Of Ninjas and other oddities (Job/Solo)

The member 'Johann' has done the following action : Dice Rolls

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'Monster Dice' :

Johann's eyes wandered along the thin line on the horizon slowly, red and orange light gradually filling more and more of the sky as dawn broke, the sun slowly rising up from beyond as its image was reflected from the sea below. His hands were resting on the railing of the massive ship that, at moderate pace, was moving through the dark waves, slowly but steadily heading straight for the small dot of light on the horizon. The Vice President smiled. This was a great opportunity for him to finally get some training again, stretch a bit, get some fresh air. With contempt he looked back at the last few weeks. Tolgalen, or much rather the entirety of the Divide Islands, had been swarmed by mysterious creatures, goblins, wasps, and even oversized rats. The West Fiore Trading Company being the entity that called these lands their own had to take care of all that mess, of course, and with the help of a few company members as well as the army the situation could be brought back under control, every last creature of the swarm being hunted down and eliminated. Still, the ensuing damage to life, goods, belongings and infrastructure was ... enormous at best, not to mention the one behind the sudden, yet intense attack still hadn't been identified, even worse, they had not the slightest clue to point them to who, or what, had committed this act of terror.

The old man sighed. It couldn't be helped, for now they had other priorities anyway. Rebuilding the damage and helping the people was more important ... for now. Still, Johann had spent his time doing what he had come to hate most within the last months he had spent with the West Fiore Trading Company: Paperwork. Day-in, day-out. For some reason everyone assumed he was the one to talk to when it came to signing shipping reports, approving budgets for the construction, settling land disputes over properties, supervising the rebuilding process ... it had been the exact same when Sol and the other former Basilisk Fang members had joined the guild, and he again would spend a good 18 hours each day sitting in his office, reading through sheet after sheet, occasionally stamping, signing or writing, kept company only by his loyal friend Artorias who, admittedly an odd, but fierce and likeable fellow, would rather read and inform himself about the state of the world, understandably so after hundreds of years of being locked away in an amulett, than hold a conversation. Despite that Johann had learned much from the magical beast that had been a friend to the von Weiss family for many generations, if not about personal matters but about the family's history, the magic associated with them and the ... unknown and rather obscure beginnings of their bloodline.

The Vice President's hands let go of the railing before he turned around. He had to inquire further into what Artorias had told him, and at times he was certain that even the falcon didn't really know too much about the time before himself, but that were questions for another day. The city of Shoritsume was coming closer and closer, the docks clearly visible now, and he had to get ready, making his way back to the cabin inside the large warship, picking up his various pieces of equipment, his weapon and his uniform, making sure he looked flawless for the meeting with the client. This one had left the Vice President of the West Fiore Trading Company scratching his head at first, as the job request had been forwarded to him, or rather, the leadership of the Company, directly, attached a letter bearing an intricate seal. Upon opening it they found that the letter had in fact been sent by a rather desperate man calling himself "Mercer", a man who, as Johann had found out later, was a businessman almost as wealthy as he was desperate. The Company's reputation had reached his ears through one way or another, and he offered a great sum for the retrieval of a "secret tome", as he called it, apparently containing extremely valuable information about the man himself that was stolen by , well, someone ... . Not only was Johann tasked with finding out who had stolen it, the letter had only given the implication that the client might now something, he was also to neutralize the threat and bring back the object in question without any damage. Easy enough, he agreed to finally leave that office of his for a much welcome change of scenery and pace. Sure enough he had gotten a long night of quiet and rest in the relatively spacious cabin reserved for high ranking officers, the silence only occasionally interrupted by the sound of steel on steel or the crashing of the waves outside, and was now ready to meet this Mr. Mercer and, in the fashion of the West Fiore Trading Company, set up a contract with him. And who knew ? Maybe a successful favor for the man would warm him up to some potentially lucrative trade deals for both parties in this corner of the world.

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Word Count: 864
Word Count Total: 864 / 4.500

Dressed in the all-white uniform of the Company and in full gear, the rapier dangling from the belt on his side, Johann knocked on the small steel door to Artorias' cabin. From inside, the creaking of a chair and a subtle thump could be heard, the sound of a book being closed, Johann had figured, before the door swung open a few seconds later, revealing a tall man with black hair dressed like the Vice President, the white suit that looked remarkably similar to the one Joann was wearing fitting neatly around his muscular form, a pair of deeply yellow, almost glowing pair of eyes staring at the silver haired male. "Good morning, Artorias. I hope you had a pleasant rest ?" the corners of Johann's mouth formed a subtle smile. "Very much so, thank you". Johann did not need to ask the falcon if he was ready or not. Artorias was reliable, the sheathed blade hanging on his side and the amber amulet around his neck. Johann took a step back and turned to allow the other to step out of the small doorway, Artorias promptly following his master. "Shall we ?" "Yes, my lord" , Johann sighed. No matter how many time he would tell him to drop "my lord", he wouldn't listen. No matter.

The ramp was slowly lowered onto the docks before touching down on the ground with a loud metallic scraping sound, Johann making his way down as the first one to set foot onto the wet cobblestone, followed closely by Artorias., who in turn was followed by a few sailors. The men immediately started securing the ramp and the ropes while Johann turned, his eyes slowly examining this new dock he hadn't seen before. Indeed, when he had first joined the West Fiore Trading Company over a year ago he had expected to get around a bit, he would join an organization of sailors and traders after all, but even his expectations were trumped by some things he had experienced, some places he had gotten to see, and, from the looks of it, Shirotsume was one of those fantastical places one would hear stories about. The buildings were exotic, he had seen it on pictures before, still there was something uniquely different about this town that caught his eye. But that was of little importance. He stayed close to the ship, shouting commands at the workers, supervising the transport and storage of crates with supplies and wares and, last but not least, giving the crew their well deserved shore leave, which they promptly celebrated with loud cheers. In contrast to them, now was the time where the fun stopped and the work began for Johann, officially presenting himself as one of the three Vice Presidents of the West Fiore Trading Company.

It didn't take too long to find the man's residence, the letter had contained a detailed description and even a map that lead Johann, accompanied only by Artorias, to this pompous building before them, reaching at least 5, no, 6 stories in height, and immensely, incalculably extravagant in its design and build. Johann sighed. It was annoying him already. He had met more than enough people like this in his life, people who placed monetary values above all else, sitting in their fancy mansions while looking down on those who could barely afford to live. He sincerely hoped he was wrong, not wanting to deal with one more pretentious asshole in his life while putting up a smile and putting on a nice and respectful tone. For the Company ... Yes, he would do it, but he wouldn't like it. "We'll see"

With that, the old man took a few steps forward, out of the slowly shifting crowd of people walking the paved streets of Shirotsume, walking towards the gate, two men dressed in black leather clothing and armor to its left and right, promptly crossing the muskets they were carrying when they spotted the Vice President and his partner approach. "Hol' dere, ol' man, wha's yer business 'ere ?". "old man ?", the Vice President stopped himself from sighing loudly, annoyed and slightly offended at the open display of rudeness towards him, just what he needed to looked forward to meeting this client. He pulled out the letter from one of his pockets before presenting the stamped seal at the bottom of the piece of paper "Johann von Weiss, Vice President of the West Fiore Trading Company, I was invited by Mr. Mercer to meet him here today". Upon hearing the words and seeing the seal the guards promptly stiffened, standing attention all formal, their attitude changing in a second. "E-Excus' me, Sir, we couldn' have known", the other guard, lowering his head and bowing a little pushed open the thick iron gate "Please, do come in. Right this way" before pointing to a large set of deep brown wooden doors, giving Johann and his companion a nervous smile. This time, he couldn't help but sigh. Were official guests such a rare sight for these guards ? He slowly approached the large door, this time holding the letter at the ready, just in case, the gravel of the path crunching with each step of Artorias and himself.

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Word Count: 875
Word Count Total: 1.739 / 4.500

Johann took a look back, then up, once more letting his eyes wander over the intricate design of the man's mansion before resting his gaze on the door before him, knocking firmly with three loud thuds echoing through the hall behind. After a few seconds, one of the two doors slowly opened inward, a grey haired older man of slender, yet elegant stature, dressed in a butler's uniform staring at Johann before giving a quick bow, Johann returning the favor. "Johann von Weiss of the West Fiore trading Company, I have come to speak to my client, Mr. Mercer" "Certainly, please, come in. I will inform Mr. Mercer of your arrival immediately", the man closing the door behind them before vanishing through a door to the side, leaving Johann and Artorias in the neatly decorated entrance hall to wait for a couple of minutes. Johann's eyes wandered through the room. Indeed, it seemed he had not been wrong. The man certainly placed great emphasis on appearances, the walls decorated in carmesin carpets, paintings, streaks of gold forming a recurring element in ,well, everything. It was almost as if the man didn't know what to do with his enormous fortune. "Why not invest in the West Fiore Trading Company, then ?" the Vice President couldn't help but think to himself sarcastically, Artorias giving him a smirk. The other new exactly what his master was thinking, for he himself thought the same.

Still, the two waited patiently, turning their heads in unison when the door opened once more, the butler stepping out and bowing once more. "Mr. mercer is now ready to see you, please, follow me", the men looked at each other briefly and gave a short nod, following the butler through an equally ornately decorated hallway into a large room, in its middle a circular couch around a large table, on one end now standing up a short, blonde middle aged man in a grey suit, a smoking cigarette calmly sitting in one hand, a grin spreading across his face when the door opened and the two men stepped into the room, the butler closing the door behind them to leave the 3 men to themselves. "Please, take a seat", the man said with a rough voice, a voice that gave away the man's experience, a firmness that was charismatic, yet soft. In short: the voice of a businessman. The man knew what he was doing, and the slight contempt Johann had felt earlier was replaced with a little bit of respect. Mercer had worked for what he had now and earned it. "Can I get the gentlemen anything to drink ? A cigarette perhaps ?" "A drink ?" the Vice President chuckled internally before declining politely, as it stood it was still rather early in the morning, too early for a drink in any case. The three took a seat.

"So, you are the ones the West Fiore has sent ?" he mustered Johann for a short bit before his cold and calculating eyes wandered to Artorias "I am Jonathan Mercer. I take it you have heard of me ?" Johann gave a nod and stood up before giving the other a deep and respectful bow "Johann von Weiss, Vice President of the West Fiore Trading Company, pleased to meet you. This is my advisor, Artorias von Weiss" Artorias gave a similar bow. "I see. Well, to be honest, an I mean no offense, but I expected the West Fiore to send ... a fighter, you know, not an administrator." This time, Johann couldn't stop himself from laughing out loud, he had heard it before. "They send the old guy ?" they would ask. This time, Johann was a little piqued by the man's comment, and responded in kind "Mr. Mercer, I take no offense, but I ask you to take none in return as well, because if I wanted, you would be dead in less than a second. Your guards are incompetent and your defenses lacking, the "invisible" anti-magic runes covering the walls won't help you against things that go beyond what simple magic can do." the rapier on his side dangling back and forth a little. Maybe that was a bit unfair since Johann, or someone else specializing in rune magic, would about be the only ones able to even detect them. The runesmith who forged these knew his craft well, but the comment from before had just brought forth Johann's sarcasm and he couldn't help himself. The other looked surprised, but seemed happy, it was just the kind of snide he was looking for. "Now, Sir, if you have no further objections" Johann continued "then let's get to the business part. That is why we are here, after all"

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Word Count: 793
Word Count Total: 2.532 / 4.500

"Heh, indeed" Mercer simply replied before taking a seat on the comfortable beige leather couch "straight to business". "So ..." Mercer didn't seem to care about it being early morning, reaching for a glass before him that contained an amber liquid on ice "as I already stated in the letter I have had forwarded to your prestigious company, a most valuable item of mine has been stolen, a tome containing highly personal information regarding my own person. If published it could ruin my reputation and, more importantly, that of my business. That's not the difficult part, though. We do not know by who or why it has been stolen, and police are unable to work with what they have. The only clue we have is Alfred, my butler, you met him", Johann and Artorias responding with a single, synchronized nod "He saw the culprits, masked men dressed entirely in dark garb of various colours, and tried to stop them, but was knocked out in a single blow to the back of the head. These men strike from the shadows, quickly and efficiently, which leaves us with the idea that we might be dealing with, uhm, well, Ninjas ..." Johann had the feeling that the other didn't feel comfortable with uttering this suspicion of his, and indeed, it seemed a bit ... outlandish, but not impossible either. He had heard of these men and women from Midi, warriors trained thoroughly in the art of combat, magic and, perhaps most importantly, stealth. They would form clans to do their work from the shadows, extorting, stealing and assassinating for just about anyone, for the right price, of course. He couldn't help but smirk. Not too different from Onyx Moon.

Mercer wasn't done yet "... which leaves us with not much room to work with. I'm sure you know of the reputation surrounding these warriors. This is why I contacted you and the West Fiore. I fear me must resort to ... unorthodox methods and operate not entirely outside the law, but not entirely within it either. I trust you and your advisor see this as a matter of highest confidentiality, Mr. Weiss ?". So it would be that kind of job. Johann had gotten used to doing this work for the other side of the West Fiore Trading Company, but it was the first time someone approached Johann and not Wolf. "This is a highly unusual and delicate request, Mr. Mercer ... . The WFTC doesn't really deal with work of this kind ..." Mercer, for a brief moment, let the facade slip, and his slightly wrinkled face spoke volumes about his desperation and disappointment with Johanns words "... however ...", Mercers eyes rose from the ground back to Johann's face "the West Fiore Trading Company hears you. I, we, might have a few friends who would deal with this matter of yours, for a very good price." Johann rose from his seat "You have my word that we will do away with this problem of yours as quietly and efficiently as possible" stretching out his right hand, Mercer now standing up from the couch as well, doing the same and shaking Johann's hand "State your price". Johann smiled with a pleased grin.

The next morning, Johann was lying in his cabin back in the enormous steel titan of the West Fiore Trading Company they had used to make their way to Shirotsume. Of course when he was talking to Mercer about their "friends" he was talking about the darker side of the West Fiore Trading Company, the mercenary guild Onyx Moon, and Artorias' and his masked alter egos, the White Wolf and Bird of Prey. He was carrying his mask on his person at pretty much all times, just in case, and so was Artorias. The Vice President of the West Fiore Trading Company and Keeper of Onyx Moon had waited a day to prepare and give the illusion that he had contacted the mercenaries and followed through on his promise to Mercer before giving the man his goodbye and ordering the warship to sail back to Tolgalen, without him or Artorias on board, of course, but that only the captain and a few other trusted officers would know. Officially, Johann was on the ship, unofficially he was on a secret business deal for the West Fiore, and secretly he would operate as Wolf to find the stolen item and, well, "deal" with the Ninja clan once and for all.

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Word Count: 749
Word Count Total: 3.281 / 4.500

Johann had been scouting out the forests around Shirotsume for about an hour, Artorias as a black falcon flying above to get a better view of the area, the black mask firmly sitting on his face, the black leather of his coat blending in with the shadows of the trees below. He had, over the course of his investigations, caught wind of a rumor, whispered only quietly and behind closed doors, a settlement of shinobi to the west of Shirotsume had sprung up apparently overnight. Some people insisted they had always been there, only choosing to be seen now to spread fear, others said they had arrived from other parts of Earthland to target the rich city of Shirotsume. Whichever one was true, Johann, or Wolf, rather, had decided to investigate the rumors, it was his best bet to find what he was looking for, and almost a too convenient coincidence. Sure enough, a settlement was in fact where the people rumored it to be, relatively fancy wooden and stone houses dotting the fields below the forested hill, a small river running through its midst, a slightly elevated tenshu overlooking the place and the entire settlement surrounded by wooden palisades. Wouldn't exactly be an easy task, but easy enough for the Keeper of Virtue. He wasn't an officer for no reason, or so he hoped. With Cirven, one was never quite sure.

Johann, surrounded by an aura of invisibility, slowly and quietly approached the palisade, slipping through a small gap in the line and making his way into the village to come to a stop in the shadow of a small cabin and break the invisibility spell. This was more than strange. there was not a soul around. The streets were empty, the fields weren't being worked, the surroundings were completely quiet. No. There was this strange feeling that he was being watched. All of this was more than suspicious. Under the old man's disguise, his left eye turned black, the red pupil starting to glow in a deep crimson that shimmered out from beneath the mask, and the familiar feeling of his senses explosively heightening hit him like a high. He could hear every little creak of the wood around, every buzz of every fly within at least a hundred steps, every breath the wind took, the flow of the air. He smelled the fresh smell of the summer breeze, the subtle smell of the rice on the fields, and ...

Johann turned around immediately, the man had already gotten close, making absolutely no sound at all, but even from under his mask he could see the other's eyes widen in shock as if the individual had expected anything but him noticing. A ninja, dressed completely in black with the occasional streak of shimmering platinum silver decorating the outfit, had somehow found his way around the Keeper of Virtue and outflanked him, tanto drawn and at the ready. Johann sniffed at the smell the weapon gave off, the smell that alerted him: the decomposing smell of poison. For just a second, the two men under their masks were staring at each other before all hell broke loose.  The man started screaming and charging at Wolf , "HYAAAAAAA", who had his rapier at the ready in an instant. Sure enough, the ninja was fast and had amazing reflexes, could move with precision and in complete silence, but in open battle the Keeper would be far superior. He evaded the tanto that came rushing for his chest easily by sidestepping, the hilt of his rapier digging itself into the back of the mans head who slipped into unconsciousness immediately, collapsing forward into the dirt, the tanto hitting the ground beside him with a loud, metallic clunk.

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Word Count: 626
Word Count Total: 3.907 / 4.500

Combining 12 normal monsters into 6 strong ones
Combining 6 strong monsters to make 3 bosses

Defeated Enemies:
-1x Platinum Ninja

Enemies Left:
-3x Platinum Ninja
-1x Gold Ninja
-6x White Ninja

rolling one more time

The member 'Johann' has done the following action : Dice Rolls

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'Monster Dice' :

This was the point of no return, and immediately after he had struck down the one ninja the village erupted with life, much to the Keepers displeasure. All Ninja in hiding now came out of their holes, around Wolf forming a half moon circle of angry shinobi, some holding tantos, some katanas, some only kunais and throwing stars. Just what he needed, fighting all of them at once, this was the thing he wanted to avoid, but it looked like they had had an advantage on him from the very beginning, watching his every move while preparing an ambush right here. But they had made their deal without the Keeper of Virtue, and now they would pay the price. Immediately two Ninja in white and black uniforms came forward, a man and a woman from the looks of it, one swinging his sword wildy and with uncoordinated, yet determined movements while the other stayed back and readied a hand full of throwing stars."Suppose that leaves me with no other choice", Johann sighed a little under his mask before speaking out calmly the word that awakened his powers "Suscitatio", his body immediately covered with glowing red runes, an aura of immense strength radiating from his person. The first ninja was sent flying back by but a single punch, crashing into the side of a wooden wall, 3 throwing stars flying through the air towards the masked man of Onyx Moon in a for him almost painfully slow manner. He simply knocked the projectiles away with the blade of his rapier before bursting through the air towards the other opponent, a firm kick sending this one skidding across the dirt as well. Immediately 4 more ninjas stepped forward to take their place, bearing the same uniforms as these other two. This clan admittedly had a fighting spirit that Johann could admire, but it wouldn't help them too much against the mage.

They thought they had a chance 4 to 1, and encircled Wolf before each swinging forward their katanas at him, a wave of energy bursting from the wind mage immediately throwing them back violently. Johann once again exploded into a stream of pressurized and dust, zapping through the space between them at tremendous speed, each one of them receiving s strong blow to the head one after the other, their motionless bodies falling to the ground just a second later as Johann came to a stop behind the remaining ones. The ones left all had the same uniform as the one before, the one that had managed to get so close to the VP without him noticing. They were the high ranking officers, and they were the only ones left, with the others probably already having been evacuated. Well, less work for him. Black and purple circulating stormwind started forming around the wind mage's hands, forming the subtle shape of claws around them before he sheathed his rapier. No, there was no need to eliminate a foe that fought honestly, not today when he had to decide. It would hurt, but they would be back on their feet after a while. The first one came rushing at Johann, much more calm and reserved than the ninjas in the white uniforms from before, stalking his every move as the two circled around each other, his fingers ever so twitching around the hilt of his blade before the man finally took a quick step forward to bring down the blade of his weapon onto the Keeper. This one had, as he suspected, superior agility and speed, but still, way too slow to even get close to his own movements, Wolf knocking the blade to the side before his fist dug into the man's chest. This triggered the others to also storm forward, but with 3 steps at a speed faster than even that of sound by a multitude, he struck down those foes in a similar fashion. "Is that all ? That's hardly even worth calling it training", and truly, after Mercers words he had expected a bit more, but nevertheless, he was happy that for once he didn't have to get his outfit repaired after a mission, his eyes shifting from the now defeated shinobi dotting the ground to the tenshu on the hill. He would find what he was looking for there, return the item to its rightful owner, and who knows, might even take a look inside the oh so valuable tome.

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Word Count: 724
Word Count Total: 4.631 / 4.500

Combining 2 Normal monsters to make a strong one
Combining 2 Strong monsters to make a boss

Defeated Enemies:
-5x Platinum Ninja
-1x Crimson Ninja
-6x White Ninja

Defeated 5/5 bosses for full jewel reward