Chapter 2: Home, but the heart is elsewhere
It was nothing impressive, a one-person salvaging vessel made with practicality in mind and little else. Using the term loosely, it only had four rooms and a cargo hold. Each but one of them had their own entrance from the outside. The cabin and the kitchenette were supposedly only separated by a counter that stretched out from the wall. The communications room was more like a walk-in closet with five machines shoved inside.
Nia was relieved to find the washroom was perfectly ordinary. Particularly the shower. Well, it was a bathtub with a showerhead. Seemed there was some business with catching and storing the rain as it rolled off the bulbous, floating titan from which the ship hung. Nia didn't really catch the full explanation, mostly because both she and the explainer were far more eager to clean themselves off.
Apparently trying to be a gentleman, Rex insisted that the lady go first.
"For the record, the whole 'lady' business is only a habit of Dromarch's. Just Nia is fine." She explained. After her shower, of course. She wasn't about to complain about getting free dibs on the first turn, not with this much dust in her ear fluff.
Bloody hell, she needed this. It should be criminal how long it had been since she had properly taken the time to unwind. A proper pampering would be longer still, but this would suffice for the moment. The hot water worked a miracle on every fiber of stiff muscle it poured over as she just about collapsed into the tub. The chimes of water against porcelain easily drowned the incessant buzzing that had been plaguing her ears. No opportunity to heal them had properly presented itself, and the far softer white noise relieved them beyond description. She settled further into the tub, her chin just above where the shower's line of sight began, with what was probably the biggest smile she's had in months.
When it occurred to her that she had probably wasted enough of Rex's water supply, she pulled herself with all her might from the surprisingly comfortable sheer solid surface. After about a minute of remembering how to stand, she turned the shower off and prepared to dry herself. It never even occurred to her that she forgot to use conditioner.
She shivered a little as the small fan in the ceiling finally started making progress against the steam.
It was nice while it lasted, she thought as she tried in vain to warm herself in a towel.
Once Dromarch assured her that Rex's eyes were closed tight, she went to dry off and get changed while Rex took his turn. Their host had been gracious enough to lend her one of his spare salvage suits so she could wash her clothes. Against several odds, it was nearly exactly her size and the same colour as her usual jumpsuit. Remarkably intact as well, considering the point of reference was the suit Rex was currently wearing. She was certainly thankful for how well insulated it was. The catch seemed to be the weight. She basically had no choice but to wear the whole thing lest she expose herself, and it wasn't exactly made for performing gymnastics. The helmet probably would have crushed her delicate cat-like ears flat, so it was lucky she didn't need it. It would have also obstructed her sight, and she definitely didn't want to miss any of what she was about to investigate.
Rex was certainly somewhat shady, but the cabin was cause for concern on a completely different level. Rex had forbidden them from entering it when they arrived. He explained it had been left a mess as he wasn't expecting company, and that he would clean up during Nia's shower. What Nia saw when she let herself in, well, mess wasn't exactly the word she would use. Many papers lay strewn about the floor and furniture. Not that there was much furniture anyways, the cabin was too small for anything noteworthy. Just a coffee table here, a chair there, a desk, a lamp, some stools by the counter…
The bed was the most concerning. She didn't need to turn the light on. Even with only the slight light from sunrise peeking through the window Nia could see the problem, and even if she couldn't see it the smell was hard to miss and easy to recognize. The same blood that had coated Rex was soaked into the comforter. Whatever had happened to him, it happened here.
She called Dromarch into the cabin, promising him she was clothed. She wasn't surprised to find that the blood that still stained him smelled exactly like the bed.
She needed answers, and she resolved to get them. She drew her weapons once the sounds of the shower disappeared.
Laundry was going to have to wait. She needed the sheets dirty if she was to make her case.
That was the original plan anyways. A change of tactics was needed when she heard Rex scream.
Nia entered the washroom, her twin rings remaining at the ready in case of some new intruder. However, all they found was Rex.
A pale, terrified Rex on the floor, his breathing heavy and shuddering as he stared at his reflection. His back was to the wall opposite the mirror, as he stammered something under his breath about impossibilities and poor etherphone service.
His eyes were wide and his pupils contracted. He was so focused on his reflection, Nia wasn't sure if he had even noticed her entrance.
Now, Nia considered herself more comfortable with the indecency of others than the average person thanks to how many medical odd jobs she's picked up over her life. Even so, she was still thankful Rex had put his shorts on before she intruded. With his body clean, she saw just how much blade was hidden by the blood and shirt. His skin was quite pale for someone who lived on the open sea. Large scales of a slightly darker color than the skin grew sparsely along his arms and sides, along with two clusters of smaller ones either side of his jaw. Looking back at his arms, a handful of short tube-like growths poked out just above his wrists, pointed toward the backs of his hands. It somewhat reminded Nia of exhaust pipes. The most glaring examples of blade-ness were in his chest. An array of wide slits fanned out next to the glowing stone in the center, four on each side of it, almost resembling gills. If he wore a thick enough shirt, he might have been able to pass as some hybrid Urayan. The accent and hair might give it away, though.
Alternatively, he would have a very hard time passing as a blade. As a regular one, at least. She was expecting to see a motley color in his core, but this wasn't what she had imagined. Motley though it was, a large splotch of red adorned the center, its shape bearing a morbid resemblance to a wart or a tumor. It almost resembled a tree stump, six jagged limbs branched off it and dug into flesh. Any veins they hit softly glowed grey through his skin. The base colour of the core, however, was a light purple rather than the usual blue. There was still some blue present, a slender trim that ran around the edges of its gnarled asymmetry.
He sat there for a moment, as if expecting his reflection to answer any of the questions he was asking. The details of the questions were lost to Nia, he was speaking too quietly and she still hadn't gotten around to healing her ears yet. It was getting a little hard to watch.
"Oi," Nia said as she tapped his shoulder.
Rex flinched at the contact, calling his weapons as his stance turned defensive.
"Whoa, easy there," she calmly stowed her own weapons, "It's just me. Mind telling me what the screaming's about?"
It took several deep breaths before Rex was calm enough to speak. "It's…it was nothing, I just…I look so much like…My reflection surprised me, is all."
A short chuckle escaped from Nia. "What, you never looked in a mirror before?"
"No, actually, I haven't. Not…not technically."
"Oh…" the awkwardness that now hung in the air could be cut with a knife. "I, um, I'm sorry, I didn't realize." So much for lightening the mood.
"…here," she offered Rex a hand, "can you stand fine?"
He looked at her for a moment before staring at his own hands for about as long. He took a deep sigh before accepting her offer. Nia helped pull Rex to his feet, he kept his eyes averted from the mirror on the way up. In that same mirror, Nia noticed more of those tube-growths on his lower back.
Covered in blood, one bed, scared of his reflection, red shining through his core, and a fake name.
The gears were turning in Nia's head, filling in the story's empty spaces with possible explanations. With the exception of the ending, it was a story she recognized. She had read about it a few times back in her fath-uh, back in the family library.
It was a sad story. She had come close to crying over how tragic it could be back in the day, and she'd seen a particularly harsh example of it first hand.
"C'mon. Let's get you some fresh air. While we're at it, maybe we can find some food. You hungry?"
A moment of fear flashed across the boy's face, nearly instantly replaced with an only somewhat pained smile as he began raising his hands in protest. His stomach proved to be much more vocal on the matter as it began impersonating a brog's mating call.
"I believe that qualifies as confirmation, my Lady," Dromarch chimed in behind her, "For what it's worth, I could eat an ardun, if you'll pardun the expression."
Dromarch's comedic genius fell on one pair of deaf ears. Ironically, the one who was actually hard of hearing rolled her eyes.
"I'm not done cleaning the cabin, breakfast may have to wait a bit." Rex piped up.
"Yeah, I saw. You weren't kidding about not expecting company."
Rex froze once more. Nia tried suppressing a scoff, but it turned into a snort.
"Nothing in there's worse than your state when we met you. If it helps you calm down any, I've no place to judge. Got a few skeletons in my own closet."
Rex's expression went from mortified to confused, and the gormotti girl rolled her eyes again.
"I think I've already mentioned it, but it's not for nothing Indol was chasing me. Tell you what, I don't plan on telling you anything about my past, so don't feel the need to explain anything about yourself. You keep cleaning the cabin, I'll start some laundry, we have some food, then once we make landfall we part ways and never have to think about each other again. Sound good?"
While a stunned Rex continued to contribute nothing to the conversation, Dromarch caught his attention.
"What I believe my Lady is trying to say, sir Rex, is that we are quite grateful for your hospitality. However, it could cause you a great deal of trouble if you were to become associated with our affairs, so we would prefer it if we parted ways for your sake. I implore you to not think any less of us."
It wasn't far from the truth, but even still…
"Dromarch! What have I told you about speaking for me?"
"My lady, you must try not to be so harsh. He is just a boy, after all."
"Whatever." Nia grumbled as she exited on to the deck, "You going to wash all that off you?"
The beast blade stretched into laying down as the sun's full body showed itself over the far side of the sky.
"I doubt Sir Rex would be fond of cleaning the hair trap afterwards. I shall tend to my grooming myself."
Nia cringed a little as she was reminded of how many inns and bath houses they were banned from for that very reason.
The three set about their tasks. Nia collected the salvage suit Rex had left in the lavatory, squinting at the faded tags as she attempted to decipher the cleaning instructions. When asked, Rex passed her the sheets from the cabin and assured her that most of the symbols were just what not to do. Wash it on warm and hang it to dry, that would get it clean enough to wear.
The washer and dryer were located below deck in the cargo hold, and they were just about the least interesting things in there.
Nia couldn't name anything she saw stored within the nigh uncountable number of crates that filled the room. Okay, there were only twelve crates, but that still was an abnormally large quantity of what seemed to be assorted scrap and junk.
It had only now finally occurred to her.
"…the Salvager's Code" she remembered Rex telling her.
She was on a salvaging ship, wearing a salvaging suit that belonged to the captain, and in the process of washing another.
She was honestly disappointed in herself. She had pieced together a likely backstory for Rex basically immediately after meeting him but it had taken her this long to pick up the clues that the boy worked in the salvage trade.
In her defense, his physique didn't exactly scream tradesman. She wouldn't put it past somewhere like Indol to hire children laborers, but salvaging seemed the type of job that needed someone…
Well, someone that wasn't a kid. Some of these crates were huge and each stuffed to the brim. She could barely lift one the size of her head out of the way of the washing machine door, she couldn't imagine how much salvage was stuffed into the ones taller than she was.
Not that she was overly familiar with the trade herself. What did she know? Maybe they hired babysitters to teach apprentices not to chew on the screws.
That would actually be a good lesson, tetanus is not a joke.
Rex himself was a blade as well, so maybe he was exempt from any age restrictions. Perhaps his driver was a high level salvager and had tasked Rex with a solo mission. That would be a nice, harmless explanation for his solitude. It also either contradicted or failed to explain nearly everything else she's witnessed so far.
The washer roared and rattled as the drum spun the first load. It was a little rickety, but it seemed watertight at least.
Nia's own stomach was beginning to feel the consequences of being empty for so long. A growl churned forth, a beast pacing hungrily as it demanded something more than the glorified dessert she had for breakfast yesterday.
Rex would probably have wrapped up cleaning by now, and she couldn't do much more until the washer finished. It was time for a very late lunch.
She climbed the ladder out of the hold, the cool sea breeze slapping her with the realization of just how much she was sweating down there. She walked to the cabin door, and knocked a few times.
There was no response.
"Rex?" She called as she knocked again.
"I believe he said he was going to do some fishing, my lady." Came dromarch's voice from above her.
His stained fur had been lessened to a brighter pink, but stained it was still. He might need a proper bath after all.
"Though, now that I think of it, I do not believe I have seen him since."
The boy's timing was impeccable, as he flew out of the cloud sea and landed directly on his rear before tumbling across the salvaging platform with no shortage of pained grunts. A pair of crustip crawling aboard gave chase. Rex growled angrily as he slammed his fists into the deck before pushing himself up.
"That was a cheap shot!" He yelled at the crustaceans with an accusatory point, as if they would justify themselves.
To his credit, they did respond. One of them raised its claws and did a little dance.
"So, that's how it is, eh?" Rex responded with a growl as he rubbed his chin.
He dodged a charge from the one that wasn't lost in the rhythm, a surprising amount of finesse and dexterity going into what should have been a simple motion.
A back handspring doubled as a kick to the attacker's face, and was followed by a dash to the nearby locker as it staggered backwards. The contents clattered about as Rex began searching through it, muttering something about knowing he kept a spare somewhere in there.
He "ah ha!"'d as he pulled out a rough-looking thing attached to a something-or-other. It looked like junk. She was going to continue that thought, but words to further describe it failed her. It was a cobbled together mess of old metal, "junk" described it perfectly well.
Rex noticed his audience.
"Oh, hey Nia."
"Don't you 'hey Nia' me, the hells going on here?"
"Ah, it's nothing to worry about, happens all the time."
The object in his hands revealed itself to be a weapon as he returned to face the ruthless invaders. He pushed a button on the handle, and a sharpened edge flipped out from the large cross guard.
"Just sit tight, I think I know what's for lunch."
Nia gagged slightly at the suggestion, but Rex's fighting caught her attention fast enough to push down the nausea.
His speed was impressive even if his technique was a little rough. Rolling under claw swipes, he jabbed counters into whichever foe left itself more open. Rex deflected a heavy strike and let the force of the impact push him into a spin. He carried the momentum into two final slashes on the monster's side, and the first crustip collapsed under its injuries.
The second rethought it's life choices and decided to run.
"Hey! Come back here and fight me like a man!" Rex yelled at the crab as it jumped back into the clouds.
With some disappointment in his posture, he returned to the supposed meal he had come from acquiring. He raised his 'weapon' and began butchering the creature. Nausea returned to Nia as blue fluid sprayed from the cuts.
After kicking the remaining remains overboard, he grabbed the claws and legs and took them to the cabin's kitchenette. The claws were given a light dusting from a few cans of powder before being placed over a firing ether grill, while the legs were left to the oven.
Nia couldn't deny that it was beginning to smell alright, but she wasn't sure if that was because her empty stomach was lowering her standards.
"Sorry, it's probably under seasoned. Been a while since I've gotten groceries. I haven't got much in terms of condiments or drinks either, but you're more than welcome to anything you can find."
They took a claw each while the legs were left for Dromarch. Nia was a little skeptical, but the flavour was a pleasant surprise. She wasn't sure she'd go so far as to eat the shell like Rex was, but she had certainly eaten worse seafood. There was of course also the secret seasoning of being free.
"Say, Rex?" Nia began. She had promised not to ask about his past, but there was one question that seemed light enough to have over a meal.
"Hrm?" He mumbled through a particularly crunchy bite.
"Something's been bothering me. About when you picked us up"
"Alright, what is it?"
"Was it completely necessary to break your arm? I get that you were trying to be convincing and all, but that just seems a bit extreme."
Honestly, it was a completely valid question. If she were in his shoes, she'd think just screaming a lot would have done the trick. That roar of his could wake the dead.
Or make the deaf, she thought with a twitch of her finally silent ears.
Was one hell of an odd power to inherit, stories went that it was always either something crazy or nothing at all.
She focused back on the conversation as Rex started his answer.
"To be honest, it was mostly the heat of the moment. I knew I healed pretty fast," he gestured to a wicked looking scar on his left thigh, "so I guess it seemed like a good idea at the time. Dromarch's acting really helped sell it though, he was amazing."
The blade in question hummed at the recognition as he ate his own meal.
The concept made Nia properly laugh. "You really think so? Maybe I should try him out for a theater troupe."
They continued talking throughout their meal. The conversations weren't really about anything, but it was nice finally having a voice besides Dromarch's to listen to. Not to mean any disrespect to the tiger, Nia loved him to bits even in spite of how badly his fur chafes sometimes, but his conversation topics tended to be a little dry. She'd never learn what the best tasting cloud sea monsters are from him, that's for sure.
"Argentum? You mean that nopon trade guild?" Nia asked through the last bites of crustip meat. The subject of their heading came up.
"Yeah, that's where I'm on contract. Officially, I'm on leave to rest up after a nasty bunch of injuries. I've got some work waiting for me there and I've got some cargo to load off, and the travel time will be about the rest of my break. It's a free floating Titan, so they've got transport ships going basically everywhere. You shouldn't have too much trouble finding a ride somewhere quiet."
Quiet, eh? If only.
It had only been a day, but Nia had enjoyed her time on the boat. While she could probably write a three page list of all the questions she had about Rex, his tendency to simply accept the facts as presented was a nice change of pace. Whether he didn't want to know or didn't care, Nia would take it over Indoline interrogations any day.
Free food and travel was certainly appreciated as well. Now that she thought about it, her conscience would probably burn a hole through her if she didn't make it up to the boy.
They had the rest of the week until they reached Argentum. She'd think of something.
The titan Goldmouth was difficult to notice over the white horizon at first, but once its enormous sphere peeking over the clouds became impossible to miss, it was the signature sign that you were approaching your destination.
Contrary to popular belief, it was not the biggest titan in Alrest to be dedicated to a guild. While Argentum was the most powerful guild, Goldmouth itself was relatively small compared to its contemporaries. What made the Argentum guild stand out, though, was how tall it all was. Goldmouth itself floated a whole titanped above the cloud sea's surface, and the titan was still enormous. Large enough that even Uraya's ravenous homeland would need two bites to eat it. You would be able to see Goldmouth in full a whole half-hour before Argentum would even come up on radar. In certain cases, the smaller size also worked to its advantage.
The history of Argentum's chairmen was long, well documented, and nuanced. Rex could never pay attention to any stories about it, since they were almost exclusively told by nopon with tendencies to focus on all the wrong topics to branch off on. One thing he did know was that every chairman to ever man the chair followed one simple rule: 'follow monies'. Argentum was a giant ship that a city was built into. Said ship was fast enough to circle all of Alrest proper in a month. Rex was even there for it once. If the chairman calculated any given area would make for better profits, the whole guild would be there within the week. Legends said that way back in the day, a great pirate captain used this very vessel. Rex could only imagine how devastating his raids could be with a ship capable of that kind of speed and power.
They were probably only legends, though. The fluffy, bouncy, and somewhat adorable nopon that made the majority of the ship's crew and population in the present day were a far cry from anything Rex would consider pirate material.
The trip from Gormott was a quiet one. No big cloud sea monster attacks, no crazy weather, very few ships passed on the way, there was very little of note that occurred over the last four or five days. Rex and Nia had tried sparring once, but that ended up knocking a hole in the deck that Rex then needed to waste materials fixing. Not that he minded having a new chore to do, there was only so many times he could run inventory on his salvage. There was precious little to be done to pass the time. Sure, any sailor worth half their salt had a deck of cards, but even with Dromarch's deep historical knowledge they ran out of games to play on the third day.
There were a few hits on the depth probe en route, and their primary food source was fishing. These facts combined meant Rex was getting a lot of practice in with his newfound swimming abilities. It was jarring at first when he had to keep reminding himself not to take a canister, but he eventually got a better handle over it. Though, there were a few gadgets from the usual salvager's toolkit that he missed. Maybe someday he could get a bespoke salvage suit from an engineer that didn't ask too many questions. In the meantime, he'll just settle for what he already owns like he always has.
The dark red hull of the trade guild was a sight for sore eyes. After such an eventful week, it was good to be back to the closest thing Rex had to a home. It was in rough shape, as always. It was the Argentum way: spare every expense, install only what's necessary, and only repair things when desperate. It made for iffy working conditions for anyone who didn't have wings, and Rex had more than enough scars to remind him of all the possible workplace hazards. Nothing serious, of course. The worst he ever got was a broken finger from unloading his own hauls. Come to think of it, this would mark his first ever time off caused by injury.
He tried not to dwell on how often it felt like he was thinking of someone else.
Stop doing that.
He was Rex now.
No, stop it.
He was Rex.
Nothing had changed.
Nothing at all.
He just had to stop thinking about it.
He was going to moor his ship, pay Hirkham the mooring fees, and head to central exchange so he could get paid. Just like he always had.
Okay, he didn't always do it in that order, that's not the point.
Nobody would tell the difference.
Speak of the devil, there he was walking up the port.
"Hey, Hirkham! How've you been?"
The ardainian man paused in his walk as he saw Rex.
"R-Rex?! Is that you?" he said incredulously.
Huh?
"I-I had heard you had an injury, but…"
Oh.
Oh…
Titan's foot.
The fact that his face didn't exactly resemble the old Rex had completely slipped his mind.
That same slippery mind was now running circles around itself as it tried to slap together an answer for the one question he was unprepared for.
"Sorry, that'd be my bad!" Came a Gormotti accent behind him.
Hirkham squinted and Rex turned his head as they both looked at its source.
Nia had raised her hand and was leaning against the railing
"And who might you be, young miss?" Hirkham asked.
"Name's Nia. Driver medic extraordinaire." She said with a look of pride, "Our mutual friend here has contracted regenerative inverse-recess syndrome, RIRS for short."
She seemed to note the look of confusion on both those present before continuing.
"See, he came to me after that accident you heard about. I was happy to heal him, but he needed it done too fast. That's when RIRS comes in. It doesn't occur naturally, it's caused when someone takes too much ether-based healing on too big of an injury too fast. Messes up their genetics, making them regenerate with traits they could have had but weren't born with. A lot of Ardanian soldiers actually have Gormotti ears because of it."
Most of it seemed to be going over Hirkham's head, but he was nodding along. "So, I guess our Rex here has a decent chunk of Urayan in him to start growing scales?"
"Exactly. They'll probably fall off eventually and the health risks are fairly minimal, but I thought I'd continue to volunteer my services. You know, make sure he's fit to work and all that."
Hirkham paused as he processed it all. Rex couldn't blame him. As confident as Nia sounded, he was completely right to be skeptical.
"Huh. That so? Well, uh, I suppose you would know better than me." Not skeptical enough, it would seem, "Thank you very much for your services, miss Nia. You make sure to do as the doc says, eh, Rex? I don't think Argentum would be quite the same without you."
Well, they would find out.
No, that's enough, stop thinking about it.
Rex grit his teeth through a smile and forced a laugh.
"Yeah, sure. The highest quality fizz juice for my Lady."
He ignored Nia smacking his arm.
"Anyway Hirkham, I've actually got a sizable haul to unload. You might want to grab some crate carts for when I'm done negotiating."
The young man raised an eyebrow. "Sizable haul? I thought you were on leave because you took some driver work despite not being one."
Ah, here it was. A question he was prepared for.
"I was. It was salvaging driver work. They ended up letting me keep a huge amount of non-target as reimbursement. All and all, I'd say not a bad deal, hey?"
"That's a touch reckless, but I guess if you're still in one piece."
Hirkham, you had no idea how many pieces he was in.
Stop thinking about it.
Rex jumped down from the deck, and stood to face the man.
"Mooring fee's the same as always, yeah?" He asked.
"Yep, 15G per half-day." The man stopped as he stared at Rex. "Huh. You know, it's rare to see you walking about in your full salvage gear."
Another question he had an answer for. "Ah, I've just got a few nasty marks left still. They're a bit gross-looking, so I'm keeping 'em hidden."
Rex passed him 30G for the whole day, and Hirkham went to get the loading jack.
"Thank you for covering me like that," Rex said quietly to Nia as she joined him on the dock. She was wearing the now-clean jumpsuit she had when they met. He leaned closer to ask a question.
"You think he bought it?"
Nia crossed her arms. "Don't see a reason why he wouldn't. The only lie I told was that you had contracted a condition."
"Wait, so that's a real thing that can happen?" Rex took a step back.
"Oh yeah, all the time. Though, it sounds like you would be an incredibly extreme example of it. Most common symptom of RIRS is a change in eye colour. Tip for lying, kid: only ever tell one at a time and mix it with enough truth so that nobody questions it."
It was a depressing piece of advice, but a welcome one considering Rex's situation.
"Well, thank you all the same. Flight deck is on the main deck of the ship, it's not too hard to find once you get up the stairs." Rex said gesturing about with directions.
"Hey now, what's this about?" Nia interrupted.
"What? I thought the plan was-"
"Don't be daft, what kind of medic would I be if I abandoned a patient like that?"
She stepped closer.
"Our new cover story would fall apart if I left as soon as we landed." She whispered with a point to Rex's chest, "You could have mentioned how well known you were in the first place, but I guess now you're stuck with me for a bit longer."
It made sense, thinking about it. Nia probably knew more about his supposed condition than Rex ever could. What's more, Rex already wasn't fond of lying to the faces of everyone who knew him. At least he could feel a bit better about it if Nia was doing most of the lying. There was one thing that bothered him though.
"Where's Dromarch?"
"He finally caved and decided to try showering. You stain pretty badly, as it turns out." Nia explained, "Now come on. I believe I was promised a fizz juice."
They began their way off to central exchange, but something else caught Rex's attention at the dock.
"Whoa, that thing's huge." He said in reference to an enormous black and gold ship moored nearby, "and it hasn't even got a titan!"
"Gawking at a ship?" Nia said with some amusement. "What are you, twe~" she held the note for a few seconds as her eyes narrowed after noticing the ship as well, "~wait a moment…"
Just as Rex said, it was huge and without a titan. It snuggled right up to the main working platform of the harbor, and it ran the length of the pier it sat next to with enough of its own length left to stretch another few meters into the sea. As for height, the entrance space at the back just barely poked it over Argentum's second floor. Rex knew that titan-less ships were possible, the clouds had surface tension just like any other liquid, but conventional propulsion never quite worked in the cloud sea. For all the similarities it had with water, its viscosity was all its own. The larger the object, the harder the clouds held on to it. Propellers outright didn't work it in, and you'd need a windstorm for a sail to get any traction against it. Rex's business sense went off the charts trying to piece together just how this thing could be possible, and there were enough bystanders around to tell him that some keen-eyed shipwrights were trying to do the same. The potential coin that could be saved by not having to care for a Titan was no doubt whispering sweet nothings to their nopon ears.
"Rex…"
Did nopon have ears? He had never really thought about it before. They must, because otherwise how would they hear? Maybe they felt vibrations through their wings or something.
"Rex!" Nia's voice snapped him back to the real world with a whispered yelled. She sounded worried. "I've seen this ship before. Whenever…'trouble' was getting close, I'd see this thing in port the day we left town."
That certainly didn't sound good. "You don't think…this could belong to Indol?"
"Not so loud," she hissed slightly, "no, Indol's ship's are required to all follow a certain construction model. I don't have the slightest idea what this could be."
"Well…" Rex scratched his head as he tried thinking of something to help put her at ease. "This is the first time they've gotten somewhere before you, right? Let's just steer clear of it, and hope it's all a massive coincidence."
Nia groaned a little in response. "Where do you get that optimism? Do you actually have a condition?"
"Yeah, I do in fact," he teased, "Watch yourself, I've been told it's contagious."
He laughed as Nia smacked his side for it.
Unfortunately, he knew that optimism was about to fall flat. He passed Nia some gold, and asked her to grab a table for them at the Rumbletum Canteen up the stairs after getting herself that fizz juice.
He'd meet her up there in a bit. In the meantime, he had business to take care of.
Blade name: Rex?
Rarity: * *
Weapon: Nameless Knuckles / Junk Sword
Role: ? ? ?
Affinity Rewards Unlocked:
Salvaging Mastery Lv 1
"Ah, how did I ever forget this?"
"What, that's it!?" Rex shouted with astonishment as he read the offer report.
"Is life, Meh." Replied Melolo, the nopon working Central Exchange. She had just finished processing the inventory list Rex gave her. He knew he had probably overestimated profits, but by 23%?
"This still more than I give to non-friend. Me heard about what happen from Pupunin, so me sorry, but there not much I can do." She shook her head as she shrugged with her arms. "You bring in military supplies, you get good price."
She gestured with a wing as she bounced a little to turn herself. Two groups of soldiers were standing rather awkwardly close to each other by the door of the return port. They both kept to themselves, occasionally shooting looks they probably wished could kill at the other group as they tried their best to act casual with the locals.
Ardainians on one end, their signature black outfits, masks, and spiked hats making them hard to miss. On the other, Urayans in their full suits of round, greenish armor with enormous shoulder pads.
"Ceasefire between Mor Ardain and Uraya not keep for too much longer, methinks. So weaponry is hot item."
That wasn't wrong. Legally speaking, Argentum was a neutral party and was not liable for the actions of those employed by it. As much as Rex loved the people here, he knew as well as they did that Alrest's biggest superpowers were only one incident away from declaring war again. From there, money would flow like crazy to whatever guild members could get the bigger guns for either side.
"So, what friend think?" Melolo was really pushing it this time. "I make it worth your while."
"No way. I told you before, I stay away from that kind of stuff."
For all the good it did him, considering what happened because he wouldn't take the weapons in his last dive.
Stop thinking about it.
"Oh, is shame! Rex good salvager, could be good way to earn pretty penny!"
Yeah, Rex was a good salvager. Emphasis on 'Rex' and 'was'.
Stop thinking about it.
"Waste of talent if you ask me."
If only you knew how badly he had wasted his talents.
Stop thinking about it.
"Anywho, where were we?"
Right, work.
"I'll take your offer." He didn't really have a choice. "2000 now, and I'll send the rest to Leftheria."
"Meh? It been a while since you do that."
He scratched the back of his head to fight down a bit of shame. "Been a while since I've had a payday this good."
"Well, Okie-doodles! Sending monies to Corinne of Fonsett village, is right?"
"Yeah."
"Is beautiful thing, sending money home at such young age. I touched!"
It wasn't his home anymore, and he technically was even younger now.
Stop thinking about it.
"Wish my own dum-dum littlepon did same!"
Rex saw the littlepon in question behind her shrink into his cushion a little. It was a little mean, but Rex always found it funny when Melolo spoke badly of Bipopo. He was notoriously bad at basically everything, not to mention exceedingly lazy, but everyone knew his mother wouldn't trade him for the world.
"Been a bit hard to send money lately. A lot of my gear needs some repairs."
"I imagine so, especially after accident. Me not see you wear that suit in long time, blue one got broken?"
"Broken is an understatement." He said with a laugh. Like Nia had suggested, support the lie with truth. "Alright, counting on you to get that money sent."
"Roger! Pleasure doing business!"
Rex took a deep breath in, and tried to appreciate the familiar ground. Merchants, travellers, mercenaries, and of course other salvagers milled about the bottom deck. This may have just been a guild, but many people actually called it home. Permanent establishments constructed a whole bazaar. Even some famous shops set their claim here, the constant foreign foot traffic certainly contributing to their success. If you even wanted to think about getting something from Noodler's Delight, you had to come in after the lunch rush, dinner rush, and midnight snack rush.
Sitting alone in the dark eating soup at two in the morning wasn't Rex's proudest moment, but it was some damn good soup and it didn't keep well.
As he walked towards the shops, Rex's new titan nose began to tickle. For the first time in his life-er, what would have been the first time in Rex's life, he could separate the mass of scents that flowed from every food stall around. It should have been overwhelming, but he could easily choose what to focus on. He could tell a cinnopon roll from a sparklesugar at Honeycomb Sweets. He could tell what seasonings Zuzu was using too much of at Noodler's Delight. He could smell…
Was that…?
It couldn't be.
He followed the scent behind the bazaar, and came to an Ardainian man just past the equipment shops. A courier, Rex was familiar with him. Max, his name was.
For some reason, he smelled like…
"Ah, Rex! I've been looking for you. Package for you, straight from Leftheria."
So why was he getting it?
Stop thinking about it.
He signed for the package. His curiosity was burning, but he couldn't get a great grip on the box through his gloves. Maybe he could get Nia to open it for him.
He had left her waiting long enough. He could pick up her scent from the bottom of the stairs. He then realized how creepy that was and decided to focus on the restaurants of the Rumbletum Canteen. The seafood place, Fishy Fishy, was finishing up some stir-fries. The titular restaurant of the canteen had just started making some fried rice.
He spotted her at a table as he finished coming up the stairs.
She had already finished her drink. Rex recognized the cup as a large twinklejuice, 12 Brothersisterpon's specialty, which was actually cheaper than the fizz juice they had joked about. She was perusing the menu of Fishy Fishy when her ears flicked towards him and she looked up.
"So, how'd it go?" She asked as he pulled a chair.
"Could have been better, but it was still a good amount." He replied, trying not to be solemn.
"Ah, I see." She put down her menu. "What's in the box?"
"I got a package, and I was hoping you could help me open it." For effect, he rubbed at the tape on the seams, his gloved fingers unable to get any leverage against it.
She took the box from him, and Gormotti claws made short work of the cardboard. Rex tried not to notice that she tore into the return address first. Apparently, she was eager to keep the promise they made to not dig into each other's lives.
The source of the smell finally presented itself, and it was everything Rex could have hoped for. Two fillets of seafood dropped onto the table, their parchment wrappings shielding them from the elements, but it was not sealed tight enough. Even with his old nose, Rex would be able to place this exact scent.
"No way, braised cloud sea shark!" He exclaimed excitedly. Aunt Corinne knew exactly what to send.
"That your favourite or something?" Nia asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Not exactly, but I still love it."
He waved over a waitress and requested a plate with some silverware, and got ready to dig in.
The first bite melted into his mouth. Perfectly cooked, just the right amount of salt and sauce. It didn't matter how old or cold it was, he could always wolf down Corinne's home cooking.
Home cooking that had been sent to Rex.
Stop thinking about it.
He didn't deserve to be eating this.
Stop thinking about it.
Because of him, Rex was-
Stop thinking about it!
"Damn, that good, huh?" Nia said from across the table, "Mind if I have a bite?"
Rex looked up at her, confused, before he realized how blurry his vision had become. He hurriedly wiped the tears from his eyes as he swallowed the mouthful of seafood.
"No, it's…yeah, go ahead." He replied after a quick sniffle, trying as he might to stop his voice from cracking.
Nia's expression softened. "Are you alright, Rex?"
"Yeah, I'm fine it's just… it's been a long time since I've had this. A lot's happened." His voice cracked a little, he hoped Nia wouldn't notice.
"I can just get myself something if you want to have it all." Nia's words held a fair bit of empathy. Rex wiped his face again.
Come on. Pull it together.
"No, don't worry, help yourself. Food always tastes better when you share it with friends, right?"
Nia returned a bit to normal.
"Since when are we friends?" She countered with a sarcastic scoff before picking up her own fork.
Their meal was cut short as a nopon approached followed closely by two large, well-dressed men.
"Hello, Rex." Spoke the nopon, his deep voice not quite fitting his small, round shape.
"Pupunin! Was going to start looking for you after lunch."
"Something wrong? Rex looks very, Ah, what is word…down?"
"Nah, it's just been a while since I've had my aunt's cooking. Hit me harder than expected." He tried to believe what he was saying as he wiped his eyes once more put on a grin. "So, you said you had some work for me?"
"Something like that. Ah, by the way…"
The nopon turned to Rex's company. "Miss Nia, yes? You say Rex has special condition now?"
"It's nothing serious," the gormotti replied, "I'm just keeping track of it. Making sure he doesn't get any of the bad side effects, yeah?"
Side effects? She did say the health risks were minimal, I suppose that would mean there are health risks.
Rex thought for a moment. I guess I shouldn't be worried though.
"Right, so Rex is not actually Urayan, he still from Leftherian Archipelago, yes?" Pupunin asked.
What did that have to do with anything?
"Right. Technically speaking, nothing about him's changed." Nia assured him.
"Hang on, what's my home titan got to do with the job?" Rex interjected.
"You should go straight to boardroom of Chairman."
"Wait, what's going on?"
"Chairman Bana ask for Rex by name!"
"The Chairman?!" Rex stood up so fast he nearly hit his knees on the table. The legs of his chair screeched against the floor as his rapid stance change pushed it back.
"For me?!"
"Yes, he explain job in detail. Should probably bring Miss Nia as well, explain your situation."
"R-Right! Thanks Pupunin!"
Once he wolfed down the last of his aunt's gift, he began off towards the stairs as Nia quickly made pursuit. She grabbed Rex's arm as they reached the bench area down the first flight.
"Hold up there, what was that about? I don't know much about salvaging, so break this down for me."
"Okay, so," Rex took a deep breath, "The Chairman is the highest political authority of the trade guild. Bana takes care of placing all the big work orders that come in on the right notice boards so that the right salvagers see them, and he also sorts through the major finances of the place. The fact that he's personally asking for salvagers means he's got a big and hopefully well-paying job in the works ."
"And the fact that he asked for you specifically means you might be getting some real good recognition, which would help you land more big jobs like this in the future if he's impressed?"
"Yes, exactly!" Rex was practically beaming. This was the break he was waiting for. If he could get any kind of reputation boost around Alrest from this, he'd never have to worry about rent again. It was almost ironic to get a job this good after…
Stop.
Big job.
Good times, be happy.
They continued down the stairs, and met Bana's receptionist.
"Ah, Mister Rex and company. Bana is waiting"
The pair entered the office. It was a sizable room, the walls in noticeably less disrepair than the rest of the ship. They passed a couch and table on their left, and stood before a desk elevated by an incline to the floor. On the far wall, there was a red tapestry with the Argentum guild insignia. Between it and the desk sat the nopon who was Rex's potential employer.
"Thank you for accepting summons." Spoke the nopon, "I Bana, Chairman of Argentum Trade Guild."
The man himself was enormous. Rex didn't realize nopon could even grow to that size, Bana was only a head shorter than him. His fur was blue and the feathers atop his head were puffy and purple, coiffed upwards through a gilded brace. Most of his accessories were extravagant and excessive, as if he was trying to make his mere existence gloat about how much money he controlled. Large red gems encrusted two golden wing bracelets as well as the monocle he was wearing, and his choice of wardrobe was the most expensive looking pair of nopon overalls Rex had ever seen. If Rex had ever imagined what the guild's Chairman looked like, he probably had undershot the networth by half.
This was the man who had a job for Rex. His business sense was going crazy.
"P-Pleased to make your acquaintance…" Rex managed to stutter out as he scratched the back of his head.
He looked around the room in an attempt to calm his nerves. It did not help, as the other two things he decided to focus on were the dancers who kept Bana company while acting as his secretaries. He tried looking away from one only to stare at the other, who noticed and decided to give him a wink with a pose.
Great. Now he was nervous and blushing.
"Me hear from Pupunin that friend is salvager of some renown, even being able to handle light driver work at some risk."
The large nopon gestured to the third girl in his room.
"I assume that why you bring healer driver friend. I truly sorry to hear about your accident, but very glad to have you return in time. Hearing of your salvaging prowess, I have teensy-weensy thing to ask of Rex."
This was it. The offer he's technically been waiting his whole life for.
"Reward is 100,000G."
His business sense had passed out and was now ascending to Elysium.
"A HUNDRED THOUSAND!?" He repeated. Louder than he meant to, apparently. Nia had covered her ears.
"I'll do it."
"Hey, hang on, there!" Nia interrupted, "You're still technically recovering. As your designated caregiver, I need to at least hear the details before I can let you go off on a potentially dangerous mission."
"Huh? Oh, right." He wrestled his business sense back on to solid ground. "um, what kind of work is it?"
"…still recovering, you say?" Bana asked as he looked at Nia. "You sure he well enough for job?"
"Well, like I said, technically recovering. He's completely healed far as I can tell, I'm just here making sure he doesn't get any adverse side effects. You've heard about his condition, yeah? RIRS?"
"Ah, yes. Handful of salvagers catch that every year. Resurface too fast after dive, but less tragic than could be. In that case, more on the job. Should mention, that is only final payment. In advance, will be given addition 100,000."
"Two hundred thousand in total?!" There went his business sense again."I must be dreaming."
"Easy there, Rex." Nia gave him a tap to ensure he was still listening.
Bana meh'd out a small laugh. "It probably better if crew explain task." He turned to one of his dancers.
"Bring them in." He ordered.
The door flew open as the somewhat scantily clad woman walked to the other room.
The smell that came pouring out of the doorway was more than enough to catch Rex's full focus.
It smelled awful.
Terrible.
Repulsive.
It took so much willpower just to hold back a gag.
It smelled a little like himself, and a tiny bit more like Nia, but it was worse.
So much worse.
Rex tried to think of things to compare it to.
That time he forgot to put milk back in the fridge and it ended up sitting out for three days. No, that smelled better.
That time he excitedly pulled up a huge crate only to discover it was full of nothing but ancient, moldy compost. No, that would actually be preferable.
That time he got a full nose-full of some giant squood's breath when it passed by a bit too close. About as bad, but that was a completely different scent.
This smell almost reminded him of rotting meat. Old and rancid, he almost wanted to stop looking for the source because he didn't want to know what it would have to look like to smell this bad.
It looked like three men, apparently. All fairly tall and reasonably handsome. The first to enter was blonde, the next had hair comparable to charcoal. The third wore a horned eye-mask under his neck-length grey hair. The blonde smelled the best, rather, the least bad of the bunch. The grey-haired one smelled the worst by a titanped.
The black-haired man…it wasn't that he didn't smell like anything, it was as if he drained the scent from his surroundings. Simply him being in the room near the other two was already making the smell disappear. He smelled like less than nothing.
The black-haired man and the blonde were both drivers, their weapons stowed on their backs as their blades followed during the entrance and stood behind them. Though Rex's only real point of reference was the fluffy gentleman Dromarch, he could tell the blades were impressive.
The blonde's was enormous, nearly half the height of the room. His weapons were two ridiculously huge metal gloves with what looked to be slabs of metal that extended behind them, and it looked like his hands fit them perfectly. In both width and height, the grey-skinned blade was barely smaller than the door. His waist-length sideburns of red hair matched his driver's outfit. How he had sideburns was a good question, as his head was more like an ornate helmet.
The other blade was sleek and black. He reminded Rex of the cover art for a horror novel he had seen occasionally when browsing through old books. Some monster from the sky that hunted down the crew of a ship. What did they call it, a xeno-something? In any case, he barely qualified as humanoid. A jet black tail rested behind his animalistic hind-legs, and insect-like mandibles hung beside his reptilian mouth. His driver wore all black to match.
The last man had no blade, but he did carry a single-edged sword on his back. It was nearly long to the point of impracticality, the handle reached over his right shoulder and the tip stopped at his left knee, the whole affair strapped tight to the back of his flowing white coat without any form of blade guard.
"You alright, kid?" Asked the blonde man.
It was only then that Rex realized he had been coughing at the smell ever since they entered.
"Yeah, I'm-ahem, I'm fine." Rex tried to rescue his case. These were the guys thinking about paying him 200k, he needed to look presentable.
"Just…just picked a bad time to start choking on spit."
Rex wasn't sure if that helped, but it was better than telling them they stink.
The white haired man stepped forward, giving no acknowledgment of Rex's coughing. "There's something we need to pull up. There's been some current shifts, and it showed up in an uncharted area. But it's a long way down."
"Nice. I like a good challenge." Rex said with some pride. It wasn't for nothing he had enough of a reputation for the chairman to call him by name, after all.
"Bana offered to assemble team of veterans for this job, but this crew very picky. They want small elite team, and only from Leftheria. That when Bana have stroke of genius: Should hire Rex!"
Seriously? This job was made for him! Deep sea dive tasked to a Titan from Leftheria, they honestly couldn't have picked anyone better. At least, he's technically from Leftheria. Either way, Rex let out a small laugh. For the first time, his new state was actually a benefit. Not that they would know that.
"You made the right choice!"
The blonde man began laughing with- no, laughing at him. "You sure kid? Like Jin said, it's a long way down. We don't want the pressure squeezing you out of existence, do we?"
"The hell's that supposed to mean?" He replied with a bit more force than intended.
"He means you're short, and that the job might be too big for you." Said the man in black, matter-of-factly.
"Ding!" Said the blonde as he pointed to his friend. "Ten points for Malos!"
"Wait, since when do we get points?" The blonde's blade asked him in a dopey and surprisingly endearing voice.
"You shush." Replied his driver.
The man named Malos returned focus to Rex. "If this is too big a job for you…well should be easy enough to tell."
Rex barely had time to process the words as the man drew his weapon and charged at Rex in one fluid motion. Dodging knocked him off balance as he stumbled back, but a pivot on his heels helped shift the momentum into drawing his own sword. He parried a second strike as he spun back around, and held a block against a third. Nia's weapons found themselves pointed at Malos' neck.
"The hell is wrong with you?! Where do you get off, attacking a child?" She hissed.
The large man stepped off.
The blonde man blinked a few times as he watched it all. "Whoa, whoa, hey, what was that?"
"You said it yourself, Mik." Malos replied with venom in his smirk. "What if the kid's not up to it?"
"That's…okay that is what I said, but I was implying that I didn't want to have to break any unfortunate news to his girlfriend." The man apparently named Mik responded with a gesture to Nia.
Rex felt his cheeks flare up, but Nia was quick to dismiss the notion.
"We're not a couple, I'm just a medic here to make sure he's fit for work." She shifted her eyes and voiced the next sentence louder at Malos. "He's just wrapped up getting over a serious bit of injuries."
Mik whistled at that statement. "Dang, you held off Malos while injured? I'm sorry I doubted you, kid. You're hired."
"I have a name you know. It's Rex."
"Mikhail. And this fine fellow is Cressidus." He gestured to his blade with a smile, who responded with a somewhat dopey wave.
Malos began laughing. "Yeah he'll do fine. Though, you don't look like a driver. Where'd you learn those arts?"
Rex rested his weapon on his shoulder as he turned to the man who attacked him. "My gramps taught me a thing or two. Even when I was little, that was his idea of playtime."
"You've got some skill." Malos said plainly. It was almost a compliment. "Plenty of guts, too. Kid, you'd better work hard."
Malos and his blade began leaving the room. Without him present, Rex was worried the stench would begin to accumulate in the room once more. Luckily, the man called Jin began leaving as well. Though, he did turn back at the pair before he left.
"Bana, we'll hire the girl too."
"Meh?" The chairman titled his large head to the side, Rex and Nia both made similar shocked faces. "She not on payroll, I'm afraid."
"Yeah, I'm not a salvager. I don't even work for the guild, I'm just a driver medic."
"Then we'll invoice you for medical services." Mikhail offered while he also began leaving. "Like you said, your boy Rex here is injured. It would be a good idea to have a medic on the crew anyways. Bana! We'll cover her advance in your fees, so handle it for us, eh?"
The chairman began to 'Meh' as nopon do once the crew had all left. "Friends are such rowdy bunch. Not even hiring medic from guild? They insult me. Meh…"
A large and heavy sack was dropped onto the chairman's desk with a fair few clinks. "Here is advance for Rex…" he began rummaging through a chest behind him. "…and here for miss…?"
"Just Nia is fine." Corrected the gormotti of the hour.
"Very well, here is advance for Nia." Bana said as he dropped a second sack on the desk. "Use to buy any new supplies you need. Meet at dock on starboard in two days."
"Two days?" Nia asked, "isn't that a bit soon for a job we were just given?"
"When a salvager is discussing a job, it's generally assumed they've got nothing better to do." Rex explained. "Most of the time, it's accurate."
Bana cleared his throat and recaptured their attention. "Bana has arranged for excellent vessel for you there."
"You got it." Replied Rex with conviction.
With heavy pockets and heavier thoughts on Rex's mind, they left Bana's office. Outside, the smell of their new employers still hung in the air though they were nowhere to be seen. Rex was probably the only one who noticed it. He was probably the only one who could notice it.
The whole situation was a lot to take in. Strange drivers requesting specifically a Leftherian crew to pull something up. It stunk of something happening in the background, not exclusively because the drivers smelled foul.
At the same time, Rex had come out of that meeting 100,000G richer without even having worked yet. Over quadruple what he made in that last salvage run and this was going to be doubled once he did something as simple as pull something up from the sea bed.
He knew he couldn't pass this up. With that kind of cash, Rex could replace every piece of equipment he owned. Even better, it could set Corinne up for years. As much as he'd love to send her the majority of it, there was a bit too much that he needed to replace if he wanted to pass as an actual salvager.
Nia pulled him aside. "Look, Rex. I don't entirely blame you, but you may have jumped the gun taking that."
"What d'you mean?"
"What do you mean 'what do I mean'? You nearly wet yourself the moment he told you the advance, and then you started coughing up a lung! We still barely know anything about the job!" Nia's voice grew harsher.
"I…Okay, maybe, but I need the money."
Nia took a breath in as she rubbed the bridge of her nose, "Yeah, I guess your ship isn't in the best of states."
"That's also true, but I need it for something else. I have a lot of people depending on me and-" Rex caught himself, "sorry, I know you don't want me to share too much."
Nia sighed, slightly in resignation. "I guess I can at least cover your arse since you somehow managed to drag me into this. Let's go tell Dromarch, and then see what we can buy 'round here for supplies. What was that coughing about anyways?"
No harm in telling her. "Those drivers and their leader, they smelled really bad."
Nia had a short laugh. "Worse than you did when I first met you?"
She stopped smiling when he nodded. He probably shouldn't share the bit about that Jin guy smelling very similar to her.
"That is not a good sign…maybe they just haven't showered in a while?" Nia suggested, "In any case, we already agreed to work with them. Let's…let's just hope it's a big coincidence."
That put a slight smile on Rex and a slight blush on Nia when they realized she had just repeated his thoughts on that strange ship.
"I warned you it was contagious." Rex laughed as Nia smacked him in the side.
As they passed a certain empty shop, Rex remembered there was another thing that needed his attention. "Would you mind telling Dromarch on your own? I've got a stop to make."
"Wha-Hey! You can't just send me off here, he'll take a bite out of me if we don't explain it well enough."
"He wouldn't."
"And how the hell would you know? You've only known him for a week, he's been with me for ten years!"
Rex paused at that. "Wait, you've been a driver since you were six-ish?"
"What? No, I've been…" Now Nia was the one pausing. "Nevermind. Fine, I guess I can tell him myself, but if he gets up in arms about it, I'm running straight back so I can use you as a meat shield."
With that, they parted ways again. Rex didn't catch much of what Nia grumbled as she went back to his ship. "So much for keeping a low profile" was all he heard.
She was a little rough around the edges, but it was nice to have some company for a change. It was of course an amazing bonus that she's saved him from a lot of trouble involving his 'condition'.
Rule #2 of the Salvager's Code:
Always help those who help you.
He should do something for her, make it up to her for all her help in covering this whole thing up.
They'd still be working together for the next while. He'd think of something.
He walked up to a shop by the bottom of the stairs.
"Hey, Shynini!"
"Friend Rex! Good to be seeing. Look different, do something with hair? Anywho, how can me help?"
That was a nice thing about working with nopon. The business minded ones rarely asked questions that didn't involve their own money.
"Well, two things actually. Do you still have that abyss vest I was looking at?"
"Ahh! Rex finally save up money for purchase?"
"Something like that." His nerves still hadn't quite settled from the immense amount of cash he had just been given. "And the second thing, I need to replace a lot of salvaging gear. You know where I can find Rurui?"