After the talk with Mister I Corvayne wanted to spend some time with Wick, but she wasn't in her room, and he saw she was doing magic practice in the garage which he didn't want to interrupt with his usual insecurities. It was raining pretty heavily, but the humidity trapped inside the building felt suffocating so he parked himself under an awning in the court yard of the community center, the pattering of rain mostly blanketing out Wick banging on the metal wall with spells.

Looking around at the little walkway, handful of trees, corner garden, and grill all getting pelted by rain relaxed him. It took him away from the desert to see a puddle shimmer. So what now? Well, Mister I gave him a lot to think about, but he guessed it was a worst-case assessment between him and Wick. He would put it off to Monday. That's assuming he got there, he might very well die in the next couple of days. Even if it didn't stick last time he died, he had a feeling he wasn't going to get to live a hundred times and unless he vastly overestimated his enemy, sooner or later he'd stroll into Old Town, possibly with a legion of cops.

Corvayne was cursed, and he knew he had tried to dodge thinking about it, but Lady Blood Claw had been right. Something was wrong with him. The memory gaps bothered him. What was he going to do about it? The only people that might know what to do were on a different world. He'd have to talk to Mister I about if there were things he could do to train his mind here. That and maybe some mental flexing would help give him clarity. It was one thing to empty his mind and just act, but he sometimes felt overwhelmed by all the stuff he was now trying to keep track of.

So, list, he had to beat up the monk, then find his way back home, all the while trying to sort of fix himself long enough to deal with his own tribe when he found them. The Magus cursed Lady Blood Claw, and probably cursed him. He'd go into the prison and... ask nicely? Wring the wizard's neck? The second option usually was how warriors did thing, but it didn't feel like it would work. Either way, he'd come back to the village stronger. He was pretty sure that he wouldn't be the bottom of the barrel with the weapon powers he had, especially with a one on one duel with Spears under his belt. He couldn't take a master yet, but with those skills he used he might actually land a hit.

Spears-Like-Water had changed too. Did he lift her curse? The black vine around her heart felt like what he pulled away to get his powers. He didn't like her, but the look on her face when the fight ended and she vanished after being stuck inside that... thing... He summoned the wood statue of a spear woman in a cage, the carving oddly familiar to him. He was pretty sure he hadn't carved anything before, but there was something nostalgic about it. Holding it... he felt himself turning to stare at a part of the inner courtyard wall, north near the door to the garage. He tried thinking of the desert, his bed, home, and his attention jerked sharply back in the direction of the warehouse. Right. He felt at home here, in the city. He wasn't at all out of place or out of touch! Thinking about Spears again, his senses started drawing his attention north again... it didn't feel like gravity or his shadow hands, so was it the compass power or did he have something else that might let him sense where things were?

Someone sat down next to him and he jumped out of his seat and turned. Lady Blood Claw looked up at him, skin turning brown with orange and red circles swelling up, her face looking a little hurt.

“Sorry, I didn't notice you come up on me.” Corvayne held his hands up, then sat back down. She had been stern the first week they knew each other but more and more she was acting... less like a gruff alien mercenary. “I was just watching the rain and thinking.”

Her skin drifted to a sort of pinkish darker gray color. Halfway between happy and keeping a lid on it. “Ah. Sorry, I was just going to say you've been doing a good job. I wanted to try to train some before we face off against the monk, too, but there's not a good place to do so here.”

“Yeah, Wick's using the garage. And it's kids field hockey day in the gym.”

Lady Blood Claw sighed. “All that effort renovating that factory... down the drain.”

Corvayne nodded. “It had plenty of space. And of course I'd train with you if we had a spot... You are a good sparring partner.”

She raised an eyebrow, looking amused with bright banded colors flowing over gray skin. “Ah. I had hoped we'd moved up to friends.”

“Oh. I sort of thought that, but I'm still finding myself... unsure of what to do with other people? And myself.”

Lady Blood Claw nodded. “I lived for the organization so long that I sort of grabbed for the first thing that offered me a place, with Nyxion. I appreciate Nyx, but you've sort of upset the status quo of jumping onto his brand of chaos.”

“You still want me to try to find my village and the Magus, right? I think if Wick is safe, that's what I want to do next.”

“That's sort of what I wanted to ask you about, but... I'm okay waiting a little longer if Wick gets caught up in what Nyxion wants to do. I know often I'm... brisk and direct. I had talked to Wick about you and she had admonished me about badgering you, telling me it would be like pushing me to go back to the Magus's apprentices.” She scratched her cheek, skin turning a deep blue that Corvayne was nearly certain was embarrassment.

Corvayne nodded, suddenly feeling odd looking at her face to face. “Thanks for your concerns, but I'm dating... trying to date Wick. You barely register on the pushy scale. I don't know if Nyxion is up for a quest to try to find my village, but you're welcome to come when I go.”

He heard the door open to the courtyard from the direction of the main community center and clinic and spotted Grunt, who produced an umbrella while holding another. The large man smiled and walked over, offering Corvayne an umbrella. He made a shoveling-food-in-his-face gesture.

“Can I see if Wick's down too?” Corvayne asked. Grunt nodded and handed him an umbrella.

Inside the garage Wick was in a tank top and shorts, her blue robe and pants draped over a folding chair, and was waving a wand overhand and underhand alternating as she threw tiny bolts from the tip. Sweat covered her forehead as guided a trio of jade bolts into a bulls-eye. Each disrupt made a small pinging noise as it dented the metal. He saw one swing going wide from the target and smack into a different part of the wall, and as much as he liked watching her sweat he decided she probably would appreciate a break.

“Wick, food?”

She turned and tucked her wand in the band of her shorts, then swept her hair back, the mop of green damp with perspiration. “You don't mind that I'm sweaty?”

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“No.” He didn't think the circles under her eyes today were makeup, and didn't want to freak her out by telling her that right now he was very tempted to skip eating to do something else. He forced himself to calm down. Despite what Mister I said, Wick didn't need to know every time he wanted to grab her and... He redirected himself to food.

Wick threw her robe and pants on, reducing some of Corvayne's baser thoughts. She looked him up and down and he saw a little smile on her face that suggested she noticed him checking her out. Then she slipped back into her manic grin and walked past him. “Good! I'd kick your ass if you complained about me working out. The stunt with the hell hound means he's going to be in Ko-Ban soon. Thankfully, the cops are spread out trying to deal with the shit Grunt stirred up, but it's a matter of TIME. When are you working out? I wanna watch you, see how you like it.”

He fell in step with her as she strode outside. It seemed like jogging she had been doing in her past life had carried over, as before when she was a little tired she was fully winded. He tried to do a little acting with her, adding a baritone confidence to his voice. “You are always welcome to watch me.”

She laughed. “I won't have a choice since you live an empty door frame away.” She had stopped under the awning as he stepped past her with the umbrella.

“I haven't gotten a job yet, hence living in your spare room.” He had to either loom over her or get wet to keep the umbrella on both of them. He saw that Grunt and Lady Blood Claw... he would try to say Lady next time he wanted to get her attention... he saw that they were waiting inside the front part of the community center.

Wick was looking at him. “Corvayne, you know most people don't live where they work, right?”

“I sort of guessed.” He didn't really know, but he missed living next to Grunt for as much as he liked crashing at Wick's. “Why doesn't Grunt live with Dawn?”

“I want to challenge you to think about it, or just ask him.” Wick said. “You are smart enough... oh I wanted to talk to you about the gang. The Bone Dogs. Also I'm glad you don't open doors for me. It would weird me out.” She swung the door open and he used a shadow hand to keep the umbrella over her, then held the door and yanked the umbrella in after them as they both went inside.

A wide eyed child in the hall, probably less then 10 summers old, was pointing at him with mouth agape. Corvayne smiled and winked at him, using a shadow hand to shush himself. “We're on a secret mission. Shh.”

The child beamed and repeated the motion, then turned to run back into the gym and likely tell everyone what he had seen.

Corvayne looked over to Wick, who gave him a level look. “Sorry, I might have pushed the time table up if the rumor spreads.”

She laughed. “I'm so beyond caring at this point. I mean, the hell hound you guys dragged into the neighborhood probably did the trick. Argyle might not know my name but people know Grunt, and Grunt associates with me.”

Corvayne felt his shoulders slump as they walked up to Grunt and Lady Blood Claw. “Sorry Wick. We tried to keep a low profile.”

Wick waved her hand. “We got Dawn working on the info, and you guys all lived without being maimed. Corvayne. Stop. Look at me. I'm not mad. I'm a little scared, but I am NOT angry at you. I warned you that I am fucked. I was always going to have someone show up and try to kidnap me or kill me. You've been at the front lines of trying to give me... something back. You get me? No sappy shit, just nod.”

Corvayne nodded. Grunt held the door for them, and as a group they strode into the rain and a couple of blocks over to the covered street mall. Grunt lined them up at the noodle stand, just far enough in the awning that the rain pouring down didn't splatter them. The warm light of the stand and the delightful steam coming off the broth mixed with the subdued daylight and cool mist of the rain. A group of teens ran in from the street, holding a newspaper up as cover. The noodle lady looked at Lady Blood Claw and laughed and added another person to the tally assuming she was in costume as a drow elf. He had half a mind, once he got a computer again, to figure out why she got that response every time.

The lady behind the counter served them up then watched the rain as they ate, swaying to the music coming from a radio that looked a century old. The beef noodles he ordered were good except for the Cascadian habit of slipping native pine needles into their food. Corvayne tried to give them a fair second chance with the noodles but found them intolerably soapy again. Lady Blood Claw was eating carefully, rolling the noodles and chewing them and sipping from her soup spoon rather then slurping. He secretly was pleased to see her carefully remove the soaked needles from the soup and set them on the serving bowl, meaning he wasn't alone in despising them. Wick ate like she was possessed but instead of hurrying away like the last time, turned to look at the rain. Grunt was working on his second bowl as he spun as well.

“Hey. What do you guys want?” Wick asked.

“You to be safe. Obviously.” Corvayne added.

Wick groaned. “No no no. I mean, that's my goal too, but what about afterwards? When you're too strong to mess with... what did you want to do with your life?”

Grunt put his bowl back on the counter unfinished to mime out a fist bump, then binoculars, then a hug: I have a friend I want to find.

Corvayne was surprised. Grunt seemed so content with wherever he was. “Oh, you have a buddy that went missing, or you just lost touch with them?”

Grunt nodded. He shrugged, and gestured around him, at the bowls of noodles.

Lady Blood Claw offered with hesitation. “Grunt wants... the simple things in life?”

Grunt nodded vigorously, beaming at Lady Blood Claw. He mimed drawing out a string, then cutting it with finger scissors, then shrugged and took two offered beers from the cook, clinking them together and putting one in front of Corvayne: Life's short. So don't sweat it, and enjoy.

He took a sip and offered it to Wick who shook her head. “Can't drink for another hour. Meds.”

They sat and watched the rain. Corvayne must have slept through this storm last time.

Lady Blood Claw broke the silence. “I haven't done anything, have I?”

Wick leaned over and patted her on the shoulder. “You lived as a noble for years, right? Everyone thinks it's the high life.”

“Nyx enjoys it, but I found it... tame. Boring. Same with trying to start a rebellion. He rarely even gets to ground level. Most rebels are other nobles who want more. It won't change much of anything if he wins.”

Grunt grunted in agreement, then slurped down the rest of his noodles.

Wick rested her head on her palms, watching the rain. “I just like telling stories to people. I wish I could just... stay here and do that. Or somewhere.” Her scratchy voice sounded tired. “But until I figure this all out... I'm stuck fighting or running or whatever.”

She leaned on Corvayne, and he ruffled her wet hair a little. When he saw she was looking up at him expectantly, he cleared his throat. “I'm still figuring my goal out. I always wanted to go on an adventure with friends... and it's happening despite all the extra stuff. I do have some unfinished business though. Both with tracking down Spears-Like-Water, and then the village itself and The Magus.”

Wick leaned back on the counter. “So what, we need Seru or Hari or someone to get buff as heck to figure out what's wrong with you two... or do as you say and go back to your village. What do they actually want or need from traders?”

“Raw materials. Mostly metals, seeds, potted plants with living dirt...”

“Okay. I want you to try to make a list so we can stuff a bunch of it into your ring. They might not like you as a person, but money talks.”

Corvayne ordered another bowl which he'd probably have to toss in a container and finish later, but he had been curious about what a 'spicy buffalo' tasted like. That, and the warm bowls and smell of soup were comfortable. He watched a couple of people run to get under the cover of the covered street, passing an old couple with two bags of groceries waiting for the rain to die down. The pair saw him looking and smiled and waved, so Corvayne waved back. A truck rattling through the rain merged into the sound of a train clattering somewhere above them. It was just another moment to most of the city, but to him it was the exact opposite of his old life.

Wick nudged him then wiggled the fork she had, so he slid the bowl he ordered over let her try it as he went back to watching the rain fall, thinking about things he could not afford to lose.