Calvin took a sip of the ale, and swished it around in his mouth for a second. It was certainly high-quality, and he nodded appreciatively as he held the drink in his hand. He listened quietly while Shona launched into her tale, but was shocked at the lengths the Infinity Initiative had gone to track her. There was something off about that organization, but Calvin was still thankful for them. Much like many of the talents here, his was a dying art. He would not have been able to hone his craft without them. 

Cyrus’s story was equally impressive. “I’ve heard about that paper! My sister was a buff on that stuff.” He took a gulp of the ale, and scowled a bit. “It’s a sipper.” He realized that eyes were on him. 

“So. Infinity Initiative.” He put down his drink for a moment. “Back when I was starting up, I just was using a makeshift forge I had set up outside of my house. Wasn’t anything special, but it did the job. Needed money to pay for all my shit, so I began to take commissions. Some lady named Theresa came by my forge one day. I’d never met her before. Asked for a statue, and I’m not a huge fan of that stuff, but the pay was good so I took it up.” 

“Worked on it for a few days, and when she came back, she was impressed. I’m pretty fast at that shit. Told me she was working for the Infinity Initiative. Wanted me in it. I initially told her to fuck off. But she was uh-“ He took a pause mid-sentence to drink. “She had some persuasive arguments. Plus, my sister thought it was the coolest thing in the world when I told her.”

Flashes of bloody bodies went through Calvin’s mind. He shook his head.  “Those guys know what they’re doing.  Don’t know how, but they’re keeping an eye on everything.” An uncomfortable thought went through his head.  

“Fuck. Me.” He stood up, slamming his drink on the table. “What if they’ve set this up? The Infinity Initiative?” His eyes were wide, and he looked at Shona and Cyrus. “They’re obsessed with us hitting our full potential. What if this is some joke? Some fucked-up way of pushing us?” Breathing heavily, he finished the rest of his drunk in one gulp. “Fuck!" He wanted to throw his glass at the wall, but settled on pacing instead. 

After a moment, Mondatta entered. Calvin needed anything to distract himself with, and the opportunity to explore the rest of the resort was compelling. He felt his stomach clench up, and turned to Mondatta. “I’ll come, but I think I’ll check out the ER.” It was an easy excuse to check out the crematorium, provided no one came along.