Thar Shaddin

Michael dismounted off of the wagon and reached in to grab his small crossbow that had been laying next to him. With the adrenaline coursing through him, Michael barely realized what a crisp, cool night it was in Athena. The stars were shining bright as well, but he couldn't be less interested.

As he was about to leave, the driver leaned out and spoke to him. "Dro, how long is I suppo' stoo stey hea?"
Michael latched his crossbow to his chest and turned to face the driver, pointing. "You keep your mouth shut and stay where you are, if I am not back by sunrise you may turn back to Pedom Morini to collect your payment."

The driver raised his left hand in acknowledgement as Michael turned and continued on his way.

Michael briskly walked down the road with a crazed look in his eye, ready to interrogate the rat that had gotten one of the TCO's most respected associates murdered.
Michael's manager, David, and one of Michael's subordinates, supposedly, already broke into the rat's house and had him restrained.

Michael was still livid about the whole situation. A drug supply that, he personally, would have sold for the first time had been in the process of being transported from an undercover farm in between Thar Shaddin and Tian Xia. The farm had prepared it's first supply of Opium that had been too endangered to sell in previous days.
Everyone in the drug business knew that there was money to be made in Opium, but it had been in such short supply that, if sold, it would've quickly became extinct. This farm keeper, however, came to Trelham in search of the TCO to assure them that he had created a stable environment for opium and would keep them stocked high on the drug if the price was right.

After investigating the farmer's claims, the TCO had made a deal with the farmer and put him in contact with David, Michael's manager, the head of the Tarsis Family drug trafficking. He had went with David to see the farm and meet the farmer for himself.
The farmer had an elated sense of humor that Michael did not appreciate. He did not find this amusing, he did not consider this a game. It was a business, and Michael had been less than impressed with the Tarsis for making a deal with such a doof, however, the farm was impressive and had a full acre of land dedicated to the growth of Opium. A new fortune had been promised to them.

Opium was definently a drug worthy of merit. It's average "high time" was four hours and 100% of Opium user's had claimed that all of their worries and stresses were quelled by the drug, it was relaxing and simply made you feel really good. On top of that, some user's went on to claim that sore's or pain's that they had were also eliminated. In today's world, a drug like that would sell like hot cakes, top that with Michael's already superb selling skills and you would have an empty inventory with bags full of bishani.
Michael was not a user of any drug, so he always had to interview user's and gain a perspective of the drug through their eyes. Not an easy task, especially since most user's were insane or were too doped up to remember.

Michael shook his head in anger and cursed aloud once again. The small fortune he could've made was put to a screaming halt with the death of this associate. The veteran had been tasked with getting the first shipment of Opium through the southern trade route undetected, not an easy assignment. Michael knew from the start that this drug was going to be dangerous to transport, especially with those bastard Marnian guards lurking around in the dark and with the Bendulli Family being a constant hassle.
Sure enough, he had been murdered and the Opium stolen. At first Michael was positive it had been an employee of Marn that committed the act, especially since it happened only two miles from Marn, but according to the Tarsis sources inside the city, nothing had been stirred up in the city that day or night. The Tarsis Family had quickly sent some men to move into the farm and keep an eye on the Opium farmer for the time being, not wanting the farm to fall into rival hands.

With surprising speed, the TCO had been tipped off by a resident of Keir about a suspicious man pulling a cart toward Athena that almost exactly matched the description of the cart that had been stolen. The man also matched the description of a recently recruited dealer of the Tarsis. With that information the TCO had sent most of their man power in that direction in search of the rat.

It didn't take long for the cart, and thief to be found.

Having something stolen from him was like a spit into Michael's face. The mere thought that this rat was thinking he had gotten one over on him made him fume. Plus, the murdered associate's wife, Ashlynia, had been moved in with Michael for protection. A decision Michael was absolutely furious about.
The stinking cowardly traitor would take the brunt of Michael's frustration for that.

Now Michael had the house in his sights. He continued to walk as he unlatched the crossbow and took off his shirt to reveal his athletic frame. An act he did usually to appear more intimidating.
There was no leniency for traitors and Michael was not inclined to bend that rule any time soon, the rat would suffer a traitor's punishment. Torture as well if he refused to talk.

Two men stood watch on either side of the houses entrance as Michael arrived. "Brutes" was the term they were referred to as, because of their masculine build and tall stature. Michael was athletic, but he didn't have anything on these guys.
Still, Michael outranked them and they acknowledged him with respect.

"Everything straight?" Michael asked. The crazed look still dancing in his eyes.

The men nodded and opened the door for him. The interrogation was about to begin.

As Michael walked into the house, David was already walking toward the door to see if he had arrived yet.
"The Opium is not here." David said, having trouble looking Michael in the eyes.

"What? I thought you two had found the cart?" Michael said.

"We did, it was empty. There's nothing in it, except a bag full of Bishani"

Michael brought both of his hands up to his forehead and let them slowly slide down his face, over his eyes. He was furious. "And what is he saying happened to it?"

"He swears that he had nothing..."

Michael heard enough. He walked past David and made his way into the living area where the rat was restrained. Michael realized that he was still upset with David for throwing Ashlynia under his protection. It wasn't that Ashlynia did anything to bother him, Michael had just became accustomed to living alone and her mere presence was annoying and distracting to him. Ultimately, though, it was the traitors fault, and he would make sure the snitch understood his frustration.
The rat sat in a chair, in the middle of the room, with his wrists tied together behind him. He had the look of annoyance on his face, rather than fear and his demeanor didn't change when Michael entered the room.

Michael had no patience left, he wanted to know where the Opium was, and he wanted to know now.

Michael stood in front of the traitor and looked down upon him. When the traitor met his eye contact, he spoke. "Where is the Opium?" Michael asked.

The traitor chuckled in disbelief, as if he had been asked that question several times. "I told your partner already, I had nothing to do with.."

Michael snapped. He took his crossbow, pressed it against the traitor's left knee and fired. A gruesome scream filled the house as a six inch long stake punctured the traitor's knee and partially exited through the back of his leg.
David and the other associate, in unison, looked out the window's closest to them to see if they had attracted any attention. Michael wasn't too worried about it. If someone got nosy, the brutes outside would handle them.
The traitor moaned and whimpered as the extreme pain began to subside, slightly.
"We have wasted enough time and resources on you." Michael snarled, now only inches from the traitors face. "And we have lost too much money because of you!" Michael continued, yelling now, trying to drown out the traitor's whimpering. "If you ever want to walk again, you will answer my questions. I don't want to hear any more horse shit from you!"

The traitor's teary eyes met Michael's and Michael took satisfaction in seeing that fear was now beginning to overwhelm him. "Now," Michael began, reloading his crossbow and pressing it against the man's other knee. "Where- Is- The- Opium?"

The man mumbled and whined incoherently as he stared at the crossbow against his knee, then at Michael, then back to his knee. "I...I..It.....He."

"Alright!" Michael said, bringing the crossbow in firing position.

"No! Please! Alright, Alright!" the traitor wailed, begging for mercy. "An Elf! An Elf took the Opium. An Elf dressed in white clothes. Dress attire! It was white dress attire!"

Michael backhanded the man so hard that the chair toppled to its side. Michael, then, grabbed the mans collar and brought him, and the chair, back on its feet. "He took it? Or did he pay you for it?" Michael asked, his right hand holding a firm grip on the collar.

"He payed. 500 bishani. I don't want it! Please, take it!" the man pleaded, as if hoping that would buy him his freedom.

"We will!." Michael screamed turning around to catch his breath. With the adrenaline coursing through him, Michael hadn't realized that he was not breathing. Michael closed his eyes and tried to calm himself, but couldn't. Whether it was his fault or not he knew the Tarsis would make a strike against him for the loss of this Opium. Drugs were his business and if problems or losses occured relating to drugs the Tarsis would put the blame on David, first, and them him.

As if sensing Michael needed a break, David stepped in and continued. "So for 500 bishani, you surrendered the Opium and murdered the courier. His life wasn't worth more than that to you?"

Michael had his back turned, but he heard the traitor's reply. "I swear. I swear to god I didn't kill anyone."

"There is blood! Stained all over the side of the cart you carried here!" David replied. For some reason, Michael sensed sympathy in David's tone.

"It's my own blood. From an accident on the way here. I swear.."

Michael couldn't take any more. Enough of his time had been wasted on this man. "I told you..." Michael began, as he turned around and approached the traitor. "That I didn't want to hear..." Michael kicked the stake in the man's knee, driving it deeper inside. Another gruesome scream resounded through the house. "...any more horse shit!"

David backed away and allowed Michael to take over again.

Michael pointed to the associate that had arrived here with David. "Get that cart in here." Michael ordered.

The associate stiffened. Surprised that he had been asked to do something. "The ...the cart that he..."

"Yes!" Michael interrupted. "The cart. In this room. Now."

The associate jumped to the task while Michael observed the traitor, hunched over, suffering in agony. He felt no remorse. The man had willingly accepted money to murder an associate of the Tarsis and then allowed this so called Elf to take the Opium. On top of that, his act would likely get he and David in trouble and also created a widow which was now living under Michael's roof.
A few minutes later Michael heard the sound of the cart trying to be forced through the door.
Michael sighed in aggravation, made his way to the door, pushed the associate aside and yanked the cart through the doorway. Ripping the lining out of the doorway and snapping the wheels off of the cart.

Michael dragged the cart through the house and threw it in front of the traitor, with the blood stain facing him. "You say this is your blood!" Michael yelled, grabbing the man's hair and forcing the side of his face against the blood stain.
Michael scraped the traitor's face across the cart, allowing splinters to pierce his skin and creating a second blood smear on top of the other.
"Your blood does not match the blood on this cart! It does not match!" Michael screamed in the mans ear, while he wailed in agony and begged for mercy.
Michael knew he wasn't making any sense, but pain appeared to be the only thing the traitor respected.

"You murdered one of our loyalists! For a bag of Bishani!"

"Okay!" the traitor cried out. "Okay! It was me!" The traitor finally admitted, beginning to cry. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Please forgi...."

"Shut up!" Michael exclaimed. "Shut up! I'm not interested in your groveling. You will not have any remorse from me!"

Michael turned around again, recollecting his thoughts. Michael, then, got a look from David. It was a quick, subtle look, but Michael knew what it was. They had been there too long and had made too much noise. It was time to move. There were, however, a couple of extremely pertinent questions that needed answered.

Michael turned back to the traitor and put his face only inches away from his own. Michael saw several splinters protruding from the traitor's face and it was covered in blood. Most of it had dried up by then. "You've struck out," Michael began again. "I don't have any more time for you. If I hear anything else but the truth from you, from here on out, you will be nothing but a splatter against these walls."

The traitor whimpered and nodded.

"Do I make myself clear!" Michael screamed, causing the traitor to recoil in fear.

"Yes! I promise the truth!" The traitor exclaimed.

"The Elf. Where did he go?"

"He traveled West. It appeared to me that he was headed to Keltaris."

Michael shot a glance at David, who was apparently thinking the same thing. The Bendulli Family. Michael had never, personally, had a situation with the Bendulli family. The Tarsis and Bendulli had always been at war, but it had laid dormant and silent for the longest time, as far as Michael knew.
Michael suddenly realized that if the "Elf in White" was working for the Bendulli, then this rat might've given him too much information.

Michael grabbed the man's neck and began to choke him. "Did you tell him where the farm was!?"

The man couldn't speak, but mouthed the word, No.

"goddamnit!" Michael yelled tightening his grip on the man's throat. "Did you tell him where the farm is!?"

The traitor shook his head violently, making it apparent that he hadn't. "I don't even know where the farm is." the traitor said as Michael released him, allowing him to cough violently.

Michael believed him. This man had already given up so much information, why would he put himself through more pain? Michael had gotten the information he needed, but he had to know one more thing.
"The Elf sent you here to Athena." Michael stated as the man slowly looked up at him. "Why?" Michael asked.

The traitor looked Michael in the eyes and shook his head. "He told me if I wanted to make more money, to come here and wait for him." Michael looked at him, expectantly, waiting for the rest. "That's all he told me, I promise."

Michael, again, grabbed the man's hair and put the other side of his face against the cart. "I told you I want the truth! All of the truth!"

"Please!" the man wailed. "You can fill me with splinters! You can shoot me with crossbows! I can't tell you anymore! That's all I know!"

Michael looked at David, who solemnly shook his head.

Michael dropped the traitor and walked out of the room, with David and the associate following behind. Just as they approached the door, one of the guards opened it with someone standing behind him.

"What's wrong?" Michael asked.

"Dro," the brute began pointing to the elf behind him. "He claims to be working for us now. He says he has a note for David."

David stepped forward and took the note from the elf. David nodded his head and allowed the elf in.

It appeared to Michael that the elf was sick. He was way too skinny, appeared shorter than any elf he'd ever seen and, quite possibly, had the smallest arms as well.
Great, Michael thought. The Tarsis sure knows how to pick 'em.

This traitor had proven to Michael that people just couldn't be trusted and he had no reason to trust this "new hire."

As the elf stepped inside the building, Michael approached him and pointed to the man that laid sprawled on the floor, whimpering.
"You want to work for us?" Michael asked, sounding more like sarcasm then an actual question. "Get rid of him."

Michael walked out the door and headed back to the wagon that brought him here. David stayed behind and the other associate had turned left and went his own way


Michael was exhausted, he was going home to rest. A new threat had been revealed this evening. The Tarsis would not be happy.

Kyo has examined the room and tried to piece together what he had missed. He had looked at the man in the chair and thought of his new task at hand. He began to regret taking a job for a criminal group but he was close to death from starvation and could really use money to buy food and sleep in a bed for a few nights.

He was slightly shook up from the boat ride he took that evening. He thought back to the day before and how he ended up in this mess.

"Boy! Wake up!" A strange man dressed somewhat nice had awoken him. Kyo looked up.

"Wha... What? I was sleeping", Kyo placed a hand on his dagger still sheathed.

"Are you..." The man froze in the middle of his words as he noticed the pale weak elf. He looked a bit confused. He was sent on the task of finding this professional assassin, and drug peddler. The man thought he had the wrong person but finished his sentence anyway "Kyo Ryari?"

Kyo grew a tighter grip on his dagger and felt a bit insecure with the man, believing he was hired to kill him by his prior employer.

"Who's asking?" Kyo questioned.

"I have word that you are in possession of a unique set of skills that could be useful for our organization, but it appears your not him... So ill be on my way now." The man turned and begun to walk out of the ally and he suddenly stopped. He had felt a blade on his neck and the grasp of someone behind him.

"What's the payout?" Kyo ask, as he restrained the man and held him at bladepoint.

"It depends on how much you help us. I suppose your intrested then?"

Kyo let the blade down and let go of the man. "Where am I going and what am I doing?" he asked.

The man looked at him and handed him a note. "You work for a man named David now. You will go to Athena and seek him out. Tell no one who you are or where your going. You will hand this note to him when you find him, do not open it yourself. You will be payed soon after your tasks are complete, and heres some compensation to keep you with us and to get you there as fast as possible." The man handed him a small bag of Bishani and left.

Kyo grabbed a small meal and made his way to Athena where his currently is now...

He opened his eyes and looked at the man in the chair. He took a small parchment from his bag and a small needle and walked over to the man.

"Wha... What are you doing?" He asked.

"You need to be quite for the sake of my mission... I have a zero percentile failure rate and I will not start now." He got up close to the man and began sewing the mans mouth shut as he started screaming. Kyo hit him in to throat to quite him slightly and continued sewing. Once the man was silence he began dragging him by his leg out of the building.

He continued to slowly drag him away, taking him down by the water. He checked all of his corners and made sure he was not followed. After he arrived at the water and looked at the man who was now covered in dirt from the drag and he was crying in pain from the stake still in his leg and the stitching in his mouth.

"Im sorry, but I have to do this." He says in anguish, having guilt from his task even though it might be he only means of survival. He proceeded to using his dagger to saw off the arms of the man. Once his arms were pretty close to being dismembered and were beyond use to the man kyo stopped. He then tied his legs together and held him underwater until he no had a pulse. He then took off his armor and clothing and swam out a ways with the corpse and let him go into the water he then swam back and dried off, gathered his equipment and went back tho the jobsite.

Michael sat, staring at the floor board of the wagon, while the driver took him to a wooded area that held his key for getting back home.

The realization of what he was doing with his life struck him hard, yet again. This feeling of sadness and despair attacked him, almost religiously, after every evil job he accomplished for the Tarsis family. It was a burden on his soul that threatened to crush him at a moments notice.

Michael cleared his throat and rubbed his eyes. He had long since learned to quell the horrible feelings that surrounded him, because that's what they were. Feelings.

To Michael, feelings were a strictly human emotion that could be controlled with a disciplined mind, and he had that mind. Michael banished every depressing thought that haunted him and left his mind blank.
The appropriate thing to do would be to think of something uplifting. But what could Michael think of?

"We hea' Dro." the driver said turning and looking at him.

Michael snapped back to realization and hopped off the wagon. As he began to walk in the woods a strange feeling washed over him. Gratitude?

"Thank y--" Michael began to say to the driver, but he had already starting heading in the other direction and couldn't hear him.
Michael turned and continued into the woods, thinking of what was about to happen ahead. A mage that worked for the Tarsis was waiting for him to teleport him to Pedom Morini, however, the mage was an amateur and less than skilled in "Transportation Magic."

Michael had the unfortunate luck to get sent to this man on his first day on the job. What was suppose to be a quick teleport to Trelham, turned out to be a 9 mile hike and a splitting migraine. He was tired and not in the mood for stupid mistakes tonight.

After a few more minutes of walking, Michael found his way to a clearing where a man was waiting for him. The man was tall, lean and appeared to be pacing anxiously. When his gaze met with Michael's, however, the man stiffened and stood still. "Hey, about last time, I.."

Michael cut off the man with a wave. "I'm tired, just don't screw it up this time."

The man averted his eyes from Michael and nodded his head.

Michael closed his eyes and let his head hang. Prior experience taught him that keeping his eyes open during the teleporting process resulted in a very large headache and extreme nausia.
Michael felt the magic envelope him and the familiar feeling of flying brought the uplifting feeling that he could never remember.

Keltaris was a prosperous port city found at the west end of both the Southern trade route and the Northern trade route which passed through the city of Marn. However, it received most of it's goods through the Southern trade route and it's southern port in a small sea adjoining the open ocean.

It's skyline was perforated by numerous magnificent structures, all modern in their architecture and mostly low to the horizon. In between the buildings were criss-crossing intersections of busy streets that made up a perfect grid.

The day happened to find Bertram relaxing on one of the docks, taking in the gentle sea breeze. His arms were crossed over his eyes to keep the sun out, which happened to be hanging midway between high noon and the western horizon.

He breathed a light sigh of relief and had begun to hum a merry little tune when he was suddenly accosted by a shadow and a flirtatious giggle. He placed his arms at his side so he could see what was going on. Leaning over him was a beautiful girl that appeared to be his age and was grinning from ear to ear.

"You're funny!" she said to him and giggled some more.

"What's it to you?" he replied, covering his eyes with his arms again.

"You know I saw you take that apple from the food stand. But don't worry, I won't tell anyone." she informed him, still smiling.

Bertram gave no reply this time.

"Just thought I'd let you know. I'll definitely be seeing you again sometime, handsome." she concluded in a flirtatious tone of voice, and she left skipping and humming the same tune he had been humming before she surprised him.

After she left, Bertram spent a moment thinking about what had just happened, and he simply grinned and blushed.

~

Later that evening, Bertram could be likened to a wandering zombie, as it was late and he hadn't found a place to lay his head yet. No matter where he tried, no one would take him in for the night.

The streets had long been deserted, and many of the inns had closed up shop for the night. He was dragging his feet and knew it wouldn't be long before he collapsed from exhaustion right in the middle of the stone-way street.

He was slowly approaching one last light when no matter how hard he tried he couldn't cry out. And it was there he finally stopped and gave in to his desire to sleep.

It was then that a stocky older man opened the door and seeing Bertram rushed to his aid. He managed to catch him as he fell, and out of instinct Bertram reached into his pocket and held out a few Bishan.

"That'll do son, that'll do." the innkeeper reassured him, and carried him inside his inn and laid him to rest on one of the beds.

Bertram would sleep soundly until morning.

The next morning, Bertram was stirred to consciousness by a quarrel out in back behind the inn.

"For crying out loud, what in Thar Shaddin could possibly be going on back there?" he growled grumpily at the rude awakening.

After putting his clothes on, he snuck out to the back to see what was going on.

As he peeked around the corner, he could see the innkeeper facing away from him, with what appeared to be a small group of thugs confronting him. Bertram listened closely as best as he could.

"Please, I beg of you! Give me more time! I'll pay back the money for certain!" the innkeeper begged. He was on his knees, groveling.

"We've given you more than enough time, liar!" one of the thugs snapped at him. He was holding a sword, and proceeded to smack the innkeeper across the cheek with the hilt of it.

"Please, please, please!" the innkeeper pleaded frantically, but to no avail. The thug with the sword spit in his face.

"Die you mongrel!" the thug cried and then thrust the sword into the innkeeper's chest. When he pulled it out, it was covered in blood, and the innkeeper rolled onto his back dead.

Bertram quickly withdrew his head and cursed under his breath, but one of the other thugs had noticed the movement.

"There's somebody there! After him!" he cried, and they began their pursuit.

"Shit!" Bertram cursed again, this time out loud, as he lept to his feet and fled.

~

"You can get up now, Golford." said a voice, and a figure emerged from the shadows.

The innkeeper proceeded to open his eyes, pick himself up off the ground, and brush himself off.

"You'd better hurry up madame, before he gets too far." Golford commented.

"Don't worry, I've got everything under control." the figure reassured him, and giggled sadistically.

~

By now, the streets were crowded again with busy people, so he sought to use that to his advantage. As he darted in and out amongst the crowd of people, he kept looking back to see if he had lost his pursuers.

After running for a while, he took one last look back, and it appeared that he had lost them. Ahead of him some ways he had seen the east gate to the port city, so he proceeded to run again.

Turning back around, he began to run again when out of the corner of his eye he saw a familiar face. It was the girl who had spoken to him the previous day, and she was grinning the same way she had been before. That was the last thing he saw, because as soon as he saw her, he tripped over something and came crashing to the ground.

Within seconds the thugs that had been chasing him before were upon him. As they dragged him away from the street, nobody paid any attention and the thug with the sword eventually hit him in the head hard with the hilt of his sword knocking him unconscious.

~

When Bertram finally came to, he found that he was bound in chains to a wall. When he finally looked away from himself and the chains binding him, somebody was already standing in front of him. It was the girl from the day before again, and she still had that grin on her face.

"My name is Vivian Bendulli. I know you're wanted in Marn, so you'll do exactly as I tell you to do. Or I'll hand you over to the city guard. Welcome to the family, Bertram de Folia." she said, all with a smile, and she giggled sadistically.

It felt like a dream. A dream of flying.

Without being able to see anything, the "falling out" feeling in his stomach told him he was not on the ground. The calm, peaceful feeling of flying was welcoming to Michael and he embraced it warmly.

A couple hours seemed to pass before Michael realized what was going on. No. He wasn't flying. This wasn't a dream.
Michael began to think and it all started coming back to him.

The flying sensation ceased and was replaced with the sensation of falling.

No. This wasn't a dream, Michael thought. The job. The mage.

Suddenly, reality crashed around Michael as he blinked his eyes and realized where he was.

A novice who had never been teleported before would've gone through a major stage of disorientation. The first stage would've have been the frightening thought of how long they had been standing there and not been aware.
The second, being how long they had been "flying."
The third, and final, was trying to remember what day it was, the time and where in the hell they were.

But Michael was no novice. Before he was teleported he had said in his mind over and over again, The date, where he was going and what time it was when he left.

Michael also knew that he had not been standing there for more than four or five seconds. When reality began to settle in someone's mind, that's when the teleportation was complete.

In addition, just like in a dream, the feeling of flying felt like several minutes. Or even hours. But the process actually took no more than thirty to forty five seconds.

Michael dug his shoes into the loose gravel beneath him and was pleased to see his house not far off. The mage had not screwed up this time.

Michael made his way to the front door of his house, preparing himself the entire way for the inevitable awkwardness that waited for him.
Ashlynia was the wife of an associate that was murdered when the trade of Opium began for the Tarsis Family. David, for some reason, saw it fit to make Michael a babysitter to look out for her.

If that wasn't bad enough already, Ashlynia always felt the need to "do things" to try to make him happy and to make herself feel more welcome. The loss of her husband still shook her and she was constantly wanting to communicate with him. No matter how much Michael ignored her or left her without saying anything for days, even weeks, at a time, she was always still there. At his house. Moping around.

Michael couldn't care less about Ashlynia. Her life meant nothing to him and was irrelevant, but he had been given a task to do by the Tarsis Family, so he had little choice but to do as he was told.

Michael walked through the front door and immediately began walking to his bathroom. He had to walk quickly to avoid having a run in with Ashlynia.

Sure enough, when Michael opened the door, Ashlynia was there, in the kitchen.

Michael's eyes were down on the floor as he walked, he wanted to avoid all eye contact. In his peripheral vision, though, he saw her jump. Startled at his sudden arrival.

Michael felt her looking at him all the way to the bathroom, extremely awkward.
Michael began getting angry that he couldn't even feel welcome in his own home. Why didn't she just go away?
When Michael reached the bathroom he turned the faucet, let the small stream of water spill out from the nozzle and splashed it on his face.

As he was doing this, Michael heard footsteps making their way to the bathroom. Damnit! Michael thought. Why couldn't she just leave him alone?

"If..um..your hungry there's some food ready." Ashlynia said from outside the door, her voice weak and timid. "I've had some ready every day......in case you came home."

Michael exhaled and tried to think of a way for him to just get to bed without any more words from her. Actually, he was kind of hungry. But he didn't want to ever feel like he "owed" her anything.
"Well you can stop doing that and wasting food." Michael said, firmly. "I'm not hungry."

In the mirror, Michael saw Ashlynia step into the bathroom and met her eye contact for the first time in weeks. Her eyes were welled up with tears that she was trying to hold back. She was a beautiful girl and very attractive, which made Michael want to avoid her all the more.

Michael tore his gaze away from the mirror and looked away. Several seconds of awkward silence followed.

"Why do you hate me?" Ashlynia whispered, her voice wavering like she was about to burst into sobs.

Michael leaned over, set his elbows on the counter of the sink and brought his hands over his eyes. He didn't feel bad for her. He wouldn't feel bad for her.
Why did he hate her? Michael thought. After a few seconds of pondering, Michael realized that he didn't know why.
He hated everyone.

Michael thought of Sarah and how she betrayed him. He thought of his mother and father who had "disappeared" inside Justice Hall in Marn.

Michael clenched his hands into fists over his eyes.

He had never gotten the chance to say goodbye to his parents. Marn murdered them before he had the chance to.

Now here Ashlynia was. On the verge of crying because she had lost one person and because Michael hated her. Why did she care anyways? Had he not been very clear that he didn't want her around? Had he not been mean enough to her already?

"What can I do to make you happy?" Ashlynia whimpered, interrupting his thoughts.

Michael had built up a rage by then. His thoughts and memories had created it. Michael fought the urge to punch her. Or even kill her.
Instead he turned around and decided to attempt to talk her away.

"You can't," Michael said, pointing at her for emphasis. "Nothing you do will make me happy."

Michael brushed past Ashlynia, who just stood in place. Stiff as a tree.

"Well perhaps one thing." Michael said, walking into his bedroom. "If you leave. That might make me happy."

Michael shut the door and laid in his bed. Trying to fall asleep with his mind ever so active playing back his evil deeds that haunted him.

He would never love again, Michael thought. Life had used its final straw on him.

In the dark of night, as things began to settle down in the Frodrick house, it wasn't silence that surrounded it. Instead, it was filled with Ashlynia's muffled sobs.

The black of night begins to shroud around Kyo, who is still sitting on the shore of his murder scene.

He begins rummaging around in his pockets. "Not a single Bishan..." He yawned an pulled himself up, heading twords town. Once inside town he began looking around for an inn. He began walking twords a man in the distance to ask for directions.

"Hey you there!" he began saying aloud.

The man looked back an him seeming a bit dazed and confused. The man watched as a dark robed man with sheathed blades on his side walked up to him past midnight, the man expected to be robbed or murdered here. He shivered with fear and asked "What?".

Kyo noticed his fear and felt even more like a monster. The exact thing he was trying to avoid being before taking this assignment. "Uhh... I just would like to know where to find an inn"

The man in shock looked at him and pointed at a building just down the street, still shivering in fear he ran off between two buildings.

Kyo, feeling ashamed in himself continued twords the inn. He entered the building and noticed the inn keeper pasted out on a chair, awaiting late arrivals most likely.

Kyo quitely snuck on by him and up some stairs noticing about 10 rooms. He began to quitely pick the locks of the rooms one by one looking to see if anyone was inside. He went through about five rooms to see people sleeping in their beds. He closed the doors and moved on each time.

At the sixth room he picked he noticed no one inside. No belongings left about. It seemed like an unoccupied room. So here, he took off his armor and slept.

Vivian had left already and an indeterminate amount of time had passed when somebody came into Bertram's windowless cell and released him from his chains. As he was being led out of the cell, he growled menacingly at the thought of being thrown back in jail in Marn, this time for an extended period of time.

I can't let that happen! Bertram thought to himself, I guess I'll just have to see how long I can endure whatever this infernal temptress has in store for me.

When he stepped out of the cell, Vivian was already waiting for him. That and he could see clearly that it was night time now. The halls of the stone structure they were in was lit up only by torches spread out uniformly hanging on the walls. The guard who was escorting him proceeded to hand him off to Vivian, and a grimace appeared if only for a brief moment on Bertram's face.

As Vivian led him down the hall, he managed to stir up enough courage to speak to her again.

"So what exactly are you planning on doing with me?" he asked.

"Oh don't worry, I won't hurt you, at least not again." she responded and giggled again this time in a flirtatious manor.

She was a beautiful girl, and a sly grin appeared on Bertram's face as he conceded that she might as well just have her way with him. Unfortunately, his pleasant thoughts were interrupted by a slap across the face.

"Ow! I thought you said you weren't going to hurt me again!" he snapped.

"Get those dirty thoughts out of your mind you pervert and maybe I'll keep my word!" Vivian snapped back.

"All right all right all right...I get it, you're out of my mind." he reassured her.

"Oh but I'm definitely not going to let you forget about me." she reassured him.

"Yes...Ms. Bendulli..." he began.

"Madame." she corrected him, and they continued down the halls.

~

Eventually, they came to an open room, and Vivian motioned for Bertram to go inside.

"What's this?" he asked, as it was dark inside and he couldn't see anything yet.

"This will be your room, make sure you get some rest. We start tomorrow." she ordered him, and gave him a stern shove into the room.

"Um...okay..." he began, but she cut him off when she shut the door behind him and walked away.

"Gee thanks, I'll just make myself at home here." he said to himself as he rested his back against the door and slid down till he was sitting on the floor. There he sat, and waited.

It wasn't long before his eyes adjusted to the darkness, and he could see what was in his room. It was fully furnished, and he could see an oil lamp sitting on a desk along with a flint match.

He immediately went over and lit the oil lamp and turned it down low, and he could already see the lavishness of his quarters. It was his first time being in a real shelter, having grown up in the slums of the Historical District of the city of Marn. There was a glorious looking wardrobe, so he opened it up and found a luxurious night gown hanging inside. Feeling it with his hands, it was the softest thing he had ever felt in his life. He proceeded to take off all of his clothes and store them in the wardrobe and put on the night gown instead.

"This is wonderful!" he exclaimed. "This must be how royalty gets treated! I think I might just enjoy this after all!"

He then proceeded to put out the oil lamp on the desk and bury himself up to his neck under the covers on the bed. It was so comfortable that he fell into a deep sleep until the following morning.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

The sounds echoed through Michael's mind as he slept.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

Michael awoke violently. Quickly fumbling to get a grip on his crossbow, Michael aimed it at the window where the noise was coming from.

A persistent stream of knocking followed and didn't stop.

Michael slowly moved to the linen curtains that shielded the outside from his room.

"Michael. It's me"

Michael lowered his crossbow, immediately recognizing the voice. As he moved the curtains aside, Michael could notice the urgent look about David. A look of anxiety.
Struggling with the window, Michael opened it just enough to slip outside.

As the cool night air met Michael, he took notice of the moon's position and realized that it had only been about 4 or 5 hours since he had arrived home.

"What the hell David?" Michael asked, clearly agitated. "It's the middle of the night, we just finished a damn job."

Before Michael even began talking, David already had his hands up in submission and understanding.
"I know, I know." David replied. "But we've got orders you should know about."

Michael leaned his head forward and squinted at David.
"So. Tell me in the morning? After I've had some sleep?"

David shook his head. "This couldn't wait. These orders came straight from the bloodline."

Michael instinctively tensed up. They received orders and jobs all the time. But it almost always came from another associate of the Tarsis. Not from an actual Tarsis family member. When the orders do come from the bloodline, it's usually because of something very serious.

David must have noticed the change in Michael's attitude, because he continued talking.
"By the end of the week, they want a full proof, guaranteed solution for getting the shipments of Opium from the farm to the Port of Blades. With no further mistakes. You do remember where the Port of Blades is right?"

Michael nodded. The Port of Blades was a small, but vital, ship port that was completely under Tarsis control. The Tarsis Family didn't control much and the area's they did control, they guarded very heavily. So heavily, in fact, that not even the Bendulli Family would dare go near them.
The Port of Blades was one of those area's.
Michael shook his head, something didn't seem right. The Tarsis had never been so direct and urgent about drugs before. Why now? For money?

"They need the fund's," David said, seeming to read Michael's mind. " and they need it quickly."

"It makes no sense." Michael stated. "I've always brought in a good profit from marijuana, if they need money so bad I can just step up my game a little bit. Surely that would be time better spent then coming up with solution's for how to transport Opium from one of the most dangerous roads on the planet."

"Not as good a profit as Opium could bring." David replied. "It could bring the Tarsis a fortune that marijuana never could."
David fumbled in his pocket to retrieve a box of matches and a pack of cigarette's.
"Smoke?" David asked.

Michael accepted the cigarette and allowed David to light it.

Together they stood there for a few minutes, letting the nicotine calm their nerves.

"It still doesn't make sense." Michael said, breaking the silence. "Ya, Opium can bring a fortune, by why the urgency?"

David took the final puff of his cigarette and flicked it into the woods nearby.
"War." David replied.

Michael looked intently into David's eyes.
"What do you mean. War?"

David looked away, talking out of his thought's
"One of our sources in Keltaris reported an alarming rise in Bendulli Family activity. Mainly recruitment."

Michael looked away as well, letting it sink in. The Bendulli Family had been pretty silent for the past few years, as far as Michael knew. It was a serious situation, the only reason the Bendulli Family would be enlarging their numbers is for an attack. But, as far as where and what they'd attack, that'd be the question.

"The bloodline believes that the Bendulli is going to do anything necessary to make sure we don't make a cent off of the Opium." David continued. "So they want shipment's to begin as soon as possible."

Michael was in this for the money. He had no desire to be a "soldier" for the Tarsis Family, but he had little choice. All Michael could do was hope to avoid direct conflict. Michael needed revenge on Marn and the only way to do that was to continue to build his trust with the family, so he could exploit it later.

"Anyways, go get some sleep." David continued. "I'm going to have you meet me at the Opium farm. I'll have a mage come here to send you there."

Michael nodded and watched David make his way down the loose gravel road. Fatigue began to overtake Michael as he thought of the new job he'd been given. It was going to be a lot of work and he'd have little time to do it.

The next morning, Bertram awoke to the sensation of something clinging to his arm. At first it didn't hit him, but when it finally did he turned his head to look and see who or what was there. It was Vivian, with her arms wrapped tightly around his left arm and she was coddled up right next to him.

"Aiyee!" Bertram exclaimed and jumped off the bed, landing on the floor. In doing so he also inadvertently pulled Vivian on top of himself and he was trapped. His teeth chattered at the thought of just how much she might get upset at him.

It was only a matter of a moment before Vivian finally stirred, unshaken by the sudden vaulting.

"Mmmmm..." she moaned quietly and opened her eyes slowly. She immediately realized where she was and Bertram could sense it and gulped.

"Alright, explain boy, and it had better be good!" she snapped and released his arm and got up.

"W-w-w-well, when I woke up this morning, I found you clinging..." he began, but then she interrupted him.

"I don't care about that, go to the next part!" she snapped.

"I was surprised which made me jump and I ended up jumping off the bed and pulling you with me!" he finished hurriedly.

"Oh well that's all your fault, but I'll forgive you this time. Did you sleep well?" she conceded and asked.

"Yes...that was the best sleep I've had in a long time..." he responded, sighing dejectedly.

"That's good." Vivian said, putting on her characteristic grin and giggling flirtatiously, "but we have a long day ahead of us. So get ready!"

"We?" Bertram inquired, but Vivian just sat down on his bed and began tapping her foot with impatience.

Bertram immediately went over to his wardrobe and opened it. As he reached for his clothes, he looked back to see if Vivian was still there and she was still sitting there, tapping her foot impatiently. His gut told him she wasn't going to leave until he was ready and that he'd just have to change and get ready in front of her, so he proceeded to do just that.

As he took off his night gown he revealed that he had nothing on underneath and was completely naked. Vivian giggled flirtatiously again. As he was putting on his regular clothes he was shaking uncontrollably so it was a rather slow process. Vivian was still tapping her foot, but she didn't get upset at him for how long he was taking. When he was finally done, he breathed a sigh of relief and turned back to face her.

That wasn't so bad after all, I guess. he thought to himself.

"You look nice," Vivian commented, "now it's my turn. Come with me." she commanded him. So Bertram followed her.

~

When they got to Vivian's room, Bertram tried to follow her inside but she slammed the door behind her, hitting him in the face.

"Ow, my nose!" he complained, rubbing it.

"What do you think this is, a peep show? Wait outside!" Vivian snapped from the other side of the door.

"Yes madame...I will wait outside..." he responded sheepishly.

"Very good Bertram. You know, I'm getting tired of that. I'm going to start calling you 'Bertie.'" she praised him and thought out loud.

"Yes madame..." Bertram conceded, and he sat down against the wall opposite her bedroom door.

Several minutes later, he heard her bedroom door creek open and when he looked up she was there standing in the doorway in a rather provocative outfit. He blushed intensely and tried to hide his face.

"Whatever is the matter Bertie, you don't like my dress? I do need to be able to move around a lot you know." Vivian said, a sad expression appearing on her face.

"No no no!" he reassured her, "You look...stunning..." he admitted to her and closed his eyes and gulped.

Vivian then immediately lifted him back up off the ground and onto his feet and embraced him. "Oh I love you for that! Thank you much for being so honest."

She was embracing him with her body but her head was pulled back a little so he could better see his face, and what he saw on her face was that enormous grin she always seemed to have on her face. And then she moved her head back in and gave him a peck on the cheek before completely releasing him.

"Now, let's go! Follow me!" she commanded Bertram, but in more of a nonchalant manner.

~

Vivian led Bertram to an enormous open courtyard somewhere within the sprawling complex. It was another bright and sunny day. Arranged around the perimeter of the arena was numerous weapons and shields. Vivian immediately walked over to one, took it out, and tossed it to Bertram. It was his dirk.

"Time to see what you've got, boy!" she exclaimed to him, and picked out her own weapon. She picked out a small dagger much like Bertram's dirk, and immediately approached him and stood in front of him. "Ready your arms!" she commanded, and Bertram struck a fighting stance.

"I see, excellent. I like your fighting stance. You're ready to attack me yet at the same time you're not leaving any openings. But it's not good enough!" Vivian commented, and then immediately attacked him. Bertram ended up parrying the blow.

"I thought you said I didn't leave any openings, yet you found one!" Bertram argued with her.

"No I didn't, I created one. You may not always have an apparent opening, but you can always create one. I'll teach you." she informed him, with her all too familiar grin on her face.

And they sparred for the next few hours, all the while Vivian giving Bertram all kinds of pointers, until they got hungry.

Not able to fall back asleep, Michael made his way to the Eastern outskirts of Pedom Morini to complete a transaction from one of his greatest consumer's.

Michael's first stop would be to pick up the appropriate amount of marijuana that this prospect would need. Michael kept 3 or 4 grams of the drug on his person at all times, however, the amount of marijuana that this man would need was far beyond any amount Michael dared to carry on him.

From Michael's experience, 4 or 5 ounces was the typical purchase from this customer. But Michael had seen him buy up to 8 ounces in one sitting.

8 ounces of marijuana was a borderline fortune in itself and to ensure the safety of such a large quantity of the drug, appropriate measures had to be taken.

About ten minutes away from his destination, a large Cypress tree seemed to greet Michael in the midst of several other skimpier tree's.
To a passing wanderer's eye, nothing was special about the Cypress except for it's exceptional beauty.

But what that wanderer wouldn't know about, was the hollow spot at the bottom of the trunk that had been carved out from the inside to create a very natural "safe deposit box" and then covered with the very bark it had grown in the first place.

After ensuring that the area was clear, Michael removed the tailored bark from the hollow spot in the tree and sifted through the content's inside.
From experience, Michael could tell that each individual bag contained 1 ounce of marijuana and Michael counted 10 of those bags.

A very rare grin appeared on Michael's face. 10 ounces. When the Tarsis Family had a big customer, they knew it and they went all out to ensure their buyer would never run dry.

Michael removed all the bags and stuffed them into a duffle bag he had been carrying with him.

By then, the sun was beginning to appear in the horizon and Michael could already feel the effect's of sleep deprivation. Hopefully, he'd be able to complete the transaction fast so he could get home and clock in a few hour's of sleep before the mage came knocking on his door.

One thing Michael appreciated about this customer was that he was always early on the days he made his purchases. As Michael came closer to the meeting area, he saw the familiar sight of the small brown man with his two burly body guards.

"You weren't tailed?" Michael asked as he approached the small man, surveying the area around him. When Michael felt his security compromised, a heavy feeling gripped his stomach that urged him to move. Luckily, Michael didn't feel that feeling at all here.

"Ya." The man responded. "I tol' dem Bendulli's to folla me and see how it done hea in Morini."

The small man and his two escort's laughed. Michael didn't.
"How much 'ill it be today?" Michael asked, making it apparent he wanted to do business and get out.

"Mayne imma keep it light dis month Dro. I take six."

Michael reached into his bag to retrieve six of the marijuana bag's.

"Kilo's!"

Michael stopped what he was doing and looked at the buyer, was he serious? Surely he wasn't stupid enough to think Michael would keep 6 kilogram's of pot on him. But when the man continued to look at Michael with a straight face, Michael felt the need to make it clear.
"I don't carry Kilo's." Michael replied.

When the three men heard that, they immediately burst out laughing. Michael let out a huff of irritation, retrieved six bags of the marijuana and tossed them on the ground in front of the three laughing men.
"Here." Michael said, interrupting their laughter. "You want them or not?"

"Hahah. Oh mayne Dro, you'z a hoot. You'z a hoot. Ya mayne, I take 'em. How much I owe ya?"

Michael remembered the conversation David and he had earlier. The Tarsis Family was struggling financially, surely he would have to increase the price on his sales now.
"Twenty Three." Michael replied.

"Hundred!?" The man replied, leaning to one side trying to catch Michael's gaze. A big smile played out over the small man's face, as if he thought Michael was lying.
"Mayne dro, I aint stupi'. For real, how much ya.."

"I'm not kidding. Twenty Three hundred." Michael interrupted, returning the man's stare.

A few seconds of silence passed as the small man just looked at Michael in disbelief. Michael was not in the mood for this, he was tired and wanted to go home and get some sleep.
"Look, I'm not going to stand here all damn day. Do you want this shit or not?"

Any hint of amusement vanished from the small man's face.
"Mayne you fuckin' crazy Dro! I aint payin no twenty three hundred fo six fuckin ounces, shit, I can grow a fuckin farm myself wit dat kinda cash."

Michael wanted to say "Suit yourself", take the bags and walk away. But Michael knew the Tarsis needed the funds and would not take kindly to Michael losing such a loyal buyer.
"Look, you know me." Michael replied. "I don't play games, I always give you the lowest price I can. If the price wasn't absolutely necessary I wouldn't be asking it of you."

"Mayne I don't care Dro. I been buyin from you and da family fo ova a yea now! I can go to any chump off da street's and get it fo dat price. I'll get you eighteen fo it."

"No." Michael replied. "I'll drop it to Twenty Two hundred for you, but that's it. No lower."

"Mayne, drop it to nineteen for a friend."

"No." Michael replied firmly.

"Well fuck it den Dro!" The small man said, waving him off and turning to walk away. "I aint no fuckin idiot, I know how much six grams suppo to cost."

Michael sighed in aggravation, reached into the bag and tossed another ounce into the pile of other ounce's causing the small man to turn and look at Michael again.
"There." Michael replied. "Another ounce. Twenty Two hundred. This is my final offer, if you refuse me again you wont be seeing me anymore. Ever. And you know you can't find a dealer with more supply or variety than me."

In Michael's experience, applying pressure to the consumer was a very strong way to win their money and Michael could tell his concept was working when the man reached into his pocket, clearly unhappy.

"Mayne you killin me Dro." The man said hanging over a handbag of Bishani.

"Only when I have to." Michael replied.

At lunch, Bertram and Vivian were joined by an old man, and they were seated on a balcony overlooking the main street. As they ate their Brodetto, the old man began to speak.

“You know, she just won't stop talking about you. Show me you've got what it takes to be a part of this family, and I might just give you her hand in marriage.” he spoke in a thick, Italian accent and laughed heartily.

“Oh hush father,” Vivian quipped, “it would just ruin the family name.” She was clearly annoyed and quickly finished her bowl of stew.

“Nonsense, my dear! We have the power to make him a part of our family.” her father reassured her, and it was obvious that when he said “we” he didn't mean his daughter and himself.

In response, Vivian just huffed and left the table.

“Don't worry boy, she just doesn't understand her own feelings. Love is such a fickle thing. And I know you'll be fine. Now that you're done too, you may go. I'll have the servant clean this up.” the father reassured and dismissed Bertram.

“Thank you sir.” he said as he stood up and bowed before leaving.

~

Now Bertram went looking for Vivian so that they could spar some more and work off lunch. But after looking everywhere including her bedroom but not including the dungeon, he couldn't find her, and his full stomach was beginning to make him sleepy.

“Damnit, now's not the time to take a nap. I need to let my meal digest some first. But I'm so tired...” Bertram thought out loud and let out a big yawn.

He backtracked to his bedroom, closed the door, and stood in front of the wardrobe thinking about what to do next.

When it came down to it, his eyelids were getting heavy and he couldn't force himself to stay awake any longer. He opened his wardrobe, stripped down and put his clothes away and then slipped on the night gown. Then he threw himself on his bed landing on his back and drifted off to sleep.

Where'd you go, Vivian?

Kyo awoke nearly a day later. He didn't realize how much energy he used in his travel from Marn to his current living quarters without sleep.

"Damn... Such a simple little job, all the way out here to simply hide a body...?"

He sat up in the bed.

"Something just ain't right... There has to be more to this job..."

He pulled his legs out from the bed and slowly pulled the rest of his body up. After regearing himself he began to walk twords the door to leave when he heard the door begin to open from the other side.

"So this is our room... Such a shabby inn... It dosn't look like they've cleaned it since the last customer here." The man who entered the room said. Kyo had vanished.

"Oh calm down, we'll only have to sleep here... now drop off your stuff and get back out here so we can go see the town!" a girl from outside said.

The noise of bags crashing down beside him past Kyos ears from beneath the bed. The door closed and Kyo released a long breath.

"Close..." he though.

He got up and opened the window. He had choosen a good room for escape seeing as the window had faced an ally he was in the clear to flee through it. He jumped out sliding down to the lower roof slowly. Then dropping down into the ally and walked out into the streets of the town. He had walked down to the bridge where he had finished the victim of the Tarsis family.

"Who were you... What did you do...?" He questioned the water outloud without realizing it and looked around to see if anyone was around to think of him as insane.

"More senseless death for no reason other then my own survival again..." He thought to himself.

He continued to sit there an stare at the water alittle more, day dreaming of him beloved family. The daydream swiftly turned into a moral struggle within himself thinking about the familys deaths and all of the people whom he had harmed. All of the innocent life he had taken for the goal of his own survival.

"What makes me more deserving of life then them...?" He questioned himself without an answer.

He continued staring into the water.