|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Fri Oct 18, 2013 4:57 pm
Taking a moment, he sat himself down, eyes still turned to the sky, though he gave her the occasional glance as well. "My last customer was an easy one. They had lost a pendant in a pond, so I retrieved it for them. In trade, she gave me food enough for three days, and directions. A small transaction, but it held merit in it's own right. And the food proved useful." It was a good trade, and one he was happy with, though it wasn't his normal fare by any means.
All and all, it was a good story to tell as well. More innocent then some he could recall. Some he should probably never tell. But that was the business he was in.
"But where are my manners, I have not asked what it is you do."
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Oct 18, 2013 5:43 pm
"Small to you, but meaningful to the other herla I imagine, still don't see why the bother couldn't they retrieve the pendant themselves?" She eyed him, she'd given him directions did that mean he owed her? Doubtful, besides what would she collect? She wanted nothing that one herla could give.
"I do?" She blinked and then frowned her eyes lost focus for a moment at the memory of green fire blasting with each stamp of her hooves as she splashed through sludge like waters.
"I...kill Ghavials and try to survive as long as I can...it's become quite the soft life here..."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Oct 18, 2013 6:06 pm
The term was unfamiliar to him. Ghavials. Clearly it was dangerous to some degree. And it was clearly something from her past. "Survival is an admirable trait. Don't you hope for more though? I'm afraid I'm not really familiar with what a Ghavial is. Fairly fierce I take it? Are there many where you are from?" His empty eyes looked about seeking predators in the shadows, but not seeing anything suspicious.
"And any trade I make can't be worth much more than what I trade for it. That is part of the deal. I never take advantage of others. Not my style." There were two things he hated. Lying, and cheating. His business might not be the most noble of professions, but that didn't mean he had to make a dishonorable.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Oct 18, 2013 6:20 pm
"Have you ever seen a lizard crawling about? Imagine one as long as a herla, with a tougher body like stone, razor sharp teeth, claws that with a few pricks can poison you, and a ravenous appetite and desire to destroy anything living that invades their territory...that is a Ghavial." Her voice had darkened the edge of rage was there, heat emanated with a soft green glow from her hoofs.
She looked back up at him the glow vanished and the heat with it. "I used to live right in their midst. I got smart enough to get away though, my only hope now is that they all end up belly up...especially their...queen." Her eyes flashed with green hatred, it was obvious what Shego's one true desire was.
"Well, that's fair of you it would be easy enough to take advantage of a desperate herla." She was a bit surprised by his words, at first glance she'd think he would be the sort to press for the best advantage in a sticky spot. Well nobility was overrated in her book, but the grudging feeling of respect lingered.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Oct 18, 2013 6:32 pm
Thinking over the creature Shego had described his mind caught on what might be flaws in his mind. "Do they have any natural predators, or weaknesses? It would seem there must be something keeping them from over running us all. Perhaps there is only a certain environment that they can live in. Figure out your enemies drive and desired, and you can start to understand how to defeat them."
Everyone had a weakness, a way to exploit them, a way to beat them. It was true in trading, and it was true in combat, though he loathed the latter of the two. Still very important to know. Find the advantage, and use it. In his head he was already running over what possibilities might apply to these creatures.
"How long have you been fighting them, if you pardon my asking?" It was good conversation, and it was more information for him to work with.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Oct 18, 2013 7:04 pm
"Well as far as I could tell they weren't very good at opening their mouths and they were a bit slower on land than in the water. Other than that though no..." She gave a soft sigh at his question, how long? Sometimes it felt she'd been fighting Ghavials forever.
"Since I was a yearling...I escape last winter though and haven't seen one in the Hartlands since." She gave a casual shrug trying not to sound distressed.
"I'm fairly certain nothing eats Ghavials except maybe another ghavial if it gets desperate, their stomachs are usually a good target if you ever come across one, but unless you have some special talent you're better off just...running for your life."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Oct 18, 2013 7:52 pm
He thought this over for a few minutes with out saying a word, considering different courses of action that could be applied. "Poison would be the easiest solution. Or feeding them something that disagrees with them, violently. Other than that, it would probably best to lure them on the land, and attack them while they are slow. Do you know how well they handle temperature changes? If their biology is lizard like, they might be susceptible to heat or extreme cold."
With the courses of action defined the next task would be to resource them. Poison might be hard to come across in large quantities, but if they lived in a swamp, a fire might be able to be started with the swamp gas. If they were aggressive, luring them into traps wouldn't be to hard either. Maybe a few spike traps set in predetermined locations could take a few out. They would take a while to dig though...
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Oct 18, 2013 8:05 pm
"That much poison would be rather hard to come by and once one reacts to it unfavorably the others would no doubt steer clear. The swamps never get much extreme weather so I've no idea how they handle temperature oddities. Their tough hides protect them pretty well but they can be burned badly enough to retreat and die." She said the last bit with smug satisfaction.
She'd held the Ghavials off with her unique fire talent, between her fire and her brothers abilities they had held their home, until Shego decided it wasn't worth it.
"They are numerous and besides they don't bother the hartlands so theres no reason to go looking for them." Despite that logic she did find herself at the swamp sometimes tempted to seek out her enemies for a fight.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Oct 18, 2013 8:24 pm
Smiling a bit at her words, he found himself saying, "There is a big difference between some thing that isn't a threat, and some thing that isn't a threat at the moment. Current threats should always be taken care of first, but future threats can never be forgotten." His voice made it clear that he had been burned before, and not necessarily in the physical sense. A man of his word, should never forget that others aren't always the same. And a hand offered in friendship today, can be holding a knife tomorrow after all. And some one in need might not be so kind when they aren't.
"Other than that, Guerrilla tactics would be the best route. But it would be a slow war of attrition, unless you had the forces to do some real damage on each strike. And armies aren't easy to come by..." Forces would be good in her situation. Not necessarily hard to come by, but not cheap. Though, if you can make them think it is worth while, some will come for free. The trick is in the spin.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Oct 18, 2013 8:32 pm
"The Hartland herla are enjoying their peace after the rigor of the Talon Wars, the veterans still surviving would probably talk anyone out of even attempting to fight a war with the Ghavials unless they pushed out of the swamp." Shego doubted they would make that push anytime soon, after all they would probably be gaining ground on the Power Plant now that the team of five had fractured.
"You're right though, it's a good idea for...someday." She thought of the training an army would need to be effective in the swamp.
She looked back to her evening's companion, the moonlight made the bloody red of his fur seem dark and bright in patches like wet blood. "You have quite the tactical mind, had to fight a lot?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Oct 18, 2013 8:57 pm
A brief laugh broke through the silence of the night, "Me? No, I don't fight. I may have killed a time or two, but I never fight. I only know how to plan. And that I have done a few times. I did say I was a jack of all trades, didn't I?" He smiled at the words, a true smile, running deep into the voids that were his eyes. Fighting was not his preferred activity, but there was always some one who thought they needed a bit of violence done. And a bargain was a bargain. And some prices were worth doing the deed.
Then his thoughts turned to soldiers. "The Talon Wars took there toll, but there will always be a few who never left that war. They still look for the fight. I have crossed paths with a few people who could probably be convinced that a good cause was a good enough reason to fight. And there are few who never stopped fighting in the first place."
His mind wandered while he thought of harts and hinds that had crossed his path. Then it wandered to the hind that was crossing his path now. She was troubled. Conflicted. Angry. And maybe a bit lost. She was also not unattractive, but that was an issue for another time.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Oct 18, 2013 9:12 pm
Shego gave a wry grin, well he wasn't a coward at least just honest enough to know his strengths and weaknesses.
"Yes, that you did, I should wonder what price a life has in your eyes, but I'll leave such bargains between you and your customers." Or perhaps it had been unpaying customers who he had killed. She listened to him speak of those who had fought, fools, if she'd survived that she...well...she had survived and ordeal and still she felt the tug to return perhaps that made her a fool as well. What did a fighter do when the fight was done?
If only she knew she might be as sappy and cheerful as the herla she watched silently. The idea made her shudder slightly in revulsion, she was strong and wondering what would make her weak like others was stupidity.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Oct 18, 2013 9:30 pm
Deciding to be straight-forward with his answer, he said simply, "The price for a soul is a soul. Though I'm not sure these Ghavials qualify as having a soul, at least as I count them." He smiled, thinking back on some fond deals he had made, his face turning to a sad grin, as he remembered some of the deals that hadn't gone as well. Always a price to be paid. And always some one who has to pay it. And life's don't come cheap, for anyone involved. His crimson fur was stained with blood. But he at least prided himself on the fact that known of it had been innocent.
"The price for a life though, that can be quite a bit less, depending on the type of life involved. Sometimes the promise of a favor is all that I ask. But you can always expect the favor to match the job I had done. That's just business."
This was always the most dangerous part of the whole thing. Seeing people's reaction to the bargains he offered. Not that he was officially offering her a bargain at the moment, but some might find his work, well, distasteful at best.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Fri Oct 18, 2013 9:43 pm
"Fair enough, but how exactly do you collect a soul?" She raised a brow eying him quizzically. She found it odd how he defined a soul and a life differently. He was certainly an odd Herla, but she was bored with watching the usual simply family frolicking.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Sat Oct 19, 2013 8:40 am
She seemed to be taking the nature of his business well enough. Some herla really freaked out about that. "I don't. We make a contract, that upon their death, so long as I'm not responsible for that death mind you, their soul officially belongs to me. But only so long as I fulfilled my side of the contract before their death. A simple business transaction."
Things were going well, so he let himself relax, his body beginning to release some of the tension he didn't even realize it was carrying. The first stars of the evening were starting to show themselves, and he watched them shine above. It could be a good night. At least he had some good company for once. While he enjoyed the quiet, it was nice to spend some time with others for a change.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reply
