In too deep

OOC: For past reference to this story, view the following links.

http://shadowlack.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=981'A New Contract' Part I</a>

http://shadowlack.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=1195&st=0&#entry13391'Dark Debts' Part II</a>

IC:

Day: 32
Quarter: Dyo
Year: 81378

Time used to go by so quickly when a contract was received. But, that was the past. The past, more often than not, has little effect on the present. At least, it doesn't for pendragons like Kuem. The past is merely that which existed and should not be repeated when it came to the darker moments of it. The present was all that really mattered. And, at the present point in time, Kuem was getting highly annoyed. How many days had it been since he arrived in Aurius? It was hard to keep track after awhile. The better part of a season more than likely. And, still no word about the contract.

At first, Kuem had wrote it off as bad timing. Perhaps he had arrived too quickly. Perhaps he misunderstood the letter's message. No. He knew when games were being played, and he could smell this one coming from a mile away. By now, Sampson would have already informed this Elliumu Rlyypnyym of his arrival and she in turn would have tried desperately to find out all she could about him. At least, thats what an intelligent person would do. He figured that about this time now, Miss Rlyypnyym was discovering that Kuem had covered his tracks well. His name was known among many circles, but few knew anything worthwhile about him. He preferred it that way, it made things alot easier, and alot less messy. But, still the advantage was hers. Kuem knew nothing about this woman other than a name. While she knew something more of him. Damn, how he hated these games.

Today wasn't much different than any other day Kuem had spent in Aurius. At the moment he was wandering the marketplace, examining some of the fresher fruits. Under his guise as 'Ylaumpaj Myjshfemp' the foreign jewel dealer. He had kept his nose clean. Avoiding the pubs and any other cesspool for the the typical riffraff. It was a shame though. He could use a good hard drink about now.

It all came back to time. Time was running out on Kuem's patience. The jewels he was using to finance his stay in Aurius were beginning to run low. Even the young medic who had joined him in the black market had long since taken her leave of him. <font color=red>"Two more days. Two more days and I'm out of here."</font> He spoke to no one in particular as he turned back towards the 'Royal Arms.' Perhaps it was due to his annoyance that he neglected to notice the red-haired beauty who was following him.

 

Elliumu smiled absently as she quietly followed Kuem. She had known that by now he was probably on the verge of leaving, but it couldn't be helped. Her employer wanted a full background search done on this Kuem Panymtruma, and so far he was far from happy with what she had found. Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Of course there were those few individuals who knew the name of course. Finding maggots with fanciful stories was never a very hard thing to accomplish. But, the problem was, that was all they were...stories. There was no written proof to this pendragon's existence at all. At least, besides the fact that he was walking in front of her at that exact moment. A walking mystery. This should be interesting she thought. She thought as she continued her pursuit.

Her weeks of intelligence gathering weren't an entire loss though. She had learned a few small tidbits of information about him. Even if much of it was nearly useless information. She had discovered his affinity for jewels, in particular, blood rubies. While this wasn't exactly the greatest bit of news she could hope for, at least it gave her something of an edge. Perhaps greed would be enough. There was also an incident that took place during his flight from the black market which had led to the deaths of nearly two hundred thieves from rival clans. That was not useless information. Perhaps blackmail could come in handy. She was positive both clans would love to know who was behind so many deaths. The only other bit of information she found on him came from far more than one source. The pendragon Sampson was also very outspoken about it, Kuem's pride. If he accepted the contact, he would not stop until it was carried out. While this was good news, at the same time it meant blackmail would be next to impossible and bribery nearly the same if he was pushed too far. Her employer wanted to find someone else, but inevitably there really wasn't going to be many foolish enough to accept what she was told to propose.

Kuem had so far taken no notice to her presense. Quite unusual for an assassin. But, Elliumu wasn't quite so sure if it was for lack of talent or by timing...or feigned ignorance. Either way, she couldn't speak with him out here in the public, so she would inevitably have to wait until he returned to his hotel.

The silent march stretched out for quite sometime until she finally noticed Kuem walking towards the Royal Arms. She paused for about a minute before following to allow him time to get to his room. She already knew what room 'Ylaumpaj Myjshfemp' was staying in. No point in raising his hackles by showing up seconds after he had just walked in.

Taking her time she strolled quietly into the hotel. She walked with purpose for the stairs, pausing only long enough to offer a small wink for the clerk, who quickly turned crimson. It took less time than she intended to get to his door and for the first time since her pursuit began, she felt uneasy. The door stood ajar and the room beyond looked empty. Bounding through the open door Elliumu looked all around for some sign of Kuem. <font color=green>"Did he already leave? This can't be the wrong room..."</font> Her voice was nearly frantic. She had spent far too much time preparing for this meeting for Kuem to suddenly walk out of the picture. The sudden slamming of the door brought an end to her thoughts. <font color=red>"You're quite lucky I stayed this long. And, you better have a damn good reason for making me wait Miss Rlyypnyym."</font> Kuem's voice echoed as he stepped into the room.

 

Elliumu's surprise lasted for only a moment before she regained her composure. <font color=green>"A pleasure to finally meet you, Mr. Panymtruma...or would you prefer for me to call you 'Mr. Myjshfemp'?"</font> She grinned teasingly as she spoke, obviously hoping that her charm might gain some effect on Kuem. It had none. <font color=red>"Call me what you want. I really don't care. Now, do you intend to answer my question or not?"</font> Elliumu stared at Kuem for a moment or two trying to gain some appraisal of him, apparently satisfied with what she saw she spoke. Though her smile had vanished nearly as quickly as it had formed. <font color=green>"As I'm sure you already know, my employer wished to find some information on your background. We very well couldn't hire an amatuer...or worse a spy. As it is, we had more than a little difficulty finding out anything about you. As far as any records go, you don't exist..."</font> <font color=red>"Yes...well bribes can go a long ways nowadays."</font> <font color=green>"Thats precisely what I told my employer. However, he still wished to find out what he could, and that took more time than we had anticipated. For what its worth, we do apologize for the inconvience and we intend to compensate you for all of your expenses since arriving in Aurius."</font> Elliumu then passed a small satchel to Kuem. He was by far not surprised to find that it contain the exact number of jewels he had thus far spent in Aurius. Whoever this woman worked for, they were thorough. And, they had been watching him since his arrival. Not exactly a big surprise there.

Kuem walked slowly to his bed and carefully reached underneath. Slowly he pulled out a large leather dufflebag. And, then proceeded to empty the satchel of jewels into a large pouch. Elliumu waited until he finished before speaking once more. <font color=green>"Now lets talk business. My employer wishes to hire you for two unspecific contracts at a price of ten blood rubies per head."</font> She waited momentarily to see if that got some reaction out of the dark pendragon. To her annoyance, he didn't even blink.

It was unsurprising that Elliumu's employer also know that Kuem favored blood rubies. Many assassins did. One single blood ruby could easily purchase a summer home in Chafuo. Which added a new question into the mix. Was a payment of this magnetude meant simply to show how rich her employer is, to show his little care for how much he spent, or was it due to the difficulty of the task? Maybe it was a bit of each.

<font color=green>"One contract is for a member of the 'Dylpam Pjudym' Assassin Clan. The other contract is for a member of the 'Rlyypi Huly' Assassin Clan. Both contracts are unspecific...though it would be best to try to get one of the higher ranking members of each clan. Whoever you decide on is unimportant. What is important is that after you slay them, you are to leave behind a dagger. To be more specific, these daggers. One at the scene of each murder."</font> Elliumu then proceeded to remove two long silver daggers from another small satchel. Kuem didn't need to see the emblem to know that each dagger belonged to the rival clans. Depending on who he killed, it would cause a massive clan war. But, it made no sense. What could anyone hope to gain from starting a clan war? No. He didn't want to know. Best not to mettle into the affairs of his contractor.

<font color=green>"So, do you accept the terms of the contacts?"</font> <font color=red>"Do you have the twenty blood rubies? If so, then yes. If not, then no. I'm paid in advance as I was informed back in the black market."</font> Elliumu then revealed a third satchel which she then tossed to Kuem. He promptly examined each ruby closely before depositing each into his pouch. <font color=green>"If you haven't already heard of the clans, they are both located on Dhruv. While we like to be more specific, both clans are known to more around alot, so it would be a difficult matter to pinpoint a specific location. However, both should be realtively close to one another, seeing as currently they are supposed to be having peace negotiations."</font>

Kuem was liking less and less about this contract a Elliumu told more. He hated 'unspecific' contracts since it always involved a week or two of intense spying to try and determine the best target. Of course, the clan leaders would be preferable, but they would also be the hardest to get to. And, though he said nothing, he had heard of both clans. After all, they were both around when he was still a kid. While his former clan was well-respected, they never managed to reach the sheer size and reputation of either of these clans. But, all of that aside, it did give him a remote idea of where the two clans would be located. Especially if it was a peace negotiation. There used to be a particular place for such events...at least there was when he was a child.

<font color=green>"So, when can you leave?"</font> <font color=red>"I'll be gone within an hour."</font> <font color=green>"Well then I'll make this quick. If you should succeed, my employer would be willing to offer a bonus as well as a position in our humble organization. We're always..."</font> What exactly they were would not be none to Kuem. For he chose that moment to interrupt. <font color=red>"The contract was made and agreed upon, payment was delivered and so it shall be carried out. I will not accept any bonus. And, I have no interest in joining your organization. I work on a per contract basis and I'm typically quite picky on which contracts I accept. If my services are to your employers liking, I'm sure he'll find a way to notify me of a new contract if such an occasion arrives. And, I may choose to accept or decline that offer. Now if you will excuse me. I must prepare for my journey."</font> Elliumu was left little room to argue as Kuem not only interrupted her, but turned her offer down cold. <font color=green>"Very well, Mr. Panymtruma I'll inform my employer that you're leaving for Dhruv. Perhaps, afterwards, you'll be more 'reasonable' towards our generous offer. Good day."</font> Seeing little room to argue the matter futher and being highly annoyed at not getting her way, she spun about and stormed off towards the door.

 

It didn't take Kyem long to get ready. In fact, he was prepared to leave at a moments notice since arriving in Aurius. But, he still waited nearly thirty minutes after Elliumu left before deciding to leave himself. Gathering up his dufflebag, and double checking to make sure everything was in its proper place, he headed on downstairs to checkout. As usual, the manager of the 'Royal Arms' attempted to greet him like a long lost brother and then, upon hearing of Kuem's soon-to-be departure, expressed an almost overly dramatic performance. With the 'goodbyes' over and the promises to return told absentmindedly, Kuem finally managed to be on his way. The only problem was, how was he going to go about getting to Dhruv? It would be pointless, not to mention dangerous, to go back to Bhim. And, taking the portal to Mansukh would be equally pointless. So the only other choice was taking a Rloamyta to the surface and then hiring a ship to take him to Dhruv. It would take about a week, but it seemed he had little other choice.

The trip to the seaports went without incident. Probably due to his opting to wear his armour, the crowd parted to avoid contact with him. All in all, nothing new. It took little time as well finding a Rloamyta heading for the surface, which in turn finally got Kuem out of the underwater city. Kuem relaxed in a small cabin awaiting the short journey to the surface to end. He could vaguely hear numerous bits of chatter coming from other rooms as families gathered around the portholes to take one last glimpse of the wonderous Aurius. Shaking his head briefly, he waied until the chatter finally died away. That must mean they were getting closer to the surface. Good. Finally, he could set about planning out how he would handle his arrival in Dhruv. And, he would have a week to do so...that is if he could find a ship willing to take him.

Once the Rloamyta finally reached the surface it docked at a small port town. Kuem sighed to himself, he would be hard pressed to find a suitable vessel here. But, he had no other choice. After all, he had to cross through the strait between Ajita and Swaraj, and finally across the perilous Hrishikesh to reach Dhruv. At least, that was the fastest way. And, he needed speed.