As he had done nearly every morning since establishing the Duskbreak, since before he had made it known and given it a name, Warren Castille sat at the sturdily built table and took a small breakfast before beginning the day. He used to think of it as hist table, just as he had thought of it as his house. Known to only himself initially, then only to three, then five, and now... The thought was interrupted as the coalition of miners set out for their day. They paid him a respectable enough greeting, all bowing their heads as they moved by wordlessly, and Warren took a deep breath as he reminded himself that yes, they were making use of both the airship hangars in the Goblet and one of the rooms he'd furnished.
The Duskbreak began as a safe house of sorts, intended to look the part of a small inn or humble bed and breakfast, just one that never truly opened to the outside world. It had been used as one, briefly, before being turned to a makeshift home for himself and Howl and Sei. He knew that it wasn't a closely guarded secret, but they seldom had guests and few ever came calling. There was the pink-haired lalafell and her grey miqo'te fiance, of course. She had come with gil, playing the part the papers had declared for her, but Warren had seen her at work, and knew she was accepting punishment for someone else's sins. He'd spent a night drinking with the miqo'te, the pair of them speaking without talking about the subject, and while there was a lot of pain and faith there was also certainty on behalf of the withered storyteller. Warren kept the pantry stocked with fine wines as means of some solidarity, having been in a situation similar himself once before, long ago.
Duskbreak found itself acting as a safe house again at the strong recommendation of the Judge, and Warren had offered sanctuary to Marisae without a second thought. It was clear the woman truly needed it, having become embroiled in some Ishgardian heresy plot. Bounty hunters had come out of the woodwork suddenly, at the declaration from a noblewoman that had given Sei no small trouble upon a chance meeting in the Quicksand. The white-haired hyur who seemed to be leading the charge made two glaring mistakes in as many days. The first was a package of descriptions detailing nearly everyone who had come to or departed from the Duskbreak since the trouble had started, and Warren Castille did not respond to poorly-veiled threats. The second mistake was arriving at the Grindstone with several of the others who had staged an attempted kidnapping on Mari, and speaking openly about their intentions. Warren had acted rashly when they stuck around, calling attention to the hyur and making it known in front of nearly three score of devoted fighters that should anything happen, or any rumor stir, about the Grindstone overseers or healers, that the white-haired man was responsible, and that Warren wouldn't hold anyone accountable should action warrant reaction.
There was also the small issue of the ghost reappearing. Warren hadn't been sure at first she was real, but after speaking and sharing a meal it was made clear that she had been through very much, and that sometimes rumors are only that. She, too, had taken refuge in the Duskbreak - though she would never refer to it as such - and she had brought hired help. They had brought assistance in the form of wards and additional security; All of Warren's devices were for the purpose of collecting information, not deterring entry, but recent events had made it clear he could not afford to seek shelter in obscurity.
Her return had been the acting herald of the rest of the changes that followed suit, and what had been designed as a secret safe space was now becoming a fortified base of operations. Majority of the Grindstone's overseeing staff all lived under a shared roof, or visited frequently enough to count. There were plainly-declared threats against him and his own. It had been suggested to him that Warren officially claim themselves as a Free Company, and while he was resistant to making any sort of pledge of allegiance to anyone but his family he could not deny the benefits of having the affiliations.
It was an awful lot to think on.
The Duskbreak began as a safe house of sorts, intended to look the part of a small inn or humble bed and breakfast, just one that never truly opened to the outside world. It had been used as one, briefly, before being turned to a makeshift home for himself and Howl and Sei. He knew that it wasn't a closely guarded secret, but they seldom had guests and few ever came calling. There was the pink-haired lalafell and her grey miqo'te fiance, of course. She had come with gil, playing the part the papers had declared for her, but Warren had seen her at work, and knew she was accepting punishment for someone else's sins. He'd spent a night drinking with the miqo'te, the pair of them speaking without talking about the subject, and while there was a lot of pain and faith there was also certainty on behalf of the withered storyteller. Warren kept the pantry stocked with fine wines as means of some solidarity, having been in a situation similar himself once before, long ago.
Duskbreak found itself acting as a safe house again at the strong recommendation of the Judge, and Warren had offered sanctuary to Marisae without a second thought. It was clear the woman truly needed it, having become embroiled in some Ishgardian heresy plot. Bounty hunters had come out of the woodwork suddenly, at the declaration from a noblewoman that had given Sei no small trouble upon a chance meeting in the Quicksand. The white-haired hyur who seemed to be leading the charge made two glaring mistakes in as many days. The first was a package of descriptions detailing nearly everyone who had come to or departed from the Duskbreak since the trouble had started, and Warren Castille did not respond to poorly-veiled threats. The second mistake was arriving at the Grindstone with several of the others who had staged an attempted kidnapping on Mari, and speaking openly about their intentions. Warren had acted rashly when they stuck around, calling attention to the hyur and making it known in front of nearly three score of devoted fighters that should anything happen, or any rumor stir, about the Grindstone overseers or healers, that the white-haired man was responsible, and that Warren wouldn't hold anyone accountable should action warrant reaction.
There was also the small issue of the ghost reappearing. Warren hadn't been sure at first she was real, but after speaking and sharing a meal it was made clear that she had been through very much, and that sometimes rumors are only that. She, too, had taken refuge in the Duskbreak - though she would never refer to it as such - and she had brought hired help. They had brought assistance in the form of wards and additional security; All of Warren's devices were for the purpose of collecting information, not deterring entry, but recent events had made it clear he could not afford to seek shelter in obscurity.
Her return had been the acting herald of the rest of the changes that followed suit, and what had been designed as a secret safe space was now becoming a fortified base of operations. Majority of the Grindstone's overseeing staff all lived under a shared roof, or visited frequently enough to count. There were plainly-declared threats against him and his own. It had been suggested to him that Warren officially claim themselves as a Free Company, and while he was resistant to making any sort of pledge of allegiance to anyone but his family he could not deny the benefits of having the affiliations.
It was an awful lot to think on.
![[Image: yEROfKO.png]](http://i.imgur.com/yEROfKO.png)
