MERC XIX: Toss a Coin to your Goblin

[Morty]

[Mountaintop]

The three creatures bow and nod eagerly.

"Thank you. Thank you."

"You must truly be a servant of our lord to direct us so."

"All exaltations onto the King in Rags."

Then they're gone, scurrying off to who knows there. Seems they bought it hook, line and sinker. That wasn't so hard.

[Deathkeeper]

Mountaintop

Krayger sits down by the pond, getting his line ready.
What a bunch of weirdos.
Wait, what name did they say? King in- oh, that guy.
Krayger mutters some words that are not said in polite company at the prospect of him not being done with that particular individual...

[Gullara]

In the Hall

Cantata comes to a sudden halt as she notices Kirk, the loose fabric of her blouse swaying for a moment as one of her brows arches quizzically. She raises her left index and then stretches four fingers out in a crisp motion, before extending two on her right and pressing the thumb to her left palm. She turns them from 3 o'clock to 12, almost as if winding a clock in reverse.

Quarterly review, the woman clarifies through her phone after a couple of seconds, should Kirk not seem able to parse her signs. The saboteur plays it calm, studying Kirk with an unassuming gaze - but he can still pick up on the way her body tenses, the subtle glances around him as if looking for a way to slip past. Cantata's not frightened, but she's definitely a little uneasy.

[In the Hall]

"Right." Kirk does require her to use her phone. Of course he doesn't mention that he's been teaching himself sign language. He levels a stare at her for what just starts getting awkward. "How do you feel you've performed?" He asks, oddly conversationally.

[Arkhosia]

In the Hall

Cantata blinks. Me? she seems to ask, pressing the fingers of one hand against her chest and holding the gesture for a single second before shifting to give Kirk an amiable smile and an affirmative thumbs-up. Pretty well, it seems.

The woman lets her answer linger for a moment or two, waiting for Kirk to follow up. If he chooses to do nothing but stare and let in another bout of awkward tension, Cantata will finally let her hand drift down to fold behind her back, raising the other in an open palm. She traces a couple tight circles with her fingertips and leans in a little imploringly: Is there somewhere you’re going with this? she might seem to say, or perhaps it’s more of a may I move on? Regardless, there’s certainly a hint of disrespect in the gesture.

[Rebonack]

[Mountaintop]

"You certainly have a way of attracting admirers from the unseen world, Krayger," says a certainly minotaur woman seated on a large stone nearby. It's a face and voice that he should recognize instantly.

Wh-

What?

When did she show up?

How long has she been there?

Why do all these faeries have to pester him when he's trying to go fishing!?

It's that fox.

It HAS to be. The one he met in the sauna out in the woods. The one that peeled the identity off him and took it for herself.

[Deathkeeper]

Mountaintop

Krayger looks up from his rod. Not even a nibble and yet here he is with a fourth person bugging him within ten minutes?
Gods. Even with the changes he still can’t unsee that face. And she does know his name. Did he give it to her? He knows you’re not supposed to but he must have.
”I am a popular person. Much against my will. Are you here to ask about royalty too?” his voice is slightly more gentle for her. But not a lot.

[Rebonack]

[Mountaintop]

"I know what you're probably thinking," Reassa says, raising one hand, palm toward the sky. "How did she learn my name? Did she steal it? Am I in danger?"

As she speaks she slowly closes her fingers.

"No, you aren't. I just know how to use these-"

She points to the fox-ears suddenly sticking off the top of her head.

"I've followed you around a bit. Listened to other speaking with you. Got to know you. My kind are shameless voyeurs, I've got to admit."

Dreadful.

Those fox ears are gone now, too.

"And no, no. I'm not here to ask about royalty. I'm here to ask MERC to do a job for me," she continues. Then adds with a coy smile. "And I like you, so I'm asking you. There is a location in Outside called The Ossuary. As the name suggests it is a place of rest for the dead. There will be a contingent of employees from LFW Labor Solutions traveling there to collect raw materials. I would like it if MERC prevented them from disturbing the dead by any means you and your co-workers see fit to employ."

[Deathkeeper]

Mountaintop

Minotaurs shouldn’t have four ears. That’s just weird.
”There are better ways to offer a job that don’t involve admitting you’re a stalker.” Krayger says with a groan.
”But we can manage that if the pay is good. Which I imagine it is, given what you’ve told me in the past.” He nods.
”I might even have a special request for Mister Lichman.”

[Rebonack]

[Mountaintop]

"I would rather be forthright about my personal vices," Reassa replies with an airy laugh. "I can't imagine that would be a reason to turn the job down, since the money will be good."

She holds out an plain manila envelope for Krayger to take.

"Those documents specify the time and place for the supply run, which direction they'll be coming from, the sorts of guards, spells, and equipment they'll employ. Everything MERC should need to prepare a tactical assessment of the situation and provide me with an estimate for the cost of the job. I already had some associates of mine run the numbers and I included an opening offer that I think your superiors will find sufficiently generous."

That's certainly nice of her.

She's doing a good bit of the legwork for them.

Then there comes that airy laugh again.

"Heehee, Miss Olivia Lichman. Don't worry about it, that's a common mistake. With a name like that, considering the position, most people assume Lichman is withered, corpse-like old man. Far from it. Olivia used some ethically dubious applications of necromancy to maintain her youthful appearance."

Another reason why the kumiho doesn't feel bad about eating her heart.

"What is it you wanted to request? Is this a personal favor, of business?"

[Deathkeeper]

Mountaintop

Krayger shrugs. He's not the one who negotiates these sorts of things.
"If I participated I might ask if Ms. Lichman has any interesting and not unethically-sourced bones in the storehouse somewhere. Non-people of course. But then again I've done two jobs this last month so I don't know if I really need the extra income myself."
That's true. It seems logical to keep working but he doesn't really need to right now.

[Rebonack]

[Mountaintop]

Assuming here that Krayger takes the envelope as opposed to Reassa just sitting there awkwardly holding it out to him.

So!

Reassa looks curious at that question.

"Now that's a request. What sort of remains would you consider interesting?"

She does not, however, ask what they would be used for.

Why?

Because that's none of her business.

She might be a shameless voyeur but that's no excuse to pry.

[Deathkeeper]

Mountaintop

Krayger does take the letter, but it is immediately dropped into the tacklebox without him reading it because he's not privvy to that sort of information.
"Again, nothing from a person or taken unethically. Something old and rare, but something untouched by necromancy and ill-will. I suppose a fossil bone would match the idea but I think that's not really a bone at that ponit it's partially rock, right?" He's not entirely sure how fossilization works.

[Rebonack]

[Mountaintop]

To really answer that question properly Reassa allows a wave of foxfire to wash over herself-

-revealing a prim and serious looking half-elf woman in a smart grey business suit.

She looks a little awkward sitting on the rock and glances down at it distastefully.

"You make an interesting proposition, Mister Krayger," Ms Lichman says, adjusting her glasses. "I'm sure your request could be added to the terms of payment in our agreement, but you would need to discuss this with your superiors. Otherwise I would consider this a personal rather than a corporate transaction. I believe I have some specimen in my personal collection that would fit the parameters you've stated. As to the subject of fossilization, please indulge me as this is a subject of some interest to me."

Oh no.

The necromancer is also a paleontologist and she's going to talk science things at Krayger.

"Generally you are correct. The processes of fossilization replaces organic remains with a mineral cast. What is less known and woefully understudied is the fact that nearly all fossilized remains do contain some unmodified original l
tissue. Typically very little, but some. However, in some rare cases with larger bones only the outermost layer is mineralized. The interior organic remains are still intact. This requires rather specific chemical conditions that I won't bore you with, but suffice to say I am aware of fossil fields where the bones still smell of death."

Olivia seems to be quite excited about this subject. It's one that fascinates her to no end.

"It should be obvious that such intact remains are immeasurably valuable from both a scientific and necromantic point of view. As such, it would require significant compensation on your part to convince me to part with such a treasure," she says, offering Krayger a sly smile. "What are you willing to offer me?"

[Deathkeeper]

Mountaintop

Krayger considers this.
"Well, that does sound absolutely fascinating. Though I am but a humble mercenary without fortunes and artifacts so I cannot possibly trade something of equal value. I don't suppose you would be satisfied by having some of your employees repeatedly punched in the face? The person it's for despises necromancers beyond all reason and would never forgive me if I actually went providing them with anything for his sake."
It's true.
Felix would deck him for giving a necromancer the time of day.

[Rebonack]

[Mountaintop]

"If you can convince your employer to accept an allosaurus femur as payment for the proposed mission then I believe we have an agreement," Olivia replies, that smirk of hers never leaving. "Otherwise, I'm afraid we do not."

It sounds like they probably don't have an agreement.

Sad.

Another wave of foxfire and Reassa has returned!

"Isn't that an exciting subject? Olivia certainly seemed to think so. But I'm afraid it might be difficult to get you those remains unless you can suggest a more tantalizing form of payment. You're quite clever, I'm sure you can think of something," the minotauress sighs.

What could Krayber possibly offer that the kumiho might want?

Anything at all?

[Deathkeeper]

Mountaintop

”Well I do admit there’s not much I can think to offer of someone in the control of several wealthy business people’s fortunes and whose prime hobby is murder.” he says flatly.
Really. She seems nice but-
It’s kind of hard for that to not come up after someone tells you “it is a terrible thing to be in a room with me for even one night unless I can eat someone.”
There just isn’t really going back once that’s out there.

[Shadowcaller]

[Demands of Snakes]

Kirk quirks his eyebrow at her, then shrugs. "As of a few weeks ago, yes." Then quite a few times since then. "You're not developing a jealous streak now, are you?"

[Demands of Snakes]

"You're in my room whenever I want you to be, so why would I?" Dena replies with a grin. "I was asking since I couldn't help but notice you being off somewhere else at lunch more than unusal lately. I knew what you were doing but not who." She taps her nose. "You should do a better job getting rid of the smell. Not to mention the wrinkles on your suit." She moves her hand to flatten one out, or the lack of one in such a case. "The boss knows too, y'know? He's simply getting too good at pretending things aren't happening around him these days." Dena gestures to herself. "Therefore, it falls to me to be the bad guy and ask, you're not letting it influence your job performance are you? I expect it to get less frequent eventually but I know for a fact that both of you like playing the field and this kind of behavior can easily spread. The sexual tension going on in this office can get a bit overbearing, but that doesn't mean you guys can start messing around however you want."

[Rebonack]

[Mountaintop]

Reassa looks unamused.

"Murder isn't a hobby. Everyone has to eat. My dietary requirements are just very strict," she replies with a huff. "You seem like a clever man. If you really want the remains I'm sure you'll be able to come up with something. But that has little bearing on the mission I would like MERC to carry out for me. That is business. If you're hoping for a less transactional relationship with me, well, I'll let you make the first move."

She stands up and begins strolling down the mountain trail.

"Enjoy your fishing, Krayger."

And she's off!

If the minotaur was wanting to secure some rare beast remains he didn't negotiate that well for them.

Maybe that's why OTHER members of MERC do the negotiating.

[Deathkeeper]

Mountaintop

Oh boy, Krayger you made her mad.
Which she deserves, of course. She's a gods-darned self-justifying serial killer who admits she has constant desires to eat him and then comes around acting all flirty. And who also admitted to stalking him.
But she's also a rich serial killer who does mostly eat slavers and is going to make your company cash if you just play nice for ten whole seconds. Blast it all.
"I'm sorry; that wasn't my best phrasing. But my point stands. Our last conversation was entirely about your enterprise in Skyside and my problems. I know next to nothing about you. It's not exactly a balanced negotiation in that sense."

[Rebonack]

[Mountaintop]

Reassa turns back toward Krayger again, that sly smile on her face.

That darn foxy smile.

There's always this unshakable feeling that she's up to something.

...probably because she is?

She's a fox how could she NOT be up to something?

This definitely doesn't make her more trustworthy.

"Apology accepted," she replies, stopping to sit on a different rock than the first one. "Are we going to get to know each other a little better? That sounds nice. What would you like me to tell?"

[Deathkeeper]

Mountaintop

"I dunno. I guess I can ask you about what sort of things you like, given the subject of this conversation." Krayger offers.
He knows that she's up to something.
But if it's just conversation he can tolerate that.

[Rebonack]

[Mountaintop]

"Things I like? Oh that always gets so confusing. I know what Reassa likes. You should, too," Reassa laughs. "But if you mean me me? I like... quiet places. Digging holes since you never know what you might find."

More likely she just likes digging holes because she is a fox.

Foxes like digging holes.

This is known.

"I enjoy music. Helping people, in so far as I'm able. Finding new and exciting ways to spend obscene amounts of wealth."

That last one is definitely lots of fun.

"I've always thought about riding in one of those star ships that dock at Skyside. Wouldn't that be an adventure? To look back on the world, so small and pale and blue in the dark black of bottomless night. What a sight that must be?"

She tilts her head ever so slightly to the side.

"What about you, Krayger? What do you like?"

[Deathkeeper]

Mountaintop

Reassa? Well Rassa liked cheese and wild parties and apparently killing things. But she abandoned the hooves and muzzle long before getting to that last part so maybe that's not part of that identity.
"I like quiet places and animals. I like complicated architecture and puzzles. I usually focus on finding ways to not spend obscene amounts of wealth. Especially when jobs usually only come once every few months. And some of them you really don't want to take." Frankly he'd rather he passed on the last one.

[Rebonack]

[Mountaintop]

"Quiet places and animals. Hehe, I'm sure we would have gotten along great when we first met if not for the dietary woes," Reassa laughs. "When you say complicated architecture and puzzles you don't mean-"

She leans forward a bit, eyes widening.

"-mazes, do you?"

She's thinking he might.

Or maybe she just made a huge faux pas?

Either way this is really funny and she can't just leave it alone.

Mazes and minotaurs!

This is just wonderful.

[Deathkeeper]

Mountaintop

Krayger looks at her without even a shred of irony on his face.
”I mean I also like arches and Corinthian columns but yes, mazes are great. I’ve got entire tunnel systems mapped out in my head. People just don’t really build mazes in the Nexus.”
Krayger has a very good sense of direction and definitely would not be contained by a maze for decades.
Also putting animals isn’t as endearing when they’re intelligent and talking and want to eat you but he doesn’t say that.

[Rebonack]

[Mountaintop]

Okay yeah now she's laughing.

Just.

Oh man she's laughing so much.

"Sorry," she manages to say between bouts of giggles.

But she doesn't stop.

This is like full blown having trouble breathing sort of laughter.

Now she's wheezing and everything.

Apparently this is hilarious.

[Deathkeeper]

Mountaintop

Krayger crosses his arms.
”I mean, you have no room to talk, lady. You’re the one wearing the face of a minotaur whose entire life was a cow joke.”
Well he can’t prove that.
But in hindsight Rassa making an identity to lure in a minotaur and choosing a dairy farmer just seems suspect.

[Rebonack]

[Mountaintop]

"Sorry, sorry, I'm laughing at myself, too," Reassa says. "The Nexus is just so... It's a joke. Sometimes it feels like a cruel joke. Is the Dreamheart just laughing at us all? I don't know if it even has intent but it feels that way sometimes."

...the what now?

That probably isn't a term that Krayger has heard before.

Maybe she's talking about some sort of god?

Or...

Something?

Who knows.

[Deathkeeper]

Mountaintop

"Is that a fairy thing? Because I'm not from the Nexus and I am quite separate from any fairy nonsense and I've had my hobbies my whole life."
Yes, Krayger would absolutely never get involved in fairy nonsense.
Please ignore the kumiho wearing the modified face of his fey ex and the shard of a sidhe-equivalent lodged in his back.

[Rebonack]

[Mountaintop]

"Likely a fairy thing," Reassa admits. "Speaking of, you have a... hmm... how to put this. You have a piece of someone's Name on you."

Here comes that sly smile again.

"And so quickly after I got the last one off you. I believe you may have a problem Krayger."

He's a faerie name junkie.

But it's okay, Krayger.

The first step to recovery is admitting that you have a problem.

It's okay.

Just admit it and the healing can start.