a break after a contract *leta raz hades*

[Vrases Claudt]

sitting down on his chair, Vrases finally was able to relax, although he had been running around enjoying himself the entire time throughout the day. It was the day right after a big contract, albeit a successful one; he had been hired out on a hit for a murder of three people outside of the town of Barcelona, ironically a city where he had a nice condo at, specifically for this reason. That reason; enjoying himself after a well done job.

Having taken care of the murderer, he decided to have some fun; why the hell not? he had worked hard, and hard work meant enjoying yourself after the work was over. First, he had woken up late, shambled out of bed to eat something homemade that he cooked, a recipe he learned from his friends at a small restaurant in Munich, then walked down to the beach, enjoying the sights; the beach, the waves, the local "tiendas", and the ladies. "oh ya, i could live here, most definitely. too bad it doesn't have enough activity that i could stay here" he thought somewhat bitterly. After surfing for hours, he had gone home, changed out of his swimsuit, and headed over to a local place and concert hopped, going from a techno concert all the way to Whitechappel, his favorite metal band, that happened to come here at the same time he did! "what a coincidence!.. phenomenal concert though." he thought, smiling to himself. Now, after busying himself with pleasure for the day, now he could truly relax.

Having a condo at the top of the hotel at the seaside edge of Barcelona had its advantages; for one thing, the view was amazing, especially now; the sun had begun its descent onto the horizon, allowing for a red and orange colored tint to come about over the ocean. smiling softly to himself, he grabbed his small ipod player, his only addiction, and hooked it up, switching it to random; and luckily, the first song was a good one. "smoke 'em if you got em' ", by parkway drive. "haha, oh man this brings back some memories." he said quietly. walking out onto the edge of the roof, he found his little haven away from his life; his chair, a bottle of jack daniels, his portable player and of course his most important object... his sketchpad. " damn, if people knew that i sketched stuff, they would definitely not see me the same way, that's for sure... at least i finally have the chance to do this, the time has alluded me to do it; i can finally get the view." he thought quietly to himself as the music played at a moderate volume. grabbing his pencil, he began to draw, occasionally sipping on his drink, and simply enjoying the little things that allowed him to continue on; always enjoy the little things, he always said. now, he followed his saying.

However comfortable he was though, he was a hitman for a living, and knew that he should always be on guard. keeping true to his beliefs, he had his knives right next to him, and he had his brass knuckles in the little cup holder to his left. " never let your guard down; one of the most vital rules of hitman and fighters alike." he thoughtfully said to himself, as he took another swig, allowing the burning liquid to go down his throat as he enjoyed himself, listening to the waves crash on the shore and the music play, content with both himself and his place in the world at the moment.

[Leta Raz Hades]

Barcelona, City on the west coast of Spain, one of the worlds’s leading cities for trade, sports, fashion and media. Of course, where you find trade you find exploitation, where you find sport you find cheaters, fashion you find bitches and whores and then there was the media- guilty of all of the above. It was a honey pot for Leta, it was a sweet suckling bosom of delight and it drew her to it like a powerful magnate, giving her shivers all up her spine.

Dressed in a long, boho, skirt, that flowed and danced around her ankles as the wind swept it about, she looked delicate; like a flower, like a girl trapped in the nineteen-seventies. She had a sweet lily in her auburn hair, that flowed down her shoulders. Today, she had coloured her eyes; normally they sparkled a cool crystal blue, but today they danced a devilish russet colour, almost as dark as her freshly painted hair. Leta was in a disguise; she liked to play dress up, she liked to create a character- no one ever saw the real her, not even the Gods. Leta wasn’t sure who the real her even was.

Padding along the lush golden sand, her shoes in her hand and the bracelets on her arm jingling happily, she was barely taking in any of the scenery. It was not about her noticing them, it was about them noticing here and she knew they would. Leta did not fit, she was not as picturesque as she first appeared; at first glance she was a beautiful siren on the sand, but on second glance, or closer look it was easy to see the blood that smattered her floral top with crimson; the wound in her side made her look like she had been hit- hard- with broken glass. There were bruises on her throat, on her wrists on her ankles; there were cuts and shiners on her face and skin that said she had been beaten, badly, and as she stumbled onto the sand, leaving a trail of blood behind her, it was very clear today she was the damsel in distress.

As she came to the middle of the beach she stumbled and fell, dropping to her knees with a thud. She could hear the gasps of the holiday makers, of the beach-goers, around her, she could hear mothers calling their children back. She did not want their attention, women were mostly useless too her; most of them were worse double-crossing bitches than Leta herself, most of them got what was coming to them and did not need Leta to administer the God’s Justice.

“Some one call an ambulance!” Came a voice to her left and Leta smiled privately under the screen of her hair. “Jesus, what happened to you love? Do you have any family here?”

Let the games begin.

[Vrases Claudt]

As the song began to come to an end, vrases thought he heard something, a shriek, a cry. Waiting for a moment, he listened quietly and intently for the sound; there it was again. putting down his drink, he looked over the shore that his condo overlooked, searching for the person or thing that had made the sound. setting his sketchpad off to the side, he grabbed the pair of binoculars that he used for reconnaissance missions and looked over the shore line.

sure enough, as he looked for about 5 minutes, he spotted two people on the beach, a man and a woman; the woman looked like she was in pain, and the man seemed like he was helping her out, shouting loudly for an ambulance. "good luck with that one man; the drivers are probably drunk already, it's nearly 7:30 at night, and this is Barcelona." he thought to himself. continuing to watch the spectacle as it unfolded, he couldn't help but feel as though he had met the woman before; there was a cold aura about her that he feel that he had encountered before. "no matter," he thought to himself. "the guy down there is helping her out, no need for me to get involved...yet." deciding to play it safely for a bit, he continued to watch the scene unfold. He noticed something, almost immediately so, as the situation had begun; the woman had smiled quietly to herself, as though she were a spider and a prize had suddenly been caught in her web. "why is she.... smiling...odd, if a bit peculiar at that. it might be that she did this on purpose.... that couldn't be a possibility, could it? he thought. this day was about to become very interesting, Vrases could feel it in his bones. deciding to still play the silent observer, he simply sat and watched the two quietly as the scene began to unfold.

[Leta Raz Hades]

The poor tourist helped Leta to her feet, put her arm over his broad shoulders and walked with her, aiding her away from the beach. All the while he spoke to her using gentle tones, speaking as if he had the situation under control. The truth of the matter was simple, this was not a random holiday maker that had stopped to help our sweet damsel in distress; no Leta had been watching him conduct his business for a terribly long time, and she had been watching the torturous things he had been doing to the poor, underpaid people who worked for him. This, as they say in all the great films; was a stick-up.

“Down there-“ She told him and when he looked at her suspiciously for pointing to something of an alleyway she smiled through her beaten face; “I live down there.” She continued to tell him, putting him instantly at rest. The stupid fool that he was, helped her down the alleyway, his eyes swinging left and right for a doorway, or some sign of an abode.

Killing him was easy. Killing him was fun.

When they were far enough away from the people who frequented the beach she straightened, no longer in pain on her chest or her arms, no longer with bruises on her shapely form, they were gone in an instant as her shape-shifted into her human self, the dark eyes replaced with sparkling lime ones, that danced with delectable glee as she set upon him, forcing him back into the darkest of corners. The alleyway around them seemed to darken, the shadows from the walls seemed to grow and spiral and Leta seemed bigger, less frail and more frightening. She put her hand to his throat, pressing him back against the stones; then she invaded his mind. Her voice plaguing there; granting him his chance to freedom and life, in the words of a riddle;

Alive without breath
As cold as death;
Never thirsty, ever drinking
All in mail, never clinking…What am I?

He stumbled and spluttered and rasped, thoughts of fear and nightmare settling through his mind and in his fear and panic he did not think clearly, he did not find a clear answer but babbled apologies of a desperate man.

She tsked at him and whispered in his ear; “Fish, dear, the answer is fish.” Her words in his ear were like a spell, as she went deeper into his mind and let him torture himself, skimming the surface she placed an illusion there, a scene of horror, of fish, of drowning, of self-torturous piranhas eating him whole. And of course, as she stepped back, it was not the image that killed him, but the shock. She smiled to herself, watching him slump to the ground, and then she stepped out of the alleyway; the darkness retracting as she stepped into the light of the sun and ran a gentle hand through perfectly wind-kissed hair.

“Mmm, that was fun- another round to me, I think.” She mused to herself, before dropping sun glasses over her eyes and wandering back towards the beach.

[Vrases Claudt]

Watching as the two walked into the alley, vrases suddenly recognized something; this woman was bringing the man into a trap. watching as the man collapsed in a heap for some reason, he calmly watched as the woman headed back out onto the beach, intent on finding another victim. Relying on his supernatural hearing, Vrases had heard her speak of fish being the answer, although to what, he had no clue; he assumed that it had to do with a question or riddle, and the man had apparently answered wrongly, much to his dismay and the woman's amusement. resting his head on his hands, he watched quietly as the woman walked back onto the beach, looking around for another victim. quietly, he debated to himself the following question; should he go out and meet the creature, making her notice him, put himself in harms way to simply do something interesting, or stay at home and sketch? the answer was obvious... he was out the door in his swim trunks and a t-shirt with his surfboard in less than five minutes.

Walking quietly up to the woman, he watched as she sat down in from of place where the waves broke. calmly, he sat down a few feet away from her on top of his board, and looked over the waves; he had already ridden them earlier today, but he suddenly felt the need to go out again, but that would wait for later. Glancing over at the woman, he noticed that she was much different from the people around her; she walked with a sort of grace others didn't around here, even in barcelona. She had auburn hair with a flower tucked neatly into it, giving off an air of beauty, no matter how dangerous she might be, and she wore a knee high dress, something that also set her apart from the girls that flooded these beaches. "she has nice eyes too." he thought to himself quietly, but that did not cover up the number of lacerations, bruises, and wounds that showed up on her; however, he was a creature too; he knew that they were a charade, intended to lure in unsuspecting prey into her midst. Although he had no idea what she was, he knew she was dangerous, and he was in danger simply being around her. but she was interesting, and, as he increasingly recognized, he had a hard time not going to things that were interesting.

"that was an intriguing display back there in the alley; i don't know what happened to him, but he must have died conflicted inside. Did you not like the jokes he made or something?" he asked jokingly, smiling lightly at the woman. getting up, he continued; "but ah, were are my manners; my name is Vrases Claudt, at your service. welcome to barcelona." he bowed to the woman for good manners which were in short supply in this era, and finished up. "so what would bring you to this city? business, pleasure, or both, considering your show of power back there? you're among friends, there is no reason to be quiet on the matter." he smiled lightly to her as he sat back down on his board and watched her, quizzically wondering what a creature of her magnitude was doing here at a time like this.

[Leta Raz Hades]

Leta sat on the edge of the water, for a cat the water did not scare her, for a dessert creature she did not like it particularly, but there was no need to go around calling it her nemesis. It was beautiful, on a day like today, under the beating sun, with the crystal blue curling into the golden sand at her feet. She drew a shawl around her shoulders, seemingly taking it from beside her, and revisited the kills she had taken recently. They had been done in honour, they had been sacrifices to the Gods, yes, yes, we know they were bad and hurtful men, and we know they deserved to be destroyed because they were bad and cruel, but truth be told; Leta had heard a rumour that if one killed in the name of a God, then the God would listen. She wanted their attention, like a needy child, she had to have their approval.

Her fingers stroked shapes in the sand, absently tracking the golden dust in curves and points, in circles and triangles. Hieroglyphs became reality under her fingers touch; it was the ancient tongue, the old language that had been passed to her in her blood. She had memories too, that did not belong to her, of great battles when the Titans tried to destroy the Gods and when the God’s that ruled today replaced those of old…great battles she had seen in her mind, a mind that did not belong to her. Since her first visit to Shangri-la she had changed, noticeably.

There was a voice beside her and Leta tipped her head to it, her palm brushing out in one fell-swoop, the drawings in the sand as she brought her sparkling eyes around to look at him. Leta wet her lips, slowly, and gave him something of a curious smile. She did not speak, not yet, no the beast did that enough for the both of them. He was the boy from the bar; what was he doing in Barcalona when she had last met him in Brazil?

She chewed her bottom lip enticingly, and brought her fingers up to her face, tucking her hair behind her ears on the left hand side; as her hand dropped away from her face and back to her lap the cuts and bruises she had gifted herself with quickly vanished and once more she changed her shape. She had no fear of the humans around them noticing; humans never noticed anything, they were stupid, incompetent and a slave race. Her form changed from a beaten brunette to a slender, devilishly hot red head, with a busty frame and delicate appendages.

“My business is always pleasure, Vrases Claudt, son of the moon.” She told him, in her songstress voice. Her mask had changed, from the victim that she was only moments ago to something much more divine. “As my pleasure is so often business.”

[/i]

[Vrases Claudt]

having seen some of the drawings on the sand, he decided against talking about them; if she wished to speak of such things, she could, however he would not press it. Watching as she shifted once again, he suddenly found himself in the company of a well endowed redhead, a small surprise even for the Were. Smiling at the woman, he asked; " to be able to discover my true nature so quickly is quite a feat; if i may be so bold, how did you come across the truth so quickly? smiling, he silently resisted the charm of the woman, determined to discover her true nature; although she had shifted fluidly, he had his doubts that she was a changeling; she did not give off the same smell, and her power was beyond that of other shifters he had met.

"well, it would seem that we both mix business with pleasure it would seem. I thought that it would be easy to seperate them, but it is becoming increasingly difficult to do so; they always seem to entwine one another." speaking with a practice ease, he let himself continue to wander, going from one place to the other mentally, all while trying to solve many puzzles inside of his head. Who was she, what was she, why kill the man? was he a sacrifice or was it a habit or necessary, like him and his work. So many unanswered questions, so little time, he thought.

[Leta Raz Hades]

She ignored his question, instead leaning her hands back behind her in the sand, placing them equal distance from her bum and sunning her blossomed chest; her eyes closed and she listened to his voice but she did not respond, not for a long time as the sun beat down on her gloriously, it seemed to bounce of her olive skin, seemed to make her red hair shine like glowing embers in a fire pit. Leta was unafraid of him, it was only the Gods she feared, and their offspring, but she could feel him trying to assess her, she could practically hear the thoughts in his head as he tried to work her out. She liked that, in fact, she lived for it. The scene of mystery and excitement that glowed off her as he tried to work out her the difficult puzzle she lay was something she was born to do, and she was terribly good at it.

As if answering his internal dialogue rather than what he openly spoke, she purred; “I will grant you three questions, son of the moon, and only those questions will I answer you true.”

[Vrases Claudt]

watching as the rays of sun hit her olive skin, he kept a passive face on the outside, but on the inside he had a hard time keeping his true instincts from showing. he knew she was trying to entice him, and it was working, partially; however this wasn't the first time he had attempted to have been seduced by a beautiful woman, supernatural or not. keeping a calm demeanor, he looked quietly at the woman as she spoke of three questions that she would tell him truthfully. propping up his surfboard and leaning against it, he mulled the sentence over in his head for a second, thinking, all while keeping his eyes on the woman.

finally, he spoke; "who are you, truly? not simply a name; where you're from, what you are, and what your true nature is. This is my first question." holding his head up in his hands, he watched intently at the woman and thought of how she would answer, all while keeping his dark brown eyes on her.

[Leta Raz Hades]

And he asked his first question; “Who are you, truly?”

He spoke much more after this, trying to redefine his question, trying to explain it further, but his additional questions did not change her answer, not in the slightest. She had guest he would ask that, though had she had betted with herself that he would ask ‘what are you?’ in exactness but his question was much in the same and she intended to answer it honestly.

“Will you not sit?” She asked him first as he propped his board up. “You are blocking the beautiful sun from its place on my skin.” And even as she spoke she undressed herself, unbuttoning the soft shirt she wore she slipped it down off her shoulders and let it lay behind her, forgotten in the sand. She ran a sand ridden finger through her red hair and let it feather its way between her shoulder blades as she lay back against the shore of the beach in a innocently laced pale blue bra.

And then, as promised, she answered him in words that were true. “I am myself.” She told him, not glancing at him to see a reaction, she was not being difficult to spite him but she was being true to her nature as he seemed to want her to be. “I am a woman, a lady, a lover, a mistress. I am as fierce as a warrior and I am as frail as a child. I am the light in the sun; I am the darkness in the night. I am a dancer, a poet, a game maker and a dream taker. I am all of these things and more.”

[/i]

[Vrases Claudt]

nodding his head slightly, watched as the woman spoke of her being; a mistress, lady, lover, and warrior. intrigued, he began to wonder more about the enticing lady and her nature. "of course." taking his board and putting it down, he sat on top of of it and began to play with some of the water as it came closer, changing its shape and flowing it around his hand as he mulled over her answer and his next question. watching her begin to sunbathe, he thought of his next sentence. taking a quick swig of a drink from his flask that he had carried, he calmly offered it to the woman to see if she would like some; if she would answer his questions with no consequences, the least he could do was to offer her a drink.
Finally, he spoke." what do you seek in this world?" a cryptic question, he wondered what she would say. He truly wished to know what she sought after, or if she even had anything that she wished to attain. she could be anyone or anything, so did she even have to try to attain objects or goals. intently, he watched her as she smirked, perhaps at his question or his simpleness in an attempt to figure her out..

[Leta Raz Hades]

His next question came and for a moment she glanced at him and in her entrapping eyes was a gaze of curious surprise. That was not the next usual question; often when she played this game - though she had to admit she often played with lesser species than him- the next question was often 'are you winding me up?' Or a particularly clever person, who did not speak of the first thoughts within their head might ask 'are you always so cryptic?'. For him to take a moment and ask an interesting question; well it sparked her attention and for a moment she looked at him as more than prey, but as a contender.

Leta smiled, a beautiful smile and spoke; "Absolution" and for the thought he gave to his question she continued, rewarding him with more than her own riddle-some answer; "though I am not looking for it, I am waiting for it to find me and when it does I will be rewarded for my deeds and my soul will be whole."

[Vrases Claudt]

Absolution? well this suddenly took an interesting turn, he thought to himself. Absolution for what though? as he pondered the answer, he began to run through the possibilities, thinking frantically as too what they could be. Murder, antagonizing of a deity? "too many possibilities" he thought as his brain cranked quickly in an attempt to work it out; this truly was interesting, being able to question a creature of immense power and not be dead by now; and as he stroked his chin thoughtfully, he attempted to come up with his final question, knowing that this was his last. "i really hope that this one is good, wouldn't want to disappoint." he chuckled and thought to himself.

taking a moment to think, he scratched his head in thought, a habit he had picked up from a philosopher he had met in Munich; interesting place, Munich. full of fun, carefree, and happy people; Vrases envied them in their cheerfulness. shaking his head of the memories, he came into focus on the woman, and finally asked his final question; " what entertains you the most in the human world?" he laughed quietly at the question; he knew that he could have asked something about her life, her past, her powers, even what her nature was. but he also knew that sometimes these questions could give away more than they intended, and besides; everyone has their pleasures and vices, might as well know what her's were.

[Leta Raz Hades]

This time she gave him a little bit more to play with when she answered his question, after all, it was his last one. Leta hadn't decided what to do with him now, she wasn't sure if he provided her with enough entertainment. He wasn't human, so she wouldn't kill him. He was pretty and she had caught him desperately trying not to look at her breasts, maybe she could find other pleasurable uses for him....?

"The humans" she told him by way of answer; "their so predictable for most of the time, but when they sup rise you it's really worth the wait. Of course, I enjoy killing them too, they are the rats in my maze, the puppet on the end of my strings. I have learned to appreciate and detest them"

With a wicked grin she added; "You're out of questions, stud."

[Vrases Claudt]

humans huh? they are pretty fun to mess with. he said, smiling a bit. he began to remember all the times he had messed with humans, toying with them, enjoying their looks of confusion. the killing part though didn't really surprise him; although he did the same, he did so out of necessity or defense, or a contract. not out of pure joy, although he had seen some of his people fall to the temptation; and his race wasn't exactly known for having the best control.

well, guess that's the end of that, he thought as he finished up his next question. he didn't really know what to expect; he had gotten some interesting information from the woman, but he knew he would probably die before he slept tonight. "eh, worth it. was interesting while it happened." he thought, smiling to himself somewhat sadly.

"you're out of questions stud."

shrugging his shoulders slightly and sighing, he wondered what would happen next as he scratched his head thoughtfully. "so what now? do i die with the newly gained information? or do you have something else in mind?" he smirked somewhat mischievously, yet at the time was somewhat tense and on his guard. he knew he was still in danger; here was a creature that could kill someone by simply looking at them right. as he stood up, he spoke again. " you know, if you're like me in this retrospect, i enjoy the nightlife of this city; it has many surprises. before you do whatever you choose to do, would you like to grab a drink? i know a place that has some good tequila." he asked, looking at her, wondering how she would respond; either by saying yes or killing him, he thought quietly to himself.