Leaving the Necropolis ~3 A.M.

[ladyreanimator]

The door swung shut behind her with a thud, the noise echoing in the evening darkness. Her brows furrowed, a frustrated glance taken over her shoulder at the building she just exited. Negotiations hadn't gone well, but she was sure she could wear them down eventually...Stepping away from the threshold, she sauntered into the shadows of the alleyway

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[city_sinner]

I'm walking down a nameless street (or rather, I assume it has a name, but the plate is so covered in. . . something. . . that I can't read it) when I round a corner and come face-to-face with someone who should be dead. And really, if I can't tell that, who can? Because she's very obviously not dead, it's just that. . . well, according to her aura, she is. And alive. At the same time. It's like seeing double.

I blink a couple of times trying to clear my vision, then realise I'm staring and blush furiously. Smooth, Danny, I think to myself. Real smooth.

[ladyreanimator]

Oksana stops just short of running into the other woman. Startled, she took a step back, her head lulling to the side. Her heavy oxygen mask rested against her shoulder, as yellow eyes drifted over the stranger curiously. For a moment, she also just stared -- her curiosity getting the better of her -- before she arched an eye brow and clicked her tongue.

"So sorry, darling," Her surprisingly feminine voice rasped out in between wheezes, "Are you alright?"

[city_sinner]

"Fine, thanks," I tell her, embarrassed to have been caught staring. I tell the bit of my brain that desperately wants to ask 'what the hell are you to shut the hell up, and give her a slightly sheepish smile. "My fault, I was distracted. You pretty much gotta expect someone to walk into you when you stop in the middle of the street, right?"

[ladyreanimator]

Behind her mask, her lips pursed together in a small, amused smile. She coughed out a chuckle and straightened her posture, her head returning to a more natural angle. "It happens to the best of us, no worries," She reassured her with a small nod, yellow gaze drifting over the area curiously.

"Heading anywhere specific?" Usually she wouldn't pry into other's business...but, well. The lady reanimator was bored, and she wasn't thrilled about how her negotiations went, so she was keen on finding a distraction. Conversation or company might just be good for that~.

[city_sinner]

"Not really," I say with a small head-shake. "Just getting a feel for the lay of the land, you could say." And for the people, not that there seemed to be any sort of similarity between inhabitants that I could see. All just adds to the fun, I guess.

"You?"

[ladyreanimator]

"Me either," Oksana mused with a shrug, her lab coat rustling from the movement. "Smart idea though," She continued after a raspy exhale, "This place has a lot of twists and turns, and surprises it seems," She hadn't really explored too much herself yet, having jumped straight to business.

"Would you mind an exploration partner?" The inquiry was made with a small head-tilt, smile creeping behind her mask again. She extended a gloved hand after a moment or two, "I am Oksana Lotte, by the by. Professional Reanimator. It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss...?"

[city_sinner]

"Sure," I say, thinking that it might give me a chance to find out what she is. Since just outright asking is generally regarded as rude. I regard her hand for a split second, before taking it carefully. Psions generally avoid physical contact wherever possible, but. . . well, she's wearing gloves, right. Her hand is cool through the latex, but not corpse-cold. Still, the contact does send a small jolt through me and I see a brief flash of death's realm blue behind my eyes. I smother a small intake of breath, and let go, managing a brief handshake rather than thrusting her hand from me. Hurrah for self-control. My rings throb a low light, reacting to my discomfort.

"Dante Valentine, accredited Necromance," I say, and the emerald in my cheek flashes a greeting atop the twisting tattoo. "Most people call me Danny."

[ladyreanimator]

"Necromancer," She echoed the word curiously, thin 'brows arching a tad more. How odd, she thought to herself, someone in the same line of work? She canted her head to the opposite side and stepped to stand to the right of the lady, turning so they were facing the same direction. She started to walk at a leisurely pace, footfalls steady and sure. The emerald on Danny's cheek momentarily caught her attention for a moment, but it's quickly forgotten in light of the questions swirling in her head.

"How...interesting..." She practically purred, although all her rasping and wheezing made the noise decidedly more sinister. "We may have more in common than I expected."

[city_sinner]

"Necromance, no 'r'," I correct without thinking. "It's not quite the same thing as the old legends, I guess why the name was changed." I shrug.

I fall into step with Oksana, regarding her thoughtfully out of the corner or my eye.

"So it would seem," I say, although knew from the moment I laid eyes on her. "We're both intimately acquainted with death, at any rate." You know, in the way where she's. . . dead. Ish.

[ladyreanimator]

"Hm. Nix the 'r'," She commented to herself, committing that little bit of information to her memory. "Oh, no? Curious."

Oksana kept half her attention on their path, and the other half on Danny.

"Indeed. Honestly, I am quite surprised to have ran into someone in the similar line of work as I. Generally, people are not too...keen on what I do," She clicked her tongue and chuckled softly to herself with a cough. "I have to remind myself that this place is nowhere near normal though."

[city_sinner]

"Doesn't really matter," I say, "I'll know what you mean."

I cock my head to the side, regarding her thoughtfully.

"Re-animator, you said?" I ask. "What exactly does that involve?"

I know what she means - most normals shrink from psions, Necromances even more so than others. It grates - this place is refreshing. Not one person has looked askew at my tattoo so far - or with more than normal curiosity, at any rate.

[ladyreanimator]

Oksana lets out a low, drawn out, rasp of a "hmmmm". Her head lulled to one side at a sharp angle, her mask nestled against her shoulder -- peering at Danny from an almost upside down view. She stared at her for a moment or two, obviously mulling over words, before she straightened her posture and turned her attention back to the street.

"Generally, exactly what it sounds like. Restoring a deceased creature to a healthy, living state."

[city_sinner]

I blink.

"How far deceased?" I ask. "And what does the god of death have to say about that?" How. . . odd. Even I can't bring someone back to life if they're truly gone - on ly if they're on their way, and the god allows it. And I'm a world-class Necromance so if I can't do it, it's unlikely anyone else can. Never say never, of course, but it doesn't exactly sound likely.

[ladyreanimator]

At the second inquiry, Oksana stopped momentarily. Half turning towards Danny, she exhaled softly through her mask and let out a wheezy chuckle...slowly starting to walk again.

"God of Death? No, no God. I am purely scientific in my pursuits. One of the many reasons I prefer the term of "reanimator". None of that hocus pocus," She waved her hand dismissively. Of course, she wasn't trying to be offensive -- just being blunt and honest about her beliefs.

"Hm. Well, my darling Favilla was freshly dead when I worked on her...but as I perfect my techniques I am sure I can expand the timeframe."

[city_sinner]

I blink. Well, Gabe had warned me that I would come across people from worlds that weren't mine.

"Um. . . no offence, but it's not hocus pocus. Not in my world, anyway." And not here, either - I could feel my god just as well as always. Still, it was fascinating.

"And yourself?" I ask. "How long were you dead for?" It was a bit of an assumption, but it was the only one I could come up with right now.

[ladyreanimator]

"Hm," The contemplative noise rumbled from her again and she exhaled in a small rasp, rolling her shoulders in a shrug.

"Different strokes for different folks, I do suppose," She commented nonchalantly, before she blinked at the second question. "Me?" She asked, and even placed a gloved hand to her chest in surprise.

"Oh no, not me darling. I suffer from some necrosis," She tapped her pointer finger against the side of her oxygen mask, "From a faulty experiment. But no no, not dead yet."