Veil of Smog, Chapter 1

[Esprit15]

Sarah looks at the card thoughtfully, the magical aura slowly fading as her magic viewing spell ended. “Interesting. I’ll most definitely visit it in the coming days.” The woman finishes another drink and makes small talk with anyone that asks before excusing herself to see if any of the regulars were interesting in talking to a new person about the local hunting.

When she gets home, she locks the door and untenses slightly. Why by the Great River is a youkai working with us? Why was it fated to work with us? She frowns as she begins to consult books and scrolls, half paying attention as she maps out different ways to direct magic during the ritual. She writes up a list of reagents to collect - some purchasable, some to be foraged, some of which she kept quantities of due to their obscurity.

She looks at herself in the mirror before bed. <It’s a zenko, Midnight. They’re friendly,> she says in a dead language. She washes her makeup off for the day, blemishes and scars becoming more visible. <And you have worked with monsters before. You’ve befriended more than a few. You can’t judge her before she has acted against people.> The reflection does not speak back, but the scars on her face tell their own story. <Even friends can turn on you,> hisses a blotch of skin. <A monster will lie with the ease that you draw a bow,> smiles the scar that she showed Lief earlier. <A moment’s hesitation…> hums the thin slash running from her eye to her mouth.

Midnight splashes her face with water and returns to her spell schematics. It is not her job to question the will of the gods. Her job is to protect people. If that means killing, so be it. If that means working with monsters, so be it.