A New Task

by **Brandon Blackwing** on September 1st, 2014, 8:52 pm

x

The 27th of Fall 514AV

Quick strides carried the bat over the Plaza, no time was taken to look around even for a brief moment, no time was taken to orient himself. There was no need to anyway, Brandon did not need to pay attention to find his way in Lhavit, he rarely got lost in the city of Skyglass. And if he should find himself someplace he had not expected himself to arrive at, he just needed one quick glance to realize where he was and how he could get where he needed to be.

People were still out and about today, despite the dark threatening clouds that hung over the city and even hid Syna from sight. It would rain soon, Brandon could sense it, he could smell it in the air. It wasn’t as strong as when it just had poured down from the sky or was in the process of doing so, but it was there, unmistakably. For all he was concerned that meant locking himself in and staying inside for as long as the droplets kept coming down, but his resolve was weak and the bat knew that if it would rain for too long he’d go out anyway, rain or no.

It was getting colder too already, winds blew and trees were shedding their brown, red, yellow and orange leaves, the public workers cleaning them off the streets. Criminals and members of the public who made a living out of it worked side by side, neither of them happy to do what they had to do. Of course, the thieves and burglars caught by the Shinya and tried by the Seiza were the least happy of them all. Forced to work to repay the city for the crimes they had committed, it wasn’t something the Kelvic wanted to be doing any time soon. And he wouldn’t either, he would not let himself be caught, being locked up in prison was even worse than working for Kriegsfelt, and public work…. No thank you.

Another gust of wind blew, stronger than the previous ones and pushed hard against Brandon’s body, playing with his coat. One of the workers cursed franticly as the leaves were blown away, making their hard work undone. The Shinya that stood by to supervise reached for the hilt of their weapons, taking an quick step forward. The thief shook his head, an awful job indeed.

Not that his current form of employment was any better, in fact it was pretty much the same. While his job was one he initially had liked doing, the mere fact that he was told what to do and could not refuse made him feel like those criminals punished in front of him. The only difference being that they could escape their work if they fled the city, while the bat could not. If he did that Engghaen would suffer the consequences. A sigh and he started walking again, pondering on the events of that morning, only a couple dozens of chimes away.

As per usual, a courier had brought him a message, a message coming from Mr. Black himself. It had been the girl again, Brandon had noticed and he wondered if Kriegsfelt hired any courier or just a couple of them. There hadn’t been much variation in the faces of the messengers Kriegsfelt had been sending to summon him… Probably he had approached three couriers or so, had asked whether they wanted to do a job for him every so often. Maybe he had even paid them extra to wander about the Azure when there were no messages to deliver, in case he needed them.

In any case, it had been the girl again this time, not quite blushing this time, probably because he had actually been dressed for a change. Well, just like all other times it had been completely coincidental, he hadn’t gone for a flight at night, so it was only natural he’d been wearing clothes. Another time he’d just thrown his clothes on the floor, in his path when he needed to answer the door. As such he had remembered to at least wear his pants before opening. Still, mating season was not the best time for Kriegsfelt to send female couriers.

It had taken lots of focus to keep his gaze on her face and not her chest, hips or private parts. And even then he had lost himself in her features; the luscious hair cascading from her scalp and those startling emerald eyes of hers. Concentration had not been able to withstand the power of pheromones. Gods, he hated mating season! Not only did he feel the urge to attract the attention of any female his subconscious deemed fit for mating, it told him to do so in bat-style using purrs and calls and such. It took quite a bit of effort to control himself, so he felt rather restrained… very annoying.

Well, he supposed it was a good thing he actually had self-control and could restrain himself… The thought of what could have happened shot through his mind and a rough shaking of his head ensued. Upon reopening his eyes, he spotted a female passing by, his nostrils having picked up the scent just ticks prior, being the reason why he had opened his eyes right then. The black orbs followed her while she walked past him, head turning slightly to gawk just that little bit longer. And then it snapped back so he could see where he was walking. A hand cupped his right eye, fingers on his forehead and rubbing it with a sigh.

Oh, how he hated mating season!

x

credit goes to Euthisa

by **Brandon Blackwing** on September 2nd, 2014, 7:13 pm

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The Azure market was as crowded as ever, the people and merchants did not care about the dark clouds which threatened with rain. As long as nothing fell from the sky there was no need to rush or to seek shelter. As such they strolled the market, yelled for attention and offered discounts, while the customers stared, questioned or just plainly ignored. Brandon shrugged as he passed the rows upon rows of stalls and slipped between the bodies of the mass of people, with the ease of snake slithering through cracks in a boulder. However, again this simple task used up a lot of his willpower each and every time he brushed past females. Not all females of course, but it was still very, very uncomfortable.

Fall would go into history as the season during which Brandon locked himself up at home.

Well, if he could manage something like that of course, which was close to impossible for the energetic thief. Fortunately, he had almost reached the place where Mr. Black usually set up his stall, only one alley to cross, he was nearly there. Within chimes he would be able to hurry back home and get this all over with. But not without another hardship to overcome.

As he entered a new alley, a hand grabbed his arm and stopped his forward motion. An absentminded glance was send to the person the hand belonged to. Slowly his gaze drifted from the slender fingers to the face of the one that had stopped him, and he cursed internally. It was not hard to guess why, it was a female merchant, a young one at that. Her lips moved rapidly, overwhelming Brandon with words he did not listen too, instead he stared at her face, concentrating hard not to gawk at her chest which was displayed by a deep décolleté.

Obviously it was a trick to attract customers, and it was working on the bat, mating season encouraging him to scan her thoroughly, to try and start something. She was a perfect mate, his instinct told him, the same age as him, sexually mature and on her peak. He should go for it! It was a good thing Brandon was rather stubborn, he wouldn’t give in, he did not want to make a fool out of himself in plain sight, besides, Kriegsfelt was waiting, if he took to long he might give the command to murder Enggy!

Still though, while she ushered him to a stall and suggested he’d inspect her wares, he did just that, but not those she meant. Her ‘wares’ were much more interesting, so had his mind decided, and only half an eye looked at the display of her stall, occasionally. While she chattered away, blabbing about the medical applications of herbal tea-leaves or so, Brandon managed only with great effort to peel his eyes away from her feminine charms and actually take in his surroundings. The stall he had been led to actually hadn’t been left unattended while the young female scouted for customers, an elderly woman sat on a chair behind it. Thankfully, his animalistic instinct did not act up.

These stalls were the worst of all, instead of letting people just pass by and watch, they send scouts to cling to passerby’s and drag them to the stall, utilizing all cheap tricks in the book; like giving the role of scout to attractive females and accentuate their attributes.

Cheap and effective, unfortunately.

Once again his eyes were draw to the young woman’s body, this time because she had started bending over, granting the bat an even better view while she pointed at different kinds of tea.

Brandon felt himself become a little bit too excited. Cursing internally and starting to feel sweat pearling from his pores, he decided that the gods were testing him, or were playing games at Brandon’s expense. With that thought in mind, the bat found they’d had their share of amusement, if they wanted more they’d have to find someone else to toy with. Mustering up every inch of mental fortitude, he ripped his eyes away from the young female merchant’s voluptuous figure and turned around, ignoring the tempting calls she beckoned him with, striding onwards, towards his destination.

x

credit goes to Euthisa

by **Brandon Blackwing** on September 5th, 2014, 4:26 pm

x

Kriegsfelt was waiting impatiently, tapping his feet on the stones that paved the streets of the Azure while Brandon approached, doing his best to focus on the merchant and not the passerby’s. Much to the bat’s pleasure, he found that he succeeded rather well, though sadly he couldn’t always stare at something while walking, he needed his eyes to scan his surroundings after all. Maybe he really would lock himself up in his house, only coming out when he was summoned by Kriegsfelt or when he needed to eat and drink –but that could be done in his true form.

The closer Brandon came to the merchant, the more impatient the man grew, his foot started tapping the street in a quicker rhythm and his the fingers of his crossed arms started rapping on his flesh. His expression was a dead giveaway too though. With the obnoxious trader’s eyes locked onto him, the Kelvic considered to quicken his pace, but ultimately decided against it. The thief wasn’t a dog one could call at a whim, even though he felt like one and Mr. Black seemed to think he was. Besides, it seemed as though the merchant never had to wait for anything, so practicing his patience would do him good-apart from annoying him, the bat thought with a grin.

As per usual, the merchant’s stall stood where it always stood, Kriegsfelt had somehow arranged to always get the exact same spot. Perhaps he had made a deal with the other merchants or maybe he was respected more than Brandon knew. What the bat didn’t get was why the man still sold his wares at the Azure instead of opening a shop, he was rich enough to be able to afford it. Not that it mattered, shop or no, Brandon would still have to walk there when called.

Dragha and Bragha were keeping their boss company like good bodyguards should, the two giants probably thought they were inconspicuous when they stood in the shadows, a few meters away from Kriegsfelt’s stall. Of course, there were people who didn’t notice them, but that was probably because they weren’t paying attention or because they had no idea Kriegsfelt had guards. Either way, to Brandon it was way too obvious, but then again, he was always wary of their presence. His body still remembered how it felt to receive a beating from them and thus he always kept an eye on them if they were around.

Finally he reached the waiting trio, keeping a straight face while hiding his disgust and frustration, also hoping his emotions wouldn’t be reflected in his voice. His plan was to make Kriegsfelt believe he could trust him after all, that couldn’t be done if he came across as hostile. Sure, there was no guarantee that Kriegsfelt would ever trust him, but it was worth a shot. It was only so the merchant would share his goals with him, what he was trying to achieve in Lhavit, why he had returned and why he needed Brandon’s aid. Or any criminal’s help for that matter.

“You’re finally here! You took too long Brandon!” Mr. Black raged with a finger pointing at the sky and chins blobbing while he spoke. “There’s a limit to my patience, you know!”
“Apologies,” said the bat not very sincerely, “I came as fast as I could.”
“Hmpf, as fast as you could while gawking at the girls you mean.” For one reason or another there was more mocking intent than annoyance in his voice, which surprised Brandon a little. Could it be his plan was already working?
“Well… sort of,”he admitted sheepishly, not really knowing what he was supposed to comment to that.
“Can’t really blame you, you’re young and I can’t deny that Lhavit’s womenfolk is worth a gaze or two,” he winked, a conspiratorial smile touching his lips briefly.
“…” Not knowing how in Yshul’s name he should deal with this situation, the Kelvic kept his mouth wisely shut, allowing Kriegsfelt to ramble on.
“Were it not for your dirty appearance and poor choice of fashion you might be popular with the girls you know,” Mr. Black continued lightheartedly. What the hell is going on today? Did Kriegsfelt hit his head or something? Or… is he trying to do the same thing as I am? In that case I’d better play along.
“If you say so,” Brandon stated, not quite convinced and not wanting to consider the idea. Besides, poor choice of fashion?! “But let’s get down to business. What do you need me for?”

x

credit goes to Euthisa

by **Brandon Blackwing** on September 6th, 2014, 2:32 pm

x

For one supposed to be impatient, one that had been annoyed with the slow pace the Kelvic had used to traverse the Azure, Kriegsfelt seemed rather unwilling to get to the point, looking a bit disappointed. Brandon didn’t quite understand what had led to this sudden change in behavior, the man had always been rather bold and straightforward when he’d summoned the bat, wasting no time with chitchat or other nonsense. It appeared that today he liked to do the exact opposite. Well, it might not be a bad thing, perhaps Kriegsfelt needed to have a lighthearted chat every once in a while. Besides, friendliness was something Brandon appreciated, perhaps the merchant wasn’t so bad as he had thought.

Don’t let him fool you! bellowed the voice of his mind in warning, He’s manipulating you, he wants to trick you in believing he’s not the enemy! Do not forget; he had his guards bet you up, he holds Eng hostage and he has tormented Dimitri for longer than ten years! Don’t let him deceive you! Poison dripped from the mental tirade, Brandon’s eyes narrowed and turned harsher ever so slightly. Don’t let him fool you, but pretend to be tricked. Play along with his game and look for a chance to stab him in the back. Play along but don’t be fooled! Always keep in mind what he has done!

Brandon silently agreed with his mind, deciding to act how Kriegsfelt wanted him to act, but determined not to forget that Kriegsfelt was acting as well. Brandon would not forgive the man, taking his freedom was one thing, but using Engghaen’s life as leverage was a whole different matter! No, forgiveness was not something he would give the man, no mercy! If he got the chance the man would not be allowed to get away with all he had done. Not a chance.

But for now he’d keep quiet and pretend. Of course, not immediately, first he’d just do what he always did, be rushed to get away, get to the point. Later on he might just engage in chatter with Mr. Black, but not just yet, slowly but surely he’d ‘open up’ to the man. However, he couldn’t go about it too swiftly, it had to seem naturally. Not an easy task, but only time would tell what the outcome would be. It was a gamble, but there was quite a prize he could win. If luck was on his side.

“Always all business, aren’t you? ” sighed the black clad merchant a little disappointed, shrugging in a defeated manner. “Well, it can’t be helped, I guess.” Another shrug and a shake of his head and chins. “I actually have a couple of things to ask of you.” Ask? Since when do you ask me things? I thought you once said you do not ask but demand.
“Go ahead then.”
Mr. Black nodded. “Well, let me start by giving you a couple of directives before I get to your assignment.”

Directives, huh? So more than just one thing? And then an assignment? So he’d be given more than one task at once? Well, if that meant he wouldn’t be summoned again this season he didn’t mind. In fact, he’d be glad.

“As you probably have already noticed, Councilor Alses has not resigned yet. Which means that a simple act of theft wasn’t enough to topple her. The third law has been changed and while we only created a few ripples on the water’s surface, the big waves came from the bureaucrats and the various towers and individual wizards.”
“So we failed?” the bat asked gingerly.
Solomon Kriegsfelt shook his head slightly, crossed his arms and assumed a thoughtful expression. “Perhaps. I did hear that the Councilor was quite hysterical when she found out about your work. I wouldn’t say failed, no, we just did not succeed completely.”

“I guess we did manage to put her off balance, she’s wary now, increased the numbers of her Shinya guard, tightened the security. While she hasn’t collapsed, we did succeed in planting the seed of worry. The only thing we have to do is to nurture that seed, see to it that it grows into a beautiful flower.” He smirked, his eyes gaining a rather unpleasant sparkle.
“A lot of beautiful flowers are poisonous, ” Brandon nodded, “Or have thorns.”
“Exactly!” agreed Mr. Black, nodding violently, “And that’s part of what I want you to be doing this season; break the other pillars that keep her standing, feed the seed. I will give you instructions when I deem it necessary, but you can go ahead and do your stuff. We must see to it that she gets rather paranoid, exhaust her mentally. If that goes well, she will crumble eventually but it will take time.”

“Thus, you want me to drive her crazy?”
“Basically, yes.” Kriegsfelt clarified, “Bypass her security, show her that guards are meaningless. Get to the heart of her sanctuary, let her know you are aware of some of her secrets. You mentioned she drugs herself at night? Use that to your advantage,” the vendor spoke upon receiving an affirmative nod from the Kelvic, slamming a fist into his palm. “If she feels threatened, thinks danger looms over her at night she won’t be making use of that drug, she won’t be able to sleep, worried that you might come. She won’t use the drug fearing she will be unable to respond when you arrive. Nights will be horrible for her, and that will affect her performance. Then it won’t take long until she falls, until she flees the political scene.”

Brandon winced slightly at that rant. What he was supposed to be doing was a lot more horrifying than his usual ‘pranks’, making a mess out of her workplace, yes, but this? This was close to crossing the line, or maybe it already had. He wondered if his assignments would only get worse from now on, was this what it meant to be trusted by Kriegsfelt? No, that wasn’t it, it was a test to see if he could handle it, possibly after this there would be more horrible and dirty jobs to come, they would get worse the more he was being trusted. The bat grimaced, this was getting rather unpleasant, but he could still deal with it. Driving the Councilor insane would take a while and probably wouldn’t happen ‘just like that’, he had no qualms with giving people a scare, but this was … too much. Pity for the Councilor bubbled up, but it couldn’t compete with the determination he felt, determination to do whatever it took to reclaim his and Engghaen’s freedom. The end justified the means.

As long as he wouldn’t get caught everything would probably turn out well. If he did get caught however… this scheme of kriegsfelt, this conspiracy was starting to stink, before he had found a way out he could not allow himself to be caught! If that happened all would be over, going with this plot to topple the Councilor was not something he would get away with easily.

x

credit goes to Euthisa

by **Brandon Blackwing** on November 11th, 2014, 8:59 pm

x

“Okay,” the bat replied after a pause filled with silence, both men guarding their tongues. Brandon had needed the time to think, to worry about that order, but he didn’t have much of a choice really, of course he’d have to go along with it. “Good,” Kriegsfelt reacted, nodding his head violently in approval. The multiple blobs of fat dangling below his chin swayed as a result, something the bat still found to be extremely disgusting. He hid his feelings of course, but still, how could one possibly acquire that much fat? Possibly the merchant ate way too much, as well as things that had a negative impact on his body structure.

“So, do I have to get inside of Elysium Hall or can I just try to abet the magic-using part of the population a bit more? I’m sure that with the right words they can be persuaded to … say… increase the flood of complaints to Alses a bit more, among other things…” He eyed the fat merchant warily, not quite knowing how he’d react. While it was not really defying orders, it was the first time Brandon had subtly refused to do just whatever Kriegsfelt said. In any case, he’d have to camouflage it a bit, giving a reason that might seem valid, but actually wasn’t what bothered him. “You know, I thought it might a bit strange to target the councilor so obviously. The Shinya might notice, perhaps link the crimes to us, to you...” His voice trailed off, Mr. Black knew well enough what the Kelvic was trying to say.

“Is that so?” the merchant started, eyes narrowing while his brow furrowed and lines of anger rippled on his face. “Is that why you have been leaving notes, … Incognito? To lead the Shinya in my direction?” It was quietly hissed between his teeth, sending tiny droplets of saliva everywhere. A quick glance around was cast nervously before answering the vendor, he wasn’t surprised the man knew about the notes and his assumed name, it was Kriegsfelt who’d given him the jobs that Incognito had done after all. “Of course not,” the bat spoke without blinking, or averting his eyes, “I was only creating a persona for the sake of teasing the guards. An enigmatic thief who succeeds in getting away each and every time. It gives both the Shinya and the government a bad name, for they fail time after time.” It was not really a lie, but not entirely the truth either. Brandon had never worried or thought about the consequences of him leaving notes. Not once.

“Look at it this way; I have given Alses someone to fear, a person who could be anyone. She doesn’t know Incognito’s identity, only his acts and the notes he leaves. By breaking into her home last season, I kind of left a challenge by stealing the amendment and leaving a note. She might have thought she was untouchable –and she is- but that is only for those who believe the law to be absolute. People like me do not care about rules, we don’t care whether she’s a farmer’s daughter or the Councilor Radiant. It’s all the same. She may have thought that Incognito would never dare to target her, but he did. As such we delivered a message. A challenge to try and catch me.

I should not forget to mention that those actions also installed a seed of fear, like you stated so beautifully before.” Brandon took a short break to catch his breath and study Kriegsfelt’s expression, the merchant merely gestured that he should continue. “To her, there is a single person in Lhavit who dares to openly defy the law, break the rules. As of yet, the guards have failed to catch him, most haven’t even caught a glimpse. Seeing as Alses probably believes in the competence of the Shinya, she can’t help but worry about this fact. How dangerous is someone that even the Shinya can’t find or catch? Not to mention that anyone could be Incognito, thus making her fear the public as a whole. They might seem like ordinary people, but any one of them could be the masked thief.” With that he finished his speech, feeling like he had started to believe his theory himself, though it did sound quite logical.

Mr. Black seemed to ponder on this for a while, rubbing his chin with his palm before opening his mouth to speak. “According to your … explanation, targeting the Councilor would be better than not to do it,” he remarked, which was something the bat could not deny. “Though you do have a point that it might be in my own interest if you didn’t go there for a while. She might decide to hire an entire army to guard her walls if we do, and I assume that you wouldn’t be able to handle it then.” A smug grin, mockingly almost. “Yes, for now stay away from the Hall, and don’t leave any notes referring to Alses. That’s something for another time. ” Just like that, the man went silent again, rubbing his chin with the palm of a hand once more, closing his eyes half while staring through the Kelvic bat as if he wasn’t even there to begin with.

“Your other idea might not be all that bad too, actually… Alses’s fear will only grow when the masses start becoming more… desperate for answers she refuses to give. Say, do you think you could get the wizards to …. Well, organize a protest demonstration? A march from a gathering place to Elysium Hall. Or maybe get the wizards to actually attack the Hall? It needn’t be per se as bad as it implies, just rousing them up and getting them to … say … interrupt the Bonfire Ball for example? That should serve as quite the wake-up call for our Councilor, don’t you agree!” A fleshy fist covered his mouth as the merchant hid a chuckle, which made him appear quite… creepy. Mainly due to the beady eyes of the man. Brandon didn’t like it at all.

“I’ll do what I can,” the thief sighed, “Rouse up the masses should be easy enough… I think.” Kriegsfelt nodded approvingly, the creepy smile not having left his lips. “Ah, Brandon, start by spreading some rumors, you don’t have to spearhead the demonstration or the assault. I’d rather not have you there, I still need you for other things. Rumors should be enough, the most short-tempered and annoyed with the situation will adopt either of those ideas anyway, since they believe something must be done. You should just be the quake that sends the tidal wave hurrying towards the councilor, that’s all. Understand?”
“Sure,” came Brandon’s reply, seemingly disinterested but secretly he was glad it were just rumors he had to spread. As he was fearing, things seemed to lean towards treason quite heavily… if possible, he’d rather stay clear of that, even though he could feel that this was not the last of it. He sighed deeply as he turned around and walked away, only shaking his head when he had the protection of the crowd so Kriegsfelt wouldn’t see. It was time he’d get busy searching for a way out for real, the sooner the better. For one or other reason he got the feeling, a chill that ran down his spine, that the end of this all wouldn’t be the outcome he’d like.

Oh well. He’d find out when the time was there.

x

credit goes to Euthisa

by **Balian Martell** on December 5th, 2014, 10:36 pm

Brandon

Skills:

Lores:

Notes :

If you've got concerns, just shoot me a pm.