EliteCommander

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

The Breton crossed his arms, still eyeing Sabine suspiciously. "He's not from here. He's a foreigner, an Imperial. I think Colovian. Never saw him myself, thank Talos, but there shouldn't be many people like that around. I don't know his name. He apparently liked to call himself 'Viper'. An appropriate moniker, I'd say. The people who told those faithful souls said he was just a businessman, and he'd honor his agreement if he was paid, but he's certainly a snake."

The pace of Sabine's questioning had caused the Breton to tense up further, but he had not yet decided to give up answering. "There's probably some way to arrange a meeting with him, but I don't know it. I think Hjorvand just waited around in the brothel for him to show up. Took him three days to actually contact him. The owners of that pit don't appreciate people loitering around their business without buying their skooma or hiring their women. He was a righteous enough man not to give into that filth, so he had to keep leaving. If you are honest about wanting to kill this man, do this whole city a favor and burn that place to the ground while you're at it."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"I will not tell you anything about those good people, but..." The man began, his voice trailing off as he continued to stare down Sabine. He was obviously conflicted, and very much on guard for anything that his unwelcome guests might try. "What you say makes no sense. Why would some group, who are not those vile Elves from the Dominion, suddenly want to hunt those faithful to Talos? You are lying to me, hiding something."

Briefly, the man turned his gaze to Sabine's Argonian companions, allowing it to rest on Kaleeth for a time. "But...if it will convince you to leave me alone, I suppose there is not harm in telling you about my enemies. If you are trying to trick me, then you likely already know this anyways. Those people, four of them at least, took information from the same man. Supposedly proven not to have associations with the Thalmor, but a snake regardless. He was to help them flee from trouble, but they never made it to...the person they were supposed to meet. I warned them to be cautious with him. He is...how to even describe him? He is like a prince of thieves. He does not do the smuggling and the stealing himself, but he commands others. He is apparently very well connected in the city, which is why he claimed to be able to help these people. He conducts business out of a brothel and skooma den on the south side of the city. A sinful place for corrupt people; no one should ever have trusted him."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

There was hardly even a pause after Sabine stopped speaking before Colors picked up immediately afterwards. He had already had his hand on a parchment in his pouch, which he pulled out and began to read from quickly. "Guillome Danenne, Gaspard Monterick, Nalenne Frey, Hjorvand Ice-Eyes, and Ahran at-Faran. Four taken in the same group, one nabbed separately."

As much as he tried to hide it, the man recognized at least some of the names. Regardless, he was still being stubborn at any chance he could take. It was clear they would have to argue with him at every step. "What-, what reason do I have to trust you? You spy on my home, you come threaten me with information that could kill my entire family. Am I expected to believe that you just happen to be enemies with those that hunt us? You say you do not worship the mighty Talos yourself, so for what supposedly noble purpose do you supposedly seek to help us? I think you lie, like so many others. Take me, kill me, do what you will with me. It is clear I cannot stop you, but I will not betray anyone else to you."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

The shopkeeper was at least willing to accept that Sabine did not intend to rob him, as her response would have been quite strange against a man who had already surrendered. But, that did not cause him to calm down. It took only a few moments of thinking on what Sabine was saying for him to start shaking his head. "What I bought? No...no I'm afraid I have no idea what you're talking about. I didn't buy anything yesterday, not anything worth talking about. I'm sure you have the wrong man. I shall help if I can, but you are in the wrong place."

Colors leaned forward onto the table, looking the man in the eyes. "The strongbox, in your room upstairs, built into the wall, hidden next to the bed. We know what we're talking about, and we've made no mistake. I implore you listen to this fair lady."

The man stared in silence for a good five seconds before letting out a sigh. "I can talk to you, but not here. Follow me upstairs."

Stepping out from behind the counter, the man addressed his other customers loudly. "I am dreadfully sorry, but I have something very pressing to tend to. But do not worry, I shall not be long." He said before hastily making his way up the stairs, motioning for the others to follow. Although, once they were in his room, he was petrified to speak.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

At first, the Breton shopkeeper was confused at Sabine's awkwardness, but not immediately alarmed. His first thoughts about the "private thing" she mentioned was that she perhaps needed her undergarments adjusted, given her anxiety, but that thought vanished when she mentioned his strongbox. It was a few seconds before he was able to take in what she was asking and come to a conclusion.

"My...strongbox? Is this...are you robbing me?" He questioned. He looked as if he was about to shout out for a moment, but as soon as he cast his gaze onto Kaleeth's sword, fear set into his expression and he raised up his hands slightly. His voice lowered to the point that Sabine would have had a hard time hearing him were it not for her enhanced senses. "I-I promise I won't give you any trouble madam, just please don't hurt me."

The shopkeeper was possibly trying to deny his identity as a Talos worshiper, though it was also perfectly reasonable that he would keep his coin in the same strongbox.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

The rest of the group was fairly clear on their roles, so there was little left to say before they all got into position. Malithus' pack moved around the shop to watch any exits, but made sure not to make it obvious that they were doing so. The streets were more crowded than the previous night, which made it easier for them to find places among the crowd where they would not draw attention to themselves. Although, it would also make it more difficult to tell if any of Vile's hunters or the Thalmor were also on approach.

Nevertheless, everyone who was joining Sabine followed close behind her. Kaleeth had her helmet in her bag, a blade on one hip, and a mace on the other. While she usually carried her shield with a center grip, she had buckled it to her arm for simple convenience while in the city. She kept her expression blank for fear of seeming too friendly, or too threatening. Either extreme would call more attention to her than she wanted at the moment. Colors was also going in with Sabine and Kaleeth, though he was mostly just going to stay back and only comment when needed. The Breton would have an easier time empathizing with Sabine, so she would have a better chance of getting through to him.

A bell rang above the door as the group stepped into the shop. Of course, the sound of heavy metal boots would have been enough to draw attention to the door even without it. The shopkeeper's eyes were immediately drawn to the group, particularly Kaleeth. But, adventurers were not terribly uncommon in the city, so he treated them as any other customers. "Welcome. Feel free to browse, and tell me if you see anything you like." He greeted. There were two other customers browsing the clothing, so Sabine would have to convince the shopkeeper to speak to her in private without making it obvious to the customers that he was a Talos worshiper.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Colors nodded at Sabine as she started to leave. "If that's what you want, then that's what you want. I'll not argue with you about it." He said, finishing off the last of his wine. "Goodnight, and I...might need a hangover cure at some point. Probably." He did not stay at the table for much longer with no one else to talk to, and instead retired to his room shortly afterwards.

The next morning, the group was quick to start preparing for the day's tasks. True to his word, Colors asked Sabine with help for his headache before even having breakfast. Regardless of how Sabine acted, there was not a single hint of awkwardness from Colors. It was almost as if nothing had happened at all, though after such a long conversation with her, he was a bit more apt to be friendly with her. Still, it was obvious he had felt no sort of surprise or discouragement from her rejection; indeed, he likely had expected it.

The group remained in the inn until Kaleeth was able to make it back to the city, before noon. She had left early that morning, so she had been awake for hours longer than the others. Unsurprisingly, the sight of an armed Argonian warrior in bronzed armor attracted the eyes of nearly every patron in the inn for at least a few moments, but grabbing attention would be her purpose during this confrontation.

Once they were all ready, the group left the inn and started towards the market. Most of them were going to be watching the exits, but for the ones that were going in, they needed to be sure of their roles beforehand. Since Kaleeth had been away the previous night, she had been the first to question Fendros. "So I guess I should stand a bit behind everyone? I probably don't want to be too threatening at first if I don't need to be."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Once more, Colors simply laughed with a considerably more lighthearted tone than the tone that Sabine's brief threat had set. He picked up the pastry and took another bite. "Oh this? It is just a bit of sweet bread, fortunately not stale yet. It contains no moon sugar, or anything of the like. Has the scent of it, yes, but only because it was in the same bag as my other one. I just set it down as an, uh, invitation. A bit of a joke, really. Sometimes, people will 'feel' moon sugar that doesn't exist, just because they think it does."

Colors became a bit more serious, but still certainly friendly. "But yes, I can say that I want to. I can say it without any shame, since you're a beautiful woman I respect. I would love for you to join me in my bed, and be my countess for the night." He said, never breaking eye contact, and his friendly expression never appearing to be non-genuine. It could at least be said that he did not fear her. "I like talking about women because I'm attracted to them. No more complicated than that. I enjoy my time with them. Can't you say the same about the men you've been with? But like I said, I want to speak honestly with you. There is a part of you that feels you would enjoy joining me, yes? Just...really take a moment to think about it. I promise, I won't harass you about this if you don't want me to, if you just answer one question. If, at any point, you want to back out, to quit and go your own way for the night, I guarantee you could do so and I wouldn't stop you. So, would you say there's any harm in trying?"

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Colors continued to laugh, despite Sabine snapping at him. "Oh? I said nothing about doing anything of the sort. I was merely...admiring your beauty, as I usually do to those with plenty to spare." He said, a sly grin coming over his face. "You are the one that made the assumption. But...since you've gone ahead and brought up the topic, I don't mind discussing it. True, there are many women in the world to whom I, uh, caress with words. To whom I must place great effort to woo so that we can share in such pleasures. But not you, Sabine. No, because you are different. What is different with you is the...immense respect I hold for you. You deserve nothing less than to have the company of the most genuine and honest side of Sees-No-Colors that exists. With you, I feel we have the maturity to broach this topic directly and with true candor."

When Colors smiled, it was, at the very least, indistinguishable from one that one genuinely friendly. "You see, the world, it uh, places a certain stigma on the carnal pleasures two people can enjoy together. It tries to make us avoid it, but I see many flaws with that. Why should we deny ourselves such things? If you take a moment and think back on it, can you say you've missed the feeling of another's, uh, intimate embrace? There is no requirement to bind such enjoyment to a relationship, and what's more, neither of us have any current loves we would be betraying. I will...I will say clearly that I would never try to force you into it, if such a thing were even possible. But, is there anything wrong with talking about it with mutual respect?"

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Colors reached forward and grabbed the pastry to take another bite before replacing it. He was not yet showing any obvious signs of the effects of moon sugar, especially since the alcohol's effects were far more obvious. "Well, it sounds to me like you don't have much experience with, uh, experienced men. Peiter was your first, right? I'd assume he'd have gotten better eventually. You ever end up finding someone who could give you a better time than he did?" He asked.

As he awaited Sabine's answer, Color's eyes started to wander over Sabine. He was clearly giving her the same looks as he did to women that he had a particular interest in. Granted, he had a tendency to give the same looks to many women, regardless of his actual intention to pursue them.