Home 24: A house in this market?

[Arkhosia]

[St Lazarus’s Apartment]

"I've only been serving her for... about a week?" Fidelia responds, nodding as she moves towards one of the cabinets. "We met by chance too. She... well, I owe her a lot." The scarred woman adds, avoiding the actual contents of said meeting in a truly deft and artful manner as she sets a glass down and retrieves a carton of store-brand orange juice. It doesn't seem to occur to her to offer something to her guest until she's about to pour it, pausing rather awkwardly with the carton leveled just barely too high for its contents to flow. "Er, do you want anything to, um, drink?"

Calm Reed might get the sense that Fidelia doesn't entertain guests often. Maybe never.

[Tina's Place]

The silent songstress's easy smile flickers when she hears Tina's remark. So this glinting chrome angel was yet another wealthy young maiden with far too much time on her hands. It wasn't too long ago that Cantata had been in the same place, and a degree of concern briefly formed in her expression as she remembered all to well the kind of trouble she got herself into. One of her delicate hands subconsciously caressed the scar on her throat as she briefly reminisced.

Well, not quite. Cantata types with an amicable little look. There's plenty of fighting, yes, but I prefer more... delicate operations. I'm not built for throwing punches, but when it comes to convincing people what's in their best interest...." With that, she gives Fettina a charming little smile. Not that I can't defend myself, of course. I can line up a shot just as well as any gun for hire... and I have a few tricks up my sleeve too.

[Morty]

[St Lazarus’s Apartment]

"Gladly, though I would prefer no alcohol," Calm Reed says. She guesses Fidelia might not know what a monk's duties are. "I met her on my way to Vigil. The park I was going through was infested with the living dead, which I'd dispatched easily enough. So had she, but the looks of it. She was going to go to MERC, but certain events on our way persuaded her otherwise."

[Gnrlshrimp]

[Thad's Apartment]

And sometime later, after plenty more teasing Thad and a little more flirting with Vivi, Lucy will be off on her way, leaving Vivi with one half of a pair of stones that can be used to send short messages to each other...just in case.

And it is really a just in case measure, as Lucy isn't exactly subtle about her desire to stop by again sometime sooner rather than later. Poor Thad will just have to hope they do find a way to give him a little warning.

[Recaiden]

Hrm. Koshal isn't the law here. He doesn't have the authority to punish this criminal. But he can't risk bringing this very vast, possibly powerful gremlin to a populated area for justice. He also thinks this crystal gremlin might have something to do with the crystals in the water.
So he once again tries to pray for guidance! Only this time Faye is watching reeeeal closely. If he doesn't get some sort of sign maybe he should just let it go.

A few common misconceptions there.

1. This is a lawless wilderness, and Koshal has unlimited authority to do anything Leah asks of him.
2. The gremlin has no legal standing anywhere, not even the nearby village. It is not a citizen, an alien, nor even a proper resident, and thus cannot be a criminal.

It does have something to do with the water crystals though, good insight there Koshal.

He does not get an externally observable sign that Faye could see. Though since she's on such watch, she probably notices that in the direction the gremlin is failing to escape to, there's a tiny glint of crystal off in the trees.
But if he looks inside himself, he might find that he already knows what to do. He can't let it go. That would be shirking his knightly responsibility and pushing the decision forward to someone else.

[Arkhosia]

[St Lazarus’s Apartment]

"Gladly, though I would prefer no alcohol," Calm Reed says. She guesses Fidelia might not know what a monk's duties are. "I met her on my way to Vigil. The park I was going through was infested with the living dead, which I'd dispatched easily enough. So had she, but the looks of it. She was going to go to MERC, but certain events on our way persuaded her otherwise."

"O-of course." Fidelia obliges the request, pouring the glass and offering it to the dragonblooded monk before fetching another to repeat the same process for herself. "Ah, I see. I'm happy you did. She... well, she likes to say she's not that good of a person, that she's fighting people just to keep living... but she's been so kind to me. VIGIL is a good fit, there's definitely good in her." Wow, getting a little verbose there, Fidelia. What did Jen say about gushing about her? Nevermind how unceasingly charitable she's been towards you, or the way you feel like your debt to her just keeps piling up even with all the things you've been doing to pay her back.

[Morty]

[St Lazarus’s Apartment]

"She carries a heavy burden," Calm Reed simply says as she takes the juice. Hmm. An odd drink. She's used to tea or simple water. "And seems determined to see it through, for better or worse. But what did she do to earn such gratitude from you?" she then asks, seeming to see through Fidelia's words to their intent.

[Murkus]

[Tina's Place]

The silent songstress's easy smile flickers when she hears Tina's remark. So this glinting chrome angel was yet another wealthy young maiden with far too much time on her hands. It wasn't too long ago that Cantata had been in the same place, and a degree of concern briefly formed in her expression as she remembered all to well the kind of trouble she got herself into. One of her delicate hands subconsciously caressed the scar on her throat as she briefly reminisced.

Well, not quite. Cantata types with an amicable little look. There's plenty of fighting, yes, but I prefer more... delicate operations. I'm not built for throwing punches, but when it comes to convincing people what's in their best interest...." With that, she gives Fettina a charming little smile. Not that I can't defend myself, of course. I can line up a shot just as well as any gun for hire... and I have a few tricks up my sleeve too.

[Tina's Place]

"So many talents. Someone didn't hire you to charm me, now did they?" Asks Fettina, grinning with mirth. She hoped she hadn't annoyed anyone quite that seriously yet.

"Well, you don't have to worry about any of that tonight. We can just relax." says the chrome gal, indicating the elevator door as it slides open to let them out on Tina's platform. Her apartment door glides silently into the wall, revealing a square entry chamber ringed by a miniature moat, complete with small white flowers and lilypads floating lazily along the top. A stone path winds round between that moat and a clear square pool at the room's center. There stands a statue depicting a nymph, bent at the waist, holding a silvery pitcher that feeds the waters of the chamber.

A staircase opposite the entry leads up into Tina's lavish apartment. Faintly crescent shaped, lushly carpeted, decked out with neo-modern furniture in a wavy style. There's a kitchen alcove at one end of the crescent and the door to Tina's bedroom at the other. A floor to ceiling window along the length of the whole apartment looks out over Inside's skyline.

Fettina will try to take Cantie by the hand and lead her past the burbling fountain. "Come on doll. What do you like to drink?"

[Lord Magtok]

Ithuriel's Demiplane

Spoiler

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[Ithuriel's Demiplane]

Ithuriel doesn't like this. It's written all over her face. She couldn't look more nervous about this. Her hug even becomes a little more...clingy.

Ambriel appears to be doing a very poor job of reassuring her.

It probably shouldn't be that surprising. She's spent far too much time stuck in deadtime and not having Ambriel as her cute fake-angel boyfriend.

She lets out a very heavy sigh. "You're going to insist on this, aren't you? This is- it's going to be one of those things, isn't it? Where you have to do it alone because you can't just-" She pauses, cutting herself off before she says something stupid. How obnoxious would it be to criticise him for not letting her do everything? What, does she just want him to keep him locked away and never let him do anything, like some sort of pet?

"I'm sorry. I don't want to see you get hurt or killed, but I can't be that overly protective of you." Ithuriel steps back and rubs her forehead, trying to reconcile the conflicting interests in her mind. "It's not like you have to go get it immediately-" she mutters, almost pleadingly. "But I'm not letting you leave without one of my temporary horns, so you've at least got a way out if things do go wrong, alright?"

Ambriel considers arguing this further, or telling Ithuriel that she can come along too, but this is probably the best deal we're going to get, and bringing her along would just lead to her doing all the fighting and scouting and exploring. What would that prove? We'd still be her delicate, fragile little thing, her sweet little mortal boy toy. We're more than that, aren't we? We're still a MagClone, and part of a very dangerous paramilitary organization which will be very important in the future, just you wait.

"I'll be careful, I promise. I'll scout out the place, figure out when he's not home, arm myself for a big fight, and leave the second it looks like I might be in over my head. I won't rush out and do this right now; I'll take my time and plan this all out. I haven't been Magtok for a long time; I know better than to just run in and die and hope the next clone does a better job," he tries again to reassure her. It's just one little infiltration mission in the same cave where he grew up. Easy enough, right?

[Rebonack]

[Ravanys' Home]

Hannah's eyes widen a bit as she watches Zee turn a seed into a pumpkin right in front of her eyes.

Oh, wow. That's pretty freaking impressive.

I could never really get into medical stuff. It's just too...messy. Blech.

Says the young woman covered in grease.

After the pumpkin, Hannah nods a bit. Yep. But she just says that's all there is to it. And you know what? I haven't really felt like bugging her too much about it. She gestures to the workshop below. I got a good setup doing stuff I like. And she's taken care of me for fifteen years now. Can't really complain too much.

"I'm sorta the same way with machines," Zee laughs. "They just don't make any sense to me. I know most of them are simpler than the stuff I work with, but I just don't have the head for it, y'know? Pumpkins and people? Those make sense. But pistons and spark plugs and stuff? Can't make heads or tails of them."

She gives a little shrug.

"Probably isn't worth worry about, then," Zee replies. "There are a TON of stories out there that we'll never get details on. And that's fine. When you're in my line of work, you learn pretty fast that there are things people are better off not knowing. You don't need to know everything to be happy, after all. Knowing everything would probably make lots of people UNhappy! Like... knowing what a rotting whale carcass smells like. That's knowledge you can live without. Trust me on that one."

Then she glances down to the shop floor!

"So... what are you working on? I mean, I know it's a vehicle of some sort. I'm not quite that clueless."

[KerfuffleMach2]

[Ravanys' Home]

Hannah shrugs a bit. Yeah, I guess. If it was important, she'd mention it, right?

Sounds like something she's told herself a bunch.

Jumping at the chance to change the subject, Hannah gains a huge grin and waves her hand towards the stairs. Come on, I'll show you.

Hannah flies down the stairs fairly quickly and heads for the car. Under the balcony is a walled off section with a few doors and curtained windows. One of the doors opens and Ravanys steps out, hair wet and dressed in different clothes. Guess she wanted to wash off the blood stains.

Hannah jerks the tarp off the front of the car, revealing the front end of a Delorean.

Wanted to make a working replica of the Delorean from Back to the Future. Complete with hover and time travel.

Ravanys grins a bit. Yeah, and she's too stubborn to buy some time travel tech and work it in.

Well that's no fun. I gotta build it myself. So I know how it works. She shakes her head a bit. Course, it turns out it was a terribly designed car that is a pain to maintain, let alone make fly and travel through time.

[Rebonack]

[Ravanys' Home]

Zee follows Hannah down for a better look at the vehicle, at which she gives a little whistle. "Difficult to maintain, but it LOOKS neat," she points out.

That's a pretty important point in favor of it, right there.

Looking neat (and looking authentic) is sort of the whole goal behind the exercise, isn't it?

"I can't say I really approve of time travel, though. Too many temporal paradoxes. Paradoxes give me hives," she says, her tone completely serious.

That...

Might have been a joke.

Maybe.

"Are you trying to make something that hops between universes that are out of synchronicity with each other? Or are you trying to punch space/time in the nose in this universe? Because... um... if you're trying to the do the second one it might attract some really fishy attention."

That sounds suspiciously like a warning.

[Arkhosia]

[St Lazarus’s Apartment]

Fidelia nods, taking a sip herself... and pauses as Reed inquires further, setting the glass down gently before taking a shaky breath. "I... I'm not sure just how... comfortable I am, talking about it." The page thinks for a brief moment or two. Well, Jen did trust this woman enough to share her address.... "But... I will try."

And so, after a second to collect herself, she speaks again. "I used to be a street urchin, surviving as best I could in Skyside. I was little better than a wild animal then... I fought, I stole, I killed, and I scavenged, all just to live another day. And then... my luck ran out." Fidelia's quiet voice began to waver. "A-a group of men, they... they cornered me, b-beat me senseless when I killed one of them. She clenches her fist, taking another shaky breath in an attempt to keep it together even as her voice wells up with anguish and it all comes pouring out.

Spoiler: spoilered because slightly vivid implications of, well, sexual trauma

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"T-they... hurt me. So, so much. Did... things to me, made me bleed, again and again, no matter how many times I begged and pleaded and screamed, until I could beg and scream and bleed no more. T-then they dragged me, out into the street, to... discard me. Kill me, toss me into the gutter, l-let the rats feast." It's then that Fidelia seems to realize how worked up she's gotten, notice the speed of her breathing and the rise of her normally soft voice to a relatively louder crescendo. She takes another couple of moments to calm herself, soothe her trembling form and wipe... were those tears? had... had she been crying and not even realized it?

"And that's... that's when Jenette found me. She killed them, gave those bastards a kinder fate than they ever deserved, and saved my life. I... I owe her my life. I owe her everything." A small smile forms as she looks back up at Calm Reed. "I just want to repay her... repay all she's done for me, and repay what she continues to do for me."

Tina's Place

Another quiet laugh, and Cantata shakes her head. Pointing towards herself and then sending a focused look towards Fettina, she chuckles and shakes her head - Her, charm Fettina? not a chance. She moves to follow the attempt to convey this point with text, typing If anything, I'd say you... before her fingers pause, and an audible gasp slips from her lungs.

The awed look on Cantata's face says it all as she gazes wordlessly at the lavish decor and beautiful fountain - wow. She'd seen many beautiful places in her time... but they were mostly swanky clubs and gorgeous ballrooms, state houses and a couple truly luxurious hotels. None of them approached this sort of aesthetic. Tina's place felt welcoming and tranquil, not loud and ostentatious. So it wasn't hard at all for the chrome-skinned pianist to take the songstress by the hand and lead her onwards, the woman still following in a slight stupor. Anything you might suggest. She attempts to flirt, trying to recover.

[Gnrlshrimp]

[Ithuriel's Demiplane]

This is probably something they're going to have to discuss at some point. But not now. Definitely not now. She can just add it to the list of potential problems to be discussed at a later date. A list that hopefully doesn't grow too long.

A lot of it can be tied together under the banner of "Ithuriel is an OP angel and Ambriel isn't" anyway. Big banner though. Big issue. Later.

"As long as you've got one of my horns with you so I know you've got a way out, I-" She sighs. "I want to say I won't worry, but I will a bit. I promise I won't worry too much and I won't interfere, alright?" Hopefully that's fair enough. "Anyway, we can worry about it later. For now we should get going. I still want to meet the rest of your gang."

[Morty]

[St Lazarus’s Apartment]

Calm Reed listens with well-hidden dismay. What a wretched pile of rancid garbage this Skyside is. Like Nexus... the one in Creation, that is... or Wu-Jian. Teeming masses of people just left to their own devices and the mercy of the brigands. No authority, mortal or divine, to keep them in line. This world clearly needs her, but she's just one Dragon-Blooded. And... what did Fidelia call St. Lazarus? Her birth name, she guesses. But the knight didn't give it to her, so she'll keep on using the St. Lazarus moniker. After all, she's not using her birth name either.

"Your debt to her is great indeed. And it does need to be repaid. Maybe in time you'll see a way to do it. Perhaps not to her, but by carrying her good deed forward and passing it on to someone else."

[Arkhosia]

St. Lazarus’s Apartment

Fidelia sniffles, drying a few lingering teardrops on her sleeve as she listens to Calm Reed with a nod. It was... a little bit of a counterintuitive suggestion to her, as it was Jenette she was indebted to specifically. But... maybe she was talking more about some sort of cosmic debt, a sort of “good was done to me, I must do good to have earned it” deal? It wasn’t a philosophy she had ever heard of before, and it sounded odd to s woman who had only really had time to dwell on the next meal and favors she owed... but perhaps it was something to think further upon.

”Y-yes, maybe...” the squire concedes, looking down a little apologetically. A concerned Romero trots over to her and she gives the dog a few gentle scritches. Gods, I-I’m... I’m sorry I just, l-let all of that spill out of me. You came here to see J- Lazarus, not hear my life story.” The girl tries to inject a little bit of levity into the conversation at the end, forcing a smile.

[Murkus]

[Tina's Place]

"Does typing with that thing start to get difficult after you start drinking?" Tina asks, winking and leading Cantata across the carpet into the chrome kitchen. It's... much the same color as Tina actually, and seemingly featureless save for an empty counter and an island in the center of the floor. At least until a bar rack of tall glass bottles simply slides out from a hidden alcove in the wall. "Come on, tell me your poison. I promise I won't get judgy."

[Morty]

[St. Lazarus’s Apartment]

"That may be, but I did find out something about her, didn't I?" Calm Reed says, smiling ever so slightly. "If you have any questions about me, feel free. It's only fair, after you've told me something so personal."

[Ashen Lilies]

Electra does a half shake of her head at Fayyaad's comparison. It's sort of similar and yet not at the same time. She doesn't really know how to describe it properly, and the tiefling manages to escape to the outdoors to retrieve fire wood before she can find the words. She blushes slightly as she looks to Cass.

"Sorry, I guess I made an assumption I shouldn't have." The blush deepens a bit. "I'm still not very good with magic."

Cassandra gives Electra a reassuring smile.

"Well, it's the Nexus," she says. "It's difficult not to make assumptions, but just as difficult to not make bad ones."

[KerfuffleMach2]

[Ravanys' Home]

Ravanys heads over towards the bag of bagels from before, grabs them, and heads to the kitchen area.

Hannah nods a bit. Oh, yeah, it looks great. Better than just the car itself.

Hannah waves her hand in the air a bit.

Eh. This universe, but more of a past viewing device. Like, travel back to the past to see it, but no interaction. And no future travel.

Hm...wonder if she has a specific goal for that...

I know there's a bunch of beings that would frown on messing with the time stream. Which is why I don't wanna mess with it. Besides, that'd cause a bunch of issues.

[Rebonack]

[Ravanys' Home]

Bagels are fantastic.

Zee, meanwhile, nods at the time travel talk.

She can think of a reason why Hannah might be interested in doing this.

It rhymes with head Clarence.

"Not saying that won't help you a little, but even the act of observing changes things," Zee mentions. "Or at least that's my understanding of it. Observation is just as much of a thing as any of the other things that are... things."

She wrinkles her nose a bit.

"That was an awful explanation... umm... but the, uh, the things I was talking about? There are these fishy things that are really into time and space and making sure the arrow of time is working right. And there are a whole bunch of these fishy things active in the Nexus right now. So I'm not saying that you shouldn't do this? Just that maybe now or any time soonish wouldn't be a great plan if you don't want to get aged backwards until you cease to exist."

That sure would be awful.

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Lake Cabin - Private Party]

Electra takes a step closer to Cass, and smiles, still blushing slightly.

"Very true. The really bad ones can get you killed. But there do seem to be some universal constants that just about everyone makes, too."

[Arkhosia]

[Tina's Place]

"Does typing with that thing start to get difficult after you start drinking?" Tina asks, winking and leading Cantata across the carpet into the chrome kitchen. It's... much the same color as Tina actually, and seemingly featureless save for an empty counter and an island in the center of the floor. At least until a bar rack of tall glass bottles simply slides out from a hidden alcove in the wall. "Come on, tell me your poison. I promise I won't get judgy."

Cantata makes a so-so gesture with her other hand, briefly thinking on how best to reply without letting go. Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be a great way to do it, and with some reluctance she slips her gloved hand out to make a more wordy reply.

It can get... a little dicey, but sometimes it catches the mistakes for me. She leaves out the fact that it's occasionally a double-edged sword. An old friend she met for drinks still poked fun at her for the time she told a guard they were there to see Captain Coral Lion.

Well, I know it's a bit basic... but I've always had a soft spot for a cosmopolitan. Cantata glides to stand opposite from Fettina on the other side of the counter, leaning against it on her forearms with an interested little look. She was curious to see what Tina might make for herself, as much as she was to hear her reply.

[St. Lazarus’s Apartment]

"That may be, but I did find out something about her, didn't I?" Calm Reed says, smiling ever so slightly. "If you have any questions about me, feel free. It's only fair, after you've told me something so personal."

With a small little chuckle, Fidelia nods. "I guess so." She thinks for a second, realizing she didn't know very much about the visitor in the first place. "Well... I don't really know who you are, just a martial artist with a shared friend... could you tell me about yourself?"

[Morty]

[St. Lazarus’s Apartment]

"Certainly." Calm Reed bows her head. "I come from a world we simply call Creation and a mighty empire called the Realm. I'm Dragon-Blooded, blessed by the Immaculate Dragons with both power and responsibility. Great Houses of Dragon-Blooded rule the Realm, but some of us choose a different path and join the Immaculate Order. The task of monks, both Dragon-Blooded and mortal, is to remind the Dragon-Blooded of the restraint and responsibilities demanded by their station, teach mortals how to mind their own roles and keep gods in check, making sure they perform their duties and don't extort worship. We also battle the vile Anathema who steal power from the sun and the moon." She pauses. "I and some mortal monks were headed towards an island nation with a mission to teach them about the Immaculate Faith, but we were caught by a vicious storm. Even my skills as a sailor weren't enough and I was the only survivor... washing up in this strange place."

[Lake Cabin - Private Party]

Strangely enough, Fayyaad doesn't seem to be back yet.

[Ashen Lilies]

[Lake Cabin - Private Party]

Electra takes a step closer to Cass, and smiles, still blushing slightly.

"Very true. The really bad ones can get you killed. But there do seem to be some universal constants that just about everyone makes, too."

[Lake Cabin - Private Party]

"O-oh? And what would some of those be?" Cass asks, suddenly noticing Electra's proximity to her, and starting to get a little flustered and blushing herself...

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Lake Cabin - Private Party]

"Everyone wants a place to be. I guess you might call it a concept of 'home'. A safe, comfortable place where they can be themselves with those they consider family, whatever form that concept takes," Electra says, fixing those deep blue eyes of hers on Cass's for a moment. "Even the worst villains need a place they can retreat back to when they get beaten. They might not call it 'home' exactly, but the concept is the same."

She pauses for a moment, looking away, and chuckling, then smiles and fixes Cass again with her gaze.

"I guess what I'm saying, in a very ramble-y, roundabout way, is that...I like you, a lot. And...I get the feeling you feel the same about me. Am I wrong?"

[KerfuffleMach2]

[Ravanys' Apartment]

Hannah raises an eyebrow in mild curiosity. Fishy things?

Ravanys returns holding a bagel. They here for any specific reason? Because that could be a little troublesome.

[Ashen Lilies]

[Lake Cabin - Private Party]

"Everyone wants a place to be. I guess you might call it a concept of 'home'. A safe, comfortable place where they can be themselves with those they consider family, whatever form that concept takes," Electra says, fixing those deep blue eyes of hers on Cass's for a moment. "Even the worst villains need a place they can retreat back to when they get beaten. They might not call it 'home' exactly, but the concept is the same."

She pauses for a moment, looking away, and chuckling, then smiles and fixes Cass again with her gaze.

"I guess what I'm saying, in a very ramble-y, roundabout way, is that...I like you, a lot. And...I get the feeling you feel the same about me. Am I wrong?"

[Lake Cabin - Private Party]

Well. That's certainly a lot to unpack. Quite a lot of philosophy in there, that Cass isn't quite sure she's sober enough or in the right mood to begin to tackle and decide if any of it applies to her or not, or what Electra is trying to say with any of it.

That last part is pretty clear, though.

"No. You're not."

[Arkhosia]

[St. Lazarus’s Apartment]

"Certainly." Calm Reed bows her head. "I come from a world we simply call Creation and a mighty empire called the Realm. I'm Dragon-Blooded, blessed by the Immaculate Dragons with both power and responsibility. Great Houses of Dragon-Blooded rule the Realm, but some of us choose a different path and join the Immaculate Order. The task of monks, both Dragon-Blooded and mortal, is to remind the Dragon-Blooded of the restraint and responsibilities demanded by their station, teach mortals how to mind their own roles and keep gods in check, making sure they perform their duties and don't extort worship. We also battle the vile Anathema who steal power from the sun and the moon." She pauses. "I and some mortal monks were headed towards an island nation with a mission to teach them about the Immaculate Faith, but we were caught by a vicious storm. Even my skills as a sailor weren't enough and I was the only survivor... washing up in this strange place."

Fidelia does her best to listen as she drinks, nodding along and making a sincere attempt to absorb all of the new jargon and terminology. "It sounds like a rather... fantastic world to be a part of. Like one of those storybooks I used to read, something truly amazing!" And for a girl who grew up in dirty alleys and only got glimpses of the Nexus's true marvels, it wasn't surprising that she would be so enchanted with it all. "What does Dragon-Blooded mean?"

[Nova_Eclipse]

[Lake Cabin - Private Party]

Electra's smile widens for a moment, and her blush deepens, an instant before she takes another step, and kisses Cassandra on the lips, gently. After a few moments, she pulls back, the smile returning.

"I may not be very good with magic, but I think we can still find a way to make the night magical, wouldn't you say?"

[Rebonack]

[Ravanys' Apartment]

"Fishy things," Zee confirms. "Galgalim, ophanim, or just 'wheels'. Depending on who you talk to. There isn't an exact word that matches up nicely in Common. It implies whirling, like a dust devil or a vortex or a whirlpool or, uh, a wheel. They're an order of empyrean. A sort of angel, kind of."

So something like Zee.

Just a different sort of critter than Zee.

"I think the empyrean activity is linked to whatever has got all the fae causing mischief," Zee reasons, leaning back a bit and crossing her arm over her chest. "I don't know if one side got the other all riled up, or if there's some other event that kicked both sides into high gear. But regardless of the reason there are a bunch of otherworldly jerks lurking around in the Nexus right now making things hard for normal people to do normal people things."

She sticks her tongue out at Hannah.

"Yes, I consider building time traveling cars to fall under the category of 'normal people things'."

Just being clear, here.