[ Not so long ago, Ephemera could have handled this just fine. He's good at talking to people, or at least he can be when he stays focused. Not quite like Hunter was—everyone liked Hunter—but Ephemera did all right. Enjoyed going out among strangers, getting them to laugh. Used to flirt his ass off at bars just to see what happened. Not anymore. But he could pretend, still. He was decent at pretending if he stayed on track.

Yeah, well. It's different now.

He takes another shot. Swallows it down and focuses on the burn, on the warm feeling that's starting to spread through him.

Good. That's better. ]

Yeah. Money's decent.

[ And he likes fighting. Likes the satisfaction that comes from surviving it. Ephemera nods slowly, some of the tension bleeding from his shoulders. It's an easier topic than trying to think about the war, and all the shit back home. ]

Some of the fighters are, too. Most of them don't go hard enough to really hurt anyone. But a couple are good. Worth paying attention to.