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The Doctor Is In (Wolfram Vertzhul, Vermillion, Vesd)

Started by Vermillion, April 05, 2019, 06:18:27 PM

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Vermillion

  "Precision is key," Dr. Vertzhul said softly, sewing a nose onto a still corpse. His hand deftly weaved through the flesh of it's face, matching the gentle stitches adorning other parts of the face. "You know, this beauty started out as but a single skull; but look at him now, he's looking prettier and prettier every day. He placed the needle down on a surgical tray once it was complete. The doctor leaned back in his chair and began humming a soft tune to drown out the screaming from the shackled man behind him.

   "You sick bastard, I didn't do nothin'!" Said the shackled man, nasily. "You took my godsdamn nose!"

   Wolfram kept his face to the ceiling, eyes closed. "You're lucky you just had a pretty nose. The rest of you is atrocious." He grabbed a scalpel from the tray and deftly threw it into the shackled man's throat, when he tried to speak, it came out in gargles. "Don't worry, it won't kill you, but your screaming was giving me a headache."

   The doctor leaned back in his chair again, closing his eyes and continuing to hum his little tune. He sat there, stroking the corpse's hair gently until he lulled himself to sleep.


SanctifiedSavage

Vesd's work took him quite literally all over the place. Whether it was to turn contracts in to the odd patron to collect payment, disperse the bounties to hunters who couldn't wander into civilized lands, or traipse into places most people wouldn't bother.

Like Zantaric.

Truth be told, Vesd didn't really like the place. Laws were useful tools in his trade, which he thoroughly enjoyed exploiting for his own gain. When places tended toward the 'we have very few', it meant he had to get his hands dirty more often than not.

Vesd hated getting dirty.

The elf had dressed down in simple traveling clothes he hoped wouldn't draw too much attention and had patted his nice horse down with mud before they wandered in so it'd look a shaggy mess. He'd even packed light so the saddlebags wouldn't look full. Forgoing creature comforts was another reason he hated traveling into messy places.

Alas. The things he did for both coin and curiosity.

When jobs found their way to Vesd, he made it a point of personal and professional pride to seek them out. Not everyone knew his name or what he did, after all. Worth a look, then. Not like he was suffering alone. Did that make it better? Or worse?

The snow elf let out a long, almost dramatic sigh as he slid off his horse in front of the dark building. Granted, they were all dark, but this was the right street. Right number. So he crossed his arms and gestured to his newfound assistant. They could knock. Was it petty? Yes. But it was fun to have someone along for the ride and he wanted to see what it'd be like.

Vermillion

   Vermillion shared Vesd's distaste for Zantaric. 'Twas a disgusting, orderless place and they really weren't looking to get mugged. If they were wearing their usual travel clothes, they might have fit in. But of course the job had to be here, so they were wearing their usual business attire, record keeping materials in hand. Can't dress down on the job, even if the job doesn't deserve their best. At least they didn't have much of value to steal.

    They rolled their eyes at Vesd's little gesture, but still approached the door. "You know I'm your secretary, not a servant. You could have just asked."

   Regardless of the affront to their pride, the used the door knocker and waited patiently for it to open.



___________


  The knock at the door woke the doctor from his nap. He looked back at the shackled man and sure enough, he was still kicking. When the shackled man heard the knock he began flailing and trying harder to use his voice to no avail. Wolfram stood and dusted off his lab coat, noticing the blood stained on it. In an act of good judgement, he hung it up in a small closet and answered the door in his undergarments.

   "Oh my, I really wasn't expecting guests."

SanctifiedSavage

Vesd smiled at the quip from his new work buddy. Secretary, servant. They were both really close to one another. One got paid a little more, he supposed. Even so, it amused the snow elf to no end and he nodded an acknowledgement. "Right. Secretary."

In his line of work, Vesd had seen... well, just about everything. Monsters, murderers, and miles upon miles of flesh. So when the good doctor answered in undergarments, it didn't phase the snow elf at all. Rather, he dipped a gracious bow and said, "Evening. I believe we'd sent word ahead that we were to meet today." He straightened, masked, charming smile fixed in place. Business was business. "But if you need us to come back at another time..." The snow elf made a vague hand wave. If the man was busy or in a mood, Vesd would rather waste the time to come back.


Vermillion

   His pale body leaned against the door frame, which was only ajar enough to fit his form. While the room behind him was dark as sin, the clanking of chains from his most recent victim rang through to outside. Wolfram tapped his chin in an exaggerated manner, "Was that today? Oh my, I should have cleaned up a bit. Mind if we speak here?"

  His movements were slow, as if each tense of his muscles was strategically calculated before they happened. He snaked past the frame, closing the door behind him. The clanking that was coming from the interior was shut out.


  Vermillion faced Wolfram, and despite everything in her wanting to turn away from the mostly naked human in front of her, she needed to take note of everything; including his unusual introduction. She gave Vesd a shooing glance that said "Your move, I don't want to speak with this thing."

SanctifiedSavage

Vesd clasped his hands behind his back. Oddities abound in the world, and my but wasn't this person one of them? When the human asked if they could speak in the street, Vesd actually quirked a brow and made a show of looking around. There didn't seem to be many out and about, though that could've been because the city itself was a gloomy, black stain on a map.

"I prefer to conduct such business inside." Vesd didn't like the chance he might be overheard. Not in his line of work and certainly not in a town like this. Just because things looked calm and quiet rarely meant that things would stay that way. "Should you like, we could meet somewhere in an hour or so?"

Vermillion

   Dr. Vetzhul clicked his tongue, frustrated. He had a repertoire around these parts, and any business conducted would be seen as just that, business. It wasn't that he cared if these two knew about the man inside, he just preferred to compartmentalize things separately. The man would be gone by evening anyway.

   His frustration flashed over his face, but only for a brief moment before he regained his composure. He turned his back to his visitors, brave for a place like Zantaric, and pushed the door open. With a welcoming gesture, he waved them in "Very well. If it must be indoors, you may come in."

   The rattling began again. "Pay no mind to the sound, I am simply dealing with a particularly difficult patient."



   Vermillion would have rathered they stayed outside. Ironically, to them, it felt almost safer out there than in the man's house. They understood that this was par for the course for Vesd, but their last job was at a desk for a noble. They'd never had to handle this sort of thing.

   Subconsciously, Vermillion pushed closer to Vesd's side and held their files to their chest. Internally they were screaming at themselves that looking meek made them a target, something they've certainly had to learn in the past, but this was new grounds and Vesd seem to know what he was doing.


   The interior of the home is what one would expect of a doctor, but not what one would expect from a doctor in Zantaric. The entrance led into a small foyer that opened into a traditional treating room. There was arches on the northern and eastern walls, the former leading into a hallway lined with doors, the latter was pitch black. There was comfy seating tucked in the southwestern corner, where Wolfram offered them a seat.

SanctifiedSavage

There wasn't anything in the house that would've scared him away. Vesd dealt with monsters daily. What was one more?

The snow elf walked ahead of his new assistant / secretary and smiled a little at Vermillion when they remained close. So long as it was all about business, there was no reason this wouldn't go well for everyone involved.

When offered a seat, Vesd took it. Looking for all the world like this was the most comfortable place to be. Obviously that wasn't the case, but the snow elf was anything if he was polite. He didn't pay any attention to the sounds he might hear. Someone could've called for help and he wouldn't have bothered. Wasn't his business – contracts and money were.

@Vermillion

Vermillion

   Given their particular ability, it was ironic that Vermillion didn't share Vesd's ability to hide their discomfort. They remained standing, as far from the doctor as they could get while still remaining by Vesd's side. They took note of possible exits just in case. Despite all this, they did the job they were hired for, readying themself to get all the sordid details from this... client.

   Dr. Vertzhul lowered himself down onto a chaise lounge in front of the two. One would think that someone residing in Zantaric would constantly have their guard up, but Wolfram seemed as if he hadn't a care in the world. He raised one of his hands up towards the ceiling and observed it as if it weren't his own. After blinking a couple times, as if he'd just woken, and sat up.

   "So, my pretty friends, let's get down to business. I guess you could say someone stole something from me. Something dear. He escaped with it a few days ago, and I need it, and him, back. Alive. No questions asked. Is this doable?"

SanctifiedSavage

Vesd had the patience of a saint when it came to his work. The snow elf had to, otherwise he'd have been murdered a long time ago. Besides, he'd gotten into this sort of job because he liked learning and seeing interesting people.

The Doctor classified as such.

He smiled a little when the Doctor snapped into it and suggested they get down to business. As if they'd not been waiting this whole time. He crossed his legs, leaned back in his seat. Comfortable and actively listening. It was nice to have someone around to take note of all the details. Freed him up to enjoy the moment. "Of course it's doable, and no questions beyond how much you're offering to pay... and some details about who ran off. So they can be tracked down." The snow elf maintained his smile. Such contracts were common place. Talking about hunting down another didn't bother him in the slightest.

@Vermillion

Vermillion

  Dr. Vertzhul smiled the kind of smile that only showed in his lips. There was no joy in his eyes, and he showed no teeth. "Worry not, my young friend, money is of no issue. I'm willing to offer up 100 Suns to find him, but I'm willing to negotiate. That being said, the job should be done fairly easily so long as you get to him quickly." He mumbled the last part, completely oblivious to the irony that he was taking so long to get to the point. "Feel free to rough him up a bit more than he already is, but please do spare the eyes. They are such a beautiful shade of blue and I'd be loathe to see them tarnished."

  The doctor stood. Walking to a small table cluttered with medical instruments, and passively rearranged them while continuing to speak. "As for the mark himself, he's 5'6", his weight fluctuates between 195 and 198 depending on the time of day and water consumption. His hair is greyed and he's 64 years old. Human. He is known to frequent a tavern for gambling a couple blocks east. You can't miss it."


   Vermillion tried their best to stay quiet during the description. They knew the man was a doctor, but his description was an odd mix of professional and intimate and it didn't sit well with them. How can Vesd do this sort of work so dispassionately. When the doctor stood, Vermillion flinched very visibly. They just wanted to get out of here as soon as possible. They wrote down all the details and gave Vesd a pleading look for him to accept the offer so they could leave. Every jingle of the chains from the other room sent shivers down their spine.

SanctifiedSavage

Vesd noted the price, already considering who he could track down for such a thing. Finesse didn't seem to be an issue here, just expediency. That made things significantly easier. Tracked down, quickly, and brought back alive. Not difficult at all.

The snow elf blinked back to the moment when the doctor stood, momentarily wondering if he'd missed something. He even glanced at his new assistant, who seemed... out of place. Poor thing. First day on the job, though. They were bound to find things weird. Too bad their first client couldn't have been some stuffy royal trying to get back at some tart who had wronged them. Infinitely easier, though Vesd supposed that would have been far more morally distasteful. Maybe.

His moral compass was broken.

Even better that the target didn't seem far. So time was of the essence. Good, good. Vesd liked working in deadlines and time frames. He smiled and stood, then offered the good doctor a short bow. "Consider it done. I only need that you sign the description that my assistant here has sketched out and the contractual obligation to pay. Then we'll see it done." Standard procedure. Had to make sure he had a paper trail in the event someone tried to call him a liar.

@Vermillion

Vermillion

Vermillion flipped their clipboard around to Dr. Vertzhul. However, not possessing the ability to stretch their limbs, it meant they had to actually go near the man. Something they'd been trying to avoid doing as much as possible. The room wasn't all that large, but at that moment, to Vermillion, each step seemed to go in slow motion. Their movements getting shakier with each step, they made their way across the room for him to sign. The document had written descriptions and sketches to help with visualization. It contained the cost arrangement, as well as a notice for this man to be retrieved alive. No harm to the eyes, for whatever reason that Vermillion didn't care to mentally explore. They looked back at Vesd. How could he be so calm and collected? What has a seen that makes this a walk in the park. And he signed.

Vermillion had heard of making deals with a devil, but rarely had they considered the other way around.



Vertzhul returned the bow to Vesd after signing the agreement, though the bow was more of a hunch. A smile crept over his lips, "It's been a pleasure. I do hope you can find him."

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