Auryon led the way down several flights of stairs and to an old elevator, stepping inside and hitting a quick combination of buttons before the door closed and the thing jerked into motion.
"So, before we go in, just a quickie of the creed so that we make sure there's no trouble. Guild law is, uh...well, it's anarchy with the rules enforced by a bunch of demons, assassins, mercs, and so on and so forth so usually there's not much found of anyone who breaks the rules. The first is no killing, maiming, kidnapping, or otherwise causing harm to a member of the Guild in Guild territory. Sometimes there's still little brawls and things but we try to keep it civil. The second is that you never break a contract or a deal - which means, don't give your word to anyone on anything because you might get bound tighter to it than you initially anticipate. Questions?"
"All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost."
Boris smiled, and nodded. "Oh no, that sounds exactly like the sort of civility I can get behind. If only the criminal sort I am accustomed to had such a creed..." he lamented. Then something dawned on him, and he changed the subject.
"In hindsight, I do have a question. Am I appropriately dressed?"
As with all things, Boris asked his question with a well-crafted layer of composure, but it was clear that he regarded matters of fashion and presentation quite seriously.
Bad souls have born better sons, better souls born worse ones -St Vincent
She laughed as she pulled her mask over her face. "You look fine, darlin'. And, as for the creed - it's a double edged sword. It's savage enforcement." Auryon grinned under her mask. "You only ever find a few smears of blood and maybe a bone or chunk of flesh if you're lucky. But it keeps the Guild's honor and credibility, which is important if we want work from those who are serious."
"All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost."
"Honour among rogues is the lowest form of honour, and therefore, the most important. For the chain of truth and decency is only as strong as its weakest link, which makes us scoundrels the last line of defense, for the integrity of the world."
He took a moment to step back and assess what he had just expressed, and immediately felt the need to add a disclaimer.
"A foolish, useless sentiment, I know. ...In fact, now that I have detailed this philosophy out loud, I am embarrassed by it. Please don't quote me on it.
Introduce me to some of your friends!" he finished on that cheery note.
Bad souls have born better sons, better souls born worse ones -St Vincent
The Viper raised an eyebrow as the elevator clanged to a stop and the doors opened into a small common room. An electric heater sat in the middle and a plastic table was in the corner with a coffee machine and hot water kettle alongside dusty mugs, tea bags, and Swiss Miss hot cocoa packets. Some mercenaries sat around a poker table and a few more lounged in front of the heater on a couch with several holes in it. A couple raised their hands or dipped their head in greeting.
"I like your philosophy well enough," she said. "So does Apophis, for that matter." She turned to the rest of the group and sauntered up to the poker table, walking straight up to a cobalt-eyed, white-haired woman. Two scars were marked and visible across one side of her face and her wolfish smile revealed sharp canines: a vampire.
Viper patted the nearest assassin - a red-haired woman - on the shoulder and looked to the white-haired one. "I hope Di isn't taking all your money this year, Tai."
"That's Taipan to you, you little f***," the red-haired one snapped good-humoredly, and the vampire grinned.
"Don't you go giving away all my tricks now, f***in' snake," she told Viper, her gaze falling on Boris. "He isn't Guild."
Those words brought the room to a hush as all eyes landed on the Viper's new friend. Viper herself simply put an arm over Boris' shoulder. "That he isn't. Folks, meet Boris, brother of our fallen Silberfuchs - no, not the new one - and a dear friend of mine."
"You have friends?" an old man piped up from the corner, earning the middle finger from Auryon before she continued.
"He's human, but he's of a good sort - and by 'good sort' I mean he's going to meet us all in Hell. Boris, this here's Diamond," she gestured to the vampire. "Geomancer, specializes in gemstones of all kinds, thus the name. She's the reason our mutual friend got out of Germany after sabotaging in the second world war. She's also a big reason Boomslang's out of the picture. Then this is Taipan," she patted the red-haired woman. "An utter b**** who I'm going to kill the next time I get the chance but I'm hoping to have another fling with first. Ain't that right, darlin'?" she winked at Taipan, who gave her a coy smile, before turning to the old, gaunt man. "That's Spider, my old mentor, he took over for Sly when that bastard took off. He's a dry, seemingly humorless man, but he's still alive so apparently he's got some talent." Spider waved his fingers in greeting. "Lastly we've got Hex and Skip, but just ignore them, they're not worth anything." Skip was seated between Diamond and Taipan and was a mussy-haired young man who gave Boris a warm smile. Hex was next to Spider on the couch and seemed to be the sort that had a perpetual scowl, merely glowering at the newcomer.
"Pleasure to meet ya, Boris. Any friend of Kratzer's or Viper's is any friend of mine," Diamond said, and Spider nodded agreement.
"All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost."
Boris was pleasantly surprised by the reception of his philosophy- particularly surprised to have impressed Apophis to any degree. He'd presumed at the very beginning that he probably would never understand the ancient creature well enough to even know what her standards were, and resolved simply to be himself around Auryon, and not worry about how Apophis liked him. Well, perhaps he would have understood Apophis better if he'd ever asked Auryon a single question about her, but he considered it rude to ask a lady about her demons.
He addressed Diamond first, in Russian. His Prussian upbringing included an education in the language, to speak with his Russian neighbours, and he did not have very many opportunities to show off.
"Likewise, likewise. You had a hand in Boomslang's demise, you say? You have my admiration, and thanks. Engel's doing quite well nowadays, I'm sure he'd have sent his regards, if I'd told him I was coming."
Bad souls have born better sons, better souls born worse ones -St Vincent
"Oh, yes, I actually spoke to him quite recently," she replied in the same tongue. "But I thought I was to be in Russia, so I didn't end up dropping by. And as for Boomslang, well...It was the least I could do after the bulls*** she put us all through."
As she spoke, Taipan turned to Auryon. "Where's your demon, Vipes?"
The assassin rolled her eyes and her form shimmered, splitting off into two separate entities. The second was a tall, honey-skinned woman with golden eyes and long, dark dreadlocks. Elaborate eyeliner bordered her lids and deep blue eyeshadow was painted around it. Apophis smiled and stretched, getting used to the feel of her own skin. She smiled to reveal her too-sharp teeth and rested her arms on Taipan's shoulders. "Hello, darling," she greeted, giving Tai a quick kiss on the cheek. "Good to see you again."
The others mumbled greetings to Apophis, all of them used to this occurence and Di gestured to a few empty chairs. "Boris, Aury, Apo, grab some seats, we'll deal you in!"
"All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost."
Boris took a seat by Apophis, and nodded politely, curious, but determined to play it subtle. He didn't know that she was even capable of splitting like that, and now that she had, he considered that perhaps he should make efforts to get to know her. After all, asking a lady about her demons may be rude, but ignoring her when she was up and about? That would certainly be worse.
"Lovely to see you out, madam. Do you venture outside, often? I can't claim to know what the inside of a mind is like, but I imagine the fresh air makes for a nice change of pace." he said, conversationally.
Last edited by SirenCymbaline on Thu Feb 14, 2019 7:57 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Bad souls have born better sons, better souls born worse ones -St Vincent
Auryon looked up as she heard Boris address her demon and she smirked. "Feel free trying to make conversation but the only reason she doesn't usually sound like an automaton is because she goes through me first," she said, snickering.
"I will point out that you're hardly in a position to cast stones as far as social standing, Auryon, all things considered," Apophis said to her before turning to Boris. There were a few 'oos' from around the table. Evidently, this group quite enjoyed banter. "Thank you, sir, it is a pleasure to meet you in the proper body for once. It's somewhat uncommon, since two targets is more dangerous than one, but I do take my own form on more than rare occasions. For jobs, sometimes, or when we drop by here. It's helpful for information gathering or in combat."
"All that is gold does not glitter, Not all those who wander are lost; The old that is strong does not wither, Deep roots are not reached by the frost."
A person is a fool to become a writer. His only compensation is absolute freedom. He has no master except his own soul, and that, I am sure, is why he does it. — Roald Dahl
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