The Night Elf's Message

[Little Sparrow]

The City of Thieves was ever the same. Taverns all around and rather shady characters, none of which looked like they were going to send her all trussed up to the King. This was the only part of the City that she was comfortable with; the hounds were never here and wouldn't dream of bothering her. After all, she did have an acquaintance worthy to give her safety throughout the city. Even though she was here on serious business, the avian shaman was in a lighthearted mood. She regarded everything through calm gray eyes, head swiveling around occasionally to take in an extra detail or two. Surprisingly, there weren't many people here. Perhaps they were all on a job or two or maybe needed a drink. Who knew?

Or maybe they had been intrigued by Than's acts. The main reason why she was here was because she wanted more information about Than. She had heard about the newest atrocity that the night elf had committed in the City; blowing up a building or ten. He must have made some announcement or something of that sort, like a public stunt, so there was bound to be some information that she could get from that. Cloti didn't think that the night elf would still be anywhere near here; he had to know what was good for him. And that was why she was here, there would definitely be information sources, this was the latest gossip and she might just get a chance to find a good bit of information.

With that thought in her head, she went walking down the streets, cloaked like most other figures, though the majority preferred to walk hooded. Cloti honestly couldn't care; she didn't look very much like an avian shaman, there were others out there who shared black hair, tanned skin and gray eyes, after all. So, where to look now?

[Than]

Than strode confidently through the city of thieves, clad in a traveler's cloak and a simple black tunic and matching tights. Beside him a Pine Marten padded as they walked towards the Rabbit's Paw, a tavern known for it's loose mouthed fools just waiting to divulge his secrets. A low growl came from the creature that walked beside him, "calm Alastor, I'm sure the Song isn't hiding in this cesspool of moral indecency, their far to busy looking for me. Then again, twelve buildings is difficult to cover up, but that's what makes it fun." He reached the door to the tavern at that point and tilted his head to his left shoulder before standing straighter and opening the door to the tavern. As he walked inside the Pine Marten scrambled up Than's back and rested on the left shoulder and eyed the belt around Than's waist that held his weapons, all part of the plan.

The tavern went silent as the night elf entered and walked towards the bar, "tankard of ale, McNayer," Than said in an almost hiss as the bar tender began to walk up. "As you wish Than," the bar keep answered as he began to pour the drink. Than's ears pricked up then to hear the conversation's in the bar. He noticed that the people who sat at the bar with him had halted their conversation about some maniac at the mention of his name and had went on to discuss the finer parts of dishrags and their effectiveness. The rest of the bar, however, had more intriguing conversation, some discussed how green flames had nearly overcome their house, how loud explosions had kept their children awake, how some human boy had been spotted talking to the King's guards about the attack. Word traveled fast in a city as corrupt as this, but it made well to keep those uninvolved in his plans worried of what he might do to them.

Just then McNayer returned with the tankard, "The rest of your men moved out last night, what keeps you here?" "Business, my friend, business," Than whispered back, "The Song's on my tail, best to through them off before I move on, safety first, and all that."

[Little Sparrow]

Cloti came to an abrupt halt, as if she had missed something important, when in fact, she had come to her destination, her second stop after the Drunken Bunny, Rabbit's Paw. Somehow all the good sources had something to do with lapines, maybe lapines were extremely talkative and naive. That thought made her smile a somewhat lopsided smile which she carried into the tavern itself. Normally, she went for the company rather than the drink, for she had no faith in alcohol's ability to keep her identity. She was known as Lluvia to the public, the name that she had given her alternate personality, the alternate personality that was "asleep" now. Thank the gods for that.

As she adjusted to the noise, she had just come in to catch a worthy phrase, "... you wish, Than." Well, that was certainly a surprise, someone named Than. Was it the evil night elf Than or some other unfortunate person whose name was Than? Only one way to find out. The conversations around were shifting topics from the latest crime that the King of Thieves had arranged to green flames and dishrags; both that she had heard of from Winter.

Now that there was no real urgency or anything and Lluvia was completely silent, Cloti decided that she had nothing to lose by directly approaching the cloaked traveler with a pine marten on his shoulder. Convinced of that, she sauntered over, placing herself more or less next to Than; away from the pine marten in case it was more than hostile. "So, are you the "evil night elf Than" or some unfortunate other who happens to share the same name?" She asked him in a lighthearted voice. Even if he was the evil night elf Than, it would have been a more worthy approach to actually strike up a conversation--she wasn't like Rodi to lop his head straight off, that wasn't the smartest thing to do for someone like her. Anyways, since it was officially declared that she couldn't infiltrate the Army of Green Flames, she could talk.

[Than]

Than turned to look at the human who sat down on his right, avian shaman, an unlikely visitor to this tavern, unless... Lot had said that an avian shaman named Cloti was in cahoots with Rodi over the Song. This newcomer looked like his description, but he couldn't be sure it was her, not yet. Then the woman spoke and filled in the gap, ""So, are you the 'evil night elf Than' or some unfortunate other who happens to share the same name?," well if that didn't show an over interest in his life he wasn't sure what did. He took a sip of his tankard before placing it back on the bar and turning to face the woman. "Asi matro mes ike," he said under his breath so that only Alastor could hear. the pine marten seemed to nod before scampering off down the bar and into a back room.

"What drives a young shaman like you to ask me that?," he asked Cloti, "After all, I'm sure you can't be bothered with the affairs of some crazed night-elf, hell-bent on destroying his own race and plunging the world into fear, fear of something they don't understand, fear of a name, a name spoken by only those in his inner circle, and even then spoken only in hushed whispers at passerby's to sow the power of their master. Is that the man you search for? A man who's goals lay in shadowed ruins and decimated cities?" He then took a swig of the tankard as he stared at the subtle movements below the shaman's skin. A flick of the wrist, a twitch of the eyebrow, a cautious glance around, anything to show her true fear, fear that he could learn to stir against her.

[Little Sparrow]

(( Ok, completely random question, but I have to know:
What position would Chess have within the Army of Green Flames? ))

Cloti waited calmly for the cloaked one to have a swig of his drink. Once he had set the tankard down, the pine marten scrambled off to some unknown recesses of the bar; they were obviously familiar with this place, perhaps even more so than she herself. It wasn't like she chose to come here a lot; she was wary of the warrants but she simply didn't trust the majority of the characters here. She could fight, yes, but she still didn't want to kill unnecessarily.

"What drives a young shaman like you to ask me that?,"

Well, there she got a response. A response and a long speech about what this evil little night elf was doing: destroying his own race, striking the world into an era of fear and paranoia and all those goodies. Wasn't that the motive of everyone? Strange. There weren't enough people that could see the better things in life. "Strange, in fact I was," Cloti replied, her lips curving up ever so slightly. "The exact person I was looking for, but what it seems to me is that everyone has that exact motive but no one ever tells me why they want to cause a massacre to their own race." She prompted him. Yes, she knew the overall picture, but it was mainly the personal motives that she was interested in. Everyone had personal motives and that was what made a person. "By the way, call me Lluvia. I know your name already, so there's no need to go for formal introductions." She added. Cloti couldn't see much of the night elf as he was completely covered, but from what she could gather about his nature, he was probably watching her.

[Than]

"Lluvia? What a lovely name, it speaks of beauty and grace, and mental instability my dear friend," he said before taking another swig, "You were looking for me?" He placed his left hand to his chest as he said this, knowing fully well Cloti's intentions, he was evil, not dumb. He then put the tankard back onto the table and snapped his fingers to alert the barkeep for another round. "I'm flattered," he said in his most sarcastic voice, "Of course, I'm even more intrigued by the ideal that you wish to know my motives, I thought that no one cared. Well, the Song of Heroes cares, but what do they know of my motives, when their own lines are so skew. I hear whisperings that their co-commander is a traitor herself. A human who betrayed her own people to free the very people that her race despises. An d they have the nerve to call me out as a traitor? I think not."

As for my own motives, they are far more logical, I lead these attacks because of the arrogance of those in power, the Fae Council thinks that those born of rogues are no better then the dirt they stride upon, they destroy these Fae's hopes and drams and have reduced a good deal of them to the poverty of the Southern Boil," he took another sip here before continuing, "They sit in their chambers and debate the trials of the upper class of Fae, sure everything's free in the Mound, but pretty flowers do not buy ornate living spaces, no, no, they are clearly working outside the Mound to get what they need. The Fae Council that once was, kind, forgiving, persistent in their pursuit of equality and indifference is gone, replaced with these corrupt officials. I do not lead a massacre on my own people, I make my move on the corrupt bureaucrats, and the forest born Fae who think that their ears are the pointiest and that makes them better then us. I move to make my people what they should be, not this rabble that hides in the forest and cowers from the humans. You may think the humans are the true rulers of Lithatia are you may not, but I will not have the true dominate race shoved into the mud like worthless worms." He then slammed the tankard onto the bar and looked into Cloti's eyes with a fire burning deep within them, "I was considered unworthy for the Fae Councils consent because my mother and father were banished to the Northern Tangle for 'Crimes Against the Fairies', because of this I have seen nothing, but scorn and ignorance exuded too me from the leaders of the Fae, I will show them the error of their ways.""

[Little Sparrow]

Beauty, grace, mental instability? Well, if you considered having an alternate personality "mental instability", it would be true. Was it a night elf thing or a wild guess? Whatever it was, Cloti was still able to make a connection to herself. Despite that, she had already begun to give the night elf more respect than she initially thought that she would ever give him. If he was going to know or not, she didn't know, didn't care. Even if she respected him, what would that do? If he was in her way, he was in her way, but the power to do something against their own race because he could see wrong in it, that was different.

Whisperings? She couldn't help but break out into a soft laugh at that one. Whisperings? Heck, everyone knew that she, Clotilda of Aimela had betrayed the humans, gone against their law and was wanted so badly that she had a ginormous bounty on her head--only they didn't know exactly what she looked like. "My, you're forgetting that her description is on every street corner of the human city." She reprimanded him. "She's probably the most wanted criminal, the most wanted woman history has ever seen." She tapped a fingernail on the counter absently. The women were seen as inferior beings, probably why she was so infamous.

Cloti arched an eyebrow. Well, this was certainly different from what she had heard from Rodi. While the Forest of the Fae did grudgingly allow her to walk within its tangles, not once had she come close to the Mound, nor met an elite. In fact, she usually let Rodi handle all the Fae business, for she in their eyes was vermin, a human, a creature that wanted to overthrow the Fae and become the rulers of Litharia. Though she did have a minuscule grudge against the Fae for taking Salvador away, she was thankful that he had survived up til now. No doubt he would have become a great knight in society, however, she was glad that he become like this; she might have ended up having to kill him if he did take any others prisoner of war. Maybe it really was best to leave everything up to Fate to decide.

Her thought was broken when Than slammed the tankard down, hard enough for her to feel a large vibration and snap her gaze to him. For the first time, she caught a vague glimpse of his eyes; a dark brown, ablaze with some sort of intense passion. Passion for his cause, a strength to strike down anything in his way. A strength to strike her down if she wasn't careful enough. "With power comes arrogance and with arrogance comes carelessness and foolishness." She commented. Sure, if this person managed to take the fae council down, what about the innocents that were caught within loyalty to the fae council, unable to see the truth or intentions of his cause? All those unnecessary deaths? "And what of the humans?" She asked, for she was sure that the human's society that she grew up in could be as corrupted.

[Than]

Than waved his free hand dismissively to her spiel about Cloti's current status to the human law enforcement. "But with betrayal comes fear, and fear leads to rash decisions to cover ones tracks, and that leads to an ultimate demise," Than commented dryly as he took another sip while his guest debated the topic inside her mind. He then took another swig before returning the tankard to the table and turning his face back to Cloti, sorry Lluvia, which she obviously wasn't right now, lot had told him that Lluvia was much more rash, she would not be so kind whilst talking to her organization's mortal enemy.

"As for the humans, many reform's must be taken when I take the throne of the Fae. I've studied the human economic system and government for quite some time and envy it's potential effectiveness. I feel that it would be a wonderful new step for the Fae to take towards growth and power," he then paused for a short nit to readjust his cloak, letting down his hood to reveal his dark purple locks, "But I despise the human race as a whole, they have a rare few gems, but their race as a whole is arrogant, with extreme superiority complexes. They steal my men, my families, my people from their beds, from their work and force them into slavery. I honor the Song's attempts to free them, but I must say that effective reform can not, nay, will not occur with sympathy missions and single rescue strikes, no, the only effective means is to beat down the human oppressors with their own swords. They must see the error of their ways. No doubt you've heard of my radical actions a few nights past, it was all to send a message, they need to be taught that not all Fae are easy pushovers they can just catch or kill like mice, there are hundreds of us willing to fight for our right to the land. Our people were here first, the only ones born of the gods to specifically inhabit these lands, and the one who should rule it. Not a race that sailed in on boats, and begun a conquest, no, the humans will pay."

[Little Sparrow]

Ultimate demise? Well, thanks for predicting her downfall. Now at least she knew more about what she was going to do in the future. That certainly was helpful. And why did Rodi and Winter refuse to let her speak with Than? Because they were pessimists. And maybe a tad overprotective. Yes, she was human, but she could put up a pretty good fight too. People should learn not to underestimate her. Or overestimate, for that matter.

At the mention of Than's taking the throne, Cloti couldn't help but giggle a little. So far, she had heard that the fae only had Fairy Princesses as rulers, meaning no males. Than was definitely a male--confirmed by his brushing back of the hood that shadowed his features. Now she could see that the elf's skin was just as dark as the cloak he wore, distinguished only by his paler lips, brown eyes and cascading mass of purple, worn ruffled and seeming uncared for. Maybe this would be the turn of the century, she could just imagine the newsboys calling to the passerbys about the "First Fae Prince" on the throne.

She was broken out of that temporary thought by Than's comment on the humans. There was nothing that she could-would deny, the charges were all valid. Not only Fae, but the humans targeted shapeshifters. Daemons were too strong for them, too strong, too destructive. From the way Than spoke, he already sounded like a father to the race, even though he said he was an outcast. Strange, really. From what he said before, his motives seemed different, more... passionate and sane in a way and more insane in another. He was talking about spilling human blood. Yes, the humans were in the wrong, but there were only a selected few. She knew that it would be easier to just kill a whole lot of them like he had done before, but people would lose their lives. That wasn't going to happen while she was around.
Just when she had been slightly swayed too.

"I have never been taught the complete history of Litharia, therefore I have no proof of if what you say is the truth." She noted. "Assuming that you are, assuming that this hellhole of a human world was an implemented world based on their dominance in numbers and lust for power, assuming that you bring them down, what will this new era be like?" She asked him. Even now, she could not imagine if the humans were a hunted species. In fact, if they were, they'd be completely eradicated. Humans' strengths were in numbers, not in lifespans or resistances. If they were no longer the "power-holders", they wouldn't exist.
That certainly wasn't a very happy thought.

[Than]

Sitting the tankard back down he took a deep breath before beginning, "when the throne of the Fae is mine, this world will enter an era of peace, an era of unification, an era where the great battles of history are little more then children's fairy tales. Where great human kings no longer usurp there power and destroy the other races, destroy their own by flinging them into pointless battles over a land who's owners we all know do not walk this earth. This era will be one of grace, the world will return to the way it was when Fae ruled it, before the human plague descended upon it," he took another sip, "I move not to destroy the race, they simply must be taught a lesson, taught to respect the world, taught to fear that which they so brutally destroyed. In this new era the wild creatures will return to their homelands, their sacred mating grounds, and their lives. When the humans came to this land they drove herds of Peagus' away from their mating grounds, deeper into the forest. It was been months since one was spotted."

He took another sip and then knocked on the table for the barkeep to refill, he could hold his alcohol exceptionally well, "When I lead the Fae they will rule the forest again, the Shifters can keep to themselves on their island, as is their nature, the Daemons their tunnels, as is also their nature, but the humans pose a rather difficult task. They are not easily suited to remain in an area for an extended period. That is what drew them to our land, their land became too boring, it became crowded, it became to dark and depressing, oh the pathetic woes are endless, what truly matters is the issue of keeping them appeased. It will not be easy, the human's superiority complexes make them unwilling to comply to what they consider to be 'lesser species', that category, however, seems to encompass all other races on the Litharian mainland. It will not be easy to overcome, but I can not stop in my pursuit of peace, my pursuit of the destruction of hypocrisy, of corruption, of fools." He waited for a moment for his tankard to return before taking a large swig and returning it to the counter.

[Lazarus]

As the cloaked figure beside him punctuated the end of his long ramble with another long drink and forceful return of his glass to the table, Lazarus couldn't help the slight upturn of his lips, the involuntary expression ending up leaving him with a crooked grin of amusement. Ah, idealists. They were so amusing, but indefinitely long-winded and fallible... and so conceited. So, so conceited. The perfect example had been sitting next to him for at least over ten minutes now, so self-absorbed that he hadn’t even realized that this particular man next to him had been nursing a full mug for the past fifteen minutes, hoping that this peculiarity may earn him a sharp, smart remark about eavesdropping. But of course when Lazarus took the lengths to try and add himself to the highly intriguing conversation, his attempts were not perceived. Which left him now tired of taking the roundabout approach to enter the situation, and pushed him into taking action. So he laughed.

“That’s your ultimate plan, then, isn’t it?” he said with apparent hilarity, his voice quieter than the other two’s, who’s raised voices proved that they were either extremely cocky, or were so naïve that they didn’t believe there could possibly be ears like his lurking within the tavern. Or possibly both. “Ah, well isn’t that particularly droll. I didn’t expect anymore from the infamous Than,” he continued on, keeping his eyes locked on the dreg in front of him, not feeling up to meeting the pair’s eyes just yet. “The ‘pursuit of peace, pursuit of the destruction of hypocrisy, of corruption, of fools’… how common. It’s like an extremely cliché book, which you only read for the ratings, and not for the actual content. Not that I don’t agree with everything you say – I have no reason to like humans, and I do wish that someone would show them the complete errors of their ways and customs. However, destroying their entire species is not the way to go about it in the least; even if it’s only a minority of them, some contain goodwill and common sense, which is more than I can say for you, in the least. They just don’t contain the determination and vigor to convince their race otherwise, which you obviously do have.

“But, despite my slightly varied concurrence with the majority of your speech, you utterly destroyed any hopes I had of you as a sort of salvation with your last sentence. Destruction of hypocrisy? Destruction of corruption? Destruction of fools and injustice and the rise of all things peaceful and good? You’re like some sort of twisted saint, so blinded by his own visions and faith that he can’t see that he’s breaking every rule he preaches. YOU are the hypocrite, my friend. You are the one who rants on and on about how you wish for peace, and yet to gain this peace, you believe that destruction of all things that stand in your path is necessary. And I make no exaggeration by saying ‘all things’ – for that is what you will find yourself against, in the long run. You wish for the downfall of corruption and fools and the like? Well, once you open your eyes and see clearly, dear elf, you will realize that EVERY species has corruption and fools and follies and injustice and hatred and sins. In fact, every PERSON has these traits, if they are only less or better hidden than others’.

“So, you see, your pursuit is hopeless from the start. You are trying to do what so many other infamous villains – not the least of which are your detested humans – have done since the beginning of time: trying to pursue a selfish dream that is unaccomplish-able, which will only lead to the deaths of many and the downfall of races, species, even civilizations for your own 'goodwill'. You will accomplish that which you say you despise. Dear, dear Than… you’re a complete fool, if only a fool with a will.” Lazarus finally turned in his chair, looking at the hooded figure through pitying indigo eyes, that small half-smile still on his face. “And this is only the brunt of the flaws I can currently find in your whole charade.”

[Than]

"My dear friend," Than said as he spun in his chair to face the man, "It is not my sole intention to rid the world of humans, they merely need to be taught a lesson. Their are diamonds, small twinkles in a sea of rough cut ignorance. They're lights could be of use to me, useful to maintain the balance of the world. If their race were to be extinguished at this point it would no doubt disrupt the fragile balance of our world. A lesson is all that they need, hopefully. A lesson in fear. You see all beings feel fear, most fear what they don't understand, which is the reasoning for so many of the Shifter and Fae races being tormented, bought, sold, killed. They don't understand so they fear what we may do, we fear because we don't understand why they show such contempt and hatred towards our races. It's time that we learned to remove our fear and stand for what is right, not just the easy way.As for the destruction of, 'all things,' as you so, blatantly, put it, is in no means my intentions. Things must be destroyed if balance is ever going to truly exist. As the saying goes, you can't make an omelet, without breaking a few eggs," Than said matter-of-factly as he took a short swig. It is here where some readers dispute the fact that omelets did not exist in the time period we so lavishly decided to paint in this roleplay. I say they do in Litharia and that is what matters, now on to what happened next...

"You mean to say that I am corrupt and hypocritical in my own right, as is all creatures. And so you are right, but my flaws, for lack of a better term, aid me in the long run by allowing me to use them to establish a new world order. You see I'm not a monster, I'm just ahead of the pack. For years there have been mutterings and prophecies of the great time of peace. I believe that that's where it's all going, and if I have to be the one leading us there I will be. The gods did not mean for the races to destroy each other out of folly or fear, they intended us to live in peace, free from wars, free from pain. Granted we can not ever truly rid ourselves of these despicable practices, but we can limit them if we are wise. Entire races will chant the Army of Green Flames name, the King of Thieves' name, for it is all because of them that Litharia will one day see peace. It is not my intention to destroy the world, it is my intention to purify it, the charade of it all is not my actions, it lies in those before me, who started full out wars, felled flags, wiped civilizations off the map, out of their own pursuit for peace, a peace that could never truly be obtained, not like ours, we will succeed, Lazarus, we will." He then took another swig of ale as Alastor came scampering across the counter towards him with a note on a ribbon around his neck as he scampered onto Than's shoulder.

[Lazarus]

Lazarus’s smile now turned to one of pride and acceptance, and he unexpectedly rose to his feet, leaving his glass on the bar behind him. Taking Than’s face in both hands, he placed his forehead against his ally’s for a mere second, before pulling away and saying, “You receive my blessing, Than. I approve of your ideals and determination, which are rare things in times like these. I shall hope that you will contain them throughout your leadership of the Army of the Green Flames, as well as I hope that our pact shall remain intact. But if either is broken, the other will turn to dust; as you are surely fully aware of.” Seating himself once more, he glanced to Pine Marten perched patiently on the elf’s shoulder, and made a casual, welcoming motion towards the creature. “Hello Alastor. I should have expected that you would be nearby, considering Than is here, as well as myself. I believe you are doing well; if you are not, then a few of my sources may be in deep trouble, as well as whatever being or object that may be plaguing you. So please tell me otherwise, after you deliver whatever important message you are carrying.”

His grin grew a fraction larger, and he then turned his attention back to Than, who remained, for once, quietly seated at the table. “However, Than,” he began again, a short chuckle escaping from the depths of his throat, “it was almost as if you knew I was here and testing your loyalty, and were attempting to smite me with your harsh words! Either that or you were merely speaking with such belief that you were forgetting that, in the process, you were lacking to make things clear to the lady here. Neither option would surprise me if it was true. You can be so brash at times. But it is not a bad thing until your weaknesses get caught in your own arrogance, and you realize too late that you created the threads that will end up tripping you in the end. So I warn you if the problem happened to be the latter – for you saw all the flaws I could find in your monologue, and in such a short amount of time.

“But I am forgetting my manners.” Lazarus swiveled within his chair, turning to face the woman who had remained quiet throughout their whole speech. “Hello… Lluvia, isn’t it? It’s nice to meet you. I’m terribly sorry that I didn’t address you beforehand, but as you could see, I was quite busy teaching my friend here a good lesson. Now I may make your acquaintance.” He sketched out a mocking, fanciful bow within his chair, smirking as he teased Cloti for her silent, anonymous audience.

[Little Sparrow]

Once again, Cloti got a long reply from Than. What else could be expected, if someone was devoted to their cause, they'd have a lot to say. Only thing that irked her was that Than seemed to be quite open with this information. Though this particular thing struck her, she was a little too wary to ask about his next plans, attacks and whatnot. It might have been a little too much and give her away completely. Not a smart move. But this thought of hers was stolen away as laughter rang in her ears. Her guard was almost thrown off before she placed the familiar laughter. Of course he would be in here. He knew everything that was going on within his territory. If he didn't, he wouldn't even be here.

King of Thieves Lazarus Lark was here within the Rabbit's Paw.
Cloti stole a look at the other occupants of the tavern; now, more obvious than before, they had their heads down, talking amongst themselves somewhat anxiously. A smile lingered upon the corners of her lips, threatening to break into a full out grin and perhaps even a laugh, but now was not the time for such actions. It was obvious that Lazlo was confronting Than in this very tavern. Two men of great power, one against another. This could end well or... not. She hoped it was the latter. Anyways, let them talk it out, both seemed to be able to have long-winded speeches, much unlike herself.
Wait, Lazlo was going to support Than? Cloti kept her face cool. This was going to be interesting. He had already pledged his support to her and he was supporting Than as well? Well, he had better not give information about the Song out. If not... he wouldn't be in his current position.

“Hello… Lluvia, isn’t it? It’s nice to meet you. I’m terribly sorry that I didn’t address you beforehand, but as you could see, I was quite busy teaching my friend here a good lesson. Now I may make your acquaintance.”
Her attention was caught with that phrase. She stared at him for a short moment before darting up to aim a slap on his head. Way to draw attention to her. But then, this wasn't the first time dealing with Lazlo's antics, she had dealt with them before and could very well do so again. At least he had remembered her alias, that she had to credit him. "Shaddup, Lazlo. I know what the hell's going on here and I've been able to take care of myself perfectly well, you know." She retorted. "I see you've actually learned something about staying alive," She nodded towards the scar that marred his face like a streak of blood on flawless white.

Before she could make too many comments, her trained eyes caught a slight movement of the King's cloak--as if someone, or something was tugging the dark material. The avian shaman looked down, curious as to what was causing the movement. She doubted that someone like Lazlo would have a little pine marten messenger like Than. Instead, it was the last thing that she really would have expected. It was wearing a pink dress with a ruffled white collar. It had white sleeves and wore mismatched shoes. Pale orange strands of yarn topped by a blue satin ribbon acted as her hair while the doll looked up with mismatched, red and black eyes. It seemed to know Lazlo and the little thing was bold enough to come all the way to bother the celestial despite the risk of being stepped on. She looked at Lazlo, raising an eyebrow in question. When had the doll come in?

[Lazarus]

Lazarus tilted backwards to avoid the smack he had predicted would come, laughing with amusement. It was just like Cloti to lash out at him so quickly, using words second and physical actions first. She wasn’t as nearly as calm and collected as she liked to think she was – or at least not around him. Perhaps she became much more open and hasty around those whom she was close with; but then again, there weren’t many who didn’t. Including himself, at most points in time; or at least he seemed that way – the previous King of Thieves had taught him long ago how to hide real emotions behind a blank poker face, or the even more-believable smile. However, sometimes he would allow his true feelings to let themselves through… or he would fail at attempting to force them down. For now, the situation remained mostly the former.

His good mood and general lucky-go-happy attitude upheld until the mention of his scar, which led to a sudden fall in his facial expression, a break in his facade, then an even faster righting of it, pulling his mouth back into a long, elongated, and only barely seemingly-forced smile. “Of course,” he said, his voice a calm act of a hard attempt not to betray his emotions. Even if he temporarily trusted Than, there was no reason to give the man more information on him than appropriate… and he most definitely did not want this piece of information on him handed out to all who wished to know. Hopefully the elf would realize this was something that wasn’t important information to him, and just let it slide by. “I believe I understand survival much better now… I may even have become accustomed to it.” He let the conversation drop at that, believing that Cloti was intelligent enough to also let the personal information go freely.

But luckily enough for him, he didn’t even need to worry about his business partner’s ability to read the atmosphere – a small diversion had appeared just for him, in the very nick of time. The light tug on his cloak was just hard enough to catch his attention, (and Cloti’s, too, for she looked down as he did,) and he glanced down to behold the familiar doll beneath him, looking resolute in her attempt to get her master’s attention. “Hello, Lacey,” he greeted his guest informally, reaching down with both hands to pluck her from the dirty tavern floor, and lift her up to the safety of his lap. “Have you come to see me?” He ignored his other two conversers’ stares, letting them goggle at him for just a bit of fun.

“Yes, Lazlo-sama,” the peculiar doll sang, a tiny smile growing on her face at the sight of her master. She immediately made herself comfortable within the man’s lap, adjusting herself so she could see both Than and Cloti if she willed. She had been in the tavern long enough to know that Lazarus was holding a fairly important conversation with both of them, and was obstinate to be included as part of it. Beady little doll eyes swiveled to take in the surroundings, gauging the current flow of conversation before relaxing and falling into what seemed to be an innocent doll stance.

[Than]

Than then stood suddenly, the Pine Marten on his shoulder fighting to maintain balance at the sudden move, "Well, this has been an interesting meeting my dear friends, but I have business to attend to in Saranti," he said as he pulled the hood of his cloak tighter and tossed a coin onto the counter. The Pine Marten then jumped off of his shoulder and scampered up onto Lazarus' shoulder, several small squeaking noises followed and another note, tied to his right forepaw , was deposited in the King of thieves collar. "I regret I couldn't stay longer, but making piece is a full time job," he said as the Pine Marten returned to his shoulder, "Lazarus, Lacey, may the City of Thieves thrive, and... oh drat what was your name again miss? Clothilda I believe? Either way, good bye, I hope I've enlightened you." He shook the two sentient beings and the dolls hands before striding out the door, flashing a smile at Lazarus as he left and entered the poorly lit street.

The Pine Marten's muscles tensed as they entered the shadows of an alley, and then he jumped off of Than's shoulders, transforming into Alastor as he fell to earth. The ribbon around his neck snapping and being caught expertly with the right hand before it was handed to Than. Than unfolded the paper cautiously before reading. Tossing the now crumpled up letter to the side he continued on down the alley towards the stables where Nightshade was being kept. "We must take these next few steps carefully Alastor, the fate of the world hangs in my hands and your claws," Than said, Alastor simply nodded in agreement, "Clothilda seems very difficult challenge, did I do right to tell her what I did. " "I have no doubt that she needed to know it, by you or someone else she would have found out," the shifter replied, "the world and most certainly the Song will come after you, you just have to be able to outrun them. And if not, fight back."

[Lazarus]

Lazarus allowed a crooked smile to return Than’s blessing, as Lacey stared up at him with calm, knowing, yet unreadable button eyes. “May your heart and mind remain focused on good deeds, dear Than,” he added mystically, throwing a simple riddle out for Cloti and Than’s ponderings, as was his habit to do. “In other words, I wish you a good day.” He continued to watch the man’s full retreat to the exit, not letting his eyes leave the frame of the doorway even after the elf had slipped out into the crowded haze of the street, gone from his limited sight and hearing. His gaze just remained fixed on the opening, as if something unseen to all but him remained there, something that mystified him in ways that were unearthly and spectral.

Breaking the relative silence of the tavern, (which had fallen quiet at the departure of this man who was so apparently mysterious and important,) Lacey suddenly cleared her throat with a small noise, her mouth turning down into a frown. “I missed it,” she complained haughtily, sounding almost disappointed at this fact. “He left before I could witness anything important. The aggravating man.” Lacey continued to repine underneath her breath, crossing her small doll arms in frustration. She’d taken all the time to follow Lazarus from his apartment for this? She could’ve been squashed like a bug, for nothing more than to watch the ending of a significant speech.

Lazarus snapped out of his reverie at his smaller companion’s words, offering another one of his small smiles to her, while fishing the note Alastor had given him from his collar. “I’ll inform you of the details later, Lacey,” he promised her consolingly. “You were here for the majority of it, anyway, weren’t you?” She nodded sharply, despite the sour expression portrayed clearly on her inhuman face. The King of Thieves then sighed, as if the whole ordeal had taken a drastic toll on his well-being, and rose to his feet with the doll tucked into the crook of his elbow. “Well now, that’s that,” he said with a nod and a grin, talking to no one in particular. “I’m glad the alliance is still withstanding. It would be a great trouble if I were to have to annihilate that man. He’s a fairly frightening foe.” He finally turned his attention once again to Cloti, his expression still glued friendlily on his face. “I hope you’ve realized that, Cloti,” he said, his tone carrying a slightly cautious tone. “Than is someone you wouldn’t want on your bad side.” His smile grew even wider for a second, a play at pretending to actually be cheerful, before falling back to something more genuine. “I’m afraid I don’t have the time left to loiter here. It’s been wonderful seeing you again, Cloti, as well as seeing Than… I hope I have many times in the future to see the pair of you again. Though perhaps not together, of course.” He began to walk towards the door, finished with his departing gifts, before remembering something else and calling over his shoulder: “By the way, Cloti, if you have any inquiries or requests, feel free to visit me at my apartments! I’m sure you remember where they are.” Once he’d reached the door, he turned to give her one last beaming grin and a small wave with his free hand, before disappearing out the door himself, just like Than.

[Little Sparrow]

“I believe I understand survival much better now… I may even have become accustomed to it.”
Cloti laughed at that. "Aren't we all?" She retorted with a faint touch of bitterness and resentment. A little too accustomed. For a short moment, she found herself longing for the life she used to had, where she was a tedious violin student and still studying as her parents had bade her. The time where Salvador was still a sweet little child and was still... human. Looking back, she wondered how life would be like if she hadn't gotten into this mess.

For a moment, Cloti's eyes widened as she watched Lazlo speak to the doll. She had not expected someone like him to be... socializing with dolls, neither have anything to do with toys that little girls tended to target.
“Yes, Lazlo-sama,”
Her eyebrows shot up. An enchanted doll, now that was much rarer and now she really was caught off guard. Where had he found an enchanted doll? Who had made it? How long had it been... alive. From the previous artificial life reports and articles that she had been aware of, artificial life never got past a life span of over two weeks. She had the suspicion that this one had a lot of knowledge within her - more than two weeks of knowledge.

Before she could further contemplate this matter, her attention was drawn back to Than, who had risen with a flourish. "Well, this has been an interesting meeting my dear friends, but I have business to attend to in Saranti,"
Saranti... That was where... Cloti tensed; well, time to get back to work. The peace was over. He had just reminded her of the atrocity that stole any respect from her.
"... oh drat what was your name again miss? Clothilda I believe? Either way, good bye, I hope I've enlightened you."
Instantly, Cloti fought to keep her blank, indifferent expression. He had known. He was comfortable with sharing this information. Was it false information? Information that he wished to trick her with? An inner sense told her that none of the other beings were listening that intently to have caught her name... or at least none that seemed like it. But now that the night elf was gone, she could do nothing about it. Even as much as she would have liked to dash out and kill him, she knew that it would most likely be her that would be killed instead of him. She turned resignedly to Lazlo, watching with rekindled amusement as he and the doll Lacey conversed.

“I’m afraid I don’t have the time left to loiter here. It’s been wonderful seeing you again, Cloti, as well as seeing Than… I hope I have many times in the future to see the pair of you again. Though perhaps not together, of course.”
Cloti snorted. Well, trust Lazlo to address her formally again. She rose up, letting her cloak fall around her properly once more.
“By the way, Cloti, if you have any inquiries or requests, feel free to visit me at my apartments! I’m sure you remember where they are.” She glowered at the Celestial's back, wondering if she should put a blade between his collarbones. Nah, that would mean her death sentence. She waited a while, then strode out the door. Today had been a more or less successful information raid. Time to get back and take it out on her violin.