Many roads led in and out of Terminus, but none larger than the shuttle doors which barred its west and south entrances. Large, auritium-reinforced steel parted on the occasional day when massive caravans might shuttle supplies in bulk into the metropolis. Now, though, those gates were shut.
The smaller passages might've been guarded by smaller forces, but no less than a full platoon now occupied the western gate. As for the south... large stripes of yellow tape were criss-crossed along it, a clear sign of law enforcement.
All throughout Terminus, the grandis speculii flickered to life. Like a pool of murky water, a smoky gray filled the orb-like screens before slowly clearing into a coherent picture. On it was a recognizable - and well-respected - figure: the Auspex of the Conexus.
Zephyrus was a woman who loathed the limelight, but there was no trace of her renowned patience in her eyes. The enlil-velen spurii was striking to behold. Her mixed parentage had endowed her with a wholly unique aesthetic, neither Velen nor Enlil. Pure white plumage feathered her neck and cheeks, thinning out to reveal a small pair of spines that ran across the top of her head and down her back.
Puffed out not unlike a scarf, the plumage decorated her shoulders before revealing the tightly-packed musculature of the Velen. Terminating abruptly, the sinewy amber skin gave way to hardened keratin almost seamlessly, black limbs smooth in appearance and texture. Five digits occupied either hand, an opposable talon with four other digits.
Her left leg was shown prominently, dressed in simple denim pants beneath an open-side skirt. A deadly distraction, one that had long since earned Zephyrus the reputation of a femme fatale. Above it, she wore a simple button-up shirt with a thick jacket draped over her shoulders. Slung around her waist loosely, a pair of pistols sat snugly, waiting to be used.
Glowing amber eyes matched the almost luminescent skin of the Auspex, but not a trace of humor lined them. Instead, her voice spoke lowly, devoid of its typical musical tenor. "Attention all citizens of Terminus: the city is hereby on lockdown. All those associated with Astra Non Obligant is hereby wanted - for crimes of murder, conspiracy, and assault with deadly intent - dead or alive."
Behind her, the gates loomed large in the encroaching winter night. The images faded from the speculii, and the fresh announcement left no question in every citizen's mind: there was no leaving until the Auspex meted out justice.
[ 419 / 419 ]
The smaller passages might've been guarded by smaller forces, but no less than a full platoon now occupied the western gate. As for the south... large stripes of yellow tape were criss-crossed along it, a clear sign of law enforcement.
All throughout Terminus, the grandis speculii flickered to life. Like a pool of murky water, a smoky gray filled the orb-like screens before slowly clearing into a coherent picture. On it was a recognizable - and well-respected - figure: the Auspex of the Conexus.
Zephyrus was a woman who loathed the limelight, but there was no trace of her renowned patience in her eyes. The enlil-velen spurii was striking to behold. Her mixed parentage had endowed her with a wholly unique aesthetic, neither Velen nor Enlil. Pure white plumage feathered her neck and cheeks, thinning out to reveal a small pair of spines that ran across the top of her head and down her back.
Puffed out not unlike a scarf, the plumage decorated her shoulders before revealing the tightly-packed musculature of the Velen. Terminating abruptly, the sinewy amber skin gave way to hardened keratin almost seamlessly, black limbs smooth in appearance and texture. Five digits occupied either hand, an opposable talon with four other digits.
Her left leg was shown prominently, dressed in simple denim pants beneath an open-side skirt. A deadly distraction, one that had long since earned Zephyrus the reputation of a femme fatale. Above it, she wore a simple button-up shirt with a thick jacket draped over her shoulders. Slung around her waist loosely, a pair of pistols sat snugly, waiting to be used.
Glowing amber eyes matched the almost luminescent skin of the Auspex, but not a trace of humor lined them. Instead, her voice spoke lowly, devoid of its typical musical tenor. "Attention all citizens of Terminus: the city is hereby on lockdown. All those associated with Astra Non Obligant is hereby wanted - for crimes of murder, conspiracy, and assault with deadly intent - dead or alive."
Behind her, the gates loomed large in the encroaching winter night. The images faded from the speculii, and the fresh announcement left no question in every citizen's mind: there was no leaving until the Auspex meted out justice.
[ 419 / 419 ]
