MRDRHAWK
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Scylla moves to (19,18) and equips the Rotating Slicer.
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If Miles hadn’t been at least a little suspicious before, he was now. Either that, or this fortune stuff was a lot more on the nose than he had anticipated. “Hm. You could say that, yes.” He really didn’t know what to make of this new group, though nobody had him exactly wishing to get out immediately.
No, he had his own, entirely unrelated reasons for that.
”Well, I’d like to know what the last card tells me. If you would be so kind, miss…?” Miles paused, realizing that in all his desire to indulge this little curiosity, he hadn’t had the manners to ask her name. He could always ask her later, though, assuming she wasn’t just some spy who’d been peeking in on their luncheon the other day.
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Graham nodded a couple times as Miredy told him a bit about herself - not quite everything, but what he needed to know, and that was fine. “A guard… from Lufiria. Well, you’re quite a ways away from home, but… I do wish you the best of luck in returning safely, if that’s what you desire.”
What wasn’t fine was Kieran’s continued belligerence, which caused Graham to quickly lose his patience with the man. “Excuse me for a moment, Miss Miredy.” Stepping forward, now standing beside Owen, Graham folded his arms in front of his chest. He was, in some part, surprised at what he was about to do and say, but he pressed onward.
“Enough, Kieran. Though I’m reticent to disagree with your disdain of Belrose, you besmirch our Lord Owen’s trust that he has chosen to place in this woman.” Trust that Graham did not entirely share, but that wasn’t the point here. “Remaining caustic will only make things worse. I suggest simply letting the Belrose woman ask her questions, and be on her way. I’m sure someone more… receptive to you would like to ask a few things afterwards.” He gestured towards Owen, as if to remind Kieran that there were more friends than foes among the group gathered here.
Tanya simply gave Lucretia a smile, and nodded at her admission. “Right, sorry. I bet you wouldn’t know much about us… unless Jeremiah’s talked about Pa- er, Anton, you wouldn’t know the name, probably.” Even though some of the extended family would likely have made some mark on Lufiria, maybe. Tanya wasn’t quite sure how some of the cousins were doing.
Any further train of thought was cut off by Renais’ admittance - that she was a Rhapsodia, and therefore Lufirian. “Wow…” She mumbled, before looking back at the healer, after her admittance of not exactly feeling like a Rhapsodia, even with all the similarities. “Guess it makes sense that you would see yourself as still being who you figured you’ve been all this time, though. I couldn’t imagine finding out I’m from a family that’s entirely different from the one I know and love.”
Biting back a shudder at the thought, Tanya continued on, with a bit of a smile. “You know, you really are one of the toughest people I know, Renais. Maybe not in muscles, but you definitely got a stronger spirit than a lotta people I’ve ever met.”
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Well, at least Scylla knows how to dodge. That’s something. Or maybe the tank was a bad shot; either way, she was still standing. And she was patched up somewhat from the added intervention of… okay, she hadn’t entirely been paying attention to the name, but she had to thank her.
”Thanks for the patchwork!” Scylla called out over the comms, before moving back to board the ship for a moment. At the very least, she wasn’t… quite as pissed at her performance as she was last time, although it was still frustrating that she was always the one having to cool off.
She really needed to get better at this whole ‘taking hits’ shit.
Scylla moves to (22,23) and boards the Dawn.
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Graham shook his head, clearly a tad annoyed with his poor choice of words. He had to ruminate for a moment, paying no mind to Kieran and Marigold’s… situation. That’s how he meant to put it.
”So, you were born this way… fascinating. I didn’t mean any offence, and I apologize if there was any. I simply was curious… I’ve never met a Monster with their entire lower half like that of a snake.” Graham hummed thoughtfully, glancing down at the child in her care. To be so trusting of the larger woman… he felt an odd surge of pride at the sight. “You truly are interesting. I’d like to know more about you - not as a Monster, but as a person.”
Amidst all the bustle within the castle walls, there was activity outside of it as well. A pink-haired dragon Clouded, tail swishing about as her hips swayed from her walk, made her way up to the castle with a heavy sigh. Really, she wasn’t sure why Ryon had to stay back at the clinic, and that she was the one who needed to go run their latest supply order by Lord Gaffney.
”Okay, Mina… you can do this. It’s not like you haven’t been here to do this before. Just, maybe not for a while.” Mina clapped her cheeks, as if to psyche herself up, before knocking on the castle door. She wanted to just get this done quickly, and to avoid thinking too hard about her nerves, lest her thoughts drift to that fateful night years ago.
She wondered if that woman who saved her and Ryon from being sold off by the Hecatian Underground would ever show up in her life, so she could properly thank her. Probably not; such things were contrived coincidences at best, and cliches meant only for those tawdry romance novels Ryon kept in the clinic at worst.
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Graham let out a snort at the small crack at his stance on the matter. He found it much easier to relax - though far from letting his guard down - after the slight joke Owen had made. After a moment of careful consideration - and, evidently, being praised by the Belrose woman, which he wasn’t sure how to feel about - Graham decided that perhaps now, it would be best to simply leave the diplomacy with the Belrose woman to Owen. Though… that certainly didn’t mean he found himself lacking a conversation partner.
”I don’t wish to pry if it’s… an uncomfortable affair.” Graham began, taking a moment to collect his words as he stood beside the… snake woman. Gods, there had to be some term for what exactly she was. “However, I must admit to being more than a little curious as to how you became… well.” He vaguely motions to her body, or rather, the lower half of it. “Like that. Were you truly born in such a manner, or is there more to this…?”
Tanya had been hanging back a tad, trying to sort her thoughts out - and take in as much info as she could. So focused was she on making sure she hadn’t forgotten anything Jeremiah had told her, that she hadn’t even noticed everyone dispersing. Crap. Well, Jeremiah and Versaris were still here, and she did need to talk to them, but… looked like she had an introduction to take care of.
”You must be the lady who came along with Jeremiah. It’s good to meet you.” Tanya began, extending a hand to the unfamiliar pink-haired healer of the two. “Name’s Tanya Maldolche. I, uh, doubt you’ve heard of my family, but… either way, I’m looking forward to fighting alongside you.” With that out of the way, Tanya turned her attention to Renais, asking about… Rhapsodia? She had a vague knowledge of that name, but what did that have to do with anything? She didn’t want to pipe in sounding like a clueless idiot, so she simply chose to listen, for now.
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Miles couldn’t help but find himself curious. At the very least, he’s glad he didn’t need to ask for an explanation himself, but at the same time… finding a new beginning for him was something that needed a bit more in the way of specifics.
“You could say that. I… actually believe I’m about to embark upon a new beginning after the festival.” Miles knew he needed to be careful and not say too much, just to be safe. This wasn’t his first special assignment, after all. “What might the next two cards entail? I must admit, you have my interest now.”
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Graham grunted, though he had to stifle himself to avoid letting out a yelp when he saw the… snake woman, holding the child. He’d never seen anything - anyone, he corrected, since she was still a person - like her before, and it was… well, fascinating would be a word for it. Horrifying in implication would be another. The fascination won out, but he’d definitely need to ask her about it later.
“I do not think so little of you, Belrose, to think you enough of an idiot to attack Lord Owen in his own castle.” Graham told Syndra, flatly, though he was a tad annoyed that she had even considered the notion. It may have been a bit rude of him to say, though, so he bit his tongue. “However, as his sworn protector, I will leave no room for error, in the event that you are so foolish.” He leaned in a bit closer, glad for his larger frame so he could loom over Syndra easily. “Do not betray that trust.”
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Well, she tried, she really did. But Scylla once again bit off more than she could chew. “God fuckin’ dammit! Why am I so shit at this?!” She really needed to stop getting into these messes.
“Pulling back for now!” She yelled into the comms, not accounting for the fact that even pulling back still put her uncomfortably close to the front of the line for now.
Scylla moves to (19,22)
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Nyx hadn’t had much time to react to Syndra suddenly wanting to slip off with Owen. Much as she trusted the lad, it was still a bit dangerous to go down to the dungeons alone with someone who had every right to hate her. “Y’sure y’don’ want me wit’ ye? I mean…” Nyx trailed off with a sigh, instead just putting a hand on Syndra’s shoulder.
“Aye, aye. M’nae sure where m’gonna go, but ‘m’sure ye’ll find me after.” And then, Nyx slipped out of the room, weaving her way through the castle, making her way towards the city streets. Hm… Well, she wasn’t exactly tempted now, so maybe she could slip into some bars, get a feel for the gossip of the land. Might be good for their definitely now tactician to get some intel, right?
She could figure out the fine details later. This castle felt huge, and Nyx still needed to navigate.
Graham grunted as Owen and this… ‘Leon’ fellow wove their web. He wasn’t much for this sort of thing, which is why he stepped back and allowed his liege to work his magic. But now he was back in full bodyguard mode, and stood behind Owen as he decided to pay Kieran a visit… with the Belrose.
”I’ll be accompanying the two of you, then.” Graham said rather gruffly, tone brooking no room for debate. He hoped this Belrose would be co-operative… he could feel it get colder near her. Bah, ice magic. Graham never was good at handling that sort of thing. “You’ll forgive me for being prudent, Miss Belrose. Though you have Lord Owen’s trust for the time being, I am still loathe to leave him alone with a Belrose, especially in the dungeons.”
Tanya’s eyes bounced back and forth between Aly and Jeremiah as the latter looked over, and her tail swished almost out of curiosity. Huh, what was that all about? She might need to ask Jeremiah about that later… on top of the other things she needed to ask Jeremiah about still.
Hm. Or, rather than burden him more… maybe she should talk to Sari. Tanya figured it would be at least something of a good idea; maybe as a member of Intelligence, he’d maybe have an idea of what was going on with her Papa. It was a long shot, but… then again, maybe she just wanted to chat with the guy.
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Okay… okay. Not too bad. Scylla could deal with this. Markus looked like he was having a rough time, but Daeran was seemingly handling covering him… so, Scylla switched gears.
”Hit the fuckin’ dash! Let’s see how that goddamn tank likes a bit of crunch time!”
This was… probably not a good idea. But Scylla needed to try. The sooner these things were scrap, the less people would have to risk dying to deal with them.
Scylla activates Accel! Moving to (20,26) and attacking Tank A-2 with the Heavy Metal Sword!
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Before Tanya had much time to answer, Jeremiah had already leapt into action, using his words rather than his weapon to help push the council into siding fully with Lord Gaffney. Tanya was surprised at just how fast he worked, but it was more out of a sense of being impressed than anything.
”A strategist now, is it?” Tanya muttered quietly, hoping some of the nosier folk in the room wouldn’t hear. Discussing tactics wasn’t something she found herself all that good with, but she chose to stick around anyways. She could discuss a few things - and maybe get an update on what’s going on back home - after this.
”Well, maybe it would be nice. I’d certainly feel a lot more comfortable with him around a lot longer than this…”
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Miles couldn’t stifle the chuckle at her shocked reaction in time, but quickly schooled his face into something… slightly more neutral, and less amused. “I apologize for… er, frightening you.” He began, once more having to stifle a laugh. At least this time, he was more successful.
”I admit, I have no knowledge of how any of these things work, so… I suppose the tarot cards. It might be interesting to have a few cards dictate the future.” Miles was never one for the idea of divination, but there was novelty in the idea, at the least. “I may need to come back later, for a second reading. The idea of the stars showing the future is… well, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t curious.”
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Scylla to (18,22)
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Nyx instinctively moved in front of Syndra, hoping maybe these clowns on this Owen fella’s council would quit talking about her girlfriend like that if she was hidden. “Don’ worry, Synnie. M’nae gonna let these lads slander ye like tha’. Ye got more moral fiber in yer fuckin’ pinkie than yer pa does in ‘is whole body.”
Then again, after some thinking, Nyx added, “Not tha’ I got much’a it either, but yer prob’ly th’ brains o’ our lil’ couple, aye?” She teased, completely tuned out from the council‘s rumblings.
Tanya tried her best to follow along, but felt a bit lost. Politics were never her strong suit; Papa, Max, and even Yuyu had a better grip on that sort of thing. She was fine with that, for the most part, even after biting off more than she could chew by joining the Tigers.
Slipping to the side of probably the man in the room she’d feel safest next to, Tanya leaned towards Jeremiah to whisper something to him. “General Jeremiah… why do I get the feeling these people aren’t all that happy about our help? I mean, I know Islexia hates Clouded and all, but you’d think these people would swallow their pride and just… let us help them.”
The large red-haired man had to admit, the council’s points held merit. He’d had some suspicions, but to hear that the lost Belrose was among this group had the hair on his arms practically bristling. Before he could get a word in edgewise, though, one of the other women introduced herself as one of the Evokers, and things fell into place mentally.
“Lord Owen,” the man began, leaning his body downwards slightly to whisper into his lord’s ear, “I suggest heeding the words of the lady Candalia. If the Evokers themselves vouch for these people, perhaps we can trust them, even with a certain…” He threw a look over towards Syndra, maintaining a neutral face even with every other part of him screaming to scowl at her. “… Weed in the midst of flowers.”
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Miles couldn’t help but let out a slight snicker at the sight of the tent. In his honest opinion, it more resembled a child’s attraction than something at a proper festival, but he decided to withhold his judgment until after he heard his fortune. It wouldn’t be right, to simply dismiss the novelty of it all, without giving it a fair chance.
”Pardon, but I’m interested in your… services?” Miles couldn’t help but be surprised by the petite woman, raising an eyebrow as she looked rather… distracted. Given how quiet it seemed to be in for the woman, he suspected business was slow, and she was resigned to merely whiling away the day. Look at him, ruining the woman’s plans. “Erm, I admit, I’m terribly new to the whole matter of fortune telling. I’ve never truly been one for… er, superstition.” He didn’t know if that was the right word for it, but hopefully the woman understood what he meant.
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With how well that Lancer crunched beneath the weight of her swing, Scylla was feeling pretty good. Thank god she didn’t turn on her comms, or else she’d have been heard cackling like a maniac - only to panic like hell when she heard the other voice on the suddenly open comm line.
”Gah!” Scylla nearly fell out of her seat, but kept herself steady. With that in mind, she moved a bit closer, but taking care to not rush in like a fool.
Scylla moves to (19,18) and equips the Rotating Slicer.
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Miles had seemed to be able to slip towards the entrance of the inn without being accosted, which was nice, at least. There would be much more time to indulge in the company of the others, but today, he had some time to himself, and he intended to take it. He gave a quick greeting to Lord Alister and Mikhail as he left, before rolling his shoulders.
”Right… where to first? Mm, now I wish I had a guide of some sort, to recommend some things. How vexing.” Miles decided that his first order of business would be to find a fortune teller - he’d heard that they were a novel thing, and he had always been curious about what he could learn. Besides, with such an important task ahead after the festival, Miles wanted as much foresight as he could get.
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Well, shit. Nyx really hoped she wouldn’t have had to jump to her girlfriend’s defence, but so it went. “M’Nyxied, an’ Syn ‘ere’s m’girlfriend. Trust me, she ain’t the kinda lass tha’ ‘er dad is.” Well, probably, anyways. Maybe her dad had some of Syndra’s better qualities, but Nyx had no clue.
Tanya, meanwhile, seemed a bit caught off-guard by everyone just jumping into introductions. She wondered if it’d even be worth it to introduce herself, but decided to just go for it anyways. “Tanya Maldolche, eldest daughter of the Maldolche family of Lufiria. Nyice- uh, shit, nice to meet you.”
While the introductions were in full swing, a rather large red-haired Clouded fellow stepped to the side of Owen. Scratching his neck with a hairy hand, he looked down at his lord while keeping an eye on the others. “Lord Owen, are you truly sure about this? I understand Lady Cassandra seems to be vouching for them, but even still…” The man sighed, perhaps overthinking things. Besides, it wasn’t entirely his place to question both of the siblings. “My apologies. I should know better than to doubt you and your sister.” He rolled his shoulders back, and simply stayed at Owen’s side, as a good guardian should.
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Miles was rather reticent to take a room in the inn when the princess was elsewhere, but he supposes this would be something he’d have to get used to. Even before getting out of his room, though, he had much to do. New feelings to sort out, new people to deal with… and yet, as he sat on his bed, half clothed, it was the same issue that he always had to deal with.
”Blasted arm…” The whirring was sounding much clunkier than normal today while Miles was getting dressed, which meant he’d require additional maintenance today. He wondered if he would even be able to make much of the festival, but… he had to try. The whole reason he even had this mechanical arm was so he could enjoy life without having to be held back because of the circumstance of his birth. Even if it was a cursed little contraption many days, it was still invaluable for Miles to protect people.
“Well, best be off. It wouldn’t do for me to be alone and miserable when merriment is the goal of the day.” Miles muttered to no one but him, to psyche himself up for the day. He didn’t let things get him down normally, and he wouldn’t start now.
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Scylla saw an opening, and hell if she wasn’t going to take it. Sliding in after Markus had taken his shot, Scylla brandished her HEX’s sword and took a mighty swing at the bot!
Scylla to (17,16) and attack Lancer 1 with her Heavy Metal Sword!
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Tanya hadn’t felt this good in… well, it felt like weeks, but it probably wasn’t. Still, she had noticeably more pep in her step as they made it to Esclas, and her tail kept flicking this way and that as she did. It also meant she tried to keep a slight bit of distance between herself and everyone else, because nobody liked cat butts in their face… well, probably. It’s not something that ever really comes up in polite conversation, so she has no idea.
Tanya kept favouring her side, though; that one shot she took still had her reeling a bit, and weirdly, it was harder to adjust out of combat than it had been during. At least Jeremiah had stayed with them through the trip, which was nice - it meant things weren’t going horribly, like she’d been afraid of before. Come to think of it, why had that affected her so much? She wasn’t like that normally… Ah, well, no need to dwell. She had another goal in mind, now - getting to know some of the Tigers better.
Maybe that ice lady would be a good start… after their business was taken care of, of course.
Nyx had never felt more out of place than she did right now, which was weird, given she was one of the only fully human folk here.
Maybe that was part of it - or maybe it was more to do with the fact that she was arm-in-arm with an Islexian warlord’s daughter, who absolutely could not let people know who she was around here or else there’d be horrible times ahead. Damn, can’t even flaunt her hot fuckin’ girlfriend without an international incident anymore, huh?
Thinking about how that was a real, genuine concern made Nyx uneasy. Before, life was a lot simpler. Now, she was in bed with a noble, just fought against a massive criminal organization that she’d formerly been a part of, shot said noble in the ass, shot a dead guy in the dick, and now was trotting into an Islexian noble’s house with the Evokers and some big-shot Lufirian General, and that didn’t even account for any of the other folks with her.
All this thinking made Nyx feel like she needed a drink. Maybe quitting wasn’t as easy as she thought.
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Miles clicked his tongue, but before he could get another word in edgewise, his liege came in and sat next to him. Letting out a breath he likely had some idea he was holding, he placed a reassuring hand upon the princess’s shoulder - his flesh-and-bone hand, fortunately, not his mechanical one.
”You only had to chase them so fiercely because they were so frightened by your strength, milady.” Miles gave her praise like it was second nature, and in a way, it was. He just hopes that his relief wasn’t too obvious, or it might be embarrassing. “I’m relieved to see you unharmed, milady. Not that I would have expected any less from you, of course.”
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Miles hadn’t actually been intending to challenge anybody, though Evangeline seemed quick to defuse a situation that wasn’t much of anything. Had he come off as challenging Ichika, to her? His brow furrowed at the thought, and wondered if he should perhaps clear the air later.
Before he could, though, Evangeline explained more about what their goal was - retrieval of the Regalia. “Ah, this makes sense… so, we’ve been chosen by our benefactors - to which I assume myself, Mikhail, and the red-haired madam’s lieges can be listed as being among - because they knew we could be trusted, given that many of us have had our strength witnessed by royalty firsthand.” Miles seemed keen to sum up why they were here, almost to make things more palatable. But something tugged at his mind - two somethings, really, but only one could be dealt with now.
“I’ll be frank, miss Evangeline. Does the church - or you, perhaps - believe this group to be acting alongside Garmr’s forces?” Miles asked, drumming his artificial arm’s fingers on the table before him. If such things were all connected…
Faith in the Spirits Arc 1: To Align the Stars
in Roleplay
Posted
Graham wanted to snipe back at Marigold, but Owen’s interjection cut him off at the proverbial pass. He took a deep breath, and moved back away from the cage door, his attempt to ground himself aided by Kieran actually being cordial for once, though that lasted about as long as it took for the Belrose to open her mouth. Even Miredy said her piece, too, which left Graham pondering how this divide could be bridged, if it even could.
He settled on the simplest answer - leave it to Owen and the Belrose. It wasn’t his place to pull everyone together by force, unless given the order.
Tanya felt a bit lost and left out, but that just seemed to be common for her with this group. It was… fine, she guessed, but it still stung to feel so lost all the time. Then again, this wasn’t about her, but about… well, everyone else around her, being some sort of important folk.
“Oh, uh… Jeremiah, if Renais is leaving, and you aren’t urgently needing to speak with Sari… I just. Um. Wanted to ask…” Tanya wondered if she should even ask this, but… eh, may as well. She needed to know, after all. “Have you any idea what’s happening back home? With… my family, I mean. I’m sure you’ve at least spoken with Papa- er, Anton, at some point before you left… or, at least, I’d hope so.” If not, it was fine, but Tanya really wanted to be sure the family was okay. She knew Yuria would likely be setting out soon, given her age and curiosity, but Tanya was hoping that Yuyu would wait until she got back home from her own travels first.
Mina let out a huff, though she wasn’t too shocked. She’d heard through the grapevine that there was… some sort of gathering in the estate, today; some foreigners seeking an audience from Lord Gaffney. It was just… very poorly timed, since now it meant Mina couldn’t get in because everyone was just too darn busy to open a door.
”Only question is, where would I…” Mina hummed, thoughtfully, as she headed down the steps and around the estate to see if there was… well, some sort of back door. Heck, maybe she’d find an entrance that would lead her right to one of the Gaffneys, but that would just be too convenient, right?
”All this just to put in a supply order… Ryon had better thank me for this when I get back.”
It had taken Nyx a little bit, but she had to dodge a bunch of people to slip out without being pestered about where she was going. She didn’t want the other Tigers getting the wrong idea that she was off to drink and cause trouble; no, she just knew how to poke about taverns to get a lay of the land.
Sure, she’d picked that skill up from a long time of being a barfly, but that was beside the point.
Eventually, Nyx made her way from the estate, navigating Esclas, until she’d hit the bar. It seemed pretty rowdy for this time of day, but that was fine. If anything, it worked to Nyx’s advantage, long as nobody tried to cop a feel - she was really not in the mood to explain to Nattie why one of the locals had a familiar-looking arrow embedded in his asscheek.
Nyx slipped onto one of the barstools, tapping on the bar lightly to get the tender’s attention. She was trying to quit drinking, yes, but she knew most places had at least some non-alcoholic shit. And all that running around made her thirsty.