pishirogane | prismatica

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[He would sneak a kiss to the temple before he rose, fixed his coat, and 'looked for the bathroom'. He needed to see what the others had to say, or maybe plant the rumor that he was entering the Crystal Fist tournament. That'll perk some ears.

Maybe he wasn't so bad at this investigation stuff...]

[It would perk some ears alright, but she doesn't think she likes the look of those now whispering about his entry. Still, she said nothing, waiting patiently for him to return from the 'bathroom'.]

[He settled back in his seat, carrying with him a basket of skewers of various meats, seafood and vegetables. They weren't the fanciest-looking foods, however; they seemed more greasy-spoon levels.

He offered her one.]

Called it. They don't talk to anybody but fighters.

[Looking over at him once he returned, she eyed the plate. Nothing like what they made... and she doesn't know if she wanted to have any of it. Still, her 'bodyguard' was offering and she should have something.]

Makes sense. What did you learn?

[And she'll try one of the seafood skewers...]

[It's pretty uninspired. Just seafood with a little lemon juice kicked on for a little kick. Fortunately, she wasn't going to be suffering any form of food poisoning. Kanji helped himself, naturally, to the crunchier skewers, ones cooked a little too long. He liked a little crust on the steak.]

Barney's on a shitload of Glow. He trains with it, he lives with it, and they pump him full of the shit before every single match. It makes him huge, almost godlike. Nobody knows what he was like before the circuit.

[He lowered his voice.]

Tried askin' who manages him and they got cagey. Nobody will gimme a name, only tellin' me to quit asking if I wanted to be able to walk outta Level 3 in one piece.

[Ugh... They need to cook something after this was over. This practically flavorless junk wouldn't do. Meanwhile, she also scowled over the information on Barbarus, not liking the odds and made a mental note to be present when Kanji faced him.]

... Our main target then.

[He nodded.]

So I'm thinkin', if he gets juiced up before matches, he might need to check in with his boss to approve a dose and oversee the process.

I mean, why have some lackey do it and potentially screw it up, and money goes down the drain, right?

It would. However, at the same time, getting a chance to see this happen isn't likely. I expect his locker or where ever this will be handled is going to be under tight surveillance.

Hmm, damn, you're right. I kinda hoped with whatever they got that bans magic, they'd put it on and maybe there's a bit of shit-talk between me n' Barney before the match.

But that's the movies. This is real.

Yes...

Beside that, Glow sounds like a steroid. If anything, that amplifies physical strength so whatever they use to ban magic will have no effect.

Right... so all I can do now is just wait for the tournament to start and see what goes.

[He nodded, thoughtful. Or maybe to comfort himself. He couldn't help smelling a whole lot of blood emanating from the arena.]

[She doesn't smell what he does, but she does feel a shift. Carefully, she placed a hand on his leg.]

I'll be there, watching...

[His leg was steely, and even trembling a bit as he let his foot bob up and down in his sudden upshift in anxiety. It stilled when her hand settled.]

Right. Okay. Right.

It isn't like you to be unnerved by a challenge like this. What's going on?

I guess a part of me's still a coward.

[He hesitated. He didn't want to note that he'd heard whispers that Barnabus had killed a good number of his opponents, and figured it was a figure of speech.]

Never ignored my gut before, and it's sayin' 'don't do it'. But this is our way in. I gotta do this. Just gotta shake it, that's all.

... You're not a coward. Your instincts are warning you this match-up isn't ideal.

[He half-nodded, focused on the crowds.]

Makes me wonder what else boils underneath all this stuff. A drug ring is pretty par for the course for underground crimes, but I wonder if there's seedier underbellies somewhere.

[He paused.]

Kinda wonder if I should look into bein' one'a those Moon Knights.

I've heard rumors of a black market of sorts on the third floor, but I wouldn't be surprised if a larger one existed down here.

[And she cringed. Organ trades were a thing... and possibly Prismal trafficking.]

I don't know... you might become more aware of what happens down here, but they don't regulate what occurs until it becomes an issue on the higher levels.

You're right. I'd keep worrying about Level 3 but watch as everything bleeds into 1 n' 2.

I thought about my own business, honestly, but... Chromawear just kicks ass. It's got a monopoly. Hell, back home we had an edge against Junes, but this is like a Mega Junes.

I think you could edge above Chromawear, though. It can be anything, but it's a drain on Chroma to use. I'd rather save it for the right occasion, so having casual or formal clothes I don't have to worry about abruptly losing would be nice.

[She... had a point. He'd use his Chromawear and feel a little drained after so many changes, and about half the time he just wore what he'd made for himself. Could there really be a market for regular clothes...? It'd help the newcomers, certainly. He'd seen Yosuke earlier, fresh off the vine, not a drop of Chroma in him.]

Hmm. I'll... see about what it takes to work from home, maybe, save on renting a building.

Our lease is up soon, too. Guess instead of just a place we could live in together we should look into a couple extra rooms for like... a study-slash-office for you and a studio for me, too.

[Whatever happened, she figures it would work out. Even if clothing didn't take off, he could still do custom jobs or... lingerie.]

That sounds perfect. I myself might start making... toys. To help alleviate Iris needs.

[Toys? ...Oh. Now that he thought about it, it was basic motors all wrapped up in squishy material.

He lowered his voice and smiled.]

Hittin' the shops can be pretty stressful, yeah.

[It was tougher for them than they thought. But an idea occurred to him.]

I paid off those parts I kinda... stole as a dragon, by the way. Hey, you think stuff you'd need would all be in there?

You tell me... but next time, don't run in yelling the whole time, okay?

[She laughed softly under her breath.]

Hm, I saw quite a number of useful parts. The only thing is I've never really constructed anything of the sort. Until I know what I'll try making, anything might have its potential use.

[He blinked. Then, he gaped at her. SHE WAS THERE!?]

[But he pulled his collar and jacket closer to him when she continued. Okay. Okay, he needed to maybe be more attentive to his surroundings. Good job, Kanji, you jackass.]

S-s-so maybe we should buy a couple and you could take 'em apart. Sorta reverse-engineer it, yeah?