The Narrator- a few days later

As the two parties of adventurers, team Clairvoyance and team Regal traveled to the dungeon ruins deep under the sewers, on the surface the sun rose over the edge of the horizon signaling the beginning of another day in the city of Octaal.

The ice and fleet frosted onto the various buildings melted away as the morning heat made itself known as warm sunshine, causing small streams of water to drip down from the many rooves and overhangs forming larger streams of water that rushed down the streets spilling over choked gutter's and ensuring that large puddles of water were dotted about the city.

A common phenomenon in the weeks before winter when the sun still warmed streets enough to thaw out the clustered city.

Despite these oftentimes relatively deep and sometimes even hazardous puddles forming, no actions were taken to fix or otherwise apprehend the watery hazards.

One might think that was because no one had bothered to complain about the increasing number of small ponds practically springing up about the city. But such a concept would be wrong. Many concerned citizens and lesser merchants had complained about the issue for various reasons over the years, but all had been ignored.

The ruling body of the city-state had no time or interest in the complaints that did not directly impact them, the only potholes and gutters they fixed being those on the main streets, the rest being summarily ignored especially if they were in the winding backstreets of the black district.

For this reason, if one was not careful where they stepped in the poor quarters, they could get a very cold and unpleasant surprise...

Taldur

*Splash!*

"Awww! I just bought this jacket Dwayne! watch where you step!"

"Apologies sister,"

"I'm going to have to scrub this out later, the water in those potholes is always rank..."

"Mmm again, apologies sister, I misjudged the depths of that deceptively small puddle,"

I sat on Lescar's shoulder as she grumbled at Dwayne and rubbed at the inner velvet of her new jacket. She had purchased the item of clothing recently at a high-end tailor alongside a small selection of other articles of clothing, most of which Lescar was wearing right now.

Lescar's old clothes had been pretty battered from the fight with that clown oaf even though they themselves had been only recently purchased, so they'd had to go.

I couldn't have my only representative be seen as a complete slob due to her shabby attire, so new clothes had been a must. Lescar for her part, had been fine with getting new clothes but adamantly refused to get rid of her old jacket, instead insisting it get repaired.

It had irked me that she wouldn't simply toss out the worn-out old rag, but she had been through a lot recently, so I decided to acquiesce on the matter. The thing apparently held some sentimental value to Lescar being another relic from her brother before his mysterious disappearance.

Now, my human was dressed in a creamy tunic overlaid with a thin earth-colored cardigan, which her dark brown, almost black jacket covered. On her waist down she was wearing elegant fitted trousers and under those form-hugging pale leggings, the multiple layers on both her upper and lower body being for both Lescar's sake and mine.

It was cold, quickly approaching winter, and I am an insect. Not a compatible mix for me, fortunately though, I came prepared.

I shivered on Lescar's shoulders before I crawled into the new felt-lined leather hood I had insisted be added to Lescar's recently purchased jacket when we were at the tailor's, a demand the tailor was only too happy to accommodate, for an increased price...

The little swindler! I was sure he was ripping us off when I had Lescar ask for the redesign! But... the man's handy work at least was genuine. It wasn't cold while I curled inside it besides Lescar's head. In fact, it was rather comfortable for both me and Lescar, the greedy tailor had taken my measurements when he had redesigned the hood and I could now sit comfortably in a relaxed position around Lescar's neck both without getting in Lescar's line of sight or inconveniencing her movements.

While the price had been rather steep for mere clothes, it was likely appropriate despite my annoyance at such. For the raiment offered, was indeed some very nice items of clothing, there were even subtle etchings of silver on the fine design of the coat. Giving my human girl a far more regal look well beyond what she had been outputting before.

The getup suited Lescar well, transforming the slender thief girl into something more respectable and prominent in an instant. She now looked more like a person of note rather than a raggedy pauper, maybe some people would even mistake her as a noble if they didn't look too closely.

I shifted slightly moving further back into the depths of the hood, it was early morning and more people were beginning to appear from their housing, it would be best to remain hidden, an option only available because of the new hood.

Something that could come in handy in the discussions we were about to try our hands in.

Mind moving away from clothes, as Lescar acted as my mount, both carrying me and leading the others through the steadily declining streets, I instead dwelt on more troubling topics.

I was concerned with the precise happenings of my circumstances, more accurately Lescar's circumstances, involving the disconcerting dream she'd had and everything I had done in an attempt to prevent future attacks. 

"That dream... Mrrrrrr..." I growled to myself, anger bubbling in my mind as I revisited the recent occurrence back at my glade.

It had been three days since my human girl had been injured and attacked in her sleep and in that time I had ensured Lescar had rested well under my watchful eyes just to ensure there were no lasting effects of her close call with that tentacle woman creature.

Lescar had not enjoyed this period of quarantine, but she had agreed to undergo it anyway, reading out the book gifted to me by that tea swilling bear during the majority of the three days.

I'd had Lescar read it out for me most of yesterday and the day before that,

Two days almost wasted, as no creatures invaded my territory to be killed, and nothing outwardly happened to Lescar, but still they weren't quite wasted, some words Lescar read out loud proving fruitful.

"The tea trade truly is a wonderful and varied thing in Octaal," I remembered Lescar reading aloud with a bored voice, both of us sitting in the middle of my grassy glade, "worthy of a prospecting tea enthusiast, sadly not all can appreciate the beauty and divine nature of tea." Lescar had continued to read, just as deadpan, my own antennae twitching as well at the content, "Roving gangs and bandits occasionally attack the poor tea convoys as they make their way to the markets, only to toss the delightful herbal remedies in the mud when they realize they aren't gold, spices or silks. The nerve of those savages!"

'Well,' I chittered to myself as I recalled that just enthralling parsel of memory, 'not all of it was too valuable' I admitted to my own person, 'but I did get a few golden nuggets here and there.'

Most of the topics covered in Greezly's so-called guide book were worthless miscellaneous facts about the local tea industry (the damm bear and his tea!).

When I had first realized this, I had attempted to roll my eyes in exasperation, the bear Greezly was nothing short of obsessed with the hot leaf juice, and although I did enjoy the brew he had served, I didn't want to hear another three chapters about how to grow your own tea garden, as already we had gotten three whole chapters in, and the book was still waffling on about tea leaves.

'Was the book not called Greezly's Guide to Octaal city?' I had said aghast, 'where was the guiding!?'

Eventually though, in those three days of hearing about different blends of tea and where to get them, some actually useful information was mentioned casually during another segment on how to properly mix beverages.

"The poor quarters or the black district as most nobles prefer to call it, is home to half of the population of Octaal city, which is composed mostly of Ab-humans and dirt poor peasants, and has a disturbingly high level of crime and criminal activity, although the Tarky tavern there has a surprisingly good cup of tisane-" cutting off suddenly as she read this Lescar had said in a frustrated voice, "Taldur! aside from all the stupid tea trash! this is all stuff I could have told you, in fact, I have told you most of this!"

Calmy I had absorbed the information recited to me even as my own nerve clusters cringed under the strain of hearing about more tea.

I had rapped Lescar on the head making a response swiftly, "Yes, but Greezly might have another angle or some data you lacked, read on."

"Mmmph!" Lescar had grumbled, rubbing at her sore glutes, she had been sat down for over half of that day while reading for me.

I had paused back then, rubbing my front claws together in careful thought.

The data provided by the verse was only a sliver of information, but it provided me more context as to how to possibly take this city. From what I understood, ab-humans were generally seen as lesser to pure humans and rarely held legitimized positions of power, they were usually either slaves, the working class, or criminals, an obvious side effect from being downtrodden.

Food for thought, just like most of the other useful things I had managed to squeeze from Greezly's tea addled ramblings.

I learned some obscure noble laws that might come in handy at some future point, locations of the best and most reliable businesses on the block, (including some none to subtle praise towards specific businesses which I suspected Greezly owned or had connections with), shadier less legitimate stores for those attempting to fly under the radar, a few semi-secret sign language gestures used by merchants to communicate with their peers, and a host of other odds and ends that might have some worth in the right places.

The information gained then had been insightful for other more mundane matters but entirely useless for the attack my human suffered earlier.

The original reason for that period of semi-forced study.

I clicked my jaws together in the present, filaments of displeasure curling about in the bottom of my gut at the mere thought of someone stealing Lescar out from under me.

Something or rather someone, had attacked my human girl as she slept those few days ago, tearing at her unconscious mind, someone called Nemato.

I had never met or heard of anyone called that and neither had Lescar, but I knew without a doubt that the attack on Lescar's mind was a 'real' concern.

My strange instincts as reliable as they seemed, had informed me in an alarming jolt prior to the event that something was wrong as I had tended to Lescars wounds.

I had been unsure what to make of it at first, but then I had felt it, something pulling at my link to Lescar slowly beginning to sever my connection.

It had been subtle at first, but became more obvious as I had focused in on it.

Concerned, I had tried to peak into Lescar's head with the same technique I had already utilized twice in my previous experiences with the mind or dream space as I called it.

I had not been able to enter her mind, only getting brief flashes of red, flailing tendrils and a honey sweet multitude of voices that I decided I didn't like.

"Evadess usss all you'sss likesss ssssmall fleshy one, ssssoon we will havessss you."

"Yesssss then we will feed."

"It hasss been sssooooo long sssssince we fed."

I had not been able to hear much more than that, as whatever power was preventing me from entering also interrupted my ability to see and hear effectively, but I'd known that Lescar was in danger.

The thing encroaching on Lescar's mind had a familiar presence. I was certain I'd already clashed with this thing once before, although that recollection was not entirely clear.

Unable to see her struggle, I was sure at the time that Lescar was fighting back against her nightmarish foe much like she had done against me in the past.

I had fumbled around the edge of Lescar's resisting mind, catching glimpses of her confrontation noticing something in the process.

Lescar seemed to be different? Smaller, younger, less experienced, was her mind suppressed even as she struggled against her attacker?

I had immediately detected that something was clearly wrong with her, the creature had already managed to get to her in part, I'd had a hunch she had forgotten something important.

Perhaps it was why my bond to her was shriveling up, beyond the invader's influence, because Lescar had somehow forgotten about me and her true self, a part of her mind trapping me outside unable to help.

A terrible feeling had swept over me, if I did not remind Lescar of who she was, she would soon be erased.

That could not be allowed, having just fixed her body,  I would not permit a foreign power to steal my only human's mind and undo all that work.

'I couldn't- wouldn't!' let Lescar die.

Focusing all my energies, I had pressed into the membrane around Lescar's mind trying to push a single sentence through.

I had stood there, three of my limbs cradling the unconscious and writhing Lescar, one claw pressed to her clammy temples and two others holding her close.

I'd poured power into my efforts, my limbs beginning to twitch as I had directed it all into Lescar's prone form, I could feel it wasn't enough.

Whatever the invader had done to Lescar, had made the barrier around her mind almost impenetrable,

An uncomfortable knot of worry twisting in my thorax, I had renewed my efforts to push through to no avail, my power insufficient for the task.

"Just dandy! Just dandy! ARRRGGHH! I NEED MORE POWER!!!" I had sworn, being unable to breach the barrier, Lescar's connection to me dwindling by the second as she gradually began to lose to the trespasser.

I had almost lost my human girl forever as the external threat continued to swamp her.

It had been only through pure luck, fate, or perhaps another strange aspect of my predicament that Lescar had not perished there and then.

As I had cursed and emptied my reserves of magic over and over again, each time failing to pierce the veil over Lescar's mind, something in my surroundings changed.

The light in my cave flickered and darkened, a new premonition stretching my senses, a sort of reaching, warm almost intimate yet impartial sensation.

"What is- ..... Woah..." I had begun only to stop mid-sentence, jarred by a new understanding.

The crystal deposits that had long been a feature of the dearest parts of my glade shimmered, a host of distant incomprehensible voices filling my head briefly before cutting off suddenly, the yellow gemlike growths fluctuating, seeming to falter in their steady rhythm before something happened that I had not expected, the glowing crystals flared up more brightly than I had ever seen them do so, before a wave of energy billowed out, flowing smoothly into me.

The energy melded easily and perfectly into my empty reserves of magic,  instantly filling them back up and then some, giving me an immense amount of energy to wield, far more than I ever could produce on my own.

Almost staggering from the sheer rush and titillation, I had steadied myself trying to keep my limbs in check as they wanted to spasm and lash out.

"So much power..." I had muttered with frantically twitching antennae, "Is this really all mine? with this maybe I could... yes! I can do it!"

I had run a spare claw down the closest gem, a feeling like that of a phantom limb pinging back into me, I had always known these crystals or Soulstones as the system called them, were connected to me in some way, but I had never known how, the entry for them being very vague and cryptic as usual.

Soulstones- linked (Cor Salvator)  

A fragment of manifested presence that is foreign in nature, these crystal structures reach between the material and immaterial plane, allowing quantities of the energy from beyond the material world to coalesce and pool outside, causing an almost innumerable number of possible effects on the world around them.

Soulstones are dangerous to most intelligent life and cause nightmares and insomnia from short term exposure, and from long term exposure, madness, insanity, death, and even gross mutation.

Creatures born from or around soulstone deposits (or those that survive the mutation), are not affected by the negative effects of the crystals, instead, receiving greater vitality, speed, and power so long as they are in the vicinity of the crystal.

It is extremely rare though not unheard of for some deposits to even grow slowly over time as the crystals have a peculiar habit of growing on corpses and blood left too close to their placement.

These deposits are jealously guarded and cultivated by those that own that land, and are where most soulstone is sourced from for private use.

The worth of a single soulstone crystal to sapient races is immense, as it is required for the creation of truly legendary enchantments rivaling and even surpassing Chronall sometimes in its exorbitant price, the material being just as rare.

I had known the stones were potent things, I had known they didn't harm me or my familiars, and now I knew these crystal were like pieces of my spirit, my 'soul' in physical form, they were quite literally pieces of my metaphorical heart.

The reason the surrounding forest had sprung into existence and the creatures here obeyed me, had to do (as I had realized some time ago,) with my very essence and lifeforce leaking into surroundings here.

Not just from me directly, but from the crystal formations as well, enriching the land locally even when I was no longer present, the crystals storing vast quantities of my power, releasing excess energy frequently when they were left full.

It was the true reason I could only exercise my full power here in my forest as the crystals did not come with me when I traveled, a power I had only been subconsciously using until that moment.

At the time I had first seen this data entry I suppose I should have registered the crystal being some sort of 'Manifested presence' but then I had simply not believed that it had been 'my' presence.

It had confused me, 'why do I wield such power? I don't recall being anything particularly special in my last life? Was my soul always this potent or fractured?'

My questions as always, had not been answered and I had not paused long to ponder them, Lescar had needed me.

With this newfound strength, I had burned it all, forcing the immense rush of force into a single memory which I slammed into the barrier in Lescar's mind.

My promise to her and all its fixtures.

After that, and some tense waiting, I had detected a rapid change in Lescar's mind, small holes through which I could whisper into her troubled dream appearing, allowing me to further remind her of the false reality she was trapped in.

"Wake up! this is a dream!"

I had forced more of the magically charged words through the crumbling barrier the words being exchanged within becoming more clear to me.

"Well done fleshling girl, or should I call you Lescar? Perhaps the next time we meet, it will be on more even grounds..."

I  had gotten a good look at the thing talking to my human, it resembled a pink purplish woman connected at the waist to a writhing mass of tentacles, an ugly daughter of a bitch to be sure.

"Your little friend won't be able to protect you from me forever, I will have you eventually."

"But not today." Lescar had said stoically.

"Not today..."

I had watched the woman creature fade out of Lescar's inner realm, her influence banished by my own and Lescar's, my human girl speaking up as she looked up at me, weary gratitude in her eyes.

"Thanks, Taldur."

"Your welcome," I had said, keeping my relief to myself as I pulled out of her mind.

My whispering had borne success and Lescar had been saved, waking up later with a headache, I had even gotten an EXP notification for my trouble.

{Unknown mental incursion repulsed from familiar 50 EXP}

But I had not cared about the rather paltry experience, for Lescar had received a concerning wound that I couldn't heal fully, leaving a very real scar.

A physical reminder on Lescar's face and body, that threats abounded everywhere and I could not lower my guard, something that had already been hammered into me earlier that day by the encounter with that stupid clown and Greezly.

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

I looked up from my recollections at Lescar in present time as I sat curled in her hood, She was walking with almost a hop in her step, but I knew she was still shaken by her encounter with that Nemato creature.

The three days since then, had not been enough and she still expressed great concern towards sleep, even being briefly attacked once more in her sleep, while I was away hunting with Dwayne trying to raise our levels and feed respectively.

I had rushed back after Roulette contacted me frantically, and this time easily chased away the invader, the Nemato woman creature simply retreating the moment I reentered the fray.

She had not attacked since then, but Lescar was no less stressed for it.

Fidgeting, breathing fast, and displaying signs of restlessness when it came time to slumber. Lescar had quickly worn herself thin without proper rest, forcing me to make a radical decision to protect my human investment.

I would have to sleep beside her as Lescar's makeshift dream catcher in order to placate her worries and prevent future attacks.

My decision had an immediate effect and Lescar was actually able to get some uninterrupted sleep.

No doubt due to some facet of my powers, my presence alone made it harder for Nemato to get in, and Lescar slept at ease for the first night in two days.

Did I provide some sort of nullifying or passive mind shield to my familiars when I was close?

I must apparently, because ever since I started doing so, Lescar has slept better, at least so long as I was close.

Lescar also said that the soulstones help too when she stays close to them, and considering what I have learned about the glowing gemstones that makes sense.

They are part of me after all and having one close by in the form of some sort jewelry for Lescar would be a good choice, albeit later.

Currently, such obvious mineral wealth would be harmful to display, I don't want some more snoopy adventurers down in my glade looking for soulstones, I still haven't properly dealt with the remains of the last ones.

So I remain as a guardian bed roach, keeping never do well worm women from defiling my human girl.

I have even been used as a pillow on multiple occasions by Lescar and even Roulette, much to my distaste.

Being squashed is not pleasant and being squashed under a girl's head does not make it any better, anyone who thinks otherwise clearly has their dysfunctional brain in their balls.

Not that I have any balls, I am a cockroach after all, and technically what passes for my brain is spread throughout my body in multiple clumps.

Still, I allow it all, because Lescar was asleep at the time and simply rolled on top of me, and secondly because it reduces Lescar's worry.

Roulette, on the other hand, got a lecture first before I let her cuddle up to me, I had been still a little disappointed in her for her recent shortcomings.

Although, since that clown incident, she had been quieter and disappeared frequently with Dewey to go hunting while Lescar recovered, coming back late those past few days with a tired look, a limp tail, and a thick coating of blood on her claws, teeth, and tail.

I even had to heal her a few times as well, when she came back with open wounds and bites all over her, some of which were deep and would have been life-threatening if I wasn't there.

Concerned that my rat would get herself killed, thus voiding the effort I had put into her, I made sure she wasn't going anywhere too dangerous by tailing her unseen on the third day.

I discovered to my surprise, that she was actively hunting down packs of Dire rats outside of my territory, Dewey riding on her back as Roulette fought, trying his best to fend off any flanking dire rat that attacked Roulettes side.

I had considered helping Roulette fight the more mediocre rats, but it looked like she and Dewey had it well in hand, Roulette would move at high speed to hit the pack alpha first, killing them instantly with her tail, before picking off the panicked and less organized remaining dire rats, all the while Dewey, attached firmly to Roulettes back would flail at and batter any dire rat courageous enough to approach, seemingly unbothered by any damage done to his gelatinous form, all of which regenerated slowly after being damaged, the eyestalk at one point even being entirely severed growing back only 10 minutes later.

Roulette dismembered the last standing dire rat, a large brown male, before sniffing the corpse and trotting on, not eating into the meat at all.

She had taken my words about cannibalism being unhealthy to heart, something that made me smile slightly as I watched from the shadows.

Dewey, on the other hand, hopped off Roulettes back with a wet plop and set himself to consuming every last rat corpse in the area.

'The little glutton!' I had thought, still, I had known that Dewey was the most likely to benefit from this sort of overconsumption, I had a hunch he gained a lot of EXP from simply eating.

It reminded me of earlier days here in the sewer when I employed similar tactics.

Ahh, simpler, but more lonely and boring times.

While what I could only assume was a training regime was unusual behavior from Roulette, I had no issues with my familiars strengthening themselves. Those two really needed it after all being the weakest members of my party.

Mind back in the present, I turned to look either side of myself at those two from my spot in Lescar's hood.

Roulette was skipping along in a short jaunty steps, and Dewey was proving he could move faster than a crawl when he wanted to, the slime bouncing along the ground in quick hops.

Both of them were larger than they had been three days ago, that size difference being rather obvious for Dewey who was as big as a basketball at the moment, but it was subtle for Roulette.

While neither had gained a level yet, Dewey looked like he was about to, and Roulette's size had definitely increased, she was almost the size of an average dire rat now if leaner and more streamlined.

I clicked in approval and turned my head back to face the front, jaws clamping together, it was time to return to the things at hand.

I looked up then back to the unoccupied alley Lescar was carefully navigating.

The sky above was mostly clear and free of clouds despite the biting cold, a nice day overall if I weren't so opposed to the morning chill, the preferred active period of thieves, when they weren't trying to steal things.

A piece of relevant information due to the nature of Lescars contacts we were presently going to visit.

Her old gang or crew as it were.

I was hopeful I could get my first true henchmen-henchchildren here if things went well.

Now, a pack of light-fingered criminal children would not be my preferred choice if I'd had other options in terms of underlings, but I did not have such options considering I was essentially recruiting through Lescar, who herself was barely a teenager, so teens and children was what I was taking.

Lescar assured me that they were competent pickpockets at least, the girl pointing out before we came here that poor pickpocket crews never survived longer than a week at most before they either crumbled to infighting or were disbanded forcefully by the guard. The gang Lescar had been a member of being over three years old.

'A valid point.' I concluded after a second of thought.

Long term criminals, even if they were only kid pickpockets, had to have some measure of skill to stick around so long in this competitive city.

Lescar herself certainly had some moves one would not expect a kid to have, her swordsmanship was formidable for what it was, her nimble and agile movements were smooth and silent like that of a cats, and she had a knack for learning very quickly.

If all of Lescar's old crew were like her, then recruiting them would actually be a massive boon provided Lescar can interest them and keep them in line.

Of course, If we succeeded, these new servants would not be able to talk to me directly, as they would not be my familiars, instead, Lescar would act as the sub-boss to them while I provided her my instructions.

'Something that might be difficult,' I contemplated, 'Lescar is not an experienced leader, but at least she would still have me to back her up for that.'

The acquiring of more lackies or minions so to speak, was something that was absolutely necessary for my plans, a mere three animals, a human, and myself, was not nearly enough to accomplish my goals, no matter how potent each one of us got individually.

So today we were making an attempt to acquire me some more human or even ab-human servants if the other were not available, something that Lescar insisted was possible.

I turned my head slightly to regard Lescar, mostly only able to see her auburn hair and left cheek from my seat in her hood, as she walked carefully around a few more potholes, I knew she was not telling me everything about her crew.

Perhaps because it was uncomfortable or too personal.

Lescar's past in this gang of young delinquents had been a mixed bag from what I understood, the pressure and cost eventually rising to high for Lescar to stomach, causing her to leave her gang and join the adventurers guild like her brother had once done before her.

Lescar had not told me what exactly this rising cost was that had caused her to leave, but judging by the look of anger and disgust on her face at the time she spoke, I drew up a few conclusions for myself.

Most of Lescar's anger seemed to be directed at a single person, the leader of that gang rather than anything else, her eyebrows furrowing every time she mentioned the boys name.

Fabran.

A boy that Lescar detested almost as much as Joel.

The most likely obstacle to my recruiting here would likely be this boy, 'Fabran', both because he wouldn't take kindly to someone else filching his crew members, and because Lescar had something of a grudge against the guy.

A factor that might complicate matters if Lescar were to act poorly while we hadn't gained control of the crew.

We were getting close to our destination if Lescar's earlier words were to believed, I twitched as Lescar moved deftly around another large puddle, before exiting out of the alley into a much larger if equally squalid street.  

As Lescar paused for a second to assess the area, I did likewise.

I was not impressed by what I saw.

'The poor quarters or Black district surely lives up to its names,' I mused glancing around at my surroundings as I made sure to stay inside the confines of Lescar's hood.

'What a quaint neighborhood,' I clicked internally as I beheld the structures about me.

Maybe the neighborhood was too pleasant a word for this place, it was really more of a slum or shantytown within the city, truly Octaal city was a colossal sprawling place.

The buildings around here were either ramshackle constructions of scrap wood, or were so old and decrepit that some had even caved in partially and were held up only by coarse unprocessed logs.

I flicked my antennae out the front of Lescar's hood as I studied my surroundings with a touch of disdain, even my literal cave in the sewers was nicer than this, and cleaner too!

Everything around here was coated in a fine layer of black grime, the houses, the patchy cobbled streets, the water in the potholes, even the people here themselves were covered in the stuff looking dirty, hollow eyed, and weedy.

I knew the black dust was due to the poor quarters being close to a large coal mine. The main source of coal and fuel in the city, but the looks Lescar was receiving were not as easily explained at least not until I looked closer.

There were far more people here in this wider street, most of them were ab-humans of some sort, unremarkable to me regardless, all of them being dirt-encrusted, dusty fellows. But a few of their number caught my attention as they turned their eyes upon Lescar.

A quick myriad of emotions flickering on their faces, surprise followed by contempt, then even more swiftly by greed, as their eyes beheld Lescar's high-quality clothes. 

"Concerning," I whispered out loud to no one in particular.

Lescar did not respond to my words but did take a breath and step out onto the street, striding along without stopping to acknowledge the unpleasant looks she was getting.

'An applaudable action of courage,' I clicked, swaying inside the hood as I scanned the sparse crowd, a few of the glares she was getting seemed to holster barely contained violence.

I watched as these more openly hostile individuals began to tail Lescar casually as she walked past, approaching her from behind, hands dropped deep into pockets where they surely had large knives or the like.

These men, and one woman, clearly had bad intentions towards my human girl.

I furrowed my antennae and flexed the pincer on my tail, but did not have to take any action as the situation soon resolved itself.

Dwayne having been some distance behind Lescar, rounded the corner at just that moment with Roulette and Dewey, causing the expressions on the stalkers to freeze up, a huge hulking bat and two smaller monsters now in between them and their mark.

The stalkers hesitated briefly before their features went stony and they dispersed back into the less hostile crowds.

Emphasis on less hostile, they still looked pretty unfriendly, many of the people standing in place as they watched Lescar pass.

But with Roulette now trotting on the left of Lescar, her spiny tail held aloft in a ready to strike position, Dewey holding the right, as he propelled himself forward with a wet plop every few seconds, and finally, the massive form of Dwayne towering threateningly at Lescars back, it looked like we had nothing to fear from the crowd, the bat staring down anyone who gave Lescar anything more than frown as he stomped on.

On spotting the looming existence of Dwayne, most people quickly wiped their face clear of any emotion other than alarm and scurried away, those that didn't, watched impassively from where they sat or stood.

Reassured that there would be no trouble, I said aloud to my familiars.

"Curious, Is this how you are normally treated here Lescar? Perhaps clean clothes and a good presentation was a mistake?"

"Yes, well... sort of," Lescar responded uneasily as she sidled past a particularly large horned man who was glowering at her, "usually in the past I would get one or two people scowling at me when I walked through the main black district streets, but not this many, I think you might have been correct, looking too clean might be attracting attention."

"Hmmm..." I scratched at my mandibles in thought.

I'd made sure Lescar had used a popular bath house called the 'happy duckling' before we arrived here, the place having a fair price, and so my human was currently scrubbed clean and fresh, a quality she seemed to relish.

Apparently Lescar had rarely been able to afford the bathhouse in the past, and bathing in the lakes and waters around the city was ill-advised.

While Lescar may have enjoyed this new state of cleanliness, it, and her new clothes were surely attracting the wrong kind of attention here.

I scrunched my mandibles together in rueful irritation before a certain rodent scooted over to trot beside Lescar.

"I think you look better like this though," Roulette said honestly with a squeak as she, like Lescar, tiptoed daintily around the glowering man, "you also smell a lot better too big sis! like a fresh minty thing, instead of an old sour one!"

"......."

Lescar was silent for a moment before she replied, "Thanks Roulette, I think..."  a slightly conflicted look on her face, clearly not sure whether to be pleased by the rat's complement or upset by the fact the rat just indirectly called her smelly.

"Your, welcome!" Roulette chirped not catching on to her own blunder, " I hope I can be as pretty as you one day!"

This statement caught both Lescar and me off guard, If for very different reasons.

Was Roulette merely flattering Lescar, or did she really think Lescar was pretty? why would a rat think that?!

I had never taught Roulette that the human form was anymore attractive than anything else, so why would she consider it pretty?

'Had I missed something important in her development?' tapping my claws on my own carapace I decided, 'I need to monitor her development more closely, I definitely missed something.' 

As I came to this quick conclusion, Lescar, unlike myself, reacted visibly to Roulettes words.

Coughing as she stopped being confused, her lips turned upward in pleased expression, Lescar attempted to hide her smile unsuccessfully.

"*Ahem*! Thanks Roulette, I think you look pretty too." Lescar said, her sentence far more genuine than last time.

Lescar's words did not have their intended effect, however, as Roulette immediately seemed more down at the uttered reply.

"Really?!" the albino asked unconvinced, "how so?"

"Ahh..." Lescar hovered, face mortified, having clearly not thought she would have to back up her  words, "you, err, have a beautiful soft snowy coat and errm, crystal clear ruby eyes?" Lescar said tentatively before doubling down strengthening her voice, "Yes! And I think those two things make you look very striking Roulette."

Roulette blinked then her drooping whiskers shot upward.

"Oh! yeah! I do have those things!" Roulette said cheering right back up, "I forgot about those!"

Roulette cantered over to trot next to Lescar, the two of them smiling at each other as I glanced over at them, my eyes absorbing their interactions.

It seemed Lescar didn't hold any ill will towards Roulette despite a great deal of the recent disasters being in some way her fault. A good thing I suppose.

The two girls began to converse telepathically to each other about style and how they could help each other with this and that, something I considered mildly irrelevant as I focused on my last mental meal, that of the angry-looking slummers we were passing by.

It would be easy enough to make Lescar not stand out so badly here in the slums, all I had to do was tear up Lescar's clothes then pick up some coal dust and wipe it all over her.

That thought alone was repugnant though, I'd just spent over 50 dubine on the things and I loathed to waste that investment, I shook my head and dismissed my prior idea, 'It would be a shame to ruin such a good set of clothes after they cost so much.'

Besides, it was just too warm and comfortable here in this custom made hood for me to simply let it go unused, it was freezing outside!

Resolved, I spoke aloud.

"It's too bad the people around here are Vestiaphobes," I stated expecting a response, "but there is no way I'm coming out of this hood."

Lescar did not respond other than a vague mental wave I received as she conversed with Roulette she was too busy having an in-depth discussion with the little mouse about pedicure and how to look after one's nails.

An antenna twitched on my head as I heard this.

Was it just me? or was it a constant in all worlds that women have a fixture on beautifying themselves, even those that were street rats and literal sewer rats?

Annoyed that I had been ignored to some extent, I relented on breaking up the discussion between the two girls.

It was a positive thing for them to have good bonds with one another, it would allow them to cooperate more effectively in the future, interfering just because I was not included in the discussion was juvenile and self-harming.

Rasping my mouth plates together, I turned to Dwayne for proclivity.

"So Dwayne what do you think about this?"

I felt Dwayne's intense eyes stare at me through the hood, and sat unaffected, I had long grown accustomed to Dwayne's piercing gaze.

"Your majesty," the bat intoned in an even manner as he glanced around at the nearby hobo's, "worry not about these gnats, if they dare approach my sisters and yourself, I will crush them underfoot, they will not be an issue."

Having a similar opinion if for a different reason to myself, Dwayne chuffed then effortlessly pushed the horned man who had stood in Lescars way aside with a shoulder, a guttural growl rising from his throat.

The horned ab-human staggered and almost fell from Dwayne's effortless shouldering, hissing out a curse and returning with a start, a small knife in hand as the man looked up at who had knocked him.

Turning around angrily the ab-human came face to face with something large, hairy, and heavily muscled, looking up and seeing a slavering fanged maw only a foot away from his face.

Face turning pale, the horned ab-human gulped visibly, looking at his knife then back at Dwayne's easily longer serrated teeth that were only a foot away and decided he didn't want any part of that.

I watched almost entertained, as the big man backed away rapidly sheathing his weapon before all but sprinting in the opposite direction.

An amusing sight, but it did make me recognize something obvious now that I took a moment more to think about it.

Most of those sneering at Lescar were those people with obvious exotic traits like horns, tails, and in one case even what looked like a human woman with primitive feathery wings. All clearly ab-humans.

I chuckled to myself at this, the air whooshing out of my multiple lungs in one long hiss.

This place truly was a slum just like back on earth, a real ghetto, completed perfectly by a racial tension that just seemed to hang over everything.

It was funny.

And worth noting for future occasions.

Racism had its uses for those with a willing mind and just a touch of imagination.

It had been used to such great effect back on earth after all...

Less amused than me by this treatment, Lescar continued to ignore the unpleasant various glares fairly well, continuing her isolated conversation with Roulette, obviously used to this to some extent, as she swiftly moved past the bedraggled ab-human watchers.

The difference in treatment between the ab-human populace and the pure strain would inevitably cause further enmity to develop between the masses, something, a willing individual like me could easily tap for power.

The streets after all were rampant with dissatisfaction and resentment, I had not been out of my sewers for long, but I could easily see the constrained anger and loathing looming over the poor quarters, the hostility of the passing ab-humans being evident enough.

Most humans clearly were not welcome here, a powder keg like this place was ripe with opportunities if I could find the right bridle for this unruly mob.

'the right bridle...' I considered whimsically, 'Should I appeal to their pride and feed them the old adage of fighting for equality and rights as equals? or maybe something more indirect would be preferable? hmmmmm...' 

Weaponising and harnessing violent mobs had been done countless times on earth by all sorts of people and rulers, whether they be genuine in their actions or more Machiavellian in nature, and without a doubt, this very strategy had been used here in this world innumerable times.

Most people were blind sheep only too happy to conform so long as you did the bare minimum to keep them satiated and obedient, the same did not apply to angry mobs, but so long as you dangled some viable bait, the mob would take it.

Mobs were not known for their intellectual wit.

'The cretins!' Alas, it suits me well that things are so, for when I take control of these streets it will be easier to predict and direct.

The ab-humans here just need a good push and a face to get behind, and bam! instant revolution.

Of course, utilizing an ab-human revolution wasn't necessarily the best idea given that my only representative was human, so it was more of a side note than a part of my intended plan.

A possibility I could take if things within my designs went pear-shaped.

My mood improved rather than worsened at that idea, and I settled back into the hood, Dwayne was more than enough to scare off the worst of the aggressors, and I was sure no mobs would suddenly form to lynch us on such short notice.

We made quick progress through the black district, having little trouble save for when a small group of random armed lowlifes attempted to threaten Lescar into handing over all her possessions. Aggressive posturing and growling from my faithful muscle bat sent those men scarpering on their way.

Really, Dwayne has been so very reliable, a choice minion indeed.

After that short and quickly resolved altercation, no further speedbumps got in our way, allowing me time to soak in the atmosphere of the district as Lescar steadily made towards where she knew her gang still dwelt.

The black district may have been considered the slums, but I saw more than enough evidence that plenty of wealth was passing through this place, just not as blatantly as the market district.

At shady bends or leaning casually against street lamps, suspicious hard-eyed men and women, most likely thugs, stood spread throughout the slums, disheveled people occasionally trudging up to them to hand over small amounts of coinage which the thugs would snatch out of the offering hand before nodding and shooing the payee away.

A tariff of some sort, protection money perhaps?

It seemed likely. One skinny old man seemed to lack enough money to pay for whatever privilege he was receiving from the thugs, that old man was seized after his loud begging to 'give him more time.'

The old man's begging was ignored and the thug holding the insufficient pay shook his head before cracking a fist against the old man's face, sending the frail man staggering before more blows pulped the old man's features repeatedly.

People passing in the streets seemed to not notice or willingly ignored the brutality as they sped up, quickly moving further away from the violence.

'Definitely a tariff,' I concluded as I watched the worn through shoes of the old man disappear around a bend, the thug responsible dragging the old man away.

Lescar saw it happen as well, tightening her lips and looking away, she did not relish violence against others if they had not wronged her, there was a surprising amount of empathy in her despite her rough and tumble upbringing, something I might have to work on if it proved to be troublesome.

I redirected my attention away from Lescar back to the thugs, for their part, there were many of those stationed thugs throughout the district, each one of them wearing a distinctive visible tattoo somewhere on their bodies.

A tattoo of some sort of purple bird rising from a fire...?

A name that escaped me pestered me for a moment before I tapped my head with a forcep, the name coming to the forefront of my intellect.

'Ahh! that's it! a phoenix!'

These phoenix goons were everywhere! clearly part of a dominant faction in this part of the black district, a faction I would no doubt have to contend with at some point if I wished to ascend the ranks of society.

The phoenix goons spread far and wide turned their sharp eyes on us every time we past one by, sizing Lescar, and my other familiars up before returning to whatever it was that they were doing.

"Lescar how much do you know about these guys?" I asked as I pointed a feeler at a big scaly ab-human goon wearing a purple sash.

"Quite a bit," Lescar remarked having long since fished her discussion with Roulette, "I know their boss after all."

"You do?!" I replied incredulously, twisting around to stare at Lescar, "Why didn't you tell me this?"

"Well, I don't actually know him that well," Lescar said shaking her head, "my brother knew him better than I, they worked together a few times, and even then, brother never trusted the guy."

"Yes," I said impatiently, tapping my forceps together, "but what is his name? and your relations with him, are they good?"

Lescar pursed her lips and glanced back at me before answering, "I don't know his real name but he goes by the alias of Beaky, and beyond meeting him a few times I have little to no relationship with the guy as he stopped visiting me long before I left Fabran's crew."

Pausing for second with a thoughtful expression Lescar added pensively.

"I think he was trying to see if I had the same skills as brother did, when I didn't show any signs of those skills he lost interest in me and stopped contacting me altogether."

Lescar had told me in the past that her brother had been a formidable warrior, thief, and mage all rolled into one, a true diamond hewn in the rough.

Considering her older brother's apparent prowess, It made sense that in her brother's absence some hopeful prospectors would check in on Lescar for the same potential, aiming to recruit a capable fighter.

Fortunately for me, they had overlooked Lescar's true value, I was certain much of what the system did was simply awaken latent powers and strengthen them, and considering Lescar could call upon the element of lighting when she stressed out, I would certainly say they missed Lescar's true worth.

My human girl was plenty worthwhile, only a dunce couldn't tell that.

Thinking this I said aloud, "well, you may not have your brother exact skills, but this Beaky certainly fumbled a golden opportunity didn't he?"

Lescar smiled at my light praise and reached up to touch my tail with a single hand, squeezing it gently.

"Do you actually mean that Taldur?" Lescar asked quizically

Without hesitation, I replied, "Yes I do, I would not have risked so much if you were not an important asset to me."

Lescar's expression crumbled slightly as she heard the last part of my words

"I'm just an asset...?" she frowned.

'Whoops that was a misspeak'

"Well... you aren't just an asset," I assured quickly, feeling strangely upset, my mind weaving together a tincture for the verbal injury I had just made, "you are also a valued and treasured member of my retinue."

A touch of anxiety rebounded in my heart as I waited for Lescar's response to my offered placation.

Lescar chewed silently on my statement for a few terse seconds, before her eyes turned to regard me in her hood, staring impassively for what felt like a whole ten seconds, before she suddenly burst out laughing.

"Oh, Taldur, you are 'really' bad at expressing affection, aren't you?"

'What!?'

Lescar continued to giggle out loud as we walked, some of the people passing by looking at her with raised brows before moving away.

Flabbergasted by Lescar's change in tone, my thoughts were disorganized.

"Affection?! no, that was not what I had been trying to imply, I-"

Lescar loudly interrupted my train of reasoning with a buoyant statement, "Pffft! you can't fool me Taldur, you have a bigger heart than you like to let on."

I went silent trying to come up with a valid response to Lescar's words, catching a glimpse at the smug look on her face, she had been testing me, her crestfallen appearance earlier was meant to deshell me. 

'Clever girl,' I thought trying to weave together another narrative to redirect Lescar, but again my human beat me to it.

"I know you're a big softy Taldur, firstly because you let Roulette hug you after berating her, secondly because you got upset when she was taken by the clown, thirdly because when you were trying to save me from Nemato, you were beside yourself with worry for my wellbeing at the time."

"Dwayne told me that afterward," Lescar added after a moment of cheer.

I staggered at Lescar's accusations before I turned a furrowed pair of feelers towards the muscly bat.

'Treason! he betrayed me!'

Dwayne noticing my glare, uncharacteristically shrank back a bit, a sheepish expression on his maw, he was indeed guilty.

Not allowing me any time to recover, Lescar crowed.

"You try to act big and in control all the time," Lescar said with a confidant victorious smile, "but under that hard carapace, you have squishy insides like the rest of us."

I remained silent Lescar's words beginning to sink in.

"You are like a..." Lescar paused searching for the right words before she called out, "Like a person who doesn't want others to know how they feel and so acts distant all the time, argh!" Lescar growled after another pause, "I don't know a word that fits that!"

My stomach turned over inside me as she said that, a knowledge of myself I hadn't realized coming to fruition, I knew a word that fit the description she was giving perfectly.

No... It couldn't be...

Was I what was called a Tsundere?

'By dandy, It couldn't be!'

But deep inside I knew she was right, dammit!

The Narrator

The remaining length of the trip towards Lescar's last crew was uneventful for the intrepid party. Taldur moped and denied trying to convince himself his behavior was not something as cliched as a generic shounen anime girl, while Lescar gloated and marched forward with a satisfied and large grin.

Taldur may have detested this revelation, but its reveal ultimately only further cemented the growing bonds between bug and girl.

A bond that would be tested once more in the events to come...