"And Get Back Out.."

She wasn't sure how this was possible. Not even two blocks away there was a big giveaway going on, hosted by one of the most well loved brands in the area. And yet somehow, the line for a passport was twice as long! While she'd been wanting to get out of here, get back to the sharper senses she'd come to be used to? She definitely appreciated having a deadened sense of hearing around here.

Anya was all but certain her eardrums would start bleeding if..whatever this place used to shut down Magic hadn't also taken the benefits that came with it. It was unfortunate, too. As it turned out, she quite enjoyed flying. But, this place all but ripped magic out of reality as a concept. So, here she was. Standing in yet another line. Her eyes glazed over as she walked through the place.

So far, she had progressed at least slightly in her primary plan. Gaining an ILac for future communication with the Abyssal Fleet and it's guild members? Check. Having a valid passport that would allow her past the Fiore border was now the most important part of things for the moment. Or at least, it was supposed to be.

Right now though, she could feel it all bubbling just beneath the surface. The energy of all of her magic, straining to get back out. It wasn't like she was a bomb, no. But she'd never been a big fan of crowds--or in this particular case, crowded areas--in the first place. She could feel the anxiety beginning to set in. The way her chest tightened, and her breathing picked up. Everything felt so concerningly close together. Oh god, the walls. They were closing in. She was back in that damned room again. Let her out, out, out!

And that was when she felt it. A pressure. Subtle, like it wasn't even really there. And yet, it was all the more comforting. She recognized this particular pressure, as it had become a recent part of her life. This was Viguul, acting with something other than the pure unbridled hatred that he was known for. It was him attempting to comfort her. Thankfully, it worked. He might have been stuck in her shadow thanks to the natural aspects of the Neutral Grounds, but they were still bonded. That reminder of her new companion's presence served to ground Anya again. Just in time, as well. It was her turn at the front desk.

One Hour Later..

"Christ, I thought they were going to drown me in paperwork.." Anya complained as she finally stepped foot outside of the city. Just like that, her senses shot back up to their new normal, the deadening effect leaving the moment she was no longer behind the walls. She'd done it. A genuine passport, one that could allow her to move past the insanely strict outgoing border security of Fiore. Between that, and the bracelet that was jangling against her other arm, she was ready. She waited until the city was well behind her, stomaching the twisting and turning of her stomach as she rode one of the Neutral Ground's strange combustion powered cars out to the first proper crossroads. Eventually, she was left standing alone at the crossing, the car slowly becoming a dot on the horizon, before vanishing. And just like that, the cheerful and bubbly expression she'd been wearing faded, that facade of even higher energy than she usually put out fading as she went back down to her normal average. She looked at the marking on the back of her hand and sighed. Well, this was going to suck.

"Alright Buddy, we're halfway there. But first thing's first..we've gotta get rid of this." She said, holding her hand up in a position most would recognize as a 'fight the power' gesture. However, the fact that a frankly massive, heavily muscled arm shot up out of her shadow as a result, followed by another pulling...something freakish out of it?

That was different. Eventually, Vigull pulled his head and part of his torso out of the shadow, mouth becoming level with the back of Anya's hand as it opened its mouth..and slowly lapped up the back of it. There was a sizzling as the acrid smell of rot filled the area for a moment, combined with the sound of boiling flesh.

Anya winced, hard. She knew that she'd have to get a proper tattoo to fool the agency..which also meant that it would take something magically destructive--like any of Viguul's bodily fluids--to melt it away. As for the burn, she could take care of it later. For now, all that mattered was that the pair were on their way, the monstrosity that had melted the Sabertooth tatoo away disappearing into Anya's shadow as she made her way towards a more...familiar area of the country.

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Total Word Count: 803
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