From below the forest canopy on a well worn trail, two men walked one in front of the other. Neither of these men looked particularly happy, especially not the one in front thanks to combination of his hands being tied behind his back, and the shotgun being aimed at him by the man behind him. "[b]C'mon man, do we have to do this? It was just one damned horse![/b]", "[b][color=004b80]One damned horse that wasn't yours. Along with all of the supplies that happened to come with it. Now shut up and keep walking.[/color][/b]". The man in front stop and turned, resulting in the barrel of the shotgun being aimed at his face rather than his back, "[b]Look, let's make a deal, Jacque! I can pay you more than what my bounty's worth! I've got a stash of supplies not too far from the border of the Empire's northeast end! No one needs to know! Just-[/b]". The horse thief was cut off mid sentence by the butt of the gun being driven into his jaw, "[b][color=004b80]Let's get something straight here, your bounty is the same whether you're dead or alive. I'm bringing you back alive as a courtesy, but I can change my mind if you insist on talkin'.[/color][/b]".

The gun wielder -Jacque-, glared down at his quarry as he sprawled out in the dirt before yanking him to his feet, "[color=004b80][b]Are there any more questions?[/b][/color]" the bounty hunter grumbled as he shouldered his weapon again. The horse thief said nothing, he only turned and began to walk again to Jacque's satisfaction. "[b][color=004b80]Good. We should make it to the collection office just before noon. You're lucky, that means we won't be walking during the hottest part of the day[/color][/b]". The horse thief mumbled something, but Jacque paid it no mind. All that mattered to him now was the fact that he was about to get paid, and that there were more bounties to be had.