[11:41] <@Mike> I will tell you a tale.
[11:41] <@Mike> The city of Nexus. Haven for the decadent and prison for the poor. A sprawling city of millions, Nexus is one of the most infamous places in all Creation. Sitting on the peninsula where the mighty Yanaze River splits into the east-running Yellow river and south-running Grey River, the so-called Heart of the Scavenger Lands sits at a strategic crossroads for three major rivers that twist and...
[11:41] <@Mike> ...wind their way through the Eastern directions of Creation. The amount of trade and river traffic Nexus gets is truly staggering, and the profits made by merchants nearly unbelievable. It is said that the business of the Scavenger Lands *is* business; Nexus is where the profit of that business ends up. The Guild has made its headquarters in Nexus for good reason.
[11:43] <@Mike> Founded in RY 99 by a brilliant merchant named Brem Marst, the Guild has since become an economic and political force to rival the Realm. The chief concern of the Guild is making money, and to do so they sell any product, to any customer, almost anywhere in Creation and beyond, at any means necessary. The tendrils of the Guild touch all parts of Creation except the utter North, far West, and...
[11:43] <@Mike> ...the Blessed Isle. They are inextricably rooted in the Scavenger Lands, and their capital of Nexus is a mirror into their soul. The wealthy look down upon the sniveling disheveled poor from multi-storied towers, counting their silver dinar coins as the masses below hope they can afford bread or get enough swamp rice to survive the week. The Guild affects all aspects of life for those in...
[11:43] <@Mike> ...Nexus, and none who gaze upon the 12-story First Age tower serving as the seat of the Guild Council of Entities can forget that. Only one other building in the city is taller than it; that building is another First Age tower.
[11:45] <@Mike> First Age buildings and ruins can be seen throughout all of Nexus. In that long-gone era, the city of Hollow occupied the spot where Nexus now stands, and much of the surrounding area. A great center of trade even then, it was torn asunder by the Usurpation and Balorian Crusades. Six Anathema are known to have died in its walls and were entombed in the city. In the Second Age, these six...
[11:45] <@Mike> ...tombs have been found and feature prominently on any map of Nexus. They are strange and dangerous places that most people avoid for their own
[11:46] <@Mike> safety. For centuries, the Solar Anathema have kept away from Nexus. But that is about to change.
[11:46] <@Mike> In this city we find our heroes. An intrepid artist and doctor, a zealous horsewoman from the Marukani tribes, and an opulent noble known as the White Prince of Nexus. All are Exalted by the Unconquered Sun. Together they look to carve their own destiny and fortune, to change the world to their liking. To start their journey, they came to Nexus.
[11:54] <@Mike> The White Prince has employed these two Exalts for future projects. As they have not yet met, he sent the Marukan, a woman named Ahuri, to meet the artist-cum-doctor Inks at her medical clinic in the district of Nexus known as Sentinel’s Hill. The clinic is a small, recently built medical house roughly on ground level, staffed with a handful of selected nurses trained by Inks herself. It is here our tale begins.
01[12:00] <Inks> The clinic itself wasn't so much recently built, as reciently renovated. It was the bottom floor of an incredibly narrow townhouse, wedged between two other buildings and slightly off angle. The door was open, voices could be heard out in the streets.
01[12:00] <Inks> "That's silly! You're silly. You get sick because disease gods are offended by people not washing their hands or keeping food preserved! None of this 'balance the humours' crap. Go home, get washed up, keep those dressings changed like I showed you, and you'll be fine in a few days! Come back if they're any problems!"
01[12:00] <Inks> With that, a young man who looked flu-striken stumbled out of the clinic and into the city streets, a cloth mask wrapped around his face.
[12:05] <Ahuri> The young tanned woman gives the obviously ill man a wide berth as she squeezes inside the clinic. "You must be the doctor. Boss sent me here for treatment, says my sense of humor lacking."
06[12:08] * Inks snorts. The doctor is... Not what most people expect. Instead of stuffy robes and such, she wore a sleek backless dress with slits up both legs. All the better to see the fact that from neck to wrist to toe, the woman was covered in tattoos. No, one single, comprehensive tattoo. It must've taken years to do. Her brown hair is pulled up in a messy bun, pinned with chopsticks and fake pearl clips.
01[12:08] <Inks> She grins at the other woman. "No your boss is an idiot, your humors are fine."
01[12:09] <Inks> she switched out the scalpel in one hand to extend her other to the horsedame. "Call me Inks."
[12:12] <Ahuri> "Call me Ahuri. If you have any horses, they may call me that too." She shakes Inks' hand. Dressed in simple riding clothes, she looks a bit primitive compared to Inks' more cultured appearance.
01[12:15] <Inks> Inks looked around at her clinic and the two bustling nurses on the job right then. it's not much. A counter served as a desk and reception area, while couches and cheap chairs waited for patients. A curtained off section off to one side served as a private examination room. A stairway leading up into the higher floors was cordoned off. Nearby, one of the nurses was at a loss...
03[12:15] * Exhack (chatzilla@sux-788A40D0.mc.videotron.ca) has joined #exalted-tni
03[12:15] * Exhack is now known as Dove
01[12:16] <Inks> Inks winced and bowed to Ahuri. "Sorry, gotta help." She swept over to help the nurse, who was trying to dress the scrapes and cuts littering a young boy's arms. The boy's mother fret next to him. "He took a tumble down one of the steep roads, I didn't have anything to treat him..." she rambled. Inks smiled and took charge. "It's alright, I got this."
01[12:19] <Inks> She gave the nurse a playful hip-check and nudged her out of the way. She turned to the little boy, who was more upset about the fussing than the cuts and scrapes. "Okay sweets, let
01[12:19] <Inks> 's take a look at you~"
01[12:21] <Inks> She pulled out a basin filled with over distilled alcohol and a damp rag, rubbing at the cuts. "It'll sting." She warned.
[12:21] <Ahuri> "It will be good practice for his war cry."
01[12:23] <Inks> Quickly and easily, the doctor cleaned and wrapped the cuts. "I haven't had a chance to make any decent salves yet." she apologied to the mother. "Just keep them clean and keep him from taking any more falls for a few days or weeks, and they'll clear up just fine. Kids heal fast."
06[12:28] * Ahuri looks over Inks' handiwork. "I am impressed."
[12:28] <@Mike> The boy's mother looked up at Inks with tears still rolling down her cheeks. "Thank you! Thank you so much doctor! Now come, Jhurty, we need to get home before your father does." She takes the boy up and they begin to leave the clinic. The boy can still be seen wincing at the pain in his arms, but he will recover.
06[12:32] * Inks smiles and waves. She turns back to Ahuri. "Okay that seems to be it for now."
[12:33] <Ahuri> "If I come in with cuts, will you talk sweetly to me too?" She smiles. "Now that we are acquainted what do we do? The boss only wanted me to meet you, he didn't say what for."
01[12:33] <Inks> Inks grins. "I'll say whatever you want cutie."