Of Bards and Assassins

[GoblinFae]

Tiraris could not help it. She began to clap a slow not quite mocking clap. "It seems our little gnome can act after all. For where else could such tears come from, then from a practiced showman. Congratulations, it seems very realistic, but I do not buy it."

She handed the smelly change purse back to him. "Tell me friend, and I use the term quite loosely, what good is your thievery to me? I do not hurt for money. I kill for the pleasure of it and use the receiving of payment as a socially accepted excuse for doing so."

She stopped taking a swig of the beer before ordering two more, one for herself and one for him. "Climb up. If you can convince me that this would be a mutually beneficial partnership then we can talk specifics. As far as I can see though, you get all the benefit and I do all the work. For that I can work alone."

[Anonymous]

Mort straighten up with a huge smile on his face. "Well a loose friendship is a start." Quickly he climbs up into the stool next to her.

"Maybe my redistribution of money isn't helpful in your line of work and I don't hurt for money either, stealing is also a pleasure, but i have other talents as well. Haven't you ever been on a job and wished you had a third hand? Well I could be that third hand. I also dabble in magic which could be useful to ya too. Have you ever wanted to go somewhere and truly not be able to be seen? I can help ya with that, watch!" Mort says a few strange words and makes some hand gestures suddenly he disappears from the stool from beside her. "Look! Now ya see me now ya don't." He picks up his mug and makes it look as if its floating in mid air. "OOOOooo i'm a ghost BEWarrrrre!!!" chuckling he reappears with his mug in hand, taking a gulp before sitting it back down on the bar.

"Don't you worry about doing all the work yourself. Trust me I'll do a part of the work for any benefits we recieve."

[GoblinFae]

'Give him a chance. What is the worst that can happen? He steals from you and you kill him. No worries there.'

"There will be ground rules then, if this is to actually work. First off, you do as I say when I tell you to do it. I do not need you getting me killed because you decide to do something stupid. Secondly, I am not responsible for you or anything that may happen to you. You get caught or you die, that is on you. Thirdly, you will not steal from the customers nor will you maim the customers. Ruining my reputation and scaring off customers defeats the purpose of working. Now provided those terms work for you, our first job will actually start with you doing something."

She smirked in cruel amusement as she devised the perfect first job. "You can go find the client you scared off, return his purse, apologize for stabbing him, and get him to come back for his business. If you succeed, this once I will let you have all the profits from the job. Still want to work with me, Mr....?"

[Anonymous]

Mort listened to Tiraris with excitment. He was going to play the role of an assassin "I'm truly sorry we have been back and forth, up and down, around and round so much I forgot to proper introduce myself. I am Mort...Mort the Magnificent and YES I agree to your terms. Do what you say, you're not responsible for me, and last but not least don't steal from or hurt the customers. Got it!!

"Ok then for my first job go find the man with the wounded pride, CHECK!!" Mort takes the coin purse and dumps out the coin placing them in his pocket. Holding up the purse to show Tiraris saying, "Give him his purse, CHECK!! Tell him I'm sorry, CHECK!! Bring him back so we can get more money out of him, CHECK!! Don't you worry your pretty little head. Mort in on the job. I'll be back before you can finish that ale."

Mort hops off the stool and is headed out the door like a flash of lightning in search for the man.

[Anonymous]

Mort headed out into the street looking both to the left and right of him before thinking to himself. "Now if I was a big oaf like him that just got stabbed in the rear where would I go....The closest healer I guess?"

 He heads up the street to the closest healer. Going inside sure enough there was Big Tom and he could see thru a doorway across the room was a curtain wall and behind it he heard the other man that he had stabbed " Easy Doc that hurts!"
Big Tom's eyes widen as the Gnome stepped in the room. "Edd..Edd...I think it's him, the one who stabbed ya!" Mort headed into the room and looked behind the curtain wall. The man was lying on his belly where another man was stitching up the wound Mort had made. "By the Gods, he's come to finish me off!" The man shouts.
"Just calm down." Mort demands in a tuff voice playing his role of assassin. "If I had wanted you dead you wouldn't be here now. I came to say i'm sorry. You see, you insulted my lady friend back there and no one does that." Mort takes out the empty purse and throws it on the table in front of the man. "Here is your purse back I took the money as compensation for your actions. Now if you want my services you will return to the bar, tell the lady you're sorry, and all deals and transaction go thru her, Understood?" Mort turns to head out the door. looking at Big Tom he points up at him with his eyes glared. "And YOU better make sure he comes."

Exiting the building Mort heads back to the bar. Finding Tiraris he tells her. "He should be here any moment now. He's getting a few things sewn up and he'll be own his way."

[GoblinFae]

Tiraris watched as the now named gnome excitedly agreed to her terms. 'This should be interesting, to say the least,' she thought as fought back laughter. As he purposely misinterpreted what she said, she had to fight back a laugh. 'In the future I will have to keep that in mind. Last thing I need is him getting me killed. That is of course if there ever is a future.'

Sitting waiting for the gnome to return she began to doubt her decision and wonder why she was about to put herself through such torture. Draining her ale she contemplated her newest dilemma. 'I can always kill him myself if he proves to be too annoying or gets in the way. Partners, what a stupid idea!'

Mort came bouncing back into the room, breaking her thoughts and sending them scurrying like rodents in the light. She shook her head at his comment. Sure enough a few minutes later her new client followed by Big Tom slunk into the room, grabbing a table. She chuckled when she saw the client refuse to sit, but to lean against the chair instead.

"Ready?" she asked raising her brow at Mort before heading over to the pair.

[Anonymous]

Mort followed Tiraris over to the table and waited for her to be seated before climbing into a chair next to her. Right away the man start apologizing to Tiraris. "I'm very sorry Miss. If had know you were friends of Silverd'art I would..." Mort slaps his hand on the table cutting the man off "Ok,Ok You're sorry enough of that. So what is it you need."

"Well you see." the man starts. "Me and Big Tom here work for this shipping merchant. A few days ago the city made him fill out some papers about who gets the business in case he dies. Since the merchant had no one to put down, since he aint got any family, Big Tom found out that he put us down to get it if he passes. So thats were you come in."

Mort looks over at Tiraris then back to the men. "Well sounds good to me, but like I told you earlier all deals and transactions will from here on out go thru the lady." He hops off the chair onto the floor waving a hand back over his shoulder "I don't have time for the small details. I have more important things to do." he heads back over to the bar, gets another ale, and starts chasing the barmaids around the place like a cat would mice.

[GoblinFae]

'Ah, so he did maintain the ruse that he is me. How, amusing. Well we can remedy that later,' she mused already thinking of a plan to put the gnome in his place.

A passing glare scorched the gnome as he ran off to chase barmaids. 'He gets told he earns all the profit on this one and then abandons me to all the work, predictable.'

She listened apathetically to the men's plights, already wishing she had not agreed on the temporary partnership. Coldly, she laid down the ground rules, no interfering, no backing out, no helping, and no backstabbing. The two men agreed quickly sporadically sending nervous glances Mort's way.

"Ya boss," Ed said shakily, "does he always stab and steal from his clients? I 'eard Silverd'art was an 'onorable one," snorting he stage whispered to Big Tom, "if ya can call an assassin 'onorable."

"Who said anything about the gnome being the one who does all the killing?" Tiraris smirked back. "If you will excuse me now gentleman, I have work to do." She rose gracefully from the table and attempted to leave until Big Tom grabbed her by the arm.

"What about the job?" he growled looking about apprehensively.
"It will be completed tonight. That is all you need know. The gnome will collect payment from you in the morn."

She tore herself from his grasp and made her way over to the flirting gnome. "Quit flouncing about. There is work to be accomplished," she barked at him, impatiently tapping her foot.

[Anonymous]

Mort looked to Tiraris with a puzzled look on his face. " What! We not done yet? I did as you ask. I found him, gave him his purse, told him I was sorry, and brought him back. I even got him to tell you HE was sorry. I should get extra for that, but it was so funny I'll not charge for that one. Did you see the look on his face? He was so scared the both of em' was about to pee themselves." Mort busts out in a boisterous laughter then suddenly stops.

"So really, tell me what do you have to do now!?!" Mort stands in front of Tiraris with his hands on his hips tapping his foot mocking Tiraris.

[GoblinFae]

"No my friend, that was but the start. One actually has to complete the job given to them to receive the rest of the spoils. You would not want to miss out on all that gold and silver, now would you? Especially, when you will be the one receiving all the profit on this." Her eyes belied none of the friendliness that her words silkily intimated.

"If you plan to use my name then you will do well not to tarnish it. Or have you already forgotten what the real Silverd'art is capable of? Perhaps I should remind you of the times I have killed men five times your size. Killing you would be like breaking an egg, messy but simple." She glared at him letting the words sink in. 'That is if he can focus enough to let them be understood correctly.'

"Now get your things. If you plan on getting paid then you are going to get your hands bloody," she told him walking out of the pub. 'He follows, then he will do the job. He stays, then I am done with him.'

[Anonymous]

"I never used your name. Those guys assumed I was you......I just never told them any different, but not once didn't I ever say hello I'm Silverd'art a big bad killer, Anyways I would never taint the good name of Silverd'art. See I thought tellin those two I was sorry wasn't the right thing to do, never show you're weak side,but I did it anyways cause you wanted me to. I would have...." mort stops midsentence looking up at Tiraris, "Wait, kill me? Friends as close as us don't go arouund killing each other. Anyways you just said that you've killed men five times my size, so that makes me five times less not worth killing. However I would like to think I have abit harded shell than just a simple egg." He pats down himself as if looking for any stray items then follows Tiraris out the door, "Yep I'm ready as ever.....hands bloody... hey wait....you never said anything about getting bloody.

[GoblinFae]

"Despite your worth, I am willing to make an exception. Who knows, I may actually enjoy killing you, Mort," she threatened. "Yes, bloody. You were hired to kill, so kill you will. You want to play assassin? Then, you need to actually do the job. Here," she handed him a slip of paper, "this is the address of the target's office at the docks. We will go after him there. Now, you need to go scope the place. You are a thief, I am sure you know what to look for in terms of security," Tiraris said in dismissal, trying to shoo him off.

[Anonymous]

Mort looks up at her with gleeming eyes "So you do think I have worth, how sweet!" He takes the paper with the address, reads it, and then handing it back exclaims, "Fine, Fine I'll go see what the place looks like, but I'm still not keen on this gettin' bloody"

Hr heads down the street looking for the place. Once he finds it he stands watching for a few moments the comings and going of the people. He takes a quit walk around the other sides looking at the window and any other doors to the place before he heads back to find Tiraris.

[GoblinFae]

As Tiraris waited she contemplated how she managed to get herself into this to begin with. She had never been one to take partners and yet here she was with a thieving gnome, no less. 'One job and this over. One way or another this ends. He gets caught, he gets killed, we complete the job. It does not matter, this ends soon.'

While she had sent Mort to examine the docks, she did the same from afar. She watched the comings and goings, which men did what and when. Every person had a flaw, it was just a matter of finding the ones that were of most benefit to her. By the time Mort returned, she knew all she needed to know.

Still watching the docks she asked, "do you have everything you need to know? We are doing this tonight. You better be ready, it would be bad for your health if you disappoint me."

[Anonymous]

"I've never disappointed a woman." Mort flutters his eyesbrows at her like the wings of a butterfly. "But none of that now, Missy, we have a job to do." He says with a stern look on his face.

Mort stands at attention saluting Tiraris. "Secret Agent Mort with the Report! We have one lazy city guard patroling on the back street. There is a window down the alleyway possibly going into the office, but it has a magical ward on it, this guy must have alot of money or a connections to a high level wizard for that. There is a small front entry door facing the docks along with big double cargo door into the warehouse part. We may have a chance thru a roof access, but I didn't take the time to go up there." Mort finishes his report standing at ease he looks up at Tiraris with a puzzled looked " And why can we not just go thru the front door, walk right up to him, get it over with and leave?"

[GoblinFae]

"You may go through the front door if you wish Mort. You are the one leading this after all. My only suggestion is that once we get inside we split up. It would be better for our partnership if you could prove to me you can kill the selected target without alerting anyone. While you are doing that I can disable any prowlers that may hear, allowing you more "room to work" so to speak," she told him.

It took everything she had to not to just kill him now where he stood. Why she did not, only the gods knew. "If you do not have anymore questions, then I will meet you here tonight. I have other matters to attend to in the mean time."

'A few more hours. That is all I need and this will be a forgotten memory,' she thought, impatiently waiting to leave.

[Anonymous]

Mort spent the remainder of the day doing his usal fooling around. Picking a pocket here and there and chasing barmaids it the taverns. He realized it was getting late and figured he would go and find Tiraris. On the way to the meeting place he thought about how he really didn't want to kill someone just because somebody paid him to do so. He didn't even know this man. He may be a good man, but he said he would do it so thats what he aimed to do.

Shortly Mort arriaved at the meeting place. He statred perparing himself for the task at hand while he waited on Tiraris.

[GoblinFae]

The night air was warm and humid, which only served to make Tiraris more irritable. The familiar wright of her armour brought little comfort as it felt stiffling and suffocating. Years of ingrained self-awareness were the only thing stopping from fidgeting in place as she waited.

It was just as she was ready to take off and abandon the job that Mort made his appearance. Pushing off the warehouse wall, Tiraris made her prescence known and stepped out of the shadows and into the moonlight.

"I believe the plan was that you would complete the assassination and that I would assist by delaying any interruptions or disturbances to give you more time. Are we still in accord?" She stood there with her arms crossed and eyebrow raised. A gentle swept by playfully tugging at her hair, sending it out behind her like a crimson flag. "Remember," she added, "do not get caught and do not get in my way."

Internally, Tiraris was raging. 'He is going to get me killed; I just know it.' A deep-pitted feeling gnawed at her making her feel as if a great fist had reched inside her and had begun twisting her innards. 'Plebians,' her mind spat disgustedly believing it to all be Mort's fault. Her hand clenched her sword hilt out of anticipation. "Ready?"