Ganus- 5th solo: Scales and fur

[igordragonian]

"Hmm.. it would be bloody and bothersome..." Saluq's father said with humm.

Jilaila blinked. "How about.. we make a trap wedding? He won't ignore something insulting as that, and gathering so much of your clan in one place?"

Saluq sighed. "I guess, I should get used, to being used by beatiful women.."

[Emmerlaus]

Acho chuckle, take Saluq in a headlock like it was his brother already: " Cheer up! You gonna have a slice of two beauties when this is all over with..."

He laugh warmly and also give a friendly poke to his mute friend slave next to them.

He turn to Saluq's father: " No matter what, their is a bloody storm incoming. We cannot avoid it. Jahfar is too dangerous, ambitious and heartless. If you give him the opportunity, he is gonna crush you and make you his slave. He already made one of the Prince a woman and made it his harem slave. "

Acho sigh: " Give yourself a day or two to make the wedding and trap everything accordingly. But do take this matter seriously. Jahfar will be using drugs to his advantage for his advantage. You better be prepared. I would also get a few batch of holy water if you can."

[Theoboldi]

Azur shudders for a moment at the thought of the fat man in front of her being turned into one of Jakhar's servants, the thought too disturbing for her to handle. Then, however, she shakes it off and voices her approval.

"And make sure to get me the biggest sword you have. I'm looking forward to cutting him a new one."

Under her breath, she mutters to Saluq: "Aren't you lucky? Acho doesn't usually want to share. But then again, maybe we're all lucky in this case."


Suddenly, however, the slave girl who has silently entered the room clears her throat, causing seemingly everyone in the room to turn their heads at her. Many of them look genuinely surprised to see her. "Will this be your course of action?" she asks Saluq's father, her voice a flat monotone. "If so, my master would like to have a word with the visitors. He hopes you will have no issues with this."

[igordragonian]

Saluq was surprised.
He sighed. "Well, I guess, one trained woman for two enhanced girls is... a good trade." he purred.
The mute slave just looked worried.

"I'll consider it all. Saluq, you may take them to HIM. Get them what ever they require.." Visir El Majin decided to halt the decision just a bit.

[Emmerlaus]

Acho chuckle at Saluq words. He poke his mute friend and give him a reassuring smile.

He turn to the new girl, frowning. He sk her: " What are you, madam, and who is your master?"

[Theoboldi]

“I am-“ the girl says, seemingly completely unconcerned by Achoo's questioning. “ -a creation of my master. He is a humble guest of this family, traveled from the beyond.“

Should Achoo think to ask, the members of Saluq's family are quick to confirm her claims. Saluq himself only offers “He's not dangerous, if that's what you're wondering. Be careful, though. Not all of our extraplanar guests are bound to our wills, and that includes him. I'm not really sure what he is, either.“

[Emmerlaus]

Azur frowned. He wasn't sure what to think of such a answer. He had meet a undead before but this time, it seemed different. He made sure to not touch her though, he wasn't sure how the tatoo ion his body would react. In fact, he made a mental note to not touch anyone carelessly. He realized also that Saluq and his mute friend (whats his name again) slave didnt seem to have any reactions but he didnt want it to suddenly act to somebody else without his knowledge.

Acho shrug and turn to Saluq: " Well then, please lead the way then if we have to meet her master..."

[Theoboldi]

Suddenly, Azur puts her hand on Achoo's shoulder, causing the familiar sensation of being at sea to wash over the two of them. Knowing that she has his attention, Azur then retracts her hand, immediately tensing up once the pleasant feeling is no longer affecting her.

"I don't like this." she says to Achoo and Jiliala. "Something's wrong with this girl. She smells too...alive. Moreso than you. I can hear her heartbeat, too. But there's nothing behind her voice. No emotion, nothing."

Indeed, if the girl did indear hear what Azur just said, she shows no reaction to it.

[Emmerlaus]

Acho sigh: " Nothing we can do about it. We can only follow along with the motion right now."

[Theoboldi]

Azur hesitates for another moment, as she finds the idea of following the slave girl really uncomfortable. She gives a short glare at her, growling, before finally resigning herself to Achoo's choice. "Fine." she says. "But this better won't end up biting us in the ass. I'm keeping my sword on me, in any case."

Undisturbed, the slave girl opens the exit of the chamber, and Saluq moves ahead to lead you out. "Follow me." he says.

Quietly, and looking nervous, Saluq and the slave girl lead the group out of the mansion, taking them across the streets towards a small, unassuming tower of relatively simple, worked marble. Aside from its painted roof and windowsills, it has barely any decorations, making it stand out among the more opulent neighbourhood.

The slave girl leads ahead now, opening up the tower's thick wooden doors, and waving everyone inside. However, when Saluq attempts to enter, she raises a hand to stop him, causing the sorcerer to freeze in his tracks. "My master wishes to talk to your guests privately. He hopes you will have no issues with this." For a moment, Saluq grinds his teeth, but then he relents. He and Azur exchange looks, feeling equally bad about going along with this, although probably for different reasons. Then, the doors close behind the group, leaving Saluq outside.

The inside of the tower is a rather odd place, compared to the other mansion you have seen so far. The whole place seems to be set up as a laboratory, with wooden tables full of odd chemicals and mechanisms, strange organic remains on metal trays, unidentifiable materials preserved in glass jars. Weirdly enough, it doesn't smell as badly as a place like this normally would, with not even a whiff of any sort of drug or decay in the air.

The slave girl leads the group up a flight of stairs, going through several more floors of laboratories, all filled similarly to the first one. Finally, she comes to a stop in one room where there appears to be another person, an old, sickly thin Khajar with a scraggly beard, dressed in the plain garbs of a doctor. He stands at a table, surgically stitching up what appears to be corpse of a dead Kinjar. From the looks of it, the corpse was once a beggar or outcast, given the poor state of its body and fur.

Suddenly, the old Khajar raises his head, examining the group with piercing, yellow eyes. "There you are." he comments with a cold impatient tone that seems to be directed at Achoo and those with him rather than the slave girl.

She, meanwhile, simply bows to the group, stating "I introduce to you Master Javed."

[Emmerlaus]

Acho sigh: " Maybe you were right Azur. Maybe it was a bad idea."

To the old sickly man in front of them: " We agreed to your request to come here. Let's all try to be amiable. You can start by telling us what do you wanted to chat with us?"

[igordragonian]

Jiliala bowed.
"Excuse my slave's hostility.. we just have survived an assination attempt..."

[Theoboldi]

Javed, even as he is talked to, continues stitching up the corpse, somehow managing to do so flawlessly without even looking. In fact, he does so with such dexterity and speed, that by the time everyone else has spoken, he is done and puts aside the needle.

"I've never been an amiable fellow. But I'm observant. You needn't to pretend about your master's status in here, princess."

At this, Azur momentarily reaches for her sword, but manages to stop herself just in time. "What the heck is that supposed to mean?!" she snarls. "Who are you and what game are you trying to play here?"

Javed, in a motion that only misses him rolling his eyes, raises his hand to dissuade further agression from the dragoness. "I've not invited you for a chat. I've invited you to make you a proposition." Looking off towards the laboratory's window, he explains "Instead of risking your lives in some foolish gambit to stop Jakhar's plans, you should run away. There are ways through the mountain passes or through the sewers that you can use, where you would face only a minimum of resistance.

You could abandon Saluq and his family, escape the vizier's wrath, and move on to more important and less dangerous tasks. Your lives would be improved vastly, and my research would benefit.

That is my offer."

After all he just said, Javed does not even blink, and he has kept the same cold, detached tone throughout the whole of it. Azur, meanwhile, is glaring daggers at him.

[Emmerlaus]

Acho listened quietly the whole thing. When it was his turn to speak, he ask: " What IS your agenda then? What ARE your research? "

[igordragonian]

Jiliala frowned.
"What is so important? Hmm?"

[Theoboldi]

For the first time since you've first seen him, Javed actually stretches the corners of his mouth into a smile. It's faint, but prideful, and he seems very much glad that this questions have been posed.

"Life." he says. "Life is the answer to all of those questions. It is the greatest cause of all, and the topic of my research."

The slave girl interjects at this point, toneless as ever. "Thanks to his studies, Master Javed was able to create me. His knowledge is far-reaching. Eventually it will entail all there is to know."

If he enjoyed that compliment, Javed himself does not let it show. Somehow it seems doubtful that he did, though. Instead, he goes on to provide an explanation. "Your world contains two individuals of interest to me. To you, they are known as Kaladan and Miyaris. I'm sure I need not to retell their legends for you, so I will just say that their current status is a mystery to me, and my status as an outsider makes it difficult to approach the rather.....vigilant....gods that remain."

A loud "hmph!" emerges from Azur at this point. "Yeah, okay. You want us to go after two dead gods. Maybe we can paint the sky green while we're at it?"

Expertly stiffling a sigh, Javed crosses his arms. "There is no need to do such a thing. All I ask of you is to further investigate that special connection that you all seem to share with the ocean." Suddenly, the sensation of salt water and crushing waves flares up within Azur and Achoo, despite them not being close to touching each other. It feels as though some outside force is making it happen, and it passes as suddenly as it started, the sudden oppressive feeling of outside interference gone.

"That connection. And also those visions of the disappeared empire you've had. Suffice it to say I have my reasons to believe it will reveal the information I desire. All without any direct influence on my part." Javed, for some reason, sound almost glad at that last part.

Meanwhile, Azur stands shakily, and throws Achoo a glare. She seems very unhappy about what just happened, and eager to lash out at the old man.

[Emmerlaus]

Acho share Azur repulsion of the guy himself. he take a step foward;

" Running away won't solve the problem. Even if we fled now, Jakar would still be on our tails with a clan backing him up. Secondly, you know way too much. I cannot trust you right away. And finally, it's also about revenge. Jakar will need to die for all he have done. Its also the only way we will be able to sleep peacefully at night. So I'm afraid we will have to turn down your offer."

[igordragonian]

Jiliala was curiouse to the very least. This bimbofied assasian wasn't so much into mysticsm, occult and mysteries..
but she dreamed of freedom. Being able to sleep with two eyes shut.

"Achoo.. Azur.. why can't we do both?'

[Emmerlaus]

Acho sigh hearing Jililah. He answer her: " Please mistress, not now. I'll explain to you later the true meaning of freedom. "

Their is a slight impatience/disappointement in his voice that makes Jililah realize he is not happy with her for not trusting their judgement.

[Theoboldi]

"Revenge?" Javed's eyes narrow, suddenly shining with a dull inner glow, and it seems as if his form stands a few feet taller. It's hard to tell, however, as a slight headache suddenly distracts the group.

Then, however, it passes, and Javed is the same frail old men he has always seemed to be, his back now turned to the group. When he speaks, his voice seems filled with bile. "Typical. People like you will always cling to such worthless goals. Go ahead then. At least it will ensure your security, and not be a complete waste of time."

Azur, for her part, throws Achoo a smile. She seems very much happy with his choice. With the same smile, now somewhat smug, she adresses Javed. "Aww, sorry we've gotta leave you to stew a bit. We'll get back to finding our destiny when Jakhar won't hurt any more innocents."

The only answer the old man offers is a cold "They'd live. And many more would if helped me."

The slave girl speaks up again, the same emotionless tone as ever. "Master Javed will apologize for his outburst in time. You may leave now, but please reconsider. His ultimate goal is the charity of eternal health."

[Emmerlaus]

Acho encourage the girls to the exit. But before going out, he suddenly graz Azur and kiss her with passion. He let her go soon after that though: " Im not sure I can give you more today, it's being tiring. I would prefer our first time to be when we are both full of energy and fully rested. "

He winks at her playfully before starting to walk again. Near the exit, he turn to Jililah, his tone a bit more neutral: " You wanna know the true concept of freedom Jililah? Freedom is not just in responsabilities but it's also in attachement. Love bond you to those you love..."

He hugs her and sigh. He seem to warm up a little: " Your father loves nobody, he is truly free. Both the tree of us are bond by our hearts. Your father would crush those feelings no matter what if he is allowed to live. I don't want to seperate from either Azur or you but if it's your wish, if you feel you are capable to do so... you go go ahead and accept this man's offer? If we are alive after this, we could regroup... or you will be able to flee on your own. How about it? "

Even though the answer is obvious, Jililah mind have being altered because of the drugs. Acho explained things so she could understand and follow the resaonning he had, so that she came up with the answer herself.

[igordragonian]

Jiliala rolled her eyes, as Azure mentioned innocents. As if there is such a thing!
she hissed with envy when Acoo gave Azure attention first.

From all the fancy words, Achoo said, Jiliala understood, he threatening to forsake her!

Her sharp pupils widened with horror. She clang to Achoo, clawing his back, clinging to him, smashing her breasts against him, as her heart pounded with fear.
"No!' she mewed. "Don't leave me! I'll be good!" she whinned.
"You can punish me, as much as you want, but don't abandon me!" she begged with tears in her eyes, clinging to him, tightening her tail around him.

[Emmerlaus]

Acho sighed. he let her be clingy and ignored the claws on his back. His scales were providing protection anyway.

He kiss her forehead: " Silly girl. Seem like you would rather die with me rather then flee on your own. And that's what I meant. If you are reallysorry, don't be jealous of Azur in the future. If she is gonna stay by our side, your jalousy isn't welcomed. "

He wait for her to calm down and let his words sink in...

[igordragonian]

Jiliala looked at Azur, and then at Achoo.
She.. noded slowly.

[Emmerlaus]

Jiliala looked at Azur, and then at Achoo.
She.. noded slowly.

Acho kiss her on the lips while ticking the base of her tail. It was a sign of affection between them: " Good girl. I'll hold you up on that promise. "

He hugs Jililah a bit longer before letting her go. His smile to Jililah is reassuring and loving.

[Theoboldi]

Azur responds to the kiss in time, showing all the appreciation she has for Achoo's decision at once. When it's done, she whispers "Oh, don't think you're weaselling your way out of this. You've got this dragon by the horns."

When Jiliala shows her own signs of being jealous, she lets Achoo handle it at first, growing more accustomed to leaving these decisions to him. When he's done, however, she puts a gentle hand on the catwoman's shoulder. "I'm sorry, Jilly. I'm sure Achoo's eyes are still firmly on you. As are mine, you know."

[Emmerlaus]

Acho agree with Azur with a smile and a group hug: " Indeed. "

[igordragonian]

Jiliala purred, and hugged them both.
She stayed like that for few minutes/

"So... what now?"

[Emmerlaus]

Acho sigh: " We can only wait for Saluq's dad to grow some real balls and prepare for war. It will ring at his doorsteps sooner then later anyway."

OCC: Who should take over next in the story? Igordragonian, me or you Theo?

[igordragonian]

Saluq had led the three to their promised house, where they could cool down from the whole excitement
The place was simple, without almost no decorations
but there were a bath and few beds.

Saluq:"This house were used for a family of slaves before you.". he explained.