Prepare for the #LodanRespawn2024 Existing characters may choose to be displace from/have memories of different timelines, thereby allowing returning members the option to retcon their whole character. These changes are the result of the "Unnatural Fog" plot device that is running between now and the Respawn. The plot is simple: no matter where your character is, that place is shrouded in a thick fog that suspends time, but not thoughts or memories, so even if they're repeating the same day over and over again, they continue to remember, so each time feels like a new day. For those retconning OCs; this is where new versions of themselves have the opportunity to replace the old versions. Official lore and tree updates will be announced asap
That was what Max was coming to realize over the past few months. It just, it wasn’t her thing. She was good at it, good enough to join the guild, but she didn’t enjoy it. She wanted to stop doing it. Stop having to cover her tracks. Stop having to kill people who didn’t look guilty when you held a knife up to them. Just stop all of that.
But there was a problem with that too. Money. By taking up jobs at the guild, she no longer had to pickpocket or outright steal to get by. She could walk into stores and actually buy things. Which was helping her improve her social skills quite a bit too. She was no star, but at least she could say what was on her mind now. And yet, earning the money from killing people just didn’t feel right. She made up her mind that she wanted to get out of this job—even if it meant going back to robbing people just to stay alive
So here she was, walking around the guild headquarters, looking for the guild leader who had recently returned to her job. It wasn’t as though one could simply quit the guild, especially one full of assassins, without saying a word to anyone. No, you had to speak to the leader and arrange it. And that’s what Max was here to do.
...If she could find Epikuro
"I only go out to get me a fresh appetite for being alone." -Lord Byron
Post by Edelweiss Fjäril on Jul 7, 2015 15:40:40 GMT
She had been there for a while, back leaning against a wall while sorting through a few papers, her gaze occasionally following Max while the blond girl paced around looking so tense. Admitedly the natural shadows around were making the redhead blend in quite a bit, so it wasn't all that a surprise Max hadn't noticed her there. Odds of the job.
But she finally decided it was about time to see what Max was up to, wandering up and down like someone lost in the slums. Giving a small sigh, Epikuro waited for the next time the freckled blonde passed by close enough and tapped the top of her head with the papers. "Evening, Dagger."
She almost jumped out of her skin when she was tapped, but it turned out to be more of a light flinch than what it actually felt like. Had the guild leader been there the whole time? If she had, then Max was surely loosing her stuff, or just too distracted by her inner turmoil to actually pay attention. Either way, both would be good reasons to get out of this line of work.
Stepping back, she cleared her throat and looked at Epikuro, fighting the words as they got caught in her throat. “Hello. I, uh, wanted to talk to you. Have a moment?” she asked, already falling into her usual fidgeting. This lady wasn’t like Stephen, it wouldn’t be appropriate to mess with her. Max hadn’t interacted with the guild leader much so this whole encounter caused her to be nervous. But, it needed to be done.
"I only go out to get me a fresh appetite for being alone." -Lord Byron
Post by Edelweiss Fjäril on Jul 7, 2015 17:08:24 GMT
"I can make one." She told simply with a nod, rolling the papers to be carried like a tube, although she didn't make any mention to let go or settle the sheets anywhere else. Those were things she needed to take care of on her own. "Not in here, though. Come with me, we can take a walk."
She motioned for them to leave the room, and the Main Theater as whole, then walking in silence for a couple minutes through the streets before she turned back to look at Max. "So," The redhead commented. "my years on the work taught me whenever someone comes up looking as tense as you are, they always have thoughts that'll either mildly anger or highly amuse me."
She turned to looked at the blond girl. "What are you thinking?"
"All power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men." - John Dalberg-Acton
The young blond nodded, following her out of the building. She was still a bundle of nerves, but moving made it a little better. The minutes in silence helped her gather her thoughts as well. Her mind wouldn’t be changed, but it made it a little easier to think. And then she mentioned that she might be angry. That wouldn’t be a good thing.
But, no going back now. “I don’t want to be an assassin anymore,” she said a bit quietly, waiting to see what kind of reaction would be had before she continued.
"I only go out to get me a fresh appetite for being alone." -Lord Byron
Post by Edelweiss Fjäril on Jul 7, 2015 22:55:32 GMT
The redhead's reaction wasn't really anything that could be called flashy. She just kept glancing at Max while walking, and something that looked like a soft smile formed on her lips. "And what are you planning to work with after stopping?"
No matter the point of view she used, Epikuro or Edelweiss, to the redhead Max seemed a tad too young to have children - for someone in that lifestyle at least, not like the little rich lasses who got bethroted and married as almost children. The blond girl also didn't seem to have other family, or at least wasn't the type to ask them for help. If she stopped working altogether, chances were she was going to starve. So Edelweiss had to admit she felt curious on what exactly was Dagger--- Max interested on switching the assassin job for? Acting, maybe? Dancing? Knife throwing?
"All power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men." - John Dalberg-Acton
That was a good question. One to be expected, and yet, she still didn’t have a solid answer for it. “I don’t know. I’m good at this job, but,” she glanced down at her hands, not feeling guilty for all the lives she had taken, but still feeling something. “I don’t want to do it anymore.”
At least Edel hadn’t been mad at her; that much was nice. However, the conversation wouldn’t get much easier from here.
"I only go out to get me a fresh appetite for being alone." -Lord Byron
Post by Edelweiss Fjäril on Jul 8, 2015 2:10:21 GMT
"That's as good a reason to quit as any. But you do need to think of what to do after retiring; CAEsAL has plenty of places you'd fit in as something else than an assassin, but I can't randomly set you somewhere at my whims."
As she kept walking they passed by a narrower street, still well illuminated by the street lights in the evening. Passing through an archway and going ahead some more, a tall building could be seen standing, silent and dark. A clocktower. Large, majestic even, a remainder of the times before the previous queen's death and the civil war - but a dead remainer. The clock hands didn't move, and no gears ticking could be heard, just the faint background sound of the wind whistling and water dripping from a drizzle that would soon become rain. The clock was broken.
Max stopped in her tracks as the large building suddenly appeared before her. Her heart jumped into her throat, expecting to hear ticking…but it didn’t come. False alarm. Still, she didn’t want to have anything to do with the thing. She stared at it for a moment before tearing her gaze away. Why did she have to be brought here, of all places?
It took her some time to recover and continue talking, listening to water coming from somewhere helped. “I’m not sure what I’d do. I haven’t tried doing anything else, I’m not good with people either. If I could stay that would be nice, but I don’t know if I’m much of an entertainer,” she finally managed to say, keeping her gaze away from the large building.
"I only go out to get me a fresh appetite for being alone." -Lord Byron
Post by Edelweiss Fjäril on Jul 8, 2015 15:44:14 GMT
"It's broken from inside, doesn't work at all. Nothing will snap nor explode on your face." The redhead told, once again looking at Max when the blond girl froze and that flash of panic crossed her face upon seeing the clocktower. She didn't seem the type who was afraid of heights, but frear of working gears - mainly of having many o them around - was understandable for anyone of Ander descendance to have, so Edelweiss didn't feel surprised by that reaction. "It used to be a minor norm to bring the assassin initiates who passed their Trial to this place, although Triune has been breaking the tradition in the last times for... his own personal reasons. If you wish to retire, you might as well see it at least once - what CAEsAL works for as a whole."
"You were already taught plenty of the ways of an entertainer, Dagger--- no... Max. That I can guarantee you." She stated with an amusing smile while heading for one of the clockwork's side doors and opened it. The hinges didn't make a sound - it was old, yes, but well-oiled. "Didn't you notice it yet? The assassin work is gruesome indeed, but for whom started with that it also works as the best internship for all the rest. Care to guess how? Think a bit."
Looking up at the massive building still unnerved her to a degree. She bit at the flesh of her cheek inside of her mouth and looked to Edel, fighting with herself inside. Everything in her brain told her to turn and run, get away from this place, but, she needed to do this. Her steps were a little shaky, but he moved forward, focusing her mind on trying to figure out what the redhead meant with her words.
“Being an assassin, and being an entertainer...” she said more to herself than the other person. What did they have in common? “One’s about being quick, quiet, unseen, while the other’s about being the center of attention, make sure everyone’s eyes are on you.” Thinking more as they walked into the building, she began to understand it, or at least thought she was. “If you know the best way to avoid attention, you’d also know the best way to bring it, is that is?”
"I only go out to get me a fresh appetite for being alone." -Lord Byron
Post by Edelweiss Fjäril on Jul 8, 2015 22:46:45 GMT
"Also that, but not only." The redhead chuckled. "The skills you need for one thing can also be handy for the other, exactly as you learned them."
The clocktower was hollow... well, that was expected already, but more hollow than would be normal. From the entrance they used at ground level there were 3 floors to go down and 8 to go up. Where there should be ticking, slowly moving gears, pendulums and bells, there were only a couple thick ruptured metal cables dangling slightly in the empty space. At the walls and where they were, sets of stairsteps interlinked by metal bridges ran up and down the tower edges in a square spiral, and there were hand-handled elevators attached on each of the four corners; the center was empty no matter how close one looked though, leading to a vertiginous fall towards the bottom - where the old-looking large gears that should keep the clock in motion were precariously settled after falling years prior. Water formed a shallow pool at the hole-ground, dripping from some leakage at the ceiling that was made more noticeable with the rain outside, and the reddish rust mixed into the liquid gave the impression of it being a pool of blood.
"You've learned how to run faster, jump higher, only make noise when desired, how to hide and fit in unusual spaces. Something about disguises, something on reading others' expressions, and evidently how to keep secrets. Your weapon of choice are daggers, and they should be like an extension of your hands by now."
Edelweiss made no mention of even touching the elevators and started climbing the stairs. The sound of feet moving on the metallic stairsteps resounded slightly, and might work as a distraction as well. Climbing to the top would take a while. "To sum up, you've learned everything an entertainer does. You'd be an excellent actress, ringleader or stage assistant. You could be a dancer," 'Exotic' or not. "or even acrobat. You could do knife tricks - with a little more training you could throw them as well. There's very little in the lighter side of CAEsAL you cannot do right now, Max, and the little you can't do can be learned much faster than a normal begginer."
At the top there was a more stable platform, and a firm floor had been set with long wood planks over the remaining metal frames. The sight over there allowed to see most of the city - and they were now standing right behind the clock. Just like it had been long before, an old two-faced mirror, the opaque surface covered in numbers outside was transparent from inside, albeit being kind of dirty, and served as a giant circular window. Edelweiss sat down on the 'sill', her back leaning on the glass while she let Max look around.
"This tower is very much like the shady side of CAEsAL is. It might not seem all that nice from outside: it's dark, ugly, broken and shady. But once you're inside you can see all that surrounds you - and be at the top."
Not only? So there was more to it. She glanced down to the bottom of the building, managing to at least look at the gears for a few moments before turning away. The water dripping was nice. Turning her gaze skyward, she saw just how broken the building was. It wasn’t so bad really, on the inside. She suddenly very much wanted to see what it looked like at the top, so she followed Edel up the stairs, the soft sounds of steps fading out the dripping of water.
Max remained silent as she listened to the guild leader speak. As she explained, it all made sense. In theory, she could learn to do all of those things. Maybe even more. Reaching the top of the stairs, her eyes widened as she looked around. They were so far up and had a fantastic view of the rest of the city. She immediately walked up to the clock face, ignoring the fact that it was a clock face, and peered out. The city was alive and she quickly decided that she liked it here.
And then questions came to her mind. “Do I have to pick one job right away; can I try a few things? Is there a different trial for being an entertainer?” She had a few more, but decided to start with those.
"I only go out to get me a fresh appetite for being alone." -Lord Byron
Post by Edelweiss Fjäril on Jul 9, 2015 0:50:01 GMT
"Usually yes, there's a different trial. A siple interview and a test to see how the candidate acts under pressure - but technically you already proved how you act under pressure on the assassins trial, so no worth in trialing you again." She seemed to ponder for half a minute, what to have Max do first.
"Clean the backstage board room, and help the informants to keep the board updated (just keep the papers there up to date and such). That will be your work -until- you choose what you truly want your job to be. Does it sound good enough?"
"All power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men." - John Dalberg-Acton
She nodded, pulling her gaze away from the city below and to the person beside her. “I can handle that. And, um.” She paused, shifting her feet around for a moment. “Thank you.” Max actually meant that. Without this guidance and support, well, she might have been a lump on the side of an alley for the rest of her life. Now, she actually felt like she had some sort of future.
"I only go out to get me a fresh appetite for being alone." -Lord Byron
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