Resting On Summer's Day

Location: NW Forests - near Village of the Moon

If there is one place that I both love and hate taking missions at it is the damned Western Forests. I have bad history here and while that should haunt me, I also very very fond hunting memories in this region. The Northwest is actually an enjoyable place to travel and visit the villages here. They typically have plenty of work for me when my travels bring me here. I was low on supplies so avoiding the main trails was at the top of my priority list at the moment. I would traverse by the creek that leads towards the Village of the Moon. I needed to drop off a package here anyway. So I figure if I take the creek, I'll have plenty of fresh... well relatively fresh water to drink and I could even try my hand at killing some small fish should I get hungry again. I was running low on dried fish and jerky after all. Speaking of jerky, I still don't know why that party I was with reacted so strangely when I started cooking that yokai that we fought. I see no point in letting good meat go to waste and the old shamans in the villages to the south of here say that eating the bodies of some yokai and mystical creatures can imbue special powers onto the ones who consumes it. I refuse to feast upon benevolent creatures, but if I'm hungry and unsure of when I might eat again... you better believe I'll roast a yokai. Thinking about that makes me a lil hungry again, so I pull out a small piece of jerky that was made from the referenced yokai and nibble on it a bit. I keep my eyes peeled as I move along. My attire is that of a normal traveler. I saw no reason to alarm people plus I was still waiting to acquire my new armor before I would start wearing stuff like that. For now, simple lightweight clothes that will allow me to hide in plain sight. You know the other good thing about walking along the creek... there are generally very few bandits. I must admit, I am not in the mood for a fight at the moment.

EXP: 388

La di da di da! My demeanor is rather relaxed and easy as I continue on my walk. Moving at a rather brisk pace, I continue along the moderately deep creek to my left. Walking along, I pause for a moment as I look down and notice something in the ground. Looking down, I grin. Well ain't that something. I find a nice, shiny and glassy rock in the ground. I'll have to give it to her since I'm sure she will be displeased to see me again after milking her for information to complete my job then vanishing right after dinner. It was not that I do not find her attractive because I surely did, but I don't mix business with pleasure. Unless it is part of business. Given how often I find myself traveling, pleasure of that sort only really comes from other adventurers and operatives or as part of my assignment when I am ordered to get close to someone in order to influence them in some way. I pocket the stone and keep walking. I see someone up in the distance entering the water. Looking back to the sand along the banks, I spy clothing and something shiny. I would wait for a moment to see if he noticed me as I continue to walk nonchalantly. My mischievous side starts to perk up as I look at the male in the water enjoying his swim. I suppress it seeing no point in such antics. I saw no point in actually saying anything, but my curiosity gets the better of me, "How's the water?"

EXP: 281/669

Looking at him, I notice he keeps looking at some chain on the sand or perhaps his clothes. I'm going to assume that unless he's wealthy and paranoid, he doesn't have any valuables on his person in the water and thus they would be small and probably tucked in with his clothes. Considering that I'm actually not a thief, he should count his blessings. If I was, he would be cleaned out and left completely naked as insult to be added to the injury of the situation. He tells me that the water is suitable, but alas I cannot waste time. "Another time maybe. I have to get into the Village for work. You should come look for me at the inn. I'll buy you some tea." This is said before I chant softly to myself, "Clothes, go to the inn." A small opening in the Void would appear below the clothes before swallowing up his clothes whole and to try and sell the whole thing, I jump back from them and look at the dissipating energy and the male in the water. I run to toss him his chain to protect himself before I tell him that he'd better hurry to the village. Now truth be told, this is rather cruel considering that he has no clothes and just a chain, but at least the chain looks long enough to cover at least part of him. I would move quicker towards the Village of the Moon snickering to myself as I move forward. I could not wait to hear the reaction of his entrance into the village. Oh the depraved humor in all of this!

EXP: 288
^_^

Coming up on the wall of the Moon Village, I smile at the guards and ask one of the guards if the "Old Woman" is in the village. He tells me that she is and will be glad to see me. Oh great. That means that she most likely has a borderline suicidal mission that she needs undertaken and I'm one of those people who don't really care about the job as long as it is fun and the compensation is adequate. There's nothing worse than taking a job that ends up being a great deal of trouble of inconvenience only to find that I'm not getting paid much at all to deal with it!

I walk by and tell him that I provided a little amusement for them that should be following in a moment. I smirk and keep walking inside. The Village of the Moon is a rather nice village and the decor is very simple and traditional yet amazing in the grand scheme of things. Their architecture is Feudal Oriental and most of the people wear silk or silken garbs. The less "wealthy" citizens have cotton or hide garbs with silk stitched into them. That's one thing that I always enjoy about coming to this village. Silk is somewhat abundant here while it is rare in the eastern lands... especially the Bazaar in the Coastal Lands of the Monarchy.

The inn comes into my sights as I make my way thru the quaint village.

EXP: 260/1217

Not more than ten minutes after I had passed thru the gates, the guards see the strangest thing thing approaching them. As he gets closer, they make sense of what I meant when I passed by. They look at each other and while they acknowledge the humor in the situation, they maintain discipline. When the chain clad nude male approaches, they address him as they would anyone, "What brings you to the Village of the Moon?"

Inside the village, I traverse to the tavern on the eastern part of town where most of the adventurers and explorers tend to go to look for work. The tavern in the town center is generally more for travelers and "tourists". I enter into the bar and a good number of the patrons are wearing kimonos. I nod to different people. There is a reserved table off to the side where Yuki's belongings are neatly placed. Considering that they just appeared over thee without warning a few moments ago, no one is going near them. Thankfully I was able to make them appear before I got here. Before I can even order anything to drink, one of the hostess girls walks up to me and tells me that she is waiting for me. My left eyebrow raises quizzically. Oh you have got to be kidding me! She actually knew I was coming?! Great. I was planning to avoid her for a while if I could. Possibly drink a few rounds before she asks me to undertake her latest batch of insanity. I tell the hostess that the owner of those clothes would be arriving within the hour. If he asks, a cloaked figure left them there asked you to keep an eye on them then left. She giggles and nods to me. "I also won't tell my cousin that you are here in the village." I nod to her and tell her that when I return after my looming job, I'll have a present for her to express my gratitude for her discretion and assistance. She smiles at me and leads me to the back.

EXP: 373/1590

The guard that spoke to him nods to the other guard who walks off for a moment. He returns with a old linen robe. "Wear this for now. Since you obviously are need of goods with which to barter, you should probably head to the Yellow Owl, it's a tavern on the eastern side of the village. Head inside and go north two roads and then head right towards the stables. Once you reach the stables, head north again and it'll be right there about one road up. There you can find work and get yourself some clothes and food perhaps." Once he got dressed, he would be admitted into the village.

EXP: 119/1709

The hostess and I come upon the back area and there she is. The manipulative old bag that called upon my services in dealing with problems that might arise for her. As soon as I make it back to her, she tells the hostess to bring forth a platter of fruit along with riverfish with spicy lime seasoning served over a bed of steam cooked rice lightly seasoned the same way. She pauses for a moment and asks for that special herbal nectar from the Village of the Sun. I look at the old woman and nod to the hostess. Sitting down with the old woman, I look at her quizzically for a moment. This is one old fox that is always up to something and if she plans on involving me, I am definitely curious as to know what it is.

Entering the tavern would draw a few looks as Yuki looks like a beggar of sorts. The hostess would be returning to the front and she spots Yuki. Smiling she looks over his attire and asks him to follow her. She leads him in the direction of the table with his clothes on it hoping that he would notice them. She's dealt with all sorts of shady characters so she would know if his reaction was genuine to the clothes. If his reaction is genuine then she would be leaving to handle the order of our meal. She already knew what the Old Lady wanted as she orders the same thing.

EXP: 265/1974

To everyone else, her actions would seem completely normal. While this is a tavern, Yuki would not notice a standing bar, but a several sets of tables with people gathered around them all. She was sort of a cattle herder in terms of the flow of the seating. As soon as someone came in, one of the hostesses would guide the next group or individual to their table as well. If his gaze fell back upon the front section of the tavern, he would see this at some point. The decor of the tavern is traditional as well. While no one is wearing their shoes or boots, there would not be a cupboard against the entering wall. Those with shoes or boots take them off at the entrance and carry them to their table. Since he has no shoes, he does not have to worry about such. At each table, he would see individual cupboards for the shoes built in the seating. Above the hardwood seating area, there would be cushions for each individual around the table.

The hostess takes note of his reaction and his apparent confusion. "So you are the one that the woman was snickering about... how unfortunate. Would you like to get dressed?" If he answered affirmatively she would lead him to a private room and wait outside the curtain after pulling down a shade to signify that it is in private use. Normally that is reserved for... "other" private uses.

EXP: 270/2244

The hostess would still be waiting by the door now that she knows that he is the one that I said would be arriving. When he thanks her, she "replies" with a smile and nod of her head. The gesture of acceptance would be followed by an inquiry, "So what brings you here, traveler? Would you like to be seated and see our menu of food and drinks?"

Meanwhile in the back, the old woman smiles at me, "I'm glad you accepted my invitation, Dravec." I respond coyly, "If I had known that it was from you, I may have reconsidered truth be told." She chuckles and tells me that she figured as much, which is why she had it set anonymously. Sneaky old bag! I nod to her with a grin and inquire, "So what manner of insanity are you prepared to ask of me this time?" She fakes a surprised look on her face and tells me that she thought I enjoyed her past requests of me. I scoff and tell her that for what she typically pays, it is a major inconvenience. "This job will pay you far better and I think you'll find this one a bit more personally satisfying. I want you to intercept a shipment being delivered to your old friends, the Order of Chaos." My internal stirrings threaten to penetrate my infamous calm. There was no secret of my hatred for the Order of Chaos that had brewed for the last 10 years and that I believe them to have knowledge of my Master's whereabouts since he disappeared. She sure knew how to get my attention... that is something I must admit that I do not like.

EXP: 298/2542

With a smile she asks him to follow her. When Yuki answers her question, She inquires as if she didn't already know the answer, "A man told you to come her? What did he look like? I may know of him. And as far as work is concerned, you have definitely come to the right place. What sort of work were you looking for? Our patrons offer a variety of employment opportunities and exploration adventures heading south into the regions that are rumored to be filled with evil spirits and creatures." She would await his response as to a description of the man he encountered. Also, judging by the look of the male walking behind her and the fact that the old woman is here, she wonders if I actually already knew that the Old Woman was waiting for me and deceived this man into coming here to aid me. Well now that would be quite a deception indeed.

EXP: 171/2713

The hostess remarks, "He had silver hair you say? There is but one person I know like that. He is here and meeting with the one we call "The Moon Witch". If you want work, she is quite the employer though no one tends to work for her for too long... except for him. I hope you aren't afraid of demons. Many of her jobs involve hunting dark spirits." The hostess signals for Yuki to follow her as she leads him towards the back where we are catching up. While they are walking, she asks him for his name as she would need to introduce him when he arrived. The hostess also needs to go check on my food as well as the Witch's food before she starts bellyaching about the whole deal. The Witch could be quite a nag at times.

When the two of them walk up, the Witch and I would be beginning our talks about the new assignment before she would quiet down to receive the interruption. Upon the Witch tell her to bring him back, the hostess brings him back to the table and introduces him telling the Moon Witch that he is looking for work and is an acquaintance of her "current guest" which is in fact, me.

EXP: 222/2935

The hostess bows to the Moon Witch and speaks, "Sorry to disturb you, but this man says that he knows your guest." I smile at the Witch and nod with my back still to him. The hostess excuses herself from the room in order to see to our food. Sniffing the air, you got your clothes back. That is very good. I'm glad that u were able to make it. You get to help me get her off of my back." I turn my attention to the Witch and continue, "As you can see, he has the look of a warrior, so he will be a fine choice to handle ur affairs for u. So I don't have to be bothered with this mission, right?" She looks at me and remarks, "What if I finally teach you what you've been trying to figure out on you're own but have been unable to do? And still pay u of course. Will u undertake this task for me now?" She looks at Yuki and invites him to sit with us. She asks him half sarcastically, "Do u see what I have to put up with?" I remain silent in my thoughts weighing the offer. She was offering knowledge that I wasn't able to acquire on my own. That alone was enough to entice me. Truth be told, I question whether I'm currently strong enough to take on the Order of Chaos. There was only one way to true test my strength. Besides, I wouldn't be going up against the entire order. Just a single snatch team. Loking at Yuki, I remark coldly, "You had better be good with that thing (referring to his chain) if you're coming along with me. Slow me down and I will leave you with a second thought." The Moon Witch looks at me and comments that I become more like a harsh winter every time she sees me. Ever since... she stops without directly mentioning it but she was right. I am what the world has made me.

EXP: 341/3276

That sounded like a challenge. Perhaps after business had been concluded, I would take him up on that offer. Grinning at him, I nod to his comment. "I suppose we shall see." The witch chooses to ease the tension at the table by offering a quip. "Now now boys. Kill the captors and rescue ur target before u decide to kill one another please." I remark, "yeah yeah, old lady! Business before pleasure, I know." The hostess returns with my drink & the witch's strange elixir. I swear that's how she's still alive. She asks Yuki what he would like to eat & drink. Once he responded, she would smile and head back to the kitchen. One to get right to business, I inquire, "So give me... I mean us the rundown for this job." She looks at Yuki first and asks, "Are u up for this?" She had no intention of discussing our business arrangements in front of Yuki if he had not officially accepted the job. It was dealing with the sensitive matter of the Order of Chaos and around the forests, they are kind of a major player, so she would definitely want to be careful. I honestly couldn't care less about the Order of Chaos being aware of my longing to annihilate them. They were my sworn enemies until the day that I die or find someone to hate more than them for trying to sacrifice a child.

EXP: 257/3533

The old woman chuckles and says, "Oh Great Mother!! You're starting to sound like this one. Just make sure that the payment is ready." I definitely did not like that comment as she was basically implying similarities between this one and myself. An insult to say the least. Meh, it is of no consequence. She chimes in and says, "As I was telling him (me) earlier, this mission is a rescue job. Your target is a young female human. She has dark brown hair that is slightly curly. She has a slender, yet developed figure and a sigil marking on the back of her neck. You will recognize it for sure. Also, she has a underdeveloped voice however. She sounds like a child." The Moon Witch produces a map and shows us a highlighted route and tells us that this is the route that she will be brought along. I ask, "Who is she, witch? You are going thru quite a bit of trouble to retrieve this girl so she must be important or valuable to you." The Moon Witch tells me that she is my target. I scoff at her evasion of my question. She points out highlights on the map of different locations to be to noted. Some of these would make ideal ambush spots. The only problem is that it's just the two of us, so this should be interesting to plan. Studying the map, I inquire of Yuki, "Mercenary or soldier, which are you?"

EXP: 266/3799

Asking the Moon Witch if there is anything else we need to know, she tells me that she would appreciate it if one of the enemy captors could be brought back alive. She looks at me and I feel an unsettling feeling inside my head before I glare at her. I HATE that she can do that. Nodding to her, servers return with our food and I smile at the sight. I forget about her little mental intrusion as I gaze upon the food being served. The hostess makes sure that we have everything that we need before she closes the curtain behind her. The Moon Witch leaves as well with a rolled up scroll or something left her place. "She really gets on my nerves. Well, we might as well eat up, we don't get good meals like this all the time. Once we're done, we go hunting. I have much better things to do than run errands for her. So... where do you normally operate at because I don't believe I have ever met you before, Yuki?"

EXP: 185/3984

The meal is quite delicious, but I was not getting paid to eat. As soon as I finish, the hostess returns and asks if I need anything else. I shake my head and tell her that we are fine and about to leave out the back way so that we can get straight to work. She looks at me and I inquire jokingly, "You think she might fancy Yuki here?" The hostess rolls her eyes at me and tells me that I am unbelievable at how cruel I can be. I snicker at the response and tell her that I'm liking to test said theory when we return. Considering how abruptly she vanished, I am assuming that she only has part of our payment now that she would know that I had "acquired help" you could say. Albeit, I was just having a little fun playing a prank on a warrior that got caught off guard, it seems to have turned out to be quite advantageous. "We should get moving, Yuki. I want a chance to survey the area before the package and targets arrive. Grab the map." I grab the other piece of parchment left behind and rise from the table. The hostess bows respectfully to both of us as we depart. Slipping out of the back of the tavern portion of the inn, I motion for him to follow me. Now the fun part begins. I won't lie and say that I am thrilled about hunting with someone new, but there is something about this one that leads me to believe that he might possess some skill in terms of hunting the sort of prey that we were about to be after.


EXP: 288/4272

Mercenary JC: 8
For: 5/22, 5/23, 5/24, 5/25, 5/26, 5/27, 6/2, 6/3
PWC (Operative Network): 4272
* Rewards will all be collected at the end of the next thread.

The member 'Kazatul' has done the following action : Dices roll

'10 Roll' : 2, 3, 4, 9, 5, 5, 7, 9

The member 'Rune' has done the following action : Dices roll

#1 '10 Roll' : 1

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#2 '10 Roll' : 6

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#3 '10 Roll' : 2

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#4 '10 Roll' : 10

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#5 '10 Roll' : 5

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#6 '10 Roll' : 3

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#7 '10 Roll' : 1