Zerachiel
Assassin
To many you will simply be another fool of a bloody king, but to me you shall always be a friend.
Posts: 99
Profession: Etrurian Assassin
Affiliation: Etrurian Inquisition
Affinity: Light
Profile: Zerachiel
OoC Alias: Elias
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Post by Zerachiel on Jan 16, 2014 3:19:03 GMT -6
"It sounds funner than it..." He began but quickly trailed off as he saw what awaited them up the road. A shame, he had quite the kicker to finish it off with, but alas the world would have to await that for another day.
Two people came into view as they entered the town. He recognized both of them, though truthfully one more then the other. It was strange timing, and also a bit overly coincidental they both just happen to be waiting right there. It felt more like they were waiting for them, rather than actually happening by the duo via pure chance. Whatever the reason, now was a time to stow away the talk of Kraft and mission and all that good nonsense. He considered taking a persona, but it was without a point. One of those two men already knew his name to be sure, and there was little to gain tricking the other.
The first of these men was named Edrick Stormveil, also known as Edrick the Pale. He was a contestant in the arenas in which he was stationed to kill Marcus, and while he knew little of him he knew that he was devout follower of Elmine despite his choice in magic. Which, considering he was already traveling with Karen, wasn't much he'd have to adapt to. He was tall, taller than Zera to be sure, and lanky in form. His body covered in a long black robe, it was like he was a walking shadow. He wasn't entirely unfortunate looking either, but that was neither here nor there.
The second was Saturos Prox, whom he knew a little more about. A tall, broad, and handsome man who refuses to wear a shirt and paints his face all the colors of the rainbow. Originally he was from Etruria, though that much could be surmised by his surname 'Prox' which belonged to a well to do merchant in the Etrurian Elite. Born with a platinum spoon in his mouth, he then decided to just leave home and join the Bernese army. Now he worked down in Bern, in similar circles that Zera did. He was a member of the rebellion, and liaison to Aidan Lowell. Gathering information and delivering it to the mostly clueless knight, in which case it was obvious he wouldn't be fooled by whatever guise Zera would adopt. It was likely that man already knew of him, in which case it could make staying undercover a touch more painful. Unlike Karen who also did not wish to divulge more information then necessary, he had no such prerogative keeping him from overtly speaking things better left unsaid.
The first asked to travel with them, then so did the second. It was enough to make the assassin's eyes roll, of course they want that. They just strapped their little 'hey these guys look important and busy' goggles and accosted perfect strangers who just so happen to be them. Well at least it appeared that Saturos specifically hunted them down. "Actually, we're not headed towards Ilia. I'm not sure how you overheard that either considering we were speaking about the place near a half mile away." He looked at the man with half-lidded eyes. "Unless you've been following us, in which case what point is there in even asking if you could join?" Zera added with a clearly annoyed sound in his voice, he did not want to travel with these two. He barely wanted to travel with Karen.
He looked at Karen with a sort of sigh. He was pretty sure they were going in to town, not out of it. They were still a day or so's journey from Karen's home town if he remembered correctly. Unless she abandoned that, or he was wrong about the distance. Truth be told it didn't interest him much so he didn't pay ever too much attention to it. Still she went and invited them anyways, yay. "I'm not too fond of company I don't know." He said bluntly. It was a blatant lie, he preferred people he didn't know most of the time since they were much easier to trick. Right now though? Not something he wanted. "I'd rather if you didn't come."
His eyes met the swordman's and he cocked a brow at him, was he going to blow his cover? The answer was a stalwart yes, it made the assassin sigh in exasperation. "Say what you wish, levy your blows against me if you must." He stopped himself from gesturing, which was annoying. It might of been disquieting to see him try to move his stub of an arm through the air. His eyes slowly made their way to Edrick. Then he looked at Saturos again, almost smirking. He might have to kill the shaman later if he over hears anything of importance, so lets hope Saturos wasn't prepared to talk about anything sensitive. Otherwise this kid's blood was on his hand.
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Saturos Prox
Swordmaster
The Wildcard
I'm almost incapable of lying. I'd be a terrible spy.
Posts: 351
Etruria Fame: 1
Profession: Undercover Operative
Affinity: Anima
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Post by Saturos Prox on Jan 16, 2014 11:56:24 GMT -6
Saturos merely smiled knowingly when Zerachiel accused him of stalking them. Yes, he was good at that, or at least good enough for the assassin to assume that's how he procured that bit of information, but no, that's not how he knew. He had other channels he used to obtain such tidbits, channels that Zerachiel should be quite familiar with.
"You've caught me in a lie, I see," replied Saturos, putting his hands together in a mockingly apologetic motion. "I do apologize for that. Yes, you're right, my presence here is no mere coincidence, but I'd rather ask before I invite myself to the party," the swordsman said with a wink. "It's more polite, I think, though I guess the end result is the same. Either way I still come to the party." Saturos shook his head. "But don't worry, I'm not here to fight. I have more benevolent intentions." He paused, placing a finger to his lips as he put on a thoughtful look, then corrected himself. "Well, perhaps malevolent would be a more appropriate term, all things considered, but you, at least, have no need to worry. Like I said, I just need to talk." The swordsman let his gaze drift over both Edrick and Karen, as if sizing them up, before continuing. "Not here though. I'd rather just keep this between you and me. Mind if I buy you a drink?" Saturos gave Zerachiel a playful wink as he extended his hand towards the town.
"I insist."
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Post by Karen on Jan 16, 2014 12:27:49 GMT -6
Karen sighed inwardly. She had felt another presence for a time and was ready to deal with it in short order, but to have gotten ahead of the pair and then reveal himself openly... This man could prove trouble. She'd seen his profile before, Saturos Prox. Prox itself was a name well known and Saturos stuck out more specifically for his actions with the Bernese rebels. The Stormveil on the other hand was mostly a non-concern. A practitioner of "Elder" Magic, his family's faith was well known and the younger Stormveil was no exception.
Still, all told, this was rather annoying. Only a day away from her home, she was hoping the trip would be peaceful. Instead, she was met with Zera and Prox. She didn't exactly trust the rebel, but even with one arm gone, it wasn't like Zerachiel couldn't handle himself still. Some might expect that'd be it, but she'd heard more than a few tales during her travels of the infirm in Zera's condition being scrappier than you'd expect.
"I'm afraid you heard my companion here. I only intend to travel a small distance myself. I suppose you can walk with us that far." She replied first to Edrick on the matter of travel. Then she looked to Prox. "Your business is your's, but I believe it can wait until we actually arrive in the village over yonder, yes?"
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Edrick
Shaman
Even in darkness one can devote themself to the light.
Posts: 114
Sacae Fame: 1
Profession: Jack of all Trades
Affinity: Light
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Post by Edrick on Jan 16, 2014 12:48:09 GMT -6
"Well, I suppose if my companion doesn't mind, then I don't either." The woman said as she gave a grin.
But suddenly a voice came up from behind him, it sounded a bit happy go lucky. "Mind if I come too?" Turning around to view this new person Edrick saw a man. The man was quite tall, even taller than him, he had a darker complexion with the right half of his face painted green. And, he had no shirt, but thankfully he was wearing pants with a sword strapped in the belt. "I don't mean to interrupt, but I overheard that you were going to Ilia." he said as he closed the last bit of distance between him and the group of people. I hate to pry, but I've been in town for a couple of days, and was looking for some traveling companions. The road to Ilia is dangerous, swarming with bandits you know, and like the hooded man says, there is safety in numbers after all. Obviously we've never met, so I'll introduce myself. My name is Saturos Prox. I'm a merchant from Etruria, and I'm looking for safe passage. I can pay you handsomely, if that's what you're after, but I'd hope a fine acolyte of Elimine would be above such base desires." His gaze then shifted, slowly, to the hooded man, before he offered his hand to be shook. "I've never met you before either. Hi, I'm Saturos Prox, a soldier of Bern. I deserted years ago, so I fill my time wandering from place to place. Ilia is my next destination. I'm good with a sword, so I can make sure you get there safely."
"I'm Edrick, pleasure to meet you." Edrick said as he firmly shook the bigger man's hand.
"I'm not too fond of company I don't know." The other man said, but before Edrick could reply the man's traveling companion cut back in. "I'm afraid you heard my companion here. I only intend to travel a small distance myself. I suppose you can walk with us that far." She replied first to Edrick on the matter of travel. Then she looked to the Saturos character. "Your business is your's, but I believe it can wait until we actually arrive in the village over yonder, yes?"
"Are you sure? It seems you're friend would prefer to travel alone, although he is traveling with you. Unless.... Do you two happen to be together? Edrick questioned the two. "I'm sorry if I interrupted anything. But if I could come I'm not entirely usless, I know how to cook well, and I can hold my own in a fight." Edrick said to the group.
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Post by The Madness on Jan 16, 2014 12:52:28 GMT -6
Oleg peered to the group ahead. Seems like they were growing all the time. "Mhm.. Interesting. I could use some cover.. Too many angry clients on the way." He nodded to himself, before straightening himself out, doing his best impression of someone rather well off and rich, before walking to the group. "Greetings! I, Oleg, of house Oleg, son of Oleg, would wish to join this travel to Illia! I am handy with my sword as I am with my word!" He nodded quite proudly, stroking his hair growth on his chin. "I can be of a great asset with my sword, I can."
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Zerachiel
Assassin
To many you will simply be another fool of a bloody king, but to me you shall always be a friend.
Posts: 99
Profession: Etrurian Assassin
Affiliation: Etrurian Inquisition
Affinity: Light
Profile: Zerachiel
OoC Alias: Elias
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Post by Zerachiel on Jan 16, 2014 13:08:25 GMT -6
Zera went to speak, but he was cut off. This was getting absolutely ridiculous. For a pair of assassins, they seemed to have big signs pointing to them saying 'COME BOTHER US' since now it was a third person that came from... He didn't know where, he didn't care, it was like he just materialized from the ether. "We. Aren't. Going. To. Ilia. I swear! Are all of you retarded or something?!" His hand grew into a claw, and with great effort did he resist grabbing his head to keep the annoyances in his skull. Suddenly he simply couldn't take it anymore and just dramatically pointed at the robed man. "You." Then he pointed at the new person who showed up, his name occupation and other junk Zera liked to rattle off wasn't even the slightest bit of interest to him right now. "And you. You two, travel together. There. Done. Everyone's happy."
Then he jabbed his finger towards the shirtless man. "You! Stop trying to be a coy piece of crap. I wrote the book on that." He scrunched his face together in a clear show of annoyance. "And stop winking, I swear you've destroyed all meaning of the gesture. I can't tell if you're trying to be cute or if you're hitting on me." He ran his hand down his face with a lengthy sigh. Taking a deep breath in, then letting it out. "We aren't going to Ilia, we're going IN to town, not out, and I don't want to travel with anyone but her. If anyone asks to join one more time I swear I'll smack them."
He looked at Karen with an almost tortured look on his face, then again at Saturos. He was probably thinking he was being all clever and interesting and intriguing but honestly the assassin could not muster the effort to care. Not even a little bit. "Come on, let's go. Maybe if we're lucky only seven other people will ask to join us." He was being rude, but Zera never really was one for manners. Unless they proved useful, which right now they did not. So he would embrace being an ass, because at least it might get him away from this overly crowded scene. He should have never came out of hiding. He blamed Karen for this.
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Saturos Prox
Swordmaster
The Wildcard
I'm almost incapable of lying. I'd be a terrible spy.
Posts: 351
Etruria Fame: 1
Profession: Undercover Operative
Affinity: Anima
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Post by Saturos Prox on Jan 16, 2014 13:41:19 GMT -6
Saturos chuckled at Zerachiel's explosive reaction. For an operative who had been deemed good enough to hunt down and kill Richter Abend's pet dragon, he was surprisingly easy to aggravate, though perhaps he just didn't care. The shirtless man was also surprised that the assassin hadn't caught on yet, though perhaps it was more to Saturos's own merit than it was to Zerachiel's demerit that he hadn't. After all, you didn't end up where Saturos was by being easy to read.
"Stick a knife in someone for all I care, just calm down," the swordsman replied, his cool demeanor changing little in the face of the assassin's outburst, though he did make an effort to act a bit more serious. No point in needlessly antagonizing the man if he was going to act out. "Like I said, I need to speak to you in private." With that, Saturos reached into his back pocket and pulled out a slightly crumpled letter. It was sealed with a small lump of black wax, on which could be seen the Herald's insignia only if one was close enough to examine it. Saturos wagged it slightly, like a master would wag a bone at his dog.
"Issues in Bern and what not. About a little...badge, hmm?" Saturos raised an eyebrow. He hoped he was getting his point across, since by this point he was being grossly obvious about it. "Are you catching my drift, yet? Or were you never clued in?"
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Post by Karen on Jan 16, 2014 13:53:26 GMT -6
This was starting to get... trying. Frankly, she was more than ready to agree with Zera in this regard. "Yes. That sounds like a wonderful idea. Let's be on our way, shall we?" She was already starting to move on again after looking at Zerachiel with her own look of annoyance and Prox. She prided herself in her patience, but even she had her limits. So close to home and now all of this coming down and-
...Did he just show a...?
Great. Now people had to die.
"Perhaps. We should move on to town." Karen spoke through slightly gritted teeth, her annoyance not exactly concealed anymore. As she stepped past Prox, she whispered briefly in his ear in a tone that only he could hear. "Do you realize what you've done?" She continued stepping on without a pause, the only one knowing she said anything was Saturos.
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Zerachiel
Assassin
To many you will simply be another fool of a bloody king, but to me you shall always be a friend.
Posts: 99
Profession: Etrurian Assassin
Affiliation: Etrurian Inquisition
Affinity: Light
Profile: Zerachiel
OoC Alias: Elias
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Post by Zerachiel on Jan 16, 2014 14:15:02 GMT -6
To be honest, he hadn't really cared much about anything these days. Ever since he returned from his mission to kill Marcus, and ever since his standing had fallen so harshly... He was trailing Karen, to crying out loud. Watching another operative was something only the lowliest members were assigned to. He was once a man who commanded a great deal of respect, his name itself brought fear to the hearts of those in the underworld. They knew Zerachiel was a dangerous man, one who could destroy you with a single word. Now? Feh, now he was just a one armed man. Who feared a one armed man?
What point was there in being professional? The assassin was just filled with... anger. Towards everything really, to Marcus, to Kraft, to the other assassins, and to himself. Maybe that's why he got so aggravated so easily? Or maybe this was just an annoying situation. He's had to endure months of stupidity and idiocy several times before, and he never so much as flinched. Then again that was when he had both of his arms. Maybe he just lost his touch? It would of probably all went much more smoothly if he had just hid in the shadows the whole time, him and that stupid honor of his that may not even actually exist. Maybe he was confusing honor with boredom, or greed.
Whatever it was, he'd have all the time in the world to mull over it in town. Right now he just wanted to get away from everyone, it was just a bit too much for him to deal with right now. This guy wants to travel with them, this guy is acting like some big shot, and this guy is also wanting to travel with them. Didn't their parents ever tell them not to talk to strangers? They were only a day away from Karen's village, and all he wanted to do right now is to follow her there. Maybe tease her a bit when they arrived, like real assassins do.
"Good, we're on the same page then." His voice came out like a sigh as he began to walk forward and ignoring everyone. Maybe if they were lucky they could shake them, because they would surely follow as all annoying tagalongs do, and then lose them in the village. If they hurried they could get to Karen's home, and he might finally get to finish that story he was telling. If only he-
...Oh you have got to be goddamn kidding...
"Are you a complete idiot?" Zera slid up next to the other side of Saturos and spoke through his teeth in a quiet hiss. Maybe if he hadn't tried to be so coy about it, Zera would have listened before. What he just did, however, was basically forcing them to take action. The other two probably had absolutely no idea what it was, but that didn't matter. Just the mere chance that they could have known is more than enough. If it was official business Saturos should have just used code, or... or something! Maybe his time in Bern dulled his senses, but here in Etruria they were subtle.
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Post by The Madness on Jan 16, 2014 14:24:32 GMT -6
Oleg blinked slightly at the anger of the man, and the reactions all around him to the letter. He was in no way a master of reading expressions, but the way he heard faint whispers and people passing the letter waving man, it seemed best to just try to stay away from them. State secrets, or mayhaps just a sibling fight. Who knows. "Well. I just offered my services, but if they are not needed, I shall take my leave." He nodded, stroking his chin as he then left towards the way furthest away from the group, trying his best to not look like he was panicking.
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Edrick
Shaman
Even in darkness one can devote themself to the light.
Posts: 114
Sacae Fame: 1
Profession: Jack of all Trades
Affinity: Light
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Post by Edrick on Jan 16, 2014 15:23:17 GMT -6
The People just kept talking, Edrick was listening to every word they said. But one of them, who's name appeared to be Zerachiel, was getting quite ticked off at all of the new arrivals. But then the tall man, Saturos, pulled out a letter. It had a black emblem emblem on it "That Emblem, I swear I've seen it somewhere, but where? And who's was it? Oh well." Edrick thought to himself. At that point it seemed the two he originally meant to join became nervous, perhaps he should really be here at this time. "Um, it seems that you guys are a bit busy, I'll just continue on my own, have a nice day." Edrick told to them as he moved a bit off to briefly stretch before he began to jog down the road, away from the town he came from taking in all of the details of the road to write down later.
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Saturos Prox
Swordmaster
The Wildcard
I'm almost incapable of lying. I'd be a terrible spy.
Posts: 351
Etruria Fame: 1
Profession: Undercover Operative
Affinity: Anima
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Post by Saturos Prox on Jan 16, 2014 18:07:36 GMT -6
"Not enough for life to have weeded me out of the process, I supposed," Saturos replied under his breath, unfazed by the anger directed towards him. "The shadows are overrated my friend. You would do well to get outside every once in awhile." He found the other two Etrurians' reactions amusing, probably too much so. They were absolutely frothing at the mouth over a letter, which had only become worthy of suspicion because they were acting like it was. If Saturos had learned anything over the years, it was that people only found you suspicious if you acted like there was some reason for people to be suspicious of you. A letter signed by the Prophet himself could be passed off as a letter from grandma as long as you acted like you believed that was so. It was an easily exploited aspect of the human psyche, one these two apparently didn't have much familiarity with.
Indeed, his point was proven when the two civilians said their goodbyes and began to walk away. "See?" he said matter-of-factly, his voice now at a normal volume as he gestured towards the two black haired strangers with the hand he currently wasn't using to tuck his letter back in his pants. "You scared them away with your hissing and whispering. Now they think we're crazy people of some sort." Saturos waved after the two. "Sorry about that, friends, perhaps we'll meet again in the future!" He then began walking back towards the town, beckoning for the other two agents to follow. "Now come on, I'd rather not waste a lot of time faffing about out here."
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Post by Karen on Jan 16, 2014 18:29:05 GMT -6
Ugh. Finally meeting one of the Inquisitors deep undercover in Bern and then... this. Right, her day was starting to get sour rather fast. The other two men were quick to leave, but by the casual tone they had used, it was more on the side of taking a hint than actually knowing anything.
"You scared them away with your hissing and whispering. Now they think we're crazy people of some sort."
"Says the one that literally couldn't keep it in his damned pants." Her patience was so very close to being shot. All she wanted was a nice peaceful trip home. St. Elimine help her with these two.
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Zerachiel
Assassin
To many you will simply be another fool of a bloody king, but to me you shall always be a friend.
Posts: 99
Profession: Etrurian Assassin
Affiliation: Etrurian Inquisition
Affinity: Light
Profile: Zerachiel
OoC Alias: Elias
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Post by Zerachiel on Jan 16, 2014 18:32:56 GMT -6
The assassin simply sighed as he backed away from the shirtless man. He made no gestures or facial expressions, mostly because he was tired of this whole charade. He simply couldn't deal with this buffoon and his superiority complex. It was a pain in many things, his ass was among them. He was speaking to Zera, of all people, of the importance of hiding in plain sight. If he wished to believe himself to be superior for being mentally challenged, then all the more power to him. It wasn't so much that they were over reacting, he was under reacting. It was standard protocol, and honestly the two were lucky have gotten away with their lives. You see, that seal was the official seal of the Herald. Anyone who recognized it could see that they were operatives, and that was a dire blow to any sort of cover they might of had. It wasn't so much that they expected people to recognize it, but rather if there's even the smallest chance that they might it was their duty to terminate them. To kill any loose ends before they could potentially cause damage.
Saturos simply did not understand this, he's been away from Etruria far too long. If the Herald had saw this little event, those two would not be the only two to have lost their lives. Saturos would be silenced for being so brazen. He took in a deep breath and let it out once more, calming his self. "Well then, looks like it worked then didn't it?" He said coolly with that cocky grin of his. "We didn't want them hanging around, and now they're gone. It appears that my 'acting paranoid' was only in my favor this time around. You really must make a stronger case next time."
Inside his cloak his hand gently touched the hilt of his blade hidden within the fabric, hidden from sight and hidden from notice. If he desire, both of those men would be dead but... Honestly the Assassin couldn't muster up the energy to even care. "Is there any particular reason you're here other then waving classified documents around willy nilly? I daresay you can do that in your free time, can't you?"
He looked at Karen, if he was a man with the capability of empathy he'd feel bad for her right about now. "I'm already on a mission, I'm sure whatever it is you have that it can be passed onto some other operative." It was unlikely that it was a mission for him anyways, considering he never got any missions these days more difficult than killing drunkards.
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Saturos Prox
Swordmaster
The Wildcard
I'm almost incapable of lying. I'd be a terrible spy.
Posts: 351
Etruria Fame: 1
Profession: Undercover Operative
Affinity: Anima
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Post by Saturos Prox on Jan 16, 2014 20:02:53 GMT -6
"I actually do," replied Saturos with a shrug, allowing himself to roll with Zerachiel's verbal jabs with a bit of self-depreciation. "I stay up late into the night waving it back and forth, but that's not nearly as fun as waving it in front of you." The swordsman crossed his arms in front of his chest. He realized Zerachiel probably didn't care for his devil-may-care attitude, but he could care less. He wasn't here to make friends, just to pass on orders, so if he could make his job a bit more amusing in the process, he would.
"But believe me, if I didn't have to be here, I wouldn't," he continued with a sigh. "However, I need a man for a job and the Herald deemed it appropriate that I talk to you in person since I'm the operative with the most information on the operation at hand." He tapped his temple with a pointer finger a couple of times before bringing it to a rest. "So due to the sensitive subject matter, I kept most of the report up here. Hopefully we can get along long enough for me to pass your mission on to you."
"Now before I give you the letter or divulge any more of this potential mission," continued the swordsman, removing the document in question again from his rear pocket, "which is more just important dates, times, locations, and people to remember, you don't have to accept the mission." He held the document out towards Zerachiel, flicking it back and forth as he did so. "If you'd rather run around and play garbage man, that's fine with me, I can find someone else. But..." The flicking came to a halt. "...we both know that, arm or no arm, you're still one of the sharpest operatives in the Inquisition, which I think makes this mission perfect for you."
"Other than that, I can say no more. Do you accept?"
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