TRP: Goro, Morgan, and Ombre (Hubris)

[SETTING: Morningstar Castle, Night 192.]

Ombre sat cross-legged under the library table, a book in her lap and a notebook beside her that she was scribbling notes into without looking. The blanket draped over the table was folded up, and little dancing lights drifted around her. She hummed to herself quietly.

Izzy:

Goro knocked on the top of the table. "Hey, pal. You busy?"

Izzy:

She looked up, then glanced at her books and shrugged. "Not really. What's up?"

Izzy:

Goro crawled underneath the table with her. "I have to ask you a favor. But since I feel shitty always asking you for favors, I got you an apology gift." He pulled a fox Leigh had whittled out of his pocket and presented it to her with a sheepish grin.

Izzy:

"Oh." She blinked at him, sounding surprised. After a second, she took it, and turned it over in her hands. "This is really cute." She grinned up at him. "Thanks, bud. What'd you need?"

Izzy:

Goro settled into a cross-legged position to match hers, and he sighed. He had a feeling she wasn't going to like this. "You know that Dream spell you got?"

Izzy:

She grimaced. "Who this time?"

Izzy:

He grimaced back. "Morgan Wyn?"

Izzy:

She wrinkled her nose and sighed. "I mean ... why, though."

Izzy:

"Because." Goro leaned forward to grab her arms. "She can't talk to me normally, because she's being spied on by her bosses through their pseudodragon familiars. This way I can ask her fucking anything!"

Izzy:

She kept making a face and whined, "Ehhhnn," but then sighed again. "Yeah, fine. She's not a caster, right?"

Izzy:

"As far as I know, she's not. Why?"

Izzy:

She shrugged and picked at the blanket they were sitting on. "Sometimes other casters can, like ... do stuff through the Dream spell. To you, or to me, y'know. It's dangerous, that's all."

Izzy:

"Hey. I'll fucking kill her if she tries anything on you. Kill her in the dream, somehow. I'll be the first one to manage it, just from how pissed off I am. Got it?"

Izzy:

"Pfft." She rolled her eyes, trying to not grin. "'Kay."

Izzy:

Goro leaned forward, grinning, to kiss her on the cheek.

Wyn... Wyn had asked about Ombre. Twice. But she wouldn't know who was casting the spell, right? Didn't matter. Goro kept smiling. "Alright. Now's a good time for you?"

Izzy:

She shrugged. "Yeah, guess." She set her books aside and scooted so she could lean against a leg of the table, back cushioned by a pillow, and motioned for him to come sit in front of her.

Izzy:

Goro scooted over and sat. "Let me make this up to you sometime. I'll take you out to dinner."

Izzy:

"Uhh. Weird." She pulled him into to lean against her and raised her hand, ready to tap a finger against his forehead the way she always did.

Then she stopped.

"... Huh."

Izzy:

"What?"

Izzy:

"I'm not ... sure? 'Kay, I know who Morgan Wyn is," she said firmly, "but it's like I can't make the connection? She's not just, like, awake, that's different. Umm. I don't know what's going on."

Izzy:

"What the hell." Goro sat up straight, scowling. "What do you mean you--what, is she dead?"

Izzy:

She shook her head. "Lemme try, uh -- lemme try Sending. What should I say?"

Izzy:

"Ask her why it's not working." Well, that'd be out of fucking nowhere. "Tell her Goro wants to talk to her privately, and wants to know why it's not working. She'll know who I am."

Izzy:

"Right." She was quiet for a moment, then frowned and tilted her head, squinting. "It's not going through. Like -- it's just fizzling like I don't know the target well enough? But I do," she insisted, twisting her hands together anxiously. "Sorry. Um."

Izzy:

Goro frowned. "How do you know her?"(edited)

Izzy:

"I mean, you guys have told me about her. Like, same way I know Bishop Fred, y'know? Second or third-hard knowledge is usually enough."

Izzy:

"Alright, well, I know her real good. Let me try. I got that shit ready." Goro closed his eyes and bowed his head.

Hey, gorgeous, wake up. I'm trying to get into your dream so I can talk to you. What gives?

Izzy:

He got an immediate response: Why?

Izzy:

He blinked a few times, surprised. Gave Ombre a questioning look, like she'd have a fucking clue. He closed his eyes again.

'Cause it's one in the fucking morning and I can't walk to Skyport. Or because I want some privacy. No prying eyes. Catch my drift?

Izzy:

If you can Send you can Dream, doll. Don't know what to tell you.

Izzy:

Goro ground his teeth and thought for a while. He only had enough magic to Send to her one more time, so he had to make this count.

Don't have Dream. Friend's doing it. Why can't she get through? Tell me something good, I'm outta magic.

Izzy:

Don't try again. This is dangerous. I'll try to reach you so we can talk. Circle in dungeon.

Izzy:

His eyes snapped open. He leaned forward and gave Ombre a hug. "Thanks," he said breathlessly. He scrambled out from under the table, then whirled around and pointed at her. "Stay here. Do not--do not follow me."

He bolted out of the library, and ran downstairs to the dungeon.

Izzy:

Wyn paced in the dungeon, back and forth, in front of the teleportation circle, flipping her watch open and closed. A dark-haired young Calish woman stood behind her, looking skittish and alarmed, holding a staff.

No pseudodragon.

Wyn's head snapped up as soon as the door opened and she jammed her watch back into her pocket, striding across the room to grab the front of Goro's robes and hiss, "I have exactly five fucking minutes, you son of a bitch, what do you fucking want?"

Izzy:

Ah, shit, shit shit. Straight to fucking business. "I wanna know who the fuck you're working for, and how to kill her. Or them. Them?"

Izzy:

She sighed harshly and let go of his shirt to drag a hand down her face. "Mask. I literally do not have time --" she gestured emphatically -- "to get into this shit with you right now. You're not gonna kill my boss. Don't care what else you've fuckin' killed. Give up on it."

Izzy:

"I won't. What's she got on you? What kind of leverage?"

Izzy:

"We're done here, doll." She patted his chest and turned back towards the circle.

Izzy:

"Nope, nope, we're not." He threw his arms around her waist and pulled her back, locking himself in place. "I'm gonna fucking help you whether you like it or not, so give me some tips!"

Izzy:

"What the fuck --." She flinched and struggled for a moment, then launched the heel of one hand back into his face and shook him off, stumbling away a few steps and turning back to glare at him, wide-eyed.

The Calish woman with the staff had straightened, but Wyn held a hand up to stop her.

"Consider this, you dumb fuck, if I don't want it then maybe what you're doing isn't fucking help," Wyn snarled.

Izzy:

Goro shoved a hand against his nose to staunch the bleeding. Yeesh, did she fucking break it, or--fucking--

"Why'd you come all the way here if you won't tell me shit? What did you think this conversation was gonna look like?"

Izzy:

She hissed through her teeth and relaxed -- kept glaring at him, but reached into her cloak and pulled out a dark red handkerchief. She stepped closer again and held it out to him. "I came here to tell you to fuckin' stop. Don't Send at me. Don't Dream at me. Don't come to Stoic Hall. When it's safe to talk, I'll fucking let you know." Her voice stayed low.

Izzy:

He ignored the handkerchief. "What is it?" he whispered. "Is it a god?"

Izzy:

"Oh, fuck you." She grabbed the wrist of the hand that he was holding against his nose, jerking it away and pushing the handkerchief into his fingers, staring him down. "Don't Send," she repeated firmly. "Don't Dream. I have to fucking leave."

She turned again, back to the circle.

Izzy:

"Don't keep me waiting too long," he said, and smiled. "I like a woman who knows how to break noses."

Izzy:

She flipped him off without looking back and joined the sorcerer, quietly saying, "Thanks, doll. Let's go." The Calish woman openly eyed Goro past Wyn, and she added, "Don't worry. He's not gonna bother me anymore," putting a hand on the woman's shoulder.

The sorcerer gave Goro a final look, then tapped her staff against the floor and opened a portal. The two of them stepped through and vanished.

Izzy:

Goro examined the handkerchief for a while, but near as he could tell it was a normal handkerchief. He didn't actually want to get blood on it, though, in case it was special somehow and he was just missing it. He said a prayer to heal his nose, then wiped as much of the blood off as he could on his sleeve.

He walked back upstairs to the library, and approached Ombre's table. "Hey," he said, and sniffed. "Uh, don't worry about this." He waved at his nose.

Izzy:

"Oh my goddess." She slipped off the table and met him halfway, grabbing his bloody sleeve and carefully touching his face, looking deeply distressed. "What the fuck, Goro? What the fuck?"

Izzy:

"Look, I grabbed a lady. It was only fair. Hey, she gave me this handkerchief, can you tell if there's anything weird about it?"

Izzy:

She gave him an incredulous look. "What, was Wyn -- here? Did you tell her to come here? And she hit you?" Ombre took a step back.

Izzy:

"Hey, come on, focus, handkerchief." Goro tried to hand it to her again. "Wyn loves me, it's fine."

Izzy:

"No." She took another step back. "Goro, I'm really fucking worried about you. Look -- look, your mass murderer boyfriend just left, and now you're calling a crime boss into your home and she's punching you and you're trying to tell me she loves you?" She was tearing up. "I don't think I should keep helping you with these things."

Izzy:

"What? No, Ombre, listen, it's alright." He stuffed the handkerchief into his pocket for the time being, and took a step forward, reaching for her. "She didn't fucking punch me, I grabbed her and she was just trying to get away. Hey, what are you fucking worried about? You know I've been like, hosted by a hivemind and shit, right? This is small-scale. I'm fine."

Izzy:

"What am I worried about?" she cried. "Exactly shit like being hosted by the Glutton! Shit like you not thinking things through, shit like you going into Joan's dream when she was hosted, shit like you inviting Morgan Wyn into the castle! Like -- like you just fucking deciding to help her after one conversation when she's this -- this conquerer and she's trying to kill Larkin's family, I mean, why would you trust her?"

She brushed him off, fully crying now.

"You keep making bad fucking choices, and I love you, and I can't just keep helping you make them."

Izzy:

"Ah, jeez." Goro took a step back, running a hand through his hair. "You sound like my mom. I mean--fuck. I mean that in the best way possible, alright? I do. My mom's the best person I know. She loves me more than anyone ever has. And she begs me--begs me not to do this kind of shit. Stop--putting yourself in danger, she tells me. Just stop. Come home. Move to the countryside with me, we'll have a little cottage and you can help me garden, and serve the townspeople."

Goro paused a second, blinking.

"And I always gotta tell her--Ma, I can't. I can't. This kinda thing--" He waved, indicating everything around them. "This is what keeps me alive. This shit's what I live for. It's what I'm good at. I can't... be like her. She's got a certain way with people, you know? She has the biggest heart. She knows what people need, she knows how to serve them and make their lives better. I don't got that. This is what I'm made for. And you know, I like to think... maybe, in my own way, I'm helping people too. I'm making the world a better place, taking out shit like Diva, and Fred, and the Sanguine Queen, whatever the fuck it is. Morgan Wyn's a small fry, Ombre. She's not the threat. I've gotta fucking help her. I can tell you why--I mean, I can tell you everything. Why I--well, I don't trust her, but I can tell you why I believe her."

He stared blankly at the space in between them. "I get, though. I do. I get if you can't help me. I won't hold it against you. I don't hold it against Amari."

Izzy:

Ombre collected herself a little as he talked, sniffling, wiping one eye with the back of her hand. Her voice was still shaky. "Well, I'm -- I'm not made for this." The composure started slipping again immediately. "It's not that I think you're not helping people, I know you are, and I wanna help too, but I'm so fucking scared because you -- you care more about that than anything that happens to you because of it, or -- or anyone who gets hurt because you do."

She wiped at her eyes again, then gave up and just covered her face miserably, voice breaking. "I was so alone, and I just hid so I wouldn't have to think about it, and you were the only person who cared about me in three hundred years, and if something happens to you I'm just -- I'm just gonna go back to my tomb and quit."

Then she dropped in place, wrapping one arm around her knees and keeping the other hand over her face, choking back sobs.

Izzy:

Goro's shoulders slumped. He watched her for a minute, then carefully sat down next to her and put an arm around her. "Hey. C'mere."

Izzy:

She kept crying, and leaned into him without saying anything.

Izzy:

He put his other arm around her and held her tight. "You wanna know a secret?"

Izzy:

Still sniffling and trying to catch her breath, she shrugged a little.

Izzy:

Well, that was as good as a yes. Goro took one arm away so he could reach into his pocket for his Mask amulet. He showed it to her briefly, then stashed it away again. "Death can't actually find me. I'm too good at sneaking away." He winked, then hugged her tightly again.

Izzy:

She shook her head. "That's bullshit," she said weakly. "Death finds everyone and we both know it. And you don't sneak away, you fucking taunt her."

Izzy:

"Yeah, yeah. And I'm sure one of these days she'll catch up and smack me in the face. But that's what the gem's for. You know about the gem, right?" He took that one out to show her next. "I'm not actually making you feel any better, am I?"

Izzy:

"No." She gasped in another halting breath. "But I don't think you -- you can. I don't want you to just ... stop ... being who you are, just." She scrubbed at her face. "I don't know. I don't know."

She took another breath, more steady this time. She sounded defeated. "What'd you want help with?"

Izzy:

"Hey, no, wait a second." Goro grabbed her hand. "Ombre, listen to me. No cheeky bullshit this time, I mean this. I realized something a couple weeks back--had a, what do you call it, an epiphany. And it was a real fucking annoying one, too. I realized I have to take better care of myself, 'cause I'm not just my own anymore. You know, I spent most of my life alone, no one else to worry about and no one worrying about me. But the other night I was like, ah, fuck, people love me now. I gotta watch it. I stopped carrying the Leech around, you know that? I am trying harder now. Because I care about the people who care about me. I don't wanna fuckin'... send you back to your fuckin' tomb, alright? I wanna be here for you. I swear I'm not looking for a fucking way to die."

Izzy:

"Well, maybe you should ... fuckin' act like it," she mumbled, and wiped her nose on her sleeve. After a beat, she said, "Why do you believe Wyn, then? I mean, you said the thing about her boss's familiar, or whatever, but she could just be lying, or messing with you."

Izzy:

"Well, for one thing, it just didn't fucking seem like she was lying. But I got the same story from Amren, too, when we interrogated him. And..."

Goro sighed. He pulled the handkerchief out of his pocket and examined it idly. "There's something fucking off about all this, Ombre. I just have a feeling. I know that won't mean a whole lot to you, but it definitely means something to me. I need more information, is the thing. And if I'm right--if Wyn can't talk to me because she's always being spied on--going into her dream is a good fucking bet."

Izzy:

She sniffled again. Goro was good with people, in a really specific way -- good at reading them. She knew that. He got those gut feelings, and it seemed like they were usually right. She just felt like ... maybe he didn't always listen to it the right way, or he did, but then he still made the wrong choice.

It just seemed like a lot to bet on a gut feeling and Goro's judgment. "Okay, well." She wiped her eyes on her other sleeve. "I mean, if she's not a caster, then Dream should be safe. Um. I don't know of any way that a familiar could, like, interfere with stuff from the outside."

Hadn't know people could do what Tricksy could do, either, though.

"So, I mean, I can try again." She looked at the handkerchief. "She's not gonna be asleep, like, right now, though. I mean, she was just here, so."

Izzy:

"Yeah. Hey, I want your opinion on something. Let me tell you exactly what happened just now."

He filled her in on the details--his Sendings with Wyn, meeting her in the dungeon, the sorcerer who was with her, the cagey way she was talking to him.

"She really wanted me to have this, for some reason." Goro waved the handkerchief in the air and passed it to Ombre. "But she couldn't talk freely, not in front of that sorcerer. Why do you think she gave it to me? Would it make it easier for you to connect to her dream, you think? Or maybe it has something to do with how she's gonna get in touch with me. She said she'd let me know when it was safe to talk, but... she kinda acts like she's speaking in code a lot of the time."

February 18, 2019

Izzy:

Ombre listened quietly, frowning. This all sounded ... so shady. She got what Goro meant about needing more information, though; she turned the little square of soft fabric over in her hands while he talked, studying it. Seemed normal to her, not magical or anything.

She thought it over. "Could be ... a delayed effect. Like, she's gonna target this with some spell, later on, to get a message to you. I'd have to do some research on what kinds of spells you can do that with. Or, yeah, I can use it to help focus a Sending or a Dream or scrying or teleportation. Well, not me," she said, "'cause I can't scry or teleport, but you know what I mean."

Izzy:

"Huh. Do I?" Goro frowned. "I know fuck-all about teleportation magic. I didn't know you could use a focus for it the way you can with divination."

Izzy:

She nodded. "Yeah, the high-level stuff. Not like, y'know, Mishka's trick, but real teleportation."

Izzy:

"Oh. Huh. Someone's got to be hella fucking powerful to do that kind of shit, though." Goro scratched his head, thinking it over.

Then, he watched Ombre for a minute. He still remembered, through the haze of feeling sick and sleepy, the stuff she'd said the night he was drunk on whiskey. How she thought nobody liked her. Reading her now, hearing the defeated note in her voice, he filled in a few gaps.

"Hey." He took her hand again. "I meant it, before, when I said I won't hold it against you. You don't have to do it if you don't want to, alright? I'll figure out another way, and I'll love you just the same." He held his other hand out for their secret handshake. "Promise."

Izzy:

Ombre returned the handshake, a little hesitantly. She still kind of wanted to cry, because it felt like -- nothing had really changed, and Goro wasn't ever going to back down from throwing himself into dangerous situations, and she realized that she didn't even want to try to talk him out of it. She just had to find some other way of dealing with how scared it made her, how vast and nebulous everything felt when you'd already outlived everyone you'd ever known, and you were going to keep doing it again, and again, and again, and how she just wanted one thing that she could hold onto for a little while.

She nodded, though. Because she did believe him. At least -- she did right now -- she'd probably lose track of it later, but maybe she could just, like, ask him to tell her again? He'd already said it twice. That made it seem pretty real.

"I don't mind doing it," she said quietly, then, spur of the moment, added, "Don't tell me not to follow you again. You know I'm a fucking powerful wizard, right? If you're gonna be in danger, I mean, let me help you."

Izzy:

"Pff. God, fine. You just seem so damn nice, alright? It's hard for me to imagine you fucking anyone up."

Izzy:

She scowled, and thought about the fireball she'd cast over the lake, cracking the ice. "I am nice. And I don't like fighting people, but -- if you're going to ..."

Izzy:

"You're gonna have my back. I got it." Goro smiled and hugged her again. "And I'm sure as hell gonna have yours."

Izzy:

[timeskip]

Izzy:

The way Dream worked, Ombre could put Goro into the trance and just wait there for Wyn to go back to sleep. So they gave it some time, to give Wyn a head start, and then Ombre tried again -- and with the handkerchief to focus, she was able to make the connection. Still couldn't figure out why she hadn't, before. It was too late at night to figure things out. She kept yawning, and loosely held onto Goro's unconscious body, and scribbled down every detail of what the failed connection had felt like so that she'd be able to remember later, when she could think clearly again.

Goro was still and silent, for a while, then went limp as he entered Wyn's dream.

- - -

It was a cavern, huge and ragged, mottled stalactites dripping from the ceiling like teeth, the floor oddly smooth and rippled black stone. Daylight came through a narrow shaft far overhead, illuminating stalactites and casting their sharp shadows across the floor, falling on Morgan Wyn.

She looked hazy, unfocused, not entirely there. She sat cross-legged on the black rock with her back to Goro, and the hilt of a stiletto stuck out of her back, blood dribbling down from it, discoloring the loose dark green tunic she wore. Her head was bowed, resting in one hand.

The ground rumbled, and from somewhere distant in the dark cavern there came the echo of metal striking metal.

Izzy:

Goro walked slowly, creeping to the side, coming wide around Wyn. He looked every which way as he moved, checking where he put his feet and scanning his surroundings. "So listen," he said, "when you said don't Dream..."

Izzy:

Wyn flickered, out and back into unclear existence, and raised her head from her hand. She looked around warily until her bruised eyes fell on Goro.

There was a rough gash in the right side of her neck, the artery torn out messily.

"Yeah." She rested her head in her hand again. Her voice sounded distant. "I meant do."

Izzy:

Goro pumped his fist in the air victoriously, even though she wasn't really watching. "I'm a little slow on the uptake sometimes, but I get there eventually." He couldn't take his eyes off her wounds. Wasn't anything to be done for it, but being what he was, it felt strange to just stand by and not help. "Uh, sorry about... running my mouth off in the dungeon, there. I didn't realize that sorcerer who was with you was... yeah."

Izzy:

She looked up again, blinking absently. "Don't worry about it."

The sound of metal against metal echoed around them again, and the ground shook, and Wyn flinched.

Izzy:

"So, uh." Goro glanced into the darkness. The fuck was going on? "The fuck's going on?"

Izzy:

"You tell me." She closed her eyes and flickered again, wincing. "The fuck did you want? I don't know how much time I've got, here."

Izzy:

"A way to talk to you without anyone listening, is what I want. Can they read your mind, too, or is this actually good and private now?"

Izzy:

"Good and private." She grit her teeth. "They know what I did, though. Sneaking off." One hand raised up to almost touch the wound in her throat. "Whatever we say, they're gonna find it out."

Izzy:

"Who are they?"

Izzy:

"The pseudodragons?" She looked unfocused and confused. "My boss's familiars. Thought you'd figured that out."

The cavern turned to blackness for a moment, then returned. The sound of metal persisted.

"When I told you to stop trying to help, I fucking meant that."

Izzy:

"Nah, I meant... who's your boss?" Singular, apparently.

Izzy:

"You're gonna do some dumb shit like try to kill her if I tell you," she said flatly, resting her face in her hand again, flickering.

Izzy:

He grinned. "Yup. That's what I'm known for. But hey, looks like I'm headed in that direction anyway. So you can either help a guy out, or I guess just kick back and watch as I do increasingly dumb shit trying to find out the information I need another way."

Izzy:

"Nah. Nah. You don't get it. Hey." Without raising her head, she gestured for him to come closer with her other hand.

Izzy:

"What?" he said, without coming any closer.

Izzy:

"Come here, you asshole."

Izzy:

He frowned, then shrugged, and moved in closer.

Izzy:

She grabbed his sleeve, and dragged him down to sit with her, vanishing and reappearing halfway through and losing her grip. She glared at him, still not raising her head.

"Listen. I don't want you to kill my boss. If you try, I'm going to fucking stop you. I'd rather not have to do that."

Izzy:

"You love her, huh? Hey, I got an idea. Can you show me? Dream her for me. Seeing is believing, as they say. Maybe if I get to see this horror with my own prying eyes, I'll be successfully scared off. What do you think?"

Izzy:

She laughed harshly. "That's funny. That's great. No, you wouldn't. Nice try, though."

Izzy:

"Damn. Show me just 'cause it sounds cool, then?"

Izzy:

She reached out to pat his cheek, smirking despite herself. "No."

Izzy:

"Come on, gorgeous. There has to be a reason you invited me here. 'Stop trying to go after my boss' is something you can say freely. And have, multiple times."

February 19, 2019

Izzy:

"I'm trying to make you understand, here, Goro." She rubbed her face, going fuzzy but not quite disappearing, shivering. "I fucked up. Snuck away from the chaperone to see you. Got caught." She stared at him, hard, pausing for a second. "There's gonna be some readjustments to the plan. They're gonna keep a closer eye out. I'm telling you to drop it, for your sake and mine, too. No more little secret visits. I'd still rather ally you and your Runners, but you gotta fucking drop it, or it's gonna go bad."

Izzy:

"Well," he said. "Fuck." He nodded a few times. "Hey, I gotta ask you a question, but to keep it simple it's gonna be a multiple choice question. Ever heard of it? That's where your teacher asks you something but gives you some possible answers--you know, A, B, C, D, and you gotta pick which one's right. You with me?"

Izzy:

"Oh, my fucking god. Yes, I know what a multiple choice question is."

Izzy:

"Alright, alright. So. The reason you'd stop me if I tried to go after your boss is..." Goro held up his fingers to count them off. "A, you just fucking love her, harsh mistress though she is. B, she would physically compel you to stop me. C, she's going to punish you real fucking bad if I go after her. D, she's going to punish somebody you love. E, she's keeping you alive somehow, and if she goes kaput, so do you. Or F, none of the above."

Izzy:

The cavern flickered, and Wyn twitched. "Let's go with C and E. Hey, guess what happened last time I disobeyed?" She indicated the gash on her throat.

Izzy:

Man. This did not fucking sound good. And here, Goro had been hoping for a quick and easy turncoat situation. One where Wyn would help them out, as long as they carried on in a way where her boss couldn't watch.

He remembered what Larkin had said, the flaw in his plan--how if the Runners stopped working against her because they thought she was on their side, Wyn could keep doing her thing, just without them trying to stop her. It'd be a perfect situation for her.

But hell. Larkin, and Ombre, and Hansel and Mishka, they could question his judgment all they wanted. He had a fucking feeling.

"Hey," he said. He pointed off into the darkness, where the sounds of clanging metal were coming from. "What would I see if I walked that way?"

Izzy:

"It's a nightmare, Goro. You'd see something fuckin' bad."

Izzy:

He watched her as he slowly climbed to his feet.

Izzy:

"Hey." She looked up. "Hey, come back." She flickered, and the cavern did too, out of sync. "Lemme tell you a story before I wake up."

Izzy:

"Psh, alright." He took his seat again, and grabbed her hand. "I love stories. Hey, are they hurting you right now?" I'll come find you, and stop them. Yeah, no, that was definitely his dick talking. At least he recognized it when it was happening.

Izzy:

"Don't worry about it." She shook her head. "Listen. There used to be this guild, back in my hometown." She flickered in and out, her hand falling out of his. "Small time. And the guildmaster, she wanted more than that. So she found something that could give that to her, said she'd give it what it wanted if it helped her get what she wanted. Figured she could handle that. Fuckin' ... hubris." She flinched, closing her eyes, going fuzzy but not quite going out. "Got in too deep."

Izzy:

"Hey." Goro tried to grab for her hand again. "Hey, you like gruesome stories with happy endings, right? Tell me how to give that one a happy ending."

Izzy:

She looked at him. "I liked that story you told me, about your friends saving you from that Diva thing. Wish it always worked out that way, huh?"

Then she winked out, and the dream ended.

Izzy:

[END]

Title: Hubris. Summary: Goro and Ombre argue about his self-preservation instinct, but they make up and she agrees to use a handkerchief give to him by Wyn to enter Wyn's dream. Wyn has seemingly been punished by her boss for sneaking out to see Goro. She alludes to the fact that she made a deal with the Sanguine Queen for power, and her own life is in peril if the Queen is killed.