[bazaar] the fine art of jobhunting [Ivan :: open]

[Coba]

12th Day, Winter 510 An average day looked over the Great Bazaar, it's normality catching. People moved, back and forth, to and fro, gathering their daily bread, their daily needs, their daily things. They crowded in the streets of this entirely average day, far to close for Jacoba's comfort, as she involuntarily was pushed and herded into the centre of the mass. It made her skin crawl to be among the press of bodies, even though the spacing was loose enough to only afford her occasional brushes of contact. Still. Her eyes darted back and forth, frantic under a furrowed brow, her movements equally fevered. Gods, how she hated crowds. It was her next question to ponder why on earth she would ever desire to take up the dance of torches when it required such an audience. Secondary questioning of her thought brought her realization that it was because no one was going to stand close to you if you twirled swords or other objects aflame around your head or belched fire. Still. Tracking had no such crap to deal with. You were on your own. It was especially good when you had the bully boys to clear your area side to side while you're own sharp eyes scanned ahead for the tell tale whisper of parting among people as they jumped from your quarry with irritation. She slapped her thoughts away from the memory of the thrill of the hunt. She'd relieve it soon if she could find work to suit her skills. Lost in her thoughts, she ducked and wove through the sights and smells of the Bazaar. Her eyes were not shut off, however. The colour, the experience, the yells of wear-bearers, it was remarkable, though not uncommon to market places. She jumped, nigh out of her very skin, from the press of bare, exposed flesh against her neck, the offender she turned to face even as she moved away to swear and curse an individual who could go sleeveless on such a day. She didn't need to yell as to why their arms were at her neck. Anyone of decent height could as elbow distance from the ground give her a blow to the ear without much trouble. It was as she exploded backwards, perhaps with a little too much vigour, that she went head over heels as she fell backwards over a crouched individual, she assumed from his business at his feet to be tying his shoe. On the other side of him she found slush to fall in, rolling as she did so in a fluid movement to come to standing again, much wetter and far colder then when she had begun her descent. That who'd had drawn out such reaction had moved on, probably not even realizing they'd offended her, so she resorted to a small fit, the whole affair looking rather manic, not to mention the half shushed gibber of anger. Coba, get real. Don't act like some unhinged child. They touched you, so what? She drew a breath as her little voice of reason, a man's voice, Leo's voice, chimed in the back of her head. You know exactly what, so shut up! Snarled the rest of her existence. The remote, detached bit of her that ruled cool, calm and collected thoughts sighed and sent thanks up to whatever god was listening that she didn't have these conversations out loud. Her idiocy through, she continued on, steadily crossing out her list of places seeking part time help. No one thought a woman suited to labour, and they defiantly didn't want to utilize her other skills. No, they had the Knights for that. Last option down with a shake of a head, her lungs heaved a sigh, heavy and tinged with defeat. And then she found that flicked of defiance inside her, and breathed softly upon it. Stoking the flame until it burned a little brighter, she pushed away thoughts of giving up on everything and heading to the Rearing Stallion to observe the bar going demographics of Syliras, some part of her curious to see what kind of drinkers a goody two shoes city as this could produce. Time to find her soap box. She had to put herself out there somehow, though on later thought this was far from the best way. On later thought she would also question why she was so impatient that she didn't just go to the Employment Office. To which she would later answer that to go to the employment office, she'd probably find an incredible yawn of a job. Finding her way to the edge of the street, she grabbed an abandoned produce crate from behind one of the stalls and stood on it, giving her maybe a head above the average people of the place. She pulled in a breath and shouted: "I will work for coin, or food if you're really that cheap. To be honest, I have no people skills and will break all your good china if you let me touch it." She rubbed her hand across her opposite forearm, trying to quell the unease that having even these few heads turn her way. " But my skills are far more," she paused, searching for the correct word. "Worldly suited. I can track, anyone, anywhere. I can act as a competent body guard, dress basic wounds and basic medicine, and uh. . . what else. . . " She trailed off, her public speaking skills pretty much spent. She quessed the ability to light pretty much anything on fire was also a bad hiring point. ". . . dunno. Stuff." Even if she had more to add to her diatribe, Fates would have nothing of it, probably fed up with her foolishness. Her platform had been discarded for a reason, and as it creaked, then collapsed into splinters beneath her, proved it's timber rather rotten and nails rusted. Removed by the crunch from her interval above the heads of the crowded, she abandoned the platform and sulked back into the crowd. People watching at the Rearing Stallion it was, then.

[Ivan]

Ivan spent the day on the streets of Sylrias. It was not his fault though, he’d wanted to go out of the city. The only flaw with his plan to just walk out was the fact that he was lost. He’d some how wandered back into the middle of the city, as there was merchant stalls up and down the street as far as the eye could see. His pride would not alow him to ask for directions.

A head rose from the crowd of tall folk. A girl had taken to standing on something, and several people had stopped around her to hear her speak. Ivan joined them as she started. Ivan was not very good at translating the words of common speech, but from what he could gather, she was looking for a job. Her skills would be useful... but he could not pay her. Still though, if he could travel to a less defended city, maybe there was a way.

As he thought about it the crowd parted. The others moved on, laughing, as the girl wandered back into the street. Ivan stepped in front of her before she got into the large sea of people. It would be easy for one of his size to lose some one in such a place.

“ If you want work, i could use your skills. I can’t pay you, though. If you’re interested, maybe we can work out a deal...” Truthfully, Ivan was just trying to get out of the city. If she could track people as she spoke of, then she could do that with ease, he thought. Still, with his profession, she might be more useful then as a guide. A skilled hunter could offer him a much easier time of doing what ever it was the rich people told him to.

[Coba]

Coba was starting to warm to the idea of merely putting off the inevitable search for a subsistence flow, to procrastinate. It almost brought of smile to her face, the thought of not having to actually socialize for another day. Her mellow perception snapped abruptly when she had to look down slightly into the the blunt features of an isur, one who had just stepped out in front of her. She sized him up quickly, considering her success she might achieve if she attempted to step around him. She might be able to. Might. He was a sturdy creature, as all Isur were supposed to be. This was all before she heard him speak, the first words that trespassed her ears initially pulling her thoughts from getting away from him. If you want work. . . The tantalizing phrase brought considerable interest to her intent features. The type that used her talents? That gave her small relief, for she had in afterthought been concerned that the first part of her announcement suggested she'd do any sort of work for coin or food. However disinterest and annoyance coloured her expression when she heard that she would not be paid. A girl had to eat, you know? Especially if this work kept her in this city, where hunting was sparse outside of the walls because of the volume of hunters also trying to eek out existence in the same way and food expense inside it. She stared at the Isur, gnawing the inside of her lower lip in mannerism as she considered what he said. A deal? She might as well hear him out, it not being as if she had much better offers pouring in. If she was lucky, she might get out of the city for good as well. "What employment do you offer, and what of a deal?"

[Ivan]

Ivan looked up into the girl’s eyes. It was nice to know she was interested. She seemed a bit annoyed as him not offering payment, but lying did not seem right. She seemed strong for one of the lesser races, at least mentally so. She might survive the roads that Ivan was most inclined to travel.

“ I am a traveling mercenary, and i need companions. The trade of a hired weapon is not easy, so i figure it best to have friends. We do what ever the people who pay us tell us to, if its to kidnap the cutest girl or kill the strongest monster. I am not the best of hunters, so you will be a valuable friend to have. If you join me, then you get paid when i do. Interested?”

Ivan had not said so much all at once since he left home. He hoped he had the words right. He also hoped she had the will to kill. He’d hate to have her break down in the middle of a job.

[Coba]

Travelling mercenary, eh? She laughed as she saw the sturdy man size her up as she did him. She wondered what she came to in his calculations. If she was completely outside his optimal requirements, he would not be talking to her now. She suspected that he saw her most use put to her hunting capabilities. That suited her just fine. She could fix that perception. "I know the mechanics of the work." She said when he explained what the job entitled. She'd grown up doing it. She still did that kind of work. She smirked a bit. "I am one. Bloodlust was having a small celebration in the back of her skull. To finally do what she did best, what luck. "I'm in, little man." Understanding what he offered made the fact she was not being paid immediately mute. When she addressed him as such, she had to think of names and their relation to her. In order to work for him, she'd need to present a name. Generally she'd go by Hound, her gangland title applied for such work. She didn't even know why she went by Coba at all, some small attempt at humanity that had did not serve the purposes of survival but fulfilled some part of her that still desired to be able to wear sheep's clothing. So she gave him both. "I work under Hound, for casual employ. Jacoba works as well, I suppose." "I assume that you don't intend to stay in Syliras. I can't find work for one hired blade, let alone more."

[Ivan]

Ivan nodded in her acceptance of his offer. He was rather annoyed that Jacoba had made reference to his size, though. He supposed that if it got out of hand he could break her legs, but then she would not be useful. It would be interesting to see if she proved any trouble later on though.

“ No man is taller then the last one standing. I leave this city soon, though. Tomorrow, on the thirteenth day of Winter i will be outside the city wall. Bring any friends you may wish to if you have any, and the others i’ve met in my stay here will join us. We will be traveling to Ravok. At least there, people want other people dead.”

(OOC: since i havent threaded with caleb or his brother and they said you have, mind mentioning this to them? seems like a good idea since you already know them.)

[Coba]

She suppressed a smile at the look he shot her, feeling it would do little to help the lightly murderous look on his face. Perfect, quite the first impression to a being that she would be travelling with for what seemed to be a while. She cursed her ability to say the exact wrong thing with the poorest timing of anyone, but didn't really know how to mend it. Nor did it overly worry her. "Too true." She wasn't overly inclined to patch up it up, and since he'd given her no name she had nothing else to think of him as. She hoped it didn't slip out by accident later on. With her luck though, it would. Taking care this time, she addressed him with affirmative. "Yessir. I'll look for you then." He seemed to be entirely on business, as was she. There seemed no need for pleasantries, and she had no written credentials to give him for some stamp of approval. So she turned to disappear among the much larger bodies, off to ready her effects, along with the numerous other things she needed, a small smile of contentment smeared across her lips. Finally.

[Archon]

Illumination of Development Coba +1 Rhetoric +1 Interrogation Lores: Old boxes make poor stands, Don't call an Isur short, Crowded places are no fun Care to see more? : A bit of Rhetoric experience for your impromptu job hunting, and a bit of Interrogation for getting your answers out of Ivan Ivan +1 Persuasion +1 Intimidation Lores: Sometimes getting lost is good, Strength in the lesser races, Resisting urges can help Care to see more? : You get a bit of Persuasion experience for convincing Coba to join you, and a little Intimidation for your response to being called short. Notes:Short and sweet, this thread gets me curious to see where you'll go and who you'll kill.