The Slums

[yinsukin]

Suerte

Suerte sat on the back of the horse, her arms folded over her generous chest.  It was hard to describe the version of hatred that she was feeling.  With her hips lined up against Nanako's on Punishment's back, she felt nothing but annoyance.  The butt of the horse shot up and down, causing her and Nanako's boobs to bounce.  As Suerte's breasts went up, Nanako's went down and vice versa.  How was that not hot?  Why wasn't Justice paying attention!  She made out with Nanako, wasn't that what he wanted?

Well, she knew what he wanted, but love was war and you don't make peace until the other side does a little groveling.  Not that they were in love, but she liked him damn it and she was there first!

"Well I'm glad your happy," she said, her bitterness over having to share Justice poking through.  This was the worst.  It was like watching a happy couple when you are more single than a widow on valentine's day.

[Panda]

Nanako

Ordinarily, a ride through the city like this probably would've been far more enjoyable, perhaps less so once they got to the slums proper, but still. Here she was, back to back with a hot blonde and bouncing on Punishment the whole way, what with Sakura needing to be seated further up on account of being so squishy. And yet, while the ride was certainly fun, she could practically feel the animosity coming off of Suerte and had her own fair share to throw right back. This blonde little bimbo who'd snuck in while she was out and about, and now she was trying to snatch Justice from under her nose! Granted, not that she really blamed Justice. She probably hadn't been too clear with how she felt in the aftermath of that fight, and she still wasn't sure about it herself at this point. Not to mention that the cowgirl definitely was hot, and that makeout session even more so.

Still, she couldn't help wondering what Suerte was planning. She doubted things would be over with that quick tussle.

Her brief consideration was swiftly interrupted, however, as Sakura got a call from the redhead they'd gotten together to find in the first place. Nanako perked up, more than a little confused as it sounded like Shirou had just been up and let out.

"Wait, so the other you just let him go?" Nanako piped up, confused, but still happy for her friend, "Well, there's some good news."

In spite of herself, Nanako couldn't help feeling vaguely cheated in some way, but she quickly shrugged it off.

[Kotomine_Rin]

The Scene of the Crime

6:00 PM

If this city were a rotten carcass, the slums would be the guts and entrails leaking out. The stench and the view was putrid, and most of all, corrupted. One only needed to turn it upside down to see the insects wriggling beneath, feasting on whatever they could.

But not all of it was as filthy. Few areas, provided with "protection", were adorned with enough plaster and lies to seem almost slightly, even affluent. Among them, there was a tall business building, usually populated with activity. But tonight, the surroundings were lacking of the women, the gangs... as if everyone had strayed away. However, it was not deserted. Outside, you could see men in suits looking around, wearing sunglasses and sharp attire. All of this was as unlike the slums as it got.

One of them stood by the entrance, and spoke on the phone with an angry, hushed tone.

[Panda]

Nanako

4:00 PM

With directions as precise as what Carin had given her, it didn't take long to get to the Slums, even while she was pacing herself. One final leap took her down to street level, Nanako landing lightly before carefully making her way into the building. To most, she was sure the building would look like just another crumbling ruin amongst dozens in the Slums. The little things were what gave it away though, the intact windows, the absence of the usual musty smell of damp brick and dust. The squirrel girl navigated the building quietly, soon finding herself face to face with a nondescript door. There was no mailbox, no mail slot, and a quick check revealed there was no room under the door to slide a letter.

Biting the corner of her lip, Nanako brought up a hand to knock at the door. The squirrel girl waited for a bit, her tail flicking back and forth behind her and a boot tapping against against the ground. With no answer, Nanako listened for any sounds of movement inside the apartment, shrugged, and withdrew the letter and a small roll of tape from within her cleavage.

Nanako quickly taped the letter to the door, with strips of tape across all four corners to be certain it would be secure. With her task done, Nanako cracked a small smile, patting the letter to be sure it was secure, and turned around to leave.

[yinsukin]

Suerte

6:00pm

The familiar sway of the horse's hips was a nice one, even as she stared up and around the city.  The cowgirl couldn't help but giggle everytime Punishment passed a car or two, only to see some old man do a quick double-take.  Sometimes, there would be a scoff, or a "Who does he think he is, riding a horse on the road!?" but that was only in the inner city.  For some reason, the city-goers didn't seem to care too much about a horse from hell running around.  They acted like this sort of thing was normal....

Seeing as she was still new to the city, she loved to ask Justice questions, partially to learn things and partially to hear that manly voice in the wind.  "Hey Justice," she said, purring a little bit in his ear before giggling.  "Why are there a bunch of men in suits here?  I thought you said this was where poor people lived."

[YOLF]

Justice

He slowed down Punishment to a slow trot, as comfortable riding the beast on a road as he was on dirt and sand, and rumbled in response to Suerte.

"It is. And no one with the resources to hire suits like those would normally care about a murder or worse in the slums."

Justice gave the location a wide berth on his steed, keeping them within line of sight. He craned his neck, directing his silver gaze at Suerte over a shoulder. "If they're here," he said, "then it must be something much bigger, or someone important must have died, which raises its own questions."

And their presence en masse was stupidly broadcasting to everyone this was something to take notice of. Perhaps it was just so important they couldn't afford not having so many people here, but here, in the shadow of the possibly richest area of the Nexus... there were subtler means to employ.

Justice stretched a gloved hand into the hair, and a half-transparent raven came to be, perching on his fingers. He whispered something to it, and it flew off over the makeshift barricade, quietly seeking a high point to rest from which to overlook the area. The rider projected his senses into it.

[Kotomine_Rin]

The scene of the crime

"Damnit. No, listen. If they ask any questions, you- no. Are you an imbecile? Just deny. Deny, deny, deny, deny. I shouldn't even have to tell you this." The man's irritation was clear despite his hushed tone. With his sharp attire and raven hair cleanly cut, it was a shock that it didn't turn white- if he'd have any left by the end of the day.

Meanwhile, a massive square-jawed man took a few steps closer. His suit hardly hid his humongous size, to the point his face looked tiny compared to his fingers. He was dark skinned, his head so shaven you could see your own reflection on it. Despite his intimidating appearance, he seemed more troubled than not, even with the sunglasses. He approached the two.

"Excuse me. Sir, ma'am, this is a restricted area. Would you kindly leave?"

[yinsukin]

Suerte

Although his silver eyed gaze made her flutter a bit, the unease rising within the pit of her belly kept her facial features neutral.  "Bigger huh?  Sounds fun!  I'll let you do the talking here," she said, giving him a reassuring pat on the back.  "But don't worry, i'll back you up."

She had a feeling they might need to get a little aggressive.  Those two reeked of fear.

[YOLF]

Justice

He smirked under his scarf and turned back to the suit taking exception to their staring. The message was clear, and to most people, it would make both their and these suspicious fellows' lives easier if they just nodded and went back to whatever. Unfortunately, Justice didn't care about that.

"We were just passing through," the rider said, rolling his shoulders. "But should we be anxious? Askin' on the behalf of the neighborhood. And you and your colleagues, your faces don't look good."

[SINIB]

Tsumiko

As Nanako approached, the chirping of insects became noticably louder. The outside of the building was inconspicuous, a simple one story ramshackle hut, a bit larger than average. Vines grew off of the side of it and a faint scent of decay hung to the building's walls. An overhang cloaked the front entrance in shadows. As she stepped into it, a small familiar slid onto the bottom of her shoe, then inside it.

[Kotomine_Rin]

The Scene of the Crime

He shifted his foot and kicked a pebble away, looking uncomfortable. Finally, he sighed. "Haven't you heard the news? There's been a murder here. We don't want any troublesome reporters asking more questions. Today's been enough of a pain as is..."

He looked to the two of them with a solemn expression, only for something to click. His eyebrows did most of the talking, until he removed his sunglasses

"Wait a minute..." He cleaned them with a handkerchief and blinked at the woman. "Aren't you Suerte?"

[yinsukin]

Suerte

The cowgirl looked at Justice for a moment before returning her gaze to the suspicious man.  "Do you know me?" she asked, placing a finger on the bottom of her lip.  "I haven't been to the city for long ya know?"

[MissingMandible]

Mothra (as Lora):

"-So she had pointy ears? Was she an elf?"

"Maybe. She also had a red rock in her forehead."

"Thank you very much," Lora said, slipping a candy bar through the chain link fence. The boy she was talking to took it and ran off without another word.


A few days ago, when Lora was walking home from her part-time job, she spotted her neighbor crying on the bench in front of the apartment complex. Of course, Lora couldn't just walk by and ignore her, so she stopped to ask the woman what was wrong. The older lady explained between sobs that she had an argument with her son, Joshua, and he ran away the night before. While the local law enforcement were doing their rounds looking for him, if he left the district there would be nothing they could do. Since then, Lora's been following the trail the best she could, finding herself travelling through no less than five districts by this point and now currently in the Slums. A common place for people to run off to to disappear, but no place for a child.  Especially now that even the local children have been going missing.

But now the trail is heating up again. The mahou kaiju hadn't seen many elves here, especially not one with a stone in their foreheads. If she is the one who's also responsible for the other disappearances, Lora can knock out two birds with one stone. Now all she has to do is locate this mystery woman and pray that Joshua is okay.

[YOLF]

Justice

"We're not reporters," the rider said through a grunt. His eyes skidded questioningly to Suerte, and then refocused on the large man. "Perhaps we can help."

Justice dismounted Punishment, wrapping an arm around his companion's waist to bring her with him.

[SINIB]

Emiya

Emiya swallowed as he saw the all too familiar shadow emerge from the floor.

He took Tsumiko's outstretched hand, his hand coarse and unnaturally warm against hers.  "I assume it would go very badly for me if I did," he drawled before swallowing the lump currently forming in his throat.

Tsumiko

"You'd die." She answered simply. The shadows ate the two of them, and she squeezed his hand tightly. The shadows were cold, empty, vast, and directionless. He couldn't even tell up from down.

But then, they appeared in a kitchen that looked remarkably identical to Archer's.

She blushed. "We're here."