Throwing the last of the packets onto the blanket, the leopard picked at the edge of the blanket to make a string. "Ah, bosses," said Nubes. "Alarick always despised the leaders of the kingdoms he marched into. I suppose you agree with him? Also, what do you fight with? I am not very proficient with this sword" - Nubes patted the sword in question - "I like to incapacitate my target first, and it is exceptionally easy to stab someone who can't move."
S'io credesse che mia risposta fosse a persona che mai tornasse al mondo, questa fiamma staria senza piu scosse. Ma per ciò che giammai di questo fondo non tornò vivo alcun, s'i' odo il vero, senza tema d'infamia ti rispondo.
Briar appeared behind them, the blanket from earlier tied around her neck to keep it covering her shoulders and two makeshift bags in hand, "Incapacitating your target first assumes you have the time to risk failure. It's best to acquire the skill to complete a hit in a single strike."
She inclined her head toward the bag in her hands and addressed Ryder, "What is your plan for when what supplies we can carry runs out?"
"Oh, I had the time," Nubes said. "It was never like there were plenty of assassins trying to escape. I had more than enough of an ability to take the odd job, befriend the locals, join the gossip circles, and wait to hear something out of the ordinary. If a few bottles of alcohol and some flattery couldn't coax a target, well, the other assassins were remarkably bloodthirsty and eager to advance their careers." He smiled. "Not that I let them - I had my own career to advance."
S'io credesse che mia risposta fosse a persona che mai tornasse al mondo, questa fiamma staria senza piu scosse. Ma per ciò che giammai di questo fondo non tornò vivo alcun, s'i' odo il vero, senza tema d'infamia ti rispondo.
Briar kept her eyes forward. She didn't have the right to shift away from him, not with her background, but that didn't stop her from wanting to. The way he spoke was a little too similar to her sister, the comfortable way he spoke about his skill, about taking lives.
She pulled the blanket a little closer around her shoulders.
Maybe she was only uncomfortable because of his use of the word 'career'. It wasn't a job to her. A chore, maybe, a task. A means to an end.
Ryder glanced down at the makeshift weapon at his side.
"I use a sword," he softly said, "but only when I have to."
His gaze traveled to Briar.
"We'll look for supplies in the surrounding area," he answered. He was good at foraging. Even if this world wasn't his own, he would be able to find similar things for them to eat, and hunting an animal for meat never hurt.
She nodded. She wasn't trained in survivalist techniques. She was barely allowed to leave the city, and when she did it was to resorts, other cities, or other such urban landscapes. Places where her father had business, or where he wanted someone dead.
Still, she would make an attempt. She would hesitate to ask for help -shew as never supposed to look helpless- but maybe she would be allowed an exception.
This didn't feel like a conversation for Nubes. Foraging and finding supplies had never been his strong suit - boxes left far fewer traces than people did - and Briar appeared uncomfortable around him. Which was a fair response for someone who had been forced to be an assassin listening to an ex-assassin talking fondly about his job.
Still, as Nubes tugged a string out from the blanket, he said, "We can go a long way with the supplies we have - we should be able to find more before we run out of these."
S'io credesse che mia risposta fosse a persona che mai tornasse al mondo, questa fiamma staria senza piu scosse. Ma per ciò che giammai di questo fondo non tornò vivo alcun, s'i' odo il vero, senza tema d'infamia ti rispondo.
Briar nodded, still unsure. Arguing about it, though, wouldn't make more supplies appear, so she left that topic alone for now.
Still talking to Ryder, she said, "Which direction do you believe we should travel in?"
He seemed the authority on the matter. Actually, he seemed the authority in general. There was no doubting his leadership experience, but she couldn't help wondering exactly what could have pushed someone so young as him into such a position. There was no way he was much older than she was. Despite her general smallness, she would be a legal adult in a few months, and she suspected Ryder wasn't very far past that milestone, if he had reached it at all.
"I don't think there's a specific direction," he said. "I think we should just pick one and go once everyone is ready, or see if they have a better idea than mine."
"It isn't as though we can tell what lies ahead in any direction," Nubes said, tying up the blanket. He lifted it up tentatively; it held, but he could already feel his arms straining. He'd need a bit of help.
The leopard set the makeshift bag down, then walked over to his bunker. "Are you ready?" Nubes called, setting a paw on the edge of the open hatch and leaning forward to look down the metal staircase.
After a few seconds of shuffling noises, the familiar bulk of a lizard appeared, taking up most of the light from the fireplace. Lasan had obviously being stuffing his coat with odds and ends from the bunker - he must've heard what the group's plan was, either when Nubes had been dragging him down the stairs or because of the slight echo in the bunker.
"Yeah," Lasan called back, voice only a little unsteady as he slowly made his way up the stairs.
S'io credesse che mia risposta fosse a persona che mai tornasse al mondo, questa fiamma staria senza piu scosse. Ma per ciò che giammai di questo fondo non tornò vivo alcun, s'i' odo il vero, senza tema d'infamia ti rispondo.
Lust and Gluttony joined the group as they gathered outside of the bunker. Despite her relatively slim figure, Lust was carrying an absolutely massive amount of stuff on her back - Ryder didn't know how she did it without her back giving out.
"Is everyone else ready to go?" Ryder asked, slipping his bag on as he surveyed the group.
"We should be," Nubes said, trying not to look at Lust and how much she was carrying. She definitely wasn't human, but seeing someone with her body style lift that much was a tad surreal.
The leopard began to lift his own bag up, but felt something else grab onto it. Looking over the top of the bag, Nubes saw Lasan on the other side, crouching down and straining to lift the bag over his own back. Nubes let go, running around Lasan so that the leopard was standing behind Lasan and helping the lizard keep the bag up.
Lasan rose back up, taking a few deep breaths while the weight of the bag stabilized. When it did, Nubes looked over at Ryder. "Pick a direction," he said.
S'io credesse che mia risposta fosse a persona che mai tornasse al mondo, questa fiamma staria senza piu scosse. Ma per ciò che giammai di questo fondo non tornò vivo alcun, s'i' odo il vero, senza tema d'infamia ti rispondo.
Briar watched from the outskirts of the group, a sizable amout be supplied slung over her back. She was much stronger than she looked, but the amount that Lust carried was incomparably massive. She reminded herself not to engage in straight combat with her. If a situation arose in which Briar would have to kill Lust, the element of surprise may be the only useful assets in her arsenal.
She pushed the thoughts of violence from her mind. She should be thinking about how the group could work best as a unit to get them out of this situation. Lust's strength could come in handy in many other ways as well. No one was gurenteeed to die.
Ryder took a deep breath. There was no good direction to pick - each one was equally a mystery, and he just had to hope that he picked one with relatively good resources.
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