Buster and Mara step out of the warehouse into cool night air. Dust clings to the doorway behind them, then settles back into the dark.
They walk side by side along the empty lot, their pace unhurried for once. The city hums far away, softened by haze and distance.
Mara
I keep waiting for the next thing to go wrong. It is strange, walking without a plan to hide behind.
Mara folds the map chip in her palm, then lowers it, choosing not to look at it again for the moment.
Mara
You did not have to trust me this far. I notice that more than I know how to say.
Buster's shoulder brushes hers as they slow near the curb, the quiet giving them room instead of pressure.
Mara
Maybe next we find somewhere warm, somewhere safe, and then we decide what kind of future is still available.
✓ Quest Accepted
Find somewhere warm and safe for the night
“I ask Mara if she knows of any quiet spots where we can lay low for a while.”
SUCCESS (Good Reasoning, rolled +1)
Buster Jones
Do you know any quiet places where we can lay low for a while?
Mara
Yes. There is an old laundromat two blocks east, boarded up, but it still has power in the back room. Or a church basement near the river, if you want warmer and less eyes on the street.
Mara slows, thinking it through, not performing certainty this time. The map chip rests in her hand while she points toward the city with her chin, like she is weighing routes for both safety and trust.
Mara
The laundromat is faster. The church is safer. I can take us to either one.
Buster Jones
The church is farther, but it sounds warmer.
Buster’s answer comes through his choice of direction rather than words, and Mara follows it at once. She folds the note from earlier back into her palm, then tucks it away as if making room for the night.
Mara
Then we go to the church basement. If we stay quiet, we may finally sleep without looking over our shoulders.
They turn toward the river, side by side again, the cold easing from the edge of the lot. Behind them, the warehouse door stands dark and still, while ahead the city waits under moonlight and low wind.
“I go with Mara to the church basement”
SUCCESS (Poor Agility, rolled +1)