Member
NoriWasHere
Morden Man
Fading Memory
Ruby
Tlaloc
Nyxvira wasn’t sure what God’s holy messengers looked like, but she was pretty certain they didn’t have their cleavage on display, so she made a point of fishing out the most modest clothes she owned when getting her outfit ready. If she was going to convince Cardinale to break off his deal with the Tong, she needed to be in the right headspace, and that meant making sure every little detail was meticulously orchestrated to help her get into character.
The Faerie stood in front of her apartment’s full-figure mirror, her fiery red curls bound up in a bun above her head, as she squeezed herself into a milk white swing skirt dress. She could feel it pressing tightly around her middle. She’d gained some weight. It was seven pounds at the most, but it was noticeable.
I’ll have to go shopping at some point. It's not like I can’t afford it, anymore.
She placed a pair of golden torcs around her wrists, and added a crucifix necklace the Italians had given her for full-effect; mentally composing herself as she made the transition from aspiring slum queen to angelic valkyrie.
Nyxvira let all traces of her usual smug sneer slip away from her face, creating a mask of pious serenity. She made eye contact with the foreigner in the mirror, gazing into her sparkling irises.
“Count not my transgressions, but, rather, my tears of repentance. Remember not my iniquities, but, more especially, my sorrow for the offenses I have committed against you.” She murmured, her voice soft and soothing, with just the faintest hint of her usual iciness.
Now, let's go kick some serious arse.
During the daytime the Santa Somabra docks were buzzing with life, but at night things were considerably more quiet. A few figures shuffled about beneath the dead black sky, but other than that the waterfront was almost silent. Huge Mechanical cranes loomed immobile above the still husks of empty boats, and stacks upon stacks of shipping containers dotted the edges of the docks.
Nyxie’s destination was the USS Junia, a small cargo ship where Andreas Cardinale conducted his dock-based dealings. The Junia itself was a modest vessel, with a squat little hold that’s white paint job was peeling away in flakey strips, and a chimney-like funnel at its centre. It sat at the end of the docks, hiding in plain sight as it bobbed gently back and forth, tucked away between two larger ships.
The Faerie made her way slowly down the docks, walking with long, confident strides.
“Miss Bloodbloom.” A voice echoed out of the darkness.
She spun on her heel, and came face-to-face with a pale-skinned Chinese man, dressed in a silvery grey suit and a dark-rimmed fedora. He also happened to be pointing a Stocking Pepperbox six-shot pistol straight at her.
The man watched her with hawk-like precision, taking note as her petrified gaze fell upon the handgun.
“Oh, this?” the man nodded to his pistol with a sharp laugh “Don’t think anything of it. Its for my protection, more than anything else. If I wanted you dead I’d have just shot you before you knew I was here.”
“I’m guessing you want something from me?” Nyxie asked, as calmly as she could manage in the current circumstances, her heartbeat thundering in her ears.
“You’ve guessed correctly,” the man replied “I’ve been following you for a few days now; ever since you helped the Italians off Tao Yin. You’re not very good at covering your tracks, Miss Bloodbloom. Be thankful that it was me who picked up the trail you left behind.”
“I’ll be more careful, next time.” She replied sourly.
“You’re lucky there even is a next time,” he shot back “You’re supposed to be a professional. There are certain rules that professionals have to follow.”
“If you’re planning on lecturing me, I’d really rather you just shoot me.”
“As much as I’d enjoy that, I was ordered to keep you alive; and I never disobey an order.” He said plainly “The italians know you’re coming, and it isn’t Cardinale waiting for you on that boat. If you step aboard the Junia, Santoni men will put a bullet between your eyes.”
“How’d they catch on?” Nyxvira asked, caution biting away at the edge of her voice.
“A tip off from Judas, not directly of course. A civil war between the Martovanni and Santoni families is exactly the opening he needs to push the Italians out of Santa Somabra, once and for all.”
That corpse-raping fuck.
“I see.” Nyxie said “And what use am I to whoevers hired you?”
The man smiled, a sharp hook-like grin pulling on the corner of his lips.
“How much do you know about the Nyctari family?”