Karlya smiled to Jibril then takes her leave thanking her for letting her know that she and Karin are able to live with them. They hugged each other then said their goodbyes while Jibril fishes out the letters in her backpack.
- 1 from Shurifon Capital with a green leaf symbol
- 1 from an Anonymous source with a small black hand print symbol on it.
- 3 from Jimmy
- 1 from someone with red lipstick pressed on the face of it.
- 1 from someone named S.Vali that smells of gunpowder.
With it being 1:45pm by the sound of the clock tower ringing outside of the hotel, Jibril thinks it about time she looked over the rest of the letters and see what else she must dig up. Knowing the last letters she's read, they're probably more depressing and heartbreaking letters.
She starts with Jimmy's letters, seems they're sporadic and hard to read at first but it seems as thought Jimmy wasn't able to write for some reason or another. She crumbled up the first unreadable letter and reads the second one but this time it was printed weirdly because all the letters were perfectly uniformed and too carefully worded to match Jimmy's handwriting. She reads that Jimmy was going through some conflicting emotions about being alive after being immediately killed on the road to Shurifon, he was scared and thought about how quickly everything went down hill for them. When he was shot by the Canaanites defending the wagon, he described how his body became limp and hot where he was shot, all he could think about was the warm blood coating his body and the life they lead in Heifong meant nothing. Jimmy remembered the cons he and Jibril did together and thought it was pretty great, hoping that it would lead them somewhere once they climbed the ranks of their gangs. But in the end, Jimmy was just hitting his head against a wall every time he thought about how he died. All he did and he just, died, there wasn't anyone there that knew him besides Karlya and Jibril. Had he stayed dead, would anyone have mourned him? His third letter was more upbeat.
In his third letter, Jimmy had questions, too many to ask Kane when he was brought back to life. Jimmy said being alive was completely different than before, like he's not in any sort of back pain or the bum leg he had from falling from a rooftop and he's much more clearheaded than before. It took him awhile to contact Kane directly, seems the normal folk are hard press getting any attention from their 'President' it seems, all Jimmy could do was speak to the country's Administrators and relaying his message to Kane through others. Three days later, Jimmy was standing before Kane himself. Jimmy was shocked to see the man with human skin when the last he saw him he was more monster than man, all he could think about was the creatures Kane summoned and finding himself back at the warehouse reliving that day over again. Few pages into the letter, Jimmy had to be put under observation in the hospital with Kane being the personal 'physician' and doing some research into Jimmy's condition. Jimmy was told by Kane that although he is by all accounts 'alive', Jimmy was technically 'Undead'. When asked why only technically, Kane explained that physically, Jimmy's body is dead, all his organs are pristine condition but they aren't alive as he is abet slowly. The only explanation Kane could answer for this thing of Jimmy's condition is: magic. Jimmy thought it was hilarious that Kane threw up his hands when the answer wasn't as obvious as he had wanted it to be. Jimmy asked why Kane was so interested in him when he felt fine. Kane says Jimmy could be living a half-life and things like eating and sleep won't help even if he could - nothing would benefit him as a half-elf would. In actuality, Kane believes Jimmy may decompose over time without proper care or treatment if the magic keeping Jimmy alive like this decided to wear off or vanish completely.
Lastly, he tells Jibril that she should come see him at the hosptial whenever she gets up ... he could use a friend.
The lipstick marked letter piqued Jibril's interest and she opens it to read what was inside. Seems the Alabaster Gang has made it a point to contact Jibril while she was unconscious, Madam Rouge was always blunt and kind to Jibril letting her stay at the Last Breath inn was a kind gesture of good faith given that Jibril's first job was working for Madam Rouge's whorehouse as a bouncer safeguarding the girls. It seems as though Madam Rouge is asking Jibril for a favor to repay the kindness of letting Jibril stay inside the brothels without being attacked by thugs across Heifong wanting to slit her throat. In fancy terms and flavorful texts, Madam Rouge would like to offer her services to the Canaanites setting up shop in the Scarlet District and putting the Red Queen Brothel under new management. Madam Rouge suggests that Jibril be diplomatic about getting the brothel by taking the request to City Hall and inquire about the management, she hopes that Jibril can get Kane persuaded enough to let them do business there given that he has the final word in any decision made there. But if Jibril doesn't, she can ask Garrett of the Thieves Guild to perform some work around the city for a steep price that Madam Rouge will pay handsomely for. Either way, Madam Rouge wants the Red Queen and get the Alabasters to take control of the Scarlet District and make it their new headquarters from the sound of things.
With Heifong in ruins, the Alabasters are going to be looking for a new place to call home as well. If Jibril gets it done through the Thieves Guild, then the Alabasters could be trouble given their past exploits and cause problems for the city and its crime rate will rise from the safest city to the seedy underworld just like Heifong. However, Madam Rouge will negotiate with Kane and the Canaanites to do things the legal way abet with less profits given the taxes and fees associated with running a brothel in a 'clean city' like New Canaan but that's better than running it illegally and plus the city will protect the working girls better than hiring thugs and lowlifes that will just be more of a problem than they're worth. The Guild and the Alabasters will be passing a lot of money for the deal so Jibril will need to meet a friend from the Last Breath: Guadalupe and her girlfriend to discuss what they plan to do. Turns out they stay at the very brothel as 'guests' and scoping out the place for their gang to take in the sights.
If Jibril wants to, Madam Rouge will pay her 50 Gold coins ($500) for helping them secure their place in New Canaan as a 'preferred client' and they would owe her a lot of favors for doing so. This would be a huge boon for Jibril since the Alabasters are very well coordinated and perfect for espionage work, being allies with them could open lots of doors to her to use in a jam or sneak into places that would otherwise be hard to reach. This is a great opportunity for her to make money in the city with how things are here and having more money means Jibril could retire here with her family and settle in more comfortably. Who knows, maybe Jibril and Kor'da might be one of the richest families in the city if everything goes well.
Jibril was happy to read the last letter, now she'll be in the mood to read what S. Vali has to say to her.
Shimbala Vali, it appears that Shimbala's last name is the name of her Dark Elf clan. This can't be good.
Jibril braced herself to read the letter, she's immediately put off by the idea that she ordered the Jaegers and Juggernauts to open fire on the wagon and the whole group had pursued Jibril's group all the way to Shurifon and the cause of the massacre of the refugees. She reads and finds that Shimbala is very angry with Jibril and how betrayed she felt when Jibril and the others betrayed her trust in them. After all the talking they've done and how much she came to think of Jibril as her friend, she now believes that Jibril is just another traitor that needs to be punished for the suffering she caused. It's a very ominous letter the more Jibril reads, a bit heartbreaking when Jibril read how many refugees were actually killed and Shimbala describing the gory details of how gruesome the crash site was. Jibril thinks the details vividly of mothers cradling their crushed children under cargo crates and father having their head crushed or boiling alive in hot oil when Sunstones sparked a fire and burned everything. Jibril forced herself to stop reading and crumbling the letter in her hands and throwing the letter into the corner of the room.
Jibril tries to forget the incident but the more she read that damn letter, the guilt returns. She hoped the next letter was going to be better.
The Shurifon Letter with the green leaf seal pressed onto the parchment stirred up some thoughts on what the royal family could want with Jibril. Never in all her life would she be contacted by the highest ruling body in the empire, bigger than the Medressans! She wasn't sure what to expect when she opens the rlled up scroll and reads the Leyfon writing on the letter. Jibril was addressed as the Nagini of Heifong with her name being an afterthought as the Ambassador Avasti and Speaker of the Shurifon House of Lords conveys that Jibril was once a citizen of Heifong and thus requested that Jibril venture to the Capital City to have an audience with the Royal Family. It seems the fall of Heifong has taken its toll after a week into the siege by Undead, the Navy and the Civil Unrest. With Jibril being the only few people left of the siege, the royalty of the court want to know what had transpired there and urge Jibril to come at her earliest convenience to address the situation and as a citizen of their country: Jibril is obligated to answer to the Shurifon Dynasty. This assumption that Jibril has any loyalties to the empire are presumptuous and it shows just how detached the imperials are from the rest of their citizens, if they had any empathy for their people, they wouldn't have allowed their Navy to purge their own people like they've done.
Or perhaps something else is going on. Maybe there is trouble brewing in Shurifon that Jibril isn't aware of.
Lastly, the black hand printed symbol on the letter. Jibril doesn't know who or what sent this letter but she's afraid of what this one could be. She felt a sense of dread when she placed her hand on it and opens it in a cautions manner. She doesn't utter a word but reads it. It was a very short letter:
"You have been touched by 'He-Who-Walks-With-The-Night'. You bear his Marker. Your life is in grave danger, we want to help. Place a handprint on your door to acknowledge this letter, we will make contact soon." Signed with a single letter: C