Curious at the seemingly quite purposeful path the man is taking, Ohm follows after him. It had been her intention to ambush him when he reached a less-travelled part of the city, but she can't help but wonder at what sort of dire destination he is wandering towards. Besides which, she is no particular hurry to spirit herself back to Yuna's side. Exploring the seedier corners of the twin cities seems a perfectly fine way to spend her time.

The man walks through a few more tunnels -- if not for Ohm's precise sense of direction, she was sure she'd be lost by now -- before stopping in front of a seemingly random door set into the wall, like many others they had passed on the way here. He raps his knuckles on the door, and after a few moments it opens, revealing an even more menacing man wielding a very large cudgel.

"Yer late. Were ye out drinking again? The boss ain't gonna be happy about this, man."

The mark Ohm had been following stammering, the walk having cleared some of the drink from his system but not all. "I'm sorry, okay? I'm here now. Let's get this done with."

"Aye. Lose the light and come in."

Nodding, the man set the torch on a nearby sconce, then moved to enter the room, giving Ohm a short window to decide if she would follow or not.

In a blur of white fur, Ohm darts through the door and then up, flattening herself to the ceiling. Though her white fur is ill-suited to blend against stone, she pulls her body in tight, trying to become as tiny as possible. From her ceiling-located vantage point, her antenna fix on her quarry and his new, even burlier friend, while her eyes scan the room.

The small room is occupied by more than just the two burly men Ohm had already seen; three other thug-types crouched nearby. The only light in the room comes from a small lantern set at the very edge, and obscured by a heavy blanket besides, casting everything in shadows and making people's features almost invisible in the gloom. The sound of something sharp hitting a solid surface, which Ohm recognizes as that of claws on stone, comes from the other side of the room, and Ohm can see a shadow moving, a sixth occupant. She can't  discern more than their overall shape in the gloom; they are crouched down, but seem of a size with Ohm herself in her humanoid shape. The shape speaks with a guttural, feminine voice.

"Finally here, yes-yes? You bring jingly-shines?"

The man whom Ohm had originally followed squints at the darkness, as if trying to see the speaker, but then gives up and simply nods. He reaches into his ratty shirt and brings out a pouch with what Ohm assumes is silver coins. The shape in the gloom seems restless at its sight, but the man simply throws it gently towards her corner of the room.

"Good-good, yes. Here, as promised-agreed."

In return, the unseen person throws back something that clicks as it skids through the gloom. It turns out to be an ornate dagger, with an intricate crest on its hilt. Unfortunately, Ohm does not recognize the crest, but it is clearly an important symbol. The man seems surprised to actually see the dagger, but he kneels down to pick it up while muttering "Bugger all, you actually did it..."

To the shape in the shadows, he says louder, "Our business is concluded, then. I can tell you that my boss will be happy with your success. Farewell." The man gives the darkness a nod, then all five rise and turn to leave.

From above, a tiny moth watches on in confusion. The exchange of coins for the dagger she understands — its ornate structure and the unfamiliar emblem on its hilt catch her attention, but no amount of wracking her brain brings it to mind. Less understandable are the words. They'd paid the hidden creature to obtain the dagger, and there was a boss who was looking for it. The creature, whatever it is, is no human. Something about the way it speaks reminds Ohm of a dark and twisted something, and of silver collars.

The men making their departure snaps Ohm out of her reverie. She detaches from the ceiling, wings fluttering as she follows them out and then up, her tiny form vanishing into the darkness above their heads. How very strange this all is. Seems you've stumbled headfirst into a mystery, Ohm.

The men walk as a group, moving roughly back towards more well-traveled tunnels. They eventually make their way back to a place that is more well-lit and that has actual people in it, though it is still clearly a very seedy portion of the undercity. They enter a den of people, not unlike an alehouse, but rougher and exhibiting more overtly criminal activities. The men are not challenged as they move through the den and into a back door, with a moth still inconspicuously following them.

The front of the den was filled with people drinking and drugging themselves in heaps, with filth strewn around. The back holds more of the same, but of a higher class; alcoves are strewn with soft pillows instead of filth, and silk curtains hide people indulging all manner of earthly pleasures. The men move to a back alcove, were a severe-looking woman is smoking a pipe and making notes at a ledger. They stand for a solid five minutes, waiting to be acknowledged.

"Well?"

The woman finally says, closing her ledger and turning to the thugs. She's younger than her steel-grey hair would imply, probably around her thirties or early forties. One of her eyes scans the thugs sharply; the other has been ravaged, claw scars trailing from her eyebrows into her cheek, the eye itself still standing in its socket albeit torn and broken.

"The deal went through, ma'am." The lead thug says, taking the dagger and handing it out. The woman takes it, expressionless, before putting it away somewhere behind her.

"Good, good. That pet is turning out to be very useful indeed. Now shoo, I have work to do."

As the woman turns back to her ledger, the men disperse, going different ways, some going to stand with some of the other thugs standing around as enforcers, others leaving the den.

Ohm follows the men into the alehouse, and the deeper still, the den of inequity growing more malicious to her antenna, heavy with the scent of drugs and sex. Rather than another wall, she dips down to a table, her white form vanishing behind half-empty bottles. Through a crack between the glass pillars, she watches what unfolds next.

This new woman, with the scar, had an air of authority to her, Ohm decides. Whether she is the one at the top of whatever weird conspiracy Ohm has unearthed, she isn't sure. Nevertheless, she makes careful note of the location to investigate properly at a later date. The loss of the dagger is a disappointment; she would have preferred to get that for herself, significant a tool as it appears, but it is now beyond her reach.

As the thugs disband, she once more follows her original quarry out of the alehouse and into the dark tunnels beyond. This time, though, she isn't going to wait for him to lead her to yet more secrets. She is only going to wait for him to be alone.

It doesn't take long for Ohm to get what she wants. The thug exchanges some words with the others, but he does not linger back at the den of criminals, instead going out into the warrens again and making his way back towards the main passageways. Perhaps he was headed back to the alehouse, or perhaps somewhere else; either way, it doesn't take long for him to turn into a less-used tunnel, and for him and Ohmoth to be alone.

As the man turns his final corner, Ohm focuses a single phrase within her mind. I'll be taking your heart.

There is no hesitation this time. Behind the man, a flash of silver flame marks the location of a moth in the darkness, which then expands, growing to encompass the frame of a monstrous girl. She lands on the stone with a click of claws, the barest hint of an approach before claws close around the man's throat and wrists. He's hurled to the side, slammed face-first into the wall by the unseen, inhuman assailant. Ohm pulls his arms backwards, until his muscles are taut and pained, the iron strength of a single paw upon his throat keeping him pinned against the tunnel wall.

"Hello," Her voice is a quiet, oddly pleasant growl. "I'd like to ask you some questions."

The man is clearly caught completely by surprise, and Ohm can sense that he doesn't even struggle at first -- not that it would have made any difference to the Lunar -- and likewise doesn't make any effort to soften the blow to his face; blood sprays out from a clearly broken nose, and perhaps some broken teeth as well. The man stammers, confused, and finally attempts to fight back, but his strength is no match for Ohm's, especially in the leveraged position that she has over him. Finally he stops struggling, realizing (wrongly) that his best chance to stay alive is to cooperate. He nods, once, to indicate he understands.

The claws gripping the man's throat loosen as he nods, though they do not draw away. "Good boy." The heat of the creature behind him is palpable through his thin, filthy clothes as she presses close, the motion pulling on his arms. "You have had a very interesting day, and you are going to explain it for me. You delivered a dagger this evening. What was it, who did you give it to, and who gave it to you?"

"Wh-what?" The man stammers out, confused. "You're attacking me and you don't even know who I work for? You're making a mistake! Auntie Cheng, she-- she doesn't tolerate people getting in her way! She's the one I work for! She's the boss around these parts!"

"Mmm," the grip around the man's throat tightens once more, "Now, see, I thought you'd say as much, so let me make your situation clear." A fourth paw presses against the elbow of the man's left arm and pushes, straining the joint and the tendons it contains. She pushes until the joint makes an audible groan of grinding bones, at the very cusp of breaking. "I have you pinned against a wall, in a dark alley far beneath the ground. You are the man I have pinned. And, every time you don't answer my questions I'm going to hurt you just a little bit more. So worry about you, first."

"I imagine Auntie Cheng likes to promise terrible fates to snitches, but here's a secret: Here, in the dark, all alone, there's no one to hear you but me." Her claws press into the skin of his throat, and the damp feeling of a bead of sweat — or maybe blood — runs down his neck. "The big, bad bogeyman come out of your nightmares to punish boys who've strayed too far from mama's breast." The paw on his elbow pulls away, letting his arm relax. "So let's go again, from the top. Was Auntie Cheng the woman with the scar over her eye? What is she the boss of, specifically?"

The man groans and whimpers, and when the pressure releases takes a few long moments regaining his breath. "Yes, yes of course. I understand."

"Yes. I don't know how you saw that, but that was Auntie Cheng, scar and all. They say she got it from some kind of spirit-monster-thing. She's boss of this part of the undercity. Criminal boss, I mean. Most businesses nearby pay her protection money, and if you operate on these parts you give her a cut of whatever you make. She's been taking advantage of the recent turbulence to expand her empire, you see. She's ruthless with her competitors, you either fall in line and obey her or you get taken out."

"Hmm," a claw scratches idly at the man's throat while Ohm considers his words. "That's a bit disappointing. And here was me, thinking I'd stumbled onto something a bit more significant than a crime boss. Credit to your town, though, for having enough space to support several sex dens like that."

"Next, then. That dagger. What is it, why did she want it, and who gave it to her?"

"Th-that's a House V'neef dagger. You know, the satrap? It was stolen from his personal belongings. Auntie Cheng has been putting pressure on the nobles of the city for the past few weeks now, you know, by stealing from them and manipulating them against each other and against the throne. She says that's all to strengthen her hold on the city but I don't know. I don't really understand it. I think she's going to start putting pressure on the satrap next but- but I don't know for sure! I'm just an enforcer, I'm not privy to her plans."

"The thief, I don't know who she is. She's some kind of aberration, I think. Always meets us in these deep tunnels, and requires we to not have any lights. I never got to actually see what she looks like. Besides she speaks weird, and I don't think she really understands money. She pulls off these amazing heists, and we do pay her, but at lot less than the value of these things she steals. She's done a few hits on the nobility now. I didn't think she was going to be able to steal the dagger, actually, but she came through as always."

"Hmm." The Lunar's grip on the man loosens a little, body relaxing as the distance to her past grows. "Surprisingly mundane. Well, last two questions, then you'll be free to go. First, do you know what a Lunar is? Second, what's your name, son?"
This message was last edited by the player at 20:54, Tue 25 Aug 2020.

"L-Lunar? No, I don't know what that is."

"And my name's Sun"

"Good to meet you, Sun. And goodbye."

"W-wait, what?"

Ohm places her paw on the man's back, then pulls it back. The fur near her elbow parts, a fourth finger uncurling and twisting forward, bearing a long, piercing spike. She presses it against his spine, and the heart beyond it. "I'll be taking your heart." The speartip claw is plunged forward, through his spine, through his flesh, impaling his heart. The claws around his throat clamp down, preventing him from screaming. As the organ beats to a final stillness, she pulls her claw free, bringing it to her mouth. her tongue caresses the smooth curves of the claw, lapping up his heart's blood.

Gripping his bloodied tunic, Ohm pulls the fabric off of him and opens her maw wide. No sense in leaving good meat to rot. Or... edible meat, anyway.

-

A few minutes later, Ohm is alone upon the bloodied ground, next to Sun's thoroughly soiled clothes. She grabs the fabric, tugging the half-ruined garments onto her body, and then begins to change. The two limbs extending from her back shrink and then vanish away as her body grows, fur receding and muscles growing. The fabric fills out with Sun's surprisingly well-kept physique, as he straightens up in the darkness, rolling his shoulders, skin newly-minted with glittering silver tattoos. After a moment, these too fade away. What had once been plain, dusty brown hair is now strikingly white, and his muddy eyes have changed to a blazing, intense gold. He seems different in other ways, too, his thuggish slouch replaced by a proud-chested stance that seems to highlight the curves of his waist into his hips and the shape of muscles through his clothes.

Sun leans down, picking up the discarded hatchet. Hmm. Now for the less fun part of the plan.

-

Some time later, Sun crashes into the side of the den's archway, stumbling into the building proper and collapsing, drawn and bloodied hatchet pinging as it strikes the stone. Blood streams from numerous fresh wounds on his bare arms, with growing stains indicating more under his clothes. His eyes are wild with panic. "Ch-Cheng!" he calls out, struggling to his feet and setting out at a stumbling run towards the back door, "I need to speak to Auntie Cheng!"

Most of the "customers" of the den seem unfazed by the sudden appearance of a bloodied enforcer, lost in their highs as they are, but the other enforcers immediately react to Ohm's entrance. Two men come to help "Sun" up and take him into the inner den, where Auntie Cheng was busy in conversation with a group of rugged thug types. As Sun and the two men helping him come in, she whispers something to the group, who bow and retreat out of sight, before she turns to Sun. She takes a pull of her pipe, letting a long moment pass, before finally speaking up.

"What's the meaning of this?"

Sun, apparently too stunned to offer up any kind of resistance, allows himself to be escorted into the depths of the den. As soon as they release their grip on him, he falls to his knees before Cheng, a hand gripping at his chest. He replies, breathlessly, trying desperately to keep his words straight. "They took her. V-V'neef, they tracked the dagger? There were... dozens? I saw them... They had some kind of monster, the claws..." His wild eyes grow even wider, and the bloodied enforce falls silent.

Ohm's golden eyes flicker upwards, gauging the woman's reaction to the announcement. How exactly did she react to seeing one of her own men on his knees before her, bloody and terrified?

Sun clears his throat, managing to regain some degree of composure. "Auntie Cheng... what are we going to do about this?" He glances to the enforcers around him, but leaves the obvious next step unsaid.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:18, Tue 25 Aug 2020.

Auntie Cheng's eyes narrow as Sun describes what happened. She turns to the other thugs gathered, "Scour the tunnels. They can't be far away. I won't allow this blatant attack on me to go unpunished. A hundred silver for each head you bring me." Most of the enforcers scurry out into the tunnels, save for a few who remain behind; elite guards or higher-ranking thugs, perhaps.

The crime boss steps closer to Sun, once again taking a pull of her pipe. "Who is this 'her' that was taken?"

Sun sags as many of the enforcers leave, his sprint to get here having taken most of the spirit out of him. He manages to lift his head to respond. "I... the thief, ma'am. The one in the shadows, who stole the knife with the V'neef crest." He's left at a loss for words, not sure how else to explain the hidden thing. Ohm hadn't been given a name.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:31, Tue 25 Aug 2020.

"I see. That pet has reached the end of its usefulness, then."

Auntie Cheng takes a moment lost in thought, possibly rethinking her plans in light of this "new information". Then she remembers that Sun is still lying in the ground, bleeding.

"Go get sewn up. We'll speak more later."

With that dismissal, she begins to turn to go back to her table and her ledger.

Upon being dismissed, OhmSun kowtows, pressing his forehead briefly to the floor before rising unsteadily to his feet. No sooner has he straightened up than he topples forward, directly into Auntie Cheng. He manages to catch himself on the table before further humiliating himself my squashing the older woman beneath his substantial frame. Quickly pushing himself back up and staggering away, cheeks flushed red with humiliation, Sun makes a deep bow before his matron. "I-I'm sorry. You're right... I should... get cleaned up, Auntie Cheng. Right away."

Sun turns away, walking as quickly as he can manage — which is slowly, with one hand steadying himself on a wall and another wrapped around the front of his chest, nursing one of those worse-looking wounds. Quickly enough, and he is gone.

As soon as s/he is out the door of the back den, Ohm lowers her arm. She'd been careful to avoid getting blood on the book's pages, but holding it next to a seeping wound is more risk that she's willing to take. Instead, she drops her arm to the side, book grasped in her fingers. She still feigns injury as she staggers away from the crime lord's den. As soon as she slips around a corner, not overly concerned about more watchers as most of the thugs have already been sent a'scurryin' to scour the tunnels for imaginary Imperials.

Ohm makes towards the same entrance to the tunnels she'd used to get in there in the first place. As she approaches it, however, she veers off, instead ducking into an empty-looking building on the side of the tunnel. Propping her back against a wall, she slides down and settles in for a nap.