The Road Home [PRIVATE Sly]

Lexia shuffled her hand further into the pockets of her black and blue hoodie, having decided to wear it over her restored backless top. Her skirt was currently in the drawer of the hotel room which they had booked, and she was wearing her normal boots with some rather plain black jeans. Her hair, instead of flowing loosely, was tied back into a braid.

However, Lexia was greatly regretting that she didn't have a hoodie which she could unzip. It was a warm day, the sun beating down on herself and Sly as they made their way through the rather small town. The towns population was significantly larger than the one which they had visited previously. The shops were in a slightly better state, made up of old wooden structures and panels. Their goods were in better shape, and around the outside of the town they managed to keep their own stock. Thankfully, this town wasn't exactly like the other one which was on the other side of Cormere, the one closest to the Temporal ruins. However, they were both well aware that they had to keep a low profile. And that was what they had done.

So far, neither of them had aroused any suspicion at all. Lexia had tried to convince Sly to dye his hair to ensure that it was a little harder for people to recognize them. He didn't exactly appreciate the idea, but came around to it eventually when Lexia promised him that she would use a temporary dye so that he would be able to wash it out after the mission was over. Although, he was still rather reluctant that he dyed it. To somewhat make him feel a little better, Lexia put a dark shade of red through her hair, its normal black colour tipped with red.

Lexia and Sly had arrived, fulfilled the mission Yuuki had asked them to do, only to find out there there wasn't enough cash for them to buy the tickets to arrive home. So, here the two were, stranded in a baseless city, stuck with paying for their room with money that they so desperately couldn't afford to spend, waltzing around the city. For safety purposes, they had decided to leave Nithya in the hotel room so that he could guard their proper private belongings, Lexia's skirt, and other private items.

Sadly, Lexia still couldn't remove the bracelet from her hand, and she wore a glove over it. She didn't show or tell Sly why she refused to take off her gloves, or more accurately the glove which covered the bracelet. With a small sigh, Lexia pushed the hood off her head further, trying to feel the gentle breeze across the back of her neck. It wasn't exactly cold, and the fabric was sticking to her sweat. She sighed, "You were right. It's too hot for jackets." She commented with a light laugh, before falling silent again.

She didn't enjoy the crowds wandering through the streets around them, but she wasn't really able to do anything about it. Currently, they were searching for any signs that needed help. Something to indicate that they could get money from somewhere. If it had been any other town, they would have been able to send a message to Yuuki, however, the systems had shut down and were on rather randomly. They only managed to send her these words before the electronics (and the majority of the signal) had crashed again;

Mission completed. Ran into trouble on return. Will be up to a month late.

These were the last words which Yuuki would hear from them, and Lexia was well aware that she might need to give her a proper briefing when they got home. But that was assuming that they did get home. Lexia drew a little closer to Sly, so that her following words wouldn't be heard by anyone else. "You should just make another construct to get us out. It would be much easier to get home." She commented, before looking down at her hands which she had taken out of the pockets.

Lexia fiddled with the leather of her gloves, her fingers brushing over the top of the blood stones. Don't you wish that you could use these~ It would be rather interesting to see what you could do to a street full of people~

Straight away she took her hands away from each other and shoved them into her pockets. The voice wasn't exactly pleasant to listen to, but she had little choice. This was something that bothered her, but she still had yet to tell anyone of the voices. Not even Sly knew. But what made her really question herself was that she somewhat trusted him, and the two worked well together. It was probably why Yuuki decided to send them both on this quest mission thing. Funnily enough, it was also both of their first missions. Well, official missions. Now that Lexia thought about it, Yuuki probably sent Sly with Lexia because of her injury, her back still hadn't healed. Thankfully, Sly's legs had completely healed.

But why did she trust him?

Lexia shrugged to herself, those were questions that she would ask herself later. There were more pressing matters at hand. She cast her gaze to a nearby shop, her heart lifting as she saw a sign. Only for Sly and herself pass it by as it was advertising a new product, not that they needed someone to work with them. Lexia sighed in disappointment. "Have you found anything yet?" She asked him, raising a rather hopeful gaze to him.

Their first mission landed them in in Cormere once more. At least it was in a different area, but still they had to keep a low profile. The events in Temporal Ruins were not long ago, and due to recent sightings of a 'dragon', security throughout Cormere was never so uptight. As he walked down the semi-quiet main road through town, there were always a pair of soldiers every block. It must had been their lucky day. They were getting paid for nothing. This town of Rose was at peace under a clear sky. It was getting hot very quickly, but there were plenty of shade.

The mission was complete, although they encountered a number of issues along the way. The majority of which was they spent a lot more than what they had for the mission, and now they were stuck in this town. It did not help that both Sly and Lexia were wanted people for the fall of Temporal Ruins and Cormere was especially filled with uncanny thugs who would do anything to make ends meet. Sly had his hair dyed to disguise himself. Brown was not really his favoured colour, but it would do. The more he looked strange, the less likely someone would notice him. Lexia also had her hair dyed, the ends of them dark red.

Yuuki, leader of Dragonstorm, gave them a device where they could input messages wirelessly. However, the signal in Cormere was horrible. Their one lucky moment, they spent it to tell her mission was complete and they encountered difficulties with returning. Of course, Yuuki paired Sly and Lexia together on this mission. Perhaps because she knew how the two, alone, managed to fight off an entire army of Oak Hollow soldiers before making their near impossible escape. It only took so much teamwork, trust and reliance upon one another. This mission was nothing in comparison.

Now, they both only had the money to stay at a hotel for the day. They needed to find money fast. Lexia commented about how Sly could a totem like what he did back at Temporal Ruins. He bit the bottom of his lip as he thought of that painful experience. Unless we are planning on slaughtering the entire town, it takes far too many pieces to build one. We are better off finding something else. Sly huffed a sigh. It was not like he wanted to go through having to construct a large totem. But the amount of effort he needed to put in just to generate enough pieces was very tedious work.

He stopped in his tracks when Lexia asked him if he thought of something where they could make some extra credits. Sly looked around where he was. He purposely took Lexia here because he was hoping that the great hall of this town would have a billboard of some kind. And there, he found it. Perching upon a stand just above a few set of stairs, outside an open door. Many scraps of paper were attached there, some old and new. There, Sly pointed to the board, a light glint in his eyes as he thought of an idea. Every major towns and cities have some sort of place where bounties are listed. I used to be a witch hunter myself, so picking up an easy one will be of no issue for me. Sly walked and climbed up the steps before squinting at the print. His finger pressed and cycled through the notices. Some of them were plain useless, including one advertising for some food product, another inviting people into a blind date and a familiar picture of Sly being painted as wanted for the destruction of Temporal Ruins.

But he eventually found something of interest. A young behemoth running rampant and killing off merchants upon trade routes, threatening to starve out Rose. Reports were also recent that the behemoth had struck Rose at night and killed night patrols while searching for food. There were no other bounties, and Sly predicted that the less able had already accepted them. Sly tore off the poster for the behemoth - an indication that he took a particular interest in this job. The task was simple. Find the behemoth and present its horn as proof to the town major. This will have to do, Sly said. He turned to Lexia, but then remembered how she was still injured from the ruins. He wanted to take her on the hunt as well, but could not risk it. The money they would earn was rather decent for a dangerous beast not yet fully grown: $5,000 credits. More than enough for their ride home.

Sly presented her the poster. What do you think? It is the only thing that this town wants out of here for now. I can take this one on my own, but I need you to stay here, in case this beast decides to attack the town again.

The light-hearted joking with her current companion didn't seem to go so well when he bit his lip. Something Lexia knew wasn't so grand. She just hoped he knew that she was merely trying to have a bit of a tease with him. Although, something she would later admit, she was half being serious with her idea. The people around her really did annoy her with their unkempt manner. We could always make the streets pretty with their blood if they truly annoy you~

Lexia restrained a sigh from its voice.

Thankfully, Sly actually had been taking her across the town for a reason. She was beginning to think that he was half leading her on a wild goose chase in search of jobs which either one of them could do. He took her to a rather well kept building, the stonework constantly repaired as soon as it was damaged. It's two large oak doors had rather large buds carved into it, one of which was blossoming into a rose. Its leaves were elegantly curled in on itself. At the edge furthest from the golden hinges, the handles protruded from the wood. They themselves were gorgeously carved flowers, the wood lined with gold to make it just that much nicer than the buildings around it. For a few moments, Lexia wondered why it hadn't been destroyed and the gold extracted from it...

However, what attracted her attention was the board which Sly approached, telling her about what it was used for. She watched his finger trail across the pieces of paper, reading the words which they ran under. Lexia was a bit taken aback by the blind date poster being there, figuring that it was probably something that people did for fun when they needed or wanted a partner. She smirked. Thanks to the stupid voice in her mind, she probably would drive herself insane and anyone around her. She doubted that she'd ever find what this blind date would have to offer other desperate people.

Lexia tossed that thought aside in her mind, before turning her attention back to Sly as he tore out a piece of paper. She tried to look at the paper for a few moments, but Sly quickly gave the paper to her. Gingerly, she took the torn paper from his hands to look through it, her black-gloved fingers running through the words. It took her a little longer to read than Sly as she hadn't had the chance or opportunity to actually read for quite some time. Slowly, her head bobbed up and down as she nodded, inwardly applauding his choice. From there, she would pass the note back to him.

"It seems like it would be easy enough to do..." Lexia began, half hesitating. Sly had said that she should stay due to her injury... But what if he went out there alone and ended up badly hurt? Then where would he be, he wouldn't even be able to get a shred of help! She bit her lip, her shoe tapping slightly on the stone floor. "I know that it would be a good idea to protect the town, but... I don't want you going out there by yourself. One simple accident or one little mistake and something could go horribly wrong. You wouldn't even be able to get help. If you are worried about my back, it will be fine. I'd just prefer if I went with you on this task." Lexia requested, before biting her lip. She hoped briefly that she hadn't stepped out of line by putting forward her requests.

Lexia turned, slowly beginning to make her way down the stairs. She would cast her gaze back to Sly as if to check on him, or more simply, to see if he was following her or not. "If you allow me to come with you, we can get started straight away. I'd just want to get back and change out of this ridiculous jacket before we left anywhere!" Lexia commented, giving him a small grin.

From there, even if Sly followed or not, she would begin to make her way back through the crowded streets. She would try to memorise buildings and familiar places so that she could make her way around the city if she ever became lost, or was ever having to come back here away from Sly. Lexia highly doubted that she would, especially considering there was no way that she would let Sly go hunting alone.

Lexia was just worried something could go wrong, and her mind happily played out worst-case scenarios of what could happen to him if everything went tragically wrong. These thoughts only served to heighten her fear for him.

He was not surprised when she insisted to come with him on the hunt. If he had to be honest, he would want to have Lexia on board with him on this impromptu mission. His skills in witch hunting had gone rather rusty, the last task being no more than a year ago while he was still with Master Horus. This behemoth could be far beyond what he was currently capable. Having Lexia join him would probably mean the hunt would finish much sooner than he would anticipate. Additionally, the random town attacks were at night only it seemed. It did not really take him a lot of thought before he would decide to take her with him.

I am still rusty with the hunting business, so it may not be as easy for me, Sly said. But if you insist on coming along, I have no qualms. After all, we are a team. We look after one another. Sly smiled a little, thinking back to the ruins and how they depended on one another. Who is to say we cannot do it again? Lexia then began to make her turn towards their hotel, saying she wanted to change from the jacket she wore. Sly gave her a nod. The day was getting hot, and he doubt it would get any cooler as they venture out into the wilderness. Sly was in his simple short-sleeved button shirt but he still wore the long brown pants and enclosed shoes.

Sly chose to follow her towards the hotel. Just to ensure she had some company as they walk back. Then he thought maybe they could take Nithya with them. Maybe he could help track where the behemoth was hiding. Knowing that the behemoth attacked this town, it would not be far from here. If it were the one bounty still left on the board, it meant no one in Rose had the ability to take down something like a behemoth. Of course, it was a young beast. A mature behemoth was even larger, but no one could take on one that had yet to mature, Sly wondered about the security of this place.

There is no need to take anything else but our weapons and the clothing on our backs. If things go the way they should, we will finish in a few hours.

Lexia considered what he has said, before falling into a still silence. If she had told the truth to him, or if he had known, Lexia was in no position to go on any sort of mission. Despite the pain killers that she had been taking, and the fact that she had also been taking the medication which they had provided to her... Her back still ached. Without the pain killers, she'd be refusing to even move. Even a simple task such as walking caused shock to course through it, agitating the healing wounds. However, she refused to let it get in her way. Eventually, this stubbornness would be her downfall.

Thankfully her back was to Sly when she gave a shy smile, stating that they looked after one another.

"I think we made a great team, but if I had been alone in that situation, I probably would be dead... the only reason I'm still alive is because you simply refused to give up, no matter what we were facing. Lexia said, giving a small shrug. The ruins may have been a nightmare, however, it was something which she would probably do all over again. Save for the stupid voice in her head.

I am not stupid! Lexia gave a small and sudden sigh at that voice, her shoulders falling a little. She still was rather thankful that Sly decided to come back with her to the hotel. Thankfully, the two didn't draw too much attention as they continued down the road. "I just really want to get rid of the jacket. Mind you, taking along Nithya might be a good idea!" Lexia said with a grin as she opened a backdoor which opened up into a hallway.

Either side of the hall were rooms, and Lexia's gloved hands took out one of the two keys. As they made their way down the hall, she counted them in her head. Once they got to the number 3, she inserted the key. It faintly clicked as she turned it, unlocking the door. She turned the knob, opening the door easily. With a smile, she pushed it open. "Where are you little one!" She called as she tried to open it. However, that was a slight mistake. A way too happy Nithya barked, jumping off the bed he rested on and bolted toward them. He leapt and bowled over Lexia with the impact from his jump. He was all happy, licking her face, small yips and whines coming from him. Until Lexia gave a muffled and startled cry of pain as her back slammed into a wall.

Walking back to the hotel behind her confirmed his fears. Lexia was walking in a rather awkward manner. From afar, no one would notice, but being up close, he could see how stiff her movements were and how she was slightly staggering, like she was slightly paralysed somewhere. At least she had her jacket on, probably one of the good things about it at this time was that it would cover the bandages that Sly renewed in the morning. He would give it another week before she would make a complete recovery. He looked to the side, clenching his teeth. She was still taking those painkillers. A clear indication that she needed rest more than another fight.

Sly flipped open the receiver in his pocket. Still no signal. By now, Yuuki would have sent at least one message, lost somewhere in the air until they could find some reception. He pocketed the device. If they so requested him to join their guild, they could at least improve their COMMs. To extend up to where they would send them.

He smiled at what she said. And I would be if you were not beside me. He was slightly glad that she seemingly read his mind and decided to take Nithya along with them.

Once they got to their room, Nithya immediately greeted Lexia. The huge foenix reared and pushed her back, almost a little too hard, against the wall behind her. And immediately she cried in pain.

Lex! Sly immediately held her steady, carefully lowering her to the ground if she needed to. Quickly he took off her jacket. The bandages turned red, soggy to the touch, and blood leaked below them. Damn it! Sly held her arm over his shoulders and carefully dragged her into the room. He dropped her carefully on the couch and rummaged the kitchen cabinets. Until he found a green bag with a red cross marked on it.

Sly immediately got to work with replacing the bandages. Ignoring the blood that stained almost the entirety of his palm and beginning to char, he cleaned off the shrunken hole in her back with alcohol before wrapping the wound in another roll of fresh bandages. He made sure to do it quickly so she would not lose a lot of blood. When it was all over, he stepped back from her and looked at his bloody hands.

They were starting to quiver. He balled them into fists. Lexia, are you alright?

Stupid Nithya Lexia thought to herself rather harshly as her back flared with the impact with the wall. Just when she thought she might be able to try helping Sly a bit more, this happens. Her back began to drip red almost instantly, seeping through the bandages wrapped tightly around her. Lexia glanced up as Sly had called her name, maybe that startled cry was louder than she had thought. Seeing that he was attempting to remove her jacket to see the extent of the injury, Lexia would help remove it as much as she could.

What didn't reassure her was the blood that she could feel dripping down, and Sly's rather volatile reaction to seeing her wound. Lexia hissed in pain, half gritting her teeth as Sly slung her arm around his shoulder. Every single step agitated the wound, forcing crimson to run down her back. Nithya guiltily would push the door shut behind them, his form slinking back onto a bed. He whimpered, watching Sly frantically searching the cupboards. He found the small bag which he was searching for and quickly took it back to Lexia. She was a little pale, her mouth pressed into a firm line.

Lexia's gloved hands already were taking away the blood soaked bandages, the leather half protecting her skin from becoming crimson straight away. However, Sly's hands gently brushed hers away, taking over what needed to happen. He had helped her previously with this before, and he knew what to do. Lexia took a piece of fabric in her hand, then placed it into her mouth. As soon as the alcohol touched her skin, Lexia naturally tried to pull away from it. To help herself keep stationary, she bit down on the cloth, surprised with just how much it stung.

Lexia would take a familiar battered flask which was resting on the couch next to her, before opening it and dipping some of the water in it onto a second cloth. She had noticed how Sly's hands were shaking before he tried to hide it, balling them into fists. At his question, Lexia would give a sad nod. "I-I'll be alright. Just wasn't expecting Nithya to tackle me like that." She commented, before placing the damp cloth on her knee and taking his hands in her own. Lexia would gently try to open them, and would use the cloth to clear away the blood.

Even while she worked, Lexia couldn't help tears build up in her eyes. "I'm so sorry Sly.. I don't think that it's wise if I came with you on the hunt anymore." She said to him, surprised at how much her heart ached with them. She didn't want him to go without her...

But thanks to that stupid foenix, Lexia wouldn't be able to get out of room easily at all. Not until the wound had settled. But, for once, the voice was silent.

He took deep breaths, trying to settle his racing heart. It was something he did not really expect at all, and no doubt a painful reminder of how she got the wound in the first place. She was still able to move, as he had saw how she tried to help him with replacing the bandages. Nithya, after getting a little too excited, had slunk back onto the bed, watching the two from afar. Lexia told Sly that she did not really expect Nithya to tackle her. Then again, he did have the same affection to his owner like that of another pet dog, so how could Sly blame him?

Sly stiffened when Lexia took his hand in her own, uncurling the fingers to reveal the blood that started to flake off from his palm. She then used the damp cloth to wipe the blood off. Her touch was soft and gentle. When Sly look up to thank her, he saw how her eyes were starting to fill with water. She apologised for not being able to follow him to kill the behemoth. Sly felt his heart sink a little. But he knew she was right. She could not fight in her current condition. But it would make hunting the behemoth a lot harder without her.

Thanks, Sly said, both to her cleaning his hands and her offer to help. And do not worry. I have fought stronger beasts on my own before. He held his tongue from saying that was a year ago. If anything, his skills were far too rusty. How he survived the Temporal Ruins was very clumsy and he could find a number of mistakes. It made him a little nervous that he would not have a companion to fight alongside him. At least until he could regain his skills and confidence. It will just take me a little longer.

Sly grabbed the first aid kit and shoved it back in the kitchen cabinet. Do not push yourself Lex. You need to rest. If anything happens to you while we are out there, it will make it that much harder to finish the task and come back here alive and well. Besides, Sly opened the fridge and poured a glass of orange juice before giving it to Lexia, You were already a big help with our current mission. Let me take it from here.

Lexia felt a ghost of a smile tug at her face. She had next to no doubts as to Sly having fought other creatures in the past which were bigger and worse than the behemoth. But her memories took her to the place of the Temporal ruins. Her thoughts stayed there for a few moments, remembering on how they needed each other to survive. Sly's never-ending determination and strategies. Lexia's knowledge of the ruins coupled with her willingness to protect. Without the two of them, it was a feat which would rarely be accomplished again.

She felt the blood still stain the replacement bandage, and she gave a small shrug at his advice. He pushed it on her that she needed to rest, to make sure that the injuries didn't become worse compared to what they already were. Lexia's head fell as her gaze went to the floor. She didn't want Sly to do this mission by himself. She was barely aware of him speaking until she heard the fridge door open.

The tears that threatened to break out earlier returned with a rather harsh vengeance. They fell from her cheeks, refusing to stop. No matter how hard Lexia tried. They just wouldn't. Sly gave her the glass of orange juice, stating that she had already been a rather big help and to let him take it from here. Orange juice. It was like a delicacy to her, as she normally would just have water or alcohol for the past few years. Lexia rose her head to give him a small smile. "But it still stands that I couldn't have done the mission without you. Seeming you were here, I was able to pull a few strings without fear of something horrible happening... You were always there in case things turned south. But... You're going alone, and I can't help you here..."

But she couldn't let him go alone. That thought weighed heavily on her mind. That was, until a small idea sparked in her mind. "We both know that I can't go, but I have a little friend who might be able to keep you safe in my stead... Take Nithya. He can track down the behemoth and force this mission to finish a little faster." Lexia offered brightly and, at the sound of his name, the foenix guiltily approached the two of them, walking over to Sly and nudging his hand.

As he presented her the orange juice, his hand twitched at a gentle sting. A crystal drop appeared on his hand, followed by another. A glance upward and he saw her tears breaking out. Her hands remained still where they were. He set the glass on the table in front of the sofa and was about to go and find some tissues, but then he saw her forcing a smile back to him. He smiled back at her, acknowledging what she said to be true. Then again, he would never have been able to go through with the mission alone. A thousand weights hung over his heart as he knew that he had to kill this behemoth on his own. Even after fighting alongside one another for a very short time, Sly was already developing a mindset of working as a team with her.

Then she said Sly should take Nithya with him. As he turned to see the foenix, he was already next to Sly, a cold nose on his hand. Nithya had been extremely quiet since he reopened Lexia's wound. Perhaps still saddened he had caused this much pain on his owner. If Sly did not know any better, he would hastily accept taking Nithya. But he had been paying attention to the commands Lexia had been giving him. They were no simple barking of orders like what other trainers would do. Instead, it was a series of whistles and clicks. Sly had absolutely no idea what order of these sounds to use in any situation. But at the time in Temporal Ruins, where Lexia was unconscious, Sly thought Nithya could understand what he was saying. Or was he simply repeating what Mirage was doing?

Mirage. Maybe she could help him.

Sly never really worked with Nithya before. It was either Sly and Lexia, or Lexia and Nithya. Still, it would be interesting as to what the two could do. He personally saw what Nithya was capable of back at the ruins. But against a behemoth, it would take much more than simple clawing to cut through the hide of a behemoth. Still, that beast was much larger for a foenix. Sly was worried that the very scent of it would make Nithya cower and stay away from the area.

Then again, it was not like Mirage could even smell - she was not really a sentient being. If he could get Nithya to copy her, maybe he would pick up the behemoth's scent. Then he would figure out what to do from here.

Sly nodded to Lexia after giving it considerable amount of thought. We will be back as soon as we can.

While Sly seemed to be deep in thought, Lexia opened a drawer next to the couch she sat in, wincing as it pulled against her back to move in the motion of bending down. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw that Nithya would raise his head to gently nudge at Sly, however, he completely avoided eye contact with Lexia. This somewhat broke her heart, the creature which she had saved simply felt just too guilty to even maintain eye contact with her. Lexia's hand curled around a small notepad and a plastic blue pen. Straight away, she began to scribble down notes.

There, she folded the piece of paper in half, pressing firmly against the fold to ensure that it stayed down. When Sly announced that he would be back as soon as he could be, Lexia gave a small shuddered sigh. She carefully forced herself to her feet and walked over to him, clearing the tears from her eyes. Lexia would suddenly hug him for a few moments, not caring of what he thought. As suddenly as she hugged him, she would suddenly break away from him and pass him a note. On one side was scrawled, "Instructions" and if Sly bothered to look at it at a later time, the note would read;

The note:

Lexia gave him a small smile. "If you do this, make sure that you guys come back in one piece. I know those creatures are incredibly powerful when they are larger, just... don't be fooled if they are smaller. That being said, Nithya should be able to take it on for a few minutes and be on equal footing.. But an adult, and he'd fall." Lexia said, lowering herself to the ground to gently ruffle Nithya's mane.

The foenix would whimper, turning his head to look up at her questioningly, and also sadly. Lexia nodded to the little creature, doing a series of clicks which wasn't written on the paper. Nithya would bark, before turning his attention to Sly, awaiting his orders.

Don't worry! You still have me if all else fails! The voice shrilled in delight, cackling manically.

He found her quickly accepting of what they had decided. It still tugged on him that he would be leaving her behind, especially when she recently had her wound opened again. He wanted to stay in the hotel with her, to make sure that she would be alright. But it was not safe to stay in here any longer than a day. Not without the soldiers noticing the two looking alike what they were looking for. He took her hands in his own, cupping them. They felt soft and warm, and he almost felt guilty for soiling them like that. But he did not know how to put his thoughts into words.

I am sorry Lex, Sly said. You did not deserve to suffer like this. I should have... he stopped there, looking to the side. There was no point dawdling on what things should have been. He did not notice the sniper sooner, but at least they all escaped the ruins alive. Before he could continue, Lexia had passed him a folded piece of paper. He let go of her hands to read what was inside it, skimming the entire note. Some parts of it were hard to make sense of, but he caught that they were instructions on how to order Nithya.

Sly nodded to Lexia after she voiced her concern. After pocketing the paper, he reached his arms around her shoulder, being careful not to touch her wound, and pulled her in a hug. I still owe you a huge debt from what your service in the ruins. Let me repay you this time. You deserve your rest. And... Sly paused, feeling his heart sink again, ...I wish you could come along.

He was a bit scared, that he had to fight alone this time. To get off a year's worth of rust to take on a behemoth. Slowly Sly pulled away from the embrace and slowly made his way to the door. We will be back in a few hours. I promise.

Lexia's teeth gently bit into her lips at Sly's words. How could he say that? Did he blame himself for her injuries? But why – if she hadn’t been the one to lead him there and help him when she could, there was no doubt in her mind that without her... She didn’t want to even consider that possibility and banished the thought from her mind. The main thing was that they were here now, injured and damaged, but recovering.

Safe.

Confusion crossed Sly’s face, and it was only then that Lexia realised that she wrote something completely wrong on the note. However, her thoughts weren’t to dwell there for long. He shoved the paper into his pocket and gently, tenderly, pulled her into an embrace. Lexia felt her face run cold, surprised that such a sophisticated figure would have such a gentle touch. She would move her arms to return the embrace, her face resting gently against his shoulder as her tears threatened to spoil the shirt.

For reasons she couldn’t comprehend, she didn’t want him to go, nor for this moment to end. She wanted Sly to stay, to be with her, to forget that they needed to get home. His words were half muffled as he spoke. To her, Sly had no debt. Nothing to return to her. Her heart broke as Sly spoke quietly;

”I wish you could come along.” Slowly, Sly pulled away from the embrace, and Lexia’s hand would run down his arm, her slender fingers tracing his arm gingerly as he pulled away. For a few moments, Lexia was tempted to clasp his hand and force him to stay.

As he said his next few words, Lexia gave a sad smile. “You better come back in one piece... And come back soon... Those hours are already too long.” She said quietly before Sly would turn to leave. Nithya would give Lexia a gentle lick, before returning to Sly’s side.  

When he left the room, Lexia’s shoulders fell and crystal tears fell. Her chest felt as if a hole had been ripped through her at his departure, and she raised her hands to cover her face.

For once, Insanity didn’t speak, silenced by the compassion the strange man showed to Lexia.

It was a strange feeling after he left the door and on his way to the plains near this town. A simple reflection would tell that this was really the first time he had to perform a mission alone. After Master Horus' death and the repossession of his mansion, Sly knew what to do after. Before he thought he had to do all this alone, he met Lexia. Ever since, the two were in missions together and were getting very well acquainted with one another. Back then he did not mind having to go lone wolf. But now, having to leave behind Lexia for a while was the last thing he wanted. Of course, he was not completely alone. He had Nithya with him.

Sly squeezed on the folded up paper Lexia gave to him in his pocket. Nithya could understand simple commands, according to her. But he figured it was more worth while to study what she had written in case they were in a sticky situation. That had to come later. The sun beat and scorched the back of Sly's neck, forcing a few drops of sweat from him. This heat was worse than he thought. Above, clouds were scarce, with no more than three small fluffs hovering. Sly sprinted from shade to shade, wiping the sweat off his forehead as the cooler air blasted him. It was pretty humid as well. He figured he should have brought his canteen of water, the thought of which making him wanting to turn back just to get it.

Instead, he quickly took a stop at a convenient store to buy a few bottles and a hat, before walking past the huge billboard sign welcoming them to Rose. Before him was a small dirt road cutting through the wavy surface of the plains. In the distance, the path occasionally split in two, one disappearing behind a small forest and the other around a bend, perhaps heading for the mountains. A few boulders disturbed what would have been a very peaceful and green field of dancing strands. The grass reacted to even a whisper of a breeze. Aside from the wind, birds chirped every once and a while, but only as they passed by.

It was rather quiet.

The behemoth should be somewhere around these plains. It will take forever to find its cave. Did you pick up its scent? Sly asked Nithya as he stepped off the road and onto the tall grass. But just in case, he pulled out the paper and checked if she written anything about tracking. She had written a few commands, but unfortunately it did not seem there was one for sniffing something out. He somewhat hoped Nithya would understand what he said, but it would be a long stretch to call it a 'simple command'.

Sly ventured deeper into the plains, hoping by some off-chance Nithya would catch a strange scent. He would keep walking until he does, squinting under the sunlight. Damn this heat! We better find and kill this thing fast before we are fried lunch.

The room was almost deathly quiet after Sly had left, the chill in the air refusing to budge even the slightest as she sat there. Lexia couldn't find the will to move, her eyes red as tears refused to stop falling from her cheeks. She had been alone for so long in the past, had been isolated for three years, she had been away, back into the wild. But why did being alone scare her? Why did her chest ache as if something had stabbed her? Why did she feel so exposed and alone? None of this had ever bothered her in the past, and her watery eyes didn't stop allowing their tears to fall. Why did she miss him so much?

Lexia suppressed a sigh as she slowly forced herself to slide off the chair to force herself to her feet. There was no use crying about something that she couldn't fix. She wandered across to the bathroom, using a hand towel to dip into some running water, using the damp cloth to clear her face. She tried to calm herself down, and it was successfully working.

That was until she heard a knock at the door.

---

Nithya happily followed Sly, his nose sniffing the ground whenever they went somewhere or investigated something new. The sun scorched against his back, the lack of wind chilling the foenix made him feel rather warm and flustered. His feathers were light, and he walked with pride, not minding walking in the sun of his homeland. The foenix glanced up at Sly, who seemed to be struggling a bit more with the conditions. Sly spoke to him, and Nithya tilted his head to the side.
The foenix would snort and shake his head to decline that he couldn't find anything yet, before returning to sniffing the ground.

Nithya flinched at Sly's sudden shout at the heat, quietly whimpering at what he said. However, the shout startled creatures nearby, birds flew away, scared and worried of what the shouting voice would do to them. Curiously, Nithya sniffed the ground around the base of the tree where he had seen the birds take off from. He could smell something was rather... off, something that he didn't recognise...

He was going to brush it off as just a random noise.

Until he heard a twig snap.

His ears flicked upright, alert, facing the direction of the sound. Footsteps were slow, lumbering, but he could faintly hear them coming closer. A rumble in Nithya's chest would prove to Sly to be a warning that something was coming, and the foenix turned in its direction completely, growling louder as it came closer.

Why the human shouted, he had no idea. But this thing sure as hell wasn't sleeping, and Nithya's growl of defense quickly waned to being a nervous rumble.

He wanted to get out of there.

AND FAST.

Lexia wasn't there, his guide wasn't there. Sly was in danger. Nithya didn't know what to do. He desperately would turn to Sly, panic all to obvious on his face.

It was at the moment he reached the bottom of the first valley that a slight tremor rippled beneath him. He froze. There it was again. Something huge. That was strange. Why would the behemoth be out and about this close to the town? He turned to the foenix. Nithya was alert, his head up and ears perked as he looked around. A growl escaping from his throat, a clear sign that something was coming towards them.

Hide! Sly whispered sharply before ducking into the grass. He only needed to crouch, the grass here reaching his waist. He would shuffle to one of the nearest rocks, resting his back against the burning surface. A hand out as he slowly and quietly formed Mirage in his grip. Sly would not know if Nithya understood the command. If not, then he hoped his actions would speak to the foenix. They would not want to mindlessly charge at the beast. Especially if they were considered a brute of some sort. Its physical strength would definitely overwhelm Sly's if he were not too careful.

The shaking ground increased in strength. How rigorous it shook numbed his legs and he slowly dropped onto his haunches to give them a rest. Sly was able to peer around the corner to see what was behind the rock. There was a large black mass behind the dancing strands of grass, but not enough of it was sticking out to make anything out of it. The heavy footsteps and beastial grunts and sniffs were the only things he could hear. He remained still, somewhat holding his breath in like the air was poisoned. His heart raced against his chest, and he felt his arm starting to tremble. Well, the good news was they found it. At least that was what Sly thought. Aside from what he had gathered, he saw two protrusions sticking into the air like a spear. From the base they curved outwards and around, then curved the other way at the tip before they touched. Horns most likely.

Easy... Sly said quietly, hoping Nithya would hear, wherever he was. This beast was too big for the two to take on immediately. They were better off setting traps and finding the right moment to attack. In his other hand, white and pink gears materialised into a small clockwork spider. It spun a thread around Sly's finger before he underarm tossed it towards the behemoth. He got to work in constructing as much of a white sentry as he could, folding it up behind the boulder to avoid being seen. Sly would then attack the thread to the sentry once it was complete. Then he attached Mirage onto the sentry before lying on his belly and crawling to reposition. The behemoth better not move, and he hoped that none of them were spotted as well. If they got into a fight now, it would be a very difficult one to even survive.

Heart hammering in her chest, Lexia stared down the innkeeper. Bills. Paid by 9pm. Tonight. Her eyes glanced to the clock in the hallway behind the young lady, just over her crown of bronze hair. Lexia released a pent up sigh, just what she needed. Great. Negotiations had already failed, and the lady was firm with what she requested... If Lexia even tried to bend the rules, break the bounds, pay later than what the lady said, Lexia and her things would be turfed into the street.

With a nod to answer and confirm her request, Lexia would step back into the hallway, her hand pushing the door shut. How was she going to gather the funds to pay her? Sly could be gone until late into the night, early into the morning. Her heart rose in her throat as she thought about it, her mind racing as ideas, thoughts, suggestions would tear through her. She needed one. A stripper wasn't an option. Bartender? No... Waitress? She'd done that before, but all jobs for them had healthier and more respectful younger lasses in the job already. Her chances with them were gone, and she made an irritated sigh.

Lexia paced the room, almost dragging her feet too and fro across the carpeted floor. But the solution came to her when she glanced across towards Sly's few belongings he left behind. A smirk widened on her face. She could use that fancy little billboard.

With a smile on her face, Lexia grabbed her bag and swung it across her shoulders. Surely there would be something there!

---

Nithya would whine at the presence of the beast, his legs shaking at its formidable sounds which its feet were making at such a great distance away from them. He glanced at Sl-wait. Where did he go?! His ears pricked up, and he felt his heart hammer in his chest. Where did he go? Why did he betray him?

The foenix's panic caused him to blank out, his form merely hunching down on the tall grass, stationary.

WHY DID HE LEAVE HIM!

The beast remained where it was at least. Whatever it was doing right now, he doubt he would ever know. It was difficult knowing where he was going, the only reference being the grunts from the behemoth. He remembered telling Nithya to hide, but did not even hear a squeal from the foenix ever since. He was here somewhere, but it felt like the world was just him and the behemoth. His heart started to hammer against his chest as he crawled slowly, trying not to stir the grass into giving his location.

After having moved for some time, Sly stopped on the foot of an appreciation on the hill. He rolled onto his back and quickly forged another structure. This time, a black and white clockwork snake named Spade. If anything goes awry, he would use Spade to hopefully snipe the behemoth. If there was anything preventing him from just trying to sneak up on it, it was the tough hide and heightened senses. Perhaps he would have to lure the behemoth towards Spade so he would have a clear shot at the softer underbelly. Then again, Nemesis could easily pierce the thick hide, but would require him to be dangerously close.

To him, all thought came to creating a distraction to force an opening. Aerial attacks were no good due to the hide, so he had to settle with Enigma. It had been a while since he used it but he would have to wait for the right moment to activate it, or else he would give away his position.

After the preparations were done, Sly got onto his feet and squat. Checking to make sure the behemoth could not see him, he moved towards where he last saw Nithya. If he remained where he was, Sly would easily find him.

Alright, Sly whispered, opening his free hand. Brown and green pieces flowed from his timepiece and spun around it. Let's do this. Go! With that, the rapier which he would form, one with intertwining branches along its blade, would start to glow, thereby revealing their location.

If the behemoth decided to charge towards them now, it would trip Pulse's thread. This would then trigger a pre-emptive strike of three daggers from the still folded-up Ephemeral, which would then unfold and stand on its insect-like legs and fire the remaining three marbles it had towards behemoth. Sly predicted this would then draw its attention, or at least stun the beast. If the attention was drawn, behemoth would be facing towards Spade, which would then spit a penetrating dagger at its chest. If stunned, Sly would personally charge forward with Nemesis and hopefully take advantage of that small window to attack.

The streets were just as busy as before, and Lexia drew the jacket closer to her frame, as if it would draw a sense of comfort. She disliked crowded cities, but it was the only way to the billboard. It didn't take her too long to find her way back to it and she proceeded up the steps, her fingers running across the papers as she skimmed through the titles. A small sigh came from her, the empty nails showing that a large number of them had been taken away from when they had last gone through.

There was one thing left, and Lexia tore one of the several tabs left there away, freeing it. An address. The name of the event. But apparently, you got paid... Lexia frowned. Damn, where was Sly when she needed a dagger made to take with her. It wasn't that she didn't want to go-she needed to just so they would have enough money to pay the keeper off. So, she pocketed the piece, a sensation shivering down her spine.

Trying to act as if she didn't notice it, she turned, starting to walk away from there, her hands shoved into the pockets of the jacket.

Someone was watching her.

---

Nithya's form would start to slink away as he felt the vibrations rattle through his leg, closer and closer to him, the size of the beast huge. He wasn't confident, he really wasn't. He didn't want to be there. Not alone against that thing! The foenix suppressed the instinct to snarl, to draw his lips back and growl at the beast coming closer and closer, the daunting presence...

Nithya was an animal. Instincts kicked in, and the foenix turned, his form rising.  

He started to run, afraid of the giant beast. However, he would only get a few feet before the order came to him. Sly was still here?? Nithya growled, encouraged, and lowered himself to the ground once more. The bane of the county growled lowly, his legs skittering as he did a tight circle, his fangs barred for the creature to see. Nithya would ignore the rather large form, and growl viciously at it, howling as it challenged it.

The howl was designed to draw attention, to which Nithya would push himself from the rocks to leap forward, aiming for the beasts face. Sure, it was the most dangerous, but it was the best way to distract it so that Sly would be able to get a few feet closer. Nithya also had a trick up his sleeve, if the creature were to try and bite him, he would shapeshift and use a great pair of wings to push himself away from the creature. For now, he did the best he could with making himself a very annoying target, much more than what Sly was at that time.

The beast sniffed the air around the grass, growling. It had been a hard drought in Cormere, and there was little food left around these parts. Not even a raid in Rose came up with anything at the very least satisfying. A few stray patrols here and there, malnourished from the poor conditions as well. This was the third time it had to come out in the sun again, a mind to scavenge for anything it could find. Now, it found something. A human and... something foreign. No doubt another small morsel. If only it could find them. They were here somewhere, but the under-developed nose could not yet help the young beast track it.

Then again, it may not need to.

Slowly the beast turned, facing what appeared to be a human dashing towards him. Finally. Before it could release a roar, a way to get its blood flowing for a fight or chase, a shadow jumped into its sight and clung onto its face. It only stung a bit, but the proximity of this mass immediately rewarded the beast its scent. Again, it was foreign, but at least it knew the scent was coming from this animal. The beast reared, and whipped its head left and right. Clearly its focus was getting this thing off it. The behemoth roared, then tried to use its front legs to claw it off.

Spinning its body around, its tail hooked against a thin peace of thread, easily snapping it. Then three sharp objects prodded against its thigh like nothing more than gentle jabs against the thick hide. It took the beast's attention and it turned. Again, its tail hit something, but it was a heavier mass this time. A low grunt came from this rather soft being, and flew off as the behemoth's tail stopped. Eventually, the behemoth subjected to catapulting itself in the air, and rolled its entire body all over the ground. Surely there was nothing, at least up to now, that could latch onto the behemoth after that.

If the beast was released, the behemoth would double over a bit, then gave an enormous how. The horns glowing and sparking yellow and blue, and smaller spikes burst from along its spine, also pulsing with such electricity. The beast followed this with a short growl, dispersing some of its stored power a bit. The electricity would then form a small ring around it, no bigger than a 5 metres radius. Three more objects tapped against its shoulder, and it turned to face what appeared to be a white large insect with a strange head, standing upon a rock. Taking its attention to it, the beast charged forward to strike it.

Lexia, even though she was on her guard from others around her, didn't expect this next move.

As she passed by a walkway, a back alley which cut through and lead to the back of a bar. A sharp pain flared in her neck as she went passed, something flying into her neck, like a rather angry bee. She, expectedly, would jump back in pain, crying out in astonishment. Her fingers would tear away the small dart that broke her skin. A cold horror would freeze her veins, her vision already faltering as her legs would give way beneath her.

Like a sack of potatoes, Lexia's body hit the dirt road. A man, cowled in black, made his way towards her. A smirk brightened his face as he knelt down, taking her face in his hand and tipping it back slightly. The white mask covered the majority of his face, small, unseeable carved areas allowed for him to see through the sheen of white. With a hand gesture, two others would come forward quickly, a sack roughly pulled across Lexia's face. The draw cord was pulled, tied, and let loose as the two grunts picked up her body. They followed the masked man.

"Finally. We found Lexia... Now, the real question... Where is her darned partner?" The man mused, before shrugging. Half a bounty was good enough for him and would keep him fed for a while. Jin rose his head with a grin. Today was. Good day...

---

Nithya leapt away form the vicious tusks that threatened to tear away his insides, the rather sudden twisting and turning from the behemoth sending him flying. His feet scrambled across the grass, slipping out from underneath him and skidding several meters. The foenix whined as he felt stones dig into his side and he pushed himself up, groaning. The beast pulled its head back to utter a giant howl, a roar of fury which drove terror into the hearts of most children.

Nithya, however, was still a beast of his own.

Through the anger of being hurt, Nithya howled a challenge of his own. He sprung up, running in between the white machines and the behemoth. The foenix would try dodge any attack that it made, before retaliating and leaping at the creatures legs. His fangs aimed to maim him, to tear the flesh from the muscle.

To also buy Sly time to get in and kill the damn thing.

The behemoth halted its charge, following on another howl that challenged his. He turned to face what appeared to be a small animal. His heart pounded with excitement at the sight of something decent to eat, to quell his hunger. Single-mindedly focusing on the foenix, the beast took a prowling stance before leaping forward, claws high in the air as he pushed all his weight into one large stomp, trying to crush the foenix.

He met nothing, and like an eel the animal slipped by and under him. Then the monster howled, flicking his foreleg to the side as a sharp pain flared in his paw. He lifted and stomped about. It was quickly followed by another sting, right to the side of its neck. The behemoth shook his head around, a small mass swinging and plopping onto the back of his neck, followed by another sharp sting as his body went numb for a second. Dropping to its forelegs for a bit, the behemoth flailed and spun around, even tried to roll onto the dirt, a few rocks jabbing into his back, trying to get it off him.

It was no use. A series of jabs followed, and the beast's screams turned into gargling croaks, its energy sapping from his claws and he moved like he was exhausted. His vision blurring, the behemoth let out a number of beastial growls. The pain never ending. And with one final groan, a trumpet into the sky as it looked at the vast blue dome above, the beast slumped to the side. The grass slowly turned white, and all that pain turned to relief as a breeze blanketed over his chilly body. Then everything went silent, and faded to darkness.

--

Putting a foot against the bloodied neck, he yanked Nemesis with a sickening crack. Blood stained all over his shirt and pants after desperately trying to stab it in the neck a number of times. Panting, he rolled off the beast and landed in the shade, huffing. If not blood, he looked like he played in the mud. His shoulders ached. One of his arm and leg on his left side had been crushed a bit thanks to the behemoth's rolling. He twitched that leg once. Aside from the sharp pain that one would feel after occluding bloodflow to a limb for a very long time, he judged he could at least move it and just needed time for the tingling to settle.

I am not doing that again, he said, resting his head against the dead beast. He searched his bag for the bottled water he bought. Both of them were flattened after that, but at least the plastic did not burst. He unscrewed the cap and poured the warm liquid down his throat. If Nithya was nearby, he would give him the other half of the bottle and assist in helping him lap it up. That went quicker than expected at least. Let's turn this in before someone else takes the credit. Using the heavy monster as leverage, he polled himself to his feet and limped a little towards the head. He had to take something as proof that he slew it to claim the bounty. What he saw before him was the behemoth with its jaw open, purple tongue flopping onto the grass but eyes surely closed. This will do. He raised Nemesis and sliced off both of the curved horns. They were rather huge, almost as big as his abdomen, but they were not as heavy and he could sling them over his shoulders. He did just that before making his way back up towards town.

Jin manhandled the sack covered female into the waiting hands of the guards, half shoving the barely standing girl forward. "That's the girl from the ruins. Now give me my pay." He demanded straight away, the officers grabbing the girl suddenly in front of them. Her jacket was torn, mainly from being so roughly handled by the three men. One of the officers raised an eyebrow, looking at the girl, then at Jin as their partner moved to sit Lexia down. Their partner would take the sack from Lexia's head. They would take a picture of her face before uploading it to their systems, beginning a scan.

"If you are sure that this is the female from the ruins, then you will get your due rewards." The man said, and Jin sighed, crossing his arms impatiently. His foot would gently tap against the ground, his mind deep in thought. The officer gave him a stern look and the man sighed, ceasing his tapping.

A green light flashed once, his partner nodding. "He's right, this matches all descriptions of the female."

Jin grinned, holding his hand out. Instantly, they transferred the money to a physical lump sum, before he would stuff it in a small bag. "Next, it'll be that other kid. I'm sure if that bitch is here, he will be around somewhere and I'll keep my eye out for him."

He then made his way to the exit, the cash firmly shoved in his pocket after claiming his reward. It was then that Lexia finally regained consciousness. She gave a startled cry at her surroundings, her eyes wide. The man instantly shoved a cloth in her mouth, wrapping a bandage like strip of fabric around her head to keep her quiet. She withdrew, her eyes wide as she felt the steel against her wrists.

The world went dark as the cloth sack went over her head.

---

Nithya whined, looking up at Sly as they passed a masked figure outside. The inside of his coat flashed open as they passed, a large bag rustling with notes inside it swinging loosely on the inside. The man smelled a bit... Familiar, and Nithya sniffed a little after him. Then snorted and turned back to the path. The foenix shrugged it off, continuing to carry Sly down the streets. He had injured his arm and leg from the behemoth, but now, the victorious duo carried the horn towards the little...

Nithya was a dog. How was it meant to know where to go, it just followed Sly.

However, he would begin whining, becoming restless. He could pick up the smell of Lexia, and he quickened the pace, his nose at the ground. Until he reached the door where he wasn't allowed through, the building having banned any and all animals from entering. Nithya looked intently at the doorframe, his eyes latched onto the doorknob and his ears pricked.

Trying to signal something was wrong.

He bit down on a piece of rope until he finished the binding over the pair of horns. The two were rather magnificent in their beauty, the black and cream horns fading into purple towards the base, although it ended with a sharp cream colour, where Sly had severed them. If this beast grew into an adult, the horns would become rough and ridged, losing the exotic purple for the complete and dull grey. Something of this nature would be incredibly hard to replicate if anyone tried to cheat on a bounty, making these horns solid proof for his troubles. Who knows? Maybe he could get to keep one or both, though he would have little use for behemoth horns other than decoration or as a trophy in his room. Bound and covered in cloth, the horns were rested in front of him as he rode on Nithya back to town.

Nothing much has changed, but he was now happy that he and Lexia could finally leave this place and head home. Of course, he was sure to give Yuuki a scolding and maybe demand some compensation. As he thought of this, he did not notice Nithya taking his attention towards one of the passers-by. Sly only remembered seeing a black robe in his periphery, but he quickly discarded that as he made his way towards the police station. It was then that the foenix began to act a little strange and paced quickly towards the front door.

Nith? What-? he slid off towards the tail and landed on the hard wood with his rump, the horns clattering before him. Nithya whined, scratching at the door. That did not seem right. Why would he be this excited? And he doubted the foenix would know that they were going to cash in these horns for bounty.

Easy there, Sly said, swinging the door open to a small bell. There were two officers here in this small lounge. One of them tapping something on the tablet, casting blue light upon his uniform. The other was handling-

Lexia! Sly almost gasped the word loud but quickly cupped his mouth. He stiffened, seeing how the officer was practically dragging her behind the barred door, towards one of the cells around the corner.

Can I help you? The officer looked up from his tablet and gave a questioned look at him. Then he looked towards Sly's legs and scowled. Did you not read the sign outside? No pets allowed! Tie him outside first.

Sly blinked. Then he sighed. A quick thought in his head was that if he needed to sort this out as peacefully as possible, he should not be riling the policeman. Nithya. He held open the door and beckoned the foenix outside. It's okay. I will handle this. Wait for me on the porch. If Nithya walked out, Sly would close the door behind him before carrying the horns to the officer. I heard you have some behemoth troubles. Took care of it myself, and here's your proof. He held up the pair of horns, which the officer would go to inspect. Tapping on his tablet again, he took pictures of the horns and started the scanning procedure.

You don't look like you belong here. Where you from?

Xastristan. Just passing by here with my pet... dog while we are seeing the sights. Figured you guys can use some help with the beast.

Hmm! What's your name?

That is not important, especially if I doubt I will pass by here again. All you need to do is just make sure these checked in and transfer the funds to my account.

The tablet would give a green light. The officer gave Sly a look. Well I'll be damned. Sly snorted a little and, from his pocket, took out his device and scrolled until he found and selected his bank account and initiated the wireless transfer procedure, the policeman doing the same. Sly's device would beep and make a series of small noises, indicating the transfer was underway...

Nithya's feathery tail wagged to and fro, trotting happily outside, where his nose returned to the ground. He proceeded to sniff around, before making his way around the path, the door shutting behind him. He wanted to see just what else was around but at the same time, Nithya wanted to know why little Lex was in the building. She never went somewhere that Nithya couldn't follow, why would she break the golden rule now? With a huff, Nithya laid down near the door and waited for Sly to return.

However, Lexia wasn't so lucky. She could hear Sly's voice, and she begged him for help. Only to realise that she had the stupid cloth on her mouth and he wouldn't have heard anything.

Lexia heard the doors slam shut behind her and she cursed herself for being so careless as to let herself be caught so easily. But she wasn't to know her cover had been blown, she didn't know just who was after her. Neither of them could have anticipated an advanced bounty hunter. Someone who knew the ways around their trade like the back of their hand. Neither of them were to blame for this. Lexia felt herself be pulled up, and she stumbled up a set of wooden stairs.

The breeze signalled that she was outside, the cold biting her skin slightly. She sighed. This was how it was always going to end. The ruins had garunteed this... Lexia felt the officer force her down on a seat, the clinking metals signalling a door that was locked. It seemed like she wasn't going to be able to get back home after all. Even if Sly was here, there was no way that he would be able to break her out of this...

The whip sounded and the beasts which dragged the wagon whined, beginning their long return back to Xas. This time, Lexia would not return.