{Liri}
Well... Admittedly, maybe she'd taken things a little too easy.
Defeating all of those warriors at the drasen tribe had made her let her guard down, somewhat.
Now, she was in a cell along with Arisa and Caitlyn, trapped. Maybe, anyway. There was a chance that with how strong she was, she could break down the metal bars keeping them inside of this place, but she didn't want to try that just yet.
Especially not while there was some weird lady standing in front of the cell, along with a couple of armed human guards by her sides.
Sure, their Soul Ratings were all low, with none of them surpassing even 1500, but it was their weapons that Liri was scared of.
She wasn't too sure she could take bullets directly yet.
"To think you'd be back in town so quickly after escaping," the woman said. "Did you miss me, Caitlyn?"
"You think I'd miss someone like you?" Caitlyn asked, in a quiet tone.
And then, she went off.
"YOU FILTHY TRAITOR, I HOPE YOU-"
"Holy shit," Liri muttered, looking at Caitlyn, interrupting her inadvertently.
"Still as passionate about your futile rebellion as ever, I see," the Duchess said with a laugh. "It would seem you have some friends with you, though. Care to introduce me?"
"-YOU GET EATEN ALIVE BY A PACK OF RABID WOLVES, YOU-"
"Who are you?" Liri asked as Caitlyn continued to yell at the top of her lungs.
"Hm?" The Duchess blinked. "Who... Who am I?" That had been the last question she'd been expecting to hear, it seemed. Slowly, a low cackle bubbled up inside of her, until she was laughing out loud, over the sound of Caitlyn's flood of insults. "You... Come to think of it, you two are certainly not elves."
The Duchess moved toward Arisa's side of the cell.
"It seemed unlikely that we'd see Caitlyn ever again, but I have to admit, it seems even more unlikely that a Drasen would leave her tribe to come help with elven issues. And yet, here you are..." The Duchess tilted her head. Then, she moved toward Liri's side. "And you... You are no elf, but you are clearly no drasen either. Who are you?"
"Um," Liri put a hand up, trying to seem friendly. All she needed was a moment where this lady let her guard down and she could try bursting out of there. "My name's Liri."
"Liri, it's a pleasure," the Duchess bowed her head. "And, if I may ask, *what* are you?"
"I'm a ven," Liri answered. "I come from the lands to the northwest."
"Ah, where the dead forests lie?" The Duchess asked and Liri nodded. "People live there? I see... That is quite interesting. I have not met anyone like you."
[She's taking this all pretty easy too. Is that just raw arrogance, or...?]
"I would guess you haven't," Liri responded. "I'm pretty unique."
"In what way?" The Duchess asked.
"My tongue, mostly. Maybe you could let me out of here and I'll show you."
"..."
"..."
Arisa and Caitlyn both turned to look at her, with their jaws planted on the ground. The Duchess seemed amused.
"Are you... flirting with this bitch?" Caitlyn asked.
"Cait," Liri started, but before she could say anything, the Duchess's laughter cut her off.
"You... are certainly unique. I have no problem believing that."
She began pacing from one side of the room to another. Her eyes were cast low, as though she was considering something.
"Liri, if I may ask, how committed are you to the cause of elves? Seeing as you are not one yourself, I am curious to hear your answer."
[... What?]
An opportunity suddenly dropped on her lap. Liri glanced over at Caitlyn and then looked back at the Duchess before saying:
"I don't really care about them," she stated with a shrug. The instant she said that Liri could feel Caitlyn glaring so hard she was burning a hole through Liri's head, but she kept going. "I was just traveling with these two because I was promised some stuff in return. That's all."
"Really?" The Duchess asked. "What if I could get you anything they promised and more?"
"Then, I'd be happy to switch sides."
[Is it really this easy? What is happening right now?]
"LIRI!?" Caitlyn asked. "What the fuck are you doing?"
It seemed like Caitlyn hadn't caught on. Thankfully, Arisa seemed to have a little more confidence in her, as she simply lowered her head and pretended Liri wasn't saying any of this.
[.... Hearing me say this has to be a little painful. I'll make it up to her later, though.]
"Honestly, fuck elves. She's been so annoying," Liri said, nodding at Caitlyn. "If you're willing to pay me, I'd ditch these two in a heartbeat."
"Indeed," the Duchess replied, clapping her hands. "I want to speak to you a little more. Get her out. If anyone makes any sudden movements, shoot them."
"On it," one of the guards responded. Quickly, he went and unlocked the cell, stepping to the side so that Liri could walk out.
[Okay, here goes nothing.]
Now that the cell was open, Liri had a shot. So, she muttered:
"Juvin melnir, na coran."
She stated the Mantra for Nature's Fury, trying to summon her armor.
Nothing happened.
[What?]
"Liri?" The Duchess asked. "Having second thoughts?"
Her tone was slightly suspicious. Liri raised her hands defensively.
"No, no, no, I... Sorry, I spaced out for a second there."
[My Mantra didn't work. What happened!?]
Despite the panicking she was doing, Liri had already gone too far. She had to commit at this point. Hesitantly, she walked out.
The Duchess licked her lips.
"Goodness... Your appearance is quite intriguing. You would look much better by my side than by hers. I can think of a couple of offers I could make you. How does that sound?"
So many different things were running through the ven's mind, that she couldn't quite process this too well. However, the fact that she couldn't use Mantras changed the situation drastically. Now, she felt she had to cooperate. At least, until she found out what was preventing her from using them.
"Sure," she answered.
"Very well," the Duchess replied with a wide grin. "Come. Let's talk a little."