The Unsettling City (under new management)

[Roaven]

Ah, there was Ivory, on the high ground as always, easy to pick out and with her eyes in the sky, so to speak, circling her, keeping watch on the ruins. Well, they would no doubt be noticed as they approached, with so many eyes watching, but Roaven had no intentions of making it easy. Making a mental note of what building it was, she swiftly moved to the edge of the roof she was sharing with the heroine in red and dropped down to street level, moving through the streets and alleys, cutting her way over towards the building Ivory was perched atop, using the buildings to shield her from above as she approached, and, when close enough, she began scaling the side of the building. It would be harder now to conceal herself, but hopefully Ivory had eyes outwards, rather than on her building. As for Nero, well, she'd keep up, but hopefully slowly enough that she didn't blow the sneak's cover.

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Well, this had been a long time coming. Admittedly, Roaven had meant to make this delivery himself a while ago, but it had hardly been a high priority project for Haven's magitek elf, and he had a lot on his plate even when the gift had been turned over to him for delivery. Not to mention, until recently, Spam's disappearance from the city, and some amount of trouble centered around her return. He didn't know the full story, of course, though he imagined he could find it easily enough if he asked the right people, but she seemed a better choice, and he could inquire while he delivered the gift. At least he knew where her Haven apartment was, though whether she was currently in it or not was another matter altogether.

[AnCatDubh]

It wasn't Ivory's style to do stealth unless it suited her. Unlike her counterpart in this world, she'd kept the melodramatic flair going more strongly than he had. As for Roaven's approach, she didn't seem to have noticed the Hunter Lord. Nero's approach, however, would if she went about it the most direct route, which would be a little roof-hopping if not a straight flight through the air. The real question is how long it would take either of them to arrive.

Still, regardless of that time, Nero would most likely notice the grin that suddenly made its way onto the Dealbound's face...and then with a backwards flip, she jumped down a hole into the interior of the building. Mere moments after, a fist would punch through the wall just to the side of the Lord, along with a sing-songed, "Peek-a-boo~!"

She was apparently in a playful mood tonight.

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Whenever Roaven arrived at Spam's door, he'd find a small tin sitting just outside along with a folded-up note stuck to the top. Should he deign sneak a peak, he'd find a short message:

It won't heal your loss, but this soul balm will at least help heal up the damage left by Alwiss some.

It was unsigned, but there was a pretty slim picking of whom might come up with something so quickly, and Roaven probably would recognize the handwriting.

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No sooner than Brin had formulated her plan and started moving for the cars than several things dropped on her, catching her by surprise. One landed on her head and began maneuvering itself to latch on securely. Meanwhile, her mind was assaulted to put her into a dreaming state...

The Psuedohound bayed loudly from the back room...

((Folks in the Ruins might just hear that, and it doesn't sound like a normal dog at all))

[Kuro Ryuu Hime]

However Roaven chose to make his presence known once he had arrived at Spam's door, there would be a few moments of silence before a muffled "Gimme minute!" could be heard through the door. A keen ear might pick up on the sound of tissues being assaulted by forcefully evacuated nasal mucus...otherwise known as blowing one's nose. It would take a couple minutes for the dragoness to compose herself; once she felt a bit more able to deal with people, she'd call out "Who is it and what do you want?" though with no rudeness in her voice; just the sound of someone exhausted enough to want to pick and choose her interactions for the day.

[Roaven]

"It's Roaven. I'm here on two separate accounts. Acquaintance and Lord." Roaven explained when she inquired after him. Well, she didn't exactly sound like she was doing well, but that was to be expected given the events of the past while, not that he was entirely up to date on all of them. "And someone left a gift for you." He added, scooping up the tin and glancing at the note, stepping back from the door and waiting to see if she was feeling well enough to admit him. If it came down to it, he could always leave the gifts for her and come back later. As for the leaver of the tin, well, it wasn't hard for him to piece together. He wasn't recon with Haven for nothing, though admittedly even without those skills he could have managed.

[Kuro Ryuu Hime]

Another long moment of silence followed Roaven's explanation of his presence, but eventually the door would open. Spam was...looking a bit worse for wear. Her eyes were a bit puffy, her face was red, and her nose was all stuffed up...and with her cheeks being still somewhat damp, it wouldn't be hard to piece together that she'd been crying. In addition, she was also back to looking like a young teenager. "H-hey. Didn't expect to see you," she stated, her tone rather flat from her clogged up nose now that there wasn't the door and the yelling needed to be heard.

[Roaven]

"Well, I've been meaning to see you for a bit, but a chance never really came up." Roaven explained when she mentioned that she hadn't expected to see him. He certainly wasn't the best candidate for cheering her up or checking up on her, but he had a few reasons to be here, and considering that she was...well, an asset to the Hunters, they had grown...closer, at least, enough that he wanted to make sure that she was alright. "Someone left this for you." He noted, opting not to specify who it was, as it wasn't his business who left stuff for her. "And something from...well, Daelan, technically.' He admitted. "It's been a while coming, and I thought you might like a toy to play around with." Might as well get the gifts out of the way before the talk got heavier.

[Kuro Ryuu Hime]

Spam nodded at the explanation for the visit, and would take the gifts when they were offered. A quick read of the card attached to the gift from Isaac was plenty enough for the moment, so she'd set it aside for later. However, as for the gift from Roaven, she started to open it when a thought came to her. "Oh. Uh. You want to...come in and sit?" she offered as she tiredly glanced up at the Hunter Lord. "Sorry. Just thought of it. Mind isn't...running 100%," she explained softly, letting out a sigh at the end. Regardless what he picked, she'd then continue with the opening of the gift, wanting to see what it was while he was still around in case it needed explanation.

[Roaven]

Roaven was, for his part, glad to have the gift off his hands, literally speaking, as having something in each hand wasn't exactly convenient. He happily surrendered his own gift when it came time to do so, pondering her offer for a moment before nodding his acceptance. Better for them to talk within her apartment than out in the hallway where anyone could hear, anyway. "It's pretty simple, but useful. Well, simple to use." He clarified. Given he was no magitek expert, how much work went into making it was unknown to him. He would demonstrate, if necessary, so she knew how to use it. "Infinite, or at least virtually unlimited, throwing knives at your fingertips. Though you'd appreciate that." He would settle in wherever she lead him, glancing around her apartment briefly, having never seen the inside of it.

[Zetsubo-Chan]

Livian DoUrden

He was glad to see her interested in a few things already. It seemed like collars and leashes were first up on the agenda. "In my personal opinion for a puppy you might want a harness just in case she tries to start to fight the leash and collar so she's not hurting herself. I'm almost curious if she'll follow us around." He replied with a thoughtful look on his face, wondering what sorts of colors she'd pick out, what kind of collar. Xeras was sniffing at things, being all sorts of curious about the other doggy smells he happened to pick up.

Well, that would be one of those things that were neglected to be told. She nodded at it and started looking at the harnesses as well, though it did pose an interesting question. Should she pick up a collar as well? She decided to err on the side of caution, and pick up a pretty floral purple collar, as well as a standard black harness. She turned to Aedan to see if this was the right choice, a little confused. The leash would be one of the simple ones, just to say that she had one. The puppy, still in her arms, squirmed a bit here and there at the different smells, particularly when she went to pick anything up. "It would be nice if she did follow us around."

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Nero shrugged, What could he say, he was a cautious guy. "You do have a good point, but by the same merit, you may not have anyone to tell here, but that doesn't mean you won't always. And you may have the time to become familiar with the people of this world. There's no telling when Tsudo will have the portal fixed in a way so that it actually works. Could be two days from now, could be a year or more. Trying to connect one reality to an adjacent one is not an easy task." He shook his head a bit. That was a problem he did not want to wrap his head around. Mostly cause if Tsudo had already done it once, what was to see that if he did get a more stable gateway, he wouldn't start trying again with other realities. This one was benign, but the next might not be. He had to think about the next question. "I... Suppose. I'd have to talk to the AI about it, and set up some clauses for her, or even get her to talk to the AI. But it's entirely possible to set something up." He thought on it a bit before starting to interact with a computer on his wrist, then finally shrugging it off. "That will come when it comes."

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Nero sighed a bit, cocking a smirk when she watched The hunter lord drop to the street. Might as well provide a distraction, right? So she'd head the more direct route, leaping from building to building, Though she seemed to be going through it slow enough that she kept up with Roaven, though she stopped a couple building soon, deciding to switch focus from providing distraction, to watching What Ivory intended to do. Considering that smile she was sporting, the 'Heroine' assumed that she had never fooled the dealbound, then she heard that sound, directing her attention over there. That might provide some entertainment, but did she want to go without any back up? And could she convince the dealbound and thief to back her up if she wanted it? This was a problem. Might as well see what they think about it, right? Quickly closing the distance, she'd call out. "What do you guys want to do about that noise?"

[Hat-tori]

"You can't be serious, Driblis. Are you certain of the findings?"
"I am, sir!"
"So let me get this straight - you opened a hole while digging some new apartments in preparation for the next generation of Warriors."
"Yes, sir."
"This hole seemed to be endless, and all you can hear is water."
"Yes, sir."
"And your first instinct was to go and check?"
"..."
Harumda palmed his face.
"Here's a writ of payment. Go find a damned expert in bodies of water and especially oceans. I've a hunch about what it is, but we can't leave three kobolds in the lurch on that. Hurry along now!"

---

The room, just past Spam, was just as Arty had left it. His workshop untouched by either Hattori or Freddy. A few of his works were even scattered about.

[Livian DoUrden]

Zetsubo-Chan

Well, that would be one of those things that were neglected to be told. She nodded at it and started looking at the harnesses as well, though it did pose an interesting question. Should she pick up a collar as well? She decided to err on the side of caution, and pick up a pretty floral purple collar, as well as a standard black harness. She turned to Aedan to see if this was the right choice, a little confused. The leash would be one of the simple ones, just to say that she had one. The puppy, still in her arms, squirmed a bit here and there at the different smells, particularly when she went to pick anything up. "It would be nice if she did follow us around."

He would have chuckled at her thoughts if he knew about them. It was cute that she went for the purple. "Purple is a good color.." He nodded, the collar would become of use later and for having a license. Doggy needed to have an address attached to the collar in case she got outside and no one could find her. "It would be really cute. Though I can imagine Xeras leading her around...if we gave him the leash with her attached..." He replied and laughed a bit at the image in his head.

[Kuro Ryuu Hime]

She listened to Roaven's explanation as she looked at the weapon in the box. "Huh... I wonder..." Spam trailed off as she tried to sniffle back some remaining snot, but it ended up just clogging her nose and making her choke, which then made her cough and reach for a tissue. "Goddammit...why do humans have so much mucus in their face...???" she muttered in stuffed-up annoyance before blowing her nose again. Agh, finally, her nose was mostly clear. "...Er, so...how does this work?" she inquired, trying to get the topic back on track...and her mind onto the neat little magitek gizmo and off of what she had been previously over-pondering.

As for the apartment itself, Roaven would be led over to the kitchen table, which was the...neatest guest-friendly area in the apartment. She...hadn't had the heart to touch any of Arty's stuff since she'd gotten home, and it would be rather obvious with all of his stuff right where he'd left it. The place had been his before she moved in...now that he was gone...the healthiest thing would likely be for her to readjust the place to her own taste, or even relocate to a brand new apartment; but for now, it still felt very much like Arty's place.

~~~

"Relax man, everything's good. Why would I want to make things harder on my alternate self?" Rufus asked with a laid-back tone. "I just figured I'd mention the settings, since I mean...if anyone knows what bells and whistles she'd want, it'd be another her, right?"

[Ixor Firebadger]

"Well, guess I should join in, huh?" Lucy starts to head off to slip inside whatever establishment the others were scoping out.

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Brin swiped at the one that had landed on her head with a massive paw, though she was starting to feel a bit groggy. It wasn't the only thing that had landed on her, either, and she spends time ripping and tearing them off of her, hopefully doing so violently enough to keep them off.

[Roaven]

Well, Ivory wanted to play it that way, did she? Well, two could play at that game. She sparked off a flash of magic intended to blind, at least temporarily, her sight, launching herself upwards, onto the roof, planning on following the Dealbound down and tapping her on the back, perhaps literally. However, her maneuver was interrupted by the otherworldly howl, so she crouched, frowning, on the roof. Normally she wouldn't care about the troubles of others, but if her counterpart here had scouts near the ruins, as she did, it was possible it was a Hunter in peril. If not, it wasn't her problem, but it perhaps was worth investigating. Ivory probably wouldn't keep away, at any rate. She waited to see what Ivory wanted to do about it, though.

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"You'd have to ask someone who knows more about anatomy than me." Roaven shrugged when Spam asked her presumably rhetorical question. He was sure that it served some benign purpose, but he could sympathize with the problems that it presented as well. "I suppose, strictly speaking, you would consider this a focus more so than a throwing knife. What you're to be throwing are what it makes." He explained. "The problem is they can't persist forever, given a finite amount of energy, but they'll do some damage and you'll not run out." He assured her. He had tested them extensively enough to verify that much, at least.

He certainly noticed that things looked largely untouched, and it didn't take a genius to figure out why that might be, given her relationship. "I...well, I don't want to reopen wounds, Spam. At some point I need to know what happened, though." He warned her. "But for now, just let me know if you need anything." It didn't seem prudent to press any harder than that for now, he just wanted to get the fact out there that he was after the information. "I'd rather hear it from you."

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Smoke reached out, seeming intent on stopping her from running off and kicking things off, though he'd do nothing more than place a hand on her shoulder before she could slip away. "Hold on there. You want in, you check up top and get filled in. Don't run in there and go off half-cocked." It probably wouldn't be dangerous, but this was the sort of thing that always benefited from a bit of planning ahead of time. No sense wasting it all away.

[Ixor Firebadger]

"So you are out here on something specific." He had been awfully vague about it, it seemed. She had been under the impression they were seeking out targets, rather than having one currently in sight. "You know, forget it. I'll just keep fending for myself. You boys have fun." With that she turns in a different direction, intending on disappearing down the street.