuck, think me mood’s gone halfway t’shit now.” Nyx grumbled quietly off in the corner, really wishing she had a drink in hand right about now. Or maybe that’d just make things worse; knowing how hard she could go, then she’d be grouchy and have a headache to make things worse. Really, she had half a mind to just go back to the inn and sleep for the rest of their time in Eibar, but that wouldn’t be fair to Gean.

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One Final Stray

Ingverd had found the dive he’d been told about, idly ordering something light to drink since he was already buzzed. He was just there to listen and learn, hopefully hear the name he was looking for. It took a while, perhaps an hour, but the bartender finally gave up the ghost and called the man over by his name. Ingverd smirked. The man was carrying a rather large sack and immediately hushed the barkeep, though it was too late; a little bird was already sitting outside the bar’s window, watching Malkuith. Ingverd didn’t make a move, yet, waiting for him to finish his things and finally leave… He let a minute pass before tossing payment towards the owner and making his way out. Just have to follow my lovely little birdy, now…

His familiar led him straight to the man, he seemed to be heading for the wagons. It wouldn’t take much effort to catch up to him… And when he finally had, a hand covered his mouth and they both disappeared into one of Eibar’s alleys. 

“Good afternoon, Malkuith. We’re going to play a game, alright?” One hand over his mouth, the other snatched the man’s hand, gripping a finger. “I’m going to start asking questions. You’re going to answer them. If you fail to do so…” he bent the man’s finger back, hard enough to hurt, not enough to snap it– yet. “Understand?”

Malkuith hadn’t really known what happened. Only that the Crows had attacked a passing mercenary outfit in Eibar, and were completely annihilated. Even Darlunya was swept aside, and Malkuith found himself worrying about his own future. So, he’d gathered his things, and decided that he’d stop in for one final drink before getting to the wagons, and quietly disappearing. Best to stay low, that group is in town still. It mostly worked, saved for the damned bartender calling him by name. Normally that wasn’t a problem, but now he could very really be a fugitive. He thought for a moment; was he being paranoid? The only people who really knew of his ties were Sigis, Curtis, and Ricardo. They likely wouldn’t care if he just disappeared never to be seen again. Drink downed, several glances over his shoulder, and he was gone from the pub, and Eibar forever.

Or he should have been. On his way to the wagons, a strong arm took him, covering his mouth and dragging him into an alleyway. His assailant’s deep voice was filled with malice, speaking his name and intent. Malkuith groaned in pain, the only thing an otherwise frozen man could do, before nodding his head quickly in fear. He didn’t recognize the voice; just who was this man? How did he know who he was?

“Alright… Darlunya had ties elsewhere. Tell me everything you know about them. Everything. She died before she could talk and I doubt she would have, anyway… Now, I’m a nice man. I don’t expect some peon like you will know everything, but you must know something. If you want to keep breathing, you’ll talk.” Ingverd uncovered his mouth enough to speak, instead sliding his arm around the man’s neck. “Go on. You should still be able to breathe.”

“Okay. Okay. Okay.” Malkuith had tried to make himself sound more intimidating, but he never was a large sort, and his voice didn’t exactly command respect. “I, I d-don’t know much. But… Darlunya, the boss, she had… ties. She talked a lot with a guy by the name of Luthier. O-odd sort, always had a notebook with him, always spoke like he knew something. The boss hated him, but he’s a courier as far as I know… and, and that’s… what I know. Please… I don’t have anything to do with the Crows anymore!” A half lie, the Crows were finished, and he wasn’t, so of course he wasn’t with the Crows anymore. Surely whoever this was didn’t have all that information. 

“Tch.” Ingverd scowled. He likely didn’t know more… Pushing him wouldn’t give him anything but sick satisfaction. “Of course… You’re free to go.” Ingverd let him go and pushed him away a moment–

A metal wire found itself around Malkuith’s neck, constricting, choking, and cutting into him. “Not. Filth. You’re going to meet the rest of your compatriots, wherever scum like you ends up.”

Malkuith had a smirk on his face when the man had agreed to release him, and then it all turned to horror when something had wrapped itself around his throat. He gasped as it squeezed tighter, and also began cutting into him. His body started to burn, a searing internal pain that Malkuith didn’t understand. He’d never felt something like this. 

“You… you lied to… me. What–” Malkuith’s hands began to clutch at the wire. He slowly began to panic as the pain got worse. “What, ack, is this…  who are, hhh, you… ?” He turned to face Ingverd. The color drained from his face as he looked into Ingverd’s eyes, “...Who, are you… ? Why, ahhh, do you know me?”

Ingverd kicked him down to the ground, holding him down as the wire did its work. “Why would I tell you anything? How many clouded did you sick fucks kill, just like this, or worse? Don’t regret the choices you made in your life. It’s over now.” He tugged hard on the wire. 

Malkuith’s mind raced. Whatever strength was in his body was slowly leaving him. He wasn’t sure he’d even properly felt the kick that sent him to the ground. His body felt like it was ripping itself apart. Ingverd’s words made him understand, or at least think he did. He remembered the crows watching with glee as their pure weapons caused their clouded and monster targets unspeakable pain. Not even properly ending their lives, just watching as the crippling magic caused the affected to tear themselves apart. That was what was happening to him now. It was horrifying. He understood it in a way he never thought he would, and it terrified him.

“Wa–it, plea…se. Do–” The man tugged hard on the wire, and between it, and the pain he felt. Malkuith’s sentence never finished, nor would it. 

“Disgusting.” He tugged harder, the man croaked, and he sighed. “Have to wash that later. And my hands, and my boots. Well. I feel better, at least.” He didn’t take pride in killing a defenseless man, but ending the life of an awful racist trying to escape after all his crimes? That was worth doing. The town would find his body eventually, no need to bother cleaning it up. He unwrapped his implement and pocketed it, taking out a notebook. “Let’s see, let’s see… Luthier. Just a name, but ties to the Hecatian underground can’t be anything good… I’ll have to keep my ears open for his name to show again. Goodbye, Malkuith. Enjoy your rest.” 

One final sneer and Ingverd was turning back to leave. The sun shining down on the main streets of Eibar made him cover his eyes for a moment, quietly beginning to whistle. That kind of stress relief was exactly what he needed…

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"Mn." Alriana nodded her head along with what Tasha had said. She wasn't usually one to share her burdens, mostly because she hadn't had many before this adventure of theirs started, but this was the first time she'd ever felt scared... Scared of herself? Was that what this was? "Saw self. Scary look in eyes. Many bodies..." She shivered even though she didn't feel cold. "Not want be alone. Not able not think this, don't think..."

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"Vira I don't know what black magic you used to convince her into this, but bless you." It was cute to see this side of Lani. The cat was normally one of the more reserved out of the group, except around Vira most likely. "And yeah you should totally keep this. Something this good can not go as one and done." Gean almost laughed at how many of the group were eye catchers. Tasha ya sure know how to pick them.

Gean took a look off to her right and saw her 'mother' look not as happy as before. "Oh stop grumbling you. Syn will love your new threads. Hell, you'll probably catch an eye or two as well when we head out." For all intentions, Gean wanted to wrap things up here and continue shopping with Nyx. Probably with just the two of them after this. Big groups were nice, but she did have a number of places she wanted to hit up, and smaller groups made for better time.

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Cinaed wandered through town, keeping an eye out for others in his group, not avoiding them, but just wanting to know if he was going to run into them. His interaction with Tonio had lifted his spirits to a point where he wasn't against spending time with people, but he was still just so tired. He was going to need to be ready for the interactions, not just have them sprung on him. But a clothing shop was still his first priority. He needed a way to fix his vest, otherwise he would just be going around with it half falling apart and that simply wasn't acceptable.

His wanderings led him past a small stand, before he stopped, backed up, and gave it a second look. It was simple, more like a table in the street than anything else, with a simple purple cloth over it but what had caught his eye was the crystal ball. His mother had often talked about a fortune teller back home, someone who had seen the future and saved her life. It had apparently been a vision in the crystal ball that had encouraged his grandfather to send his mother away. A promise that she could survive if she left. He had always thought it sounded a little silly, but there was still something that caught him in that crystal ball. He hesitated for a long second and then asked, "Uhm, excuse me, how much to have you read my future?"

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Oops, Nyx thought she was being quiet. Admittedly, part of her disgruntlement was pettiness if nothing else; it tended to happen when she thought too much. Come to think of it, that was probably why she drank as much as she did, aside from the whole ‘loving her vices’ thing.

”Ah, y’don’ mean that. All them lads’ll be starin’ at ye rather than me, although I can’t really blame ‘em. I got a helluva daughter ‘ere, y’know.” Nyx snickered as she found herself perking up once again. Maybe she didn’t need the booze to keep those bad feelings at bay - maybe she just needed someone to drag her out of them instead.

Wait.

”Oi! Y’ain’t allowed t’tease me so much until ye find someone yerself. Ain’t fair, lettin’ it be all one-sided n’shit.” 

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"You and I both know I'm not gonna stop teasing you." Gean called back with a small tinge of sass. "Go ahead to the counter I'll be there to pay soon." Turning back to group next to her. "I'm gonna buy this outfit here and check some other stores out. What's your plans ladies?" Miria would probably stick to her or Renais, but it wouldn't hurt to chat with Vira and Lani some more.

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Miria was still stuck to Gean’s hand. Trying not to be rough, there was a cartoonish pull of her hand, until freeing herself is a strong yank. A sigh of relief. She thought about it. "Well, I was hoping to have a day with my sister so I'm right here." She smiled. "Also you dragged me away from my clothes shopping." She made a joking grumpy face while playfully kicking Gean’s leg.

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