“Put me down, you ass-clowns!” Josephine was being quite literally swept off of her feet. The two broad masculine arms lifted her from the ground by her elbows—and quiet easily at that. Flushed and furious, she kicked at the air, but her small physique was no match for the gorilla-like buffoons that dared manhandle her so. They carried her to the nearest exit, and with a quick heave, sent her flying onto the dirty sidewalk pavement.
“Kellon!” She screeched as she spotted the stains scattered about on her fresh white summer dress.
“What the hell is your problem?”A tall, slender – and in her own personal opinion – stupid looking man swaggered his way towards her, a giant grin plastered on his face, and two backstabbing hands sheathed in his jacket pockets.
“Can you blame me? I’ve wanted you out since day one, and you knew that when I was elected leader.”
He was right. She had a feeling this would happen once her old guild leader resigned from his post. She had just hoped she’d have time to get a steady job before quite literally getting thrown out on her ass.
“It really pays to be the leader’s son, doesn't it?” She spit with venomous words, watching as her luggage was tossed on to slick wet sidewalks beside her.
“You really can’t take competition.”“Competition?” He let out a croaky laugh, a crooked grin splitting across his face. His polished black shoe came down on Josephine’s luggage, and with the twist of his ankle, he began to grind the filth of his shoe onto her precious pink bunny travel bag.
How fucking dare he.“You think you were competition, Josephine? A healer who won’t heal because she’s too busy getting in the way?” He gave her bag a swift kick, sending it skimming across the wet cement and into the busy city streets.
Unintentionally, Josephine puffed her cheeks out—an involuntary habit that would become a noticeable tell every time she was at her boiling point. She could feel the rage on her face, boiling her skin like lava.
“Give me my mace!” She shouted, unintentionally collecting the attention of every stranger in proximity. Her precious mace was tossed to her feet by one of the muscular goons, clinging against the hard cement with a rattle.
Kellon turned on his heels and let out a satisfied chuckle as he returned to the safe confines of the guild hall. The doors were closed firmly behind him, leaving her alone in the late night rush. Josephine prayed to god that would be the last time she’d see his stupid, ugly face. She didn't need the Rising Knights guild. They ranked far too low on the charts for her liking. They were only a place to stay and an income.
Reaching into her jacket pocket, she returned with only a fistful of lint and an old rusty penny. She had a tenancy her earnings the moment she received them, and the habit was finally biting her in the ass.
With little concern for her safety, she danced through traffic, and into the middle of the street, shortly returning with her muddy luggage. Dragging it along behind her, she walked the sidewalks of this filthy city, hoping to find a dry and warm area for her to temporarily sleep. As the rain began to pick up, pelting her in the skull with every oncoming drop, she found refuge in the safety of a bus-stop bench. Hugging her damp and ruined luggage to her chest, she let out an exasperated sigh.
This hadn't been the first time she found herself homeless. It probably wouldn't be the last.
He had gone another night searching for a proper candidate and ending up empty handed. He had quite literally scoured the small town he had just been in, but there was not a single trace of magic within it. The town had seemed proud of that fact, almost, by being cleansed of magic users, the place was a lot less likely to manifest or attract creatures.
Though, it wasn't always effective when it came to preventing attacks, as some places just got unlucky when it came to being terrorized by some animal or monster. Then again, solving those sort of problems is what put food on the table, so he couldn't complain. He considered them a necessary evil.
And so here he was, a random city between the one he had just been in and San Clemente, the home of the Guild he was an Officer for. His home. Blue Empire.
His main priority was to find a place to stay over the night, then he'd leave in the morning and report back to Ajax that he had found nothing. Which Castor was sure the man would respond to with an air of disappointment and then send him to some other place with a 'potential' lead. More members had been dying recently as attacks because more frequent, which resulted in a piling up of bounties and a decrease of member-base, which wasn't good news for their status of Top Guild.
It was lightly raining when he first set out to find appropriate shelter, and he humored stopping for directions at a guild he had just run across when he heard a commotion coming from around the corner. Normally they were off limits, especially on searches such as this, as members of guilds were considered a 'territory' of sorts, but desperate times called for desperate measures.
As he rounded it, he was greeted with the sight of a rather petite female being tossed out. He stood on the corner as the female, on the pavement, shouted something at a man standing near the entrance of the Guild. He didn't pay much attention to their exchange, nor did he really care. But then again, if he had just witnessed somebody being kicked out, maybe that meant they potentially needed a new occupation.
He remained at a distance as the small femme retrieved the luggage that had been thrown, and then began to walk away with it. He followed her, and much to his dismay, the rain began to pick up as he did so. He wasn't particularly fond of the rain, especially not when it became thicker like this.
A small scowl of annoyance adorned his face the more his head moistened, and he felt a small air of relief as the girl he had been following sheltered herself under the canopy of a bus stop. He closed the distance and joined her, silently glad to be out of the weather, and shot a quick up and down at the girl.
She was dirty, wet, clutched a case of similar stature to her chest, and had a mace that looked far too big for her with her. The sign of a weapon didn't particularly phase him, but he didn't drop his guard.
He turned away from her then, letting out a sigh as the pitter-patter of the rain became louder, and slipped a hand into his pocket to fish out a lighter along with a cigarette, perching the latter between his lips before placing the mouth of the lighter underneath of it and sparking it.
He could hear the crackle of the paper burning as he inhaled deeply, letting the accumulation of smoke sit in the bottom of his lungs for a bit before exhaling sharply out into the rain, causing the cloud of smoke to dissipate almost as soon as it had been created, torn apart by the droplets falling from above.
He fucking hated it.
Sapphire eyes fluttered open at the sound of shoes scathing the cement nearby. Who in their right mind would be waiting for a bus at this hour?
She followed the noise with a curious gaze, eyeing the man who stood a mere foot away. Lighting a cigarette so close?
This asshole.
The smoke cleared quickly, but the slightest stench was enough to cause her nose to wrinkle.
“What do you want?” She muttered with every bit of composition she could muster. She was damp, and it was cold. Of course she’d be fighting chills. But how silly would it be, trying to talk tough when your teeth are chattering away? She relaxed her muscles and let out a bothersome sigh.
“If you’re planning on mugging me, you’re wasting your time. This is all I have.” With the flick of her thumb, she sent the penny flipping through the air to roll and spin erratically at her feet.
Then again, this man was well-dressed. Tall, slim and with a face that was far too intense for her to have not noticed around before. Still.
Her arms constricted around her soggy fabric luggage. Her pretty dresses were the only material possessions she’d have left. Posh attire or not, she wasn’t taking any chances.
Castor turned his head slightly and rolled his neck back to look over his shoulder at the girl that had just spoken to him. His facial expression didn't change, but his eyes appeared ravenous, as if he wished to devour this girl whole, much like eyes of a snake would appear to a rat.
"If I wanted your money, I would have had it by now."
He replied, straightening his neck and looking forward once more, taking another drag from the cigarette and exhaling it before flicking the rest of it into the gutter, following it with his eyes as it floated along with the rush of rainwater and down into a storm drain. He smirked slightly before speaking up again.
"In fact, it's the opposite. I'm about to offer you money. Or at least a chance at earning some."
Josephine’s wasn’t entirely sure whether to be disgusted or intrigued, so she simply stood to her feet and peered with furrow brows at the stranger’s calm complexion. This seemed like the kind of situation her mother had warned her about—at least back when she considered her a mother. A stranger approaching her on the damp, ominous city streets… and to top it all off, offering her money?
By his clothing alone, she struck up an assumption.
“If it’s a bar you work at, I’m far too young.” She had to crane her neck back to eye the man who’s height towered over her own.
“And over-qualified.”
The man shook his head slightly, and even allowed a small amount of air to blow out of his nose at the girl's second comment. So much for modesty.
He turned reptilian eyes upon her again and met her gaze. The girl definitely seemed more than capable, and she had a fire behind her eyes that reminded him of somebody he once knew. Silent decisions were made and he answered her.
"A guild, like the one you were just thrown out of. Blue Empire. Ever hear of it?"
He inquired, tilting his head.
Josephine’s breath hitched in her throat. She had heard of Blue Empire. Of course she had heard of Blue Empire. The Rising Knights absolutely despised Blue Empire. Kellon talked often about wanting to dethrone them from their god-like status.
Biting her lip to disguise her growing excitement, she raised a suspicious brow.
“You belong to Blue Empire? And you’re saying you can get me in?”Whether it was a scam in the works or a legitimate offer, it was a plunge she had to take. She was far too young to be living on the streets again.
“Okay.”
