>>5206418"All of the relics stolen by the two have been recovered amidst the corpses of Susan's warband." reported Solomon.
"And what of the biomass harvested from the warband?" asked Sathriel.
"All of them have been salvaged." answered Yan Wong. "All are of the highest quality. The remainder will provide the village with enough to last a week or two, up to a month if they can ration it smartly."
"In addition village has set aside three corpses worth of biomass as reward for your services."
"That's too generous of them." remarked Sathriel "Two is more than enough. Why didn't you haggle down the reward?"
"About that..."
"We did try to haggle down the reward to a more modest amount but..."
A pair of arms wrapped themselves around Sathriel's shoulders and enveloped her into a soft hug.
"The village insisted on the extra." said a new voice.
Sathriel turned to look at the newcomer in the conversation. Having consumed and accepted her Mother, Lisa Loupe looked to be a near-spitting image of her mother with enough minor differences to make a distinction. In addition to a sharp suited attire, the daughter of Susan Loupe was shorter, slimmer, and had a cleaner look than the rough 'n tumble impression her mother had.
"Hello lisa."
"Hey there, Judge Sath."
"Are you well?"
Lisa sighed. "I'm still upset at all of this." she answered honestly. "Mom and Grizzie said they understand why you did what you had to do. They also said that they feel bad for what you had to do. But at the very least I feel like I'm in a better place than before."
"Good." Sathriel got up from her seat upon the hill prompting Lisa to release her hug.
"I believe it's time for me to leave then."
"Already?" said Lisa, surprised at the hastiness. "I thought you would stay for a while longer."
"You should already know how I operate given my reputation." said the Arbiter as she moved to raise another Bone Obelisk from the ground to purpose as transport and storage for the biomass.
"Hey Sath?"
Lisa's callout prompted the Obsidian Arbiter to turn.
"Thank you. Just know that if you ever want a place to rest between cases, Wishbone Village will be happy to provide."
Sathriel didn't reply, but appreciated the gesture with a nod and a soft warm smile.
.........
.........
"So where to next Mother?" asked Yan Wong.
"A storm is gathering. And the Defiant is in that storm's eye." Sathriel said half-cryptically "I would be remiss if I weren't a witness to it's warpath."
"What if a case shows up before we get there?" asked Solomon.
Sathriel fell quiet as she considered the scenario.
"We'll solve it as we travel along the way. Injustice should never be left unanswered."
END.
