Her top was a simple, long-sleeved black shirt, though she had long since removed the sleeve on the left arm from the elbow down. A light leather jacket, with the same sleeve cut off, finished main part of the outfit.
The last piece was a simple belt, looped through her pants, with a sheathed dagger and a few vials. Three of the vials were dark red, containing and preserving her own blood. The last two held the signature black of demon blood.
The dagger came to rest at her left side. Eva pulled it out of its sheath and gave it the usual inspection. The crystal blade glimmered underneath her bedroom’s runelight. Not a single nick could be seen along the edge, as it should be.
The dagger was made for drawing blood and nothing else. Using it in combat would likely see it shattered in an instant. Eva didn’t look forward to making a new one, making this one had been unpleasant enough.
A petrified snake made up the handle, coiled around until the mouth bit into the crystal blade. A red bloodstone capped the end of the snake’s tail.
Satisfied everything was in order, Eva sheathed the dagger. The check was probably unnecessary, but her master constantly warned of needing tools only to find them damaged or missing.
Eva emptied her book bag of all schoolbooks and dropped in the latest tome she had been reading, a book on blood rituals. She double checked her chalk, pens, and notebook, and slung the bag over her shoulder.
One final pat down ensured her clothes were in order and Eva stepped straight out of the second floor window onto the roof of a nearby building. Twenty minutes later, under the cover of night, Eva found herself in front of the old train station.
Eva pushed open the door. The cold edge of a knife at her throat froze her footsteps in their place.
Devon Foster | Arachne
“Eva?” Devon Foster blinked in the dim light. “You almost lost your head, girl.”
“Yeah. Nice to see you too, master,” Eva said as she gently pushed the blade away from her throat. “Expecting trouble?”
“Not exactly,” he said, replacing the dagger. “We were just about to leave. You surprised me is all.”
“We?” Eva peeked further into the building. Spinning in a swivel chair was a woman with six too many eyes and glossy black chitin in place of skin. “Ah. Hello Arachne.”
The spinning woman slammed one of her bare feet to the ground. Sharp claws that passed as her toes dug into the cement floor. She regarded Eva with all eight eyes. Slowly, a grin filled with pointed, interlocking teeth spread across her face.
In a single leap, she crossed the ten feet between her seat and the doorway Eva stood within. Eva made a quick step past the flying woman to her vacated chair. Turning, Eva found the woman had sprouted four additional spiny legs from her waist; all of them, and her arms, were wrapped around the spot Eva had just stepped out of.
“Aww, you don’t need to be so cold.” Arachne turned and put on the fakest pout Eva had ever seen. “We’re practically sisters now. Or you’re my daughter?” She shrugged.
“Arachne,” her master cut in, “we’re short on time. You can play your games when we get back.”
Eva crossed her arms and sent a glare at Devon. “You’re going on a job without telling me again?”
“It is just a small pick up. A smash and grab, as it were.”
“You wound up sick with the pale fester for weeks last time it was just a ‘quick pick up.’ Remember? We had to summon a bile demon to suck out all the puss.”
Eva’s master went a bit green, probably more at the demon than the illness. He said, “the last time you came on a job, you nearly had your leg detached.”
“Yes, well,” Eva kicked her right leg back and forth, “I’m fine now, aren’t I. Besides,” Eva said before her master could retort, “I’ve something urgent I need to speak with you about.”
Devon shook his head. He pulled his brown trench coat off a hook by the door and started out the door. “Fine,” he said, “but talk while we walk.”
Eva jumped to her feet and followed him out the door. “First,” she said, “this job. Anything I need to know to not get killed or horribly maimed?”
“Probably not,” Devon said, shaking his head, “the museum has a new tour going around. A missive from Death said that–”
“Oh, we’re dealing with Death now?” Eva interrupted with narrowed eyes. “The Great Corrupter and Endless Void not enough for you?”
Devon sighed and shot Eva an annoyed glare. “It isn’t like that. And I’m not exactly best friends with the other powers. Death is willing to grant a small boon in exchange for the destruction of a phylactery that is currently in our museum.”
Eva considered for a moment before asking, “I thought liches worshiped Death.”
