Gold Tires and a Cursed Sock

Ninety minutes to the next heat. Carl's messages to Splash Zone, Gluteus Maxx and Doctor Bones all bounce back with a warning that the mercenary has left the floor and cannot be contacted while his daily fee keeps running; all three had gone to see Hamed, the Guild of Suffering's leader and the Desperado Club's new owner. On the way to garage two Grigori admits he has never actually performed a rejoining, since halfsies rarely outlive Split Personality by more than minutes, and offers Meld as the nearest precedent. Tipid reports a debuff over Dong's head reading Negative ROI, Bucket Boy loses the sock to a teleport after it attacks him, and Mordecai and Mistress Tiatha identify the debuff as a curse called Separation Anxiety that no temple can lift. The raid dies at the threshold: the garage opens by itself and Genesis and Rapture drive out with Corky slumped in the back and gold-glowing tires under them, having overheard the whole plan, while a road to the starting block opens beside a factory that was not there a minute earlier. Carl decides to attempt the rejoining during the race instead and sets Grigori to learning how to drive.

First appearances (3)

• Lover Illiana (Character) — Hologram vocal coach · the training room booth
• Meld (Spell / Skill) — Spell / Skill · one mind consumes another
• Negative ROI / Separation Anxiety (debuff) (Notification) — Debuff · a curse wearing System clothing

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