Keble College

“It’s not safe for you to be out here. There are strix here at Oxford, they’ve been attracted by the bullshit the Mabinogi are trying to pull off.” Mehdi points his thumb behind him, gesturing to Liam jamming without any apparent concern for his safety. “That one has a deathwish, I’m just here to yank him back to the Hedge when shit goes bad. The two of you should…” it’s only now that Mehdi notices Rae’s missing finger and finds it in Aubrey’s clutch. “Wait a minute… you guys aren’t here just to watch the show and grab a bite to eat, are you?”

Before Aubrey or the others can say anything, Rae responds in a grave tone that resonates unnaturally outwards. As though the sound of her voice had been layered over itself a dozen times, then cast through a vast, cavernous space. “We’re here to kill a strix.” The shadows around her shudder, then crowd in closer to her.

Merric sees a new face approach, a bit reserved given the situation, but also excited to meet someone new. Rae introduces him, and he silently waves hi to the new face. Merric hears a term he hasn't heard outside of study that piques his curiosity. He pulled out his pocket notebook and pen and approached the new face. Ignoring social cues and breaking the tension, he asks, "You're name was Mehdi, right? You mentioned the Hedge just now, right? That has to do with the Fae. Are you related to the Fae somehow?" with excitement and pen in hand.

Mehdi blinks, wide eyed, at the strange yet blunt response from Rae. ”Right. Of course. Uhm,” he starts, turning to Merric. The stranger’s eager curiosity is offputting, especially with the notebook and pen readily in hand. Mehdi’s thoughts immediately return to Alice and her sketchbook skin. He shifts backwards, clearly uncomfortable. Of course, it would be hard for the privateer to hide her Mien from a fellow Changeling, but it certainly wouldn’t be impossible. “Uhm, yeah sure, I guess you could say that. And you’re a… mage?” he asks, making the easiest assumption given there is no pallor of undeath on the guy and there is another known mage present.  “So… two Mages, a bunch of Kindred, a bunch of cheshire cats, a Changeling and his Terror Toad against a Strix… or two or three. What exactly is our game plan?” The Strix feels far from the biggest threat to Liam, but it certainly isn’t a small one. As long as there is a team here looking to go up against the birds, he might as well throw in his lot and try to turn this sure to be trainwreck into a productive night.