Harvest Bounty

It was a pleasant day on the streets of Regulus City, much more quiet than its recent reputation would have others believe. Ever since the supposed "black monster" attacks, the city had been in a state of constant vigilance, with guards looking for the culprit every day; a lot rightfully mad that their best blacksmith nearly died from it.

Kirygosa, the natural curious that she was, headed straight in the direction of the commotion; who knows what exciting new things she'll find? Maybe she could help out some people along the way too.

"So what, you're doing this for free? Less work for me then. If you see that ball of tar, shout as hard as you can, kid."

One weirded out and thankful guard later, the Emerald Dragon found herself scouring the dark alleyways of this city; those scary, secluded shortcuts that looked like they were made for mischief makers. Thieves, bandits and even black monsters - she was prepared for them. Her appearance was very much deceiving, as many had found out the hard way. If there was really a monster roaming these parts of town, Kiry was sure she could handle herself; being more suited for it than the city guards.

Her search was interrupted by a fearful yell. A poorly-dressed man made a sharp turn towards her, running like a wild animal. He seemed to have his hands full carrying a large sack of valuables: trinkets and oddities, all carved out of wood. Needless to say, the man bumped into her at full speed, tripping and falling among his scattered belongings.

A black monster had been terrorizing a city and that's just the thing the naturally curious liked to seek out. What was this monster? Why was it terrorizing people? More importantly though, what sort of magic was being perverted to meet these ends? That was far more natural for the calling that Kirygosa, the Aspect of Life Magic, had to investigate. Despite her initial role as guardian passing, she still felt some sort of obligation to curing "bad magic".

A hop, skip, and a jump later she'd find her first clue of something abnormal in the city. A fearful man darting away from something and right into her. Far more robust than her physique lead on, she hardly budged as the man crashed into her, his possessions sent scattering. Eyeing the various pieces with a mild curiosity, she refocused on what was important. "Running away from someone? Or something?" She inquired, believing she was headed in the right direction for whatever this black monster was.

In his rush, the agitated man did not even pay heed to Kiry's looks, instead focusing more on her question. "No time, no time, gotta put it back-" he mumbled to the Aspect as he was frantically reaching out to the trinkets, putting them back into the sack.

Kiry was a little crossed that she was being ignored despite the man's clearly rattled state. Crossing her arms, she glared down at the frantic gathering of the man watching him as he almost managed to recollect everything that he owned. However as he reached out for the last piece, the dragon placed her boot on top of it, trapping it to prevent the man from having an easy go at collecting it. "You'll have to make time for me. What are you running from and what do you mean, "put it back"?" She leaned forward a bit, glaring down. Despite being the kindest of the Aspects, she was still prone to the sort of arrogance dragons had compared to humanity.

"I-It's the witch!" He shouted, not even looking at her. The man gathered what he could of his belongings before running past her in utmost haste, taking a sharp left in the crossroads. Kiry saw that there were some carved idols left on the ground, as well as some pearl necklaces. Before she could trail him, the Aspect found herself faced with a new figure, one that presumably chased him out.

"Which way did he go?"

The venomous voice of a woman made her turn and look at her. Tall, slender, dressed in a provocative magician's outfit. Her top was fully covered by a white buttoned shirt, unlike her exposed shapely thighs, clad in pantyhose and black boots. Her purple lips, blue hair and top hat were the dead giveaways - Kiry heard of this woman before, the one people talked about in outrage, the vile witch who snatches folk from their homes, never to be seen again. Her right hand sported elongated blue nails, stained red with fresh blood, and her unhinged only spelled upcoming trouble.

"The witch, huh?" Kiry blurted, rhetorically asking the man as if the Aspect hadn't quite heard him. Initially it seemed as if this man's haunt was unrelated to the black monster that this town feared. However with magic becoming a free enterprise, it had opened up many unnatural situations. With just about anyone having the power of life and death in their hands meant even the most sinister of creatures can have greater power to carry out such vile machinations that earn them these names.

The man fled and he was of little concern to the Aspect at this point but she did watch him escape from sight. Just as her mind was ready to move on, an interruption came from ahead. Kiry's attention turned and she was stunned to trail her eyes from head to toe of a true feminine figure. Despite the cloak, it was obvious this was the black monster, a creature of infamous dealings all about.

Smiling peacefully, Kiry lifted her gaze to match the glower of the other. "You just missed him, but I don't think you're going to have much luck tracking him down. You're going to be far too busy." She gave a playful wink.

The woman looked more than irritated at the situation. One quick glance at the carved idols was enough to make her hand curl up into a fist, claws disintegrating in crystalline dust.

"Damn it..." she mumbled to herself, before her attention snapped back to the Aspect. "Busy, you say?" The witch eyed her from head to toe. "Mmm, quite the exotic look you're sporting~"

She sauntered closer to the short girl, exuding an aura of alluring confidence that grew stronger with every step. "You're going to tell me everything you know, once you become my pretty little slave, that is."

The intent was there, but the witch did not attempt anything. Instead, she was waiting for Kiry to make the first move, as was the way she regarded every opponent.

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Kiry: 30 willpower
Maya: 30 stamina