Lurking Krog
Crimson Flame
wanderingwolf
Majoraa
Snowdrops
Abstract Proxy
Guardian Angel Haruki
The World
BrokenPromise
Digizel
Ciri hadn't managed to get a word in edgewise with Trixy, and by the time the other stepped away, she felt even more drained than she had directly after being hit with a plasma beam. Fucking extroverts. Exhausting.
Even so, she did try to stand up a little straighter and stiffer in the presence of the Big Boss. "Yeah, I'd better be, after everything it took to get the damn dragon here." Ciri groaned, but her tone was considerably more polite than usual — and her lips did threaten to curl into a proud smirk. Because hell yeah she deserved the praise. She’d nearly gotten her ass roasted back there.
She looked back towards the girl and shrugged one shoulder. "No damn clue. Some unfortunate chick the GEMINI really wanted dead. So, probably like us. ... You, I mean. A monster."
She turned fully to said, presumed monster girl. “Got a name?”
It hadn’t been that long since Amanda’s harrowing escape. As drained as Ciri felt, she had nothing on this teenager, who looked like a standing corpse. With a voice just loud enough to not be considered a whisper, she said ”Amanda.”
Well, at least she could still talk, as harrowed as she sounded. Ciri took that as a win.
”That’s a nice name!“ Trixy’s response was just fast enough that it sounded prepared.
... She took Trixy joining in on the conversation as a loss.
”Are you a monster?“
”Gemini are the real monsters.” She hugged herself, and her voice started to crack. ”They, they killed-” Her voice cut out completely.
”Thou art of the glass one’s lineage.“ Boteg attempted to explain. ”Me saw thou’s forebearer shattered on the ground in the old drinking hole.“
Billy gave a single, slow nod before looking at Ciri. ”I uh, don’t suppose ya can make sense of that, can you?”
How'd she ended up as a translator!? Ciri sighed, resigned. "... She's Dante's kid. The GEMINI bitches killed him, at the diner." Her brows furrowed as she added on her own: "Shattered the corpse too, by the way, for good measure. And killed tons of others.” She nodded at Amanda. “So, yeah, we pretty much agree on who the monsters are. But they’ll get what’s coming to them, we’ll make fucking sure of that."
But Amanda only broke down more, to the point where she was sobbing.
Shit. Ciri looked to her colleagues for help, because comforting a crying girl was not her strong suit.
”Ah, Dante.” Billy looked at the ceiling. ”He was a rootin’ tootin’ good man if I do say so myself. Wanted to remain neutral in everything that was going on. But we’re all on sides regardless of how we want to live. Monsters and humans can’t live in harmony it seems.”
Ok, that probably made it even worse. Thanks, Boss.
Billy looked at Amanda, but spoke to everyone. ”We’ll talk more later. Lots has happened, and you should all rest. We’ll see to it that our newly arrived have rooms.”
Ciri nearly stopped him. She wanted to hear her praises sung some more and be promised like… a promotion or something, not be left alone to deal with a kid who’d lost her dad and the literal definition of a Manic Pixie Dream Nightmare Girl.
Billy excused himself, but Trixy remained behind. ”And what’s your name, tall dark and golden?“
”Boteg!“ The dragon man looked very proud of his name.
”I like it, very unique!“ She nodded a few times before looking over at Ciri. ”I’ll go prepare their rooms! Was there anything you needed?“
“Yeah, some medical assistance. Without any damn boo-boo kissing. Just work your magic like a normal person, please, Trix.” Ciri half-pleaded, exhausted as all hell. “And look her over too. She… fell, I think.” She looked over to Amanda, who was presumably still crying. “Hey, Amanda! You… uh, injured? Like, physically?”
Amanda covered her mouth with her hand and shook her head.
”No kissing…“ Trixy squinted her eyes. ”So like, no physical contact?“ She said in an attempt to make it seem like Ciri’s very specific request was not necessary, despite the fact that everyone in the area knew it was. ”I don’t have any magic like that, sorry! Maybe turn back into a human? That’s what I do when I need to heal up and there’s nobody around. I’ll see if I can find Luna. She’s got normal healing magic!“ Looking rather proud of herself, Trixy scuffed her way down one of the Bastion’s many corridors. Ciri, Amanda, and Boteg were left to their own devices for the time being.
“I mean, yeah, I can turn into— but that won’t— ah. She’s gone.” Thank god. But also fuck you, a little bit? She was in pain here!
With a sigh, Amanda wiped her eyes. ”Is there any place to sit down?”
Boteg immediately noticed a giant spool of cable and slid it behind Amanda. The bastion was constantly under construction, so such things were usually just laying around. Billy must have recently carved out the area, because the walls were unfinished. In a few days, they’d cover the walls with slates of stone, or repurpose buried concrete if they were feeling especially fancy. Amanda took a seat and placed her hands on her knees.
While Mr. Bootleg was being all gentlelizardly, Ciri did in fact turn back into a human, gasping as she did. Instinctively, she reached to touch her back, even though she knew the injuries were gone — for now, while she stayed human. Which probably wasn’t long.
”What, is your name?” Amanda looked to Ciri. ”I don’t think you told me.”
“Huh? Oh. It’s Cirilla. Ciri’s fine,” she answered, at least a little less awkwardly now that Amanda was attempting to talk and not just cry her eyes out. She shifted her weight from one leg to another, avoiding eye contact at all costs, and hazarded: “The other girls are okay. Just, if you were wondering. Pretty sure they got out.”
That was, assuming the fleeing teenage girls she’d seen had been Amanda’s friends. For all she knew, they could’ve been her bullies or something. In which case fuck it, she was officially done trying to comfort anyone ever again.
Briefly, Amanda’s eyes shot open. It looked like she might have started crying again, but she just sighed. ”That’s right, we were going to meet up today. Then dad said it was too dangerous to go outside and, a-and, I never called them back to tell them not to come.” She placed a hand over half of her face. ”I thought it was stupid to worry about.”
Oh, shit. So that backfired. And here she was actually trying to help for once!
"It was stupid to worry about," Ciri tried hastily, groaning. "Is stupid to worry about! They're fine. Probably just worried about you. So just... focus on you for a sec. Like, you need anything?” She spread her hands as if a vendor displaying wares. ”Water? ... Beer? I can absolutely get you a fucking beer if you need."
Amanda blinked, her eyes looking like they had glazed over while Ciri rapid fired out words at a pace most teenage girls would. ”I don’t really like Beer. B-but I wouldn’t mind some water.” She kicked her feet in the air. ”Though I’ll take a juice if you have it. Grape is my favorite, but I will drink anything.”
Grape juice? Damn, she really was still a kid, after all. Somehow made things worse.
"Yeah, sure, I can grab you some jui—"
Boteg sniffed the air. ”...Melty gold?“
This caused Amanda to sniff as well, or she was trying to prevent snot from leaking out of her head. ”I-is that pizza that I smell? You don’t have any of that left, do you?”
Ciri arched a brow at Boteg, then at Amanda when she mimicked the dragon's motion. "Melty...?" She craned her neck to look in the direction they were sniffing, realizing her own stomach was pitifully empty, too. "Dunno what the pizza status is, but we're gonna make sure we get some. C'mon."
She gestured for the two to follow her further into the hideout, then narrowed her eyes at Boteg as they went. "And it's called cheese, dude. If you wanna get one word right, it’s cheese."
Even so, she did try to stand up a little straighter and stiffer in the presence of the Big Boss. "Yeah, I'd better be, after everything it took to get the damn dragon here." Ciri groaned, but her tone was considerably more polite than usual — and her lips did threaten to curl into a proud smirk. Because hell yeah she deserved the praise. She’d nearly gotten her ass roasted back there.
She looked back towards the girl and shrugged one shoulder. "No damn clue. Some unfortunate chick the GEMINI really wanted dead. So, probably like us. ... You, I mean. A monster."
She turned fully to said, presumed monster girl. “Got a name?”
It hadn’t been that long since Amanda’s harrowing escape. As drained as Ciri felt, she had nothing on this teenager, who looked like a standing corpse. With a voice just loud enough to not be considered a whisper, she said ”Amanda.”
Well, at least she could still talk, as harrowed as she sounded. Ciri took that as a win.
”That’s a nice name!“ Trixy’s response was just fast enough that it sounded prepared.
... She took Trixy joining in on the conversation as a loss.
”Are you a monster?“
”Gemini are the real monsters.” She hugged herself, and her voice started to crack. ”They, they killed-” Her voice cut out completely.
”Thou art of the glass one’s lineage.“ Boteg attempted to explain. ”Me saw thou’s forebearer shattered on the ground in the old drinking hole.“
Billy gave a single, slow nod before looking at Ciri. ”I uh, don’t suppose ya can make sense of that, can you?”
How'd she ended up as a translator!? Ciri sighed, resigned. "... She's Dante's kid. The GEMINI bitches killed him, at the diner." Her brows furrowed as she added on her own: "Shattered the corpse too, by the way, for good measure. And killed tons of others.” She nodded at Amanda. “So, yeah, we pretty much agree on who the monsters are. But they’ll get what’s coming to them, we’ll make fucking sure of that."
But Amanda only broke down more, to the point where she was sobbing.
Shit. Ciri looked to her colleagues for help, because comforting a crying girl was not her strong suit.
”Ah, Dante.” Billy looked at the ceiling. ”He was a rootin’ tootin’ good man if I do say so myself. Wanted to remain neutral in everything that was going on. But we’re all on sides regardless of how we want to live. Monsters and humans can’t live in harmony it seems.”
Ok, that probably made it even worse. Thanks, Boss.
Billy looked at Amanda, but spoke to everyone. ”We’ll talk more later. Lots has happened, and you should all rest. We’ll see to it that our newly arrived have rooms.”
Ciri nearly stopped him. She wanted to hear her praises sung some more and be promised like… a promotion or something, not be left alone to deal with a kid who’d lost her dad and the literal definition of a Manic Pixie Dream Nightmare Girl.
Billy excused himself, but Trixy remained behind. ”And what’s your name, tall dark and golden?“
”Boteg!“ The dragon man looked very proud of his name.
”I like it, very unique!“ She nodded a few times before looking over at Ciri. ”I’ll go prepare their rooms! Was there anything you needed?“
“Yeah, some medical assistance. Without any damn boo-boo kissing. Just work your magic like a normal person, please, Trix.” Ciri half-pleaded, exhausted as all hell. “And look her over too. She… fell, I think.” She looked over to Amanda, who was presumably still crying. “Hey, Amanda! You… uh, injured? Like, physically?”
Amanda covered her mouth with her hand and shook her head.
”No kissing…“ Trixy squinted her eyes. ”So like, no physical contact?“ She said in an attempt to make it seem like Ciri’s very specific request was not necessary, despite the fact that everyone in the area knew it was. ”I don’t have any magic like that, sorry! Maybe turn back into a human? That’s what I do when I need to heal up and there’s nobody around. I’ll see if I can find Luna. She’s got normal healing magic!“ Looking rather proud of herself, Trixy scuffed her way down one of the Bastion’s many corridors. Ciri, Amanda, and Boteg were left to their own devices for the time being.
“I mean, yeah, I can turn into— but that won’t— ah. She’s gone.” Thank god. But also fuck you, a little bit? She was in pain here!
With a sigh, Amanda wiped her eyes. ”Is there any place to sit down?”
Boteg immediately noticed a giant spool of cable and slid it behind Amanda. The bastion was constantly under construction, so such things were usually just laying around. Billy must have recently carved out the area, because the walls were unfinished. In a few days, they’d cover the walls with slates of stone, or repurpose buried concrete if they were feeling especially fancy. Amanda took a seat and placed her hands on her knees.
While Mr. Bootleg was being all gentlelizardly, Ciri did in fact turn back into a human, gasping as she did. Instinctively, she reached to touch her back, even though she knew the injuries were gone — for now, while she stayed human. Which probably wasn’t long.
”What, is your name?” Amanda looked to Ciri. ”I don’t think you told me.”
“Huh? Oh. It’s Cirilla. Ciri’s fine,” she answered, at least a little less awkwardly now that Amanda was attempting to talk and not just cry her eyes out. She shifted her weight from one leg to another, avoiding eye contact at all costs, and hazarded: “The other girls are okay. Just, if you were wondering. Pretty sure they got out.”
That was, assuming the fleeing teenage girls she’d seen had been Amanda’s friends. For all she knew, they could’ve been her bullies or something. In which case fuck it, she was officially done trying to comfort anyone ever again.
Briefly, Amanda’s eyes shot open. It looked like she might have started crying again, but she just sighed. ”That’s right, we were going to meet up today. Then dad said it was too dangerous to go outside and, a-and, I never called them back to tell them not to come.” She placed a hand over half of her face. ”I thought it was stupid to worry about.”
Oh, shit. So that backfired. And here she was actually trying to help for once!
"It was stupid to worry about," Ciri tried hastily, groaning. "Is stupid to worry about! They're fine. Probably just worried about you. So just... focus on you for a sec. Like, you need anything?” She spread her hands as if a vendor displaying wares. ”Water? ... Beer? I can absolutely get you a fucking beer if you need."
Amanda blinked, her eyes looking like they had glazed over while Ciri rapid fired out words at a pace most teenage girls would. ”I don’t really like Beer. B-but I wouldn’t mind some water.” She kicked her feet in the air. ”Though I’ll take a juice if you have it. Grape is my favorite, but I will drink anything.”
Grape juice? Damn, she really was still a kid, after all. Somehow made things worse.
"Yeah, sure, I can grab you some jui—"
Boteg sniffed the air. ”...Melty gold?“
This caused Amanda to sniff as well, or she was trying to prevent snot from leaking out of her head. ”I-is that pizza that I smell? You don’t have any of that left, do you?”
Ciri arched a brow at Boteg, then at Amanda when she mimicked the dragon's motion. "Melty...?" She craned her neck to look in the direction they were sniffing, realizing her own stomach was pitifully empty, too. "Dunno what the pizza status is, but we're gonna make sure we get some. C'mon."
She gestured for the two to follow her further into the hideout, then narrowed her eyes at Boteg as they went. "And it's called cheese, dude. If you wanna get one word right, it’s cheese."
20 | Female | Maverick Alternative | So(ME)thing On Your Mind
Kiss & Make Up | Handgun | Physical | We Are But Dust and Shadow
Hellspawn | Streetside Devil
Friends on the Other Side | Shadow | Abyssus Abyssum Invocat
[Obfuscate, Intangible] Damage X (6), Restrain (4), Blink (4), Minor Heal (2), Summon (4), Enhance (2), Powerful (0), Homing (2), Avoid (2), AoE (2), Bend (0), Construction (4)
DAMAGE: B | SPEED: C | SENTINEL: E | 1000
PHYSICAL: D | ARCANE: D | CHAOS: E | 1000
Kiss & Make Up | Handgun | Physical | We Are But Dust and Shadow
Hellspawn | Streetside Devil
Friends on the Other Side | Shadow | Abyssus Abyssum Invocat
[Obfuscate, Intangible] Damage X (6), Restrain (4), Blink (4), Minor Heal (2), Summon (4), Enhance (2), Powerful (0), Homing (2), Avoid (2), AoE (2), Bend (0), Construction (4)
DAMAGE: B | SPEED: C | SENTINEL: E | 1000
PHYSICAL: D | ARCANE: D | CHAOS: E | 1000
That was a little over a week ago, and Ciri could've really used another pizza right about now.
Like last time, Ciri was the only Esper that Maverick Alternative had to spare for today's operation. That meant she'd gotten to make her way to the meeting spot in blissful silence, alone save for her ever watchful shadow. Be that some tension remained between them still; they'd never really worked out their differences when it came to the conclusion of their previous mission, after all.
In other words, Ciri was still pissed, but refused to talk about it.
Anyway, unlike last time, Ciri wasn't going to be the only Esper on the case as a whole, and that didn't help with her mood any. Somehow, the big shots had managed to hire two freelancers to aid with their cause, no doubt in exchange for a hefty sum of money. No way those greedy bastards would've moved their asses otherwise.
Ciri could only hope that being able to hire freelancers at all meant that the GEMINI, who would abso-fucking-lutely show up today too, weren't in too good a financial situation.
"Can we just ditch them if they're late?" Ciri sighed up at Boteg, leaning against his leg, nose buried in her phone.
