[IC] Coyote Hustle

[Dealdric]

@Rekaigan

"I meet your grandfather after the collapse of the city I was made for. He helped me understand the ways of the world above the sea, and in turn I helped in some of his jobs, but only if he asked me to." His helmet lights changed to a dark purple. "It pained me to hear of his passing, so I returned to the see and assisted the lady of the sea."
His helmet light went to normal and his posture stiffened. "But now I have to protect one of good heart that has the shard, which happens to be you."

[Rekaigan]

Yeva Darbinian

_{@GrizzTheMauler@Dealdric@Saquira}

---

Yeva's gaze moved between the giant 'guardian' and the women that vouched for him. If they were observant, they'd see a large amount of distrust in her eyes. The mercenary sighed, as she lowered her pistol. It would seem that this... thing truly did know her grandfather. Whether or not she had a 'good heart' remained to be seen by anyone that has ever known her. She nodded slightly toward the two, tapping Hayden on the shoulder as she turned her back to the newcomers. It was time to move. The strange woman was right, they weren't out of the clear yet, especially not with this hulking tin can.

They needed to leave this town immediately, but they couldn't use the docks. It was too close to the tavern and trying to out sail pirates was a terrible idea. Perhaps the road was a better notion. Yeva started down the path, heading toward a road that exited the town, however she was careful with her movements. She didn't want to run into the military or anymore pirates, so the back alleys were the way to go. Whether or not these three could keep up wasn't any of her concern.

[Dealdric]

@Rekaigan@Saquira@GrizzTheMauler

Enigma knew what she was thinking. He kept up with her, and was as quiet as his body would allow. He now believed that the new keeper of the shard in his eyes trusted him. Now, his augmented almost instincts kicked in, for he now has something to protect.

As he followed Yeva, he was curious as to what town she planned on going to. He knew that they couldn't escape another way, well Yeva couldn't. He and the Mermaid could go under the water and get out with now issues. But he now had his Guardian motives back in play, he couldn't do that unless Yeva told him to. This is a predicament

He knew the otterkin was there as well, sensing great dis trust from him. So, before they continued, he went up to him and offered a handshake. "You may not trust me, but now my instinct prevents me from harming any of you three, so might as well shake on it. By the way, Enigma the name.

[Tybalt Capulet]

"I can't thank you enough, sir. I can't imagine what could have become of me had you not come to my rescue. But... I can't just be calling you "Handsome." You do have a name, don't you? Mine is Mira, and I expect you to use it well." She winked, a practiced gesture that, when accompanied by a somewhat-innocent-seeming smile, put forth a facade of a damsel who was just grateful to have been saved. It almost made up for the suggestive way she was dressed, though there was nothing that could be done about that until she got the chance to grab her traveling clothes from her hidden cache in the red light district of the city, a place which she could hardly visit while maintaining her more-innocent persona.

"Where now? Well, I was thinking I'd see what that girl was up to with that lovely little stone. I would be ever so pleased if you were to join me in seeing what she's up to..." Mira treated the lion-man to an earnest-looking smile, put forth with only the barest hint of amusement at how easily the young man had been ensnared. Well. It was hardly anything to complain about. The poor thing looked capable enough, and essentially guileless, so far as Mira could tell. He would do just fine. Who knew, he might even grow on her, so long as he didn't get himself killed first.

@Overlord Thraka

[Overlord Thraka]

Gharn nods simply, trying to keep up with the flow of events. First the fight on the ship, then the fight at the bar, now being dragged along by a beautiful woman. He shakes his head to clear it and looks at Mira, his expression still a little befuddled. "Err, my name be Gharn." he says simply. "You be welcome," he continues "but you not be weak. You could flee without me." he says. "But I be glad to be helping." he smiles at her slightly, but only the right side of his mouth moves, leaving his grin decidedly lopsided. The old wounds on the left side of his face must have damaged the muscle to the point where it no longer fully works.

Gharn is now thoroughly confused by the woman, who he now knew as Mira, at first seemed flirty, then seemed downright slutty when trying to get him to flee with her, but now seems different yet again. He makes a mental note to try and figure out what she's really like.

Gharn nods simply, more than happy to follow after Mira. "Stone? The blue one the pirate had? Okay." he chuckles slightly, remembering the pirate's face as the table hit him. "We go to find her then. You be leading, I know not where I am going in this city." He allows her to lead the way, glad to have someone who seems to know what they're doing alongside him, it's just a bonus she happens to be and attractive female. Gharn walks after her, gazing around at the wonders of modern living that up until now he has known nothing about.

[GrizzTheMauler]

Hayden was overwhelmed. He was half sure that this was all a dream and he'd wake up on the Aurora, safe from all of this. but he knew that this was his reality now. He followed Yeva closely, doing his best to keep up. When the metal man ntroduced himself Hayden shook his hand out of habit, unsure of what to make of him, as in his mind he was exactly what his name was. An Enigma.

Hayden's ears twitched as he listened for the sounds of pursuit. It wasn't too hard with all of the noise the city gave off being muffled by the alleyways. "We need to move faster."

[Tybalt Capulet]

@Overlord Thraka@GrizzTheMauler@Dealdric@Saquira@Rekaigan

"I suppose you're right, Gharn. I probably could have escaped on my own. But, and this is just my take, I don't think I'd have nearly as much fun, now would I? Besides, I needed some excuse to get you to join me! Now, then... If I'm not mistaken, the girl with the stone took off down this way..." She started off with a light step, her elven heritage lending her feet the swiftness that was the hallmark of her grandfather's race.

She was impressed by the lion-man's speed. She wasn't an athlete, exactly, but she was by no means out of shape, and as a part-elf, she was usually able to outpace most anyone without breaking a sweat or running out of breath. This was shaping up to be a well-balanced partnership. So long as Gharn was willing to follow her lead, Mira would be perfectly satisfied with having such an imposing figure to back her up, and his naïveté made him all the more appealing, as it would save some effort on manipulation. Tough and willing, that was exactly the type of backup that would serve her well.

As she considered her new situation, Mira nearly tripped on the trailing hem of her gown, as she stopped suddenly at the sight of a small group ahead of her, which included, in part, the nondescript girl who she'd seen stealing the blue stone. slowing her pace, and gesturing for Gharn to do the same, she strode purposefully over to the three who had congregated together, smiling openly at the otter-man and the thief, but largely ignoring the... whatever he was.

With one hand held lightly against her chest in a feigned motion of being out of breath, she said conspiratorially "My! I didn't expect to run into you all! That was quite something, that nonsense in the bar, wasn't it! I can't imagine how the barkeep must be feeling after all that. I imagine he's used to such things in this town, being so near to the ports and all." She looked pointedly at Yeva. "And you, miss! You got out of that encounter better than any of the rest of us, didn't you!"

[Dealdric]

@Rekaigan@Tybalt Capulet@GrizzTheMauler[@Saquira@][Rekaigan]

He saw the Werelion and elf and was defensive. He never liked elves that lived out outside Elven communities, for most than not, they were cut throats or thieves. And this one was the whore in the bar. "What do you want...other than the stone, who now has a new owner, I saw you were interested in? he said with the light from within his helmet turning red. He stayed on guard, but did nothing more rash than that.

[Rekaigan]

Yeva Darbinian

_{@GrizzTheMauler@Dealdric@Saquira@Tybalt Capulet@Overlord Thraka}

---

The constant, rhythmic 'Thud. Thud.' of the Enigma was really getting on the young woman's nerves. Not only was this thing massive, it also made a lot of noise. If this place was populated, they'd all be noticed in an instant. Not only that. They were also amassing way too many people. Four was a sizeable number, not enough to get noticed, however this Diver thing counted for at least three.

Suddenly more voices called out behind her. She felt a vein burst in her temple. She stopped in her tracks as she turned around, her gun instantly aimed at the whore's head. She clicked her tongue as she noticed the were-lion she had in tow. Too many people. Way too many people. 'Fuck this. I'm out.', she thought in frustration. 'Clack...Clackclack.' Three small cylinders fell from Yeva's pocket, rolling along the cobblestone for a moment before bursting; releasing a thick smoke around everyone. As silently as a whisper, the Darbininan split from the group running through the alleyway, making seemingly random turns to throw off any would-be pursuer.

She wasn't about to share this shard with any of them.

[Overlord Thraka]

Gharn nods. "You be quick-quick. You could have escaped" he said confidently. He frowns, slightly confused for a moment. "As much fun?" Then his ears turn slightly pink. "Join you?" he says, his expression is one of utter confusion and befuddlement as he runs after Mira. He allows a little of the lion's strength into him, easily keeping pace with her. He runs easily, his own athletic form keeping pace with the Elf seemingly effortlessly. "Why do you want the stone?" he asks her, his breathing steady and controlled, a long distance runners breathing.
He's still confused, but privately a little happy that Mira seemed to want him with her. Companionship is something he's lacked for the past several years, and Mira seems like a good person to have as a friend.

He skids to a stop as Mira falters, automatically reaching out to steady her by grabbing her shoulder. He makes sure she's steady then follows after her, bare feet paddling along on the cobbles. His expression turns from one of mild curiosity to severe confusion as he looks at Mira, she's acting completely different now. What's going on? He frowns and looks between Mira and the other group. He sees the mysterious being's glow turn red and growls. "Who be you metalman?" he growls at what looks like a robot of sorts.
Suddenly smoke billows from three small shiny objects dropped on the ground my the silent woman. He reels back sharply, his body changing, the lion taking over. He sniffs, trying to catch the silent woman's scent through the smoke, then coughs and rubs his eyes as they burn and he inhales the smoke.

@tybalt capulet @Dealdric @grizzthemauler @rekaigan

[Saquira]

@Rekaigan@GrizzTheMauler@Dealdric@Tybalt Capulet@Overlord Thraka

Aedre kept quiet as the guardian continued to speak, figuring she didn’t have much to add to the conversation, and instead watched the woman who had taken the shard – Yeva apparently – and her companion. She held the pistol she aimed at them with a steady grip, and given the way she hadn’t yet attacked or fled from the guardian despite his demeanour she likely had the skills to back up her confident stance. And the man certainly seemed to possess some sort of gift.

She was relieved when Yeva nodded and turned away, not wanting to linger any longer, and Aedre quickly followed as the other woman began to walk away. She looked over at Enigma when he spoke up again but didn’t offer any comment of her own for the time being, and then all of a sudden there were another couple of people walking up to them. Another two people from the bar, one of them the werelion who’d aided quite nicely in creating chaos amongst the patrons. But if the pirates were to turn up they’d be noticed in a moment with this many people, and the only place Enigma was likely to blend in was the city he’d been created in.

Smoke suddenly billowed up around them as she was watching the newcomers and hoping the guardian wasn’t going to pick another fight, and she only barely had time to see Yeva take off before she threw herself away from the smoke so as to inhale as little as possible. She pulled the staff close to her body as she rolled and got out of reach of the smoke, but hadn’t been able to avoid inhaling some of it and coughed violently for a few moments before getting back to her feet and looking at the group.

“Well, that’s certainly one way to get out of the situation,” she stated as she reached up to fix her hood that’d gotten slightly displaced in the tumble. With no idea of what exact direction Yeva had taken off in Aedre kept one eye on the strange group that had assembled and another on their surroundings as she considered how to proceed.

[Dealdric]

@Saquira@Overlord Thraka@Tybalt Capulet@GrizzTheMauler

"DAMNIT!!!"

Enigma 3, omega series guardian, and he fail his mission. He never failed, never. With the shard gone, nothing remained for him to do, once again. He thought for a moment, then looked towards the mermaid. "Don't be angry with me for this." and with that he produced a shock wave with enough volts running through it to knock them out cold. He planned to be rid of the pursuers, grab the mermaid and otter man, and attempt to find the shard once they waked. But first he needed them all to be unconscious.