“Alright. C’mon” Roxie stands before pulling her weapons and breastplate off her pack.

Donovan jerks upright, spilling some of his beer again “Wait what? I thought you wanted to get some rest or something?”

“Yeah, but I want to get this over and done with quickly” She pulls her breastplate on “Besides, I want to know if you're any good with those knives”

Till and him look to the other, Till smirking whilst Donovan's frowning before slowly putting the mug down.

“Fine, but we’re not doing it in public” He side eyes Till as she sniggers at him.

She idly waves him away “Don’t mind me” She then turns to Ilia “Come on then”

Everyone is lead downstairs, through a semi hidden door in the cellar before emerging into a big room, large enough for two or three different pairs to spar.

Donovan strides to the other side, mug still in hand, whilst Roxie takes place besides the entrance.

Once Till and Ilia are seated off to the side, with three similarly dressed aides standing between them, Roxie stands at the ready, axe in hand.

Till gives them the nod to go and Donovan starts drinking as Roxie charges; he then throws the empty cup which she dodges but is caught by him spitting the contents into her eyes. She pushes on and barrels into him and, guided by her sight, swings her axe into his side which exposes the lose metal plates of his hidden armour. She jumps back with a beat of her wings to avoid his counter swing with a knife.

“Fucking stars, could’ve held back!” He steps back and clutches at his side.

Roxie starts wiping the alcohol off her face as she spits before grumbling “Shut up, you humans are the most durable fuckers there are”

He slowly stretches that side “Doesn’t mean it doesn’t fucking ‘urt”

“Is that all!” Till calls from the side “I expected some blood!”

“This is a test, not a brawl” Roxie calls back then rolls her eyes as Till scoffs.

“Actually, stay there” Ilia speaks up before rushing back upstairs, returning a moment later with three big jars of tar and a ruby “I want to try”

She pops open the jars which releases three separate doglike creatures; one’s flabby, one’s angular and the final one is rounded. She then throws the ruby up which pulls the stone from the room’s walls and ceiling

“Anyway, I’m happy, but I need some sleep” Roxie walks back up the stairs on her own.

Till gestures for one of the aides to follow her before turning to Ilia “Do you want to use the training room?”

“I. Yeah actually. Give me a second” She climbs back up the stairs.

Donovan ambles over to Till “Welp, she hurts”

“She better. I just hope she’ll get the Gracefuls off my back” Till rubs her face and sighs.

“Any headway on why they suddenly changed their minds?” Donovan drops into a sit on the floor.

Till squints and goes silent for a moment “A little. They’ve been meeting with some strange race”

He gestures upwards “Why don’t you run that past her, she seems to know shit”

“Because I want her focusing on the current problem—” She dismissively waves “The Gracefuls and whatever the fuck they’re doing is secondary”

Donovan flops onto his back “That doesn’t sound too good to me”

Till frowns at him “Is this a feeling of yours?”

“It’s not a in my bones” He pauses and rolls his head side to side for a bit “But definitely my gut”

“I’ll put more of my aides on it then—” She idly gestures to one of her aides who runs up the stairs “Until then carry on with what we planned”

“Learn everything off her, check her trust, make sure she doesn’t wander into the wrong alley and piss of a goldie oldie, all that?” He leans up to his elbows “Hey Ilia!”

Ilia slows as she reaches the bottom of the stairs and slowly responds “Hey?”

Till smiles and waves her closer “How much did you hear?”

Ilia eyes her with suspicion but approaches anyway “The strange race that the Gracefuls are meeting”

“Ah, it’s not something I want you two to worry about—” She dismissively waves at her “but just know that the Gracefuls handle a lot of our civil work and have been very vocal in us not bringing people in to help. Until a few days ago”

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“They did ask for Roxie by name by the way” Donovan, who’s returned to laying on the floor, brings up a finger as he makes his point.

“But she’s really the only beast that going out and doing shit in the inner realms so that not surprising” Till shrugs and looks back to Ilia “Anyway, what’ve you got there?”

Ilia has three jars of tar strapped to her hip and a fist sized ruby in her hand “I managed to get a new familiar. His name is Jonson and well, just watch”

She throws the ruby up in the air where several chunks of stone tear out of the room’s walls and ceiling, forming a stone golem.

Ilia gestures to him “See”

Till looks him up and down, Donovan just lifts his head up and the aide remaining is currently brandishing an orichalcum knife.

Ilia beams a smile as she states “He’s mainly attuned to earth, but says that he can manipulate metal to a degree or two”

“Ok?” Till taps her chin and tilts her head a bit “And you can just form him like that whenever?”

Ilia continues beaming “Yeah, he knows his own magic and has his own supply like all familiars”

Till points down at her hip “What’s up with the jars?”

“Oh? These are Kyle, Dorio and Magni, I’ve had them since I was a kid” She releases the caps on the jars and three dog like heads pop out formed from the tar; one’s round, one’s angular and the last is square “They’re mostly good at gooping people”

Till chuckles and lightly pats one on the head.

Donovan meanwhile has gotten to his feet and is sizing up the golem.

“Also, I hope that your friend, Jonson was it?” Till gives Ilia a look but continues when she nods “Can put the stone he ripped out back into place”

Jonson nods and demonstrates with his hand; the pieces floating back into place and staying there as others are pulled to replace it.

Donovan pushes Till and Ilia to the wall then stands opposed to Jonson “Alright big guy, let’s go”

At that, Jonson lowers nearly into a crouch and makes a wide, low swing at Donovan; he jumps back to avoid it whilst swinging a small chained weight that emerges from his sleeve. Jonson tries to block it with his other hand but only strikes the chain, letting it continue and swing around at Donovan who catches it; Jonson pushes himself back and drags Donovan back with him by the chain once he catches it. Donovan jumps and a bright flash emerges from his entire front, pushing him back and tripping Jonson over by the chain which then retracts and pulls Donovan forwards whilst he flicks out a knife from his other sleeve, he then reverses his grip on it and places the tip at the centre of Jonson’s chest whilst lifting the weight above his head ready to hammer the blade in.

Jonson admits defeat by lifting his hands and Donovan steps off.

He then points the knife at Ilia “Right, let’s do that again but with those three”

Roxie slowly lifts up her sheets, gently sniffing the air before her head emerges proper with a confused look on her face. She crawls out of bed and descends the stairs before striding into the kitchen where one of the aides, still dressed in their obscuring clothes, is currently frying bacon with a bright pink ‘Kiss the chef’ apron on and humming a light tune.

They’re humming slows to a stop when they notice Roxie “Want some?”

“Yes. Please” Roxie slumps onto the sofa in the living room where the aide eventually brings her a bacon sandwich.

He walks back into the kitchen and starts on more bacon “So, will you require anything today to aid you in your investigations?”

“A steady supply of pure salt, and some silver if you can spare it?” She pauses halfway into a bite before asking “Oh and can you point me in the direction of someone who’s selling bows”

The Aide leans back and asks, “Hunting or war bow?”

“War. Definitely” She speaks through a mouthful of sandwich.

“I know someone” He admits before, after a moment, asking “For my own curiosity, what rank are you?”

Roxie pauses for a few chews before answering “I’m C with a black star if I remember rightly”

The aide nods then continues cooking for a bit before asking “Also, do you have any money?”

“I’ve got more than enough leaves”

“We use Downings here—” He leans back to watch Roxie slump back and groan “I’ll get your money changed in a bit”

A little later the other start descending into the living room, Donovan covered in bruises and Ilia looking as if she didn’t get any sleep at all.

Roxie looks between the two as another aide enters and serves tea “What happened to you two?”

Till quips “Donovan got Jonson’d” over her cup.

Roxie stifles a snort before asking “What?”

Donovan shrugs and mumbles “I just thought that it would be a good idea to see what Ilia’s familiars can do, and well….”

“You got punched in the face” Till starts chuckling as she finishes his sentence.

“I got punched all over—” He gestures to his whole body “not just the face”

One of the aides asks Roxie for her money so they can change it. She then stands and points at Donovan “Right, once you’re done eating we’re heading out”

A little later, the three-start walking down the street, Roxie in her full gear but with several knife strapped to her midsection and her mask off, Ilia with her chain shirt on and spear on her hip and Donovan not changing other than a new shirt.

Once they’re off Tills property, she asks “Right, are any of those shackle dealers moving meat around nearby?”

“Let me ask a few people”

He leads them through the streets and into a back alley where they descend into a seedy bar where Donovan immediately winds his way to the barkeep, leaving Roxie and Ilia at the entrance where the various patrons start eyeing them. After and uncomfortable amount of time being stared at, Donovan weaves his way back out with a bottle in his hand.

“Alright lets go, the Buried Gold is next”

The continue on for a few streets and alleys and into a surface pub, one that’s furnished with nice carpets and clean tables. They then filter into a stairway that leads into another underground area and whilst the furnishings are still there, the patrons are considerably much rougher. Donovan repeats his quick winding, handing the bottle over to the barkeep who starts talking.

Roxie meanwhile sets to staring down everyone who gives them odd looks, eventually gaining the attention of an old man who strides up to her “You have a problem”

“Personally, no—” She then leans over him and bares her teeth “So, go back to your seat and stop staring”

He doesn’t lean away, and instead gives her the stink eye “And why should I listen to you?”

He then freezes as Ilia speaks “Please sit down, we’ll be gone when Donovan finishes”

Her shadow then retracts, and he walks off back to his seat with a glazed look in his eyes.

Roxie watches as he mechanically sits at his table, not touching his drink “Hold off doing that too often, people will get touchy about it”

“They’d get touchy about you crippling an old man” Ilia looks up to Roxie and huffs.

“That old man is a regenerate. And the people here hold value in individual strength, so we’re probably eventually going to have to crack a skull or two to get them to hold off” Roxie continues staring down anyone else that stares.

After a little longer, Donovan returns and quickly leads them out “What the fuck where you thinking, fucking with a Goldie?”

Roxie frowns and tilts her head “Huh?”

“Jack’s a fucking Goldie, he could wipe the floor with you” Donovan stops their walk.

“I’ll dealt with him if it comes to that” Roxie shrugs, but pokes Ilia hard in the side with her stinger.

He looks up at her with a blank expression before pointing at her and stating “Ok, but if he comes screaming and leaping over rooftops with an axe, you’re on your own”