Riverside

[Shadowcaller]

[MERC Office

"Oh, um, sorry." Anika remarks sheepishly as Dipsnig seemed to mind her questions.
She would just have to ask them later then.

Jaahlyn had also found Anika's questions distracting but at least she wasn't attempting to beat her up so that was a huge improvement in her eyes.
She nods to Blanche. "You could say that, yeah. But people always just described them as 'demons' to me so I had no idea it was them." The satyr pauses, taking a deep breath. "I mean, I did know they were causing problems around here but that's worse than I thought." She let's out a sigh. "Thanks for bringing this to my attention though."

[Gullara]

[Back to Fox Central]

"Really?" Anastasia giggles. "Like, did you think I wasn't into cool troublemakers? That's basically you too, y'know!" She offers her boyfriend a nervous little prod of the elbow, then sighs. "Gosh, can't I just only have a crush on you? Why does everything in my life have to be so complicated?"

[Back to Fox Central]

Eliseo laughs and puts his arm around her. "Try not to worry too much about it. Just do your best not to feel awkward about it. I'm not going to get jealous when you two hang out, promise. So nothing to worry about."

[Arkhosia]

[Back to Fox Central]

"Hey, that's like, way easier said than done!" In spite of her nerves, Ana leans into his arm readily. "I was a mess back before you asked me out." Still, she smiles. "I do, um, really like hearing that, though. It's... really nice."

[Meowmai]

[Fight or Flight]

Eliseo laughs. "Figured you would." He starts the game up and they begin! He gives her a number of tips as they start out, until she gets the hang of it. He tries not to over explain, though.

She'll find once they really get into it that Eliseo's a really vocal player, whether is voicing success, frustration in the moment, or just coordinating, he really gets into it. He jostles her a bit, too as they go, whether just active in the moment or giving her a celebratory nudge and a grin. They play as far as the first boss, and after a hard fight they manage to take it down. "Fuck yeah! Let's go!" He raises a hand. Give him some skin.

[Fight or Flight]

Fortunately, a few basic tips is all she needs. Atsede isn't here to be complicated. As long as she can mash buttons and bash enemies, she's all set. And so she has fun!

She's pretty vocal in play too, and does her best to rib Eliseo whenever he gets hit- even though he's way better than her. At last they beat the final boss, and she whoops as loud as him. "We're unstoppable!" She wastes no time in landing the perfect high-five with him. The game had very clearly cheered the changeling up.

[Recaiden]

[Knight Takes Queen]

On the one hand, it begins to make sense. Siana killed Ilpholin to protect Anastasia.
Meaning the Anas must be a demon, or working with one, which was uncovered while Skye was away from the others...

The King in Rags is asking the questions about the rest of it, and Skye is willing enough to let him keep doing so without interfering.

And Nye over there is sounding absolutely unhinged, as she supposes the fey tend to do. What does it even mean, to kill someone and bring them back minutes later? There was no satisfactory answer when she was changed, so long ago. And there isn't one now, not that she can think of.

So, on the other hand, this looks more and more like a senseless act, an absurd situation. She has no idea what to do, so she is just still.

[...and Fusago]

Good answer. Life is, after all, why they are here as well.
Fusago will be shown, in particularly distorted imagery, a passage from one place to another. People carrying torches as they leave the sunlit lands and trek into the darkness, and each in turn lightning new torches for younger hands to carry away.

Is Fusago not also unusual? Look how their territory stretches into the Nexus, moves into Riverside. Strange, no?
Still, each pursuing their own path, keeping separate spheres and identities? As it should be.

The lights shift indistinctly for a while. There are things they feel that cannot be put into words, or even into images. But perhaps they aren't that important. Perhaps they are complex enough to treat with this fey using other principles. Yes. Living things give so many examples of how to be.

The next image shows The General nodding, shaking hands with some indistinct figure. Yes, they can advise Fusago and his network of yu-seeds.

[Reinholdt]

[Northside Graveyard]

As Malady goes to tuck the envelopes back into her pocket, she may find an old lady's cane interceding, pressed under them so that it can suddenly flick upwards to toss and scatter the bundle of letters. "Utter trash."

Mrs. Mordecai taps her cane into the ground once more with the authority of an elderly old lady. "Helpless sheep that follow a useless leader into a chasm are worse than that leader. Your entire generation's lost with people like you as its idol."

Ugh, Melody was finally finding her voice and Jaahlyn was off gallivanting with a dog like the beast she is. Ilpholin can stall for a little bit, still having one more thing to do, depending on how far she just pushed Melody.

[Xar'Cha Estate]

"Yes MA'AM!" Ilpholin corrects, expecting them to repeat as much. They already seemed to have a history in at least basic militia or military duties. Best just to establish the power dynamic now. "Very well. Let's begin."

Ilpholin will proceed to train them for the first and possibly last time.

[Morty]

[MERC Office]

Dipsnig falls silent and listens. Something in Jaahlyn's behavior strikes him as odd. Wenomir assumes that Jaahlyn is also someone who has experienced some particular loss or trauma at the demons' hands.

"They've been waging war against the Nexus for a while. But ever since the invasion they've been more silent. I'd like to think we hurt their ability to attack us but I doubt it. I'm worried they're hatching another scheme or attack."

[Knight Takes Queen]

"When I command you to speak, you will speak." Now the King seems furious for being affronted in this way, not just Ilpholin's death. "Her story was not meant to end like this. What made you think you could decide otherwise?" He turns to look at Nye. "If it weren't for your protection, I would kill her where she stands."

[Arkhosia]

[MERC Office]

"I wasn't here for the Invasion, but I've dealt with them in the past," Blanche comments, looking a little resentful about the subject matter herself. "Have you encountered them yourself? Or do you think they might have any further ties to what's been going on with the King in Rags lately?"

[Shadowcaller]

[Knight Takes Queen]

Nye strokes her chin thoughtfully as the King gestures at her. "It could be argued that while the arena is designated for bloodshed she overstepped its boundaries by actually murdering one of the other guests." She admits before turning to the General and the two Ana's. "Being guests yourself, would you say that's a fair ruling? Since I think the middle ground here would be for Siana to at least have a chance to defend herself either in the arena or by arguing for her case. Her decision." The fey queen shrugs.

[MERC Office]

Jaahlyn closes her eyes for a moment as if she was trying to relax but once Blanche addresses her directly she nods and opens her eyes again. "I... have encountered them before, yeah. Don't think they would have any ties to the King of Rags though. From what I understand they hate the fey more than anything else. The fey hurt them in the past I think, hurt them so badly they turned into the monsters they are now. Everything they do now is either out of desperation or revenge for what was done to them."

[...and Fusago]

As Fusago is about to reply, something suddenly tugs at their attention and the general is instead seeing the image of Nye. Somehow sensing her presence here despite not actually being in the room with them.
Something has happened. Something bad.
The General will then see images of Ilpholin being decapitated by Siana while kneeling before her. Not making a single move to resist her fate. In this image Siana looks particularly monstrous as Fusago seems to consider her a murderer and criminal in this case. Someone who should be judged.

[Arkhosia]

[Knight Takes Queen]

"I-I-I don't- I-I don't think she knows why either," Stasia attempts to offer, raising her head to look at the King in Rags - only for Ana to reach forward, clamp a hand over her eyes and guide her gaze back down. "Y-you don't have to see all that again," she advises, then looks between Nye and Siana nervously. "I... I don't know. This- Gosh, I shouldn't have let it get this far, no one should've been killed - but I-I heard a little of what the two of them said to each other before this." Ana swallows.

"The way Ilpholin spoke, it- u-um, I dunno if I heard everything right, a-a-and I know I'm a biased witness, but - i-it sounded like she was saying that the only way Siana could protect me was to kill her." She looks down briefly at her feet. "I- I guess it doesn't matter why the spirit of this place was violated, but... I don't - I-I don't want anyone else killed because of me. If there's going to be bloodshed again, please, at least make it nonfatal." Ana turns towards the King in Rags as she makes that last plea, steeling herself to look the apparition in the eye as best she can.

[Ironsmith]

[Knight Takes Queen]

"...Arena."

Siana raises her gaze again, looking up at the eldritch terror baying for her blood. Ana's defense of her actions was... touching, but she doubts the King in Rags has a heart to touch. That, and playing up the angle of "it's all my fault" was likely to be counterproductive; if the King decided to take his anger out on her for her role in this, then SIana didn't succeed in protecting her, just altering the identity of her attacker.

"...My actions were my own." She continues, pulling herself to her foot by leaning up against the arena wall. "Mine and nobody else's." She adds, giving Ana a pointed look and a gesture to stand back. "If you demand retribution, I will see that demand met." Her gaze flicks down her cane, still in the arena, before it goes back up to the King in Rags. "...I will not even resist." She continues, stumbling away from the wall and landing on her knees again. "Since that would be a fair punishment, wouldn't it? An eye for an eye."

Though she doubts he'll be that quick or restrained about it. A quick, clean decapitation wouldn't satisfy his anger; she's anticipating more of a "torn into bloody ribbons by a thousand wooden hands" sort of response.


[Northside Graveyard]

"Gah!" Melody cries out as the letters go flying. Unfortunately, she's not as nimble as papers caught in the wind, and her immediate, reflexive attempt to catch the fanmail before it's scattered out across the cemetery is less than successful. "Nononononono!" She squeals, running after the scattered envelopes and trying to catch them. She gets one, and another, and a third, stuffing them each into her pocket as she retrieves them, not wanting to risk losing them again.

She is, however, far too focused on retrieving them, and as such doesn't seem to notice, until it's too late, when she stumbles over one of the headstones.

Which sends her rolling down the hill, all semblance of control lost for the short but remarkable distance, ending with her landing hard on the cobbled-together pathway at the bottom of the hill, scraped-up, covered in dirt, and holding one of her knees.

[Shadowcaller]

[Northside Graveyard]

That bite had finally given her enough motivation to shake the damn mutt off her and make it finally understand that she didn't want to play.
Of course, it might already be too late now the way she had shouted.

The satyr peers out from behind the mausoleum only to spot Melody rolling down the hill.

...

What in the depths was going on here?!

First the dog and now this.
Was this Ilpholin's doing? Had she brought the dog here just to mess with her and then had tripped Malady hoping she'd die by smashing her own head open on a tombstone? In fact, what was Melody doing here in the first place?
So many questions yet as she was not to interfere perhaps it was better to not get the answers to them. It would likely just make her feel even worse about all of this.
Thus, she retreats back behind the mausoleum, sits down and pulls her hooves close to her, closing her eyes. All she could do now was to wait. Wait for awful things to happen.

[Morty]

[MERC Office]

Wenomir gives an irritated scoff. Dipsnig is looking between him and Jaahlyn with a calculating expression. That Wenomir hates the Cuthun demons is nothing new, but what is Jaahlyn's angle? It's clearly personal.

"These creatures' motives interest me very little. But it is useful to know they won't be working together with the King in Rags."

[Knight Takes Queen]

"What you want is of no concern to me. Be silent," is all the King in Rags has to say to Anastasia. His gaze remains fixed on Siana, not sparing Ana a glance. "Your life isn't worth hers. It would not be an even trade and I do not make deals where I stand to lose. Nor will I abuse our host's generosity. I will come to demand your payment in due time and an appropriate manner."

[Gullara]

[Back to Fox Central]

"Just don't run away with her. Where would I be without my daily dose of Ana?" He gives her a wink and a laugh. "You feeling good, though? I don't want to worry about you after I drop you off." More laughter as he gives her a squeeze.

[Fight or Flight]

In the midst of their celebration, they can hear a call from outside the room and down the hall. "Eliseo?" Uh oh, trouble approaches. Nadia opens the door a moment later, looking cross. "You do remember that you're still grounded, don't you?"

"Uh yeah, but this is different. Atsede got hurt and I was helping her out. Just wanted to give her a few minutes before she headed home on her own, you know?" Eliseo quick talks to explain himself.

Nadia turns her attention to Atsede now, scrutinizing the cold pack tied over her eye.

[Arkhosia]

[Back to Fox Central]

"Just don't run away with her. Where would I be without my daily dose of Ana?" He gives her a wink and a laugh. "You feeling good, though? I don't want to worry about you after I drop you off." More laughter as he gives her a squeeze.

[Back to Fox Central]

"Hey, you know I'd never be able to do that! I mean, where would I be without my daily dose of Eliseo?" Anastasia teases right back, leaning in and giving her boyfriend a flirtatious little nip at the base of the jaw. Then, she smiles a little bashfully.

"I think I'll be just fine, really. Talking about all of this really helped - I mean, I'll probably still have a bit of nerves, but I'm always like that. And like, you're really good at this sorta thing, so." Snuggling up against him, she takes a moment to give her boyfriend a warm look. The words might be a little hard right now, but the affection and sincerity come across just fine.

[Shadowcaller]

[Fight or Flight]

In the midst of their celebration, they can hear a call from outside the room and down the hall. "Eliseo?" Uh oh, trouble approaches. Nadia opens the door a moment later, looking cross. "You do remember that you're still grounded, don't you?"

"Uh yeah, but this is different. Atsede got hurt and I was helping her out. Just wanted to give her a few minutes before she headed home on her own, you know?" Eliseo quick talks to explain himself.

Nadia turns her attention to Atsede now, scrutinizing the cold pack tied over her eye.

[Fight or Flight]

Irena peeks out from behind Nadia and makes the 'I'm watching you' gesture at Eliseo.

But then something makes her pause. "Wait, hurt how?" She glances at this 'Atsede' girl. Just how many friends did the Kid have exactly? She could hardly keep track of them despite this one having wings.

[Gullara]

[Back to Fox Central]

Eliseo chuckles softly, some colour coming to his face accompanying the affectionate gesture. "Good. I'm doing my best." He kisses the top of her head. "Wanna start walking again? Not that your mom gave us a curfew, so there's no rush."

[Arkhosia]

[Back to Fox Central]

"Hm, I dunno, I guess she didn't give us a curfew~" Anastasia's voice turns a little conspiring and she peppers his neck with a brief flurry of kisses, pulling back with a giggle before glancing around for any secluded spots around them. Truly a menace, this girl.

[Gullara]

[Back to Fox Central]

Oh. Eliseo's mind was remarkably not there, but he's easily encouraged. He looks around briefly and makes a quick decision. "Here, come with me." He takes her hand to help her up, then leads the way to a little alcove at the entrance of a shop. There are a couple steps down and it provides some degree of cover, given that the store itself is closed.

"We can spare a little bit of time." Eliseo agrees once they have the barest modicum of privacy. "Now where were we?" He leans in close to her, lips nearly touching when he speaks, then closes the gap immediately afterward.

[Arkhosia]

[Back to Fox Central]

Taking Eliseo by the hand, Ana is only too happy to follow him down... only to find the tables turned, a flutter in her stomach as she looks back into his eyes. While she's a little slow to return the kiss at first, it isn't long until she's as eager to make out as she was before - and by the time they finally get around to actually heading home, Eliseo will probably come away with quite a few marks that he'll struggle to hide.

Ana, for her part, acts perfectly innocently when they knock on the door and Kitty lets her in, turning to give Eliseo a chaste little kiss on the cheek and slipping away with a smile. A menace, truly.

[Gullara]

[Back to Fox Central]

Eliseo smiles a little dreamily after Ana when she slips inside, taking a moment to realize that Kitsuki has paused at the door. She looks at him with an eyebrow raised and a knowing smile, and Eliseo puts his hand on his neck self-consciously. "I'm glad you two had fun, though aren't you a bit late? I think you mentioned needing to be home by now."

Eliseo's eyes widen. "Oh shit, uh, yeah. Bye Mrs. Bellamy." And with that he turns and runs off. As if hurrying will somehow make him meet his curfew.

[Reinholdt]

[Northside Graveyard]

Mrs. Mordecai watches in bewilderment as Melody flings herself down the hill. Was she about to do the job for Ilpholin, cause Lolth below, she can't imagine how this girl has lived until now. Well she supposes Malady technically hadn't, but then she can't imagine anyone allowing this being to become a demon or an angel or anything in between.

Well she's certainly managed to trash Mrs. Mordecai's expectations and plans. This has just been ugly and sad.
...
Ah. Malady might be a succubus, but she was really a demon of sloth, isn't she? That makes the most sense.

It would have been more fitting to kill Melody atop her gravestone, but Mrs. Mordecai can't always follow the rule of cool and slowly begins hobbling her way down the hill. "You alive down there? Should I call an ambulance?" She calls out in a screechy voice.

[Ironsmith]

[Knight Takes Queen]

Siana keeps her eyes on the King in Rags, not entirely sure what to make of what she was hearing. Was... he really letting her off that easy, if only for the moment? She would have expected imminent wrath from him. Instead, he's forestalling any punishment... probably until he can think of a good one. Or maybe the delay is part of the punishment; leave her dreading their next encounter, so she never has a moment's peace of mind.

If that's the case, joke's on him. She's not going to be fine for a long time.

Still... not much more to be done about it, is there?

Siana just nods slowly and moves back to the edge of the arena, crawling the whole way.


[Northside Graveyard]

"Of course she is."

The response comes from a haggard-looking man sitting on top of Malady's gravestone, dressed in moth-eaten, cheap clothes and with long, unkempt hair, both tucked under his greasy baseball cap and dangling scraggily from his chin. He didn't seem like he was here before, but it seems possible that he could have been; he looks like he might be homeless, and if that's the case, he's probably camped out somewhere nearby.

Which doesn't explain why it suddenly feels about thirty degrees colder.

Melody, for her part, doesn't respond; she's too busy keeping her mouth clamped shut and visibly trying not to cry, again. She's still moving, so Mrs. Mordecai and Jaahlyn both will be able to tell she's not dead. If either of them comes close enough to examine the injury properly, they'll be able to see that her knee is... definitely bent out of shape. Dislocated patella. Probably about as painful as it looks, and it looks awful.

[Shadowcaller]

[Northside Graveyard]

Jaahlyn isn't trying to listen as she wasn't eager to hear the death cries of her friend. Yet the man's voice is distinct enough to make her peek out from behind the mausoleum again.

Just a homeless man? Or was this yet another demon trying to kill Malady? She couldn't tell from this distance but something told her that whoever this was it hadn't been a part of Ilpholin's plan. It did feel like she should try to make sure if Malady was still alive but she was going to keep her eyes on the strange man and Ilpholin-as-old-lady for now.

For all she know he could have been that annoying dog.

[Morty]

[Knight Takes Queen]

"The Wyrd heard what I spoke. It knows of your debt," the King says to Siana before turning back to Nye. "Do you have a plan for bringing her back? I wouldn't think such a thing possible."

[Reinholdt]

[Northside Graveyard]

Fantastic. The last thing Ilpholin needs right now is some rando interfering. That he wasn't there before only suggests the distinctly annoying type. She has half a mind to rip his reality in half. She was so close in getting Melody where she needed to be, until the demon literally threw herself down a hill at the climax.

The old lady turns to the man who speaks, slowly rotating with her cane, before lifting it and pointing it in his general direction with a shaky hand. "Get down from there son! You're disrespecting the dead." And that's rude.

[Knight Takes Queen]

Hidden and undisturbed in Moth Park, a spider bot rouses from its motionless state, lightly whirring as it processes.

Signal error.
Signal lost.
Attempting to reconnect...
Signal error.
Attempting to reconnect...
Signal error.
Attempting to reconnect...
Connection to host established. Input not found. Verify password and check host connection.
Password not verified.
Host connection not verified.
Verify password and check host connection. 1 attempt remaining.
Password not verified.
Host connection not verified.
Locking account and activating Project Icarus.
Connecting to Spider's Web.
Connection secured. Channel open.
Requesting authorization.
Authorization received.
Initiating Project Icarus.

The spiderbot rears up and glows with an intense purple energy for a time among its visible creases and joints. Within the arena and surrounded by the stunned guests of Nye's party, Ilpholin's body and head suddenly start to shimmer and glow blue before they will quite unceremoniously disappear a moment later as if dematerializing from the world. The remaining blood proves that she was there at one point and it isn't all some elaborate illusion.

[Ironsmith]

[Northside Graveyard]

"I'd be curious to hear what you think you're doing, if not that." The scruffy man snarks, sliding off the gravestone. "It's all right, though. I can take it from here. Not like she's going anywhere."

Melody lets out a pained moan at the bottom of the hill.

"Definitely not going anywhere." The man shrugs, taking a few steps down. "Thanks for that, by the way. I mean, we could have waited until your friend back there redirected her to the authorities, but that's an annoying argument nobody wants to have. Now we can just skip right on past that and get to the fun part." The man taps his temple. "Work smarter, not harder, am I right?"

[Arkhosia]

[MERC Office]

Jaahlyn closes her eyes for a moment as if she was trying to relax but once Blanche addresses her directly she nods and opens her eyes again. "I... have encountered them before, yeah. Don't think they would have any ties to the King of Rags though. From what I understand they hate the fey more than anything else. The fey hurt them in the past I think, hurt them so badly they turned into the monsters they are now. Everything they do now is either out of desperation or revenge for what was done to them."

[MERC Office]

"Hm, I see. I suppose it makes sense from what we've seen of them." Blanche frowns. A monster being made by their desperation for revenge hits a little close - it's an attitude VIGIL has always had to be cautious about.

[Knight Takes Queen]

At some point after Siana retreats to the edge of the arena, she'll feel a hand on her shoulder. "...Hey, c'mon," Ana coaxes, trying to gently guide the vampire away to take a seat by Stasia. She rubs her back in a soothing motion. "Look, you're - you're going to be okay. It's all going to be okay." The words only sound so confident, like Ana's trying to convince herself as much as she's trying to convince Siana. Still, the sentiment is sincere.

[Meowmai]

[Fight or Flight]

In the midst of their celebration, they can hear a call from outside the room and down the hall. "Eliseo?" Uh oh, trouble approaches. Nadia opens the door a moment later, looking cross. "You do remember that you're still grounded, don't you?"

"Uh yeah, but this is different. Atsede got hurt and I was helping her out. Just wanted to give her a few minutes before she headed home on her own, you know?" Eliseo quick talks to explain himself.

Nadia turns her attention to Atsede now, scrutinizing the cold pack tied over her eye.

[Fight or Flight]

Irena peeks out from behind Nadia and makes the 'I'm watching you' gesture at Eliseo.

But then something makes her pause. "Wait, hurt how?" She glances at this 'Atsede' girl. Just how many friends did the Kid have exactly? She could hardly keep track of them despite this one having wings.

[Fight or Flight]

"Oh shit." Oops, they had gotten so caught up in the moment she completely forgot they were supposed to be quiet. "Uh, hi. Yeah. I'm Atsede. I uh. I fell." Best not to mention getting into a fight in front of parents, even if they weren't hers. She peels up the icepack to reveal a nasty black eye developing, as proof. See? Definitely a falling injury. Which is why nowhere else is bruised.

[Shadowcaller]

[...and Fusago]

Good answer. Life is, after all, why they are here as well.
Fusago will be shown, in particularly distorted imagery, a passage from one place to another. People carrying torches as they leave the sunlit lands and trek into the darkness, and each in turn lightning new torches for younger hands to carry away.

Is Fusago not also unusual? Look how their territory stretches into the Nexus, moves into Riverside. Strange, no?
Still, each pursuing their own path, keeping separate spheres and identities? As it should be.

The lights shift indistinctly for a while. There are things they feel that cannot be put into words, or even into images. But perhaps they aren't that important. Perhaps they are complex enough to treat with this fey using other principles. Yes. Living things give so many examples of how to be.

The next image shows The General nodding, shaking hands with some indistinct figure. Yes, they can advise Fusago and his network of yu-seeds.

[...and Fusago]

All beings were unusual in their own way. Fusago seems to assume that was the reason they were separated. Their minds were incompatible with one another. Too unique to be able to function together. Since like all the other yu-seeds it had traits that were different from theirs. Thus it was 'unusual' to any being separated from them. Since by this logic everything that wasn't separated from them were the same as them.

Of course as the General is explaining this it all came down to a single question, didn't it? Did they wish to join the network Fusago had shown to them? Since not only would it change their lives forever they had to be accepted by the other seeds first. Which didn't seem like it would be an easy thing to do.

[MERC Office]

"But they're just demons right?" Anika inquires. "Like, they're made of evil. So it sounds like they were already pretty monstrous already to me." She points out.

"I-" Jaahlyn shakes her head. "Nevermind. I don't think there's much more for me to tell you about them anyway. It's the King in Rags you should be focusing on and if you do come across him don't hesitate to call me, okay?"

The satyr will hand out her number to the VIGIL group, Anika giving the note a skeptical look. "Uh... how do you do the number thing again?" She asks Blanche as she holds up communicator armband that Geneva had given her.

[Knight Takes Queen]

Nye leans back in her throne and swings her chair up on the arm of it, essentially laying down in it as she considers. "Well... there are a few options..."
"Your majesty-" Black Pawn remarks but Nye raises her hand.
"Not now, I am thinking."
"-Ilpholin's body is gone, your majesty."
"Oh."
"..."
"Well, that's going to make it harder to bring it back. Probably."
She pauses in a moment of thought.
"But it must have been taken back to her compound, yes? Perhaps we can contact that spider friend of hers and arrange something." Nye turns to face the King in Rags. "But until then I'm afraid we have to be patient. Rest assure though, I wouldn't let a great warriors life end like that."

Her gaze then starts looking for Siana. "Until then I suggest, eh, you and Siana settle the score so to speak. Vengeance is a terrible business so its best to get it over with quickly wouldn't you agree?"