He'd joked about the armor being cursed but Warren was beginning to wonder if he was on to something. The frigid encounter with Coatleque Crofte had left both himself and Howl uncomfortable; Warren had found out only moments prior to the encounter what Howl and Sei had done and probably overcompensated for his attitude by leaning more apathetic than he would have normally.
He didn't want to fight about it later, but his point was lost in the noise. If Longneck had been less smug, a hair smarter, he would have brought his own backup to an obvious trap. Assailing an Elite Sultansworn would be a crime that kept them both locked up at the best, executed for treason at the worst. Warren just wanted to let Howl know that those terms - risking his life for petty revenge - were unacceptable. The tension of the moment and the general mood caused that to land awry, though, and the two of them had it out. It took some hours and much effort to soothe over both of their worries but something still felt wrong. In the late hours of the night Warren laid awake and tried to figure out why.
His issues with Howl weren't the source and he knew it. Neither of them reacted that poorly to the other in any given circumstances but lately it had been touch and go for a lot of things conversationally. He knew he needed to talk to Sei soon, but he didn't want to bother her when he knew how much trouble she was going through. He would work out his issues with Howl. Deep down he was sure of it.
It bothered him how often Otto Vann was appearing in his life. Warren initially didn't even know the man was Syndicate; He thought he was a fashion designer by trade. He was an associate's of Coatleque's, and while the man had always been polite enough in company his connections had to go further. Now Otto was a mainstay at the Grindstone, flaunting wealth and encouraging citizens to fight for his amusement. Otto's personal fighting club had been put together because of his love of pugilism. Removed from the formal organization of the Grindstone, Otto's club was strictly to find the toughest, most brutal combatants. Coerthas had proven a cruel training ground for many, and while the evening avoided the amount of blood the Grindstone typically allowed, there were many bones broken and plenty of wounds. Miss Jancis had gone above and beyond to keep people going between rounds and the toll on her after such a grueling night would have been substantial. He wondered if Otto would have words with her regarding it; His original wish that was healing would be minimum to weed out the weak from the strong.
Warren considered that perhaps there was more to the scheme than Otto Vann was telling people. He recalled his match at the Grindstone against Ruinfeild; Prior to their bout and following it, the roe and Otto had discussed some sort of work arrangement. Ruinfeild was a smith by trade, seemingly so, but his strength was immense and hammers could be used for flattening more than steel. Similarly, Iron Sea had been welcomed and greeted with open arms by Otto following his victory over Howl.
Warren couldn't hope to know how to Syndicate operated, but he figured Otto was on the outermost reaches of it. Could it be a power play? Otto was looking for muscle, and finding it. For certain though, Warren knew that if he was noticing these sorts of things, the big fish were as well. The Syndicate's eyes were everywhere.
He didn't want to fight about it later, but his point was lost in the noise. If Longneck had been less smug, a hair smarter, he would have brought his own backup to an obvious trap. Assailing an Elite Sultansworn would be a crime that kept them both locked up at the best, executed for treason at the worst. Warren just wanted to let Howl know that those terms - risking his life for petty revenge - were unacceptable. The tension of the moment and the general mood caused that to land awry, though, and the two of them had it out. It took some hours and much effort to soothe over both of their worries but something still felt wrong. In the late hours of the night Warren laid awake and tried to figure out why.
His issues with Howl weren't the source and he knew it. Neither of them reacted that poorly to the other in any given circumstances but lately it had been touch and go for a lot of things conversationally. He knew he needed to talk to Sei soon, but he didn't want to bother her when he knew how much trouble she was going through. He would work out his issues with Howl. Deep down he was sure of it.
It bothered him how often Otto Vann was appearing in his life. Warren initially didn't even know the man was Syndicate; He thought he was a fashion designer by trade. He was an associate's of Coatleque's, and while the man had always been polite enough in company his connections had to go further. Now Otto was a mainstay at the Grindstone, flaunting wealth and encouraging citizens to fight for his amusement. Otto's personal fighting club had been put together because of his love of pugilism. Removed from the formal organization of the Grindstone, Otto's club was strictly to find the toughest, most brutal combatants. Coerthas had proven a cruel training ground for many, and while the evening avoided the amount of blood the Grindstone typically allowed, there were many bones broken and plenty of wounds. Miss Jancis had gone above and beyond to keep people going between rounds and the toll on her after such a grueling night would have been substantial. He wondered if Otto would have words with her regarding it; His original wish that was healing would be minimum to weed out the weak from the strong.
Warren considered that perhaps there was more to the scheme than Otto Vann was telling people. He recalled his match at the Grindstone against Ruinfeild; Prior to their bout and following it, the roe and Otto had discussed some sort of work arrangement. Ruinfeild was a smith by trade, seemingly so, but his strength was immense and hammers could be used for flattening more than steel. Similarly, Iron Sea had been welcomed and greeted with open arms by Otto following his victory over Howl.
Warren couldn't hope to know how to Syndicate operated, but he figured Otto was on the outermost reaches of it. Could it be a power play? Otto was looking for muscle, and finding it. For certain though, Warren knew that if he was noticing these sorts of things, the big fish were as well. The Syndicate's eyes were everywhere.
![[Image: yEROfKO.png]](http://i.imgur.com/yEROfKO.png)
