if the price is right

Laser beams we're about to awesome all your dreams

So, this… Jack fellow. The dock worker hadn't said much, other than that if there's anyone who knows anything about Torchline and its people, it's probably Jack Barclay. She recognizes the ship from its bust (obviously, one does not forget that kind of bust)  and as the Wraith approaches the deck from the dock, she ironically admires it once again. This had been Aurelia’s ship, if she recalls correctly, and the demigod spares a thought for the Outlander. Things had been so promising for Team Ascended on that front and then… like they always seem to, they inexplicably fell apart.

Well. No sense dwelling on it, she’s got some magic to bargain for. Equipped with a number of items, Wessex stands on the dock in front of the plank to the Ark, a bag slung over her shoulder, and hand up to shield her eyes from the sun. “I’m looking for Jack,” she calls out, hoping the man might be ‘at home.’ If not, she’ll just have to sit and wait for him to return.

WESSEX

JACK

"Yeah, an' I'm lookin' for a stiff drink an' a great set of tits," comes the gruff call back down the gangplank towards Wessex. The man of the hour is at home, as it happens, but he's busy taking stock of everything on the Ark, and when he appears at the side of the ship it's with a ledger in hand and a pencil between his teeth. Blue eyes flash up to glance at the Wraith on the docks, Jack giving her a cursory look up and down before letting out a sigh and snapping the ledger shut.

"A stiff drink it is," he mutters, taking the pencil from his teeth to tuck it behind his ear instead, before leaning his elbows against the dark, polished wood and addressing her properly. "You lookin' for trouble or a good time? The answer'll depend on whether you find Jack," he informs her.

you wanted perfect, you got your perfect
but now I'm too perfect for someone like you

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

Laser beams we're about to awesome all your dreams

Snorting, Wessex looks down at her flat chest, right about the time the man sizes her up. She’d be one of the first to tell him to look elsewhere, so there’s very little (pun intended) to be upset about when he comes to the same conclusion. “Both,” comes the swift answer, as her head tilts and she takes the man and the scene it, wondering privately his conditions might be because he’s Jack and doesn’t want to deal with trouble. Or maybe it’s a test. If he wants to play that game - sure, she’ll humor him.

“Just depends on your definition of a good time.”

WESSEX

JACK

Tilting his head, Jack considers her response for a moment before letting a catlike smile spread across his face. "Both it is," he says, straightening up and heading for the gangplank, his hand drifting along the Ark's wooden finish before he lets it drop to walk down to meet the newcomer. "As luck has it, you can call me Jack," he tells her once he's on even footing with her on the pier.

"What kind of good time trouble are you wantin' to get into? You name your terms, I'll name my price." Gods, he hopes its something fun. Or dangerous. Or both, as they have already established in this first little back and forth.

you wanted perfect, you got your perfect
but now I'm too perfect for someone like you

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

Laser beams we're about to awesome all your dreams

Well at least her intuition isn’t that far off. Wessex chuckles to herself at Jack admits he’s Jack. And then she watches him with sharp, curious eyes that scan up and down as he comes to join her on the dock. In the practice of keeping her teeth hidden, she offers a close-mouthed, half-grin in return. Indicating the city beyond the docks with a jerk of her head, the demigod replies “Let’s start with a drink, since we’re both fairly tit-less. I’m looking for some information. And depending on that….”

Shrugging, she lets the lead trail off, because the truth is that she doesn’t know what will happen and this Jack fellow seems slippery and also, actually, a potential good time. Which is a weird thing to think as she waits for the Captain to take the lead to his preferred watering hole, if that proposition is acceptable. And as the salty breeze tousles her short hair,s he can’t help but think Fuck It - let the day lead where it may.

WESSEX

JACK

Ever a fan of Fuck It, Jack finds his smile growing a touch more crooked as he gives Wessex a similar dressing down with his eyes - it's better up close, he decides, and they can chat more about those teeth later if the situation should call for it. "Can't say I'm much of an information broker," he admits, which absolutely is not the same as not having the information she's after. And by the way his feet are already taking him up and away from the pier, having a tit-less drink is definitely on the cards, it seems.

"I don't get in the habit of makin' deals with strangers, either," he adds, despite peeling her name out of her thoughts with the same ease as he's able to imagine what a good time would look like. Pushing open the door to the Hanged Man, Jack leads them to a table on the shadier side of the bar, where there aren't windows for people to eavesdrop on them. "What's your poison?"

you wanted perfect, you got your perfect
but now I'm too perfect for someone like you

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

Laser beams we're about to awesome all your dreams

Raising a single brow at Jack’s analysis about his ability to deal in information, Wessex hums to herself and then shrugs lightly. “Well a dock worker seemed sure that you would know how to get what I need, so -” so here she is, and if it’s a dead end, then she’ll go elsewhere. It’s as simple as that. “I’m Wessex,” the demigod adds when prompted, flashing a polite expression. Noticeably lacking is her surname, because at this point, she’s fairly certain it isn’t possible to remain anonymous anymore. Only one big, bad, blonde Wessex running about. And no matter where the Captain falls on the political spectrum, she offers him a quick, firm handshake, before they find themselves at building she recognizes.

Doesn’t look like much has changed in the Hanged Man since Wessex was last there - though it has been longer than she’d care to admit. Something something Sunjata and loyalty to the Krai and the Vlad. “Whiskey. On the rocks, please.”

When drinks are in hand and her money changes hands, the Wraith settles into the wall behind her and takes a sip. “I’m looking for someone with Air Magic who won’t be against letting me bite them.” Which is to say, someone who isn't choking on the Old Gods' dicks.

WESSEX

JACK

"The lady Wraith herself come to darken Torchline's doorway," Jack drawls as she confirms her name - suffice to say it's safe for him to out her reputation since she's already done it first. Tapping the table as they sit and motioning for a waitress to bring two of Wessex's preferred poisons (and a please too, how quaint), Jack turns his attention back to her as they get down to business.

Air magic, though? Jack raises his eyebrows, and it's only the clever little ring of Sunjata's name in her thoughts that stops him from cutting the conversation off dead at that point. "You know where we are, right? You've seen whose tits decorate the prow of my ship?" He grins, taking a sip of whiskey. "What'd you need it for? Can't say there are many out there that'd help you."

you wanted perfect, you got your perfect
but now I'm too perfect for someone like you

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

Laser beams we're about to awesome all your dreams

Darken is a bit strong in her opinion, but she might as well lean into the reputation with a noncommittal and borderline coy shrug. Maybe yes. Maybe no. If they’re going to play this navigation out by ear, she might as well let go of any preconceived notions.

And speaking of preconceived notions - Jack’s revelation is a startling one, one that causes Wessex to fall silent, mouth slightly open, and then burst out in laughter. “Of fucking course it is.Gods, the amount of blasphemy I’ve committed over the past year or two admiring those tits...” Trailing off, the chuckles die down a bit, but she is still obviously amused at her own faux pas. “No, Aurelia never mentioned who the figurehead was.” Taking a healthy sip, Wessex swills the rest of the booze in its glass, recalibrating herself and the next steps.

“I know there aren’t, but I also almost everything has a price here. I need Air Magic to practice, so I can fulfill a quest and be able to put out fires.” And she’s willing - and able - to pay, if it will help her family.

WESSEX

JACK

"They're very good tits," Jack confirms, tilting his glass at her with a catlike smile, before taking another generous sip of his drink. His eyebrows raise to hear Aurelia's name slip from her lips, the captain placing his whiskey down and letting a finger tap out a staccato rhythm against the glass.

"Didn't know you knew her," he mutters. "How's she doin' these days?" Because it would make sense, if Aurelia has fucked the fuck off out of Safrin's graces to be with the Ascended. It's one of the only things that would make sense.

As for prices, Jack inhales a steady breath and lets it out again, before motioning to the tiny, star-shaped tattoo at the edge of his eye. "Well, I've got your air magic," he says, bold as you like, because there's a fucking war coming and hiding shit like this is quickly becoming pointless. "But I'm marked by the lady with the lovely tits, so I don't know what price you could possibly pay to make me help you out."

you wanted perfect, you got your perfect
but now I'm too perfect for someone like you

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

Laser beams we're about to awesome all your dreams

Wessex is almost surprised to hear the question. She thought for sure that when Aurelia had left again, she might have told someone closer to her about the impending departure. But when someone doesn’t want to be found… things can get tricky. Caido is massive. “I don’t know,” she admits. “One day, she wanted to talk about something and the next - poof.” And it’s a damn shame too, because Aurelia had been willing to help Team Ascended. Or at least, wanted to fuck up the Order.

There’s a long silence, filled with lots of thinking and measuring and dancing in her head after he says he’s sworn to Safrin. “Marked? That’s fun.  I didn’t hear dedicated to or owned by. What she doens’t know won’t hurt her. And I seem to recall a certain new fountain with Mastered Healing magic that could heal any bite mark? Rid you of any scar?” Raising a brow ever so slightly, the Wraith continues at a calculated pace, taking a small sip and leaning back. “I’ve got a pair of magical handcuffs that can restrain anyone. Pair it with a personal favor and it’d be a good way to hedge your bets, in case the war doesn’t go Safrin’s way.”

WESSEX

JACK

Caido is massive - and Jack can only hope that Aurelia has gotten lost in it somewhere forever. Once he can forgive, barely - but if she appeared again after all this, it would just be an insult. "Probably dead," he mutters, because while it's grim, it's also the most likely scenario.

While they continue to talk shop and Wessex thinks - and thinks some more - Jack runs his tongue along his teeth and keeps on tapping out the rhythm on his glass, slouching in his seat to see what her offer is going to be. Because he begs to differ - it might not be exactly the same as owned by, but he's had the chaotic pleasure of being inside the goddess's mind, even if only for a second. And it smells like burned synapses and spins like the cosmos on a dime, and gods, he wants to do it again.

But then again, this is the Wraith. This is a Tower in flames, this is the red right hand of the Voice, this is biomechanics meets brilliance, and... well. Most of all, this is I didn't have to ask all wrapped up in a glass of whiskey and a fanged smile. At least this way, he gets something out of it.

It only takes the blink of an eye between them for all of this to bounce around the captain's brain. Letting out a long sigh, he juts a hand out between them. "Magical handcuffs and a personal favour," he reiterates. "And this stays between us."

you wanted perfect, you got your perfect
but now I'm too perfect for someone like you

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!

Laser beams we're about to awesome all your dreams

Could it really be that easy? Trying to hide her surprise, the Wraith slips a coy smile through as the bottom of her glass tilts out to offer him a deal-sealing clink. “Fine by me.”

She could overthink this, but why bother, when what she wants is right in front of her, and tims is increasingly of the essence? Throwing the rest of the whiskey back (not that there’s much left), she offers Jack a pleasant smile and slightly raised brow. “No sense in waiting, hmmm?” Wessex is efficient, and usually discrete, to say the least, and she can imagine (even if it’s wrong), that if Jack wants this to stay between them, then he might not want to spend more time in her company than is necessary. And with the handcuffs in her bag - “I’ll follow your lead.”

Wherever he feels most comfortable, because for matters like these, she does try to be a courteous business partner.

WESSEX

JACK

Oh, yes. It is absolutely that easy when the alternative is Wessex likely getting what she wants anyway, but not really letting him have a say in it. And so he clinks his glass against hers with a cat-like smile, inclining his head as if to confirm that a deal is a deal. And how considerate she turns out to be, Jack hiding his own quiet surprise behind knocking back his drink as well, before promptly getting to his feet.

"Appreciate it," he drawls, nodding over his shoulder out of the Hanged Man and promptly heading in that direction. Outside the air is still cooler than he'd like at this season, but it's a whole load of whatever when it comes to the general bullshit of the world these days, and instead Jack focuses on the Ark bobbing at the pier.

"Ain't ever expected to invite the Wraith home with me," he remarks as he heads in that direction, striding up the gangplank and towards his own quarters. "I assume you're headed straight out of Torchline from here?"

you wanted perfect, you got your perfect
but now I'm too perfect for someone like you

Code blatently stolen from queen of codes, Sky!