Whiskey, hold the olive (syndicate mission)

[Poison]

((SOLO))

Poison moved confidently through the streets of Gisela. The young vampiress knew exactly where she was going and what she needed. After getting the information for a job in Radasanth, she had finally arrived in the place that her mark was supposed to be. All she needed now was for this Reaper person to show up. She detested having to wait for people to find her. How was she to know exactly who the Reaper was? Any one that thought to earn himself a little extra money or something could claim to be the Reaper and she wouldn’t know the difference. Nevertheless, she had been told to wait at a small hovel of a tavern, thus she would do as she was instructed.

An hour or two later, Poison was starting to get irritated. The wine she drank to appease the tavern keeper tasted like someone had taken a bath in it. She was about to walk out and figure things out about this job on her own when a new person walked in through the door. Figuring that she would give it one more chance to be the person she was waiting for, she resettled into her seat.

In a short time, her patience was rewarded with the appearance of an older looking man, dressed in bland colors that would blend in with almost anything. His hair was dark with shades of gray that could be age or dirt. Poison did not care which it was. He took a seat opposite of her and spoke in a low, gravelly voice.

“You are here for the job, yes? Good, good. You tell the Reaper what you need, the Reaper gets it.”

Pleased that he had finally shown up, Poison leaned forward a bit, also keeping her voice low. “I need one, maybe two, capable persons to help deal with the entourage and any surprises in that entourage. I also need a poison. Not just any though. I want Rosetta Pine. It may have another name here, but it is a slow acting poison. It takes about three hours to take effect, but when it does, the symptoms are sudden and immediately fatal. The subject’s face will start to blacken as the tongue swells up, choking the victim. Within five minutes after the facial color-change, the poison will have reached the brain and all bodily functions will cease. The victim will collapse, dead, on the spot. There is no cure for it that I know of. It is tasteless, odorless, and usually comes in a powder. Can you get all that?”

The Reaper was silent for a moment as he mentally made notes of the items he was to fetch. Then nodded, “You will have all that you require. Where shall I send the boys?”

“Send them to the Blue Periwinkle Inn. Tell them to ask for Alicia Silvertree. And Reaper, no substitutes for the poison I want. If it isn’t available, tell me and I’ll pick something else.”

The middle-aged man nodded and rose to his feet. Touching fingers to brow in a gentlemanly manner, he left the seedy tavern. The poison the girl wanted was expensive, but that was not truly a problem for someone like the Reaper.

[Poison]

The following day dawned with clouds stretching as far as the eye could see, threatening to begin a downpour of rain at any moment. Though she would have normally slept through the early hours of the day, Poison forced herself to rise from the bed, dress herself, and go downstairs. There she found herself a seat in a corner of the inn’s lounge and waited.

Throughout the night, Reaper had been a very busy man. It was nearing dawn when he finally managed to secure a second man to aide the young woman. Likely as not, they would be her saving grace, but that was none of his concern. The poison had not been any easier to acquire than the two large men following him had been, but he had a tiny, glass cylinder tucked away safely in his pocket. There was only enough there for one use, but it was the best he could do under the circumstances.

Shuffling along the street, muttering to himself, he looked up to see the sign above the Blue Periwinkle swinging and creaking in the wind. Perhaps it would rain today, Reaper certainly hoped not. He had quite a bit to do today and he did not fancy doing it in the rain. Stepping inside the small establishment, he walked up to the counter and politely asked after a Miss Alicia Silvertree.

The young woman behind the counter looked up, a bored smile pasted on her face. Miss Silvertree was in room 203, but they should check the lounge first. Thanking her, Reaper turned and beckoned to the men behind him to follow. On entering the lounge he looked around and found his client.

“Miss Silvertree?”

Poison looked up and nodded. “Good, I was hoping I wouldn’t have to wait too long. I take it these two are to be my helpers?”

“Yes, their names are Tobias and Christof,” he answered gesturing to each as he spoke. Both were large and well-muscled. Poison would not have been surprised to find that they were bouncers for some other tavern in town. Tobias had dark hair and eyes, while Christof had platinum blond hair and crystal blue eyes. Of the two, Poison thought Christof to be the handsomer, but that was not important.

“I also have the other item you requested.” Reaper continued as he pulled out the small cylinder from a pocket. “Mind you there’s only enough there for one try. If you miss, you’ll have to come up with a different plan.”

Poison held the glass container up to the light. Within was perhaps about a teaspoon of a blue-green powder. That was one of the things she liked about Rosetta Pine. You only needed a very small amount to get the job done. All she needed to do now, was slip a little into something the mark was drinking. The tricky part would be getting the timing right so as to be sure he fell as instructed.

“Thank you, Reaper. I’ll get started right away. You coming, boys?”

Rising smoothly to her feet, the young vampiress pulled her hooded cloak up, casting her face in shadows. The edges of the cloak swirled about her ankles as she led the way out and into the street. She wanted to get away from the Periwinkle and hopefully to find exactly where her mark, Minister Gawain Derun, was staying.

[Poison]

It was nearing mid-day when Poison finally stopped in the shade of a large tree. Normally, she wouldn’t be out and about at this time of day. She usually stayed indoors when the sun was this high. Even with the heavy, hooded cloak she wore, the sun still made her uncomfortable. It was not enough to be painful, but she was aware of how warm it was and a part of her worried about something pulling her hood off. That was a kind of pain she did not want to have to deal with.

The tree offered two things that she liked. The first, was the shade. It was very welcome to a vampiress who was taking her life in her own hands by going out in broad daylight like this. The second, was that it offered a way to get rid of the two men that were supposed to help her. Right now, all they’d done was be in her way. She hadn’t worked with a team for many years. It was a difficult thing to adjust to when you’d been working on your own for so long. Looking up into the blessedly cool foliage, then back at the men, she smiled charmingly.

“I’m going to take a nap up there in the tree. You can either stay here or go do something else. I don’t care which you do, so long as you’re back here in an hour. Got that?”

Tobias and Christof both nodded and turned away. Poison had not let them stop for anything this morning and both were famished. As soon as they left, Poison swiftly climbed into the tree and found a comfortable spot to sit. She had a great deal of thinking to do before she went much farther. From what she could tell, the large building just a block and a half from where she sat was where the Minister was staying until after his speech at the autumn fair.

Let’s see, I need to find a way to confirm or deny the rumor of the Scarlet Brigade. That puts a whole different light on this. Heh, Tobias and Christof would probably soil themselves if I told them that a Brigade member might be around somewhere. Getting by the Brigade is going to be the hard part. The rest’ll be easy. Just gotta get to him about three hours in advance. Maybe a disguise and take him a glass of wine or water or something. That should work. Now how to get that far. If I knew which guard was Scarlet, this would be a lot easier.

Seeing that the men were now far from view, she descended from the tree and began making her way toward the building. She had done nothing as of yet, so she was not worried about any questions that might be asked of her. However, she wanted to get a closer look at this place. She needed to know every nook and cranny that was big enough for her to hide in. All the entrances needed to be found. A great deal of things that she needed to do that she could not accomplish in an hour.

Soon, it came time to return to her previous seat and meet her helpers. They were quite prompt in their return, for which Poison was actually pleased. Perhaps they would be useful after all. Motioning for them to follow her, she led them almost all the way back to the Blue Periwinkle.

“All right, I can do nothing more tonight. Come back to the Periwinkle in the morning and I’ll have work for you to do. There are a few more things I need to do this, so get the Reaper for me if you can. If you can, tell him I need him tonight if it’s at all possible.”

“What are we gonna be doin’?” Tobias asked in his deep voice.

“You’ll find out tomorrow,” she snapped. “and not before. I still need to work it all out and I can’t do that with you two underfoot. Go enjoy the rest of your day. Tomorrow you’ll be very busy.”

Not waiting for them to ask any other questions or make any comments, she spun on her heel and stalked away quickly. The two men watched her for a few minutes before turning and walking away, grumbling quietly to themselves about working for a woman.

[Poison]

Sometime later, Poison sat at a table in the back of the Blue Periwinkle’s tavern. The room was about half-filled to its maximum capacity. However, unlike most taverns she usually frequented, this establishment was quite clean and quiet. There was no loud, raucous singing, fights were not on a slow simmer in every corner, and the serving girls did not have to worry about getting their bottoms pinched by customers. All in all, it was a respectable place.

Directly in front of the beautiful vampiress stood a tall glass of red wine, half-full. It was the most perfect shade of red she’d seen in some time, telling her that it was of fine quality. It tasted like colored water, but that was not the fault of the winemaker or the Periwinkle. Due to her vampirism, she thirsted and hungered only for blood. Everything else tasted dry and flavorless. She picked the glass up and gently turned her wrist so the blood-red wine within swirled around in its confines.

Suddenly, she tilted the glass to her lips and guzzled it all down in one go. Irritation flashed in her eyes as she looked around the quiet tavern. She needed sustenance, but she also needed to wait. The Reaper had not yet made an appearance and she wanted to be sure to give him ample time to find her tonight. Finally, just before she was going to give up, the door opened to admit the Reaper. He spotted her almost immediately and joined her in short order.

“What is it now, girl?”

“You needn’t be so snappy,” she replied mildly, “I just need a few more items. One is a maid’s uniform. I need to be able to blend in tomorrow afternoon. The other is a sleeping potion, the strongest one you can find that doesn’t take instant action. I need about an hour’s time between administration and reaction.”

“Anything else?” he asked curtly.

“How ‘bout a more cheerful disposition for yourself?” she answered with a mocking smile, “No, that should do it. Oh wait! I need a map of the city. Since I’m not from around here, I’d prefer to have a map of Gisela rather than have to figure it out as I go should I have to flee. I really don’t fancy getting lost.”

Reaper nodded and stood, “Fine. A dress, sleeping aides, and a map. I’ll have them by lunchtime tomorrow. Is that soon enough?”

Poison was silent as she thought for a moment, “Yes. That should still give me ample time to get into position. If I’m not here to receive my packages, have them placed in my room. Thank you.”

The Reaper only nodded in acknowledgment and left just as quickly as he had come. Poison watched the tavern-goers for a few more minutes, then retired to her room to prepare for the night’s hunting.

[Poison]

It was nearing midnight, Poison’s favorite time to be outside. The full moon above her bathed her pale, delicate skin in its white light. It felt absolutely wonderful. The moon was very bright tonight, allowing her to see almost as well as a normal person did in daylight. It was bright enough that if she had looked up to the sky, she would have noticed that most of the stars were dim or completely washed out by the moon’s brightness.

At the moment, she perched on top of a building beside the Minister’s temporary abode. Balancing on the balls of her feet, she looked down at the garden entrance below her. She could see one guard, but could not tell if he was awake or sleeping. Crickets and other night creatures moved about in the garden, unaware that they were being noticed. Apparently, this ‘tight-guard’ she’d been told about meant around the Minister’s person. Her plan tonight was simple: get inside, get a good look around so she knew the basic layout, and get out. Nothing more, nothing less, this was purely reconnaissance. Tomorrow, she would have the guys mingle with the common guards and try to find out what the rotation schedule was and how long pauses were between shifts, if there were any pauses. This assassination was going to be the highlight of her career thus far, and she wanted to be sure that every base was more than sufficiently covered.

Smiling a wicked little smile, the silver-haired vixen descended from her perch to the ground. In a short time, she found the garden door she’d seen from above. It had no outside guards, so the man inside was by himself. Feeling like humming, she pulled a set of lock and pick keys from her belt and got to work fiddling with the keyhole. A few minutes later, she was rewarded with a tiny click, signifying the door was now unlocked. Softly, she pushed the door open, listening from the shadows for a reaction from the guard. Hearing nothing, she cautiously entered through the now open doorway.

To her immediate left, the single guard slouched against the wall. Soft snores and the steady rise and fall of his chest made it clear that he was asleep. Poison frowned at this. Though this meant that she had easier access to the manor, it still galled her to see a guard sleeping on the job. This guy was here to keep people like her out and here he was, sleeping. She was tempted to wake him and then give him a good drumming, maybe even kill him, as a punishment, but opted instead to simply hit him over the head with the butt of her sai. She didn’t hit him very hard, just barely enough to be sure he would continue to sleep until she was long gone.

Amateurish, but effective, she thought grimly as she watched the guard slump to the ground.

Moving on, she crossed the silent, perfectly manicured garden. Keeping to the shadows as much as possible, she almost seemed to float across the ground like a shadow. Soon, she found what looked to be a kitchen door, locked of course. Muttering to herself, she pulled her lock pick keys from her belt once again. This lock turned out to be much simpler than the garden door. In seconds, the door was open.

Perfect! she thought excitedly as she put the keys away and entered the manor. So far the only hard part would be dealing with the Scarlet Brigade. Finding the mark, even getting into his abode, had been easy. She had a plan for the Scarlet guard though. Underneath all the stories of their strength, speed and determination, they were still people and all people reacted to the drugs she’d requested. The plan was shaky, but doable. The biggest hurdle in the plan was not even getting the drugs. The biggest hurdle was simply figuring out which guard was Scarlet.

Poison wandered through the silent halls of the manor. The walls were lined with ornate statues and pottery of gold, silver, and fine china. There was enough there to make her fingers itch to lift a few items, but she harshly reminded herself of why she was there. Thievery at this point would only serve to make the Brigade certain that there was someone that might want to harm the “precious” Minister.

Eventually, after flitting through almost every hall and locating the rooms in which she guessed the Minister slept, she made her way back to the kitchen to depart the way she had come. Once outside, she made sure the door had locked behind her. She did the same at the garden gate. There was no point in alerting the household that someone had entered while they slept.

Once outside the garden gate, she breathed a deep sigh of relief. She had expected at any moment to come across a guard on a nightly patrol. She was safe now. Smiling a triumphant smile, she quickly made her way back to the Blue Periwinkle and her waiting bed.

[Poison]

Poison rose early in the morning feeling refreshed and ready for the day. The Minister would be giving his speech tomorrow and she would be ready this afternoon. Things were looking good.

Downstairs, she waited for Tobias and Christof to make their appearance. She wanted them to be in position just as early as possible. She wouldn’t be joining them until after she had her disguise, but it was better that they didn’t arrive together anyway.

The front door opened, admitting the two large men who were to be her helpers. They made their way to her silently and took a seat at her table. She waited until they were seated and then spoke in an almost cheerful tone.

“Good morning, gentlemen. Let’s get down to business, shall we? I need you to join the common guards. If something goes wrong, you two will be responsible for creating a diversion. I don’t care what kind of diversion it is, so long as it’s big enough to get us all out of there in one piece. Avoid getting into the detachment that will be surrounding the mark to the speech. As the newest guards, you’d likely be the first ones to come under suspicion. Instead, get yourselves on guard duty at one of the entrances to the square where the speech will take place.”

“And what will you be doing?” Christof asked in a low, gravelly voice.

“My job, that’s all you need to know. By the time, he gets ready, I’ll already be in place to watch the fireworks. If everything goes as planned, this will be the last time you see me. I’ll be watching from up high. As soon as he falls, I’ll be gone. Now, are there any other questions?” At their joint silence, she nodded and continued, “Then you better get going.”

The two men rose wordlessly and left the Blue Periwinkle. Poison waited until they were gone then returned to her room to wait for lunchtime.


~*~*~*~*~*~

Lunchtime filled the Periwinkle tavern with delicious, mouth-watering aromas. The Reaper sat at the bar nursing a beer and nothing else. He was not in a mood to eat. At his feet was a small, wrapped package. He would give the girl a few more minutes, then ask for her room number.

Upstairs in her room, Poison roused herself from a nap and went downstairs. On seeing the Reaper at the bar, she quickly crossed the tavern and took a seat beside him.

“Your package is on the floor, Miss Silvertree, use it wisely. I trust that you need nothing else?”

Poison shook her head. She had everything she needed. Everything that the Reaper could provide anyway. He could not provide the luck she would need to be able to pull this off flawlessly. However, there was no need to mention that.

“Then I’ll be going. Good luck to you, you’ll need it.”

Guzzling down the last few sips of his drink, he left Poison by herself. He had other business to take care of before the end of the day.

Poison watched him go, then bent and picked up her package. She took it to her room and opened it quickly. Inside was a maid’s outfit. Moving quickly, she took off her normal attire of black pants and shirt and put the dress on. It fit perfectly. The neck line scooped low, though not low enough to make Poison think twice about it. The hem came down to the middle of her calves. It had short sleeves and snug bodice. The material was of simple cotton, colored green. The whole outfit was far more modest than Poison was accustomed to, but she could deal with that. She was supposed to be blending in anyway, and this would ensure that she did.

She packed all her belongings into one small bundle which she tucked under one arm. The shoes that had come with the outfit were simple, black, servant shoes. They were a little snug at the toe, but nothing that she couldn’t endure. The vials of poison and sleeping powder went into her bosom where they would be safe and well hidden. Ready at last, she hastily made her way out of the Blue Periwinkle and down the streets to the Minister’s abode.

[Poison]

At the entrance to the large manor, Poison paused and took a deep breath. She was now entering the most dangerous area of her mission. She still didn’t know who the Scarlet guard was, so she would have to stay on her toes. She assumed that wherever he is, he’s very close to the Minister, which meant that he wasn’t on guard duty at the door. Undoubtedly, the Scarlet Brigade was expecting an attack on the Minister’s life, else they wouldn’t have assigned someone to escort him.

Taking another deep breath, she walked forward, rehearsing in her mind what she was going to say in order to gain entrance. As she approached the door, the guards stopped her, crossing their spears in front of the door.

“Who are you? What is your business here?”

Poison looked down at the ground, trying to appear to be frightened of the guard’s imperious tone. She made her voice as meek and servile as she could as she answered him.

“Please, sir, I’m one of the new maids. Today is my first day.”

“What’s that in your hands?” the same guard asked harshly.

“Oh this? It’s just my regular clothes. I don’t have very much. Please, can I go in now? I don’t want to be late my first day.”

The guard was silent for a moment, then nodded to the other guard. “Let her in, you know how Mistress Feldin gets when the girls are late.”

The other guard chuckled in agreement as he opened the door for Poison. She paused briefly as the guard that had spoken called out to her once more.

“Hey! What’s your name?”

“Alicia,” she answered with a wink. “Maybe I’ll see you later when you’re not working.”

Giggling, she hurried on down the hall. Once out of sight of the guards, a small triumphant smile parted her perfect lips. Getting in had been much easier than she expected. Getting out would likely be much more difficult. Right now though, she needed to find a good place to hide her belongings. She needed to be able to get to them quickly, but also be sure that no one would find them.

Having already been through the manor once, she didn’t need to wander very long before she found a stairway that lead up to the roof. Likely as not, it was there for roofers to safely reach the roof should roof tiles ever need to be replaced. Once out on the roof, she found a spot next to a chimney that was missing a tile or two. This left a small hole just big enough for her to put her belongings in. No one would have a reason to come out onto the roof, and when she left, she could leave by rooftop. This would be perfect.

Descending the stairs, she waited until she was sure there was no one in the hall, then slipped out of the stairwell door. She walked quickly through the halls, trying to look as if she was on an errand of some sort. It seemed to work. No one stopped her and she easily made her way around the halls until she found one room that had two strong looking guards standing to attention outside the door. Putting on her meek face again, she slowly approached the guard on the right.

“Umm, excuse me, sir, but I’m new here. I was told to find out if the Minister would like wine or water in the hours before his speech tomorrow, but I don’t know where the Minister is to ask him. Can you help me?”

The guard looked at her then spoke, “He’s inside. Wait here, I’ll go see what he would like.”

Poison nodded and waited patiently while the man went inside. While she waited, she let her eyes rove over the other guard. He was a handsome man, likely in his late 20s. He had dark, curly hair, cropped short, and a neat, thin goatee. Seeing that he was watching her look at him, she smiled and stepped close to him. He had the look of being a normal guard, but he might still know some information she could use. Sidling up to him, she let her hand slide up his arm. Keeping up her show of being an empty-headed maid, she gasped and giggled at the strength she felt in his arm.

"Oh my! You're very strong, sir. How did you get to be so strong and handsome?"

The guard was taken aback at first at her forwardness, but he quickly relaxed at her praise. "Oh, it's not hard, I just work out a lot. I haven't seen you around the manor before, are you new?"

Poison looked down shyly, "Yes, I'm new. Today is my first day, but I'm afraid I don't really know my way around yet. I don't suppose you could show me around later?"

New? There weren't supposed to be in any new hires at all until the Minister is gone. Very suspicious...

"Well, I'm not really supp-"

"Please?" she asked, looking up at him with her eyes open wide and pleading.

"All right. I'll show you around later. My shift is over at 7PM. Uhh, let's see, where to meet? How about at the front door, that's easy enough to find. I'll meet you there at 7:15, gives me a little time to get out of my armor and such. Will that be okay?"

"That will be perfect! Oh, I feel so silly, I didn't get your name, mine is Alicia."

"James, and-"

Before he could say more, the other guard came back, raised an eyebrow at how close the maid and guard were standing, then told Poison that the Minister had said he would like wine. Poison thanked him and curtsied, then hurried away, casting a wink at James over her shoulder. Everything was set until tomorrow. She knew where the Minister was and what he wanted to drink. All she needed now, was to figure out how she was to get to the Minister without the Scarlet Brigade knowing the wine was poisoned.

"What was that about, James?"

"Oh nothing, new girl, doesn't quite know her way around yet. I'm gonna help her out, show her the shortcuts and all later tonight."

"Really, now?" the man asked with a knowing grin.

"Yeah, now shut up."

The guards both fell silent then on the subject of the new girl, putting their concentration back to the job of keeping people away from the Minister that were not authorized to go near him.

[Poison]

Poison quickly made herself scarce for the rest of the afternoon. As she had not heard anything to the contrary, she assumed that her “helpers” had been able to blend in with no trouble. Before long, seven o’clock came around. She stepped into a bathroom to make sure her makeup and hair looked good, then quickly made her way down to the front entrance. She found that he was already waiting for her and was quite pleased that she would not have to wait for him.

James had spent the rest of his afternoon thinking about the 'new' girl. He had given instructions that it was in the best interests of the Minister's safety that absolutely no new people were to be hired. He had already researched every employee within the manor. Everyone from the youngest scullery maid to the trusted family servant that had been around for several generations. This girl was definitely not part of the household and that made him very suspicious. She had even made it easy for him to find away to investigate her without giving away his identity. Now, he stood at the front door awaiting the arrival of his suspect.

“Ahh, so you were able to find it easily enough, I see,” he commented as he approached her.

“Well, the front door is pretty easy to find. Shall we begin?” she asked, looping her arm through his.

“Of course.” Arm in arm, the two walked throughout the manor. Poison took notice of every possible escape route.


Two hours later, the duo found themselves alone in an upper hallway. Poison pretended to be nervous and walked closer to her escort. James did not mind, though he was starting to wonder why she wanted to see even the places that no one ever went to anymore. The only people that had been along this hallway were the maids to keep everything clean and they were long since done with their work in this part of the building.

Very suspicious, but good. She's probably noted every escape route we've seen today and if I were someone else, I'd probably believe every word she's told me. May as well find a place to start asking questions of my-

His thoughts were interrupted as Poison, spying a double door, stopped and gazed inquisitively at it before speaking up, “What’s in there?”

“Just a spare bedroom I think. It hasn’t been used in years.”

“Can we go in? Just for a little while, I like to look at old rooms and see what kind of people used to use them.”

James was silent a moment. No one was supposed to enter the rooms up here with the except of the cleaning crew. They were supposed to have belonged to the nobleman who first built this manor and were therefore thought of as a kind of family heirloom or something. Good for looking at, but anything else would be on a level of blasphemy.

On the other hand, it would likely make a very good place to ask my questions...

Poison looked up at him pleadingly, her lower lip sticking out in a pout. She just wanted to get him into more comfortable surroundings. She had found at least a dozen different escape routes in the course of this tour and now her use for James was almost at its end. At his sigh of acquiescence, she squealed girlishly and opened the door.

Inside she found a large, one room suite. At the far end, near a balcony, sat a huge bed. On another wall stood a large dresser and a vanity table. Opposite that wall stood a fireplace. In front of the fireplace sat a couch and a large armchair. A small table with a lamp and few books stood beside the couch.

Walking softly, Poison went to the bedside table and after finding a book of matches, lit the lamp, then padded over to the lamp in the sitting area and lit it. The two lamps did not cast very much light, but they cast enough to allow Poison and James to see better.

Smiling to herself, Poison walked out onto the balcony. The view was not that spectacular, but the cool night breezes felt refreshing against her skin. James followed her and stood beside her at the rail.

“Are you happy now? We really shouldn’t be in here, you know.”

“Oh stop worrying, James,” she told him with a grin, “it’s not like anyone knows we’re in here.” Laughing softly, she jumped up and sat down on the rail.

“Get down before you fall,” James told her moodily. He was not intending to be sharp with her, but he was starting to worry that he would run out of time. He could not afford to not know everything about everyone in the manor.

“I’m not going to fall, but if you’re so worried about it, why don’t you make me get down,” she challenged.

James raised an eyebrow at the challenge, then his breath caught in his throat as he looked at her, really looked at her. The moon had just come out from behind a cloud and cast its light over Poison, making her hair glow and accentuate every lovely curve. Damn, she’s beautiful...

Poison smiled as his hands moved toward her, obviously having accepted her challenge. She giggled as he lifted her down and set her gently on her feet, but did not release her. Poison figured she knew exactly what was going through James’ mind. Raising up on her tiptoes, she tilted her head back and gently placed her lips against his.

[Poison]

((OOC: This post contains highly sexually explicit material, skip it if you don’t wanna read such stuff. This post is not truly necessary to understand the plot at all. You will not miss anything by skipping it. You have been warned!))

Beautiful...it'd be a shame to waste it...

That did it for James. The feel of her lithe body in his arms and her tender lips against his made him forget everything other than the beautiful woman in his arms. His arms pulled her closer to him as he deepened their kiss, his tongue parting her lips forcefully and entering her mouth. There really was only one thing on his mind now.

Inwardly, Poison crowed in triumph. Outwardly, she accepted his advances, moaning softly as his hands began to roam over her body. Breaking their kiss, she moved to his neck, speaking in between kisses and nibbles.

“Mmm...bed...now...”

James did not answer her. Instead he picked her up and reclaimed her lips for his own. The bed was not far away and he sat down atop it with her in his lap. Eagerly, his hands slid down her long legs, then back up under her dress, spurred on by the shivers the movement elicited from Poison.

Desire welled up in the vampiress, increasing her hunger as well. She would sate both hungers that raged through her tonight. Breaking their kiss again, she bent her head to his neck, nibbling and kissing as her hands worked to pull his shirt loose. Surprised, she realized that James was muttering something in a frustrated tone of voice.

“How do you get this damn dress off?”

“Zipper...in the back,” she told him breathlessly. In a trice, the dress was pooled around her waist, leaving her torso clad only in her black lace bra. Unhindered, she pushed her body against him, causing them to fall back onto the bed. Laughing throatily, Poison sat up and ground her hips against his groin, laughing all the more at the moan that escaped his lips.

“Are you certain this is what you want?” she whispered in his ear as she leaned over him.

For an answer, James took a hold of her shoulders and rolled over so that she was beneath him. He pulled her dress off the rest of the way, then allowed his hands to have free will over her body, elated that she seemed to be as eager as he was.

Low moans escaped Poison’s lips as James’ hands, then lips explored her body, starting with her neck and working his way down to between her legs, tasting every inch of her. He was driving her insane and he knew it, too.

“Oh! Oh please, James!” she heard herself begging for more of his attentions. When she had first chosen him, she had not expected to get such a pleasurable experience. James ignored her pleas and continued to do whatever he wished, knowing that he had her in the palm of his hand.

Soon though, he could no longer deny himself and he allowed Poison to remove his clothes. They paused only for a moment before joining their bodies together in lustful bliss.

[Poison]

Some time later, they lay in the bed arms wrapped around each other and Poison's head resting on James' shoulder. She was very satisfied with the night's pleasure even though she hadn't eaten anything yet.

For his part, though he had enjoyed himself, James was very angry with himself. He was on duty and thus was not supposed to indulge himself like this. He had a job to do and having sex with a suspect was not accomplishing it very well at all. Thinking quickly, he ran over a list of questions in his mind before speaking up, keeping his voice low and his tone that of a curious lover.

"So, where are you from anyway, Alicia?"

"I don't really remember. I was orphaned at an early age. My earliest memories are of wandering the streets."

"I see. How did you get to become a maid then?"

Poison was very prompt with her answer, "A lady caught me stealing out of her garbage and took me in. She taught me everything I needed to know to get by in this world. She even tried to find a husband for me, but I took off before she could manage it."

"Interesting. I noticed two vials of powder in your dress earlier, what're they for?"

"Oh those? They're just allergy medicines. I have some pretty serious allergies to some flowers and bees. If I get stung or I get too much pollen in my system, my face gets all puffed up and I have trouble breathing. So I have to keep the medicines with me at all times. Why are you asking me so many questions?"

"Just trying to get to know you a little, that's all."

Poison sat up and slipped out of bed, searching for her clothes. He was asking too many questions and it was making her nervous.

“I’m not the kind of person you really want to get to know.”

“Why not?”

“Just trust me, James. People that get close to me tend to die painful, agonizing deaths. Where did my medicine go? I really need to keep track of it.”

James slipped out of the bed as well and quickly found his pants. After pulling them on he looked around briefly and located the two vials of powder. “Here it is, are you sure it’s medicine and not poison?” he asked bluntly.

Poison stared at him then reached for the vials, her face indignant, “Of course it’s medicine! Why would I be carrying around poison?”

James pulled them out of her reach and approached her. “I’m just making sure. It’s my job to protect the Minister and everyone else in this manor.”

Poison backed up toward the fireplace as he approached her. She had not managed to get dressed yet and felt very vulnerable naked. It was a feeling she was not accustomed to and did not like it one little bit.

“So, what? You think I’m here to assassinate someone?”

“You might be. Anyone that walks through that front door might be here to assassinate someone.”

He had her trapped against the fireplace now. He was certain that she was an assassin. The fact that there was only one person truly worth assassinating in the manor, the way she dodged his questions and the fact that she was trying to avoid being too close to him only served to confirm his suspicions. A small, triumphant grin parted his lips as he reached his free hand forward to grab her.

So beautiful, pity it won’t help her.

At that moment, panic settled over Poison. Frantically, she felt around for something to use as a weapon and found the iron fireplace poker. Grabbing hold of it, she swung it up like a sword.

“Don’t you touch me! You wouldn’t be the first man I’ve killed protecting myself, so don’t push it.”

“Come now, Alicia,” he said, trying to sound casual and friendly, “I don’t really think you’re here to assassinate the minister, but I have to take you downstairs for questioning and have these powders examined. Once the questioning and tests prove that what you say is true, you’ll be fine. Really, it’s not that hard. The guards from out of town are just very suspicious of anyone new.”

“You aren’t taking me anywhere, James!”

Swinging the poker wildly, she stepped forward. James ducked easily and dodged nimbly back with Poison following closely. She made several futile swings before finally getting a lucky strike between his legs. As he crumpled to the ground, she swung again at his head, knocking him out cold. Breathing heavily, she stared at him. How close had she come to getting caught? She would have to hurry out of Gisela just as fast as she could. She had not admitted anything, but she was certain that this had to be the rumored Scarlet Brigade guard. Her best bet was to poison the wine and run just as fast as she could. He’d gotten a very good look at her face over the last several hours and would likely be able to describe her very well. She may even need to leave Corone for a while.

Taking several long breaths, she steadied her nerves, dressed herself and collected her poisons. Once in the hall she looked around until she found several large armchairs in the room directly across the hall. It took her all morning to move them by herself, but when she was done, there were three large armchairs blocking the double doors.

That should hold him long enough to complete the mission. I’m not sure how long he’ll be unconscious so I’ll have to stay on my toes.

Hurrying on down the stairs she found herself a hiding place until three hours before the speech. Those few hours passed nervously for Poison, but soon it came time to put her plan into action. Collecting a bottle of wine and a glass from the kitchen, Poison quickly made her way to the Minister’s temporary office. On the way, she stopped in a secluded area and emptied the entire vial of Rosetta Pine into the wine bottle. Stoppering it again, she continued on her way. At the doors she found the same guard that had gone to ask her question the day before.

“So, where’s James this morning?”

Poison smiled sheepishly, “He’s a just a little under the weather. We had quite a bit of wine last night and he’s found he doesn’t quite feel like getting out of bed.”

The other guard chuckled and opened the door, announcing as he did that the Minister’s wine had arrived. Poison followed him quickly and set the tray with the bottle and glass down on the table near the minister. Unstoppering it, she quietly poured the minister a glass of wine. He took the glass, sniffed it appreciatively, then took a sip.

“Splendid choice, my dear, thank you. On your way now, I’m quite capable of pouring a new glass of wine when I need it.”

Poison bobbed a curtsy and hurried out of the room. Now she needed to get out. Hurrying through the halls, she located the roof access and disappeared nimbly up to the roof. She changed clothes quickly and let out a small sigh of relief as she belted on her two sai. She felt much safer now that she had a real weapon on her person. It was still three hours before the minister would give his speech. According to what she’d learned, that one sip the minister had taken in her presence should be enough to kill him. Hopefully, he would drink at least the whole glass if not more. Confident that her mission was complete, she moved quickly across the roof.

The last step to a successful assassination was the escape, often the hardest part. This time it would be even more difficult with the Scarlet Brigade being here, knowing her face, and knowing her motives. That there wasn’t anything he could do to save the minister encouraged her to disappear before he woke up and began searching for her.

[Poison]

James woke some time later with a very sore personal area and a splitting headache. ‘Alicia’s’ actions had only proved to him, beyond a shadow of a doubt that she was indeed an assassin. He had been too easy on her, trusting to her apparent fear to be able to get a hold of her. She had gotten lucky, very lucky, and he would make sure she wasn’t so lucky again.

Finding the rest of his clothes, he quickly put them on and tried to leave the room, only to find that the doors wouldn’t budge.

What the hell? How did she? Nevermind, it can only be locked from the inside, so the door is only blocked.

Setting his mind to the work of getting the doors open, he set his shoulder against one door and pushed with all his might. Despite the fact that he was much stronger than Poison, it still took him at least an hour before he managed to get the door open far enough to allow him to slip through. Once out he checked the time and cursed. The minister would be giving his speech in an hour, if he still lived. Still cursing inwardly, he hurried through the halls to the minister’s office.

“Hey, where’ve you been all morning, James?” the other guard asked him knowingly. At James’ glare, he wiped the grin off his face and put his eyes straight forward. “Nevermind, forget I said anything.”

“Is the minister still inside?”

“Yes, sir. He’s probably going over the last details of the opening celebration and all.”

“Has Alicia been here? Wait never mind, if she’d been here then you probably wouldn’t be out here anymore.”

Without knocking, James went inside the office. The minister sat at his desk with several guards around him. At his elbow stood the bottle of wine, but he had been too busy to drink it all. He had only consumed a glass and a half of the wine Poison had delivered.

James strode over to the minister and took the bottle of wine in his hands. Holding the bottle to his nose he inhaled deeply, then ran his finger along the edge and tasted it. Much to his frustration, there was no smell or taste of poison.

Perhaps she has not struck yet after all. I need to find her.

“Sorry to disturb you so, Minister, I’m just following the trail of a possible assassin. I’ll be going now. Do not let anyone into this room and do not change your guards for the remainder of the day.”

Not waiting for any questions, the elite soldier went back outside. After a few more questions for the other guard, James began searching the manor for traces of the pretty assassiness. Eventually, he came across the rooftop access and noted that the door had been opened recently.

Found you, my pretty...

Moving silently up the stairs, James fingered the knives hidden in his clothes and checked the sword at his waist. This should be a simple enough task. There was no where to go from the roof. None of the other buildings were close enough to get to from here. He had made sure of it before choosing what he believed to be the safest place for the minister to stay.

[Poison]

Poison moved quickly across the rooftop with the surefooted grace and confidence of experience. She already had her route in mind and was certain that she would be able to outdistance James easily. After all, it wasn’t as if this was her first attempt at killing someone.

Her route thus far had been fairly simple. She’d run across the roof of the manor, then using a rope she’d found on the stairs to the roof, she repelled down the far wall. The rope only reached halfway down the wall, but that was enough for the agile vampiress, even in her protective cloak. Using all the agility she possessed, she jumped out away from the wall, aiming for the top branches of a tree in the courtyard below. Climbing through the tree, she reached the outer wall that separated the manor from the rest of Gisela. Once over the wall, she kept to the shadowed alleys and side streets.

While Poison was working her way through the streets of Gisela, James began his trek across the rooftop. He searched very carefully and thoroughly, as surefooted as any topnotch thief. Much to his surprise though, he did not find “Alicia” hiding anywhere. However, a smile parted his lips as he saw the trail she was leaving. Using her own rope, the tall man followed the same path Poison had and was soon on the ground outside the manor. Before picking up the trail again, he went to the front of the manor and gave orders for all the city gates to be barred. No one was to leave Gisela until his quarry was found.

Poison was now nearing the space where the Minister would give his speech. A platform had been set up and decorated to mark the occasion. Poison chuckled to herself, knowing that the Minister would only get part way into his speech before falling over dead. Looking around at the buildings that surrounded the square, she chose her vantage point and made her way to it quickly. It would have the best view of the platform to allow her to watch her handiwork unfold before her.

After forty-five minutes of searching and not finding the elusive “Alicia,” James decided the next best thing would be to stake out the square for the speech. When he arrived, he saw no sign of “Alicia.”

She must be here somewhere, but where? She’s very clever to have gotten this far, but there’s no escape now.

From her vantage point, Poison saw James enter the square and silently cursed. She’d hoped that upon not finding her on the roof or the near vicinity that he would return to the Minister’s side. She had not expected him to try to follow and find her. This was not looking good at all.

Great, now what am I going to do? I don't think I can beat him in an all out fight and he’s sure to check the rooftops eventually.

A small, hard bubble of apprehension began forming in the pit of Poison’s stomach as she began to realize that maybe this time, she may have bitten off quite a bit more than she could chew.

[Poison]

People began to fill the square below Poison, eager to hear the Minister’s speech. Sounds of chatter and laughter floated up to her ears, but she ignored it. Securely wrapped in her cloak and crouching in the shadow of a chimney, the vampiress waited patiently for her poison to take it’s toll. Hopefully, James would think it better to remain on the ground to protect the Minister from aerial missiles flying at the doomed speaker. She was almost certain that he did not know that her work was already done.

Far below her, the two men she had been given as helpers grumbled to themselves. They’d been ordered to block the western exit from the square and to be sure not to allow any silver-haired, cloaked women pass. They knew who the official looking man had been referring to and were starting to wonder if the gig was up.

“Maybe we should just quietly disappear. What do you think, Christof?” Tobias asked, worry edging his voice.

“And draw attention to ourselves? No, we stay put, she said she’d handle it. If she doesn’t then it’s on her, not us. We have nothing to worry about.”

Still a little nervous about the whole idea, Tobias scanned the area for “Alicia”. He could not see her and did not remember that she said she’d be watching from the rooftop.

On the east side of the square James was carefully scrutinizing the portion of rooftops he could see. He cursed inwardly as his eyes roved from rooftop to rooftop fruitlessly. At last he came to the conclusion that the only way to find her, would be to search each rooftop individually.

That’ll take a long time though. If she hasn’t done anything yet, she’ll probably do it during his speech, which doesn’t give me nearly enough time.

Frowning, he located five other men and instructed them to get up to the rooftops of the surrounding buildings. He sent two men to each of the four large buildings that surrounded the square, taking one with him for the west side of the square.

“The suspect is female, has silver hair, and is wearing a green maid's uniform. If you find her, do not engage her. One of you stay on the rooftop with her and the other come find me.”

In a short time all six men were on their respective rooftops, carefully searching for Poison. Below them, a few cheers rang out as the Minister stepped up to the podium to begin his speech. Poison silently gloated to herself. If she had the timing right, the minister had about five minutes left on this plane of existence.

Hearing a sound behind her, she turned within the shadow, being careful not to step out of it and silently cursed. James and another soldier were searching the rooftop. A quick glance across to the other rooftops showed her that they were all being searched. James had been lucky in choosing the one she was hiding on. Trusting to her vampiric powers, Poison shifted so her back was against the chimney and her face was watching the Minister. Then she concentrated hard on blending into the shadow of the chimney. In a few moments, she was all but invisible. No one would see her unless she moved or they bumped into her.

[Poison]

Two stories below her, the Minister continued with his speech, unaware that his life was nearly over. The crowd was silent as they listened to his voice ring out over the square. Poison watched with a satisfied smirk on her lips, counting down the minutes to the Minister’s death. She had to watch and be certain that he did, in fact, die, otherwise she would have to take more drastic measures to ensure that job got done as instructed.

James walked silently across the rooftop. His companion was not nearly as stealthy as he, but that was not a problem. If Alicia was up here, there was no where for her to run. Hearing the minister begin his speech, James crept carefully to the edge of the roof, laying one hand against the chimney, right over Poison’s head. His hand brushed her hood and he glanced down out of the corner of his eye, then smiled inwardly.

Very good, Alicia, but it would seem your luck has run out.

Sighing irritatedly, he motioned for his companion to start heading back down. There was no one on this roof. James also backed away from where he could now clearly see Poison. He waited for a minute then began creeping up on her again, this time with his sword drawn.

Poison’s smirk widened as it came down to the Minister’s last minute of life. She had heard James and the other man leave, but had not watched them. Thus it came as a complete surprise when she felt cold steel against her throat.

“So, you found me, congratulations. However, you are too late to save the Minister. He will die very soon now.”

She stood gracefully to her feet, but kept her hood on, cooly ignoring the steel blade at her throat as it followed her movement. Within the folds of her cloak her hands rested on the hilts of her titanium sai. The fact that he had actually found her despite her shadow-melding ability unnerved her. He should not have been able to find her.

“What do you mean?” James asked suspiciously.

“Observe, James of the Scarlet Brigade," she answered, nodding toward the Minister.

At that moment the Minister stopped speaking. He grabbed at his throat as though choking. The onlookers began screaming as his face slowly started turning black. His assistants rushed forward trying to pry open his mouth and see what was causing the problem. They were as fearful as the crowd.

In the span of about half a minute, the minister collapsed in a heap. He did not breathe. He did not move. His face was black and his eyes bulged out of their sockets. A tiny bit of purple froth decorated his lips. The head of the guard around him tried in vain to close the minister’s eyes, then began issuing orders to his men. They left quickly while the captain stood to his feet and addressed the crowd.

“The Minister is dead. Everyone is to stay where they are until further notice!”

Poison smiled in satisfaction then turned to face James who still held his sword at her throat.

“You see? He was as good as dead three hours ago, while you were still recuperating from our earlier fight. And now, I will take my leave.”

Her hands flashed, throwing the cloak back from her arms. Her right hand came up and shoved the sword away. In the same fluid movement, she ducked down and ran across the rooftop. She did not like the idea of having to fight in the sun, but she did not have a choice at the moment. Standing in a defensive stance, she beckoned to James mockingly.

“Come and get me, if you can.”

[Poison]

James followed her up to the peak of the roof. He had to admit, this woman had a lot of guts, but right then he didn’t care. As he drew near her, he brought his sword up and across, intending to slice her stomach open and end the battle easily. He was not counting on the pretty assassiness to be so quick to react.

Poison deflected the blow easily and backed up another step. She was well aware that he would likely outclass her if he got too close. Thus, she planned only to let him drive her off the roof. She had not actually checked that there was a way she could get off the roof, but it would certainly beat having his sword through her body.

“Come now, is that all you’ve got?” she taunted as she brought her sai up in a defensive position.

James did not answer her, instead he calmed himself down so he could fight better. Allowing himself to sink into the intense training he’d received to become a part of the Scarlet Brigade, James began to approach “Alicia” a second time. This time, though, he did not rush her. He approached slowly, seeking a weak a spot in her defense.

Poison watched him carefully, aware that he was now thinking about what he was doing instead of trying to overwhelm her. Out in the open, the sun beat down on her. She could feel the heat of it against her back. Her hands, the only part of her in the sunlight, were in incredible pain. She was not sure how long she could stand to fight and made a mental note to buy a pair of gloves at the first opportunity.

CLANG!

Poison reacted instinctively, blocking the sudden movement of James’ sword. She had not actually seen him move, but had somehow felt it. As his sword came free of her sai, Poison darted forward, slashing at the man’s open side, then continuing on away from him. She did not like the idea of trying to jump from the top of the tall building, though she would as a last resort. Right now, she wanted to make him follow her.

James grunted in pain as the titanium blade sliced neatly into his side. He had not thought to put his armor on earlier. He was in too much of a hurry to find his suspect to remember such things. Now, he was paying for that mistake. The cut was not deep, but it would prove to be a nuisance. Keeping his sword up, he again began closing on Poison, all thoughts other than apprehending her gone from his head.

Poison’s mind was going a thousand miles an hour as she tried to think of an escape plan. She had not expected for him to find her and did not have an escape plan for getting off the roof. Her hands felt like they were on fire and she was grateful that her hood was so deep. She would not be able to keep this up at all if her head were in the sunlight as well.

At least he doesn’t know that I’m a vampire. If he did, he’d have more than steel at his command.

Gritting her teeth against the pain in her hands, she beckoned for James to come closer smiling sweetly at him.

“Come, lover. Surely that little scratch isn’t going to bother the likes of you.”

James said nothing. He had never cared for trying to throw his opponents off with banter. He ignored Poison’s words and closed the space between them again. He thrust forward at Poison’s left shoulder and thought he felt the resistance of flesh against his blade but then he saw that Poison had trapped his blade with her sai.

“Hmmm, what shall I do now?” Poison taunted for a moment, then brightened, “I know!”

Twisting her sai, she forced the sword out of James’ hands. It skittered across the rooftop and came to a stop twenty feet away. She saw it out of the corner of her eye and silently cursed that it had not gone over the edge into the alley. Still, it was out of James’ hands and that was a start.

Feeling the sword leave his hands, James lost no time in pulling out two of his hidden daggers. He left Poison no time to recover from tossing his sword. Coming in low, he slashed at her legs, but found that she was just as quick as he. A slow grin began to creep over his face. It had been a long time since he’d fought anyone that was anywhere near as good as he could be. Being so close to her now, he noticed something, her hands were trembling and starting to turn red.

What’s wrong with her? Perhaps, I’ll ask her later. Right now, that’s a good thing.

Believing he had an upper hand, James began to push her harder. Poison found that she was barely meeting any of his attacks. She certainly had no time to retaliate with any of her own. She hissed in pain as his blades found her flesh a few times, though not deeply. Panic began to rise up in her again. She had to get away somehow, but she couldn’t spare the time to look around to find a way out.

Slowly, James pushed her until her back was to the chimney. The feeling of the cool bricks against her back felt good to Poison only for a moment. Then, she realized he had trapped her just as he had in the bedroom earlier that morning.

Crap!! What am I going to do now!?

Fending off James’ steel blades frantically, a last hope dawned on her. His neck was completely uncovered. She made one last, desperate parry, then threw herself forward on him. The movement caught the man offguard and they fell to the roof with Poison on top. Not even pausing to note that they were so entwined with each other for the second time, she plunged her fangs deep into his neck, drinking hungrily.

The moment James’ back had touched the roof, he’d immediately begun trying to get up, but was stopped short as first excruciating pain, then bliss filled his entire being. Blinking his eyes rapidly, he tried to fight off the sensation, realizing that Poison was using some kind of trick on him. He managed to plunge his dagger into his side once, before her plan came to fruitition. Feeling suddenly very weak, the soldier of the Scarlet Brigade felt his arm drop limply to the rooftop, his blades falling harmlessly from his hands as his vision blurred. He felt as though he was falling into a dark pit. In a few seconds, darkness claimed both his mind and vision.

Poison took several deep breaths and looked down at him to be sure that he really was unconscious. Grimacing, she pressed a hand against the wound in her side and stood to her feet. Sheathing her sai, she stepped into the shadow of the chimney to recover from the exposure to the sun. Looking at her hands she winced. They were extremely red. She also now noticed the alarmingly large amount of slashes adorning her arms. He had gotten in more hits than she thought.

This is going to take forever to heal, but at least I’m alive and not in custody. I better get moving though before someone comes back to check on him.

Wrapping her cloak around her tightly, Poison disappeared into the building down the same flight of stairs she’d come up an hour or two before. Keeping hidden, she made her way toward the western exit. Relieved to find that her accomplices were on duty there, she hurried forward. They of course allowed her to pass and she quickly went back to the pub where she’d first talked to Reaper and waited to see if he would show up with her reward.


~*~*~*~

It was nearing midnight, the little man known as the Reaper moved briskly through the alleys and side streets of Gisela. He’d not expected to have to actually deliver this reward to the girl. He found her in the same place he’d first met her and approached her table gruffly.

“Here,” he said as he dropped a bag on the table in front of her unceremoniously. “Five poisoned, plynt throwing stars as requested. The poison will maim a man temporarily and kill him within an hour if it’s left untreated. Good night and good luck getting out of here.”

Chuckling humorlessly to himself, the Reaper left Poison alone with her thoughts and her reward. Once he had gone, she reached out a reddened hand for the bag. She opened it carefully, wincing at the pressure of holding something, and inspected her new tools. Nodding satisfactorily, she closed the bag and tied it to her belt. Rising smoothly from her seat, she exited the tavern to find a way out of Gisela.

[Poison]

Poison moved smoothly along the outer wall of Gisela. The moon was still mostly full tonight, so she could see everything as clearly as if it were the middle of the day. She had not heard any news of James’ recovery, but she was sure that by now he’d sufficiently recovered to make exiting Gisela a difficult task for her. She kept a careful watch around her as she descended a flight of stairs. There had been movement at a public notice board and she thought it wise to see what could be so important that it be posted at close to midnight. A small smile parted her lips as she read the proclamation.



WANTED:
Who: Alicia Silvertree
Wanted for: the murder of Minister Gawain Derun
Description: about 5'6" tall, around 120-125 lbs. Has long silver hair and grey eyes. Wears a hooded cloak and carries two sai.
REWARD
50,000 GOLD PIECES

Poison nodded proudly to herself at seeing the amount of the reward. She would have to give up the alias of ‘Alicia Silvertree’. She had so liked the name, too. Still, they didn’t know her real name or even her codename, and that was a big plus. Shaking her head, she left the notice board and continued on seeking her way out of Gisela. So far, every gate had been heavily guarded and she had not yet attempted to go through one of them. The last thing she needed was to run across James again.

She came across another flight of stairs leading to the top of the wall and climbed them swiftly. She was running out of time. She knew, without a doubt, that she had to get out of town tonight. If she waited until tomorrow, there would most certainly be a hunt for her. Gisela was not big enough for to hide long enough to escape notice.

An open window in a nearby house caught her attention and she decided to see what goodies the house had to offer her. The silver-haired vixen climbed silently through the window and began her stealthy journey through the house. A small variety of gold and silver trinkets found their way into her pockets. When she had a reasonable collection gathered, Poison headed back out. The last door she checked turned out to be a supply closet and inside was a coil of rope. Poison’s eyes lit up.

Perfect! This looks like it ought to be long enough to get me most of the way down the wall.

Taking the rope, she slung it over one shoulder and closed the door. She was so pleased with herself that she almost began humming, but thought better of it. Once out on the parapet again, she sought out a secluded area of the wall. There was a spot on the east wall that seemed ideal. As she began uncoiling the rope, she heard the sound of booted feet walking along the parapet.

Crap! A patrol! Come on fingers!

Her fingers still ached from their exposure to the sun earlier that day. The redness had not subsided even the slightest and the slightest pressure made them hurt all the more. Even picking up the pretty goblets and other pretties had caused the vampiress pain. Tying a knot in the rope was proving to be even more painful as the footsteps grew louder.

There! That’ll have to work!

Just as she got to the top of the wall and was preparing to slide down the rope, a soldier walked around the corner. Seeing a figure on top of the wall, he guessed, accurately, that it was some criminal trying to escape. He called out loudly for his fellows to come quickly and charged toward the cloaked figure standing on the parapet.

Poison stayed stock still for a moment then leaped from the top, sliding down the rope quickly. The soldier looked down from the top, alternately calling for her to stop and for the others to open the gate and get to the fugitive. The rope ended about ten feet from the ground, so Poison dropped to her feet. She took a moment to get her bearings, then began running as fast as her legs would carry her. Behind her, she could hear the sounds of pursuit and narrowly dodged a spear thrown from the wall top, again moving instinctively as if she had sensed it. Poison took no notice of that though, and kept running.


~*~*~*~

It was nearing dawn and Poison’s weary legs were starting to give out. She could still hear the soldiers from Gisela following her and forced herself to keep moving. She knew she had to find a place to hide. There was no way she could continue like this in the daylight. Far ahead of her she could see the beginnings of the Concordia Forest. Encouraged, she put on a little more speed. Once she could get inside the forest, she could disappear easily.

Many long minutes later, Poison was almost dragging her feet as she entered the forest. The coolness of the shade was extremely welcoming. Her pursuers seemed to be as tired as she was. They were falling further behind her as their own weariness started taking its toll on them. Pressing on, she crossed a small stream and climbed a tree. Her limbs barely seemed to work as she climbed laboriously. At last, she found a wide branch far enough above the ground and with enough foliage beneath, for her to be out of sight. Sighing tiredly, she pulled her cloak tightly around her and went to sleep.

Traveling mostly at night, Poison made her way to Radasanth. Once there, she sold the trinkets she’d stolen then found a ship heading out of Corone and snuck aboard. Apparently, James had been very busy in trying to catch her. She had seen more fliers advertising the reward for her capture. She doubted that any ship’s captain would willingly harbor and transport a wanted criminal, so she slipped in with the cargo. For the rest of the journey, she strove to stay hidden. The ship eventually landed in Raiaera. She slipped out as quickly as she had slipped in and set about finding new work.

I’ve spent more than enough time in Corone, anyway. It’s high time I went to new places.

With this attitude set in her mind, Poison started off on what she hoped would be a practically new life on the mainland.


((OOC: Spoils: As per the Syndicate Recruitment thread: (http://www.althanas.com/world/showthread.php?t=2700) 5 plynt poisoned projectiles. The poison is strong enough to maim a man temporarily and kill him within an hour if left untreated. I choose throwing stars for my projectile.
Also, the gold from selling the silver and gold trinkets, how much they sold for I will leave up to the mod.

[Witchblade]

Storyline

Continuity: - 5 Well, I understood right off the bat that this was a Syndicate Mission that Poison had taken on, but it was never quite explained why she had taken on such a mission. Clearly it wasn’t for a monetary gain because her rewards in the end were some daggers. Even just a simple mention of wanting to get herself a reputation would suffice, but I didn’t really read anything to that effect. After all though, the general storyline of the quest was okay, though despite the fact that there was a Scarlet Brigade member there, it seemed like Poison had quite the easy time getting the mission done. I’m sure you read up on the Scarlet Brigade before doing this mission, but they’re not a force to be taken down so easily. I’ve seen Letho command a few of them as NPC’s, still your depiction of James wasn’t necessarily wrong given the information supplied to you.

Setting: - 5 Setting needs to be described more vividly for the reader to actually see what is going on around the character. Sometimes it was there and at other times it wasn’t. Your opening post had almost no setting in it and that’s the post that needs to draw in the reader to the story. There were a few times when you used the setting to your advantage, but they were rather few and far between considering the situations that you got your character into.

Pacing: - 6 For the most part, the general flow of the quest were all right, up until the very end. I thought that her escape was quickly rushed because you just wanted to get the thread over and done with. It happens sometimes, you get to the end of a thread, and you just want to rush through it, but it really does affect your writing. Her planning to get up to the actual mission itself seemed to take quite a while too, while the whole deed was over and done with quite quickly. Not to mention some things, like James leading her around, seemed a bit pointless in my mind and only drew more attention to her.

Character

Dialogue: - 4 My one big problem with Poison’s dialogue, was whenever she needed to get something from Reaper she would always explain to him why she needed it. No assassin would actually explain to someone why they wanted specific items that would only give that person an advantage over them, especially when earlier on Poison was complaining to herself about not being able to properly trust Reaper. Christof and Tobias had absolutely no personality throughout this quest (more about that in persona) and it really showed in their dialogue. It was so flat and just there for no reason. James wasn’t bad, I liked some of his internal dialogue but he seemed to think a lot and do very little.

Action: - 4 No one and I mean no well trained assassin would knock out an already unconscious guard, it’s foolish. The guard will only alert the others when he comes too, because damn is he ever going to feel that one when he wakes up. And for someone who’s not very worried about killing a Minister, why wouldn’t she just kill James as well while he’s unconscious? It would save her from having to leave Corone, not to mention no one would have noticed him gone until it was too late, since according to your own writing no one goes into those rooms. Then there were the chairs she had stacked in front of the door. There was a balcony in the room, why didn’t James just climb down from there or yell at someone for assistance instead of struggling with the door for an hour? Another strange thing was Poison just climbing up into a tree while people were searching for her and going to sleep. It totally caught me off guard and made me wonder as to the sanity of your character. Not to mention every time she turned around there was something coincidentally placed to help aid her in her escape.

Persona: - 4 Poison comes across a very arrogant and self assured kind of person for the most part throughout the quest, but some of her actions really go against this self assured nature of hers. James seemed rather dense at times for a Scarlet Brigade member. He kept thinking about questioning Poison, but never really did much of that and even though he practically knew she was an assassin somehow—because he fucked her—he rather easily let her get the slip on him. And your two NPC’s were just giant guys with muscles and no brains that stood around muttering to themselves and that was about it. They had no personality at all, which really dragged this thread down. The guard on duty with James had more personality than they did and he was in the thread for a shorter amount of time.

Writing Style

Mechanics: - 5 Watch your overuse of commas and your tenses. I caught you slipping into the first person once and then quickly back into the third. I find that rereading your last post before you write up the next one allows you to catch a lot of the mistakes you didn’t the first time around.

Technique: - 5 Over all you have a good writing technique, you just need to refine it a little more.

Clarity: - 7 For the most part things were rather clear and precise with what was going on in the thread.

Wild Card: - 5 I think this kind of thread would have benefited from a second person taking part, which I see you did try to accomplish though Dyne dropped out of the thread.

Reward: 50

Poison receives 1,000 experience!

The Five Plynt Shuriken is granted and upon selling the items, Poison receives 76 gold, but she lost it while she was in the ship travelling to Raiaera. It must have gotten misplaced in all that produce. Also, her battle against James damaged one of her sai, leaving a dent within the metal, and it will need to be repaired soon.

[Witchblade]

EXP and GP added!