On the shrieking ship of Shriekpot...
Niklas affirms his desire to go down this path that he has apparently chosen.
"I am prepared."
"Actually, you are not. But this is a natural delusion, really. What we will do now is prepare you. Making your dreams come true is but a matter of focusing oneself, which you cannot do properly, at least not yet. But fear not, it is entirely within your ability to master, as it is within mine. The first thing you need is to cleanse your mind somehow. I leave the method up to you."
Well, that's a bit less dramatic than Niklas hoped.
In the captain's quarters of the shrieking ship of Shriekpot...
Scott examines the walls, finding them to be made of some kind of black, shiny material resembling something... woven, really. Point is, it's a bit too weird to mess with presently, so he just goes out on deck and looks around.
The Artiste is nowhere in sight, either on the pier, on the deck or at the harbor. Oh dear.
In Karina's home...
Darren keeps on trying to assuage Karina's concerns.
"I'm fine, don't worry, I've had much worse," he wheezes out in a strained voice, before smiling wryly. "Unless coughing some more would get me another hug."
Karina smiles, then hugs Darren again, though this time a bit more tightly.
In a toymaker's kitchen...
Morton quickly fills the wooden pitcher with tea, then fills a flask with tea from that. Then, after a brief round of mental sparring between the incompatible ideas of common decency and practicality, he sets both the pitcher and flask down on himself, grimly anticipating lasting marks on his immaculate surface. However, in these dark times, it is indeed a sacrifice he must make, distasteful as it may be.
Now the final part awaits - the presentation of his handiwork.
In Brenwicke's Books...
Sigmund, after thanking the mute many-armed man for his trouble, leans up against the wall and examines his ankles for a moment. They seem rather blackened. He doubts he'll ever be able to walk normally again. Oh, woe. He is about to reflect on his ineptitude when Kevin walks up to him after saying his piece to the confused crowd.
"C'mon, Sigmund. I don't think you want to be in a store infested with death mushrooms," he says in a whisper, then drags the guy out of the store before he manages to hurt himself even worse, finding Mark to still be at his voluntary post.