"Well," Boo said at last, swirling the wine in her glass, watching the dark liquid cling to the crystal a second too long before sliding free. Her gaze never left Nyxia. "Since we're all geared up and gorgeous… shall we talk business?" Nyxia inclined her head, slow and deliberate. Not deferential. Measured. "We're listening." Boo set the glass aside, and the shift was immediate. The warmth drained from her posture, the playful slouch straightening into something sharper, predatory. When she spoke again, it wasn't for the room. It was for them. "Ves'Sariel's trail runs cold," she said. "Not because she's hiding. Because she's slipping. Moving through spaces most people don't even know how to look at." Her eyes flicked briefly to Nyxia's armor. "And she isn't doing it alone."
Perseus leaned forward, forearms braced on his knees. "You said you'd help us track her." "I am." Boo tapped a finger against her temple once, light. Deliberate. "I have ears in places that don't have names. Places you don't ask about if you enjoy sleeping uninterrupted. And one of those ears," she added softly, "has started hearing things it shouldn't." Nyxia didn't blink. "Hollow-touched artifacts." Boo's mouth curved, not a smile, but approval. "Discreet shipments. Trinkets. Relics no one would miss until they start whispering back." Her voice dipped, velvet over steel. "Some barely kissed by it. Others steeped. They're feeding something. Mapping tolerance. Seeing how far they can push before the city notices."
"And Ves?" Perseus asked. Boo's gaze slid to him, weighed him. "I don't know if it's her hand directly. Or one of her faithful trying to earn favor." A pause, intentional. "Either way, it leads back to her." Silence stretched, heavy by design. Perseus folded his arms. "You want us to track the informant." "Find him," Boo said. "Stop the flow." Her eyes sharpened. "Quietly, if you can. Bloodily, if you must." Nyxia's jaw tightened. "And if he's not just moving artifacts." Boo met her stare without flinching. "Then I want whatever he's making brought back here." "Alive?" Perseus asked. "If possible." Boo's lips twitched. "I'm not unreasonable."
Perseus exhaled through his nose. "That's a lot of ground." "I've already cut it down." Boo snapped her fingers. Light bloomed above the table, an ethereal map of the Serath'Kai underlevels threading itself into focus. Movement traces ghosted through stone. One route pulsed crimson, slow and steady, like a heartbeat. "Scrapyard on the edge of the Warrens," Boo said. "Fast caravans. Light loads. One of the runners used to work Skivv's circuits before he decided he deserved more." Her gaze flicked again to Nyxia's armor, lingered. "He'll recognize what you're wearing. That could be useful. Or it could get you swarmed."
Nyxia inclined her head once. "And when we find them?" Boo's smile returned, thin, sharp, delighted. "Send a message." The door creaked open. Switch limped in, clutching a rag to his temple, grin too wide for someone bleeding. "Speak of knives and they appear." Boo sighed without looking at him. "Switch, darling. I sent you to listen. Not to get rearranged." "I multitask," he wheezed cheerfully. "Caravan left less than an hour ago. Hollow drop point east of the Drainpipe District." He tossed a blood-smeared data shard onto the table. It skidded to a stop between them. "Schedules," he added. "Names."
"Good boy." Boo flicked the shard toward Perseus. "Go soak your skull before it starts leaking ideas." Switch saluted, nearly headbutting the doorframe. "Already forgot where I live." He vanished. Perseus scanned the shard, then looked up. "We can intercept them before they clear the city." Nyxia adjusted the strap of her bow. The armor whispered in response, plates shifting like it was listening. Loque rose at her side, a silent, spectral presence, tail flicking once. "Then we hunt," she said.
Boo lifted her glass again, eyes never leaving Nyxia. "Try not to ruin the stonework. Blood is a nightmare to scrub out of cobblestone." Nyxia smirked. "No promises." They turned to go. Only when the door closed behind them did Boo lean back, studying the empty space they'd left behind. Her fingers tightened briefly around the stem of her glass. "What did Skivv give you?" she murmured.