Interconnected: Spliced Souls

Momo, Itarr, and I had another conversation when we awoke. The goddess felt not so much as uncomfortable as she did uncertain about things. Momo said that was normal. People were complex. It was impossible to understand emotions as clearly as words in a book.   

“And you’re a…you know,” Momo said after getting dressed. “You’re way more complicated than Servy and I. Or anyone else. Oh, and I talked to Foxy Me, but she was tight-lipped as always.”  

We spent a few more minutes just talking. Itarr’s voice gradually softened. The worry was there.   

It would always remain until after she had made her introduction to a certain noble girl.   

But we had plans to snuggle again tonight. A sleepover was always fun. And Momo said she’d show Itarr how to act like a singi, reminiscing what Butterfly Rumble did during my first night in Srassa’s mansion.   

Itarr said she was looking forward to it. Momo hugged my phone close before her stomach growled loud enough to wake the dead. She nervously chuckled and scratched her chin.   

“Guess we should quell your belly before it tries to eat us.”  

“Don’t talk like it’s a monster! It’s…only a little gluttonous…”  

---

Cassidy didn’t return until we had finished breakfast. She walked into the kitchen, and I knew she hadn’t gotten much rest. Her coat still bore the same bloody stains as it did last night.   

“Good morning!” chirped Saline. She quickly poured Cassidy a bowl of sausage stew while Cue rubbed against her legs. “How did the meeting go?”  

“It’s fine. Don’t worry about it.” She eyed the bowl and lit another cigarette. “What plans do you have today?”  

“I never finished giving you two a tour of the city,” said Saline. She turned to us and smiled. “So I’d like to do that before anything else.”  

“I guess we did get a little distracted, huh? But it’s okay. We can do something else,” Momo replied, chowing down on her third bowl.   

Seriously... Her stomach had to be endless… Or maybe singi burned that many more calories? I mean, her tail was always moving, so…  

“You’re doing something else.” Cassidy finally ate a spoonful of the stew and placed a sealed envelope on the table.  

I recognized the emblem. “The Crimson Grotto?!”  

“That’s right. I want you to deliver it to the Queen of Night for me.”  

“What’s this about? You regret leaving so suddenly?” I expected something witty, but Cassidy looked stern.   

“Yeah. I do. So what? Even someone like me can feel like shit.” I asked if this was an apology, and she grunted and ate two more spoonfuls of stew. She ashed her cigarette and took a long puff, exhaling black smoke from her nostrils. “You’d want to have Nimyra as a friend. Especially if you want to get ahead in life. She’s a good woman. She looks after other people.”  

“I can confirm that,” I added. “I was a total stranger, and she welcomed me with open arms.”  

“I’ve heard about her, but...”  

“I’m sure she has a lot of stories and rumors, but she’s just a friendly gal. She’s easy to talk to and always willing to listen.” Momo finished her last bowl and turned to her cup of tea. Citrus and sugar tickled her nostrils as the refreshing beverage quenched her thirst.  

There wasn't a better way to end a delicious meal. 

“Really?”  

“Yep. You know, it would be nice to see her.” Momo looked at me. “But Servy has the fights. And I want to learn a little more about medicine making. If that’s okay, that is.” She turned to Cassidy, who nodded.   

While I was sure that was part of the reason, Momo was still worried about the aged apothecary. We talked for an hour in the bed in our soul world about what to do, but nothing came to mind except spending time with her.   

“Are you scared of traveling alone?”  

Saline shook her head, but the elf nodded after saying she didn’t want to lie. “I’m uncomfortable with it. It almost frightens me more than I want to admit.” When asked about her earlier quests with the guild, she confessed and said she only went on gathering and low-rank missions that posed little risk. “I know how to shoot. I practice every morning in the backyard after I wake up. But…” She admitted she felt like a fake adventurer.   

A poser—if you will.   

Momo immediately told her to stop thinking like that and said every mission was worth doing. It all made the world a little bit better, and if everyone did their part, things would be a gentler, kinder place to live. “You don’t have to jump in the deep end. I got my start chasing rats out of gardens and helping old ladies with their shopping at the village market.”  

“Hey, how about this? Why don’t we introduce you to Dineria? And Claire?”  

“Ooohhh! That’s a good idea, Servy.” Momo retrieved paper and pencils from her bag and scribbled a few letters. “Okay, so Claire’s our girl at the guild. And she introduced us to Dineria, our mentor. So, they’ll take care of you if you give them these letters. They can offer you some pointers. Oh, and Dineria can introduce you to Srassa.”   

“You two would do this for me?”  

“Eh? Why not? I can’t exactly leave my newest student out to dry, haha! But Dineria would say any student of mine is a student of hers.”  

“She makes a good point. Saline, learn under Dineria. It’ll be good for you.”  

“But what about you? Cassidy, you can’t run the shop by yourself.”  

“But I can. I’ve been doing it for years before you came around. Don’t go counting me out, goddamn it.  I ain’t croaking just yet.” Cassidy narrowed her eyes and stared at me.   

Was this her answer to what we discussed last night? Was it meant to make me feel better?  

“But… What…”  

“Ah, and we…gotta do that, too. Servy, are you thinking what I’m thinking?”  

“Are we about to post our first quest at the guild?”  

“Yeppers!” Saline was confused, but Momo broke it down. Basically, we had tens of thousands of dupla just chilling. And while we needed a lot for our scheme to work, we could realistically spend about ten thousand and still come out on top. “Besides, it’s not like a handout or anything. We really need someone we can trust to deliver these letters.” Momo said she’d provide the fare for a taxi service to get to Canary, but Cassidy scoffed and told us to save our money.    

“There’s a mage that owes me a favor,” she said. “He’s affiliated with the guild and is a licensed teleporter. He’ll send you to Canary.”  

“But doesn’t—”  

“Don’t worry about the cost. It’s free. The mage ain’t charging me a goddamn dupla for it.”  

“And it’s okay if you wanna hang out there. Dineria and Nimyra will look after you. And then we can meet up again once we return. We can have a little reunion party to celebrate. We really want you to meet Srassa, and then you can become the next member of Butterfly Rumble!” I swore Momo’s smile could brighten a room.   

Saline blushed, but her hesitation showed. "But you're doing all this for me? I can't repay--" 

“And there’s no need. Seriously, I think it’d be awesome to have you and Cue with us. Of course, that’s if you want it.”  

“I do…” Saline looked at Cassidy. The elf was torn. “I don’t…want to be who I used to be,” she confessed. “I hated that woman. She was too stupid…and her stupidity almost...killed her and her best friend.” Saline called over Cue and hugged him close to her heart. The furry mutt loved the attention.   

“And you don’t have to be her,” Momo whispered. “Servy…told me how you two met. And I’m sure you must still be afraid. And that’s natural. It really is. But Dineria’s been there. She can help you just like she helped Servy.”  

“Momo’s right. Dineria’s the perfect one to talk to. And Nimyra, too. I can’t thank them enough for their advice and care. The world is full of bad people, but the helpers are there. They’re out there.”  

“Oh… I think I’m about to cry… Umm—Ex—Excuse me!” Saline darted upstairs with Cue.   

“Did we—”  

“Nah. We didn’t.”  

“The girl’s right,” Cassidy said. “Look at it from her eyes. You know her past. You know how shit her life used to be. Sudden kindness can be uncomfortable for those who were never given it. Just give her time.” The apothecary said to give Saline an hour or two, but she returned within ten minutes wearing her equipment.    

“I’ll do it. I know I must overcome…this uneasiness.” Her words were shaky—her voice quivering like a teetering nail. Nervous sweat salted her trembling lips. She even slightly shook and needed to hold her hands to her chest.   

This really frightened her. She had probably developed a dependency on Cassidy since Saline didn’t have anyone else after she killed her husband.   

She also slaughtered her rapists after I saved her. Only she knew how those traumatic events had affected her psyche. Maybe she blamed everything on herself. Or she feared a similar fate befalling her.   

It could’ve been a mix of all three.   

“Servi, I’ve been relying on you for so much. You saved me…and introduced me to Cassidy… And now you’re really, truly helping me get this second chance. I always feared it was too late, but… It’s not, is it?”  

“I don’t think anything is too late for an elf,” joked Momo. “Or even for a human or a singi. My grandpa always said you should always learn new things whenever possible. It's important. This is a big step for you. Those who say it’s easy need some sense knocked into them.”  

Someone knocked on the door. Cassidy left as we continued, and she returned with Sissy and the others.   

“Sorry for the intrusion! We’re not too early, are we?”  

“Not at all. Ain’t no customers come at this time of day, so do whatever you want,” grunted Cassidy. She occupied her lips with a cigarette, and Momo explained Saline’s latest mission.   

“Eh? You’re getting to meet the Queen of Night? Envy? Hello? Just call me jealous.” Gerld suddenly grinned.  

“Don’t even start thinking like that, you perv! You hound dog!” berated Sissy. Gerld just laughed and said he had an innocent mind. Sissy was the one who was thinking lewd thoughts about the country’s most famous prostitute. “No—I wasn’t! Shut up!” She turned around in a huff while I laughed. Suusa just kneeled and rubbed Cue.    

“Canary’s a safe city. They’re refocusing on safety after the incident with that underground slave market," said Suusa. He kneeled and scratched Cue under his chin. It seemed like his mood had differed, so maybe this was what he was really like? I preferred him like this over the old standoffish guy he used to be.  “If you’re going to place a mission, you might want to leave. The guild was fairly packed.”  

“That’s a good point. Saline, are you and Cue ready?”  

The elf nodded and picked up her dog, and we left Cassidy’s shop and headed towards the guild.   

Upon arriving, we stood in line with Momo while she placed the quest, and Saline immediately accepted it.   

“And there’s your transport.” Cassidy pointed to a white-bearded man smoking a pipe. He looked refined enough to fit my image of an aged wizard.   

“Do you have everything?” Momo asked.   

“I do.” Saline patted her hip pouch. She tenderly touched her dagger’s pommel and brushed a hand against her bow. The nearly empty quiver on her hip seemed so lonely. “I’m… I can do this… And… I’ll be waiting for you two… I’m going to learn with Dineria. I hope that when we next meet… I’ll be almost unrecognizable.”  

“That’s fine and all, but don’t rush. And don’t be discouraged if it takes a while to get the hang of something. Training is called training for a reason.” Momo hugged her new friend, and I joined, making it a group embrace. Momo hadn’t known her for long, but she already regarded her as a close companion. We wanted to see her thrive.   

“There’s this.”  

“There’s what?” Saline turned to Cassidy and wiped her misty eyes.  

Her wrinkled hands held an envelope.  “I want you to read this tonight. Do not open it until then.” Saline took it with a smile and carefully stashed it in her pouch. “Take care, Saline. I’ll see you soon.”  

“That’s right. This isn’t an ending. It’s just an ‘I’ll see you later, okay?’ type of situation. When Servi and I meet with you in Canary, we can snag Srassa and return. And then she can watch Servy fight some more.  And maybe we can head to Adenaford afterward to see Lucy?”  

“Well, look at that? It seems like we have the next few months already planned out. Have fun, Saline. We’ll be back within the week, okay?”  

“Yes. I’ll be waiting!” Saline couldn’t hide her tears. She wiped them and walked to the mage, then she turned and faced us with a bright, beautiful smile as particles surrounded her. Cue walked over, and she picked him up. She lifted his paw and waved goodbye at us.    

And just like that…   

Saline was gone.  

No.  

She was in a better place. Cassidy was one thing. But if Saline wanted to heal and grow, she needed Dineria and Nimyra. The poor elf had a lot of demons in her closet that she needed to confront, and I seriously thought those two were the best to help her become a better woman.  

“So…” We turned to Gerld, who leaned against his spear. “What’s the plan for today?”  

“Whatever it is isn’t going to involve you,” Cassidy said, pointing at me.   

“Why? Do you need me for something?”  

“I do. Meet me outside in a minute.”  

“And you can’t even throw in a please?” I shrugged as Cassidy walked away.    

“As cold as her reputation precedes her, huh? That woman has ice in her veins,” added Gerld, who joked that it was Momo’s and Albert’s turn to adventure with them since it was me yesterday.    

“She’s…a character,” I added.   

“Don’t worry about us, Servy,” Momo said, patting her bag. “We’ll be fine. Here, I’ll walk you to the door. Can you two find a quest for us?”  

Sissy nodded and approached the quest board while Momo escorted me to the exit. I texted Itarr for a favor, and…  

“You’re probably going to be fighting golems,” I said, handing her an acid version of her wrist-mounted crossbow. Momo clasped it on her other firearm and said it fit like a glove. “Just in case you run low on skill energy. Oh, and take my phone.”  

Okie-dokie.” She stashed it in her bag and gave me a hug. “Wait, is that?” She turned to the window, and I saw a carriage pulling up.   

“I don’t even know what that woman wants me to do,” I said, staring at the cranky woman sitting inside.   

“I guess you don’t want to keep her waiting, huh? Good luck with that, I guess.”  

“Same to you. See you later?”  

“Yeppers! Bye-bye.” Momo cutely waved and skipped back to join Albert and the others, and I sighed and wondered what Cassidy would throw at me.    

---

“And here I thought the frugal Cassidy wouldn’t spare the dupla for such a luxurious ride,” I said, entering the carriage. It was honestly beautiful--like a work of art in how the embedded rubies in the window frame sparkled like orbs of crimson when the light hit them.   

“It ain’t mine,” she replied, knocking on the window behind her. The driver snapped his reins, and we were off. I looked and saw Momo and the others standing in line. She glanced at the phone, turned, smiled, and waved as we departed.    

“Ah, so you’re a thief, then?”   

“…”  

“And nothing again. Anyway, what do you need me for?”  

“You need money, right? And a lot of it? Is 40,000 enough for what you desire?”  

“Honestly?” I sighed. “Probably not.”  

“Why do you want so much?”  

“Most will be donated to the orphanage being built near Canary. And the rest will go to charity, I guess. Maybe I’ll keep a couple thousand for a rainy day.”  

“Bullshit. You can’t frame the true reason with something so pure. That type of shit doesn’t suit you.” Cassidy raised an eyebrow and laughed.   

“And you know me so well?”  

“It isn’t hard to figure you out. You’re the type of idiot to throw her life away to save someone. So I…” I sat and listened to her accurate deduction.   

Yep.   

She had figured out I wanted to solve the mystery behind the missing fighters.   

“That’s too good for a guess. Surely, I’m not that open. I was trying to be subtle about it.” I told her my other plan—to purposely make myself a target.   

“Only an idiot would do something so stupid.”  

“Well, I’d have probably done it if I were alone.”  

“And you don’t think winning tens of thousands is any safer?” rebutted Cassidy.   

“Safer than the other option when the girl in question is on a time limit,” I said, explaining that Momo and I were returning to Canary with Sissy and her group. “So, you know why I wanted to fight. Where are you taking me? To the culprit?”  

Cassidy laughed and lit another cigarette. She tossed one to me, I stashed it, Itarr ignited it, and it appeared between my slightly parted lips like some magic trick. “If only it was that simple. No, I don’t know who’s behind it.” She puffed and visibly relaxed after rolling her eyes to the left. “But I know how you can find the answer.”  

“Care to let me know? I need to prepare myself.”  

“There’s no need for that,” she replied, pointing at my fists. “Those are the only things you need.”