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[Licearsvansan]

. . ......... My journey is my destination. . . . .

Winter 13th, year 512

This was an interesting day to be sure. Svan had woken up this morning to find the sight of two nurses and a doctor staring down at him. They had immediately informed him that he had nearly died after his slight altercation with Samantha the tigress. Because "Oh, you're not dead?" is exactly what people like to hear right after waking up in a hospital. Of course due to his secret affection for anyone in the field of healing, Svan had honestly enjoyed his time in the hospital. As much as he would have loved to stay however, he needed to finish some more things before hibernation set in.

...

Upon leaving the hospital Svan did what anyone who just fought a tiger would do. He went to the bar and got a beer. And about three more to chase it. Some time later as the dhani nursed his fourth drink, a large man walked in and took a seat next to him. Not one for socializing with strangers, or people in general, Svan quietly turned to the side and continued to let the lovely brew glide down his throat. Soon after taking his seat the man drew out a piece of paper and placed it upon the table. Glancing slightly, the meddlesome snake managed to notice that it was a bounty note. Apparently this man was either a mercenary or an assassin. Considering the man had more muscles than a bear, Svan assumed the former.

The man made a grunt of satisfaction and rose from his seat to walk over to the bar. Before long the man was tangled in a heated argument with the barkeeper about the price of a drink and was demanding the bartender lower the price. While the merc was off trying to convince the barkeeper that he deserved a discount, Svan couldn't help but notice that he had left the bounty note on the tables. Nimble fingers snatched the paper, and buried it deep into the snakes pockets. As silently as possible the tavern door was pried open and a grinning grey figure slipped out into the afternoon.

...

Now a gleeful dhani skipped down the streets of Alvadas singing little tunes he had heard in his travels. Svan wasn't yet a mercenary but he wanted to become one than through a bounty hunt? Upon the note was a picture of the target, a few scribbles by the original owner, and a strange compass seemingly pointing to a certain building. The target of the note was an member of Alvadas's normally hidden underbelly. According to the scribbles however, this man was supposed to be making an appearance to trade with an influential man in Alvadas later in the night. A smile grew across the dhani's face as he realized that the man before him had already done the sleuthing work. This would certainly make Svan's job easier, but as the snake approached the large house the compass pointed towards, a single obstacle became clear. Before him lie the home of the man whom Svan's mark was to be trading in, but it lacked a single window that could be broken into. The brown haired snake gave a look of dismay at the sight and scanned the perimeter for anything else he could use. Unfortunately the only entrance seemed to be a large door protected by a pair of angry looking guards. While Svan could try and distract the guards, he still wasn't confident that he could get through the massive and likely locked door. With a sigh of defeat the man began to walk away from the house. Several yards away from the wall Svan began to notice something he had not seen before. A cloud of smoke twisted and snaked its way out of a large brick chimney. It certainly wasn't original, but Svan had found his way in. Unfortunately one problem still remained. Svan was about three stories bellow the chimney, and had no way of getting up. Petching gravity, always keeping me down.Yeah I made the pun. It was bad and I feel bad, but I did it.

Svan limped though the city. With his new found dilemma weighing heavily on his mind. Svan had rope, but no way to secure it to the top of the building. Continuing down the streets of Alvadas the snake looked down each of the confusing roads in hope of inspiration. As he passed by one street Svan's eye caught sight of a familiar figure. The dhani continued down the road until he passed by the street with his acquaintance. Only once he was out of view did the idea of asking this man for help cross his mind. Smiling, Svan turned to go back down the road, but stopped right in his tracks. Svan had threatened this man the last time they met, and he realized that the guy might not take kindly to the idea of Svan chasing down the road after him. Instead Svan looked over to find a woman who seemed to be turning down the road that held his acquaintance. He struck up a brief flirtatious conversation with the woman and followed her as she went down the street. The plan was to use this woman to pretend he hadn't seen the man down the way, and then turn to see his 'friend' as if surprised to see him once he got close enough.

I'm sure he will be glad to help me. After all, we helped each other before. Svan was still blissfully ignorant to the fact that his acquaintance, Durv, had meant to betray him.

[Durvekral Wormwood]

Durvekral walked, alone, through the streets of Alvadas. Finding work was getting thin here. He hadn't done much in this city in the last few weeks. In addition to this dry spell, Durvekral had received word that there might be some work for him in the city of Lhavit. He was planning to leave soon.

Today, he decided to patrol around the city. He wanted to make sure that before he left, he tied up any loose threads that may have been created, here, from his work. He strolled past the residences of families which he had had to keep his eye on. He followed some higher priority individuals so that he could make sure that they weren't up to anything. Most importantly, he wandered through very visible places like plazas or markets. He did this because he wanted to find out if he would spot anyone following him.

This was why Durv was able to notice Svan. He didn't actually spot him at first. Not for the first few moments. However, Durv began to feel that familiar, sneaking suspicion. Durvekral always had some level of paranoid suspicion so it wasn't as if he suddenly felt "more" suspicion. However, he suddenly felt a more "specific" kind of suspicion. Instead of his typical "the world is horrible and scary" paranoia, he suddenly felt a more pressing, immediate sense of doom set upon him.

"The snake!" he thought to himself. "But what could he possibly want? He didn't seem the type to want revenge for my verbal prodding. I judged the tiger to be more reactive. Durvekral shrugged off the discrepancy in his memory and chalked it up to needing to further develop his interpersonal perceptive abilities.

The snake was talking to a woman. "What is he up to?" Durvekral muttered in a quiet whisper as he and the woman approached. Durv was too paranoid not to place himself at the center of this interaction. He immediately assumed that the conversation was some kind of ruse so that he could sneak up on Durv as if he was some random passerby with an unfamiliar lady.

Durvekral looked around for vertical escape routes and caressed the underside of his rings with his thumb. He watched him get close and prepared for the worst, including the possibility of the stranger suddenly springing upon him.

[Licearsvansan]

She was a surprisingly good talker, and Svan was really starting to get into the conversation with this lady. She just had these wonderful ideas of how society could be restructured to better allow scorned races like the zith and dhani to fit in. He was so enthralled by the conversation that he nearly forgot why he was speaking to her to begin with. Recalling his plan the snake's eyes glanced around the road to find it devoid of Durvs. Petch! I passed him! In perhaps the most obviously fake manner possible Svan turned around completely, and feigned surprise at seeing the spider. "Oh hi there-" Svan paused, he couldn't recall the man giving a name, "-buddy. I hope you've been well since our little encounter with that tiger." The dhani unconsciously moved his hands to cover up a few scars. "Its so good to see you, in fact I think you're just what I'm looking for."

Svan took a step towards the man, and suddenly remembered that this man might be afraid of him. "Oh I'm sorry I should have said that better. I meant that I need help with a 'job' and I think you would be best for it." Svan took out a the bounty note and held it towards the spider. He of course had no plan of letting the note go. He had stolen this thing, and was not about to let the paper be stolen from him.

[Durvekral Wormwood]

Durvekral was poised to strike. He was nervous and frightened and ready to kill. He watched Svan like a wolf ready to lash out at an oncoming threat. He watched Svan closely. In fact... he watch Svan pass right by him.

"What in the zlynge is going on?" Durvekral immediately thought. "He must genuinely not see me. The dense fool is no~" His thought was interrupted by Svan's obviously staged greeting manuever.

After having been put on alert, eased and then surprised in less than a few minutes, Durv's only 'readied action' was to utter a gasping "Dlaaahhh~uh.." noise.

He immediately tried to regain some face after his alarmed exclamation. He took a few steps and assumed an upright and rigid posture. His face twisted into a judging stare. He looked at Svan like a military commander looks at a private with an untidy uniform.

"So..." Durvekral began slowly. "You've been stalking me so that you can... employ my services?"

His face didn't soften after Svan had made the offer of employment.

"Well there is really no way for me to trust you. For all I know you are in league with the cat and just looking for the right moment to slit my throat. But, such is the business, I suppose. I know how to protect myself against your possible plots.

Durv was unmoving. He felt that he had recovered from his embarrassing moment of surprise and his posture reflected this. His gaze would have been like an angry statue bearing down over Svan. This steeled strength was not really the way he felt and it certainly didn't reflect any cockiness with which he treated the possible threat that Svan posed. Still, the bluff was, to Durv, part of survival and so he tried to appear as collected and menacing as he was able.

Gone, was the quick witted Symenestra that Svan had met in the Bizzare. Gone was the sharp tongue and the presence of biting, cynical comedy. In this meeting, there would be no hint of words spoken lightly or any psychological games.

"Meet me at the Withering Rose, tonight and we can discuss your need of me there. I don't believe either of us have forgotten which city we are in but I will do my best to be there around the time of the 11th bell. I will expect you to do the same.

And with that, Durv turned on his heel and left. Svan may or may not have noticed that Durv walked along a specific path along the street so that he was able to keep an eye on Svan until he was out of sight.

[Licearsvansan]

In league with the cat?! Svan would rather be in league with a Myrian! The dhani wanted to correct the man, but Durv left as soon as he finished his reply to the snake.

Well good day to you too thought Svan. He was used to being dealt with caution, but he still wasn't found of the man's curt reply. Svan turned on his own way and let his key guide him to his house. There he readied his battle pack and wrapped himself in his darkest cloak. In one pocket lie a flint steel and in the other was a container of oil. He doubted he would need them but it never hurt to have a little warmth in the cold night air. Placed in a loop around the bottom of his pack were several lengths of rope he would need to scale the building. Svan checked his pockets, and brushed the dirt off his boots. He was ready.

Unfortunately, it was far from the 11th bell. "Petch...I need to buy some playing cards."

...

Svan left early to make sure that he had time to get to the withering rose. Even so Svan still managed to be late, and when he came in to the building he looked like a mess. Svan had, once again, been distracted by the lovely Ionu stars. Sadly, his attempts to catch them had all ended in failure. He was quickly reminded that his body was recovering from the duel, and now he had a few more bruises to complete his collection. The slouching figure limped through the door way, and winced as he placed pressure onto his bruised leg. Okay, Now the question remains. The man peered out beneath his hood and looked for Durv's skinny frame Did my little friend show up, or did he climb up another wall?

[Durvekral Wormwood]

If Svan had possessed the sense of wariness that Durv possessed, then he would have felt Durvekral's eyes looking at him from a back corner of the tavern. Durvekral was sipping on a glass of red wine. He knew that there was no guarantee of making an efficient trail to the Rose. However, he prioritized reaching the Withering Rose agonizingly early as more beneficial than arriving their slightly late. He had been sitting alone for an bell's time now. He made no specific gesture to call Svan over, he only waited for him to recognize him and then approach. If Svan failed to see him and sat at a different table than Durvekral would follow.

For all of his preparedness, Durvekral was not easy to see. He had a dark purple hood drawn up and over his face so that it was very difficult to distinguish his facial features in the dark, corner booth which he had claimed. When he entered the bar, roughly one bell ago, he walked in and spoke to no one. He immediately sat himself in the back corner and sat in total silence. It was only about twenty chimes later when his boots thumped up to the bar and he drew his hood back to order a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon. After this, he returned to the murky darkness of his isolated booth and continued to wait.

In appearance, he seemed to be a weird stranger who was totally anti-social. In truth, Durvekral has been busy scanning the bar from the moment that he had arrived. He tirelessly and ceaselessly looked at every face, analyzed every pocket, listened for every whisper and anticipated every moment that was initiated inside of the Rose. He was preparing (and nearly waiting) for any sign of a possible ambush with or without the presence of Svan.

[Licearsvansan]

The snake scanned the building for Durv, and after a brief search he managed to notice the dark outline of his associate. With long half limping strides Svan maneuvered through the tavern to meet his hired help. The snake gave a smile and sat down in a nearby seat. A nearby waiter was quickly charged with bringing Svan a glass of wine, and not long after the snake was sipping from the glass in an easygoing manner. At least until the aftertaste kicked in. The dhani beat at his chest as the surprisingly potent alcohol worked its way down his throat. He shook his head as the taste left his mouth, and made a note to never let the waiter pick the bottle again.

Placing the glass upon the table, Svan looked over his symestrian accomplice. The man was perfect for this kind of job. The man was darkly dressed, and seemed to excel in both noticing others, and avoiding being noticed himself. He was also quite silent. Almost too silent really. While hushed conversations continued throughout the building Svan couldn't help but notice that this man hadn't said a word since he arrived in the building. Not even to help the snake find him. It could be worse. Its better to have a man who doesn't like to talk than one who talks to himself right? Svan nearly agreed with himself before he realized the hypocrisy of his thoughts.

These thoughts quickly flew from his mind as he focused back to the task at hand. The dingy figure of the snake leaned forward onto the table before him, and a pair of gloved hand rose to rest next to his drink. "So shall we share the detail here, or would you prefer someplace else?"

[Durvekral Wormwood]

Durv's eyes stayed upon "the snake" as he wandered over to the table. Durv made special notation of the fact that his guest limped over to the table but Durv kept this fact to himself. He saw no reason to draw attention to the fact that he had noticed this detail. Similarly, he gave no reaction to Svan's otherwise ungainly and comical reaction to the dryness of his wine.

Only after Svan had addressed him, did Durvekral begin to speak.

"I have taken special measures to make sure that no one can hear our conversation. We can speak freely in this both. It doesn't appear that anyone particularly cares about what we are saying or doing."

Durvekral stopped to take another sip from his own glass of wine. For good measure he took one, quite visible, look around the bar. He had accidentally met a few gazes but that was to be expected. He knew that academic, physiological literature had documented a reflex among humans to immediately shift visual focus to any visual pattern that resembled eyes. Similarly, he had personal memories of the phenomenon occurring in Kalinor. He was quite sure that the reflex was universal. Furthermore, he felt confident that he could distinguish between a nervous spy and an awkward "staring at a stranger" expression. Paranoid and fearful as he was, he was not explicitly worried by any of the stares that were returned to him.

[Licearsvansan]

Svan glanced to his sides as Durv scanned the room. He wasn't quite sure what the spider had meant when he said 'special measures', but he decided that he would rather not waste time asking.

The snake's eyes flicked back towards Durv. from his pockets the dhani produced the bounty slip and set it on the table. A finger glided over the page and rested on the picture of a man. Svan spoke in a hushed voice, "This is Jacob. Dark hair, gaunt face, and shifty eyes, probably your average underfed goon. His rank doesn't matter though. What matters is that for some reason or another our friend here is going to be making a little black market deal with Isaac Delbar tonight. You may know Delbar as the merchant who has been selling all manner of jewelry in the Bizarre lately. He has been getting quite a bit of business since setting up shops since his prices are better than Matilda’s Jewels." Svan's finger rapped the picture on the paper, "And I bet this man is why. We should be able to find the both of these people tonight in his house. Unfortunately, there is a slight problem. The only way in is though either the guarded front door, the solid brick walls, or the chimney. Since I have neither the power to defeat two trained guards, nor the ability to phase through wall, I'm left with only one option. For that however, I will need your help."

The snake drew back and placed the paper inside his pocket again before continuing. "The plan is simple. You climb the roof, secure a rope for me to climb with, and then we pay that I can handle whatever bad guys we meet inside. Once we are inside and safe, we just have to find our target and bring him down dead or alive. If we can get any proof of Mr. Delbar's dealings with this criminal then we get bonus points." Svan had a satisfied look on his face as he finished. He took another swig of the wine and leaned back in his chair. "After, all that is done we just need to grabs some proof of the deed and hightail it the petch outta there. Sound like a plan?

Svan never bothered to mention that he had stolen the note from another man. In fact, Svan had completely forgotten to mention it.

It didn't matter though. Karma was nothing more than a myth anyways.

[Durvekral Wormwood]

After hearing the plan, Durvekral stared at Svan for a few seconds. He wasn't trying to intimidate Svan, nor was he trying to make him feel foolish. He was simply thinking and did not concern himself over the rudeness of staring silently while he thought.

"I can get you inside and I can do so without being seen. However, it would appear that your plan is to...what? Interrupt the underhanded dealings of a smuggler and powerful merchant? Then you'll kill, everyone present, I suppose. And finally you'll simply hoist yourself back up the chimney for a nice big reward?"

Durv broke his lecture for another sip of his wine. "Again, I will get you inside, and do so silently, if you pay my up front. However, my 'skillset' is not designed for close quarter combat. I cannot and will not allow myself to be placed in a position where I can be ambushed.

Durvekral sat back in his chair, now. He stretched out his arms and leaned back, lounging in a more comfortable position over the seat.

"Therefore, I will get you onto the roof and then provide a way into and out of the house through the chimney. Alternatively, I propose another scenario. We ferret out some more information about this Jacob. We discover where he works, who he loves and when he is at his most vulnerable. Its easy enough, we get to know our target well enough that we become aware of the best moment to strike. I have done this type of work before and it would be no trifle to do it again. The only pinch is that this, of course, would take longer than simply staging a violent crusade in Jacob's house. My services are wasted on brute force but I offer them to you within my best capacity. I'll transport you to the roof or I'll get you close to Jacob, alone. Which will it be?"