Though she made a show of keeping up her guarded demeanor, crossing her arms, Deliah was barely able to contain her excitement. "Really? You'd go to bat for the likes of us like that? Ahh... I mean... of course, a canny lady like you could see how valuable we'll be to your long term position here, and all that stuff." she straightened up. "And don't you worry about that 'runner up prize', I'm sure it'll be fine too, but I prefer to focus on a good challenge." she smiled broadly at Arcea. Even though she was a confident warrior, Arcea could sense that this raccoon was a kindred spirit to her in some ways, naive in the ways of the world, and relieved to meet someone else who wasn't afraid to genuinely express themselves. "I can promise you that we'll deal w'you real fair and square when it comes to that trading you mention! And I know that Imperial viziers, tax collectors and other folk with too much time on their hands will be coming by to peep on you all, assuming there aren't some still cowering in that train over there... so I can promise that while us folk and your nice lil' village are getting to know eachother, we won't get up to anything more serious than operating an unlicensed distillery and scrounging up old Lavendrian scrap material that's been lying abandoned for 20 years or more. Dunno why Taileton and Skadi came all the way out here to fight eachother way back then, but we sure appreciate them leavin' all their lovely guns and field kitchens and such behind! Our family's been thriving on that windfall since before I was born."<br/><br/>"Oh..." Deliah looked genuinely worried for a moment when Arcea corrected her about her proper title, seemingly worried she'd made a dire mistake and smiling nervously. "O-of course! Why, I honestly apologize for the mistake - I wouldn't like it if somebody was callin' me wrong neither." Maribel giggled again. "Oh yeah... remember how I used to call you 'Pee-liah' all the time when we were young, 'cuz you couldn't stop we-" Deliah turned around and gave her a suddenly furious glare. "Maribel - have you not noticed that I've already electrocuted one unforgivably stupid family member today? Don't make me go for two." The newly-minted bandit leader sighs again. "So, ah, we can wrap up all of the formalities later. I'm sure that the owners of the trade post aren't exactly comfortable having us hanging around, and it'll be hard enough to get them to trust us as is..."<br/><br/>Then, however, another issue at hand is brought to her attention. The raccoon girl who had been shooting carelessly at Arcea mumbled softly in her sleep, and only fully woke up at the end of the drag when she came to a sudden halt, finding herself in front of Maribel and Deliah. "Oh, hey Mari! Hey Deliah! Did we win?" she asks hopefully with an idiotic, broad smile on her face. She is very good-looking, with a generous chest barely constrained by her leather top, and she certainly can't be faulted for her enthusiasm - only her common sense. Maribel cringed and put a hand on her head again when Arcea described what could easily have happened to her... Then she looked over at her cousin silently asking for a decision. Deliah just shrugged. "You're the one that Julie-ann clipped, Maribel - I figure you should be the one who makes the call."<br/><br/>Maribel looks back at Celrie for a moment. "Well, that's - before I get ahead of myself, I need to give Miss Celrie my proper thanks and see what she thinks on the matter... she is a psychic, and they're wise and all, right?" She turns back to Celrie and leans forward, smitten, as she speaks. "Oh I don't want to be improper or anything saying what I'd want out of such a wager, but... aww heck, I ain't fooling nobody - I want to rub and smell and feel every inch of your gorgeous- Well, you get the idea." she said blushing so brightly that she practically had an aura.<br/><br/>She nods along to Celrie's words. "Oh yes, Deliah - every word she speaks is true, the psi-shielding, the wild shots, all of it!" Julie-ann, the pretty sharpshooter girl, pouts and holds up a black-furred hand. "But-but you weren't even conscious when she hit with the energy thingy!" Maribel looked back at her with a frown. "So you ADMIT the rest then?" Julie-ann's only response was a drooping in her ears.<br/><br/>Maribel looked back to Arcea now. "Well, Arseealaundrya Marlust," (Arcea feels the mispronunciation was a genuine mistake this time), "you've been so downright kind to me and Deliah, and the few others who were spared after making a... an utterly foolish attack, that, well, I think I might like to see Julie-ann here get her just 'desserts', at the hands of such a great warrior, no matter where in some imaginary 'line' she is." The captive sharpshooter girl gawked at her in shock. "Now come on, you can't afford to-" Maribel held up a hand a turned away from her. "Sorry, y'little idiot! It wasn't the first time but it's gonna be the last! As far as I'm concerned you're... you're nothing but discount cat-food now!"<br/><br/>Deliah gave a low whistle. "Wow, Mari, I'm impressed. You'll make a pretty ruthless lieutenant. A, uh, ruthlessly peaceful lieutenant, unless the situation calls for it." she hastily corrects herself. "Anyway, I couldn't agree more - take her away, Arcealandria!"<br/><br/>Meanwhile, Alexis took a few seconds after meeting back up with Sevana to realize the gravity of her mistake(s). "Oh, wait - you mean - ooooh, so that's what it meant by 'de-fault' setting. I thought that label meant, like... that there was a self-repair setting? For fixing faults, in the 'proximity'...?" She puts her index fingers together. "Ummm... I'm sorry about that. But..." She clears her throat, "In all fairness, it isn't totally my fault! I mean, why was that old fop of a conductor carrying so many explosive charges around with him, anyway?"<br/><br/>Speaking of whom, the small mouse-man in his powder blue uniform was disembarking at that very moment. "Ahem, yes..." he said to Sevana, straightening his cap. "Two clockmakers. I must confess that I do forget there is a branch of the order in the shadowy domains of Bucovina... In any case. I can't say I'm glad to see that young mistress Alexis has wasted all of our explosives but surely it is not an insurmountable hazard? Isn't the elven woman a psychic, can't she just... whisk the offending obstacle away with her mind?" he asked hopefully. "Mrrmm... well, if she can't, we could take a different fork on the hover-rail, and double back to bring you to the opposite side of the mountain where the village is built. We could drop you off within a half a mile of the walls, but it would be a treacherous mountainside walk along narrow paths... not exactly the sort of proper entrance for the new ladies of the town to make! If you give those commoners a reason to mock you, the next thing you know they'll be withholding their taxes and refusing to labor on public works, the blaggards... Anyway, I'm sure that you could find someone at the shanty town inside the depot there to disarm it. Just dangle a few coins in front of that sort of riff-raff - the promise of a quick platinum will make them take on any danger. Just so long as my train is moved back a little further first, ah ha.... In any case, I leave the decision to you."<br/><br/>A stodgy conductor like this one will probably hasten to carry out the first authoritative suggestion he's given - a semi-democratic group of equals, which typically governs the new shadetowns, is rather a new concept for those like him to grapple with.