A Job is a Job | Page 2

Aalam looked at the bottle it seemed that they were from the man’s reserved sections, well that was kind of him, and he knew just the person to share these with. If it were the same cider, she would get a kick out of the taste if nothing else. Taking the bottles off the counter and placing them in her person he put one more coin on the table this time for the bartender. He had been a good sport with him after all, and the man already had his card if he wanted to get in touch with him. “I don’t want your bar, but I would like to be able to get a mug of this easier than having to track to this every time I want a good drink. But I shall be back before I leave this village after all I will need a mug for the road.” Giving the man a friendly smile as he made his way out of the bar and back into the light of the town. It was good to see that he hadn’t spent too much time, talking there was still somethings that he needed to fund out. It was times like this he wished that he had brought some poison with him.

He could have killed her quickly and be on his way. So he would have to do this the hard way, and he still didn’t have enough information. The bartender had expressed a bit of apprehension when he had talked about the bodyguard. And no one, he meant no one just appeared like that it only people he knew that were able to come into terra with no past are players. If this guard were a player then, his job would have just gotten as difficult as possible. He would need a commotion to draw attention away from the oracle he would prefer to do this at night, but he should still get things step up now.

It wasn’t as difficult to find her house as most people would think; he stood on the corner drinking from a flask as he did a quick count of the bodies. There were at least fifteen people there, so that would mean a frontal assault would be out of the question. So he threw back up his hood and made his way to the back alleys of the buildings. He would have to pull as must stealth as he was able to do. There should be a way to get in the house without anyone seeing him, made be a window or a back door. So he made his way into the alleys behind the house and scaled a wall so that he could get on a roof. Making his way over rooftops until he was directly behind the house. For his position he could see a window on the second floor, Equipping his bow and quiver as he aimed he needs to hit the wall with enough force that the arrow would be able to hold his weight. Pulling out one of his heaviest arrows, this was a specially made beast for grappling. Taking aim and letting the arrow fly if it was able to land then he would be in business.

 

• 124 HP
• 152 EN

“Cain Da-” the muse began, when the door blasted open and promptly smacked him to the side, the apple vendor from before lunging into the embrace of the bodyguard. A rapid exchange gave Cain all the information he needed. Yuu. Nyx. Blood drawn. And then the damning phrase ‘don’t say anything to Youn.’

At that point, even a moron could make the connection, one that only became crystal clear when the Oracle child showed her face. An almost exact copy of the child that had encountered Nyx.

It all fell together, oh so easily.

His dark gaze swept from Maria to Youn, the joviality gone in a flash. She was definitely a sharp child, one blessed by the Elysid in a manner that even the adventurers were not. The Aura, the Status of a Saint hung invisibly over the short haired child, giving her a bearing of divinity that did not suit her appearance. No lies then. Knowing Nyx, it wouldn’t just be an ‘injury’ inflicted. It would be chaos and death. Enough to keep the guardian of the Oracle busy.

The phantasmal rope burned, but not enough to pull him in any specific direction.

The standard had been to burn the letter they received from the client, but Cain pulled it out of his inventory now, dead serious and slightly nervous.

“Read this if you won’t believe my words,” the Flagbearer spoke, “But your life is in danger right now. I managed to sneak into the group that plans your assassination, but I couldn’t imagine that they would act so soon, after they claimed they were simply going to gather information. Oracle of Applesun, listen to me carefully.”

He had nothing but hypothesises, but that was enough.

“Yuu was attacked to draw you out of your estate. Don’t make that mistake and come out. There are plenty of adventurers present, many of them well versed in the healing arts. She will be fine, but you won’t be. You must make this escape immediately, be-”

Cain’s gaze swept up, towards the second floor. His eyes narrowed, ears twitching.

“Shit, c’mon, now! Maria, if an archer enters this floor, point him in the opposite direction!”

With that, he extended a frantic hand towards Youn, motioning for her to follow him out of the mansion.

But would she?

Convince Youn to Escape with Cain
31
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• 148 HP
• 112 EN

Aalam has to suppress a little grin it seemed that this might be possible, well then there was something that he needs to insure. Cain needed someone to make sure that the girls would trust him and that meant putting them in danger so that he could be the hero. He was impressed the last time he had worked with Cain the man was hard in his moral could see the big picture. Guess the death of the woman hardens him up a bit, well it seemed she hadn’t wasted her life after all good to know.

However, he still had an open to do using one of the arrows to open it open but he to take his time to do this quietly. The other woman was still in the separate room and for this, to work, he would need to put on a good performance. Once he had the window open he made his way inside the home, watching each of his steps on the ground so it wouldn’t make a sound below. Grabbing what looked one of the sturdier chairs on the floor and wedging it under the door handle, it would have been problematic for someone to get in the way of what he was doing. Now came the hard decision did he want to waste a bottle of the most elegant drink he ever had to finish this job or he could do a job. Damn it was times like this that made his job so much harder. Grabbing a piece of cloth and stuffing it in the uncorked bottle tiptoeing back to the window, taking a match and lighting the fabric. Giving it a good lube as he tossed it in the middle of the floor. He heard the bottle break if it there was some time for the fire to build up.

Then proceeding took out the second bottle and stuff a rag in this cork; he was going to need a drink later after all of this. But he lit the second bottle and tossed it in the woman’s window to her bedroom. They couldn’t take the chance that she might have been able to save the child. This was a story that he was never going to tell Savannah, however as soon as the bottle was gone from his hand he cut the rope. Swinging down to ground level and cutting off her ability to quickly escape. Pulling up his hood he walked back into those allies there as still a few arrows he would need to find in a short period.

throwing a Molotov cocktail in both windows
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• 100 HP
• 90 EN

_____The world was muffled around her, but it was clear what she had done and people did not like it, but that was second to her own hate for her actions. Mind wrestling wildly against her kill mode derived from the hands of the Organization until she was back in control. Eyes darting around to re read the situation as she clicked her tongue and had to work with the own grave she set herself in. Sure there was a better way to do things, but to Nyx who only knew so many the one she felt was best was also very dangerous. Hands moving around in her sleeves as she got everything ready.

_____The first sign she was doing anything was her frame rising up and moving her arm as clear liquid spread from her sleeve. A moment after her face wincing in pain as she cut her left wrist with her knive and allowed her blood to drip into the chemical causing a chain reaction. The liquid rapidly bubbling before reddish black smoke consumed the area and spread quickly. It was not going to cause extreme harm to people, likely scatter them from the paranoia, but if they did enter the poison would eat at them slowly in its airborne form.

_____Not wasting much time Nyx pinned her sleeve to her arm with needles as a rushed wound cover before moving towards Yuu and trying to pick the girl up. Then rushing to the cloaked woman and tugging her cloak to hint to follow before Nyx kept running to try and clear the area while people dealt with the rising chemical cloud. Nobody would die, though some would likely be harmed from prolonged exposure to the cloud. Setting Yuu down when she assumed she was a safe distance before falling over herself and growling.

”Help… her… NOW…!”

_____Nyx struggled to lift herself to sit up, she knew her idea was going to hurt her more as her sleeve did little to keep the blood from pouring out but she was far more worried about Yuu. Nyx hurt someone who was kind to her again, it pained her more then any stupid wound she suffered, but it would hurt so much more if the girl died because Nyx had no control over herself. She did not want another to die because of her. Moving to dig around her sleeve for something that could help if needed, but little luck as she coughed up blood from the poison in her system. A brief worry Yuu might also be poison as she searched for the antidote worst case.

Chemical smokescreen & escape
100
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• 124 HP
• 152 EN

Fire?

He could hear it too, the scattering of glass, the licking flames, the stench of an alcohol-based flame. The scream of a woman, and a violent thump. First the sister, now the mother or maid? Fucking hell, it was like the interrogation of the Caenis all over again. No real direction, just wanton violence and the involvement of innocents, of non-targets.

The Aristocracy seriously had no professionals available, huh?

For a moment, the amethyst glow in Cain’s eyes emerged, the phantasmal noose loosening as it realized that this was truly the easiest method of completing the task. The simplest, the safest, the cleanest. It may cost him some interpersonal relationships, but a job was a job, and money was money.

But he still knew nothing yet.

It tightened again, the scorching agony of an infinite amount of routes, anxiety churning his stomach like the sea. But Cain narrowed his eyes, focused, and allowed his berserk nature to bleed into his psyche. He wasn’t a hero. This was all for the sake of self satisfaction. All for the sake of someone who no longer existed. All for his own interests.

But not being a hero didn’t make one a villain.

“Fine, I’ll take both of you out. Zack’s covering Yuu, but you need to trust me!”

With that, Cain burst into action, his midnight mane shining with an ethereal light as he bounded up the staircase. Harmonics pounded his heart as his entire body was transformed into an instrument, the flames barely felt as he landed where the fallen woman was. No hesitation. He was the fucking strong, the Flagbearer and Slaughterer of Miracles, the one who held both life and death in the palm of his hands. Lifting the woman up, the muse was just as quick to descend, practically kicking through the wooden floor to land onto the first again. Debris scattered all about as his eyes frenetically flickered about.

“Youn! Is this her? Let’s GO!”

If you need any roll, here it is
49
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• 124 HP
• 152 EN

He breathed, nodding once at Maria in gratitude as he buried any sign of guilt beneath the desperation of the motions right now. Aalam was a wild card in this state. If the archer was on the rooftops, he’d have a clear shot at Youn. Dark eyes flickered back behind him, before Cain slowed down, running behind the Oracle of Applesun instead of in front.

If an arrow was fired here, he could take it with his body. It would hurt, but it would work out.

“Too dangerous to group up,” Cain replied as she spoke about finding Zack again, “One of t-”

He stopped mid-sentence, eyes wide at the toxic vespers that rose up into the sky.

“…one of the assassins is a poison specialist. Need to leave town immediately.”

As he spoke, he led the mother and daughter into a separate alleyway, behind a stable. Gently the older woman back onto her fight, Cain narrowed his eyes in thought, carefully mulling everything over. “Alright, miss, here’s what you need to do. Run out and scream about how some madman’s kidnapped your daughter, racing out of town northerly. The people after her life are no doubt going to give chase, which should mean that they’d leave this village alone. In secret though, make sure that Zach knows that we’ve taken the southwestern route to a logger’s cabin a half day away. We’ll convene with him there, and plan out the next course of action.”

A pause, another look over his shoulders, before Cain removed a heavy cloak from his inventory and draped it over Youn’s shoulders.

“This should be the best way to ensure that no one here will be taken hostage. They aren’t aware of my personal motives yet, after all. Are you able to do this for me?”
@Skyswimsky

If you need any roll, here it is
23
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• 80 HP
• 80 EN

_____It was all Nyx’s fault, if she never came here the girl would not be bleeding or poisoned. The two would likely still be peaceful. Another moment passing before Nyx recalled more information she chose to ignore, there was still people here that would likely harm this girl and her family. Pulling the antidote from her sleeve and covering her mouth before coughing up more blood. Clicking her tongue Nyx popped the seal and poured some into her own mouth before leaning down to Kiss Yuu and give her the antidote also.

”Cure… Not… trying to harm… never wanted to… Traineed to kill… not choice… others here… keep… safe…”

_____A mix of bad social skills, half dealt with poison, and losing blood was the result of he very chopped words as Nyx struggled to her feet and instead fell back over coughing. She inhaled far more of the cloud then she could cure with the small amount of antidote she had given herself. Not to mention she only had a cure for a single person so her large hope rested in the fact the mage could deal with what was left of the poison.

_____Rolling to her side and trying to sit herself back up Nyx was left rather stuck. If she tried to move again it would likely harm her more, but at the same token if she did not move and Yuu’s sister was killed Nyx would blame herself. Turning to look at the cloaked woman and Yuu again before Nyx struggled to stand again. Her frame barely holding itself up as she took a step at a time into the open, she had to find Yuu’s sister and make sure the girl was safe. It was all Nyx could do to try and atone for her actions.

_____Hand trembling towards her temple as she activated investigation mode and used her hunting mastery to try and track down any leads. Her impression of the sister similar to Yuu, likely with another person… it was a long shot in her mind but she had to try and make sure both made it out safely. Staggering forward and attempting to use her Incognito mastery also to avoid the people searching for her. She would turn herself in later for her actions, but with the other hired killers still lose she had to escape until they had been dealt with.

Searching for Youn & evading searcher for her.
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• 148 HP
• 102 EN

Aalam was watching a house burn it self-down to the ground and a mother that was saved by a dashing hero. Cain was someone who had put their lives in danger to save someone that they barely knew, and in the process seemed to comfort both the mother and what looked like her tow daughter. That alone with his ability to make any tale that he told and word that passed his lips to be one of moral conviction. He was the perfect example of a hero after all who but a hero what have done what he just did? There were times he evened the way that the man was able to work his way into the hearts of every person he meets. If he was only able to bring that man to his way of thinking, all of the people that he had touched over the time in Terra. That alone would be so useful it would make him a great agent, shame. However, it seemed that Nyx was doing something useful if that plume of whatever that was making its way into the air. It seemed that this was going to work well as long as Cain was either able to make to drop point in a few they would be able to close this job.


He thought about heading back to the bar but then again this was Cain, and well Cain had a conscience. That was something that could lead any man astray. Damn, he missed the days when people were just able to do what was asked of them. He had set up Cain to be the greatest of heroes but in doing so had put all the targets in his hands. He couldn’t trust a man like that to do what was needed of him, after every time they had worked together he had put the people on the job. If he was going to do that again he was going to kill him, so that meant he was going to have to find that him and follow him. Turning his attention back to the well whatever nyx had because she would be alright and if not well. They were plays they could come back from the dead after all, so either way, it wasn’t his problem. If was able to make it out of this alive then he would buy her a drink.

So he unequipped his bow and placed his quiver back in his inventory. Pulling his face mask back up and throwing his hood over his head. He had to play this carefully if he was seen that he would mess with any plan that Cain had but he had to make sure that the man was going to complete the mission. Either way, he had a man to follow.

Following Cain but staying out of sight
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• 124 HP
• 152 EN

She really did trust in that man’s strength, hm?

He’ll use that then.

Dark eyes flickered back, catching the shadow of the archer, and Cain clicked his tongue. Dude was definitely keeping the reins tight, hm? “Zack entrusted you to me, Youn,” the flagbearer spoke, “Because he knew that he’d be kept busy against these assailants. That’s why I need to get you out of here first, before all else.”

He took the young girl’s face in his hands, turning it so that she had no choice but to look at him.

“Trust me.”

And then, those words turned into whispers.

“Now slide your eyes to the side, very slightly. The shadows by the storage shed. Do you see him now? Careful, don’t make it obvious, or he’ll put up his defenses again. We’ll be taking a horse immediately. Do you have any magic that can stop him?”

Her reply didn’t matter, not in this case. For the story to be complete, a daring chase like this was necessary.

“I do believe in the innate goodness of your magic, and even if the world requires equal misfortune for the fortune you grant those close to you, that’s absolutely fine with me, because I’m cut from the same cloth. Now, I will countdown to three, and at ‘one’, we move, got it?”

Her reply still didn’t matter. If he was strong enough to carry Youn’s mother, he could do the same here. His heart thrummed like a drum once more, the faintest ethereal strength flowing into his limbs.

“Three.”

The path was straightforward, the stables already in sight.

“Two.”

He definitely had the tools, magical and physical, to make it.

“One.”

They moved as one, Cain picked the girl up as the ground beneath him crumbled. Accelerating dramatically, the midnight haired muse bounded off a tree, sharply turning before grabbing the reins of a nearby horse. Arcane magic burst from his fingertips, searing the rope that tied the beast down, before he leapt onto its back. Without even orientating himself, he slapped the horse’s rear end, sending it rushing out in the opposite direction. One hand held down his hat as his midnight mane billowed in the wind, while the other maneuvered his young passenger to his front.

“Let’s go!!!”

And, for the first time that day, a feral smile crested his features, the adventurer wholly enjoying the adrenaline rush of an explosive escape.

@Skyswimsky

If you need any roll, here it is
22
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• 148 HP
• 102 EN

Aalam was following Cain because the man had proven time and time again that he was more similar to Vivan that he was comfortable with. Meaning both of them played by a set of rule that either put their interest or the interests of a single person over the job. One day he would have people in his group that would be just able to kill. That was the dream a simple job where they were able just to kill who they needed to and go home no hang-ups or anything else. That was the dream, just kill who they had to kill and then go to a bar and drink. From the way, the girl was slowly speeding up to walk, and it seemed that wasn’t going to happen. When this was over, he was going to hit Cain with something heavy and possibly metal in nature. It needed to hurt. However, it was also possible that he was luring her into a sense of security before would then kill her. This simple seemed that it was going to boil down to if he would trust that Cain would follow what the job installed and kill the girl……..Yea no that was a not going to happen.

So it was time to run, while he might not have had the man’s speed he was fast enough he just needs to keep them in sight. He did raise an eyebrow as Cain bounce off a tree to get him and the girl seated on a horse. Well, that was new, and for Cain unexpected, however, it didn’t make much of a difference to him. He still has a shot. Equipping his quiver and pulling his bow off of his shoulder as he slides to a stop picking one of his special arrows out of his quiver. A shield breaker one of the heaviest arrow he had gotten made, strong enough to punch through most amours, bones and as the man implied shields. Sliding to a stop on the grass as he nocked his arrow back to the full draw of his bow and got a bead on his shot as much as he would have liked to put an arrow in Cain that would solve the problem. The horse would still be galloping away, and he would lose the girl, and from here there was too much risk that he might not kill her. So pulling out a next arrow he chooses the next target, the would take out there escape animal.

So he aimed for the back of the horse's knees, he would simply make the beast unable to run to well walk.

Putting an arrows in both the horses back legs
24
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• 70 HP
• 70 EN

_____Nyx was in no shape to deal with running, hand holding her cut wrist as she clicked her tongue and also drew her bow. She was risking a great deal with her gamble as she notched back and arrow and began pulling the string of her long bow back while using her foot to hold the bow in place for a full draw at top speed. She was not aiming for the horse but the arrows going from Aalam’s bow. A far smaller and faster target but worth trying.

_____Firing the first and soon after struggling to fire the second intercepting arrow as the strain started to yell at Nyx. Her job was far from down as she pulled some paper and ink feather from her UI to write a note and snapped the tip of another arrow. A clumsy shaken hand attaching the note with a small trail of blood along the side before Nyx did a quick check of her bow and took aim again for a new target.

_____The arrow had to go much farther, accounting for the horse speed, time to slow down so it could be caught easily, and a shot in the dark as to where Cain might try to go in that time. Biting her lip as Nyx drew back her bow string, aimed skyward, and prayed her note would reach Cain. The least she could do was try to help him, she would likely not last longer to sae Youn herself. With the last arrow airborn Nyx collapsed, her bowstring covered in blood.

‘Yuu is safe… I swear if you kill Youn you will die a thousand deaths…’

- Content of the letter should it be caught.
@Skyswimsky

Attempt to shoot down Aalam's arrows with her own, and shoot a message on an arrow to Cain.
54
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