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 Posted: Thu Mar 28, 2019 10:54 am
The boy smiled and practically squealed in joy as Mizuki agreed, and reached out to shake her hand happily. His shaking hands were calm for just a second as he shook her hands rather animatedly. " Trouble? Miss, I don't care! This is such a rare treat that I don't even care if they fire me! Honestly, other than you guys showing up, I'm usually so bored that I was thinking of quitting anyway. I'd love to see more of your spirit allies, but I won't push my luck." He bore a happy, troublemaking grin, and reached out to shake Tsukuyomi's hand. He shook it even more animatedly and excitedly than he had Mizuki's. " Amazing... the magic coming off of your body is incredible... to think I'd get to meet a spirit such as yourself, and your contractee..." He looked embarrassed by himself for a second, and let go of the spirit's hands sheepishly. " Ummm... I-I-I-I'll go get the keys!" He walked off quietly and quickly, obviously embarrassed by his enthusiastic outburst. A few minutes later he came back out with an ornate, solid wooden box with a glass cover. There were some bronze and silver keys, a single gold, and two jade keys inside. " Tadaaaa!!!"
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Posted: Fri Mar 29, 2019 3:00 pm
 Guild- Independent | Rank- Delta | Magic- Celestial Spirit | Jewel- 500,000 ☽❄ ████████████████████████████████████████████████ ❄☾ Mizuki grinned politely as he shook her hand. His movements were so animated that she felt he might dislocate her shoulder from the socket. “Even so, I don’t want to cause any trouble for you.” She would feel terrible if he were to be fired for merely wishing to see a demonstration. “Jobs aren’t easy to come by sometimes.” Not desiring to sound as if she were lecturing the clerk, she decided to focus on the joy being exhibited by him. “I’m glad we could bring some excitement to your day. I think you might’ve made Tsukuyomi’s day as well.” The Moon Spirit inclined his head in the affirmative, patiently waiting for the young man to release his hand. “It can be boring at times, being stuck in the Spirit Realm without much to do. It can also be a pain when my sister and I are having one of our rows.” The Eridani princess quirked a brow. His statement stirred her curiosity. “You two haven’t been fighting again, have you?” Another nod accompanied by a weary sigh came in answer. “Amaterasu is being difficult as always. We were in the middle of our current debate when you summoned me. For which I am eternally grateful.” He smiled broadly, the pleasure plain to see. Not only was he happy to have been summoned but he was glad to have been summoned away from the temper of his sister.
She shook her head in amusement. “You two—” The remainder of her sentence fell away. The clerk was fawning over Tsukuyomi’s magical power. “He’s one of my strongest. I keep telling him he should’ve been a Golden key instead of a Silver one. I honestly believe he’s Silver simply because he’s the Spirit of the Moon.” For his part, Tsukuyomi looked mildly self-conscious by her praise. He never truly thought himself powerful enough to be a Gold key as she claimed. That is not to say, however, that he believed himself any less of a Spirit than his sister, nor did he doubt his abilities and talents. “You always do that,” he muttered under his breath once the shopkeeper had departed to the backroom. “And I’ll do it again,” Mizuki agreed promptly. Her teal orbs danced with delight. She enjoyed praising her Spirits whenever possible and when well deserved. A thoughtful silence passed with contractor and Spirit staring at one another. Their bond as friends strengthened even more. The boy returned soon enough with an ornate wooden box in tow. Residing within lay an assortment of keys. In one glance, Mizuki noted the sigils for Saggitarius, Ying Long, Centaurus, Circinus, Serpens, among a few others she was not too certain of. “There are more than I expected,” she ran a finger lightly around the edge of the container. Her eyes were drawn to the Bronze and Jade keys. “What do you think, Tsuku? Would Meng Zhang like me to surprise him with his brother? Or should I purchase one of the Bronze keys? I don’t have any of those yet.” Tsukuyomi shrugged, leaning forward to glance at the variety as well. “So long as you avoid Puppis. He and I have not gotten along for a millennium.” Chuckling, the teenager gestured to the Jade key and an obscure Bronze key. “How much would either of those be?”
☽❄ ████████████████████████████████████████████████ ❄☾
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Kaya Wolf Moon Vice Captain
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Posted: Mon Apr 01, 2019 11:25 am
The boy listened to Mizuki talk to her spirit with an awestruck look on his face. " ...oh my word... I'd never get away talking to my spirits like this... they'd all peck me in the face and refuse to answer my summon for a week! And, again, this job sucks. It's slow right up until it's not, and then it's a bunch of rude teens, ruder parents, and selfish, haggle-prone jerks. You're literally one of the handful of customers this entire season who weren't rude to me. And to top it off, you're an absolutely amazing Celestial Wizard... I'd give up this garbage job to give you a discount, any day." He said all this as he was walking away and then back with the key box. He watched Mizuki browse the keys with nothing more than a quick glance, and his amazed stare grew wider. " Man... it took me a while to figure out some of these keys, and you knew them at a glance... So, prices! Jade and Gold are usually something heinous like eight hundred thousand jewel, but since you are getting the 'friends and family' discount-" He winked at her subtly before continuing, " It will only be four hundred thousand. The bronze... eh... five hundred Jewel?" He smiled and held the keys up in his hand, wordlessly offering to let her examine them.
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Posted: Sun Apr 14, 2019 5:00 pm
Guild- Independent | Rank- Delta | Magic- Celestial Spirit | Jewel- 500,000 ☽❄ ████████████████████████████████████████████████ ❄☾ She listened with amusement as the clerk described his interactions with his own Spirits. Chuckling, Mizuki nodded knowingly, “I have one or two who were like that to begin with. Just remember that it’s about trust. Both sides have to earn it and build on it. Otherwise, it’s nothing more than a Boss-Worker type relationship, and those sorts can only become so strong.” The rest of her thoughts on the subject tapered off once the shopkeeper walked from sight. She did not wish to lecture him; however, it was her firm belief that, to create the strongest bond possible, a wielder of Celestial Spirit keys must treat the Spirits with respect and as equals. Anything less than that would lead to strife and distrust. “Your family has always understood more about its magic than others of this world,” Tsukuyomi whispered, leaning closer to his summoner and friend. “It is one of the many reasons why we Spirits tend to favor it among few others.” The Eridani princess flushed lightly at his words, feeling his warm gaze upon her. “Well, it’s the truth. Treating you and the others like slaves would be one of the worse things imaginable. You are our equals, if not greater. I know I speak for us all when I say the Spirits are our family as much as those of blood.” Her teal orbs flicked up to meet his royal blue ones. He knew, as did all the Spirits with contracts amongst her kin, that what she spoke with earnest sincerity was truth.
One second passed before the young teenager would turn her attention to the box set before her. Her cheeks reddened further at the praise of her skill in identifying the various keys. “Thank you. I’ve been studying my magic for awhile so it’s become second nature.” She said nothing more while he stated the prices for each of the ones she had appointed. Mizuki frowned at the hefty price of the key carved from Jade. While she had expected it to be of greater value, she had not anticipated it to be nearly one million Jewel or even four hundred thousand Jewel. She could afford it, of course, but at the cost of indicating her true status- something which she was not willing to expose so easily, not even for a Celestial Spirit key. By comparison, the key of Bronze was far more reasonable in price. Most customers would be able to purchase one without seeming too out of place financially. “Hmm,” she hummed, taking the proffered items and hefting them each in one hand. The Jade key resided in her right while the Bronze took up her left. Their weight felt equal yet vastly different. It was a difficult decision, to be certain. Mizuki adored Meng Zhang and would enjoy reuniting him with his brother; on the other hand, the addition of a Bronze key to her repertoire was another step forward in her growth. “You didn’t make this easy on me, did you?” She chuckled, looking to the boy behind the counter. The chances of her gaining this opportunity once again were nil. A point which she considered heavily before making her decision. “I guess I should count myself lucky that I decided to save some Jewel in case something like this happened. I would like to purchase both please. Meng Zhang would love to work with his brother again, and I succeed at finally getting a Bronze key.” “You do spoil him so,” Tsukuyomi sighed heavily, though his expression showed his delight at her decision. Mizuki grinned but said nothing; instead, she rested the keys upon the velvet lining and reached into the pouch at her back, retrieving the required Jewel for the transaction.
☽❄ ████████████████████████████████████████████████ ❄☾
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Kaya Wolf Moon Vice Captain
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Posted: Thu May 23, 2019 7:50 am
The boy smiled and actually gave a morose sort of chuckle. " See, I try that. I like being friendly and amicable to my summoned spirits... but they just see me as a conduit for them to come into this world and do what they like. So... the problem really is on their end, in this rare instance..." He listened to Mizuki and Tsukuyomi talk with interest. He wasn't really trying to eavesdrop, but there really wasn't much else in the store making any noise. " Man... that's really cool! I wish my family was preferred by anyone, let alone Celestial Spirits. Oh... ummm... sorry! It's sorta quiet in here, you know? I'd like to have that sort of relationship with my spirits one day... hehe he... aaahhh..." He realized fully how awkward he'd just made this exchange, and flinched, choosing now to fall back onto his customer service experience. " Well, I'm a salesman first, and an otaku second. I know what to say to garner the attention of a fellow fan of the Celestial World! And, well, not to put too fine a point on it, but I knew you had a fair bit of money on you as soon as I saw you. The key pouch you carry is made of really good materials, as is your jewel pouch, now that I see it..." He started punching in some numbers as he spoke, almost autonomously tossing out the knowledge he'd accumulated in the brief moments she'd been here. " And, if such small items on your person were so well made, I could only assume their contents were similarly grandiose... I figure either rich family, or you've made a name for yourself as a mage. Or both. Either way, I'm no judge and no snoop. We'll take anyone's money here at Boggern and Brots!" He smiled and reached out his hand, leaving the palm open for her to hand him the cash.
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Posted: Sun Jun 16, 2019 10:20 am
Guild- Independent | Rank- Delta | Magic- Celestial Spirit | Jewel- 500,000 ☽❄ ████████████████████████████████████████████████ ❄☾ The Eridani princess frowned lightly. “I’m sorry. I did not mean to indicate it was just you. You’re right. The Spirits themselves can be difficult to find accord with, especially the few that consider humans not worthwhile. From the sound of it, it seems you managed to strike a contract with some of those Spirits. May I ask…how often do you summon them?” It was not truly her business, of course. Yet, she could not suppress the desire to help the boy with his troubles. She adored the Celestial Spirits and wished to see every key wielder and summons find balance with one another. Leo liked to jest that it had become a bad habit. As the shopkeeper went about his business, Mizuki and Tsukuyomi spoke of her family and its connection to the Celestial realm. It did not occur to them how quiet the shop was nor that their voices could carry in the silence. “It…has taken a long time for my family to earn that sort of trust,” the teenager admitted, blushing lightly once again. “But it’s not impossible to achieve. As I said before, it takes time, understanding, and proper treatment on both sides.” A relationship of any sort could not be forged on crumbling grounds after all.
There was a moment of awkward silence before the salesman at last switched topics. The discussion of Jewel was something more easily discussed. Or so she believed. Mizuki shifted uncomfortably as he explained why he had set forth the box of keys. She had not anticipated someone to be so observant of another’s attire. “Eh heh,” she scratched her cheek idly with her free hand. “I guess you could say I have made a bit of a name.” The girl did not expound any further, placing the correct amount of Jewel into the boy’s open palm. “That is an understatement,” Tsukuyomi’s amused agreement filtered into her thoughts. Casting a sidelong glance at her summons, Mizuki addressed the clerk, “No one has noticed something like that of me in a long time. Although this job bores you, I must admit you’re very good at its trade.”
☽❄ ████████████████████████████████████████████████ ❄☾
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Kaya Wolf Moon Vice Captain
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Posted: Fri Jun 28, 2019 5:58 pm
Mizuki's apologies for accidentally implying it was just him not trying to make an even deal in the exchange with his celestial spirits brought a slim grin to the boy's face. "Aaahhh... don't worry about it. I knew what you meant. I just felt the need to clarify a bit. I call on each of them about once a week to let them stretch their wings and get some fresh air. They also deign to answer my call when I'm in trouble, or need to get somewhere faster, but in that case only for emergencies. And they demand tribute of this world's 'Heavenly Breaded Food!' for their inconvenience. Kind of funny, really.And yeah. Well, I'm not gonna give up on winning them over any time soon!" He was grinning now, certain in his own goofiness in that moment: and that Corvus in particular would ream him for his impertinence later.
As Mizuki admitted to having money of some sort, the boy smiled in a prideful little way, and tossed his hair backwards in mock arrogance, his voice taking on an obviously fake sort of haughty arrogance. "Well of course good lady! Here at Boggern and Brots, we deal with all sorts! And when you're alone in the shop at all hours of a day, you need to learn to pick out potential thugs and ruffians before they get a chance to try and rob you! It also translates well into guessing a customer's potential price range when they start looking for specific stock. Now, speaking of stock and price range, may I ask for the money for those keys you'd like? Now, full disclosure: the ones you touched are stand-ins. We keep the real keys in a big, magic resistant safe in the back. Better not to get robbed that way. So standard procedure is that I take the money into the back, count it, deposit it in the safe, and come back out with the keys. Is that okay with you?"
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Posted: Sat Jul 13, 2019 7:27 pm
Guild- Independent | Rank- Delta | Magic- Celestial Spirit | Jewel- 500,000 ☽❄ ████████████████████████████████████████████████ ❄☾ It seemed as if the clerk held a fairly stable contract with his spirits. They were summoned once a week aside from any need of them should trouble arise. The circumstances were not too demanding nor were they inadequate. From what she could discern, the key wielder and his spirits had struck some form of balance. That was the first step in creating a firm bond, so he was well on his way. Mizuki chuckled, “Offering tribute is one way of appeasing them. I’d hate to think what mine would do if they overheard that idea.” “Liquor might become an issue,” Tsukuyomi conceded, nodding sagely as images of his sister drunkenly prancing about played through his mind. “Although…it could also be amusing.” “Hmph,” the princess snorted, “You just want to see Amaterasu drunk again.” She remembered well the last time the sun spirit had consumed an inordinate amount of alcohol. It was the one and only time, as it would stand. Affixing her gaze to the shopkeeper, she returned his goofy smile with an encouraging one of her own. “Just keep at it. You’ll earn their trust and kinship in time. Probably when least expected.” Or so it usually went.
His charm certainly was boundless. The young princess found herself laughing in amusement as he assumed a faux arrogance. “I see,” she bobbed her head. “You’ve mastered it well. Thugs and ruffians would do well to avoid this shop I think.” If his insights were always so keen, then bandits would be better off finding other shops to disrupt. I wonder how many he’s had to deal with here? Her question would have to wait, however. Now was the time for business. He inquired after her payment for the keys before explaining the shop’s procedure regarding merchandise. “Oh, that’s okay,” Mizuki agreed. “I didn’t expect them to be real. That would be too tempting for a lot of people. The Jade key alone is enough to catch a thief’s eye.” She had no qualm with following the appropriate guidelines set forth. In truth, it made her feel more confident in her choices, knowing that they were indeed safeguarded until sold. “Here.” The cerulean-haired teenager reached into the pouch at her waist and extracted the money. “This should cover everything.” A single cursory glance was all she needed to confirm it to be enough before placing it into his open palm. As the clerk had his skill with appearances, so too did she have her own when it came to divvying Jewel. Her desire to keep her identity concealed during her travels pushed her to learn techniques such as that.
☽❄ ████████████████████████████████████████████████ ❄☾
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Kaya Wolf Moon Vice Captain
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Posted: Fri Aug 09, 2019 3:57 pm
The boy smiled and reached out his hand, accepting the coin gently and slowly before nodding his head and turning to the back room. "I won't be too long. Make yourselves at home for a few, okay?" The door closed behind him and clicked loudly, as if a heavy lock clicked into place. The sound of an air conditioner or some other mechanical device that moved on could be heard turning on behind the door. A few moments later, a faint smell of ginger and something sweet began wafting out of the back.
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Posted: Sun Sep 22, 2019 1:10 pm
Guild- Independent | Rank- Delta | Magic- Celestial Spirit | Jewel- 500,000 ☽❄ ████████████████████████████████████████████████ ❄☾ Mizuki nodded her assent. Teal orbs watched him retreat into the vault at the back of the establishment before shifting her gaze to the spirit at her side. “Thank you for helping me, Tsuku. I really appreciate it, even though you didn’t get to demonstrate your skills.” Tsukuyomi smirked, waving a hand dismissively. “No need for apologies. I am pleased you chose me to call upon.” His dark blue eyes twinkled. “Amaterasu is going to be so jealous.” The princess scoffed and shook her head. Of course, the Celestial Spirit of the Moon would want to tease the Celestial Spirit of the Sun. Such was the way of the two siblings and their inherent rivalry. “Just be cautious,” Mizuki warned. “I don’t wish to have to break up an argument like last time.” “I make no promises,” the Moon Spirit grinned impishly, choosing that as his cue to return to the Celestial realm. There was no sign of danger, thus he felt comfortable in leaving his summoner to finish her business.
Upon his departure, Mizuki returned her attention to the shop itself. The air had started to fill with a different smell than before. It was sweet but not wholly overpowering in its scent. A hint of ginger underlay it, though she could not quite place the other. Perhaps it was released into the shop on a timer in order to keep the shop smelling fresh? Whatever the case, the teenager paid little heed to the air wafting about her, her eyes instead roving over the various shelves and trinkets once again while she waited.
☽❄ ████████████████████████████████████████████████ ❄☾
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Kaya Wolf Moon Vice Captain
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Posted: Tue Oct 01, 2019 2:46 pm
The smell only intensified as the moments ticked on, and Mizuki would begin to feel herself growing light headed in the increasingly dense air. There was no sound from or indication of anything happening in the back room, least none that could be discerned from beyond the heavy looking door.
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Posted: Sun Nov 10, 2019 6:42 pm
Guild- Independent | Rank- Delta | Magic- Celestial Spirit | Jewel- 500,000 ☽❄ ████████████████████████████████████████████████ ❄☾ As the minutes ticked past, Mizuki found it increasingly difficult to concentrate on the shop surrounding her. Her eyelids started to grow heavy. The aroma in the shop grew increasingly thick and oppressive. This doesn’t feel…normal, she wondered to herself. Gazing dazedly towards the heavy door, she thought it also odd that she could hear no sound from within the enclosed room. Surely there would be some indication of movement from there? “Might be…thicker than s’pected.” The princess frowned at how slurred her speech had become. Something was amiss. There could be a gas leak of some sort inside the shop. Perhaps that is why she could not hear anything from the other room. The clerk might have passed out if the leak was originating from there. “Ex-excuse me?” She called out. Her voice was fainter than she felt comfortable with. Clearing her throat, the teenager shuffled across the floor. “Hello? Can y’hear me?” Mizuki tried again, louder than before. It was difficult though. Her feet felt leaden, as if they were being weighed down by an additional one hundred pounds. Alarms rang in the back of her mind. This certainly was not right. Spirits…she needed to summon her spirits. A task no longer easy to accomplish. Once pleasant fumes now noxious and potent swirled about her. They distorted her vision, disjointing her thoughts and making it far more difficult to perform the simplest motion. She could not even focus on her mental link with the spirits to call for aid. “Tsuku—,” the name stuck in a mouth dry as cotton. Mizuki attempted another trudging step forward. Her vision blurred as she tumbled forward, managing to gather her wits just enough to twist so she would avoid hitting her head on the edge of the counter. She could feel the gas overtaking her. Her energy sapped with each poisoned breath. “Tsu—Le—” Even as her eyes were sliding shut, her hand inched its way toward the pouch on her leg. A little more. All she needed was a little more time. Though time, it seemed, was not on her side.
☽❄ ████████████████████████████████████████████████ ❄☾
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Kaya Wolf Moon Vice Captain
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Posted: Sat Nov 30, 2019 1:03 pm
A few moments after Mizuki hit the floor, the door to the back room clicked open, and the boy stepped out wearing a gas mask. He looked around, and finally noted the princess's form upon the floor. "Aaaahhhh... so resilient. Truly amazing... Oh, but I can't have you escaping at the last second." The footsteps of the boy resounded throughout the room and very, very gently pulled Mizuki's hands away from her key pouch. With what seemed to be every effort not to touch her inappropriately, the boy removed the pouch and held it in his hand away from her. "For what it's worth, I really am sorry for this... it's just a job, you know? You'll get these back once you're in the last set of hands. Do yourself a favor though... don't try to escape them. This is the only kindness I can show you now, for allowing me to shake your spirit's hand..." He reached a hand up and patted her head, almost protectively, despite the situation. "Please don't hate me for this, it's the only thing I can do right, it seems... I wish you luck, little lady... Sleep tight, you're going to need it." The boy knelt there beside her, waiting for her to pass out, and once she did, would stand up and flip the sign to closed, secure in his capture of this fine mage. Though he did seem bothered by something, and turned back to Mizuki, somehow conveying a frown through his mask. "If you make it back here one day... well, I'll accept whatever punishment you deem fit. I'll keep your money safe with me. We're free to take whatever we find on our catch's personage, after all."
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Posted: Sun Jun 07, 2020 12:08 pm
Guild- Independent | Rank- Delta | Magic- Celestial Spirit | Jewel- 500,000 ☽❄ ████████████████████████████████████████████████ ❄☾ Her mind reeled from the sudden turn of events. How had this come to pass? There had been no hint of a gas leak before yet now she lay prone on the ground, unable to move, hardly able to breathe. Her eyes had long since closed though her consciousness fought to linger. If only she could reach her keys. She strained to make her hand move, to inch toward the pouch where salvation could lay. Yet her muscles rebelled. Her hand rested a mere half an inch from what it sought. It was disheartening to have hope so close but to be unable to reach. And what of the boy? Had the infernal gas claimed him as well? Mizuki’s mind swam with thoughts of worry and fear, confusion and disorientation. Each beginning thread leading to a separate, unrelated conclusion.
As she lay unmoving, her consciousness in an upheaval, torn between slumber and awareness, the faint click of the door sounded through her haze. Mizuki mustered her wits as best she could; however, she was able to comprehend only bits and pieces of what transpired in the shop. The shopkeeper’s voice flitted across her sphere of consciousness. His words jumbled by her addled mind, though his meaning clear. He had betrayed her trust. Her honesty had been repaid with deception. Worse, the princess was unable to stand against him. The gas had taken its toll. She could feel herself slipping further into the abyss of unconsciousness. That dark slumber eagerly awaiting its victim. I—will—not forget—this, was her final declaration as the tension seeped from her body, having succumbed at last.
☽❄ ████████████████████████████████████████████████ ❄☾
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Kaya Wolf Moon Vice Captain
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Posted: Fri Nov 13, 2020 4:25 pm
As Mizuki finally passed out, the young man sighed in relief and picked her up, slinging her over his shoulder with a small grunt of effort. He pocketed her key pouch for now, and carried her through the door at the back of the store. He flipped a few switches, and the gas stopped filling the store while a large ventilation fan kicked on, sucking out what was already in the store.
With a grunt, he deposited her on a soft seat in the back of a plain, windowless carriage. He strapped her in carefully, and made sure her hands, mouth, and feet were bound securely, but gently. Sure in his work, the boy closed and locked the door, and walked over, opening the loading dock door in the back of the store. He coaxed the horses into drawing it out, then closed and locked it before climbing into the driver's seat and heading out towards the drop off point.
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