Help me out, would ya? (Rine)

[Sigma]

It was the evening. Sigma had been following a messenger of Etruria who was carrying what he presumed must've been some kind of report of the situation in Ilia. This could be bad if the message mentions the night he and Orcleous accidentally had to kill a few of them. It would not be a good thing if they actively decided to seek the resistance by spreading knowledge of their existance to the other camps. Sigma knew he would have to falsify that message, throw the enemy offtracks. No way the resistance could handle this kind of pressure right now. After secretly following the messenger on foot, Sigma was glad to see he didn't look at the letter's content. That way he wouldn't know if the message was falsified or not! Who knew loyalty could be so beneficial.

Arriving at a modest inn on the side of the road, Sigma noticed the Etrurian going in to rent out a room for the night. Hmm, this might be his chance to steal the original letter. Good thing he had bought some ink and some paper. Even with apt skills for copying handwritings, he still needed actual equipment to pull this off. Sigma decided to wait around for maybe a half hour or so, just to be sure not to make himself look suspicious by entering the inn mere moments after the military messenger. The sun had already set and nightfall turned the white landscape that was Ilia into a dark and menacing wasteland. Surprisingly enough, Sigma never minded that fact. This was home after all.

The inside of the inn was surprisingly clean. As he entered, he saw a couple of notable things: the barkeep behind the counter, a few villagers enjoying themselves with some stories, a small band of loud mercenaries in the corner, probably winding down after a long day and the messenger, quietly eating some bread while reading some kind of book.

Already starting to make a plan in his head, Sigma decided to go at one of the tables after signaling the bartender to bring him whatever they were serving with a mug of ale. Sitting down at one of the empty tables nearest to the wall, he removed his bandanna for a bit and decided to relax for a little while while unstrapping his sword and leaning it against the table, however he never let his eyes wander too far from the messenger, that letter he carried was the main objective after all.

[rine]

That day Rine was attempting to get some rest... He had to secure a place to stay otherwise he would be left at the mercy of the elements of Ilia. Sleeping outside frankly where allt hose wild animals were was not something he wanted to risk doing, especially with his last encounter that involved a bear. In the evening Rine walked inside of a local inn on the side of the road, prepared to spend a small amount of gold in order to obtain a room. The inn did not really stand out to him, except for the usual bar crowd that inhabited it. Various people around which were interacting among-st each other. He couldn't help but wonder what to do next after he finally situated himself over here. He had to find some kind of opportunity to gain.

Walking up to the innkeep, Rine would come up to him in his usual leather ensemble and black pants, with nothing but the axe on his back and begin to speak to him. "Hello, I'd like a room for one night please". The boy would say as he pulled out some gold to pay for it as well. This was a pretty normal place at the moment with a normal vibe, but just what was awaiting Rine today?

[Sigma]

The messenger continued to read whatever book he had on him. Hmm, he definitly didn't seem to be a very outspoken person. The only sign of social interaction the man seemed to be talking to the inkeeper about payment and nothing else. Was he simply introverted or was his mission of the highest importance? Still trying to study his quarry, Sigma didn't notice the food that had arrived on his table. Neither did he notice the new traveller until he started speaking. Looking at him, Sigma quickly gathered that the boy must've been some kind of fighter, what with that axe on his back. Though his apparent young age was enough to show the lack experience he might have.



Studying the young man from the corner of his eyes, he noticed the scars on his face. Well, maybe he did have some experience after all... Maybe he could even be somewhat useful to him. Things like this were always easier with a partner for a well placed distraction after all. Though first of all he'd have to see if the boy had what it took. Not anybody is fit for activities like this. But there was something about the boy. Maybe it was simply his rugged appearance with that messy hair and those worn pants, but Sigma definitly felt that he would be an interesting person, at the very least.

Waving at him, he gestured to the red haired youth to come over:

- Hey you! What's a boy like you doing in a place like this? You"re on a big journey or what? Come on,
sit down, I won't bite. The name's Sigma.

Before he could respond, Sigma was already shouting to the inkeep to bring him a plate of food.

- Don't worry it's on me kid.

[rine]

As Rine proceeded to order a room. He would notice that someone had apparently tried to call over his attention just now. Turning his head over the other way, Rine would excuse himself for a minute as he got called over to another table. "O-Oh geez." Rine said to himself, he didn't expect someone to actually attempt to talk to him while he was over here. The boy had nothing to lose right now however, so he would just move over to this Sigma person , who had been kind enough to also order a plate of food for the young man. To be honest he was rather hungry as well. "Hi there." Rine had said solemnly, starting to move over to Sigma, and then sitting down near him. "Oh I'm actually traveling around. I want to make a name for m-myself you see." Rine had said with a little stutter in his voice, it would be clear that Rine was a rather young kid, and likely pretty inexperienced in what he was doing. "Oh thanks Sigma. I appreciate it."

It only made sense that Rine would thank him for the free meal he had just gotten, the bigger question was would he get more out of him possibly?

[Sigma]

- Making a name for yourself eh? Hmph, well that's a pretty nice goal to have...

He seemed quite nice in fact. Polite and respectful too. Well, more polite than the regular traveler anyways... Sigma was already taking a small liking to him. Of course, he still needed to be sure about if this kid would be useful in any way, but his gut was already telling him that this was a good one. Taking a swig from his mug full of cold ale, Sigma decided to see what exactly they had been served. From the looks of it, there was some roasted ham accompanied with bread and some kind of pottage, mushroom and maybe.. leek? At least, that's what Sigma was smelling anyways. He was surprised to see that this quaint inn was able to get ingredients with respectable quality all the way from the south to Illia. Normally, it was hard to find actual fresh vegetables, even more so meat of this quality. Smelling the aromas, Sigma took a first bite out of the bread, a way to make the pleasure last longer before he would eat the ham.

The messenger was still in the corner of the room... reading. Nothing else it seemed like. Looking at him, Sigma was still trying to devise a plan to maybe try and separate him. Maybe bring him somewhere where the rest of the people wouldn't be able to see him. Right now, he just wanted to try and steal that letter without him noticing... Hmm, maybe waiting for him to go to sleep would be the better idea. For now, he could rewrite a new message in about an hour or so, to make sure he at least could stay faithful the to original author's handwriting. He couldn't tak the risk of using his own handwriting, the Etrurians are probably very well experienced with falsified information and know how to spot it... Sigma was going to have to make this look good. But for now since the messenger was still awake, he decided to chat a bit more with his new companion:

- So what's your name? If you decided to travel around Ilia it also probably means you come from here, no? I'd find it strange that a young boy likeyou would go of his own accord to this frozen tundra.

[rine]

"Yeah. I really wanna get out there in the world".

Rine had addressed Sigma in a rather calm and noticeably nice manner, he was a naive boy but he wasn't too naive about the world. The food that Sigma himself had ordered would appear to come over to their table, and Rine would thank the server a little quietly before analyzing it. The food looked pretty well done judging from how it was served, at least it was well done coming from a regular inn that anyone could go into. Without much hesitation, Rine would begin to partake in some of the food. Grabbing a piece of the ham and biting it off rather quickly, wow. He had already gotten a free meal just from walking into an inn, he had to see what else he would obtain just from standing around with this guy. The ham was rather delectable to Rine as he had not eaten too much that day, and happened to be rather hungry when Sigma offered him the food. "Gee, this foods pretty good. Thanks Sigma." The boy stated as he would move on to continue eating the meat, it really was one of his favorite things to eat actually.

Delighting himself with the ham, Rine would stop for a second to move onto a bit of the bread which was available to him right now and get a piece of it off for him to put in his mouth. Chewing it down rather well and swallowing, Rine would begin to respond to Sigmas question. "My name is Rine, I do come from here y-yeah. I want to make something of myself, but I just departed on my journey recently."That was correct, Rine didn't necessarily know what he was doing at the moment however. He was mostly just "wandering around" and hoping something would occur.

[Sigma]

- Hmm, out of the frying and into the fire eh? I'm impressed you're doing this at such a young age.

Sigma was pleased to hear that his deduction was spot on about Rine. Hmm, now if only he could more sure about what that messenger would do... Looking back towards the boy, that gu feeling he had didn't seem to fade. Should he really ask him? The resistance needs new members yes... As much as it can get in actuality. However, would it be right to bring a person so young into such dangerous situations? Maybe this mission could be a way to see if he had what it took. Sigma didn't want to bring back somebody who would get themself killed in an instant or at least, didn't have the potential to grow as a fighter. A small mission like this could be the perfect way to see if the lad had it in him. Not only that, but if they did need to fight, it was simply just one messenger. They would be able to run before any reinforcements showed up. However, Sigma knew that wouldn't happen, his sword skills may be somewhat average, he had full confidence in his infitration and sneaking abilities.

Drinking from the mug of ale which had a slight fizz to it, Sigma stared at him for a few moments, trying to weigh the pros and cons. Would he simply run to the Etrurians and sell him out for some gold? Would he actually grow into a great asset for the resistance? Shaking his head a bit, Sigma put his elbows on the table, both hands held together in front of his face the way people in negotiations like to do. Not waiting any further, he decided to ask him in a slower and lower voice:

- So let me ask you something Rine... I know you've got that axe on your back but how are you in terms of sleight of hand and general thievery? You don't have to answer that if you don't want to but I might have a small job for you. If you help me out, I'll be sure to make it worth your while. Though i can't say anything else unless you accept.
What do you say?

[rine]

"Well yeah. Like I said.. I just didn't want to wait around anymore".

Rine would then continue to eat and delight himself with the food that was laid out in front of them. Sigma would definitely be able to tell that the little guy was quite hungry judging from how he was not hesitating to make quick work of the damned ham in front of them. Proceeding to cut off another piece of the ham and begin to devour it, the well cooked meat tasting rather divine upon entering his mouth. While this may be any regular run of the mill inn, at this point anything that wasn't cooked badly would taste divine to the young man. Swallowing now, he would move on once more to the leeks and consume them at a rather quick pace. They always said young people ate pretty quickly, and rine lived up to that phrase. Being torn apart as fast as paper entering a shredder, while Rine himself had preferred to eat dishes involving predominantly meat, it was at this point he would take what the young man could get. Swallowing down the chunks of Leek he chewed up with a noticeable gulp. Rine would turn over to Sigma. "Oh man, this place cooks pretty well." The boy was really enjoying the cooking of the inn, however Sigma had then went over and made a interesting proposal to him based on how Rine was carrying a weapon.

"Sleight of hand? I know how to pick a pocket a little bit, but I'm no professional thief or anything, what do you want me to do?", it seemed he was being given a chance to attain probably some coin while he was at it. So he was up for it clearly, what was the worse that could happen right?

[Sigma]

- Well somebody seems quite eager... Alright then.

As he said those words, the messenger got up from his seat. Taking a few bites of food and washing it down with a bit of alcohol, he let the man go up the stairs to his room. Making sure he left the room, Sigma went back to talking with his new acquaintance. While smirking a little bit he said: " Eh, damn Etrurians... Hmph, ok then. You saw how he was carrying his messenger bag right? Well i need to get whatever he's carrying and replace it with a fake one. There's two steps to this, first we get the master key from the innkeep. After that, we'll sneak inside of his room to get the message and finally rewrite a new one before leaving the inn. For payment, I'll let you keep whatever gold he carries on him, how's that? We're talking military officer gold here.

Sigma wasn't really interested in the money. Never was really despite being a thief. He could leave the loot to the young one without any remorse as long as his mention and Orcleous's would disappear from that letter.

Looking at the people inside of the place, he could count about 4 people besides them: the innkeep and the three mercenaries from before. It definitly seemed like they had some kind of contract with the innkeep from the look of it what with their swords and tomes at the ready, if the innkeep saw Sigma and Rine trying to steal the key, it's without a doubt that he'd order the mercenaries to catch them... Hmm, what to do, what to do. Getting closer to him, he told the boy:

- I'll keep the bodyguards busy, I want you to go get the key for me alright? He's probably got it close to him. Don't be reckless though, better fall back than to get caught. If all else fails I can pick the lock as a plan B. When you have it go upstairs and I'll be right behind you.

All right, let the mission begin.

(Sigma exits thread due to Rine not responding)