Marvin
_Almann waits within the merchant district of New Salvainia. The trek took him and his rouncey all day to make, but this job should be worth it. He's familiar with the area, frequenting often the tool makers and other trinket makers of the city. Either way, hopefully this quest will bring him more coin and fame to build his businesses around._
Cora
*A shrouded, masked figure wanders the merchant District of New Salvania, looking for... "Work".

This job had better be fucking worth it. He hadn't done all his work, becoming a brilliant Artificer and getting himself turned into a vampire, and built a mask with which he will allow himself to become greater than any mortal man, just to do some **Fucking** Grunt work.

The man is intimidating to look at. He wears a slightly ragged coat, which trails behind him. Almost unconsciously, he walks at an incredible speed, and his mask makes it impossible to decipher his actual emotions at all. His Oriate features have been hidden, and it's utterly impossible to tell much if anything about him at all in terms of race. He approaches who he believes to be someone else doing the job... Fucking Macen. Of course it's one of those.

He eyes up Almann through his mask and adjusts the lenses slightly with his left hand; it becomes more obvious that his hand is metallic, and not natural at all.*
Jessica
*Arthur had spent the last couple of days in the Salvainian Empire's wilderness, sleeping and hiding out in the forests within. On one of his routine stops to refill his bread reserves, he found himself faced with another courier giving him a mysterious note. Arthur already knew what it was for, since it had that signature black envelope that always hinted something from the boss. His expectations didn't fail him, and so he found himself making the journey back to New Salvainia, where everyhing started.*

*He didn't know why he was accepting this job. Was it money? No, he already had a decent amount of gold and silver left in his pockets. The sadness he had felt from his loss at Vinran's hand mostly evaporated into nothingness by this point, but he could still feel the pain of the thundershocks every time he ran his hand on his chest, remembering the fight with the elf. He pushed these thoughts to the back of his mind, however, and continues along the trail.*

*He remembered what he said to Hitoshi and Mevis that night. That his goal was to become one of the most infamous criminals in the Empire, but was that what he really wanted, now? What he wanted most, what he yearned for, actually, was just someone to be there for him right now. It was a long time since he had see either Hitoshi or Mevis, and the feeling of being alone for the second time in 7 years was finally starting to take a toll on his mentality. He found himself looking on the more negative side of things, but not so much that he would look at the world as if it was made of shit. Oh well.*

*With a cloak covering his face and head, he would saunter straight into the New Salvainian merchant district, where the letter had instructed him to go. He saw two of his teammates before him, a Macen and... Whatever the person in the mask was.*
James
*Syele would arrive later than most after receiving the letter, she had been unsure if she really wanted to risk her life for a third time. But, the amount being paid per body couldn't be ignored, while she couldn't fight all she really had to do was to keep the others alive so they can handle the rest. The oriate would eventually arrive in the merchant district looking to the three others that had also arrived there, she thought little of the first two, but she continued to dully look at the the shrouded mask figure with a pair of dead eyes that didn't detail any thoughts she had on the man.*

"...Greetings." *Her boring and bland voice leaked out from her mouth as her ears perked about in thought and her jackal like tail hung low to the ground with a slight wave of interest. Her glaze then turned to Arthur as she looked the man over with equal dispute in her eyes that leaked no emotion whatsoever.* "Greetings to you as well... I assume we're all here for the same reason?" *She'd hold up her letter casually and then placed it back into her pocket.*
Mary
*Kaisa had just gotten back from a small monster hunt when she recieved the letter. Interesting. Hopefully she wouldn't have to kill any good people, they were probably evil in some way. Hopefully. This is just another hunt she told herself, just with more intelligent prey. And evil in a way that isn't obvious. She would arrive and see a Macen, who looked like he could care less, a hooded, masked figure, with what seemed like a metallic arm, and two Oriates, one with slight armor and a sword and another who didn't seem prepared for combat. She herself arrived in her full armor, her helmet covering the entirety of her face, and her two pods mounted on her shoulders. They were sleek and tapered, seemingly like a jet engine*
Marvin
*Almann observed the other 4 recipients of the letter. All of them were experienced fighters, a couple looked like they'd kill Almann if he teased them enough. The man in the mask looked like the silent macho type who angry all the time, Almann has had enough of those. Most of them seem too scared to show their faces as well. Almann fiddles with the letter in the right side of his robe. Compared to the rest who seemed to have armor galore, he was quite under equipped. To Almann, heavier pieces of armor would slow him down and hinder his aim with a bow, a helmet would negate his eyesight as well.*

*He figures he'd act as a scout for these recipients with his lighter arsenal, using magic and whatever other skill sets he had to track down their targets. The steppes taught him well in the art of search and capture. Perhaps he should start off on the right foot though, wouldn't want to lose his life to one of them without getting the reward first.*

*Almann gives a wicked grin. This is going to be fun.*

"Aye, the letter. Targets and lots of gold."

_Almann leans back against one of the street wells and puts his hands behind his head casually, scanning each of them as he talks._

"I'm Almann. Your names? We will be working together in this quest after all."
Cora
"Alexander."

*His voice was... Nondescript, if that makes any sense. No real special aspects to it, and that was intentional. While Alex's normal voice has a specific sound, he's taught himself to remove all accents and speech tics.

He continues to adjust the lenses on his mask. Fucking thing was supposed to enhance his eyesight, give him a boost in combat. So much for that. Barely fucking worked. Of course, when you assembled it in a crappy cult cave you, erm... "Refurbished", it's hard to make anything decent. His clothes were also ratty, having been taken off a cultist's body. Alex hates wearing the clothes. Feels horrible... Hopefully this next mission can get him enough money to buy some.

He removes his mask and rubs at the lenses, revealing various scars across his face. The most notable scar is across his right eye: a nasty looking burn scar he'd earned during an experiment gone wrong. Oh well. Alex never bothered to heal or hide it, he felt pride in showing that he can own up to his mistakes. His skin is deathly pale, and when he talks, you might see the reason as to why: his vampire teeth are much more visible.*

"Damn lenses are broken."

*He scoffs and straps the mask back on. Better to keep his identity hidden when he does the mission.*
Mary
"Remember, these are people. Try not to kill them if they're just doing their job. Do so if absolutely necessary." *Kaisa's voice was distorted from her helmet, but was still feminine. She sounded serious, not one to kid around with. Almann was not a very moral man. Alexander seemed to be angry at something, but she wasn't sure what. Her helmet and pods shrink down, revealing her pale face with small purple tattoos on her cheeks and forehead, making somewhat of a triangle, and her long dark hair, which seemed almost purple.* "Kaisa"
James
*Syele continued to dart her eyes about the group as they spoke out each word. She thought little of them at the time and considered Alexander of even a lesser sense since he was a vampire, making him a even tougher person to heal when in combat, well matter of the fact impossible to heal through magic. She then continued to think for a moment as she looked over the other odd one with the tattoos, she considered that one to be less of a concern for the moment since she was rather quick on the tongue to give out her name.*

"In all honestly, do we really need to give out our names? I understand that those who sent out the letters already know of us, but even when we're among strangers is it of truly our best interest? If we are captured or worse then we run the risk of exposing those among us. Which, I doubt the letters would be of any use in the hands of authority, but our names is a different story. If you must call me anything, simply call me jackal for the name being." *Syele would finish speaking for the time and then waited for the others to finish their introduction.*
Jessica
*Arthur would stay quiet in the conversation, taking note of the people around him that were most likely his teammates for the mission. Almann, one of the macens, seemed nonchalant and casual about the mission, probably a signal that he'd done something similar like this before. Good to know that he'd be with experienced individuals for this job, although that grin of his unsettled Arthur a tiny bit. He seemed to be an archer or ranger of sorts as well, judging by the bow he had carried along with him.*

*Next was Alexander, or so he called himself. Arthur noticed the incredible abundance of scars on his face, most notably across his right eye. His skin was deathly pale, but that was to be expected, seeing that the man had very visible vampiric teeth, the likes Arthur hadn't seen before. He didn't know whether or not this man was experienced in working for the boss, but Arthur sensed a good deal of power coming from the man. Raw strength was always good in a fight when your tactics and strategy all went to shit.*

*Next was Kaisa. She sounded like the serious type, but feminine nonetheless. Her voice was distorted from behind the helmet, but he caught the meaning of her words nonetheless. Judging by her outwards demeanor, she was also analyzing the other recipients of the letter, exactly like how Arthur was doing. Her she had long, dark purple hair, and introduced herself as 'Kaisa.'*

*The last one was Jackal, which Arthur saw as an arrogant fool. Of course they needed to give out their names, otherwise how would communication between the five run smoothly? Her eyes told Arthur that she thought less of everyone here, a terrible assumption to make when you first meet your teammates. He didn't like her.*

*Noticing the silence that was amongst the five, Arthur finally decided to introduce himself as well, taking off his cloak and revealing his Fox ears.

"Call me Arthur. Arthur Dax, Kitsune, wanted by the Salvainian Empire. That's all I'll disclose for now, since you're all basically complete strangers to me."
Mary
*Kaisa eyed the young Oriate, who called herself Jackal* "You're scared. Nothing wrong with that, at least you gave us a codename to call you." *Jackal was a coward. No weapons, and her look seemed disapproving of them. She probably had some kind of magic to be useful. Arthur was an interesting fellow. Another Oriate, and wanted nonetheless, but he didn't quite fit the character. He was obviously hiding something*
Marvin
*Almann looks at the vampire. He'd never seen one before. His hated the were-kin, but vampires gave him a sense of morbid intrigue. How did he get that way? Where'd he get the scars. Perhaps he could get more info out of Alexander while tracking the targets. It seems this one has calmed down a bit and it a tinkerer himself...*

"The lenses? I could take a look at them if you want. I'm a tinkerer, once apprenticed to an elder craftsmen of the Silnarian Khanate, perhaps there's something I can do to fix it."

_Almann turns to Kaise. This woman has also loosened up a bit. Revealing a name and a face is a sign of trust in business. One day though, her fondness for life may get the better of her._

"Yes, they are people, like the rest of us no? The goal is to capture alive, but they didn't say what shape they'd have to be in. Simply give the targets an ultimatum should they struggle. If they attempt to attack back and run away just take something away from them. A finger, toe, hand, an eye. It doesn't matter. They simply need to live for the coin." _Almann shrugs_

_He then turns to the one who calls herself Jackal. In his experience the ones most likely to be cowards or backstabbers are the ones who prepare to cover their tracks. Hiding a face and a name is the first step in this. He'll keep an eye on her._

"Jackal? Interesting alias. Names are important lass, remember this." _he waggles his finger at her jokingly_

_Next was the Kitsune. A criminal. No issues, Almann deals with them all the time. They ask for him to sharpen knives, forge documents, fix up some of their... Tools..._

"A criminal Kitsune? All that's needed is a name. Though I'm sure we'll figure out your trade later in the quest."

_Almann gives an eye of interest towards what this man is wanted for. He couldn't wait to find out. He's also impatient for the sender to arrive._
Jessica
*When Almann mentioned that their employers didn't care about how their targets returned, he obviously remembered what had happened with Cornelius. Leaving behind nothing of the man but his torso and head, he had cut off both of his arms and legs out of anger that night. He shuddered at the thought, but shrugged it off nonetheless as an incident that would stay in the past.*
James
"...Well, I suppose we should begin the job now? Or at least the individual who is hiring us should had shown up by now, it's rather rude to be the employer and not to be the first among the bunch." *Syele muttered a bit while they looked about the group a bit waiting to see if they could spot the employer anywhere in the area.*
Cora
"I don't need help with my work."

*Alexander brushes off Almann's offer. Of course, Almann has done nothing wrong. Hell, he's actually being pretty considerate. But Alexander harbours an irrational hatred of Macen, and doesn't want their **Grubby hands** Touching **His** Mask. He might come to like the Macen in this party a little more, or at least respect them slightly more. But not right now. As far as he's concerned at the moment, they're all worthless scum. Even if he didn't mind Almann's race, he's a prideful individual. He hates anyone touching **His** Work. It's beneath him to relinquish his job to someone else.*

"I'd leave, but I need a new jacket. Damn thing smells horrible even through my mask."

*He squirms in his jacket. Wearing this trash is truly embarrassing.*
Jessica
"No, knowing these guys they always arrive on time. Never early, never too late. I'd say we have a good... 4 minutes until they show up. It does get annoying, but hey, better on time than late, yknow?"
*Arthur would look around the district, hoping to find someone that looked eccentric enough to be their employer. Alas he would find no one to fit the description, unfortunately.*
Mary
"I suppose we could start by sharing our strengths? It would be better to plan our attack accordingly rather than rushing through"
James
"...I can do a bit of healing and I'm a decent talker at times." *Syele kept it plain and simple, she'd hold onto the katana that she* **Never returned** *To hitoshi for the time being since she was unsure on where to find the fellow again anytime soon. Her attention then turned to Alexander for the time being as she measured him up in her head and examined the jacket for the time being.* "Well, your current one does look like shit that was dragged out of a beggar's den. But, if you need a new one I can do a bit of tailoring and make you something nicer after this is all done. I run a merchant shop that might actually already have some stock for it."
Marvin
_Almann laughs_

"So The Jackal has a sharp tongue eh? I do some support magic, close quarters fighting, and archery on foot and horseback."

_Almann really wanted to see what the sender looked like. His curiosity of these people and the employer, not to mention who they're supposed to hunt down reminded him why he wanted to do this quest in the first place._

_He turns to Kaisa_

"What about some of your strengths?"
Mary
"Close quarters combat or long range. Preferably against unarmored opponents. I'm also a good hunter." *Looking at her kit, she would have armor, an arm blade and a small, pointed shield. No indication of range whatsoever*
Cora
"Leave the armoured ones to me. Electricity bends to my whim."

*The man smirks under his mask.*

"Ever seen what Crack the Sky can do? Now imagine someone using two of that at once."
Jessica
*Arthur jolted at the mention of Crack the Sky. Aye, he knows the terror of what one can do. It was quite frightening, really. One taken head on was enough to knock him out, causing massive lightning scars across his chest. It was costly, however. Using it too much at a given time would exhaust you of all of your mana, essentially making you worthless soon after.*

"Me? Im completely based on rushing down opponents. I can summon... About 4-6 swords that I can all control if I wanted to. All are wickedly sharp as well. The ideal matchup for me is against unarmoured, but if you can slow down some armoured tanks, I can surely take them down in a single blow with one of my other abilities."
Marvin
_Almann shrugs_

"We'd have to know who are targets are before we truly make any sound plans. The sender will probably be here soon. The goal is to incapacitate the targets, we split loot evenly afterwards and we're good. If one of us doesn't pull their weight the others will pitch in to vote for a smaller reward for the slacker. Good deal, no?"
Cora
"If somebody doesn't pull their weight, they shouldn't get anything in the first place."

*Alexander shrugs and folds his arms.*
Charlie
*As you all continued to wait for the employer, Arthur who has had experience with dealing with them before would realize it was infact past the meeting time. A rare occurrence, as he had mentioned earlier, they never appeared first, but they always appeared on time.*
*A couple more minutes would pass from the mentioned meeting time with no one showing up. The newcomers might think this was perhaps a prank, but for what purpose? However, you would all then hear some commotion coming from a nearby barrel in the alleyway. The lid would pop open and rising from it you would see green haired macen in a nightgown and cap holding a stuffed animal of some sort. Those familiar with more exotic animals though would recognize it as a sloth. The individual would yawn loudly and remove his sleep shades before rubbing his eyes while looking at you all.* 

"Uh... Well then, there's a lot of you. You're here for the job right? Yeah, you guys match the descriptions. Cool. So, uh, hope I didn't keep you waiting. The job, is uh..."
 
*The individual would have trouble keeping his eyelids open as they slowly dip till they are full closed, causing him to fall out of the barrel. He would snore for couple of seconds before opening his eyes once more.* 

"Oh, sorry about that. Didn't get much sleep as of late. Anyway, there's a guild here that had been hired to escort some cargo for the boss, I think. However, they, uh, had a change of heart I guess, and is keeping the cargo and payment for themselves. The guild building is like a 10 minute walk from here in some shady part of the district. And uh..." The messenger's eyes would start to droop again, but at the last second he shakes his head awake 

"Uh... Yesh. Where was I? Oh yeah, you all just need to go in there and take care of everyone inside. Also, don't go to the basement unless necessary cus that is where the cargo is. The boss doesn't want to risk it getting damaged. Questions?"
Mary
"Any information about them? Dangerous in any way?"
James
"Would the cargo be a living entity? Because if so, we may need to be careful of that so we don't accidentally kill them by mistake during the fighting."
Marvin
_The others asked questions that Almann had thought of asking himself. He waits for the answer._
Jessica
"Are there any VIPs within the building that pose a high threat to any of us? Or just important figures in general?"
Cora
"Fuckin' hell... Err, how are the guards equipped?"
Charlie
The green haired individual would look over to each of you in the order that you've asked the question

"Uh, yeah, they are pretty strong. Have a mix of magic users and melee combatants, expected things of a guild. They've done jobs for us before, so they were skilled enough to carry them out. Just a shame they changed their minds for this job"

The individual would start to feel sleepy again, but pinches his cheek to keep himself awake

"Yeah, the cargo is something like that. Exotic and expensive as well"

"VIP's? Well, the guild master is pretty strong, and they have a couple of high ranked members in their guild as well."

"As for how well they are equipped, well, they got a lot of gold from us from before, so I say pretty good quality stuff. Don't think about looting it though, we're taking it back to compensate for the losses they've caused us" 

He would then yawn again and cover his mouth "Anything else?"
James
*Syele just shook her head no for the time being and remained quiet waiting for the others to take the lead. She considered that the cargo might just be some exotic slave race that they were meant to take. Which in her opinion, seemed like something a guild of 'do-gooders' would take for themselves or even more so they probably decided to take the cargo to just churn out their own profits while screwing whatever organization that was hiring them to begin with.*
Marvin
"That'll be all for me. Gonna head over." _Almann jerks his thumb towards the guild hall_

_He looks like a giddy child, waiting to get a new toy from his parents. He already has a spell prepared in either hand. It'll be a proper brawl in a guild hall! He will keep his daggers in mind, but all of this should be done with his bare fists. After all, an Earth Macen has the sub-dermal plates in his knuckles for a reason._

_He starts walking towards the guild hall non-nonchalantly, he'll wait outside of the door for the rest of them_
Mary
*An exotic living being. What could that mean? Hopefully it was some kind of magical creature. Probably was, seeing that transporting slaves wouldn't be too exotic. This organization doesn't seem to use slaves* "I think we have the information we need. Let's go." *Her helmet and shoulder pods form back*
Jessica
*The guild master? That was to be expected, obviously. For someone like him, they'd have to gang up on him and overwhelm them with brute force and magic, which is how encounters with such individuals should be dealt with. That, or running away. The High Ranking members, however, shouldnt pose that much of a threat. If they were weaker than Vinran, itd be easy pickings for Arthur. There, however, was a slight problem. It was the middle of broad daylight, surely they wouldn't barge in on the guild headquarters right now?*

"Wait, are you two blind? It's noon, and there are people everywhere. If one of them were to slip by our defenses, the mission is over. I suggest we wait until nightfall, then we can infiltrate the guild base. We can recon during the day, though. Who'll do it?"
Cora
"Of course the fucking Macen take the least intelligent path."

*Alexander looks to Arthur.*

"I'd suggest that we transform, but..." *He waves his hand.* "I need this to cast... Don't know why, but that's life, I suppose. You?"
James
"I can do it." *Syele stated with her meek voice.* "I am a bit good at acting and I can scout out the interior of the guild rather easily." *Her blank expression still maintained across her face, giving a false indication to just how well she could 'act.'*
Marvin
"We could always have someone watch outside for stragglers, chase them down and neutralize them as clear out the inside. A quick panic with others waiting outside will make those who try to run away easy pickings. There is always a back up plan, _cave dweller._"

"There is also a possibility of causing a panic inside of the guild so we can ambush those fleeing from the inside. That dual Crack The Sky spell could also work for that reason."

_Waiting until night also suited him, his eyes wouldn't take long to adjust if he sat on the roof tops waiting for the signal to begin the quest._

"I'll stay on the roofs then, I can pick them off by shooting at their legs, making it harder to get away. Waiting until nightfall is fine and all, but as time passes the less targets remain in the guild, there are those who come and go, unless of course, we pick them off as they leave. Even then, that would rouse suspicion if some were expected to return."
Mary
"We should wait for nightfall. Alex and I are both vampires, so we don't want to risk losing some gear and risk being exposed to sunlight. Some people should rush in, take as many out as possible, and then others pick them off as they leave"

"Jackal, you can be our opening to make them feel safe"
Jessica
*Arthur turned to Alexander, nodding in agreement. He now knew that he was a Kitsune vampire, but why did he harbor such an irrational hatred towards their macen teammates?*

"Yeah, we can transform. You want to recon now, or later?"
Cora
"No, I mean I **Can't.** I might be able to follow, but if I change form, my stump will open."

*He waves his metallic arm about.*
Jessica
"Oh, well that sucks. Does that mean I'll have to do it alone? If so, that's unfortunate, but what must be done **Must** Be done. We can't just assault a highly defended building like this blindly, anyway. We should set a rendezvous point somewhere near the guild where we won't look suspicious, so I can relay the information between all of us. Got any ideas?"
Mary
"Let's get to the actual area first, then we can make our plans"
Charlie
The green haired individual would point you over in the direction where the guild was.
 
"Just 10 minute walk this way. Huge sign, Burner Knuckles is its name. I'll make your guys lives easier, the ones that come and go from the guild, let's just say they're not coming back. Just need to take care of the ones that live there. Simple enough?"
Mary
"Simple enough. Let's go"