NEMO: Into The Depths

Chapter 29: Arguing with Fossils

There were seldom things he knew that truly excited Lati. As the half luin stumbled lifelessly into the guild staff's break room, their gills accidentally opened into the dry, frigid air as they spotted the leftovers of last night's feast. The bang of the door behind also did wonders to his partner, an audible groan describing completely her pain, muffled by the table which she was failing at wrapping around her head.

"Keep it down, fish lips, not everyone can handle their liquor like you," Alex remarked loudly, purposely causing even more whines to emanate from his hilariously hungover friend.

Lati silently sat down on the table, joining them in their wait for the Council to assemble, happily receiving the tiffin that he slid across. His handler had already popped open the prison of the lasagna, steam rising from the metal tin, before realising it was probably more considerate to ask his partner first, "Would you like some? Something rich like this would probably help with the headache."

Elyza finally ceased her attempts, lifting her head, wincing at the light streaming down, answering as she readjusted the medicine he had given her for the hangover with her tongue, "I tried to enjoy the dish this morning, unfortunately its acidity the way in is too similar to when it came out."

"Don't blame my food, Ears," Alex remarked, offering Lati a fork as he used his own to rip a pillar of cheesy layers from the tin, adding, "Nobody told you to challenge a lamia, especially one who's a renowned foodie, to a drinking contest."

"I was dared to do so," She retorted as if that was a good excuse, her voice going unusually defensive.

Chomping down on his fork, he let the harmonious mix of red and white sauce wash over him. The tart of the tomatoes cut through the richness of the cheese, the pasta, and vegetables giving him various textures to keep his mouth occupied, enjoying his own creation before remarking, "Well, maybe you wouldn't have fallen for said dare if you hadn't literally downed a barrel of cider with Kurven moments before."

Lati's chuckle broke through their banter, chewing the mouthful of lasagna in their mouth before commenting, "Seems like I missed a pretty eventful day. Did you win against Mon?"

"Barely."

"We stopped, or were forced to stop at the same glass, though since she ejected the contents of her stomach first, I was handed the victory," Elyza clarified, accepting his flask filled with lemon water to settle her grumbling stomach.

Scoffing, Alex riposted,"A short-lived one, considering I had to teleport us both to the bathroom before you spewed into the remaining food, and comfort you through the process of emptying your stomach." The words invoked unfortunate memories of the night before, forcing him to shudder as he tried to forget them.

_I am so glad I could not smell that._

Don't you worry, I'll create a special dream to share my pain.

_You really are the biggest bastard in the world._

Technically, I'm not.

"This is really good," His handler stated, their flowery voice disappearing without the need to keep it up in the company of friends, silencing any further words from his freeloader

"Of course it is," He grinned with his utterance, his mind was bombarded by the haunting of a bell beckoning him, its echo vibrating through his soul, alerting its position to him. However, there was no need for him to sink into his shadow and follow its call, it was just a message, one whose messenger would soon arrive.

Flipping up his hood caught the attention of them both, Lati continued to enjoy their meal, but Elyza tried her best to return to how she usually was, lifting her mask in response. As she rested the magic laden cloth on the bridge of her nose, his partner asked, "Is it time?"