Ten Zero

"I don't understand why or how she sleeps so much. You would think she was a child," Ko-lee mused to herself, as she made her way into hall. Today was the day that her and Antimony would meet with the Conclave, and like nearly every day prior that Ko-lee had spent with the woman, she would need to be woken up. As she made her way out of her room and into the hall, she had a brief impulse to leave Antimony behind. To let her sleep, while Ko-lee went on to speak to Konzu herself, not dissimilar to how she had spent the previous morning buying new clothes for the both of them. But as quickly as the impulse came, she discarded it. "The Conclave will want both of us there. She may have insight into the... event... that I don't." She could feel the ghost of the fury of that night pass through her, and she took a momentary breath to settle her nerves. She had spent much of the journey from Sharip to Cetus trying to come to terms with what had happened, but she still found her mind a mix of unpleasant emotions anytime the memories cropped up. "A Chief needs to-"

Ko-lee's musing was interrupted by the door to Antimony's room swinging open. Ko-lee's gaze found her way towards the woman; she had clearly just woken up, apparent by the haphazardly thrown on outfit and disheveled hair. Her mind, however, didn't seem to suffer the same exhaustion; her vibrant blue eyes were searching Ko-lee's, as though trying to pierce into her mind. "How did you sleep?" she asked, as she stared straight into Ko-lee's soul. "Her eyes are mesmerising," thought Ko-lee, before she realized that Antimony had asked her a question. She could feel the tips of her ears burning, and there was a brief moment of silence as the words caught in Ko-lee's throat. Quickly schooling her expression, and hoping that her companion hadn't noticed her slip up, she spoke. "Fine, as usual." For some reason, that didn't seem to be the response that Antimony was hoping for, and the briefest frown crossed her face, before she broke into a grin, her gaze wandering around the hall as she spoke. "Better than yesterday, I hope. So, what is our next step?" For some reason, that seemed to tickle her, and her smile grew even wider.

"Her mind is all over the place. How she functions, I have no idea," thought Ko-lee, as she began to lay out the day's plans. "While Konzu will be at the tavern tonight, I was hoping we could find him before that point. If we do, then we might have an opportunity to bring the Conclave together today, rather than needing to drag this out." As she spoke, the two made their way down the stairs and towards the tavern itself. As they passed Mareep, the bartender, Ko-lee held two fingers up, receiving a nod of affirmation in return. "However, I don't know where else we might find him. I figured we could speak to Nakak. She might have more insight into when and where he might be." Antimony nodded vigorously as Ko-lee spoke, and the moment the last word left Ko-lee's lips, the excitable woman spoke up. "I like it, peh kass oh," she said, for some reason inordinately pleased with herself. Ko-lee, for her part, did her best to ignore it. During the trip to Cetus, Antimony had explained that she would occasionally just... say things. There was a term attached to it, but Ko-lee couldn't remember what Antimony had called it. In any case, it wasn't meant to be responded to, it was just... something she did.

She wasn't worried that there would be any odd outbursts during the Conclave though. When Antimony had explained it, she said it was generally only in situations where she was relaxed. "It is because I feel comfortable with you," she had said, and even the memory of the conversation made Ko-lee feel warm inside. Still, she knew her feelings were one sided, as the few times she had made insinuations towards Antimony, they were gently rebuffed. So, while they dug into their food, Ko-lee did her best to set her feelings aside. "I need to keep my mind on our next step. Breakfast, Nakak, Konzu, Conclave," she thought to herself, and with her mind set on their immediate goal, she dug in to her meal.

As the pair made their way through the busy market streets, Ko-lee heard the young entrepreneur's voice cut through the chatter of the crowd. Not long after, Nakak spotted the two approaching the stall, and her face lit up. "She's probably excited for another influx of cash," thought Ko-lee. She wasn't sure how much the young woman had made from the assistance of her and Antimony, but being able to draw attention to one stall among many was no doubt a valuable ability, and Ko-lee knew that Nakak would use them as long as they were available. "Ahh, my friends! I am so excited to see you again, and so early too! Are you here to assist me on this Unum blessed day?" Ko-lee looked at Antimony, but her attention seemed to be lost in the flow of the market, so Ko-lee decided to take charge. "We're looking for Konzu," she said, focused on the young carpet seller. "We know that near the end of the day, he'll end up in a tavern called Salt of the Sea, but we were hoping to find him before that point. We have an important discussion to hold with the man." Nakak just nodded her head, and when Ko-lee finished, she responded, a mercantile gleam in her eye.

"Wellll, I think I might know, but I hardly have the time to discuss it. I'm losing sales just from talking to you, you know," said Nakak, a look of faux frustration on her face. Ko-lee just sighed, reaching into her pocket to grab at the few credits she had from the work of the day prior. But before she had a chance to pull them out, Antimony spoke up, her gaze still wandering amongst the crowd. "Sorry Nakak, we are just trying to find him so we can wrap up our business early. If we can, then we can come back around lunch time and work with you again. Assuming you want us to help again," she said, seemingly offhand. Ko-lee almost spoke up to counter what Antimony said, but then a thought flashed through her mind. "If we find Konzu and speak to the Conclave, we'll end up having the rest of the day with nothing to do. We're still short on credits to make our way into the Unum, so we'd need to work with Nakak anyways." She looked at Nakak, who had a smile on her face, clearly amicable to the idea. Then she shifted her attention to Antimony, who for all intents and purposes, didn't even seem to be paying attention to the conversation. "Was this all a ploy? It felt so... genuine, like it was just something she thought of on the spot, but surely not."

"Hmm, that sounds like a plan to me! So, from what I know, he heads in towards the market from the beach, likely coming from the tower. He doesn't have a specific time he passes by here, but it's still early enough that you'll likely catch him if you leave now," said Nakak, as she recalled the previous month's interactions with the man. At her words, Antimony spun around, a grin on her face. "You are the best! We will go find him right now. See you in a few hours?" she said, looking at the mask seller. Nakak just nodded, a smile on her face. "Sho-lah, Antimony, Ko-lee." Just as quick, Antimony spun to face Ko-lee, gesturing with her head to start walking towards the beach. Ko-lee nodded, then gave a short wave to Nakak, before starting to make her way through the crowd, with Antimony trailing behind her. A minute into their walk, and Ko-lee couldn't help but speak up. "That was well played, Antimony." Antimony, for her part, looked confused. "What was?" she asked, and Ko-lee gestured the way they had just come. "How deftly you handled Nakak. She wanted us to pay her for the information, but instead you got us more work for the day." Antimony's expression of confusion didn't leave, however.

"She did?" said the woman, and this just caused Ko-lee to become confused. "Well, yea. You didn't know? I thought you did it on purpose?" Ko-lee didn't understand how Antimony could simultaneously be so competent and so unaware at the same time. "Oh, uhm. I did not know. I just thought... well, I was just thinking about what we would do after. I did not really, uh..." Ko-lee took a moment to look at Antimony, and saw her face growing red. "I don't understand, what is she embarrassed about? Even barely paying attention she's a social savant," thought Ko-lee, as her gaze refocused on the the path before them. She wanted to do something, say something to assuage Antimony's clear concern, but not knowing what exactly the woman was so embarrassed about, she decided to just keep her mouth shut instead. "Maybe she'll explain it at some point in the future." And so, the two women continued making their way past the various stalls and towards the beach.

After the short jaunt, Ko-lee looked around the sandy stretch of land, but wasn't able to spot Konzu anywhere. Noticing Othlak however, she made her way over, waving to catch the man's attention. Othlak, seeing the approaching pair, gave a short nod of acknowledgement, and as Ko-lee got closer, she spoke up. "Do-lah, Othlak. I heard that Konzu passes by the beach at some point today? Do you know when and where I might be able to run into him?" Othlak, ever focused on his work, said, "He generally speaks to the companies. You'll need to speak to one of the foremans." At this, Othlak took a brief pause in his slicing to point with his knife at a much cleaner man directing others near the balloons. "That man is a foreman. I think his name is Jakob." Then, he returned his attention the meat before him, continuing his methodical and bloody work. "Thank you," said Ko-lee, before making her way over towards Jakob. As she approached, she heard the scratchy tone of the foreman directing those around him. "I'm sorry to interrupt," said Ko-lee, as she got within earshot. "Are you Jakob?"

The older man took a quick look at her, before quickly returning his attention to the various workers around him. "We're not accepting any applications right now," he said, making a quick note on a holographic tablet he had in his right hand. Ko-lee just shook her head. "Sorry, this is about Konzu, actually. I heard that he would be somewhere on this beach? I have an urgent message to give him," she said, and at this, the foreman gave her another look. "Ahh, I see. Yea, he'll be coming back from the tower in an hour or so. If you wait near the landing pads, you should be able to catch him," said Jakob, gesturing towards the section of beach with the most balloons. Thanking the man, Ko-lee made her way over to the pads along with Antimony, and managed to find a section where they'd be mostly out of the way, but still have full sight of everyone taking off and landing.

Roughly 40 minutes after settling in, Antimony spoke up. "Did you say something?" she asked looking at Ko-lee. Ko-lee just shook her head "No, I didn't say anything." "That is so weird," said Antimony, looking both concerned and confused. "This is the second or third time that has happened, I think." Ko-lee, without taking her eyes off of the beach, asked, "What happened?" Antimony just shrugged, and said, "I keep thinking a woman is speaking to me. I think I am going crazy." Ko-lee, without missing a beat, said back, "I'm pretty sure you're already crazy." Antimony's face lit up, a grin stretching wide across it. She said something in that other language that she spoke, but Ko-lee didn't have the opportunity to press her on it, as at the same moment, she watched a reclamator balloon that was carrying Konzu land nearby. Ko-lee stood up, with Antimony quickly following suit, and the pair made their way off their rocky seats and towards Konzu. "Konzu!" said Ko-lee, half shouting to get his attention. The older man looked up towards Ko-lee, and he began to smile as they got close. "Ahhhh, swazdo-lah Ko-lee! What-" but he was quickly cut off. "I need to talk to you about Sharip," said Ko-lee, her expression stone.

"Gather the Conclave."

Ko-lee and I are sat in some sort of official looking building. That is to say, the building was less wood and more Unum shell, almost like they were attempting to mimic the Orokin style. "Or probably the Unum's style, realistically. Potato, potato," I think, as I start to look at the oft mentioned 'Conclave'. It was, not unsurprisingly, mostly older people. Konzu and Saya are the first two that I recognize, but I also note Master Teasonai, the conservation merchant within the game. The rest of the members weren't people I recognized though, all with varying levels of frustration clear on their faces from being pulled into this emergency meeting. They were sat in high backed chairs, with the chairs sat on a part of the ground that was about a foot higher than what we were stood on. However, since they were sat down in chairs, it meant that they were really only at eye level with us, rather than looking down on us. "Alright, game face," I think to myself, as Ko-lee steps forward to begin speaking.

"Swazdo-lah, conclave. Thank you for coming, and I am sorry for having pulled you away from whatever you may have been doing. I, Ko-lee of Sanza, Chief of Sharip, have some news to bring." At her mention of her title, there is some quiet murmuring, and I manage to pick out a few words. It's clear they think that this is about Sanza passing, and Ko-lee now taking up the role, although there is still confusion about why an emergency meeting was called. I look at Ko-lee, and I can see a subtle shake, although whether it's anger or sadness I can't be sure. I take a step over to my right, bumping my shoulder into hers, and I feel the shake subside just a fraction. She takes a breath, and says the words that we've been carrying for the past 500+ miles.

"Sharip has been destroyed."

Obviously, there is a multitude of reactions from the various Conclave members. Shock, anger, pity, even a look of disbelief from a few. Konzu doesn't react, however, since he had already known; we needed to tell him to have him bring together the Conclave in the first place. There's nearly a minute of chatter between the various members, before Konzu calls for order, and nearly 30 seconds before there is silence again. Then, the questions begin. How did it happen? When did it happen? How many have survived? How did you survive? Did the Grineer see us flee? On and on and on the questions go, with Ko-lee answering them as quickly and succinctly as possible. I can tell how hard it is for her, and I think the Conclave does as well, because the questions don't drag on too much, or dig into specifics. Still, I can't help but wish I could speak for her, so that she doesn't have to go through it all again. However, I'm effectively a nobody in regards to the meeting, so all I can do is be present.

Eventually, the question we knew would be asked comes to the table. "And who is Antimony?" says Master Teasonai, causing the various members to shift their attention to me. "Damnit, see if I ever catch a vampire cat for you again," I think, as Ko-lee speaks up. "A wandering monk. Someone at the wrong place at the wrong time. She had been passing through, but we had... grown close. She's unrelated to Colonel Jar and the Grineer." I just keep my mouth shut, my gaze jumping between the various sets of eyes on me. It was the only thing that we had to lie about, since we knew that drawing too much attention to me would cause issues, but I still felt uncomfortable with the bent truth. "Shit like this always goes sideways eventually," I think. Still, we had a plan, and I wasn't about to disrupt it. "How sure are you that she is not a spy?" says some old lady I don't recognize. Ko-lee speaks up immediately.

"I would bet my life on it."

"Damn, alright, that's... she's probably just being hyperbolic for the crowd. Or, I guess she did bet her life on it," I think to myself, the tips of my ears growing red. Even though I know that Ko-lee trusts me, the statement leaves basically no room for interpretation, and I can't help but grow a little embarrassed at the unequivocal show of trust. Still, it convinces the Conclave, and eventually, after a few minutes of chatter, Konzu speaks up. "Thank you for bringing this to our attention, Ko-lee. I think I can say for all of us that we are deeply sorry for your loss. I've heard that you are staying at Salt of the Sea. I will let the bartender know of the situation, and we will cover your stay for as long as you need to get your feet under you." Then, in seemingly a dismissal, Konzu stands up, the rest of the Conclave following shortly behind.

"Hold on," says Ko-lee. "Is that it?"