Chimper #985
Gao the Battle-Scarred deals in fine, unbroken porcelain, yet they themselves are a collection of old fractures. “They washed up at the base of Waterfall City years ago,” a frog fisher will tell you, mending a net. “Clinging to driftwood, with that scar fresh. Never said where they came from.” Another merchant in the plaza adds, “Ask them about their past, and they just rearrange their tea sets. But during storms, they get this strange calm, like the stories of Aoi. It’s unnerving.” A city guard once saw them cornered by a wild beast that wandered up the stone stairs. Gao didn’t flinch. They just stood there, and the beast, seeing something ancient and weary in their eyes, simply turned and left.
