The pub was packed on this cold and rainy night. They had a band playing and constant drinks circulating through out the pub. Tonight just might be a bad night and signs of that could possibly be the bad rolling thunder or maybe even the fact that everyone that seemed to be coming into the pub seemed to be a brawler like person. Everyone looked as if they had a big chip on their shoulder that they needed to eat, and tonight just might be the night they decide to do so. Just in case it was, Jade Valdis, the silent assassin, had moved her seating to the back of the pub in the corner. Her stunning looks caused many men to look her way, but her deadly look caused nobody to start trouble with her.

“Give me my money scumbag” some man said as he stood up yelling and spitting everywhere. Why were people so stupid, and filthy. “I don’t owe you a damn thing” the skinny man said in response to the big ones comment. That started everything.

With a flash, the big man had flung his table, his chair, the mugs, and plates across the room in every which direction. Everything was flying and everyone near that place was being hit by something. The men went crazy and started fighting each other for some reason. What started from two people turned into an all out brawl. The only thing jade did was lick her lips, drink her wine, and watch the fight. Things were getting interesting more and more as the time went on.

Normally Nathaniel was keen on watching brawl fights. Fists being thrown, fortunes being lost; it was an amusing spectacle. There was also the darker edge to it that interested him; the black bruises adorning rippling frames, the squirt of blood from a broken nose. Such violence without cause was an addictive sight, and like some pety drug addict he watched with lustful eyes. Today was different, however. Dark eyes failed to take in the sight.

But why? Why had he ignored that which called to his hungry belly when he sat amongst its presence? Conflict and chaos stroked against him like an insistent cat, and usually he was fast to pet the favored pet. Oddly enough, a more intriguing sight had caught his dark blue eyes. The sight of one woman scantily clad in light reds that would almost dare to be pink. There were a few weapons he could see on her, and then there were a few he did not see but assumed were there. Nathaniel had never encountered an assassin face to face before, and the oppurtunity to approach one was tantalizing.

Carefully he moved from his seat, ducking low to avoid any thrown articles between the men that had missed their aim entirely. Nathaniel wasn't keen to be hit in the face by thrown mugs or half-eaten food, and these ruckusses tended to get out of hand and spread like wildfire. Such was the nature of the beast.

"It isn't every night a woman entertains such a noisome harlot. On behalf of the Wilwarin, I must assure you it isn't always this distasteful." Nathaniel sat in the seat beside the female, giving a quiet smile as he sat his half full tankard down upon the wood before him. His body was partially angled towards her, portraying his obvious interest in having a conversation. If she neglected to he would be just as happy to return to his drink, but... something about the woman assassin was intriguing.

Perhaps I can make use of her...

Jade listened to the mans words and and watching him out of the corner of her eye as he sat next to her. Which was more interesting to her, the fact that a man had come up to her instead of being in this fight, or the fact that all of this unneeded chaos was going happening all around her. Chairs being flung around, the sounds of loud cries, and the sounds of bones breaking filled the air. Everything from wood, to actual bodies got tossed around the pub like nothing. It was funny to her, but this man sitting next to her seemed to take the cake.

Lifting her short glass and placed it to her lips she allowed a little bit of her red wine to enter her mouth. The wine was watered down slightly to give it less of an after taste and to make it much smoother. She placed the glass back down and turned her body to where she could see the man and the fight at the same time.

"Well maybe behalf on the Wilwarin Inn and Pub, you somehow get me another drink. Maybe water?" Jade said giving the man the light conversation he wanted. More than likely, he thought she was just a shallow female that didn't have a mind of her own, but if that was really the fact, then he would be sadly mistaken. She could hold her own weight and if she needed to prove it then she would. If needed to, she would prove she could handle herself, of course if it ever got that far.

Nathaniel gave a dark smile to the other. Well, she'd certainly not been spared any wit. It was interesting to interact with someone not more easily molded, normally if his appearance didn't force others to comply his words did. It was a difficult balancing act, but it had worked out for the best; those who could not be swayed one way usually fell victim to the other. Right now he wasn't interested in such things though -- infact, he wanted in on the action. Rather than engage in the pety conflict going on (which, really, would have been beneath him to engage in anyways) he wanted to fight a verbal battle.

"Water, eh? Certainly an interesting choice to come here for anything but getting sour." Nathaniel raised a hand to stroke his goatee, eyes fair off as he mock-contemplated. As good as he was at acting, the smirk he wore gave away the fact he wasn't doing anything more than playing games. "I apologize, it seems I can't oblige. Though I understand the bar keeper is usually rather talented at watering down drinks."

Ah yes, the age-old rumors of the man watering down his drinks. Many customers complained he was trying to milk their money by doing so, forcing them to buy more before they could get a buzz. He always kindly informed them they could find another pub if this one was not to their liking. At the moment he was trying to break up the fight, though a rather muscular fellow was looming behind him with a bottle raised high. The arm came crashing down, the bottle seconds from impact, and--

Nathaniel turned away to once again smile at Jade, giving her his full attention. "Quite the arsenal you've brought with you, all the same. A traveller?" He lifted his mug, sipping on his grog slowly efore once more setting it back down in its place. "Or perhaps an apprentice...?" His dark eyebrows lifted, revealing his curiousity.

Jade smiled at the mans wit. He too was somewhere close to smart, unlike other people she had met in her lifetime. She went back to looking at the fight as she watched random people get hit over the head with something hard and blood sprayed everywhere. Very funny stuff. Other than leading guys on for a major upset, she loved watching people give their bones, blood, rage, and the worst thing, their life to stupid things such as bar fights.

"Well i cant have water i see now. But none the less, its not really needed." Jade said as she took another slow sip of her smooth watered wine. "But as to answer your question, what if im both? An apprentice and a traveler hmm? What would you say then?" jade said as she slipped one hand from off of the table and placed it on her the hilt of her hidden dagger. If this man was here to try her then he would live to see nothing else.

"So what about you. Why would a man such as yourself rather flirt with a girl like me instead of bashing someone till they are all just as brainless as any other man that walks through that door?" she said licking her lips once more. Jade was obviously trying to tempt the man to see exactly where his head was at. Was he another pointless brute who just got his eyes on on a girl this one time, or really a man who didnt enjoy getting into fights like this. She would find out, for this man would open up like a book to her.

"I didn't realize people needed training to become travellers." The chuckle was soft and smooth, not unlike the watered wine. "Fair enough, though. I suppose I would have to assume you are one who travels dangerously, to be so well suited as you are." He drew upon his drink, leaning back as he eyed her up and down lazily. Not to check her out, but rather to give a fair opinion. "And that, perhaps, you are one who travels out of necessity. For I do not know a traveller that ever wanted attention, and yet you wear the world of one who does."

Nathaniel could have said more, and likely would have if it wasn't for the beer bottle that whizzed overhead. He ducked it quickly, then grasped an aandoned bottle from off the counter and threw it in the general direction the attack had been from. "Hey! Keep it to yourselves! You lot are worse than a tribe of weebles caught in a barrel!"

Immediately the disdain and isgust rolled away to a pleasant, if not apologetic, smile. "Sorry about that." He missed the movement of the dagger entirely, something he normally would have caught. "I erm... Well, I wouldn't say flirting exactly." Nathaniel chuckled a little uncomfortably, not unlike someone who had been called out. "Actually, as it were, I was looking for someone to ah... aid me. I am a fighter by trade, and I am trying to find a few good allies. You certainly look as though you'd qualify, though admittedly appearances can be decieving."

Leaning back once more he drank from his cup, a smaller sip this time so as to spare himself from finishing it too quickly. The blow that had befallen the bartender ensured no one would be getting a refill anytime soon. "As for fighting... no. This is not fighting. This is little more than a child's game of hopscotch. Look there," He turned, gesturing to a drunkenly swaying man who was bashing heads in with a chair.

"He is not a fighter. His feet, they do not move with balance... he knows not where he places them. His hands do not hold that weapon with anymore care than he would hold a simple hammer, and his attacks are slow and random. Any trained man," He corrected himself quickly. "Or woman, could easily knock it from him. Fighting is an art, it takes infinite control and love. A weapon is the umbilical chord that binds us to our mother, and we should lavish it with the same love we give to those in our beds."

The brute was hit on the head by a bottle, and though it shattered he turned slowly to glare at the man behind him. Not impressed in the least. Giving a disgusted frown Nathaniel turned from the sight and looked back to the assassin. "I have more taste than those beasts."

This man was witty. He knew how to properly think and and talk in a manor that most people cannot. He was able to play off the remark she had said in a wonderful way, although it was still apparent that he was faking through it. Call it female intuition. It didn't take a genius to know that he was still hitting on her, but either way she would play his game for a bit longer.

When the man turned to talk about the drunken fighter, she listened to his words deeply as she chuckled softly. Not at his words, but that the man was actually hitting people with a chair that he used as a weapon. The bar fight started to take a turn for the worse and it was obvious as the fight started to get closer and closer to the back of the tavern where they had been sitting.

"Well appearances can be deceiving. What if i want people to think i can fight by bringing all these weapons? Or maybe i want them to think i was not capable of holding my own because im a female. That is what you were thinking correct?" Jade said looking straight at the man in his eyes. She didn't hold her tongue for anyone, but she did have a manor of playfulness in her voice. She meant it in a serious way, but added a hint of sincerity to show that she was not trying to insult him.

"Now if its pure strength you want you have the wrong one. Fighting is an art, your right. It takes love to do it. And i love what i do. I fight through shadows, stealth. If you want some upfront brute then ask one of these men getting hit with chairs" she said sipping her drink more. She slid her hand from her dagger to her throwing knives as she prepared herself to attack if the bar fight got to close. What would the man do if he was attacked? Would he become as brainless as one of these barbarians? Or is he capable of an actual thought process.

Nathaniel shrugged expansively to her initial comment. "I would not know either way if you are capable of holding your own or not. It is not my place. It has been my experience women are quite decent when it comes to fighting one on one, as anyone knows the tales of Phedre. I simply believe they need to work... harder." His eyes moved to the fallen tender in contemplation, then with a soft sigh he finished his drink off.

"You are not a brawler. You would have jumped into the fight as well, I'm sure." The words were barely mattered, spoken under his breath. When she spoke again he listened intently, nodding along to her speech. She did sound ideal, but sounding was only half the battle. Could she walk the walk as well? "I wouldn't dream of asking a baffoon to do what only an adult can. I am curious, though... how am I to know you do possess such skill? What proof may I partake in, to be certain you aren't some common woman trying to make ends meet?"

He gave a smile that clearly showed he didn't believe it, though he was well trained in theatrics. "Not that I would wish to imply you were. But I need the best of the best... and it isn't usual I find them at bars, begging your pardon." Nathaniel felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end as the fight grew closer, but was silent to the approach. If they drew in enough he would be fast to withdraw his blade and incapacitate the morons, but wanted to hold back from such things at the moment.

It was terribly easy to kill a foe, but felling them without permitting death was an art in itself. To knock them down without shedding blood was a fun challenge, but it was late at night and he'd far rather partake in more alcohol. Still, the lurkin danger could not be ignored, and slowly his fingers eased over the top of his blade, resting on the hilt in the half shadows.

The thought of jade being a women trying to make ends meet reminded jade of her past. She was adopted into a rich family and had everything she could ever want. Ends meet was nothing then. Even now its still nothing. She was happy, she was skilled, she was content with her life, if this man was that shallow that all he saw was a woman dressed up with weapons and thought she was making ends meet, then this man was very closed minded. If one was making ends meet, why would their weaponry look so extravagant? Why would the way you dress be seductive and sexy at the same time? Why would the things you own be of the finest materials that one could buy.

"Is it every man that thinks that people, well mostly women, that think they must proove themselves before they are accepted? Does it really look like i need ends meet? Pure silver weapons, one of a kind bows, shurikens made of the finest materials. One look at me should tell you that im not an average women." Jade said batting her eyes. Jade was not the average woman. First look at her could tell anyone that she was not. Why was this man so different?

"Well, it doesn't matter. Proof lies within one's eyes as they talk. My eyes have not looked away, or shown anything differently. People can say all they want to about lying with a straight face, but the eyes will always tell the truth. But you dont have to agree with my words, or eyes. But keep in mind you just might need me one day soon. You never know" Jade said taking a bit more of her win into he rmouth finishing the wine completely off.

Nathaniel listened to Jade's little schpeil about not being average with a smirk. Fair enough, she did dress well and arm herself with wicked weaponry. "My dear Lady, I did not mean to insinuate anything of the sort. You yourself said that I should not be so hasty to judge by appearance, didn't you?" He shifted on his seat, leaning forwards to raise an eyebrow in challenge. After all, it was quite a winning hand when one could turn words of their enemy against them. "I myself don't believe in the word average."

A sinister smirk curled his lips, and with a creaking of clothing he leaned back and away from the other. Nathaniel listened silently as she spoke of studying another's eyes, and he found himself nodding along. His practice in interrogation had taught him much of the subtle bodily gestures. Some trained assassins could lie right through it though, eyes included. It took years of training, but it was not fully unique. Either this woman knew it and was playing him, or was intentionally withholding information. The concept of her having not known was absurd.

"You see, that is precisely why I'm still here." Nathaniel's voice had grown darker, deeper. Like some demon about to make a deal, as if hidden in his coat was a red right hand. The light obscured his features as he leaned forth, throwing his face into shadows and making him seem all the more frightening. "I believe I could use you, if you were able. I believe an assassin might be just what I need. I'm starting a war to end all wars. And I will tolerate no strumpets. But you... you seem a capable fighter. One of the elite; a general, perhaps, in the coming squeals."

Nathaniel leaned back, the light once more touching him and allowing him to be human again. "Talk is cheap, though. So are egos. You may believe yourself the best, but I need proof..."

A grin twisted his lips upwards, teeth revealed like the slobbering jaws of a wolf. "If you would care to stand on my side of the fence, anyhow."

"Believe myself as the best? No sir i do not. The best are for arrogant people such as these in this bar fight. Maybe even those feeling they can make an army. So now i ask you sir. Was it me who thought myself best because i put notice on my well equiptment?"

Jade asked licking her lips and spinning her glass on the table. She was not done with her speech but she wasnted to make sure he was listening, and listening well.

"Or was it you that thought yourself best coming in here thinking women are not as good. Thinking that you can build an army yourself? I dont mind you asking my help. Im actually flattered, but might want to be wise who you throw your words to." Jade said as she threw her glass at a man who was running directly at them with a chair.

It was another brainless brute, carrying a chair. The glass connected with his skull in a horrible way as he fell to the floor screaming loudly. Someone ran behind him and kicked him in the chest and just as fast as he was ready for a fight, he was now wishing he had stayed home that night.

"That man is a prime example of a man who thinks he is best. He is now suffering. I bet he wants to go home right about now." Jade said mockingly as the conversation between them heated up but stayed casual. It was just common words being passed, but each of them made solid points. This man was a brilliant one. She gives him props, but as for being fair, or not sexist like any other guy of this time, he loose points in her mind. But maybe she was wrong. There was always a chance.

A thin smiled wormed onto Nathaniel's features. "I do believe you have begun talking in circles. First you do not wish me to assume you are average, and now I am not to assume you are one of the best? There is no such thing as middleground; you're either one or the other." His voice faded as she licked her lips, watching the gesture in partial fascination as she resumed speaking.

Predictably enough, they were infuriating. Nathaniel quelled any fires brought about by the sparks though, maintaining a perfect attitude and relying on that skill he'd so honed over the past while. "I do count myself as among the best. I don't deny it. My skills and goals far outweigh that of the pathetic rabble squirming on the floor, and I have the strength to attain what I seek. I have no illusions about what I can and can't do, but I do not suffer from an ailing morale, unlike the wretches of these days."

Nathaniel lifted his mug, eyeing the inside of it slowly. It was glistening faintly, but there wasn't enough liquid to even drip out of it if he were to swing it upside down. Giving a dejected sigh he set it back on the counter, regarding Jade once more. "If you doubt your own abilities then perhaps I was mistaken in asking you. As it is this isn't some open call; I keep an eye out for only those who match what I'm looking for. Further more, I expect something of a test of loyalty... This isn't a boy scouts club, it is a future that will shake Ea to its core." The last words were hissed quietly, the passion in it more heated than any flame.

Nathaniel leaned back as she threw her glass past him, not flinching as the harsh sound of shattered glass met his ears. Following that was the unique crumple of a body followed by a thump and crash. No doubt she'd nailed someone, and with quite the aim to boot. He didn't look over to study the handiwork; these hogs bored him and took no talent to dispatch. Still, Jade pressed on, and he stared at her with an interested expression, if not somewhat judgemental.

"That man is a prime example of a man who thinks he is best. He is now suffering. I bet he wants to go home right about now."

"Please. That man could barely hold the notion of what a weapon was, much less being better than others. He is no better than a common dog, trying to assert its dominance by weak attempts of flattering itself. That man doesn't think he is best, he just thinks he can get his kicks off being an idiot. Sadly, I doubt this will change his path in life at all." Nathaniel stroked his goatee thoughtfully. "A man who is truly one of the best knows such things, but doesn't give to such lewd attempts. There is no need to prove anything. No doubt our friend there was aware of that, and probably sought to change it."

Stretching his arms, he eyed the door of the pub warily. Men were passing in and out, bodies flopping out occasionally as they were shoved by other drunken louts. It was a pitiful sight. "I don't believe I caught your name. Would you care to share it, perhaps outside and away from this... mess?" The disgust that dripped from the last word was impossible to miss.