The walk up from the Abyssal Spa to the Casino floor was uncomfortably silent.

​Commander Thorne stood with his arms crossed, water dripping from his pauldrons onto the stone steps.

​Beside him, High Inquisitor Kaelen was humming a low, vibrating note that sounded suspiciously like a microwave. She was leaning heavily against the railing, her eyes tracking dust motes that weren't there.

​"The slime," Thorne muttered, breaking the silence as the gears ground overhead. "It ate the noble."

​"It is a therapeutic engulfment," Reed corrected, checking his wet coat cuffs. "Lord Valerius is simply... marinating. He will emerge rejuvenated and, ideally, ready to lose more money."

​"It is unnatural," Thorne grumbled. He tapped the chest plate of his armor. "A warrior relies on steel. Not... jelly. And certainly not steam."

​He glared at Kaelen, who blew a small puff of white vapor in his direction and giggled.

​"I feel like a dumpling," Kaelen announced.

​Thorne scowled and reached up to touch his Silver Commendation Medal, a nervous tic he had displayed since arriving at the estate. He brushed his fingers against the cold steel of his breastplate, seeking the reassurance of the holy relic.

​He paused.

​He patted his chest again. Harder.

​His eyes widened.

​"Where..." Thorne whispered, looking down.

​The giant doors open to reveal the obsidian and neon grandeur of The Mezzanine.

​Thorne didn't move. He stared at his chest. The silver sunburst, the holy relic awarded for the Purge of the Black Valley, was gone. There was only a jagged tear in his tabard where the pin had been.

​"My medal," Thorne choked out. His face turned a dangerous shade of purple. "WHERE IS MY MEDAL?!"

​SCREEEEE!

​A triumphant shriek echoed from the high vaulted ceiling of the Casino floor.

​Reed looked up just as a blur of tawny feathers and manic energy spiraled down from the chandeliers.

​Riva was doing a victory lap.

​The Harpy Scout was clutching a heavy velvet coin purse in one claw (stolen from Valerius's discarded trousers in the Spa) and the Silver Commendation in the other.

​"SHINY!" Riva screamed, diving toward the Slot Machine banks. "Riva is Rich! Riva is Queen of the Roost! Riva is best Bird! Stupid metal-man has no eyes!"

​"THIEF!" Thorne roared.

​The sound was loud enough to rattle the glassware at the bar. He drew his sword with a metallic shing that promised murder.

​"You harbor thieves, Monster! That medal was blessed by the High Bishop! It is a Class-4 Relic!"

​Thorne didn't wait for an explanation. He charged out of the stairwell, his boots cracking the marble tile. He scrambled up onto a blackjack table, scattering cards, his eyes wild.

​"I will gut that pigeon! I will roast her on a spit!"

​"No!" Kaelen cried out, stumbling out of the doorway. She tried to run, but her legs were still jelly; she tripped over her own tabard and slid across the floor, emitting a shower of harmless white sparks. "Commander! Wait! Don't... don't cook the bird!"

​Reed cursed. "System, track the scout!"

​[SYSTEM ALERT]

[Target: Riva (Harpy Scout)]

[Status: ZOOMIES]

[Loot Acquired: Medal of Sanctity, Heavy Purse (500g)]

[Threat: Thorne is charging a Holy Smite.]

​Reed vaulted from the stair well. He ran obsidian floor of the Mezzanine lobby just in time to see the catastrophe unfolding.

​Riva wasn't hiding. She was taunting.

​She was flying loops around the obsidian pillars, dangling the medal just out of reach of Thorne's frantic swings.

​"Too slow!" Riva chirped, banking hard to avoid a crossbow bolt fired by one of Valerius's confused guards who had wandered up from the lobby. "Heavy metal-man moves like rock! Riva moves like wind!"

​Thorne stopped swinging. He planted his feet. He raised his sword with both hands.

​The blade began to glow with blinding white fire. The air smelled of ozone and burning righteous indignation.

​"Holy Arts," Thorne bellowed, his voice echoing like thunder. "Smite... THE WICKED!"

​He wasn't aiming at Riva. He was aiming at the air in front of her flight path. He was going to detonate a mana-blast that would vaporize everything in a thirty-foot radius... including the Harpy.

​"She's dead," Reed realized. "If that hits, she's KFC!"

​He couldn't outrun the blast. He needed to intercept her. He needed a net.

​He looked at the bar. The Void Bunnies, his squad of ten spectral waitresses made of smoke and fishnets, were floating nearby, polishing glasses.

​"Bunny Squad!" Reed shouted, his voice amplified by the Void Shard. "Phase shift! Wall formation! NOW!"

​The order hit the Hive Mind like a lightning bolt.

​The ten waitresses dropped their rags. Crash.

​They didn't run. They dissolved into violet smoke and shot through the air, reforming instantly in the space between Thorne and the ceiling.

​They linked hands. The smoke of their bodies merged, creating a semi-solid wall of fishnets, corsets, and violet fog right in Riva's flight path.

​"Blockade!" Reed commanded.

​Riva, busy mocking Thorne, didn't see the wall of waifus until it was too late.

​WHUMPH.

​She slammed into the wall of Void Bunnies. It was like hitting a mattress made of marshmallow and static.

​"Squawk!" Riva yelped as her momentum died instantly.

​She tumbled out of the air, a tangle of feathers and stolen loot.

​Reed was waiting.

​He didn't catch her gently. He tackled her.

​He dove forward, sliding on his knees across the polished marble, and snatched the Harpy out of the air just inches before she hit the ground. He rolled, shielding her body with his own as he skidded to a halt at Thorne's feet.

​"Got her!" Reed gasped, pinning Riva's wings to her sides.

​"Let go!" Riva hissed, struggling wildly. "Nest-Boss is traitor! Shiny is mine! I won it!"

​"Drop it," Reed hissed back, squeezing her beak shut with one hand. "Drop the holy relic, you feathered kleptomaniac, or he will turn you into nuggets."

​Thorne loomed over them. His sword was still raised, the white fire crackling dangerously, illuminating Reed's wet face.

​"Hand over the beast," Thorne growled. "She touched the Commendation. She has defiled it. The penalty is death."

​Kaelen crawled up, breathless, using a slot machine for support. Her helmet was crooked. "Commander! Please! She is... she is..." Kaelen hiccuped. "She's an asset. Don't smite the assets."

​"She is an employee," Reed interrupted, standing up slowly.

​He held Riva by the scruff of her neck like a misbehaving kitten. The Harpy went limp, realizing the game was over, though she still clutched the coin purse defiantly to her chest.

​Reed held out his other hand. The Silver Medal dangled from his fingers.

​"And this," Reed said, keeping his voice steady despite the holy weapon in his face, "was a test."

​Thorne blinked. The holy fire on his sword dimmed slightly.

​"A test?"

​"The Dexterity Check," Reed lied, channeling his best 'Casino Manager' persona. "A standard security feature of The Twilight Estate. We test the awareness of our high-profile guests."

​Reed dusted off the medal and offered it to Thorne with a flourish.

​"You failed the perception check, Commander. A rogue could have slit your throat. Riva demonstrated a flaw in your perimeter."

​Thorne stared at the medal. He looked at Riva, who stuck her tongue out at him. He looked at Reed.

​"You... stole my property to teach me a lesson?" Thorne asked slowly.

​"We provide a full-service experience," Reed nodded. "Security auditing included. No charge."

​Thorne snatched the medal back. He pinned it to his tunic, his hands shaking with suppressed rage.

​"I do not need lessons from a monster," Thorne spat. "But... perhaps I was distracted. The slime... the heat... it was disorienting."

​He sheathed his sword. The tension in the room snapped, leaving only the smell of ozone and burnt feathers.

​"Keep your pets on a leash, Reed," Thorne warned. "Next time, I won't miss."

​"Understood," Reed bowed.

​Thorne turned and marched toward the heavy iron doors labeled THE VIPER'S EMBRACE.

​"Come, Inquisitor," Thorne barked. "To the Arena. I need to kill something to cleanse my palate."

​Kaelen sagged against the slot machine, exhaling a breath she seemed to have been holding for a minute. She gave Reed a wobbly thumbs-up. "Nice save," she mouthed, before stumbling after her superior. "Coming, Commander! Wait for me!"

​Reed waited until they were gone.

​He looked down at Riva.

​"You have a death wish," Reed whispered.

​"Riva has a purse," Riva corrected, holding up the velvet bag. It jingled heavily.

​Reed snatched it. He checked the weight. At least 500 gold. Valerius must have been carrying his walking-around money.

​"This," Reed said, pocketing the gold, "is confiscated. It goes to the Bridge Fund."

​"Unfair!" Riva screeched. "Riva did the work! Riva dodged the bolts!"

​"And this," Reed continued, reaching into his own pocket. He pulled out a small, shiny brass button he had ripped off his own coat during the slide.

​He pressed it into her claw.

​"Is your cut."

​Riva gasped. She looked at the button. It was useless. It was brass. It was shiny.

​"Oooooh," Riva cooed, her eyes dilating. She rubbed the button against her cheek. "Boss button. Shiny. Okay. Riva accepts trade."

​She scrambled up his arm and perched on his shoulder, preening his messy hair as if nothing had happened.

​"Riva is good scout," she whispered in his ear. "We rob the metal-man later? When he sleeps?"

​"No robbing the metal-man," Reed sighed, walking toward the Void Bunnies who were reforming their waitress uniforms into standard attire. "We are going to rob him legally. In the Arena."

​He checked his HUD.

​[QUEST COMPLETE: MAGPIE DOWN]

[Reward: Crisis Averted]

[Loot: 500 Gold (Valerius's Purse)]

[Riva Status: PACIFIED (Shiny Button)]

​[Current Gold: 4,000]

[Bridge Fund: 80%]

​"Close," Reed muttered. "We need one big win. Just one."

​He looked toward the heavy iron doors of The Viper's Embrace.

​Seraphine, Reed thought, sending a pulse of Void Mana through the connection. Get ready. The Purist is coming. And he's angry.

​Good, Seraphine's voice purred back, dripping with anticipation. I like them angry. They squirm more.

​Reed adjusted his coat.

​"Let's go start a riot."

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