#soulstagger

Something to allow her to spread her wings, to learn something new, and even further her own personal goals without someone nearby.

All of that finally came to a close, one peaceful morning. All Nyalter would get, would be a little warning from Chengshu that it's nearly time.

Nearly time and some options for lodging, a little help from Chengshu's many girls to clear some space for an additional fold out bed. It would be a tight stay, but for a week or two they could manage until something else was figured.

That morning was all she got by the way, it was just a little after lunch after the rapidly chaotic task of preparing oneself for what only felt like a few months apart, was about to come to an end.

By now the memories, their time together, it was all so real feeling and meshed nicely with her life in Gensokyo. Like she had raised her girl in a town parallel to the village, at the same time as being here.

Regardless she arrival would be anything but quiet, the door swinging open with a loud and happy announcement.

"I'm home Mom!"

Flora Clarion, has finally returned from visiting a beautiful ocean side!

Half a day's notice is definitely short enough to make Nyalter fly into a slight panic. She's not fully freaking out, but things in the house are a little hectic for a while as Nyalter fusses over where Flora can sleep. It's definitely not as spacious of a house as they had previously.

Nyalter fusses over several different potential rooms all morning before finally settling on one. Because of that, she doesn't really even have time to prepare anything else. She'd originally wanted to set up more of a party, make some of Flora's favourite snacks, and maybe do some banners or something.

Then again, maybe that's a bit too much-

"Welcome home, Sweetheart~ I've missed you!"

Maybe she should just act smooth like everything has gone according to plan-

"So yeah, this is home for a while. This is the village where I grew up! I'm glad you can see it now. My house isn't all that spacious compared to where it used to live, but at least it keeps out the cold in winter."

She would have liked to have prepared a plate of cookies - There's no wafers at home but she could have gotten some mint-choco-chip ones ready at least-

"So, how was your trip?"

From Yuuka for that Otter that's always scurrying around and getting caught spying.

Faaaak Yoooou

"Aaah-hahaha-haaah..." Momoka's voice rattles in response. She's backed herself up away from Yuuka as much as she is able, but all that's left behind her is the cold embrace of a concrete wall.

Her legs tremble and sweat runs down her face. Right beyond her nose are Yuuka's massive breasts. She is far too terrified to look at them for more than a second, let alone Yuuka's right above her.

Momoka figures that she can't stay in this terrified state forever. She swallows her fear and slowly gazes up to meet Yuuka's eyes. "Ah... No, thank you." Another nervous laugh leaves her lips, but the harsh look that Yuuka gives her incites panic.

But it's Aldara taking a drink of it first before sharing the rest with her Emperor. A direct heated and gasping kiss, a leg pushed between hers as metal plating clatters and bends.

It ignites a fire in her that yearns for more, and yearns to be freed from that metal armor. A heat so painful that when her most devoted warrior prances back, gasping herself. Hand clutching her heart, one might almost want to leap back in.

Only...ah Hubert is knocking, seems the meeting has been moved ahead. And Aldara has no place in the limelight of politics, but their shared heat can rest a little.

Until the meeting is over, and the Emperor herself is ripping off her own chest plate demanding to know what her loyal hound has fed her.

Aphrodisiac Asks

“Aldara, good evening. I hope you are-” What Edelgard thought would be a small greeting for the night turned sour once the other woman grabbed her and forced her jaw open to force her lips

Edelgars’s lavender eyes widen in shock. Even before the start of the war, she had known Aldara as a bit of a wild card. One who would have sudden outbursts or invasions of privacy.

It seems all that had come to a head tonight, as Edelgard finds herself caught in the warrior’s mighty grip. The pressure that Edelgard puts on Aldara’s muscles with her own strength builds up once Edelgard tastes the sweet liquid rush down her throat.

Her eyes shift towards Aldara’s burning furiously with a look that could put Bernadetta to sleep permanently. Her small body is squeezed as the hound delightfully smiles. Edelgard can feel the cur’s lips curl against her own. Then, she is released.

“What-” She is cut off by her own coughs. “What in the world?!” Edelgard turns towards her retainer with burning eyes. “Aldara, you had better explain yourself!” Her eyes are pulled away from Aldara towards the open door. Hubert is here, and he has a grim look on his face, more than usual. That’s about to be expected once he has Aldara in his sights, like he wishes to murder her where she stands.

However he must attend to his duties first, and Edelgard is informed that she must appear at a meeting with the other lords of the empire posthaste. Aldara already seems to be making her getaway, and so Edelgard has no choice but to track her down later for a further scolding.

Edelgard moves swiftly to be crowned and escorted towards the meeting chamber. The effects of the aphrodisiac would flare right before she enters. Her twisted face and crooked smile strike the lords, making her appear as if they caught the emperor in a bad mood.

Indeed the marks of the first are all over each, but one is violent and untamed, and the other is carved and meticulous.

One is a body shredded and torn into, it's nestled inside a small fence, bite marks all over of various beasts, and claw marks of another creature across it's neck. The body has been tortured and left for hungry starving animals to attempt to get at, this is how it's brought to the guard's attention.

The hounding and clawing of beasts wanting the tortured body, yet somehow despite clearly being attacked by some monster and these hungry hounds, they managed to isolate themselves. What slow agonizing death awaited them? Throat maimed enough not to yell but bleeding so slow, the body covered in shallow wounds yet too weak where it all counts to escape.

Trapped in a cycle, draped around them are the collars of these starving hounds. Did they belong to the deceased? It seems not, strays and lost beasts with old collars and nothing more.

A body decorated as if it was being feasted on by it's own hounds, maimed by something far strong... Ravenous and wild, yet the second scene is nothing like it.

It's serene and methodical, the welcoming arms of faith holding the terrified body of a youth. Both killed as they held each other, candles are spread all around to illuminate a beacon of warmth and joy.

As if mockingly suggesting a scared youth had found safety in the arms of an adult, of someone strong. Yet left so fleeting, the red pooling around their legs as they're already stiff as bone.

As if the murderers had parted, the violence on one side depicts a situation of no escape...

The other, a moment of fleeting hope.

And in blood, written at the first scene. "Familiar fangs and blood sucking torture."

The second scene seems to continue, yet it's written then hastily erased. Whatever it could have said, withheld... the truth obscured, purposely or accidentally?

She doesn't like this, not one bit. The signs make it clear that they're dealing with two killers, both with the same goal, but wildly different methodologies. A monster and it's handler? Allies? Kin? This only spreads the guards and knights even thinner.

And then there's the message.

There is... the possibility that it's unrelated. That it's making reference to a different monster, or an organization. But... then someone pointed something out, that the crime scenes were laid out as one might arrange a symbolic painting. When reframed like that... Hounds turning on the master, fruitless salvation... again in her head it makes her think Selene, but the execution is all wrong. Selene doesn't leave things out, she makes announcements, declarations, bold statements that cannot be missed.

But every time she thinks she's got it, her head feels like it's going to split! Like the connection she needs is buried in a great pile of thorns, and she lacks the armour to push them aside. The killer must be somehow linked to the memories Selene stripped from her! But how did she lose them? How can she get them back? Was it just a coincidence, or was Selene involved after all.

No, every time she tries to connect Selene to this mess, she can feel it in her bones, that this isn't her. But if that's the case, where the hell was Selene?!

"Marie! I found a bottle of fancy plum wine last week, let's split it!"

They don't seem to have done down fighting entirely, their guard was down it seemed? Perhaps they were concerned for someone out late at night, a few are found with a bag or sack opened but nothing stolen. As if they were going to offer a drink of water or some bread.

There's no coins missing, nothing valuable stolen or collected. They're killed so deliberately, yet it's not the killing blow that strikes one as odd.

It's the fangs, the claws, the marks after death that puzzle one. Like a beast was allowed to toss and wrangle the body after the head was removed.

The killing blow each time is a single strike into the heart, the slow intimate experience of losing one's life while staring down their killer.

Yet the head is torn off, claws and fangs rip and tear it clean off the body. The heads mounted as a decoration, the lips positioned in a way that all six seem to be mouthing something, a different word or sound.

'Th' 'Eh' 'Ah' 'Yo' 'Fe' 'He'

The language might be not match however, it would puzzle anyone looking into it.

As for the rest of the bodies, they're simply tossed aside all over, beyond the aforementioned beastly aftermath, there's nothing special about them. Simply left in places for innocents to stumble across.

Like a wild beast had rampaged the scene after a slow methodical kill.

Yet no skin of the attacker, no hair, not a drop of the attackers blood or saliva, no sweat. It's like it's all cleaned up. Purposely left to be found, purposely left to puzzle and instill fear in a populace still spooked by recent events.

"The evidence seems to point to one of two things, neither of them are particularly pleasant. Either it's two different people, one who lures in and kills the victims, and another that mutilates the bodies, or one killer that deliberately kills the victim and positions their head, then ravages the body to scare the people who find it."

"I tried my joker, and even though the killer left no physical evidence, their essence clings to the kill and everything they touched, almost disgustingly so, but..."

"The trail goes cold. Not in a sense that the killer got away, but more like... it's as if they simply vanished."

"Not like teleportation, no. Teleportation magic still leaves a kind of trail, I'd at least be able to see the cardinal direction they'd gone."

"No this is something... more disturbing. Whoever... or whatever did this, traversed the planes. Either to another dimension... or another world entirely. Something not of this world is killing in this city, in a way meant to provoke the guards and scare the people. But why?"

"No... this isn't her handiwork. Selene has a way of doing things, she escalates over time. This is too much at once, but not flashy enough to follow her last kills. This is someone else."

"What do you think was the motive?"

"These victims... their only link is proximity, they were chosen because they were nearby, nothing more. This is the work of a monster..."

"Should we contact the guild?"

"The guild... and the knights. Regular monsters aren't this deliberate. Whatever did this is calculated, trying to send a message."

"What about your cards, any luck with those?"