Beginnings in Zaphis

While taking cover from the rain Dwek began to doze off again. The sound of light rain hitting the wood above his head was...hypnotizing. He sat in the fetal position, cradling his great sword. Though his cloak wrapped around most of it you could see many scratches. There were too many for them to all be natural. Most of the marks seemed to have been made by his own dagger. 

He fell into a deep sleep for the first time in a while. It had been months since he slept like this. It was refreshing, but also a sign of weakness. He couldn't afford to lose his awareness in any situation. At least, this is what living in Wyrmenhiem had taught him. He slept for a while. When he had awoken, he saw that he was still alone. Deciding A bit more rest would help he fell into a light state of sleep. He'd be able to notice anyone coming along now.

Eliana pondered on what he, Dhadaeryn, could've gone to Frundonmire for? Especially when they had just claimed war on Fedonia. There could be many interesting things that could probably happen, and it would be kind of cool, yeah? But, going to Frundonmire could also be a very bad idea. If they've claimed war, and he's a prince, couldn't they just kill him and just go on with their lives? This probably wasn't too important, especially since she wasn't in any danger, anyways.

"We'll leave soon, but first I need to get a few things from around town. A lot of people owe me debts from previous games, and I think I should collect them. Eliana, come you with me?" Dhadaeryn said, peaking Eliana's curiosity. Why her? "Uh, sure." She said hesitantly. Though this might not be the best idea, since she, as a thief, would probably be easy to recognize by the other townfolk. Well, since he's the prince, he could just tell them not to jail me. After having the thought, a slight smile could be seen from her. Maybe this wasn't such a bad idea after all. She gave a definite nod now. "Sure, I'll go with you." She said confidently. Maybe while she was there she could get more goods, anyways.

"Goldy, can you meet up with the big guy? If you can find him." Her smile grew wider. Ah, at least I don't have to go search for the nut-guy. Heh, good luck with that "Goldy". She said in her head mockingly, then looked to Dhadaeryn, who had already started walking away. "See you soon." She said to Goldy before turning around to follow the prince.

"I've never wanted to go to Frundonmire before. I've been there though, I might just be a bit of a nuisance if I go, you know. But... I guess I'll go, if i have to." Eliana responded, a little dramatically. Dhadaeryn chuckled.

Goldy simply sighed. This was going to be a long trip. Why were they going to Frundonmir, anyways? Was that the only place they were going? They all were in the dark at the moment.

"We'll leave soon, but first I need to get a few things from around town. A lot of people owe me debts from previous games, and I think I should collect them. Eliana, come you with me?"

Her eyes flashed between the two. What am I going to do, just stand here? Her mouth was suddenly sour.

"Goldy, can you meet up with the big guy? If you can find him." he continued. She scoffed and gave a quick nod.

"If?" She whispered, a small smile on her face. Of course she could find him. Even if she hadn't been trained to search for people for three years, it would be very hard for her not to see a man of Dweknel's stature. "Of course I can."

She glanced at Eliana and saw the smug smile on her face. To avoid becoming angry, Goldy quickly averted her eyes and looked to the direction in which the big guy had left. She heard their parting footsteps. See you soon.

Ignoring the fae's words, Goldy spun on her heel and made her way through the alley way. Okay... I think he said he was going to the outskirts. Her braid swung like a pendulum as she strutted towards the faraway gate. She scanned the streets, hoping that she wouldn't have to walk that far. No such luck.

~

Goldy liked being outside of cities just as much as being inside them. There was something about the air that was becoming heavy with humidity and the birds that tweeted so sweetly. She slowed her pace as she walked down the rocky road that led to and from Zaphis. "Where are ya...?" She mumbled under her breath, once again playing with the fingers of her gloves. There was a lot of area one could call "the outskirts."

She spotted a little dirt road that broke off from the main road just before the bridge. It seemed to follow the river for a long ways. As she approached it, she saw large footprints on it. Probably his. She thought, turning onto it. I hope the rain holds off. This road will turn to mud and ech... not fun... and I'll get wet and I'll catch my death and-

Splat

"You're kidding me..." Splatsplatsplat She began to run down the road as the rain began to soak everything. A mile later, the ground was quite wet. By the time she reached the second, the road had become her worst nightmare and, upon discovering the grass was in no better condition to walk on, she trudged miserably onward.

She eventually stumbled upon an area with a fire pit near the river and an empty stable a little ways off the road. There was probably a little village nearby, or an old farm. She crept forward, her hair and clothes waterlogged. Craning her neck, she peeked to see if he was hiding out in the stables. Sure enough, there he was.

Is he sleeping?

She let out a sigh of relief (mostly about finding a good place to get away from the rain) and began to make her way over. What's that on his arms?

Dhadaeryn made his way through the crowds with ease, though they parted when they saw the Fae. They had gotten on the wrong side of Evysa once, and they didn't feel like taking there chances with this one. Dhadaeryn wasn't bothered, he didn't care for much talk. He instead looked among the buildings he saw, and was looking for a telltale sign of his debts.

"Stay five feet to my left when you enter."

There's the first one, a long row of herbs and pots outside of it. He walked to the door and knocked four times, paused, and knocked another three times. The door cracked open and then slammed shut. He wasn't happy to see Dhadaeryn, obviously.

"Go away! I don't have the money!" he said, and Dhadaeryn sighed. Tilar never really cared much for the subtleties of greetings. Dhadaeryn then spoke.

"Open up, I'll collect my debt in a different way. Maybe I'll have Evysa come by?" there was a crash, a groan, and the door slowly creaked open. From inside a shady looking man, about the height of Dhadaeryn, was hidden behind a cloak. He started to clean the broken flower pot as Dhadaeryn took a look around. He needed medicinal herbs, and lots of them. How much could he get out of him? Pulling out a paper and pencil, he started to jot down different amounts of different things, and at about the same time that Tilar finished cleaning, a paper was thrust into his face. This distracted him further, and he didn't even notice when a paper was handed to Eliana. It had pictures on it of everything that was needed, and the amount.

"I need all of that. If you can't supply me with it, then no matter, I'll have it anyway. Even if it has to be stolen." he spoke with authority, and the man examined the list. He looked at Dhadaeryn and laughed. Dhadaeryn would never steal anything, mainly because Evysa would smack him. He didn't even care to notice the Fae. Most crime was treated with a slap on the wrist here, anyway, and if it were severe enough, execution on the spot.

Last execution was twenty-three years prior.

Last slap on the wrist? Eliana and Goldy.

Tilar turned his back as he started to run the numbers.

"In fact, when they're stolen, they'll be in and out before you knew what hit you." he continued, now standing next to Tilar. Tilar still never paid a notice to the Fae, as he had been distracted the entire time. First he was cleaning, and then he was reading. Now as he was calculating, there would be nothing for him to suspect.

Obviously nothing suspicious if his client was right there. Dhadaeryn pulled out another paper and started to do calculations on the side of Tilar. Tilar was somewhat distracted again, and started to focus on both of the calculations.

More time bought.

Eliana, it's all on you.

At the bottom of her note, it read four words: Wait for me outside.

Below that: For safety and less suspicion.

Dwek tensed up as he heard the sloshing of mud coming towards him. His hands sleepily fumbled towards the dagger on his hip. This however wasn't needed because it was Goldy who rounded the corner into the stables.

He felt a slight wave of relief that was immediately followed by a sense of unease. This was his first time interacting with people in ages. It was all so awkward and drawn out. What's more is that she was now slowly walking over to him. He pretended to sleep for a second before realizing his arms were pretty exposed. He didn't like people seeing his scars. It wasn't because they were ugly but because the more distinct the scars are the easier they are to describe, he didn't like that. 

He grabbed onto the wood next to him to pull himself up. All 200 pounds of him. The wood creaked and screamed as his body rose upwards. He pulled his cloak around him again and yawned. He closed one of his eyes again and moved passed the drenched mess that was Goldy. She must've had a fun time. 

He poked his head out of the stable and looked back at the city. He began to mumble to himself "Was it too much trouble to come as group? Rain should end soon...ish"

He looked back at Goldy. He studied her for a moment, though, his "studying" would come across as more of a stare. She's too short to take on large groups at once. Scare on the nose means she is either shit at sparing or messed up a bit too much during something. Dark skin...is that he natural skin color? She might just be really fucking tan. That shit on her face is kinda leaking...what is that? Do people draw on their faces? Then he looked down. He noticed the elephant in the room.

Dwek looked around while avoiding looking directly at Goldy.

"Might not wana wear white clothing when it's the wet season." It came across a bit harsh because he had said it in a disgruntled voice, though, in his mind he was just giving useful advice.

Goldy slowed down a little when she saw the hulk rise from the ground. Once comfortably under the roof of the stables she leaned against the wooden wall and took in a deep breath, trying hard to keep her teeth from chattering. Dweknel moved past her and poked his head out of the stable.

"Was it too much trouble to come as group? Rain should end soon...ish." She heard him mumble.

"The other two had some debt-business to take care of. I was sent to find you." She said, peeling herself and her extra heavy clothes off the wood. She sighed, turning her attention back to the big guy, who appeared to be staring at her.

He was scary enough already when he wasn't glowering down at her. She shuffled uneasily. "What?" Was there something on her face? Shoot, my makeup is probably running. I'm probably full demon mode. "...how bad is it?"

His gaze suddenly broke, avoiding her.

"Might not wana wear white clothing when it's the wet season." He said, his tone harsh. Goldy glanced down and quickly crossed one arm over her chest, keeping the other free. She was unable to hide her embarrassment.

"S-sorry. In Nueven we don't have to worry about such things." She muttered, turning away. Didn't even know it was the "wet season." "Shall we wait till the rain stops to head back?" Please

Eliana watched as she and the prince walked through the crowd. Nobody had a problem with him, to her it didn't feel much the same. People parted as if she was carrying a disease. Didn't bother her too much, though, and perhaps she was taking it all in the wrong way. Royal treatment, eh? She smirked, even though if anybody were to be given a royal treatment, it would be the literal and actual royal son in front of her. She chuckled a bit to herself, very happy with these settings.

"Stay five feet to my left when you enter." He had said to her. She was partially curious as to why he would say that, but, it didnt bother her too much. After all, she was going to have a reward for just following them and not really participating in general. Being paid a whole castle. She sighed with delight at the though, then nodded. Taking quicker steps to get by his side, then slowing down a bit to match his pace. Once he wold enter, she would part a bit and continue to do as told.

When the prince knocked on the door of this person's house? Er- place. They had opened the door, then slammed it shut again. Then expressed something of not having enough money. Eliana raised a brow, curious as to why they would be out collecting taxes when they could just be starting the real adventure, really. However, she decided to ignore this, and just wait. As they entered the building, though, Eliana started to take some distancing steps and looked around with a bit of awe. Many medical supplies, what a nice sight- then without realizing it she was handed a paper.

Looking down on it, she noticed pictures. Very interesting pictures and- oh? Quantity amount? She looked up to the prince, but then noticed he was distracting this other person, who owed money? She didnt care, really, she was just a follower. Then, the words were spoken. "Even if it has to be stolen." Eliana smirked.

Hey. Am I being told to steal thins by royalty? She lit up with excitement, because shouldnt royalty be against her in this kind of situation? She smiled widely and went to go say something- then noticed they were short on time. She shook away her excitement and started to move around slowly so she wouldn't bring attention to herself.

Picking up various items, potions, herds, medical stuff, etc. that had looked like the pictures on the list given to her, she stuff them aside into the bag of fruit she had been carrying. What a clever little move of her to do, hm? Once she was calm enough, she slowly started to walk outside of the building, hoping he wouldnt notice, but since he was being distracted by the prince, she didnt have too bad of a problem. She opened the door and slid out of the building, hopefully without being detected, and leaned against the side of the building, waiting for Dhadaeryn to follow his own notes and meet her out there.

"How cool." She whispered to herself camly, resting her eyes a bit out of pure excitement. "Stealing for royalty. What an accomplishment." She opened her eyes again and looked up to the sky. It was a rather relaxing sky, to her anyways.

Dhadaeryn never looked back, never took notice, and acted as though nothing were under plan. He and Tilar continued to do calculations, and once both of them finished, they compared their prices. Dhadaeryn's paper showed the fair price, Tilar's showed a slightly elevated price, and on the corner of both of them was the amount that Tilar owed him. Tilar smiled.

"Sorry, those prices are on your average day when I have supplies. I'm runnin' short, so I can't go cheap! Maybe another time."

Dhadaeryn knew this was a lie, and he gave a sigh. "Well, I wish that you wouldn't be so hard on me. I am, after all, just a young prince." he had every sign of defeat etched into features, and he turned toward the door.

"Ha! And you won't be stealin' nothin'! You were right next to me the entire time!"

Dhadaeryn was smiling as he walked away, but all Tilar could see was his back.

Stupid man, always getting fooled by a child. As he opened the door he closed it slowly behind him, his motion expressing a sign of reluctance. The door shut, and he looked to Eliana with a smile.

"You were rather excellent. I could just barely hear the sounds of movement behind me, but to an old fool like Tilar there was nothing but scribbling from paper." he looked around, the bustle of movement resounding loudly in his ears. Most buildings block out the sound of those walking through the streets, but once you go outside it is the only thing you hear farther than five feet.

"Now, just a few more debts and we'll be on our way." he started walking again. A woman grabbed Dhadaeryn's shoulder and her turned to her. She was giving a somewhat disdainful look to Eliana. Obviously she did not like the Fae.

Most people here didn't mind the Fae, they were just scared of them because of what they've encountered with Evysa.

A few, however, completely dislike them, just like a few Fae completely dislike humans. People started to slow to a stop to see what was happening, and when they saw who it was they laughed and kept passing, but still they kept there distance.

"Filthy scum!" she said in a gravelly tone that matched her age. Dhadaeryn's eye twitched slightly, and he lifted her hand off of his shoulder. The woman looked to him in disbelief.

"Dhadaeryn! You shouldn't be walking around with scum like her! The Fae are evil! I can't see why you trust that Evysa fiend so much, anyway!"

Dhadaeryn typically would have just brushed it off and signaled to leave, but the moment he heard Evysa's name he shot the old woman a look. She backed off in shock, and then turned her head and fumed.

"Ignore her, Eliana." he said in the Fae dialect. Though the only Fae family to actually use the language is the royal family, most of every Fae knew how to speak it to an extent. Naturally, it was natural for them to learn the language even if they rarely heard it. Kind of like a genetic memory.

He continued to walk to the next destination.

The rain was beginning to die down. He glanced over every so often. She looked cold. 

What is the weather even like in Nueven? He tried to imagine it but all he could picture was a landscape covered in fire. I'll have to figure out more later.

Maybe this was his chance to shake the threatening air around him. He stripped underneath his cloak. He took off his armor and then the shirt under it. He tossed it towards Goldy. His shirt was thick and would make an immediate difference once she put it on. Most of what he wore was made to travel through Wyrmenhiem, though, he never really returned. The shirt had a very strong scent to it but beggars can't be choosers now can they. He was slightly amused when she reacted to the smell. Guess that's another difference between women from Wyrmenhiem and women from other countries. Most of them enjoy the smell.

"Put it on. We're goin back to the city. I'm not likin the feelin i'm gettin around here." 

He waited for her to at least cover herself then walked out with his right arm extended. It would make a canopy big enough for her to stay dry under. The whole process for him was uncomfortable. The didn't like people being particularly close to him nor did he like showing off his scars. He knew her eyes would eventually wander to them but he put up with it cause he wasn't liking the vibes that he was feeling. It felt like things were going to go wrong soon.

When she was under he started to move towards the city again while scanning the area around them. Between scans he'd look down at Goldy. He honestly had no idea what he was doing. He wasn't great at reading body language so he relied a lot on his instincts. These very same instincts were screaming at him about how awkward the situation was.

Dwek's mind wandered when he saw a brown droplet fall in front of his face. It was only distinguishable because it fell in front of his eyes but it still sparked concern. That was when he remembered he had left the pot back at the stables. 

You've got to be fucking kidding me. 

He almost motioned to turn back but the kid did say he had a sack of walnuts so he decided against it.

Goldy shivered as she observed the cracks in the wood with a little too much interest. She heard some new noises and glanced over her shoulder to investigate. He was taking off his armor and shirt. What's he doing?

She was surprised when he tossed the shirt to her. "Oh." She caught a whiff. Crinkled her nose. "...oh..."

"Put it on. We're goin back to the city. I'm not likin the feelin i'm gettin around here."

"Thanks." She said, quickly slipping it on. It was very big on her, but there was an instant difference in temperature. Maybe he's not so bad. She thought as she made her way over to him. He held out his gigantic arm, covered in scars. In fact, it looked like he had a really bad time somewhere along the lines. Bandages and scars covered him. She'd have to ask about it someday.

"Convenient~" She said with a smile, acknowledging the arm. It blocked the rain. "You're a lifesaver."

They began their trek back towards the city. Not wanting it to be awkward, she decided to make conversation. "So... Wyrmenhiem?"

Eliana looked to the door as it opened, seeing Dhadaeryn walking out with a smile. "You were rather excellent. I could just barely hear the sounds of movement behind me, but to an old fool like Tilar there was nothing but scribbling from paper." She chuckled a bit with delight. Stealing for royalty, and, getting compliments on my stealth? What an eventful day. What 'til that bounty hunter hears. Shs sighed with joy, needing to get all of the excessive pride out of her system. "You did pretty good, yourself. For a prince."

"Now just a few more debts and we'll be on our way." Eliana nodded and got ready to start walking again, especially if she got to keep stealing from idiots who don't realize whats happening in their own building. As she stood up straight and started to walk with Dhadaeryn, a woman, a rather old woman, took his shoulder and glared at Eliana. It was a glare of hate, she could tell.

Whats this bitter old hag wa- Her thoughts were interrupted as she spoke, voice rather broken and yet oddly fitting for a woman of her looks. "Filthy scum!" Eliana scoffed. "Dhadaeryn! You shouldn't be walking around with scum like her! The Fae are evil! I can't see why you trust that Evysa fiend so much, anyway!" Eliana then rolled her eyes. She didn't think she was scum, even though theifs were considered the lowest of the low to some people she'd met before, that doesnt instantly make her scum. And calling Evy-whatever a fiend? I dont think this woman knows very much about what she's stupidly babbling on about. That other fae looked more like the good guy, too me. Eliana kept a sharp, angered glare at the lady- No. She was far from a lady- she kept her glare on the hag, when Dhadaeryn spoke up, pushing the bitter old crone away.

He had said, in her native dialect, to ignore the woman. Easy enough task, but her anger got the best of her. While Dhadaeryn was walking away, Eliana turned back to the hag and scoffed. "He wont be dealing with peasants like you. Learn your place, you old crow." She grumbled, then turned back around to follow the prince.

"Some people have no manners." She muttered under her breath, still a bit annoyed. Anyways, all that drama aside, Eliana walked calmly along side the boy. Growing a bit bored and tired of the lack of conversation, she sighed loudly and looked back up to the sky. "So, where are we goin', anyways? Going next, I mean." She asked, even though in all honesty she didn't care, she just wanted a reason to speak.

Dhadaeryn flinched as Eliana spoke, and there were hushed murmurs from the surrounding, all of them with there eyes on the old woman. She had resumed to staring at Eliana with immense dislike, and the everbody was pacing his or herself from the old woman. Funny how people think that being too close to somebody will make everything worse, even if you're just walking past them. Then again, he never walked too close to anybody if he could solve it. They were well out of the nobility court now, and Dhadaeryn stopped in front of a building that looked as though it were in shambles. He held his hand up, paused, and then put his hand down.

Again?

He took a couple of steps back, and not a moment too soon. The door exploded off of its frame and scattered around Dhadaeryn, a split or two bouncing off of him. Out stepped a young man of about twenty. His hair was mud brown and his skin a light tan. Soot was all around him and he coughed some of it around. He was average in height and his build muscular from constant lifting of heavy object. He let his blue eyes fall on Eliana for a couple of seconds before returning his attention to Dhadaeryn.

"What do you need from me today?" he asked with a raised eyebrow. Dhadaeryn pulled out another paper and wrote a couple of things on it, but this time he didn't hand a second sheet to Eliana.

"Hmm. These things, you want them concealed." he said, and he vanished back into his house.

A loud explosion as a window shattered, and Dhadaeryn shook his head. He was rather glad that the king decided to fulfill his wish of isolating this man from other buildings. Good man, bad habits. The man came back out after a while carrying a medium sized bag.

"Okay! Here you go." he said, and he handed over a bag that Dhadaeryn tied around his back. He had about twelve other debts he could collect, but for now he should just collect the last one.

"One more, Eliana." Dhadaeryn said as he walked away.

Dwek could felt Goldy's piercing gaze move to his scars. Blood rushed to his face as it was much too embarrassing for him to be allowing someone to take shelter underneath him. If you added that person having full view of some of his scars and it was a recipe for making him feel timid, which doesn't happen often.

They had been walking for maybe a minute at most before he heard her voice.

"So... Wyrmenhiem?"

His eyes moved down to look at her. This was actually really weird. Most people just assumed Wyrmenhiem was a big chunk of ice and misery. 

He replied, this time managing to sound a bit less aggressive. "If you've got questions now'd be the time since we have nothin better to do. Whadda ya wana know?"

They had a good bit before they would be within the city again so Dwek didn't see why he couldn't answer some questions.

The brown drops were becoming more frequent.

"If you've got questions now'd be the time since we have nothin better to do. Whadda ya wana know?"

What do I want to know? Goldy pondered the question for a second or two. Then, she looked up at him, eyes curious. "Is it cool up there? Well, temperature-wise, yes, but... ya know? And what's up with the blizzard thing? The monsters? I've only ever heard about the place from other peoples' mouths." She had said it all rather quickly, never stopping to take a breath. When her mouth closed, she realized her over-eagerness. However, she was not sorry.

Her gold eyes drifted back down to her feet, making sure to avoid the extra-wet dirt. Puddles were forming here and there, and the ripples were becoming more frequent and splashy. The river was becoming wild, gray with the reflection of the sky. She longed to be under a roof and beside a fire. At least she had the arm umbrella, though.

Eliana felt silence fall on the duo again, even though she asked a question, he didnt really answer her- and a part of her knew he wouldn't have anyways. He seems a lot more like the quiet type, the more I follow him. Maybe he's just determined, could just be some princely kinda thing. Hell if I know. She stayed quiet though, making sure to not make the moment any more awkward. However, she did turn around to take a glance at the woman. People were moving away from her rather quickly, and she was still staring at her from behind. "Hope I go my point across." Eliana said before looking forward.

A rather strange house, it seemed. This must be the house they would be stealing next from. Wouldn't seem too much of a challenge, something just right for her. It seemed kind of broken down and not really good for living conditions, she could easily just break something on accident, if she had to be the distraction, but it didnt seem to be the case as Dhadaeryn backed away from the house for a quick second. "What're y-"

Bits of the door and its frame went flying, putting Eliana into a bit of a freight. Dhadaeryn stood there as if nothing was odd, or horrorfying about a door just spontaneously exploded. She looked around nervously, expecting to see a violent person, ready to fight so they wouldn't have to pay their debt. Instead of a violent person, though, Eliana could only see a rather interesting man. Brown hair and blue eyes. Very muscular. She gave a weak smile. Theres no way we're stealing from him. She had been ignoring whatever had been said, and looked to the prince. He had been writing something.

Eliana grew a bit more nervous now, she was cocky that she couldn't get caught once Dhadaeryn gave her the paper and distracted this person, but she was more worried if he found out something was missing, especially since he had taken notice of her already. Preparing to be handed a paper, though, she had looked to the prince, awaiting any orders. However, she was never given a paper- and it seemed that this man was okay with giving what he needed to. She sighed softly, relieved that she wouldnt have to go through that.

Another explosion and a crash. Maybe thats why his house looks awful. She raised a brow, a bit concerned for the house and its structure.

"Okay! Here you go." The man handed the bag to Dhadaeryn and wasn't any trouble once they got what they needed. "Sheesh." She whispered to herself, now feeling a bit stupid for worrying so much over such a small task. A small task she wouldn't have even needed to do! It could've been a fun adventure, though. Oh well. Eliana shrugged off her own thoughts and looked back to the prince, now both of them were carrying a bag.

"One more, Eliana." She heard him say, then nodded. Waving good bye to the man whose house was i a lot of trouble. She followed Dhadaeryn again, letting her stress levels down. "Wow, that sure was crazy, hm?" She spoke up, hoping to get him to speak to avoid any silence. "Could've gone pretty bad if he had, I don't know, been violent or something?" Maybe she was just being annoying, or just pestering.

Either way, she was clearly desperate for either attention or conversation. Maybe both.

Dhadaeryn stayed silent, not wanting to answer. He had a lot of planning to do right now, and he wanted to use all of the brainpower he could on executing it. Would he be able to pull it off? Well, he's already made three rewards due, might as well make a fourth. After he turned to a door, he held his hand up to knock, but didn't. After a couple of seconds he lowered his hand and pulled out another paper, his last debt collection for now. He quickly scribbled a couple of notes onto the paper, and then slid them into the side of the door. With three knocks the paper vanished, and a sickly laugh came from inside the building. There were two knocks back, the deal was accepted. He's going to have to try hard to get all of the gold back once he's done.

He turned to Eliana. He looked somewhat stressed, but he gave a false smile to her.

"All done here. We should get going, now. The transportation will be set by the time we get there." he started to walk away before pausing, and he looked back to Eliana.

"Would you like something sweet?"

Goldy waited for a response as she hopped foot to foot over the mush. "I don't find it that cold back home but a lot of other people don't feel the same way. They get used to it...eventually. The blizzard is just there...we don't know "what's up" with it. The monsters aren't that tough as long as ya stay away from the center. If ya do manage to kill one from around the center you can usually make a good bit out of it..."

She glanced up at him, satisfied with his answers. Has he fought center monsters? She wondered, her eyes wandering to his scars again.

It appeared that his cooly-colored hair was giving him trouble. She almost laughed, but then she noticed he was aggravated enough to do breathing exercises. She decided to hold it in until she understood his temper.

"To be honest the people are the real monsters there." He finished. Deep. She gave a knowing nod, biting her lower lip as they continued onward. Water splashed onto her tights and she instantly looked back down, going back to the ordinary puddle-jumping business.

There was a sudden creaky, rustling sound from above. She looked back up to see a branch swinging from where Dweknel had hit it with... his face? He didn't look happy.

"Careful up there." She said with a chuckle. One downside to being huge.

She was pleased to see the walls of the city through the trees, and even more so when the rain began to let up. She let out a low phew and wiped at her cheeks, hoping to get stray eyeliner off.

"What about where you're from? It as dry as everyone says it is?" She was surprised to hear him ask some questions. She smiled, giving a strong nod.

"Very, superly so." She said cheerfully. "Hot, too. It's nicer by the oases. Having a guaranteed drink whenever you feel faint - which is quite often - is good. Being out in the open desert, though." She winced for effect. "Yes, very dry. Could use some of this." Her gloved hand pointed to the rain clouds that were drifting away.

Eliana waited patiently for him to answer, but, it seemed that he just didn't care to hardly listen to her questions. She sighed out of annoyance towards him, not many people would just ignore a question. Sheesh, Who spat in his meal this morning? Eliana rolled her eyes and just continued to walk, no longer bothering with "stupid questions".

They had already been at another door anyways, to collect more items. Asking anything would be a moot point now, so she just left it be. Dhadaeryn scribbled more things on a piece of paper then slid it under the door. She didn't really get a chance to see what he had needed, and was rather curious, but she continued to ignore her impulse to ask twenty questions. Then, a sickly laugh could be heard. Ech. Getting stuff from a sick person? How... disgusting. We could just get it from someone healthy, couldn't we? She asked herself. Hell, I don't know. I should ask prince-boy, but he wouldn't answer even if he was about to die. Her own inner voice was annoyed and bitter.

Then, as if he had read her mind, Dhadaeryn turned around to face her and gave quite the weak looking smile. "All done here. We should get going, now. The transportation will be set by the time we get there." He turned and began to walk again, so she turned her heel to start to walk, even though losing any desire to do so, when Dhadaeryn turned back to face her and asked her a question.

"Would you like something sweet?"

Oh, so he can ask questions and expect an answer out of me? What is this, some royalty-syndrome? Eliana scowled, her own thoughts triggering a bit of a more angry emotion now, rather than bitter or annoyed. However, sweets wouldn't be too bad right now. She nodded. "Sure, wouldn't hurt any to get som'thing." Her tone when she answered was a lot more kind and happy than what her own inner monologue made her seem.

Dhadaeryn walked to a vendor and pulled out a bag of gold. If he was to be an exile, a rich one would be better. He gave a few gold coins to her and then gave the bag of candy he received to Eliana. It was a good amount; would probably last a day. Though he like candy, he didn't want any at the moment. After-all, he was in the process of trying to prevent a war. A more apt description, of course, would be to get rid of the war.

When you think of it, what's the best way to stop a war?

Cut off its head.

"Sorry about not answering you questions, there's a lot on my mind right now." he said to Eliana, and he added. "If you need anything answered, hold it for tomorrow. By then, I'll have most of the answers that you could provide a question for."

He then started to walk again, his brain rummaging through everything that would most likely happen. Best place to start would of course be Frundonmire: Basmotos has too much technology to get past, and he needs some form of information. Frundonmire is perfect because it has just enough to keep it running, but not enough to make it hard to break into. Information would also come more easily because that is most likely the secondary operative, and it'd be easier to drag information from them than from the source.

The larger midget seemed to be surprised when he asked the question. Am I not allowed to ask questions?

From her description of Nueven it wasn't all that different from Wyrmenhiem. Sure there was a temperature difference but both were wastelands with little room for mistakes, though, Nueven was probably more forgiving due to the multiple oases. 

Being the rain was now a drizzle he stepped to the side lowering his arm. Dwek walked with Goldy into the city. There were more people around than before. A lot of them were giving him weird looks or staring while they thought he couldn't see them. Needless to say it put him in a foul mood.

He began to walk through crowds not caring how who walked into (or walked over) which caused some yelling. He didn't pay attention to any of it. Fuck outta my way milk drinkers.

His pace sped up and he moved with even more force now. He was tracking the other two midgets. People, no matter the place, all acted the same when it came to the Fae. They all thought they were "spooky elves coming to take over" or something along those lines. He saw an old lady who was acting like she had "interacted" with one recently. He sped up again taking him to a jogging speed when his nose caught a wiff of something weird. He had never smelled something like that before. He turned his head to where it was coming from and low an behold, thing one and thing two. He thought about walking to them but thought it would be best to let Goldy catch up to him before moving on.

Everything seemed okay until they entered the city and Dweknel became a raging bulldozer. She found herself apologizing to those he bumped into while trying to keep up with his quick strides that seemed to get faster with each passing second. Soon he was jogging. What's he doing? Did I miss the other two saying where they were headed? She trusted he knew where he was going and chased.

She stayed close behind, able to keep up but not catch up. He stopped abruptly and Goldy finally reached him, her eyes scanning the area as she caught her breath. There they were! "Oh, good." She muttered, brushing loose hair from her face. Her skin was a little too cool to her liking, and the moistness of her hair didn't help. Before they left, she'd have to go grab her stuff and change.

"Hi guys. I found him!" Goldy called, waving excitedly at them. Out of old habit, she grabbed onto one of Dweknel's arms (hoping they didn't hurt) and pulled him towards Dhadaeryn and Eliana hurriedly, her expression cheerful but tired. "How'd your business go? Are we ready?"

Hearing that he had a lot on his mind was a bit clearer, now. She questioned herself for not really noticing before he told her, but still wanted her answers immediately. Something about the feeling of being ignored wasn't such a good one to her, especially since questions should always be answered.

"Well, by tomorrow I could probably get the answers myself." She grumbled, putting a piece of candy in her mouth to change her focus on something else. They were pretty sweet, yeah- almost bitter. It hadn't bothered her too much, though.

"Hi guys. I found him!" A familiar voice called to them. When Eliana turned to get a better look, she noticed it was Goldy and Dwek-whatever, returning back to follow the prince again. She nodded in greeting and just moved her glance back to her feet. Excited much? She groaned in her mind, a bit annoyed by the joy of the bounty hunter. "Ah, thats good- 'cuz now we can all take turns looking for 'im when he wanders off again. How fun." She took another piece of the candy.

Dhadaeryn was looking at the group and, more or less, sizing them up. The Fae would have innate magical power, so that would be useful. Dweknel, the larger man, would stand out too much in Frundonmir, so he needed to add that into his calculations. However, he was also strong and seemed to know how to survive.

Dhadaeryn's eyes twitched up for a second, but he pushed the thought to the side for now.

Goldy's skills would be needed the most. As a bounty hunter, she would need skills in reconnaissance and information gathering. Of course, he didn't know exactly what kind of tactics she used. Might be a problem depending on how she goes about her business. Whatever, that's a problem for another day. The main problem, right now, was how strong-willed everybody here was.

Dhadaeryn and Dweknel would probably have the lowest affinity toward Magic, while Goldy would be in the middle, and Eliana would be the highest. He started to walk without bothering to ask them to follow. How long would the trip be? Obviously a long time, and they would need many rests. Many.

He was now outside of the city. A somewhat thrown together vehicle was directly in front of him. There were no horses to pull it or anything like that, and Dhadaeryn sighed. It might just barely hold Dweknel's weight.

After hearing Eliana's remark Dwek opened his mouth to snap back at her. He would have continued with it if he didn't notice Dhadaeryn walking away. His curiosity made him shut his mouth. Where was the runt going?

As he followed he had to move through crowds of people again. He had to focus on Dhadaeryn's small stature unless he wanted to lose sight of him completely. This meant no worrying about people who got in his way. I mean they'd move out of the way or he'd just trample them. He followed him until they reach the destination.

You're fucking kidding me...

He was less than pleased to see what was just outside the city. He had a general hatred towards anyform of transportation that wasn't his own two feet. Mostly because his size and weight made it rough for him to find any he could use but if you add on how easy they are to target...well it's always been a recipe for disaster when it came to him. He was not going to get in that thing. 

Dwek squatted, sitting on his heels, and spoke in a low and somewhat demoralized tone of voice. "I don't have to get in that do I?" He already knew the answer but he wasn't about to settle for it. He began to unstrap, clip, and strip himself of everything that wasn't his clothing and his dagger. It would weigh less than he did so it should be fine to put in the...thing. With most of his equipment off of him he might just be light enough to keep up with it. At least for a while anyways.

Least I can catch up with training...