#path to nowhere moore

[roysristi]

Interrogation

[karnzteinz]

[soymilkwithyuri]

Moore, rise and rahu doodles

[brickeater712]

help me stay awake tonight?

cw: moore x reader, bondage, vibra/tors, edg/ing, over/stim, ruined org/asm, pet names, mentions of public sex, ejacu/lating strap, gags, ruined org/asm, multiple org/asms, watching yourself get fucked???

quite the amazing idea from my twitter mutual i think. i like it lots

“you know, it’s already two in the morning.” 

you peek into moore’s office, looking on as she yawns and types away at her computer. 

“mmm.” she hums, and tears her eyes away from the bright shining screen. “already?” her eyes zero in on the clock above the door frame. “well,” she shrugs, “my work is due soon, anyway…” and just like that, she turns back to the computer.

you sigh and step into her office, moving to stand next to her. “we have another meeting in the morning though…” you grimace, trying to get her away from her work. 

“that’s fine!” she giggles lightly. “i can always sleep after the meeting ends.”

you pout at her, causing her to coo. “don’t worry too much about it, cutie. i just need some coffee-” she reaches for her thermos flask- “to get me through the night.” 

you reach over quickly and grab the flask from her. she whines and tries to grab it back. “no more coffee for you. you’ll die of a caffeine overdose, you know.”

moore sighs and drops her hands. “fine. you’ll help me stay up tonight then?” she pleads with you.

“why not.” you shrug, playfully rolling your eyes. this wouldn’t be your first all-nighter anyways.

________________

“m-moore, wait!” those are the last words that you choke out, before moore shoves a thick cable into your mouth, muffling your noises. your hands are bound too, by a smaller, thinner, cable, that moore had decided she had no more use for. you’re squirming on a cleared-out table, clothes tossed away to the corner of the room.

“perhaps your cute noises will keep both of us awake till the meeting, hm?” moore had said, before lifting you up and plopping you on the table.

she hums as she binds your ankles to the legs of the table, to keep you still for her. your eyes follow her movements and you watch as her huge, floating monitors reposition themselves around the room. 

“i guess i can take an hour or two off of work, right?” moore holds that ever-kind smile on her face, though you don’t miss the mischievous glint present in her eyes either. your eyes widen as you see her walking toward you, with a vibrator in her hand. 

“no need to look so surprised, cutie, even someone like me has needs to fulfil when i’m working in the middle of the night…” she chuckles and moves to stand in front of you, staring directly at your already glistening cunt, clearly aroused by the situation that you’re put in. she taps the head of the vibrator on your throbbing clit, making you whimper behind your gag. 

“what a good girl, staying still for me… well, not like you can do anything about it anyways.” she muses, and turns on the vibrator. the whirring of the device rings through the room, scaring and exciting you at the same time. without letting you react, she pushes the head of the vibrator directly onto your clit, making your thighs attempt to close instinctively. 

you moan desperately, eyes widening as the intense pleasure rocks through your core so quickly. she moves it around, trying to determine the best position to stimulate you the hardest. you toss your head from side to side, drool escaping from the corners of your lips. 

she moves the vibrator around until it hits the underside of your sensitive clit, and that’s when you really start reacting. she delights in the way that your teeth dig into the cables that gag you, and your legs struggle to kick against the air. your cunt is already dripping slick onto the table, wetting the area under your ass. she giggles as she watches your body shake against its restraints, eyes rolling back into your head. 

you squeal (as best as you can while gagged) when she turns up the speed on the toy, now vibrating against your clit so painfully, so deliciously. you don’t get to warn her at all before you suddenly cum, and start squirting onto her clothes, staning it. 

but the moment the first jet of fluid hits her, she reacts fast and takes the vibrator away quickly- smiling as she watches your eyes go wide, hips attempting to buck up against nothing as your squirting dies down, as does your ruined orgasm. tears fall from your eyes, and your clit is left red, angry, and throbbing, waiting for more stimulation from the cruel woman in front of you. little whines escape your gag, making her coo at you.

“oh, cutie, don’t whine so much! why would i let the night end so quickly? there’s still so much time left…” she pouts, keeping eye contact with you as the still-on toy vibrates in her hand. she moves and whistles as she moves the huge screens in the room once more, three of them now hovering over your still shaking body. 

“let’s see here… ah!” she exclaims excitedly as she wheels something over to you, a strange contraption with multiple cameras attached. she positions it right beside the leg of the table, and with that, the monitors around you turn on, with the screens first showing some static before cutting to blurry views of your thighs, your breasts, and the middle monitor- a centered view of your dripping cunt. 

your entire body flushes a deep red, and your eyes lock on to the view of your own pussy gushing more slick at the sight. you squirm and whimper, biting down on the cable- you feel as if your teeth have dug into the cables to expose the copper inside. she moves to set down the vibrator on a table, and from the same drawer, pulls out a harness, and a thick, translucent, dildo- clearly meant to stretch your cunt out. it’s ribbed- she plans to make you cum over and over tonight. 

your body wants to wriggle away, but you also don’t miss how your pussy throbs at the image of getting stretched out by moore. she catches it as well.

“i saw that, cutie.” she muses as she puts the harness on. “looks like you want me to fill you up too.” she fixes the dildo into place, showing off her strap in all its glory. “what do you think? does it look good on me?” she teases, delighting in the way you nod desperately, a few more tears rolling down your face. 

“good girl! now, i don’t have any lube here, so you’ll just have to help me get my cock ready for you.” she cheers, as if she weren’t about to fuck you into oblivion. she walks up to you, clacking of heels accompanied with the whirring of machines resounding in the room. she reaches down to take the cables out of your mouth, causing you to choke on your spit. 

when you recover, you look up to see her nonchalant face, and down to see the thick dildo in hand. “open wide, baby.” that’s the only warning you get before she shoves her cock into your mouth. 

you gag immediately, trying to adjust to the size of the strap in your mouth, nearly forcing its way down your throat. you glance up, with tearful eyes, and for the first time, you see a change in moore’s expression. 

a darker glint in her eyes, and her smile seems a little more sinister- her cheeks flush a dark red and she huffs everytime she thrusts her cock deeper into your mouth. her look excites you wildly, and you try your best to take her into the back of your throat. 

you tear your eyes away from her, and at the corner of them, you catch a glimpse of one of the monitors- zoomed in on the way your mouth stretches around her. you nearly bite down on her strap in arousal, but instead relax your throat to allow her to fuck into it deeper. 

moore hilts herself in all the way, hands intertwined in your hair. she grinds into your mouth a little bit before finally pulling out, cock covered in drool and your lips flushed red. “so pretty.” she smiles, and slaps your cheek lightly a few times. she grabs the once discarded cables from the table beside her and shoves them back into your mouth, gagging you once more. 

she then walks back to the foot of the table, and you can lift your head up to see her align her strap with your sopping hole. she clicks her tongue, “eyes up, look at the screen.” you nod, eyes zeroing in on the screen displaying your cunt and her strap that is prodding at your swollen clit. 

“good.” she praises, and finally starts sinking her cock into your pussy. you let out a shaky sigh behind the gag, and your eyes roll back as you feel the stretch of every ridge of the dildo against your walls. you try to roll your hips forward to meet her pushing, but she’s binded you well- you can only lie there and take everything she gives you. 

“ biiiiiiiig stretch, cutie.” she mumbles, as she hilts herself inside your needy cunt. you look dizzily at the screen, watching as you visibly clench around her. you can only whimper out, trying to get her to move inside you, and she takes the hint. she doesn’t hesitate to begin thrusting slowly, helping you get used to the large toy. 

eventually, when she sees that you’re comfortable, she starts speeding up, and digs her fingers into your thighs. only the slick sounds coming from your cunt, and the soft “ mmfgh, mmf ”s can be heard throughout the room. you can barely focus on the screen as you can feel yourself approaching your much-needed orgasm, eyes crossing and toes curling. 

moore can feel you clenching harder around her- she knows that you’re close. “cum anytime you want, cutie- ah, but i won’t touch your little clit, ‘kay? it’s already so sore from the vibrator just now.” she fakes a sad pout and coos at you, though you could tell she was stifling a laugh while she was looking at your current, piteous state. 

you can only whine at her, though she pays no mind to the noises you make. without warning, she angles the strap differently- hitting your sweet spot intensely. and just like that, you cum immediately, squirting over her strap and dirtying her clothes. but it’s not enough- your swollen clit still untouched, still left unsatisfied amidst the jets of fluid squirting from your already sore cunt. your long, drawn out whines and hip movements tell moore all she needs to know. 

she slows down, making you shake your head desperately. “aww! not finished yet?” she giggles, thrusting hard just once into you, your head thrown back from the mild shock. “fine,” she says, almost mocking, “i’ll touch your pretty clit this time.” 

she pulls out of you, making you whine at the empty feeling, but it doesn’t take long for her to return, with that cruel vibrator in hand once more. she slides back into you with ease, making you whimper. however, the whimper turns into a scream when you feel the vibrator back on your clit, kicking your body into oversensitivity. 

amidst the buzzing of the toy and the the sounds of filthy squelching, you can hear moore laughing- at you, no doubt, as she pushes the toy against the underside of your clit once more. your hips try to wiggle away from the stimulation, but it’s impossible with the way you’re tied- and you cum around her with a squeal, but she doesn’t let up with her movements. you glance at the screen once more, now catching a view of your slick dripping onto the floor from your drenched cunt. 

the buzzing gets too much, almost painful , but she pushes harder. you slowly lose the strength to struggle against her, eventually succumbing to the pleasure she gives you. you’re simply laying limp on the desk, head thrown to one side with your eyes rolled back. she can tell that you’re close to your limit.

“one more, okay?” you barely get a nod out, and she grins. “gooooood girl.” it’s almost patronizing, but you’re is too fucked out to care. “maybe i should keep you tied up to a machine next time? that would be better than any coffee i could drink, no?” she proposes. 

the thought has you squeezing around her once more. she continues putting the filthiest ideas into your head. through your hazy mind, you can barely make out a few things she says- “how about i fuck you in the meeting in the morning?” and, “next time, i’ll record you getting fucked silly and send it to you while you’re working.” 

through a couple of choked out sobs and tears, you agree mindlessly- you can’t wait for the next time she has you like this. “gonna give you a treat now, sweet girl.” you don’t have the time or energy to question what she meant, before you feel her slam her strap home, and then something filling you up. your eyes jerk to the screen, and you can see a thin shot of cum flowing through the dildo into your worn out cunt. 

you cum wordlessly for the last time, creaming around her strap, body convulsing on the table. she jerks the dildo a little bit around inside you, trying to get her cum as deep as possible. she slows the speed down on the vibrator, eventually stopping it and putting it aside when your jerking dies down. she says something about pulling out- you can barely process anything anymore- and slowly removes her strap from your pussy, and you can feel the emptiness in you once more. your eyes watch wearily as your mixed fluids drip from your hole- which reminds you. 

your fingers, luckily, aren’t bound, and you make weak noises, pointing at her crotch area.

“me? oh, you want me to cum?” she giggles, petting your cunt gently. “don’t worry about it, sweetie, maybe i’ll have you eat me out under my desk tomorrow. you groan out gently, feeling your binds be removed. when she finally takes the cables out of your mouth, you cough a few times before speaking hoarsely. 

“moore… the meeting…” you can barely keep your eyes open, but you can feel her scoop you up into her arms, and kiss you on the forehead. 

“worry not cutie, i’ll clean you up and you can rest on the couch. i’ll wake you up when the morning comes…” she trails off, and it’s the last thing you hear before you pass out in her arms.

“ah… but there’s the issue of carrying you to the bathroom without you getting seen…”

[kinokochouchou]

path to nowhere glitchware nihil event screenshots

[frogchampi0n]

finally did moore’s interrogation, and lore drops aside, this feels like a reference to those types of tiktok comments

[ruinillusion]

000 doodle :3

[nekoyashi]

Really liking Rise VA, her voice is just SO good

[solinmoirav]

PtN 2nd Anniversary Spoilers Ahead!

̝̦̬̤͖̗͕͎͊̐̊͊̏ͦ̈́̒͆́ͬ̂̕͠ ̛̛̾̒̊̈̈̇ͭ̾҉̱̹͙ ̪̖̠̱ͧͬͤͯ̄ͣͨ̚̚͘͠Be ̵̸̶̶̸̨̼̜͕͍͈͔̪̘̣̮̖̥̗̪̬͓̠̲̟̻̞̤̳͔͖̥̻͉̮͓̬͓̤̩͉̻̩̘͕̠͍̳̳͔̣̬̰̤̺̹͉̞͚̖̲͈̻̪̜̹͇̭̥̼̹ͮͫ͐̄͐ͯ̑͊ͤͩͬ͛͛̆̐̐͗́̔̊͋̈̐ͥͪ̽ͣͪ̒́̀ͤͬ̃̄̆̈́ͭͣ̇̓̊ͦ̍ͭ͂̽͑ͫ́̽͒̇̾͊ͮͪ̑͑̄̕̕͘͜͢͟͞͝͝͡ͅͅ.̢̬̜͇̳̣̮̩̗͈̝̪̭̲̓̆̄̒̈̊ͧ̈́̋ͥͬ̏͑ͨ͗̿ͨ̃ͧ͒͑̈̚̚҉͖̭̦̲̣͎̗̳̾̓̉̂͑͛ͧ̾̕͞ ͆̆̏̋̄ͤ͏̧̨̧̡̛̳͙͙͚̮̥̙̖̞͈̜͖̱̻̪̗̱̠̼͈̠͔̯̺̳̥͔̱̟̱̥̣͎̫̰̣͕͆̀̈̓̃͋̐̓ͥ̀̐̐̽̑ͦ͑͗͑̄ͥ͒̀̚͟͜͜͡͞͞ͅͅMad.̷͎̱̫̗̗̹̥̟̬̲̲͉͇͉̦̼̞͆̾͑̓͛̀̒͆͆͑ͯ͋ͭͬͤ̏ͬͮͤ͘͠͏̸͏̵̬̰̹̬̘͍͖̤̮̮̣͇̥͉̹̝̰͕̼̫̣͔͙̫̋ͬ̇̅ͤ̀̚ͅ҉̷̸̷̨͍̺̟̳͔̞̙̳̳͕͖̬̮̳̥͇͚̝̘̞̯̦͂̿͆ͯ̋̒̇ͨ́͋̄̃͌̉̈ͮ̿̾ͬ̋̌̂͑ͤ̓ͭ̀͒̌̑̒̎͊͆ͬͬ͟͠҉̶̴̩̥͎͖̻̜̰̪̙̝̺͕͓̹̱͚̪ͦͣ͐́͆̀̀ͪ̍ͫ͂̇ͬ̑̉̓̍̋ͦ͗̌̌̊͊̊́̚͞.̢͔̮̖̠͇̝̳̪̩̩̥͎͔̞̳̣̻͓̜͍͍̐̊̔́̀͛̎̑͌̓͑̿́̏ͭͫ̀͋͋̐̍ͦͦ̀̄̕̚ͅͅ ̷̷̨̦̖̘̤̱̮̘̪̘̘̦͖̪̟̱̥̟͓̇ͣ̿͗͆̓͆̈́ͨ̓ͫ̆̓ͯ̿̔̑ͧ͛̽ͅ͏̡͇͎̳̣̹̀ͭ̿̂ͩ͑̇̕͟҉̨̠͈̼̲̣̣͖̠͓̞̞̄̾Be.̵̥͈̝͚̘̣̘͍̘͎̟̳̺̗̬̰̤̪̮̞̝̯̣̖̂̿ͫͣ̊̔ͯ́̋̍͞͠҉̴̧̡̛̲̗̭̫͈̺̗̗̭̮͎̗̫̫͉͉͇͚͎͓̦͊ͤ͋͐́̋̃͛̔͒̒ͥ̇͂̽̌̈̎̀͆͑͆ͨͬ̽͌̍̀̚͘͘͡͡ͅ͏̶̢̘͈̪̗̙̩͚̜̳̘̖͇̲̓̐͂͆ͬͧ́̅͋̍́́́͡ͅHer.̡̲̤̯͇̟ͯͪ̽̿ͯ̍ͤ̀҉̷̸̨͍̺̟̳͔̞̙̳̳͕͖̬̮̳̥͖͕͂̿͆ͯ̋̒̇ͨ́͋̄̃͌̉̈ͮ̿͟͠ ̷͇͚̝̘̞̯̦̾ͬ̋̌̂͑ͤ̓ͭ̀͒̌̑̒̎͊͆ͬͬ҉̶̴̩̥͎͖̻̜̰̪̙̝̺͕͓̹̱͚̪̱ͦͣ͐́͆̀̀ͪ̍ͫ͂̇ͬ̑̉̓̍̋ͦ͗̌̌̊͊̊́̚͞.̢͔̮̖̠͇̝̳̪̩̩̥͎͔̞̳̣̻͓̜͍͍̐̊̔́̀͛̎̑͌̓͑̿́̏ͭͫ̀͋͋̐̍ͦͦ̀̄̕̚ͅͅ ̷̷̨̦̖̘̤̱̮̘̪̘̘̦͖̪̟̱̇ͣ̿͗͆̓͆̈́ͨ̓ͫ̆̓ͅ

[zwan99]

New S-Rank Umbra - Zero

New S-Rank Endura - Moore

New A-Rank Fury - Rise

New 3 Star Attire for Zero

New 2 Star Attire for Crache

New Free 2 Star Attire for Demolia

By @ PathtoSnake

That's a lot of stuff... Those dual banners are gonna be the death of me.

[nicknickknacks]

Moore's roster pic looks like she knows something we don't know

[karnzteinz]

glitchwave nihil

[boundary-line]

aaand i got moore! i read she's quite good at s4 but i do not have the funds for that, lol. plus i wanna save for the angell re-run in a few months~ i know she's not meta or anything, but ... i am her wife and we are married

i finished the event as well but i'm gonna wait a bit before talking about my thoughts so i don't accidentally spoil anything! i enjoyed it though!!

[kuro-kurochi]

When the game agrees with you today 😍😍😍🔥🎉😌💐

[lanibijou]

The s rank endura Anni sinner...I need her so bad. I need her for my endura family I live her already

[cannedpickledpeaches]

Insert Your Name (6)

Mafia!Jade Leech x Mafia!Reader

Link to series masterlist!

Notes and TW: Here's how they met, and also some other stuff. This series will have mentions of blood, violence, crime (kidnapping, attempted assassination, extortion), and harassment, as one might expect from a mafia AU. Please enjoy!

Tags: @guava-writes @itszzmoon @twstsandturns @myteacupisempty @rou-luxe @chikitasmol

Things feel a little different between you and Jade nowadays. You can’t say you’ve gotten closer. But tentatively, you’re starting to let your guard down around him. You told him what you thought about trusting him.

“The only people who’d trust you,” you explained your theory, “are naïve fools, desperate people, or wary ones who have leverage on you or something to gain.”

He smiled enigmatically. “What category do you believe you fall under?”

“Naïve fool,” you answered without hesitation.

His chuckles in your ear felt like silk. “The fact that you can say that means you are not.”

A part of you still worries, but you’ve decided to give it a chance. No developments can be made if you refuse to take risks. Besides, you don’t have the brainspace to linger on this. The other mystery from his phone call that morning still hasn’t been addressed.

Why did (Y/N) forget you? Is it linked to the spell shielding Barry Moore’s memories from Shock the Heart? After some tests, Azul concluded that it’s not a defensive spell. Instead, it is a high-level spell locking specific memories. Only experienced mages can pull that off, even if it is someone’s Signature Spell. If it’s the same spell, why would (Y/N)’s memories specific to you be blocked off? Does it have to do with how you’re an extra in the book? By that logic, why were Moore’s memories locked, and not yours?

There is one path that has opened up. Jade consolidated a list of mages in the Carpenter Mafia. You’ve spent the past two weeks splitting the investigation into every mage between the two of you. Meanwhile, Jade has continued with advancing the plot. The story says he should be in love with (Y/N) by this point, but he still denies it to you. You have decided to take his word for it.

Your iced coffee tastes like frustration. You fiddle with the straw while observing a barrel-chested man across the street. He browses a luxury watch shop. You’ve been tailing him for a good few days, and you’ve already seen a few glimpses of his magic. His spells are crude and broad. Nowhere near the precision needed to lock specific memories. Maybe he’s acting, too cautious to show his magical prowess. You find it unlikely.

He is the last on your half of the list. Jade is done his half as well, save for someone who is a missing person the last time you checked. Not unusual for a mafia. You still think you should look into it when you return home. Other than that, did you not investigate thoroughly enough? Nobody matches the level of magical skill needed for that spell. You are starting to wonder if you are the one who is making a mistake. Maybe the one responsible is not a mage in the Carpenter Mafia. If not, who is it? The same person who wrote that manuscript in the first place?

Unanswered questions buzz around you like flies. You feel as though the more you investigate into this whole ordeal, the more questions you have. The man leaves the watch shop and you cannot find it in you to leave your corner of the café. It would be a waste of time to follow him.

Even if this investigation fails, not all hope is lost. According to Jade, (Y/N) recently won a raffle that allowed her on a certain movie set. The men you’ve planted amongst the staff reported that Vil Schoenheit took an interest in her natural beauty. The story is flowing onward without a hitch, so if all else fails, you can rely on her doe eyes. She should be able to tug on Vil’s heartstrings until he agrees to cure Jade and Floyd’s parents.

There’s no point in fantasizing about hypotheticals. If the story says it is so, it probably is. Things are easier this way. With that matter put to rest in your mind, your thoughts wander to home. With some free time in your schedule, you could make brunch for your mother. She might be sleeping in today.

Maybe you should take her back to your hometown sometime soon. Right now, you’re both living in your house in the capital of the Queendom of Roses, but you grew up elsewhere. Your hometown is on an isle on the far reaches of the Queendom’s territory, right next to the Coral Sea. That is where you met the twins, and later, Azul.

The memory of your first meeting is still vivid in your mind. You had been strolling along the beach that day on your way home from school. An odd shape caught your eye. Something distinctly green and long, half hidden behind the grey rocks of the cliffside. Loud voices of children your age filled the air. Middle schoolers, all boys. You figured it couldn’t be anything other than trouble.

But then you saw what caught their attention. And just like that, you were rooted to the spot. A long green tail with dark stripes and thin fins thrashed on the sand. Where you might have expected a fish or a sea monster’s head, you instead saw a boy’s upper body. Green, slimy, and snarling with gnashed, saw-like teeth and mismatched eyes, but a boy nonetheless. A boy who was trying his best to appear threatening while human boys stood around him in a circle.

As a child, you weren’t particularly righteous. You didn’t—and still don’t—care much about the livelihoods of people who aren’t close to you. The typical reaction for you would have been to walk away.

In fact, you were just about to turn around when you realized why his tail seemed familiar to you. Your favourite shops by the shore were owned by moray eel merfolk. When you asked your mother about them, she mentioned that moray merfolk weren’t too common. You surmised that whoever this unfortunate kid was, he was probably somewhat related to those rich business owners, and that meant you had something to gain if you helped.

It’s all very flimsy logic, now that you think back. You can forgive yourself for it. At the time, you were twelve years old. And without this incident, you wouldn’t be employed at this very well-paying job in the present day.

So you decided to chase away the boys surrounding the mer. They weren’t doing much other than talking out of curiosity, but they weren’t helping him get back in the water, either. Warning them should have been enough, but you lacked the factor of intimidation. When you yelled at them, they sneered back at you, telling you they wouldn’t listen to what a girl had to say.

In your defense, you were quick to anger as a child. Not that it excuses the five noses you broke under your fists that afternoon.

You stood next to that mer, hands dripping red with blood onto the thin layer of snow over coarse sand. The human boys threatened to tell on you or beat you up or whatever else they could think of, but after you threatened to break their arms too, they ran off. Once the coast was clear, you looked down at the boy beached on the sand. His skin was becoming dull.

“Thank you,” he said, his inhuman mismatched eyes peering up at you. “Can you help me back into the water? It’s a bit hard for me, and my skin is drying out.”

You squatted down a safe distance away from him so that you could see him at eye level. He sounded just like a normal boy. If you ignored the green skin, fins, markings, sharp teeth, and tail, he looked like a normal boy, too—although that was quite a lot to ignore. Well, a boy who looked normal could still be rich.

“Pay me.” You reached out a bloody hand expectantly. He looked at it with a raised eyebrow.

“You’ll be disappointed. I don’t have money on me.”

He wasn’t carrying any bags. But his hand clutched something shiny and blue. Before he could react, you snatched it away from him and held it up to the rays of the setting sun.

They looked like jewels, almost. But too thin, and the texture didn’t feel like any jewel you had ever held. Not that you’d held many. You could have been fooled into thinking it was something valuable based on how the boy bared his teeth at you.

“Give that back. You will regret it if you do not.”

“What is this?”

He held his hand out the way you did when you asked him for money. “Sturgeon scales. Return them.”

They were just scales, it seemed. Not particularly expensive. And your mother always told you it was bad to steal things.

She never explicitly said it was bad to extort people.

“I’ll give them back to you tomorrow if you come here at sunset to give me one hundred thaumarks.” You pocketed the scales. “I’ll push you into the water, but I’m not giving them back until you pay me.”

Begrudgingly, he accepted your help getting back to the embrace of the waves. A mer who looked exactly like him greeted him with a loud, cheerful voice. He even called out to you, asking you to come into the water and fight him, too. That was more trouble than it was worth, so you ignored him and went home with three sturgeon scales in your pocket.

The next day, you waited at the same spot after school. As promised, he arrived with a hundred-thaumark bill. As you exchanged items, he asked why you didn’t ask for more while you had the chance.

You blinked slowly. “I didn’t even think about that.”

“Ya shoulda asked for way more!” A second, identical green head popped out of the water, startling you. You didn’t even know when he arrived. “A hundred thaumarks’s chump change.”

“Must be nice thinking that way.” You crouched by the shore, staring at the money in your hands. Your mother would surely ask where you got it from. You wondered what excuse you would give her this time.

“What do you need money for?” The first twin rested his hand on his chin, his torso propped up on a rock.

You fidgeted with the bill. “My mom needs to buy medicine. She isn’t dying or anything, but it would make her life more comfortable. I can’t earn money, but I want to help.”

“And ya extorted Jade for that?” The more boisterous one laughed. You thought it was a laugh, at least. You had never heard something so similar to crunching glass. “Ya got guts, Red Handfish!”

“Red Handfish?”

“Think of it as a term of endearment.” The first twin—Jade—flicked his tail lightly. “Anyway, if you need money, I have a proposal. If you bring us things that only exist on land, I’ll keep paying you.”

It didn’t seem like a bad deal. Little did you know that it would entangle your lives until the present day.

You’re still contemplating your good? Bad? Fortune of meeting the Leech twins when your phone buzzes, pulling you back to reality. A text from Jade that says: Come to my home office. I have something to discuss with you.

You didn’t think much of it until you arrived at his front gates. Unease flickers in your gut. The mansion is quiet, the courtyard empty. Where are the security guards who should be stationed at the front? It is noon. They can’t all be off work.

You enter the front yard. No movement except for swaying branches from the trees Floyd likes to climb. The sound of the doorbell meets dead silence. Your eyes rove over the massive glass windows on the double doors. The midday sun lights up the neighbourhood behind you, which casts a reflection of your silhouette on the glass. In that reflection, you catch a glimpse of a shadow behind you.

Instincts kick in before your rational mind. Your Signature Spell envelops your body like chainmail. The knife thrusted towards you crashes into invisible armour around your skin. With a flick of a wrist and a punch to the jaw, you disarm your assailant and knock him out. Fluidly, you transition into a kick, the sole of your shoe meeting the throat of another one. More jump out at you. Your body falls into a quick, effortless flow of movements as you knock them unconscious one-by-one. A strike to the temple. Throat. Jaw. Solar plexus. Heart. Groin. Repeat. You would kill them if you had a weapon, but you’re barehanded and doing it that way takes too long. Something is very wrong here. Assassins? Where is Jade? Was that message even from Jade to begin with?

You unlock the door and rush inside, heading straight for his office. It could be a trap. No matter. You are confident you can take care of yourself. Within seconds, you fling open his office door and step inside.

Nothing seems amiss here. In fact, Jade himself sits calmly in his chair. On your side of his desk, a woman stands in the uniform of the security under his employ. Jade gives you a smile.

“You seem out of breath. Would you like a cup of tea?”

You shake your head, confused. “A hot drink is the last thing I need right now. What is going on? Why’d I get attacked?”

Jade shoots a pointed smile at the woman. You’ve known his expressions well enough to tell it is a threat. She chuckles and extends a hand.

“Sorry about that. I told my men not to let anyone enter.”

You shake her hand warily, your Signature Spell still active. “Your men?”

“Yes. Pleasure to meet you. You may call me Walrus. I have been working undercover in the Leech brothers’ residence for . . . Oh, about a month.”

“Walrus” sounds familiar. You wrack your memory. It dawns on you—it was a name in the list of mages working for the Carpenter Mafia. The one who turned out to be a missing person. Was that fake? Your shoulders stiffen. If she’s from a rival mafia, then she’s in the middle of enemy territory.

“Isn’t espionage a little outdated?”

“Not at all. Especially when my Signature Spell is so well suited for it.”

You connect the dots quickly. “You’re the one who locked Barry Moore’s memories?”

“That’s me. He’s under me. I didn’t expect him to be so careless, so I cleaned up after his mistake.” Walrus beams like a teacher congratulating a student. She turns to Jade, talking as though you are not in the room. “She’s quick. And strong enough to incapacitate all my men. Won’t you please lend her to me?”

Jade’s smile borders on dangerous. “She is an essential member of my group. I would be quite burdened if she suddenly left.”

“Please think about it a little more.”

“My decision will not change.”

You hold out your hands. “Hold on. Just give me a second. What is going on?”

Jade’s facial muscles relax imperceptibly. He gestures for you to stand beside him, so you indulge him. Only when you are properly by his side does he answer your question.

“Walrus is not truly part of the Carpenter Mafia, just like how she was not truly part of my security team. Her true allegiance lies with a smaller group in the Queendom that aims to take over the Carpenter Mafia.”