of all the beaches in Torchline

It's Lord of the Flies in my mind tonight

So this is Torchline.

A bit too sunny for her tastes, but then you can’t win ‘em all, can you? She imagines the rest of the Grounders will be quite happy with this thriving, warm, bright little corner of Caido. It’s so much more hospitable to the average person and it’s so fucking annoying. People. Everywhere. And they smell, in a way that is very different from old furs and smoke.

News had reached the Wraith that Remi and Ronin were alive and well and while she could honestly kind of care less about the ‘well’ part of that saying, she’d also heard that they had themselves a wagon. Cleverly named. And Remi was selling his wares, or trading, rather. As the day is cooling off and the sun is sinking behind a brilliantly colored horizon, a cloaked woman approaches the wagon and stops a few feet away, gazing at it with the slightest of frowns.

It was too easy to find. The poor guys must be inundated with Grounders. She almost turns and walks away. Almost. Instead, she takes a seat with her back to the sun on a nearby washed up thing (log? Timber? Who knows, it’s dark and half-covered with sand) and waits for someone to poke their head out or around or whatever.

i've seen fire & i've seen rain.
i've seen sunny days that i thought would never end

As the sun dips low, Remi and Ronin are normally well into their fifth or eighteenth drinks at the Hanged Man. On this day though, with a certain ship scheduled to make port in the dark of the night, the alchemist has put his work ahead of his thirst. It isn't every day that the Ark makes its berth in the bay, and the alchemist wants to be ready. First impressions and all that.

So it is that as he goes to get water for their mare that he spies a silhouette perched only a few feet away. He could change his eyes to better see in the dark, could shift his nose to sniff the breeze, but as much as he is, Remi isn't an animal. He does the human thing and calls out, "Closed. Fuck off until tomorrow."

It's Lord of the Flies in my mind tonight

Ignorant of all what should be going on tonight and whatever is going on the next day (what does Wessex know of ships and timelines and eighteenth drinks?), her ears perk up when she hears movement. Pulling her hood down, she hears his dismissal and shrugs to herself. Aight. “That's fine,” she calls back. “I’ve got all the time in the world.”

Assuming he recognizes her voice, he’ll know it’s true. She can wait there - or elsewhere - for as long as she needs to, without sleep or food or water. Sun’s really the only problem, but even that is feeling like less and less of a problem these days.

i've seen fire & i've seen rain.
i've seen sunny days that i thought would never end

And he does recognize the voice. Wessex is one who has always been straight with him (not literally of course). She never feigned friendship where it didn't exist, knew when she was using him for his talents and made no qualms about it. So it was that as he turned towards her silhouette it was without his new-normal brand of anger.

"But I assume you've better things to do with it." Stepping forward enough to make out the demigod, the alchemist folded his arms loosely across his chest. "I take it this isn't a social call."

It's Lord of the Flies in my mind tonight

“Well, yeah,” she says, rising and coming to meet the alchemist so they’re not just talking loudly across the sand to each other. “It’s 95% business, but I’m not a total dick. I can come back tomorrow.” It’s the polite thing to offer, even though her non-social call probably won’t take very long. There’s a whole land to explore, and she could probably find something or someone to occupy her time during the night (what do Torchline people’s blood taste like, she wonders - and have they ever seen an Ascended up close and personal?)

And for the record, even when she’d used Remi for his talents, it was few and far between. She’s had… other options for magical aides and a stubborn reliance on herself, for better or worse.

i've seen fire & i've seen rain.
i've seen sunny days that i thought would never end

"95%? How sweet." It's strange to hear sarcasm coming from the alchemist, but there we are. Still, he doesn't seem offended. "Nah don't worry about it. I don't sleep much these days as it is." Passing out drunk didn't really count as sleep, not when you woke up just as tired the next day.

"Welcome to R&R things and stuff. If you couldn't tell by the name, Ronin supplies monstrous things and I supply magical stuff." So saying, he'd kick a mechanism on the wagon which would cause a small panel to lift. Therein would be jewels from cloud mantas, various skulls and cuts of meat, and all the magical items created thus far.

It's Lord of the Flies in my mind tonight

Weird, yeah, but she kinda likes it when Remi has a backbone. “Yeah but any less and I become a nosy Grounder. Fuck that.”  If she were in his place, she’d want to be left alone and the fact that she’d heard he’s here means he wasn’t. So they’re gonna do business. Okay.

“The Monster Hunters Guild and myself are in the market for some things. I come bearing some tradeables or favors.” The guild is still trying to rebuild, but it isn’t his problem anymore. And she’s always been poor, but there are things she can get using her skills, if need be. Peering in to the compartment, Wessex takes a moment to examine the items. Pointing to the handcuffs and the cloak, she asks, “What are those?”

One - kinky. Yes. She likes.
Two - less kinky, but everyone needs a good cloak.

i've seen fire & i've seen rain.
i've seen sunny days that i thought would never end

"Fuck that indeed. That sets you right on the path to becoming a bona fide hero, and we all know how that turns out." The steel in Remi's gaze says all that needs to be said on his view of heroism these days. It hadn't stopped the ice that impaled he and Aoife. It hadn't saved her life.

Nodding at this—it doesn't surprise him that Wessex has come prepared—he gestures vaguely around. "Favours here are a currency all their own. One my magic can't just up and provide." Did Remi have plans for the remainder of his time spent in Torchline that a favour from Wessex and/or the MHG would be worth having? Perhaps.

Glancing down, Remi nods approvingly. "The handcuffs once on can't be broken by feats of physical strength. Not until they start to border on the godly." That wasn't an exaggeration, either. "The cloak renders you invisible so long as you're in shadow. When you pass into the light again you'd be visible."

It's Lord of the Flies in my mind tonight

Heroism hadn’t stopped the Temple from falling, either, or Amalia’s spine from being crushed. She’s done with the whole heroism bit for awhile, anyway, since she doesn’t need a KQ for levelling any time soon saving herself for building shrines and boats and exploring Torchline. Back to the items, both of which are even more pleasing now that she knows their tricks. “Hmmm, I can offer a personal favor or two Ursur tusks for the kinky handcuffs.” Did I mention she has a bag with her? She does. She definitely does.

Out of the aforementioned bag comes a cloth wrapped package, which she peels open to reveal two Ursur tusks the length of her arm. Stolen, perhaps, or scavenged. Doesn’t matter. “Does it work in utter darkness too?” Inquiring again of the cloak, there’s an idea forming behind her eyes - Kiada might find the item useful during LongNight, but there’s no point if it only works in the shadows.

i've seen fire & i've seen rain.
i've seen sunny days that i thought would never end

"Trust me that it isn't idle flattery when I say that I'd prefer a favour from you." So maybe he very much does have a plan for Torchline then. "Still the tusks are impressive. I was only in Halo once, and not long enough to see anything noteworthy." That includes you, Neron. 'We're all out of giftwrap I'm afraid. Though I'm sure I can create a nice pink bow if you like." This was said with a shit-eating grin as he handed the cuffs over.

As for the cloak? "I may not be a clever man, but I think the argument is easily made that darkness is just another kind of shadow."

It's Lord of the Flies in my mind tonight

“Let’s pretend I didn’t ask that,” she says with a wince as she hears her own stupid question echoed back at her. Taking the handcuffs and placing them in her bag, the demi-god smiles to herself about the idle flattery. No one really flatters her. The Voice, maybe, but most people can probably tell that she isn’t susceptible to praises in the ways that others are. To her, they’re just facts. “Bows on handcuffs? All of a sudden I’m terribly curious about what you two do at night.” Except not really. It's banter for the sake of banter, not a legitimate question about their sex lives.

“Alright. I owe you. Tusks for the cloak, then? Or will a favor cover both?”

i've seen fire & i've seen rain.
i've seen sunny days that i thought would never end

Remi grins and nods at this, his lips growing crooked (but not with embarrassment) as the topic turns to bows. "You can come watch if you like." He said casually. "Ronin quite likes when I mould the earth around him to perfectly contour his body. I particularly like that he can duplicate himself." Remi's pupils grew then in a predatory manner that the demi-god would likely recognize quite well despite possessing no animal shifts of her own.

Crossing his arms and narrowing his eyes slightly, Remi tilts his head ever so slightly to the side. "Two favours. One from you for the cuffs, one from the Monster Hunter's Guild for the cloak." Surely she can swing that. She's Wessex after all.

It's Lord of the Flies in my mind tonight

Once upon a time, she might have said yes. Might have sat there and touched herself while two pretty men fucked. Now, with the bite the only thing that gives her pleasure, Wessex just shakes her head with a chuckle. “Nah. You’ll make me miss regular sex too much.”

Oh, alright. She momentarily forgot that she wasn’t just bargaining for herself. Not really caring that Kiada will take on this debt for the gift, Wessex nods in assent and extends her hand for a shake. “Deal. Go to Kiada when you call in the guild’s favor.” Surely the Guildmistress can handle that one. Replacing the tusks in her bag, she quickly follows it up with the cloak. Before turning to go, she looks Remi up and down. “You want me to tell the Ground you’ve disappeared or something? This might be your only chance to really get away.” Not just from Phoebe and Sam and whatever else he’s hiding from, but from interactions like this, too.

i've seen fire & i've seen rain.
i've seen sunny days that i thought would never end

"I hear there's a room that lets you scratch that particular itch." The alchemist said, a puff of amused air leaving his nose as he shrugged.

Of anything anyone has said to him—Ronin aside—Remi thinks that what Wessex has just offered, is the most understanding. Had he a heart that did anything more than simply beat in his chest, it might have gushed just a little. "Sadly we've been found out already." He sighs with an annoyed sigh, running his fingers across his scalp with a bit more force than is probably necessary.