Lily wandered around not really knowing where exactly Seneschal's was.
The only clue was that it's clientele were over protective and most likely
servants. She wandered the walkways looking for any significant signs. The
early afternoon guided the masonry in golden tones. The air was still but
carried music and shouting from the top to the bottom of the city From what she
thought to be a nobles spire, six servant girls giggled their way onto the joining
walkway. Although their laughter irritated her, their conversation that
punctuated it was of more interest. They were heading to a birthday party. What
made this special was that it was going to be cooked by a native of the Beyond,
and cuisine they had never tried. They were headed to Seneschal's. Lily deftly
followed, masked by the crowds. She listened to their inane chatter, about the mundane
details about their lives that made them so interesting to each other. They
were soft, mollycoddled by the city. Their lives seemed petty and insignificant
to Lily. To distract herself she tried to envisage her mark but came to the
sudden conclusion that she had no idea what this gentleman would look like. She
would need to get into the kitchen.
On the outside Seneschal's had the markings of being above its level.
There were variegated plants in ornate pots. The black iron tables and chairs
were neatly stowed and a few trinkets adorned the entrance like wind chimes.
The bricks however betrayed the lie. They were marked, mossy and slightly
cracked. The new furnishings apparently trying to mask its age. This interested
Lily as she went in, wondering how much was a facade, and how much was the true
Seneschal's. The group of girls sat down in one of the booths, already
decorated for festivities. Lily looked for a table of her own, a quiet one, out
of the way but in line of sight to the kitchen door. The one she had picked was
underneath an old painting, which looked like it had spilled onto the table
cloth. She cautiously sat down, trying not to garner the attention of the old
man who was shuffling between table to table. A short while past, with Lily
having to at least order a drink then out of the corner of her eye she could
see the glimmer of amethyst and could hear the familiar irritating tones. She
tried to hold her gaze but it was too late. Chloe in her desperation to leave
the table was now frantically waving over at Lily. In repine she hide herself
behind her menu and tried to ignore her. Eventually she had to wav back but
refused to sit with them. Chloe sank back down into her chair. In the meantime Lily
had noticed that the waiter was the only one serving, so with his back turned,
she tried to sneak into the kitchen.
Within a blink of an eye Kal had moved from the table to the door. He
now blocked her path, and his stature
and imposing body language made it clear she could not pass. On the other hand
however Chloe's reaction was not as logical. In her state of constant fear she
was scared Kal's sudden movement, and in that moment reacted violently, in hope
to protect her friend. Before Chloe could react, Lily knew she had to bide her time
and sat further back in the restaurant, far out of view. Chloe instantly jumped
from her seat and flung herself at the man. She latched on to his arm with both
hands and preceded to transmute the armour covering it. A slightly synthesised
scream ruptured the polite silence. He removed his helmet. Underneath were pained
cybernetic eyes, a scared bald head, and a look full of fear. Chloe realised
her mistake, far too late. He asked innocently, why this human had harmed him?
Why had she wanted to kill him? What was the logic? How can he understand? Lily
left before Chloe could do more damage. She would have to investigate another
way.
Chloe backed down, looking for an escape route, realising that she could
not transmute his life sustaining armour back into its original composites.
Every face she looked at now stared at her, and as she tried to leave, the
twenty four people including the birthday party all stood up. They didn't rush
to help. By the looks in their eyes, Chloe judged that they were fearful, but aggressive.
She had to leave and she had to leave fast. She dashed for the door but Kal was
there before she could take her first step. The customers, Kal's friends and acquaintances
stood up. The uniformity of it was almost unnatural. They started to surround
her, blocking her view of even the walls. In a state of pure terror she lashed
out, firing a razor sharp shard of amethyst from her hands towards where she thought was the
door. She cut down an innocent man. She had sliced his gut open, his innards now
spilling onto the floor. She lashed out again, slicing the chest piece of Kal's
armour, forcing it to split from his body. He writhed in agony, his eyes fading
to a dim light, his left hand and both feet twitching. The crowd was mortified,
in the seconds they were stunned Chloe flew out the door. One of the patrons a
robed and hooded woman did not however stand up at the fight, she had sat all
the way through. She had got up just as the first man died, walked serenely
over to the fight, waited for the girl to leave repaired Kal's armour and
followed Chloe without a word. The mob followed baying for blood. Chloe quickly
found herself at the edge the platform outside with nowhere to run. The crowd was
crying out for her punishment and her execution. Tears started to fall from her
face, the first in a very long time.
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