You!
06.6.920
Endergaln
[Ten years ago] Ashen frequents a town on the edge of Night, where he notices a flyer recruiting for the Relickers of Strife and goes to talk to their leader, Calabor Strife, and his deep V-neck and disinclination to head to the White Crown.
[In the present] After a few more questions to Camille and Rhun, the main party heads back to the Cog and Sprocket (which, after Bax and Sal disappear and Albrecht stays behind, means Ashen, Peach and Sav). They chat a little about Peach’s conversation with Miranda, their various parentages (Sav does not go into theirs exactly, but does show the sketch of Lusira; Ashen says he was recruited into the Pale Guard at 8 and foreswore family), and destiny.
Ethan stakes out the dead drop of the Copper Blind and, after most of a day, a man comes by to pick it up. By his outfit and boots, he probably works at one of the House Beryl factories. Ethan tails him to a flophouse some 30 minutes away, where he goes into a room on the second floor and goes quiet.
[200 years ago] A baby black pudding learns to imitate a human.
07.6
Sal reappears, and Peach tells him about her conversation with Miranda, and Sal questions why she’d believe this woman over her own mother. They all meet in the common room, sample a monster and rat meat platter, including a strange bear-duck meat, and mention various ideas, but not wanting to talk about it in public, agree to meet at the workshop, where Gwin’s already gone before anyone else got up.
Ethan goes to check on Xander and seed the idea of a work about the Great Houses; Xander is cautious, not wanting to rile the bear-duck, and lets slip that nobles will generally only talk about themselves if they want to impress someone.
Sal and Peach go off to explore cultural exhibits around the city, visiting an art gallery with an installation about factory workers. After some prodding, Sal admits that he lost control initially while first in Kendall’s Forge and hurt some folks; Ori patched him up and helped him in more ways than one. After more pressing, he lists off his worries: that he’ll disappear in the midst of carrying his daughter, why Sylas called him something shadowy, and that he won’t find the answers he needs and will end up hurting someone again. She attempts to comfort him, but instead he threatens the gallery curator when he turns around too quick and bumps into him. As they leave, they spot a final installation, a giant mask shaped like Ava’s owl mask.
Sav arrives at the workshop and finds it closed but unlocked, which is unusual; wary, she goes invisible and Sees Invisible, before opening the door to see the tall, dark-haired Star-Touched from the other train. After a confusing initial interaction and a barrage of questions, it comes out that her name is Frisk, she doesn’t claim to be Returned, and that she’s looking for Gwin for a specific odd job. She does recognize the dreams when Sav mentions them and asks Sav what they mean to them; Sav says that’s what they’re trying to find out.
Before long the others arrive and get a very brief summary, and more standing around happens before Gwin arrives with Yev in tow, carrying new purchases. The rest go into the other room to give them privacy, and Gwin and Frisk talk about the job—something that apparently needs an infiltration-savvy artificer, someone who can go around uptown without attracting undue attention. Gwin is interested, but says she doesn’t have all of those skills; however, she might know someone who does. Warily, Frisk asks if that person is in the next room. Gwin offers coffee.
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