Chapter Text
The Floating City is only partially gilded. At one point, Techno knows, the Governor had considered having every building plated in gold as a mighty display of the resilience and power of humans. After all, after the Storm, they'd survived. They'd built their own heaven. It should have the colors to match. Of course, Techno's also visited the heavens, and his buddy there has more recently had a thing for flowers than he'd ever had for gold, but no one asks him, and no one asks anyone about how practical it would be to gild a city either, on account of the fact that governors rarely ask farmers that sort of thing. The project hadn't been completed. The city's gilding remained partial. The sunrise burning off of each shining building, however, made an eternal star by which to navigate his boat into the docks by the Farmer's Syndicate on Tuesdays, so he'll concede that the idea hadn't been entirely without merits.
"Mornin'," Techno says, pulling his boat into the docks.
"You're late!" crows Squid as he ties up his boat.
"A pig is never late. I just don't need that much time to beat you."
"Excuse me?" Squid says. "I'll have you know that I have a new strategy that you won't beat, no matter how much of a lunatic you are."
"Keep tellin' yourself that, squid boy."
The Farmer's Syndicate is one of many, many docked markets in the Floating City. Canals run into it for farmers from out of the city to bring their goods. It has a roof and paths for the customers. In a better world it'd be busy, and perfect for people to buy from. Techno's pretty sure the types of people who actually show up during the day, however, can be best described as hipsters. Neither he nor the other people he parks his boat next to get their main revenue from the market. Techno's been selling potatoes to a wholesale grocer for years; Squid's got some deal with a guy who owns restaurants in one of the mountain towns nearby. That's not why either of them still show up to this market. The market isn't about petty things like commerce.
Squid smirks at Techno as he hangs a charm up on the side of his market stand. It's made of black feathers and has a small symbol shaped like a pig's skull.
Techno snorts. "You know, I'm the one with a pig's head. Never knew you liked me that much."
"Shut up, it's not you! It's a symbol for the God of War and the God of Battle! To represent how I'm going to kick your ass tonight."
"Yeah, that's me," Techno says.
"Shut up!"
Techno is not here for commerce. He's here to crush his foolish enemies beneath his potato might. He's here to get money the likes of which no one else would argue his power with him again. He's here for glory. For victory. For the continuous, devastating defeat of his rival Squid. He's here for the closest thing to war he can find himself doing these days, now that he's almost as mortal as the rest of them. These are times of peace, he's been told, mostly by the same kinds of people who go about gilding towers.
No one had told Squid Kid that. Squid Kid—a nickname born from his Gift, two long tentacles that reach out from his back—would have once lived in peace, Techno is sure. In a timeline where Techno had never decided to venture out from his farm, Squid would have simply ruled the potato side of the Farmer's Syndicate in peace. No more. Techno will make him rue the day, and has been making him rue the day for some time. Quite a lot of rueing going on. If rueing is a word—Techno can only assume rueing is a word, given how much of it is happening.
Still. Religion is a new way for Squid to try to get a leg up on him. Pity that won't work, on account of the specific kind of religion he's gone about deciding he's going to do. Bad move, that one.
Techno starts setting up his own stall. Their little competition is simple. After the two of them were forced to reluctantly admit that competing in their main source of revenue was starting to flood the market just a teensie little bit (it's not actually Techno's fault the price of potatoes crashed for a bit there, he swears), they compete on their sales for the day at the farmer's market. Techno has won most of their weeks, but Squid hasn't made it easy. Today, Techno also has a new tactic: a brighter, more colorful banner. He'd found someone in town that would sell him a carnival banner and he's hoping it makes his potatoes stand out from Squid's.
Around him, other farmers are setting up their own stands. More boats are coming in to dock. The Farmer's Syndicate is on the outskirts of the city, so even people like them can get their boats into the canals. In the heart of the city the waterways get too winding, too narrow, too dark. There are people with the kinds of boats that can navigate where the people are thickest and the world is angriest, but Techno finds it exhausting enough just navigating here. His boat is best for the outskirts.
The outskirts, and winning in potato war.
He hangs his own feathers up on the side of his stand. He touches them with one claw and goes back to work. Squid may not be getting the divine intervention he wants, but Techno has friends in high places. Friends that are almost certainly not paying attention, but, well—any advantage helps when Techno's got the body of a pig. Humans can be fairly accepting of strange Gifts, and it's been long enough that they don't remember the shape of the divine so well, but, well, people still do a double-take when they see a pig standing up and handing them their potatoes. A little intervention from the God of War doesn't hurt. The breeze has never hurt a potato.
That's a lie. The breeze has hurt potatoes a lot. One of these days Techno is gonna yell at his friend about last year's big one. Still, it's about the principle.
He unfurls the banner, smirking at Squid as he hangs it up.
"That's, uh… very loud," someone says next to him.
"Loud is what you need to stand out on a battlefield," Techno says seriously.
Ranboo snorts as he finishes mooring his boat next to Techno's. Ranboo's a weird kid. Very tall, apparently genetic, and with a Gift that means half of his hair is black and half of it is white, apparently not genetic, weirdly enough. He and his family grow citrus. Today it looks like Ranboo mostly has oranges.
"Making a bet on orange juice over lemonade today?" Techno asks.
"Uh, actually mostly making a bet on—our lemon trees are having a moment," Ranboo says.
"Eh?" Techno asks.
"Yeah, having a moment," Ranboo says, nodding to himself, before… pulling out his own charm?
"Okay, when did everyone decide to go and get religious on me," Techno asks, a little shudder running over his spine as Ranboo hangs the charm up.
"Behold, my master plan!" Squid says excitedly. "I got everyone else to bring in charms for victory as well. I'm going to harness their power to finally crush you and take back my rightful spot as the best-seller here at the market!"
"One, they're still pigs, and I'm a pig," Techno says. "Two, isn't Ranboo the best-seller?"
"Eh? I am?" Ranboo says.
"That's true, he is," Niki says, coming in to dock in her small boat. Niki has a bakery in-town. She always comes to market to sell baked goods on what is normally one of her slow days. Techno personally likes her ciabatta best, but they both know her cakes tend to sell the best. Once, Techno had told her that she clearly has a Gift for bread. Niki had laughed and said she knew she didn't have a Gift. The jury's still out on that one.
"Fine. The best potato-seller," Squid says.
"You are also wrong about that, and will forever be entirely mistaken," Techno says.
"I, uh, don't think I'm the best seller?" Ranboo says nervously. "I mean, uh, there's you two, and whatever you all like to do to get people to buy all your potatoes, and it's super weird that it works so well, by the way, they're potatoes."
"Rude but I'll allow it," Techno interjects.
"Uh, sorry, I mean—you know what? No, standing by that one. I'm uh, standing by that. But I mean, even setting you aside, there's uh, Niki? Niki's baked goods."
"Yeah, but you're selling drinks to thirsty people," Techno says. "That's like, the famous thing that you get money from. Now, I'm no expert in fruit, but the way I see it, you're selling fruit the one way everyone here will buy it, instead of just those who've got a juicer at home."
He pauses for a moment.
"You should not make potato juice," Niki says helpfully.
"No, no, you're right," Techno says, sighing. He does have plans for more sellable potato strategies, at least; he's been working on a secret perogie recipe that's going to blow everyone out of the water once he's done. It's foolproof. Unfortunately, he's getting hung up on the fact that he's, uh, not actually the greatest of cooks. Following a recipe, sure, he can do that, but a recipe? No, no, that's too easy for Squid to copy. He's got to invent the spice blend he uses. He's got to make perogies the likes of which no one can possibly compare. If he merely finds someone else's recipe, he'll have Squid undercutting him within the week. The problem is that he doesn't quite have the taste buds the humans around him have got, so tasting his creations is going a bit poorly.
Luckily, Ranboo does have a point: he and Squid are remarkably good at convincing people to buy their potatoes. Part of this is a tactic Techno will never admit to: parking next to Ranboo and Niki. When this had all started, Techno and Squid didn't really know anyone else at the market. They had, however, known that Ranboo's juice sold extremely well and that Niki's baked goods were only shortly behind them. If they docked and set up shop next to them, they'd get more foot traffic. Yes, Techno had only decided to stay where he was to use his neighbors. All is fair in war.
It's been long enough properly that they all know each other, though. And all, apparently, know each other well enough for betrayal, as Niki also hangs up a charm to the god of war.
"You're all tryin' to summon gods against me," Techno says. "All of you?"
"Sorry Techno," Niki says, not sounding terribly sorry at all. "I just can't help but root for an underdog."
"My own friends, workin' against me…"
"They're my friends too, bozo," Squid says.
The sun has risen properly. Soon, someone will open the gates on the docks the Farmer's Syndicate uses, and they'll begin their market. They mostly get people from nearby. That had also been an interesting pricing puzzle. The outskirts of the Floating City tended to have dockworkers and tradespeople who needed to stay closer to the ports; they were not the least well-paid people in the city, but they weren't the best-paid either (the best-paid lived at the top of the towers that had actually gotten gilded). It was a balancing act to find "expensive enough to make money, but not so expensive to be seen as a luxury over the potatoes being sold in grocery stores, especially after that market crash that Techno still refuses to take credit for".
Someone, as usual, is late as well. Techno sighs. Squid may make fun of Techno for being late, but he'd been one of the first in their corner of the market to arrive. True lateness is reserved instead for someone else.
Just before the owner of the Syndicate arrives, another boat races in. All four of Techno, Squid, Niki, and Ranboo quickly pull down the covers on the front of their stalls.
"Hey guys! You won't believe what I'm selling today, it's like, the hot stuff," Connor says. He's a shorter man with blue spikes running down one of his arms. He's also one of the friendliest shady people Techno has ever met. If the Farmer's Syndicate had even slightly more rules on the kinds of things anyone at the place could do on any given day, Connor probably wouldn't be here. It still surprises Techno that Connor even shows up weekly. With the sorts of things he finds and sells, it would make more sense for Connor to stick away from regular patterns. Then again, Techno's still surprised Techno shows up weekly.
"Are those god bells?" Ranboo asks nervously.
"Nah, they're fake. But they look real, right?" Connor says.
"Why—why would you sell those," Ranboo asks.
"I mean, it's not like anyone would need the real deal, right? They're like, decorative," Connor replies.
"They will if you all keep on gangin' up on me tryin' to summon the God of War. What if he's here right now?" Techno says, and Niki and Ranboo laugh at him as though he's not giving them a perfectly fair warning as to what, exactly, they have sitting on a boat next to them, and who they've been talking to for the past year and a half, and who Techno will quietly admit they're probably friends with. They're so rude to him! They're so rude to him, laughing at him trying to tell them something he doesn't want them to know anyhow.
It's probably for the best, generally, that humans don't find out about who he is. It may have been a century since they went to war, and it may be that some humans still call upon the gods for minor favors, and it may be that Connor's god bells are fake, but the one in the center of town—that one's still real.
That one's still why the city is floating above the waves.
"At this rate, I ought to move to a mountain town. I hear Everest is nice," Techno complains. "And isn't full of traitors becoming religious to beat me in a battle that is rightfully mine."
"Sorry, man, but it is funny," Connor says, hanging up his own charm.
"I don't know why I bother," Techno says, but he can't hide the fact he's smiling.
Great. At this rate, people are going to think he's nice. That he's gone soft. That there's an opening in the battle.
Not today. His banner will win out today.
The sun reflects off of a golden clock as the gates open, and they wait for their customers to trickle in.
The thing about the Farmer's Syndicate is that they've got regulars. Every good market should have regulars, Techno has come to understand; repeat customers mean repeat sales. They also mean repeat gossip. Now, Techno shouldn't admit this, because it was his own choice to stay out on a farm away from civilization back in the day, but listening to the gossip is a key reason he keeps on showing up to sell at the market. It's nicer than he previously would have expected or admitted to be able to hear about what's happening in the Floating City or elsewhere.
Most gossip is largely useless. Techno does not need to know that the Dockworker's Union and the current Governor are in another conflict. They're always in a conflict, and Techno always knows who's right: the Dockworker's Union, because Governors are a terrible human invention that should all mysteriously perish, and unions are a mechanism by which those out of power attempt to take it back. He's certainly gotten into arguments with the union's president before, but that's because personally, he thinks all decisions should be made by consensus instead. The union captain says it's 'impractical' and that 'you aren't a dockworker anyway' and 'look we appreciate you but there are farmer's unions that are better places for you and your radical ideas about anarchy'. It's rude, but it doesn't change the fact that the Governor is wrong.
Techno also doesn't need to know about the fact there's some kind of crime turf war happening in the central city. This is also always true. While the most powerful people in the city live at the top of the tallest buildings, anchored to the ocean floor by old magic and modern engineering, they rarely deign to come down. They don't need to; the bridges are safe as long as there isn't a storm coming. Instead, the labyrinthian lower streets of the inner city belong mostly to criminals who have filled the empty space. Also, the Governor is probably being paid off anyway—hence the whole 'he should probably mysteriously die' thing. Luckily, that is not Techno's problem!
Possibly Techno's problem is the gossip about the rising popularity of charms just like Squid's. Now, Techno mostly doesn't care what people get up to with religion, but it's kinda odd that people are starting to get closer to the aforementioned religion these days than they used to be. Plus, one of these days someone's gonna pull up old forgotten magic, and Techno's going to find himself dealing with things he'd been exiled to avoid. Connor wouldn't be selling fake god bells if people didn't want them, although it's apparently a decorating trend?
"Are god bells and charms really a decorating trend?" Techno asks, just for clarity's sake.
"Yeah, they're being sold at like, those trendy fashion stores downtown?" Ranboo says.
"Why do you know that?" Techno asks. "Don't you, uh, live out on… a fruit place?"
"I—I'm cultured sometimes!" Ranboo says.
Anyway. Decorating trend. Techno supposes it makes sense; a century's enough time that people have nostalgia. He's like, pretty sure that's how that works.
There's a lot more personal gossip too. Don't hear it from Techno, but it sounds like Sam has finally gotten some new work, but his boss is really sketchy. Keeps asking him to break building codes, so Techno's suggesting going to the Electrician's Guild about it. Sam said he would, he would, but like, super weird requests with lighting, right? Techno nods along like he knows anything about how magic and electricity works these days, which he doesn't. He knows things about farming and hitting guys hard though. Does Sam need him to hit a guy hard? Sam laughs and says nah, he doesn't need any guys hit, thanks though. If he needed that, he'd ask Ponk. Techno says really, Ponk? Is that relationship going better these days? Sam says yeah, they went to couple's counseling, it's been a good time.
Niki calls Techno "basically a nebby old woman" when Techno and Sam finish talking. Techno thinks that's rude. Gossip about the regulars, that's important stuff! It's part of what's keeping him ahead of Squid today in the potato business, and let him tell her, Squid's potato business isn't going nearly so well. He clearly doesn't know enough gossip, while Techno, he's been maxing out his gossip so he can trick people into coming to buy more potatoes.
Ranboo says that's insane.
Techno thinks that's probably accurate.
Some other decent gossip for the day: it sounds like Hbomb has a new obstacle course going. Apparently, it's getting popular with some kids to practice "swimming stunts". Techno thinks this is sensible. If everyone's going to be living in a floating city, swimming stunts are important. Hbomb also says something about Ponk, but Techno decides that it's probably not worth opening that can of worms just yet, at least, not until someone worth that kind of bombshell says something. He's got money riding on whatever happens there after all.
His less interesting customers, when they aren't talking about union disputes or confusing divine fashion trends or crime, have been talking about the weather. It's been a bit windy lately; there have had to be an unusual number of dock closures. Techno had noticed that on the way in; stormy season is apparently starting early. He says as much to one of his customers, who tells him that they think it's probably a good sign that their market is open. Techno says that divine intervention is apparently in-vogue; just look at Squid!
"You really are just a nebby old woman," Ranboo says.
"I am doin' this for strategic purposes," Techno says.
"You, uh, got a strategy that requires this weekly?" Connor asks.
"Yes," Techno says, "it's called social manipulation."
"You know, if we were not friends, I would be much more concerned about you," Niki says.
"Yeah, it's—oh, hey Tubbo," Ranboo says.
The rest of Techno's comrades probably shouldn't talk about Techno being a gossip monger, because even Squid drops what he's doing when Ranboo says that. It's been three weeks since Tubbo had last swung by the market to check on Ranboo. Everyone there knows their relationship is fraught; Connor, the only one of them with some competency in the matter, had attempted to give them some love advice once, but Techno's pretty sure it only made the situation worse. Niki mostly offers comforting food whenever they have one of their weird passive-aggressive disagreements. Techno and Squid mostly just shamelessly listen in.
"Hey, Ranboo," Tubbo says.
"I, uh—do you want. Some juice?" Ranboo asks.
"No, I don't really want juice, I want—look, have you seen Tommy?" Tubbo asks.
"Huh, what—Tommy? I mean, yeah, we talked—huh, it has been a while since we talked, it's been… uhhh…"
"Never mind, I forgot you and your forgetting things," Tubbo says.
"Haha, yeah, me and my forgetting things!" Ranboo says.
"Yeah," Tubbo says.
"Yeah," Ranboo says.
There's a long moment of silence. Squid, silently, passes Connor a ten-mark bill.
"Look, I'm sorry I blew up at you," Tubbo says. Techno grips the edge of his stall. "I, uh, I've been really stressed out lately. You know my office Center City, it gets into trouble sometimes, and I uh, got into an argument with Tommy about it? He's just—ugh, it's really the only way to keep the place open, and he won't listen to me. Sometimes you just have to, you know, give things up for the greater good, and I was thinking about it and you started talking and… Ugh, I'm not old enough for this."
"You sure aren't old enough to drink alcohol," Ranboo agrees.
"Neither are you," Tubbo mutters. "Look, what I'm saying is—"
"It's okay, it's okay! I forgive you, really," Ranboo says. "I'll tell you if I see Tommy around, okay? I'm sure you only want what's best for him. You've been besties forever!"
"Yeah," Tubbo says, oddly short.
"Do you wanna hang out after market? I've got a few hours before I've got to get anything home," Ranboo says.
"You know what? We should. We can go make fun of things in the downtown shopping district?"
"I'd love to!"
"For now, though, I'm gonna check to see—are those god bells?" Tubbo says, pausing next to Connor's stall.
"Yeah, he's trying to get in on the weird fashion trends going on downtown," Ranboo says.
"Wait, that's why you know about those?" Squid asks. Ranboo turns a little red.
"That's not important," Ranboo says.
"He should be careful with those," Tubbo interjects before the conversation goes any further. "Like, you know, those are older magic. Old magic is like… Man, I have not been having a good few weeks."
"Yeah but… no one can actually use those things anymore, so," Ranboo says.
"Also, don't tell anyone, but they're fake," Connor says, loud enough that it's effectively telling everyone.
"Oh… kay…" Tubbo says. "You know, you guys are lucky the Governor is so scared of the Dockworker's Union, or you'd be shut down pretty quick."
"I know, right?" Connor says. "I think he's actually scared of Techno."
"He should be," Techno says. Tubbo narrows his eyes at him before sighing and walking over to buy potatoes from Squid, which is really quite rude. He leaves; Ranboo stares after him. Techno waits until Tubbo is gone before offering Ranboo a potato for his troubles. Ranboo takes it, watching forlornly after his on-again off-again boyfriend.
"It's okay. Government work takes a lot out of you," Niki says. "Once whatever his current problems are done—"
"It's definitely my fault," Ranboo says.
Niki grimaces. Techno grimaces back.
"I'm not sure—"
"Look, Ranboo, in war, sometimes you've gotta—"
The both of them stop. Connor shrugs, hands Ranboo a fake god bell, and says: "I think you go on that date this evening, and after you're done, you need to decide whether that makes you happy enough to deal with the distance, and try to make a call for once and for all."
"But I'm terrible at decisions!" Ranboo says.
Connor joins in on the shared grimacing. They don't have much more time, though; a party of several new customers comes over almost immediately to try to purchase more juice, and the conversation is lost into the general air of the market. He'll have to go give Ranboo some more advice later. Hopefully, before the date; Techno is slightly worried that if he waits until after the date, he'll have gotten back in love with Tubbo. Techno likes Tubbo alright, he's decent enough for someone who works for the Governor, but everyone knows he's a figurehead, and he's not particularly good at keeping his work stress from affecting his relationships.
He files the thing about Tommy away, at least. Techno hasn't met Tommy before. He's heard about the kid—apparently Tubbo and Ranboo first met through him?—but he's not the kind of guy who comes to farmer's markets. Tubbo shows up mainly for Ranboo, but also, Techno expects, to keep some kind of eye on Connor. That works well enough by Techno; he doesn't need even more regulars to keep track of.
Speaking of, actually, is that Skeppy?
Techno goes back to the gossip. Never let it be said someone could catch him slipping.
"I still don't know how you're doing this. You're an utter bozo whose strategy was a colorful banner and gossip and I was calling on the divine might of the gods," Squid says. The two of them stand shoulder-to-shoulder, counting marks. It's become very clear that Techno's sales are, of course, better, as they always should be.
The Farmer's Syndicate closes decently early, around 4 PM on each day it runs. Everyone generally agrees this is for the best—no one really wants to go to a farmer's market after that, and everyone at the market needs time to clean and get on with their lives. Therefore, at around 4:15 PM, Techno, Niki, Squid, Ranboo, and Connor gather in a circle to see who of Techno and Squid had sold better. Originally, it had just been the two of them, but over time everyone else had joined in, and nowadays Techno's pretty sure he wouldn't want to count earnings without everyone around. What's the point of a victory that can't be shared? That's just war for its own sake, and while historically he'd been a fan, he's mellowed. He understands war for its own sake is an eternal spinning of a wheel. No, he doesn't want to spin a wheel eternally unless he's doing it with other people.
He sounds like a children's story character. Well, whatever, it doesn't matter because: "I win! You lose! Haha, sucker."
"One of these days I get you! I'm working on a brand new secret weapon!"
"The pigs were only giving me strength! Me! The one true pig in the room! The leading scholars on war will tell you, never use a tactic that helps your enemy more than it helps yourself."
"Shut up, those weren't pigs, they were charms for the power of the God of War!"
"And I'm tellin' you, that's basically the same thing!"
"Augh!"
Techno laughs, swiping the day's prize from Squid. It was Squid's week to bring one; it's one of the new humidity monitoring charms that the Farmer's Almanac is swearing by. Techno doesn't know how well it works, and frankly has never been a technological guy, but he's never going to turn down a prize. Besides, he can't exactly tell Squid 'hey, I do half my work manually', because that would simply be unsporting. He also wouldn't want to let Squid start up the level of manual labor Techno does, because Techno is not a human and Squid is, and he kind of doesn't want Squid to die. He doesn't consider their battle done yet. He still hasn't perfected his perogie recipe.
Squid grumbles as he packs up. Everyone does, a little. Techno tries to give Ranboo the advice that government officials probably aren't good partners; Ranboo rolls his eyes and heads out to go on his date. Niki gives Techno a baguette to try. Connor waves a bell around, pauses, and says something about how he probably shouldn't do that. One by one, they leave. Techno finds himself last to leave the market of the five of them. He watches as others pack up.
The sun is still shining over the city, but that's alright. He doesn't need the city to navigate himself back to his farm to farm on his own for a week. It's a little bit lonely, but he's spent a lot more time alone than that, and also apartment prices right now? Terrible. There's like, nowhere he could afford to stay in the city while also going back and forth from his farm, and the closest farming collective he'd considered joining's boss has told him no. Techno and Simon get along, but they've agreed that Techno's farm would probably be bad to hitch up to theirs. The ocean can be unforgiving, and Techno's has a much, much older design than Simon's do these days.
He doesn't really need companionship, anyway. Gods were designed to go at it alone, as far as Techno's concerned. It's just nicer to have it. He wouldn't go back to the days before he had the Syndicate; he wouldn't go back to the days before the people who gild towers tell them these are peaceful times.
All wars, after all, should be for peace.
Satisfied with his day, he starts his motor, and he starts the hour of lonely sailing across the ocean. It only takes him ten minutes before he gets far enough from any other boat that no one can hear him—and ten minutes before he hears something he isn't supposed to.
"Finally, I thought you'd never finish with that stupid market. Tubbo's right, you all gossip like, way too much," someone says behind him. Techno whips around.
"Ehhh?"
"You got food that isn't potatoes, incidentally? Because I need nutrients, and I haven't been getting so many—is this a baguette?"
"What are you doing on my boat?" Techno asks.
"Oh, that's easy! We're about to be best friends," the blonde stranger says. "Now, er, to check if this thing works—"
A bell rings. Something cold shoots through Techno's bones. He finds he cannot move.
"Oh, fuck, it works," the blonde kid says.
"What do you want," growls Techno, the words moving slowly out of his throat.
"Right, uh, you gotta ask that. Well, what I want is—uh, what's the word? A pact. You, me, pact. You're gonna help me, you're gonna, gonna help me find my brother, and until then, you've gotta stick with me."
Before Techno can ask for more details, he feels something wrapped around his wrists. A rope. With the bell, it's enough.
There are old magics no one is supposed to know anymore, but they're selling god bells downtown in the fashion district, Techno thinks. People are believing in gods more these days.
People are remembering the ways they used to catch them.
"Holy fuck, that worked!" the kid says.
"What did you just do?" Techno asks.
"…I mean, I think I was pretty clear. Hey, this boat's uh, kinda terrible for intercity travel, have you noticed that? Do you mind if I have you get a better one?"
Techno does. He doesn't have a choice.
The bell rings in the back of his brain for quite a while while the blonde kid rambles about getting him to steal a boat, and Techno realizes this is about to be a much longer day than originally planned.