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Post by C'Leena Thomas on Jun 6, 2023 23:59:16 GMT -5
The day is rather beautiful. Sky is lightly cloudy, wind has a nice chill to it and the sun provides just enough warmth to couple with the windchill nicely. Days like these don't happen too often, but when they do, it practically begs you to spend the day outside. Even better if you can spend that day exploring Eclipse City with your fiancé.
It's the day after Nephele had that moment of realization. They've spent the day so far wandering the streets, making poor financial choices and buying food from stalls that looks even remotely interesting. There isn't a worry for food poisoning since magic exists and C'Leena can just will that away at a moments notice. Every time they finish some sort of food, C'Leena would cast Cure Poison without telling Nephele, both on herself and Nephele at once. C'Leena hasn't the faintest idea if Nephele can tell if she's doing that, as her arms do pulse with the golden glow, but C'Leena tries to time it when Nephele isn't looking.
It's been a few hours since the day has begun, and C'Leena has been talking very animatedly about the various chaos that her and Rose did when they were younger. "Suffice to say, my father didn't exactly appreciate finding out his coffee was in fact, filled with salt instead of sugar. Completely worth it and I'd do it again in a heartbeat." The laugh that comes from C'Leena is the tinkling laugh that doesn't occur very often. It's filled with so much nostalgia it's almost contagious. She sighs lightly, smiling fondly at the shared memories.
"I can't remember if I've said this or not, but I reckon Rose would've loved you." She says, squeezing Nepheles hand. They continue walking for a couple more minutes, before a peculiar sight reveals itself ahead of them. A pair of individuals, a Fellblood and a Human. The Fellblood looks wildly irritated, and the human is trying to get the attention of passersby.
"Excuse me, madams! Would you happen to know Infernal?" The man asks, waving down the couple. C'Leena glances at Nephele, then back to the man. She's about to say that she doesn't right up until the Fellblood speaks.
"Nobody will know my damn language, even you don't! I'm speaking to thin air right now!" The language is awfully familiar to C'Leena - which she'd recognize as Russian. Kind of ironic that Russian is Infernal here, but she's not about to pass this up. The look of shock quickly passes and C'Leena smiles.
"Infernal? I'm passable at it, I think." She says, looking at the Fellblood. The look of shock now on his face is priceless, and the look of relief is palpable on the Humans face. The words flowing out of C'Leenas mouth sound hard and heavy, a complete contrast to the flow and slang of C'Leena speaking English - or Common, as she now knows it to be called.
"Oh, thank the heavens! Look, ma'am, we've somehow managed to get into an argument and he doesn't speak common, but can understand it just fine! I think the man is lying to me to make this that much harder for his little games. Please tell me what he is saying!"
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Post by Nephele on Jun 7, 2023 10:39:43 GMT -5
Nephele is having a much better time in Eclipse City now that the hard part was over.
She excitably tried new things with a grin on her face, enthusing about absolutely any and everything she could see and touch. C’Leena took up the majority of the conversation, with Nephele mostly responding with wide eyes and poorly concealed snorts behind her palm as she talked about her sister. It made Nephele lament being an only child, wondering how fun life would be with a sibling. Rose sounded absolutely adorable.
“I think you would be right,” Nephele responded, after positively cringing at the coffee story. “She sounds like a lot of fun, truly, if not a bit unruly…wonder where she got that from.” She bumped her hip against C’Leena’s as they walked, teasing. She loved hearing her gush about her sister, it was like an entirely different person came to light.
This thought process was immediately interrupted by the upcoming spat up ahead. Nephele blinked as the human man flagged them down. When the Fellblood started speaking, her face twisted into more confusion, not understanding a word. Infernal had unfortunately eluded her, being a too complicated language to learn from Common. What surprised her though was C’Leena responding in kind. With her limited knowledge of linguistics, Nephele could put together that she wasn’t the best at it, but it was still quite impressive.
“Finally!” The Fellblood said, letting out a relieved and frustrated sigh. He zeroed in on C’Leena, trying to bring his irritation down. “I’m looking for something, alright? I left my money bag somewhere and this idiot thinks I’m trying to pull something on him, like I’m some…charlatan!”
The human looked confused and slightly threatened by the frustration rolling off the fellblood in waves. “What is he saying?!” he asked, desperate to have this conversation over with. During this interaction, Nephele is staring in wide eyed bewilderment.
“Yes, what is he saying?” Nephele asked as well, all eyes on C’Leena at this point. To say that she was amused would be an understatement, curious how her fiance would translate.
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Post by C'Leena Thomas on Jun 7, 2023 13:12:45 GMT -5
Now, Russian (Or in this case Infernal) was not a strong suit. She was conversational, but it was.. decent at best. It took C'Leena a second to internally translate everything into English. "What does your bag look like?" She asks, trying to get some more information before she responds in Eng-Common.
"It's just a small leather pouch! I believe I left it somewhere here and every attempt to convey that I've lost it has been either ignored or misinterpreted!" The mans annoyance is growing by the moment, so C'Leena decides to get a move on.
"He's lost a.. small leather pouch. Think he said it was a money pouch and he's just trying to find it." She translates roughly. She opts to ignore that last half. It might make things a bit worse if that gets translated. A few minutes go by as the pair argue through C'Leena. Thankfully, she doesn't need to translate from Common into Infernal as that would be more of a nightmare to do.
At some point during this argument, things got incredibly heated despite C'Leenas attempts to calm the situation. It's about now that C'Leena decides that she's an uninvolved third party and just watches the chaos ensue, translating what needs to be translated. That does include:
"I'm fairly sure he just called you a bitch." The look on the Fellbloods face as his safety blanket of insulting him was violently removed was priceless, and it took everything in C'Leenas power not to crack a smile. Forging a connection between herself and Nephele1 she begins to talk telepathically. "I have no idea how this got so heated but I've resigned myself to 'Uninvolved Third Party'. Which comes with the added benefit of translating everything. I'm not even sure if he called him a bitch or not, I'm fairly sure that was a lapse in my knowledge. Oh well." Nephele can practically hear the sinister little giggles from C'Leena, despite the straight face C'Leena has.
1. Message
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Post by Nephele on Jun 7, 2023 16:37:31 GMT -5
In this entire interaction, Nephele was quiet. She was too busy looking between C’Leena and the other two to really speak, one of her ears flapping when the fellblood grumbled in under his breath in pure irritation. The poor human was growing more and more frustrated, especially when he caught the fellblood cursing. Nephele was too thoroughly entertained to speak, her hands folded behind her back.
She was actually surprised that C’Leena was being so civil…until she wasn’t. From the sounds of it, the conversation was bouncing back and forth with no end in sight it seemed, as the human seemed to be keen on arguing and the fellblood was mostly just pissed.
Then C’Leena translated the fellblood cursing the human, and she sighed. Hearing C’Leena’s voice in her head, Nephele has to stop herself from laughing to respond, biting her lip and pretending that the torn poster on the wall was the most interesting thing on the planet. "I hope you know you’re absolutely evil…I love it."
Nephele would never say this aloud, but she never got the opportunity to anyway, because the man immediately burst into outrage. “A b--! How dare you?! I knew you were bad news the moment I saw you!!”
The fellblood looked close to popping a blood vessel, spitting out. “I’m the bad news?! How am I the bad news when you’re the one being wholly unhelpful?! I’m telling you I lost my bag you stupid fucking git!” Then he glared at C’Leena, looking on the precipice of being enraged. “Why did you tell him that?! Now we’re right back where we started, damn you!”
Nephele was relishing in the chaos, but she stayed blissfully silent. A catlike smile etched across her face at the sounds of the chaos climbing ever so slightly higher. She couldn't help it, it was simply in her to enjoy these things. Then the human man was grabbing the front of the fellblood’s shirt, forcing him to look him in the eye.
“Your problems aren’t with them, you liar! You’re not really looking for a bag are you?!” He crowed, probably spitting in the fellblood’s face. Nephele took a step backward, a purposeful movement just in case a punch was thrown. She was wearing the wrong blouse for a fist fight.
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Post by C'Leena Thomas on Jun 7, 2023 17:02:01 GMT -5
C'Leena couldn't help it. She let out a very quiet giggle at the Fellbloods irritation which garnered her a glare from the both of them. Once the human became physical, unlike Nephele who stepped back, C'Leena got herself involved, taking the mans wrists in both of her hands. The surprised and then enraged human was moments away from lashing out before C'Leena spoke.
"Quiet," She demanded. Her voice was steady and calm, but it carries an authority one can only really learn from Public Service jobs. Nephele would recognize this tone as 'The step before shit hits the fan badly'. Her posture, glare and general demeanor exude and demand cooperation.
"Let me be frank. I've been enjoying this little argument between you two. I've been trying my best to help but Infernal is not my forte as I'm sure this gentlemen knows all too well," She nods her head toward the Fellblood. "I was happy to translate and let you two settle it yourselves, but now you've gone and made it physical. I'm not going to just let that one slide, so this can go one of two ways:
"One, you take your hands off him, you calm yourself down," She gives a look toward the Fellblood again, a pointed look that just says 'That goes for you, too', "..And settle this like adults and not like the man-children you are acting like. Or, the second way is that I show you exactly how good of a doctor I am. You see, I'm something called a 'Prosthetist' - somebody who replaces lost limbs with mechanical ones." The illusory skin covering her arms vanish, revealing the metallic structure underneath. "Just like these ones! Fancy, right? You don't want them, but you'll be getting them if you don't let go."
Now, this was a classic example of a C'Leena Bluff. Nephele knows she's bound by oath to Do No Harm unless she's the one in danger. But they don't need to know that. Despite C'Leena bluffing out of her ass right now, almost everything about her almost promises what she says. She smiles kindly, betraying the mood she has set. "Wha'dya say, hm? Wanna resolve this like adults?"
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Post by Nephele on Jun 7, 2023 18:26:10 GMT -5
Nephele looked between the three, watching their reactions and clocking C’Leena’s behavior. She was bluffing, an obvious thing to Nephele but not to the two strangers. They looked equal parts furious and terrified, which the nymph found delightfully hilarious. Maybe it was because she knew her, but the faces they were fixing her fiance with were completely ridiculous. Granted, Nephele knew C’Leena could throw these grown ass men into a wall if she wanted to, but she was bluffing here.
The nymph silently wondered how it would look if she weren’t bluffing though...hm, maybe she should conduct an experiment. Nephele made a mental note, filing the thought away for later.
For now, the two were staring at C’Leena, almost afraid to look away. In an almost comical way, Nephele leaned to the right, catching the fellblood’s attention. She waved with a painfully innocent smile, reveling in the shudder that ripped through his body before he looked back at C’Leena.
“Fine! Fine, just let go of me!” The human barked, no bite to his words as he tugged his hands away from C’Leena. The fellblood stepped away from the human, fixing his shirt with a glare.
“I left it somewhere in this area. I was walking from the Purple Lantern and I used it to buy something from a vendor over there. I turned around and next thing I know it’s gone.” The fellblood said, his voice struggling to stay balanced as he looked like he was plotting on the other man’s downfall.
The human was still furious, not paying Nephele any mind as his attention was narrowed on who he deemed as offenders. It was still really funny to watch regardless. This brought Nephele back to watching people find in alleyways from her perch on a building, trying to hold back her laughter as she waited to see how they resolved (if they ever did). It was always such a bore when the guards broke them up, but it was serotonin for her.
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Post by C'Leena Thomas on Jun 7, 2023 19:17:09 GMT -5
"Beautiful choice, gentlemen! Now, mister, he's saying he lost his purse around here somewhere. Came from the Purple Lantern, bought something from a vendor and lost it between then and now. Would you know anything about that?" C'Leena had the look of a mischievous child having way too much fun doing something they shouldn't. Her words were lighthearted but just from how quickly she's flipped from actively threatening them to simply asking questions about the issue at hand, it wouldn't surprise her to know that C'Leena has them on edge and off kilter. That's exactly where she wants them to be.
C'Leena looks toward the Fellblood who is looking between Nephele and C'Leena, most likely wondering how two apparently very different people came to know one another. C'Leena looks back toward Nephele and can immediately tell that the only way she'd enjoy this more is if she had popcorn or something of the sort. C'Leena flashes her a grin before returning it to the friendly Customer-Service smile she had previously, turning back toward the duo.
"Just letting you know, I will be saying what you say word-for-word from now on." She says, her expressions not changing in the slightest. "Now, how long have you been looking for your purse? Have you spoken to the vendor, by any chance or have you just come up to this man here and not tried other options before now?"
Her words are simple and to the point. Truthfully, there isn't much she can do outside of asking broad questions and translating what the Fellblood says. If these two can't figure it out, there's not much C'Leena can do. Either that or she's opting to believe that because she doesn't want to help either of them longer than necessary, no matter how funny it is.
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Post by Nephele on Jun 7, 2023 20:02:56 GMT -5
The human takes no time in answering, shaking his head. “The most I know was just revealed to me as you translated. He flagged me down while I was on my way downtown for something, and he started barraging me with questions. That's it.”
The fellblood shook his head, letting out a frustrated growl. “No, no that's not it! I flagged him down but he was yelling at me about me bothering civilians. He said I was being disruptive...load of bollocks.” He let out a heavy groan, running his hands through his hair. “I've been looking for at least half an hour. I tried speaking to the vendor first, but she was dealing with another customer. I haven't… spoken to her again though. Maybe that's an idea--”
“Look,” The human suddenly interrupted, looking rather cross and inconvenienced, “I have been trying to understand this man for the past 15 minutes at least. I understand that I was wrong, fine. But you are causing a scene. If you can understand him you can help him yourself, I don't fraternize with the uncouth. I have places to be.”
“Places you will get to eventually.” Nephele assured, breaking her silence. She could practically feel the fellblood smoldering with fury, stark contrast between him and the nymph. She said nothing else, simply smiled as the human regarded her with confusion and unease. In all honesty, this entire situation was sketchy.
“Do you hear this? Do you understand why I'm so angry?!” The fellblood hissed, his skin somehow turning redder in his irritation. “He has been of no help! It's completely frustrating trying to speak with a brick wall with a mouth.”
All the while, Nephele was looking around. At first she was simply watching, staring between the three as entertainment. Eventually though, upon listening to C’Leena’s translation, she started to walk around. She stayed just in earshot of the conversation, muttering a swift “keep going” over her shoulder as she spied around for any suspicious movement or activity. She knew Eclipse City pretty well, though that was normally from an aerial view. Still, she knew this corner of town and the inner machinations and alleys; it was possible that somebody took it and ran down an alley, as it would be a quick getaway.
“But that wouldn't make sense, there would be an uproar for certain…” Nephele murmured to herself, not even realizing she was saying it out loud.
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Post by C'Leena Thomas on Jun 8, 2023 0:08:50 GMT -5
With Nephele investigating a different route of possibility, C'Leena is left with the Dynamic Duo. She stands stock still with her best customer service smile as the human complains. Very, very quickly, C'Leena finds her patience dwindling. "Why don't we take a breath?" She says in a soothing tone1, making direct eye contact with the human.
The moment that C'Leena stops speaking, the man visibly loosens up, taking a few deep breaths and seeming a lot calmer and less volatile. "Now, do you mind if I ask you to help us look for this mans coin purse?" She asks, nodding toward the Fellblood. The man nods, saying,
"Yeah, alright. I'm sorry for how I treated you before. I'll help you." And with that, the man turns around to the vendors stall and begins looking around the area. C'Leena turns to Nephele, an annoyed, regretful and almost disappointed look in her eye. "I really didn't want to do that but I was about to punch him if I didn't." She says telepathically2. She almost sounds afraid of Nepheles possible reaction to the spell being cast on the man. C'Leena knows that Nephele is very averse to using suggestion or manipulative magic so to say that she was dreading Nepheles reaction would be an understatement.
Turning toward the Fellblood, she switches back to Infernal. The constant switching between languages is beginning to throw her for a loop and she needs to take a second to switch mentally. "I suggest you go talk to the vendor and see what she knows - if anything. I'll be with my fiancé over there," She gestures over to Nephele before smiling kindly. "Let me know if you need anything." She turns and walks toward Nephele, her façade immediately dropping the second she moves next to Nephele. Generally, she'd look really annoyed, but she looks incredibly uncomfortable, rubbing the back of her neck as she stops next to Nephele. "I uh, think of anything?" She says, pointedly not making eye contact.
1. Calm Emotions 2. Message
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Post by Nephele on Jun 8, 2023 0:56:15 GMT -5
Nephele turns around when she hears C’Leena speak to the human again, fully expecting him to retort until she looks at her fiance. She could sense it from here, the feeling of magic in the air as she casts a spell on the human, and she tilts her head in confusion. The next few interactions told her what she needed to though, not confused for long as she regarded C’Leena with a look. Ohh...she used calm emotions, her mind helpfully supplied.
Nephele wasn't exactly upset, but a small part of her did feel something. That something was stifled however when she saw the pure, unmitigated guilt on her fiance's face. Hearing her voice in her head again, Nephele quickly responded: “It’s alright, dearest. You did what you had to.”
Once the human and fellblood left to the vendor across the street, Nephele took a step towards C’Leena. The guilt was practically seeping off of her. She didn't like that she used those spells, but in all honesty she couldn't help but feel bad for making C’Leena feel bad. That had to be against marital laws, right? Had to be.
“I might have,” Nephele says, steady and natural as though nothing had happened. This was probably not the best approach, but the best approach was honestly better done in private. “Either his bag was stolen and someone ducked into the alleyway with it, or someone is lying.” Nephele begins to twirl her finger in her hair, I think that she only did when she was trying to appear thoughtful. “The vendor lady could have taken it. A lot of times people are hustled around these parts, some of these vendors aren't legal.”
Nephele vaguely gestured to some of the peddlers among the lively market area, some sat up against walls and others creating makeshift spots for their own. “Unfortunately this is a city before anything else, so it's not that surprising.”
Nephele shrugged, watching the fellblood start up a conversation with the vendor across the street. After a moment to let C’Leena respond if she wished, the nymph turned to look at her. Unable to catch her eye because of the latent avoidance of eye contact, Nephele frowned. That made her upset. She straightened up, releasing her hair and crossing her arms over her chest as she gave C’Leena a knowing, probing look. “You know I'm not mad at you, right? We could talk about it more in length later if you'd like, but I'm not mad. The long and short of it is you can do as you please, as you are your own person. That situation called for it, and that's that.”
Sure, Nephele felt weird about manipulation magic, and that would unfortunately take decades to recover. That being said, she didn't like that C’Leena looked so guilty for something that was honestly not a problem for anyone except for Nephele herself. That was her problem to deal with, she didn't want to drag C’Leena into that toxic mentality.
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Post by C'Leena Thomas on Jun 8, 2023 17:52:49 GMT -5
The return message didn't do much to calm her nerves, although it was nice to hear. She still felt like complete shit. Moving on for the time being, she listened to what Nephele had to say. C'Leena looked down the alleyway, not immediately seeing anything. If it were her, she'd definitely book it down an alley. Perhaps go onto a roof? That would be a good place to start. "Yeah maybe. I'm thinking on checking on the rooftops. If nothing else, it's a good vantage point." She adds.
C'Leena softly chuckles. It seems that, even when it's not a dystopia, cities are much the same. "I'm not at all surprised by that. Gotta get money where you can - seems like that holds true even here." C'Leena hooks her thumbs into her belt loops, looking around to see if there would be anybody standing out. So far, no luck.
Then Nephele scolded her. C'Leena was expecting something. Annoyance, a 'We'll talk later' in an angry tone, just something. And she got none of that. Hell, she got scolded because she expected annoyance which she shouldn't be surprised by, but is nonetheless. C'Leena is just looking at Nephele with a surprised expression. "Uh.." She starts dumbly. "Yeah uh.. Conversation for later? Just like, I don't like doing that, either. For me it's just a morality issue but I know it's not.. Yeah, conversation for later." She clears her throat, opting to move on from that particular subject for now.
"I'm gonna jump up onto the roofs. If you need anything, give me a shout, yeah?" Despite the previous subject, C'Leena smile looks warm as she turns around and enters the alley. Against everything saying that she would use her wings to hop up there, she instead looks up the wall for a few moments before jumping onto the wall, using handholds that have no right to support her1. She then jumps onto the other wall, then back. She continues this, occasionally stopping and holding onto a wall for support until she reaches the lip of the roof, where she effortlessly pulls herself up and over, out of sight.
On the roof, she begins simply walking and looking over the crowds, seeing if there are any people standing out as they try to do the exact opposite. She doesn't expect to find anything, but better to cover her bases.
1. Surface Scaling (Stealth)
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Post by Nephele on Jun 8, 2023 18:29:52 GMT -5
Nephele honestly couldn't agree any more with C’Leena’s statement on making money. She loved the city and what it had to offer and all of its memories, but it still was no utopia, as C’Leena had said. The amount of things that she had witnessed were only funny to her, someone completely uninvolved with the crime and latent disrespect for the law that would occur every few minutes in the city proper. However, she knew that if she were properly integrated into this society as the others here were, Nephele knew that she wouldn't find it as funny anymore.
When C’Leena agreed, essentially saying “we'll talk later” and much more words, Nephele nodded. She didn't persist or dignify the discomfort in the air with the response, simply a curt nod of her head as her fiance dismissed the conversation. Fine by her, she wasn't in the mindset to argue in any capacity, especially over something so small. Then again, she reminded herself that C’Leena may not think of it as such, and then she subsequently reminded herself that she was thinking too much.
“Right, same goes to you. Be careful.” Nephele said, matching her smile as she ran off into the alley. Nephele was fine with ground control, as it had been ages since she'd scaled walls and jumped from different buildings. She would have to get a little stronger in order to do that.
Until then though, the nymph walked over to the vendor, fully expecting the human be done talking to her by now. When she arrived though, it seems that he was still knee deep in conversation.
“Are you sure you saw nothing? I understand that you have to tend to your cart but--”
“Are you here to waste my time or what?” The vendor crowed, clearly irritated that the human was so insistent. He was slowing down traffic, the customers either not even giving a glance to her stall or waiting in a line. She was selling jewelry, all apparently handmade. As shiny as it was, Nephele exercised self-control and didn't touch it, being as some of the items had silvery filigree on them and she didn't know what kind of metal it was. Last thing that she needed was another scar, much less on her hands.
The fellblood looked exasperated, like he wanted really badly to be angry but was too tired to do so. He said something, but none of them could understand. Nephele pitied him.
“You guys are holding up the line, scram!” The lady barked, waving them away. “I already told you, I ain't seen it. I saw you pick it up, that's all I know.”
That peaked Nephele’s interest. “You saw him take it and go?”
“What are you, fuckin deaf? I was dealing with another customer but I thought I saw you pick it up and walk off.” The woman scoffed. “Shit, at this point invest in another bag and find yourself some more money. If somebody did take it and I'm mistaken then it's good as gone.”
Nephele frowned. Alright, three theories: either the person was hiding in plain sight, there was a shapeshifter in the crowd...or someone's lying. Interesting development.
“Thank you for your time, you two should search elsewhere. I'll check the crowds and alley, you could check around the market itself.” Nephele commanded, looking over to see if she could catch a glimpse of C’Leena on the roof. At this angle she couldn't, but she would tell her if she needed help.
Nephele then departed into the crowd, side eyeing anyone who was a little suspicious. This market stretched on for quite a while, so it would take a while for them to comb through. C’Leena would probably be their best bet.
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Post by C'Leena Thomas on Jun 9, 2023 0:18:28 GMT -5
Looking over the roofs, nothing of particular note is clear. C'Leena hears Nephele speaking with the human and the annoyed vendors rambling. Opting to ignore that for the time being, she continues eyeing the crowd, looking for anything out of the ordinary. She spots Nephele looking through the crowd herself, and keeps a careful eye on her and the people around her.
This goes on for a few minutes, C'Leena slowly losing patience with the scenario just as she feels something rather peculiar pressed into her back. A blade tip, it seems. C'Leena freezes, not exactly expecting this turn of events. Quickly looking at Nephele in the crowd, she shoots off another message. "Rooftop. This fucker is currently pressing a knife to my back. Give me a few minutes and I'll be down - hopefully not sporting new cuts."
"Now, now. You're not looking where you shouldn't be, miss, are you?" a distinctly feminine voice says from behind her. C'Leena smiles faintly. At least she would be embarrassing a guy today. Only a woman who thinks she's hot shit. "We can't be having that. You seem clever, so we'll do this easy. Hand me your coin and I don't gut you."
C'Leena takes a moment to figure out her options before responding. As she speaks, she formulates a plan to get herself out of this pickle. "I've no idea what you're talking about, Ma'am. Simply up here for a stroll - as you do." She says, raising her hands in surrender. Seeing Nephele look up to the roof in response to her message, the major thing on C'Leenas face is just a grin and her mouthing "I found her!"
"Alright, alright. Are you afraid of heights, by the way?" She asks innocently.
"What?" She barely gets out before C'Leena blinks1 twice in quick succession, appearing behind the thief, kicking her in the back. Despite the flawless execution from C'Leena's plan, it didn't quite go how she hoped as the thief only stumbled forward slightly, nowhere near the edge of the roof. Muttering a quick "Damn", she quickly draws her rapier, before flicking her free wrist, opening her Space Pocket and pulling out a second rapier. This was entirely from another instance of a poor financial choice but she might as well use it.
The thief spins around, fury evident in her eyes. C'Leena is standing there, ready to tussle as the thief engages. Quite some time ago, she had met a curious individual named Cyran who uses daggers as his primary weapon. Sparring with him was a lesson on how far C'Leena had to go when it came to her swordsmanship, but against a thief with only one dagger? She should only get cut a few times.
Summoning her cloak2 and Replicant, she engages as well. With the sudden spells coming from C'Leena, the hesitancy is apparent on the thieves face as she tries to back out. It doesn't go well as the replicant blocks her escape. Sure, she could get past just by giving the thing the slightest cut, but when the replicant can fight exactly like C'Leena? Chances of that dwindle.
Apparently not willing to give up, the thief engages with C'Leena. Blades meet and clash, ringing out from the rooftops. During the fight, C'Leena has an almost sinister grin as the adrenaline starts pumping. This'll be fun
1. Blink 2. Cloak of Shadows
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Tradesfolk
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Renown
Faeborne
Trying to stay at peace in all its forms
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Post by Nephele on Jun 9, 2023 2:00:58 GMT -5
Nephele wasn't getting anywhere. She poked her head in the alleys surrounding the buildings, vaguely recalling a few of the local hideouts for some of the sketchier people in town, her face scrunching up at the smell. This was an interesting part of town by far, and as much as she wanted to search and speak to everyone in this crowd (she really, really didn't), it was looking futile. Everyone she asked either avoided her or didn't know, too busy with their day.
With a sigh of defeat, Nephele began to walk back to where the human was, and she couldn't communicate with the fellblood without C’Leena present. She rose a hand to wave the human down, when suddenly she heard the voice of said person in her head. Her hand froze in midair, eyes widening. Okay, not good. Whipping her head around to the roof she saw last, Nephele easily found her fiancé, hands up in a surrendering motion but a big grin on her face. To say that she was flabbergasted was an understatement, and when she blinked out of view after saying something to whoever was behind her Nephele's face soured.
Alright, roof it is. Dropping her hand, Nephele barely registered the human man calling out for her before she took off running to where the rooftop was. She didn't go as fast as C’Leena, but her movement was steady and sure. She could hear the sound of metal clanging together, driving her to move a little bit quicker, her nails making excellent purchase in the knobs in the building side.
Once she was on the roof, pushing off of the wall and landing feather light on her feet, Nephele identified the target. Unfortunately for the thief, the nymph didn't really care about how she felt about engaging. The point was that she engaged with her fiance (no pun intended), and she wasn't about to let that slide. As soon as her feet touched the rooftop Nephele was running, dashing forward and springing forward into a well-aimed kick to the back of the thief’s head.1 She just barely missed, the thief whirling around in shock when she heard frantic, furious footsteps charging towards her. The look in Nephele's eyes was nothing short of pissed, taking full offense to the fact that's she had targeted C’Leena, even though she was pretty certain that she could take her on without Nephele's help. That didn't matter much to her though; no one messed with her fiance, physically or verbally.
The thief was growing frustrated, obviously not expecting to be tag teamed by what looked like a too giddy swordswoman and a really angry monk. With a frustrated growl she swings wide, trying to hit Nephele behind her while also trying to simultaneously block C’Leena off. It was proving to be futile though, as Nephele began moving around much like she would when she’s dancing, all delicate steps and fancy footwork.2 She took extra care to avoid the blade, knowing that as soon as it cut her it could leave a scar behind, calculating the best way to sink her nails into her jugular with a cold, serious glare.
1 Dashing 2 Float Like a Butterfly
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Tradesfolk
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Past events can never be changed. Instead, change the future.
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Post by C'Leena Thomas on Jun 9, 2023 2:48:36 GMT -5
The previous excitement that was plastered on C'Leenas face vanished in an instant once Nephele got involved. Before, C'Leena was careful but overall simply toying with them to have the adrenaline last just a little longer. That immediately changed when Nephele barely missed the blade. The Iron blade. Yeah, alright, no more games.
C'Leena immediately went onto the offensive, joined by the Replicant and forced them into the backfoot. C'Leena didn't want Nephele hurt, but couldn't argue against the utility she provided in backing the thief into a metaphorical corner. Constantly ensuring that the trio were in a triangle pattern with the Thief in the center, it greatly restricted their options and began causing them to slip up and garner injuries as time went on.
With C'Leenas movements aggressive to an unusual degree, she wasn't spared from injury. A few cuts here and there was nothing to worry about, but had to be tended to soon as they were bleeding a decent bit, and she didn't have a lot of blood to lose - as can be deducted by her prosthetics which are now damaged and revealed in their metallic glory.
As C'Leena and Nephele beat down on the thief, Nephele manages a hit that staggers the thief, and C'Leena kicks the back of her legs, causing the thief to collapse. Suddenly, wings appear and spread from C'Leenas back1. Instead of the usual golden feathered ones, these are a cloudlike white and not even connected to her back in any way. They're floating a few inches from her shoulder blades. As the thief tries to stand back up, C'Leena roughly pushes her back over with her foot, sprawling them on their back.
Kneeling down next to the woman, C'Leena has a fury in her eye that is generally reserved for those who get in her way or actively threaten the safety of Nephele. With her wings still unfurled, C'Leena begins speaking. Her voice is even and collected, but each word is practically dripping with hatred.
"You will listen and listen well. You've made a pretty bad mistake today, huh? Trying to rob me, THEN attacking my fiancé. Nah, that shit don't run with me, bud. Now, you're going to tell me the truth or I will be the one gutting you. Did you or did you not steal a leather coin purse about fifteen minutes ago?"
As she questions the thief, small fissures begin to spread along the wings. They grow further and larger as her voice grows more and more tense and uncontrolled. By the time she asks her question, small flames escape the burning fissures which grow in size. At this rate, they'll engulf the feathery wings very soon and show no signs of stopping.
1. Beacon of Light
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