Get a job!

After an embarrassing clean-up, involving a certain Artisan laughing so hard she nearly passed out; our group gathered outside the Domain, back at the bar of the tavern. Each of us went around the place, asking where to find work; only to have disgruntled patrons shoo us off. Eventually, we were **** to look elsewhere, only for me to bump headfirst into someone.

"Oh golly! I'm sorry!"

Having walked headfirst into a bouncing pair of fleshy mounds while exiting the tavern, I'm knocked over by their scaled owner, who quickly retreated. I see the beautiful brown eyes of a rosy-cheeked young woman, with freckled pale skin, and lovely scarlet hair; who's lower half was that of an enormous serpent. Scales dotted her body similarly to my own, crowning beneath the jaw, gathering across the forearms; all the same hue as her hair. Her attire was a loose fitting, blue gown; covering where her two halves met; oddly, she bore no scrap of red cloth. Her humanoid half was of a slightly larger build than Ashes; her "standing" height being indiscernable, as she slithered too and from the five-six foot range, bobbing up and down as she moved.

She panics, asking. "Oh, are you alright, Mam?"

"Mam!?" I shout, gritting my teeth. "God's damn it.... not me too."

"Hehehe..." Giggles a certain gem atop a staff.

Her cheeks matching her scales now, she clasps her hands to her mouth. "Oh! I'm so sorry for presuming! Here, let me help you up."

Pulled up by the She-Snake, I dust off my ill fitting clothes; still angry that my new body had brought a whole new world of annoyances. Once all was done, she bowed her head in apology, and wormed her way into the tavern.

"Oro! Get in the kitchen already!" Yells the Minotaur as we walk down the road, further into the town.

The faint sound of cheering patrons can be heard; her cooking must be well known, and of high quality.

"Finally, it's not just me." Says Ariel, still hiding within his Alm.

I stare daggers at the gemstone. "One more word, and I'm going to eat a village."

"Don't tease Monster like that!" Says Gabriella, whirling the staff around, then knocking me on the noggin with that same stick. "And no eating people."

"Aw... fine, sis"

"Ow! I was joking!"

We finally reach a more densely populated part of Bludbag, where Cilla stops us in our tracks; a figure in a green cloak catching her eye. Beckoning us forward, the Red-Hood leads us through the bustling crowd slowly along our approach, until we arrive at a well, centering a ring of buildings; where this hooded figure remains.

"Sister Eve?" Cilla calls out.

The green-cloaked individual spins about in surprise; her voice carrying a small electric hum, and not the slightest hint of worry. "Sister Priscilla? I thought you were in the Tomo Branch."

"I am, still. I have two charges with me." Says our handler, pointing to Sammy and I. "They're progressing rather well."

Looking over this Sister Eve, she seemed to be one of those Machine people. Her face was a flat plate of glass, displaying a variety of square lights to form the vague, and cartoonish shapes of eyes, a nose, and a mouth. From the looks of her hands, her body seemed to be oddly pliable; as she pressed her hands together in confusion, the tips would squish like flesh would. The material itself reminded me of my visions of Fawk's childhood. She stood at around the same height as Zana, an only half an inch taller or so. Her attire was similar to that of Cilla's, but with a green cloak in place of the red, and several pieces of the clothing having been patched or altered with the furs of beasts.

Cilla suddenly embraces Eve in a hug, causing her face-display to become an exclamation point. "Oh! Two at once... ah, and I see your cloak is still intact. My condolences, Sister Priscilla."

"Oh, it's fine... they're simple enough to teach." Says Cilla. "How have you been? It's been so long since we last spoke."

"Well." Eve simply says. "In the last month, I've helped three patients with their mental-wounds, and I helped this creature regain function after it fell from a tree."

She pulls from her cloak a small, long fluffy critter of some kind with silvery fur, which dashes around her hand; playing with her fingers. "I've named her Dart; she refuses to return to the... woods, from which she came."

The Wyrdwood; kind of her to not say it aloud.

"I see." Says Cilla. "Well, our group has been looking around for work to continue on our trip to Hoctin; you seem to have been here a while. Any ideas?"

Eve's face becomes a series of dots (...) followed by a whispered response. "One of our number has turned to a life of crime; a Black-Hood Hunter, to be exact. Would you assist me in locating and eliminating this threat? He has a bounty of around a hundred gold."

When saying "eliminating", the display of her face flashed red; her voice suddenly violently enraged, a stack contrast to her usual dull, calm hum.

I peer over Cilla, saying. "A Black Hood? I think we already ran into him... he's dead."

"Truly?" Asks the machine girl. "Do you have his head as proof?"

"Ew..." Whispers Zana, wincing at the thought.

"Sadly, no... his corpse may still be there; what with being in that box. Long story." Cilla says, her gloved hand itching under her chin. "Well, we may as well check! Will you come along, Sister Eve?"

"Oh, of course!" Says the Green-Hood in question, her face-display shimmering into a smile. "We really must catch up properly, Sister Priscilla; swap notes, and all."