We walked out getting breakfast and searching the city, asking around for where duskhaven alley was. A bit past noon we’d gotten our answer and went for lunch and planning.

“so I’m going to go.”

[morgan] “absolutely dumb.”

“this is an assassin, we’re going to meet them sooner or later so why not do it this way?”

[morgan] “because it’s a trap and she’ll kill you.”

“she’ll kill me if I don’t go, or at least try too. So I say I’m going to deal with this now.”

[morgan] “sure, why not die early. After all what’s one life for you.”

“hey, it’s not like that.”

[morgan] “really? Knowing you won’t stay dead doesn’t affect you at all?”

“i’m not treating this as meaningless, I don’t know how long it will be between lives. I can still lose a lot from dying… plus I don’t think they’ll be happy with me if you forgot.”

[morgan] “I- w-well, ok fair point. You’re still an idiot to just go on down to there.”

“well I was hoping you could help make it more in my favor.”

[morgan] “alright, what were you thinking of?”

“well if you make some scrolls or something for a single use of your spells, I could surprise them that way.”

[morgan] “that takes time, which we don’t have anymore, not enough of anyway. I could cast a spell or two on you perhaps.”

“and you beat me to the point. What could be cast before I go?”

[morgan] “well it would have to last awhile so let me see.”

Pulling out her tome and looking through it, going through the various pages. As I wait I eat, such an improvement in food I don’t think I could live another life with the meats I ate before.

[morgan] “alright I’ve got a few things, the mages armor is a definite one to use, then I’ve got one that can turn your fists to stone-living stone so you can safely punch people.”

“would that do more damage than my blasts?”

[morgan] “probably not so marking that off. Alright and then I’ve got a couple protection spells, I can make you hard to take down from cold, fire, lightning, acid, or sound damage.”

“so what, you could make me immune to someone yelling to loud?”

[morgan] “are you sure you’re not trying to die cause insulting me is not gonna help you.”

“sorry, I, I don’t think the protection spells will do that much.”

[morgan] “well the armor will and from what I know fire based spells are most common so we can slap that on as well alright?”

“yeah that sounds fine.”

With magic protections put on I walked into the alley, it was just a pass made of not quite touching buildings, a little wider than needed for someone to walk through with a wet slickness to the stone underfoot and a smell of wet dead leaves. I walk through the alley looking for an assassin; I see two… drunks? Beggars? They both wore ratty clothes and smelled of… well I’m not sure what their smell would compare to but it wasn’t pleasant. Reaching the end of the alley I turn around there stands one of the two that were sprawled out. His beard is long and scraggly, eyes green and looks like he’s deciding whether or not to attack me, which would’ve been a lethally bad idea for him if he did it.

[Stranger] “hmmm, well well. You’re an odd one to come back here, why are you down here?”

“i’m meeting someone, now I won’t be needing to cause you trouble so if you’d leave me be neither one of us will be a problem to the other.”

[Stranger] “oh but you’ve already been a problem for me, walking in like you own the place.”

“I don’t, but neither do you.”

[Stranger] “ohhh but I disagree. I own whatever I walk into, all fear me.”

he moves closer, a couple steps away from me now.

[Stranger] “but, you did as I asked.”

“wait, my that’s… you have some good illusions. So I think you have something in mind besides killing me, or you would have tried already.”

[Assassin] “good, you’ve got a mind worth using. So you’re going to pay me the other half of the contract I took and I’ll not kill the target, since you clearly are, or more likely already have told authorities of the man purchasing my services.”

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

“well that’s not the worst offer I’ve heard. But even if you kill me, you’ll have the hidden monarch and his forces after you. Not a great plan on your part.”

[Assassin] “as if I can’t avoid them already.”

I was trying, seeking to find this opponents thoughts, but it’s like I get fragmentary pieces, not enough to get anything useful and something I definitely missed in the crowd before.

“it doesn’t surprise me that you can.” I had an idea, but knowing I couldn’t normally talk well enough for it I tried out something new. I pressed the power into my mandibles again and hopped it did what I’d need it to… I suspected it might from what powers I’d gotten.

“The fact that you’re concerned about the money tells me that you have a need for it, and while you have evaded the authorities before all it takes is one mistake, one slip up and then that’s the end of your career as it is.”

[Assassin] “wh-what are you getting at here?”

“while you work on your own you’ve got to worry about a number of things beyond the current mission you have, if you were to change who employs you though you could simply worry about the mission and have the rest taken care of.”

[Assassin] “w-wait, have you talked with the hidden monarch himself? Were you sent to parley this offer?”

“I have talked with his majesty and you could join in his service… provided you do something first.” [Assassin] “of course, you want me to work for free.”

“payment will be after the mission is successful.”

[Assassin] “and once I succeed you’ll kill me, don’t think I’m dumb.”

“the monarch has need of capable individuals, take this target alive and you’ll have proven that you are worthy of his employ without any doubt.”

[Assassin] “so what, I take care of this and then I get paid well and my other problems are taken care of?”

“along those lines, the target isn’t someone easy to take care of.”

[Assassin] “alright, say I did go along with this idea who would I be taking care of? A noble that’s getting to powerful?”

“A spell casting orphan child abductor. If you care about the morality of your contracts, this one is unambiguous.”

[Assassin] “… go on.”

“Her name is Roulla, she’s tan skinned, has one eye that’s blue and one that’s orange. She has red hair, and to be clear, not orange, not some shade of brown that’s sort of red, I mean red like blood hair.”

[Assassin] “more than distinctive enough to find.”

“well the next part is what makes her a challenge, she’s a spell caster and has powerful green-skinned fighters under her control known as trolls, they’re big, strong and regenerate so a good cut won’t keep them down. Her magics seem to be more nature bound than anything so be careful while you’re in the jungle.”

[Assassin] “is that all?”

“yes. Have you made your decision?”

[Assassin] “no of course not, but I’ll be considering this… for now you’re safe to go.”

I turn to the wall.

“I was the whole time.”

with a switch of the power from my mandibles to my feet I walk up the wall and out of the alley.

It doesn’t take long for me to arrive back with morgan and get home.

“well that worked, and we didn’t even fight.”

[morgan] “soo, what happened?”

“well they didn’t say yes but I’m pretty sure I got that assassin to go after Roulla.”

[morgan] “wait, really? How’d you manage that?”

“with some luck I think, plus I implied to told her that she’d be on our bosses pay if she succeeded.”

[morgan] “of we need to send a message immediately then.”

“yep, plus I wouldn’t mind knowing what he want’s us to do, another week or two of this and I might get involved with the entire criminal aspect of the city.”

[morgan] “very funny, still we’ll see if he want’s us doing anything.”