[center]
[img]https://fontmeme.com/permalink/180513/5ef5b8f32a843a2a76c1b0aa903ab393.png[/img]
[h2]&[/h2]
[img]https://78.media.tumblr.com/86f36d3331746a3fa07b5a09e5a9ac8a/tumblr_pczx4qmC3p1w6599so4_r1_640.png[/img]
[sub]-It Begins -[/sub]
[/center]

Penny let out a sigh as she looked across the open cave again. She was out of her depths when it came to tracking someone and she knew it, the fact she was hunting after a Beast spec just made it all the worse. But she needed to keep trying, for as long as she was in Penrose at least.

Shaking away those thoughts Penny walked the cave again, it was the most recent lair that ‘Vixen’ had abandoned, if Penny was reading the signs right. After all what she got from the Independent didn’t point directly to this lair, but she found it after searching around the last area the monster had been reported being sighted. The Vixen tackled an unknown magical girl and tumbled into the ocean with her. There was little evidence to go on, but searching around did bring her to this cave opening. There wasn’t anything that pointed towards where the murderous monster girl would go next. Nor was there much to point towards the girl that used to live here before Vixen removed them. Dried blood stains and piles of ash told a dark story of what had likely happened to poor girl and Penny couldn't help the fresh spike of anger at that, for as desperately as she wish that Vixen wasn’t Thalia she had a hard time separating the two in her head.

There was also the fact that she was running out of time, if what Laat had told her last night was true. 

[color=#bd71e8]“Penny.”[/color] Veronica's voice startled her out of her thoughts again. [color=#bd71e8]“How are you making out with the lead I sent you? Did Mika tell you anything interesting?”[/color]

[color=9e0039][u][b]“Told you already”[/b][/u][/color] The robotic monster girl would reply once she was sure her surprise wouldn’t bleed over into her voice, she had forgotten that Veronica could open a channel whenever she wanted with the comms device she had been given. [color=9e0039][u][b]“Only got a name from Mika, lead me to a reporter from the Penrose Independent. Got more information from her, but nothing that points towards Thalia directly. Hell I’m not even sure if Vixen is Thalia yet.”[/b][/u][/color]

With an audible sigh Penny would move to sit near the mouth of the cave looking out towards the water [color=9e0039][u][b]“All I’ve got are lists of where Vixen was seen, and I’m not sure how to use that to find out where she will be, so not great over all to answer you first question.”[/b][/u][/color] Despite her frustrations Penny was somewhat glad to hear from the Coin Broker, as Veronica did offer to help find Thalia, and Penny did need the help if she was going to succeed. 

Penny could hear the sound of footsteps coming towards her. Sure enough, Veronica was there in the flesh. She had her hand to the side of her head. [color=#bd71e8]“Right, I forgot you told me that part already.”[/color] She folded her arms behind her back before walking deeper into the cave. [color=#bd71e8]“It's been a busy morning.”[/color] Veronica approached the bloodied wall and placed her hand on it. [color=#bd71e8]“Seems like you're making headway though.”[/color] she turned around to face Penny. [color=#bd71e8]“If they handed you a dosser, I wouldn't mind looking at it with you.”[/color]

[color=9e0039][u][b]“Doubt the days are going to get any easier”[/b][/u][/color] Penny would reply fishing out the folded papers she had gotten from Olympia [color=9e0039][u][b]“This is all I got from the PI”[/b][/u][/color] she would explain before tossing it to the more experienced magical, not bothering to stand up [color=9e0039][u][b]“Not much of a dossier, just a list of info and names of who reported it.”[/b][/u][/color] Veronica caught the papers with one hand and folded them open in front of herself. 

[color=9e0039][u][b]“Mind if I ask what has you busy?”[/b][/u][/color] Penny would ask as Veronica looked over the papers. Partially out of curiosity, but mostly to try and take a break, mentally, from hunting down her old friend.

[color=#bd71e8]“The mint decided to let me go.”[/color] Veronica didn't look up from the pages as she responded.

Penny just blinked at that admission, and when she finally wrapped her head around it she couldn’t help the laugh that escaped. [color=9e0039][u][b]“That sonva bitch”[/b][/u][/color] she would say shaking her head [color=9e0039][u][b]“That explains part of why Laat told me not to care about the Mint any more”[/b][/u][/color]

[color=9e0039][u][b]“Follow up question if I may, what did you do that ticked off the Mint?”[/b][/u][/color] She would ask as she stood up rather curious as to what might have happened.

[color=#bd71e8]“Long story. Let’s focus on this first.”[/color] Veronica folded the pages in half and passed them back to Penny.  [color=#bd71e8]“So they witnessed the Vixen chase someone off a cliff and into the water? I remember reading about that.”[/color] She extended her hands out and laptop appeared in her hands. It took her just a moment to brush the black tar off of it before running a search on it. [color=#bd71e8]“There's an article about it on the Independent's old server. Yes, apparently a magical girl was chased into the sea. The witnesses remained on the scene for hours to catch the vixen when she resurfaced, but she and her victim never did. Interesting.”[/color] Veronica gave Penny a sideways glance.. [color=#bd71e8]“So if she never came back to shore, then the victim couldn't have been killed in this room. But we have an unexplained blood stain that we need to demystify.”[/color] Veronica opened the lap top again. [color=#bd71e8]“Also,I'm not in a place to critique the independent, but doesn't a cave with a bloodstain in it seem like a strange thing to miss? There's no mention of the cave anywhere in this article. Though perhaps even more interesting, they have a picture of the cliff side, and the cave isn't in the picture.”[/color]  She shut her laptop. [color=#bd71e8]“So how did the Vixin manage to take her prey into the water, and surface in a cave that didn't exist at the time?”[/color]

When Penny looked around the cave, she could see claw marks all along the walls. It could have been a mad creature flailing against the walls, but it could have also been.. [color=9e0039][u][b]“She dug it out”[/b][/u][/color] Penny would mutter quietly as she ran her fingers across one of the claw marks on the wall.  

Turning sharply she surveyed the cave again but this time she called forth her divinely gifted knowledge as she started to mentally rewind the cave. A theory was starting to form in the cyborgs mind, but she was missing pieces [color=9e0039][u][b]“Vixen dug the cave out, possibly from the inside”[/b][/u][/color] She said again louder as she started analyzing the stone walls of the cave before narrowing her eyes at the sandy floor.

There was a soft metallic click as her hidden metallic limbs unfurled from her back and in the same moment started to probe deeper into the sand. She was looking for a tunnel or something like it, it would explain how Vixen got from the water to inside the cliffside 

Veronica nodded. [color=#bd71e8]“We also don't know anything about the victim. It's possible they had a specialization that helped them dig this cave to escape the Vixen. Regardless of what theory you go with, we're standing inside someone's grave right now. And if they didn't enter from that entrance...”[/color]

Penny had dug pretty deep, but managed to hit the true floor of the cave. With a bit of searching, she found a hole that lead deeper into the earth. What made this hole interesting though was that it looked like it was filled with rocks. As soon as Penny moved a few rocks out of the way, she could see the remains of an ornate wooden flute. It appeared to have been smashed under the rocks. 

[color=#bd71e8]“You found something?”[/color]


Penny didn’t reply, she barely heard the question, her eyes were riveted to the broken flute she had uncovered. Slowly she knelt down and gently picked up the shattered fragments of wood, hoping she was wrong, praying it wasn't the flute she thought it was, wishing that it was just a trick of the light. 

But she wasn’t, she knew this flute, could recognize it anywhere. After all it was Thalia’s healing flute. An artifact she had used a few time to help her friend and a hunt. Now broken and buried in a cave that Vixen had dug.

That would mean Thalia was… That she had become… her friend was… Thalia was… Vixen. 

There was a soft crash as Penny fell against the wall of the hole she had dug. She was holding two of the larger parts of the broken flute in her hands, staring at them hopelessly. 
She stayed that way for quite some time, unresponsive as she tried to come to grips with the revelation about… about Vixen. That she had proof now that they were…

Forcing out a breath Penny simply set aside her emotions, she couldn’t deal with them, not here not now. Not without tearing the cliff face apart. So she set them aside, she wouldn’t forget, she would just ignore them for now. So she could either break down in peace or rage and vent in solitude. But that would come later, when she got home.

[color=9e0039][u][b]“Yeah, I found something”[/b][/u][/color] Penny would call out in answer, her voice wavering as she did. She would slip the mouthpiece of the flute in to one of her storage compartments as she did, so she would still have proof later. She held the other piece up so that Veronica could see.

Veronica had moved to the edge of the hole Penny had dug. [color=#bd71e8]“I see.”[/color] She jumped into the hole with her. [color=#bd71e8]“Well, if you found something that belonged to the killer, it's just a matter of time before you find the Vixen. Otherwise, it might point to their mysterious victim.”[/color] Veronica adjusted her collar before putting her hands behind her back. [color=#bd71e8]“Say Penny, do you remember that story I told you while you were building the Earth Bastion?”[/color]

Penny would push herself to standing as she nodded her agreement of what Veronica had said in regards to it being a matter of time till she found her quarry. [color=9e0039][u][b]“I know whose it was”[/b][/u][/color] She would admit before turning to face the ex-coin broker [color=9e0039][u][b]“And yeah I remember”[/b][/u][/color] she would add narrowing her eyes is suspicion at the sudden change of topic. [color=9e0039][u][b]“Why do you bring it up?”[/b][/u][/color]

[sup]*For you kids who weren't around for the last RP, Veronica visited Penny and told her a story about being a former Beacon girl who went on to have a forbidden romantic relationship with a monster girl. The monster girl had a debt placed on her head by mint, so Veronica left Beacon and joined the Mint, offering to pay the debt that was owed. The monster girl left her afterwards, never to be seen again.[/sup]

Veronica Paced around penny. [color=#bd71e8]“I told you that story was a farce, didn't I?”[/color] She waved her hand. [color=#bd71e8]“I wanted to instill in you a lesson, that you were gullible and needed to be more careful. I think it's fair to say you've grown a bit since then.”[/color] Veronica spun on her heel so that she was facing the cyborg. [color=#bd71e8]“But that was a lie. That story was true all along.”[/color]

Penny turned to keep her eyes on Veronica as the older girl paced, unsure of what was going to be said. To hear that the story she had been told was, in fact true, had to monster girl rock back on her heels for a moment. 

Then came the doubt and the anger. Because it was so easy to believe that Veronica was once again messing with Penny, trying to teach the girl another lesson. So Penny stayed still as she searched Veronica’s face, searched for something that would help her identify what was truth, the only sounds that came from here was an odd metallic latching and unlatching. 

[color=9e0039][u][b]“And why should I belive you now?”[/b][/u][/color] She asked softly, nearly pleading, because she wanted the story to be true. Wanted to be able to trust that Veronica understood the pain. Wanted to know she wasn’t alone, and to have proof that life still goes on, but Veronica had taught her first lesson well, and Penny couldn't just blindly accept such a turn around anymore.

[color=#bd71e8]”Look on the bright side. Regardless which is the truth, you know I've been honest with you at least once.”[/color] Veronica tucked her hand behind her back. [color=#bd71e8]”Even though I'm not affiliated with mint anymore, I will still grant you aid in chasing the Vixen. Perhaps I’d like to see one of us get closure?”[/color] She shrugged her shoulders. [color=#bd71e8]”Regardless, it's important that you know the Mint still has you in their clutches. I'm not sure if they will pursue you for being one of my former agents or not, but this is something you should be aware of.”[/color] Veronica spun on her heel again. When she stopped, she was looking over her shoulder at Penny. [color=#bd71e8]”Maybe they'll even send you to kill me.”[/color] She looked ahead and walked out of the pit. [color=#bd71e8]”Turning against one's own patron isn't for everyone, but I feel liberated not working in their shadow anymore.”[/color] Veronica seeped into a shadow and disappeared, but not without a few parting words. [color=#bd71e8]”You might want to try it sometime.”[/color]

As with their last meeting Penny would stay very still, not bothering to respond to the girls parting words, until she was sure that Veronica had left. Sighing she ran a hand down her face, the silver lining in all of this was that she could finally tell the Mint to piss off if they came looking for her. She had no intention of working for them ever again. She also longed for the very freedom that her… acquaintance had just gained. Slowly an Idea was starting to form in the robotic girls head about how she might be able to go about fulfilling that desire.

Before she could get too lost in the forming plan an enchanted voice would echo across the city jarring her from her thoughts. Sighing again while shaking her head Penny would turn to look out of the cave again. [color=9e0039][u][b]“You weren’t kidding when you said everyone would hear the start.” [/b][/u][/color] She muttered to herself.

With a shrug Penny started to move out, intending to head to town hall to at least talk with this ‘Cindy Ford’ but would stop and cast another glance back at the various fragments of wood that were scattered about in the hole. Quickly and silently she would pick up every single piece of it she could find and place all of them in their own compartment. She would figure out what she was going to do with them later, it just didn’t feel right to her to leave them abandoned here.

With that task completed she would set off towards town hall. She could use the distraction form everything she learned here. As she left, one of her spider legs would lash out causing the cave to collapse in on its self, before slipping back into hiding.

On her way to Town hall, her thoughts would drift back to the conversation she had last night with her Patron.

[hr]


[hider=Optional reading]
[center]
[img]https://fontmeme.com/permalink/170805/65bbc31b7a1bdfea20f202e96550bf94.png[/img]
[h2]&[/h2]
[img]https://fontmeme.com/permalink/180513/5ef5b8f32a843a2a76c1b0aa903ab393.png[/img]
[/center]

[center][h2]- Around 2AM last night-[/h2][/center]

Deep in the interwoven scrap heap that hid Penny’s lair the mechanical monster was finishing up on a computer. She had been building the thing over the past couple weeks, both as a way to relax and as the first step in her preparations incase Boteg and his girls came after Penny.

She was just about to turn the machine on to make sure everything had been put together correctly when a chill went down her spine, and hardly a moment later a thunderous voice rang out [h3][color=9e0b0f]“My Lady” [/color][/h3] It was the booming the voice of Laat’AlOFan [h3][color=9e0b0f]“I Come Bearing Good News. Chaos Is Soon To Visit Penrose” [/color][/h3]

[color=9e0039][u][b] “And how is that good news”[/b][/u][/color] She would ask, shaking her head as she leaned back at looked at her roof. She couldn’t see her Paton though it, but she knew he was there dominating the sky as he normally did.

[h3][color=9e0b0f] “For, As With All Chaos, Change Both Great and Small Shall Be Left Trailing In Its Wake. This Also Means That A Change Shall Be Required Of The Deals That Have Been Struck” [/color][/h3] 

[color=9e0039][u][b]”What Kind of changes?”[/b][/u][/color] She would ask tentatively, she had been burned by these changes before as one could never really tell if the changes that Laat worked to fulfill were going to be good or bad. As the deity didn’t truly care all that much so long as change happened and could continue to happen.

[h3][color=9e0b0f] “Simply The Fact That They Are No Longer To Be Honored” [/color][/h3]

[color=9e0039][u][b]“So, everything with Beacon is just being dropped?”[/b][/u][/color] She would ask though clenched teeth, anger simmering at the thought of being forced to give up her friends. She knew something like this might happen, came with dealing with as fickle a patron as Laat was at times but that didn’t make the truth any better. [color=9e0039][u][b]“Does that at least mean that I can tell the mint to go to hell as well?”[/b][/u][/color] She would near demand, hopping that she would at least gain something good out of this horrible sounding change.

[h3][color=9e0b0f] “Not All With Beacon, Though I have No Fear You Would Fulfill This Task Regardless, I Would Request That You Continue Your Vigil Over The Seraph. In Addition, though You Are Correct In Regards To The Mint, You Should Seek To Maintain A Good Rapport With The Ebon Vampire” [/color][/h3]

Relief would wash over Penny, she didn’t have to abandon anyone she was friends with and she got to tell off the Mint. Things were starting to sound better in regards to this coming Chaos if you asked her. [color=9e0039][u][b]So, protect my friend, and try to stay on the Coin broker’s good side.” [/b][/u][/color] Penny would summarize [color=9e0039][u][b]“Why them?” [/b][/u][/color] She would ask, more curious about Veronica then Alicia if she was honest. 

[h3][color=9e0b0f]”Alicia Holds A Key To Beacon’s Future Much As Veronica Holds One For The Mint, Thus Both Have Many Threads Connected to them. [/color][/h3]

Not the answer she was expecting, but one that fit what she knew of Laat, nodding her head she asked the next important thing [color=9e0039][u][b]”Alright, when is this chaos happening?”[/b][/u][/color]

[h3][color=9e0b0f] “Soon But Fear Not The Beginnings Of It Shall Ring Loud Enough That All Shall Hear Its Start. Before I Take My Leave, Your Requested Supplies Shall Reach You By Tomorrow Night. I’ve Included Some Additional Things That Will Be Of Use In The Coming Days. Fare Well” [/color][/h3]

There was another thunderous crash and Penny knew that Laat had left. Looking at her computer she just shook her head and turned toward her bed instead. Figuring she should try and get some sleep while she still could.
Besides she had plans to go out hunting at day break.

[/hider]