Riverside

[Murkus]

[MERC Offices]

Dena shakes her head in response to the giggle. "I mean, we could always go down there and watch whatever those couch-potatoes are watching if you wanna. The TV is usually their rallying point when they're not on the job and they're always watching something stupid."

She's turns to her laptop and enters a streaming site (streamside) when Tina starts talking about college experience. "And what do you mean by that, eh? Am I coming onto you?" Dena inquires without looking away from the computer.

[MERC Offices]

"Well, I don't know. I've only ever had so many invitations to TV in bed and none of them were chaste encounters between friends," Fettina says. "At least, you know, after a certain age."

Fettina will try to steal Dena's laptop with a verbal 'yoink' and whisk it away toward the bed (even if she's gotta wander into another room). She flops down on her back, bouncing once. The rest of her day is, for the moment at least, blessedly forgotten. Fettina tries to scroll through Dena's Streamside before the gorgon can make it over to sit down with her and retake her property. What does the femme fatale lady leader of MERC like to watch?

[Gullara]

[Wandering Riverside]

"Okay, then we should try to back you out of there. I'm going to try to pull on your leg, but not hard. Tell me to stop if I'm hurting you." Nadia gives Raheeda a chance to confirm before she makes to do just that. Hopefully she's not too jammed in there.

[Ironsmith]

[Currency Exchange]

Yes!
She finally got a lucky break!

Without hesitating she is going to sit down on the lady crooks legs. No more running for you!
Then she'll turn and stare at her with all her eight eyes.
That's what you get for being a criminal!

[Currency Exchange]

The crook doesn't actually respond at first. She just sort of... lays there, glassy-eyed, mumbling incoherently under her breath. She doesn't move when the Ava-spider sits on her. In fact, she doesn't do anything at all. For a second, it looks like she might not even be breathing.

Then she looks up at the spider, eyelids drooped in a groggy sort of expression.

"...Huh? What's... what's going on?" She mumbles, attempting to reach up and rub at her eyes and only now seeming to see a problem with that.

Followed by a quick snap as she sits up as best she can, staring directly into the spider's eyes. Her breathing turns to a rapid, escalating series of ragged gasps as she stares at the spider, apparently frozen even without the aid of her bonds.

If Ava's ever witnessed a panic attack before, she'll know this lady's about three seconds away from screaming.

[Shadowcaller]

[Wandering Riverside]

Raheeda uses her visible hand to give Nadia the thumbs up. "Sweet, and I'll tell you for sure!"

Then Nadia grabs Raheeda's leg and starts pulling. Her scales are all smooth, much like a snakes, which makes them more slippery than naked skin. Still she seems to making some progress until the other woman suddenly cries out.

"WAIT!" She let's out a gasp. "I think my robe got caught in something! Can you, uh, loosen it before you continue? I'd do it myself but then I'd have to let go of my spear."

[MERC Offices]

"W- hey!" Dena calls out as her laptop is snatched away.
She rubs her nose tiredly as she gets up from her chair and wanders after Tina. "Maybe if you didn't act like a teenager there'd be more."

Tina might be disappointed to find that Dena has barely watched anything but the occasional nature documentary and what seems to be the only musicals on the platform but only started watching most of them. She had also started watching a lot of series, all the popular ones that she probably has heard of, she has barely finished a single episode of them.

"Are you hoping to find anything? Like if I got a OnlyBans account or something?" She inquires with a smirk as she saunters up to Tina.

[Currency Exchange]

A panic attack? Considering what this woman had pulled so far she wasn't sure if she could trust it. She had never seen someone actually fake a panic attack before but this crook seemed unusually capable.

But then again, she didn't want to take the risk either.

So she's going to shift back to her humanoid form. Something which she hoped would calm down the woman once she could speak again. "Calm yourself m'am, you're under arrest. That means you're not going to get hurt." Or at least it should mean that.

[Ironsmith]

[Currency Exchange]

That doesn't seem to be the reassurance Ava is hoping for.

"Under arrest?!" The woman squeals, her voice cracking under the weight of the words. "But I didn't..." She gasps, shoulders shaking. "I didn't..." She gasps again, shaking even harder as her eyes dart around the room. "I didn't-"

If she has anything else to say, it's quickly lost under intense hyperventilation. The woman falls onto her side and tries to curl up, covering her face as best she can as her breath comes out in rapid, short bursts.

Yup. She's panicking.

[Murkus]

[MERC Offices]

"W- hey!" Dena calls out as her laptop is snatched away.
She rubs her nose tiredly as she gets up from her chair and wanders after Tina. "Maybe if you didn't act like a teenager there'd be more."

Tina might be disappointed to find that Dena has barely watched anything but the occasional nature documentary and what seems to be the only musicals on the platform but only started watching most of them. She had also started watching a lot of series, all the popular ones that she probably has heard of, she has barely finished a single episode of them.

"Are you hoping to find anything? Like if I got a OnlyBans account or something?" She inquires with a smirk as she saunters up to Tina.

[MERC Offices]

"Why would I want more TV instead of the other thing?" Tina asks, perplexed. She looks up from her spot on the bed with the laptop balanced on her stomach. "You have a super boring history, you know. If we watched one of the things you actually finished, we'd both be asleep in half an hour."

"Ooh, do you have an OnlyBans?" Fettina looks at the screen again. Dena can see her sliding and clicking on the laptop pad. "I'll sub to that shit. Hell, you'll be able to quit your day job in no time, okay?"

[Keeper]

The Toy Tinker

Jim Puck, currently his very normal self who even had time to go home and get proper wintery clothes that actually fit him. He's always felt like he should make himself an invisible shirt for a proper Mister Tumnus Thanksmas photo but has never really gotten to it.

He heads in with Jaahlyn in tow, glancing inside and looking for Sticks. Hopefully he remembers what they discussed at least vaguely or he's going to get chewed out for being late to work.

[Shadowcaller]

[MERC Offices]

"'fraid not. Not really in the business of selling that. i just wanted to see you get all excited for it." Dena grins and reaches out to ruffle Tina's hair. "And for your information, I watch some pretty interesting shit. A gremlin like you just can't appreciate it." She let's out a tsk and shakes her head.

[Currency Exchange]

As soon as the words left her mouth, Ava realized she had made a mistake.
But that wasn't the only thing she noticed. The woman was stammering and not speaking in full sentences yet it almost seemed as if her accent was just gone ever since she woke up.

Which was odd.

Was it a trick?

Well, protecting people should take priority over arresting people so she needed to make sure she was safe even if it was a trick. "M'am, we will figure this out together but I need you to try to control your breathing." Ava says in her best calming voice as she's slowly getting off the woman. "The worst thing that can happen now is you getting a heart attack so try to calm yourself down and just breath. Then we can try to help you out of this situation, alright?"

The Toy Tinker

Jaahlyn had other concerns besides Jim but he took priority. She could resolve her deal with Ilpholin after she and him had talked to Sticks. She couldn't help but to wonder if the man recalled anything from their dream visit. Would he consider it a breach of his privacy? They might be about to find out.

[Gullara]

[Wandering Riverside]

Raheeda uses her visible hand to give Nadia the thumbs up. "Sweet, and I'll tell you for sure!"

Then Nadia grabs Raheeda's leg and starts pulling. Her scales are all smooth, much like a snakes, which makes them more slippery than naked skin. Still she seems to making some progress until the other woman suddenly cries out.

"WAIT!" She let's out a gasp. "I think my robe got caught in something! Can you, uh, loosen it before you continue? I'd do it myself but then I'd have to let go of my spear."

[Wandering Riverside]

Nadia stops immediately when Raheeda cries out. Thankfully it's not out of pain. Nadia let's go and investigates this snag more closely. "That's fine, let me get it. You have a spear? It's not making it harder to get out is it? If you can set it down I'll be able to get it for you after."

[Shadowcaller]

[Wandering Riverside]

"But there's no space to put it down on, and there's loot on it too." Raheeda objects as Nadia points out that she'd be able to get out easier with both hands free.

It is obvious that her robe has got caught on something though given how taunt it has been pulled. But it appears that something is on the other side of the outlet meaning that Nadia has to try to squeeze her hand past Raheeda to get it or the trapped woman would have to do it herself.

[Ironsmith]

[Currency Exchange]

As soon as the words left her mouth, Ava realized she had made a mistake.
But that wasn't the only thing she noticed. The woman was stammering and not speaking in full sentences yet it almost seemed as if her accent was just gone ever since she woke up.

Which was odd.

Was it a trick?

Well, protecting people should take priority over arresting people so she needed to make sure she was safe even if it was a trick. "M'am, we will figure this out together but I need you to try to control your breathing." Ava says in her best calming voice as she's slowly getting off the woman. "The worst thing that can happen now is you getting a heart attack so try to calm yourself down and just breath. Then we can try to help you out of this situation, alright?"

[Currency Exchange]

As soon as Ava's off, the lady begins tearing at the webs binding her legs, but seems to quickly think better of it and bring her hands up closer to her chest, balling them up into tight fists and trying her hardest not to touch anything else. Her breathing does seem to be slowly coming back down, though it's still much faster and shallower than is probably healthy. In belated response to Ava's request, she gives a shaky nod, not quite trusting herself to speak but trying to comply anyway.

...

Okay. That's a little better.

After another moment, the woman hugs herself and looks back up at Ava. "...W... where are we?" She asks, looking around the hallway and finding no apparent answers.

It might also occur to Ava that there've been reports of encounters of a similar nature floating around the Riverside police departments. Most of them taking place up near that demon street and involving people with a clearer connection to some kind of hell, but not exclusively so. They'll be doing things like this; committing a crime of some sort, get caught, and then seemingly switch out personalities immediately afterward. It's been a subject of a lot of water-cooler debates, apparently.

[Arkhosia]

► SHOW SPOILER

[Too Many Visitors -> Exiting]

Hiep has never been very comfortable with silence and this time isn't much different.

"You two were right. She is really hot, but also really not right in the head," she proclaims. "But we did find out that these phyrexians are a new factor."

[Exiting]

Anika glances at Hiep as she mentions Ilpholin being 'hot'. Could she not feel how Blanche's shoulders were practically vibrating?!
Since Anika sure could!
"So we're going back to VIGIL to tell them that- uh, about the phyrexians, right?" She inquires while looking straight at Blanche. Afraid that the catgirl might take out her frustrations on anyone or anything they passed. Like those phyrexian things that were staring at them as they were walking away from the building.

[Exiting]

Anika isn't wrong - there's a distinct twitch at the mention, though Blanche doesn't act on it. Instead she answers her partner with a terse nod. "That, and whatever the hell it was she was ranting about. We relay that, and then we make preparations for whatever Wenomir decides to do."

► SHOW SPOILER

[Bird Watching]

Atsede had completely forgotten what they were watching, truth be told. Not that she was gonna mention that. "Yeah, same." She followed behind Skyla, sitting down next to her with a sigh.

[Bird Watching]

The scene of a monster attack on a village begins to play out. A great and terrible beast rampages through houses, and the young hero struggles to keep his grip on the creature's furry hide and reach for his knife. He clambers to its head and the camera follows the knife as he raises it high in front of the sun, blade glinting - only to cut to the beast's eye widening with its reflection. With a squeals it shakes its bulky form and the boy is thrown violently through a wall. In a tense moment he struggles to recover as the creature rushes him.

Skyla quietly gasps as the action plays out. She leans into Atsede and wraps and arm around hers. She breathes a sigh of relief as the boy barely manages to roll out of a crushing blow.

[Murkus]

[The Toy Tinker]

Sticks is already hard at work selling something. He hands off a partly stuffed, partly mechanical butterfly to a little girl who most resembles an upright, semi-humanoid cricket. The little creature chirps, grabs her mother's hand (who looks much the same) and toddles off with her. Sticks looks up at the sound of the bell over the door. "Ah! Mr. Puck! Keeping banker's hours, are we?" He grins to show he means no real harm. Sticks isn't really one to chew someone out unless they're frequently delayed, and even then he'd probably be the type to offer many chances. He has a lilting, fading accent that someone from Earth might vaguely recognize as Italian. "And I can see why! Hello, my dear. Can I interest you in a toy or companion? Free of charge! At least, the once."

[MERC Office]

Tina giggles. She scooches her body over to make room for Dena to lie down. "I'll bet you're wrong. Come on, show me your favorite then."

[Keeper]

The Toy Tinker

"Hey Sticks." Jim says casually, waiting for the customers to leave before he continues.
"Me and Jaahlyn visited you in your dream last night. Do you uh, remember what we talked about? It was a little urgent but I get if you don't remember." It took Jim a while before he started remembering his nightly talks with Jaahlyn clearly.

[Morty]

[Exiting]

Well gee whiz. Forgive Hiep for being able to pay attention to two important things at once.

"Right, yeah. It sounded like she was planning something big. Should I come with? I'm not with Vigil but I'm involved in this mess."

[Shadowcaller]

[Currency Exchange]

Ava sits down and keeps her eyes on the woman. "A currency exchange. Didn't catch the name of it but you just robbed it. There's been no casualties however." And she wasn't going to mention the teller. If she was actually telling the truth that information would probably not make her any calmer.

"Reinforcements should be here any minute." Indeed, they can already hear sirens in the distance. "After that you're probably going to be taken to the station to be evaluated. If you indeed have been under the influence of something they will find it." That was hardly an guarantee as they couldn't cover everything the diversity of the nexus could throw at a person but the more common types like possession and spells usually left some trace at least.

"Speaking of which, I'm going to give my coworkers a quick update on the situation, alright?" Ava holds up her communicator as to indicate she was going to do it through that.

[MERC Office]

Dena settles down next to Tina though doesn't lie down just yet. "My favorite what? Series? Movie? I'm a diverse person, contain multitudes y'know? Just tell me what you prefer and I'll find something. Doesn't have to be something I like either."

[The Toy Tinker]

Jaahlyn's black eyes peer at Sticks, now that was an offer she hadn't expected.
She let's out a giggle. "Not sure I can refuse that offer from such a master craftsman. But your 'Mr. Puck' requires assistance first. After that I can take a look around." Once more Jaahlyn wished she could grant fortunes and blessings like some fey could. Being connected to death didn't exactly give much room for cheerful things like that.

[Exiting]

""I think she's gonna release information about VIGIL and, uh, not the good kind." Anika tells Blanche before turning to Hiep. "And you can't fight information, right?" The druid punches air. "Like... punching it?" You never knew, one day Anika was gonna find some person like Zee or Lapis who could just punch out information like a bitch.

[Murkus]

[The Toy Tinker]

"That was... a visit?" Sticks blinks. "I... vaguely remember something about your needing help, Jim. But it sounded so ridiculous that I was sure it was a dream." Sticks scratches his head. "You need to win a race... or catch a faeish being? Or both."

[MERC Offices]

"Fine, fine, favorite movie!" Fettina laughs. "And I want it to be something you like, that's the point! Let me see your multitudes, Dena." She bats her eyelashes at Dena, somehow making it sound equally lascivious and ridiculous.

[Gullara]

[Wandering Riverside]

"But there's no space to put it down on, and there's loot on it too." Raheeda objects as Nadia points out that she'd be able to get out easier with both hands free.

It is obvious that her robe has got caught on something though given how taunt it has been pulled. But it appears that something is on the other side of the outlet meaning that Nadia has to try to squeeze her hand past Raheeda to get it or the trapped woman would have to do it herself.

[Wandering Riverside]

"What do you mean there's nowhere to put it? What's on the other side of the wall?" The internal layout of sewers is far from Nadia's area of expertise, so she wasn't expecting such a complication. She breathes a light sigh. Oh well. "I'll try to get it unstuck, but I have to reach past you. Hold still." And with that she'll try to feel and find the snag.

[Bird Watching]

The scene of a monster attack on a village begins to play out. A great and terrible beast rampages through houses, and the young hero struggles to keep his grip on the creature's furry hide and reach for his knife. He clambers to its head and the camera follows the knife as he raises it high in front of the sun, blade glinting - only to cut to the beast's eye widening with its reflection. With a squeals it shakes its bulky form and the boy is thrown violently through a wall. In a tense moment he struggles to recover as the creature rushes him.

Skyla quietly gasps as the action plays out. She leans into Atsede and wraps and arm around hers. She breathes a sigh of relief as the boy barely manages to roll out of a crushing blow.

[Bird Watching]

While the movie is already playing and the lights are dark, Reilana rolls Dulcinea into the theater. It's not hard to spot their seats, nor the conspicuous teen in front of them. She guides the way over, parking her girlfriend in the wheelchair spot and seating herself next to her.

Reilana leans in towards Dulcie and plucks the bag of sweets she bought off her lap. "Good thing we aren't really here for the movie. Those wings block half the screen." She jokes in a low voice.

[Keeper]

The Toy Tinker

"Yes, a fey cursed me. Jaahlyn's princess-boss was able to break the curse, but the fey is still out there. I was hoping to challenge her to something she thought she could beat me in then put a trap in the finish line to make her swear to leave me alone. That was the idea, anyway."
Jim shrugs. It's not like he's going to be cocky enough to assume he could easily beat a centuries-old fey without any effort.

[Shadowcaller]

The Toy Tinker

Jaahlyn was gonna add that the woku had turned him into a cow but perhaps that was better left unsaid.
"And if I can be of any assistance I'll gladly lend my services." She instead offers. "I'm a guide of sort so that might be useful in this case." Though she didn't know how yet.

[MERC Offices]

Tina's batting of eyelashes made Dena think exactly what part her of 'multitudes' she wanted to see. "Alright, what about this?" She selects her favorites on the site and pulls up what seems to be a rap musical based around some historical person to Tina's eyes considering all the old-time-y costumes the actors are wearing.

A unique concept one might say and certainly rather niche.
"Might look a bit weird but it's actually really popular. As long as you can handle some musical drama of course." Dena smirks.

[Wandering Riverside]

"I'd say it's very, uh, well-like over here. Like a well, but there's a grate on the top of it. Y'know, the one you were peering in through earlier? Oh, and this hole I got stuck in. Wells usually don't have those either I think." Raheeda attempts to explain as Nadia squeezes her hand in-between her and the metal of the pipe. "There's also water beneath me which is not a great place to put a spear in."

The woman squirms and giggles as she feels around to find where her robe is stuck. "Oh that tickles!"

Then Nadia can finally feel it. A section of the robe where the fabric have been pulled taut with metal just beneath it. It would be something of an effort to pull it free from there. I'd be far easier to just rip off the fabric that got stuck.

[Murkus]

[The Toy Tinker]

"Ah, I remember better now! I was having the teddy dream again. And we discussed this, and I... and I..." Sticks runs his hand through his reddish, coppery hair. His voice unwinds for a moment like a broken accordion. "Oh dear. Ahem. Er. I may have offered something I shouldn't have."

[MERC Offices]

"I can handle music, and I can handle drama. I don't know if I can handle musical drama, babe. I can't believe you're a musical girl! Aaah!" Fettina laughs. "So crazy! Look. I love music. I'm a musical soul. But I could never get into musicals myself. I'll still watch it, if only because I'd love to try and change my mind, but there may be some groaning."

[Keeper]

The Toy Tinker

"It's okay, Sticks. You can't entirely control what you say in a dream. And I know that you've got stuff in the past that's well, in the past. Don't think anything of it." Jim assures Sticks.
Sometimes you say things in dreams that are referring to your past as a creepy soul-ripping archmage that you may or may not be a copy of because of that freak in the underground.

[Shadowcaller]

The Toy Tinker

"Yes, we wouldn't take promises made in dreams for granted, sir." Jaahlyn replies, giving Sticks a nod. "And neither will you I hope, given that most are forgotten like a drunkards oath. What we need is a way to bind my kind, one that can be concealed. A trap if you will."

[MERC Offices]

"Hard to be a dancer without loving what you dance to. Ya' gotta have a sense of rhythm, you know that. Remember when I danced to your piano that one time at that beach party? Good times." Dena smiles fondly as she recalls that event.

"That's what makes musicals so great to me, they combine dance, music and of course a story. The best songs have a narrative to them, don't you know?" She giggles. "But that makes me think of the last time we were at the beach. I hope you remember that too, eh?"

The movie is still on pause, Dena's thumb pressing what doesn't seem to be the 'play' button as she starts leaning back in the bed next to Tina. Since instead of the movie starting a nearby panel in front of the couch starts opening, revealing a large flat-screen tv on the other side which screen is mirroring the gorgons laptop.

[Murkus]

[MERC Offices]

"You feeling sentimental babe?" Fettina asks. Truth be told, she was too. Maybe it was the scary and horrible things she'd seen in Riverside earlier tonight. Maybe she needed to get away from that - maybe escaping into the past was the best way. Or escaping into Dena's arms. Nearly the same thing.

"Of course I remember. All of it. I remember every time you've danced for me..." Fettina says, maybe a little dreamily. She tries to lean against her friend, lying against her side, throwing her arm across Dena's stomach. Her eyes are on the screen, but she keeps talking, soft and sleepy.

"I remember... you looked so beautiful without having to wear a cover on your eyes. I remember it changed you like-- like nothing I'd ever seen. I've seen people turn their whole face inside-out with cosmetic surgery and cosmetic augmentation and they didn't look as good or as different as you. I remember it was like turning the lights on." Fettina takes a deep, comfortable breath through her nose, the sound like a hand sliding across canvas. "I remember... I took you flying for the first time ever." She grins.

[The Toy Tinker]

"Thank you my boy. You are too kind," Sticks says earnestly, clicking and clacking his fingers together. He looks at Jaahlyn as she tries to explain further, his brow pleating. "Well, my memories are a bit fuzzy, but I recall mention of 'fey'. If that is what you are, miss Jaahlyn, I must ask if you share the same weaknesses as the 'fey' I'm familiar with. Do you have an aversion to iron? Are you able to tell a lie? Do you appreciate Faustian bargains with charmingly devious consequences? Wait. This could be devils..." There seems to be a suspicious amount of crossover there. "Anyway. I would need to know just what it is that can trap or harm or restrict your people to effectively bind them. I could perform a general purpose binding, but without... without using some magic I'd rather not use, 'general' is limited to the frame of my experience, and would be only capable of binding beings of spirit who obey the metaphysical mechanics that I am familiar with manipulating."

[Shadowcaller]

[MERC Offices]

She was getting sentimental? Tina might just have said some of the most sentimental things she had ever heard. Not to mention the way she put her hands around her stomach.
"Don't put me on a pedestal now." She remarks with a giggle but pauses as she felt her words and they were, well, undoubtedly Tina's. Yet there were more of them than she would usually use. Almost like poetry for her really. Tina poetry.
"But the flying, yeah. That was... unforgettable honestly." She reaches behind her to give Tina's shoulder a slight bump with the back of her hand. "You really ought to do that more. Depths, I'm pretty sure you could sell the experience if you wanted to."

[Ironsmith]

[Currency Exchange]

Ava sits down and keeps her eyes on the woman. "A currency exchange. Didn't catch the name of it but you just robbed it. There's been no casualties however." And she wasn't going to mention the teller. If she was actually telling the truth that information would probably not make her any calmer.

"Reinforcements should be here any minute." Indeed, they can already hear sirens in the distance. "After that you're probably going to be taken to the station to be evaluated. If you indeed have been under the influence of something they will find it." That was hardly an guarantee as they couldn't cover everything the diversity of the nexus could throw at a person but the more common types like possession and spells usually left some trace at least.

"Speaking of which, I'm going to give my coworkers a quick update on the situation, alright?" Ava holds up her communicator as to indicate she was going to do it through that.

[Currency Exchange]

The woman shakes her head vigorously. "No... no, they're not going to care." She cries, her breathing starting to escalate again. "I have a record, they're not going to think of me as an innocent. I'm supposed to be home right now, next to my wife, I-" She looks down at her feet, which are still bound together, and looks more distressed at what she finds. "Oh, god, they're going to think I slipped my monitor and came here and- AH!"

If Ava's looking in her direction right around now, she'll see the woman toss out the handgun she was using earlier, sending it spinning across the floor while she does her best to scoot away from it, eyes wide.

"Oh god my prints are going to be all over that, oh god oh god oh god-"

She's hyperventilating again. She's not even coherent enough to object to Ava radioing in help.

[Keeper]

The Toy Tinker

Jim glances around the room to make sure no one's watching at the window. Then he explains the plan quietly to Sticks.
"To give you the whole idea, the plan was to get something that either would help me run faster, or at least look like it does that. I challenge her to a race, she brags because she thinks she knows the trick, but the real trick is that there's a trap at the finish line. Then I force her to promise to leave me alone and let her go."

[Shadowcaller]

[The Toy Tinker]

Jaahlyn had suspected this question would come up so she was ready to answer it.
"That's correct, sir." She nods. "Fey like me are governed by Laws decided by our Courts. They decide things like if we are allowed to lie or or use mortal currency, though I'm not sure about the logic behind the last one." She had no aversion to ordinary iron at least.

"Either way, the courts decide the rules for all its members and since there are more than one Court there are more than one set of rules. Indeed, the fey we're after is a member of a Court that allow for a more diverse set of Laws."

She raises her hand. "I'm not going to get into all that though, don't worry. But there's some Laws that are universal. We can't break an oath for instance or knowingly enter someone's home without the owners permission." The last one is more of a vampire rule, isn't it? Jim might recall having to give Jaahlyn permission to enter his apartment though.

"We also have an aversion to- well, it's not a specific material. Rather it's something that can be found in all sort of materials. Something immaterial that attaches itself to metals and and other non-organic things. Usually its found deep underground but apparently the dragons of my world could also produce it. It feels could to the touch though, which I suppose why it's sometimes called 'cold iron' when attached to the metal. But I've also heard it being called dragon glass and stone ice among other colorful names. Since it's harmful to mortals too, we're just even more sensitive to it."

The satyr gestures to Sticks.
"Is any of that helpful? Do feel to ask questions, it might help me jolt my memories."

[Currency Exchange]

A record?
She was right, that would make this a lot harder.
Can Ava recall if any of the other potentially possessed/mind controlled persons had a record of some sort?

Ava will put down the radio and attempt to take the woman's hand. "Please, if you're flipping out you will have even less of a chance to get out of this. So please, try to focus and calm yourself. Tell me about your record, what have you been sentenced for exactly?"

Meanwhile, the reinforcements cars start to slow down outside the exchange.

[Ironsmith]

[Currency Exchange]

"A... a lot of things." The woman whimpers, pulling her knees up to her chest. "...Kidnapping, seven... no, eight counts. Assault with a deadly weapon. Resisting arrest. Impersonating a police officer. Conspiracy to..."

She stops, seeming to realize a problem. "...This all sounds really bad." She sniffs. "But I promise it's not what it sounds like. My wife and I used to work for a spy agency; the Global Intelligence Network. It was all part... part of the job." She sniffs a second time. "But GIN cut us loose and we've been trying to go straight. This is... this is the last thing I want to be doing!" She squeezes her knees to her chest, rocking back and forth in an effort to soothe herself before she starts panicking again.

While other possession victims sometimes had criminal records of their own, it's probably a safe bet that this woman's profile is a significant outlier.

[Felandria]

[Food Trucks]

"Well... Sophie over at Glog has been teaching me administration things to help at Glog eventually? I've been helping out there and doing crafts with the kids and setting up parties and things. That seems more like a real job than action archeology. A!A is more like a cool hobby?" Khannie reasons.

She definitely enjoys it.

Learning about the past and recovering priceless artifacts while facing death defying danger is cool!

But helping kids do kid stuff is actually IMPORTANT. Learning from the past is good. But without the kiddos there will be no future.

Anywho!

Khannie orders a torta!

They start by frying a mess of cheese on the grill and piling toppings on it.

"Oh yeah definitely the pimentos. Gotta have cherry peppers."

They're Khannie's big favorite.

Felandria noms some combo platter as she listens.

Well, the offer is there regardless.

This is pretty good.

You really should check out the grilled cheese truck over there, they have some excellent varieties.

I’m quite fond of their salami grilled cheese.