Elsewhere i.

> *Elsewhere...*
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> **"HIIIYAAARGH--!"** screamed Liudiya, as her fist slammed into the stone for a third time. This time, the stone slab buckled and cracked, and with a final shout, she struck it with her left, destroying the stone entirely. Newly-made gravel showered down around her as she caught her breath in the dank hallway.
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> "One way to disable a trap..." muttered the sugarwasp behind her, arriving with a torch. "You okay, Liudy? We need you in sound mind right now."
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> "Never been better," she grunted, after a pause. The mire dungeon exploration had been going smoothly, but they had long since given up on anyone being left alive. It was all remodeling at this point.
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> "Well, good to hear," said the sugarwasp, hesitantly. "The wanted posters were distributed this morning," he added. "They said you'd want to take a look."
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> "Thanks," said Liudiya, turning to take a piece of brown paper from the bug. Her large size completely dwarfed him, especially in this cramped hall. "...this'll do. Thanks, Andouille."
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> "We'll find her," replied the sugarwasp with a reassuring click of its mandibles. "Don't you worry."
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> Liudiya stared at the poster for a few more moments before turning her empty gaze back to the sugarwasp. Then, her eyes sparked, and she gave a toothy grin. "Right you are. Make sure these got where they needed to go. I'll need a report on intended locations and responses whenever its available."
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> "It's in progress. I'll let you get back to work." The sugarwasp clicked again and waved with two knobby fingers, before turning and leaving the way he had come.
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> Liudiya's smile hardened as she turned back to the stone. Holding a piece of it in an open hand, she exhaled, and a deep rumbling emerged from her throat. "I made you a promise." Suddenly, her body began to steam, and her eyes went red. She snapped her hand shut, and the rock shattered into sand.
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> **Champion Liudiya**
> **Beloved Mayor of Tang**
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> *Elsewhere...*
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> "Master Nimue! MASTER NIMUE!"
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> Nimue toyed with the edge of her hood. It was fraying slightly, she noticed. She would need to see to that before her rendezvous tonight. Organic clothes were a chore to maintain, but tradition is a powerful concept.
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> The flustered priest continued banging on the door as she strode calmly towards it. "Are you in there, Master?! This matter cannot be postponed again! *MASTER NIMUE!*"
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> Nimue pulled open the door with a dignified grace just as the priest was about to pound on it again, causing them to stumble forward into the room. Nimue stood at least three feet taller than them, her impossibly lithe figure making her look almost spider-like.
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> "Master Nimue!! Finally! It has already been three days since our last-"
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> "Please do relax, your voice is ever so grating at that pitch," said Nimue, interrupting the priest with a small flick of her wrist. The priest almost choked in response, surprise visible in their eyes for a moment before a sudden calm fell over them. Nimue smiled. "Yes, like that. You would not disturb Master Triangle during his meditation, would you?"
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> The priest babbled a few nonsense syllables before catching up to their own tongue. They looked up at Nimue with a plain smile. "My apologies, Master. Perhaps the matter can be discussed another time."
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> "This is the matter of the ogre girl, is it not?" Nimue stepped across the room again, reaching the opposite doorway in a few long strides. Peering at the figure inside briefly, she shut the door without making a sound. "Forgive me for remaining silent, but you should know that everything is under control."
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> "Truly? That is good news indeed," said the priest. "I had feared that our inaction following the radio silence of the original hires..."
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> "Yes, there was clearly some bungling, wasn't there? Rest easy though, sibling, for it is in my hands now, as you seem to have heard." Nimue produced a wine glass half-filled with wine from her core and took a sip. "Be done with this matter for now, and leave me be. The High Master seeks my attendance."
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> "Master," said the priest respectfully, bowing low. They gave Nimue a warm smile, before backing out of the room and shutting the door slowly. The latch clicked.
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> Nimue sighed, placing the wine glass on a table nearby. She walked over to the window, watching the water swirl in the moat below. It danced for her, making shapes and symbols that reflected the sunlight above. She turned her lidded eyes to the wilderness beyond, and began to trace the distant treeline with her vision: up the hill, across the sky, along the horizon...
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> "No matter which way you go, little squires," she whispered to no one, "all roads lead to the Terminal."
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> Nimue, Lady of the Lake (Aura core)
> Master Priest of The Temple of Monad
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> *Elsewhere...*
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> Stone crumbled and furniture shifted with each booming step. The lone figure sat comfortably on the precarious balcony, unfazed by the constant disruption of their area. Though the chair beneath them slid back and forth with each motion, the figure remained frozen in place, hovering above the ground, disrespectful of gravity and ignorant of physical laws. She brought a teacup up to her lips and sipped neatly.
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> BOOM.
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> "Fistle and thie, thine words half-met;
> For a Universe fleeth as a Person upset;
> A trio done-bye whence a par'nt be none;
> Infinity endeth what Infinity begon."
> BOOM.
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> The figure smiled at the new verse. A journal next to her was automatically scribbling down her words with a quill and flowery script. She licked her lips contemplatively, and took another sip of tea.
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> BOOM.
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> "Dead hole o' the deep father Manos he fell;
> Few nate never diff'rent for Monad to tell;
> Hand-hold in hell nev'r saved us befor;
> Thistle and fie, lest we nev'r no more."
> BOOM.
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> The figure twitched slightly, suddenly distracted by something. Then, she smiled again, looking back into her tea cup.
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> "Where'd ya go, Leon?" she said softly, despite the booming. "I left y'a trail an' everything. Mevernind, must'n't be tha day. Keep yer eyes peeled, my Leon though. There're so few of us left, y'see!"
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> BOOM.
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> ??????
> ?????????
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> *Elsewhere...*
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> "Cooome in."
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> The sliding door whined as it opened, and she stepped inside. The atmosphere in the laboratory was fascinating in a different way every time she visited. This time, it was dark and shrouded, with clouds of undefined smoke hanging low in the air. Very “bubbling cauldron”. Multiple people worked at different stations, but the one she needed to talk to was behind the counter, wearing a single-eyed safety goggle while standing over a series of beakers, each containing a slightly different coloured solution.
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> She stood still for a few moments, fingering the glass object in her hand, before clearing her throat.
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> The doctor looked up.
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> "Louli! My delicious hero! My sweet savior! Babydoll, tell me all about it. I mean, I already read the debrief. But tell me all about it anyway!"
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> Louli smiled internally. She wasn't sure how the doctor was going to react, but this was a positive start. You could never be too complacent, though.
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> "Do-"
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> "Actually nevermind, I'm really busy here. We're working on a thing. You know how it is. But seriously commendable work on the mission. I would be in some very sticky jam if Quis had lost a royal guard on a random “scouting mission”. You made the right call, bringing that dimwit back. I knew I could count on you." The doctor lifted her safety goggle up and gave Louli an approving thumbs-up. She knew this was a serious sign of respect, as taking the doctor away from her work was often cause for punishment in its own right.
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> "You're too kind, *Laika*. I was juzt doing my job. Potzo... is not ze most delicate touch."
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> "No, he's a dimwit," agreed the doctor. "No idea how they got a hold of some holo.B. Ros figures they must be better connected than I thought."
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> "Zere iz... one more thing," said Louli, daring to interrupt the doctor's musing.
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> "Louli my syrupy goddess, what more could you bring me?"
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> Louli twisted her wrist to expose the vial she held, holding it up to the faint light in the room.
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> "Louli... what is that?" said the doctor, cautiously. Some of the lab assistants turned to look at her, surprised at the uncharacteristically serious tone.
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> Though her face was straight, her internal smile grew. The doctor knew exactly what it was. "It iz hers, *Laika*."
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> "Louli." The doctor put her face in her palm for a moment, then looked up again, and then walked around the lab counter to face the glazheen. "Louli, are you telling me... Willowisp's blood? Are you being serious with me? You GOT IT?!"
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> "I did." She couldn't help it. She cracked a smile.
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> The doctor often wore a smile herself, but there was a lesser-seen smile as well, one that only came out when she had something truly interesting in her possession. It appeared on her face, the edges of her lips curling ever so slightly, and her lips parting just enough to see her white teeth. "...Well, well, well," she said. "Sorry for being so flippant with you earlier."
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> *Zat was flippant?* thought Louli.
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> "You deserve some real accolades. You're the real deal, baby."
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> Louli handed over the vial. "I am lucky it worked," she said.
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> "As a scientist, I'll take luck over skill any day," said the doctor, inspecting the vial closely. "Nice job chilling it. Come on, throw on a lab coat and join us inside. We can introduce this lovely thing to the others."
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> Louli paused. "Ze... others? Zere are more like her?"
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> The doctor's smile curled even tighter around her cheeks. She snapped the safety goggle back on. "Oh, Louli. You have no idea."
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> Dr. Leilah-Kwine (Camel core)
> Royal Doctor of Saccharum
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