"You're carrying a portable domain anchor in some cheap canvas sack… really?" Vesper questioned, dropping the casual act entirely.
She didn't try to grab her daggers, but her purple eyes locked onto my bag like a hawk on a field mouse. The air pressure in the narrow alley spiked so hard my back teeth clicked together.
Reika stepped right between us, her tails fluffed out under her cloak. "Back off," the kitsune gritted out, her hands already glowing icy blue. "Step any closer and I'll freeze you solid."
Vesper didn't even glance at her.
"Structures like that were banned three hundred years ago," Vesper said, taking a step forward anyway. "The High Mages purged every single anchor because they broke siege warfare. If the Noble Houses figure out you brought one inside Ashurea, they won't send bounty hunters. They'll drop an entire regiment on your head."
