on the precipice

[Deleted]

Simralins hunt today took her outside the city walls, into the land beyond. She sifted through the city until she was able to sneak out before straightening up on the other side of the wall, making her way toward the trees.

She had been informed of a bounty for someone who had left the walls the night before. Really, it seemed more like worried parents who were willing to pay someone to find their teenage son, but they advertised it to those who knew bounty because they were the best at finding things and people. Especially highly capable trackers, such as Simralin.

She got the boys description, name and gathered whatever she coud about him before setting out. The reward his parents had set up was fairly substantial, making this worth the time. She woudl have preferred if they knew of her skills and hired her only, privately, but they didn't so they sent the word into the network, which she thought was a mistake.

She was supposed to bring him back alive and unharmed and, in a way, she felt like she was one of the few rangers/bounty hunters/ etc. that would follow through with that. She felt a strange obligation to find him before someone else did.

Bo Riddle

(it kind of went a different direction but there you go!)

[Bo Riddle]

Of course Bo was going to follow someone who was trying to sneak around. Because why not? Besides, this person was horrible at sneaking, and terribly easy to follow.

"You really need to work on your sneaking skills, yeah?" She finally opted to say. "I tracked you all the way from town!"

Could she tell who the person was at this point? No. Would she care either way if she recognized them or not? Still no. She was just there to pass time. She was curious, so she'd sate it.

"'Sides, what are you doing out here?"

[Deleted]

At the voice Sim froze.. Frowning. Simralin was fairly good at hiding her tracks, however she knew a good tracker would still be able to follow. This girl apparently knew what she was doing. When the girl asked what she was doing out there, Sim spun around. Sim smiled softly, "oh, it's you," she vaguely new Bo Riddle. She cocked her head to the side, "I'm simply working on a case. What are you doing out here?"

[Bo Riddle]

Simralin Ellisidar. Not exactly a great friend, but not an enemy either. More of a name really.

Bo shrugged with a toothy grin. "Whatever I want. Saw you heading out so I decided to follow you." Really, that was all the explaination she needed.

Bo took a few steps ahead of Sim before turning on her heel and observing her. "So you going to explain what case you've got then? Some stupid idiot need to get a few more holes in them?" Bodies meant loot. Loot was good, even coming from a corpse.

[Deleted]

Sim was unsurprised by her answer. "Well, keep up," she said, moving forward as the girl explained that she decided to follow. She turned back toward the trees as Bo asking her to explain and spoke rather coldly of the dead, which Sim didn't really mind. She shrugged, "missing teen, like yourself," she explained, "probably will get a few holes in them if I don't find him."

[Bo Riddle]

Bo's face scrunched up. "Rescue job then, yeah?" That wasn't as fun. Especially if it was a teen. Bo tended to hate people around her age. Most of them were too stupid for her.

"So whose this idiot then if people might be after them? Or did they wander into danger?" That sounded as likely of an option as any. If they were out here past the city, it was even more likely. "Cause if that's the case, they might already be dead by now and you're searching for a corpse." Not that Bo particularly cared either way.

[Deleted]

Sim shrugged, "something like that. Rewards are always nice," there was no point hiding that there was a reward in store. Sim wasn't a good Samaritan type, after all.

"They didn't tell me why he left the city," she answered, her voice lowering, "corpse or not, I think they'd rather just know what happened to him," she said, bending her knees into a slight plié to get lower as they got closer to the trees, "I think I hear something up ahead..."

[Bo Riddle]

Rewards were always nice. Corpse or no corpse. The only trouble with finding a corpse is that something had to have made the corpse.

Which meant whatever Sim heard up ahead could be exactly that.

Bo went silent and drew one of her daggers from the folds of her clothes. Better safe than sorry. Especially with what she was hearing. "Sounds like more than just your boy is up ahead." She whispered it so the sources of the multiple rough voices she was picking up didn't hear them.

Bo really didn't want to end up dead today.

"There others after this kid?" That meant it was just competition.

[Deleted]

Sim didn't draw her axe or bow just yet, confident in her ability to have enough time to do it when the moment came. She nodded as Bo's words, "perhaps..." it didn't sound bigger than just one kid, for sure, but she wasn't sure what exactly it was. Then the voices came through and Sim found herself reaching an arm out, beckoning Bo to stay put even though she already was. "most likely the reward is substantial due to his family... I'm not surprised," then she took her axe out, spinning it in her hand, "we'll just have to get them out of our way."

[Bo Riddle]

Bo wasn't about to dash headlong into danger. Shadows suited her better. Especially when it came to attacking people. "Sounds like a plan to me. So what, you going in swinging and I'll stab 'em in the back? Or are we going to actually try and talk to them instead? Because that sounds boring." And unlikely to achieve anything other than a few arrows and blades in their hides.

Not exactly something Bo wanted to happen. Ever.