Onsen was a small town. Not one of those backwater hick towns where the most activity you ran into was when a cow got loose, but far from the kind of city Kiri was used to. In Onsen, if something went missing, everyone and his brother turned out to search until the thief was caught. If someone died of an unnatural cause - or natural, for that matter - the gossip went on long after the body was buried and rotten.
Not exactly the best place for a down-on-her-luck, gun-toting, sharp-shooting mercenary to find work.
Kiri lounged - that was really the only word for it - in the creaky wooden chair, her feet propped up on the dirty table, nibbling her fingernail, bored out of her wits. There were only two places that had any nightlife in town, the inn and the tavern. She currently sat in the latter of the two, staring around at a bleak scene. A few passed out drunks in the corner, and a barmaid who was several decades past her prime were the only other inhabitants of the dim, smoky room. The beer was watered down horse piss, and the liquor was worse. Her purse was getting uncomfortably slim, and if she wasn’t careful, she’d end up doing something stupid. Like, you know, stealing.
The legs of her chair hit the ground with a thump as she leaned forward and stood up. “Well, I’ve had all I can stand of this excitement for tonight,” she declared to the unconscious drunk at the table next to her, words nearly dripping with chipper sarcasm. Lifting one hand, two fingers extended, to her forehead in a highly ironic salute, she turned on one heel and strode out into the brisk chill of the night, her heavy boots thumping on the wooden floor, then plodding into the dust of the road.
It really was a beautiful night. This far from real civilization, there were few lights, so the stars sprinkled the sky like salt on the rim of a martini glass. Not that they had martinis in Onsen. You had to hit up C-Prime or Sparta to get a decent mixed drink like that. Still, Kiri rather liked ale and whiskey, if the quality was sufficiently good - unlike that served at the tavern which she was currently endeavouring to distance herself from as much as possible. The inn was on the other side of town, a good five or ten minute walk, depending on whether or not you got stuck behind a plodding donkey or horse cart. At this time of night, though, the only other soul in sight was yet another drunk, this one staggering around across the road from her.
Kiri craned her neck back to look up at the stars as she walked. It wasn’t often she got to appreciate beauty like that. Hers was a dirty line of work, doing whatever brought money. There was a peace in the stars she wished she could have…. But waxing philosophical was boring. Her eyes dropped to look forward just in time to catch the startled look on the face of the man walking towards her before she quite literally slammed into him.
They were both knocked back a few steps, and Kiri took a moment to recover her equilibrium before berating the other.
“Watch where you’re going, you drunken idiot! Some people are tryin’ ta walk here!”
“Beg your pardon, ma’am, I meant no disrespect. Just… wasn’t watching where I was going,” he replied nervously, eyeing the twin pistols slung at her hip.
Kiri sniffed. “Clearly. You don’t seem drunk, so what are you doing wandering around a town like this at an hour like this?” She looked him up and down. Scuffed boots, plain brown pants, and a shirt that was of just slightly too good a quality to pull off the scruffy look he was clearly going for. He wasn’t half-bad looking, but in a shifty, uncertain sort of way.
“Ah, well, yes, you see, I’m a bounty hunter by trade.” Ah, that explained the shiftyness. Kiri liked bounty hunters in general, she had a lot in common with them. Only difference was, Kiri was generally less scrupulous in the jobs she was willing to take. “The name’s Tomlyn. I’ve just come upon some work, thanks to one of my agents, and I’m looking to start on that.”
Now that caught her interest. The prospect of work always perked her up, mainly because it included the prospect of money. “Work, eh? Well, today’s your lucky day. I’m a mercenary by trade, and I currently happen to be out of work. Pay me a decent wage and I’m yours. I’m Kiri, by the by.”
It was Tomlyn’s turn to look her up and down. Her leather jacket was worn almost through at the elbows, but still kept her warm on chilly nights. The vest she wore underneath clung flatteringly to the curve of her chest, only the collar of the dark red shirt that was her bottom layer visible at her throat. A beauty she was not, but Kiri had always been of the belief that looking cute in her line of work was entirely possible - and preferable. Her short, spiky brown hair was messy and tousled by the wind tonight, and several locks of it flopped in her eyes whenever she turned her head too fast.
There was a strange look in the bounty hunter’s eyes. Almost… distaste? When he spoke, she could hear it in his voice. “Well… I’m sure you’re excellent at your job, but… I don’t feel you’d be a good fit for my particular goals. You see, I like to do things my own way, and my own ways usually involves leaving my target alive at the end.” And before she could respond, he’d stepped to the side and walked right past her.
Kiri pouted. There really was no other word for it. She crossed her arms across her chest and glared at the swiftly retreating figure. “I don’t always kill people…” she muttered to herself. Well, she shrugged, Tomlyn’s loss. Work would come. It always did… she’d just rather it come before she ran out of gold, rather than after.
With that in mind, she once again set off towards the inn. It didn’t take long to get there, and the sight inside was enough to raise her spirits considerably. In stark contrast to the tavern, the dining room of the inn was almost three-quarters full of people of all sorts, laughing and talking and drinking and eating and just generally enjoying themselves. The majority of the clientele either looked a lot like her, or were clearly farmers or craftsmen of some sort. Rough types, but good people. Her people. Off in the far corner, though, a glint of silver caught her eye. It was a ring, a thick silver band set with a gleaming red stone, on the hand of a man dressed all in black clothes of impeccable quality. His hair fell to his shoulder, straight as a knife, and also black, and his skin was porcelain white.
Everything about the man screamed wealth, but the look in his eyes threatened steel and fire to anyone who dared try to lay their hands in an illicit manner on any of that wealth. Frankly, he scared her, but he was scanning the room like he was looking for something. Or someone. Kiri quickly ordered two mugs of ale at the bar - noting happily that the dark, foaming brew that came from the keg was far removed from the pale yellow piss the tavern served - and weaved her way through the crowd to stand in front of his table. “Mind if I join you?”
For the second time that night, Kiri was looked over from head to toe, and met with a look of distaste. This time, however, the one looking nodded and gestured for her to sit down. “Go right ahead. I hope that ale is for me?”
“Nope,” Kiri said without missing a beat. “Planned to drink both m’self.” She grinned rakishly and slid one of the mugs across the table into his waiting hand. He didn’t return the smile. “You look like a man in need of some help.”
“Do I now,” he said, voice entirely without inflection. Kiri couldn’t tell if he was deadpan, or just a jerk, and didn’t really care.
“Well, what else would a wealthy gentleman such as yourself be doing in a place like this?” She raised an eyebrow, which he did return.
“I was in fact looking for help. Unfortunately for you, I’ve already hired a perfectly capable bounty hunter.” Kiri’s mind immediately went to Tomlyn, and she laughed out loud, earning herself a mildly concerned look as the man took a long drink of his ale.
“Y’know, I bet he’s capable. Not capable enough to know how to build a crew, though, else he would’a hired me when he ran into me outside. Now, I know how to handle a job. Do the recon, get the info, build the crew and the plan, get it done. That’s the way I work. You’ll need more than some greenhorn, wannabe hunter. Unless your job involves picking apples, or getting a cat out of a tree, that is.” His gaze had sharpened as she talked, his black eyes becoming unreadable and deep - unnervingly so.
After she had finished speaking, there was a long pause. Kiri sipped her ale, grimaced, then took a long drink - much better. Finally, he spoke.
“Perhaps you’re right. You do seem quite, ah… capable.” He dropped a coin purse onto the table with a heavy thud that made her eyebrows arch. “The job is quite simple. Find the target, and bring him to me. Alive is highly preferable, but unharmed is not a necessity. In fact, you could even say it would be a detriment.” Next on the table was a large manila envelope which he slid across to her. Opening it she found a single sheet of paper with a picture and a few words. She gave it a quick glance then looked back up at him.
“Seems simple enough. How much?”
“Two thousand gold now, the same again once he’s delivered.”
Her eyebrows nearly disappeared into her hair at this. Well, there was no question whether she’d take the job now. That was damn good money! Although she did wonder slightly why he would offer so much for such a seemingly simple job. Whatever.
“Done, ah… what should I call you?” She didn’t bother to ask his name, she knew he wouldn’t tell her his real one.
“You may call me… Black Diamond.” He gave an enigmatic smile.
“Black Diamond, eh? Well, I’m Kiri. Should I bring this, ah…” She glanced down at the paper for the name. “Midas, back here to Onsen?”
“That would do nicely. Don’t worry too much about that though. Once you have him, I will find you, you may be certain of that.”
Kiri grinned and stood up, draining the last of her ale, then scooping up the money bag and envelope. “Sounds good to me. Pleasure talking with you, hopefully we’ll meet again soon.”
“Indeed.”
Nodding her head once in a quick farewell, Kiri returned to the bar for a refill on the wonderful, rich dark ale they served. By the time she turned around again, Black Diamond was gone, unsurprisingly. With a half-hearted shrug, Kiri tucked the money in her pocket and the envelope in her pack, to be perused later. For now, though, she intended to celebrate this good fortune. A quick scan of the room revealed one table with a rousing game of cards going, and an empty chair, which she quickly filled. “Mind if I join, gentlemen?”
A few hours later, and a few hundred gold richer, Kiri left the inn, waving over her shoulder to the friends she’d made in her drunkenness. “‘Night, boys! I’ll leave ya th’rest of your money for now…” she called over her shoulder as the door slowly closed behind her. She was just about to begin her stagger towards the house she was renting when a sound caught her attention. It sounded almost like… a snore? She listened carefully until it came again. Yes, definitely a snore. Following the sound to it’s source revealed a man standing up, leaning against the side of the inn, fast asleep. On his feet.
Kiri shook her head to make sure he wasn’t some drunken illusion, but he stayed clear. In fact, now he even looked familiar. She moved closer, and sure enough, it was Tomlyn, the strange bounty hunter who was now her competition on this new job. Well, well, well… a wicked thought stole into her mind and she grinned. It would have been scary, had their been anyone around to see it.
Moving as quietly as possible around behind Tomlyn, she slipped two fingers into his back pocket, moving slowly so as not to wake him. She’d just closed her fingers around something small, flat, and smooth, when he jerked and started to wake up. Quick as a flash, Kiri pulled her hand away, clutching the item she’d just grabbed, and bolted off into the darkness before he could turn around. Once she was safely out of sight, she looked down at her hand, and nearly crowed in delight. For there, resting in her hand, was a platinum credit card with a balance displayed in small, blinking numbers in the corner. Credits were worth significantly less than gold these days, but still, fifteen thousand was nothing to sneeze at! From dirt poor to practically rich in one night? For the first time in a long time, Kiri found herself feeling optimistic about the future. Maybe, finally, things were going to change for the better.
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