22.2ᴘᴀᴛʀᴇᴏɴ.ᴄᴏᴍ/sᴛʀᴀᴛᴏᴛʜʀᴀx

She tapped her pen on the table thinking.

An Inquisitor had many responsibilities as the Queen's eyes and claws, ensuring that a dungeon didn't become a problem was one of them. There were towns and cities wiped off the map when particularly powerful monsters escaped a dungeon, or a monster species had bred out of control and spilled out over the land.

Making up her mind she put her pen aside and stood from her desk. She opened her armoire and pulled on her favourite black pauldrons over her blouse and then affixed her black vambraces to her arms, then, at last, her favourite black gauntlets. High quality and lightweight, they were decorated around the edges with gold filigree, a gift from her mother. She affixed a ruby pommelled longsword to her hip, taking care to arrange it so it could be withdrawn with ease, a habit borne from long practice.

She checked herself in the mirror. A Human face, well, mostly, a pair of black Dragon horns emerged from atop her white wavy hair, a mark of her distant Dragon bloodline. She considered herself blessed to have even this small mark, her parents, both Human, had none as the mark was rarer to manifest so many descendants later. The horns gave her an imposing figure, not that she wasn't already intimidatingly severe. She hummed contentedly with her appearance. Her parents had teased her about her vanity, she personally felt it appropriate as Dragons were known to be vain.

She spun on her heel and her armoured boots clicked as she left her office.

She snapped her fingers as she passed through, the sound like a whipcrack that hurt the ears. A red-haired human girl who had been napping in a chair in the hallway squeaked and jumped to her feet looking around in fear.

"Come Jilli. We're going to the dungeon to look into an anomalous report. Maybe you can learn a thing or two."

"Y-yes Inquisitor!" said the girl, flinching to attention and then hurriedly following after the striding Inquisitor as she blew past.

"Uhm, will it be dangerous? I have my sword, b-but."

"I do not know, It may be nothing, though my instinct tells me something is afoot. It has been a while since the Queendom has seen a serious monster emergence from a dungeon, I'd like to keep it that way."

"Of course Inquisitor!"

The pair clumped downstairs and emerged into a bustling room where scribes working under the Queen talked and exchanged paperwork. Baera strode up to the largest figure in the room, a Minotaur lazing on a chair, his hooves on the table. Several empty beer mugs lay strewn around him and a Goblin slave held a freshly filled one ready as the minotaur worked through his current one. He burped and gave the Inquisitor a sour look.

"About that time huh? Coulda given me some warning, I ain't ate yet."

"Then choose breakfast over beer next time you insufferable moron."

"Oh! Never! The nectar of the gods fuels this body of mine!"

He belched loudly and Jilli covered her nose and mouth in disgust.

"You won't be receiving coin to pay for said beer if you don't get to your hooves and move Drumus."

"Yeah yeah." grumbled the Minotaur. He slugged back the last of the beer he was drinking and then grabbed the second beer from the Goblin slave causing her to stumble forward. He then chugged that to the dregs and belched lazily once more. Then with more effort than was probably warranted he slid his hooves off the table and climbed to his feet. He picked up a well worn mace from where it lay by his chair.

"Roight, I'm ready. Let's go fuck up whatever needs fucking up."

The Inquisitor set her lips in a line. "We need to acquire one other before heading to the dungeon. Come."

The Minotaur nodded then paused. "One sec." He clubbed the Goblin slave over the head and she fell to the ground limp. He then grabbed her by a leg and picked her up in the air.

"Oh, Mister Drumus, Minotaur sir? Is- is that legal?"

"Don't worry yourself lass, it's just a rental," said the Minotaur stomping out the building after Baera, Goblin dangling in hand.

They passed by a wooden slave bin with the words 'Temp-slave drop off' marked on the side and he tossed the Goblin inside and closed the lid.

"See, their problem now."

Jilli raised a hand as though to protest but the Minotaur ignored her and stomped after Baera

Baera stalked through the streets, passing pedestrians leaping to get out of her way when they noticed who she was. The trio arrived at an inn and without preamble she kicked open the door.

The noisy interior went silent as she stepped inside and looked around, a hundred eyes watching her in surprise or fear, beers halfway to mouths, coins held in the air mid-transaction.

Her violet eyes came to rest on one large table covered in cards and coins. Her eyes narrowed seeing a shirtless Halfling lying atop a mound of coin, a pipe in his mouth.

"Ah, shit." said the Halfling.

Baera snapped her armoured fingers causing half the inn to flinch and Drumus charged toward the table. The Halfling tried to scramble away but a large meaty hand came down and grabbed him by the seat of his pants and yanked him into the air.

Baera beckoned and they began to leave. She paused at the door and glanced back.

"As you were."

The inn moved back into motion and a number of fights started over the coin the Halfling had left behind.

They stepped back into the street and continued.