Riverside 15

[Shadowcaller]

Lotus Gardens

Cessie looks worried for a moment, had she somehow insulted her? "Oh no, I honestly don't mind that much, Jezebel. It was just a joke. Keep that form as long as you like." She smiles widely at Jezebel. Though it was somewhat... distracting, admittedly.

[UncleWolf]

Lotus Gardens

"Whatever is comfortable for you, Cessie. Today is about getting you out and about." He says before closing his eyes to stretch a little more, working out the kinks in the new form. "So what would you like to do? We can keep walking if you want. Otherwise there's not much around here except some clubs, taverns, and a couple restaurants." Jezebel explains as he reaches into the air to pull out his cloak to wrap around his shoulders for warmth. Afterwards he gives Cessie an odd look before reaching into the air to pull out a similar cloak of deepest black. As it moves, she'll see that there are faint specks of starlight within. The light doesn't move, but no matter where the cloak it, it shows stars beyond normal vision, as if it were a window into deep space. Without a word Jezebel steps up to Cessie to throw it around her shoulders and fixing it in place with a simple silver brooch. "This first though. It'll get cold towards sunset."

[Shadowcaller]

Lotus Gardens

Cessie blinks, too surprised to even move for a moment. "Oh... thank you, Jezebel." She replies as she pats the cloak that Jezebel put around her. She had been thinking about places to go to, but now her train of thought was gone as this suddenly felt a lot like a date to her. Was Jezebel trying to make her awkward? Probably!
"So is this suddenly a date?" She muses as she glances at the former daemon.

[UncleWolf]

Lotus Gardens

Jezebel takes a step back and gives a sigh, reaching up with both hands to run his/her fingers through his/her hair. "In other circumstances, I'd very much enjoy saying yes, but now..." The 'elf' turns around, putting his back towards Cessie and just looks up at the sky for a bit. "It'd be taking advantage of you if this turned into an actual date, Cessie, and I admit on one hand I'd enjoy it very much, but on the other, I'd regret it very much. And I think you would to." Jezebel explains before turning back around, waiting for a response.

[Shadowcaller]

Lotus Gardens

Cessie had expected perhaps a joke or some other clever response to that. But never that much honesty. She looks over Jezebel for a moment before she shakes her head and smiles. "Let's simply call it a night out then. Believe me, I don't think I woulf be ready to date you Jezebel, if I'd ever be. I imagine that would be something quite... special." She replies before turning to look up at the sky as well.

[UncleWolf]

Lotus Gardens

Jezebel's form shimmers for a moment, as if the being was going to change shape again, but apparently he decides not to at the last second, instead looking up once more. "I haven't had cause to blush in years, Cessie. Thank you." The 'elf' says, drawing his cloak tighter. "Well, there's a music club around here that we can go to get a bite to eat as the band plays. They're non-magic as well." He offers, looking back at Cessie and giving a small smile. At the moment it was simply too tempting to take advantage of the situation where she was intoxicated so hopefully getting her out of the open would help undo that.

Temple of The Burning Light

Whenever Dipsnig or MERC's representative comes to pick up Krait, they'll see that a woman is waiting for them, Krait seated next to her. The woman is tall, a giant of a human at nearly seven feet tall but her powerful form is still graceful with smooth pale skin and silver hair that's tied into a braid that stretches down to her lower back. She wears a shimmering silver dress and several rings on her right hand. She'd be fairly pretty in an angular sort of way if it weren't for the horribly mangled left cheek she has, torn so bad that it reveals teeth beneath. Despite being in a temple where people who've done horrible things could be burned alive, she appears completely at peace, even smiling slightly with her eyes closed as she waits.

[Shadowcaller]

Lotus Gardens

Cessie turns to look at Jezebel in surprise. She had blushed out of that? She looks closer at the former daemon as if hoping to detect a hint of that mythological blush color on her cheeks. Cessie didn't even think it possible to embarrass Jezebel! She was really full of surprises tonight.
"I'm not sure wherever I should question my own decency of be flattered." The sorceress replies with a laugh. "But more magical music wouldn't do anything Jezebel, I won't be able to trigger it again for another two days or so just bring it on. What kind of music do they play?" She seems all too willing to follow along.

[UncleWolf]

Lotus Gardens

Cessie does find what she's looking for as the elf's cheeks are soft pink compared to the rest of his skin. He's silent for a few moments before giving a shudder and regaining his composure. "They play a mix. Soft jazz, some blues, swing, dance, rock, pop, whatever they feel like. They also serve pretty much any food you'd want. Custom orders from the kitchen."

[Shadowcaller]

Lotus Gardens

"That sounds nice enough, I even start to get hungry." She replies while walking along. "I must say it feels so much easier to move now with that baby-weight off me. I wish losing weight was always this easy." She'd go back in a couple of hours, but she could enjoy it while it lasted.

[UncleWolf]

Lotus Gardens

"I can make that permanent if you'd like." Jezebel says with a chuckle. "One of the purposes of this place is to change people to how they'd like to look after all. It's generally a slow process, but I have some ability to help with it." He explains as he walks, guiding Cessie towards a single story building with the name "The Music Stand".

[Shadowcaller]

Lotus Gardens

The sorceress giggles. "Maybe, I'll consider it. Don't get your hopes up though, you know that I'm in bed with another god." Not sure Artaris would approve of this simile but Cessie found it extremely funny now for some reason.

[Morty]

[Alleyway]

The gnolls come rushing into the alley.

"What happened here?" the female asks Sticks as she crouches next to the dead woman. Meanwhile, the male gnoll scans their surroundings, sniffing intently.

[Temple of The Burning Light]

Dipsnig comes riding there on Viima, bearing the requested metal in a bag of holding. He's alone. Despite the task he's here to accomplish, he looks strangely calm and composed.

[UncleWolf]

Lotus Gardens

"I'll bet he wouldn't be as fun as me there." Jezebel teases with a grin. "And simply consider it a gift, not a blessing. I have plenty of worshipers, I don't need more." He explains as they get to the door to the restaurant. "What sort of music do you prefer?" He asks, hand on the door but not opening it yet. Knowing him, he's likely getting the band prepared for her, but it's a nice touch.

MagMart

Poor Riverside MagMart. Little does it know the potential ruin it will face. Famine, earthquake, disease? What possible disaster will plague it this time?

Apparently, it's a rather tall woman who goes by Frost who starts off by kicking the front door in with a grin. "Hello, bots. If you wouldn't mind departing, I think that would be a good idea. Take an extra long coffee break. I think you'll need it." She tells the MagBots staffing the place as a hover platform with several large crates on it floats in behind her.

[Shadowcaller]

Lotus Gardens

Cessie simply laughs at that, so she doesn't actually answer that question. "Oh let them play whatever they want. I'm sure they have a much better selection than me." Hestopia had music, but not very advanced instruments so it would likely be hard for the group to copy whatever renaissance music the sorceress were used to. "Ask them play something that suits you."

[Temple of The Burning Light Light's Hearth]

There are no servants in sight, just priests of various ages, races and genders running around taking care of homeless. A female tauren in a black apron and a white robe underneath approaches the two newcomers. "Is there something I can help you with? I like to make sure I personally greet each newcomer and your faces aren't know here yet." She smiles gently.

[Alleyway]

There is a strange scent in the air, blood and ash mixed together that now fills the entire alleyway. There are no physical evidence of either ash or blood however.

[UncleWolf]

Lotus Gardens]]

Jezebel gives a smile and opens the door, revealing a fairly filled restaurant with a large band in the background playing swing music on a stage near a dance floor that's in the middle of the restaurant. The goddess will lead Cessie over to a table inside, offering to take her cloak and even pull her chair out for her before taking a seat himself, watching the band with a small smile. They'll each get a few looks, but the other patrons will go back to their business. "There's no menus, so you'll have to think of what you'd like. They already know what I like, so take your time and think it over." He says, still smiling some and watching the couples dance on the floor. For all that Jezebel has been through and put others through, she honestly seems to be fairly happy now.

[Shadowcaller]

Lotus Gardens

Cessie sits down, taking a look around. Wasn't exactly what she had grown up with, but people seemed happy. Reminded her a bit of Promises and Hope's wedding, though that had been wilder. Or at least that's how she remembered it. "I want to say 'surprise me', but somehow I don't think that would turn out well." Cessie says with a smile as she sits down with Jezebel. "What are you having? Since I was thinking just some simple meat pie. Lamb meat perhaps?"

[UncleWolf]

Lotus Gardens

"Rice pudding with raisins and a bit of brown sugar and cinnamon." Jezebel says. "Surprisingly simple I'm guessing, but it's what I like." He admits before the smile fades and he takes a napkin to cough into it for a couple seconds. The cough fades quickly and he folds the napkin neatly on the table. It takes while for the god to get his smile back, but when he does he flashes it at Cessie. "Never doubt the power of comfort food."

[Shadowcaller]

Lotus Gardens

Cessie raises her eyebrows. "Once a noble, always a noble, Jezebel?" She asks with an amused expression. "I can certainly relate, I had to take classes in mannerism and courtship."

[UncleWolf]

Lotus Gardens

"Same. I took them all before I reached fifteen years." He admits as a waiter brings a couple glasses of ice water for the pair of them and heading off without bothering to take their orders. "Etiquette, dance, formal speech, swordsmanship, lore, and...well, training of a more intimate nature." He adds, frowning deeply in distaste before taking a sip of his water. "If it weren't for being forced to go on my family's tradition of leaving the House in order to find new contacts when I was seventeen and the events that transpired because of it, I'd have been carted off as a political marriage of no particular importance." He explains, looking into his glass as he swirls it around. "I wasn't even a particularly promising one as I was rather inept and dull. I suppose in some ways I'm lucky this happened to me."

[Shadowcaller]

Lotus Gardens

Cessie frowns at well, she didn't remember those parts from her training. While her own life had mostly been governed by her family (until the point she was exiled at least) they hadn't forced her to do that sort of things (I mean, swordfighting? ). But even if she had considered her childhood (and most of her teenage years) a happy one, she saw some similarities in their backstories. Which was rather amazing considering that they must be from different world. The last thing really surprised her however, the words inept and dull wasn't exactly what she associated with Jezebel. "That sounds awful, Jezebel. Yet I have heard similar stories from my world so I have seen it happening all too many times. I'd never consider you 'inept and dull' though, rather the exact opposite of that."

[UncleWolf]

Lotus Gardens

"My eldest sister needed only a few months to establish a lieutenant-ship in the Imperial Navy, the second found our lost genealogy papers stretching back to the founding of our planet in just a week, and the last...no idea what she did but she got three feuds taken care of and even put our House in position to become a Major House rather than a Minor one." He explains. "Me? It took me three weeks to get lost and start selling myself to avoid starvation. Inept is something of an understatement." Jezebel says with a slight smile, trying to show that the memories aren't so painful anymore. "As for dull, I had no goals or motivation and was entirely too plain in appearance to draw in any potential suitors."

When he finishes talking, the food is delivered with Jezzy getting a small dish of rice pudding and Cessie getting a miniature lamb meat pie and her own smaller side of the rice pudding, in case she wished to try some. "But that's entirely too dark for these circumstances. Surely your childhood was happier." After he asks that, the cough returns for a moment, but he already has a napkin ready to cover his mouth. "Pardon me." He apologizes, putting the used napkin aside. "Something is just bothering my throat is all."

[Shadowcaller]

Lotus Gardens

Once Jezebel mentions "selling herself", Cessie no longer wished to discuss that subject. She simply guessed that her "god" had changed her appearance. "You could say that, I became an initiate to Artaris and remained one for a few years." She had technically not chosen this as she had been about eight when her family sent her there, but it had been pretty good in the temple. "Then once it was discovered I had the gift I was moved to the university where I stayed for a couple of years until I had to leave due unfortunate circumstances. I traveled the world for quite a while along with a few friends before I finally settled down in Hestopia again. I'm skipping over a lot of details here but you could say I was pretty adventurous in my youth even if I was forced to leave home at first."

[UncleWolf]

Lotus Gardens

Jezebel gives a smile. "It sounds like it was a bunch of fun, and even I had some in my own travels. Remind me someday and I'll gladly show you the trophies." He says with a grin. "Skulls of alien beasts, xeno armor, and even a few tomes of lore I've still yet to translate. Then I showed up here and the rest, as they call it, is history." He adds before taking a bite of his food, sighing at the taste. Eventually the music picks up pace a little bit and he looks at the floor to see a few more couples head out to dance. For all that's happened, he looks quite content and entertained by it all.

[Shadowcaller]

Lotus Gardens

"Not sure about "fun" in either of our cases, but we both survived our ordeals, made a couple of friends and grew as persons so at large I'd count that as a success." Cessie replies before she shifts her gaze to the dancers and starts eating.

[UncleWolf]

Lotus Gardens

"We have." Jezebel agrees before turning to Cessie with a smile. "I'd ask you for a dance, but I think the rumor-mill is going to have enough of a field day with this as is, don't you?" He asks. "As fast as some rumors travel, you'll probably have calls waiting for you at home by the time you get back."

[Shadowcaller]

Lotus Gardens

That makes Cessie laugh out loud. "Rumor mill? You really think people rumors will spread out from here?" Cessie honestly hadn't considered that for even a minute and it just feels silly that someone would report her and Jezebel hanging out for a while. She leans in a bit closer. "So what will they say about us, huh? That we secretly been lovers all this time? That I broke up with Harnel to just be with you?" She suggests, barely able to keep a straight face.

[Gullara]

[Alleyway]

Sticks is shocked. One good squeeze and the chimera comes apart, split into it's component fragments by the sundering power of the Molkav. He isn't sure if it's because the Claw is so strong or the stitches holding the spirits together were too weak, but the end result is the same. He tries not to watch as the collective memories of the tortured play out across the night sky.

The huge Claw recedes and shrinks back down into the actual artifact. The fingers of that metal horror close, sated, and clench into an impervious fist before falling still completely.

The tall man makes his way forward, the Manipulator dropping to his side, and he stares at the place where the spectral woman was. Wondering. Fearing. It's only a splash of red that draws his gaze. "Miss Kitty, you're bleeding." He would put more shock into his voice, but he believes he's quite out've juice for it now. "Here I... I might have something..." The tall man drops the useless Manipulator and reaches into his cloak with his good hand, eyes turning downward.

As for the Gnolls, Sticks smells distinctly of oil, grease, and scorched air. The sort of ozone smell violent evocation produces.

[Alleyway]

The gnolls come rushing into the alley.

"What happened here?" the female asks Sticks as she crouches next to the dead woman. Meanwhile, the male gnoll scans their surroundings, sniffing intently.

[Alleyway]

Kitty looks down at the blood freely flowing down her chest. Faster than it should be. How much had she been drinking again? "Oh..." She sways precariously and latches on to Sticks' arm. "I think I need to lie down now." She starts to do just that, lie down right there in the street.

[UncleWolf]

Lotus Gardens

"Or that I was Harnel the whole time or that we secretly got rid of him so we could share a life of forbidden love together." Jezebel says with a grin. "That or people will think I've brainwashed you. "

[Shadowcaller]

Lotus Gardens

"Don't be ridiculous Jezebel, clearly I brainwashed you after I broke up with Harnel. But we must of course have a love child, but which one is carrying it? You never wanted to carry children and I think I've carried enough children already. Perhaps we're using Sakura as a surrogate mother." This was a concept she had only happened to come by in the books she had read. The idea of having another woman carry your child was odd but she had understood why some people choose to do it.

[UncleWolf]

Lotus Gardens

Cessie chose the worst moment possible to make that joke as Jezebel was in the middle of taking a drink. Needless to say it is only by his quick hand and another napkin that she doesn't end up getting sprayed by water. The god laughs to the point where he's choking a bit and ends up coughing hard for several long moments, but at the end he's smiling and sets the cloth aside. "I'm pleasantly surprised, Cessie. I didn't figure you'd joke so much. We'll have to see in the morning though. Surely by then people will be talking." He says, a little paler than he was a moment ago. "And it reminds me that I need to check in on some people tomorrow. Surrogates." He points out with a nod before finishing off his meal and sliding the bowl forward a bit.