Skyside 7: The Big Pizza in the Sky

[bc56]

Anri's Library
The door opens. A man in his mid 20s in casual clothes dashes through, slams the door behind him, and stops, breathing heavily. "Whew... I think I lost them." Not about to rush back out, he takes a look around. "Hey, nice place here." He isn't paying too much mind to anyone that might be around, not yet. He doubts any informants for the gang he accidentally angered will be in a library.

[Deathkeeper]

Anri's Library

At the front desk is an ordinary-looking young woman with orange eyes and a set of short little horns.
"Hey. You looking for a book? I can help if you want. No one else is here." she tells him conversationally, closing the book she's reading.

[bc56]

Anri's Library
"No thanks. I'm just looking around." The newcomer surreptitiously tries to peek at the title of the book the librarian is reading. But he keeps talking. "Not a ton of libraries in Skyside. What sort of books do you have here?" He's mostly just trying to make small talk. The librarian's not-quite-human appearance doesn't really bother him. Actually, it's kind of cute, in an exotic way. (And he's definitely a sucker for the nerdy types).

[Deathkeeper]

Anri's Library

The book seems to be a book on the history of Nexus djinn.
"Well, we're a library. Having a broad catalog is kind of our thing. But I admit we do lean a bit more towards fiction. Research materials aren't quite as needed in this city without the number of universities that Inside and Skyside has." she says simply. Sounds like Jason is going to have to browse a little.

[bc56]

Anri's Library
Not every library does. Some specialize in specific types of books. "That's not fiction you're reading," he replies jokingly, "You're interested in Djinn? Got any wishes you want to make?" Again, he's trying to be funny. It might come off differently to her.

[Reinholdt]

[Searching for Truth]

"Sounds like a plan to me," Ilpholin says, folding away her motorcycle and tossing it to Anika. "Hold onto this when you shift and let's get going before our boat decides to leave." Ilpholin can't hide it on her person because there's no place left to hide it, so much of it can be seen through the silk she wears. When Anika changes shape, Ilpholin will climb upon her back.

[Black Abyss Body Shop]

Mina and Sai will appear in the most dangerous of lairs... a parking lot. This particular lot belongs to a car works body shop, the Black Abyss Body Shop as indicated in big red letters with artistic blood drips here and there located on the front of a garage painted an excessively dark black. They even went so far as to paint the shutters and the windows black. The front door's barely even noticeable, it blends in with the darkness this place exudes. The thing Mina backed into is a faded, rusted sign at the edge of the lot telling her to stay off the grass. The ground there is practically barren with but two tufts of brown, dead grass. It would be exceptionally difficult to get on the grass without actively trying.

In front of the building are a trio of wretched monstrosities. Creatures of metal and flesh stitched together horrifically in a way that does little to disguise the rot and decay that's settled in. The foul sciences of a nekomancer has willed these mecha-zombies to life where they work hard to... set up a sound system? Yes, that does seem to be right. Two are putting down a big heavy speaker no doubt stolen from RadioShed and the third is behind it trying to plug in wires.

Atop the building is a being of beauty and grace? Perhaps normally, though the way she leans over the roof to yell down at the mecha-zombie does seem a bit... less than dignified. "No no!! Put the red wire into the red socket! NO the OTHER red socket! What do you mean you can't see red? Don't you groan at me like that!!" The catgirl with long flowing black hair yells as she desperately tries to keep her even longer, flowing black dress with white and green frills from getting grime on it. Her most striking feature beyond her coal-like furred ears and tail must be her cybernetic left eye. Which they see when the catgirl lifts her head, notes Mina and Sai, lowers her head again to yell at the tech-zombie once more only to lift it back up a second time.

"Oh-Oh gosh you're here already?! We're almost set up, just... just wait right there! One minute, I swear." Red faced, the catgirl darts further back onto the roof barely out of sight.

A loud click sound and some feedback tells everyone that the sound system is finally connected.

Exits are in literally any direction that isn't forward.

Spoiler

Show

[Vahnavoi]

Trust-Worthy Hotel

The humming is coming from the main foyer area of this suite, where a man wearing a white low-cut shirt and black trousers, plus a bronze collar, is repairing a door. He's got plimsols on his feet, and the hand holding the door is marked with the letters TWH overlapping each other; a brand. The door pulls open, but it looks as though somebody tried pushing it open instead- and succeeded, breaking the hinges. The man is unscrewing the old hinges and putting new ones in. The suite's front door is closed, and there's another door leading away from this room. The door he's repairing seems to lead to a cupboard, or maybe a walk-in wardrobe? It looks very small, too small to be much else. There's two sofas and an armchair around a coffee table. Resting on the table is a tray with two plates on it, which seem to have held food; there's bread crumbs and a rocket leaf on one. There's also a small burn in the carpet next to one of the sofas, and some cut black zip ties as well.

There's no ghost on the roof, just the bones. The skeleton's humanoid but not human; a hobgoblin probably- it's not chunky enough to be an orc or bugbear, too tall to be a goblin, but the mouthful of sharp teeth and the occipital ridge suggest a goblinoid, and it has four digits on each hand and foot. It was probably but not definitely male, going by the bones, and in addition to the rags it has a slightly tarnished bronze collar about its neck. The rags are stained with blood on the chest, and there's a cut mark on two of the ribs- they were killed by a thrust to the heart, and just left.

On the roof, the bandaged man sighs, then looks over the edge of the building at the rest of Skyside. So, somebody just shanked a dude and left him to rot on the hotel roof, and no-one even bothered to complain about the smell? And the collars he's been seeing everywhere suggest human(oid) trafficking and slavery are well and alive around here. Bleak. It's easy to see where people like that Maggot Prime get their ideas of putting the current regime under a guillotine and replacing it with something else. Even a verified psychopath could get that this city is objectively bad.

Clearly, this place needs some kind of a hero, a champion of the people, purging the streets from evil. A new leader to rally around, someone to shine light of hope on the oppressed people like star.

Someone unlike the bandaged man, that is.

He casts away his idle musings and focuses on his mission. Where is Hazel? In a room below him, one or two stories down. Should he break into the elevator, or just wait for Hazel to wander upwards? On one hand, he'd like to take a look inside, but on the other, he's not too keen to get caught on one of those cameras. Maybe wait, then.

[Deathkeeper]

Anri's Library
Not every library does. Some specialize in specific types of books. "That's not fiction you're reading," he replies jokingly, "You're interested in Djinn? Got any wishes you want to make?" Again, he's trying to be funny. It might come off differently to her.

Anri's Library

The woman smirks at him.
"Consider it family history." she tells him.
Oh. That should probably explain some things to Jason.

[bc56]

Anri's Library
"Then you must have quite a family." That explains the eyes and horns. She's a descendant of a djinn, most likely. "I'm Jason, Jason Fisher. Electrical engineer, sometimes adventurer." He extends a hand to shake.

[Ironsmith]

Mina’s Manor==> Raven's Lair

"Okay, first of all, most of my wish- uh, blessings have been completely awesome to the persons who asked for them. The problem is that people don't seem to want anything anymore. You offer them the world and they just shrug and walk away, it's so gosh darn frustrating. That's why I have to be so insistent you know? You have to basically drag their desires out of them and that's when things go wrong! If they had just stated what they wanted in the first place then nothing would have happened." She points to Sai, those green eyes forming into a frown. "Probably since they're like you and assume it's all too good to be true."

She seems to clap her hands together underneath the darkness of the floating umbrella. "But anyway, I've learned to accept my mistakes and it would seem I screwed up in your case. However, it's nothing that I can't fix."

The green eyes seem to look at Mina up and down and the figure tilts her head. "Yeah, that should work."

The sound of snapping fingers can be heard and with it reality changes.

---

Mina and Sai will find themselves somewhere else than the manor. A place neither of them can recognize.
However, Mina will instinctively somehow know how to get out of this place and where the exits are, even exits that includes throwing yourself out of a window.

They are both changed however. Sai is now back to his old form but he's also more as he also extends into the clothing Mina wears. A monk outfit of her favorite color scheme.
Mina is taller and it feels like she's suddenly wearing a pair of shoes, horseshoes (or cowshoes) to be specific, on her hooves. This in combination with the fact that her body equilibrium is different might in fact be enough for her to lose her balance.

Mina's Manor/Raven's Lair

Mina appears in a mysterious new location! The cream-colored minotaur makes a distressed bovine noise and immediately stumbles, backing into a nearby piece of furniture.
"What- oh hey, Sai. You're back! You feeling better? I...huh." Mina holds up her partner, glad to see he's an actual literal sai again, but in doing so notices that her arm (and of course the rest of her) is bigger than she remembers. Namely, that before she looked like an older version of Tarr, famous child demon-punching heroine of eld. Now, she looks like a famous demon-puncher of eld if someone told the story deciding to completely omit that Tarr was both surprisingly young and fairly slight for a minotaur. This is, of course, probably not going to be a bad thing for a talking weapon that was sincerely hoping for a beefy master to punch demons with him.
"Um. Well. So far nothing bad?" she hesitantly says to him.

[Black Abyss Body Shop]

Mina and Sai will appear in the most dangerous of lairs... a parking lot. This particular lot belongs to a car works body shop, the Black Abyss Body Shop as indicated in big red letters with artistic blood drips here and there located on the front of a garage painted an excessively dark black. They even went so far as to paint the shutters and the windows black. The front door's barely even noticeable, it blends in with the darkness this place exudes. The thing Mina backed into is a faded, rusted sign at the edge of the lot telling her to stay off the grass. The ground there is practically barren with but two tufts of brown, dead grass. It would be exceptionally difficult to get on the grass without actively trying.

In front of the building are a trio of wretched monstrosities. Creatures of metal and flesh stitched together horrifically in a way that does little to disguise the rot and decay that's settled in. The foul sciences of a nekomancer has willed these mecha-zombies to life where they work hard to... set up a sound system? Yes, that does seem to be right. Two are putting down a big heavy speaker no doubt stolen from RadioShed and the third is behind it trying to plug in wires.

Atop the building is a being of beauty and grace? Perhaps normally, though the way she leans over the roof to yell down at the mecha-zombie does seem a bit... less than dignified. "No no!! Put the red wire into the red socket! NO the OTHER red socket! What do you mean you can't see red? Don't you groan at me like that!!" The catgirl with long flowing black hair yells as she desperately tries to keep her even longer, flowing black dress with white and green frills from getting grime on it. Her most striking feature beyond her coal-like furred ears and tail must be her cybernetic left eye. Which they see when the catgirl lifts her head, notes Mina and Sai, lowers her head again to yell at the tech-zombie once more only to lift it back up a second time.

"Oh-Oh gosh you're here already?! We're almost set up, just... just wait right there! One minute, I swear." Red faced, the catgirl darts further back onto the roof barely out of sight.

A loud click sound and some feedback tells everyone that the sound system is finally connected.

Exits are in literally any direction that isn't forward.

Spoiler

Show

[Black Abyss Body Shop]

"What do you- oh dammit, she did it again, didn't she?" Sai lets out a long-suffering sigh. "Take your time up there, it looks like we've got some tuning up to do, too." He halfheartedly calls to the wannabe empress.

Sai straightens up a little, nudging Mina into a better-balanced stance with his newfound (not so new to him) clothing powers. "All right, listen up. I passed away of heart complications a few weeks ago. There was a funeral, it was very touching. Our Friends Upstairs saw fit to reincarnate me, since our mission wasn't done yet. Ended up as one of my own clients in a weird twist. Brought you a new weapon, we agreed it was time to move up the timetable and bring you out to a real battle. Hence the cat." Sai explains quickly. "That's the short version. If you've got any questions, I suggest you consult your inevitable flashbacks."

Trust-Worthy Hotel

The humming is coming from the main foyer area of this suite, where a man wearing a white low-cut shirt and black trousers, plus a bronze collar, is repairing a door. He's got plimsols on his feet, and the hand holding the door is marked with the letters TWH overlapping each other; a brand. The door pulls open, but it looks as though somebody tried pushing it open instead- and succeeded, breaking the hinges. The man is unscrewing the old hinges and putting new ones in. The suite's front door is closed, and there's another door leading away from this room. The door he's repairing seems to lead to a cupboard, or maybe a walk-in wardrobe? It looks very small, too small to be much else. There's two sofas and an armchair around a coffee table. Resting on the table is a tray with two plates on it, which seem to have held food; there's bread crumbs and a rocket leaf on one. There's also a small burn in the carpet next to one of the sofas, and some cut black zip ties as well.

There's no ghost on the roof, just the bones. The skeleton's humanoid but not human; a hobgoblin probably- it's not chunky enough to be an orc or bugbear, too tall to be a goblin, but the mouthful of sharp teeth and the occipital ridge suggest a goblinoid, and it has four digits on each hand and foot. It was probably but not definitely male, going by the bones, and in addition to the rags it has a slightly tarnished bronze collar about its neck. The rags are stained with blood on the chest, and there's a cut mark on two of the ribs- they were killed by a thrust to the heart, and just left.

On the roof, the bandaged man sighs, then looks over the edge of the building at the rest of Skyside. So, somebody just shanked a dude and left him to rot on the hotel roof, and no-one even bothered to complain about the smell? And the collars he's been seeing everywhere suggest human(oid) trafficking and slavery are well and alive around here. Bleak. It's easy to see where people like that Maggot Prime get their ideas of putting the current regime under a guillotine and replacing it with something else. Even a verified psychopath could get that this city is objectively bad.

Clearly, this place needs some kind of a hero, a champion of the people, purging the streets from evil. A new leader to rally around, someone to shine light of hope on the oppressed people like star.

Someone unlike the bandaged man, that is.

He casts away his idle musings and focuses on his mission. Where is Hazel? In a room below him, one or two stories down. Should he break into the elevator, or just wait for Hazel to wander upwards? On one hand, he'd like to take a look inside, but on the other, he's not too keen to get caught on one of those cameras. Maybe wait, then.

[Trust-Worthy Hotel]

Huh. Hana nowhere to be found, and it looks like they're in the cleaning/repairing stage of managing the room. Hazel looks around and tries to piece together what happened. Broken zip-ties? Weird, but not alarming. Old food plates? Also weird; Hana was pretty tidy when it came to food, usually. It'd been a bit of a point of contention between them.

Now, that broken door... that's alarming. Hana almost certainly didn't do that; she's not strong enough to break it on accident. Which means someone else did it, and likely someone violent.

Since she can't talk to the servant, Hazel instead pops her head through the roof. "Hey, Mummy Retuhns!" She calls out to Sandels. "Get youh butt down heae! Hana isn't heae and da room's a wreck!"

Outside --> SSGTV Studio

The minibus drives right into the building, stopping in a room just about large enough for it. A large metal shutter is brought down behind them, and the Amazon walks over to the vehicle and opens the door. First letting the driver out, then Hana, Abbi and the other newcomers. "Welcome to the studio. I'm going to show you to your new quarters, then prep you for your first match. If you win, congratulations! You'll get a trip to the store, where you'll make your first selection of prize. Before we begin, any questions?" Most of the newcomers have watched gladiator matches before, so they have some idea of what to expect.

[SSGTV Studio]

Hana lets herself out, pulling Abbi behind her. When the Amazon asks if there are any questions, Hana raises a bloodied hand, pointing the other one at the dwarf's back. "At least three of us are already injured." She points out, nodding toward Abbi. "Do you expect us to compete like that, or can we expect medical attention?"

SIN HQ

They do as they're bid, not that they have much to pack up. The defensive perimeter for Wallowglum, Fifi ensures Sammi's OK and is with them, grabbing for herself the buzzsaw. The cosmic knife and other loot from the Temple of Lead is also claimed, unless Klaus has liquidated the gold ingots. Magoo takes what she can, and follows. She's a little confused by all that's going on.

[SIN HQ]

Klaus nods his approval as the various memberd exit the bus. "Right. To avoid drawing the Guild's attention, we'll be traveling in groups of three. Wallowglum, new girl, you're with me. The rest of you, find your partners and follow at five-minute intervals. If you get lost, meet me at [address]. Everyone clear?"

[Deathkeeper]

Black Abyss Body Shop

Mina seems severely confused by Sai's explanation, even more than the zombies and the catgirl. She does her best to straighten up to her full (and rather impressive) height instead of leaning on the sign.
"But-but how could you end up as one of your own clients? Gardeners don't work for babies. And how could you have brought be a new weapon if you are my weapons? And are you in my clothes?" That last part is not terribly distressing but kind of weird that Sai might be some weird hovering spirit around her and not just her pointy talking weapon.

Anri's Library

"I do. You can call me Anri. I'm the owner here. Are you sure you're not looking for something?" she asks him. She doesn't seem annoyed, but unsure if he's trying to get at something. Sometimes people just want to kill some time here, which is fine.

[bc56]

Anri's Library
But is that her real name?
Doesn't matter and Jason doesn't care. "Looking for something? Just a place to lie low for a few hours until the street gang I 'forgot' to pay for passage through their territory stops looking for me. But if you'd recommend a book to pass the time, I wouldn't say no." Jason answers.

[Deathkeeper]

Anri's Library

It is her real name, except that Deathkeeper can't remember her surname.
"Well, they won't get past Brag, that's for sure. No one gets past Brag." Jason probably noticed the massive krogan guarding the door. He's rather hard to miss.
"If you go that way and turn left you'll get to our fiction section, which is most of the west wing. Otherwise there's some magazines over there?" she points to a decent-sized wooden rack.

[Earl of Purple]

Trust-Worthy Hotel

That probably answers that question, just a matter of seeing if the elevator shaft can be opened. There's a call button next to the sliding doors, so it's a matter of seeing if it works- and if there's anyone inside when it arrives. Or possibly prying the doors open; that's also potentially possible, and hopefully there's an access ladder as well.

SSGTV Studio

"Of course. We have a healer. You'll have scars, but you're gladiators now. Scars are to be expected. Hold your hands out to them, and try not to wince." And unfortunately, Abbi's ankle injury might be a bit old to heal without reopening it first. The Amazon rings a hand-bell.

The healer turns up, a person wearing a black robe and a skull mask. Dragged behind them is a fresh corpse, covered in wounds. They'll reach out to Hana first, holding a black-clad hand out. If Hana gives them her hand, her hand will sting and burn as it closes, leaving a scar. The corpse's wrists and hands open up, the injuries being transferred from Hana's body to the corpse.

SIN HQ

The minions nod in acceptance, and follow his instructions. Magoo is wearing whatever she's been able to get so far, which I don't think yet includes a full gown like the others. The mermen have to be carried, so hopefully they're paired with people big enough to carry them.

[Vahnavoi]

[Trust-Worthy Hotel]

"Mummy Returns. Hah. Wonder if I could get away with using that as a pseudonym", the bandaged man mutters as he stands back up.

"What would me getting in solve? If your wife's gone, she's gone", he responds to Hazel. He rubs his chin. "The room was wrecked? That's bad. That's real bad." He looks at the skeleton, nodding towards it to direct Hazel's attention. "The likeliest case is that your enemies, whoever they might be, got to her first. This place being the crapsack that it is, I think it's safe to presume she's been taken captive and will be sold or had already been sold as a slave." He starts walking in a circle, hands behind his back. "What else did you see? Do the hotel staff know about this?" He is developing this feeling that before the day is done, he'll be beating someone's face untill information comes out.

[bc56]

Anri's Library
Technically speaking, Jason got past Brag.
In that he walked in and didn't cause trouble, so there was no need to throw him out.
"I'll go take a look." He heads back towards that section. Anri may or may not follow him, as she decides. If she doesn't, he'll be back there a while.

[5a Violista]

Aimless Drifting

Spoiler

Show

Tetra presses her hands against her ears, pinching at the already slightly pointed tips. She could probably make them even pointier if she really wanted to, but maybe they're fine as is. All of her enemies thus far have had rounded ears, so as long as her ears don't get any less pointy, she should be okay, right?

"Oh. That makes sense. I was told by some other robots that if I ever left my room, I'd accidentally cause the end of the world, but it's been a few days now, and-" Tetra gestures around her, to the world which is still very much not in the throes of some apocalyptic disaster or massive catastrophe raining death and destruction upon everyone around them. The Tetragrammatok has never seen an end of a world before, but she's been told there's supposed to be a lot of explosions and screaming, and you don't see any of that here right now, do you?

"So far none of the robots I've met have been right about anything. What wrong thing are your robots involved in?" the pink-haired stranger asks, wondering if maybe it's not pointy ears and round ears, but skin versus metal that decides which people are her friends and which ones want to lock her up. It'd explain why the science men flip-flopped between nice and helpful and cold and oppressive so often; their robot halves must've been fighting for control! Why else would they feed her and teach her to use some of her powers one day, and then lock her up and tell her she'll be punished if she goes anywhere the next day?

[Aimless Drifting]

Sirena really wishes she had her persons-of-interest database working. That way she could check how important this pink-haired stranger is and if she'll be a potential ally or a definite enemy.

Ugh!
Being blind like this, not knowing who she can trust and who she can use. Knowing that this stranger is supposedly capable of ending the world means she could be a very useful tool...
"You're right, the world isn't ended yet. I find it hard to believe a single person could accidentally end the world, anyway, especially without someone taking advantage of them and using them as a tool," Sirena says. If it was that easy to end a world, Sirena's pretty sure she wouldn't have to go through so much trouble.

"Basically, that robot that attacked just works for a really awful person, doing what they say."
Sirena goes to brush her hair back but then realizes that's her hoodie, not her hair. "If they would just decide for themselves then everything would be better."

Well, anyway. "So, I'm Sirena." She takes a deep breath in, and out. "Since you're not planning on destroying the world, what are you going to do?"

[Deathkeeper]

Anri's Library
Technically speaking, Jason got past Brag.
In that he walked in and didn't cause trouble, so there was no need to throw him out.
"I'll go take a look." He heads back towards that section. Anri may or may not follow him, as she decides. If she doesn't, he'll be back there a while.

Anri's library

When Jason returns, he might notice something about Anri the receptionist. Namely that she appears to have a draconic lower body. Did he just not notice before? Or did she shift while he wasn't looking? Either way she continues to flip through her book, looking bored.

[bc56]

Anri's Library
Jason is pretty sure Anri wasn't half dragon when he came in here. How would he miss something like that? Wait, it's not polite to stare at a lady's butt. He pulls his eyes away.
He's got a book in hand, but he seems a bit confused at the moment. "Sorry for asking, but were you always part reptile?" And is it more rude that he didn't notice the first time, or that he's asking about it now?
The book he's carrying is not fiction, Anri might notice. He went over to the nonfiction section at some point. It's written by some mythologist or historian (it's hard to tell the difference in the Nexus), and is a comparative analysis of magical foxes in legends. Not the sort of thing a self-proclaimed electrical engineer would be normally interested in.

[Deathkeeper]

Anri's Library

Anri looks up at Jason and smiles at him. In a flash her form shifts into an orange bipedal dragon in a similarly cut robe.
"I'm sorry. Recently someone used one of their wishes to give me full control over my innate shapeshifting. It's wonderful, but ever since I slip in and out of forms like one adjusts their legs after sitting a while. Please don't pay it any mind." she assures him. Her voice hardly changes despite speaking out of a different mouth, though it does echo slightly through those inhuman vocal chords.

[bc56]

Anri's Library
Those words string themselves together in Jason's brain and he realizes what Anri has been implying ever since he asked about the djinn book. "When you said family history, I thought it was something more distant." If she's a djinn, that means she could grant him wishes.
But he's not stupid. He knows better than to make wishes; after all they always backfire. "How do you not have people constantly coming in here to ask for wishes?" he blurts out. That seems like a temptation that would be too strong for most. Especially in a city so full of desperate people as Skyside.

[Deathkeeper]

Anri’s Library

”Many don’t believe the rumors.” Anri answers seamlessly.
”Others believe them all. Which protects me as well. I spent a year or two working for a very feared warlock to get a curse removed from my person. Either way, the attempts to extort me have been few.” Anri smiles and returns to the shape Jason first saw her in, sitting down again.

[bc56]

Anri's Library
"I like to think of myself in the middle of the two camps, but I don't think I'm going to ask for anything. It seems disrespectful. Not that I'm insulting your wish-granting skills." Jason's expression says there's probably more reasons he's not asking for wishes than just out of respect for Anri's personal boundaries, but doesn't want to talk about it right now. He finds a place to sit and cracks open the book he found.

[Reinholdt]

[Black Abyss Body Shop]

They don't have to wait very long before a loud obnoxious laugh cuts through the conversation.

"OHOHOHOH!!"

Rising up on a palanquin, an elaborate affair of darkened hues punctuated with brilliant red roses, returns the catgirl. Under the palanquin, four mecha-zombies carry her to the edge of the roof so that she might gaze down upon those who would intrude upon her domain.

"I've been expecting you Heroes... Hero? Just one? Ahem, no matter! We're not so different you and I... for you see, I am your father... and finally my vengeance is at hand!" The catgirl flusters for a moment over her speech, shaking a little from the excitement and stress.

"No. Wait. That's not quite right. Can we start over? O-one second. I'm starting over. I've got this, just-just hold on."

The catgirl descends back out of sight once more.

[Shadowcaller]

[Searching for Truth]

"Sounds like a plan to me," Ilpholin says, folding away her motorcycle and tossing it to Anika. "Hold onto this when you shift and let's get going before our boat decides to leave." Ilpholin can't hide it on her person because there's no place left to hide it, so much of it can be seen through the silk she wears. When Anika changes shape, Ilpholin will climb upon her back.

[Searching for Truth]

Anika just manages to catch the motorcycle and can't help but imagine what would have happened if she hadn't. It'll slide right off the field and then fall all the way to the ground!

"Um, right." She glances at that little armband Geneva had handed out. It was supposed to allow her to shapeshift with goblin items, right? Or was that just with the speak-far devices that VIGIL used? She couldn't recall the exact details now.

Well, she knew a solution for this!

Then Ilpholin's heart might skip a beat as Anika throws the cube into the air.
But as gravity is taking its hold on it she shifts into her saber form, leaps into the air to catch the cube with her jaws and... swallows it.

That's before she lands next to Ilpholin with a big toothy grin on her saber face.

[Ironsmith]

Trust-Worthy Hotel

That probably answers that question, just a matter of seeing if the elevator shaft can be opened. There's a call button next to the sliding doors, so it's a matter of seeing if it works- and if there's anyone inside when it arrives. Or possibly prying the doors open; that's also potentially possible, and hopefully there's an access ladder as well.

[Trust-Worthy Hotel]

"Mummy Returns. Hah. Wonder if I could get away with using that as a pseudonym", the bandaged man mutters as he stands back up.

"What would me getting in solve? If your wife's gone, she's gone", he responds to Hazel. He rubs his chin. "The room was wrecked? That's bad. That's real bad." He looks at the skeleton, nodding towards it to direct Hazel's attention. "The likeliest case is that your enemies, whoever they might be, got to her first. This place being the crapsack that it is, I think it's safe to presume she's been taken captive and will be sold or had already been sold as a slave." He starts walking in a circle, hands behind his back. "What else did you see? Do the hotel staff know about this?" He is developing this feeling that before the day is done, he'll be beating someone's face untill information comes out.

[Trust-Worthy Hotel]

"Well, dat's why I want ya down heae." Hazel points out. "Dere's a guy heae I can't talk ta widdout ya. He's fixin' da door." She looks... somewhat disturbed by Sandels's conclusion, even more so since there's not really anything she can point to that says he's wrong. There was an intruder in Hana's room. She's nowhere to be found. The hotel is involved in some shady stuff, but... slaves? God, she hopes not. And even if that is what's going on around here, there's nothing to say Hana didn't manage to get away; she certainly wouldn't have stayed.

SSGTV Studio

"Of course. We have a healer. You'll have scars, but you're gladiators now. Scars are to be expected. Hold your hands out to them, and try not to wince." And unfortunately, Abbi's ankle injury might be a bit old to heal without reopening it first. The Amazon rings a hand-bell.

The healer turns up, a person wearing a black robe and a skull mask. Dragged behind them is a fresh corpse, covered in wounds. They'll reach out to Hana first, holding a black-clad hand out. If Hana gives them her hand, her hand will sting and burn as it closes, leaving a scar. The corpse's wrists and hands open up, the injuries being transferred from Hana's body to the corpse.

[SSGTV Studio]

Hana hastily withdraws her hand when she sees what magic is being used to heal her. That's... that's nasty. Also wrong and not scientifically possible, but the context already subverted both of those concepts. Still, at least her hands were... not fine, but less injured than before.

She'll then watch to make sure Abbi gets the same treatment. She's not going anywhere if the Amazon doesn't help her.

SIN HQ

The minions nod in acceptance, and follow his instructions. Magoo is wearing whatever she's been able to get so far, which I don't think yet includes a full gown like the others. The mermen have to be carried, so hopefully they're paired with people big enough to carry them.

[SIN HQ]

Since he doesn't have time to tailor her a new wardrobe, Klaus prints off a pair of handcuffs and gives them to her instead. "Slip these on, but leave them unlocked. And if anyone asks, I bought you a short while ago." He gives her a reassuring smile. "Trust me. This will all work out when we get to our new location."

Black Abyss Body Shop

Mina seems severely confused by Sai's explanation, even more than the zombies and the catgirl. She does her best to straighten up to her full (and rather impressive) height instead of leaning on the sign.
"But-but how could you end up as one of your own clients? Gardeners don't work for babies. And how could you have brought be a new weapon if you are my weapons? And are you in my clothes?" That last part is not terribly distressing but kind of weird that Sai might be some weird hovering spirit around her and not just her pointy talking weapon.

[Black Abyss Body Shop]

"It's not that hard to grasp. I was simply sent back to a time before I died, guided by fate to build myself so I could give myself to me to give to you." Sai explains, only to be cut off from any further explanation by Raven's introduction.

[Black Abyss Body Shop]

They don't have to wait very long before a loud obnoxious laugh cuts through the conversation.

"OHOHOHOH!!"

Rising up on a palanquin, an elaborate affair of darkened hues punctuated with brilliant red roses, returns the catgirl. Under the palanquin, four mecha-zombies carry her to the edge of the roof so that she might gaze down upon those who would intrude upon her domain.

"I've been expecting you Heroes... Hero? Just one? Ahem, no matter! We're not so different you and I... for you see, I am your father... and finally my vengeance is at hand!" The catgirl flusters for a moment over her speech, shaking a little from the excitement and stress.

"No. Wait. That's not quite right. Can we start over? O-one second. I'm starting over. I've got this, just-just hold on."

The catgirl descends back out of sight once more.

"...And yes, I am your clothes." He adds nonchalantly, mercifully changing the subject from this amateur villainess's speech. "Freak out over that later. For now, you've got a baddie to beat up."

[Deathkeeper]

Black Abyss Body Shop

"...that makes no sense and you know it. We will be having WORDS, Sai." Mina growls.

She's kind of distracted by the cat as she lowers back under her panel.
"Do you need us to come back tomorrow?" she calls.
"So why are we fighting?" she whispers to Sai. She can be extra quiet since she knows he's part of her collar.

LaRouge Library

Anri nods.
"Trust me, it's not something you want to abuse. I don't have a ton of experience so sometimes my emotions can get the better of me." she tells him with a shrug. She's not going to bother someone reading, though. So she'll lounge back and let Jason read.

[bc56]

Anri's Library
Jason does sit and read, and will continue to do so for a while unless interrupted. He occasionally takes down notes on a holographic pad projected from his wristwatch. Apparently he has a serious interest in magical foxes.

[Reinholdt]

[Black Abyss Body Shop]

The catgirl's voice calls back. "No, no, it's fine. I got your note about your attack, I'm ready I swear. Ahem..."

"OHOHOHOH!!"

The ebony furred mistress rises up once more into view on the roof.

"Well, well, well... I've been expecting you. You, who enter none other than RAVEN EBONDARK'S domain!!" She sweeps one hand dramatically. "You may think your cause righteous, your path just, but you have no idea what darkness awaits you within. W-well... I await you, but ONLY if you can make it past my gauntlet of highly trained mecha-zombies. You can't stop my nefarious plots, but you can join them when I turn you into my personal undead slave! Ready yourself, hero, to serve under Empress Ebondark's heel! OHOHOHOHOH!!"

Raven starts laughing and slowly disappearing again as one of the three mecha-zombies in front of the building begins to approach Mina menacingly. Music begins to blare from the speakers that were set up earlier for just this very moment.

[Searching for Truth]

Ilpholin isn't so attached to her vehicle that she panics when Anika tosses it in the air. But she does watch it rise and fall with morbid curiosity. Oh, ok, Anika intended to catch it and carry it in her mouth like a-

Wha...what?

The nymph isn't surprised by much, but she blinks slowly at the saber. "Did you just..."

Anika swallowed Ilpholin's motorcycle. That can't be healthy. She bites her lip, not even remotely sure how to handle the situation. Well she certainly can't call upon the motorcycle to home in on her in a pinch now.

"We... should get going." Ilpholin says in a strained voice, climbing upon Anika's back.

[Ironsmith]

Black Abyss Body Shop

"...that makes no sense and you know it. We will be having WORDS, Sai." Mina growls.

She's kind of distracted by the cat as she lowers back under her panel.
"Do you need us to come back tomorrow?" she calls.
"So why are we fighting?" she whispers to Sai. She can be extra quiet since she knows he's part of her collar.

[Black Abyss Body Shop]

The catgirl's voice calls back. "No, no, it's fine. I got your note about your attack, I'm ready I swear. Ahem..."

"OHOHOHOH!!"

The ebony furred mistress rises up once more into view on the roof.

"Well, well, well... I've been expecting you. You, who enter none other than RAVEN EBONDARK'S domain!!" She sweeps one hand dramatically. "You may think your cause righteous, your path just, but you have no idea what darkness awaits you within. W-well... I await you, but ONLY if you can make it past my gauntlet of highly trained mecha-zombies. You can't stop my nefarious plots, but you can join them when I turn you into my personal undead slave! Ready yourself, hero, to serve under Empress Ebondark's heel! OHOHOHOHOH!!"

Raven starts laughing and slowly disappearing again as one of the three mecha-zombies in front of the building begins to approach Mina menacingly. Music begins to blare from the speakers that were set up earlier for just this very moment.

[Black Abyss Body Shop]

"It's a practical exercise." Sai explains. "Or at least it's supposed to be. I don't know for sure how seriously madame Ebondark is taking this. Regardless, you're here so you can get a better idea for what does and doesn't work in a real fight." The wind whips around Mina and Sai dramatically as he prepares a response for the nekomancer. "That's what you think, Empress!" He retorts. "Send legions to face us if you must! We will fight and we will prevail! Okay now you say something. Half the fight is psychological. Besides, it's fun."