[Amoren - Vivian: Thieve’s Night Out]

[Gloomcrest]

6th Ash, 4623

It would be a night of catching up, amusement and exchanging tales from the most grandiose to the dark and gritty moments in Vivian’s and Jared’s lives. While it would still be a struggle for the thief to confide in another, the only other person that the Draedan had managed to soothe his own internal struggles would be Ford and Taelian for the most part, but their presence has been absent for some time. As for Vivian, the Alistian thief wasn’t too familiar with him, but with time, a guarded heart would eventually soften.

“Have any ideas on what you would like to steal; thief to thief, I am sure you have a few things you want to grab for your home. A little bit of elbow grease makes the reward far tastier, no?”

Jared wasn’t wrong on that notion; his motto of placing hard work and effort in any work. Clothed in rags and born without riches, it was essential. Nevertheless, the idea of inviting Vivian out in the town and his idea of bringing a friend out was taking. Still, it was nice to be able to relax and take the world at his own pace, whether it was slow and steady or fast and erratic.

Having a moment to himself, Jared would conjure a small bead of light from the tip of his right index finger as he awaited Vivian’s suggestion on where to steal, what to take or possibly suggest another event entirely.

[Vivian]

Vivian was enjoying Jared’s company. He knew he had liked the plucky little thief from the very beginning, and his only sorrow was the lack of innocence that Jared now displayed. Ah, he had grown up so fast. Gone was the sweet blushing thief and in his place a confident young man completely immune to Vivian’s charms. It was almost tragic. He’d so looked forward to seeing how Jared was in bed, especially without the burden of a pregnancy.

However, another thought was starting to roll around in Vivian’s mind. Jared was a sneaky little thing, and he had need of people with light fingers. Nothing for his home; he already had everything he wanted and more when it came to accommodations. No, what Vivian wanted to steal was information. With his child healthy, the mansion quietly stolen, and a plan to steal Degare’s face to make sure it stayed his, his home was settled. What he wanted now was something he had wanted since he had clawed his way out of a cocoon made from his own skin and suffering.

Vivian cocked his head slightly. “Darling man, what I want to steal isn’t any stupid bauble. I was wondering if you wouldn’t help me find out something…something only a pair of gentlemen well suited to slithering through windows can get.” He smiled at Jared. “I was given this mark against my will, you know. I was hired for my body by someone when I still worked in a brothel…someone willing to pay for something young and inexperienced. I thought the deed done and over, but instead of just getting up and putting his clothes on, he branded me with this. While I spent days writhing in agony, feeling my own body dissolve in its shell and reform…my mother was killed by the same client. I want to find the mage who changed me.”

Vivian smirked. “I intend to kill him.”

[Gloomcrest]

6th Ash, 4623

“If what you seek is revenge, I can help a friend out. Being a burglar has its perks; one of the many things is sifting out information. Information will eventually leak out whether you have friends in high places or low. That being said, do you know who this person is? Do you have any sort of info that I can work with, such as an emblem, perhaps?”

The thief started to scratch the base of his chin, thinking for a moment for other potential questions that would be relevant in finding a man who had essentially killed Vivian’s mother and been forced to become a magus; the story would be similar to Jared’s past in regards to being initiated into Nightfall before being tossed into the cobblestone streets of Alistian.

“Am I to assume that the magic this person wields is similar to your own as well? If that is the case, how do you intent to kill him; Are you proficient in combat or do you plan to kill them with other means; Are you going to enact a passionate battle or use a cold, calculating spite as your weapon? I just want to make sure I have all the details as this would alter my approach on how I would gather information, usage of various tactics and all.”

It wouldn’t be much of a surprise by the thief if plans change over time; it was important to update one’s tactics as needed and improving the odds of success whilst limiting one’s chances for failure. What mattered most was limiting the amount of information that was currently circulating as planning an assassination against another was akin to playing chess.

"Nevertheless, I can support you in more ways than one and if you need demonstrations to prove that; I am more than happy to show."

[Vivian]

Vivian frowned, biting his lip. He didn’t know where to begin. All he had of the man was a half-formed memory of making love to him, and everything else was a blur. Even when he recalled the memory, it sounded mad. A creature with hateful blue eyes, half strangling him in bed, white hair wrapping around him until the entire world went dark. Vivian had screamed and fought, feeling flesh slough off his bones and dissolve everything he was. Clawing back through that strange morass of organs and slime until he was human again. It made his gut clench, like his body could remember swimming through itself.

He swallowed thickly. “It has to be another Malformist. I don’t know if he operates like I do…the man was sick in the head. He forced this on me. He clearly meant to kill me. But I remember being told that it was an expensive client. We didn’t get them very often, so I was the one flung to him. Something less…used up. Prettier. They probably made half a year’s coin off what they charged him for deflowering me.” Vivian muttered. “My guess is we start at the brothel. A man like that, they’d have remembered his name just in case he came calling for me again.”

Vivian drew in a deep breath. “They’ll never let me in again. They didn’t let me in when I cried, or begged, or snuck in through the windows. The madam is a mean little bitch that way. So we’re going to have to sneak in and steal her client book. Go from there.” Vivian smirked at Jared. “Could introduce you to some of the girls and boys too, if you want. They’ll never snitch.”

[Gloomcrest]

6th of Ash, 4623

Seeing his platinum-blonde-haired friend frown momentarily, the amber-eyed thief considered the potential options that might come with seeking out a person from many years ago. Information was all around people. Discerning what is relevant and what is not was one of the many skills required to reduce time and limit the red herrings.

While Vivian was contemplating what the first plans were required to enact his vengeance for his past trauma, The Draedan of Saren took a moment to pull off a wooden bangle that he kept underneath his tattered cloak, one that had seen better days but a lot of strains, patchworks and patches of discolouration indicating that the cloak held a lot of memories both good and bad.

Nevertheless, the amber-eyed thief took a moment to focus his divinity on the bangle, causing the grains to glow in a midnight purple shade of refined ether, distilled from his divinity as the grains faded disappear, changing it into a plain piece of wood before the tanned mahogany wood; the dull brown would switch to a brilliant piece of brass that glimmers under the moonlight. Using his fingers, Jared would bend the piece of brass into a hook pick before releasing his divinity; the remnants of his ether would linger onto the hook for a couple of minutes before it reverted into a piece of wood.

“Another Malformist? Do you recall what they could change into? All I know is that malformists can adjust to various animals, but I do not know the extent of what are the limits of that change. Either way, it seems you need a backdoor to enter many places, and I can provide that for you. Left to belongings and Right to deceive? Don’t you agree?”

Jared quickly chuckles as he implies that since the two are working together, one person would be focused on rummaging and stealing belongs. In contrast, the other focuses on creating a distraction, essentially following a fundamental principle of Sleight of Hand.

“Alright then, lead me to the brothel, and we can start our investigation there. But I will warn you that the client book might not be there for many years, and some people might discard old records to make more space. The only other option would be to seek a Remnomancer to sift into people’s memories and dreams, but that in itself is quite risky.”

[Vivian]

Vivian let out a heavy sigh. "No idea. No idea who he was, what he can turn into. All I remember is a voice mumbling 'good riddance' as the door slammed. That was before the cocoon took my hearing. Apparently he paid extra for them to leave me alone for the three days, and the madam being who she was...she didn't care if it was me having three days in bed or carrying out a three day old corpse." Vivian shook his head, looking down at the bar. He shoved the stinging in his eyes down as best he could. Jared couldn't give half a fuck for his sob story, most people in Amoren couldn't. "But youre right, it's precious little to go on. Malformists aren't common. We're a rare breed, and so a Malformist that strong has to be known to the Entente. Out of caution if not being one himself. I just need a name."

Vivian pushed away from the bar, smirking at Jared. "Oh, I grew up in that place my sticky fingered friend. That woman doesn't throw away client lists, even that old. She's not the highest class of madam in Amoren but neither is she stupid. If he ever came calling again, she'd need to know him. I'm guessing he's redlisted...a...eh, sensitive client. Takes a lot to get blacklisted, but red lists are for clients who have a tendency to leave bodies around." He explained as he set a coin on the bar for the bread and nodded to the door.

He led Jared back down the road, along the middling line between slum and lower middle class. A delicate line, that divvied up somewhat respectable merchants from the likes of Jared and Vivian's ilk. More often that line was blurry. The merchants needed the services of the whores and thieves and killers, and in turn they needed the merchants to keep bread on the table. Vivian led Jared through twisting alleyways, combing over a street that was awash in red lanterns. They were older buildings, a bit ramshackle but solid constructions of brick that weathered poor ownership well.

Vivian made for a whorehouse three doors down, ignoring the small crowds of streetwalkers purring at passersby. They recognized Vivian as one of their own, and only gave him cursory looks. Perhaps wondering why he was more dressed and less fleabitten than usual. Jared, unfortunately, was about to get the whole brunt of what Confection Street had to offer.

Women and men alike leered at Jared, giggling coyly or leaning on alleyways, advertising business of their own. "I see the little white runt has upped his clientele recently...why run around with a used up creature like Vivian when you could have something better?" A girl called out to Jared. She batted overly-made eyes at him. A muscular man in his thirties laughed, pushing her shoulder playfully.
"Give it over, Cardamom, you lost the last cat fight with Viv." he chuckled.

Vivian sighed and turned back to grab Jared's hand. "Just keep bloody walking." he muttered at him, and pulled him into an alleyway alongside a garish, turquoise building. "The Green Lady was mine." he patted the side of the building. "So, plan. I pull you in, we sweet talk the girls into giving me my old room back for a night, you sneak out and slither into the madam's office? She usually entertains until late."

[Gloomcrest]

“Well, it doesn’t matter if you do not recall who this person might look like; at the very least, we have some information to work on. Planning a heist varies based on the complexity of the premise; I am assuming that this mistress/madam would have some security. If you can recall, what sort of securities would be set, such as locks? Guards? Possibly even potential alarms and routines? Would it be more efficient to act as a client, or is it better to be a ghost, sitting inside and catching what is needed before leaving no trace behind?”

It was nice to know that Vivian agreed with his assumptions of Malformist being little in terms of presence and practice. Still, the suggestion that magus is pretty standard is a myth, but his thoughts would be cleared as his Malformist friend mentioned the madam was not a high-class matron and a stickler for keeping records, which told the thief a few things.

“If the Madam doesn’t hold a high-standing, am I assuming she is a commonfolk or someone who has used magic to an essential degree? We need to make sure that the Madam is a magic practitioner; it should be noted since there might be a potential combat. If combat is present, are you willing to shed blood, or do you prefer escaping the scene?”

As the thief continued his explanation and searched for additional detail as best as he could pry, the amber-eyed thief took a moment to explore his surroundings. Taking essential notes about his surroundings, such as potential escape routes if things got dicey; the constant turns that Vivian was leading the Draedan of Saren reminds him of how the lower cities of Genteven would constantly confuse people if they were not familiar with the routes, even the Thieve’s Highway which was usually a euphemism or a code for the rooftops where most urchins, thieves and other delightful scoundrels would pass through foot traffic.

Nevertheless, the amber-eyed thief continued to tail behind his charming companion, keeping close and readying himself for any potential encounter that may occur during their transit to their destination. It was very much evident that Jared, despite being a child of the streets, was not familiar with the whorehouse sections within the slums; instead, the thief actively avoided these kinds of areas since his social skills were relatively poor and were more focused on furthering his talents to becoming a professional thief.

Hearing the slight giggles and seductive pose that both the men and women of the pleasure street had to offer, Jared couldn’t help but pull the hood of his tattered cloak further down to avert his gaze and mask his appearance, but the temptation proved much for the thief as his desires to look took over and his gaze would wonder for a moment at the men; taking a moment to see what they had to offer and there were a few that was catching his interest in regards to their physical physique.

As much as one of the women would play coy with her words, briefly speaking ill of Vivian for being used up and suggesting herself as someone better. Not that she was any better based on how she looked and was attempting to steal another person’s client if that was the case. In reality, the thief wanted to let loose his divinity and cause a scene briefly but his focus was helping Vivian out as best he could.
Hearing Vivian sigh for a moment before grabbing his hand and muttering to continue moving, Jared went along with the slightly forceful tug before being pushed to a nearby alleyway that housed a rather oddly coloured building that stood out among the rest.

“The Green Lady, huh? That is rather specific but nothing too odd… So you suggest that I be your client for the night and borrow a room for just a night? If that is the case, then let the money do the talking then.”

The amber-eyed thief takes a moment to take a pouch of coin that rustled heavily; based on the pouch size and the sag that the bag was giving off, he suggested that there was a decent sum to work with.

“I am sure we can rent a room, and you can trust me on getting the work down, after all. Not many people can see a ghost now, correct? Either way, for what am I dressed? Would I be considered too suspicious?”

Jared pointed out to his outfit which was mainly dressed out to be a traveller or a roughened vagabond. If the thief wanted to blend in, he must adopt such a disguise to make his cover more believable.

“If I need to change my clothing, let me know; I can do so in a moment if no one is looking.”

[Vivian]

Vivian had to hide a smile as they ducked through the whorehouse district; there was that boyish charm he’d missed from Jared. The poor thing was crimson and yanking his hood down over his head…and yet stealing glances at the men. How sweet, he was window shopping! Yet he’d rejected Vivian’s own advances twice now. He wasn’t sure if he should be offended or not. Regardless, he listened the moment they were in the alleyway.

“No, darling. I’ve seen men in far worse states. Take the hood down, and let that little spark of nervousness shine. You’ve obviously never hired a whore before, but neither are you the type to spread someone’s legs in an alleyway. You’re a mark, and you act like it. So just be yourself.” Vivian patted Jared’s cheek amicably. “And no killing. The Madam isn’t a mage and while she’s a deft hand with an iron ladle she’s not going to kill anyone. Though I dare say if it’s between you and that hideous bitch please, end her.”

He folded his hand over Jared’s the moment he pulled the coin purse out. “Best not let that jingle too loudly. The woman can smell coins. You’ll have to do most of the talking. Go in, I’ll do my best to look snug and bored. Pay the rate and we’ll likely be in one of the older rooms upstairs. The madam has a vault in her office on the first floor…that’s all I know. I’m guessing the book will be there.”

Vivian smirked. “And uh, we might have to play act convincingly…so follow my lead and don’t spook. Remember, you’ve paid to fuck me. So act like it. You get cagey and she’ll send one of the girls out to the hallway to keep an eye on us.” He brought Jared’s hand to his lips, kissing his fingers and giving him a quiet coy look. “Ready? Then lead the way to bed.”

[Gloomcrest]

6th Ash, 4623

The amber-eyed thief couldn’t help but grumble as he didn’t enjoy letting his hood down while he was currently prowling around as a thief. It was okay if he was working in a bakery or anything in relation to food, but revealing one’s identity. Pulling his hood back, the amber-eyed thief sulked as his entire face was revealed, compared to when Vivian had seen his visage.

His face was ashen, but now, the hues in his skin leaned more tanned, possibly coppery, as his divinity would flow alongside his demi-god blood. One notable change in his face was the jagged scar that would curl from the tip on the right side of his lip that trailed back a few centimetres was no longer there; his honey-hued eyes were lighter as if his shades of topaz or citrine replaced the iris in some strange way.

His physical features would indicate a rather handsome-looking man who was in their late 20s or early 30s; his angular jar seemed to be sculpted in such a way to be pleasing to the eyes and, funnily enough, if one were to look closely at his skin, an amber-hued light would seem to crackle every so slowly, flaring up slightly when a trigger is met.

“There? Happy… I feel like I am going to get way too many stares for this…”

Something in his gut was telling him that so many things could go wrong; his usual get-up of covering up his features was a form of maintaining his anonymous status, and second, it was a way for him to feel reassured about himself while Jared knew. Nevertheless, the thief pocketed his coin purse or someone’s coin purse away. After all, a few bits of coin would be needed to rent a room.

“This is going to turn out terrible; let me see what I can do… Don’t trust my acting skills or any of my ability to talk. Either way, I will make my way in and make my start.”

With that, the Alistian thief took his first few steps towards the turquoise building, taking a moment to adjust his posture as the Draedan straighten his back; a faint purplish glow would trickle down his tattered cloak; the fabric whos’ dye was faded through time would quickly be darkened as if the shroud was made anew. The frayed edges would become thin strands of fabric that was bundled, forming multiple tassels of which the tint would become golden.

A pattern would form around the fabric as duplications of a square that houses a diamond, and within the diamond was a circle with a simple depiction of a key covering every inch of the cloak. With his preparations made, the amber-eyed thief took his first step inside the building. Briefly take a moment to look inside the establishment known as ‘The Green Lady’. His gaze continued to look around before his eyes landed upon a waiting area of sorts where the thief would take his seat, patiently waiting for an attendant of sorts to arrive, which the operation would begin.

[Vivian]

Vivian watched Jared intently as the other put down his hood. How the young man had changed! Gods, he was still so beautiful...but there was strength behind it now. Energy that crackled and whispered along those long lashes. Vivian smiled encouragingly, lifting a hand to touch Jared's cheek. "You're beautiful. You've changed since I last saw you...but still so damn handsome." he chuckled. "Try not to worry so much about people staring. If anything, they're going to be jealous I'll have you inside of me." He winked conspiratorially, to show Jared he didn't quite mean that last bit. They were here for a heist, not a romp, and Jared had been rather clear about rejecting his advances. Still, a little teasing wasn't out of line. The poor thing was so shy it was hard not to.

"Tsk tsk, you really haven't hired a whore before have you?" Vivian took Jared's arm in his, smiling and nuzzling into the nape of Jared's neck. "Just act confident. You've got me, you're ready to empty your balls inside me, I'm charging so little and I'm so god damn pretty. Try not to panic if I paw you, it's part of the act." He snickered, following Jared inside of the Green Lady with the easy saunter of someone who knew what was about to go down. He sat with Jared in the small parlor, tossing his head and looking at Jared underneath long lashes.

"Why don't you go pay for a room? A place like this isn't high class enough to have attendants." Vivian purred, sliding his hand along Jared's thigh, dipping his fingers inward just enough to be intimate, brushing his thumb over the sleeping lump between Jared's legs. "See the front desk there? Hello Mina, by the way." He giggled.

The girl manning the front desk rolled her eyes. She was blonde, young, about Vivian's age, with rouged lips and pierced ears, her generous breasts barely contained in a fraying silk top. "Ergh. Sir, is this one bothering you? He's a street whore, not one of ours." she called to Jared.

Vivian smirked, pulling Jared's earlobe into his mouth to suck appreciatively. "He wanted to do it in a feather bed, the sweet little lordling." He said, hopefully giving his partner's poor acting skills something to go off of.