Author: elusivephantom, Posted: Wed Feb 28, 2018 12:21 PM, Post Subject: Business As Usual [P]

"Gods dammit," he exclaimed, turning to run towards the door, "I'll cover my bill when I get back, Boris!" The balding barkeep went back to work on the tankard with a gruff sound of acknowledgement. It would seem this was a common occurrence, but Kale had always been true to his word. Before Boris had finished his comment, the barkeep heard the sound of the tavern door's mechanism falling into place.

By the time the door closed, there was no one in sight on the streets. Rather, there was no sign of anyone that seemed as though set upon any particular task. As usual, the sounds of the lively docks carried on the air; sailors carrying on, the bustle of business being conducted, deliveries made, and the sound of various sea birds. Kale took to a sprint, hopefully in the right direction, and began trying to track down the 'regular' that had taken the bounty. He weaved through the crowd as fast as he could, painfully reminded of his arm as he instinctively tried to raise it to part the crowd before him. For a moment, he cursed his body's rejection of healing magic; life would be much easier with it and he'd probably still have his arm.

After hours of searching, he'd found no meaningful leads to tracking the mysterious 'regular' down. Kale cursed momentarily and returned to the tavern, kicking the door open in unceremonious frustration and stepping through. The sound jarred the patrons and, for a moment, the barkeep as the wooden door slammed hard into the wall. The force was enough to send the door slamming shut again once Kale had stepped through. The man reached into a rip in the very air itself, enough silver to cover his stay held in his hand as it withdrew from the tear. "Thanks, Boris," he said with a nod, "I'll see you next time." The barkeep nodded before Kale walked off. The tavern door opened one final time and the one-armed man was gone, becoming part of the wind itself to make his way to the forest.

Author: Shiloh Kyrie, Posted: Mon Feb 19, 2018 12:29 PM, Post Subject: Business As Usual [P]

The balding, middle aged man glanced up from a tankard he was wiping. Leaning out from behind the bar, he pointed to the door. "One of them regulars just came in a minute ago. Left right after they took something from the board before you came down. They shouldn't be too far off." The man knew her face from years ago, though he was busy when she ducked into the tavern. All he had seen was a glimpse of her from the back, and by then she was halfway out the door. It was a slow day at the Winking Mermaid, especially with Glaciem transitioning to Terra. Holding the bounty notice up to the sunlight, Shiloh got a better look at the parchment. It wasn't very crisp, and the color had been a bit faded. This one must have been pinned to the board for at least more than two weeks. There weren't any angular marks made by unfaded portions, so none of the other things pinned up there had overlapped over it.

The Virens wasn't a place she had fond memories of, but it was a lot safer when you compared it to the underground. She'd have to go around the mountains again unless she decided to cut through the swamp, but that way meant she would be forced to set foot in Vilpamolan. Weighing her options, the long way around the Ancense was much less bothersome. The plains were more hospitable than a stinking bog of a graveyard any day. Tucking the bounty into her belt, she pulled out a map. "I think there should be a pass somewhere in between the Voles and Ancense…" Shiloh muttered. Technically she could just open a portal, but why bother when she could walk there herself? Now if it was somewhere nearly impossible to access, then it would make sense to use magic. There also was the fact that she wasn't completely confident that the portal would open right. Standing off to the side as to not block the main road, she studied the drawn divots which mapmakers used to depict elevated terrain.

Author: elusivephantom, Posted: Sun Feb 18, 2018 1:31 AM, Post Subject: Business As Usual [P]

The morning, if it was in fact still morning, brought a now all too familiar pulsing pain. It felt as if someone was driving a spike into his skull and trying to break it open. Groggy and with a shakiness that one would expect to have after a night of heavy drinking, Kale managed to pull on his shirt and gradually make his way down the stairs to the tavern below. The light, even inside the tavern, was blinding and made his head hurt that much worse. The man steadied himself against the railing and closed his eyes, setting the thumb and index finger of his left hand at either side of his forehead. A brief, dark pulse went from his hand to his head so quickly that very few would have noticed. His head no longer hurt; he'd impaired his own senses, enough to dull the pain anyway.

The man made his way lazily to the tavern wall where bounties could be found. The night before he'd seen one that had piqued his interest, but not nearly enough to help him keep control of just how much he'd imbibed the night before. For a moment he stood motionless, brief though it was, to Kale it felt a lifetime. He'd reached out his right hand to use his finger to trail through the bounties. The man had genuinely felt the false sensations of a limb where his arm once was, that is to say where his arm had been before Dalanesca took it from him.  Now the only thing in its place was an empty shirt sleeve.

With a heavy sigh, Kale raised his left hand, trailing his fingers along the papers stuck to the wall in search of his bounty. He paused a moment to appreciate the irony of a once-feared pirate looking for a bounty to take for himself. "How the mighty have fallen," he said to himself before continuing. Shortly, the one-armed man reached the end of the papers; the one he'd had his sights on was gone. He turned to the barkeep and called over, "Hey Barkeep, any idea who took that warg bounty out around the Virens? Did they leave already?"

Author: Shiloh Kyrie, Posted: Thu Jan 4, 2018 2:21 PM, Post Subject: Business As Usual [P]

"Twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-four, twenty-five. That's twenty-five casks of Baltil ale, shipped straight from the distillery." The barkeep counted out a sum of crescents, and handed it to her with a written receipt verifying that the exchange had been made. Shiloh took the slip of paper and money, running a quick count on the coin and checking there was a signature. "…Alright then, everything's correct. It's been a pleasure doing business with you." She hadn't been in the Winking Mermaid since last year. With more business on the other side of the continent, she had her hands full delivering parcels and shipments. That left her less time for taking bounties and running small-time jobs like how she used to back before she had to go everywhere on foot. Not that she missed trekking out across the plains without a mount, but she did miss those days.

With a little free time on her hands, she took a look at the job postings for anything interesting. Mostly requests for finding missing items, or errands, but there were some notices asking for help with tracking down outlaws or the rare rampaging beast. From her personal experience, bounties involving people were more of a hassle than they were worth. Creatures were much easier to track and bring back in one piece. At least monsters were predictable, when you knew enough about them. The tavern was noisy as always, and she had never stayed long. Since she didn't have a taste for alcohol or raucous singing, there was no reason for her to hang around. Finally she took a wanted poster requesting a warg extermination out on the edge of the Virens. It was pretty much the only thing that was simple and straightforward.