Assassin and a beast hunter. (Isolde)

[Vinsue]

Ash 23, 122
"Look, I know you're against everything I do. But it's really simple. Either I get a mark or you get a job. Otherwise we will end up being bums and that's not an option for me." Vinsue said.

Bonzi rolled his eyes but did not argue. As she was right. People were not interested in a doctor from a foreign land. But a Dragon born beast hunter almost always had work. "I almost forgot. There is a Healer that should be here any minute. They said they might be willing to teach you the needle poke thing. Acupuncture? I think it's called that." She looked around the bar. Seeing the old man she tilted her head towards him. "That's him. Learn lots."

Vinsue turned and walked to the bar. A bar is the eyes and ears of a city. If something happens the bar keep knows. She placed some coins on the table but left her hand on it. "You haven't heard of any animal trouble recently have you?" She asked. The man simply raised an eye as if she had forgotten something. And so she may have. "I'll take a moonlight cider if ya have it." She said

"Sorry maim, never heard of it." He said. Of course they wouldn't have the same drinks as they would back home. "A black and tan?" She tried again. "Nope, and another order like that and I'll toss you out." He replied. She personally didn't see the problem with that drink. But he did. So she gave up. "You got a job board or announcement wall? She asked. "Near the door on the left." He said. She left a near worthless coin on the counter then walked to where he had instructed. If none of the bars had the drinks she knew she may end up calling the whole thing off. She thought to herself then decided a drink was not worth a failure for Bonzi to be right about. She looked over the posted wall. Lots of heads but no beasts. This night was off to a great start she thought sarcastically.

[Isolde]

An Assassin and a Beast Hunter

23 Ash 122

The Rathari was in her Zeon form as she was most days. Isolde strolled into the bar, her head held high, and her weapons concealed on her person. Her footsteps were quiet as she headed to the bar, all that Stealth training she did with her father as a child paid off with her quiet footsteps. She wore a black skin tight dress that went slightly above her knees with a slit on both sides that wasn't more than an inch long. A silver Broad Belt was around her waist with a coin pouch tied to it. It wasn't the most fashionable choice to wear, but it held her money. So, she didn't particularly care.

An Assassin's Dagger sheathed in a thigh holster on her left leg, hidden slightly under her dress. If her cloak blew back, the dagger would be revealed. A risky (and shitty) choice of hiding her dagger like that, but she did it anyway. She wasn't on a job today, and that's all that mattered.

A throwing knife was stashed in each boot. A little bit of protection never hurt anyone. The Assassin-in-training took a seat at the bar, crossing her right leg, Keeping her dagger concealed on her left leg. Keeping her weapons concealed while in the bar counts as progress in her training because she said so.

Isolde gave a small, flirtatious, smile to the barkeep, a sharp canine-like tooth poked out from under her lip, keeping her gaze locked with the barkeep. "A pitcher of Red Lightening Wine, please." Fishing out 6 Copper Avens from her coin pouch that was tied to the silver Broad Belt she wore around her waist, and sat it down on the table top.

She waited patiently while the barkeep made her pitcher of wine. Glancing over to the Job Board on the far left, the Assassin took in the people that stood around it. An ork and a human stood side by side, a few other people that didn't look particularly interesting sat at a table in the right corner.

The Assassin shrugged, turning back to the bar as her pitcher of wine and a tankard was placed in front of her. "Thank you, darling! I left you a tip!" She poured some of the wine into the glass before placing the pitcher back on the table. It didn't look very elegant drinking wine out of a tankard, then again... Isolde wasn't an elegant lady with her secondary profession.

"Common" | "Sknskrit"

[Vinsue]

Danger though silent always had a filling that went with it. Some say its prey instinct that tails one of potential dangers but predators could still get that feeling. A slight almost unnoticeable filling tugged at her when the assassin looked at her. Once the filling was gone she slowly looked around to see what had caused the warning filling. For the most part no one seemed dangerous. As this was not a bar known for danger. That's why she chose to bring Bonzi here for his meeting.

The person in a short black dress caught her eye. A quick glance revealed outlines of weapons that most would never notice. She looked away immediately. What was the saying? Don’t invite a fight with your eyes. She mentally took note of that person's location. She then looked over the bounty boards again. Snow shoveling read the first one. An immediate no went in her mind as she did not like the cold. Bounty for bolder. 250 gp for a murderer. At last again no. Bonzi would never allow it. Bounty Nikolas 100 gp for illegal trade. Also not her thing. Smugglers came with more dangers then she was ready for. A growl rumbled almost inaudibly at her frustration.

Seemed there was no work for her. Then she saw the very edge of a paper beneath the others. She lifted the paper above it up and almost immediately smiled. A simple direwolf problem that needed handling. 100gp. It wasn't much but it was something that she could do. She ripped the flier off of the wall and put it in her inner coat pocket. Seemed that the bar wasn't a complete waste of time. Now to figure out a drink. They had to have something here that she could drink.

She sat down two seats away from the woman in the dress and looked at the bar keep. Round two on impossible orders was almost as bad as the first. But she finally said “Just give me something with alcohol. Preferably strong and spicy.” he smiled and walked away. He returned with a mug with something golden in it. “That will be 4 copper pieces,” he said. So she put 5 and grabbed the mug. Cheers, she thought to herself, raised the glass and downed the entire thing. She put the mug down and made a quick face. “It's a Habanero Sculpin if you like it. We have others if you would prefer something lighter.” she shook her head. “I'll take another with lime.” she said, adding another 4 copper pieces to the pile. When he returned with her new drink she sipped it. Not as good or strong as back home but it would do. She smiled revealing her sharp k9s. “Thanks.”

[Isolde]

An Assassin and a Beast Hunter

23 Ash 122

Isolde glanced at the woman out of the corner of her eye, she could now get a better look at her. Two short ridged horns resided on either side of her head, silver hair with brown streaks, she couldn't see her face clearly enough from this angle. Nor could she see the ork, who is probably still standing by the bounty board. They were foreigner's, that much was evident with the woman's accent.

"I don't know about you, but I do like a red wine." She raised her tankard, red lighting wine sloshed around in it. Her pale cheeks were turning a little rosy from the alcohol consumption. And she knew that soon, she'd need to take a bathroom break, one sip of alcohol was always the case for her. The alcohol loosens her normally quiet demeanour up by a long shot. She gets all chatty and looking for company, anyone really to talk to. "Are you from around here?" The Assassin asked casually, taking a sip of her red wine.

Red Lightning tasted bitter and sweet, and it had a bit of spice to it. The passion fruit and dragon fruit made this wine relatively sweet compared to other red wines she has tasted, and thus. It was one of her favourites, though it did get her drunk quite fast. She drank more of the wine in her tankard before it was empty with a frown, she lifted the pitcher of Red lighting and poured more into her tankard. Setting the pitcher back down, she lifted the tankard back up to her lips and took a sip, before turning her attention back to the human woman with the horns.

"Would you like to taste the wine?" She offered, sliding the pitcher towards the woman. "I do like this wine the best."

"Common"

"Sknskrit"

[Vinsue]

Wine was not her usual drink. Too classy and fancy. But alcohol was even if it was fruit based. She turned to look at the woman who was talking to her. “Personally, I prefer a good cocktail. But wine is fine,” she said. Honestly after 30 days without any alcohol even the very worst grade beer sounded good. But she would not voice that.

“Nope. I’m from the jungles of north Ecith.” and with honesty she realized the drink may be a bit stronger than she anticipated. “I came here to improve my fighting skills before I find an end to the snake.” she said. “But training is not going well. I need to get faster. Otherwise I'll get bit, and that means death. Can’t even keep up with a bird rethari.” she said. Why was she saying this to a stranger? A potentially dangerous, drunk stranger. When offered a drink her first thought was to say no. But honestly she didn’t have any enemies here. She also wasn't rich enuff to be poisoned for that reason. This city had too many orks for them to try to kill her for a hate crime. Just as she was about to answer, the bartender placed an empty mug between them. She smiled and gave an appreciative nod. “Sure,” she said.

She poured a small amount in the mug, rolled it around the bottom then took a sip. She took a second to savor it and decide if she liked it or not. It wasn't bad. She took another sip. Rejudging it. She nodded. “Dragon Fruit, passion fruit, sweet and a little spicy. Not bad.”

“How about you?” she asked. “You're definitely local and dangerous. Not a bounty hunter. Not a guard but definitely dangerous." At this point it seemed this normally heavy weight drinker was ready to talk. She sipped her drink.

[Isolde]

"I do like a good cocktail myself, but a lovely wine I can never pass up." The Black Panther Rathari replied. She took another sip of her wine and at this point. Isolde was getting very drunk, very fast. Her lips hopefully wouldn't get loose about her primary profession, her father would torture her with endless training for days on end, most likely. The old bastard gets creative with his training sessions, after them she usually feels sick and exhausted.

She took a sip of her wine as the woman answered her question. "Well, you're very far from home, aren't you." She grinned, leaning her cheek on the palm of her hand. "I suppose some day I should visit that city, but alas, it won't be anytime soon." Isolde waved her hand lazily. The only way she would visit other cities is on a job to murder some poor fool, most likely.

"Improving your fighting skills, sounds exhausting, but death would be very terrible indeed." Her father would add on another hour of training if he heard that for the next session. "A bird Rathari," she chuckled, mostly to herself. "Cats hunt birds." The joke was to herself seeing as she was a cat Rathari, a Black Panther.

"That's the spirit!" Isolde beamed once the woman tried the wine. "It's one of my favourites." She tilted her head to the side with a lip sided grin upon her face.

"Me... Well, I am just the local prostitute." Isolde shrugged, her grin widening, she didn't care what others thought of her. She liked her job; both of her jobs. "I was born here... following in my poor old mother's footsteps, I suppose."

She wasn't about to tell a stranger that she was an Assassin in training... that could get her killed if she wasn't careful who she told. To the majority of Kalzasi, she was the local prostitute. And being a prostitute did help cover up her murderous profession quite well.

"Common" | 00FFF6

"Sknskrit" | 0061FF

[Vinsue]

“Perhaps next time we meet I may mix ya up one of my old favorites. I would this time but it seems best not to stack such strong drinks.” it was not Past Vinsue that the wine was strong especially as they consumed more and more of it. There was also the fact this was not Ecith and what ingredients they did have was not as fresh as it was back home.

“The farther the better. I can not progress back home. Here though I can train and get experience from people with a different way of thinking than I was raised around. Because obviously my people do not think right on how to kill the snake or it would already be dead." She was slowly learning the disadvantages of not being home but she could tolerate a few seasons without a good cocktail as long as she would get closer to killing the snake by doing so.

"So do snakes." Vinsue said after the cat was mentioned even if the joke was lost to her. When told of the trade in which the other was employed, she narrowed her eyes. This woman was hiding something. Being an apex predator she knew the look of a predator. This one was definitely more dangerous than a simple woman using her body to get paid. There was no way she was wrong on this, was there? “Personally thought you were more dangerous than loveable”

Okay true she only recently found out what a prostitute was. But she still did not understand why it was a thing as her people usually participated in large groups.

“Not much work for you where I come from.” she said, returning to a happier expression of less judgment. “Though I'm sure they could teach ya a few tricks and things back home.”

“Talking of tricks… any chance you know of any good places to practice or train against others? I could really use a new sparring partner” she said then immediately realized sparring had at least two meanings. “Sparing as in fight not as in breeding.” she immediately said.

[Isolde]

"That would be lovely, perhaps next time you can mix us some lovely cocktails." Isolde grinned, her cheeks were a rosy red due to her alcohol consumption. The woman beside her was a foreigner, and Isolde greatly enjoyed her company. Perhaps she could become her new drinking buddy. She hoped that was the case, however, she wasn't sure how long she'd be staying in Kalzasi for. "How long are you staying in Kalzasi, perhaps we could meet up more often. I enjoy your company."

"Why don't you just cut off the snake's head? Get it over and done with? Or get a king cobra, they eat other snakes. Or perhapsyou could keep it as a pet?" She tried to be helpful in her 'advice', but she wasn't sure if this woman was talking about a metaphor, which she very well could be, or an actual snake. Speaking of Snakes, Isolde herself wanted a collection of Snakes someday. Their Venom or Poison would be rather useful in her Assassations.

"So they do," she nodded. Snakes killed cats, cats killed Snakes. The circle of life, she supposed. She took a sip of her red lighting wine as the other woman asked her a question. "I'm dangerously loveable, darling. It's part of the charm." She purred, tapping a single black pointed nail on the wooden bar countertop.

"Ohh? Sounds intriguing." Isolde grinned. She wondered if they were better than her... doubtful. However, it intrigued her now. Isolde is the best at what she does, she's bedded many types of men. "Perhaps I could teach them a thing or two myself." Confident in her abilities, Isolde refilled her wine glass as she drank the last drop.

"You sure are specific about sparing, darling. I do love a good spar, though." Isolde winked, her lips tugging up into a wide smile and she let out a giggle. "I wrestle most nights, in fact."

"Common" | 00FFF6

"Sknskrit" | 0061FF

[Vinsue]

“Of course I can make some good ones next time we meet. But they're better when the fruit is fresh.“ Vinsue would reply. She could really taste the difference between the fruit that was freshly picked back home and the fruit that was picked early and brought here. The idea that the people that live here will never know the taste of good fruit is quite sad. But what they don't know can't hurt them, right?

“I plan on staying for a season or two as I try to become stronger.” she planned on staying as long as it would take to up her skills before the fight. A fight she wished was simply as easy as cutting off a small snake's head. She would smile at the advice. “Before you get too far into thought I should let you know I'm not talking of a simple Cobra or Bowa. I'm talking about Vich'uvi, The Primal Shadow Viper. A snake thicker round than you are tall. A snake as long as the tallest trees back home. A Snake known for eating dragons,” she would say. “Its venom slowly eats the person's shadow. That is if the fang doesn't kill you first. Once the shadow is all gone the person drops dead. There is no cure for it, this is why I must become faster.”

Vinsue knew that the other was far more dangerous than she was letting on. Though as long as she was not the other’s target than she guessed it didn’t matter much. “I’m sure there are more than one back home that would be willing to learn.”

Vinsue would shake her head with a smile. “Something tells me we are not talking of the same type of sparing.” she laughed while taking another sip of her drink. “