Skyside 6: Return of the Cheddar

[bc56]

Outside Groundtown Slaver Warehouse

Sekhmet says nothing. The slaver knows too much to release. Sekhmet will let her stew in her own thoughts for a while. Meanwhile, she'll spend her time with Prumathe and maybe comforting or helping some of the freed slaves if they need it.

[5a Violista]

Blackheart Street

Viviane is fine for the broken catchpole staying on her neck for now.

The orc missed her leg and falls over;
Viviane takes a step towards him, but upon realizing that the smoke dissipates and that it suddenly ends, is disappointed but realizes this is probably the best opportunity to take away the knife from this orc.

She lunges down towards the orc's hands, and tries to pry his hand open to take his knife away.

[Shadowcaller]

Back to the Ship

Minerva, the gunslinger and all the girls freed from the brothel earlier head back to the ship! When they arrive, they find that there's five people waiting for them, alongside the ship's mechanicus adept. They're... mostly human. One is a woman in an orange space-suit, with a domed helmet under her arm. She holds in her other hand an unusual gun of non-standard design; it has a stock that can be removed and used as a machete, and three barrels- two shotgun barrels over a lower rifle barrel. Another is apparently human, but far taller than the norm- just over three metres tall, and is wearing a pressurised survival suit with a servo-frame built into it; she also looks to be a woman, but the bulky suit helping her mitigate her low-grav origin makes it hard to tell. Another is much shorter; recognisably a ratling abhuman, he holds an antique single-shot laslock fitted with a powerful scope, and wears clothing in dull browns and greys. The fourth figure is the hardest to identify; they have human stature and shape, but their true identity is hidden by the voidsuit they wear, one of thick canvas and polished brass, it looks like an antique diving suit. The final figure is probably the one that Minerva feels most comfortable with; he looks to be in his sixties, and wears a well-worn Astra Militarum flightsuit, haphazardly repaired at his left leg, which ends in a cybernetic prosthesis.

The tech-priestess looks at the returning Battle Sister and her companions. "I took the liberty of sourcing some new crew to take this vessel back. I did not leave, I sent out a request for aid over the vox. These individuals have experience in voidcraft navigation and travel, and are trained in their operation as well. At least, to an extent." And it'll save time, since they've got a bare minimum crew.

Back to the Ship

Minerva would normally have a speech but she feels like it would be wasted on these people of such little faith. But as they were willing to come along she would have to do with what she had.
"How are we doing on soldiers and infiltrators? Getting the ship is of course step one but then we need to be able to sabotage it too." She couldn't deal with that alone, even with Zee's help.

[Looking for Jinn's Workshop]

Well, the workshop isn't difficult to find.
Too bad it seems to have been burned down or at least parts of it have. Other sections of the building are just gone as if they never were there in the first place. There's not even any rubble there.

There is however a pink-colored drone floating just outside the remains of the workshop where one might expect to find a mail box. Quite peculiar.

Manor Labs

Tellysandra doesn't arrive, instead one of her drones do and just starts buzzing as it seems to zoom in on Nora with its camera.

[bc56]

Blackheart Street

The knife hits Athena's neck... And now it's her turn not to react. The armored mesh that makes up her underlayer can easily turn a knife. She learned from the tentacle child monsters a while back and protected her neck. She follows up with a punch to the orc's philtrum, then a left hook to his temple. She turns and fires a beam of light from her leg at the orc strangling eyebrow guy, she'd rather not anyone die when she can prevent it.

[Earl of Purple]

Back to the Ship

"We could do with some more soldiers, just in case, but I shall do the infiltration alone. Nobody else will be able to navigate the ship's corridors or overload the atomic furnace to ensure total destruction with sufficient time to make an escape. Heavy weaponry may be required as well. Where is the other one? The lady with the archeotech?" The techpriestess is very interested in that, even if she can't keep it.

Blackheart Street

The orc recoils as Athena punches him in the face, a loud crack as teeth break from the blow. He stumbles back and jabs his knife at Athena's face, since her neck is armoured, and walks into the hook and is knocked out, dropping the knife.

The retreating orc with the Thaylen man is shot by Athena, and falls over stunned. So is the captive, since the people-catcher was wound very tight about his neck.

The orc wrestling with Viviane loses their knife, and tries to punch her in the jaw.

The remaining orc from the smoke turns and runs, hoping to get away before they get beaten and possibly killed. Even though slaves have escaped, and the hagraven disappeared, the Guild will be interested in whatever he can tell them in dealing with Athena and Smoke in the future.

The hagraven is gone; three orcs are dead. One has been electrocuted, then stunned. Two are knocked out. One is fighting to keep Viviane under control, and one has been stunned by Athena. One is running away. The Thaylen man with the eyebrows is partly suffocated and stunned, the elf has run away.

[Rebonack]

[Cultist Hunting]

Oh good.

This will be pretty easy.

Zee is going to be waiting for the cultists to make it out to the middle of nowhere before she does anything. A nice, barren salt flat beyond Skyside. Then she's going to invoke the Shape Sphere to alter the size of the pistons in the motor bike juuuust enough that they get stuck.

That will do awful things to the motor bike.

Once the cultist is busy being in the middle of a desert with a broken down vehicle Zee will approach.

"Hey!" she calls out, waving to the cultist. "Engine trouble?"

Yes Zee, you caused it you rapscallion.


[Blackheart Steet]

Darn.

That guy is totally suffocating.

Smoke drops out of invisibility and begins working at the man-catcher to get it loose.

"I'll get this thing off you in a second," he tells the stunned eyebrow guy. Maybe he'll be able to catch up with the fleeing orc later. He isn't sure. But the first thing to do is make sure that this guy doesn't get his brain starved of blood. There's still that orc the other woman is struggling with, but near as Smoke can tell she's going to be kicking his butt sooooo...

[Earl of Purple]

Cultist Hunting

The bike sputters as Zee's tampering takes effect, and the cultist coasts to a stop. He puts the kickstand down before getting off, as Zee approaches. He's wearing dirty green overalls and a second-hand kevlar vest; it has a hole in it where a bullet hit but didn't fully penetrate. He's armed with a fire-axe with a cutdown handle and a semi-automatic pistol. "Regrettably so, Miss. Dunno what's wrong with it; I could figure it out if I took it apart, but... No tools. D'you have a ride I can borrow?"

[5a Violista]

[Blackheart Street]

Viviane is punched in the face.

She falls to the ground, away from the orc.

Getting into a fist fight seems like a decent consolation prize, so long as she gets rid of the knife first since she doesn't want the orc to take it back. So, as she falls, she makes sure she lets go of the knife and make it spin away on the ground.

[Rebonack]

[Cultist Hunting]

"Nope, sorry, no rides here," Zee replies with an apologetic shrug.

This may strike the cultist as very, very strange.

They're out in the middle of a desert. He had been riding across the salt flat for how long? There's no reason why a person would be walking around out here. And come to think of it, shouldn't he have seen her while he was driving? She couldn't have just popped up out of nowhere, right?

Something is seriously off.

Zee looks the cultist up and down approvingly, then asks a question.

"So. Did you think you would get away with it?" she asks.

Zee takes a step closer, her form beginning to waver around the edges as searing light bleeds through.

"Did you think a place like this wouldn't have guardians? That I would just let you sow the seeds of my home's death?"

[Shadowcaller]

Back to the Ship

Minerva shrugs, a gesture which is barely noticeable in her power armor. "Zee is chasing the last cultist. We have to make sure the xeno infestation is exterminated from surface before we can go to the rogue trader ship. When was this ship expected to return there exactly? Was there some kind of deadline you had to meet? Since right now I'm not sure we can even sabotage the ship. I need more information about what we can expect there." Maybe she should have interrogated one of the cultists before executing them. Perhaps Zee still could if she could get in touch with her...

[Earl of Purple]

Cultist Hunting

The cultist rapidly draws his pistol and fires several times at Zee in lieu of answer. He's aiming at her head, in the hopes she needs that. He's backing away as he does, but he doesn't have anywhere else to really go.

Return to the Ship

"I do not know. Nobody told me anything. There appears to be enough cargo to make the trip, and none of it is the sort of thing that they would have shipped down. Crates of seeds, and one mostly filled with sand to short-change the Rogue Trader. Six guns, curious design. Human, but not matching any design I am familiar with. I will fetch them, see if you can recognise them. They are not bolt weaponry, nor autoguns. They fire sharp discs of metal. I have... done some tests, and the weapon can be charged so the disc explodes when it hits. That is possibly an inferior method of using it, however. The discs are capable of bouncing around corners." The techpriest hovers off, leaving Minerva, the gunslinger, the rescued girls and the haphazard crew on their own.

The Militarum vet salutes Minerva. "Flight Officer Izmayl Furslending, formerly of Sammael's Thunder Squadron reporting for duty, Ma'am. Not a Valkyrie, alas, but this bucket doesn't look too bad. I'll let you and the enginseer discuss the technicalities of this operation, I'll get everyone aboard and settled. Pleasure to serve the Emperor again, Ma'am." He smiles, and lurches away. There's a bit of lag in his cybernetic leg, which he needs to compensate for, but he's used to it.

[bc56]

Blackheart Street

Athena's helmet will definitely prevent her from being injured by the face stab, but it doesn't stop her from flinching. She still finishes her attack and runs towards Smoke, taking up an aggressive stance. "Give me a good reason I shouldn't bring you in too." She doesn't take kindly to murderous vigilantes. That's not the right way to solve these problems.

[Earl of Purple]

Blackheart Street

The orc continues to run, and the orc fighting Viviane also makes a break for it, heading in another direction. They abandon their knife, too; Viviane can keep it, if she wants. It's a combat knife, with a kevlar grip.

Freeing the Thaylen from the catchpole is relatively easy. Just grab the pole and twist it in the opposite direction to loosen the wire hoop- or, if Smoke has a pair of wire-cutters, he could cut the loop directly. That might be tricky since it's digging into the guy's neck, but it's possible.

The hagraven is gone; three orcs are dead. One has been electrocuted, then stunned; he's awake, but waiting for a distraction before he runs. Athena and Smoke fighting would provide that. Two are knocked out. One has been stunned by Athena. Two are running away. The Thaylen man with the eyebrows is recovering from the catchpole, the elf has run away.

[Rebonack]

[Cultist Hunting]

Pew pew pew!

Zee's human form incinerates when the rounds hit her and now there's something else.

Like a dragon, fearsome, powerful, awful.
Like a tree, immovable, growing, grounded.
Like a deer, graceful, beautiful, wild.
Like eyes, bottomless pits of stellar darkness devouring all light.

Something like a claw/root/hoof moves to pin the cultist to the ground.

"Well?" asks the thing, her voice vibrating the cultist's bones. "Have you anything to say for yourself?"

It looks like she isn't making friends today.


[Blackheart Street]

"Bring me in where exactly?" Smoke replies crossly as she finishes freeing eyebrow guy. "Get out of here. Try not to get caught again I might not be around to save your skin."

Then he'll stand, staring Athena down.

"We're obviously both here to stop the slavers from plying their trade in bodies and souls. You've got, what? Something against lethal force? In Skyside? The authorities here are so corrupt you can't seriously expect them to do anything aside from give this scum a slap on the wrist since they're in the Slaver Guild's pocket. The problem won't be solved."

He pounds one fist in his hand.

"Only thing these monsters understand is force and money. If enough of their lackeys die people will think twice about joining. If they loose enough money then doing business here becomes unprofitable and they leave. It's as simple as that."

[5a Violista]

[Blackheart Street]

Ugh! This was so disappointing! First, a couple of magic superheros interrupt. Then! The guy she was fighting runs away! Fighting muggers is so much better.

Viviane walks over to grab the knife, and then starts to undo her catchpole. It's broken, so...well, that probably shouldn't matter. She eventually gets it off.
...
She glances over towards the two heroes. Maybe, if she gets lucky, those two could start fighting and then she can get 'caught' in the fighting as an innocent bystander, to salvage this.

[Dr.Gunsforhands]

[Birds Scatter]

"-W-ell, okay then, if you're sure," Aviene says. She gets back on her scooter for the trip back to Skyside proper while the rest of the bird trio takes off. "Later!"

--

[Combined Pharma]

Getting back into work is not going to be the easiest task for Aviene. Her phone was fried along with her goggles and her biometrics no longer match what the automated guards have on record. She's going to have to stop at her hive, log in from her personal husktop, let her coworkers know to expect her, and probably do a quick study on the street to make sure the spread was halted as Jade predicted.

Meanwhile, Sweater Vest Troll and Broken Computer Human have their own work to do.

"Okay, I've started the simulation, but we're going to need some test subjects for the solutions," says Leslie. She takes a look at her phone while they have a quiet moment, and gasps. "So that's... Gorjek, have you seen this? It's practically dominated Inside... and it's already spawned into a bunch of mutant cases! We need to-"

"Ah, the *Buttercup situation, correct? Don't worry about that. I have already devised a countermeasure and submitted my recommendation to Princess YoonJi herself. *___"

"Really? How? Recommendation for what?"

"A complex royal decree that would officially forbid the name Buttercup and strip it from any current or incoming denizens in favor of a default replacement. *___
Thanks to the crown's long and detailed diplomatic relationship with Fey in general, the princess's authority can be made to supercede Buttercup's power within House Sky's domain. *___
Long story short, it won't cure anyone, but Skyside residents should be rendered more or less immune. *___"

He snickers. "Fey curses are always more legal than physical, you know. Good thing I'm not a biologist. *___"

[Arkhosia]

Spoiler

Show

[Look I'm Sorry Arkh Once Again I'm Writing this at 2am and am too Braindead to Write a Funny Location Header]

"Well, okay then. I think I could do with the help." The catgirl looked incredibly apologetic and awkward. "It's Elizabe- err, Eclipse. Call me Eclipse.". She hastily and rather poorly tried to stop herself from giving Fidelia her real name. Elizabeth had no reason not to trust Fi at this point of course, but she still felt it wasn't the best idea to be giving out her real name after being caught in a criminal act. Especially giving it to someone from VIGIL, who for all Elizabeth knew she might just end up investigating someday. Once she had a bit more skill and knowledge of course, and some actual suspicions to go on. For the moment she just generally figured that any large organization had to be corrupt in some way or other.

Stahlar Eclipse

Fidelia raises an eyebrow as Elizabe- err Eclipse fumbles at providing a psuedonym. Lying certainly isn't her strong suit, at least when not behind a keyboard. She doesn't comment on it though, even if she does note it. "Okay. Do you know where you're headed?" Probably not. Searching for someone can be kind of difficult that way.

[UncleWolf]

[Looking for Jinn's Workshop]

Sam does his best to shrug reassuringly. He's trying to hard to be nonchalant, but the two of them are clearly feeling the same way.
"Well, if it's any consolation...I think in the end despite everything I turned out alright." Sam might think he's nothing pretty...but being strong, resistant to the elements, and four-armed has proven pretty useful.

Manor Lab

Anri arrives exactly on time, as she must. She's almost incapable of not doing so unless she is delayed by outside forces when an appointment is made.
"Yes, I am quite ready. I'm also quite ready to see this body be smashed to a thousand pieces. Though if you would rather someone try to get it working again with another power source, you can consider it donated to pay for the costs, My Lady." Anri nods to Tellysandra. She's not happy about the warlock using the costs of this venture to force Anri to keep working for her, but anything that gets her out of this tin can is worth the cost.

[Looking for Jinn's Workshop]

Well, the workshop isn't difficult to find.
Too bad it seems to have been burned down or at least parts of it have. Other sections of the building are just gone as if they never were there in the first place. There's not even any rubble there.

There is however a pink-colored drone floating just outside the remains of the workshop where one might expect to find a mail box. Quite peculiar.

Manor Labs

Tellysandra doesn't arrive, instead one of her drones do and just starts buzzing as it seems to zoom in on Nora with its camera.

Looking for Jinn's Shop

Well.

That was not promising in the least. The elf's heart sinks at the sight, but when she spots the drone, there remains a glimmer of hope. "H-Hello?" She asks nervously, stepping up to the drone. "Are...we're looking for someone named Jinn."

Manor Lab

"In that case, having it left behind for recouping losses would be preferred by a great deal." Norael says with complete seriousness as she pulls back the cloth covering the body without a hint of flair. Under it lays a rather pretty and athletic young woman. "A little more muscled than you were expecting, I'm sure, but it was honestly necessary." The Angel admits, setting a hand on the body's shoulder. "Now, I will explain it as simply as I can, but it is a lengthy explanation about why and how it all works, and you'll need to understand it. We can start with the simpler stuff first though." She reaches out, taking the body's right arm and gives it a twist at the shoulder, detaching it. "Unfortunately, the meat b- the torso didn't have the capability to grow limbs, even with my work. Instead however, I've been able to get upper-mid grade cybernetics for you. They can touch, feel, sense, and even better, they're light. Well, light for cybernetics. Titanium alloys make them strong and light, but it IS still metal. Because of such, I've had to grow and shape extra muscle and bone density to support it all. Inside the limbs, just in case, I took the time to have silver etched in to allow the better transfer of magics should it help." Norael reaches over to the socket, tapping it before reattaching the limb. "And please, PLEASE, for Atom's sake...never take all four off at the same time or allow someone else to do it. Not unless you REALLY trust that person. Seriously, there's some incredibly weird people out there who are attracted to that sort of thing and...well, you get the picture. Just be cautious." She warns.

"The sockets are standard though, so if you ever need to adjust or replace the limbs or head, then you should be able to get it replaced at any reputable cyberneticist."

Letting out a sigh through her nose, Norael moves over to the head. "I tried to get it as close of a match as possible to what you wanted, but it probably isn't perfect. It's made much the same way and includes an air filtration system AND the actual capability to eat and drink which is needed to sustain the body. I was informed you can actually taste stuff as well, though it may be a little muted in flavor. And better yet..." She reaches down, using both hands to press points on either side of the head before lifting up the face, revealing cybernetics underneath. "It is entirely modular so you can fine tune your appearance and doesn't contain a single truly important thing necessary to sustain your biological functions. Not even a brain. All this is used for is sensory input, food, air, and hydration. If it gets destroyed or damaged, it CAN get replaced. Just don't let others know. The head itself connects halfway down the neck and should the head get removed, extra barriers move to block off the trachea and esophagus so there's no actual damage dealt and you can get help." She takes a moment to put the face back on, showing where the pressure points were in the process.

"Now for the complicated part. I said the head doesn't have a brain, but that doesn't mean there isn't one." Norael points out, tapping the torso. "It isn't a brain as you'd know it, at least nothing so advanced, but with some help I was able to graft in a secondary and tertiary nervous system to help provide all the functions and reactions you could need. You might even end up better than before, though it does mean that if the body itself takes damage, then you could lose function faster than usual. On the OTHER side of things, there's no glaring weak spot and it means you can feel things better than before as well. Everything you could want is in the body. Digestion, breathing, blood, bone, some of the messy necessities though I made them as efficient as possible...and of course, the FUN parts. And I made sure they're EXTRA fun." She seems quite smug about that last one and would grin if she could, though Norael settles for a coy wink.

"I'll explain more about the body itself in a bit, but there's one final piece of the puzzle. The Soul Jar." She explains, the amusement tamped down as she pulls out a tiny sliver of metal hardly a centimeter long and offers it to Anri. It was blank on both sides but seemed to be made of surgical steel. "You've about a hundred of those in you, made out of surgical steels, ceramic, or dragon's bone depending on where they were grafted in. Each one has part of an all-together frighteningly complicated formula etched into it. Together, it will not only provide the structure for your soul and consciousness to cling to, but also PREVENT outside forces from knocking you out of it. Effectively, your being will be trapped in this body for better or worse. And I do mean the latter." She heads back to her desk, sitting down and looking quite serious now.

"The reason the body has no true brain is because, ultimately, you no longer NEED one, Anri. Whomever did this to you either unknowingly or uncaringly released you from the confines of normal mortality. Your requirements for biological interpretation of sensory input and memory are minimalized now. Your consciousness, your soul, your sense of being is all now freed from that mortal coil that traps so many others. For all intents and purposes now, that body there is only an accessory for you to wear and use. And that is something you need to start considering relatively soon. Some day, some year, far into the future, that body is going to hit its limits. YOU won't. You're immortal unless someone takes the time to obliterate your soul itself. That's part of what the slivers will try to help protect you from. It does mean however that should the body expire, despite the gene-tailoring to prevent vulnerabilities to disease and promote longevity, if you don't make plans to get a new body your consciousness could be trapped in it for a long time." She warns. "I have put in sensors to give off distress calls should all neurological processes cease to be, but that should only be a last resort."

After her serious warning however, the angel seems to grin, proud of herself and her work. "So, what do you think? Can't wait to take her for a spin? Go out on the town? Get absolutely railed?"

[Earl of Purple]

Slaver's Guild Warehouse

In one of the warehouses near Skyside's decks there are many small cells, built with solid walls on three sides and clear perspex on the fourth, with an electric lock. Each cell has a bed, a toilet and a shower all built in, and in one of those cells is a young girl- sixteen to nineteen, maybe, though her mixed heritage- halfling, elf and human- really makes her age quite tricky to determine. She's just over a metre tall, average in build, with long red hair down he back, large purple eyes and pointed ears. Her pale skin is dotted with freckles, most of which are visible as she's wearing only a bikini that matches her eyes.

She's kneeling on the bed, hands clasped and eyes closed, praying quite fervently- though not to any deity in particular. "I don't know if anyone can hear me, but... I need a miracle again. I know it's so soon after the last miracle, for the same situation. The kind demon lady you sent was greatly appreciated, and it helped me out of this situation. But... But then I was stupid. I went to my Mum, told her what happened. She paid a neighbour to send me back, she didn't want trouble with the Guild. Git sold me, getting money from both ends. I... I still want out, if you can help me. I'll give anything in my power."

[bc56]

Slaver's Guild Warehouse

There's a moment of silence after the prayer ends. Then another.
And then a beautiful demoness appears in the cell, appearing in a burst of flame and puff of yellow smoke. She's entirely unclad, but she seems to glory in it. There's a visible family resemblance to the other demon the slave met. The same six horns, the barbed tail, the batlike wings. She says nothing, gauging the slave's reaction to her sudden appearance. She just stands there and smiles.

Blackheart Street

"You think killing them all will solve anything? In a town like this? There will always be people desperate enough to see this as their only option. To sell their friends and family and neighbors. And there will always be people ready to take advantage of them. Your way doesn't solve anything until you've killed all the poor and powerless people in the city. I'm not here to stop slavers. I'm here to free slaves. And to get them out of this hellhole of a city for good." Athena angrily replies. Vigilante murderers are so frustrating sometimes. They just take their aggression out on whatever they see as the source of the problem without thinking about the root socioeconomic causes.

[Earl of Purple]

Slaver's Guild Warehouse

The girl waits a moment, before groaning and lying back into the bed- which is the point where Sapphira appears, and she yelps, sitting up and pulling her legs up against her chest to hide her nudity. Her large eyes are even wider, as she looks at the demon-queen and the resemblance to the girl's prior rescuer. "Oh, you came! Wait, no. You're... Well, you appeared different. Last time, you were outside the door and opened it, letting us all out. And you had clothes on." The half-halfling-quarter-elf-quarter-human tilts her head to one side. "And you're not the same lady at all, are you? You look very like her. Will you get me out of here?"

Blackheart Street

The Thaylen has stopped at one of the bodies, stripping it of armour and valuables. He's not interested in the shock-spear or the catchpole, since those are only really used by the Guild and their immediate allies, so don't sell very well at all. He does take the knife, though. He'll be able to use that.

The hagraven is gone; three orcs are dead. One has been electrocuted, then stunned; he's awake, but waiting for a distraction before he runs. Athena and Smoke's argument works, so he's getting up and ready to run. Two are knocked out. One has been stunned by Athena, and is starting to recover. Two are running away. The Thaylen man with the eyebrows is recovering from the catchpole, the elf has run away. One of the orcs heads down an alleyway, and there's shortly after a muffled and short-lived scream from the alleyway; deep enough to be the orc. The other hears it and avoids the alleyway.

[bc56]

Slavers' Guild Warehouse

A moment later, Sapphira conjures an outfit matching the unfortunate girl's, a pitch-black bikini in the same style. She sits on the edge of the bed next to the girl. "No, that was not me. But I am going to release you." With a simple gesture of the tail, the door to the cage pops open. "Come. Speak with me. Tell me about the one who rescued you before. She may be a member of my family." Sapphira stands and beckons to the slave. "I am Sapphira. What should I call you?"

[Earl of Purple]

Slaver's Guild Warehouse

"It was the Groundtown warehouse. It's out of action right now, she walked off with all the people they had. Um, are you gonna do that, too?" The helfling doesn't mind too much either way; she's getting free, that's the most important thing. It's a shame about all these other people, but... maybe she can come back for them.

"My name's Bluefoot Shivernight. Your... family member- younger sister, maybe?" She tilts her head as she guesses the relationship. Sapphira doesn't look very much older than Sekhmet. "She led us all outside, dragging one of the guards with her. I scarpered after that, she was with this human chap with dark skin and green eyes. An attractive chap; he seemed into her. Oh! And they had a brownie, too. She was helping them, I could just about see her. I think her, hard to tell. Brownies are hard to spot, for me. Dad could do it better, he had the gift of fae sight." She's still got it, just not as strong. Other magic, too.

[bc56]

Slaver's Guild Warehouse

Sapphira does not release any other slaves. "Did she say her name? Do you know where she is?" The questions are posed eagerly. The man sounds like Sekhmet's beloved. That commoner. He got her all tied up in the struggles of the little worthless people, didn't he. The warehouse is eerily silent, and Bluefoot will probably notice all the other slaves that might see the pair are blindly looking past them. They don't seem to be invisible, but yet no one sees them.

[Rebonack]

[Blackheart Street]

It looks like Smoke is going to say something else but then that muffled scream catches his attention. The slavers are garbage but that might mean something worse it prowling around. Maybe an escaped experiment.

Or maybe something worse.

"We'll table this ethical discussion for a time when there AREN'T other problems to deal with," Smoke retorts as he runs off toward the alley to see what's going on.

Hopefully it isn't a pack of kildren.

He really hates those things they're gross.

The vigilante pauses briefly to make sure Viviane is alright before heading off down the alley!

So?

What's going on in there?

Hopefully Athena doesn't shoot him in the back.

[Earl of Purple]

Slaver's Guild Warehouse

"Not where I could hear it, I'm afraid. I think they went to GLoG, but... if they stayed there I couldn't say." Bluefoot is relaxing a little, now. She's feeling quite reassured by Sapphira's rather open demeanour, sitting next to her on the bed. She felt Sapphira sit down, too, so she's really there. She lowers her legs and eyes Sapphira's physique from the corner of her eye. She wishes she was that pretty, but... Well, for now she's working more on getting out of here.

[Deathkeeper]

Jinn's Workshop

Sam gives Alexia his best reassuring smile. He walks straight up to the drone with her.

"Yes, we'd like to speak to Jinn. I'm a returning customer. Has he relocated?" he tells it. Jinn is weird. Sam wouldn't be surprised if the apparent fire did little to nothing to stop him.

Manor Lab

Anri stands still for that entire and very long explanation. Being a machine, she's good at that.
"Hm. I do wish you had consulted me with this, Nora. I'm...well, I'm not sure about any of this. You could have saved quite a bit of the cost omitting some of those...features.
And frankly, I'm far more interested in the analyses you apparently did on me. How exactly do you know this and what exactly does this make me? Because if I'm anything like my ancestor, I don't need a body at all. I just need to be freed from this wretched thing and I could form my own like she was known to. Dust and smoke and flames.
Frankly, this seems to be a very expensive way to make it likely that I'll end up trapped in an immobile corpse with no way out if these devices are as good at securing me to the body as you say. You're making it sound like 'making plans for a new body' would be even more complicated than these in front of us."
Why does everything have to be so complicated? Anri can't help but feel like Tellysandra could just use her demon magic to break the demon curse on Anri, but she hasn't because it would be too much effort. She's not entirely buying Tellysandra's claim that it was too risky.

[bc56]

Slaver's Guild Warehouse

Sapphira seems to sense Bluefoot's jealousy, because her position shifts to give the girl a better view. "GLoG, you say? What is that?" She looks the hybrid up and down, as if giving an assessment of her physique in return. "I think I know who you met. Years ago, I had a daughter. But we were separated. I want to find her again." She gently rests a hand on Bluefoot's shoulder. "You've helped me, I want to give you something in return. More than just your freedom. What do you desire, money, beauty, power? I can give it to you. And if you agree to help me more in the future, I can keep giving you more."

[Earl of Purple]

Slaver's Guild Warehouse

The helfling's quite average in build; possibly on the thinner side of average, but nothing particularly remarkable. She is, however, reasonably pretty, though short; more cute, perhaps.

She blushes under the scrutiny, as despite relaxing in their mutual states of undress, she's still not particularly comfortable with her current attire- or anything else about this situation, in fact. "Freedom's top. After that... I'd like power or money. Power to not find myself in this situation again, or money enough to move somewhere else, where theft won't get me sold into slavery again. Beauty won't help me, not really. Just make me more desirable and more likely to wind up here again." Although if she winds up here, at least she's not being thrown off the side of Skyside. That's what happened to her father, after he was caught stealing from someone who disagreed with slavery.

[bc56]

Slaver's Guild Warehouse

"Money is easy. How about a little power and a little money?" Sapphira waves a hand and Bluefoot's outfit changes. She'll probably be at least partly relieved. She's now in an elegant, well-made, and expensive green gown. Her hair is neatly combed, she has tastefully applied makeup, and a heavy coin purse. Sapphira gives a mock bow. "How do you feel, Lady Shivernight? Let us leave this place, your manor awaits."