Comet’s steps through the middle tier of Laurienna were not slow enough to constitute a sulk, nor loud enough for a stride. He walked with his scarlet head hung down. His neck wasn’t tired, no, his neck was fine, thanks, mother, let me go now, mother. He just preferred not to look people in the eye any more. Not at this time of night. Not even slaves. Asteria had been… not always pleasant, these last few years. The city hid its darker smiles these days, as if bribed into protecting the innocence of the child-king (long may he live), but Comet was younger once, and he remembered how he loved the spectacle of the old royalty. Hektore’s failed coup had hit him like a pot banged over his head, and he still flinched at the sound. At least the mason blood on the unfinished temple was nothing but a fading memory. Comet walked, walked, stopped, looked. He looked left. Some pygmies slept on the street where they were tied, huddled up against each other. He looked right. There was a shop between the string-maker’s workstation and Parallax’s sandal store. There wasn’t [i]usually[/i] a shop between the string-maker’s workstation and Parallax’s sandal store. Comet crept up to the counter of the shop, which was littered with small flakes and strings of a brightly coloured material that touch confirmed was not leaf, but thinner and drier. A tiny flame lit the store, trapped in a cylinder of that festive material, one that Comet could swear was watching him. The proprietor, if that she was, was slumped over the counter, still holding the wineskin that had drained itself into a puddle under her cheek and all over her floor. She wore a small conical hat made of the same substance. Comet stared at her. Not in the way he usually stared at girls, no. Not primarily, anyway. He stared at her because she had six arms. “H… hello?” Snores. The lantern wriggled. Comet backed off. He tapped the sleeping… creature on the wrist. [i]“Hello?”[/i] Like a kinked rope uncoiling from an unfavourable bend, the spooky lady uncurled slightly from her own arms, showing off her face. Comet watched as two bundles of sharp sticks and a big bundle of sharp teeth pointed themselves at him. Chopstick Eyes settled her head back on the counter between her arms, still wearing a big grin and a big blush, and worked her mouth, unable to suppress her smile. [colour=blanchedalmond]“H-h… hi.”[/colour] Comet stared. Chopstick giggled and hiccuped. “Are you… alright?” Chopstick squealed and slid backwards off the counter, her chair falling on top of her with a crash. A very silly laugh followed her head up as she rested it on the counter by the chin, apparently kneeling, the rest of her body still somewhere on the floor. [colour=blanchedalmond]“I’m daA~aAandy,”[/colour] said Chopstick Eyes. [colour=blanchedalmond]“I’m fuck… ...ing... maniacal. I’m eggs… sell...”[/colour] Her sticks swivelled around and found the wineskin, and she heaved herself onto the counter, lay down on it and shook the last few drips into her mouth. She let the skin flop out of her fingers with a curious fascination. Comet was about to leave when she rolled her head towards him and said, [colour=blanchedalmond]“Hi.”[/colour] “...” She waved. Comet scratched the back of his neck. “Do you… want some water?” Chopstick stared at this, the dumbest question ever asked, then burst out laughing again. [colour=blanchedalmond]“Oh you’re [i]funny![/i] You’re really, really funny… HhA hHa hhh~ huhuhuhuh…”[/colour] She propped her drooping head on the back of her wrist. [colour=blanchedalmond]“You’re really pretty. What’s your naaaaaaaaaAAAAAaaaaame~?”[/colour] “I- Oh. Oh. I’m Comet.” Comet looked to one side. He’d heard that before, and said it, but never in quite the same… way. Chopstick’s mouth and eyes widened as if scarfing down the world’s thickest bread roll. [colour=blanchedalmond]“That’s so cooool! Hic. I’m Butter snort… buttery... I’m butteryboy. Hey, do yoo~ou want to know how I got here?”[/colour] “...-” [colour=blanchedalmond]“So I was, coming back from Azzie’s place, right? That’s what has the… Tonnikala. Oh I’m god, I said that right. And it’s the sky, right? It’s the sky!”[/colour] The mysterious shopkeeper waved three of her hands around the air to make this really, really clear. [colour=blanchedalmond]“It’s like, the entire sky. But I also found this place, right? And here’s the thing. Here’s the t h i n g. Um, do you have any water?”[/colour] “I can go get-” [colour=blanchedalmond]“The thing is, I didn’t land here. I wasn’t even gonna leave Azzie’s place, right?? I was just going down for a dip! And then I found a Route through a big cloud and bip boop, now I’m here. Hey, do you want some money?”[/colour] Two of the hands extended, a pile of thin golden pieces slipping through their cupped fingers. Comet started to shake his head, but the hands had already fell apart and dropped the coins all over his feet. [colour=blanchedalmond]“Oops. Anyway, so I’m here now. And this place is really cool! I’m gonna have more parties… hic. And I’m gonna buy SO~O many thiiiiings. Omgg, you should show me things. And I’m gon-na get you dressed up! I’m gonna dress you in cute clothes~ and something other than leopard print fur, that’s getting kinda tacky...”[/colour] “Go home,” said Comet, backing away from the gold. “Go home, butter snort. This isn’t safe.” [colour=blanchedalmond]“noooOOOooOOOOooo~!”[/colour] Chopstick giggled. She rolled over onto her back and stretched on the counter, arching her spine luxuriously. [colour=blanchedalmond]“Nah, I’m not gonna go home yet. I can’t… really get up right now… bahahahahah. It wouldn’t… It’d take… a big rock hitting me in the head to make me do any sensible shit now,”[/colour] said she. Somewhere high, Veradax eclipsed the Pyres. [center]* * * [b]Alpha.[/b][/center] Chopstick lay back on her deck chair at the top of the Pagoda and watched the incoming meteor through her sunglasses. She excised a fresh dollar bill from under her straw hat and waved it temptingly at the distant streak of fire. The meteor didn’t budge. [colour=wheat]“It’s gonna be that way, then, huh?”[/colour] She threw the bill to the wind and the wind spun it around before bringing it back in the form of a hefty wooden mallet. [colour=wheat]“Batter up, bitch!”[/colour] [hider=????] Betasticks discovers Laurienna by chance after accidentally evicting herself from the Blue. She decides to celebrate with a one-man party at three in the morning. More importantly, she figures out that she can use the Route to effectively slow-teleport herself into mortal marketplaces, by virtue of being the Market Lord. Alphasticks defends the Pagoda from some meteors. [/hider]