“So what is [i]up[/i] with you and Molech?”

Redana has fallen headfirst into the aesthetic known on Tellus (among the commoners, not the palace) as Post-Crossroads Poisongoth. It took some doing! She doesn’t exactly have the services of a stylist on board! But the dark lipstick and pattern of crosshatched diamonds running down one cheek are vivid against her skin, and her now-dark hair is fashionably ragged, her bangs the color of beetlewings and ancient copper. It only took a little coaxing for her spacer’s gear to become a dress that falls about her thighs, with her boots becoming longer and very impractically buckled. Between her shoulderblades, the stylized cross of Hecate marks her as cursed and beset by woes[1].

She is clinging desperately to the aesthetic of the clothing as both balm and indulgence. If she is like this, she is allowed to brood and sulk in a way that would be ridiculous if sunshiney, chipper Redana tried. Her eyes are half-lidded and project disinterest as she folds her arms and leans, unarmed, against a bulkhead wall, watching as Alexa fends off a battalion of crabs. Her sword was broken by Dionysus, and none of the regular weapons in the army feel [i]right,[/i] and besides, aren’t people always making a fuss about her putting herself in danger? You can’t complain about her fighting and then complain about her [i]not[/i] fighting, numbnuts.

“It’s like, did you even read the [i]Codes of War[/i]?” Redana lifts one boot and lets a crab scuttle past to latch onto Alexa’s ankle. “All human life is of infinite value,” she quotes, sing-song. “The true general makes all who oppose her vassals, in the end. But I guess, like, that goes out the window when you see a [i]scary guy,[/i] so it’s, you know. Whatever, I guess. What do I know?”

She shrugs to indicate that she doesn’t really care about crabs, war codes, or even Alexa[2].

***

[1]: she bullied Dolce into using the stylus. Needles are obsolete tech, as long as you’re human. Just press tip to skin and painstakingly draw, clicking the beaded head to change between gradients of color.

[2]: caring about things without a filter hurts. So the only safe way to care is to act like you don’t care and you’re untouchable and the universe can’t take anything else away from you.