Glade 5th, 4623
To say that Izzy's behavior had jostled the Rath was an understatement. Both he and Bants were utterly stunned by her return, by her gift of a captive that allegedly knew what had happened to the Artificer that claimed the small half-gnome. Both sat in silence while Izzy tied her captive to a chair in the middle of the main chamber, still unconscious.
She pulled on the knot of her coil to tighten it with a grunt, then dusted off her hands as she released the grips of her handiwork and rose to stand on her feet properly. "That should do it," she said with a grin. "Anyone wanna wake him up?"
Arkash's lips stayed pursed, a discerning look in his eyes. Bants couldn't muster the will to look at her. It was difficult to look past the elephant in the room.
Izzy sighed. "...Look, do you two want to find the assholes that killed Bosby or not?" She spoke with finality, as though she was at her wits end.
"Yeah, we do," Answered the Rath as he placed a hand on the shoulder of the half-gnome. "I don't take being robbed lightly, and Bants deserves closure, but..." He paused to look down at the blue-skinned man. "We're both just surprised to see you back. We didn't part on good terms, Izzy." That much was obvious. It didn't feel right to have to remind her that was the case, but she almost behaved as though it hadn't happened at all.
She was quiet for a moment, as though she'd just discovered something world breaking. That silence extended for a dozen seconds, then a dozen more where she only stared at them, until Arkash gave a sort of awkward half shrug and she sighed. "Yeah, I know," she began. "I'm not going to lie and say I'm totally cool with it, because I'm not.... It's just..." She gave pause to let her words sink in. "We had a deal," she said. "You and I had a deal, and I lost sight of that for a minute, and I'm sorry." She began to tear up, eye glistening as her skin reddened.
Bants' eyes were on Arkash then, it was his turn to talk. Arkash drew a deep breath through his nose and rubbed the back of his head while he thought. It was obvious that she was upset. He was too, even if it didn't manifest in tears. "I know," he began with a slight smile below his saddened eyes. "It's alright, I lose sight of things too... What's important is you came back after the fact." He swallowed and looked down at the Badlander she'd taken hostage. "And you brought this guy in to make amends, right?"
Izzy nodded as she wiped her eye dry, then turned her head to look down at the man. "Yeah," she agreed. "That's right."
Arkash shook his head as he walked toward her, then embraced her in a hug. "I'm glad you're back," he said softly. "Bants and I both missed you, a lot." He could feel her heart beating faster, which was to indicate she was feeling emotional. That, he understood.
She laughed a little at his explanation through her crying and returned the embrace. "I missed you too, both of you."
Sure enough, Bants' call interrupted the two as he cleared his throat. Arkash looked to him, as he directed Arkash's attention to the Badlander in the chair, now awake and staring up at them. Arkash blinked, then released Izzy, who also stepped away. "This guy apparently has details on what happened at the shop, a few different sources confirmed he's been blabbing but couldn't specify what he said," Izzy explained. Arkash nodded.
With a claw, Arkash gently hooked the cloth gag that propped his jaw open and smiled as he the man flinched and pulled away from him. "Easy," Arkash instructed as he gently lowered the cloth from his mouth and left it hang around his neck. "We're friends, no need to be scared."
"I ain't friends with no fuckin' lizard!" He cried. "What the Bel even are you?!"
Arkash hissed in his throat before he gripped the man by the throat and lifted him off the ground, chair and all. His powerful tail slammed the ground behind him as it acted as a sort of counterbalance for his forward weight. The man began to choke as Izzy hurriedly pulled on his arm "We need him alive," she whispered, and brought the Rath back to the present. With a grunt, Arkash let the man down gently, and released the pressure from his neck with wrought claws. Izzy's hand ushered him away as she took her place crouched in front of the man. "Hey buddy, don't call him that again 'cuz I don't know if I can stop him next time."
The badlander coughed and sputtered as he gathered his breath. "What the fuck...! Do you want from me?!" He begged. "Please, just let me go!"
"Well, he asked nicely so maybe we sh-" began Bants, only to be silenced by the Rath who extended a clawed finger at him.
"Bosby's shop," she began.
"What?" he quizzed, confused.
"You saw what happened to him two months ago, didn't you?"
"No," he answered. "Now can you let me go? I don't know anything!"
"Well then I guess he's useless to us," Arkash said as he began to manifest his cardinal features. "Good," his voice came a low, throaty growl, teeth and claws aflame with black fire that stood stark against his pale scales. "I was getting hungry!"
The man began to scream and thrash in his chair, absolute horror widened his eyes as he jumped in his seat and flailed his body in a desperate bid to free himself.
"Put it away, Ark," she spoke directly with some degree of authority. When he did, the man began to calm down, breathing heavy, tears wet on his cheeks. "Listen, pal. I've spoken to three fellas that all say you've been talking about what they did to Boz, so that's not gonna work for you."
"Get that thing the fuck away from me!" He cried, breathing heavy and ragged.
"Ark... Could you?" She asked with a glance over her shoulder. Arkash nodded, then withdrew from the gathering and ventured into the hall just far enough to keep them in earshot. "There, he's gone. Is that better?"
"Yes..." He said, still catching his breath. "But listen, I'm telling you! I can't say anything. I'm dead if they find out I'm the snitch!"
"You think he won't kill you if you don't?" Asked Bants, which drew a smile to the Rathor's lips.
"He's strong, he's not going to let whoever's responsible for this live, mark my words," bargained Izzy. "You can live in fear knowing you're gonna take the hit when someone else talks or you can be free knowing we'll take care of it."
There was a long silence after that. Arkash furrowed his brow while he listened harder. "Can I think about it?" He interrupted the silence. Arkash rose a brow.
"You can, but he's not the most patient monster on the planet. You're better off proving you're useful now rather than when you're dangling over his jaws."
Another long pause, Arkash could almost feel the pressure. "Okay fine," he succumbed. "It was a clan, Bosby cut them out of a deal and went with a different buyer, so they killed him."
Arkash nodded, that much was apparent from their past interactions.
"The name of the clan?" She pressed.
"Come closer..." he spoke quietly. Arkash squinted while he listened.
He heard the fiber of the rope snap, a scuffle, her panicked gasp that stopped abruptly. "It's Overkill, Bitch!" he whispered harshly. "Don't move!" he screamed as Bants turned around. "You take one more step and I'm cutting her head off!"
Claws rapping the cave floor, Arkash ran down the hall at full speed to arrive within the main chamber just as the Badlander threw his knife and drew Izzy's gun. She was in a choke hold. He was strangling her. He began to talk as he pointed his gun to her head, he began to scream and yell but Arkash's vision clouded red while his eyes drank the violence he beheld.
The rest came so easily, a fit of rage massively disproportionate to what he normally felt, a rush of power, a mad sprint at the attacker. The man turned the gun on Arkash as he enveloped himself with shadows for armor. The gun boomed, the ball bearing struck his shoulder with tremendous force but did not stop him. And with fully manifested cardinal claws, Arkash severed the man's head in a single swipe.
Moments later, the world began to spin as a wave of immense nausea hit him. Arkash held his head as he dropped to one knee, then held himself up with his free hand as the nausea worsened further and further.
What happened? Was the bullet poisoned? No, Izzy didn't use poison.
Eventually, the world span to such a degree and his balance was so lost that he fell and clutched his stomach as he vomited on the floor, and sure enough, lost consciousness.
To say that Izzy's behavior had jostled the Rath was an understatement. Both he and Bants were utterly stunned by her return, by her gift of a captive that allegedly knew what had happened to the Artificer that claimed the small half-gnome. Both sat in silence while Izzy tied her captive to a chair in the middle of the main chamber, still unconscious.
She pulled on the knot of her coil to tighten it with a grunt, then dusted off her hands as she released the grips of her handiwork and rose to stand on her feet properly. "That should do it," she said with a grin. "Anyone wanna wake him up?"
Arkash's lips stayed pursed, a discerning look in his eyes. Bants couldn't muster the will to look at her. It was difficult to look past the elephant in the room.
Izzy sighed. "...Look, do you two want to find the assholes that killed Bosby or not?" She spoke with finality, as though she was at her wits end.
"Yeah, we do," Answered the Rath as he placed a hand on the shoulder of the half-gnome. "I don't take being robbed lightly, and Bants deserves closure, but..." He paused to look down at the blue-skinned man. "We're both just surprised to see you back. We didn't part on good terms, Izzy." That much was obvious. It didn't feel right to have to remind her that was the case, but she almost behaved as though it hadn't happened at all.
She was quiet for a moment, as though she'd just discovered something world breaking. That silence extended for a dozen seconds, then a dozen more where she only stared at them, until Arkash gave a sort of awkward half shrug and she sighed. "Yeah, I know," she began. "I'm not going to lie and say I'm totally cool with it, because I'm not.... It's just..." She gave pause to let her words sink in. "We had a deal," she said. "You and I had a deal, and I lost sight of that for a minute, and I'm sorry." She began to tear up, eye glistening as her skin reddened.
Bants' eyes were on Arkash then, it was his turn to talk. Arkash drew a deep breath through his nose and rubbed the back of his head while he thought. It was obvious that she was upset. He was too, even if it didn't manifest in tears. "I know," he began with a slight smile below his saddened eyes. "It's alright, I lose sight of things too... What's important is you came back after the fact." He swallowed and looked down at the Badlander she'd taken hostage. "And you brought this guy in to make amends, right?"
Izzy nodded as she wiped her eye dry, then turned her head to look down at the man. "Yeah," she agreed. "That's right."
Arkash shook his head as he walked toward her, then embraced her in a hug. "I'm glad you're back," he said softly. "Bants and I both missed you, a lot." He could feel her heart beating faster, which was to indicate she was feeling emotional. That, he understood.
She laughed a little at his explanation through her crying and returned the embrace. "I missed you too, both of you."
Sure enough, Bants' call interrupted the two as he cleared his throat. Arkash looked to him, as he directed Arkash's attention to the Badlander in the chair, now awake and staring up at them. Arkash blinked, then released Izzy, who also stepped away. "This guy apparently has details on what happened at the shop, a few different sources confirmed he's been blabbing but couldn't specify what he said," Izzy explained. Arkash nodded.
With a claw, Arkash gently hooked the cloth gag that propped his jaw open and smiled as he the man flinched and pulled away from him. "Easy," Arkash instructed as he gently lowered the cloth from his mouth and left it hang around his neck. "We're friends, no need to be scared."
"I ain't friends with no fuckin' lizard!" He cried. "What the Bel even are you?!"
Arkash hissed in his throat before he gripped the man by the throat and lifted him off the ground, chair and all. His powerful tail slammed the ground behind him as it acted as a sort of counterbalance for his forward weight. The man began to choke as Izzy hurriedly pulled on his arm "We need him alive," she whispered, and brought the Rath back to the present. With a grunt, Arkash let the man down gently, and released the pressure from his neck with wrought claws. Izzy's hand ushered him away as she took her place crouched in front of the man. "Hey buddy, don't call him that again 'cuz I don't know if I can stop him next time."
The badlander coughed and sputtered as he gathered his breath. "What the fuck...! Do you want from me?!" He begged. "Please, just let me go!"
"Well, he asked nicely so maybe we sh-" began Bants, only to be silenced by the Rath who extended a clawed finger at him.
"Bosby's shop," she began.
"What?" he quizzed, confused.
"You saw what happened to him two months ago, didn't you?"
"No," he answered. "Now can you let me go? I don't know anything!"
"Well then I guess he's useless to us," Arkash said as he began to manifest his cardinal features. "Good," his voice came a low, throaty growl, teeth and claws aflame with black fire that stood stark against his pale scales. "I was getting hungry!"
The man began to scream and thrash in his chair, absolute horror widened his eyes as he jumped in his seat and flailed his body in a desperate bid to free himself.
"Put it away, Ark," she spoke directly with some degree of authority. When he did, the man began to calm down, breathing heavy, tears wet on his cheeks. "Listen, pal. I've spoken to three fellas that all say you've been talking about what they did to Boz, so that's not gonna work for you."
"Get that thing the fuck away from me!" He cried, breathing heavy and ragged.
"Ark... Could you?" She asked with a glance over her shoulder. Arkash nodded, then withdrew from the gathering and ventured into the hall just far enough to keep them in earshot. "There, he's gone. Is that better?"
"Yes..." He said, still catching his breath. "But listen, I'm telling you! I can't say anything. I'm dead if they find out I'm the snitch!"
"You think he won't kill you if you don't?" Asked Bants, which drew a smile to the Rathor's lips.
"He's strong, he's not going to let whoever's responsible for this live, mark my words," bargained Izzy. "You can live in fear knowing you're gonna take the hit when someone else talks or you can be free knowing we'll take care of it."
There was a long silence after that. Arkash furrowed his brow while he listened harder. "Can I think about it?" He interrupted the silence. Arkash rose a brow.
"You can, but he's not the most patient monster on the planet. You're better off proving you're useful now rather than when you're dangling over his jaws."
Another long pause, Arkash could almost feel the pressure. "Okay fine," he succumbed. "It was a clan, Bosby cut them out of a deal and went with a different buyer, so they killed him."
Arkash nodded, that much was apparent from their past interactions.
"The name of the clan?" She pressed.
"Come closer..." he spoke quietly. Arkash squinted while he listened.
He heard the fiber of the rope snap, a scuffle, her panicked gasp that stopped abruptly. "It's Overkill, Bitch!" he whispered harshly. "Don't move!" he screamed as Bants turned around. "You take one more step and I'm cutting her head off!"
Claws rapping the cave floor, Arkash ran down the hall at full speed to arrive within the main chamber just as the Badlander threw his knife and drew Izzy's gun. She was in a choke hold. He was strangling her. He began to talk as he pointed his gun to her head, he began to scream and yell but Arkash's vision clouded red while his eyes drank the violence he beheld.
The rest came so easily, a fit of rage massively disproportionate to what he normally felt, a rush of power, a mad sprint at the attacker. The man turned the gun on Arkash as he enveloped himself with shadows for armor. The gun boomed, the ball bearing struck his shoulder with tremendous force but did not stop him. And with fully manifested cardinal claws, Arkash severed the man's head in a single swipe.
Moments later, the world began to spin as a wave of immense nausea hit him. Arkash held his head as he dropped to one knee, then held himself up with his free hand as the nausea worsened further and further.
What happened? Was the bullet poisoned? No, Izzy didn't use poison.
Eventually, the world span to such a degree and his balance was so lost that he fell and clutched his stomach as he vomited on the floor, and sure enough, lost consciousness.
Image source.
