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[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/DhO9jwL.png[/img][/center]
[b]Interactions:[/b] Oh-Seven, Florian.[right][b][code]World Fighting Carnival - Bar.[/code][/b][/right]
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Isabella sat perched at the bar, indeed brooding as he nursed a glass full of cheap alcohol. After his last match, there was a lot to talk about, but his genderfluid parent had managed to attract (in multiple senses of the word) so many reporters and assorted admirers that none of them were even bothering to hound him. Getting through to her discreetly was going to be absolute hell, but there was little else to do but wait for the next chance.

His thoughts were disrupted by the distinct feeling of presence. He glanced at the woman, from the corner of his eye for a short moment, and went back to ignoring her, hoping that she would leave.

She did not leave.

He sighed, and turned towards her.

[quote][color=cyan]"Hello! I am Auri Auclair, a friend of Jill's. I am not certain if Ms. Breicen told you about me, but I am certain she has already informed you about Oh-One. I have rea- hold on just a moment."[/color][/quote]

Isabella froze as he saw Auri deliberately try to catch the attention of Florian Wessington. If there was one person in all the world, above all the manipulators and murderers he knew, that he [i]did not[/i] want to work with in the slightest capacity, it was Florian Wessington. The kind of utterly clueless corporate heir that should have gone extinct in the feudal age. The kind of person he intensely wanted to strangle, but had to settle with avoiding at all costs. The half-devil finished his drink, and took a long sip from the flask in his coat for good measure.

[quote][color=cyan]"... Now where was I? Ah, yes; I have reason to believe that Oh-One is making his attempt to steal the Power Stone... I require your assistance to prevent that from occurring."[/color][/quote]

[color=Silver]“Sure,”[/color] The Rider said, completely deadpan. [color=Silver]“I’d better get to it.”[/color] He stood up and trudged towards the direction of the vault. Horizon hadn’t bothered updating him on their little hunch, which meant that either they were up to some sort of scheme or the girl was lying. Either way, it was probably best to not let them know he was coming. He pulled out his phone, clicked on one of his contacts.

[color=DarkViolet]“... Hello?”[/color] Jasmine’s voice was barely audible over the sounds of the audience around her.

[color=Silver]“It’s Isabella.”[/color] His tone was colder than usual. More focused. [color=Silver]“If you’re not ready to go, start making a plan to get the hell out of here. If shit hasn’t hit the fan already, it will soon.”[/color]

[color=DarkViolet]“Wait, what? What’s going on? Will Jill be ok-”[/color]

[color=Silver]“I don’t have a lot of time. Jill can handle herself. Can you?”[/color]

[color=DarkViolet]“I… I think so, yeah.”[/color]

[color=Silver]“Good. I’ll see you soon.”[/color]

As soon as Isabella had hung up, he was already dialing up one more contact. An old friend.

[color=Silver]“Hey, I’m gonna need the plane off the ground ASAP. Looks like I’m gonna need the big guns today…”[/color]

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[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/ZFBsm2b.png[/img][/center]
[right][b][code]Gold City - Streets.[/code][/b][/right]
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Seshat trudged silently through the drainage system lying under the Fighting Carnival’s innards. She had been observing, carefully, from a safehouse of sorts near the building, but she dared not draw close until now. Offering up an artifact as dangerous as a Power Stone was so irresponsible that it… Well frankly, it was perhaps one of the most utterly stupid things she had seen in all her years. Not one of the tournament’s organizers or competitors could be trusted with it, but it was too fiercely guarded to risk a direct assault.

Now, according to her divinations, the guards were all dead. So it was now or never. She focused her wings and charged upwards, bursting through a grate in the middle of a junction in the tunnels that led to her prize, and her quarry. There was no telling who or what awaited her in the vault. But she was ready.