Private Tales Of Eunuchs and Cults

[Smiling One]

(OOC: Prologue

)

“Guards! Attention!”

The clanking of metal was heard as the young men and women of the Elbion guard stood up straight in anticipation for the Guard Captain. “Guard Captain Albert!” A guard saluted him, but his body was shaking like jello. The tone of his voice was wavering between surprise and fear.

Albert stood in front of his fellow guardsmen, his round, brown eyes scanned him. A sigh escaped his thin lips, and he rubbed his square. “What happened? Who messed up this time?” he said irritably.

Twenty years Albert has served faithfully as a proud guard of Elbion. It wasn’t as glamorous as being a knight something he dreamed of becoming as a child but going from a butcher’s boy to the youngest person to become Guard Capitan. That was the proudest moment of Albert's life at age 20 this was his chance to make a difference. However, Albert's time as Guard Captain has been mired with bureaucracy, corruption, and incompetence.

The last Guard Captain had many of his cronies on the payroll and it took Albert years to purge them out. The Merchant Council was growing unbearable with them pulling strings and forcing Albert to look the other way when there's a crime committed that involves them. Now the Guard Captain has to deal with a new generation of Guards who much rather go taverns and get drunk and go dicing rather than do their duty.

It was a hard life but a life that Albert is willing to shoulder. Regardless of the problems he's faced, Albert is committed to Elbion and his guardsmen even if they are a bunch of lazy good for nothings. Today Albert is investigating the deaths of three people in a house located in the Residential District. A man named Jason found the bodies this morning. When Albert interviewed him Jason identified one of the victims as Renaldus.

Albert remembered frowning at that, Renaldus was the son of Jeffery: One of the major investment bankers of this city and the husband of one of the council members: Cecily Payne. The family will want swift retribution even if it means burning the entire city to the ground. Albert had to work quickly and punish the people responsible for Renaldus' murder otherwise his parents will get involved and will use rather unconventional means to get justice.

Asking around the neighborhood, residents said late at night they've heard moaning which according to them sounded like two Cats pulling out each other's intestines with their claws. Renaldus' stableboy stated that Renaldus' carriage has gone missing as well. So far it seems that the murderers after killing Renaldus and his friends used the carriage as a getaway. At least that's what Albert deduced as he let his guardsmen investigate the house while he took questions.

That was a big mistake.

"Sir!" the guard said quivering. "Nancy has been knocked unconscious."

"Unconcious? How?!" Albert growled. "Speak up boy! What happened?!"

"S-she drank the wine in order to test the evidence." The guard responded. "She fainted immediately!"

"WHAT?!" Albert roared jumping up and down. The guardsmen stood back cowering at the Guard Captain's rage. "WHAT HAVE TOLD YOU FOOLS?! YOU'RE TO NOT TOUCH ANY EVIDENCE WITHOUT USING GLOVES AND NOT TO DRINK OR TASTE ANY SUSPICIOUS ITEM! WE'RE TO GIVE TO THE FORENSIC SCIENTISTS AT THE COLLEGE OF ELBION!"

"O-Of course sir!" The young man stammered about to cry. "But-"

"Take me to her!"

The guards lead Albert to Nancy who was flat on her back. Albert growled and Nancy slowly woke up, "H-hi captain," she giggled.

"I'm surrounded by idiots," Albert said shaking his head. It was then he went to the corpses of Renaldus and his friends. While Renaldus was identified, the other two: a human and a dwarf weren't. Bending over to examine Renaldus, Albert noted a deep puncture wound in his neck with blood covering it. The poor boy drowned in his own blood, in addition, Albert noted a wound as well though it didn't look fatal.

Albert then got up and went to over to his bedroom, Renaldus' bed was ransacked with sheets strewn everywhere. Squinting, Albert saw some skidmarks on the concrete floor it seems like something was stolen. Now he recalled that valuable items would sometimes be stored under their bed. Albert hypothesized that this was a murder robbery. Someone broke in, tried to steal any valuables, Renaldus and his friends tried to stop and were brutally murdered in the process. The thief then made a run for it with the carriage.

At least that's what he thought, finding the carriage would be easy enough. The suspect couldn't have gone far and the door guards often record the model of every carriage that goes in and out of Elbion. Still, there was no evidence of an escape.

"Sir!"

Albert turned around to watch a guardsman running towards him at full speed, he tripped and the item he was holding fell out of his hand as he landed face first. A golden belt buckle was seen ricocheting off of Albert's Silver armor. "Oh for goodness sake!" he said rolling his eyes while picking up the beltbuckle.

The man struggled to get up, "I-I" he said. "Found that near the door! It could belong to our suspect."

Albert sighed. "Good job," he said. "Continue sweeping the area and get these bodies ready to sent to the College of Elbion so they can be examined. Bag any evidence if you can!"

All the guards surrounding Albert saluted and scrambled to do their jobs. "Time for me to look into this," he said staring at the buckle.

 

[Trajan Meng]

((Clarissa Mejeure))​

The marketplace.

Hmmmmm. Perhaps a touch vague, that. What was the entirety of the Merchant District of Elbion if not that? Oh if they hadn't been pressed for time. The tiny little intrusions of life. Specifics had gotten lost in the haste. A bother, the slipping of a crucial detail or two from the mind.

Clarissa Mejeure stood outside Betsy's tailoring shop. It seemed the most sensible place to wait. Willis had recommended it, and yes, Betsy had quickly surmised what had happened with a smile and set about repairing her ripped corset. A mix of leather and cloth, the tear had been up near the bust, above the top buckle. Which also needed replacing. A slight mismatch of shape and color of the new buckle--Betsy could only work with what she had on hand--but it gave her corset some character, didn't it? At least until she could commission another one.

All and all, not too bad. The coin covered the cost, and it took merely an hour. Perhaps she ought to become well-acquainted with Betsy. Prudent, given her particular predilection to absolutely adoring her clothes being ripped from her body. There simply was no better to spark the fire of a long and lovely night, was there? Hmmmmm.

Claire leaned against the outside wall of Betsy's shop, next to the door. Arms and legs crossed. Watching the market-goers go about their business up and down the street and in the open plaza with all its stalls and all its hawkers. Clear skies above.

What else did she have to do today? Not much. Trajan seemed keen on something big in Elbion, or at least Khadija had said as much. But Claire's help hadn't been requested. Not yet. So time. Yes, time. Plenty of it to spare taking a stroll out along the Cairou to Renaldus' little hideaway and finishing off the rest of his necromantic group. Perhaps that would clear the way for necromancers and other such mages who were actually Luminari material. Hm. She still couldn't get over the fact that he had been a eunuch. It...well, frankly, it didn't seem fair. The presence of sexual tension was the sharpest weapon in her toolkit, the brightest spell beckoned forth on her command. Why, if she were denied that, it was very much akin to stripping a swordmaster of his sword, wasn't it?

Claire waited.

In her pocket she had one of the special tokens the Luminari used. Her own personal one, of course, but also another for Willis. They were simple little things. Smooth dark stones, nothing particularly extraordinary about them to the naked eye. But they had a simple little enchantment upon them. To allow Dio's birds to home in on their location, and so to deliver messages back and forth between members and allies of the Luminari.

And it would be a shame if Willis didn't show, whatever the reason might be. Surely it would be much more difficult to track him down and contact him again without him having one such token on his person, given his occupation. Monster Hunter. Always in search of the next monster to slay.

But all would be fine. One way or another.

Hmmmmm. Yes. The savory memories of last night. If nothing else, those were hers to keep.

And she could fly, fly away with them. If need be.

She'd done so before.

 

[Smiling One]

Albert oversaw the bodies being transported to the College of Elbion where the forensic scientists were waiting for them by the gates ready to take them for autopsy. As soon as the bodies were dropped off, Albert ordered the guardsmen who were with him to take the evidence to the Guard tower that should be an easy task for these lazy bums. After the guards saluted and left, Albert began to head over to the front gates to check the daily logs of the carriages that go in and out of Elbion. After about two hours of reading, he couldn't find anything close to the description of the carriage that was stolen. Either the thief dismantled it or they're still in the city with it.

Albert took out the gold belt buckle and took a good look at it. The belt buckle was unique "Vel Anir," Albert mumbled.

Vel Anir designs were fairly rare in Elbion and the merchants who travel here charge a pretty penny for any items they sell. That narrows down a bit all that's left is to investigate but where to start? Albert once again stroked his chin and decided perhaps it would be best to go over to the market square first. That's where the carriages are most common at the carriage was of Dwarven design, which was rare considering that Dwarves don't often make carriages so again, it should be easy to look for it.

Arriving at the marketplace, Albert couldn't help but think of Nancy who was knocked by drinking the wine. Foolish girl, he told the guardsmen repeatedly not to taste anything during an investigation. However, the Wine presented a question: Why was it there in the first place? Was the thief's intent to put Renaldus to sleep before he found out? Albert personally presented the Forensic scientist with the wine so they can examine it as well. There was a sleeping substance placed in the beverage no doubt hopefully it'll lead somewhere.

Looking around, Albert saw that there was no sign of the carriage. Usually, carriages gather around the marketplace maybe the thief dismantled it after all. If so clever bastard. It was then Albert's eyes darted over to a woman who was leaning next to Betsy's tailor shop. She was wearing a black tight leather clothing, a dark purple shaw. Albert winced when he saw her massive cleavage being exposed to the entire people can see. She was there to seduce either she was a prostitute or something relating to one. Recently it was declared illegal for prostitutes to plow their trade in the marketplace at least during the day time. Many merchants were complaining that the sex workers were taking a lot of their customers.

Marching over to the woman, Albert stared at her bust then at her eyes. "Excuse me, young lady," he said. "It is illegal for prostitutes to ahem advertise their assets during the daytime. "I must ask you to cover up."

And then Albert saw it.

On the woman's corset was the exact same belt buckle that was in his hand. Vel Anir design, in fact, her entire outfit was Vel Anir style. Frowning at the woman, Albert showed her the golden belt buckle. "I do have some questions to ask as well," he said. "I think this belt buckle belongs to you considering that you have a mismatched one. That's of Besty's design is it not?"

Albert then glared at the woman. "Maybe I should ask the Elven tailor about what happened she seems to know a lot."

Was she a possible suspect? It may be, Albert was making progress! Glaring at her Albert began to speak. "What's your name?" He asked.

 

[Trajan Meng]

((Clarissa Mejeure))​

Everyday, a prude. Oh, granted, most men appreciated Claire's choice of attire, as they did for other women of various descriptions wearing much the same. Usually it was other women, the jealous and the envious and the outright angry looks, some mumbled words, accusations made under their breath, but that was where it stopped. It was the minority of men who were forthright in their prudishness, who took it upon themselves to march up just as this big armored oaf had done and proselytize their banal religion of terribly inflated decency.

She knew well that Trajan straddled that line. It was obvious that he preferred for her to dress differently, but he never spoke of it. And that was fine enough.

Oh, but this one. Some manner of guard, perhaps, given how he bandied about notions of the law.

Claire scoffed. "I've half a mind to slap you. A prostitute. How dare you. Is this how the Elbion Guard treats all visitors? Assuming this and that about them? I'd just as soon suggest of you that--"

Ugh. More questions. Hmmmmm. He had a belt buckle. Similar design, but still, a lowly and incredibly common belt buckle. Where'd he find a golden one? A bother, that hers had been broken off. Still, even if it was of the correct color, little concern. Terribly circumstantial. Oh, perhaps the Elbion Guard had to make some effort to determine what happened to Renaldus and his cohorts. But proof was an awfully slippery thing, wasn't it?

A simple matter. The guilty acted guilty, the innocent acted innocent. So act innocent. Angry and open, nothing to hide. Not the sweaty and nervous and stammering wrecks the guilty tended to become under scrutiny, desperate to change the subject or leaning heavily on convincing statements and shallow pleas.

Claire scoffed again. "Mine? Can your eyes not tell the difference between gold and steel? Hmph. Tell me. How many things do you assume of a woman you've never met before?"

Claire hitched her shoulders up and brought her crossed arms up her body slightly higher. "Yes. Go talk to Betsy if it would please you. I believe you've insulted me enough for one day for doing nothing more than simply standing here. And it's Miss Mejeure to you."

And she said conspicuously under her breath, "Oh the sheer rudeness of it all..."

Lips pursed.

She did so enjoy her little moments of righteous indignation whenever she could have them.

 

[Smiling One]

It was a good thing that Albert was wearing a metal hat that way Miss Mejure wouldn't be able to see his reddened ears. Being a guard for 24 years leaves you assuming many things. Just because Mejure was exposing her cleavage for all to see doesn't mean she was a prostitute. Albert has made sure to withhold judgment until he had legitimate evidence but sometimes he would go and accuse people of crimes just by baseless assumptions. The city guard has taken a hit over the years due to their tactics of stop and frisk and stereotyping.

"Forgive me Miss Mejure," he said bowing. "I did not mean to assume that but I must warn you the guards may not do the same. For your safety, I suggest you cover up to avoid any harassment by the guards."

Oh, who was he kidding? Many guardsmen would be trying to sleep with Miss Mejure on the streets! They would rather follow their sexual organs than their duty. That did not mean that Miss Mejure was off the hook though Albert was certain that the belt buckle was of Vel Anir design. "Argh!" Albert thought. "Let's the facts first before making any judgments!"

Albert entered Betsy's tailor where he saw the Elf sewing a linen shirt. "Good morning Guard Captian!" She said cheerily. "Your shirt should be ready in about 3 days."

https://steamuserimages-a.akamaihd....462/9ED21CC115CCA3CD1C6D8F42BC270DD4121475EA/

"That's not what I'm here for Besty," Albert said. "I'm investigating a murder. Do you know that woman behind me?"

Betsy dropped what she was doing and stood up. "Well her name is Claire," she replied. "She dropped by my shop a couple of hours complaining about her ripped corset."

"What else did she say?"

"Well while I worked on it, Claire mentioned how she had the best sex in her life last night." Betsy paused and frowned trying to recollect her memories. "With her boyfriend, she didn't say who but she did tell me that they were humping each other somewhere in the residential district."

Albert was taken aback. "H-humping?!" he stammered his face turning red.

Betsy smiled. "Oh! You know when two Dogs get together, the male dog would mount the female and-"

"Yes! I now have the image unfortunately stuck in my head!"

Betsy chuckled. "Claire told me that she and her boyfriend were supposed to meet at the marketplace. After that, she talked my ear off about how she loved riding the carriage throughout Elbion."

Albert glared at the Elf. "What carriage?!" He demanded his tone darkening.

Betsy raised an eyebrow. "A carriage of Dwarven design," she replied. "She told me she lost a wheel while riding too fast and abandoned it somewhere in the docks."

A grin appeared on Albert's face his first suspect! Normally this would take days before for a suspect to be identified. Fate smiled on him. "Thank you for your questions, Betsy!" Albert said before running to Miss Mejure.

"Claire Mejure!" Albert said. "You're under arrest for suspicion of murder! Come with me now!"

 

[Aldren Cordale]

The skies opened to reveal a hefty sun, pouring its bright lights against the slightly scarred, bearded face of the knight. His eyes opened with quite the struggle, as his body demanded yet more rest. The weight of his armor had never felt so dense as it was in that morning, as Aldren fought into seating with his back leaned against the huge tree that provided him with cover enough to keep him at bay for a few hours.

This particular journey had been quite the drag, long and tiring. It was only a few days ago when his eyes fell upon the letter carrying a familiar seal, with words as dirty as they were friendly and funny. A letter from Willis, one of his most trusted friends, against all odds. Aldren and Willis became bounded, almost literally so, a small time ago as they carried out the purging of a ancient and powerful demon. As a member of the famed Monster Hunters, Willis surprised Aldren with this cunning skills to fight such beasts, and even prompted Aldren to partake in the Guild as a honorary member, carrying out contracts in their name. In the end, he was a Templar Knight first, and such was his duty to kill monsters and defend the land against evil, but he was impressed with the Monster Hunters, how noble was their task of dealing with the very monsters that Aldren sought to kill, with even greater liberty and resources at their disposal.

Aldren couldn't let such an opportunity pass by, and so he ventured deep into the business, starting to make quite a reputation for himself, although unlike Willis and his fame for being a good gambler as well as a monster slayer. Aldren read the letter again in that morning as he leaned against the tree, worried about the urgent business that Willis told him in the paper and what could've caused such ruckus.

After wetting his own lips, along with watering and feeding his dear Helen, Aldren mounted his mare and set out at full speed through the roads and woods, letting the howling winds carry him through the plains until he arrived at Elbion, taking one of the side entrances and going straight to the Guild's main base of operations, the Academy. After entering the main courtyard of the vast keep, kept with the good graces and deep pockets of the Merchant's Guild, Aldren lowered his hood, with some of the passing members almost instantly recognizing him for his Templar helmet. The knight nodded back at them before making his way to the stables, resting Helen in their able hands.

He avoided the gatherings and the usual chit chat over cards and ale before making his way to his quarters, letting go of his bag and the letter inside it as he went straight to the bed, exhaustion taking hold of him and driving him to sleep in the very same instant as the wooden door closed.

Now all that was left was to wait for Willis.

 

[Trajan Meng]

((Clarissa Mejeure))​

He went inside the shop. And Claire stayed exactly where she was as the door closed behind him. Leaning beside it, arms and legs still crossed. Not a hint of worry as she heard the muted talking within. Oh she'd been accused of many things before. Some true, some not. A constant: Running had the irksome tendency to make the guilty evident, and the innocent suddenly guilty. Good for a cheap thrill, of course.

And the Guard burst out of Betsy's shop in a huff. And was placing her under arrest. Speaking of cheap thrills. Hm. A bother, ultimately.

Claire made a face like he had slapped her. "Why, your assumptions never cease, do they? Murder? Hmph. Shall I find you a witch to burn while we're at this?"

Hm. Seemed Betsy and Claire had a thing or two in common. But gossip was so much fun, wasn't it? Hard to blame her. Still, for every little detail she'd shared with Betsy, it'd be trivially easy to make up some cover story. Again, little concern. And even if worse came to worst, she could always sell out Willis. After all, she didn't kill anybody, now did she? A terrible shame if the situation would call for it, but he wasn't a Luminari loyalist, and she had known him for the sum total of only a few hours.

Oh, betrayal. Such a bittersweet drink to imbibe. But she gained friends and acquaintances and expended them as necessary. Bridges built and bridges burned. A form of art, subtle manipulation. All she had in a world ruled by the sword and the spell, her being less than a novice in regard to both. Her true weapon, a knife forged from trust and confidence. Painless was its entry. The heart oblivious to the stabbing through. Until it was too late.

Ah, the rush of it all.

But now, the bothersome Guard.

Claire thrust her hands out. Wrists together. Presenting them to be grabbed. "Go ahead. Arrest me. Oh, I can't wait to see you look an absolute fool when you find out. Let's go, little man. I'm waiting."

 

[Smiling One]

Albert stared at Claire mouth agape flabbergasted at what had transpired, he expected the woman to drop a flashbang or punch him in the face before running off while he gave chase. To actually surrender without any resistance at all was unexpected and suspicious. Approaching Claire, Albert gave her a sharp glare "what are you trying to pull?" he asked.

The Guard Captain then began to pat Claire down checking her boots, pockets anything that looks like that she could even hide a weapon some kind including peering at her cleavage though Albert shut his eyes before taking a quick glance at it. "O-Okay," Albert stammered still confounded about what transpired. "Let's go,"

Albert then grabbed Claire's hand and pulled her away from Betsy's tailor. He wished he had cuffs with him, Albert forgot the cuffs when rushed from the guard after receiving news of the murder a few hours ago. The Guard Captain didn't say anything to Claire who was smirking at him. Once at the guard tower, Albert plans on interrogating her. If he had to guess is that Claire will tell Albert the murderer in exchange for a plea bargain.

Just then a dark-skinned man wearing a red vest and white shirt approached Albert and Claire. Albert frowned and placed Claire behind him. "Stand back sir!" he declared. "I'm escorting this woman to the guard tower, she is a suspect in a murder."

The dark-skinned man frowned crossing his arms. "Are you?" he grunted. "That suspect just happens to be my girlfriend."

"What?!"

Albert looked at Claire and then at the man his eyes growing wide in shock. "You're her boyfriend?!" he yelled.

"Yeah," the man replied. "And I want to know the charge of her arrest?"

"Suspicion in the murder of Renaldus."

The man was still unfazed. "What proof do you have?" he asked.

Albert began to stomp his plated feet on the ground in anger. "Excuse me, sir!" He roared. "You don't have the authority to question me! She's a suspect and that's the end of it!"

Albert then placed his fingers on the bridge of his nose. "What is your name?!" he demanded.

"Amare," the man replied in an icy tone. "And I have every right to question an authority figure. For all, I know the evidence against my girlfriend is circumstantial at best or at worst a false accusation."

Albert frowned "Are you accusing me of forging evidence?!" He roared. "I have proof and a testimony from reliable source that possibly links Miss Mejure to the murder! Now get out of my way Amare!"

Amare shook his head. "I think not," he said. "If by testimony you mean Betsy then I don't think that'll have much clout, everyone in Elbion knows that Betsy has a tendency to be forgetful."

Amare nodded at Claire. "Come on Claire," he said. "We gotta go and I'm going to report on the Guard Captain for doing a false arrest, my dear."

 

[Trajan Meng]

((Clarissa Mejeure))​

Of course. Everything had a way of falling into place for her. Everything. She knew the limits to which she could tease and tempt fate itself. To which she could walk along the tightrope of danger. The perfect balance. Not bad, if she did say so herself. Hmmmmm.

Willis had come around. Interjected more doubt. Oh, but it was certainly the most effective weapon against this oaf of a guard. He and his fellows weren't so good at investigating, were they? Renaldus surely had some incriminating item laying about in his house. Even if he was extraordinarily careful for a necromancer, it didn't much matter in the end. Terribly difficult to pin her down to anything, even with what Betsy had said. And Kha likely had the carriage tucked away in one of the many warehouses down at the docks by now, ready to be shipped out to Vel Anir. Trajan paid a handful of poor, overworked harbormasters to look the other way for the Luminari. Coin well spent.

Claire smirked. Slipped her arms from the Guard's stunned grasp. Mock waved to the Guard. "Oh, I believe there's some saying or another about making assumptions. My, how apropos it would be, if I could only remember. Hmmmmm..."

And she went to Willis' side. Held up the crook of her arm for him, such that they could walk away arm-in-arm.

What a lovely show.

 

[Smiling One]

Willis had a busy morning. First, he wrote to his friend Aldren informing him of an active. Aldren wouldn’t resist it. A cult in Elbion? His Templar code would never allow that to happen. From the time Wilis knew Aldren taking out cults were more important to him than killing monsters. Then again, perhaps he sees cultists as monsters Grandmaster Julius has mentioned that sometimes people can be monsters deadlier than the fiercest of Demons. Considering what Willis had seen throughout his life, he couldn’t disagree.

After sending the letter via traveling bird, Willis spent the coin that Renaldus generously donated on throwing knives, more bombs, and a new Cutlass. He also went to the Alchemy store, paying a considerable amount of coin for the Alchemist to brew Willis four health potions and a strength potion. Though Willis has a low tolerance in enhancement potions, it could come in handy in a fight, however.

After shopping, Willis found that he still had a good amount of coin left he would use the rest of it taking Claire out on a date. The young man smirked thinking about Claire; she was still vague regarding their deal they made a few hours ago. He was to join the group she is in on three conditions and the last was if Claire to be his girlfriend. Willis didn’t mind if they were apart for lengthy periods of time. It was okay, their jobs demanded that they travel around but Willis semi-serious about it he wanted a commitment from Claire that they will be a couple.

Speaking of Claire….. the first person Willis saw when he entered the Market Square was Claire being escorted by a Guard in bulky silver armor. He was Guard Captain: Albert an honorable man and a real stick in the mud according to one Willis’ contacts in the guard. The guardsmen to say that if the law was a woman, then Albert would go to great lengths fuck her brains out.

A law-abiding guard captain who was tougher on crime more than any other guard captain in years. Being a part-time smuggler, Willis found it difficult to land jobs in Elbion but with the wealthy controlling the city and about a third of them being the heads of criminal organizations, crime was still booming though more subtly compared to Alliria. Still, Claire was in trouble again for being a suspect in the murder of Realdus. That's not good but Willis had to be calm there was no use in acting like an idiot and making them both look guilty.

He used that name as an alias, Willis despised that name it made him bitter and reminded him of his past. That person was dead years ago but he's using his name right now just to save a woman whom he only known for a few hours.

The things he does for love..... or was it lust? Probably both.

Willis smirked hiding his irritation of using the name again. "My damsel in distress," he said. "I always in the knick of time to sweep you off your feet." Willis leaned in and kissed her on the lips, he felt tempted to say that he suspected Claire sold him or was about to sell him out to Albert but he put it to the side. Willis wouldn't be surprised if she did it though and he wouldn't blame her.

"So let's-" Willis began until Albert cut him off. "HEY!" he shouted his face flustered with embarrassment. "You can't just leave with a suspect!"

"Keep your voice down," Willis said staring at the crowd who was trying to ignore the rising tension between the three. "You're scaring my girlfriend and you're pissing off the crowd. As you may have missed the people are tired of you."

"I don't care!" Albert said. "It is my duty to protect them regardless!" He drew his Greatsword from his back the blade glowed against the sun's rays a white light. "You are both under arrest!" Albert growled. "Surrender now!"

Willis sighed and drew out his Cutlass. "This won't take long," he smiled at Claire. "Cheer for me my dear?"

 

[Trajan Meng]

((Clarissa Mejeure))​

Hmmmmm. Sweep her off her feet. That, among other things.

She kissed him back. Not nearly as fiercely as last night. Different circumstances. Oh, there'd always be time for that later. Right after the harrowing rush of raiding a retreat filled with necromancers who would none too happy that they had been discovered. Funny. How well sex and violence paired.

Oh, the oafish Guard. He simply wasn't going to let this go. Poor little man. His tenuous grip on his suspicions and accusations, not quite able to make the necessary leap beyond doubt into reasonable certainty. A small rush, to literally be the one of the two people he happened to be looking for, even if he didn't know it for sure. Just a small one. Tiny pleasures.

Hm. Still not much. Even as the Guard drew his massive sword and Willis drew his cutlass. Willis didn't seem worried, and there wasn't much immediate threat against her person, so the thrill stayed mild.

Claire spread her fingers and examined her nails. Nonchalant. Intending to irritate the Guard further in conjunction with Willis' relaxed sigh and demeanor to his supposed 'authority' and command.

A smirk and a glance to Willis. "He's no monster, is he? This should be all too easy for you, love. Hmmmmm..."

 

[Smiling One]

They were about thirty yards between them, Albert growled his face turning cherry beet watching Claire checking her fingernails as though he did not exist. "It seems that the Tin Can is getting angry my dear," Willis said. "The authority figure hates to be disrespected though here he is trying to you away from me over circumstantial evidence."

It was semi-serious, Willis did have a problem with guards who would abuse their power though admittedly Willis had contacts within the guards and he did illegal activities every now and then. Hypocrite? Oh yes, he was but still. "Yeah, It should be easy taking care of Rusty," Willis said to Claire snickering. "If anything the townspeople would be paying me for his defeat!"

"Tin Can?! Rusty?!" Albert positioned his feet preparing to charge. "That is the last time you disrespect the Elbion Guard!"

Albert rushed towards Willis and Claire, his blade held to the side and his teeth clenched. "I need my cheerleader," Willis said kissing Claire one more time before rushing to meet Albert's charge.

There was an ear splintering clang as both blades collided with one another. Albert began to push Willis back grunting putting all of his weight on to his blade. Willis altered his Cutlass, twisting it free from the lock and spun around to hit Albert in the back of the head. The Cutlass made a long scratch on Albert's metal hat but was otherwise unaffected.

Albert turned and did a vertical slash, Willis took a step backward nearly feeling the pointy end of Albert's great sword. Willis could briefly hear the sing of the Sword as it cut through the hair and landed on the concrete with a thwack. "I don't want to kill this man," Willis thought. "It'll be even worse for Claire and me, I have to find a way to knock him out."

He had to admit though, for a big man, Albert was surprisingly quick. Willis did not expect Albert to recover so soon.

 

[Trajan Meng]

((Clarissa Mejeure))​

One more kiss, then Willis rushed forward to engage the Guard. It wasn't needed, but Claire took a few steps back regardless. Entwined her fingers and held her joined index and middle fingers up and to her mouth. A smile peeking out from behind them.

A giggle as Willis scored a strike against the Guard's headpiece. And Claire said mockingly to the Guard, "Oh you poor thing. But perhaps your sense of color has been knocked back into place, no?"

Hmmmmm. Uncharacteristically fast for an oaf. But Willis had surely faced larger and faster and more fearsome foes.

A glance about the market. Oh, nothing drew attention quite like a fight. Hawkers stopped hawking, browsers stopped browsing, buyers stopped buying. No other guards yet from what she could see, but the cold and creeping threat of their inevitable presence brought on an increased thrill. A quiver. Hmmmmm. There were quite a lot of eyes on them, weren't there? Could they even extract themselves from this incident without further ado?

My how one thing could so quickly spiral into another. And where might they end up today, hmmmmm?

 

[Smiling One]

Albert raised the Greatsword over his head bellowing. "Why do people scream when they attack?" Willis thought while sidestepping the vertical cut and slashing his shoulder blade leaving a jagged scratch.

Lifting his Greatsword Albert scowled at Claire's taunt his eyes glazing over a bit. "Be quiet!" he yelled at Claire stumbling over a bit. "No one tells my girlfriend to be quiet!" Willis barked back though there was a playful grin on his face that blow to the head is causing Albert to get a little woozy. Trying to take advantage, the mercenary rushed at Albert trying to penetrate his defense. Willis unleashed a flurry of quick thrusts and stabs aiming for Albert's cheek, eyes, and neck. Albert managed to dart most of Willis' attacks with his Greatsword but couldn't deflect them all. Willis landed a cut on Albert's right cheek blood trickling down off his chin.

Albert grunted and jumped back holding his Greatsword in front of Willis and placed a hand on the cut. "That's an assault on a Guard!" Albert yelled. "You're looking at 10 years in jail for that!"

Willis shrugged. "I'm defending myself," he said simply. "I have my witness!" he pointed at Claire.

The crowd began to run away in a panic having no interest in the guilt or innocence of Willis and Claire. One of the people running lamented out loud that "Albert is causing chaos in the market place again!" Which caused the Guard Captain face to become the same color as his blood. "I'm trying to apprehend possible murderers!" he yelled at the bystander.

Willis took an apple that was on a stand and threw it at Albert's face, the fruit hit his eye causing him to stagger back a bit. Willis then took out his smoke bomb from his bag and slammed it hard on to the ground creating a thick, gray smoke masking their appearance. Albert tried to squint through the sea of smoke which slowly started to expand. "This damn smoke!" he yelled slashing through it as if he was hoping to get Willis.

Sheathing his sword, Willis ran to Claire and put her in a bridal carry. "I missed you!" Willis smirked kissing on the lips. "Shall we go my lovely lady?"

From a distance, a man watched the fight his face covered in a hood. "So they're on to us...." he mumbled. "We need to accelerate our plans."

 

[Trajan Meng]

((Clarissa Mejeure))​

I have my witness!

"And my eyes work perfectly fine, love," Claire said.

A bit of a complication, even if they did have good cause for self-defense. Oh, perhaps it would be prudent to volunteer for another operari down in Falwood. Ooo. Or Bhathairk. She hadn't been there in a while. Elves were her favorite among xenos, but orcs were a good second. Hmmmmm. Spend some months away from Elbion, undercover elsewhere, until the heat from this particular incident died down.

Oh the possibilities.

Look there, a smokebomb. And Willis hurriedly emerged from the veil. Then in the blink of an eye she was in those gorgeous arms of his. Hmmmmm. With the proper convincing, she could be as a queen, and men like Willis her faithful knights. She need not even walk under her own power. Oh, but there were tales of ages past, of thrones shouldered by servants while Her Majesty sat upon it. My, wouldn't that be fun and indulgent?

Another kiss. Her arms wrapped around his neck. Satisfied smile. And she said, "We shall go. We've a place to be and a thing that needs attending, hmmmmm?"

 

[Aldren Cordale]

Aldren woke up, still unaware of where exactly he was, only that it was fluff and comfortable, two things that he had sought for a long time in his travels. After a quick stretch, he sat up with a minor struggle, realizing that he had slept in his armor, and that it was almost noon of the other day. He pat his face, feeling his head heavy and dizzy after such a long slumber.

After taking out his cloak and removing bits of his armor to make himself lighter and more comfortable, Aldren went on to check for new correspondence, finding nothing of note. He sighed, starting to feel itchy at the thought of doing nothing while waiting for Willis' arrival so they could go and take care of this urgent business of his.

Moments later, Aldren decided to take a walk around the Academy, to see how the facility was faring and to check on other recent businesses, trying to ponder to his boredness.

He spent much of that evening in tours throughout the Academy's halls, revisiting some familiar faces and chit chatting with a few other officers while they were on their breaks as well, away from the monster hunter business for the time being. Monsters never went on vacations, but even the most efficient hunter could use a rest time and again.

As night gathered, Aldren returned to his chambers and back to his bed, to pass the time and to try and get some sleep before returning to his duties.

 

[Smiling One]

The smoke soon engulfed the market place and Albert stumbled around blindly knocking down market stables in the process. "You're destroying our stores!" A merchant cried out. "You damn guards cause more harm than good!"

Albert clutched head groaning. "Citizen," he said. "Let me explain-"

However, the Guard Captain was soon surrounded by angry merchants and customers. "We're tired of you guards always thrashing our place!" one merchant said. "There was a guard that drank a tank tard of ale last week and didn't pay his bill!"

"And the guards still didn't catch who stole my curved swords!" Another merchant chimed in. "Curved. Swords!"

Albert gulped and dropped his Greatsword. "Wait a minute!" he cried out. "I'm aware of the state of the guard but assure you as Guard Captain-"

"Get him!"

Like Hyenas on prey, the angry mob pounced on Albert his screams drowned out as he was being pummeled by feet, fists, and stones. Willis still carrying Claire heard the screams of the Guard Captain and smiled. "Hmmm," he said. "At first I thought It was going to be a shitty day," he said. "But It turns out that the people are standing up to corrupt officials and I save girlfriend from danger."

Willis locked lips with Claire as they continued walking towards the Monster Hunter Academy. "It seems that you're developing a habit of getting into trouble," he smirked. "And I keep rescuing you. Sounds like in those stories where the knight rescues the princess. Though I hate Knights I don't mind rescuing my princess."

After an hour of walking the two of them finally arrived at the Monster Hunter Fortress. As soon as they entered, Willis gently placed Claire down and began to kiss her passionately. "I know we're supposed to wait for my friend," Willis breathed kissing her neck while one hand squeezed her breast. "But right now I'm grateful that Rusty didn't harm you."

Willis was actually pissed that Claire was captured and suspected that she was about to sell him out but considering the wonderful night he had; and the fact that she was damn good at making out, he'll let it go. For now.

 

[Trajan Meng]

((Clarissa Mejeure))​

"Oh, love, I've two prized skills that I hold dear," Clarissa said as Willis carried her. "Getting into trouble, and convincing people to get me out of said trouble. Oh, what a dreary life, I know."

A knowing smirk.

Then, after some time, they reached it.

The Monster Slayer Academy. Fortress? Monster Hunter Academy? Oh they all seemed so slippery with the names. The big castle where all the delightful lunatics who fancied fighting monsters for a living...lived. Well, that seemed as good a name as any.

Through the massive gate and inside the Fortress proper. A bit sparse on people, though perhaps Claire should have expected as much. Why, they were likely all out doing what they do best. Finding the nasty things and killing them. And, well, there certainly wasn't a mob of men and women outside banging on the gates demanding to be let in so as to become Monster Slayers themselves, now was there?

Willis placed her down. Ooo, feisty and bold. Putting on a bit of a show for the Monster Slayer trainees and their mentors out on the training grounds. Hmmmmm. Oh, how she loved to be affectionate and sexy with someone in front of other people. A subtle play of power, in her view. The flint that sparked savory jealousy. Oh that tiny little reminder of what they were all missing out on, the fulfillment of desire hers to dole out as she saw fit.

And so she grinned as Willis kissed her neck and touched and squeezed her and she reached around and clapped a firm hand to his backside, giving it her own squeeze.

"I wasn't much worried," she said, bringing her other hand to the back of his head. "Not with my fearsome Monster Hunter around. You've the right...touch...for every situation, don't you? Hmmmmm."

 

[Aldren Cordale]

Aldren went through the small pile of books with fair ease, helped by the fact that there wasn't much to do in a fortress scarce of people. Many of his colleagues from a day past now were already on their way out into the wilderness again, to travel and kill monsters, as is their job. The Academy was merely a stop along their many journeys, to rest and refill before the next one. And that was Aldren's wish, even only Willis could step faster and finally arrive so they could discuss their plans.

A couple hours later, Aldren had finished cleaning most of his gear and polished his sword, Darksbane. As he put on his jacket to set out and find more supplies for the next travels, he caught glimpse of a pair crossing the front gates of the fortress, one in particular being quite familiar. He had finally arrived. Aldren let out a short smile before he hurried down the stairs to meet them.

Unfortunately for him, he arrived in a time most incovenient, with Willis and his lady making out in the courtyard, attracting the attention of the few that remained there, and enjoying in doing so. At least his friend hadn't changed, and it served for the most amusing of partnerships.

Cordale sneak up on them, surprising the pair with his deep voice and crossed arms into an imposing figure, "Took your time, Willis."

 

[Smiling One]

"You're damn right I do," Willis whispered between kisses moaning when Claire squeezed his buttock. The few Monster Hunters that were near the entrance gawked at the couple some looking bemused and others looking aroused.

Willis was aware that there were witnesses, he didn't care. The Monster Hunter Academy was indifferent with Monster Hunters making out with their lovers anywhere as long as the Grandmasters don't catch them. "When you're in danger Claire," Willis whispered removing two belt buckles from her corset exposing her breasts. "I'll always be there to save you, my dear."

The young man wrapped his arms around her waist kissing Claire's lips passionately when a familiar voice interrupted him. "Ah, Aldren!" Willis said smiling as he released Claire. "Sorry I took so long I had some complications with the town guard who harassing was my girlfriend."

Willis sidestepped leaving Claire's bare bosom for Aldren to see. "Her name is Claire," Willis explained continuing to grin. "She's a spy for some organization she refuses to tell me about and she's going to help us take care of this cult."

The young man then crossed his arms and frowned it was time to take this seriously. The thought of informing the town guard was shot down since Albert was on to them but perhaps they could convince the Grandmasters to give them some coin. The Academy was purely funded by the Merchant Council of Elbion when the Monster Hunters migrated to the city after their old base located at the Spine was destroyed by King Grichen during the Age of Expansion. The Monster Hunters refused to bend the knee to the King citing their desire to be neutral during Grichen's bloody crusades. The King retaliated by destroying their fortress and forcing the Monster Hunters to flee.

"We should head to the Library," Willis suggested. "We can talk to the Grandmasters about possible pay and we can begin to plan our attack."

Willis then walked past Aldren and was about to head upstairs until he turned around and raised his hand at his dear friend. "So good to see you brother," he smiled brightly."

 

[Trajan Meng]

((Clarissa Mejeure))​

Right here?

Well.

Now that was bold. And oh so thrilling! Even moreso than the brief exposure outside the carriage last night. Such a naughty thing, wasn't it? For daylight to dare touch bare breasts in their entirety. A taboo made center stage of some grand play.

Perhaps Willis had a certain measure of clout within the Fortress, such that those others in the courtyard wouldn't bother him no matter what he did. Perhaps whoring was a particular pastime of Monster Hunters, and they simply thought her one. Well, they wouldn't be wrong, now would they? Hmmmmm. The line between fair maiden and dirty whore seemed all too thin and rigid, especially according to her prudish parents. Call her a whore then, if it meant she could avoid the dull and dreary life of being a good girl. Stood on a pedestal like some ancient relic, only allowed to be touched by a single curator. Ugh. Some fates made the noose look a lovely little escape.

Oh! And Willis brought a friend! How pristine!

Claire didn't blush at all. Simply smirked and crossed her arms underneath her breasts and propped them up just so. All the better for--Aldren, was it?--to admire them. And of course he would admire them. All men did. It was like a wonderful tithe she collected from them. The mere movement and lingering of their eyes enough to send her ego soaring for a moment or two.

Unless they were like Renaldus. Hmmmmm. Speaking of a dull and dreary life. Willis had done him a favor, in Claire's estimation.

"Don't worry, love," Claire said to Aldren. "I promise I won't spy on you. Not without being a dear and telling you first."

A wink.

And Willis mentioned moving to the Library. Spoke of some Grandmasters. Oh, yes, the bother of the cult. Wouldn't it be nice if these cultists just tried to do something crazy and, oops, blew themselves up? Why, that would free Willis and his handsome friend Aldren up for one day, at least. Ahhh~~~...leisure time. Almost as fun as working.

Time to meet these so-called Grandmasters and be about this business. Vengeance did have a sickening sweetness to it that she so enjoyed. From time to time.

So Claire wrapped her open corset about herself again and secured the two buckles and made herself 'decent' once more. And with a flick of her hand through her hair she sauntered after and then beside Willis, following his lead.

 

[Aldren Cordale]

As pleasing as the sight of Willis' girl's bare breasts open for display was, Aldren already had his share of women trying to play and tag him for a fool with their good looks and their galore of assets. Not to mention there was already a woman occupying his thoughts every day, as their travels always seemed to diverge their paths. He knew they would meet someday soon, and she definitely wouldn't like to hear that he was looking at other women with less than honourable intentions.

And so, Aldren kept his face straight and serious for the round of introductions, his gaze falling to his hunt partner in displeasure. "You're late. I thought you mentioned a urgent business regarding cults, but it seemed you were already taken with very... peculiar rituals of your own."

His imposing facade was brought to a halt when Willis approached and they shared in a less than serious and over-the-top handshake, evidence of their good friendship even though the sellsword always got on Aldren's nerves with his behaviour. Willis motioned and prompted the trio into going to the Library, a quiet place where they could discuss their plans. Aldren got out in front, leading the love-birds towards one of the doors that led underground.

With a few manuevers on the lock, the magically sealed door opened to reveal a grand set of stairs leading a long way down, a narrow path with only a few torches to illuminate ahead. Aldren started the descent, eventually reaching the vast undercroft that stretched far below, a hidden castle on its own by the size. The Library was the Monster Hunters' main source of knowledge, acting as bestiary and safeplace for their many magical and ancient acquisitions, especially those that had to remain far from the hands of the people.

The shelves towered above them as they navigated that maze of books and antiquities, eventually reaching one of the studies so they could gather and evaluate Willis' information on the mysterious cult.

 

[Smiling One]

(OOC: Willis and Aldren's handshake XD

)

Willis and Aldren's were polar opposites, Aldren was a squeaky clean honor-bound Templar Knight and while Willis is a morally questionable pragmatic dreg of society who also hated Knights. Realistically they shouldn't be compatible. Then again in Willis' experience "realism" is a word that people often slap on when they want to sound like a stuffy, pretentious, asshole. The two of them became fast friends working together in Monster Slaying contracts. Willis found life to be full of surprises who the fuck knew that he would get along with a knight?

After Willis and Aldren performed their custom handshake which had them exchanged high fives and it ended with a hug, the three of them headed for the Library. As the trio walked up the stairs, Willis stared at Claire wondering if she would actually bare her breasts out for him. Of course, given their wild night, Willis had already seen the spy's assets but he always loved a good tease. Still the group she worked for.... Claire hasn't told Willis everything about it just some idealogues he didn't care too much for. For people like Willis, coin was the law and it was all that matters.

"Still not going to tell me who you work for?" Willis asked smiling. "I mean don't you have a welcoming package to give me? Any kind of greeting rituals?" Willis then grabbed Clarie's belt buckle again slowly unlocking it. The young man can tell she loves the attention. "A striptease?" he winked.

After going through the magically sealed door, they were finally at the library. It was an enormous room chock full of books dating back to the Age Of Uroghash. The Monster Library is the second largest in the World of Arethil only the College of Elbion's Library is bigger than it.

"Right," Willis said. "First let's inform the Grandmaster of our intentions," Willis said to Aldren. "We get our pay and we can start planning."

 

[Trajan Meng]

((Clarissa Mejeure))​

Certainly knew this Aldren fellow well, didn't he? And what a dreadful shame it was. The man seemed far more concerned with their tardiness and performing some complicated handshake-embrace with Willis. An all-business type, but the handshake-embrace seemed to suggest otherwise. Hmmmmm. Curious, that.

Oh, but it hardly mattered. They'd business to attend to, and Aldren appeared quite keen on seeing it through. Even moreso than Willis or Claire, or the two of them combined even. And they had been the ones nearly sacrificed. All well and good. They'd be done with this whole matter handily and soon enough, and perhaps then the Luminari could get on with actually recruiting suitable mages and not lunatics.

A question as they walked through the Fortress.

Claire smirked. Placed her hand on Willis' own and peeled it away. "I believe I already told you the deal, love. Oh, don't you worry yourself, it still stands. Much too easy to simply tell you, and all. Hmmmmm."

Claire made a point of buckling her belt. A show of unnecessary force. Her smirk growing just so. "And we've a culture of merit. There are things you could...earn. Many a delightful thing comes to those who show the proper, hmmmmm..." Her tongue ran across her bottom lip, teeth lightly perched there for a moment. "...dedication."

The control. The teasing up to the absolute breaking point. Indulgences given on a whim, taken away on a whim. The acts of a cruel, oh so cruel mistress. The fun of it all, the game she played. And it truly was something she couldn't lose. Either her control would work and she could have her fun feeling regal and dominant, or her control would fail...and the thrills would come, oh yes.

The Library.

How terribly impressive. And boring. This was something far more suited for Dio. Just looking at a book threatened to knock Claire out cold, as if it were some automatic defense of hers to spare her the dreary death of the banal. Was this something Monster Slayers had to do? Research? How exquisitely awful. To spend time in these musty halls when they could be out attending to their namesake, the heavenly rush of adrenaline coursing through them.

Willis had the right idea. Get in and get on with the task at hand.

"Oh yes, let's," Claire said, stifling a yawn. "The sooner, the better."

If these Grandmasters were stuffy, old, paragon-of-virtue types she feared Willis would need to catch her. Oh, it simply would be too much, being surrounded by boring books and boring people.

 

[Aldren Cordale]

Aldren tightened his jaw as he glimpsed over Willis and his girl's flirting as they strolled through the Library. He always hated how the sellsword never took any matter serious, especially when he was near women. Willis had that desperate hunger for women and the many pleasures they brought him, while Aldren focused more on the pleasures of fulfilling his duties, that being recompense enough for him. The trio passed next to the Monster Encyclopedia, a vast compedium detailing all of the monstrosities the world has ever seen, since the very first kill at the hands of a Hunter, one of the many wonders hidden down the Library.

Having finally arrived at one of the studies, Willis and Claire were at each other again, talking about the mysterious group she was part of, and that Willis was very much eager to know about. Aldren would be lying to say that didn't spark a bit of curiosity on his own mind, but his thoughts were now concerned with the cult Willis mentioned. In a span of a few months, he had seen enough of lunatical cults to know they were a plague in need of rapid cleaning, and he had hoped to spur that intent and take the fight to them.

Yet, his heart jumped at Willis' idea of loaning from the Grandmaster. Quite possibly amongst the richest and most resourceful men in the kingdoms, thanks to the Monster Hunters' vastly deep pockets and now the Council of Merchants' support, Aldren was always mindful of asking them for that particular branch of help. Any business that involved coin had repercussions that he liked to avoid, but that venture could certainly use a patronage.

There weren't many other Hunters around, with the majority now out into the lands doing their own share of hunts, and that left them really underhanded, a thought that worried Aldren. Considering that this cult seemed like a throughouly nasty and dangerous one, they could use every bit of help.

"Fine, but you're doing the talking", Aldren said, his arms crossed.