Impromptu Bounty Hunt

Masha walked into the Neutral Grounds, constantly fussing with her gear. A heart shaped shield had been strapped to her left arm. Red gauntlets sheathed her hands and a curious pendant hand about her neck. The redhead didn't know if the items would help her but she wanted to give it a shot. This was her first job since joining Silver Wolf. She wanted to do well. Since her life might depend on these items, Masha fiddled with them constantly.

The bounty sheet had been tucked into her belt. Some mysterious vigilante left the bodies of criminals about the Neutral Grounds. She didn't particularly care about that part. Criminals were to be held accountable for their lifestyle. Masha made use of lowlifes for her experiments. No, what interested Masha were the jewels offered for this vigilante. Her research had been severely undercut by the dissolution of Dies Irae. With the bounty - not too high or too low - Masha could reinvigorate that research.

A black body suit appeared to be the extent of Masha's armor past the shield. Her fighting style relied mostly on her magic. Failing that, her fists did the job. Maybe she should have thought a little harder about this past the Jewels but too late to back out now. This city would unveil the murderous crime fighter. Masha stomped her booted foot and closed her eyes. The sound faded rapidly here. Maybe twenty feet max before the city swallowed it. This part sat on the edge of the city too. Inside things would be worse but she'd find a way. The redhead tossed her length of hair as she pulled it up into a pony tail. Time to get to work.

The next several long hours were spent visiting the crime scenes. Masha wrote everything applicable down. Then she spent a few more hours trying to put it all together in some kind of pattern. A strange spot stuck out to her. Circling that part on the map, she decided to check it out. The redhead looked up to several rough looking men leering at her. The sun had long gone down, leaving only flickering lights illuminating where she'd decided to stop. "Note to self: bring backup for scientific musing time." Masha muttered sarcastically to herself.

The men circled around her. There were roughly six of them. Two wielded bladed weapons while the others held impromptu weapons. The redhead smiled, pushing up from the table. She casually swung her shield into place. "Evenin' boys! What can I do for you?" Masha asked sweetly. One of the men replied vulgarly. The slayer's eyes flashed but that was the only indication of her anger. She winked at the man. "Maybe after you shower, one of your friends will oblige you to that." They reared back as if struck. Masha didn't have any time to congratulate herself on her witty retort before they charged. Sighing, the mage readied herself for battle.

WC: 493

In the back allies of the many buildings of the Neutral Grounds area, Nat came out from the door of the diner he was working in, done with his day job to keep himself barely alive, he hurried to his ran-down apartment by leaping a great height, jumping from wall to wall until he was at the roof top of one of the buildings and leapt down just two allies down and put his uniform away through the window as cleanly as possible given his living conditions.

Now came the only thing he liked doing after every day in and day out. Dispensing his own brand of justice in the streets as some sort of faded memory, or a faint glimpse to the purpose he once held with such honor and high regard. Nat leapt up to the roof of the buildings once more and looked and listened for whatever trouble he could take on. Sirens blurted out in the distance, along with tires screeching. It was a chase, and Nat wouldn't be able to stop it. Not without his magic at least that the Neutral Grounds nullifies. A woman was chasing a man who had snatched her bag away on the open streets and saw the man make a turn for one of the allies. He quickly leapt to the same alley and beheaded the man quickly from above. Nat then picked up the bag and threw it back out of the alley, just in time for the woman to come through, relieved and confused at the same time that she had her bag back.

Nat was supposed to go back up the rooftop when he heard another woman greet "boys" with such sarcasm. Another maiden is cornered in the many alleys of the Grounds, he couldn't help but sigh and think why they keep coming through here despite knowing how dangerous it was.

He hurried through the streets with such speed that could be attributed to his confidence. Confidence born of having walked and ran these alleys for a month now that he practically memorized every turn. Such hypothesis was even reinforced when Nat bent his knees a little more slightly than usual before he made a turn because there was a wire gate on his way. Opposite the gate was a wall that Nat leapt over of and there he saw the assailants. Six men pathetically armed and cornering a girl that was now below Nat. They looked up at the Murder-Hobo with fear that stunned them for quite a bit, giving Nat enough time to attach a chain to the pommel his weapon before throwing it out towards the left, cutting three down before the fourth blocked the weapon with his own.

Nat recalled his weapon back as soon as he landed in front of the lady by pulling on the chain, meeting it halfway as he began to charge the remaining three. The make shift weapon he held wasn't enough to block his sword as it pierced through it, leaving his chest exposed and stabbed. The next one was formidable and was able to block Nat's sword as soon as he took it out the man's chest. Though he didn't know what to do next after blocking. Fear still struck them and Nat could see it in their eyes. The man's weapon was quickly parried aside after a brief lock of their weapons and the momentum of Nat's parry sliced his stomach up 3 times. The last man knowing full well who Nat was, or at least who he is in the Neutral Grounds dropped his weapon and ran for his life screaming out "It's the Murder-Hobo!" repeatedly. Nat threw his weapon that was still attached to the chain at this point and caught the man by the legs, causing his to fall over and be dragged back to his killer. Multiple times he pleaded for his life, and multiple times he was ignored. The man was back to Nat and he took his weapon back and just dropped it on his neck, causing a nasty cut where he bled out from and choked on it, twitching as he died slowly.

As this was going on, Nat took a glimpse at the woman. He thought she'd be afraid of him too, and it would have been better if he just left, but he wanted to see who he rescues, try to remember their faces if in case he sees them again. But this time, Nat's eyes widened and he turned his whole body towards her when he saw who it was. It was a shock to be sure, as he never thought he'd meet an old friend in a place like this. "Masha? What are you doing here?" he asked, confused.

WC: 796
Nat: 796
Thread: 1,289
@Masha

Right as Masha was about to strike, someone leapt into the alley. She watched the figure systematically destroy the men. With chain and sword, he eliminated all that got in his way. The display provided a fair approximation of the man's abilities. "Could this be the vigilante I'm searching for?" Masha murmured to herself. All clues pointed to it being likely. One of the bandits even screamed 'Murder Hobo' several times. Masha's face screwed up at that. What kind of vigilante name was Murder Hobo? Seriously unimaginative.

When the man turned toward Masha, she tensed wondering if they were about to fight. She couldn't rely on magic here in the Neutral Grounds. Perhaps there should have been more training done before arrival. Her name being called had Masha squinting at the face. With a scream of delight, the redhead flew forward to try and wrap Nathaniel in a hug. "By the spirits, its good to see you Nat! I'm..."

The joy drained from her face as she stepped back. If Nathaniel was the vigilante, Masha had been contracted to bring him in. There were various loopholes she could exploit but she needed the jewels. "Shit... I guess I'm here hunting you. I saw the bounty. I need jewels for my son and my research." She pulled her collar aside to show him the guild mark of Silver Wolf. Masha carefully kept her hands positioned downward. A fight didn't need to break out until they had talked a bit. If his answers were satisfactory, perhaps they could work something out.

"What are you doing here, Nathaniel? What does this accomplish?" Masha asked, gesturing to the corpses. [color=hotpink]"Are you trying to carry on Dies Irae's will or something? Is it simple revenge? Random killing? I don't want to take you in, Nat but I need some answers. You're my friend and that's something I value. Give me a reason not to bring you in so I don't have to choose between you and my son." Masha waited for answers or an attack or for Nat to run. No matter his reaction, she wanted to be prepared for it.

WC: 357
Masha: 850
Thread: 1646