And
And

After a lengthy phone call with her mother, Marrie found herself biking to the hospital one-handed. Her excuse for why she needed to go seemed to placate her enough to convince her not to fly to Pax Septimus with money she doesn't have. She avoided telling her mother that she was uninsured, knowing that she wouldn't react well. It took a while to get there, and she fell once or twice (luckily on her good right side instead of on the broken one) due to her lack of having two functional arms, but she made it and checked in to be seen by a doctor in... about 2 hours. Great. She'd be on her phone until then, she figured.

Marrie would not have much time to play with her phone. Or at least, she would not have much time to enjoy doing so in the tranquil environment she was presently in. Over by the desk Two kids were standing in front of the front desk. One was a girl wearing a flamboyant purple suit that probably would have looked better on a man. It was kind of baggy, in contrast to the girl’s otherwise feminine appearance. She had shoulder length hair that had two strips bleached and then dyed red and blue. She also had her bangs dyed red and blue as well.

"What do you mean I need to wait?" She practically barked the words.

”There’s quite a line for new patients.” The clerk looked into the waiting room. ”That other lady is going to be waiting for a while, at least two hours.”

The girl took a peak, pouted, and then looked back at the clerk. "Oh, of course some white princess gets to get in before we do."

The clerk took a deep breath, clearly at her wits end with all the other unhappy people she’s had to deal with today. ”Well ma’am, she was here-”

"Did you just assume my gender?" She(?) pointed at her(?)self with their thumb. "It’s zir!" Ze took the boy by the hand and guided him into the waiting room, where zi sat across from the “white princess” to bore holes into them with zir eyes.

The boy would admit it clear as day. He never liked hospitals. Whether it was for a flu shot or for something simple as a check up, he would always have some weird anxious feeling weigh him down no matter how calm he was before. If you'd ask him, he wouldn't know. Probably because of a natural anxiety that something might be wrong, or the strong smell of sanitizer in the halls. Or something worse, like the feeling of death looming deeper within the facility. Or how helpless people are at the mercy of time.

One wrong move, and you're done for.

Grim thoughts aside, he was feeling more flustered than anxious at the moment. The boy in the red hoodie said nothing as the other kid berated the clerk, mostly because any attempts to calm zir down would be drowned out. He could only offer the clerk a sympathetic shrug as he was dragged off. To sit across from the mentioned lady, no less.

While the feminine fellow glared daggers at Marrie, he offered a polite wave. "Er, g-good evening! Don't mind my friend here, we've been a bit busy." The boy tried to explain. "What're ya in for?"

"Oh, no worries." Marrie said to the boy. "Just a... olecranon fracture." she said, having looked up the term a moment ago. Then she paused, remembered that she herself had just learned it, and therefor most people wouldn't know what it meant... "I, er, broke my elbow." Marrie tried to straighten her left arm and was struck by severe pain, wincing and then smiling at the two youths. "See?"

Seeing her try to move her broken arm made the boy panic a bit. "H-Hey! You don't have to show an example, I get it!" He quickly reassured Marrie, a worried frown on his face.

"Yes, I think we could both see that your arm was broken." Zi folded zir arms and sat upright. "Let me guess, Bike accident? Tripped and fell into something hard? I’d consider the various farm related injuries, but you don’t strike me as much of a tom boy."

Marrie paused at the last comment, before allowing it to bounce off her like a rock on a lake. "It's okay, it only hurts a lot, heh." She turned to the insulting child. "Uh... yeah. Bike accident." she managed in a not quite convincing way.

For some reason, the reaction seemed to satisfy zir to the point that ze smiled. "I'm Mary, by the way," Ze raised zir hand, which was still holding onto the boy's. "This is Fable!" After zir introduction, ze lowered their hands back down. "We were going to go on a date, but I decided to stop by here for um..." Ze trailed off for a bit before making zir smile even wider. "Therapy! Or at least ask about it, but my, therapist, I'm too early see? My apointment is for later, but I need to see them, right now." Ze tapped zir foot on the ground.

_{"Er, I-I really wouldn't...call it...a "date" per say..."} Fable mumbled off, scratching the back of his head. When Mary thought up an excuse, his face comically blanked out.

"My old therapist is in prison for attempted murder." He bluntly said, fib or not. "Ze was going to suggest zir's to me." Mary raised zir eyebrow briefly, but said nothing before looking back at Marrie with a dead pan expression.

"Uh... uh-huh. Nice to meet you?" Marrie replied. I'm Marrie. Weird running into someone else with the same name as me, but kind of cool. 'Fable' is a cool name too, by the way. You could even call it... legendary." she began laughing for a moment before raising her left hand to cover her mouth, causing her intense pain which stopped her laughter. Then it registered. "Wait. Who did they try to kill? A patient? she asked, totally nonplussed by Fable's use of non-standard terms for Mary.

"Well It's more of a moniker than anythi-" Fable rambled, until Marrie's pun caught him off guard. He was locked between a strange cackle and an awkward cough, and the inbetween would sound weird anyways. He cleared his throat once she asked about his little "fib".

"It was. Long story." He simply said.

"Hey man, I've got two hours to wait. If you wanna talk about it, I'm not really a therapist, but I could hear you out. I did some psych research back in school for a class, which isn't really qualifying, but hey, better than nothing, right?" Marrie rambled for a bit until she remembered something. "Oh, right. Sorry, I don't want to impose on you and your date's time. Sorry."

"We're also waiting, so you aren't taking our time." Mary giggled, only growing happier with Marrie the more she spoke. "My full name is Mariette, It's a little unusual, so everyone just calls me Mary." Zir hand slid out of Fable's palm and up his arm, which ze used to pull him closer. "But this psych research sounds pretty mature. What grade was it? What grade are you in? You don't look that much older than us."

"Oh, I actually just finished highschool last year. It was as a junior and senior that I took the classes." Marrie was suddenly struck by the thought that perhaps she was short for her age. Then again, youthfulness was a good thing, right? ... Right?

The boy shivered when he felt Mary's hand move to his arm. As much as he wanted to be nice, this was kinda making him uncomfortable. So eventually, he gently shook zir hand off him. "I'm alright." Fable quietly said, to both of them in fact, with a mixed expression.

Mariette gave Fable a looooooong stare before lowering zir hands into zir lap. "Well, I guess it's just the way you keep your hair. I'm only fourteen, but I can't wait for my next growth spurt!" ze crossed zir brow before looking at Fable. "I think we need a long story right now, so how about you tell us more about the murder? I didn't get all the details when we spoke last time." Mariette was fidgeting zir hands as they spoke.

Marrie also looked towards Fable, partially reluctant to have him tell a story that seemed to upset him.

Fable frowned slightly for a second. "Attempted. But... Right. I had a friend once. A superior I looked up to in a way. Prodigal investigator, despite his age. He and his partner would work together to solve even the most dangerous cases, even if they risk their lives to keep others safe...and each other. One case was an asylum escapee. A master of deception and manipulation, no matter how much that sounds like something out of Batman but, anyways, she eluded law enforcement for years. The pursuit ended up to the two of them. They didn't really tell me anything until later, trying to protect me I guess." As soon as he found the words, the story he told flowed out naturally. He furrowed his brows. "That damn woman. She ended up targeting them. The patient that got shot? Was one of them. The partner. He survived but it still sickens me that I couldn't be there to do something." Fable shuddered. "I hate not being able to prevent something. I hate it..." His voice ended on a whisper. Even if some things are still left obscured...

This wasn't a lie, was it?

"You were friends with a detective?" Mariette looked more confused than anything. "That sort of reminds me of '
A Study in Emerald' only without the horror elements, and it's real." With a shrug, ze leaned on their arm rest away from Fable.

At the comparison, the boy offered a tired chuckle and a smile. "Yeah, not the weirdest thing in the world these days." He said with a shrug in return. "...I kinda miss them."

"I can understand where you're coming from with that last bit. And I'm sorry to make you think about all this again. But, uh, sorry to ask this, but I'm confused. Was it the asylum patient or your old therapist who shot the patient?"

"The escapee WAS the therapist." Fable clarified. "Probably should've specified that earlier."

"Your therapist was an asylum patient? They don't sound entirely up for their job then. Or was it like an asylum where even the doctors weren't allowed to leave? Is that a thing?"

Fable blinked. He was silent for a moment, before he sighed. "Fuck if I know." he slumped further into his seat.

"Well that was fun!" Mariette looked at her phone.

"Not really."

"But not very time consuming." zir eyes darted around the waiting room before locking on Marrie again. "So um, I uh... Well you seem nice." Mary inhaled. "I'm considering hormone therapy. But I'd like to talk to a doctor first." Ze locked zir fingers together. "I know I'm too young, they'll want me to be at least sixteen before they do anything. But you said you did some reaserch on psych stuff. Does that sort of thing make people happier in the long run, usually?"

Marrie thought for a moment while she shook off the stun of what she just heard. "Well... From what little I've read on the subject, it seems like it's a case by case basis? Some people are more happy, some wish they never did it. I'd say the only way to know is to try, but... It's not really reversable as far as I'm aware. I mean, I guess you could get further therapy to try to reverse it, but I don't know if that would work or not. Again, I've only done a little research on this topic." Marrie took a moment to collect herself before continuing. "If you don't mind a personal oppinion, I'd say that I wouldn't do it. If you can't find happiness in your body now, then there might be other avenues to change that that are more in the mind than changing the way your body is, you know? But it's ultimately your decision. I'm not so old that I think people younger than me can't make important decisions, I'd just caution you to maybe consider other ways first, if there are any."

Mariette's head bobbed up and down while Marrie spoke. "I see," ze placed a hand on zir chin. "I don't think... I know the doctor is probably going to say something similar," Mary stood up. "But um, say I had, two bodies. Would you still think that?"

"You mean if you weren't satisfied with either, or that you wanted the opposite gender expressed from each? Like one being a boy and one a girl? I guess I'd need to know why you actually wanted the therapy, but that would be an interesting phenomenon to have two bodies." Marrie said, it obvious from her voice that she was thinking it over.

"Yea!" Mary giggled, even if zir nerves were showing a bit. "If I had two female bodies, would you still say I was better off finding different avenues, or would it be better to alter one of them with hormone therapy?"

"Well... Ultimately, you can only change gender, not sex, with current methods as far as I'm aware. Therapy would help other people see you as what you want to be seen as, but you'd need some magic way to change one body to a male if you wanted that. I guess it also depends on-" something occured to Marrie. "If we're doing hypotheticals like that anyway, I guess there'd already be some form of magic in order for someone to have two bodies, right? So maybe it would be better to look into magical means of changing one of the bodies, though they'd have to be really careful in what they did so they didn't fall to dark magic or something like that. At the point of having two bodies, is hormone therapy even good enough?"

Mariette was nodding much more excitedly now. "Thank you, fellow Mary! I think you saved me a good two hours of waiting in line." Ze extended zir hand to shake. "Maybe later you can stop by the Great Escape and we can all do something fun together! Do you have someone to drive you home? I could have one of my servants- erm, friends pick you up."

"No problem, I'm glad that I seem to have been able to help." Marrie shook Mariette's hand with her good arm. "I should be able to get home okay, but thank you for the offer. And I'll look into the 'Great Escape' when I get home. It was nice to meet you two."

Ze nodded. "Taake care!"

Marrie waved and continued her wait. A few hours later she left the hospital with a sling and a elbow that was ready to heal.

With the police precinct swept and cleared of all danger and the hostages tended to, one might not be blamed for thinking that Samuel was finally finished with his work, but that simply wasn't the case. In fact, truth be told, he considered the next part to be equal to the raid in terms of mental strain.

He needed to meet with his boss and debrief.

Samuel set off and left the police precinct behind him, but not before ducking into a room and discarding his shadow-borne demonic visage and returning to his mundane human form.

There was a really specific reason for this. It wasn't that Samuel had read and memorized G.E.M.I.N.I's dress code and found that his demonic form did not adhere to the standards set by them, despite basing part of its appearance on his actual clothing. Or that he worried he might cause unnecessary panic or offense. No, it was far more personal than that.

My arm sure hurts! Being shot is quite an unpleasant feeling. Though I suppose not feeling it would have its unfavorable implications. Thank goodness I can change form to recover!

Samuel carried onward without any incident, passing by a now-defunct racecar-themed diner and approaching a local grocery store, following the sidewalk despite there being no risk of traffic currently and walking at a normal pace. He even checked his email and made a quick call to an acquaintance that had rung him at some point during the operation.

Eventually, the man reached his destination: the office of Dr. Fritzi Moller, situated somewhere beneath the aforementioned grocery store. Samuel's arrival was prompt but it was not familiarity that he owed for this. This would be his first time seeing the office situation in Pax Septimus and though his expression hid any ounce of it, well, he was a bit eager to see what it was like.

With a light rap of his knuckles on the side of the door, he announced his presence to the woman who he hoped was inside.

”Come in.”

With Fritzi’s permission, Samuel opened the door and invited himself inside. This was not the first time he had stepped into one of Fritzi’s offices. Little of what he saw would surprise him.

Fritzi had always stated how much she hated clutter and preferred to have the essentials and little else. The office was the same shade of white that they used in hospitals, illuminated by fluorescent lights. Her desk was a white rectangle, but it was far too glossy to be wood. Perhaps it was made out of plexiglass or some other synthetic material. The computer setup was pretty minimalist too, with only the keyboard and monitor visible. There didn’t seem to be any wires, but they were likely fed through the desk itself. There was a bookshelf on the back wall, but it was empty. Unlike the filing cabinets on either side which Fritzi seemed to be in the process of filling. But while Fritzi claimed to hate clutter, she did have a lot of things most people would consider frivolous. The top layer of her desk was transparent, and let multicolored lights shine through. They were displaying an animation of a pixel art spaceship firing on alien invaders. The ceiling also had a few model plains hung up here and there. Some of the planes were from the early years of flight while others were more modern or fantastical. There were sculptures of chemical compounds in bold colors that stood out against the pure white wall. There were also a few movie posters, everything from space operas, to frontier adventures, and even one for a magical girl anime. Otherwise, yea, Fritzi didn’t enjoy frills too much.

”A lot of this was already here.” She said, despite Samuel remembering almost everything from her old office. ”Saves me from having to unpack. So, you have something for me?”

Samuel took in the view without uttering a word or changing expression, but he was comparing it to the office that resided in his mind. It was so... full, or that's what Samuel thought despite the room projecting the ‘minimalist’ vibe of its owner's preference. But you could gleam snippets of the person behind the room, albeit only a bit, through what little inhabited it.

The room still has the same feeling as the last one, even if they're completely different.

The man offered a courteous smile and did not show any skepticism towards Fritzi's excuse. He gave a slight nod to her question and then replied without further delay. "A detailed recollection of the events that transpired within the police precinct to the best of my ability from the moment I finished clearing the perimeter of hostile chaotic elements, to the moment cleanup of the precinct had concluded. Also, there was a certain observation I had towards the end that I wished to bring to your attention, though I admit it could simply be trivial."

Fritzi would find Samuel to stay true to his word as he recounted the events that happened and concluded not long ago. She didn’t have to try hard to paint a vivid picture in her mind of what happened from his descriptions which left little unsaid. It pointed to quite the memory and attention to detail, at least. "...but mainly, there was a pair of bite marks on the back of King Cobra's neck that I couldn't help but associate with a vampire. Combined with his elongated cuspids and feral bite attempt preceding his demise, I am unable to ignore it."

”It’s an interesting detail, isn’t it?” Fritzi leaned forward in her seat. ”But if he had bite marks, that makes him a thrall. Real vampires can’t make more vampires, instead, they make weaker versions of themselves that they can fully control. The bulk of the blood they drink they return to their master.” Fritzi started typing on her keyboard. ”Shimr has a few vampire-related requests too, Hard to say if they’re true vampires or thralls yet, as even espers tend to confuse the two. Binky also overheard some espers mention vampires. Something about a violinist getting enthralled by a vampire named Justin. We have a bit of intel on Justin von Carnage, however…” She looked at Samuel. ”Like I told Binky, It’s a little early to pin this all on a big bad like that.” She looked at Sam’s legs. ”Next time you’re in here, I’ll have chairs. What’s it been, hours since we set up?”

Samuel politely smiled. “Only a few,” he answered, not bothering to retrieve his phone or look for a clock, leading one to believe he had already checked before entering the room. He continued, touching back on the subject of vampires momentarily. “But not too long. I imagine I’ll spend more time studying whatever material we might have on vampires if only to separate known fact from fiction.” He seemed to consider saying more on the subject, but ultimately refrained. He then leaned ever so slightly on the balls of his feet. “In any case, it’s probably for the best. Truth be told, I am unlikely to want to stand again for some time if I let myself relax now.”

”I guess that’s true.” She agreed. ”As for vampires, there’s not a lot we really know. You can forget about most of the obscure details about them. Spreading mustard seed on your roof, refusing to extend them an invitation, things like that don’t work on them. The last vampire we found did take special care to kill. Unless you destroy its heart, it’ll keep on coming. Even a decapitation won’t end them, but you might find some amusement as they try to chase down their head and reattach it.” She tapped a single button on her keyboard. ”I pretty much covered everything, but I’ve sent you all of our documentation, including footage of our tests. Best not to watch those in public, they’re pretty gruesome. Unless your date is into horror movies? Regardless, their arcane abilities are as varied as an espers, and we don’t yet know all of what Justin von Carnage can do.”

After the business side of the discussion was taken care of, Fritzi folded her hands together. ”You could hit the books right now, however...” The corners of her lips curled into a smile. ”I wasn’t sure if you wanted to, you know, spar a bit with me?”

Veronica's words gave Samuel pause and his smile dropped. "Today was quite eventful," he responded, slightly altering his stance to lean on a different part of his feet. "...life-threatening situations do take a lot out of you, and that's not counting the notes I used during them..." his tone seems to suggest that he is going to decline but his eyes, briefly, lock on to Fritzi's smile before closing, taking a drawn-out breath.

When he was done, his courteous smile reappeared and his opened eyes seemed to convey his acceptance. "...though I suppose that is all the more reason to try to improve. And I don't think I've quite earned my rest, anyhow."

”Wonderful!” Fritzi clapped her hands together. ”Right this way!”

…

…

…

The arena Fritzi chose as their sparring ground was not much larger than her office. It was worn out but had also been touched by Fritzi’s sense of whimsy. Plastered right over the peeling walls were more movie posters, including a horror one featuring a hospital that towered into the sky. But the appearance of the small room hardly mattered, as the two combatants were locked in a fight neither wanted to lose.

A table sat between them, but that stopped neither one from brandishing their weapons. They took turns swinging at each other, each warrior wanting nothing more than to deal a decisive blow to the other one. They maneuvered around the table to try and get a shot in, but both were maintaining a pretty good defense. Then out of the blue, Fritzi raised her weapon over her head and stepped away from the table. With a savage swing, she delivered a strike that was sure to end the match. But her aim was off, and her attack ended up hitting a small net on the table. It wasn’t very big, but it reversed her attack, causing her to lose the round.

The ping pong ball bounced off the table and landed in Fritzi’s open hand. ”Your point I guess, not that we’re keeping score.” She spun the paddle in her hand before tossing the ball to Samuel ”But if we were, you’d have some serious catching up to do.”

Samuel’s labored breathing indicated he had been getting quite into the match, which made Veronica’s statement all the more depressing. “...the match would be over if we had been. Seventeen to five. It was different when I was younger, but nowadays, games are played to eleven points.” He scratched the back of his neck. “Admittedly, my pride has taken a resounding blow. Granted it was mostly the version that involved alcohol played with coworkers every now and then, but I usually was one of the better players. I don’t think people would get that impression were they to watch this…”

Fritzi was elated by Samuel’s story. ”Oh! Do you fancy yourself a drunken boxer then?”

“No,” he shook his head, chuckling at the idea and lying with ease that rivaled his autonomic breathing. But that didn’t stop her from moving.

Fritzi walked over to one of the framed posters on the wall, looked at Samuel, and then raised a finger to her lips. She used her free hand to tip the poster out of the way, revealing a small safe. With her paddle still in her hand, she used the tip of her finger to turn a dial back and forth until the safe opened. She opened the door, pulled out a bottle, and used her hip to swing it shut. Then she came back to the ping pong table and set the bottle in front of Sam. ”One of the pros to working under a grocery store is that this stuff is pretty easy to come by. I’m thinking about getting the safe removed and installing a fridge in its place.”

He watched with curiosity as Veronica retrieved a bottle of beer and placed it before him. Strangely, he didn’t seem very surprised that it’s was there and twisted the top off easily. “My former boss did something very similar and said he got the idea from his old boss,” Sam replied, taking a reserved sip. “To keep their lunch fresh, and their water bottles cold, of course.”

”Former boss? I don’t think you’ve told me about him.” Fritzi raised an eyebrow. ”Or her?”

“...from my former occupation as staff manager at the company I was affiliated with up until the incident that introduced me to the magical side of the world? He was quite flippant, but never gave people reason to doubt his skills,” Sam explained. “Also seemed to hold me in high regard, so my sudden resignation was quite the shock to him, I’m sure. But I can’t commit myself to a job like that AND my duty as a member of G.E.M.I.N.I, so…” He seemed to have put a good deal of thought into the subject. “...I’m sure when and if my time with G.E.M.I.N.I comes to a close, my next employer will find the drastic shift quite interesting.”

”Good to know you don’t plan on entering retirement.”

“Not until I have to. If I even need to.” Samuel looked at the bottle for a moment, then took a drink. “An Esper with a butler aesthetic tried to take my life today. This occupation comes with… unique hazards.”

Fritzi barely had time to smile before the two were distracted by a buzzing sound. It was Fritzi’s tablet, which was vibrating under her coat. ”I thought the whole point of ‘vibrate’ was that it wasn’t supposed to make noise.” She hoisted her tablet out of her lab coat and scrolled a bit. ”But I suppose we can’t be too picky when fate throws us a bone.” She set the tablet down on the end of the table beside the bottle of beer. It was a page on Shimr discussing some footage that had been recorded by security cameras at the Great Escape. There in plain view was Justin Von Carnage trouncing around like he owned the place. ”Pretty ballsy for him to show up at one of the freelancer’s ‘outposts.’ What do you make of this?” Sam had only known Fritzi for his short time working with G.E.M.I.N.I., but he knew she was already coming to her own conclusion.

Samuel ponders the question for a minute. “Either a blessing or a curse,” he would say, but his expression betrays that he doesn’t think it’s positive in the least. “How much are you willing to stake on him being fatally arrogant?”

”His arrogance isn’t unjustified.” Fritzi looked back at the video. ”Until recently the Iron Queen ensured esper resistance in the area was crushed under her heel. It’s only natural for a few people to become complacent in her absence. Though he’s also fairly strong, even by the standards of a vampire. He could have grown accustomed to going where he pleased. Or, we have some pretender on our hands.”

"I'll pity him if he's just someone playing pretend. He's clearly ignorant of what that entails, and it's not going to end well for him,"

She tapped her finger against her arm. ”I’m sorry, you mentioned an esper that looked like a butler? What exactly do you remember about them?”

"In hindsight, I should have immediately identified them as an Esper. My lesser experience in these tense situations could've cost us everything..." He lamented his oversight but didn't let it trip him up for long. "Anyway, appearance-wise, he was an older gentleman who, as I've said, looked like a butler or waiter from the clothes he was wearing. His attitude matched, too. Even in that chaotic battle, he saw it fit to introduce himself as 'Servant Sofron'."

Samuel mimicked the action of pointing his hand at Veronica as though he was going to fire a note. "A single melody from him drastically changed the momentum we had gained in battle up to that point. He set the hallway we were in ablaze, and more than that, it hindered my own ability to conjure up retaliation." His voice suggested a mixture of awe and a smidge of terror, ironically. "There is no doubt in my mind that he was the strongest individual in that building out of the ones I encountered, at least in terms of magical talent."

”That sounds a lot like Baleful Sofron.” Fritzi eyed the tip of Samuel’s finger. ”He doesn’t exclusively work for Justin, but he has worked with him in the past on numerous occasions. I’m almost a hundred percent sure he was there to oversee Cobra Gang’s success. Justin Von Carnage is becoming an attractive target.” She flicked her eyes up to Sam and grinned. ”I dont think your time reading up on vampires will be wasted.”

Samuel took one last look at the 'vampire', then shrugged. "Either way, yes, I'm sure I'll get mileage out of this knowledge. I didn't notice bite marks on anyone else in the precinct, and I don't believe they suddenly became a fad… not that I keep up with those, mind you.”

He stood up straight, clenching a determined fist. "It's just another problem to be dealt with, in any case. With proper preparation, we'll inevitably cross that check off the list."

”If thralls keep showing up, he’ll definitely be our next target.” She slipped the tablet back into her coat. ”The last operation went as well as could be expected, but I think G.E.M.I.N.I. needs to prove it can stand without the help of the freelancers.” She fret her brow. ”Did you see them? They had the audacity to expect on-site catering? No wonder Pax Septimus is the way it is.” With a sigh, she tipped her head. ”Though I guess it’s understandable. We just happened to show up days after Penny was declared missing. It probably looks like we were afraid of her. All the more reason to show everyone we’re worth their tax dollars.”

“The operation would not have proceeded half as smoothly without Freelancer aid, which is something I loathe to see.” At some point, Samuel managed to drink half the beer. He looked at the drained bottle with pensive eyes. “Outsourcing has its uses, of course, but being reliant upon it does G.E.M.I.N.I no favors. The moment there’s a lull in payment, we’ll see those very same Freelancers beside Maverick, most assuredly.” Samuel’s tone does little to hide his dislike for either of the other factions, but with prior conversations in mind, Veronica would likely have gathered that he particularly disliked Freelancers.

He remains silent for a few moments, then speaks as though the edge in his tone never occurred.. “On my end, I suppose I will work towards becoming a better asset for G.E.M.I.N.I, so that there is less pressure for outsourcing.”

The doctor’s lips curled into a smirk. ”Then we are going to need to spar more to get you back into shape.” Fritzi picked up the bottle, only to stop when she realized how light it was. Her eyes looked down at the bottle. ”Hmmm, I wonder if they make refrigerated safes.”

Well, it seemed like everything went alright for Apollo. He mostly dealt with Sofron (though in actuality, Klava did most of the work). He got a neat gun out of the scrap which was now firmly held by his waistband. And hey, he ended up coming out fine. In fact, he was probably the least injured out of all of the freelancers. Go figure. Using what remained of his mana, he healed those who in the area. It was menial work, but hey, brownie points. In fact, 90% of the reason why he was so highly rated despite his cocksure self was because of this. It let him get away with a lot of things.

He gave a shrug when Klava healed herself by means of transformation. It was like that sometimes. Less work for him. Though, he did manage to miss the Protector entering a woman's washroom and the much shorter Aria coming out. He was pretty much out the door by the time she offered a meal. In fact, Apollo didn't even notice her offer. If he did? He probably would have went. After all, he couldn't refuse an offer that would result him being flanked by two ladies.

With the roar of 6 cylinders, Apollo was already gone from the scene. The only thing left in his wake was the skid marks of his tires at both where he parked and his first turn. Seriously, he was going way too fast. At least the streets were dead for that moment.

The rest of Apollo's day was wild. It was like the man's heart would shrivel up and die if his heart rate dropped below 120. Though, he was in peak physical condition even without the esper boost. His heartrate rarely cracked 80. Immediately, he was at the gym after a mission. Sure, it was essentially useless in his esper form. Maybe he'd be a fraction stronger than other espers. However, Apollo still cared about his human form. If he didn't look his absolute best, then what was the point of anything.

As the sky began to darken, Apollo left the gym and cleaned himself up. He wasn't going to waste the night. He was going to get drunk and go clubbing. The loud music and loose sense of society let him feel at home. One drink turned into two. Two turned into more than he could count. The night seemed to turn into a blur.

And then he woke up. With the morning sun barely shining through the blinds, Apollo woke up. Even if he was drunk and hungover, time spent sleeping could be time spent grinding.

This wasn't his apartment. "Shit." He whispered to himself. He looked at his side. There wasn't anyone there, but the signs of another person could still be noticed. Thus, he did what any reasonable person in his position would do. He put on his clothes, grabbed his shit, and left via the fire escape. That was probably a lease violation. Whatever, not his apartment, not his problem. What was his problem was what he could find in that room.

Where was the gun? The big ol' golden blaster? He had his phone, clothes and the rest of his shit on the ground nearby. But the gun? That was lost at some point during the night. Well, out of sight, out of mind. It was no longer his problem. It wasn't like it was his gun to begin with.

And back on the grind he went. He had more weights to lift until he decided to do his next job as a freelancer.

Back in the past, after way too long a wait, Penny charged Oros with her giant fist pulled back. ”You try my patience, cultist!”

”Again with the blind charging, shemale?” Penny was pretty fast, but Oros could avoid attacks like this in her sleep. She turned her body sideways and allowed Penny’s fist to graze her nose before slamming into the concrete wall. Dust and a hail of stones filled the room. Once it settled, Oros looked at herself. ”Oh man!” Her eyes went all over her outfit. ”The artist did a nice job! I mean, it’s not a 200$ commission, but look at my little outfit! Look at my big hair! Look at everything!”

”What are you babbling about? you looked like that when you came in here!”

”Yea, I guess the patrons saw it weeks ago when the Grand Magistrate showed them.” She looked at her reflection in her katana. ”Anyway, now that our sheets are done I’m just gunna take a look at-” Her eyes shot open. ”The hell?! Challenger Grade? Ranks that are above S? A leitmotif that copies other leitmotifs AND has its own powers on top of it? Huge ass mana pool? As well as all that other bullshit?!” Oros grinded her teeth. Her eyes were daggers, and they were pointed straight at Penny. ”Even in other portions of the multiverse, you’re still an over powered piece of shit, aren’t you?”

The iron queen only grinned at Oros’s frustration, even though she had no idea what she was talking about. ”Am I to understand you realize you’re no match for me? This is your last chance. Surrender now or-”

Oros erupted into laughter. ”Wrong again, you Teal-haired Tumbltard!” Oros brought her sword up in front of herself. ”You think I’m scared of some stats? I’m a Grand Magistrate’s Patron Champion. Your power level is entirely arbitrary in this situation. I’ve got commissioned art and everything, there’s no way I can die here. The only thing that’s up in the air right now is if the Grand Magistrate will try and save you.”

”The nerve!” Penny raised her hands, and the lenses in her palms lit up a brilliant blue. ”I will ensure your death is slow, humiliating, and painful!”

”Sounds hot. When do we start?”





With a pool of mercury nearby, there was no reason for Penny to conserve her massive pool of mana.

She reached a hand into the hallway and filled it with twisting metal and electricity. Then for good measure, the whole mess activated a forcefield around itself. Even Oros would have trouble getting through that, Penny assumed.

Penny: [Diamond Touch][Full Enhance][Powerful][Construction][Multi-Cast] =490, 1510 remains

”We could fight anywhere in Bastion, and you confine us to a concrete box?”

But Penny wasn’t done, as a second melody was coming. Penny’s palms glowed like road flairs in the dark. There wasn’t another esper in the world who could launch an attack like this, but that was why she was the strongest esper in the world. A beam filled with sparks and shrapnel raced towards Oros’s position,

Penny:[Diamond Beam][AoE][Damage X][Paralysis][Suspend]][Quake][Full Extend[Powerful] = 1440, 70 remains

There wasn’t any room for Oros to hide. Her options were to dive into a pool of mercury and hope Penny missed, or attack Penny at which point her sword would bounce off her chassis. The fight had only started, and Penny had Oros right where she wanted her.

Oros shrugged her shoulders and tossed a critter into the pool of mercury. She then looked straight at the material beam headed straight for her head. There was no time to evade. The beam slammed into Oros’s chin, throwing her head back before detonating into charged shrapnel. But when the melody expired, she lowered her head and grinned. Not a single piece of metal remained in her skin.

”Spicey, got anything else?”

Oros: Number of the beast: 6 6 6 -1 attack, 6 debuffs = 5 0 6

Penny growled. ”You tanked that entire attack?”

”Yea, I was a little surprised too, given how many different effects the [Paralysis] note can create, That’s gunna have to get nerfed later.” She was sitting on her butt, and one of her arms hung limply at her side. ”Wait, no, that was paralysis in all four of my limbs, suffocation, disorientation, suspend, and quake. So I resisted all but my arm going numb and being shaken to the floor. Yea that needs to get nerfed. It's a shame my melodies won’t be strong enough to break these hexes. At least talking is a free action, so you can’t interrupt me. But that also means I can’t stall for time.”

”Stall for what?”

”I just think your bathwater is really gross and needs to be changed. ”

The small critter Oros had dumped into the mercury turned into a portal. The mad esper had been prepared for Penny’s seemingly endless supply of mana, and had set up a portal earlier to drain it.

Oros: [Bronze Projectile][Portal] = 80, 1106 remains

Penny charged towards Oros. She didn’t really care if she hit her or not, but coming into contact with the mercury would cause her mana to restore. Oros held her sword in front of herself, but it did little to slow Penny’s charge. The iron queen drove her fist into Oros’s stomach before carrying her through the portal. Wherever her mercury was, Oros was coming along with her. But she wasn’t going to show any signs of damage from Penny’s efforts.

Oros: Number of the beast: 5 0 6 -1 attack = 4 0 6

”Still glad you started a fight with me?” Penny crossed her brow.

”I’m not happy because I started a fight, I’m happy because I’ll end it!”

Oros had set the portal on the ceiling of a warehouse that hid one of the entrances to the Bastion. Below it was a cement mixing truck, and the mercury was all falling into a hopper that funneled everything into its bowels. Before the last of the mercury slipped into the mixing tank, Penny managed to touch the liquid metal.

Penny Mana = Max! 2000!

But Oros wasn’t just standing by while this happened. Mana surged into her limbs, causing her muscles to bulk up. While most espers were gifted with peak human strength, Oros could temporarily grant herself the power of a silverback gorilla, capable of lifting nearly two tons of weight.

Oros: [Diamond Self][Transform][Full Extend] = 150, 956 remains

Therianthropy: Might of a Silverback, 36 seconds.

A katana couldn’t do much to layers of titanium alloy, but Endless Eclipse was an instrument. It was an indestructible piece of flat steel that could take any abuse its holder could put it through. With the strength of an ape, Oros’s attack was sure to do more than mar Penny’s paint job. She rammed her sword under Penny’s arm, which sent the queen spiraling into the iron wall supports. Oros was able to grab a hold of the cement mixer and take a hard landing. Though she hadn’t endured any damage from the fall.

Penny’s chassis was dented under her arm, but otherwise sustained no injuries. The iron pillar she slammed into took far more damage than she did. Though the wound she had endured inhibited her movement a bit. it wasn’t possible to lower her arm all the way. ”I think you made a bit of an oversight. Allow me to show you.”

Penny charged towards Oros while weaving a series of melodies. The first was to phase a spell inside the cement mixer. Once it blew up, she would be rolling in mercury again. It was also possible Oros would get caught in the blast. Meanwhile, her second melody was a copy of Oros’s own beast magic. Now Penny also had Oros’s immense strength on top of her own powers. And why not? She’d heal away that bit of damage too.

Penny: [Diamond Spawn][AoE][Damage X][Multi-Cast] = 500, 1500 remains

[Diamond Self][Transform][Full Extend] = 150, 1350 remains

Therianthropy: Might of a Silverback, 36 seconds.

Combat Module: Heal any wound for 100 mana, 1250 remains

Oros’s grined as she stepped away from the cement mixer. It exploded not long after, ripping the vehicle to shreds. Shards of metal and yellow dust filled the air. But there was no mercury to be found. ”Fun fact time!” Oros pointed at what remained of the mixing truck. ”If you stir elemental sulfur and quicksilver together, you get mercuric sulphide! You just gotta slap ‘em around a bit, like you’re their pimp or something.” Her smirk only grew wider. ”You weren’t hoping to bathe in mercury through the whole fight, were you? Be a shame if you couldn’t beat me fair and square.”

”Says the assassin resorting to trickery!”

Penny did not respect her opponents. It was a fact that she had no equal, and anyone who fought her would be ground to dust. The fact that Oros needed to prepare so much before their encounter proved how weak she was. Though it was bothersome that Oros knew so much about her powers. Mercury’s effect on her was a closely guarded secret. Someone was helping her, and they would be dealt with in time.

Penny balled her hands into fists. ”Fight me head on!”

”Guess I can try.”

Oros had only one hand to hold her great sword with, but that would change. Her inner beast surged with energy, and tore its way out of her rib cage just under her defunct arm. Until her other arm recovered, this was the best she could do.

Oros: [Gold Self][Transform][Full Extend] = 120, 836 remains

Therianthropy: Extra Arm, 36 seconds.

Penny’s strength was equal to Oros’s, and her speed was even greater. The cultist was clearly on her back heel as Penny’s attacks forced her towards a wall. As amusing as it would be to draw out Oros’s demise, Penny had other matters to attend to. A single debilitating melody would doom the assassin. But her mana was limited, and she didn’t want to waste it if she didn’t have to. It would be some time before she could amass that much mercury again.

Something that Penny had been holding off on using was her ability to copy her opponent’s leitmotif. It wasn’t something Penny liked to do, more out of her own pride than anything else. But since Oros had proven to be a pest, there was no reason not to make use of it now. Her eyes opened a bit wider than usual as soon as she did.

What. The. Hell.

The world opened up to Penny in ways both horrific and wonderful. Like Oros, she could now get a glimpse of the future and better understand her opponent’s powers. She could see her every ability and understood them as completely as Oros did. But also like Oros, her world felt artificial and beyond her control. The future was already written. She could sense there was a fight at a police station, as well as one outside the Bastion with a pretend queen of Pax. Penny would also go missing before any of this transpired. She may have looked like a machine, but Penny was also a human esper, and these images even gave her a tinge of fear. The idea that her unfortunate fate was set in stone was not something she agreed with.

It was during this brief existential crisis that her opponent swung their sword at her.

Oros: [Diamond Touch][Piercing] = 40, 796 remains

No, Oros would swing their sword. It seemed that Oros also had the ability to see her opponents actions just before they happened. This ability now belonged to Penny too. Even the notes Oros used were not hidden from her. No wonder she was impossible to blindside with her attacks. But if Oros was all knowing, that just meant that she needed to deliver an attack that couldn’t be avoided. Now that Oros had committed to an attack, Penny should be able to use her slightly greater margin of speed to deliver a counter punch right at Oros’s ribs. And…

Oros: Number of the beast: 4 0 6 -1 attack = 3 0 6

”Whoa!” Oros hopped backwards after Penny’s attack connected. ”Stranger danger! Can you poke me somewhere less sensitive next time?”

Another confident smile crossed Penny’s lips. Oros’s resilience was no longer so frustrating now that she understood it was a front. She could take three more attacks and turn invincible for six seconds. After that, she’d bleed like anyone else.”Perhaps you’d prefer it if I took you to a massage parlor?”

”Do they tickle people in a massage par-... Ohhhhhh!”

Again, Penny wreathed her arms in lightning and steel. She plunged her fist into the ground, and the same twisted steel barrier from before erected on either side of Oros. The walls closed over her head to form a ceiling, and then dropped behind her to form a wall of jagged, electrofied spikes. Oros’s sword may unmake any enchantment it cut through, but a barrier this durable was beyond the ability of her blade.

[Diamond Touch][Powerful][Full Enhance][Construction][Multi-Cast] = 490, 760 remains

Over the next few seconds, Penny threw a series of quick jabs at Oros. Each one she blocked would just push her backwards into the spikes. This forced Oros to use her strongest defensive ability. Over the next few seconds, every puncture and bruise Penny inflicted would heal instantly.

Number of the beast: 3 0 6 -6 seconds of invulnerability = 3 0 0

”You know for a non-binary robot, your computing ain’t half bad. ”

”It seems we’re in agreement.”

Oros could resist her attacks for a few more seconds, but her “Number of the Beast” was dwindling and wouldn’t save her much longer. Oros could try to blink out of the way, but she was cornered and couldn’t aim around Penny. She might be able to create a portal, but that would just lead back into the concrete room where she was just as trapped. All of Oros’s other notes were too weak to do anything to Penny or didn’t fit the situation. But the Iron Queen was aware that she was dealing with an unorthodox opponent. Penny needed to deny Oros as much as possible. An AoE Paralysis melody would suffice. She’d be helpless before her resounding blows.

Penny’s fist was covered in the magic of her next melody. She could practically taste her opponent’s defeat. She thrust her fist towards Oros with confidence.

”You’re finished!”

[Diamond Touch][AoE][Full Enhance][Full Extend][Powerful][Paralysis] = 560, 200 remains

Oros was between Penny and a hard place, and she was going to die there.

…

…

…

Regardless if Penny wanted to admit it or not, her life was on the line. Any screw up she made was something that Oros could take advantage of and spell her end. But that made it all the more confusing when Penny handed Oros such a big opening. When a Patron Champion commits to an action in a Patron Observation Station Transcript, or P.O.S.T., that’s it. No takesie-backsies. Because Penny committed herself to an attack, she would not be able to react regardless of what she divined. That was why “Meta Game” was so useful against the Iron Queen. It was hardly a perfect form of divination, but Penny’s tactics held no surprises for Oros. She was so focused on ending the fight that her strategies were simple and easy to understand. They were obvious to her as soon as she acted. Every action was designed to kill her opponent, and Oros hardly needed to metagame to understand what she was doing. No matter how powerful someone was, that sort of mindset would never defeat an esper like Oros. But that didn’t mean that Oros could do whatever she wanted. If there was justification for an action to be “retconned” because Penny could react to it, Oros would lose her advantage. It was just in this instance Penny's ability to metagame wouldn't be able to aid her.

While Penny pounded the crap out of her, she wove a few melodies of her own. Oros would have no problem casting two melodies if she was discreet about it. She formed two man-eating pythons on her back. Their size was far larger than normal, but Oros could keep them concealed behind her billowing hair. They were curled up and ready to strike. But the important part was that they each had a portal inside their throats.

[Diamond Self][Portal][Transform][multi-cast] = 360, 436 remain

Therianthropy: Man-eating snake, 36 seconds.

[Diamond Self][Portal][Transform] = 250, 186 remain

Therianthropy: Man-eating snake, 36 seconds.

And now, all Oros had to do was wait.

Her opportunity came when Penny prepared her second melody and thrust her fist towards Oros. But that was when Oros revealed her secret weapon. She ducked as the snakes lunged for Penny and opened their mouths as wide as they would go. While Penny was a bit faster than Oros, she wouldn’t be able to pull out of a straight she put all of her weight into. Her fist plunged into the mouth of one snake, and came out the mouth of the other. By the time Penny realized what was happening, it was too late. Even if Penny could stop her arm, Oros’s other snake was striking, moving Penny’s own fist towards her face as fast as the snake could strike.

”No you.”

While Penny had incredible defenses, her fists were even more impressive. It always turned its damage type to whatever her opponent was weakest to. Even in Penny’s case, her physical defense was far outclassed by her own weapon. Even as Penny tried to pull Back, Oros’s snake guided the iron queen’s own fist to its target. Penny’s melody triggered as soon as she punched herself in the face. Even as lightning filled the area, even as Oros’s body shut down, her own incredible strength drove her fist through her head. Omnissiah was massive enough to not only decapitate Penny, but also shattered her torso into a hundred pieces. Blue hydraulic oil stained the floor like blood, and her circuitry arced and sputtered before losing all power. Oros collapsed into what remained of her opponent and lost consciousness.

Second by second, Penny’s chance to counter attack ticked by. Oros laid in the hydraulic fluid, defenseless, practically begging for a finishing blow, but it never came.

Oros lifted herself out of the blue oil. She was used to being covered in entrails at the end of a fight, but now she felt like she had just changed the oil in her car. after swinging the oil off of her sword, she lowered her gaze to her opponent's remains.

”Shattered, just like all your old relationships.” She squeezed her sleeve in a vain attempt to rid her uniform of oil. ”But you got me wet, so I guess you have some potential.”

Then, Oros’s body froze. She suppressed the urge to meme when she realized what she had accomplished. A single tear rolled down her cheek. How long had she been waiting to fight Penny in an arena where she could lose? How long had she wanted to pay her back for hurting her friends? It didn’t matter now. All the preparation, suffering, and sacrifice had paid off. The haters didn’t think it could be done, but they were all wrong. The joy erupted from her lungs in a warcry that shook bastion to its core. The empty halls were filled with her voice, and none of the corpses stirred.

Though as her voice died down, Oros could hear a clapping sound. She turned to look at who it was, but it was someone she was expecting. A young girl in a purple dress strut into the warehouse. Once she had Oros’s attention, she folded her hands behind her back.

”The queen has fallen, and by a single pair of hands.” She skipped towards Oros. ”I’ll be honest, I didn’t know what to think when you said you could beat Penny with a cement mixing truck filled with sulfur and your wits.”

”Just gotta be smarter than your opponent. Barring that, make sure the patron overseeing your fight likes you more. ” Oros shook her head and smiled. ”Speaking of patrons, this has got to be the most petty I’ve seen mine act in a long time! Haha!”

”You say such strange things. I don’t understand it, but you get results so I won’t question it.” With a shrug of her shoulders, the girl folded her arms. ”By the way, we just cleared out the entire Bastion. Penny’s generals, lieutenants, commanders, you slew all of them.” Her hands moved onto her hips before she leaned towards Oros. ”You do know what a power vacuum is, right?”

”I’m not too concerned with it, if only because I know who’s filling the vacuum.” Oros took a seat on the floor. ”Uncle Sam and Alternative have been eyeing this shit hole for a while. Best case scenario, they wipe each other out. Worst case scenario, they have an uneasy truce that inevitably breaks. Either way, the Iron Queen’s reign ends.”

”I’m just not sure why you dealt with the queen like this. She could have been a powerful ally.”

”The short answer is two parts.” Oros raised her fingers and wiggled them. ”Firstly, everyone in a given area has urgency. You kill the most urgent person in the area, and their urgency is divided among the survivors. Shemale had so much urgency that no one else really mattered. Now that we’ve taken them out of the picture, everyone gets some urgency. Even us.” She shook her fingers. ”Secondly, we kind of have history together, and I hate their guts. Just a bonus reason, we’re the good guys. Kicking the bad guy’s ass is sort of our thing.”

”I see.” The girl in the purple dress ran her hand through her hair.
”So we’re just going to parade her body around Pax Septimus to establish your power?”

”Nah, it’s tempting though.” Oros wiped her finger through the hydraulic fluid. ”I’m not ready to be the most urgent person in Pax Septimus. I’ll let the other ring leaders hold that title while I prepare.”

”Then what is next?”

”Next they gotta patch lightning. Holy shit AoE [Paralysis] melodies suck.” Oros looked over at the girl. ”We also need to do something with your alias.”

”What’s wrong with Aria Rizzo?”

”Yea, see? That’s what I mean.” Oros pointed at her. ”There’s already a Patron Champion in town with the name Aria, so it could get confusing if we call you Aria too. Besides, there’s no real reason to hide your real name here. Everyone who wants Sharr Webber dead is long gone.”

Sharr groaned. ”Fine. I think it's a little silly, but I'll play along.” Oros was looking around herself. ”What is it?”

”We’re not done here.” Oros rose to her feet. ”Shemale would have turned into a human corpse.”

But then why had Penny not acted? While she could heal any wound with a hundred mana, she presently only had two-hundred mana, and judging by how fragmented her body was, it probably wasn’t enough to put her together. Maybe she was just hoping that once Oros and Sharr walked off, she could revert back to her human form and sleep this loss off. But after searching a bit, Oros could see the reason why Penny was still alive. There was a glowing chip that served as her central processing unit.

”Nice hustle, but I don’t do repeats.”

She drove Endless Eclipse into the chip.

Dante’s might have been a restaurant in Pax Septimus’s historic district, but it had a seedy reputation. The outside of the building was in need of a power wash, and the inside was in need of a mop. The waiting staff were either really old, or really having an acne breakout. It was the sort of place where gang members could conduct meetings, spouses could cheat, or sloppy hookups could happen. Anything could happen really, just because most people wouldn’t think to look. On the upside, the food was very good for the price. You just had to bring a napkin with you because they often forgot to wipe off the tables.

An esper had a request for a date at this very place. They did not seem to care about who accepted their request. The date did not have to be romantic, but they did state that was their preference. The only hard requirement was that their date was an esper. There were concerns about this as the request had been open for a month or so with no takers. People had been taking it, they just hadn't been returning. It was unclear what was happening, and there was no evidence the person hosting these dates was to blame for the mysterious disappearances.

Well, there was one thing to conclude before any of this began. Either her partner for this job was a literal child who was trying to get lucky without even really understanding what this meant, or her partner was a real goddamn creep. It was acceptable if some fifty year old could revert to a twenty year old, because physical prime and all, but wow, that was something else, being an elementary school student of all things.

Not that Klava felt like she had to speak any of her thoughts aloud immediately. A block or two away from Dante's, the white-haired lady sat in her classic pre-mission attire of a jumpsuit, her bike safely stored in a parkling lot locker. Sipping on some hot soup, she looked up at the young boy with a raised brow. "You're Fable? Any experience?"

The boy in question furrowed his brows, but didn't bear any ill will to the Maiden. "Frankly have no clue why they didn't use my Timekeeper handle, but yeah." He answered. "I'll be honest, I haven't done enough to be called experienced yet. But I helped take down a giant crab hivemind, if that's something to add to my resume." Fable shrugged, hands in his pockets.

"You're a newcomer then?" Klava let out a long whistle, bobbing her head up and down. "Respect the hustle, I suppose. What can you do? Ever had a girlfriend or anything?"

Fable grimaced in response. "I'd rather not think about a suitor yet. Well, there's this one case, but as sweet as they- _...Ze...? Are? I don't think I'm the full-on dating type." At his own words he let out a dry chuckle.

"So frankly my being here is conciderably damn stupid, but I took the job for the missing persons case, not to score with someone that could probably kill me. Regardless, I can still fight."

"Anyone can fight," Klava laughed. "But what can you do?"

"Specifics wise? Stun shit."

After a moment, he continued talking. "Or really, my kit revolves around the concept of time. I can heal, slow, stun, and speed up. Electric based attacks, if the type of element is relevant to your question." Fable explained.

"Cool. Can you teleport?"

"Mhm." Fable simply nodded.

Klava finished the rest of her soup, rolled her shoulders, and said, "Alright, let's get to work. I'll be point man, you'll jump in when it goes to shit."

---

One thing that became apparent to Klava after entering Dante’s was that everything she heard about the place was true. In fact, it might have been understated how seedy and run down the place was. The most active part of the restaurant was the bar, which was easily half of the restaurant. There were some swag lights that lit everything up, all with different watt bulbs and not all of them were working. The bartender was almost wide enough that he couldn’t fit behind the counter, and could be smelled as soon as Klava entered Dante’s. The tiles on the floor were peeling up too. It was so bad that one of the pimple-faced waitresses almost tripped on one. There was a moldy tile directly over Klava’s head, and it still looked wet despite the last rain being a week ago. The patrons who came to this place were exactly the sort you would expect to find. The bar was lined with all manner of rough looking individuals. Almost all of them were over fifty, over or underweight, missing teeth, and probably lived here. But all of them were louder than the radio, which tried to deliver music from a local station to the rest of the establishment. Further into the restaurant side was a few groups of people. There were some teenagers in hoodies huddled around a bag of aerosol cans, and they were probably the most inconspicuous people in the area. There were a few couples that were dressed up eccentrically enough that they could be espers. A cowboy and a hooded phantom sat at one table, and right across from them was a Japanese school girl and a panda wearing a green cape. Others looked way too attractive or well-to-do to be here.

But off by herself was Klava’s mark, who looked goth enough to have daddy issues. It was hard to tell if she was a young woman or a teenager. Partially because of her youthful appearance, but also because she was behaving like someone much younger than she appeared. She bobbed in her seat to the beat of the music, swaying side to side as people from other tables looked at her, if only momentarily. Though a man ended up letting his eyes linger too long, and she spotted him. This just prompted her to smile and wave at him. Though his natural response was to look away. This didn’t seem to bother “Kristina,” who looked pleased just to be there. After sitting a bit longer, she whipped out her phone. Much like her dress, it was almost entirely black and had various phone charms attached to it. The charms were oddly non-goth and featured everything from logos of local baseball teams to cartoon characters. She opened her Shimr app and punched in a text saying that she had arrived and was waiting for her date, including way more emoticons than nessisary.

Well, that confirmed it. Those reviews of Dante's that she read up on Yelp were paid. Should've expected it, really, but the oddities of the clientele meant that she could walk in without much eyebrow-raising either, and the perpetual grime of the locale could not touch her Leitmotif's auto-cleaning capabilities.

Dark-haired and with eyes of azure permafrost, Klava stepped into the restaurant, her presence heralded by the chiming of crystalline bells. Her preparations had already been set, a Blink-Marked totem given to Fable in case she really needed to bounce, and her dagger rested comfortably along her spine, secured in place by her many vibrant sashes. Kristina, as she was called, looked a bit like someone who spent too much time at Hot Topic, but hey, she met Klava's standards for physical attractiveness, even if there was a good chance that she was in her Esper form too. That was fine though. Not everyone could be a perfect specimen of physical attractiveness both in magical and mundane forms.

"Hey," Klava said, a smile on her lips. "Kristina, right? It's Frost. Hope I didn't keep you."

Meanwhile, if Klava cared to glance even through the corner of her eye, the Timekeeper would appear by the window. He carried the totem with his free hand, trying his best not to look conspicuous. Shouldn't be too much of a problem, with how dark it was outside. But he felt he should be cautious anyways. He stopped as soon as he was just across the other two, and he waited, glancing back into the diner at times.

Kristina was still holding her phone in her hand when Klava approached her. ’No, you didn’t keep-” She blinked at her phone before turning to look up at the woman who approached her table.

”Frost?” Her eyes traveled up and down Klava’s body. After the second or third pass, her mouth swung open. Awe soon gave way to joy, and she squealed in delight. Kristina’s body wiggled in place while she held her cheeks with both hands. ”You look so good I wanna cry!. Sit! Sit-sit-sit-sit-sit-sit!” She slapped the table with her fingertips until Klava took her seat. ”I don’t typically get, um, it doesn’t matter, you’re fine!” She covered her mouth and squealed into her hands. ”I’m sorry, I’m sorry, it’s just, it’s been a rough few weeks.” She took a few deep breaths, but she still had a dopey grin on her face. ”So um, we should decide what to get.” She pushed aside a used napkin to get a menu, which she handed to Klava. ”The Pizza is pretty consistent. Sausage and mushrooms are my favorite-favorite, but um-” She averted her eyes. ”If you want something that’s not on the menu, just let me know, okay?”

Klava laughed at Kristina's enthusiasm, taking her seat and crossing her legs. A near-imperceptible film of water slipped beneath her clothing, cleansing whatever filth clung to the chair, and she leaned forward slightly to peruse the menu. It was the typical American selection in the end, most of the items the same as what one would find from The Great Escape, but thankfully, there were a couple of options that looked a bit more inspired than burgers, steaks, salad, and pizza. Well, perhaps not more inspired, but certainly more...provocative.

"I believe I'll take the borscht set meal myself," she spoke after some contemplation. "But gotta say, I am curious. You know the chef here or something, Kris?"

When klava crossed her legs, her foot brushed against a large satchel that was stashed under the table. It was so long, it had to be stuck inside the booth sideways in order to fit.

”Hmmm?” Kristina raised an eyebrow. Then she raised both eyebrows. ”Oh! No-no-no-no-no-no!” She waved her hands in front of Klava. Six of her ten fingers had silver rings on them. While they fit with the rest of her gothic aesthetic, they were reserved enough that they didn’t come across as tacky. Most were molded to look like vines or olive branches, and the few with flowers were socketed with emerald and ruby gemstones. ”I um, I don’t really know most of the locals, heh.” She tucked her hands under the table. ”I’m kind of in the middle of a move. Been wanting to get into Pax for a while, but with the iron queen gone, it won’t be much longer.” She looked around the establishment. ”I come to Dante’s about once a week, and I wouldn’t say I know anyone here yet.”

A waitress seemed to faze out of the shadows and appeared at the edge of their table. Her glasses were too big for her face, and her hair bun was so tight it threatened to tear her scalp off of her head. There was also nothing to conceal her acne outbreak. ”Welcome to Dante’s. Are you ready to order?”

”Oh hi!” She waved to the waitress. ”I’m having pizza.”

”Sausage and mushroom?”

”Yup! And she’d like a, hold on, I can pronounce this... Borscht?”

Once Klava confirmed, the waitress jotted down their order before departing. Once she was far enough away from the table, she looked back at the two girls and stared at the back of Klava's head. After a few seconds elapsed, she continued to march towards the kitchen.

”Right, so, uh.” She adjusted her choker, which had too many chains and spikes on it to be considered subtle gothic wear. ”All I was saying is that depending on what you’re in the mood for, we can go someplace else for dessert. B-but anyway! Are you a local, Frost?”

"Once a week's quite a lot," Klava giggled, leaning her elbows on the table. "Most of the local Espers here meet up at The Great Escape, really. Lotsa live music to vibe to, even if sometimes its hella cringe. And I guess I am a local, so congrats. Now you know one."

”Oh! Well that's nice. You'll have to show me around later then. The last few times I was here, the Great Escape was still a monster den.” She rubbed the back of her head. ”I probably wouldn't eat out so much but, um, uh, heh...”

There was something beneath the table, heavy and long. Surely not a body bag? Curiousity piqued and thoughts in motion, Klava lifted her brows slightly, then tilted her head down to look at the satchel underneath. The sachel had no markings. It appeared to be cylindrical in shape, barring the handle on the very top of it. Kristina's foot was resting on top of the sachel.

"Oh," she spoke after a moment. "Didn't realize you were right in the middle of a move. Found a good place yet, or is Pax Sept just a pit stop for you in the long run?"

”Something I learned is that moving is inevitable. I should be here for a while though, and I do have a place picked out.” Kristina followed Klava's eyes under the table. ”Is that in your way? It's um, it's my um.” She pretended to hold an invisible machine gun. ”I kinda need to take it with me. One of the reasons why I like Dante's is they don't ask too many questions when you come through the door.”

"Ah, a gat." Klava grinned. "You'll fit right in then." Maybe it'd have fucked with the Fritz, but a gatling probably could've cleared out the entirety of that police precinct, huh. "Where's your new place though? Got a swanky little studio in the Historic District?"

”I wish! I don’t think I’d be able to afford my weekly night out if I lived there.” Kristina placed one of her hands in the middle of the table. ”It’s an underground apartment. No sunlight, but I’ll never wake up with frozen toes, even on the coldest day of the year. A bit of a fixer upper, but it should be more or less livable.” she used her other hand to hold her chin. ”Let me see if I can guess, you probably live at the top of a high riser, and you either fight with a longbow or…” she squinted her eyes. ”Maybe a scimitar?”

"Naw, I was project there." Klava gestured towards the west. "Live in a studio myself near the downtown area. Rent's cheap enough and security's not bad, all things considered. Definitely not a high-rise though. Got way better things to do with my money."

”Oh really? I got the impression you were, uh, hngh...” Kristina slid her fingers over her mouth.

Klava turned her own palm up to face the ceiling, exposing both the soft flesh and the hardened calluses. "And as for what I use...think a little smaller than that."

”Hmmm, well you used a dramatic pause in there, so if I had to guess, it's a lot smaller.” Kristina rapped her fingers on the table. ”Definitely not a gun though. I'm thinking, yea, something with a blade though.”

In the middle of Kristina's solo brain storming session, the waitress had returned. She placed Klava's soup in front of her and set the pizza box towards the back of the table. Before departing, she brushed all of the old napkins and some of the crumbs into a bussing cart before handing Klava and Kristina some silverware. She also placed some extra extra napkins in front of Kristina before walking off.

Kristina eyed the napkins before looking up at Klava. ”I'm guessing it's some kind of knife? Haha! I don't know my short blades very well. If it isn't a kriss or a ka-bar, I have no idea what it could be. Unless you fight with an icicle?”

"An icicle's a pretty good guess, yup," Klava replied. "Though I guess I'm a bit of a cheater here, when I can make whatever I need."

Her eyes glimmered when the food finally arrived though, the steaming red soup standing out more than just a little bit compared to the grungier setting that it was plated on. At least the waitress made some effort to clean up after departing, even if the order seemed to be a bit crossed up there. Clapping her hands together, Klava murmured a couple choice words to herself, before directing her gaze back to Kristina.

"So, you wanna do halfsies with these?"

Kristina opened the pizza box and the scent of sausage and mushrooms wafted into the air. There inside was not just a pizza, but some divine creation that had been forged on the anvil of Hephaestus. It had that golden brown crust that was evenly cooked all the way around. There was a sprinkling of flour here and there from when the chiefs rolled the dough out to make the pizza from scratch. The mushrooms were cooked just enough to start curling, and the sausage had a crunch brown coating on top of it too. Even the cheese had turned gold and crunchy in spots.

The goth girl rubbed her hands together. ”I can’t eat this pizza by myself. Or at least, I won’t admit I could. Haha! I usually just bring home what I can't finish.” She eyed Klava’s soup. ”I wouldn’t mind trying the soup though. It looks good! But how would we share? Should we have asked for an extra bowl?”

"Naw," Klava reached for some bread and tore it into even halves, handing one over to Kristina. "This ought to be fine."

---

They talked a bit more as they ate, mostly about things Klava had already told Aria. Strangely enough, Kristina was also a teacher. But she taught highschool.

”...But I don’t think that was ever going to be a long term thing for me, you know? Unless you have tenure, you’re pretty much doing the lesson plans nobody else wants to deal with. Public school is rough! I probably would have been in a better place if I stuck with it for a few more years, but I became an esper so that’s not in the cards anymore.” She tapped the satchel with her foot. ”It’s been a little nerve racking, moving so suddenly. But uh, I really think this is for the best.” She said before finishing her fourth slice of pizza. ”Mmmm!” She licked her fingers and squealed. ”That bread is surprisingly filling!” She raised an eyebrow and patted down her side. It wasn’t long before she fished her phone out of her blouse and looked at it. ”Welp, never a day off it seems.” Kristina raised her finger. ”I’ve got to get this, I’ll be right back though, okay?” She reached under the table and performed an awkward dance to free her satchel from the confines of the table. ”I-It’s okay, right?”

The more things changed, the more things stayed the same, it seems. If Kristina was in the clear, perhaps Klava would introduce her to Protector some time. That armored freelancer seemed to be doing the work-esper-life balance pretty alright, by her own estimations. In the end though, work was work, and even though this date was pleasant, she couldn't imagine it as a long term thing either.

So when Kristina went to take her call, fumbling beneath the table for her machine gun satchel, Klava smiled. "It's totes okay, Kris," she said. "And don't worry 'bout your bag over there. I'll keep an eye on it. Or a foot."

”Oh ah, thank you, but I really need to take this with me to ensure I don’t leave the esper state, you know?” With one more tug, the bag came free. She looked back at Klava. ”Just uh, be here when I get back, okay?” The corner of her lip twitched as she walked away from the table. She almost walked into another waitress before looking where she was going.

"Oh, and here I was, thinking you just own a machine gun normally." Klava laughed. "Well, I'll be seeing you then~"

With a wave, she watched Kristina head off. Slipping her smartphone out of her pocket, she sent Fable a quick message regarding the gothic esper's movements, as well as her own goals: she'll be following after Kristina for some good ol' fashioned sleuthing and eavesdropping.

After a couple of conversations on the side, Fable focused back on the task at hand. Their target was on the move, and Klava was going to follow after her. He messaged back, saying that he'll be right behind her. Then he finally pocketed his phone, and carrying the totem under his arm, he went to catch up with the maiden.

Kristina’s destination was not hard to spot, even from her position at the table. She was just going to the corridor that leads into the restrooms. It wasn’t too difficult for Klava to saunter after her unnoticed. The restroom corridor made a weird U turn that prevented people from seeing the doors that lead to the actual bathrooms. Upon turning the corner, Klava would find that as disgusting as Dante’s was, she was easily walking into the most dirty part of the entire place.

A flickering fluorescent light hung overhead, and the door to the mens and ladies rooms laid ahead. Both doors were rusting, and had a number of stains on them that most mortal humans would be repulsed by.

”I wonder which one she went in?” The waitress from earlier stepped behind Klava and folded her arms. ”Never can be too sure with espers.”

She had been set on fire before. She had literally been a charred zombie and smelled the stench of her own boiling pus and smoking flesh. She had also done her due diligence as a low-ranking goblin-slaying Esper too, and her leitmotif gave her the confidence she needed to plunge into even the nastiest of toilets. That wasn't to say though, that Klava wasn't ungrateful for the conversational distraction that presented itself to her.

"Think you just answered that question yourself," Klava replied coolly, turning for the ladies' room. "And relax. I'm not so poor that I'd climb out the window to avoid paying for an entree."

”Oh come on now, customer service is my specialty!” She grinned. ”You have to call someone what they want to be called. Regardless, I find it interesting that you choose to enter the men’s room anyway.”

Sure enough, Klava was entering the men’s room. When the door swung open, Fritzi was inside. Or maybe it was a man who had a wig that mad him look sort of like Fritzi. He was standing in front of a catering truck that somehow fit inside the crowded restroom. The promised feast, it was here.

There was also a strange grainy sensation on Klava’s hands. When she went to look at them, they had actually been soiled!

”But that’s the wonderful part about dreams. If you cast aside reality, you can live in an eternal slumber where you, and only you, are a god.” She gave Klava a sideways glance. ”But you really have to be the one dreaming.”

"Ugh. That's more philosophy than what I want outta a fuckin' parasite."

Klava cracked her knuckles as she clenched her fist. There was no magic available to an Esper that allowed one to manipulate dreams or do truly illusory bullshit, which subsequently meant that this was either a magi or a monster.

"So what," she said, eyeing the waitress with a raised brow. "You've got the hots for Kristina too?"

”Kristina?” The waitress placed a finger on her lower lip before looking off into space. ”Do you mean Beatrix? That girl you were with? The one that always orders a pizza with mushrooms and sausage? Said pizza that I had the chef prepare in advance so that I could serve it with your entree? The girl with the perfect body that moves in the most irresistible ways when she’s happy? The one who’s every sound might as well come from an angel?” She shrugged her shoulders. ”Her repeated visits have piqued my interest. But I see her more as an unwitting accomplice than anything else.” As the waitress walked closer, she got taller. Or was Klava shrinking. ”For some reason, she’s immune to my sleeping drugs. She can eat an entire pizza laced with the stuff. It was irritating at first, but I noticed she managed to drag an esper back here every time she came. So in the end, it worked out pretty good for me. You happen to be number five! ” She stopped beside Klava, who wasn’t even tall enough to bite her knees. ”Don’t worry, you fell asleep in a very discreet area. There’s pretty much no chance anyone will know what happened to you. Beatrix will return to her seat, you’ll have fled like all the others, and I get to be the hero when I give her a pep talk and convince her to try again next week.” She drew a tiny piece of paper that was just a bit smaller than her fingernails, but when she held it in front of Klava’s face, it looked to be a fairly long contract. ”No need for the long face though. Just sign this contract and become my eternal slave. Otherwise, I can just leave you in dreamland and feed your body to any of the local vampires.”

"Oh." Klava let out a sigh of relief, even as her foe grew larger and larger. "I do love it when dumbasses like you explain the whole mystery in such a nice and tidy manner. Now...let's have a change of scenery.."

Then, the world started to spin. Klava was falling backwards into the boy’s restroom while the giant waitress held her throat and fell to her knees, nearly crushing the tumbling esper.

---

While Fable was waiting outside, he got a message on his Shimr. The service was mostly for freelance espers to find work, but it did have a sort of built in messanger system for allowing espers to team up for trickier jobs or stay in touch with past aquaintances.

Cthulhya: Fable! Did you take that "hot date" job?
Cthulhya: It's fine if you did.
Cthulhya: Job's a job.
Cthulhya: You can't fall in love with her, okay? It's probably a trap!

"Eh?" Fable's attention turned to his phone once he got a notification. Not the best time for someone to message him, but Klava didn't seem to be in any danger yet. Weird bag though. He set the totem down to check his phone. Oh, it was just Mary! Ze noticed he took the bounty huh? The boy wouldn't admit it, but he was kinda worried about how ze would react. Just a little.

Timekeeper: You think? I already know she'll probs try to kill us.
Timekeeper: Luckily nothing's happened yet! I'm just waiting on my cue to intervene if things escalate.

Cthulhya: Oh! So you're just on lookout?
Cthulhya: Nice!
Cthulhya: You'll be a lot safer that way! ^-^
Cthulhya: I should probably leave you alone, but I did notice that footage of the Great Escape has been getting a lot of attention.
Cthulhya: G.E.M.I.N.I. seems interested especially.

The boy's eyes widened when Mary mentioned the footage they found before.

Timekeeper: So it did go through? And to the higher ups no less???
Timekeeper: Hell yea!! If word keeps spreading about that pos, we'll corner 'em for sure!

Cthulhya: Or maybe we won't.
Cthulhya: The head of G.E.M.I.N.I. in Pax Septimus vowed to take care of it themselves.
Cthulhya: I don't understand.

Timekeeper: ._.
Timekeeper: Pardon my french,
Timekeeper: But what the fuck.
Timekeeper: Not only is that kinda suspicious, but I'm pretty sure they could just set some limit on hires?? Or something??
Timekeeper: Like what, did a freelancer act out at the last hit? Why would they attempt to fight Justin alone?

Cthulhya: I'm mad too!
Cthulhya: I'm sure we could ask Elroy to do something about it. He's invested.
Cthulhya: Gotta go. We should hang out again when you get back.

Timekeeper: Hopefully. If even he can't reason with them, I'll figure something out. Ain't stopping till I get that bastard's head AND we get Betty back. Might have to free more, if he's actively turning people.
Timekeeper: Right. I'll let you go then, wish me luck!

After his chat with Mary, Fable glanced back into the diner again. Okay, things are still relatively normal. That's good! Might be a bit before anything happens, he thought. To kill some time, the boy decided to idly scroll through Shimr.

It was difficult to scroll far without coming across the topic Mary was talking about. Though what had really blown up was a companion topic that was made just to talk about Vermilion Veronica’s statement. It quoted her comment from the other topic.

The Freelancers are eager to fight Justin von Carnage. He stepped into their establishment while the bulk of them were out running errands, claimed an innocent, and proceeded to walk out of the place without being stopped by anyone. I can understand your frustration. Perhaps some of you even feel guilty that this was able to happen at a place you recently cleansed. But you shouldn’t. This was just a horrible monster doing something horrible. A monster is just a monster after all.

I know that many of you would love to do battle with Justin. You would likely risk your life for a pittance just to spite the vampire who wandered into your outpost. And maybe there’s someone out there that will pay that pittance, but it will not be G.E.M.I.N.I.

As upsetting as this is, do realize that your government takes the health of its cities very seriously. We have not been able to mobilize a force of espers in time to remove Iron Queen from the city. We feel like we have failed the people of Pax Septimus, and America, by allowing her reign of terror to last as long as it has. So please leave the elimination of Justin von Carnage to us. It is the least we can do to start writing the wrongs of the past. We ask that you have faith in our ability to handle this ourselves. Let G.E.M.I.N.I. spill its blood to slay the vampire.

There will be plenty of operations for you in the future.

You have my gratitude.

What followed could best be summed up as a flame war, with one side claiming that Gemini has no right to take this for themselves, and the other siding with Fritzi. It looked like the topic was quite polarizing.

"Tch." Fable furrowed his brows. Of course there had to be a public statement. He read through it once, then twice. This was an attempt to save face, wasn't it? It was kinda...pathetic. He couldn't really fault them, but even he didn't know the full story about this Iron Queen. How strong was she? Whoever managed to best her had to be a bigger threat than her, right? Was Justin linked to her somehow? Through his question, he took a quick look at the comments.

...Yeah no. Not getting involved.

He silently hoped things would change soon. If anything, he'll just have to hijack the operation himself when the time comes.

Before Fable could put away his phone, he got a friend request from “TheBlackCadillac”.

His head tilted to the side. "'BlackCadillac'?" He didn't expect anyone to friend him, save those he's already met like Mary or Elroy, nor did he have much of a reputation yet. So he thought over what to do out of hesitation.

...Eh, why not? He decided to accept it anyways. "I better not regret this later."

Mere seconds after Fable accepted the request, he received a message

”TheBlackCadillac:jhuy09poerdf87uy”

There was a delay, then another message came through.

”TheBlackCadillac:Made keyboard bigger. Easier to type. Kind of slow. You found footage?”

Fable rose a brow, but decided not to ask.

Timekeeper: Of the Vampire of the Hour? Yeah.
Timekeeper: Guessing you saw Gemini's announcement?

”TheBlackCadillac: I did. Asking around. Starting with the finders. Thinking about making operation. Race to Justin. First to kill wins. GEMINI against us.”

With that, something crossed his mind.

Timekeeper: You're of Maverick, aren't you?
Timekeeper: I mean no ill will, by the way! Just wondering, is all.

”TheBlackCadillac: The Leader. Billy Black. Thats me. Can fund an operation.”

Fable's eyes widened. The leader himself approached him??

Timekeeper: Alright then, I'm in.
Timekeeper: Payment is unnecessary for me. I just want to avoid killing any thralls. They don't deserve a fate they had no say in.

”TheBlackCadillac: Maybe you. Not others. Pay necessary. We spare who we can. Keep Betty safe.”

Timekeeper: Right.

Once he got Klava's message, he added:

Timekeeper: Gotta bounce, in the middle of a bounty.

”Godspeed.”

Finn could see Klava walking towards the rest rooms and disappear from sight. Not long afterwards, her waitress walked towards the bathroom after her. She looked to either side before entering after Klava.

Of course, the Timekeeper couldn't shrug off his partner being followed. Once he went back inside, he quietly took cover by the nearest corner to the two. He carefully peeked over, preparing a melody in case the waitress proved to be a threat.

The waitress was picking Klava up off the ground. ”Damn, I thought the other one was a big eater. You didn’t need bread with your soup!” She turned to the emergency exit, got out her keys, and started to unlock the door.

He just had to be right.

"You gotta be kidding..." She was knocked out that quickly? Damn. He'd have to act fast if they wanted to finish the job. While the waitress' back was turned, he fired a lightning bolt at her torso with the intention to weaken her long enough to grab Klava.

[Silver Projectile][Paralysis] = - 60 MP
(690 MP Remaining)

Between trying to hold up a fairly heavy woman and suddenly losing her breath, the waitress fell onto one knee and allowed Klava to slip off of her back. Fable darted in to catch her before she hit the ground. While Klava would make all the usual motions one made when waking up, she would not open her eyes. Though Klava would find that she would be able to "see" her surroundings and move like she normally could. Her hands even felt clean again.

The waitress gurgled as she finished opening the exit door and stumbled outside. She regained her ability to breathe and gasped for air. It was just the musty air of a narrow back alley with an overloaded dumpster, but it was better than nothing.

”There were two of you!?”

Of course, once the boy caught Klava, he quickly walked backwards away from the waitress. He glanced at the other esper in concern, but luckily she woke up quick...for the most part. Once their actual target realized his presence, Fable helped Klava to her feet and shot the waitress a glare.

"Yeah, no shit dipshit," Klava growled, her brows furrowed even though her eyes were closed. "Now I've got one fucking thing for parasites like you."

Arcane power, colder and crueller than arctic outflow, surged through Klava's invigorated veins, bursting out from her heart and shooting into her extremities. She slammed her hand into the ground, and as if to answer the maiden's disgust, thick sheets of ice surged upwards, then outwards, constructing two walls and a ceiling that locked the vampiric bitch right in that little section of the alleyway.

[Silver Touch][Enhance][Construction] = 150 Mana [600 MP Left]

With her best pro wrestling heel voice, Klava drew the dagger hidden in her back and gave it a villainous lick before chortling, "Welcome to the pain cage, sistah!"



Following up, Fable cast an arm out to channel electricity through. He aimed at the waitress' heart, and while he didn't have a witty quip like Klava did, the resulting beam fired would say enough.

[Silver Beam][Damage X] = - 108 MP
(582 MP Remaining)

While the espers prepared their melodies, the waitress shrugged off her disguise. Her skin and clothes cracked in half and fell to either side. Klava would see a youthful succubus, scantily clad with jeweled lingerie and a body that any man, and even some woman, wouldn’t mind touching just once. Finn on the other hand would see a different creature altogether. What he saw was a scaily man fish. Someone green, with seaweed for hair in a tuxedo top and a pink tutu. There was a reason why most succubus/incubus choose to tempt their prey in their dreams rather than broad daylight.

All the same, the monster was not expecting to get boxed into a cage and then lasered to death, But out of fear, it did manage to raise its arm to shield itself from Finn’s attack, which severed its arm just below the wrist.

”That wasn’t very sporting.” the creature growled in a voice that was appropriate for whichever form was being witnessed.

Two more waitresses wheeled up behind the espers, rolling their bussing carts along with them. Their eyes were closed, and their faces were filled with acne.

”Ohmygosh! Did they just lay a hand on Jan?”

”Like, they totally did?”

”So uncool! Get Dante, I’ll hold them off!”

”Like, yea!”

While one of the waitresses retreated, the other one charged towards Finn with her bussing cart.”You are gunna become french toast, mister!”

Klava would be oblivious to the underpaid seasonal help. Instead, she would see imps emerge from the ground. Tiny red men with bloated heads and pitchforks. They spread their wings and took to the sky to dive bomb the esper one at a time.

And with all the chaos going on, “Jan” traced a neon pink heart in the air before blowing it towards Finn.

"...Ew." Fable Finn? Eh, whatever. grimaced. The creature's transformation on his end only served to make him want to finish the thing off quicker. Was that supposed to be charming? Looked like something from an LSD trip. Before he could fire another beam, the espers were greeted to reinforcements in both perspectives. For him, it was the sleepwalking co-workers, who seemed unaware of their friend's true colors. Great. The boy's eyes widened when one charged at him, holding his arms out to stop the cart from running him over. He pushed against the controlled waitress, trying to figure out how he can wake them up.

He wouldn't have much time to think anyways.

Jan's attack would not go unnoticed. The fact that it was directed towards Fable himself put him in a bit of a panic. "Sorry, lady!!" A quick apology to the normal-ish waitress was followed by him kicking the cart away for some breathing room. Before the projectile could hit him, the boy fired another bolt behind Jan. Once he appeared in it's place, he'd attempt to stab the honestly weird creature.

[Silver Projectile][Blink] = - 60 MP
(522 MP Remaining)

Pretty people were a dime in a dozen post-transformation though, something made even more apparent when Klava had just gone through the whole 'wow dreams make you the god of an illusory space' spiel that the waitress had delivered a while ago. With Fable deciding to be a blink gamer and a host of ugly imps ganking them from behind, the maiden fell into her own role as the rearguard, flourishing her dagger before holding it in an icepick grip. In her other hand, a globule of water surged manifested in accordance to her arcane will, and as the first imp dove down, she twirled to the side to evade, tossing the projectile at the succubi-parasite before deflecting the second pitchfork with the flat of her frosting blade.

[Silver Projectile][Extend][Freeze] = 72 MP [528 MP Left]

Klava had little difficulty evading the imps, even if she looked a little silly rolling and blocking attacks that didn’t really exist. They cackled as they dive bombed Klava over and over again, none on them any more successful than the other one. But what Klava really had to watch out for was a threat she couldn’t actually see.

The underpaid waitress had been momentarily stopped by Finn’s kick, but it wasn’t like the boy had kicks so strong they could shatter bussing carts in a single kick. With reduced momentum, she resumed her charge and ran straight into Klava. Take that, Karen!

With two melodies flying in Jan’s direction, They decided to hoof it back towards Dante’s. Unlike before, they were ready for the incoming melodies. The strange faerie creature bound into the air, which made a lot more sense in the dream word where Jan actually had wings. Finn appeared just in time to get blasted by Klava’s freezing melody. As Jan gained altitude, they prepared another spell. It wasn't possible to tell what it was yet, but their body was glowing with arcane energy.

"GAH!?" The boy yelped out as he was met with Klava's attempt to freeze Jan, instead of a skewered seaweed monster man. The attack knocked him square in the chest, temporarily knocking the wind out of him. Other than his main gears slowing down for a short moment, he was still kicking. Between the waitress gunning for Klava next, and Jan preparing a probably larger attack, he had to choose which one to warn the maiden about.

"R-Roll out of the way! Incoming cart!!" Klava seemed to be aware of Jan, but like the waitress, she was stuck sleepwalking too. He had to buy her some time. So Fable aimed at the whimsical creature, and fired another beam to slow them down. By any means necessary.

And by that, he means the notes off the top of his head.

[Silver Beam][Paralysis][Restrain][Slow] = - 288 MP
(234 MP Remaining)

Jan did little to avoid getting struck by the beam, not that there was much they could have done anyway. They only glowed brighter as the melody took hold of their respritory system. static charges curled around their form, and their body started to drift through space slower. There was little they could do aside from drift towards the earth and bleed out of their severed wrist.

The flow of combat continued, the dance of melody and monstrous magic, interrupted only by...a cart? It took Klava only moments to consider what Fable was talking about, and she clenched her fist again, slamming it into the frozen ground. Whatever it was, it was nothing that couldn't be solved with some good old elevation.

Around her, lines of frost formed within a one meter radius, before a tower of ice, complete with parapets, rose up at an angle beneath Klava, propelling her towards the flying parasite.

"Sup bitch?" she said, before thrusting Moya-no-Yume into Jan's womb tattoo.

[Bronze Touch][Construction] = 64 MP [464 MP Left]

”Stop calling me that!” Jan managed to wheeze as her lungs failed to cooperate. Just as the dagger started to cut into their flesh, a pack of imps tackled Klava and pushed her back. The parapets kept her on the tower, but all four imps were flying up in her face, prodding her with their little pitchforks. Jan placed their remaining hand over their stomach. ”Very well! I don't want to see either of you again either!”

Jan's spell took form. The light surounding them detonated, sending a heart shaped explotion in all directions, shreading the restraints that binded them. Klava wouldn't notice much happen as it washed over her, but Finn would notice his surroundings would change a bit. Imps started to fade into his reality, and the growing mob of waitresses trying to climb Klava's ice tower would dissapear from view. He would also be able to see Jan's other form. The one Klava had been fighting up untill now.

Then, out of the corner of Fable's eye, a demon tore its way out of the earth. It was big, imposing, and had skin as black as night. The base of its torso went into the ground, which was wreathed in fire. It opened its hand and tried to crush Finn flat with a smack of its hand.

"Fable! Get 'em off me!"

Welp. It was probably inevitable he'd get dragged into the same nightmare Klava was trapped in. Atleast their opponent looked better than the fish man. But Finn wouldn't let himself forget this was a fish man in reality. With the ice melted off him, thus allowing him to breath normally, he was prepared to properly assist the maiden.

Until a new problem crawled it's way out of Hell. Literally. As if the Devil himself was prepared to drag him back down to Inferno, a different demon made itself known in an attempt to crush the poor kid. How the hell was he supposed to fight something like that? He was starting to run out of energy too. AND Klava still needed his help!

"Crap. CRAP."

He quickly evaded the demon's attack, then sprinted away. "Hope you don't mind, Lucifer's kinda pissed!!" Fable charged himself up, casting a melody to sprint up the tower. "OI ASSHOLES! YA' FORGOT ONE!!" He yelled at the imps, hopefully provoking them to attack him instead. He'd fight back, of course.

[Silver Self][Speedster] = - 48 MP
(186 MP Remaining)

Finn could feel his feet connect with something on his way up the tower, but it didn't impeed him as he sped up the side. The imps continued to valiently defend their queen, but one of them did look over the edge out of curiosity.

As one imp found themselves distracted, Klava pushed with all her strength against the other imp, smacking away its pitchfork and giving herself the time to weave a quick melody. Before it could advance upon her again, her body turned into a silhouette of snow, blown by an artic wind that flowed upwards, manifesting behind the succubi.

This close to the ceiling that she had Constructed, Klava kicked off the frozen ice while aiming to facelock the already-debilitated monster and deliver a truly brutal RKO outta nowhere.

[Bronze Spawn][Blink] = 64 MP [400 MP Left]

Jan squinted her eyes as soon as Klava disappeared from sight. ”She’s behind me, isn’t she?” But wasn’t able to do much more than go along with Klava’s motions before the massive demon reached to snatch Klava out of the air. But the small space didn;t give the demon much time to react, and Klava managed to shatter her ass along with Jan’s neck. Moments later, both Finn and Klava would find that they could open their eyes. The weird demon/imp field dreamscape disappeared, leaving the two in reality. Klava’s hands were still wrapped around Jan’s neck, but they were a bit less appealing to look at.

The waitresses blinked their eyes open. Many of them yawned as if waking up from a nap, some a deep sleep, others like they had just sort of dozed off during a lecture and were only coming to now.

”Ohmygosh! What just happened?”

”Like…” One of them pointed over at Klava and Jan. ”I think they fell down?”

”So uncool! Get Dante, I’ll help her up!”

”Like, yea!”

The waitresses ran over to Klava and Jan’s side to help separate them. Meanwhile, there were a handful of waitresses that Fable had trampled on his way up the tower, and they were still rising to their feet. Hurt, but not seriously.

"Ugh, finally!" With their target finally defeated, Finn slid back down the tower. In seeing what, or rather who he ran over, his face twisted into a frown. "Er...that's my doing, isn't it? My apologies." He said. "I can explain. ...Aaaand heal anyone if necessary."

”Wait, really?” A waitress with Finn’s footprint on her face turned to him. ”So I could sue you to finish paying off my loans? That would heal me up.”

”Stacy! We’ve got bigger problems.”

Well, Klava certainly wasn't going to be doing any sitting any time soon...IF SHE DIDN'T HAVE A MUNDANE FORM TOO!!!!! It wasn't the most graceful of executions she could've done in the long run, but it got the job done, and her hands (due more to her Leitmotif than anything else) were clean.

"You can start with my tailbone," she spoke to Fable, wincing as she let herself get pulled away from the dead (?) waitress. "And hey, rest of y'all, clear out for a bit. Gotta get rid of all this ice."

Only, none of the waitresses were paying attention to Klava. As more of them came too, more of them surrounded Jan’s body. ”Is she dead? I think her neck broke!” One of the waitresses looked over her shoulder. ”Get an ambulance!” They all started to move back inside. ”You! Keep an eye on her! I’m going to get some bandages!” One of them told Klava before going back inside. There were no more waitresses outside. Just the two espers, and whatever the hell Jan was supposed to be.

"....Okay then." Maybe he shouldn't explain after all. The boy made note of the one that basically said she'd sue. "Now what?" Fable asked, admittedly hesitant to heal Klava's tailbone because reasons. "Should we make sure they're dead or...?"

"Always a good policy with monsters," Klava replied. "Stabbing the heart works for vamps, yeah?"

"Of course." The heart was where he was targeting in the first place. The boy approached the corpse of Jan, aiming his rapier where their heart would be, then finished it off with a swift stab.

There was little resistance as Finn murdered the monster. It gurgled through it's collapsed throat, but did little else as its life faded.

Fable yanked his sword out of the corpse as soon as they were certain the monster was finished. Whatever happened next, he hoped it would end well and not in some manhunt for his and Klava's heads. He detransformed back into his mundane self, and let out a tired huff.

Although...

The boy's attention turned back to the diner. He was aware some building were run-down due to the crime rates and stuff, but maybe it wouldn't hurt to do something about this one. Who knows, maybe it'd be a good start in patching Pax up. So, Finn pocketed his grimore and grabbed his phone to text a certain someone.

"Wow damn."

Klava blinked, realizing that the Esper boy was really just a normal boy on the inside too. Fucked up city Pax Sept was, drawing in kids who could kill in cold blood. After some wincing and some shaky knees, she got close enough to Fable to pat him on the back. "Got it real rough, eh kiddo?"

He looked back up to Klava when she approached him, answering her question with a nonchalant shrug. "You can keep the rewards if you want. Dunno what I'd do with a dinner for two." Finn said. "Doubt my sister would have the time off for that stuff either." Then again, she still didn't know he snuck out at times, did she? He slightly frowned at the thought. Hopefully she could convince their parents to give Dante's a long-needed facelift.

"You're too young to be that cynical," she said, bopping him on the head. "Go ask before you start your doubts, yeah? And if it's still a whiff, hell, hit me up. Ain't gonna let the boy savior starve, after all."

As for herself? Well, Klava had some clearing up to do.

The boy opened his mouth to retort, but ended up in thought. Maybe it wouldn't hurt? After a brief moment, he decided to just bite the bullet and ask her. "I'll let you know how it goes then." He told Klava after he sent the text, the corner of his mouth quirked up into a smile. Though something crossed his mind.

"W-Wait, should I transform back to heal you, or are you gonna be okay??" Fable asked in concern.

"No pain no gain," Klava replied banally, already limping away with all the coolness of a cowboy riding off into the sunset.

"Heh, alright then." Finn would say to no one in particular after Klava walked off. With nothing else popping up, the boy would take his leave as well.

While Klava and Finn were unable to determine exactly what happened to the requester's friend, they were able to narrow it down to one of two outcomes, which satisfied the bare minimum of their contract. At the end of the day, it didn’t matter if freelancers were rich or trying to make ends meet. They were in it for the fat stacks, and happy endings were never guaranteed. Especially in a place like Pax Septimus.

…

…

…

Kristina was eyeing the restroom mirror. She had the water running while her cell phone rested on the edge of the sink. She was rubbing her face, staring frantically at her reflection.

”Aw man, why do I do this to myself?” She splashed her face. ”She’s a super cutie, almost a mega cutie. Why does the boss call me all the time?” She threw some more water on herself. ”I bet she went home already. It’s what the other guys and girls did.” And again. ”No but, no, she was kind of easy going. Maybe she’ll still be there? Or maybe she was just being polite so that she didn’t hurt my feelings?” With a deep breath, she closed her eyes. ”The phone call is over, I should just accept whatever happens.” Then there was a knock at the door. ”Eep!” She hugged her bagged gun against her chest. ”That’s gotta be her, she’s probably concerned about me, and I’m just being a coward.”

Though when Kristina opened the door, she was not greeted with the fair elegance of Frost, but a bald, bearded man who weighed more than any two other people in the joint. It was Dante, the bartender and owner of Dante’s. ”Are you done? We’re closing for tonight.”

”Is it that late?” Kristina looked at her wrist, only to remember she didn’t have a watch in this form.

”Special circumstances.” Dante folded his arms across his greasy shirt. ”There’s been a murder.”

Kristina blinked. ”Wha-” She folded her hands together. ”A murder?”

”Yes.” Dante’s eyes softened. ”One of the waitresses was found out back. By the time the ambulance arrived, she was already dead.”

”It wasn’t Jan, was it?”

He sighed. ”I wanted to wait for you to sit down, but yea.” Dante watched Kristina as her heart sank. ”She waited on your table every time you were here, didn’t she?”

”She was the first person I really met in Pax Septimus.” One of her hands closed over her heart.. ”After each of my failed dates, she’d be there to tell me to keep trying. I didn’t know her that well, but it’s sad to hear. I imagine you knew her a lot better than I did.”

”Jan was only with us for a few months, but she was a real angel.” Dante nodded. ”Before you showed up today, she had me make your pizza in advance.” He grinned. ”She even had the extra napkins you usually asked for stashed right by the pizza ”

”I don’t know what to say, I really liked her.” Kristina hung her head. ”I thought about asking her out, but I didn’t want to make her feel weird.”

”Really now?” Dante raised an eyebrow. ”Jan was a wonderful lady, but I got the impression you were out of her league. ”

”Heh.” She shook her head. ”I’m not this pretty most of the time. Makeup does wonders. Jan was very much in my league with her personality alone.”

”Well, wherever Jan is, I’m sure she’d be happy to hear you say that.”

”Maybe.” Kristina started to walk towards the emergency exit. ”Uh, so I’ll just pay you and leave then?”

Dante raised a hand. ”Don’t worry about the Pizza today. Jan would have wanted you to have it on the house. But you should use the other exit. I think your date is waiting for you.”

”...She waited for me?” Kristina rubbed her arm. ”That’s one hell of a silver lining to all this. Thanks Dante. Um.” She scratched her arms. ”Can I have a hug?”

Dante sighed, but even this hardened bastard couldn’t stop himself from smiling. He raised his hands and the two embraced. Kristina let her gun bag fall onto her feet so that she could grab him with both arms. ”I hope we see you again next week.”

”I’m sure you will.” After they separated, Kristina picked up her satchel and took three steps away from Dante.

”Oh, this might be a personal question, but I gotta know.” He placed his hands on his hips. ”I noticed your date called you Kristina, but Jan called you Beatrix. I thought she delivered to the wrong table for a moment.”

”Oh! yea.” with a nervous chuckle, Kristina continued. ”Because of um, circumstances, I use a fake name with people I’m unfamiliar with. But a few weeks ago, I paid for dinner with my card, so she saw my name that way.” She sighed. ”Only my mother and Jan really call me that though. Most of my friends just call me Trixy.” She smiled at Dante.

”Not a bad idea in Pax Septimus, and hey.” He pointed at her chin before flicking his finger up. ”Keep that chin up and enjoy the rest of your date, Trixy. It’s what Jan would have wanted.”

Trixy’s lips twitched into a smile. ”She'd want you to keep your chin up too, okay?” She said before walking out of the restroom corridor.

Once she was gone, Dante stepped out of the emergency exit to observe Jan’s corpse. It wasn’t really a surprise. Dante had an idea something like this would have happened sooner or later. It wasn’t uncommon for monsters to attack humans, but Jan made a habit of only targeting espers. Something about what they did to her brother. It was an understandable drive, but it made a poetic end like this seem inevitable. He told her to knock it off multiple times, and she paid for ignoring him with her life. Still, did they have to butcher her like this? She only ever enslaved espers to Dante’s knowledge. Surely there were monsters more deserving of death than Jan.

”It’s always gonna be us against them, isn’t it?”

A tide of sand rolled through the alleyway, moving Jan’s body out of sight. Dante walked back inside to finish closing up.

---

Maiden: Yoohoo, you awake?

Kristina: I wish. Can't sleep.
Kristina: (。-ω-)zzz
Kristina: What's up?

Maiden: Just checking up on you, cause, y'know, the whole restaurant closing thing.

Kristina: That was not my ideal way to end the night.
Kristina: (っ- ‸ – ς)
Kristina: Guess it’s called the city of blood for a reason.
Kristina: But wow.
Kristina: During our date.
Kristina: I know Dante’s isn’t in a great part of town, but just
Kristina: (っ- ‸ – ς)
Kristina: I’ll be okay though. I’m a big girl.
Kristina: ᕦ(⚆W⚆)ᕥ
Kristina: Does this sort of thing happen a lot?

Maiden: Uh...maybe. Well in this case, I did it.
Maiden: The waitress mindblasted me and was planning on disposing me, so yeah.

Kristina: (⊙‸⊙)
Kristina: Jan tried to kill you?!
Kristina: But why?

Maiden: Well, thankfully she did a buncha gloating.
Maiden: Basically, she's done this with every other date of yours.
Maiden: Wasn't too clear on the motivation, honestly.
Maiden: Think she was collecting espers and either enslaving them or just feeding them to vampire thralls.

Kristina: I feel stupid
Kristina: Really stupid.
Kristina: The very most stupid.
Kristina: I know I’m not smart, but how does an esper not notice a monster like that.
Kristina: I’m stupid.
Kristina: I’m glad you’re okay though.

Maiden: Don't think too hard about it.
Maiden: I didn't see it coming either, and anyhow, you were just trying to live your best life.
Maiden: How did the boss convo go? Everything good?

Kristina: Boss talk went good.
Kristina: He set up my new apartment.
Kristina: Just gotta move in with all my crap.
Kristina: Gunna be cool to not have to sleep in a car.
Kristina: Big operation coming up too.
Kristina: Can’t talk about it yet.
Kristina: Gunna do it anyway. (｡•̀ᴗ-)✧
Kristina: We’re going to bust up Justin before the Gems do.
Kristina: You wanna tag along for that? I can make sure you get a spot.

Maiden: Haha, at least you've got a car.
Maiden: Send me the deets if you can; generally would be down, but I've been dunked by one too many contracts before.

Kristina: Okay~
Kristina: Will do when I know more.
Kristina: Are you still up for showing me around Pax Septimus some time?

Maiden: If you show me your car.

Kristina: Deal!
Kristina: σ(≧ε≦ｏ)
Kristina: It has very comfortable seats.
Kristina: I would know (｡•̀ᴗ-)✧
Kristina: TTYL Frost. Hopefully the next date’s a bit less eventful.

Maiden: Night, Kris.

The warehouse lacked any sort of character. It, like so many others, was old and abandoned. The crates were covered in rust, as was just about everything inside the warehouse. Though the metal shipping crates had been arranged to block line of sight to the magical circle in the center of the warehouse. It had been carved into the concrete floor, and was radiating a blue light.

Some mobsters “escorted” some women out of the back of a van and helped them into wooden boxes. After they were securely inside, the lids were closed and hammered shut. The sound of hammers striking nails was enough to drown out the sounds of the whimpering woman. They didn’t dare scream, they had seen what happened to the ones that resisted.

The boxes were being stacked inside the magical circle, one at a time. Eyes peered out of the breathing holes at their captors, who continued to work without stopping. Even when performing physical labor like this, none of them took off their suits. Perhaps with all the money they were going to make, it didn’t matter if their suits got a little dirty. High quality females fetched a fair price, and there were a few of those in this haul.

There had to be at least ten mobsters, all working as fast as they could. Everyone just wanted to collect their money and get out.

But tonight, tonight there could be difficulties.

Despicable, deplorable, living breathing waste of oxygen. These scum were worse than the supposedly terrible monsters from another dimension, at least those monsters were born evil, being a murderous beast was all they knew, but these... "people", they had the choice to not kidnap women, stick them in boxes, and sell them off as sex slaves, yet they went ahead and did it anyway. However, if one thought that Merry was shocked at the blatant disregard of human rights in front of her, one would be wrong. Mankind were always capable of the highest highs and the lowest lows, and it was her duty as the hammer of justice to give unto them what they fuckin' deserve.

Already clad in her esper form, Valkyrie turned at Protector, the esper whom she had arranged to meet via the Shimr app earlier. As it turned out, that Japanese 'civilian' was none other than the Freelancer's human self, a drastic transformation that rivaled even Silhouette. Guess it explained why she was there in hindsight, huh? Regardless, they were here for a job and knowing they had worked with each other before could only mean good things. "You take the front so I can blast their heads off to kingdom come, then we'll free the girls, sounds good, ja?" It was a no-brainer strategy with how their respective powers, but who knows if Protector had any bright ideas?

"To kingdom come!" The Protector affirmed with a nod of its head. It looked determined, and somewhat giddy in its stance as it thought about the amount of good they'd be doing taking trash out for the city. According to what the esper had seen on the news, human trafficking began with women and extended later on to children when left unchecked. Abducting and selling women was already one issue; so the possibility of anyone from the Rising Hope nursery being involved was a thought the Protector simply couldn't and wouldn't stomach in the name of justice-- an alignment it so heavily shared with Valkyrie. It was admirable just how fast they filled up these slots on Shimr. For the citizens of Pax Septimus, it was up to this pair now to dole out some punishment.

That was why it was definitely nice to see a familiar face for the second time in a row. It was due to their combined efforts that their spit roast scheme managed to work during the last mission, after all. There truly was faith to be had in this mission, and even if there wasn't, at least they were there to try. Steadying its position, the titan's gruff voice spoke into the earpiece it borrowed from its teammate.

"I'll be your shield, Valk. Ready on your mark."

"Affirmative." Valkyrie spoke via the earpiece that she had given to both Protector and herself, enabling real-time remote communication. Being under Gemini had its perks, this was one of them, taxpayer money used for good. The sniper esper then took vantage point on top of an abandoned shipping container, enabling her to look over Protector's massive frame and set her sights on the despicable gangsters, another day, another mobster to send to hell. "I spot... ten tangos, most likely more inside... ready when you are." Then she waited, lying prone on her spot, barely moving as her breaths calmed down, she was a chameleon, her tongue ready to strike at the unsuspecting insects faster than the blink of an eye.



Soon enough, the eight foot tall mech-esper got into position, the most visible target that these mobsters would immediately see once shit hit the fan, and oh boy, shit indeed hit the fan. "..." Valkyrie's eyes focused into her signature coldblooded assassin look, her pupils shrinking as her index finger disengaged trigger discipline... then pulled said trigger. Teslic Gauss responded by working its inner mechanisms, accelerating a sabot along its coils before launching it at such a velocity, even the most agile of espers would have a hard time noticing until it was too late.

She dedicated this particular bullet to the closest mobster’s dome, homed right to his forehead!

As if on cue, the Protector raised its mana-brimming shield before issuing its stampeding charge amidst the oncoming rain of bullets. If these men would not listen to the law, then the law would manifest itself as a bullet in the night and a spear through the dark. Like a metal-suited rhino, it approached quickly and surely, stomping to the collective beat of their impending dooms.

Silmeria lined up her shot perfectly, she fired, and she would not miss. Her only oversight was assuming that a bunch of mobsters gathered around a magic circle were totally mundane in nature. Her bullet hit the first target in the head, and they immediately underwent a freakish metamorphosis. His dress vest tore off of his body, orange and black stripes manifested across his torso. When he cried out in pain, it sounded like the roar of a tiger. These weren’t normal thugs, there were weretigers. Monsters capable of changing shape between humans, tigers, and some shape in between. The mundane damage from her anti-material rifle was enough to draw blood, but it was still in the fight. The weretiger was momentarily fazed by the shot, but was able to recover enough to stand upright. It looked in the direction of Silmeria and drew its paw across its neck, blood still oozing out of the side of its head.

The Protector had charged towards the congregation of mobsters. While many drew their guns, one raised their hand to stop them from firing and walked towards the approaching Protector. What he lacked in speed they more than made up for by having the most grim scowl the Protector had ever seen. When she went to stab the mobster, he jumped over her spear and shifted into an eight-hundred pound tiger. Protector was pinned on her back, and the massive tiger held its mouth open, allowing drops of saliva to fall onto its helmet. The rest of the gunmen focused their aim in Silmeria’s direction.

”You dumbasses.” While all of the mobsters appeared to be on edge, the one who spoke didn’t look all that excited. His shoulders were relaxed, and his white suit made him stand out among his red and gray companions. He was also a bit shorter than the others, and was the only one with blonde hair. ”I knew it was only a matter of time before you showed up. Let me guess, you took that buffoon’s request on Shimr?” He lit a cigar and turned towards Silmeria’s direction. ”Is that the Gemini patch on your shoulder?” He chuckled. ”Just who do you work for?”

Valkyrie predicted that shit would hit the fan, and indeed it did, but her one grievous mistake was believing that the spray was directed at the mobsters, not herself. As things turned out, it was the exact opposite as the 'mobster' she shot turned out to be a monster instead, a werewo-... tiger, weretiger, half-humanoid half-tiger, full evil. The brunette blinked in genuine bewilderment, as she saw one of them transformed into a gigantic striped beast, with enough bulk and weight to pin even the mighty Protector down. Now this was definitely an undesirable situation.

Her eyes half-closed, Silmeria fished out her phone as she subtly sent an SOS signal to Gemini HQ, along with her GPS location. Hopefully someone would respond.

That done, she stood up, got down from her vantage point, and approached the only blonde "person" in the group, listening to him gloat over his superiority. As much as she hated to admit it, he was kinda right, what with that giant tiger and all, who knew if there were more of them around. "You thought right, I mean, this is Pax Septimus, having a bounty on your head is a sure sign someone will come sooner or later, even the Iron Queen wasn't immune to that." She made a little shrug, looking perfectly composed.

..or not, in actuality, Merry's heart was beating fast and cold sweats were threatening to drip from her pores, her charade held together only by two things: her Gemini agent training and her weariness to life in general. Hey, maybe she could meet Helena in heaven sooner than later. Although... if that should happen, she must at least be responsible for one thing.

In a surge of orange sparks, Valkyrie dispelled her instrument and esper form, her rifle and jacket vanishing into thin air, "I work for Gemini, but my big buddy here is a freelancer, let it go, and you'll have me," She paused for a moment, "Better than us fighting to the death and you getting nothing, right?"

Let's hope her little Loki gambit worked... if not, ah well, see you soon, lil' sis.

”Conceptually, your offer makes sense.” The blonde mobster looked Silmeria over from a distance. ”But if you’re serious about it, why don’t you set everything on your person aside so that you don’t just transform back?”

However, it seemed the Protector had no mind to comply. It was either these scum or them that made it out tonight, and with its morning shift at the nursery coming up in a little more than several hours, it surely would put in some effort for the latter option to come through. From underneath the giant heaps-worth of the beast, a blue pulse of light radiated from the Protector’s body, enveloping itself in a humming luminosity, and then passing on directly to the oversized animal.

Protector: [Bronze Touch][Weightless] = -32

“Hup!” With a kick, the gigantic suit of armor attempted to force the hulking weretiger in the air. Then, it heaved the strength of its entire body weight into the floating creature– aiming to send it straight towards the group locked on Valkyrie as a means of distraction while the Protector made a run for it to stand guard before the gunner.

The melody made the tiger light enough that Protector could easily move it with a running tackle. It flipped through the air, clawing every which way in a desperate attempt to get itself back on the ground. The mobsters backed up as their companion hurdled towards them, but one of them transformed into a weretiger and caught their airborn companion before he flattened the lot of them.

The blonde rolled his neck until it cracked. ”The shipment is large enough, just wipe them out.”

The six mobsters fanned out while returning fire on the esper’s position. The tiger and weretiger shifted back into mobsters so that they could raise their weapons as well. The wounded weretiger from earlier slipped behind some metal storage crates, and the blonde mobster just watched it all unfold with two mobsters at either of his flanks. The number of bullets flying in Protector and Silmeria’s direction increased every second, and it was only going to get worse the longer they stood out in the open.

Oh, it's... working? To be honest, Silmeria was a bit surprised since she never had much confidence about her looks, sure, she was not butt-fucking ugly, but she wasn't a head-turner either, unlike let's say Klava with her exotic silver hair and sapphire eyes or even Aria with her oriental beauty. Although, she supposed that these monsters didn't want to look at a gift horse in the mouth. "Can't say I'll like it, but you twisted my arm." That primal instinct to save her own skin was so strong that in this very moment, Merry didn't care that she'd be stripping buck naked in front of these men.

However, before she could undo even a single button, either through a misguided sense of heroism or just being a dense motherfucker or both, Merry's gambit completely went over the sentient mech's head - even though it's fucking 8 feet tall - and Protector decided to reengage hostilities by manhandling the giant tiger. "..." Merry made a barely-audible sigh with pursed lips, mostly frustrated, but a tiny bit relieved that she wouldn't have to strip.

"Death it is.

Valkyrie instantly reformed, her jacket and signature railgun spawning through a coalescence of orange sparks, but said sparks continued surging as they seemed to overcharge her rifle, its coils brimming with melodious power.

Valkyrie: [Bronze Beam] [Damage X] [Piercing] = -112 Mana

Even while the beam was charging, she already took aim at one of the mobsters' head.

BOOM!!

A literal thunderclap as she fired an orange lightning bolt, aimed straight at his forehead, hoping it'd shatter his skull, fry his brain, and continue to hit whoever poor sod was behind him, if any.

There was no target behind the mobster, as the group had spread out in the express interest of denying the espers double kills. But Silmeria’s melody did manage to fry the mobster’s head this time. As the case was with monsters, they often had minimal resistance to physical attacks. That was one tiger down, nine to go.

"Thanks for the cooperation, you big bitch!" That done, Silmeria immediately ran to the nearest cover, but not before venting her frustrations out at the tallest SoB in the vicinity.

Krrrng. “Thank you as well!” From where it stood, the Protector happily responded with a thumbs-up, immune to the sarcastic jest that too went over its head as it was still unaware of how tones really work with sarcasm in English.

With Valkyrie in a safer position and the titan in a much better mood, it went on to charge straight for the gunners, raising its shield against their hail of bullets as it willingly aimed to dive into the fray.

A few feet traveled later and the stomping of the Protector’s rush all of a sudden ceased as its body simply vanished, only to have reappeared and switched positions with the closest mobster in proximity to the blond man issuing orders. Upon arrival, the Protector kept its shield raised as it forced guided stabs towards the man’s vital areas with the advantage of its long-reaching spear.

Protector: [Bronze Projectile][Transplace] = -80

Protector’s shield had the ability to draw smaller projectiles into it, but it was still too small to offer adequate protection from an onslaught of bullets like this. Fortunately she would not be in the hail of bullets for very long. When she switched places with one of the blonde’s henchmen, they were now the ones getting shot at. This triggered his transformation into a weartiger, but it only did minimal damage before the mobsters stopped firing.

The blonde was in trouble. Protector was getting pretty close to stabbing him. He shifted his hips forward just before her thrust connected with his thigh. Before they could get off another thrust, his remaining henchman transformed into a tiger and clamped onto Protector’s spear with it’s claws. It gave the weapon a tug before attempting to jump onto the person holding it. The blonde used the opportunity to slip away from Protector and give an order.

”Use the shipment as cover.”

As the blonde ran into the warehouse, the other gunman ran for the wooden crates filled with women and dragged them away from the pile. While they wouldn’t stop a piercing melody, Silmeria would be forfeiting her reward if she happened to shoot the one that contained the daughter of the request giver. The five mobsters took turns firing past the crates at Silmeria to make themselves harder to predict. Meanwhile, the blonde mobster’s other henchmen was running towards Protector with claws drawn. The weretiger was not too pleased with their trick, and was going to make them pay for it.

If there was one silver lining in this course of events was that Merry wouldn't have to humor these depraved scum with her body, imagine being stripped and stuck into one of those boxes while waiting for backup to arrive. Furthermore, the only reason she did that was to save Protector's skin- errr... exoskeleton(?) anyway whereas she could've ditched the big bitch. If it didn't even need saving in the first place, then all the more power to them.

Now within the relative safety behind the cover of a metal container, Valkyrie's marksman eyes quickly assessed the current situation. So Protector had closed in on the blonde bastard, about to skewer the asshole with its fuckoff giant spear, but missed and its second attempt was disrupted by an oversized tiger clamping its jaws on the weapon. On the other hand, the gunmen were now using those wooden crates as cover, fucking idiots, did they seriously bank on the goodness of her heart to not simply shoot through the hostages? Well, in this particular case, they were right, but it couldn't have been a decision based on logic. Is it because they know I'm with Gemini? Huh... honestly I'm flattered.

There were so many targets but only one railgun, so which one... hmmm, yes, she had made a decision.

Again, orange sparks overcharged the coils of Teslic Gauss as she prepped another Melody. Zapping noises and brightly-glowing coils heralded the arrival of yet another clap, aimed directly at the giant tiger - the one that's currently clamping Protector's spear - and...

Valkyrie: [Bronze Beam] [Damage X] = -72 Mana

BOOM!!

Thor struck down his hammer once more as an orange lightning traveled at ludicrous speed, virtually instantly arriving at its intended target. It had lower penetrating power than the previous one due to Valkyrie realizing that the mobsters had spread out in fear of being double-owned, so she dedicated this bolt to fuck that tiger in particular.

With the beast in question's grip weakened, the Protector made use of the opportunity right away, sliding its now-loosened spear out of the tiger's clutches and swinging it horizontally downward-- aiming for the ankles in an attempt to hobble it, while also kicking the tiger's dropped gun away out of its reach.

Within the next couple of seconds, a flow of blue light flooded the space behind the boxes where the mobsters stood. The power of the sentinel's mana would urge them to be still-- perhaps for a moment of self-reflection or even thoughts of reconsidering their plan. Idealistic ventures aside, with the mobster's temporarily immobilised, the Protector only sought to make sure Valkyrie held the clear advantage from that point onwards.

Protector: [Bronze Projectile][Restrain][Powerful][AoE] = -84

While the tiger had a giant hole in its rear quarters, but it was still strong enough to move. It hopped backwards just in time for Protector’s swing to miss, but was unable to do anything as its gun skidded away. By this point the weretiger Protector had swapped places with had returned to aid the tiger. He delivered a trio of savage swings at the knight.

The mobsters were too distracted with Silmeria to do anything about the incoming melody. While they were spread out, Protector was able to restrain two of them. Though they would transform into weretigers to break free from the melody’s effect on them. It did cause them to drop their guns, however.

This might have been Silmeria’s chance to counter attack, but the weretiger she had shot earlier had returned to get its revenge. It waited on top of the crate she was hiding behind and pounced on her when she was taking cover. It attempted to rip her to pieces with its claws.

Two of the remaining mobsters transformed, one into a weretiger, and the other into a tiger. The weretiger was holding a crate filled with women in front of himself while the tiger raced to Silmeria’s position.

Oof, now that's going to hurt alright, no one just ignores having their ass ripped open a new one, especially by a magical thunder. Now with Protector freed to act, that was a whole hundred percent boost to the good guy squad's fighting force... considering there were only two of them. Speaking of which, where in the goddamn hell is that backup?!

Alas, Valkyrie had no time to check her phone as the enemies were hot on her trail. She was already thinking of scoring a double-dome, owner of the doublesdale doubledome, on that pair of restrained mobsters, even that brief period when they were transforming to break off Protector's restraint melody was enough to do it, but that plan was made impossible thanks to a weretiger beelining over to her. Oh, this particular furry degenerate was the schmuck she shot earlier, huh? Time to finish that job! It's tiger hunting season, folks!

"I was just wondering when you'd return, fitte!"

As the half-man half-beast creature pounced on her, she held Teslic Gauss as if the rifle had an underbarrel grenade launcher, then with a crisp zap, its tip lobbed off a projectile, a melody taking the form of a fist-sized orange thunderball, aimed at the creature's torso.

Valkyrie: [Bronze Projectile] [Paralysis]: -32 Mana

If it hit its intended target, then it should cause a sudden shortness of breath as the electricity disrupted the target's muscles, buying an opportunity in which Silmeria would exploit by unloading multiple point-blank shots to the weretiger's forehead, fully intended to finish what she started.

Obviously, as of the moment, she didn't have the chance to even worry about the approaching tiger.

The Protector flinched in response to the beast’s claws, managing to muster the strength to grab hold onto its arm on the last swing. Upon doing so, a wave of blue light pulsed from the sentinel’s gauntlet into the weretiger’s body, absorbing all of its gravitational energy to the point it began to float. With both arms, it took hold of the weightless feline and spun it around to gain momentum, letting go in perfect aim of the tiger that dared approach its ally.

Protector: [Bronze Touch][Weightless] = -32

Simultaneously, as the beast caught some airtime before crashing into the tiger, the Protector would attempt to distract the group behind the crates with a series of spear jabs and thrusts to keep their focus off the gunner.

The flying weretiger careened into the back of the tiger rider. Regardless of how fast they had been moving, their low mass meant that they weren’t going to do much harm to whatever they hit. However, the weretiger was bruised all over from being flung into one of his companions. He clammored to his feet and followed after the tiger rider.

The firing line was a little surprised to see one of their own thrown like a rag doll over their heads, so the remaining mobster and two weretigers turned around just in time to see Protector approach. Moments before it could thrust its spear through the nearest weretiger, it heard a gunshot. Then felt pain rip through its back.

If Protector had eyes in the back of its head, they might have noticed the blonde mobster being momentarily illuminated in the dark warehouse by a muzzle flash.

The two weretigers cast aside their guns and rushed the Protector head on. The remaining mobster raised their weapon at Protector, but did not fire at this time.

The falling weretiger was not initially stopped by Silmeria’s melody. It managed to get on top of her and raked her arm with its razor sharp claws, then again across her thigh, But at this point, the weretiger was weakening from the sudden inability to breathe. Silmeria was able to unload her weapon into its head at this point. She was reminded of how ineffective physical weapons were on monsters. After a number of shots, the weretiger stopped moving.

But there was no time to celebrate, as the tiger rider had arrived with the other, somewhat more bruised weretiger behind him. His majestic steed leaped forth, and he still refused to release the crate filled with hostages.

And over by the warehouse, a wounded tiger dragged itself inside. It did not have the strength to keep up with Protector, given it was hit by an arcane rail shot just seconds ago.

”Nnnnrgh!! The brunette gritted her teeth as sharp pains jolted up her spine, courtesy of the furry bastard’s claws raking her arm and thigh, wounding the esper as fresh blood dripped. Adrenaline kept her going as she rewarded the weretiger’s bravado with a few sabots right into its dome. May he continued scratching in hell!

”Haah…” Silmeria sighed harshly, her right eye twitched as she observed their current situation. This wasn’t ideal, they were severely outnumbered in what she thought would be a trivial engagement against a bunch of gangsters. Who knew that this was a goddamned furry convention?! She should have realized that the rewards are too good to be true.

Well, the patron better be goddamned sure that those rewards would be worth it or she’d put a bullet into his brain herself! Sorry, girl, but it looked like you’re going to be an orphan.

However, before she could plan her little premeditated murder, she had a - literally - bigger thing to worry about as one of those giant cats arrived at her location, not to mention its little furry friend tagging along. ”Fucking pussycat…” Merry cursed under her breath, wincing from her bleeding wounds.

She took a deep breath as she charged her Instrument…

Valkyrie: [Bronze Beam] [Damage X] = -72 Mana

Then aimed and fired the orange lightning at the tiger’s forehead, making really sure to nab it in one sure shot this time. Being pounced on by something that bulky wouldn’t be fun.

Meanwhile, the Protector reeled from the sudden shot to its back. It acted as a wakeup call, as its helmeted eyes made contact with the back of the beast rider heading towards its ally. With the shooter too difficult to locate, and the firing line being less of a priority at the moment, it scanned for the nearest structure and uttered a single line of prayer.

With its priorities refocused, a blue light trajectory followed after the suit of armor as it began to float, using the wall behind it as leverage to push itself off and into the air over the firing line of men and beast. As soon as it reaches over Silmeria and the beast rider, it will attempt to descend– possibly right atop the bruised weretiger.

Protector:[Bronze Self][Weightless] = -16

Silmeria’s melody pushed the tiger’s head into its stomach, which stopped it in its place. The only problem was that the rider and their cargo did not. Bengal tigers could sprint at about forty-miles per hour, and the weretiger’s momentum didn’t just stop because his ride did. Though Protector falling from the heavens did. They were able to spear the creature’s heart through their collar bone.

This left the crate of damsels to the mercy of gravity and velocity. The crate was just strong enough to contain the damsels and wasn’t designed to hold together in the event of a car crash. The crate soared over Silmeria’s head and slammed into the ground. It broke apart as the damsels were scattered from their wooden holding cell. The concrete road was not a forgiving surface to land on, as evident by how many of the damsels were bleeding. Those that were still conscious gasped for air as they clutched their sore and broken limbs.

Protector would have little time to react, as a second round tore through her shoulder. So long as she stood out in the open, the sniper would have little difficulty picking her off. He was also getting closer to their head with every shot.

”Shit! They’re damaging the merchandise!” One of the weretigers looked at the only remaining mobster. ”Let’s send them off already!”

The remaining three weretigers drew their weapons and fired on the espers. The remaining mobster drew a tome and traced runes in the air. The magic circle around the rest of the “cargo” started to glow, indicating that a teleportation spell would activate momentarily.

The Power of Thor had always been a reliable boon to Valkyrie as it smote her enemies with extreme prejudice, its latest victim being a giant tiger, his head struck with such thunderous fury that his skull caved all the way into its belly, destroying any organs that might be in the way, the monster wouldn't be moving again anytime soon. However, he wasn't the last of Silmeria's worries as the dead tiger had a rider upon his back, one that was somehow carrying a hostage crate for some reason. "Tch...!" As it stood, she wouldn't have enough time to fire again or dodge, so the brunette did the only thing she could, brace for impact and hope for the best.

...or at least that was the plan as Protector descended from the sky, like the Lance of Longinus thrown down from above as the eight-foot mech skewered the weretiger with impunity, its huge weapon impaling the creature's torso and heart, killing it instantly. Well, two problems down, one to go. And the last one was...

"FAEN!"

The crate - inadvertently thrown due to its carrier being dead - flew through the air and crash-landed against concrete, its shoddy construction succumbing to the force as it broke into splinters. It did little in protecting its occupants as the women were scattered about, all of them sporting some kind of wound or another.

"..." The very sight of innocents being hurt and the mobsters' audacity to blame the heroes for their cruelty seemed to snap something in the sniper esper. Her face relaxed into... nothing, a neutral expressionless gaze one would use for a passport photo, but just like those photos, her eyes remained staring, unblinking and cold.
Monsters... and everyone who acted like them deserve no less than death, a blight upon the world that must be cleansed. As these monsters defiled our homes, we clutched tightly hallowed tomes and swear our oaths we'd cull their herds.

"Let's hunt them all." Valkyrie declared to her gigantic comrade with a tone so casual, she might as well be inviting Aria to hang out if not for her choice of words.

As the trio of weretigers drew their weapons, Silmeria returned to a more proper cover position, her marksman eyes quickly scanning the battlefield. "..." Silently, she picked a target, charged Teslic Gauss, and aimed at the casting mobster. A split-second later, Thor struck his hammer down once more as thunder raged in the complex, but before the sound even finished traveling, the lightning would've reached its intended target.

Valkyrie: [Bronze Beam] [Damage X] = -72 Mana

“Chikushō!” The Protector rarely ever cursed, if at all. However, upon seeing the women land as roughly as they did, it couldn’t help but grit its teeth at its own misplanning. Wounded victims were definitely not part of the plan, but the armored nursery teacher made sure to promptly note down their hospital bills and the need for written apology letters after the mission, perhaps even fruit baskets and vitamin capsules because everyone knew that money didn’t heal broken bones, only prayers and good nutrition did– unfortunately, this long train of apologetic thought halted immediately following the titan’s bullet to the shoulder. Immediately it turned around in an attempt to follow the shot’s origin, before feeling its shield arm limping slightly in its posture. The titan clutched at its wound and grumbled, seeming to be familiar with the pain yet still so very new to it.

Upon Valkyrie’s call to action, the suit of armor issued a hard, motivated nod in response. Once the gunner took cover, the Protector followed, but not before looking back at the injured women in guilt and bowing its head, inwardly promising to return them all at the end of the day. After reaching relative safety, it raised its gauntleted palm in between itself and Valkyrie and uttered a prayer, this time causing a blue cast of light to envelope the pair of espers’ bodies– a melody to grant protection for both itself and its ally amidst the weretigers’ stream of bullets that threatened to erode the safety of their cover.

Protector: [Bronze Projectile][Shield][Aoe]= -72

The spray of bullets were mostly absorbed by Protector’s shield, which beat like a drum as a hail of bullets bounced off of its polished surface. Meanwhile, the hammer of the gods crushed the mobster’s head before he could finish his cantation. The remaining weretigers only roared at the realization that their shipment wasn’t going to make it today. One of them threw down their gun, picked up a crate filled with damsels, and hurled it through the air. The woman inside screamed as the box was on a crash course directly with the espers. It transformed into a tiger and ran into the warehouse.

The two remaining weretigers continued to back up while firing. Once their magazines ran dry, they also turned into tigers and ran for the warehouse.

The tigers may have been fleeing, but the espers knew at least one foe still had their crosshairs on them. And they announced as such with the tiger’s retreat.

”I’ve got you in my sights!”

With the crate of damsels still flying through the air, the enemy sniper fired three shots in quick succession. Due to his higher, unknown vantage point, he was able to fire directly over Protector’s shield. The first shot hit Silmeria in the shoulder, then again in the cheek. Both of these attacks were absorbed by the protective melody But not the third shot, which sunk into her collar bone. There was a brief reprieve from the firing, but he would fire again once he changed positions. They were sure of it.

Fully giving her implicit trust in the Protector's namesake role, Valkyrie focused on her aim even as bullets bounced futilely off the mech's greatshield. The lightning struck true as it utterly pulverized the casting mobster's head, disrupting the teleportation spell while also sending another scum to hell. Furthermore, this last casualty in their ranks seemed to be the last straw that broke the tiger's back as the remaining monsters decided to turn tail and run. However, one of them was petty enough to make sure that if they couldn't get the hostages, then neither should anyone as he threw an intact crate toward the agent and freelancer esper duo.

Fortunately, Silmeria was ready this time as she took notice of the soaring box. Unfortunately, her esper form wasn't built to safely catch such a fragile package, but there was someone here who could. "Protector, catch it." The sniper spoke calmly, still in her 'monster hunter' mode. On the battlefield, hesitation meant defeat after all. After trusting Protector to handle the damsels, she turned her attention to the retreating tiger-mobsters.

Adrenaline still running high, she took aim and fired potshots at the fleeing tigers, even if she couldn't kill them right now, she'd at the very least make her statement, come to our world and you'd get hurt. Whatever the results, Silmeria heard and felt a sniper bullet whizzing past her ear and striking her shielded shoulder. "...?!" By the time she widened her eyes, another struck her cheek, Protector's shield still neutralizing the impact, but the third one was the charm as it scored a direct hit against her collarbone, drawing blood and puncturing flesh.

"Nnngh... tch..." Valkyrie winced her unblinking right eye as her wounds were getting to her, but calm... stay calm, you are an instrument of the Aesir, you are the divine judge to give evil their verdict, death.

Powering through her wounds via unbridled thirst for vengeance and sheer fucking will, she spoke to Protector, "The enemy is somewhere above us. Shield me, turn me weightless, and then throw me up in that specific order, I'll give that subhuman scum a taste of his own medicine."

The titan responded with a nod, its arms spread wide open as it welcomed the falling crate of women into a briefly cold and metallic, yet safe hug before setting it down behind cover as gently as it could manage. Which would be a bit rougher than Protector initially anticipated. A crate filled with several adult women was not light, contrary to what the woman inside would like you to believe. After catching it, Protector stumbled backwards and fell onto their back. The woman inside rocked around, some groaned in pain, but they fared far better than the last crate. But the Protector didn’t stop moving. Like a well-oiled machine, it moved in accordance with the marksman’s orders, its confidence fueled highly by its own similar thirst for justice.

In one swift motion, it then picked up its ally with little effort and cradled her for a moment in a princess carry. “Fly high, Valkyrie.” The Protector gave a prayer, efficiently imbuing the GEMINI agent with a radiant blue protective aura that also made it seem as though she weighed nothing. With one full spin-around, the armored suit expended its energy to allow its ally to soar through the sky, its blue trail of light resembling a graceful, justice-bringing comet aiming straight for the head of this gods-awful operation.

Protector:[Bronze Touch][Shield][Weightless] = -80

“May your bullet find its mark.” A low, gentle voice of tin speaks to itself from within the armor, before rushing off to find the injured women and ensure that they’re all safe. In any case, it would be ready to offer support from the ground where possible.

Valkyrie kept her scope concentrated in the dark warehouse, but the enemy sniper did not reveal himself. Silmeria could make out the silhouette of some shipping containers inside the warehouse, but nothing that looked like an enemy. Even after Protector’s melody wore off, there was no attempt from the enemy to return fire.

If the two were in any other situation, the sight of a giant mech cradling a brunette damsel in a princess carry would be quite adorable, perhaps romantic even, but they weren't here to enact a scene from Beauty & The Beast Machine, for they were the hands of justice delivering retribution for those who couldn't do it themselves.

Valkyrie didn't verbally reply to Protector, but her silent crisp nod was all the answer she needed. Her body was enveloped in an azure protective aura as she was then tossed to the sky, Protector's melody giving her 'wings' in lieu of her lack of one. Well, it was more like an elegant glide as the Valkyrie's weightless form arced through the air, her lightning-spewing lance at the ready, aimed and one trigger away from sending that smug blonde bastard to Hel's embrace.

"..." However, it never came to be as their enemy was either too cowardly or smart enough to not risk firing back while Valkyrie was in the air, which was precisely what she wanted so he would reveal his position, enabling her to pinpoint where she should fire her bolt. Without the return fire, the brunette esper floated back down onto the ground as Protector's melody expired, "Nothing..." She made a little frustrated shrug at her tall comrade before sighing, then decided what she'd do next after a cursory glance at the groaning and screaming wounded women.

“No worries. That was quite fun.” The Protector looked up at its ally and waved off the little obstacle.

"I'm going to call medics for the hostages real quick, also backup." She fished out her phone again, still transmitting that GEMINI-specific SOS Beacon signal from when she activated it at the beginning of the altercation. Now, she made an actual call to the organization’s local HQ.

The titanic suit of armor gave the gunner a thumbs-up before turning back to the hostage women, being careful while tying their clothes around areas that bled the most heavily. ”Gomen– Ah, sorry. I’m very sorry, miss.” The sentinel would apologize to each of them, bowing its head repeatedly as the sincerity in its voice echoed together with the tinniness of its sizable helmet. A deep sigh came from it as it did so, both in frustration at how it could’ve come to this but also half in gratitude that they managed to see all these women live another day. Even for now, at the very least– that was what mattered to the Protector.

”Hello, Valkyrie here.” Oh neat, the person answering on the other end was none other than Binky, Dr. Fritz’s favorite punching bag, ”Yeah, so, we got a situation over here with the weretiger gang, their ringleader, and... lots of civilian hostages, a few of them wounded with various degrees of blunt force trauma. Do you think you can send medics over to take care of them? Oh, it’d be great if you’ll come too. We culled more than half of the gang, but around five still remained, including the ringleader.”

”Do you have any idea how much shit you’re in?!.” Binky sounded panicked. This was probably the first time Silmeria had heard her cuss. ”Breacher has already been dispatched. And-” There was some yelling on the other end. It was hard to tell who it was, but there were a lot of different voices. ”We’ll be there.” The line went dead as soon as Binky finished speaking.

"Yes, that's why I called for backup." Valkyrie answered the cabbage-haired esper matter-of-factly, still in her unnervingly tranquil tone with the calmness of a meditating monk and a serial killer combined. Silmeria right now would listen to a cornered criminal begging for his life... then still shoot him in the head, the only reason she'd hear them out first was just in case they had any useful information, such as their cohorts' whereabouts for example. Good doesn't always mean 'Nice' after all. "Affirmative. Valkyrie, out." She ended the call after Binky's confirmation that backup and medics would be arriving soon. For the moment, she watched over the warehouse; sights trained on the vicinity, eyes unblinking, and trigger finger at the ready.

In the background, after performing the most basic first aid it could manage with its metally gauntlets and lack of medkits, the Protector simply made sure to place crates before the women to keep them safe behind cover along with the busy Valkyrie. During this time of short respite, it’d be no good if the sniper and the beasts regained their confidence and decided to rejoin the fray. For now, it would simply do what it needed to while the GEMINI agent attempted to salvage the most out of the situation.

---

The two espers would have to wait a bit for their requested backup. Silmeria knew that Breaker lived in the suburbs and it would probably be a ten to fifteen minute wait before she arrived. At this hour, it wasn’t hard to picture her playing a board game with her kid. The medics were closer, but they needed to be assembled so that they could roll out with all the necessary equipment. It was hard to tell who was going to arrive first. As short as the wait was, it felt like hours.

Though it did seem that Breacher was here first. Given her timely arrival of six minutes, she was either already driving somewhere or had broken various traffic laws to get here in time. She certainly wasn’t in a company vehicle, as the old minivan was anything but a government issue vehicle. Her teenage daughter peaked out of the passenger side window before Breacher threw the vehicle into park and leaped out of the vehicle. She had been steering with one hand so that she could arrive at the scene in the esper state. She reached across her seat and picked up her gun.

”Hide now.” She instructed her daughter. Once her daughter climbed into the back seat, Su reached for her gun in the door of the van and blazed a trail straight for the warehouse. ”I briefed,” She called out to Silmeria as she ran past her. ”Secure area!” Her shield was held up in front of herself as she plunged into the depths of the warehouse.

But that was when Su slowed her charge and became more cautious. She looked around for anything that might serve to light the place up, but was unable to find anything obvious. She continued to creep around the warehouse with caution, making little sound and keeping her body behind her protective shield.

The brunette heard the engines of an old car arriving at the location, but she didn't pause her aim to look away because she's confident that if it was trouble, Protector would've warned her. Fortunately, it was Breacher as evident by her voice. "Copy that." In favor of keeping up her overwatch, she kept her response terse as she switched protocol to provide Breacher with covering fire now instead of actively searching for targets. Valkyrie would relocate as necessary to always maintain visual contact with the shield-wielding Gemini esper as she went into the warehouse to turn on the lights.

After a gradual trek to the back of the warehouse, Su saw an open breaker box. Several breakers had been switched to the “open” position, which was keeping the lights off. She kept her guard up, suspecting that this might be a trap. But she was able to get to the box without incident, and used the barrel of her pistol to flip the breakers back on.

One by one, rows and rows of lights turned on. Su and Silmeria waited for the remaining weretigers to spring from cover, but they never did. It wasn’t until the last of the lights were turned on that they understood why.

There at the back of the warehouse was a second magic circle, traced in the blood of a tiger. It wasn’t as big as the one outside, but it had all of the same markings. If one of them knew how to cast the teleportation ritual like they tried to do outside, then it was possible all five of the remaining weretigers had escaped. With their cargo damaged or compromised, there was no reason for them to stick around.

Along the way, there were no signs of the tiger scum, and the answer became apparent once the lights were on. There was a magic circle there, similar to the one outside, albeit smaller and drawn with blood instead, this was obviously done in an emergency. Heh, bunch of cowards, where was their bravado from before? Sigh, Valkyrie could only wish that the gang had more bravado than brain, now she'd have to play whack-a-mole with the stragglers. Oh yes, did you think that she's letting them go just like that? How cute. No, Tony the Tiger and his subhuman ilk would never sleep soundly ever again. With or without rewards, she'd put a bolt through his head and nothing short of death would stop her.

Once the Gemini agents stepped outside, they could see that the medic unit had arrived. Government medical personnel were quick to spring into action, pulling out stretchers for the wounded and inspecting the ones with smaller injuries. Protector had been moved aside as the trained medics did their work.

There by a single black government van was Binky. She stood by the vehicle with her arms crossed, shaking her head as she watched Breacher and Valkyrie leave the warehouse. ”What a mess.” She groaned under her breath.

Valkyrie returned outside, following after Breacher to see professional EMTs hard at work, tending and escorting the hostages while Protector watched nearby. Well, it looked like the operation went well, not perfect, but acceptable, especially considering how she and Protector grossly underestimated their targets.

"Sigh..." With the civilians safe and no more hostiles in the area, Valkyrie finally relaxed as her railgun and jacket vanished into orange sparks, there was no further need to maintain esper form and the wounds she sustained in said form were getting annoyingly painful too. Now human again, Merry figuratively dropped her 'coldblooded marksman' persona, allowing herself to be more expressive and 'vulnerable'. She took a few slow breaths to calm herself as her adrenaline winded down, gradually dissipating all the emotions she had been suppressing. The brunette shivered for a moment as she rendezvoused with her fellow espers.

"Great work, Protector. I'd have already been in Sovngarde without you." Merry curled a genuinely proud smile at the tallest esper around, giving her a little friendly soft jab at its armor plate, then turned at Breacher and Binky,

”Don’t mention it, Valkyrie. I fear I might have caused more trouble than I intended, but I’m happy we took this on together.” The Protector’s sheepish smile went unnoticed under its helmet, but its gratitude was clear in its tincan voice.

"Thanks for the quick response, girls. In hindsight, we should've brought more manpower, but I didn't know Tony had a whole weretiger pack as his cronies, that's on me."

”I will also take responsibility. I am sorry– it was not in my place to hastily take them on.” The Protector took its spot next to Valkyrie and executed a natural 90° bow towards agents Binky and Su. It remained in that position for a long moment before rising to look at the EMTs tending to the hostages. ”Many of them were injured due to my carelessness. I will do my best to make amends.”

Su waved her hands at Protector. ”No, no, that not good!” She smiled at the esper like a mother might at their child. ”You do nothing, they all get eat by a monster. Broken bone heal, not if dead though.” She folded her arms. ”You left before I get picture! I get camera now!” Su turned around and ran for her car.

If one were to listen very carefully, they would have been able to hear a little sniffle from the armored titan after Su’s words of comfort. The Protector habitually rubbed at its eyes before looking confused— seemingly realizing it was still in its esper form.

Binky looked between Protector and Silmeria, but her eyes eventually fell on the G.E.M.I.N.I. agent. ”When you’re done here, Valkyrie, Fritzi is waiting for you in the van. She wants to see you before you leave.” The green haired operative walked around the van and hopped in the driver’s seat without saying another word.

Su waved her Camera in the air before handing it to Silmeria. ”Take picture of us!” She holstered her pistol and wrapped an arm around the giant suit of armor. She then forced the biggest, cheesiest smile she could muster for the photo op. In turn, the Protector raised its heavy gauntlet behind the GEMINI agent’s head to form with its two fingers what looked to be a pair of bunny ears, and with its other hand, it waved excitedly at the camera.

"Ahaha, you and me both then." She giggled sheepishly at Protector's reply and its apology to the two recently-arrived agents. She almost forgot that the human behind this gigantic esper was a dainty Japanese lady, well to be fair, an eight-foot tall mechanical Japanese person was a rarity. It seemed the stereotype of Nipponese being overly-apologetic was true or at least true in the case of Aria. Well, at least Su provided a more realistic view on the matter. Indeed, had Valkyrie and Protector delayed, all of these women would become monster food, broken bones and bruises were worth it if the alternative was literally dying painfully.

"Hmm...?" Merry turned her head at Binky while Su fished out her camera, blinking a couple times as she took in the green-haired esper's words.

"Sure." Maybe the good doctor wanted to experiment on her, who knows, but for the moment, "Sure thing." She took Su's camera, walked back a few steps to get Protector’s towering bulk in full frame, then took a couple pictures. "There we go. See you around, folks." She returned the camera then made her way to the van, entering through the back, expecting to see the violet-haired mad scientist."You called, Ma'am?"

The Protector joined its hands together, half pleased and half shy, after its photo with the Breacher. ”Thank you for taking a picture with me!” It gave the agent a bow, despite being the one asked to take the photo in the first place. Evidently, the esper was not used to the attention, but was grateful all the same.

As it saw Valkyrie leave, it gave Agent Su a second bow of farewell before deciding to transform behind the nearest cover. Waves of blue light pulsed in intervals, stripping away the components of armor one by one, and leaving behind a smaller, more dainty figure in its place. The woman peeked out from behind the crate before making her way to Silmeria to say a few last words.

”Silmeria, before you leave… thank you, once again.” Aria stood before her mission partner with a grateful smile. ”I hope that we’ll meet again– and next time, let’s get rid of those beasts once and for all.”

Su nodded towards all the other involved parties. Though as they all split up, her cheery exterior faded. ”Maybe something else play?” Su pondered on her way to her van.

When Silmeria entered the van, Fritzi was sitting in an office chair. Well, at least it was very similar to an office chair. There was the addition of it being bolted to the floor, having a locking mechanism to prevent spinning, and a safety harness. She was surrounded by readouts and digital maps, likely tools that she made better use of during an operation. She had a soda can in one hand, which had to be empty based on how she was slowly turning it over in her hand.

”I’m going to assume you have no life threatening injuries.” Fritzi’s jovial tone that she used during the last operation was not present here. ”I don’t really care that you sent out an SoS signal, I don’t care that you requested medics, I don’t even care that you managed to let some of the weretigers escape.” She stopped spinning the can. ”What I care about is that you used government resources on an operation G.E.M.I.N.I. has nothing to do with. What were you thinking? Do you really think it’s okay to risk Breacher or any other operative’s life for more money?”

Well, it looked like the purple doctor didn’t look too pleased. Silmeria might not be a genius or particularly smart, but considering the situation, even an average jane like her could get an inkling what this was about. Even if she didn’t, Fritz wasted no time in explaining anyway. Oh good, the mad scientist wasn’t concerned about “wasting resources” to save civilian lives, that was definitely a plus in Merry’s book. Honestly, after Fritz made her stance clear, the brunette’s disposition relaxed.

”No, just some in my esper form, but that doesn’t matter right now.” She made a little shrug, then answered the million dollar question, with a million dollar answer of her own, ”No. The only reason I did was to save Protector’s life after my first shot revealed that those mobsters were monsters, not human. I don’t mind if you don’t believe me, but I tried to offer myself to them in exchange for Protector’s release, they accepted the deal,” She paused for a moment, letting her words sink in, ”But as you may deduce, Protector didn’t want anything to do with that plan and reengaged hostilities. Then it was either us or them.”

She exhaled once as her pupils dilated, eyes focusing on nothing in particular, starting into the figurative distance, ”If she had accepted the deal, you wouldn’t have heard anything from me.” She debated on adding “ever again” to her statement, but decided against it, Fritz was a Ph.D for a reason after all.

”Then I’m glad at least one of you had their wits about them.” Fritzi groaned. ”Again, the problem really isn’t that you called for backup. I have a big operation coming up and I’d just as soon you not be food for whatever those weretigers were going to feed you to. You can say that you did it for Protector, or those girls, but you were really doing it for some extra cash. And that is why I’m giving you a lecture right now.” She waved her hand towards the mess outside. ”Just because we’re government funded doesn’t mean we can freely dispense reinforcements whenever we please. Our strength is very limited, and we need to retain it for the fights that matter. With cultist abductions, mafia activity, and.Justen Von Carnage creating vampire thralls left and right, it's hard for me to celebrate the deaths of a few weretigers. These girls may be safe, but what about the countless others that are getting turned into thralls or worse? Not that it matters, but did you even get their leader?” She crushed the can flat under her palm before folding her hands under her chin. ”What you do on your own time is your business, but you understand why G.E.M.I.N.I. doesn’t approve of what you did?”

Well, if both of them panicked, then they wouldn't be here right now, although the truth wasn't clear, Merry firmly believed that Fritz was referring to her as the one who still had her wits about her, not once did she lose her composure after all. "...?" Now that was odd, didn't Fritz specifically mention that what she had a problem with was her calling for backup and thus causing Gemini to waste resources on an otherwise unnecessary issue? She even mentioned Breacher and the other, not Valkyrie, now the doctor cared about her specifically? That's kind of flattering.

"Thanks," Show of gratitude first because she meant that, and now for clarification, "Well... yeah, if you really dig into it, I'm doing this for money... just as why I accepted Gemini employment in the first place, money, steady money to be specific in the form of salary. Dad's medications aren't cheap and mom's busy taking care of him." It wasn't to garner Fritz's sympathy over some random family members of an employee, the doctor had bigger things to worry about, twas’ simply to explain specifically why she's so greedy about getting those shekels.

"Yeah, you're right. It was an emotional decision made in the heat of the moment." She paused, eyes half-closed, "I could've immediately abandoned ship after my first shot by using Protector as bait. It's just one Freelancer, right? No big deal, better for us in the long run in fact, one less wildcard to deal with in this blood-soaked city. I'll do that next time, no more wasted resources, win-win." Well, except for the sacrificed freelancer, but who cares about them, right?

"Nope, dude was a sniper like me and he abandoned ship with the remaining half-dead weretigers when we culled most of their ranks, can't say I blame him, I'd do the same if I was him." Then the brunette then nodded once, "Yep, I understand."

”It really doesn’t sound like you do.” Fritzi sighed before tossing the flattened can into a nearby waste bin. This was not bolted to the floor, but it was wedged tightly between some of the desks. ”When you’re doing freelance work, you can’t call on G.E.M.I.N.I. for help. There’s no reason to complicate it further.” She rubbed her forehead. ”I’m going to assume this was all a misunderstanding and let you off with a warning. You’re dismissed.”

”Well, not the first time that I failed in explaining myself.” She expected this outcome, there might be a possibility that Fritz would say “It really doesn’t sound like you do” no matter what she said anyway, it kinda felt like being scolded by a convenient store manager, they’d be hearing but not listening to you out of standard procedure since accusing employees without letting them defend themself is constituted as abuse. Eh, whatever, it’s nothing new, Seven-Eleven, G.E.M.I.N.I., what’s the difference? Oh right, one paid a lot more than the other.

”Affirmative, Doctor.” With that, Merry left the van without another word. Hmmm... she should send her share of the rewards to her parents, and either convince Aria to sell that BMW or just give it to her if she wanted it. All in all, mission completed.

Once Silmeria had left, Binky leaned in from the driver’s seat. ”Everything good, doctor?”

”Do you ever feel like they lowered the required IQ score in order to enter G.E.M.I.N.I?”

”All the time.” Binky looked at the floor. ”Though I’m pretty sure you said that about me back in the day..”

”Perhaps.” She grabbed her seat belt and pulled it across her chest. ”I don’t care who it is, Binky. Next time, you are not to send out reinforcements to agents who aren’t working G.E.M.I.N.I. operations. I’m not going to let anyone endanger our future operations.”

”Affirmative.”

---

Meanwhile, four weretigers; one with a sizable wound in his ass, and a blonde mobster appeared in a clearing. All in all, it was a regular night.

Except they had no shipment.

The blonde man lit a match on the end of a weretiger’s nose and held it up to a cigarette. ”Sorry lot of fucks aren’t you?” He placed the cigarette between his lips as his men groaned and tended to their wounds.

So a G.E.M.I.N.I. sniper and a metal man had come to crash their party? It wouldn’t be too hard to figure out who they were. He already knew about the request for their elimination, and there were only so many espers with that description in Pax Septimus right now. They’d have their revenge in time.

The blonde blasted smoke out of his nostrils before crushing out his cigarette under his boot. They walked into the shadows of the night with only the burning embers of a cigarette to indicate they were ever there.

The life of a depraved esper was not a stationary one. It didn’t matter how powerful you were, enough espers could take down anyone. Both Shimr and G.E.M.I.N.I. had large stores of information on the strongest espers, and they were swift with their updates. Everything from their last known location to their abilities were closely documented. Just as Oros was able to exploit Penny’s vulnerabilities through preparation, someone else could do the same to her. For that reason she had decided to lay low after removing Penny from power, and you couldn’t get much lower than the labyrinth-like catacombs under Pax Septimus.

Oros sat on a stone, observing Sharr as she paced back and forth in front of her. They had been searching for a good place to set up a campsite. It had to be hard for both espers and monsters to find. They were inspecting a dead end tunnel that Oros had blocked off with a massive stone. The only light source was a storm lantern Sharr picked up at a hardware store.

”It’s a little warm for my liking, but it's safe. That boulder is too large for most espers to move, and the tunnel is too small for ‘Highway to Hell’ to enter. ”

”A small tunnel. Am I right, ladies? ” Oros chuckled.

”Suppose we can’t do much until things get a bit more chaotic, hmmm?” Sharr sat on top of her sleeping bag. ”Why don’t you tell me a bit about The Elemental Chaos?”

Sharr Webber was formerly a G.E.M.I.N.I. researcher. One night, Oros stormed into her room and said she needed Sharr’s help to save the world. Needless to say, Sharr was caught off guard by a dangerous and depraved esper breaking into her lab. But if Oros had any intention of killing her, she’d have done it already. She agreed to come along not because she felt Oros would save the world, but rather for the opportunity to talk to someone who entered the Elemental Chaos and lived. Beyond peering through portals at it, little was known about the eldritch world. No self respecting scientist would pass up the chance to hear about it from someone who had been there. Even if they were a little mad.

”So when a patron- ”

”Preferably in a way I can understand it.” Sharr smiled at the mad esper.

Oros inhaled deeply. ”What is your current theory on The Elemental Chaos?”

”Before you kidnapped me, the running theory was that it was a gate into a non-parallel world. One where monsters ran rampant. Based on what we’ve learned, we have an idea that it is actually a ‘hub’ of sorts that can be used to get into other worlds.“

”Well, that’s pretty much the dumbed down version of it.”

”Oh come on!“

”It’s true!” Oros shrugged her shoulders. ”I guess I could expand on that a bit though. I mean, The Elemental Chaos is really just our world’s backyard. You know those ‘horror’ things you guys are so scared of? They reside right outside The Elemental Chaos.” She pointed into the darkness. ”Even I haven’t seen everything.”

Sharr raised an eyebrow. ”You claim to serve a horror, don’t you? Isn’t that how you came to our world in the first place?“

Oros rubbed her chin ”...Oh yeaaaaaaaa!” She stood up. ”Well, guess if you’re that curious, I could take you to another world for a bit.”

”Now?“

”Well not now, no. But tomorrow I’ll perform the required rituals and get us into The Elemental Chaos. From there my patron can guide us across the barrier out of the Realm for Patrons and- ”

”You’re losing me.“

”Why do I have to dumb down stuff so much for a so called scientific mind?!” Oros growled. ”Let’s just focus on the task at hand, then.” She raised her katana, which had a computer chip resting on the tip of it. ”I know someone outside The Elemental Chaos. They don’t like me too much, but they are going to be very interested in seeing this. If we play our cards right, we can speed up the rate in which your memories come back.”

Sharr had been having strange visions for a while. They felt eerily familiar, even though Sharr couldn’t place where she had picked them up from. Oros told her that they were her memories from another world, as she too used to have such visions. Sharr was a bit skeptical taking anything “Oros the Mad” said at face value. But now that she defeated the Iron Queen and demonstrated a logical mind, she became more curious and less apprehensive about her claims.

”Sounds good. What’s the plan?“

---

@Ponn@Crusader Lord@FamishedPants@Izurich@SilverPaw

Su had enjoyed her time between the last big operation and this one. She got a new house set up, Mika seemed happy, and she found a nice nanny to look after her while she was at work. Not that Mika really needed a nanny, but she doubled as a tutor, which ensured that she’d have all of her homework done by the time she got home. Not that it would be a problem this time. The operation was happening at ten O’clock, which left Su with enough time to pick her up after school.

She had enjoyed showing Jacqueline her home. While she was a gracious guest, Su couldn’t help but feel that it might be best to give her some space from Mika should they decide to do something again. Su also wondered if Mika would react as strongly if she brought someone else to the house next time. Maybe if Su brought someone new to the house every time, Mika would realize there was nothing romantic about it? Maybe Silmeria would come over? She seemed like she might be good with kids.

A sudden bump in the road jerked Su out of her thoughts. She was riding in the back of a van with her fellow agents. They were all transformed, save Binky, who sat at the front of the van.

”Quick briefing.” Binky eyed everyone in attendance. ”We’re attacking Justin’s mansion. There are only two ways in: One is by using the Bastion, which is crawling with Maverick espers, and the other is by using the front door. The front door isn’t favorable, but we recently apprehended a bloodmage who’s going to throw a barrier over the entrance. From there, you’re going to storm into the building. We don’t really know what to expect inside, as the mansion is one of the newer buildings in Pax Septimus. Though you can expect vampire thralls, black-market espers, and some of Justin’s own monster henchmen. We’d normally have more intel, but we know Maverick’s going to be there with Billy, and we’d just as soon get out of there before they arrive.” With a sigh, Binky continued. ”Your mission is to carve a path to Justin, at which point I’ll be able to finish him off. I will not be able to participate in the fighting before he reveals himself. Any questions?”

---

While it was genuinely discouraged, it was possible for an esper to change clothes and wear accessories. It just wasn’t ideal as espers typically fight monsters or foes with arcane powers, and changing your esper’s arcane outfit for a mundane one did not help to that end. It did make one look more stylish on dates, but Trixy was not going on a date today. Instead, she was heading into battle. She had removed most of her accessories and donned a gothic dress with white sleeves. The corners of her lips twitched as she stared off into space. But Trixy’s staring would be interrupted by Luna’s voice.

”Soooooo, how did the date go?”

Trixy spun around to look at her ally. ”Oh uh, I think it went well!”

”Nice!” Luna was already transformed. They were expecting a mission pretty soon. ”Does the mission have you on edge?”

”Nothing like that uh, I just, um.” Trixy sighed. ”I mean they don’t know that much about me yet. And I kind of invited them to come onto this mission.”

”Ey! Guess you’re going on a second date if you like it or not!” Luna punched Trixy’s shoulder.

”Heh!” Trixy rubbed the back of her head. ”I dunno. I was kind of vague with the details. She might not like me if she knows I’m Maverick.”

Luna laughed. ”Trixy, you really gotta lighten up. That’s no mindset to go into a fight with. You outrank me, you should be giving me the pep talk right now.”

”She killed our waitress.”

”Wah!?!?”

”I-I mean, she turned out to be a monster!” She looked at the floor. ”I guess the waitress mind blasted her. She was kind of hazy on the details, something about how the waitress was either enslaving my previous dates or feeding them to vampire thralls.”

”Oh, I get it now.” Luna placed a hand on her hip. ”So you’re worried she might not get along with the Mavericks if she’s too gung-ho on monster killing huh?” Trixy nodded. ”Well, without hearing exactly what the waitress’s deal was, we can’t say if what your date did was right or wrong. But if she’s willing to work alongside Billy, I’d say she can’t hate monsters that much, right?”

”That makes sense.” Though Trixy still looked a little apprehensive.

”I’d better get going. You sure you don’t wanna come along?”

”Billy really wants the freelancers to be in phase one. I’ll be there in phase two.”

”Sounds good. See you later!”

---

@OwO@mantou@ERode@Majoras End

Billy had pulled his Cadillac up to a barrier that had been hastily constructed by Justin’s goons. In the days since the concrete barrier had been erected, it already had been covered in graffiti. Soon it would be covered in light as all manner of vehicles drove up and shined their headlights on the concrete wall that ‘protected’ their target.

”I-say I-say, it is a fiiiiiine mornin’ for bringin’ down walls.” Billy scanned. ”I ain’t gunna waste all y’all’s time. I’m gunna knock down this here wall, you rush in, and then I’ll go to town on Justin’s hide!” He rubbed the back of his head. ”Only uh, gotta keep low because Justin uses espers and magi. Those put a damper on me like a rainstorm durin’ a barbecue! So you gotta deal with that before I deal with Justin.” Billy pulled back his fist. ”I’m just gunna bring this down if y’all are ready.”

---

_{@The World}

While there were many freelancers that opposed the idea of Gemini trying to slay Justin themselves, they were just freelancers at the end of the day. They worked for a paycheck, and if they weren’t going to participate in the operation anyway, there was no reason to fuss. They’d be on call when they were needed.

Besides, there were other jobs that needed doing. Like the two mysterious requests involving something in the catacombs. One bounty requested the immediate destruction of a burning coin in the bowels of the city. The other one desired its retrieval. Both jobs paid about the same, and both were submitted from anonymous sources. Some would say this meant the outcome didn’t matter. But it did for at least two espers.

While Elroy was pretty well known, he shared his fame with Regina. The Bates Twins were among the strongest freelance espers in the world. The immortal volcano and the ruinous meteor. Both had a similar aesthetic, were considered to be very attractive, and often operated in the same area. Though for all of their similarities, they differed greatly both in the application of their powers and how they liked to handle situations. Elroy had a jovial personality and would hang out in places like The Great Escape.Regina preferred to mingle in seedier places. Though where they differed most was in how they decided to tackle problems.

Both brother and sister had their foreheads pressed together. The flames from Regina’s body could boil water in seconds, but Elroy’s defences made him more or less immune to the heat. The water in the sewers was bubbling, which made the air that much more foul. Despite this, the two were grinning at each other like two lunatics at an insane asylum.

”I’m breaking that coin between my fingers!” Regina balled her hands into fists. ”I don’t care what it is. If I gotta wade through someone’s bile and crap, I’m gunna make sure whatever I find I destroy!”

”Well, Regina!” Elroy growled his sister’s name. ”If I get my hands on that coin, I’m gunna keep it safe from you!”

”Then I’d better make sure I find it first!”

”Sounds good.”

And with that, they took off down the sewer way.

Within earshot of the spectacle was Pac-A-Fist and Marrie. The former of which blinked her eyes. ”I guess they’re taking the long way.” She looked towards the neon colored esper. ”I don’t think it matters if you destroy the coin or retrieve it, so long as you have proof that you did your job, you’ll get paid.” She walked over to a large hole in the wall. ”You might as well use this entrance. There’s only two types of monsters you need to watch out for. There are goblins, which, not too threatening. But then there’s, ah… ” Patricia looked at Marrie. ”It’s believed to be a behemoth. Due to it being a giant serpent that burrows under the earth, G.E.M.I.N.I. has given it the designation ‘Highway to Hell.’ Nobody really knows what it’s capable of, so um, avoid making too much noise and you should be fine. The Bates are likely going to draw it away if they keep competing like that” She smiled. ”Need something else before you depart?”

Another day, another operation in the ever-turning wheel of time. Silmeria - in her full Valkyrie getup - sat unassumingly amidst her fellow G.E.M.I.N.I. espers in the government-issued van, her trusty railgun rested vertically against her shoulder with its butt pointing at the ground. Her eyes were closed, but she wasn't sleeping, instead deep in her usual pre-mission meditation where she readied her mind and body for the noble act of culling those abominations from the face of the Earth, them and anyone who took their side. She'd be doing good today, her sister would definitely be smiling down at her from Sovngarde. That thought almost curled a smile at her face, but she kept her enthusiastic joy in her head.

The bump in the road and the resulting jerk of the operatives' vehicle prompted her to slowly open her eyes, ending her trance. She could see her usual comrades, but also a fresh new agent this time. The Steel Hammer Knight Leroux, the Monkey Queen of the East Wu Kong, the Riot Police Dragon Breacher, the Demonic Avenger Silhouette, Fritz's Punching Bag Binky, and last but not least, the Knight of Tomorrow Avenir, the only newbie involved in this operation. This would be the first time that Valkyrie and Ashley met face-to-face, but Merry had read her dossier beforehand, her unique power of emerald-hued lumimancy should prove invaluable in their fight against Justin von Carnage and his cronies. This time, Valkyrie was relieved that they didn't have to rely on any wildcard freelancers.

"..." The brunette turned her gaze at Binky when the cabbage-haired "30-seconds-but-not-actually" esper began the quick briefing. Well, it was basically a recap of their full briefing, but it couldn't hurt to clarify everything before shit hit the fan. Attack Justin's mansion via one of two ways, infiltrate through the Bastion or come knocking straight at the pale bastard's front door. The latter should be riskier but they had an ace up their sleeves, the blood mage that they captured alive from the Cobra Gang operation, then why not press that advantage and use her unholy magic for good, ja? Carve a path to Justin himself and let Binky engage her "30-seconds-but-actually-a-few-minutes" esper form to cream the asshole before he could thrallify another innocent maiden, sounded simple enough, but you know what they say, always expect the unexpected.

"My vote lies with using the blood mage to cover us while we storm front door." Silmeria relayed her opinion on the matter, but not hoping to get anything out of it. After all, her decision-making skills had come under fire after that weretiger bounty incident. Well, at least those women and Protector were safe, and the bounty poster honored his end of the deal even though he could technically shirk paying due to the fact that Tony's still alive.

---

There was a unique surreality to watching a devious entity nonchalantly flip through the pages of a book while the van carried them to their destination, but that is what Silhouette's fellow agents had to witness during their trip.

He had opted to remain silent as he took in the contents of his book which, if anyone bothered to look at the cover, was a cheap horror novel that he had been partway through reading before this drive. Periodically, he would set down the novel and jot some notes down in a notebook, then pick back up where he left off, almost like a student taking notes rather than a person reading for pleasure.

It was Binky's voice that finally prompted him to put the book away rather than the bump the van ran over. He glanced up and paid her his full attention, listening intently to the quick recap of their briefing and then to Valkyrie's opinion on their course of action. He presented his own after.

"While I wholeheartedly loathe the idea to trust my own wellbeing, as well as those of my fellow G.E.M.I.N.I agents, to a blood mage encountered during our last operation... I find that it is the more preferable alternative to engaging with Maverick espers when they are not even our target. Each breath, melody, and second spent on them is a precious waste of resources." Sil points out, his words spoken in a cool, neutral tone. "The prudent choice, in my opinion, is to take the bold, direct approach and carve that path as swiftly as we may. I agree with fellow agent Valkyrie. As for questions, I have but one clarification: Are we to attempt to assist with Justin, or would we just be potential burdens? You are typically a contingency rather than a dependency for missions you are involved with, so I would like to make absolutely certain how we should approach that part of the mission."

"Old Greg's gonna be haunting my nightmares for a week."
Current Location: Von Carnage Mansion, Concrete Barrier
|Objective: Clear a path to Justin Von Carnage!|

The day he had anticipated had finally arrived. While some may be hesitant in going against G.E.M.I.N.I.'s wishes, the Timekeeper already made his choice. Even if Billy hadn't approached him during the hit against the Bog-Man as he called whatever the heck Jan was, it wouldn't stop him from hijacking this op himself. So it was somewhat surprising to see the Maverick bounty well-received. Atleast they'd have a fair match against a whole squadron.

Then again, as the thought crossed his mind, he couldn't help but worry. Some; if not most of the freelancers, had taken GEMINI's mission(s?) before this, hadn't they? How would they react in seeing them on the opposing side? Indifference? Scorn? Were they even expecting them? For the boy, it would feel like an inconvenience to be branded as an enemy to the goddamn government of all things. He'd like to stay neutral with both parties as long as he can, if it meant getting closer with his own research.

...As much as he wouldn't admit it, it felt good earning his own pay. Sometimes. With how well off he and his family were, Fable mostly prefered someone else to have his half of the rewards reaped. At first, he didn't even know what to do with what he earned from defeating the Crab Rave. After some concideration, he decided to get something practical. Mainly a bike to get around places faster, seeing as he was a bit too young to get a driver's license at the moment.

Like the others, the mechanical mechanic rode up to the concrete wall that would soon mark the start of their race towards the target. Fable already knew Klava, atleast there was someone he recognized, but what about the other two? How would they feel about having to fight with a kid?

He mentally groaned. Way too many questions!

So he instead listened to Billy's plan. Once the wall was knocked down, the freelancers would clear a path for him to face Justin. While it didn't feel right to leave the vampire to someone else, the Timekeeper could always step in if their peculiar boss-at-the-moment needs help. Which leads to the elephant in the room. Fable tried to hide a grimace when Billy mentioned that they'll be dealing with other espers, and those magi he heard about. It's one thing to kill unreasonable monsters, but killing other humans?? He didn't even know if they were thralls or not.

...Was Jan unreasonable?

An involuntary shudder. Now's not the time, damnit. If he can't find a way to convince them to back down, so be it. He can deal with the aftermath afterwards.

"Let's get this over with." As Fable finally spoke up, he adjusted his goggles to where they were over his eyes. The sooner they get the head start, the better.

Marrie puked up from the smell and was glad that she hadn't eaten today. "When I heard 'catacombs,' I didn't think I'd have to go through the sewers..." she managed to mumble before blowing all the air out of her mouth and quickly closing it, hoping to get the fumes out of her. She glanced at Pac-A-Fist, considering whether to ask if they were coming with, but decided it wasn't worth opening her mouth for. She thanked the gods that the catacombs weren't synonymous with the sewers, shook her head 'no' at Pac-A-Fist's question, and went through the opening.

Sure, the Bates were likely to draw the snake's attention, but if they were headed the same way Marrie was, ultimately, then she'd probably end up fighting it. As soon as the smell went away she sighed at the thought, taking comfort in the thought that maybe it could talk and they could just work things out. But with the Bates being the way they seemed, especially the girl, that probably wasn't going to happen.

She touched the wall next to the entrance and placed a portal on it, just to be safe.

---

Jacqueline was once again being driven somewhere, mildly bored. Still, the anticipation of an oncoming battle was enough to prevent her from dozing off. Even though she’d prefer to occupy herself somehow, professionalism prevented it. Otherwise, she might have pulled out her phone to play Tetris, or something. As it was, she’d spent some time by inspecting the agents around her. She supposed, after their dinner, she knew Su the best. Valkyrie, Silhouette, and Wukong had been there on the previous mission, but she’d only briefly interacted with Valkyrie. Orion was the newbie, so she’d not even met her yet.

Maybe after this mission, she should try get to know some of the others. The tense awkwardness of this silence, where no one really knew another, and wasn’t willing to make small talk – even if it would just be about mission related stuff – was annoying.

Thankfully, that was when Binky briefed them on the situation. The way Jacqueline understood it, they’d be taking the front entrance, which would have been too risky under usual circumstances, but would now be rendered safer due to the recently captured blood mage. Jacqueline wondered if the woman was getting paid, or if she was doing that just to exercise her arcane muscles. It seemed to her that Binky mentioned the back entrance just to make it a point that’s where they would have had to go if they hadn’t the blood mage. Well, that, and to relate it to the information about the Maverick henchmen being their direct competitors this time.

It was due to this supposition of hers, that she was entirely taken aback when the discussion of a vote began. “Quoi?” she expressed her confusion, in a rare occasion briefly falling back to her mother tongue. She shook her head, and looked from Valkyrie to Silhouette. “Who ever said anything about a vote?” though she’d glanced from one coworker to another, it was more or less a rhetorical question. Frowning, she thought back on what exactly Binky said. She realized that her words may imply a choice that was for them to make…But that was really unusual.

For one, Jacqueline didn’t believe she or any of her coworkers present here (with the exception of Binky) had the kind of clout to make such a decision. It wasn’t just a minor here-or-there alteration of a mission parameter either. It was the kind of judgement that carried political weight. If they went through Bastion, Maverick’s new base in Pax, wouldn’t they be basically announcing they were ready and willing to take the whole of Maverick on? That seemed a bit premature in her opinion. For another, asking them to decide now wasn’t in accordance to the rule of TPO. Only the occasion was somewhat (though questionably) appropriate. The time and place…Well, if they picked the front entrance, and the blood mage was neither willing nor ready to assist, what would be the point of them being made to choose or going exactly there in the first place?

Finally, she looked towards Binky for clarification, raising her brows in wordless question. If they really were supposed to have the final start as to their entry point, she’d give her assent to a frontal assault. It was the more sensible option, for more than one reason.

---

---

Ashley was filled with a mixture of eager excitement and nervous trepidation as the van made its way through the streets of Pax Septimus. Although she had run through a training course under Binky’s supervision and recently taken part in her first field mission, alongside Agent Silhouette, this would be the first time she would be participating in an operation as part of a full G.E.M.I.N.I. team. Looking around the somewhat cramped van, Ashley glanced at each of her fellow agents in turn. She was already familiar with the green-haired Binky and the nightmarish (and endearingly studious) Silhouette, but she only knew the others from what she had learned from their personnel files.

On the more experienced side, there was the tough, no-nonsense Dragon Breacher and the equally imposing armored woman beside her, Agent Leroux, one of the rare few agents that didn’t use a codename. On the more youthful end of the scale were Agents Wukong and Valkyrie, an interesting pair, to say the least. Where the former, simian-themed young woman looked like a bundle of fidgety energy waiting to be unleashed, the latter seemed to be taking a nap, as though she were utterly unbothered by the impeding mission. Perhaps the enormous gauss rifle propped up against her was the source of the young agent’s lack of concern, Ashley reflected. It was a truly fascinating weapon, to be sure, and Ashley made a mental note to ask her teammate about it once the current operation had safely concluded.

That was about when the van hit a bump, and Binky used the attention-grabbing event to initiate a small pre-mission briefing. It was little more than a recap of what they already knew, but Ashley was thankful for the additional reminder. After all, one could never tell when an important detail might be forgotten. They had quite the challenge ahead of them, that much was abundantly clear, but dealing with threats like Justin von Carnage was the reason Ashley had joined G.E.M.I.N.I. in the first place. Thus, the Knight of Tomorrow was determined to support her teammates to the very best of her ability.

Binky concluded her briefing by offering to answer any questions, at which point Valkyrie and Silhouette spoke up, both agreeing that a bold assault upon the front door was the best way to apprehend von Carnage in a timely manner. “That sounds like the most logical course of action to me, as well,” Ashley chimed in, before Leroux inquired what all this talk of ‘votes’ was about. Yeah, that was a bit odd, Ashley reflected, but she didn’t feel that this was the right time to address such an admittedly minor bit of confusion. There were far more pertinent matters she wished to have some additional clarification on. “Um, what sort of barrier will this ‘blood mage’ be providing?” the Knight of Tomorrow inquired. “In particular, can our own ranged melodies and weaponry be fired through it? And can it be walked through, by us, or our adversaries?”

---

Of all the vehicles that had driven up to face the concrete barrier, there was one that stood out: a second-hand bicycle with a large bell and no light, the chosen steed of the Frost Maiden. Deciding to come to the party transformed this time around, Klava checked her reflection in Moya-no-Yume, ensuring that nothing was off, that none of the burn scars from her last run in with Sofron was still there. It looked good though. Perfectly clear and soothingly soft, with the charming plumpness of youth that all young ladies had. Ah, if only her Leitmotif persisted in her human form too, then maybe she wouldn’t have to spend so much on her skin routine.

Well, she could also cut down on her love for food, but where’s the fun in that?

Billy Black and the Mavericks all look suitably monstrous though, something that kept the freelancer on edge but only on edge. There was no point in stressing over what their enemies looked like, after all. The group that was actually invading was going to be freelancers and Maverick espers, so it was very much just a matter of ‘attack things that aren’t espers. And friendly faces were all around too! There was Fable, the surprisingly spunky but also 100% precocious kiddo, already putting on his approximation of a ‘serious professional face, and there was ol’ (well, no, it was pretty likely that Protector was actually younger than her) Pro, a hulk in a coffin of metal, bristling with restrained threat. Apollo must be somewhere as well, though she hadn’t caught a glimpse of his dime-bouncing butt yet.

As she began her own stretches in preparation for vampire-asskicking, Klava asked the decisive question: “So, Billy, there gonna be on-site catering after this? That mansion looks like it could host a whole party, if ya catch my drift.”

By some miracle, Apollo didn't arrive in style like he usually did. After all, he still had to make up for his previous binge. It took effort to keep his ordinary self in style. In a pair of joggers, running shoes, and a tight shirt that seemed to accentuate every one of his abs, he ran the entire way. Or, at the very least, ran from the nearest parking lot.

He already worked with most of his allies on this mission. Though, the appearance of a small and puntable child was new. Still, having the Protector to block for him and the Maiden to run interference made the idea of fighting vampires a little better. He didn't exactly know if his light aspected melodies would be important to deal with vampires. There was always a line between fiction and reality, after all. He could guess that a stake in the heart would be a weakness, but that was a weakness of most living things.

Well, those thoughts were useless. He gave a confident but simple greeting back to the protector. A hey and a quick hand wave. In any case, the plan was simple. Break in, start shit, don't die. Pretty simple and easy to do.

With mantrap in hand, skin over his face, and joggers to hide the mystery of what that skin covering did to his bits, he was ready to fight.

"Lead the way. I'll try to keep you guys alive."

_{@Ponn@Crusader Lord@FamishedPants@Izurich@SilverPaw}

Everyone giving their opinion on the plan caught Binky off guard. Her eyes grew a bit with each affirmation, jumping from agent to agent. That was when Jacqueline asked if there was even supposed to be a vote at all. ”Ah, that’s right, we don’t really have a choice here.” Binky relaxed her shoulders. ”Fritzi does not consider the main entrance ideal, even with the backing of a blood mage. But the situation is a tangled mess of outside pressure, poor timing, and politics. If we try to go through the Bastion, we will have to fight an unknown number of Maverick espers. Even if their forces are weak, they are using many freelance espers for this operation. While they are technically going against us, their goal is altruistic in nature. They would be cornered between Justin and G.E.M.I.N.I. forces, and subsequently slaughtered. Our relationship with the freelancers would tank further, resulting in a PR nightmare. We might not have jobs after that.” Binky sighed. ”So Fritzi opted to take a more direct approach to the attack. Now our point of entry won’t be anywhere near the freelancers, which just means we have to get to Justin first. In an ideal world we would have had more time to assess the mansion and it’s threats. But time is of the essence.” With a groan, Binky mumbled. ”I hate politics.”

Binky addressed everyone’s other questions, starting with Samuel. ”Assisting me with Justin is going to be lower on your list of priorities. I have slain elder vampires before, and I am confident I can do so again. It’s crucial we make sure that Justin cannot escape or call for reinforcements. Your main goal once I start fighting is to ensure no one else can interfere. That includes stalling the freelancers and dealing with any other hostiles. Barring that, you are free to assist with Justin’s elimination.” She closed her eyes. ”As for the blood mage, Lada is under surveillance by other non-esper operatives. Should she turn on us, there will be swift consequences. Though Fritzi has spoken with her, and has assured me that she will do everything in her power to aid our mission. Though we can’t expect her help once we get inside.” She looked to Ashley when she asked about the barrier. ”It’s going to be a tube that leads straight to the front door. I’m told even esper weaponry has a hard time penetrating it. You likely won’t be able to attack through it, but from what Iunderstand, Lada and the other agents will assist with any threats attacking the barrier. But you just have to run inside and clear the foyer. I’ll remain outside until you’ve dealt with that.”

And they wouldn’t have to wait long to heed Binky’s advice. Their van, along with several other vans, pulled up to the mansion. Most people might envision a mansion being a giant house on some open plot of land, but this one was in the center of the business district. It had all the hallmarks of a mansion, from an ornate fence to fantastic brickwork. But there was no courtyard to speak of. The fence bordered the sidewalk, and the fence itself allowed the gates to swing inward without hitting anything. Though it seemed Justin had stationed people in nearby buildings to fire down on the vans as they arrived. The espers could hear gunfire before the door to their van even swung open. Who knew how many blocks around the mansion belonged to Justin as well?

Breacher was the first to step out of the van, leading with her shield. It was hard to tell where the bullets were coming from, but it wouldn’t matter. One of the vans opened up and spilled several corpses onto the street. Some of the espers would recognize them as the slain members of Cobra Gang. At least they were before their bodies gelled and floated into the air as gobs of blood. The blood would gather around the outside of the mansion, forming a tunnel straight for the front door. The inside of the tunnel glowed red, as the barrier of blood seemed to glow under the rays of the sun. Non-esper agents got out of their vans and fired on enemy positions. They had already taken the front of the mansion, and were pushing to the back to cut off all obvious avenues of escape.

The G.E.M.I.N.I. espers didn’t need to be told what to do. They ran through the tunnel of blood until they reached the door at the other end. It was reinforced, but it was nothing Jacqueline would have difficulty prying open.

…

…

…

As they pushed open the steel doors of the grand mansion, what laid before them was a scarlet carpet and the droning notes of a grand organ. Screeching with a torturous beauty, the brass pipes sang their miserable dirge, chills running through the flesh of the assembled espers. One by one, flames burst to life, firelight casting ghoulish shadows over life-sized statues of men and women, their bodies contorted in expressions of fear as their cowering position remained petrified for eternity. Each statue stood opposite of each other, lining up all the way to the very back of the grand lobby, to the great organ whose music continued unabated.
More flames set alight, bathing the rest of the lobby in dark warmth and exposing the checkerboard tiles that made up the majority of the room. Right beside the door were two towering wardrobes, lined with purple embellishments, but more eye-catching were the twin pillars that stood to support the high ceiling of the mansion. Carved into the marbled ground around the pillars were sanguine grooves, concentric circles with the design of a six-petaled flower within, and chained to those same pillars were twelve human beings, their limbs tied together and cloth sacks pulled over their head. They twitched occasionally, but that was all the movement that they could afford.

Hostages? Sacrifices?

Above, on the second floor that two curving staircases lead to, a wall-sized painting glared down at them. Imperious and disdainful, Justin von Carnage’s portrait glared at them from above, while the organ music that had been weaving firelight over the lobby stopped abruptly, the unseen musician standing up to reveal himself.

He was a tall man, broad of shoulders and chest, dressed impeccably in a light gray vest and a black shirt, the fabric stretched to smoothness by the musculature behind. His silver hair was swept back in short spikes, while his beard bordered his square jaw. The only signs of his inhumanity laid in the canines that peeked past his lips, the golden eyes that held the weight of centuries worth of disdain. This was not Justin von Carnage. This was another, a monster trusted to serve as the vanguard, a monster tasked by the owner of this mansion to hold off the barbarians at the gates.

Without effort, his deep voice travelled the entirety of the lengthy lobby, rattling even the crystals of the gorgeous chandelier that was suspended up on the second floor.

_{“Tis’ a strange time we’re living in, where words can put fear in you.
Greed runs parliament interior, yet justice seeks to make inferior.
So halt, if you may, you thieves and stooges, and consider other pathways before decisive hysteria.
Alas, blinded by illusions to choose, balls remain chained to your shoes.
Step forth and I’ll claim their heads.
Step back, it’ll be yours instead.
I’m pained, a crying shame, but…
The pursuit of our own wealth lights a flame.
That makes greed a game that lets the whole world turn.
As the world turns, the whole world burns.
Pay the blood price, and their lives may yet be earned.”}

He clapped his hands.

The chandelier lit up, crystalline brilliance coating the entire room, yet leaving a conspicuous area of dimness at the very center of the lobby. Twelve lives laid on balance. But how many more would be at risk, if this caused the operation to stop before it even began?

---

_{@OwO@mantou@ERode@Majoras End}

Luna took a quick glance at all of the freelancers. She was a little bummed to see that Marrie wasn’t here, but that was probably for the best. She hadn’t become accustomed to killing yet, and asking her to fight a vampire and maybe G.E.M.I.N.I. simultaneously was likely more than her heart could handle.

But Luna got over the absence of her missing friend as soon as she realized most of the freelancers were guys. There was a boy, who was as cute as a button, and two total studs that had their faces hidden. Well, the one guy had no face, but there was a taller guy in armor. There was only one girl present, which had to be the one Trixy was dating. She was tempted to talk to her for that reason alone, but decided to hold off.

Then she said something intelligent, prompting her to do so anyway.

”A party is a great idea!” She marched up beside Klava. ”In fact, I think I’ll call the pizza place right now!”

Billy lowered his arm with a chuckle. ”I’m doubtin’ many pizza guys have got enough salt to come to a place swarmin’ with G.E.M.I.N.I. agents. But if we take Justin and force ‘em out of the mansion, y’all know I’m down for an after battle feast. Otherwise, the Bastion’s got plenty of room for all!”

While Billy was getting ready again, Luna approached Apollo. A man without a face was a bit hard to talk to. Humans were naturally programmed to look for faces, as they were pretty important for reading someone’s mood. Though it was impossible to tell where he was looking or if he was even okay with being approached like this. Not to mention his abbs were right there. Though she resisted the urge to gawk. Best to keep her eyes on the blank canvas that was Apollo’s face.

”You’re going to keep us alive, huh?” She extended her hand towards the faceless man. ”I’m Tetrad! I also fancy myself as someone who can keep people alive. Oh! Which reminds me!” She turned to everyone. ”Justin has been turning people into vampire thralls. I doubt anyone we fight is going to willingly surrender, but if you can get them in critical condition without killing them, I can cast a stabilizing melody on them. That should take them out of action.”

With the freelancer’s accounted for, it was time for the operation to start.

Billy was only a foot or two taller than Protector, so no one was sure what to expect when he punched the wall. But the result would surprise anyone who hadn’t seen a monster attack a building before. A single punch was enough to crumple a concrete barrier like paper mache. The concrete itself broke up into fist-sized chunks while the rebar bent like straw. The attack created some dust, but it just took a few seconds for that to clear out. Billy threw his shoulder into what remained of the wall, which cleared a path for everyone to follow.

Soon the path led to a garage door, which Billy didn’t even bother raising his hands for. He walked through it like it wasn't even there, popping the garage door’s rollers out of its tracks.

The next room was a wine cellar Each wall was loaded with keg after keg of wine, and the center of the room was divided into two separate paths with a row of barrels going down the middle. Halfway down the room, the center row of kegs had a gap in them that could allow people to walk from one path to the other. At the opposite end of the room was a narrow corridor that led deeper into the mansion.

At the end of the right path was an older woman in regal clothes, and her giant metal butler. The woman’s outfit was bright pink and was lined with furs from some long extinct animal. The giant butler was dressed in a tux, but his size and obvious metallic nature made him look strange. An astute observer would notice his outer shell had just been painted to look like clothing, but was some metal plating held together with giant rivets.

Upon the freelancer’s arrival, the woman looked up from the cup of tea she was enjoying. ”I do say! It looks like we have some interesting game to hunt today.” Her butler handed her a pink sniper rifle which she aimed at the incoming espers.

”JUST_MORE_VAGRANTS." The robot cast its hand towards the freelancers. ”TURN_BACK_OR_YOUR_ASS_WILL_BE_ASSIMILATED!"

The left path had three pyromancers. One was a red haired woman, while in front of her were two men with black and brown hair respectively. They were dressed like bartenders with black vests and little red bowties. Beside the flames burning in their hands, they didn’t seem to have any other weapons on them. They remained silent as they looked down the length of the room at the freelancers.

Billy nodded once he observed the area. ”Welp, ya can earn yer keep now. I’ll be hangin’ back ‘till Justin shows up.” Billy stepped out of the room. Probably for the best, as magi and exotic weapons weren’t favorable matchups for a monster like Billy.

---

_{@The World}

Traces of Marrie’s magic were visible on the broken concrete barrier she touched, but it wouldn’t become a true portal until she made another one for it to link up to.

”Oh-hoh! Sneaky! And before I forget…” Pac-A-Fist handed Marrie a small clip light. ”It’s kind of dark, so, how about you take this? It was just a few dollars at the convenience store, nothing spectacular.” While not as cool or sexy as their hand held counterparts, clip lights did keep both of your hands free and could be worn almost anywhere.

It seemed that Pac-A-Fist was going to be staying back, as she made no attempt to follow Marrie into the bowels of the earth. She’d have to make the trek alone, with the Bate’s distant arguing filling the silence.

The small tunnelway led into a much bigger one. This path appeared to be made by water runoff instead of some giant behemoth snake. The rows of limestone stalagmites would have been flattened by such a creature. But that wasn’t to say the space contained no life. Just ahead, the glow of a campfire illuminated a tent and about five goblins. It seemed that they had discovered the magic of jiffy-pop. One of them was heating up the plundered popcorn until all the kernels popped. Then he passed the prepared popcorn to one of his buddies before heating up more popcorn to eat. It didn’t look like they were going anywhere soon, and the goblins had a patrol going, perhaps on the lookout for the noisy espers in the distance.

"Holy absolute units, Batman!"
Current Location: Von Carnage Mansion, Concrete Barrier >> Wine Cellar

While the others were talking, Fable waited quietly, and patiently. Klava's question for some food post-mission did earn a rose brow from the boy, but he expected the laid-back nature regardless. Surprisingly, Maverick was down for the idea, even offering to let the freelancers hang at their lair if the mansion ends up a no-show. "If anything, we can still swing by that Nerine Vista place if you want!" The Timekeeper offered up to the maiden. He hadn't heard anything from his sister yet about it. Maybe she was too busy at the moment?

He looked over to the other espers. The harlequin looking lady, Tetrad seemed cool enough. Then there was Pepsi Man without the bodypaint. The unnatural muscles would've been a slight cause for fear if his head didn't look shrunk in comparison.

The boy tried his best not to snicker.

Luckily the last of his new acquaintances actually approached him theirself. At the sound of the Protector's greeting, Fable turned to face the...surprisingly tall figure in armor. His eyes widened behind his goggles, looking up to them in the face. He was already a bit short, but the difference in height was kinda intimidating. Well, if not for their kind greetings. A gentle giant. The boy shook Protector's hand. Not too firmly, but just enough. "The Timekeeper, o-or just Timekeeper is fine. But my friends just call me Fable anyways." He introduced himself with a crooked smile. Yet they would not have any time left to talk further. It was time to head in.

Billy cleared the way for them before they ended up in a wine cellar. Seemed quiet enough, at first. The boy looked around, wondering if they could do anything with the kegs, if they were full anyways. Might be full of something poisonous as far as he was concerned. There was an eventual fork in the road that led to two types of trouble. A bunch of pyromancers that could burn the place down and take the group with them, and a regal looking huntress with a robotic butler. On one hand, the Pyromancers might be magi, but on the other...

Maybe it's a bold move, stupid even, but maybe he can talk the huntress into standing down if she's just a hired gun. Hopefully she's just a hired gun.

Choose your words carefully.

The boy scoffed. "'Just more vagrants'? is that any way to treat someone else from the higher-class??" He chastised the pair's behavior, a fist resting on his hip. The huntress did give off the vibes of a noble. "You should know better than to assume, looks can be quite deceiving these days!" He shot them a quick hypocritical pout. He wasn't afraid of the fact that she could fire at any second. Fable folded his hands behind his back, one still holding his weapon. He slowly began his approach. "Although, I must say. That is a fine piece of machinery, if I ever seen one! I assume you're his creator??" He innocently asked, internally thinking through differents plans at once. If his gamble seems to work, he'd keep at it. If not, he could only hope it stalls her long enough for someone to attack, or for him to avoid getting shot at most.

And more importantly, he hoped the others wouldn't notice the little truth weaved into his acting.

@BrokenPromise @Ponn @Crusader Lord @FamishedPants @SilverPaw

At Binky's revelation, the brunette took a slow, deep breath via her mouth, then made a long, drawn-out sigh with all the resignation of a convenience store employee, a sigh capable of draining dry the energy from even the liveliest of parties. Plenty of thoughts gradually formed into half-coherent words inside Valkyrie's mind, but she nipped it at the bud, pushing them to the back of her head. It didn't matter, she was here to follow orders and get paid, not play politician. Just follow instructions and take the money, which was convenient considering a bulk of those instructions involved purging monster filth.

As long as Fritzi had the money and the monster hunt list, then she would have Valkyrie's allegiance. The doctor being a sociopathic piece of work was irrelevant, no one's perfect anyway.

For the duration of the ride, Valkyrie simply listened to the cabbage-haired esper's answers on the various questions that her co-workers raised. None of those sound unreasonable, she could provide fire support wherever she's needed. One thing though... Stall the freelancers, huh? Yeah she could do that, but no promises. If there'd ever be a situation in which she had to choose between a comrade's life or a freelancer's, she'd not even have the slightest hesitation to pull the trigger. Those freelancers had made their opportunistic allegiance clear after all, they were as likely to work for Maverick as well as Gemini, a wildcard could be useful in some circumstances, but in others, well, nothing personal really.

Soon enough, the Gemini convoy arrived at the mission location as Lada immediately used the bodies of dead Cobra Gang members to conjure the barrier, convenient and good riddance, finally those scum could be useful in death where they lacked in life. Upon hearing the first shots being fired, Valkyrie mentally engaged 'combat mode' as her orange eyes no longer involuntarily blinked. As the only primary ranged fighter in the group (Avenir was more of a caster), the sniper decided to disembark last from the van, a logical maneuver really. As soon as she did, however, she wasted no time in following the group to charge into the mansion, its double doors proved inconsequential in the face of Leroux's warhammer.

--

The interior was... incredibly stereotypical of a vampire-owned dwelling. It was so stereotypical that Valkyrie couldn't help but wonder if Justin was the type to see all of these ridiculous portrayals of fictional vampires and decided to embrace them wholesale. Would he appear in an 18th century nobleman's suit along with an oversized black cape to greet them in a Romanian accent too? Heh, to be honest, that'd be neat, at least they could exchange pleasantries before she put a sabot straight through his cold unbeating heart.

Though the markswoman's eyes scanned the whole hall for any targets as was standard procedure, her attention glossed over the details; the scarlet carpet, grand organ, its eye-rolling spooky mansion music, the morbid statues, and everything. Contrary to what others might believe, nope, she didn't get chills running through her from this glorified haunted house attraction, what did give her chills was the sight of live hostages being chained to pillars, faces covered by sacks. Oh... so this was how it's going to be, huh? Hmmm... a show of cruelty or... desperation? Might be neither, these people might just be Justin's food stockpile, you know, bloodsucker and all.

Good, this blatant display of inhuman savagery assured that everyone here should have no moral objections to hunt these monsters down to the last creature.

Her eyes locked onto the only non-agent, non-hostage, individual in the room, the finely-suited broad-shouldered vampire, likely a member of Justin's coven. She casually took aim at the creature's heart, his poem entering one ear and spilling out the other as his words became nothing more than ambient noise, though she did catch a few words by virtue of her murderous attention being locked onto him.

How about we take a third option, hmm? We live, the hostages live, and you die.

"Permission to cull the vampire?" Valkyrie inquired, her voice relayed through the team's comms.

---