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"Coward," Kira said. "I don't care who it is I need to fight against. I'll win. I'll be the queen of this place. I deserve it."

Leaning towards the men, Kira added, "And of course, every queen needs a king."

She winked, and Claudette said softly, "Kira, do you really have to do this?"

"Why are you questioning me, peasant?" She snapped, accompanying her words with a hard, icy slap to Claudette's face. Kira's hand was glowing blue from the magic, and Claudette's face was bruising quickly. "That was harsh," she continued, her voice shrill and sweet. "That was very harsh. But you should learn to stop treating me like an inferior."

Claudette gently rubbed her cheek, dumbfounded and slightly terrified. Kira had put up a magic barrier strong enough to block any physical attacks. What could she do?

Veiris leaned forward, settling his elbows on the table. He smirked at the newest member of the group. "Well, my queen," he started, letting his tone say he didn't believe her title, "I'm rather content with my peasant status." There weren't queens in Sol Tier, and anyone of any social status wouldn't be caught dead in the area surrounding the Black Coral. Even if this wasn't the Black Coral, he figured the logic still held.

Veiris glanced briefly at Claudette to see that the slap didn't do any major damage and wondered how the woman, who had been so quick to draw on him for simply having tattoos, would respond to such a strike.

Kira leaned toward the man who had sardonically addressed her, feeling insulted. She raised her hand, this time white hot, as though to slap him, but Claudette grabbed Kira's tattooed arm.

"You're being kind of a brat," she said. "Everyone is just trying to have a good time, and you're... You're being rude."

Claudette swallowed her nerves, her cheek still freezing cold, and after she jumped up, she yanked out her ring blade, whipping it around threateningly.

"I can't believe you're siding with him," she snarled.

Claudette ran at Kira, springing up over her, blade beneath her body as she flipped over Kira, grazing her. She landed, rolled to her feet, and swung the blade at Kira.

Kira lifted her index and middle finger, pointing both at Claudette, and then pointing them straight up and flicking them outward. Kira's tattoos were glowing as Claudette was yanked straight up into the air, her blade dropping to the floor, and thrown back across the cafe. Claudette hit the wall, and sank to the ground. Magic had always made her feel as though she had been hit by a nasty bout of the flu, and she didn't want to aggravate Kira more.

"As I was saying," she continued. "I need a King. Who's interested?"

Veiris shoved his chair back from the table as Kira's hand moved to slap him. He reacted immediately, feeling the warmth that accompanied every Shift encompass his body. His eyes turned from light brown to the bright yellow of an eagle's. White and blue feathers sprouted from his scalp, mixing with his blonde hair.

He felt the instincts of his Griffin bond come alive in his mind, accompanied by the spark of lightning magic it offered him. A powerful addition for any Shifter. He looked at Kira now with eyes that see the magic in her.

He watched claudette stop the other tattooed magic-user, but still held the shift. The magic-user was more hair-trigger than the swordswoman it seemed.

He followed the fight, ignoring Svana's reaction. Instead he moved to Claudette's side. "That was uncalled for," he said, speaking to Kira but focused on the warrior slumped against the wall, "And no way to earn any sort of king or respect."

Kira glared at the elf, and her tattoos were red and seemed to pulsate. She gently and firmly planted her hand on the cut on Svana's face. She pulsed hot, burning flames through her hand.

"Still amused?" she asked, though it was more of an assumption.

Claudette looked at the shifter, confused at his new form, and she sat herself up. Kira was going after Svana, and Claudette wasn't sure how to intervene. She wanted to stop Kira, but she was aching and she only had her guns now. Kira had surrounded herself with a better barrier, she noticed, and so a gun might not be the best thing.

"This is why I don't like Immortals," Claudette said quietly to no one.

Veiris noticed Claudette's confused look and took a moment to remember she hadn't met a Shifter before. Although, even most who had had never seen a partial Shift. He held his hands up as a sign he meant no harm. She hadn't liked his tattoos or his connection to magic. No need to push it now. "As I said before, I can shift to many forms, partial and incomplete. This is a rather useful one. A griffin," he explained.

At her comment about Immortals, he turned to see Kira touching Svana's face. He winced, but even he couldn't say if it was because the bright magic he could see in Kira's hand or the response he anticipated from Svana.

"They do seem rather impulsive. A bit like you, but at least you allow time for explanation before cutting new holes in a person," he responded. His tone had evened out as he tried to make sure he didn't appear too concerned about the magic he saw in the room. In his experience, most magic-users didn't like Shifters thanks to the stupid creation myth so many believed.

Svana's reaction was instant, and Veiris has to admit he was impressed with her speed and her skill. He let his own instincts surface, feeling the spark of lightning closer to his skin and ready to defend himself.

Kira grinned as she broke free and lifted her head up from the counter despite the blood trailing down her face. Her hand pulsed green as she held it to her head, and the wound immediately closed.

Claudette nodded at the explanation, unsure of what to say.

"Impulsive, yes, but capable of so much more than any of us. They like to be in charge of everything and don't care who they hurt," Claudette said, her mouth feeling as though it was full of cotton. With her foggy brain, her words probably sounded rather lame but that wasn't her focus. "Svana needs help," was what she could manage.

Claudette dug through her bag, moving as quickly as her body would allow her. The vial of amber medicine was soon in her hand, and she drank a few drops of it. This was her fight, dammit. She glided over to her fallen weapon, picked it back up, and held it by the handles. She threw the vial of medicine to Svana, hoping that maybe it'd work for an elf.

"I'm not afraid to use this. You need to stand down," Claudette said, although she was lacking confidence. One wrong move from Kira, and she would probably die.

Kira sat back down in her chair and started to laugh. Not a fake laugh, but the kind that comes from deep down in her belly, genuine and hearty. Claudette flinched.

"Calm down. I'm just having a little fun," she said casually. "Don't be such a party pooper."

Despite her words, Kira's tattoos were still lit, and her magic was at the ready.

Sean shook his head and sat back down in his seat, released his hook from the girl's hand. Fortunately the owner had made the countertop from some kind of weird stone rather than wood so there was no need to explain a hole in the surface.

"You," he said to the girl and got the attention of the bartender to pour her majesty a drink, "need a lesson on timing. Waiting for Svana to gut you would have made that fight much more dramatic." He tossed back his shot. "I didn't even get to fight. That's boring."