In the clinic's staff break room, a television shows scenes from a daytime soap opera. A few medical staff lounge upon the weathered, comfortable couch, and many others occupy the chairs scattered around the surrounding space. Standing in a gathering, Deedri idly chats about subjects ranging from cases to a few behind the scenes tidbits from the Next Adventurers of Nexus episode. Aristespha gazes out into the nearby mix of city and green space surrounding the clinic complex through the large windows along a wall, flipping through her aetherphone. Deedri presents a delighted smile and answers a question from one of the doctors. "Oh, most interesting case so far? I think it would have to be the checkup I did for a little half evuukian boy named Mylo."

Across the room, Aristespha's long pointy ears twitch, and her violet eyes spring wide open, her attention snapping onto Deedri's conversation. Deedri discusses vague basics about Mylo, focusing on typical child antics with a few medical aspects. The wall clock ticks over to noon. Most of the crowd in the break room double-check their various time keeping devices and politely disperse back out into the clinic proper. Aristespha glances over towards Deedri and slowly approaches. Deedri finishes the last bit of coffee from a thick paper cup, and Aristespha clears her throat. "Mage Preeta."

Blinking her auburn eyes, Deedri swiftly pivots and faces Aristespha directly with a blank stare and neutral tone. "Yes, Mage Orienden?"

Aristespha projects a professional demeanor with barely noticeable cracks in the facade against her personal curiosity. "I overheard you performed a checkup upon a half evuukian boy, by the name of Mylo?"

With a slow nod, Deedri flatly responds. "Yes. Check up and routine immunization."

Narrowing her eyes upon Deedri, Aristespha settles into an examining stare. "I have some questions to ask, if I may?"

Deedri nods calmly and presents a stoic exterior against the hints of hesitation. "You may."

Aristespha launches into a systematic series of questions, growing gradually more probing into the case. With each inquiry, Deedri responds properly and carefully in return, her stare scouring Aristespha's demeanor. Continuing her inquisition, Aristespha's tone subconsciously develops a sharper, overbearing edge, each new inquiry inciting a reflexive, minute cringe upon Deedri's fair face. A few minutes later, Deedri grimaces briefly and breathes in deeply, her furry, tufted ears pulling back. Interjecting into the litany of inquiry, Deedri lays out an elaborate, elegant explanation behind her logic and reasoning. Citing into her own papers upon ancient genetic bio-modifications and ancestral genetics, she systematically explains in exacting detail and drives the conversation hard into Aristespha's stunned silence. Maintaining a firm stare upon Aristespha, Deedri perks an expectant eyebrow. "Any further information you require, Mage Orienden?"

Embarrassment rushes up to coat Aristespha's ivory face, and she twists her mouth to an uneasy frown. She shakes her head with a sigh and bows slightly towards Deedri. "No. None at all..."

With a hard swallow, she straightens her posture with a respectful nod. "In fact, I should apologize."

Narrowing her gaze, Deedri's stare softens. Aristespha lifts her head up calmly. "I have obviously made some dreadfully and woefully inaccurate assumptions off of erroneous first impressions. I see that you are quite knowledgeable and were the best professional for that particular case. I apologize for acting so harshly upon such assumptions."

A slight smirk curls the corners of Deedri's mouth, and she nods towards Aristespha. "Apology accepted."

Breathing easier, Aristespha gazes at Deedri with a slight smile. "I believe I have actually read one of your papers before in the past. If I remember correctly, I found it very insightful."

Smiling fully, Deedri rolls her auburn eyes at herself and sighs. "Thank you. I hope it was one of my later papers. The earlier papers weren't my best work in formatting and presentation,"

With a gentle chuckle, Aristespha shakes her head with a shrug. "Oh, do not worry. They never are. I still cringe when I even see the opening paragraph of some of my earliest work. So many times I have asked myself, what was I thinking?"

Deedri narrows her gaze thoughtfully and examines Aristespha demeanor, hunting for the motive. "I have to ask, you seem really interested in Mylo's care. Any particular reason why?"

Blinking in sudden silence, Aristespha furrows her brow contemplatively. "I ran into Mylokia at the convention and wanted to make sure he was doing okay. Talking to his parents, they were doing well. But..."

She fights down a frown and shakes her head slightly. "I could certainly tell it had been difficult for them in the past with... the politics surrounding them."

Nodding understandingly, Deedri perks up with newfound satisfaction. "Yeah, I see. Well, little Mylo is a healthy boy. And from what I overheard, I think things are going a lot better for his parents. I believe the grandparents on his mother's side actually visited."

Surprise fills Aristespha and fades to delight. In relief, she relaxes her shoulders and smiles hopefully. "That is absolutely wonderful to hear."

Thinking for a moment, she widens her violet eyes and averts her gaze briefly from Deedri within a fit of embarrassment. "Oh, before I forget... I would like to also apologize about one comment I made towards you very early on..."

Lifting a curious eyebrow, Deedri awaits expectantly. Aristespha pulls in a tense, awkward breath. "About your bell?"

Deedri pauses in thought, groans out in annoyed disgust, and shakes her head, waving off the issue. "OH. It's okay. To be honest, I'm not that thrilled about it either. I'm really glad I don't have to wear the thing for a while."

Aristespha quirks a curious brow and leans slightly closer. "Have you tried... misplacing it?"

With a long frustrated sigh, Deedri shrugs her shoulders with her hands on her hips. She grumbles in defeat and glances over at Aristespha. "SO many times. They either have a crew member dedicated to keeping track of it... OR, they just ordered the things in bulk."

Narrowing her distant glare, she grits her sharp teeth. "I just haven't figured out which yet."

----

Holding firmly onto the wand with both her hands, Cideeda focuses upon a distant stabilized magical energy pedestal with an empty glass bottle upon it. With slow breaths and a concentrating grimace on her face, she aims the tip of the stick at the target. The inscriptions upon the wooden surface glow green. The flow pulsates along the channels and condenses upon the tip. A tiny sphere of magical energy materializes at the end, vibrating in a holding position. Cideeda slightly relaxes her hand muscles. With a twitch of a cheek under an emerald green eye, the small magical bolt launches off towards the glass bottle. In the second, it flies many meters across the tall grasses of the backyard and bounces off the side of the bottle, a crisp ping sounding out. The container wobbles off balance, rolling upon its bottom, and tumbles off the edge of the platform. Falling towards the ground, the bottle halts halfway down the pedestal, jerks back up, and dangles, swinging from a thin filament of magical energy. Sotalia cheers happily and excitedly hops near Cideeda. "You did it! Amazing shot!"

Struggling to keep a humble attitude in face of the claps from Bach and Dretphi and the energetic thumbs up from Sebastian hovering nearby in his ethereal form, Cideeda smirks satisfied. She rolls her eyes at herself and groans playfully. "Yes, it should be a good shot."

Flicking her emerald green eyes towards the target, she grumbles to herself. "It only took me over twenty times to hit the damn thing."

She glances at the target, closes one eye, and aims a wand point at the platform, her furry ears fluttering in response to the breeze. "So... I think I'll stick to the laser pistols for a little while longer. Don't think this is going to replace them any time soon."

With a glint of blue in his eyes, Bach shrugs and curls the end of a finger at his side. "Hey, you'll get there. I mean, the hardest part is the launch with any unguided projectile. Even a little flux in the flow will send the thing off at the wrong angle."

The thin filament of magical energy draws the glass bottle back up to the platform. The container flips over upon the top, righting itself under the tension of the flow wire, and slides back into its prior position. Bach motions towards the target and glances over to Cideeda. "Ready?"

Exhaling out a bit of tension, Cideeda rolls her shoulders into a stretch and relaxes her arms to the sides, flexing her clawed fingers a little. She shakes her head and steps slowly towards the wooden plank picnic table bench. "Someone else can go for it."

Furrowing her brow, she rubs her stomach and glances around in a moment of confusion. "I'm actually feeling hungry... And a little tired."

With a sly, knowing smirk, Sotalia nods towards Cideeda and steps up to the firing line. "Welcome to the best calorie burning exercises a girl could ever want. A few fireballs does wonders to counter a big dessert."

Walking towards the bench, Cideeda eyes Dretphi and lifts a questioning eyebrow. Sotalia pivots around to set up for a spell. Dretphi glances over to Cideeda, and both roll their eyes in unison. Cideeda Takes a seat upon the bench next to Dretphi, and the two exchange wry smirks. Thinking visibly for a moment, Sebastian glances over to Bach. "Hey, bro, anything you can do to make it a bit more challenging?"

Narrowing an internal stare, Bach ponders and hums out his thoughts. "Maybe..."

Brushing back her dark red hair over her black, swept-back horns, Sotalia steadies her posture and lifts a finger towards the target with a dramatic flair. A small bolt of energy condenses in front of her long nailed fingertip, and she guides the orb in line with the glass bottle on the magical pedestal. Moments later, the magical projectile zips forward right for the center mass of the container. A flicker of blue in Bach's eyes and a finger twitch later, the bottle suddenly shifts upon the pedestal, just out of the way of the energy bolt. Narrowing her eyes golden, Sotalia slides an unamused stare towards Bach, placing her free hand indignantly upon her hip. "Cute."

Resuming her attention forward, she prepares another similar bolt and conceals a sly grin away from Bach. Squinting his glowing gaze at the energy orb in front of Sotalia's finger, Bach lifts a curious eyebrow and cracks a smile from the corner of his mouth. Sotalia releases the bolt, and it streaks swiftly across the grassy backyard. The bottle shifts to the side, Sotalia's fingers reflexively flick, and the projectile tweaks its path. Bach flexes his fingers, and a signal pulses down the shimmering threads, following a track upon the ground towards the pedestal. A rectangular barrier unfolds from underneath the pedestal and flips up into a small wall at the front face of the top platform. Sotalia's golden eyes widen with a faint flicker. Her upper lip snarling, she drives the bolt clear at the last moment. It darts out wide, looping back into another approach. Momentarily glaring at Bach, Sotalia presents a competitive grin and refocuses upon steering the magical orb. With each approach the bolt attempts, the barrier flips around quickly, blocking passage, and the projectile swings clear, readying another attack from a different angle. Feverish minutes pass in the ongoing contest. Cideeda and Dretphi attentively watch upon the edges of their bench seats, and Sebastian's ghostly visage hovers around, full focus upon the orb's fight. Gritting her teeth in frustration, Sotalia pants and shakes her head, flinging a few beads of sweat off her brow. The warm sun above glints off her dark red hair. With each failed attempt, she growls with her rising agitation. Bach maintains a constant blue glow in eyes, and his fingers flick and flex, pulses of magical energy flashing down the thin magical control lines.

The bolt swings wide and flies out for another attempt. Noticing the faint shimmers of the magical control lines, Sotalia pulls sinister a grin across her light tan face and gestures with her free hand low at her hip, mouthing out an incantation. With a quick snap of the wrist, a directed pulse of magical energy warps out from her downwards aimed palm towards the energy threads in the grass. Contacting the lines, the wave disrupts the flow of energy and dispels large gaps into the lines. Bach blinks confused, snaps his stare down at the broken lines, and mumbles a few curses. With a smug grin, Sotalia curls a finger and sends the energy bolt right into the bottle, bouncing it clear off the pedestal. Spinning around both hands on her hips, she bows to the amusement of Cideeda, Dretphi, and Sebastian and slyly smiles at Bach. "Again, cute."

She stands back up and sneaks a wink. "But... Fun."

Rolling his faintly glowing blue eyes, Bach shrugs his shoulders. Sotalia pants, wipes the sweat off her brow, and gazes over to the hot tub gazebo. "Well, between that and the sun, I think I need a nice long Saturday afternoon soak."

Lifting herself up from the plank bench, Dretphi glances back over to the house, picks up her practice wand, and steps towards the ranch style house. "Need to prepare dinner."

Cideeda hops up on her feet, stretches out her back, and grins toothily. "Sounds good to me."

Pausing a moment, she flicks her furry ears towards the far corner of the property lot, in the direction of the two-story house. She furrows her brow, puzzling a moment, and starts to walk away. "Quiet over there today. Don't hear Tassilda or Veevi in a yelling match. Must be taking the day off from that."

The group walks towards the ranch style house, and Sotalia snickers to herself. From the thick, obscuring cover of the bushes along the perimeter of the forest, Tassilda squints her glare and carefully observes. She focuses her full attention upon one person, Sotalia. Her light blue on black eyes track Sotalia breaking away from the group over towards the hot tub gazebo and entering. Out of view, a dark grin forms upon Tassilda, and she narrows a sinister stare upon the gazebo. Tapping a long, black nailed finger upon her lips, she visibly ponders. A spark of inspiration lights up her eyes, a low chuckle escapes her, and she slinks off back towards the two-story house.

----

Behind the general diagnostics main desk of the clinic, Dr. Blackwell sorts through the plentiful, neatly arranged stacks of paperwork. Examining documents and occasionally signing off on a form, she stares over the quiet, nearly empty waiting room, her idling desk staff, and a number of medical mages and doctors double-checking case files. The moment of peace settles upon the scene, and a wave of suspicion tenses up the veteran staff. From a red phone upon the wall a shrill chime erupts and an amber light brilliantly flashes. Dr. Blackwell steps quickly over, snatches the phone handset off the unit, and answers the call with a stern expression. "Dr. Blackwell."

Her eyes follow the statements coming from the speaker, and her stoic exterior shifts gravely. Quickly scanning the area, she spots both Deedri and Aristespha, meeting their alert, attentive gazes. "Mage Orienden. Mage Preeta. Rush to the ER IMMEDIATELY. You two have both training and experience with magical trauma. Alchemical accident in a home lab. Multiple people injured, the worst is coming via ambulance in the next few minutes."

She narrows her stare upon them. "MOVE."

Aristespha and Deedri exchange quick glances, pause briefly, and speed off in a fast walk out of the area, down the hall. Watching the two rush off, Dr. Blackwell returns her attention to the call. "Two adventurer medical mages are on their way."

Speeding down the main hallway of the clinic, both Deedri and Aristespha prepare. Both quickly speak fast incantations and gesture out the same set of protective spells. An auburn glow shines from Deedri's eyes, and Aristespha's eyes ignite violet. Entering the emergency bays, they quickly wash hands, cast disinfectant spells, and don both gloves and masks. They present themselves to the emergency room head doctor, and listen attentively to the latest details about the situation. Moments later, automated doors swiftly retract clear of the passage. A swarm of emergency medical techs and paramedics around a gurney pour into the area and spill out in the space. Upon the medical stretcher, a young man lays unconscious. Slow streaks of crimson ooze out upon his red stained skin from numerous glass-shard filled wounds across his chest and abdomen. The crowd closes in, and Deedri winces, sniffing the air. A powerful residual stench of some indeterminable alchemical cocktail floods the area, with complaints sounding out from other observant staff. Focusing her stare, Aristespha promptly studies the physical state of the man arriving into one of the bays.

The group of emergency medical techs and paramedics carefully transfer the patient onto an awaiting medical table, and Aristespha and Deedri enter the fray. Vitals, statuses, figures, stats, and more fly around in a maelstrom of activity. Both Deedri and Aristespha assert themselves into the process, taking command of the orderly chaos. Aristespha projects her voice towards a paramedic maintaining his hands above the chest and abdomen of the patient. "How long have you been magically stabilizing?"

The paramedic maintains his stare upon the injured man, breathes audibly, and only grants a few seconds of attention to the outside world, relaying the needed information. "Tw-Tw-Twenty... Minutes."

Urgency fills Aristespha's tone, and she observes the paramedic's body trembling. Quickly starting a series of incantations and gestures, she holds her hands above the paramedics and calmly, sternly commands. "On three. Transfer stabilization."

She snaps her head, facing an emergency tech, and orders. "Catch him the second he releases."

With the emergency tech nodding in confirmation, Aristespha's eyes shine brightly violet, and she calls out. "One. Two. Three!"

In one fluid motion, the paramedic with his last bits of consciousness backs away clear of the chaos and falls into the arms of the awaiting emergency tech, carrying him away. Visible flows of magical energy swirl around Aristespha's arms and radiate down upon the body of the patient. Deedri quickly and systematically inspects the shards of glass embedded in the body of the man, squints towards many strange discolorations, and inspects the burns upon the body. "Improper glassware. Shards are too large. Chemical burns, and excessive magical energy residue. Secondary reaction explosion."

Nodding with the assessment, Aristespha focuses her stabilization spell upon the man with careful breaths. "Too many wounds to maintain this stabilization field effectively for more than half an hour. I can see other issues, but we need to make sure he does NOT bleed to death first once this field releases."

Glancing up to Aristespha, Deedri resolutely proposes the plan. "I'll perform magical encapsulated extraction of the foreign material. Trauma foam the cavities. We focus on the most threatening and work from there?"

With a firm nod, Aristespha confirms and confidently agrees. "I will adjust the stabilization field as you fill. It will extend the time I am able to maintain it. Please, watch for active alchemical residue. The smell is too strong for there not to be something still active."

Deedri's hand reaches out to a wound near the side of the chest and hovers near an embedded glass shard sparkling just under skin level. With a long breath in, she carefully lowers a stable finger down and places her glove encased claw tip gently upon the hard, shiny fragment. With a brighter auburn flare in her eyes, a flow of magical energy slowly wraps around her finger, crosses onto the glass shard top via claw tip, and infiltrates into the wound. Seconds later, the flow slows, and the field of magical energy condenses to a thin barrier. Carefully and gradually, Deedri lifts her finger away, pulling with a firm, measured tension. A few centimeter long, jagged sliver of glass slides out of the wound, the field encasing the razor sharp edges and containing tiny fragments within a matrix of energy. Glancing around quickly, Deedri spots a nearby nurse at the ready, presenting a metal tray. She swiftly deposits the exorcized foreign material, dispersing the energies at her claw tip. "Thank you."

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With a series of hand motions, Deedri instructs the nurse towards the cleared cavity. "Wound foam, please."

Snatching up a canister nearby, the nurse sprays a foaming compound down into the wound and observes the sealing action to surrounding satisfaction. Aristespha gives Deedri a nod and slowly exhales. "Excellent. Let us hope the rest are that simple."

She scans the sheer number of similar wounds upon the man and gathers her composure, presenting a reassuring, confident exterior. Deedri glances at Aristespha with resolve, flexes her fingers, and hunts for the next target. With other emergency patients arriving, emergency medical techs and paramedics filter out from the area, making room for nurses, support staff, medical mages, and doctors. Focusing upon their patient, Aristespha and Deedri work methodically and coordinate their efforts with care and precision. Deedri extracts glass shards into trays. Aristespha augments her stabilization fields, isolating harmful alchemical residues. And, both communicate with support staff swiftly flowing around them.

An hour later, the last glass shard hits a tray, and a final tube of trauma foam expands into the cavity of a wound. Releasing the stabilization field spell, Aristespha carefully steps back from the table and props herself up against a nearby wall. Deedri closely scans over the man, double-checks his current vitals, and clears away towards the same wall. Another team of medical staff fill in Aristespha and Deedri's spots, thank the two for their work, and prep the patient for the next stage of treatment.

Aristespha and Deedri glance over to the attending head doctor. Acknowledging the two of them, he surveys the area full of medical staff working and points them to a few chairs off to the side. Aristespha rocks herself forward off the wall, and walks to the cleaning station with Deedri. After cleanup, the two sit down and receive potions from nursing staff. Passing by between checking different bays, the head doctor pauses a moment. "Rest up a moment. We'll need to swap out a few keeping the stabilization fields up in a few minutes."

The two nod, toss back their potions, and seize the precious moments to recover.

----

Laying upon the living area couch, Cideeda swipes through screens full of text and idly taps a claw tip upon her aetherphone display. "Wow... I can't believe all the pest extermination jobs out there in this area."

Dretphi stretches her legs out onto the coffee table in front of the couch, settles back opposite to Cideeda, and nods. "Seasonal problem. Pests become active. Mating. Breeding. Migration periods."

Relaxing in the extended recliner, Sotalia thumbs through lists of jobs on her aetherphone and twists her mouth more with each title description. "Bandit patrol, bandit patrol, whelp extermination..."

She squints at the listing and flutters her golden eyes in surprise. "Oh, gods. Pig rat extermination..."

Shuddering in her seat, she quickly flicks up a blur of jobs, putting virtual distance between her eyes and the prior posting. With a quizzical lift of an eyebrow, Bach glances over at Sotalia and gazes up at Sebastian floating over his shoulder. "So, there's a story there, I guess?"

Sebastian grits his teeth briefly and groans in slight ghostly reverb, momentarily averting his eyes away from Bach's aetherphone screen. "Yeah. Yeah. You could say THAT, bro."

He shrugs with his hands out to his sides and scratches the back of his head. "Pig rats are some weird mutated creatures that look like the large, hairless blend of a pig and rat. They're fucking mean, have claws, and are nearly blind. But, they have a good sense of smell, and just swarm anything they sense has magic. I don't know if they just like magic, or if it just pisses them off."

Sotalia cringes and squirms in the recliner further, and shakes her head side to side, tensing her shoulders. "Oh gods! Stop talking about them! I HATE those things!"

A wry smirk cracks from the corner of Cideeda's mouth, revealing a toothy grin. "Aww. But, they seemed to like YOU a lot. Never seen anything that fat wobble so fast."

Dretphi squelches an ill-humored smile and brushes a few platinum blonde braids back, keeping her steely gray eyes upon her aetherphone. "Did not know that pig rats could climb trees. Chew through boot leather."

Sotalia sours into a frown and grumbles to herself. "...I really liked those enchanted boots..."

Glancing over his shoulder to his ethereal brother, he furrows his brow curiously. Sebastian rolls his translucent blue eyes and mouths quietly. "I'll tell you later."

Scrutinizing the list of jobs upon his aetherphone, Bach sighs thoughtfully and tilts his head to the side. "Damn. I mean, it just seems like pest control or bandit patrol on the guild job board right now. I'm trying to find anything else."

Sebastian's ghostly visage nods, and he shrugs his shoulders. "Well, Sunday is usually the leftovers from the week. Most governments and businesses only post during the work week."

Crossing his arms, he wrestles down a frown and groans. "While I'm not AGAINST a pest extermination job, it's usually really dirty work depending on the pest. And, we're not large enough of a team to handle any significant group of bandits nicely. Those are best handled by large companies that are geared for that."

Dretphi gazes over at Bach with a thoughtful tone. "It is a... undesirable situation overall. Prefer unique exploratory jobs."

Nodding her head of short, multicolored hair upon the couch pillow, Cideeda switches up her crossed legs with a stretch in between. "Far better loot, too. Usually a lot less trouble most of the time."

Sebastian lowers his head and peers over Bach's shoulder at the aetherphone. "Also, most bandit groups tend to leave adventuring groups alone. Too much trouble for not enough reward. Unless..."

He furrows his brow and smirks. "You have a known history with hunting bandits down. That kind of makes it more of a personal mission for them."

A series of different chimes ring out in a chorus from aetherphones in the room, and a distant series of alerts echo down the hallway from Aristespha's room. Sebastian points a transparent finger at the indicator on Bach's phone. Bach presses the visual notification, and a job listing draws up on the screen. Everyone investigates the prompt on their devices, and reads the new information. Cocking his head to the side, Sebastian puzzles at the text, blinking in thought. "Interesting. A direct bid posting... A search and rescue assignment..."

He squints in a fit confusion. "For a young evuukian teenager?"

Standing up straight, he searches his mind with a distant stare and ponders out loud to the rest of the group. "Okay. So, when Aristespha is done with the clinic, we'll definitely discuss this job."

----

Upon the clinic break room couch, Deedri limply lifts her arms up, rubs the fatigue around her eyes, and eases out a long sigh. "I STILL can't believe those people were that stupid to carelessly mix all those reagents that they got off a random aethernet site."

Lounging in a couch chair, Aristespha pulls a warm compress off her head, gazes over towards Deedri, and groans. "Fortunately, only two other people were nearby when the explosion happened. And, thankfully, they weren't as bad as the first man. I don't think I could have done another stabilization field that involved after that first one."

The two sit in the calming silence of the room, the evening sun weakly radiating the dusk glow through the windows. Aristespha removes the compress completely, places it on the chair arm, and carefully rotates her head towards Deedri. "So... Where did you study?"

Blinking open her auburn eyes, Deedri sighs weakly and shrugs off some embarrassment. "OH. Uh, just a small no name school. No where in comparison to where you probably went."

Briefly laughing, Aristespha snorts and shakes her head. "You would be very surprised. I am the fifth child in the family. I went to a budget adventuring school... That I STILL got loans out for."

Genuine surprise appears on Deedri's fair face, and she focuses her gaze upon Aristespha with honest curiosity. "Really? Wow, I... Um..."

A sly grin graces Aristespha, and she presents her amusement with a chuckle. "Oh, you thought that evuukian ruling houses were all ridiculously wealthy and all the children got the best of everything?"

Pausing a moment, Deedri thinks out her next statement, deliberation plain upon her face, and resigns to quiet embarrassment. Aristespha briefly laughs loudly, stares up at the ceiling, and slowly shakes her head, stray strands of silver blue locks escaping the tight hair bun. "Gods, I wish that was the case. But... it is NOT. Especially, when you are not the first two children. You might get lucky if you are the third. Otherwise, you never much hear about a house's children past the fourth. The resources tend to dry up at that point, and the granted opportunities are REALLY slim."

She frowns slightly and grumbles. "Honestly, I stumbled upon a big find that got me into the Grand Library."

Rolling her violet eyes, she arches her back momentarily and winces. "It was pure luck."

Deedri aims a comforting smile towards Aristespha. "Well even with luck, you still have to know how to make use of it. It seems like you did."

With an accepting smirk, Aristespha nods and lifts an eyebrow at Deedri. "Well, I certainly hope so. I have to ask, what do you plan to do after the show?"

Deedri's eyes spring wide open, and she furrows her brow in thought into an unsure grimace. "I... I don't really know. I certainly want to do more adventuring..."

Flexing her clawed fingers, she wrestles down a frown. "With a more... COHESIVE group."

She glances around her mind and swallows hard. "But, I don't know if I'll have any more applicable experience than what I started the show with. I really don't think I've demonstrated and expanded my skills enough to be better than any other medical mage."

A serious, calm tone overtakes Aristespha, and she stares at Deedri. "You have today, to me. You have the skills. The experience... THAT will come later, in time. But, you DO have what it takes. I doubt you will have any problems getting hired into a good group in the future. If you do not..."

Tugging at the corner of her mouth, she stretches out an honest smile on her ivory face. "I am sure I can convince the rest of my group to let you intern with us until you find your own team."

Deedri's eyes widen in utter surprise. Trying to blink away the shock, she only manages to wet her eyes a bit with each attempt. Turning her head to face up towards the ceiling, she wipes the forming tears out of her eyes and sniffs quickly to clear her voice. "Thank you. Really. I appreciate knowing that."

A relaxing silence wafts into the room. Over the minutes, the last traces of sunlight no longer compete with the break room's overhead lights. Aristespha and Deedri rest, collecting their thoughts in the idle time. The entry door opens, and Dr. Blackwell walks through. Both Aristespha and Deedri begin to sit up to attention, and Dr. Blackwell motions them back to rest. Presenting a mild smile, Dr. Blackwell pans her gaze between the two. "Excellent work, mages. I wanted to come down and personally update you. All the patients are stable, and the most severe are being treated by regenerative doctors."

Aristespha perks her brow and asks. "By the way, how is that paramedic fairing?"

With a professional, proper demeanor, Dr. Blackwell nods towards Aristespha. "He'll be just fine. He's on mandatory sick leave tomorrow to recuperate."

Pausing a moment, she gradually softens her facade. "I also wanted to state that you two have performed admirably in your duties here. I'll be certain to grant a few hour bonus to your quotas. I'll need you to come in tomorrow for some paperwork, but you'll be able to rejoin your adventuring teams for now."

Presenting a proud smile, she gazes out the windows towards the orange red glow of the horizon. "If you two ever need to work on your quotas again, feel free to contact me, personally."

Both Aristespha and Deedri fight against fatigue and nod appreciatively. Dr. Blackwell steps closer to the windows and narrows her stare with a growing grin. Turning her head slightly back towards Aristespha and Deedri with a sly tint slipping into her tone. "Now... I'm not one to encourage anyone's activities off the clock, but..."

She lifts a sly eyebrow. "There's a particular bar hidden across the way in the nearby commercial district that I've heard is quite popular with many of the staff here."

She pivots around and walks to the door. Opening the door, she stops short of crossing the threshold into the hall and glances over her shoulder with a smirk. "I wouldn't be surprised if a few deserving volunteers wander that way in the very near future to settle their nerves before going home for the night."

The door closes behind Dr. Blackwell. Flicking her furry, tufted ears, Deedri slowly rolls her head over towards Aristespha, a tip of the tail wagging out from under a coat. "So... Um... Do you want to go find that bar?"

A moment of deliberation later, Aristespha tilts herself forward onto her feet, cracks her neck, and stretches her back out. "Oh, gods, yes."

----

Down one of the medical center streets, Chad slowly turns the steering wheel of the black sport utility vehicle. He guides the machine into another lane and glances between the light beaming into night from scattered windows. Alone in the cab, he speaks out loud, maintaining an uncertain, contemplative stare out the windshield. "I don't know, dad. Ratings are good. We have a cooperative contract setup for this week with a larger merc company. So, I guess things are doing good."

With an uplifting hint, an older voice sounds out from Chad's aetherphone upon a dash mount. "Hey, that's great to hear. What group is it? I might have done business with them."

Rolling his brown eyes, Chad shakes his head and grumbles with a smirk. "Of course you probably have done business with them."

An unapologetic chuckle rises from the speakerphone. "Hey! That's kind of my business, son. So, come on... Who is it?"

With a slight begrudging groan giving way to a genuine appreciation, Chad swiftly sighs out. "The Chrome Crusaders."

The bright tone of Chad's father shines through into the cab of the vehicle. "Oh! Awesome! They're a really good organization. I've sold a number of armor suits and rented a few of the big mechs to them."

After a long pause, Chad darts an anticipating glance to his phone and groans. "If I need you to check in on the particular division I'm working with, I'll let you know."

Hints of embarrassment slip into Chad's father's voice. "Ah... Well... Dammit, son. You know I just want to help you out where I can."

A slight smile forms on Chad's tan face, and he slowly nods, rotating the steering wheel. "I know, dad. Things are going... Okay. Not great. But, I think I can make it work."

With a careful, supportive tone, Chad's father approaches the subject. "Hey, don't worry about it. Even your grandfather had a rough start to his adventuring career... And, a lot of slumps... that I was around for."

In the awkward silence, Chad grimaces and waits expectantly. His father continues. "As much as you don't want to hear it... You always can work at MERC with your old man for a while. You network with a few people, and you'll be off in your own group in no time."

Seconds of quiet later, he sighs from the other side of the call. "Just know, the offer is always there, son."

The passing streetlights pulse light upon the dash and illuminate the front seats. Chad releases a long exhale, nodding, and appreciatively smirks towards the aetherphone. "Thanks, dad. Really. Speaking of... Have you heard from granddad lately?"

A long groan echoes through the speakerphone, and Chad's father grumbles, mild annoyance simmering. "Not much since he stopped by a month ago and..."

He hems into a pause. "Borrowed... one the humvees off the lot for whatever quest he's on now. If I'm guessing right, I think he was hunting down another mystical magic artifact."

Chad's interest piques, and his excitement slips into his tone. "Really?! Did he say anything to you about it?!"

Chad's father drones, unamused through the speaker of the aetherphone. "NO. Of course not. But... From what other equipment he... BORROWED... I don't think he's going too far outside aether tower and radio range. So, he should receive anything you message to him. Might even answer his phone, for once."

A mix of emotions fight for space on Chad's face, and he cautiously states. "Well... I'll try to contact him and relay what he's doing to you."

A long sigh resonates from the other side of the connection, and Chad's father chuckles appreciatively. "Ah, it's okay. He's your grandfather. And, he's always happy to hear from you, and you should talk to him. Just..."

Grumbling a moment, he lovingly pleads. "Just... Just don't fall into his... Um, nice way to put it... Life philosophy? It works for HIM. But, I think he's the only one it works for."

Rolling his eyes, Chad flips on the turn signal and slows the vehicle to a stop at an empty, lighted intersection. He ponders to himself a moment, contorting his grimace. "I'll be careful, dad. I'm going to make it work."

A long pause later, Chad's father responds pleasantly. "I know you will. Speaking of making things work, how are things between you and Veevi?"

Pondering the question, Chad blinks back to awareness and notices the lights changing to green. Driving the black sport utility vehicle into a long left turn, he uncertainly contemplates and snarls an unsure upper lip with a vague shoulder shrug. "It's... A thing?"

A hearty laugh echoes from the aetherphone on the dash mount. "Ah! No need to explain. I totally understand, son. Despite what you may think, your old man has had a few of those in his early years, too. You gotta have a few flings."

Chad shakes his head quickly and narrows his eyes incredulously ahead, puzzling with a snort. "What?! You? No way!"

A sly chuckle resonates from the phone. "Hey! I've had my own exploits behind the scenes of the mercenary equipment trade. Just because the trade isn't on the front stage, doesn't mean it doesn't get wild. Even have a few flings that I still keep in contact with today. You know Lady Aaveradean? The nice woman who gave you your first training sword?"

Chad's eyes widen in shock and flutter bewildered. "You and her? Wha? I... OKAY, you HAVE to be bullshitting me now, dad."

Another laugh crackles out from the phone. "Hey, I wasn't too bad looking back in the day."

Pressing the brakes, Chad guides the vehicle into a parallel parking spot along the street dividing the clinic complex and a nearby commercial row. He reaches for his phone, lifting it clear of the mount, and rolls his eyes in amusement. "OKAY, dad. I'll talk to you later. I need to figure out where to pick Deedri up at. Coordinates seem right, but... I'm not too sure if I'm where I need to be."

Chuckling lightly, Chad's father brightly answers. "Okay. Good luck finding your medical mage. I love you, son."

Chad smiles at the phone and nods. "Love you, too. Bye."

Pressing the call end button on the screen of his phone, he turns his attention to the evening activity around the area. He focuses towards the clinic complex, squinting between the staff and patients cycling out of different buildings. Claw tips tap upon the front passenger side window. Snapping his head around, Chad watches Deedri wave with a relaxed smile. A quick click of a button later, the vehicle's door locks disengage. Deedri quickly opens the car door, hops into the front passenger seat, and faces Chad with a smirk. "Hey. Sorry about the late pick up. It's... Been a day."

Blinking utterly confused, Chad slowly nods. Deedri hiccups, covering her mouth. Chad furrows his brow, and Deedri loosely puts her seat belt on, swaying slightly in the seat.

----

Stepping carefully along the carpeted hallway of the upper floor, Veevi slinks around past bedroom doors. She slowly approaches the two doors at the end of the hallway belonging to Deedri and Modoran. Her pink pupil eyes focus upon Modoran's bedroom door, and a sinister smile creeps across face. Closing in on the doorway, she adjusts her posture and shifts her nightshirt into a more provocative position upon her body. With her hand hovering above the door knob to Modoran's room, wooden creaks from the stairwell echo down the hall. A series of slow steps sound out and grow louder. Veevi searches around the area, straightens her posture, and projects an innocent demeanor, sliding a meter away from the door. Deedri arrives at the top of the stairs, yawns with a loose sway, and walks slowly towards her end of the hallway. Squinting her pink pupil eyes at Deedri, Veevi studies her posture, mannerisms, and body language. She processes the information, and a mischievous, evil smirk cracks from the corner of her mouth. Her full attention locking onto Deedri, Veevi slowly steps towards Deedri and greets her with a wave. "Hey. You're home really late."

Glancing over to Veevi, Deedri awkwardly returns the wave and continues towards her bedroom. "Yes... It's been a day."

Veevi closes the distance between and casually sniffs the air. A spark of sinister inspiration lights her eyes, and she presents a concerned gaze to Deedri with a sweetened tinge. "Really? Anything you want to talk about? I can be a great... Listener."

Shifting her course away from Veevi, Deedri slides close to the wall leading to her bedroom door. "It's okay. Just a stressful day. I'll be fine. Just need to get to bed."

Veevi places her tan, brown-striped arm upon the wall, in front of Deedri, and gazes at her with a sly smile. "Hey... It's okay. I'd like to hear about your day. It might help relieve some of your stress by sharing."

Deedri squirms and searches for an alternative route, between glances at Veevi's most convincing smirk. Easing closer, Veevi rests a gentle hand upon Deedri's shoulder and lowers her voice to a soft whisper. "Listen. I've had a lot of crazy, stressful experiences, too. And, I've learned a thing or two about dealing with stress. And, I've learned that best ways are sharing with others..."

Veevi's long, short-hair tail snakes closer to Deedri's leg, and her free hand slips in the space between Deedri's arm and waist, under her medical duster, resting upon the back of her pants. Donning a sultry grin, Veevi winks to Deedri and punctuates with a firm squeeze. "And... I've learned the best ways involve a bed..."

Deedri's body stiffens, her face blanks, and she closes her eyes. Veevi expectantly awaits a response. Releasing a long, irritation-strained exhale, Deedri opens her eyes, igniting with auburn. In a fraction of a second, Veevi's confidence vaporizes. Shock overtaking her completely, she unleashes a loud, reflexive yip. She instinctively lifts up on the balls of feet and drops her panicked, wide eyed stare down. Claws curl through Veevi's nightshirt and press sharply onto her soft skinned belly. Deedri swiftly marches towards the opposing wall of the hallway, ushering Veevi along under near-piercing pain and threat of puncture. With a solid thud upon the painted drywall, Veevi lifts her hands away from Deedri and raises them up, trembling in fright. From behind the nearby door, Modoran's voice sounds out a confused quip in evuukian.

Adjusting her spread finger grip on Veevi's belly, Deedri glares darkly right up into Veevi's eyes, the auburn glow illuminating her face. "You. Just. Had. To. Push. It."

She squeezes her hold lightly, watching Veevi cringe and tense. "Let me make this CLEAR. I've had a stressful day and want to go to bed. ALONE. In fact, I really don't want anything to do with YOU in THAT particular way... EVER. And, before you start thinking..."

Lifting an eyebrow, she curls her upper lip into a sneer. "I've entertained a variety of relationships. SO... When I say I don't want anything to do with you..."

She straightens her back, pulls Veevi down, and glares right through. "I. MEAN. YOU. Do you understand?"

Rapidly nodding her head a few times, Veevi remains silent in sheer terror. Deedri maintains her stare and examines the very details of Veevi's face, narrowing the auburn projection. Modoran's door opens, and he cautiously leans out. Halting in utter bewilderment at the scene before him, he quietly observes in awe. Drawing in a long, deep breath, Deedri growls low and bares her pronounced canines. "GOOD. Because... If you pester me with your pitiful attempts to bed me again... I will..."

Claws latched upon Veevi's belly press harder into her soft tan skin, reach the near piercing point of her flesh, and halt precisely short of it. Deedri grits her sharp teeth and focuses her brightly shining auburn eyes upon Veevi's horrified face. "MANUALLY. SPAY. YOU... Understand?"

Veevi nods her head quickly with a pleading tone. "Y-y-y-yes. U-u-u-u-nder-s-s-stood."

In a swift motion, Deedri releases her grip, steps away, and pivots in place. She stops her rotation, noticing Modoran gawking, and relaxes her fury with a few long breaths to a much calmer, slightly embarrassed smile. "I'm sorry. It's- It's been a day."

Blinking his dark blue eyes back to awareness, Modoran musters a comforting smirk and nods in agreement. "Uh. Looks like it. Um, it's okay. I've had... Similar days?"

Deedri returns the nod, turns the rest of the way, and quickly slips through the door into her room. Modoran slowly swings his blank stare over. Standing with her knees touching and supporting most of her weight against the wall, Veevi inspects her abdomen and pats around, finding no blood or broken skin. She slowly lifts her head up, pants unconsciously, and feels her flushed face. Resting a hand upon her chest, she stares forward confused and contemplative, her mind vainly trying to evaluate the situation. Rolling herself away from Modoran along the wall, she steadies herself on her feet and sheepishly walks weak-kneed back towards her room. Modoran bounces his gaze between Veevi's retreat and Deedri's bedroom door, only managing to mouth out evuukian phrases, absolutely perplexed.