This was a mess.

This whole, complete debacle, was a mess.

As much as Xeik wanted to blame Lewis for this, he couldn’t quite manage to pin this on his friend. Of course, if Lady Angela had not been studying the unique properties of taarua, then none of this would have happened. And who was that special mushroom for?

“I’m here,” Lewis said with a sigh as he walked up to Xeik in between the busy stalls. “Why are we here, and what do you need.” Simone was overhead scouting.

Uh…Lewis? Simone said with a worried tone. Why are there rainbows everywhere?

Xeik went into detail about how Raine had split herself with the magic mushroom, and that he needed help getting them back.

“So what you’re saying,” Lewis said with a deadpan look on his face. “Is that she’s…Raine-ing on your parade.”

There was a shocking cry from above that sounded like a bird choking. Several people looked up trying to find the source of the sound, but it had disappeared. Appearing at his side, Simone was trying to choke back her laughter at the gods awful pun that her husband had just made.

“I hate you both,” Xeik uttered. “Can you just…help me?”

Simone held up a pink haired Raine, who was happily chomping down on a bonbon that she had stolen from one of the stands. “Here’s one.”

“How the hell did yo-”

“Ex-assassins….” Lewis interrupted. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I think I see one bathing in a fountain down the road.” The sounds of happy chirping could be heard off in the distance. Slowly, the chirping evolved into off-key singing, to which Xeik’s eye started to twitch,

“She knows I’m here….”

“Well duh, you’re like a beacon in comparison to us,” Simone replied. “A shining knight come to rescue the fair-” There was a skwark as Lewis tried to pounce on the Raine off in the distance, followed by a loud splashing noise. “I did warn him that it wouldn’t work…”

Xeik was resiting the urge to facepalm as a wet Lewis walked back over to them.

“Yeah, she’s pretty fast,” Lewis said as he took off his shirt and started to ring it out.

“Shiny things and sweets,” Xeik said as he handed a back of taffy to Lewis. “Simone had the right id-” He looked over. “Where did that Raine go?”

Simone did a low whistle at Lewis as she eyed his body. “Ma’am my eyes are up here,” Lewis said with a half-smirk.

“I hate you both…” Xeik groaned.

A portal appeared and Simone tossed her Raine into it. “Who knows what caught her fancy. She’s a bird,” Simone shrugged.

There was a long pause and Simone turned on her heel. “Oh my god!” Simone yelled with a dramatic voice. “I think I’m going to ask that devilishly handsome avatar of Light and Darkness out.” Simone tried not to gag. “Now that his girlfriend isn’t here I can have him all to myself.”

It took a few moments but Simone was dive-bombed by a Raine. “HE’S MY MATE!”

There was a bored expression on Simone’s face as Lewis knocked Raine out. “That’s not going to work a second time…”

Xeik hated the fact that the two of them were so efficient at this, but he couldn’t really argue with the results that he was getting. He focused his attention on the next Raine that he saw, one that was eying a shiny stone at a stall down the road. He walked towards her, and thought of the best way to approach this.

She bolted for the stone, and Xeik immediately threw out his hand.

“I SAW YOU AND MALIIK NECKING!” he called out. At once, Raine stumbled into a roll and slammed into the stall as she turned a bright red.

“YOU ARE LYING I’M A GOOD GIRL!” she started saying immediately as Xeik opened a portal beneath her, sending her back to Elysia.

“Okay, that’s three down,” Lewis said as he walked up. “Any idea on-”

“Oh no,” Xeik said as he stared down the next side street. There was a ship arriving, offloading cargo. Animal cargo.

There was definitely a bird.