Recoup

[Kamar Deythal]

The subtle change in air temperature and pressure woke him, as it usually did. Kamar was an extremely light sleeper, and didn't need much in the way of sleep. Plus, dusk brought change with it, and Kamar was a creature of the night.

Rolling smoothly off the mattress, Kamar stood. He glanced down to the sleeping form of Chrishton across the room and saw that he was still breathing evenly and deeply. It was good for the big man to rest.

Kamar made his way to his pack, sifting through it's contents until he found his food pouch. He pulled a few bits of dried meat out, taking a large bite out of one. While chewing on that bite, he continued to rummage, pulling out a slightly shriveled apple, a small piece of cheese and a half loaf of bread. Still chewing the hard bit of meat, he cut a few slices from the loaf of bread, cored the apple, and halved the cheese. He turned and went to the shelf above his mattress, picking through the various implements there until he found a skin of fresh water and a two pressed metal plates.

While he worked, he thought about what had happened over the last day. He wasn't sure why he had agreed to become a battlemage. Perhaps he truly was tired of living on the edge. Or perhaps it would simply be easier to conduct business without being constantly hunted by the obviously powerful judges. His intent was to go through with his end of the bargain. And he was still under the impression that working for the right people would get him a larger slice of this pie than it would to simply float from job to job. Plus, he had already learned from Chrishton things that he doubted Moryldar et al wouldn't be particularly forthcoming about.

Returning to the desk, he scooped half the meal onto one plate, adding the unbitten piece of meat, then scooped the other half onto his own plate. He pulled the chair out, careful not to make too much noise and sat, no longer paying any attention to Chrishton. He was too busy paying attention to his own thoughts.

[Chrishton Radu]

You're too human for us, Chaos.

The Silver Lady's voice was silent and musical, a noteless melody that toyed with his emotions. It pulled at his heart and made him feel butterflies in his gut, the likes of which he hadn't felt since he was a teenager. She was so beautiful it hurt. The gentle curves of a woman in flawless naked silver. She had the face of every female he'd ever lusted after. He could feel her lips...

Everything he did, he did for her but in the name of Inari... Inari who never spoke to him.

You will be until you die.

He would die for her. He had killed for her, although he told himself it wasn't so simple. She was his secret desire, anchoring him to his current life. When he saw her, nobody else mattered. Not his dead wife, not Shakko, not Cervantes. It was sinful, it was wrong, but he wanted her so badly it didn't matter.

Trust not the hunter, he works for the vampire. He will only help you until you reach your goal.

What goal? He still didn't know why he was in Thar Shaddin, wasting time, getting hunted, abused, and even abandoned. How could they abandon him inside Justice Hall like that? He had almost died alone in there. He felt it. It was the first time he had feared death in years. He resented being used.

You still fear. You are still too human.

Chrishton's eyes snapped open. It took time for him to ground himself in reality every time he left the astral plane, especially if it was only in a dream and half of him was still in the material. The sound of her voice was gone the instant he awoke and he couldn't remember its sound, but he still felt the lingering affects of the emotions it brought with it. He was ashamed to think those things. He was still too human, because when he dreamed it wasn't him doing the dreaming.

He looked over to Kamar, sitting at a table eating alone. He started to get up, but his muscles, nerves and skin protested furiously.

"Agh..."

He dropped back to the mattress and glowered at the ceiling. It was always worse the day after.

[Kamar Deythal]

Power.

To different people, the word means different things. To some, it's a means to an end. Change the world, make life better for everyone. To others, it is the control over other people's lives. The thrill of knowing that, on a whim, someone could be killed, hurt, jailed... or saved ... by one word.

To Kamar, it meant the ability to stop running. To do what he was trained to do, without hiding it from anyone. Sure, he would have power over the lives of others, but he had that now. The difference was that no one knew he had the power if he wasn't employed by the local government.

At least, they didn't know until it was too late...

As he popped the last bite of his half of the apple into his mouth, Chrishton groaned in an attempt to sit up. Kamar's brow lifted and a half smile quirked the corner of one mouth at the man's obvious pain. He was surprised when the roof didn't start on fire from the heat of Chrishton's glower.

Kamar stood, reaching towards the plate of food beside him and lifting it. He showed it to Chrishton, the half smirk still on his face.

"I could bring it to you, if you'd like to remain in your bed?"

[Chrishton Radu]

Chrishton grumbled and eventually looked at Kamar, who was holding a plate of food temptingly. He didn't answer the question, but with some groaning that was a mixture of genuine pain and aggravation, he stood up and shambled over to the table to have a seat. He didn't like it one bit, but for some reason he kept going, albeit with a significant amount of protest.

He looked at the food and knew he should eat it, but his empty stomach didn't send any hunger signals to get him going. Perhaps it was the excitement of the night before, or the contrast of his current safety, but he wasn't hungry.

The dream still haunted him. He didn't like what the silver lady said or what he knew was the truth of his own motives. What was the point of doing their bidding? To get some superficial physical reward? That is all it was, wasn't it?

The spirits started buzzing around him, most of them answering his questions in childish jest. Some of them, whom he recognized as his favorites, were able to cheer him up. Look at mopey dopey. No wonder he's only got two tails. I think he's giving up already. Coming from his friends, it was enough to allay his concerns. They made him feel better. Somehow.

He picked up a piece of cheese and started chewing on it. He knew he had to eat and get on with things.

"So yer here for a bounty eh?" He kept his eyes on the plate of food, but there was suspicion in his voice, bordering on accusation. Rather than look cheerful and rested, let alone grateful, he looked like he might be upset. Keeping his eyes away from Kamar was an obvious poker face.

Was he ready to toss the table aside and start throwing punches?

[Kamar Deythal]

Kamar watched in amusement as the big man grunted and groaned his way the ten feet from mattress to desk. He chose a seat at the opposite end, which suited Kamar just fine.

Chrishton sat and seemed to hesitate over the food. After a few moments, he began to eat. And ask questions.

"So yer here for a bounty eh?"

Kamar remained outwardly calm and relaxed, but he could read the big man's body language, let alone the tone of voice the question was asked in. It was the little things that other's tended to miss; the tensing of muscles not used to eat on a man who had recently been tortured. However, the tone would even have alerted someone less astute at noticing such things.

Kamar nodded without missing a beat, launching directly into an explanation. He had nothing to lose in telling Chrishton about his search, and it may even gain the man's trust.

"Aye, that is the truth. A young woman running from justice many miles from here. Those who would see her brought to stand trial asked me to bring her back. Preferably alive, but who can say what will happen in a struggle, no?"

Kamar spread his hands, a regretful look on his face. The blend of truth and lie slipped easily from his tongue, a gift learned from years of lying directly to others' faces. It would be hard for even another trained as he was to be able to tell it was not all of the truth.

Kamar leaned forward, just slightly closer to Chrishton, as if there were people about who might hear something they shouldn't. "From what I hear, she managed to kill a child. A girl, I think. Apparently it was with the aid of a magical item or some such. Strangled her to death, nearly separating head from body."

Again, truth mixed with lies, all told from a face deadly serious and earnest.

[Chrishton Radu]

Chrishton sat hunched over the table, chewing his food and playing idly with another piece of cheese between his fingers. He was sizing Kamar up properly for the first time, and he didn't have to speak any threats. They both knew what the tone of his voice and his posturing meant. He was threatening Kamar, willing to cause a world of pain to both of them, regardless of the consequences and regardless of his current physical condition.

He didn't believe the man, but then he didn't have to. The Lady said he was working for the vampire, but she also said he would help him until his work was finished. Chrishton didn't know how it was possible for someone helping the vampire to be on his side, nor did he know what his job here was to begin with, but he had gotten used to not understanding what was going on and didn't care one iota that it made no sense. His concern was with making it clear to Kamar that working with him meant staying on guard and not fucking around. If he caught Kamar lying to him he fully intended to fight.

"Right. An' I suppose they tossed ya'n Justice Hall cause they caught ya doin'm magic tryin' ta catch her." He looked at Kamar with a blank expression. "Ya still gonna try? T'get 'er, I mean."

[Kamar Deythal]

Kamar shrugged offhandedly, no longer look at Chrishton. His eyes played over the dingy interior of the Thieves' Nook, although his peripheral vision was still focused keenly on the big man.

The suspicious question wasn't really out of sorts with the type of man Chrishton seemed to be, and suspicion was rather expected when a jail break had been conducted by two people who had little or no knowledge of each other. Kamar's job was to keep Chrishton from deciding that he would be better off without the newly-turned battlemage. It would truly be a shame to have to kill the big man.

With a sigh at the suspicion, all a part of his very well performed act, Kamar returned his gaze to Chrishton only a few moments after the last question.

"First, they put me into Justice Hall because I tried to fight off a battlemage who was coming between myself and the girl. Because of that idiocy, the girl was able to escape, as far as I know. Unfortunately, I don't know where she is because I was unconscious at the time. When I awoke, I was in the cell, and as far as I can tell, I wasn't there a much shorter time than you.

As for trying to get the girl, it is my job, and I only get paid upon completion of my contracts. However, I've grown tired of the stagnant life and dangers of being a bounty hunter, and I may decide to simply settle down and become a part of regular society." Kamar shrugged self-consciously. "You know, the whole wife-kid-family thing." He shrugged again. "I haven't decided yet. Anyways, the girl continued to cry her innocence, even when it was obvious that she used her guitar as a weapon... in front of the Captain of the Guards and a battlemage."

All of this was true, although from a twisted perspective. Kamar felt no need to lie at the moment, and omissions were not really lying. He purposefully did not mention his magical abilities, since Chrishton had actually only asked the reason why he had been thrown in Justice Hall, not if Kamar was able to use magic.

[Chrishton Radu]

Chrishton nodded as Kamar recounted the story. The battlemages were self righteous bastards and would just as soon give Kamar trouble as anyone else, provided he really was an outsider, a part of the story Chris did believe. There was a look and smell about the people in Marn that Kamar didn't have. The people in Marn were isolated, ignorant, often depressive in some way, but Kamar had confidence. Something didn't fit right with the image of him growing up here.

He chewed on the next piece of cheese and sat back, staring at the bounty hunter hard still. He looked haggard. His hair was a lengthy jungle of dirty knots.

"If she killed a kid, bitch's got it comin'." He straightened up, cracked his back loudly, and paused, finally looking away. "I could help y'get 'er if ya want. I exchange fer gettin' me outta jail. That, and I'd like a chance t'get a lil' even with these battlemages 'ere."

[Kamar Deythal]

Kamar nodded thoughtfully. Chrishton had nearly tied himself to the assassin, and that was all Kamar had hoped for. He suppressed the urge to grin to himself, nothing at all showing on his face but what he wanted.

A thought about why Chrishton would turn away while offering his services flitted through his mind, but he suppressed it, thinking on more important things.

Should I go after the girl myself? What if they already have her, or she's escaped? I still need to go back to the Judge and report...

Kamar smiled at Chrishton, a small smile of appreciation. He stood, packing some of the things into his pack again.

"I don't think that will be necessary at the moment, Chrishton. I think the best thing to do for the next few days is lay low. The battlemages aren't likely to let it become common knowledge that two of their prisoners escaped Justice Hall, but they'll certainly be searching diligently for us. We can't stay here, though. It's sort of day long place, to keep out of sight. I suppose we can drift from Nook to Nook, but it would be better if we had someplace to go to ground for a few days."

He turned and looked at Chrishton as he took a long swallow from his waterskin. The unspoken question stood between them.

[Chrishton Radu]

Chrishton looked back at Kamar, caught him waiting for a response, and smirked at the suggestion.

"Dun lookit me. I been livin' on the streets an' in a cell fer the last two weeks. Suits me just fine, and if they're lookin fer ya, the only places ya'll be able t'go without gettin' caught're the woods'n the fort ruins. They don't go in neither place much. Dunno why."

He recalled something Moryldar and Ryxa had asked him about, while he was under the delirium of their torture session.

"But if yer thinkin' ya k'n just keep yer head down'n pray they dun find ya, yer kiddin' yerself. These mages, they got scryers k'n find anyone they want supposedly. Not sure what they use t'do it, but if yer anywhere in the Thar, they'll find ya eventually."

[Kamar Deythal]

Kamar nodded thoughtfully, then shrugged again. He turned and began repacking his pack, making things smaller. The bag itself was interesting, thinner, wider and longer than most. When he had it slung on his back beneath his cloak, not many could tell that it was there. He hadn't been wearing the pack when the wolfman had thrown his dagger at him, or he wouldn't have the cut on the back of his shoulder blade. He flexed the muscles in his shoulder unconsciously; the pulling of barely healed skin was still there, even with the salve he had put on the cut. He had had one of the herb women scattered throughout the city stitch the cut on his shoulder, since he couldn't reach it himself.

When his pack was finished, he turned to Chrishton as he shrugged into it. "Well, we should get moving. There's still a bit of sunlight left, or should be, but I'd rather be elsewhere, on the move, if they have scryers as you say they do..."

He paused, looking at Chrishton askance as something occurred to him. He didn't ask the question, but it was obvious what the question was. How did you avoid the detection of the scryers for so long?

Kamar went on as if there had been no pause. "We'll be safer if we move every couple of hours. Is there anything you need to do, or get? We'll go to a tavern perhaps, or maybe find another Nook to stay in, if you aren't feeling up to walking too much. How are you feeling, anyways?"

Kamar had already half turned towards the door when the question occurred to him, and glanced back over his shoulder at Chrishton as he asked.

[Chrishton Radu]

Chrishton smiled knowingly at the pause. It was as much of an answer as he was going to give.

"Feel like shit, but so what? I need a drink. Come ta think've it, if we make our way ta Shim, I know a place there won't ask questions or care who we are. Might not be so good bein' there at night, but it'll get us some time away from the guard. Lot easier t'lay low."

It would be a lot easier as long as the vampire stayed put. The two of them might be able to hurt him if he did turn up. Maybe.

He had no belongings to pack and just sat there eating while Kamar collected his. He had no better plans for what they should be doing. He could play the sidekick role a while. When Kamar was ready, he stood and gestured to the door.

"After yeeeooouuu, bossman."

[Kamar Deythal]

Kamar nodded when Chrishton was ready. He turned to the wall, slipping a small eye slot open at nearly perfect height for him. He put his eye to the whole, checking as far as he could in either direction down the little alley. As far as he could see, there was no one around. It was still light out, though the light was draining from the sky quicker every minute.

Kamar quickly unlatched the door, pushing it out and nimbly ducking out, a dagger in his hand. He checked both ways, and when he saw nothing either way, motioned Chrishton out.

[Dorcas Tansy]

The sound of wood sliding smoothly against wood echoed in the alley like a sharp gasp. It startled a shaggy, mud-colored cat in its prowl. The cat halted in a crouch, rigid and unblinkingly focused on the source: a slim slot in the wall sliding open, the glint of eyes in the dimness.

The wall began to shift, and the cat leapt out of its crouch to lope down the shorter length of the alley. Its matted fur reflected little of the waning sunlight, it might have been unhealthy, but the effect was to appear as little more than a flicker of shadow before disappearing to the right at the end of the alley.

"Ah!" came a hoarse exclamation just as the cat rounded the corner. "The feck ye've been, dain a alley!"

Just as Kamar was beckoning his companion out the hidden door, a tall and seemingly willowy figure turned into the narrow space of the alley. She struggled with the cat, embracing it or strangling it for a moment, and then flung the thing heavily onto her shoulder. Dorcas was not a person known for her willowy form, after all, and as she straightened herself from her wrestle with the cat, her form became clearer. It was at first a trick of the shadow and light, or the odd angle of her stumble into the alley, but her form thickened noticeably into the more recognizably broad Dorcas Tansy as she edged forward.

"'Ey!" She squinted into the alley, able to just barely make out a figure, the reason for her cat's flight. "Well it's nat a magic cat, so ye kin jes' bug--" she squinted harder as she could just make out another figure, a form familiar in its unique combination of bulk and sneakiness. "Who's there?" she called, attempting an accusatory tone, but betraying her surprise.

[Chrishton Radu]

He was not the stealthy sort. He walked out of the nook with all the sleuth and nonchalance of a gladiator entering an arena. Beaten up though he was, he still stood tall proud, eager to take on whatever Dennison was so worried about encountering in the alley. He had every intention of staying out of trouble, but no intention of looking cautious.

Alas, it was a little difficult to look tough without his clothes. All he had was the robe stolen from the Hall. Shoes would have helped.

A voice called out from the street and startled him. Was Kamar's caution justified? The voice sounded familiar.

Who's there?

Definitely familiar. He had trouble remembering who it was. Without waiting for Kamar to do anything, he answered.

"Yer aunt Betty!"