Pay day, one of the biggest perks of being a mercenary for hire. High pay for such simple tasks, easy, but the real gold layed in the riskier tasks. Luckily this job consisted of an escort for feeble merchandise, nothing important in her eyes, but the pay was decent. Redirecting herself to a local tavern which was infamous for the type of customers it served; the Noxian army and its affiliates. The sturdy wooden doors to this sanctuary opened with the flick of her wrist as she dragged herself in to sit across a rugged male figure. Katana, tote bag and gloves were dropped on the table as she reclined on her seat. Lights flickered in particular areas which repairs was negated, but no one seemed to mind. Most, if not all the seats lacked cushion. No use complaining over it, it provided more comfort from where they arrived from for sure. Chipped pieces of wood from the tables were bothersome when scrapping arms or legs across them on accident, but then again they themselves were to blame for carving their names or mapping out territory on it. The owner only served drinks and would cook low tier food if paid well. Every conversation had in the room was kept to a minimal voice amongst each other, so instead of chattering, whispers and murmurs echoed in ones ears. This place was full of men aside from herself and perhaps another vaguely distinct female, but what was to be expected from a room full of mercenaries. The tall man sitting across from her was a loyal partner she had been working with for years now, the only person she could trust with her life.
The male had an intimidating bulky figure with scars to compliment him. Shaggy unkept dark hair covered his head
In such a corrupt city, trust proved to be an expensive item to be bought or sold. Reaching into her pocket for the sack of gold she carried, she tossed it in front of her partner to split the reward from her escort. While she did the work, he provided the information for the work. He calmly collected his share from the sack before tossing it back to her.
"Experience any issues with the escort?" he asked.
"None, just a long trip is all" she said.
"Why don't we go enjoy ourselves a little, I'm sure we deserve it after a long while, eh Shiva?" he asked.
"John, every time we 'enjoy' ourselves we end up broke within 2 days. After that we don't have any money to feed ourselves and I don't want to waste our gold like that" said Shiva.
"Pick up another job that pays more so we could have a vacation then" said John.
"Sure why not, I'll do all the hard work while you stay here and spend everything you have on food and hookers for a day" said Shiva.
"That's the spirit, now what do you say?" he asked.
"I say why don't YOU get a job. I need a break" said Shiva.
"I work nearly every day! What are you talking about" said John.
"If you worked everyday, why don't I ever see any gold coming from you, huh?" said Shiva.
"...well, there are priorities and fees I have to pay off" said John.
"Hookers and food..." said Shiva.
"But you wouldn't believe how AMAZING this one girl was, I just might have to marry her someday. Eats like a pig, doesn't gain a single pound and is amazing in bed, we'd be perfect" said John.
"You need to stop spending your gold like that, it's wasteful" said Shiva.
"If you gave in to me, I wouldn't have to spend so much on them, you'd save gold for me" said John.
"I wouldn't give in for a million gold. It's not my type of job" said Shiva.
"I'm sure if you really wanted it, you'd do it for a million. Ha ha. Hey let's go get something to eat, I'm starving" said John.
"How nice of you to offer" said Shiva collecting her baggage.
"I never said I'd pay, moocher" said John pouting.
"Oh? Look who's talking. Let's go" said Shiva standing up and leaving.
Following Shiva out the door, both trailed down the streets in search of an appetizing aroma. Sniffing at the air wildly for a trace, John took in a deep breath before exhailing with a smile on his face.
"Soup smells pretty good right about now" said John.
"First thing you picked up?" asked Shiva.
John nodded as they continued marching through the cracked concrete which Noxus sat on. Streets were crowded at this time of night, when suspicious activity was at its peak. The sun was setting in the horizon, shadows slowly consumed the city as warm fires lit up the dim streets as a source of light. Noxus' skull emblem on the side of the hill was lit brightly for display. Just as they reached the center of the Marketplace, John's nose lead the way to a shady and ill runned noddle shop where few customers had sat down to satisfy their growling stomachs. Filling two empty stools in front of the chef, they were quick to place their orders and await for their meals to arrive.
"Ugh, why do we stay here in Noxus, why can't we go to Zaun or even Demacia for jobs" said John.
"Demacia isn't exactly one to take its fights outside its territory. Unless you want baby sitting jobs or cleaning people's houses, you're more than welcome to go" said Shiva.
"Waste of skills..." sighed John.
"Exactly. If you want to continue getting paid decently, we need to stay here" said Shiva.
During their conversation, their food had arrived as they dug in. From the corner of her eye she eyed the chef who kept muttering to the waiter that had served them, but refraimed eye contact. Enjoying a quiet dinner, near full consumption, the waiter handed them a note on the table. Dragging the note to her lap, the following read:
I was chased down the outskirts of Noxus by assassins for valuable objects, which I hid behind a shrub before escaping. The meal is on the house as a small down payment if you are to accept the task of retrieving my possessions. The object you wish to find is a small satchell hidden behind a small shrub under a curved tree in the forest.
Retrieving a personal item was enough to fill up their gold pouch, plus it was extremely convenient.
"Want to go?" asked Shiva.
"Nah, I'm full right now, I just want to go home and relax" said John.
"Ugh fine. I'm claiming the full reward for this though" said Shiva sitting up.
"See ya at home" said John waving at her.
Flicking a wave towards her partner, Shiva casually strolled out of the Market place and to the gates of Noxus. Guards standing alert granted her access to the outside as she waved at them. The light reflecting off the city of Noxus provided some vision in the dense forest in front of her, she only prayed the location was nearby. Deeper into the forest she dwelled, cautious with every step until the descripted tree stood before her, along with the withered shrub right below it. Kneeling before the shrub, Shiva sunk her hand into it before pulling the satchell the man described in the note. Curious of the contents, she flipped the cover open and peered inside. Upon flipping, a small click was heard before having a concentrated gas explode directly onto her face as she tossed the bag away. Hacking and wheezing from the direct impact the gas had, the scent was familiar, sleeping gas. Slowly dragging her collapsed body through the ground, its effects were consuming her as vision slowly faded. In the distance she heard footsteps approaching her, murmurs and chattering. By the time she felt rope wrap up her frame, she was unable to respond.
"Works every time. Mercenaries always provide exquisite cash in the market".
Groggily waking up to the sound of crying and quarrels, all in a single room, it scared the sleep right out of her. Alarmed at the sight before her, numerous prisoners dressed in rags and right outside of the room, Noxian guards standing watch over them. Her posessions were swiped from her, including concealed weapons and accessories, leaving her bare. Bolting straight to the bars which prevent access to the outside, she barked at the guards and demanded for her release.
"How dare you hold me hostage here, I'm a mercenary! Not some commoner on the streets! Release me!" yelled Shiva.
The guards ignored her. Agitated over the situation, she recalled the incident from earlier, the smoke. Was this all planned by the chef? Luring mercenaries to the designated destination and abducting them? Without any tools, it was impossible to escape, especially with guards at the gate. Most of the prisoners were commoners, confused as to how they ended up here, while others were ridden of the thought to escape. Sitting on the floor with back against the wall, rest was cut short when the guards opened the gates and ordered everyone to evacuate the room.
"Single file, if anyone dares to escape, the penalty will be death without hesitation" said one of the guards strolling down the marching line.
Escape would lead to eventual death. Blindly following the marching line, there was no roof over their heads, only a tunnel which connected to large display room, and in the middle of it all, a stage. The stage was perched for the room to glance upon it with ease, one by one the prisoners were categorized and elaborated upon body type and abilities. Women were forced to reveal intimiate areas, for they were the most sought out for in sales. Men were used mainly as recruits, for the Noxian army or anything requiring muscle. Slavery might have been a bit more common than expected, but it was an underground event only held by the higher society. Figuring ways to escape, Shiva's turn arrived as she stepped up the stairs with confidence. Displayed to the audience before her, half statements were made about her, in hopes of making any kind of gold off of her.
"Here we have a lovely young lady who shows such grace with such posing, a perfect wife for any lonely gentlemen who wish to bare healthy children. Just admire such a fit body this woman presents to you all, perhaps a little 'hard' work on her will tender her down" announced the male with enthusiasm.
Just as the announcer proceeded to reveal her intimate areas, Shiva slapped the hand away from him, prevent any access to her body. Laughing it off at first, he proceeded to try again, but was met with another slap to the hand.
"A little feisty aren't we? I suggest you stop unless you'd rather be killed on your way down" said the announcer.
"I'd rather die..." said Shiva.
"Any calls on this lovely young woman? Do I hear 1k of gold?" he asked.
Hands went up in the air as the bids for her posession grew higher with each call. Irritated with such a trivial auction, there was a last call that rounded up to 50k gold for them. The announcer bowed with a content gesture as he signaled the guards to escort her down. On her way down, the only exit with least traffic was exactly where they came from, but searching for an exit through the tunnel would be a challenge, especially when she knew nothing of this place. Reaching the bottom of the staircase, without any bindings, Shiva darted from the care of the guards and bolted through the line of prisoners who'd given hope in escaping. Chants from the guards rushed to secure the exit Shiva hoped to escape from, but stopped dead in her tracks when heavy arms were aimed at her.
"Fair maiden, I'd be heart broken if you were to die before serving your master, especially after spending such gold on you" said a voice from behind.
Behind her stood a tall but thin figure covered in crimson red cloak, embed with gold decorations on the hems while held up with diamond shaped silver straps. Silky white strands fell from his head down to barely touch his shoulders. Long slacks with red and white stripes , but the most symbolic item were his razor sharp finger-like daggers. In a glance she recognized the beast, Vladimir, the Crimson Reaper. Distracted in the sight before her, one of the guards took the opportunity to knock the wind out of her lungs with substancial force. Last image to run through her head was of the Crimson Reaper smirking devilishly before her.