Delving in the Deep [Twinch]

[raziah]

Raziah had been having an off-time in the Guild. She had bungled a job in White Run and had been told to get out of the Guild Master's sight for a while, just until things calmed down in the Cistern. Unfortunately, it didn't take much to get on the Guild Master's bad side now-a-days, what with the guild being on rather thin ice all the time.

So, Raziah decided to do what she did best - explore ruins for shiny things that could be sold at a profit to anyone, anywhere. She would give 75% of her profit to the Guild in order to make up for the bungled White Run job. Going over a map she had obtained under... ahem... unusual circumstances from Calcemo's Laboratory in Markarth, she had picked out a Dwemer ruin that seemed promising up near Dawnstar.

The Khajiit normally did not travel to such a wintery climate, but she felt she needed to get as far from Riften as possible without hitting a major city. So, she had delved deep into Mzinchaleft.

Currently, she was busy working on opening up a Dwemer chest deep in the bowels of the ruin. Dwemer locks were notoriously tricky so Raziah's concentration was completely upon opening up this damned chest. She had broken five picks thus far... and SNAP, there went the sixth. Growling softly, she gave the thing a kick before hissing.

"Meridia's tits, ouch!" She whispered, biting her lip as she clutched her foot. She had given it a stronger kick than she had intended. Hopefully, she hadn't altered any of the Falmer that might be roaming about...

[Twinch]

The thick silence of the cave shattered as the sound of Dwemer metal echoed down the long halls. Nearer towards the entrance of the ruin a shadow pressed against the wall, reverberations from the noise lifting a fine layer of dust from the floor. The shadow was still for only a moment before creeping along the tunnels once more, her thin leather boots matching the prints that already lined the corridor. This place was old but certainly not empty, and Twinch's main talent was being careful in unsure situations.

She knew the woods of the Hjaalmarch like the back of her hand but there were so many ruins around that she had somehow overlooked this one. Simply not knowing a place was a good enough reason for the chocolate cat to explore, and what was likely just a group of bandits wasn't enough to scare her away. She wasn't so sure how she'd handle Dwemer war machines, but she had always been good at running away as well.

As she rounded a corner, bow drawn and eyes unblinking, her ears flicked back at the sight of the other explorer. She let out a silent breath, an arrow at the ready but unworried. She crept as close as she could, only about seven feet from the other Khajiit before she stood tall and aimed her bow at the back of the thief's neck.

"Stand up easy now and I won't give you a new breathing hole." She said quietly, standing in what she pictured was an assertive pose. "Why don't you turn around and tell me what a guild member is doing all the way out here, and give me a pretty smile while you're at it." She added, the corner of her mouth turning up in a smirk.

[raziah]

'Oh for the love of Nocturnal, what did I doooooo?' Raziah thought to herself, instinctively freezing when she heard footsteps behind her. It was a bad situation, here she was caught at unawares because of that stooopid chest and it's stooopid Dwemer lock. Of course, silent prayers to Nocturnal were prayed when the approaching party decided to ask questions first and shoot later. Slowly, Raziah lifted her hands where the individual behind her could see that she held no weapon, having dropped the dagger she used for lock-picking when her pick had broken, ears flat against her head underneath her hood.

"Easy, friend, I mean no harm," Raziah stated, turning around slowly, doing just as asked. Of course, due to her Guild hood you could only really see the lower half of her face, which of course she was offering an uneasy but genuine smile. It seemed to say "oh shit, don't kill me!"

Yup... definitely not a good week for Raziah the Fearless.

[Twinch]

Twinch bared her teeth in a slight grin. "I'm as easy as I'll get. Can't say the same for you." She said, laughing just slightly and moving a little closer with her bow still ready. She continued, getting close enough to reach up with her tail and flick the hood back. "You also look a bit poorly outfitted for defending yourself." As she said this her eyes narrowed slightly, gleaming aggressively.

After a moment she sighed and shook her head, lowering her bow and storing the arrow, seeming to relax slightly. "Don't worry, I'm not looking for blood on my hands right now. But you didn't answer my question. This isn't the sort of job I'd expect the guild to pull, so either you're in hot water or they're getting desperate. Either would be just as likely." As she spoke her eyes flicked over the woman, trying to assess her station in the guild. She then looked down at the chest and rolled her eyes.

"Dwemer locks have an extra pin. That's probably why you keep snapping your picks deep down." She finally added, never quite waiting for an answer before continuing. Her tail flicked in an almost taunting way, as if she was trying to judge every bit of the others personality all at once.

[raziah]

Raziah jumped slightly when her hood was flicked off by the stranger, ears going flat against her head in protest of having her face revealed. That was the problem with being Khajiit. If someone got a good look at you it was easy to pick you out by coloring and markings. No two Khajiit had quite the same pattern.

"Oh, I'm pretty easy... have half a dozen lovers in every city in this damned cold wasteland," Raziah commented, crossing her arms over her chest, pulling the out first thing that came to her head. Her armor might not have been the best, but it was Guild Armor and she liked it, but she had her favored dagger and bow on her, quiver stocked full of arrows, and that was enough.

"And even though I'm in the Guild, I'm on my own time, thank-you-very-much. The Guild doesn't do ruins all that often, but I'm the expert in the field for them," Raziah stated, tail flicking back and forth in annoyance. Ooooo, this other woman had some cheek first to question her about her business and then to offer unsolicited advise about Dwemer locks. Quite honestly, if they had met under other circumstances Raziah might have attempted to hit on her... but there was an Argonian in Windhelm who might object to that, too.

[Twinch]

Twinch chuckled. "I'm assuming you're from Elsweyr then. I've heard most of my kind from there like to make themselves available to any passerby." She said, one fang slipping over her bottom lip in a grin. "But that aside, I think we're at a bit of an impasse here. Finder's keepers isn't very viable in my mind." She said, beginning to pace slowly. "However, you don't seem like a problem. What say you stay behind and I'll pay you in something I don't need. I've got some swag I haven't fenced yet, and I'm sure that's no problem for a member."

She walked as she talked, sizing the other Khajiit up despite her short stature. She wasn't sure what she thought of her, maybe a bit of a slave to the band but not brainless. Certainly not feeble, just caught off guard. "So what do you say we do this civil-like? I'm not a bandit, and I don't particularly like fighting other thieves if I can help it. I know how much of a pain I am in battle, so I can only assume you'd be just as squirmy." She added, saying it in such a way that it sounded like a high compliment.

[raziah]

Raziah snorted softly at Twinch's offer. No way in hell was she just going to sit around, twidling her thumbs while she let some two-bit, flea-bitten, wanna-be with an attitude one-up her, raid the entire place dry and then throw her whatever scraps she deemed fit.

"Oh, I can find a buyer for just about anything... but I have a feeling that there's better treasure here in this ruin that what you could offer me right here, right now," Raziah stated, her eyes following the other Khajiit as she moved. Raziah's tail only flicked as she began to form her plan. This could get real ugly real quick and she wanted to be ready for it.

"I think you'll find that in a scrape I won't hold back, and I can tell neither would you. I fear we are likely evenly matched..." Which was true, the pair were the exact same height and extremely close in size. Raziah had a bit more on Twinch in muscle, but the other cat seemed to have more speed and agility than she did.

[Twinch]

Twinch sighed. "Hey, I offered. I don't see you coming up with ideas, Silver. Or are you just worried if I leave you behind you'll get disassembled by a sphere?" She said, winking. She then scratched at her chin as a thought began to form.

"Hmm. Well, as far as I see it, we have three options." She raised her fingers and held eye contact as she finally stood still. "One, we split this place 50/50 and step on each other's tails the whole way. Two, we see who's faster on the draw and both end up missing a lot of blood." She looked back at the chest and smiled. "Or three, we make an arrangement. We find some way to split the windfall that makes your little family happy and still keeps me eating, and you do me a favor." She said, eyes glittering slightly as she used every bit of her charm to make the plan seem viable.

"Where I come from, the most important thing is knowing your market. Right now everyone I know is looking for artifacts that make them feel special. Maybe they all believe in that Nordic 'dragonborn' nonsense. Either way, I'm in a need for locations of old Nord barrows to pick up some specialty items. You use your connections to get me some maps and I'll give you the lion's share of Dwemer chink." She said, holding her hands up a little as she described her idea. "Unless you just wanted to fight."

[raziah]

Raziah couldn't help but smirk in a mischievous way at the last suggestion. Her? Help a non-guild thief? Especially when it concerned the one thing she was better at than any other current Guild member? Hah! Nord tombs and ruins were Raziah's bread and butter. Yes, the Guild helped to provide her with a decent amount of coin for living, but she depended on the artifacts from Ancient Nord Tombs to really keep her comfortable. However... she could use that to her advantage...

"I might be able to help you with that," Raziah stated, smiling lightly. "I can point you towards a couple of places I've heard about. Those silly Nords stash more artifacts of power then they know what to do with."

Raziah shrugged, humming softly. "It would be nice to have a partner in this ruin. I've noted signs of Falmer crawling all over the deepest levels, and we all know that where there's Falmer there's intense danger... but also insane amounts of profit."

She hummed softly as she turned back to the chest, pulling another pick out of her pocket as she picked up the utility knife she had dropped, popping the chest open with ease this time. Reaching in, she found a silver and moonstone circlet, slipping it onto her head as she reached in again, pulling out a pair of rings that she tossed towards Twinch.

"Sound good?" She asked with a winning smile.

[Twinch]

Twinch caught the rings and looked them over with an appraising eye, calculating their worth before smiling at her. "Alright, it's a deal. You turn on me though, and I'll creep right up to your bed in the ratway and put an arrow in your throat." She said, licking the palm of her hand in the same way a human would spit, then held the hand out. She knew something was up, but all the same there wasn't much else she could do. If things seemed sketchy, she knew she could take her revenge safely.

It wouldn't be the first time she had snuck into the thieves guild, and it certainly wasn't easy, but she knew she could do it again. Her eyes conveyed her confidence, and it was obvious she wasn't bluffing about taking revenge. Somewhere buried under her thieving prowess there was a warrior of the desert, just waiting for a chance to be set free.

As she held her hand out she turned to look down into the depths, ears twitching as she almost thought she could hear the movement of things in the deep.

[raziah]

Raziah didn't even flinch at the threat of death. She hadn't earned, and kept, the name Raziah "the Fearless" for no good reason. She lived as she lived and did what she did and never bat an eyelash. When death came for her, be that two weeks or sixty years from now, she would fight it tooth and nail before she allowed it to take her.

Copying Twinch's actions, she shook her hand with a winning smile. No way was this cat going to muscle in on her territory without a fight, oooh no. She'd be getting some Nord Tombs... Nord Tombs that Raziah knew about because she had raided them previously.

Letting go of Twinch's hand, Raziah pulled her hood back up, feeling much better when her face was concealed. She dropped into a crouch, slipping into the main part of the tunnel, ears flicking as she heard the tell-tale noises of Falmer creeping around. Humming gently, she turned to Twinch.

"So... preferred method of dispatching disgruntled Falmer? Sniping with a bow or creeping close and slashing a throat?" Raziah asked, a mischievous, almost evil smile on her lips.

[Twinch]

Twinch followed suit, creeping down the halls in near silence with her knees bent. "I wouldn't slash the neck of a Falmer. Their blood would probably melt through you." She said, hanging her tongue out. "Besides, why bother getting close when I have more arrows than knives?" She added, her voice quiet enough to avoid the echo.

"I don't know about disgruntled though. Normally they're perfectly happy and normal until they're dead. As long as you keep yourself smelling like dust and mold they never know what hit them." She said, grinning devilishly. Her bow was already out and at her side, ready for anything. "Why don't I let you show me how you operate first though? We'll make it a game. Whoever gets the cleanest kill gets extra when we split the raw coin." She added.

She peered into the dark ahead of them as they talked. She was honestly a bit unsure about this place, but it wasn't her first rodeo. Perhaps the Falmer would be a problem after all, but with two people she knew she'd make it out alive. And hey, if they killed her silvery companion in the darkness she wouldn't have to split the shine after all.

[raziah]

Raziah smiled lightly at the comment of acidic Falmer blood. She had never found that to be a problem in the past. There had been a time or two she had run out of arrows while fighting against the Falmer and had to resort to more personal means of dispatching them before they got wind of her. The blind elves had an impeccable sense of smell in addition to their hearing, so sneaking up close enough for a back-stab or throat-slit was an art in and of itself.

"I think I rather like the way you think," Raziah whispered with a smirk before falling into silence as she paused behind a Dwemer column, ears full forward as she listened to the noise of a Falmer close by. Drawing her hunting bow, she nocked an arrow, slipping out just enough to get a clear shot.

The creature was pacing, guarding the entry way into the next room. Its back was to the pair of Khajiit for the moment and Raziah couldn't help but smile. Too easy... drawing the bow back with practiced ease, she took aim at the nape of its neck, releasing her arrow as soon as she got her aim just so. The arrow slid clean into the Falmer's neck, hitting the creature just so that it wouldn't be able to call out to any of its fellows as it fell down.

Looking to her new companion, she smirked slightly. "Your turn."

[Twinch]

Twinch grinned, tipping an invisible hat before creeping past her, pushing the corpse to the side as she walked. She padded down the now unguarded hall, peering down each collapsed side passage as she went and keeping silent enough to hear the movement of more Falmer deep in the tunnels. She smirked and readied her bow, creeping closer and moving just through the threshold of a large arched chamber.

It seemed to be a central room, old Dwemer machinery whirring away just as it had for centuries. The brassy metal that decorated the walls was lit by a warm red light, emanating from a large bonfire set between fallen pillars in the center of the room. Just beside this fire sat the remains of some Falmer's unfortunate meal and a heavy chest that seemed cleaner than the others in the ruins. Twinch narrowed her eyes as she peered at the pair of guards, one on either side of the room to watch the passages. She signaled for her companion to stay back as she formulated her plan.

She carefully drew back her bow, knowing that her sounds would be muffled by the clanking of gears and pistons. There was a quiet swip as she let it loose, shooting through one guard's throat just above the ribcage, dropping him silently. The arrow however continued and clattered against the wall, the sharp clang just loud enough to alert the other guard. He rushed to the other side of the room, and just as he bent down to feel his partner's body for life a second arrow lodged itself in the back of his neck, slumping him down in a heap.

Twinch grinned and tipped her head to the other, giving a small wink when no sign of other guards was heard.

[raziah]

Raziah smiled lightly, even she could admit that Twinch had skill and style. The silver Khajiit moved further into the room, her eyes drifting around the chamber to see if there were any shinies available here. A glint of bronze in the chamber caught her attention and she moved towards it silently, glancing around to make sure there were no other Falmer or Dwarven constructs around.

Slipping into a small alcove, Raziah smiled as she found a pair of items she would treasure - an intact Dwarven Bow and Dagger. Raziah picked up the bow, testing it out with a smile. She found it to fit perfectly in her hands and draw beautifully. Raziah had always admired the craft work of the dwarves, so finding these items was a boon...

Without further inspection of her newly acquired weapons, she continued to creep into the next room, her eyes seeing a pair of Dwarven Spiders busy at work. Their mechanical clinking was strange to her, but she had figured out their one weak spot years ago. They had a small gem-like item in a hollow space at what could be considered their heads. Drawing her new Dwarven bow, she nocked an arrow and waiting a moment before the two spiders were near one another and shot... it was a lucky shot, hitting the first spider exactly square on that little gem, knocking it out of place. The arrow continued to hit the second spider in the gem, knocking it out as well.

Smiling to herself, she looked back to Twinch, nodding her head forward to motion the other Khajiit forward, that the room was safe.