Chao sipped at a glass of whiskey on ice while the trio on stage ended their performance. The red-haired wizard stumbled into the Squished Fish, rapidly blending in with the dim lit smoke-filled room. [i]’Was he drunk already?’[/i] The roguish assassin considered. He made his way to the bar. It appeared the barkeep was familiar with the man of noted repute. Chao himself was aware of Chamailéontas’ reputation. He was someone the former student of the Fudong School in Hyosung, wanted to meet. His reputation as an assassin and as a wizard preceded him. The hood did not conceal his identity to Jhang Chao. 

Dali’s attention also drew toward the recent patron of the Squished Fish. He stood and moved to the bar, obviously to get a drink. They may have exchanged cordialities, but Chao was too far to hear their conversation. Before he knew it, Dali returned to the table to gather his stringed instrument and was bounding back towards the bar. 

[i]”Hey, Ninja-guy. Watch my ssstuff,”[/i] Dali spoke to Chao. 

“Ninja-guy?” Chao looked confused towards Saoirse. “Who is this Ninja-guy the bard refers to? I am a warrior.” Chao smiled, then conceded, “oh. He means me?” Chao laughed at the notion. “What the hell is a ninja?” Chao was bewildered. “I may as well keep an eye on his possessions.”

The lyrics flowing out of Dali the Dream Painter’s mouth were hypnotic. His song created a coin to appear on the table, eye side up and then disappear as quickly as it appeared. His words created a calming effect upon the patronage. It was as though everyone consumed a compliance drug making the crowd relaxed. Chao listened to the words, storing them away for tomorrow. [i]’I wonder if the morrow will ever come,’[/i] Jhang Chao thought to himself. He honestly didn’t care. It was a bliss filled euphoria, the atmosphere Dali’s words created. The words found their way into the important regions of his brain. [i]Glutton’s Castle.[/i]  The emergence of smoking tobacco, a cigar gave Chao an item to focus on. [i]Watchful Eye.[/i] [i]Ceaseless Feast.[/i] [i]A conspiracy of Gods and Demons.[/i] [i]A painted lady and a fatherless son.[/i] [i]voices of three faces speaking in unison upon a hill, and the babbling old Gods will choose their champion.[/i] The glow from the smoldering herbs, weeds stuck in Dali’s maw held Chao’s focus as the hypnotic tune ended.

But the red haired wizard was not relaxed. The song affected him in a different manner. It was alarming to Jhang Chao. He knew if the wizard were permitted to continue, he would cause a disturbance and quite possibly get himself harmed. Chao wanted to whisk the man away from the [i]Squished Fish[/i] with haste, to get him outside to calm him down. His yelling only made things words. [i][b]"I will not ask again!"[/b][/i]

With the utterance of Chamailéontas’ final words, Chao dropped a pinch of sulfur creating a billowing gray cloud to erupt causing Chao to vanish from sight. Unseen by everyone in the room, Chao moved quickly to the wizard warrior’s side. Three seconds later, the assassin from the Jade Kingdom reappeared in the red haired man’s ear. “Chama!” he shouted at him. “You cannot remain here! You must leave NOW!!” Chao grabbed at Chamailéontas, pulling him towards the door. Given resistance, “now is not the time. We can find the answers to your questions later. If you die at this very moment, you die not knowing. Run and survive. We will head to the Ceaseless Feast and find your answers. Dali will be there too.” Chao pulled the wizard toward the door. He eyed Saoirse to move as well. The crowd, stunned by the warrior’s vanishing act, now recovering from that moment’s distraction began to rise again. Their rumble and zeal to grab the wizard renewed. Chao fought to pull the wizard from the room. He had the man’s back and was ready to fight, if needed to leave the establishment. If the wizard did not go, he was ready to go to work; to do what he did best.