[SE] Not my colors

Sah

The forest never sleeps and the wolf never dies

Sah had been suspicious when he received the commission. He was a hunter, not a bounty hunter or a thief.  But the man had begged, pleaded, and had about ready to offer a limb to get the Wild Thunder to agree. Apparently, some unscrupulous had popped up in the area nearby. They'd made themselves known by stealing from this desperate man. Specifically, they'd stolen a priceless treasure that had been passed down in his family for generations. One that also had great sentimental as well as monetary value.

It would be a lie to say that Sah didn't want to help the man, but the entire situation was suspicious. An unknown organization appearing out of nowhere? A priceless artifact? It was all too cliche and had too many holes in the story to be completely factual. Still, the man's desperation was true, even if Sah doubted it was as he said. The most suspicious part of the job was the man's command to remain anonymous. It could be argued that it was about safety and not wanting anything to tie his client to the takedown of the organization. Yet it was certainly another red flag.

It was with a heavy dose of caution that Sah reluctantly agreed to help. The man marked a spot on the map where the Wild Thunder would meet another person who had been hired to complete the mission. The location marked was the last sighting of the group in the Outer Brambles. The Wild Thunder had dawned a blond wig, cloak, and a mask that covered the lower part of his face as his disguise. He felt ridiculous and thanked Safrin that no one he knew was present.

She bows to no one.

It was up to debate whether the man had found Thal or if she had found him. His exposed coin purse on the bar countertop had nearly jumped into her hand when she'd overheard him drunkenly complaining to the tavern owner about struggling to find any takers for a "dangerous" job with the included bonus of screwing over some egotistic bullies. She almost tore the offer from his throat, her eagerness obviously frightening him. Then he mentioned the "anonymous" part and Thal's enthusiasm vanished. What was the point of causing chaos if you didn't get to bask in the glory? She was in the process of walking away... then tears and hiccupped pleas started. His face seemed to crumple in desperation, the snot on his face and receding hairline giving him the appearance of a blubbering baby. Not wanting to dirty her new cloak and not feeling particularly sympathetic, Thal made it to the door before he stopped her, promising to let her take any of the other treasures stored with the supposed "family heirloom".

Now Thal found herself weaving through the Outer Brambles in the middle of the night with the instructions to meet her assigned accomplice. Her black hood was pulled up completely and a matching black scarf covered everything except her striking blue eyes. She had pulled her hair back to hide their inky curls. Other than her short stature, no features were exposed to imply her feminine nature. Although she wanted to walk in screaming her name and claiming all the credit, she couldn't have rumors spreading that she broke her word (even if the employer was suspicious). And what better way to disguise her identity than to hide her gender?

Just as the client assured her, a figure stood waiting at the agreed upon location. Thal paused, taking note of the man's blonde hair, cloak, and mask. They looked like an interesting pair with equally questionable intentions. If he was anything like her, they wouldn't have any issues pulling this off.

She stepped into his vicinity and nodded her head in silent acknowledgement. Not waiting for his response, she began surveying the area for recent signs of the troublesome group.

Thalassa

Sah

The forest never sleeps and the wolf never dies

Sah glanced up when he heard someone approach. A slight figure emerged from the shadows and he took in their features. A young man perhaps? The darkness made it difficult to tell. Returning the nod, Sah walked over to a tree some distance away before tapping the bark to get his accomplice's attention.

The hunter had noticed the tree on his way to the rendezvous point. On the southern side of the tree, three slashes were visible. At first glance, it might have looked like the result of claws, but the shape was slightly off. Just enough for a seasoned hunter to recognize them as man-made. "Daggers did this." The words were hardly a breath, easily covered by the sounds of the night for any potential eavesdroppers.

She bows to no one.

Thal turned as the man spoke and indicated the tree. Looking closely, she could see the sharp lines that lacked the usual variance made by animal claws. They were obviously man-made and it was understandable why he assumed daggers. She nodded in agreement before surveying the surrounding trunks. A short distance away, there was another set of markings.

She pointed at the next tree and started walking towards it. If she had to guess, they were looking at a secret system of rudimentary notches leading to an undisclosed location. Perhaps a base? Or a hideout? Or a stash? Whatever hid at the end of the path was almost guaranteed to be what they sought. Thal smiled under her scarf in satisfaction.

Picking through the trees, she didn't wait for the man to catch up. She had a mission to complete with or without his help. As each set of markings were passed, Thal began to notice that the pines and foliage under foot were forming a subtle path. They were packed with what she suspected were others' frequent traveling. It appeared that they were getting close to their destination. Her hand came up to signal their proximity. She slowed her approach, monitoring for signs of enemies.

Thalassa

Sah

The forest never sleeps and the wolf never dies

Sah paused the second that his companion signaled. Silently, he crept forward to peer around a tree. Below the ridge where the two stood was a building. On the surface, it looked like a rundown and abandoned shed but there was a single lit lamp in one of the windows. The front door squeaked slightly as it was opened and a man in a cloak came out.

The man leaned against the wall by the door and began scanning the trees. Sah and Thalassa had arrived during a shift change. Beyond their sight, another door opened, and two other cloaked figures emerged from the shadows. There was apparently a side door as well. The two newcomers joined the man in front and started a conversation. From up on the ridge, the Wild Thunder couldn't hear much. Yet it sounded like they were debating the merits of different card games.

Turning back to his partner Sah proposed a whispered plan, "I can distract the ones at the door and cause any others to hopefully come out and check what the commotion is. With them occupied, you can sneak into the side door to get our target. Once I'm done, I'll join you, and we can wrap this up." He tilted his head, "Sound good?" He was open to any suggestions.

She bows to no one.

Thal sized up the men congregating in front of the building, fairly certain she could take them out, but less certain of her companion's abilities. Although she was hesitant to let him take the lead, there were no obvious flaws in his plan. Her head bobbed in confirmation as she crouched. The back of the building was cast in darkness despite the single lantern so she made her way that direction, keeping her eyes on the three men.

Each man was visible in the light of the cracked doorway. The cloaked figure was the tallest with little visible except a protruding nose and a dangling beard. He was the loudest of the bunch with a booming voice despite their "whispers." Debates about winning hands and bets sounded violent in his tone. Based on their discussion, she assumed that the shortest man (Could he be considered a man?) had lost a large sum of money. The older two were chastising him for choosing the wrong game altogether. His head hung, resigned to accept the reprimands of his elders.

While she waited for her partner to interrupt their chastising, Thalassa peered into the nearby window. It held a table and chair next to three medium sized chests. The employer had not been very forthcoming with specifics on the item they were to retrieve, but she hoped it was being contained in one of those chests. Otherwise, she saw nothing in the room. It appeared that its sole purpose was to protect whatever lay within. A grin hid beneath her scarf at the possibilities.

Thalassa

Sah

The forest never sleeps and the wolf never dies

When no other ideas were given, Sah nodded and drew a dagger. Flipping the hood of his cloak, he vanished from sight. He was tempted to draw his sword but didn't want to risk it being recognized later. The dagger would do nicely. Silently, he crept towards the group of men, his footsteps indistinguishable between his own stealth and the cloak's power. Once was in range, he stuck.

The first man went down with a non-lethal stab to the back and a loud yell. The other two spun in confusion, searching for the hidden threat. They, too, quickly crashed to the ground, incapacitated with short bursts of steel. Sah kept them alive, however, and knocked them all out with the handle of his dagger. He'd tie them up later.

For now, though, the commotion had drawn the desired attention. Three more figures spilled from the door, one still shoving his foot into his boot. The invisible Abandoned quickly tripped him, striking the back of his neck with an elbow to render him unconscious. The last two got their bearings and stood back-to-back, "Who's there? Show yourself!" The taller of the two called out, but her wide eyes made her terror obvious. Her companion gripped his axe with trembling fingers as he wildly looked around.

Sah almost pitied them, but with well-placed telekinesis, he restrained their movement long enough for him to use his dagger to disarm the duo. The woman held her hands up as if to fistfight the air, so the Wild Thunder reached past her guard and knocked her out, too. The remaining man dropped to his knees, "There's a treasure in there; take it! Just leave me be!" With a heavy sigh, Sah took him out as well.

With all of the cloaked figures unconscious, Sah then created a rope (but made it look like he'd pulled it out of a pocket) and dragged the figures into a circle to tie them up. Done, he looked inside the shed to confirm that no one else was coming. Pulling back his hood, he turned to look back at his companion, "Ready?"

~
Sah is using:
Type: Grey | Style: Other | Level: Upgraded
Invisibility Cloak | A cloak that can hide one person or medium item, and muffle whispered sounds and footsteps. Made by Sah

She bows to no one.

When the commotion started, Thal waited quietly for the other guards to leave the building before ignoring the side door and hopping in the window. She could scarcely make out her partner easily dispatching every single one, so she focused on further investigating the chests. They sat against one wall, locked, made with dark solid wood, and large enough for her to fit inside. All identical in structure.

As she reached for the first lock, a huge hand clasped around hers. Apparently one of the idiots had been in the back room. He towered over her, his head scraping the ceiling. The glazed look in his eyes and scruffy hair made her want to laugh. Even the confused expression made her confident he had no idea what was going on or why she was there.

Not waiting for him to catch on, Thal pulled his arm toward her, and his face straight into her upward elbow. A crunching sound preceded a grunt as blood began to flow from between the hands clutching his nose. Before he had time to recover, she grasped his bent head and brought it to her knee. He crumpled into a heap at her feet, unconscious but breathing. She was reaching to finish him off when she heard the voice of her companion. The tidy circle of figures outside again tempted a laugh, but she simply motioned to the three chests.

Their locks were large and shiny with new metal, built with the state-of-the-art mechanisms. It would take a lot of muscle and time to break through them. Instead, she pulled a pick from her pocket, deftly opening the first. The large man on the floor probably had the keys, but that would have taken a few extra seconds to search him while she already had the chest opening.

It opened with a groan, revealing an abundance of coins and woman's jewelry. She didn't think these ruffians or their employer were much for sparkly accessories, causing her to believe they belonged to the nearby population. While she pilfered a few of the nicer pieces and filled her coin pouch, she waved the man to the other chests. Hopefully their objective was contained in one of the other two.

Thalassa

Sah

The forest never sleeps and the wolf never dies

Sah easily switched gears and began digging through the indicated chests for their goal. After a long moment, a brooch that matched their client's description was unveiled. "Got it." He held it up for his partner to confirm before pocketing the accessory for safekeeping. There wasn't anything else in the chests that caught the Wild Thunder's eye, so he stood up and kept watch as Thal finished up.

"We can inform the nearest settlement about this on our way out so they can come collect their belongings." He didn't comment on the items that his partner had already pocketed. The chances that everything the group had ever stolen was in one place were nearly zero, and a pocketful remaining missing wasn't going to change that.

She bows to no one.

With her bags and pockets satisfyingly heavy with items, Thal glanced at the brooch. It appeared dull and insignificant. She had no desire to sabotage the job by stealing the item, so she simply nodded in confirmation and walked out the door. The idea of meeting with the citizens to help them procure what items remained was not appealing to her. The whole "Robin Hood" persona was not in her repertoire. She'd rather drop the culprits off with a written note. Let the victims decide how to deal with them. But dragging an unconscious person miles through the dark woods was an unattractive idea.

Instead, Thal grabbed a handful of items from one of the chests and started dropping them on the forest floor. A trail would ensure the people could find the hideout without them having to interact with the citizens or do much explaining. They would also be able to deal with the guards how they pleased. Glancing at her partner, she offered a few pieces of jewelry. It shouldn't take long if they worked together. Without words, it would just depend on if he understood her meaning.

Thalassa

Sah

The forest never sleeps and the wolf never dies

Sah smirked as he caught on, "Nice plan." Taking the jewelry, started to help leave the trail. It took some time, and the sun was just beginning to rise once they reached the town. Before the sun could fully rise, the duo made their way to the rendezvous point with the client.  Returning the heirloom and collecting their reward was a quick affair. The duo parted ways soon after, Sah giving his partner one last nod before he slipped away.

Afterward, the Abandoned settled in a shadowed alley, watching as the town rallied to follow the trail of stolen goods that had appeared overnight. It was clear that they had it covered, and he had no doubt that the thieves would soon be arrested.

Returning to the inn, Sah triple-checked that he was alone before removing his disguise with a sigh of relief. Placing his invisibility cloak down, an idea dawned on him. Calling for this magic, Sah channeled it into the cloak, a bead of sweat appearing as he focused. He wasn't sure if his plan would work, but it was worth trying. After a moment, the garment glowed, and he grinned. Success.

Feeling excited, he pulled a sketch from his bag that a blacksmith had helped him with. A merchant had also spent some time helping him explore possible poisons and helped him practice creating them and testing their effects. The Wild Thunder had never created a crossbow before, but he'd been meaning to find time to make this one. With his magic still brimming at his finger, he followed the plans and watched with a wild grin as it came into existence. Satisfied with his accomplishments, the Abandoned packed his bag and got ready to go home.

~
Sah has upgraded his invisibility cloak to Mastered!

Type: Grey | Style: Other | Level: Mastered
Invisibility Cloak | A cloak that can hide one person or medium item, conceal their scent, and muffle whispered sounds and footsteps. Made by Sah

Sah has created:
Fanged Crossbow
Level: Basic
A crossbow that coats each arrow in poison upon release. (Made by Sah)

-{FIN}