[Jadenshine] An assassin getting paid (Crono)

[Anonymous]

Blood was smeared all over his clothes, as if it had come from a cloud like rain. He had lost the sense of time along with his vision but sense of touch and smell where still ever present and he could smell the stench as it had dried and become rotten.

Needless to say he needed a bath but felt reluctant to indulge in one, blind as he was the chance of actually finding his clothes once removed was not a chance he intended to take.

"They always beg. Even if they know it's futile. Why?" Mizer had changed, he was no longer a man, his skin had darkened to some shade of blue and his eyes where that of a beast thriving within the night.

Kael wasn't about to complain, the former mage had been impressive if not for his odd nature at least now he seemed to be slightly more in tune with his surroundings. Out of the two Kael was the cleaner one, wearing his usually custom tailored clothes with the skull and fire emblem on his cloak. Drinking something from his water skin, it smelled like blood but nobody had the sense of smell to tell for sure.

Valtera entered from the north, she was carrying a small sack of items and tossed it in the pile along with the pieces Kael and Valtera had collected.

"Excellent work my dear. I hear you blew up a house and didn't even manage to kill your target." Kael grinned expecting retaliation but she slunk her shoulders in defeat, taking her seat next to them. "As long as the pieces are gathered our mission is considered a success right?"

"Aye, but the mess you caused will alert someone. It should. Considering that we have everything aside from the torso. 10 dead mages ought to tip someone important off."

High Lord Molotom Veisvec enjoyed himself in the dining rooms of his little fortress. Dragons keep. He had never left the building since his wife died, since the day he had found out that nothing in the world could bring her back, nothing legal anyhow.

Still resorting to lumping on his bad leg for travel on foot, wearing just a simple purple tunic of high quality his usually green and vibrant eyes had an empty tone to them just like the greying hair having a hint of black to it.

Considering how he had looked just days ago it would seem as if the man had begun aging backwards. He was waiting for something there while his current minions gathered.

[Anonymous]

((As I said in the PM, I'm incredibly sorry for taking so long to reply. T.T))

Ceria was excited. Sure she had been employed by some important people before but never this high up. She was practically bouncing in her seat. The assassin took out the letter she had received about half a week ago and read it for what had to be the twentieth time. The letter didn't say very much but it said enough, she had learned well what to look for when a noble wanted to employ her and this wasn't just any noble either. A High Lord had need of her 'talents.'

She took a deep breath to calm herself. She would have to be incredibly careful. If anything went awry with this, Ceria knew she'd be thrown to the wolves to direct as much trouble away from her employer as possible but if she pulled this off, she would be set for a very long time. Butterflies were dancing in her stomach.

Ceria had spent no time dawdling after she had received the letter. She had packed fairly light, bringing only about a week and a half's worth of regular clothes as well as her work clothes, of course, along with everything else she thought she'd need. Normally Ceria would have just walked, or rode a horse if speed was an issue, but this time she thought riding in a carriage would be better due to the prominence of her employer. At the very least, it was an excuse to shell out the money for a carriage ride.

But she needed to focus. The carriage was already stopping at the manor gates. A guard came up to the carriage window and, after a short discussion and a little checking on the guard's part, the gates were swinging open and the carriage was rolling up to the manor proper. Just stay calm and you'll do fine. She repeated that a few more times before stepping out to where a servant was waiting.

Little more than five minutes later, Ceria was shown to a door and asked to wait outside while the servant went in to see if the High Lord would accept her. After a minute or two, the servant bowed her in and the door closed behind her and immediately curtsied. "Ceria Perow, at your service, as your Lordship requested."

[Anonymous]

"Well met, I am High Lord Molotom Veisvec, at your service" He exclaimed gleefully, and childishly expectant.  Caught mid sentence he raised his arms wide as if welcoming a friend or someone dear. He felt like a picture for that moment, a broad smile with crazy eyes fulfilling his role as a lord slightly out of touch with reality.

Snapping his fingers as servants came with several scrolls, laying them out for him to open. Clenching his fists still in awe that his fingers where back. "Since you heeded my call, you have already agreed to undertake a grand mission of epic proportions; no doubt you have questions or have heard some amount of rumours but before that time, lets go trough the contracts you will have to sign and abide by. I trust your trip contained nothing short out of the ordinary, I have begun refurnishing my province with lizard folk fugitives you see."

Quickly the lord picked up the scroll closest to him, rather small yet intricate with several magical seals of confounding to twist what was there to be read into a tribal pattern making the entire thing unreadable. "But before I can even begin, there are certain formalities."

"Standard issue blood oath on your utmost silence regarding this meeting and what shall be discussed after the moment your sweet red juice touches this paper." He tossed it carelessly over to her, taking a pirouette afterwards as he faced the table once more. "Its one of those your heart will stop beating should you attempt to violate my trust and its soul binding so no afterlife trickery, nor can you hint to anyone about the theme of this conversation."

He was chipper all the sudden, simply mentioning it as he sat back down on his chair, grinning from ear to ear as servants entered as quietly as they could with new refreshments, fruit, pieces of lightly cooked meat and fine wine, grape he guessed from the aroma coming from the newly opened bottle.

[Anonymous]

Ceria had heard rumors that the High Lord of Jadenshine was a little...off but nothing prepared her for the onslaught that washed over her. When the High Lord tossed one of the scrolls to her, the assassin easily caught it in midair and held it carefully. She raised an eyebrow. Blood oath? There was magic going on here and perhaps some she might not like the smell of.

Still, he was a client. A very rich, very influential client.

One part of her was shouting that she needed to get out of here, to just wash her hands of this ordeal before it even started. Another part of her was telling her how rare an opportunity this was. If she did what this guy wanted, who knew how many doors would be opened for her. Granted, she would have to watch herself more as not all clients liked the information she took off with when her mission was through. There'd been more than one attempt on her life.

The assassin eyed the paper in her hands warily. However, if the man was to be believed, she wouldn't have to worry about him trying to kill her after she was done. Well, she would have to worry but it wouldn't be worrying about her food being poisoned.

In the end, greed won out over caution. "Okay. I suppose I have to prick my finger and all that nonsense?" She wanted this part to be over and done with. The sooner he started talking, the sooner she would be set up somewhere nice counting her money. "I didn't bring any weapons inside with me as I thought it might make you a little nervous, so would you mind furnishing something I could use?" It all still left a bad taste in her mouth, though.

[Anonymous]

"Oh, most would be terrified of voicing their inexperience with the dealings of scary men, I like you already." He smugly replied in a display of rare sign of fatherly affection before returning grabbing a piece of fresh meat like a cat inspecting it with a predator's curiosity.

The taste of oriental spice as he swallowed it, at least proving that there would be no poisoned food from his side. "Just open up the paper, and place your thumb at the obvious circle within. It will prick you and we can move on."


"Take your time, in all honesty I rather wish I did not have too but it gives me a safe fallback to know who spreads information and who can't spread information especially within these sensitive circles that I wade around in daily."


Childish glee across his face, his eyes expectantly awaiting her obedience as a cold breeze sneaked itself around blowing at the lit candles and rattling the curtains, something dark was withholding its presence waiting for her to sign the paper perhaps?

[Anonymous]

It was always a good thing when a client liked you, right? Then why did Ceria's sense of unease increase when the High Lord voiced his 'favor' of her? Just think of the money. Just think of the money. She repeated that line a couple of times before unrolling the parchment and placing her thumb in the designated spot. Ceria's eyes widened as the scroll took effect on her thumb.

FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUU- Prick her thumb, he said! My ass that was just a prick! Ceria removed her thumb as soon as the parchment let her and took a close look at her appendage. Well, it hadn't left any marks but damn had it hurt. She caught a glimpse of a complete and perfect thumbprint in the circle as she rolled the parchment up. It looked to be laughing at her but she faulted that to pain and imagination.

"Here." The assassin said, tossing the blood-marked paper to her client. "Can we get on with this? I want to be done with this business already." Perhaps she was a bit snappish but this man gave her a sense of...wrongness that she hadn't felt before and that she didn't like one bit.

[Anonymous]

"By their nature, introductions take time." The high lord responded quite happy indeed as he caught the piece of paper effortlessly before rolling the piece of parchment neatly before laying it to the side, where it would stay for the time being.

He sighed before haphazardly throwing her another scroll. "Names and addresses, see if you recognise them." To any observer even vaguely familiar with politics, Jadenshine and merchants this list of names would spell death. You would never be able to work again should you kill this amount of powerful people and it was a very thorough list, entire family lineages written down with black inc on a paper given to an assassin who had just signed a contract in blood to never speak of anything even remotely connected to this room or this man.

Only a fool would not know what this meant.

"Naturally you won't be alone in the task at hand; all that is left is discussing at what price you would be willing to sell your life for." He carelessly exclaimed before shrugging his shoulders and grabbing an apple. Its succulent taste as he awaited her response, shock was a natural reaction perhaps she even thought it a joke.

As the list grew further in names the room darkened even more. Lights dimmed and something akin to heartbeat or a giant drum resounded within the room and the atmosphere changed as if pressuring her to read in rhythm with it the list came to a halt as a headline was presented.

Spies of the crown written in grandiose sways and emblazoned to catch anyone's eye and then more names, low nobles, high nobles merchant guilds and a bartender with his family, children, wives, chambermaids and lovers.  This list was genocide.

"All of them." Tom's voice was dark and hazy for a moment there as he observed and awaited some kind of rational response.

[Anonymous]

Ceria stared. She stared long and hard. This had to be a joke, right? The High Lord wasn't asking her for an assassination, he was asking her to empty the entire province of people! It was madness! This piece of paper was pretty much her death warrant.

She should leave. She should just turn around and go, she'd seen enough to know that he was asking too much, that it was far too many people, but she couldn't stop. She felt the overwhelming urge to read everything on the scroll. Every name; every man, woman and child; every soul, unaware of the strings being pulled to bring their life to a close, that was written down on this paper was burned into her eyes, into her brain.

To pull something like this off would take master planning and certainly more than one person but would the High Lord really be willing to depopulate his entire province? And for what gain? This was a trap. It had to be. Whenever their deal was worked out, guards would jump out and she would be taken away.

But what if she was wrong? What if he was serious? Never mind the implications, she could easily ask for a price that would keep her in comfort for a very, very, very long time. Long enough for the heat to die down at least and she could spend her time in Adela or take a long, well deserved vacation, or almost anything really.

Would she be willing to snuff out this many people in exchange for for a few - okay, quite a bit more than a few - shiny coins? Would she be able to live with herself knowing that any comfort she acquired would be bought and paid for by blood of innocents?

Well, at this point she didn't really have a choice, did she? She had already signed that contract and, if this wasn't a trap, he had said that she would be killed if she ever talked about it. Whether by magical or mundane means, she didn't doubt that he would kill her if any word of this escaped her lips.

"Alright. I'll do it but it won't be cheap. I'll need enough to set me up for a good, long while. Meaning it'll cost you quite a bit of gold."

[Anonymous]

Amusing, her expression caught by Molotom as he calmly observed the disbelief in her face, so subtly he noticed that tiny hand of hers clenching the document with fervour while human rationale was overcome by greed and the scent of opportunity and then he smiled while sighing as if a burden was off his shoulders.

At that point the room had grown silent, not even servants where cluttering about, everything caught in the grip of observation. Then she accepted.

Taken aback as if he had rehearsed it, the surprised face followed by the sceptic eyes as if he was now criticising her for being overzealous and then he shrugged while giggling like a little schoolgirl. Red checked and unable to stop grinning he stated. "Well, I guess I can call off the rest of my busy workforce and have you do everyone on that list within the 24 hour timeframe available before everyone else knows what has transpired within the boarders of my family's little profitable venture."

Molotom tried cleansing his throat, a hand on his forehead but still he was unable to stop smiling. "Sorry, it's grown into a habit since the whole thing was set in motion. I got my fingers back, my legs, and even a significant portion of my youth and for what?"

Snapping his fingers multiple times still with that absurd grin and those intense and observing eyes piercing trough her soul, reading into her every twitch and never blinking. A servant was at his beck and call filling a freshly cleaned glass with fine and red wine and he still had not moved his eyes.

His voice was as gripping as it was eternal, like a dark hole had taken his heart and spat out a monstrosity.
"I have seen a world where the ties of unity, peace and light where cloaked red with sheets of hate, war and darkness, a world where even hellfire would be considered safe haven."

Taking a sip of that delicious wine now that he had her attention, nodding approvingly to the silence he had created once again.
"A world ruled by humanity." The statement was nothing similar to the small speech he had just held, it was so short and profound that the list in her hands was insignificant to the weight in his statement. "We are merely preventing mankind from destroying themselves. So you're essentially a humanitarian."

[Anonymous]

'Humanitarian.' Ceria was barely able to keep her feelings from her face at his use of the word. This wasn't a humanitarian job; this was slaughter. Not that she was against it. She made a living making sure people ended up dead so she didn't exactly have the moral high ground here.

She wondered if he saw the irony in hiring an assassin to 'help stop humanity from destroying itself.'

The assassin crossed her arms beneath her breasts. "You're joking about the twenty-four hour limit, right?" She thought he was but it was always better to be sure than to find out the guards are coming after you. Ceria had learned that sometimes her employer's plans went sour right when she was suppose to do her job.

She wanted out of here. Doubts were beginning to creep up again. Damn her conscience! Why did it have to pick now of all times to rear its ugly head? I've killed plenty of people before and you haven't bothered me about it. Ah but this time was different, wasn't it? This time it wasn't about one person, or even a family, it was about quite a large number of people. Which made her realize something.

"You know, it's going to be hard to get rid of this many people without some of the targets figuring it out." Why hadn't she thought of this before? Amateur mistake! "I assume you have something planned for that?"

[Anonymous]

She was probably not falling for it, lies are so fleetingly told. Visions are boring; he was not a tool for fate or its like. High lord Molotom Veisvec is merely a man, nymph abilities or not this was a lot of people, even an assassin might get issues with performance thinking it be random slaughter rather he had given her the alternative of blissfully trusting that he had actually envisioned the world be wrapped in evil.

A tool is no better than the hand that wields it and his hands should appear to this tool as firm, righteous and unfailing. A few lies to make his actions justified might do this one tool good.

She still seemed to doubt him or herself, any of the two options where not optimal. "Well to be exact we have slightly more time than that. We have entire tomorrow until the day after dawns. You are simply the final piece of a larger puzzle; we had an assassin and she declined my offer for a second task when her first was completed." His mind filled with thoughts of that one woman as he took another sip of wine. She had been a fresh addition and now she was gone.

He had often prided himself on being a master speaker and thought smith but these bodily improvements that he had been granted had taken from his ability to think deeply, truth be told the ability to think of everything was but a defensive mechanism developed as a response to the way life and its dangers had shaped him, now that they where diminished into almost nothingness. Now that he had physical power and was but a manifestation of his younger more inexperienced self his body did not have to rely solely on the mind no more.

And her doubt was an insult to his gifts, the powers of persuasion that where at work at this moment where unparalleled in this entire region. She dared to doubt that he had planned for every possible outcome? She dared to question the very reason she was sitting in his room? His eyes grew cold yet the high lord kept his smile; he let his soul and spirit rage silently, as the room groaned in resonance.

"We will use magic to kill them, it was always a question of how to gather as many as possible at the same spot. The merchants invited to further our relationship, most of the spies, high nobles and low nobles alike will be busy attending a party I have arranged for the first time since my wife died, Those who are not attending will get taken out silently tonight and tomorrow morning, those who are attending die there, Some even have vengeful family members that will help us out. "

He emptied the glass of wine, throwing it on the floor with dismissal. It had already grown bitter. "There will be no escape, there will be no leaks, and there will be no unforeseen events that interfere with these peoples death. This is my province and at this time not even the crown can stop me."

The last hinted at the kings disappearance, everyone knew King Fenway was gone as well as the head mage of his order. Those the regent had tasked with finding him had come up empty, and he had hired the best of the best.

Molotom assistance in the search had been in utter silence, everyone tasked with searching by that incompetent regent and the heads of other provinces had come up empty and that meant everyone else had as well. So he could lie, he could claim and he could appear as awesome.

[Anonymous]

Well, at least he had a plan on how to take everybody out at once. How he would be finding out who was at the party and getting that information to her was another matter. Judging from the High Lord's mood, it would be a matter she would have find out about later.

She started a bow before realizing she was in skirts and turned the motion somewhat smoothly into a curtsy. "Of course, High Lord, I was merely curious on how it would happen so I would be able to plan around it." Ceria wasn't lying, she hadn't known that she would just be the one to kill off the scavengers. She hadn't really told the truth either, there was still doubt that all of this could be pulled off without a hitch. However, he'd made it clear that her place was not to question. Her place was to do.

The assassin started talking as she stood back upright. "I only require two more things before I will go prepare myself for tonight." She put her best game face on. "An agreement on payment and a forward on the pay." This would be the most difficult part of her meeting - securing a good amount of coin for her work - and she was dealing with the leader of the largest merchant province in Serendipity.

"I want three thousand suns with a third of that upfront. I need insurance on the off chance something does go wrong." She didn't expect to get all of that. Hell, she hoped she'd get the third she was demanding as the total payment but it was always smart to ask for more than you wanted. She just hoped he wouldn't be too hostile about the dealings.

[Anonymous]

"Its interesting, you are talking with one of the most influential and reliable high lords of serendipity, I have yet to break a deal since my rise to power and yet you only seek a vast quantity of the most obvious of resource I can provide, as insurance at that."


Her offer was relatively greedy but not at all in line with the flustered attempt at a curtsey, was she a gambler?  He let the silence convey that she had better come up with a more suitable suggestion or at least try to reason with him as to why he should agree to those terms.

The room seemed to groan in tune with her heartbeat the longer the silence went on these small things gathered lash out at her mind as if ushering her to make swift and rash decisions.

Like a patient yet bored predator High lord Molotom`s presence seemed to grow, slowly imposing the brunt of his persuasive powers onto her spirit like an impeding doom. He had begun moving pawns for a drawn out check mate and she had better make moves to get a good price.