Traitors And Monsters. We Better Get Extra Pay...

[Northen Light36]

Roni grimaced as he flopped down at his seat at the inn table beside Vi. "Another lead turned out to be nothing," he grumbled to his companion. "And I nearly became tree food while I was checking it out. I'm beginning to think Cain's already run out of Humontis. What about you? Agree? Or have you found a trace of the slimy bastard?"

[Kender Bard]

"Not having much luck," Virgo answered quietly, frustrated. "And I've been having hell, too. You should see the people underground. They're running for shelter as soon as it gets dark, topside."

She still marveled at that. How most of them knew when it was day and night underground, she'll never figure out.

"Good thing, too. The bats here? They have two mouths and both of them bite. I saw the remains of someone who got caught by a couple and... urgh..." She cut herself off, trying not to remember the body that had been drained dry. "I hate it here."

[Northen Light36]

Roni shuddered a little at the thought. "Then it's time we moved on," he said firmly. "Where do you think the bastard's run to. He wouldn't be stupid enough to go to a guild city, don't you agree? So that leaves... What? Ronduin, Ekaitz... Sensatia..." Roni grimaced at the mention of the Mind city. Like most Guild thieves, the difficult to get in and out of city annoyed him.

[Kender Bard]

"Well he probably didn't go to Ekaitz unless he's suicidal," Virgo snorted. "Hmm, I'm not sure about Sensatia.. I'd rather put off going there until last unless I had a good reason to believe he was there." She matched Roni's grimace. "So, Ronduin... That's not a bad choice, actually. If he lies low, then it means he's got a highly populated island to hide on."

She leaned in closer and lowered her voice, "My trigger finger is getting itchy, though. We need to find him fast before he manages to completely shake us. And don't forget, he could have gone to some other places too. Khelek, Reave, Naurorod, Beastlands..." She hoped to Taed he didn't go to any of those places either. Out of the whole lot, Ronduin was the least evil.

[Northen Light36]

"He's not gonna be comfortable in the Beastlands," Roni sneered. "Too worried something might eat his fat arse. And Ronduin's pretty much the next closest to us, so let's try there. It makes the most sense, anyway. His act is a bard, remember, and Ronduin likes music. He'd fit in well."

[Kender Bard]

"Yeah," Virgo agreed. "But let's spend one more night looking for him here. Nothing too intense." She smiled at him, quick and almost shy. "Maybe we could actually act like the touring visitors we really are. I've never been to Humontis before, after all. The topside was sure pretty with all those flowers blooming, too. If we stick together, I'm sure the monsters won't eat us." She smirked at him. "Especially not you. You probably taste bad." She made a face.

[Northen Light36]

"I'd taste better than you," Roni teased. "Sure Vi, I wouldn't mind taking another day to look around." Quietly he added, "And playing tourist on the Guild's copper isn't the worst idea I've ever heard either." He chuckled.

[Kender Bard]

Virgo giggled conspiratorially at that. There WERE perks to this trip, after all. "Topside?" she asked softly, hopefully. "There's not much to see down in the tunnels. You've seen one tunnel, you've seen them all."

And being city born and bred, she didn't often get a chance to see so much greenery in one place. It was a bit breathtaking. She was just thankful she wasn't terrified of underground Humontis like many Winds were.

[Northen Light36]

"Whatever my lady commands," Roni replied with a grin that quickly turned teasing. "Just let me find myself a lady to command us."

[Kender Bard]

Virgo snorted. "Just stick your face out the door and I'm sure several women would line up for you. Not sure about how much they'd command you though. Air in all their heads must make it difficult to dig a thought out aside from what pretty dress to wear. A lady I might not be, but at least I can tell you to get off your lazy ass." She reached over and lightly whacked him on the shoulder as she rose from her own seat.

[Northen Light36]

Roni laughed, gripping his shoulder in mock pain. "Such brutality inflicted on my fair self!" he cried dramatically. "Such pain! It's a good thing I like dangerous women." With a grin and a wink, Roni rose from his seat and escorted Vi out of the tavern. "Where to, Vi?"

[Kender Bard]

"This way," Virgo responded promptly. She stayed close to the main trails, not straying off of them... At first. But that bored Virgo quickly and once she saw a stretch of open land she hastily moved off the road and onto the grass. She did keep a wary out on trees but as the sun slid over the horizon she began to relax her guard. The locals had said that the trees didn't seem to harass people once it grew dark.

"Gorgeous sunset," Virgo commented with an appreciative look. There weren't any buildings to obscure the sight of it. "I wonder what it'd be like to live out in the country all the time..." Probably boring, after a while. She enjoyed some of the rustic beauty of Humontis but she knew she'd rapidly miss being around people. "Heh, guess I'll always be a city rat," she murmured under her breath.

"Want to race?" she asked Roni suddenly. "I won't cheat, promise. I think I see a stone wall up ahead. We'll go to there, aye?"

[Northen Light36]

"You'll cheat when I start to beat you, it's your nature," Roni teased, grinning. "But... sure!" Without warning, he took off running, laughing at his head start.

[Kender Bard]

"Hey!" Virgo squealed and ran after him, laughing as well. She was very swift, but not over the spongy and uneven natural ground. Out of her element, she did consider cheating but in the end decided against it and came half-running, half-stumbling after Roni at their finishing point, breathing hard. "I'm no cheat," she told him with a grin. Once she'd gotten her breath back, she looked at the wall and noticed with a start at its size.

Some farmer built a wall around his whole farm, maybe? she thought. "Wonder what's behind here," she remarked and turned to scale the rough stone structure easily. It wasn't even very tall. Peeking over the top, she gasped and gestured to Roni. "Come up here, you have to see this! Oh, wow, look at all the pretty red flowers, Roni!"

[Northen Light36]

"Flowers?" Roni asked. "This late in the year?" Curious, he climbed the wall to sit at the top. "Impressive," he remarked. "Must belong to an Earth plant farmer or something. I've never seen anything like them." Leaning forward for a better look, Roni lost his balance and toppled off the wall and into the field of flowers.