Closed Totally Worth It [Coren]

[Briar Holden]

23rd of Fall, 512 AV This was a brilliant idea. Of course it was. There was nothing like the feeling of monetary independence, now was there? Not that he'd ever felt it. He'd sure like to, one of these days, but it wasn't looking like he'd be in on his luck this time either. He could continue hoping, however, as his hopes were what kept him going if nothing else. When you looked to make a living, there was hardly anything else you could do than your very best, and Briar had acknowledged that many years ago. Anything to survive. Anything. Even if that meant clattering teeth and shivering in your boots in a snowy wasteland. Of all places, he decided to settle in Avanthal after living in the somewhat warm (or at least humid) Sunberth for most of his life. He had lived here for a while now, but getting used to the cold had been a slow process for him thus far. He lumbered through the streets dressed in multiple layers; clothes, leathers and furs to boot along with a thick blanket draped over his self. One would think him the typical heat-accustomed tourist wandering about the frozen tundra, and that wasn't as far from the truth as one could imagine. While he'd been living there for a while now, he didn't have any long-term plans on living here. Any such ideas were blown away the moment he set foot near the city and felt the bone-chilling temperature of this area. With trembling hands, he regarded the map again. This should be it, he thought to himself as he looked back up again and tucked the map clumsily under one arm. ... He had no idea where he was. All he knew was that he was several streets away from the Warrens he currently holed himself up in, and he supposed it was far enough away to start his daily routine again without someone noting who he was. Not that it'd be particularly easy to point him out from the regular crowd of visitors, seeing as the furs and clothes did a good job at making him unremarkable past... his lumbering figure, of course. A worn and dirty clay pitcher in hand, he rattled the pieces of grit and couple of copper mizas he'd stuck in side while hunching and stalking over to passerbys to appeal to their goodwill -- this was just a regular day in Briar Holden's life these days. "You wouldn't have a few coins to sp-Hey! Hey!" He jogged after the woman when she quickly dodged past him as soon as he opened his mouth. "Stop! Please! My dog is starving!" She didn't listen at all. Briar didn't let that discourage him, however, as he turned to the next best citizen and the cat-mouse chase continued. It was just the same as every single day of this man's life. Trying his best to appeal to their good conscience to mooch off of their good fortune and their money. It wasn't an honest living, but it was a living. His success since coming to the city hadn't exactly been the best, but that'd change soon enough. He needed connections first before he could find the same success as back in Sunberth. ... Not that connections of such nature would exist here at the same frequency and of the same kind, but... There's bound to be someone out there. Right? .

[Coren]

Coren wasn't in a good mood today at all. One of his experiments had failed once more. His construction of a shell for another experiment had grinded down to a complete standstill. And to make matters worse, all attempts on his part to get a hold of something he could hit his parents, or the skyglow hold in general he wasn't really picky about that, back for what they did to him just didn't work, he either was nearly detected and had to make a run for it, or just didn't find anything he could use. He really hoped a walk trough the city would raise his spirits and give him a flash of insight, he didn't care if it was for his experiments or a way to hit back at the skyglow hold. When somebody grabbed him by the sleeve of his thick winter cloak and began begging for some coin though, it didn't seem as if it would. Coren let out a suffering sigh as he turned towards the person who had grabbed his sleeve. “Look, get a bloody...” The rest of the sentence died on his lips as he finally saw who, or rather what had grabbed him. A normal human. Not a vantha, so he didn't have any loyality to any of the holds here, or the hold structure at all. A grin crept on his face, though it was concealed by the hood of his robe and the leather facemask he was wearing that concealed nearly everythinge except his eyes. Somebody nobody knew and nobody cared about, somebody like that was perfect to try and get some dirt on “Maybe I do have something for you after all.” He replied to the man as he stared at him. “Though you will have to do some work for it.” He trailed of and waited for the man's reply at that. Though he doubted the beggar would refuse any kind of work.

[Briar Holden]

. He wasn't having a whole lot of luck today. It wasn't usual, all things considered, to really have much luck about this sort of living. Mostly everyone he tried to speak to swiftly moved on again once his intentions were clear, only the rare few actually stopping to listen to his sob stories and dramatic tales of his starving companion back home and how him and his friend would be doomed to endure the frozen wastes lest they were given some form of financial aid. A rarer few, yet, actually spared him the good graces of coin or a chunk of bread to feed his dog. Much appreciated, all things considered. He wasn't so down on his luck that he couldn't live or pay for himself, but they didn't need to know that. Seeing as this was all he knew how to do, he would continue doing it to make his living and continue to keep his coffers satisfied. At the very least, keep them from ever becoming empty. "Please! Hear a poor fellow out, my good man!" Briar reached out and got a hold of a sleeve at a man appearing to be rushing past him. He hadn't seemed to notice him before the physical contact, and Briar was willing to break a few barriers to get what he wanted. In this case, money. Maybe I do have something for you after all. "You see, sir, I... Sorry?" Now that was a surprise. Admittedly, it made Briar pause and shut his trap for a short moment while pondering the words of this hooded and mostly masked man in front of him. ... This was all a very strange occurrence, he reckoned. Not only did the man in front of him strike a very odd first impression, he also stopped. Something had turned his reluctance around in a split second to be welcoming of the poor and downtrodden Briar. ... Or at least, as he appeared. Briar blinked his ever-blue eyes and let the stranger have all of his attention for a couple of long and drawn-out seconds. Though you will have to do some work for it. ... You don't say. Like this wasn't work, already. "Work? ... For me? Whatever could you need a man like me for? I... You wouldn't mind giving me a little something in advance to feed my dog, would you? It's for her sake I'm here, you see..." Yes, that's right. Stick to the story, Briar. "I'm a bit down on my luck. I guess you can see that, can't you? I mean, who in their right mind would... Ahah!" He let off a nervous laughter, forcibly calming himself down again to murmur again; "I'm crawling on my hands and knees in the snow, honoured stranger. A little something for my pug?" Yes, I got it! He felt a brief surge of pride. Excellent, Briar. Just excellent. .

[Coren]

Coren rolled his eyes when the man began blubbering on about his dog and something called a pug, he ignored his rambeling that where supposed to tug at his hearthstrings and reached into his purse, pulling out five golden miza's and holding them up so he could see the reward he could earn. “This is what you'll earn when you do the job to my satisfaction, with the possibility of earning more in the future if you did enough of a good job. I won't give you anything in advance though. No work no pay.” he wanted to motivate the guy to do his job well, not to just slack of and do work so shoddy everybody knew it was him who was behind it, and withholding a reward till later was a decent way of doing that. Especially if the person was in desperate need of it. He took a step closer to the man and lowered his voice, making sure anybody else on the street couldn't overhear what he was saying. “Look, I suspect you don't know much about the holds of avanthal, but the only thing you need to know is that I dispise the skyglow hold for my own personal reasons.” the way he stressed personal made it clear that he wasn't going to tell anything about it to just some guy he just met on the street. “Since you are a beggar and a non-vantha the majority of this town doesn't give you a second glance, recognize you or most importantly connect you with me in some meaningful way.” At this moment Briar would probably already get an idea what this man was asking of him. “I want you to get your hands on anything I can use against the skyglow hold or any of its members. When you bring the information to me I'll pay you for it. If you don't know which hold it is, just ask around, it isn't hard to find. Oh and one warning, do not try to pull a fast one on me. I will find out eventually, and I have heard the wrath of a mage isn't something you want to be on the recieveing end of.” He let what he said sink in for a while. “Any questions?”

[Briar Holden]

. Well, this was definitely seeming more suspicious already. Briar found himself frowning visibly at the ramblings of the stranger, leaning back away from him when he came in closer to lower his voice. That's typical, he thought to himself. Just his luck, wasn't it? Of all the people to give him an interesting offer for money, it had to be someone with an obvious grudge. He wasn't about to turn it down, however, as Briar still had a reputation to keep. Besides, money was money. It was something he needed, and desperately wanted more of. Plus, if he kept up his charade of a poor man feeding his dog and himself, that could potentially open up more doors in the future. ... As long as he kept track of his own stories, that is. Since you are a beggar and a non-vantha the majority of this town doesn't give you a second glance, recognize you or most importantly connect you with me in some meaningful way. Right. Briar's brow dropped a wee bit to clearly display his displeasure at the degrading statement. He shook his head briefly, more to himself than anything, wiping his expression of discontent from his face. This was no time to take offense, after all. He had to continue the charade, and the best way to do that was to simply agree to the terms. Whatever they may be. ... He wasn't stupid, though. He wouldn't wander in blindly where he couldn't find his own way out again. Survival is key, as he had learned from his years in Sunberth. This was nothing in comparison, he'd been telling himself. Besides the stinging cold, of course. I want you to get your hands on anything I can use against the skyglow hold or any of its members. When you bring the information to me I'll pay you for it. If you don't know which hold it is, just ask around, it isn't hard to find. Oh and one warning, do not try to pull a fast one on me. I will find out eventually, and I have heard the wrath of a mage isn't something you want to be on the recieveing end of. A fast one? Oh, sure. Got to be a real sensitive issue if he's going to warn him about something like that. In the street, no less. What kind of person says something like that to a complete stranger, anyway? That struck Briar as a great risk on the stranger's part. Empty threats in the middle of a street didn't strike him as overtly wise in a city where its inhabitants closely regarded one ano- Woah, woah, woah! Back up, there! A mage? A mage? Briar's stare became all the more intense at that little suggestion. He eyed the hooded stranger warily, eyebrows knitting in deep and intense thought. That does change his perspective around just a little bit. Even then, isn't that a very careless way to go about it? Briar didn't know much about mages, mind. He knew little about magic past what rumours had been circling around and, of course, the Valterrian. Mages were treated with great suspicion where he came from, though he couldn't exactly claim to have ever seen or met one before. At the very least, not this close up. The hair in his neck stood up, and it wasn't from the cold. Any questions? Briar blinked. Well. What does one possibly say to something like this? It was a pretty... grand offer, still, for a first meeting of the sort in Avanthal. He twisted nervously under the cover of his clothes, furs and his blanket that draped over most of his body. He cast a couple of glances to the sides before leaning back in towards the stranger. "How do I know where to find you, if I get anything that could interest you?" He might as well play along for now. There was no way of knowing the full span of his man's intentions, and he'd better not get himself on the black list of someone like this. Not yet, anyway. Even though there was no way, either, for him to know if this stranger's claims were true... He'd rather not take his chances. Not until he knew more, at least. .

[Coren]

Only after the words left his mouth coren realized he just might have worded it a bit too shady for a public space. He just wanted something he could scandilize them with at the least, or blackmail them out of a few favors at best. If the man found proof of a murder he would give it to the icewatch. Still what was done was done and he probably wasn't going to be able convince the person otherwise anyway. At the question of where he took a step back and made a motion for the man to follow him. “A good meetup place is the windward boardwalk, its big and has quite a few spots where one can do their business without any prying eyes. I'll lead you towards it, as an outsider you probably do not know the city at all and unlike with the holds you probably need to know the parks in larger detail.” he said. Coren started to walk towards the windward boardwalk at a relaxed pace. Deciding to ignore the discomfort the man had obviously showed at the rather casual mention he was a mage. Seemed like the rumors hadn't yet reached him. Not that he cared much, nobody here knew much about magic, so saying you where a mage usually let people be wary about crossing you in the first place. And he really didn't want anybody in the skyglow hold to find out he was rummaging through the filth to find their dirty laundry.. so to speak.

[Briar Holden]

. There was no reason for Briar to trust this man. Despite that, he'd decided to follow along just this once. He needed to keep up with the act and he knew as much. In a city where no one knew his name nor his face, he needed to build a reputation as swiftly as possible to enable him to continue his work and proceed with his... goals, so to speak. While a little bit reluctant, Briar left the safety of this crowded street to follow the stranger to whichever meeting spot he'd suggested. ... Briar didn't really know, since this city was still something of a grand mystery to him. He could stare at the map all day without it really telling him much, so first-hand experience was the only way he'd ever learn to find his way around this place. He'd been around already, make no mistake. The first days following his arrival had been spent walking around the city to take in the general layout and admire the architecture. It was very different from Sunberth in more than just a few ways. First of all, it wasn't his home. Not yet. "It's very generous of you to show me around, sir... I admit the layout of this city is still very foreign to me so whatever you have is... it's good!" He let off a nervous chuckle, huddling behind the stranger at a respectable distance so to not draw any unwanted attention from him or his surroundings. Like he'd said before, he was not of this city. He didn't belong here and he doubted that anyone would bat an eye for his sake. Unless, of course, he did something to offend anyone in any way. He didn't have high expectations. .

[Coren]

Coren just nodded as the man explained he was new to the city of avanthal, though that fact was extremely obvious to everybody who even ahd a passing knowledge of the city of avanthal. “Well then, would you rather have I didn't just go directly to the windward boardwalk and leaded you around some of the more notable parts of the city, I think you can notice some other spots where you can beg along the way, I always noticed that most people tend to be more generous to the unfortunate when in the crystal hall or the sculpture yard.” Coren actually really had no idea if anybody was more generous, but those two where the most frequently visited area's aside from the markets and the tavern. So just by doing the math one was more likely to get some coins thrown in his bag then anywhere else. Besides those two spots where regularly visited by both frequent gossipers and skyglows. Perfect for the beggar to find out more about them. “Though if you just want to get rid of me as soon as possible I'll just lead you towards our meeting place and leave you to your own after that.” Coren spoke in his usual polite but distant tone.

[Briar Holden]

. Briar blinked his eyes slowly at the question. He wasn't interested in a tour. At the very least, not from this man. He was much more confident exploring the city on his own accord and pace without some suspicious fellow keeping watch on him and deciding where to go. Feigning independence, Briar politely shook his head. "I, ah... Lead me to the meeting spot, if you would. I believe I could learn my way around the rest on my own, later. It's better to simply... let me know where to find you, should I find anything that might interest you." He furrowed his brow. The more the thought about this, the less he liked it and his comfort was slowly chipped away at by the cold breeze; floating away and out of his grasp. While he'd hoped for opportunities to build himself a reputation and a network of contacts, he didn't expect it to be so soon. He was familiar with the business since his time in Sunberth, but he didn't know how that kind of market was supposed to look in a city of this kind. They had laws here, first of all, something they lacked where he came from. The city of anarchy was wild and treacherous, after all, though Avanthal was likely to have its own underground that looked to flourish and utilize willing subjects for their questionable ends. Briar didn't intend on questioning their ends. He knew all too well how dangerous that was. Even so, lacking the knowledge was also dangerous. You never knew what someone might wish to toss you into. It was easy for someone with the right knowledge and tact to pitch in the unknowning as cannon fodder to achieve their ends, and Briar was still trying to not end up like one of them. He liked to think his developing paranoia would keep him out of such situations, though if he wished to survive on the profession he'd chosen for himself, he couldn't be picky. If someone offered him money for a service, it was better for him to take it without question. Questions could come later, shouldn't he be able to cover his back with neccessary knowledge before that point. He wasn't half-bad at reading peoples' intentions by looking at their faces and bodylanguage, but the Vantha were a totally new experience for him. Their eyes still freaked him out, although he hadn't gotten a good look on the eyes of this particular man leading him along. ... Which intimidated him even more, since there was no way for him to know for sure. When someone throws around such claims and comments as he'd done, it's a great reassurance to be able to see their face. ... Only if it weren't true, of course. "... And... which time of the day and how often will you appear there?" .

[Coren]

“As you will.” Coren simply replied at the mans denial of his offer. If the man really didn't want to be shown around by somebody who knew the city better then him and wanted to flounder around on his own. then it wasn't any skin of his back. He walked in silence towards the windward boardwalk using the shortest path he knew of without using the various backalleys. He didn't doubt that the man was paranoid enough to believe he was luring him into some kind of trap if he tried to take a shortcut like that and he doubted that the man would work for him if he had to subdue him. When the man walking behind him broke the silence in between them and asked when he could be found there he thought for a few moments before answering. “I'm there quite often, usually I take a walk there every day or so in the evening. I'll also be in the place that I'm showing you every five days.” Coren explained as he continued to walk. A short while later they walked underneath the arching trees that denoted the entrance of the windward boardwalk. “This is the windward boardwalk,” coren said to briar. Taking a turn into one of the pathways away from the main walkways and the busyness. Not that there were many people right now anyway.

oocnot the best post, but I really didn't want you to wait anymore.