Of Kith and Kin

[Stare]

Two things soon happened.

First Vitruvion appeared at the top of the stairs that led to the cells. He had his knife drawn and it seemed to be soaked in fresh blood. The god strode with grim determination, coming to the kenku and the elf in a swift and desicive manner. As he came close he wiped his knife on a handkerchief that he spun from his jacket pocket.

"He will not be coming with us," he said with a strangely normal tone.

And he kept striding, right past the two females and towards the bound demon mage. Him awakening was the second thing to happen. As soon as he did so he began to shout and struggle, finding himself not in the same position as before. Stare saw his face screw up and his body began to shiver before Vitruvion came up and shoved his hand on the man's back. There was no pause for pity. Thin lines of white light spilled from Vitruvion's fingers to wrap themselves over the chains - making them tighter and likely magic proof.

"You arseho-"

Grabbing the same handkerchief Vitruvion shoved it in the man's mouth, muffling him. Once he was quite happy that his power dominated the minor demon mage's he looked back at Stare and Merla.

He paused. "This man attacked us earlier. He is now my prisoner," Vitruvion said, thinking as he spoke. "I do not want to draw a parralell to yourself however, lady, therefore ..."

He looked to Stare and waved a hand, gesturing. It took her a moment to completely understand, but then she breathed in, and took the keys in hand. Merla paused, but got what she was indicating and twisted her hands around. For a moment Stare considered not doing so - after all, how did they know the elf was not just decieving them - but she realised this was what she wanted. She herself had thought, briefly, about allowing Merla the chance of escape ... And Stare a chance of extreme Vitruvion retribution.

Sliding the key in she unlocked the elf's cuffs. Then, stepping back, she took them away, her body tense, eyes resdy to do ... Well anything.

But the elf just let out a soft sigh, and stood there. Then, twisting around she sank into the lowest, more graceful curtsey. To Vitruvion.

"My lord," she held out her hands before her. "I owe you my sanity and potentially my life. I have nothing, I would go back to nothing but a life of running if I left here on my own."

She paused and rose, nibbling the corner of her mouth. Stare could imagine what was going through her head. 'Do I really want to throw my lot in with this man?' The answer in the kenku's mind was, 'Hell no.'

"If you know of anywhere, have connections to anything that can take me in, I would be in your debt. I have few skills and little magic. One that cannot be of much use ... well." She paused. "I am a goldsmith, I can make certain elements change to gold under severely limited constructs. Not very useful for an elf," Stare saw Vitruvion's eyes flicker with interest though. Even though he had enough wealth as is, she knew his mind would already be working overtime. Certainly it explained the elf's golden power lines.

"Also," Merla went on, "I don't have any right to royalty, and all I have made because of it are enemies." She sucked in her breath. "Thus I would ask you, sir, for you clearly have power and know laws even as far as Hernsford ... Are you able to assist?"

[Stare]

They gained back to the hotel in the mid afternoon. Vitruvion hid the mage with a strange kind of invisiblity spell that Stare had only seen him use once before. Apparently he could not do complete invisiblity, but rather constructed a way that made people completely disregard them. Their eyesight just slipped over their company, and as long as they did not directly interact with them and were careful he managed to drag a chained body through the streets of Radasanth and into the hotel suite.

"Throw that in the closet, will you?" He threw the man on the ground.

Stare raised her brows as she began to reduce her baggage. "You want me to ... In the closet?"

"We have nowhere else to put him," the god responded, "That or-" he paused. "The room beyond that. There. Leave him chained of course."

Stare blinked at him, thinking in her mind, But that is my room. Though she had not spent her night there, because of Vitruvion's strange requirement for company in his bed the night before, it still had her belongings in it and she definitely intended to stay there that night. Her eyes glanced briefly to Merla, who was standing in her rags in the centre of the fancy sitting room, awkward as a rabbits amongst hares. Truly, the elf had to be given some commendation for putting up with the strange, power-lusty white haired man and his bizarre kenku slave, who had a dynamic that seemed to shift constantly. Yet still here she was, saying nothing and letting the organisation of god and employee entact before her.

"Yes, that same room. Take him, make the space, leave him. Yes?"

Looking back over to him she grunted, before turning around and heading to the mage. It made some form of sense. She guessed she would just sleep on an armchair the next night. Grabbing his chain she groaned, not feeling any pity for the merciless kidnapper who endorsed rape and force-feeding, and was likely connected also with the mysterious 'brother' in all of this.

Yes - the brother! After all this she had forgotten him, in the heat of the moment with Merla and the man who knew secrets, Stare had completely forgotten about the whole issue. Standing straight up she gazed back at Vitruvion, the question clear in her mind. What had he found in the office, if anything? What had the mysterious secret man said that had made him need to meet his end? What did Vitruvion plan on doing with the mage? What was the idea next? What-?

Lady Merla first, all of that second, he told her.

And it took a long moment of looks between them for Stare to accept it and leave, heaving the lump behind her.

Once she was out of ear shot, Vitruvion moved closer to Merla, his tall, handsome form filling her view. Close to her he suddenly focused in and spoke in a low, quick tone.

"There is one condition on working for me," he practically whispered, "If that is what you truly wish. You say you are good at organisation, and believe it or not I am a very dire need for such a person," he watched the elf, who gazed up him with large eyes, her reaction to his stance before her mild supplication. When he took too long to continue she nodded.

"I am decent at it," she murmured back, "My basic bastard royalist education came with learning numbers, administration, languages and theory. It is usual practise as my kind are excepted to go into government positions."

"Well," Vitruvion continued, regarding her with a nod. "That is near perfect then. We simply need to ensure you can fit into the household and society. However," and he clasped his hands over his cane. "Right, two things rather than one. One, I have made an agreement with Stare that the truth of her physical bondage to me is to remain a secret. I would require for you to keep that. The second is that ..."

He paused and glanced over to the other rooms, just to ensure no one was watching. Instead a door clicked closed.

"A requirement that you respect both Stare and another employee of mine, Captain Raevin. They run my estates, my businesses and, every single one of my employees is adherant to one or the other. They deserve every regard."

Merla blinked. "If you do not mind me saying, sir, you do not treat Stare the same ..."

"She is mine, and she had no choice in the matter, Lady Merla, and sometimes she needs to be reminded where her loyalties lie. I make her life difficult, I know, but she makes mine hard also. Still, I require her to be respected, because she deserves it, despite what-" he paused. "They are my issues, my problems to deal with. No others. Unlike the rest of everyone I employ there is the chance that they can walk away, or I can fire them and never need to see them again, but not Stare." He tapped a long finger on the cane and admitted it. "I cannot let her go. For reasons you would never understand. But think of it simply as I believe her and my souls are bound together, in a way that few can comprehend."