Sennight's Beckoning.

Zhang, Zor Empire. As/A: 3085.

An Epitome of love, lust and desire.

"Sealed with a Kiss" are sacred, and so is laying, enslaved to a woman's Lechery; caught between the perfume of her breast and

warm embrace.

Climaxing in erupting pleasure, but yet in pain, pain upon the sight of the flowing streams of blood and corpse...

Washed down by greed and sins of men who wanted more, but Valued less.

They bathed and make merry in their filthy lucre, unwary of the dawning end...

He held firmly the brake, and came to halt at a local pub: home of the drunks and the unsober. He dismounted the motorcycle, and walked into the pub, and went straight for the bartender, a young caramel lady he hoped to seduce to bed before leaving.

"Pour me a cup of something strong and manly." He pushed a smile to his face, and a wink, still within the arm of his wide spread lip, making her cheek heat up while pouring in his request.

Poorly brewed scotch were still available these days, though many of the old age's top liqour and alcohol were lost to the last war, and anything better than the crap he was about to drink, were only accessible to those in the upper strata of Zor.

He sniffed it for poison before taking a sip, and then turned to the bar woman and smiled, causing another paint of redness on her cheek. She pressed down her left lids at him, and turns away to attend to a drunk customer.

He gestures at the Bartender, calling her over again.

"Hey!" he smiles as he looked directly into her shuttering eyes, inches away from his. "I know you hear stuff. Tell me what you know about this latest bounty and the whole story behind it?"

"Honey, you're very handsome and cute, and I can tell that bad boys like you, bring heaven to slutty bitches like myself, but right now, my fingers are a bit dry... If you could grease it a little bit, and I would --"

Milen growls, slips his hand in and out his pocket, and hands her two golden musc, which she swipes from his, and folded it within her fingers.

"Let's see." She began to speak. "I hear the bounty is huge. It's for some guy; I hear he is strong and all, but most people don't knows him personally, and only a few know him too well. And for any other story as to why, I know nothing about it." She leans over the counter, and placed her lips on his, "Bye sugar!"

and leaves him.

"What a waste! Even the dead bitch was helpful for free." He sighed and returned to his drink.

He spun around on his seat, to have a clear view of the whole bar. He drew his face into his glass, when two men; studs with weapons -one with a crossbow, and a sheathed sword wrapped round his waist, the other with a tomahawk -walked into the bar.

He kept the glass against his face, as an attempt to shield most of his face, as there was chance they might recognize him from the posters.

His discreet gaze never left them. He watched them take a seat, call out the waitress, and smack her behind after she took their order.

He wanted to get information from them, and decided to wait them out until they were drunk. He was immune to the intoxicating effects of alcohol, but his counterparts were affected nonetheless. Like a serpent, he slowly sorted out the perfect opportunity to strike, a chance at those he stalked. After a while of surveillance, he knew who they were; they were lowly bounty hunters following the trails of hearsay and indiscriminate gossip.

They were worthless to him.

"Heard the tale of the Griffin of Traè?"

One of the drunk bounty hunter climbed to the top of a table and shouted, pulling in the attention of others.

"Me mate and I slayed it, ripped it head for sports, and its claws for a trophy..." He wailed on and on about the adventure and the experience of fighting a Griffin.

"But you look so pale and frail like you could not lift a barrel of beer."

Milen intruded, cutting short the hunter's tale of heroic ventures. His words ended the crowd's choruses and cheers, and brought in a dead silence.

"So you dare say we tell lies?"

The axe bearing bounty hunter stood from where he sat, furious.

"I don't know. Griffins are really rare and powerful creatures, and forgive me if I'm a bit skeptical that wannabes like you two, could kill one." Milen took a last sip, dropped his cup and turned to face the man breathing over him.

A smug was plastered on Milen's face. He loved trouble.

The hunter growled, and raised his fist to strike him, and with ease, he stopped it half way, and followed through with a punch straight for his face, which knocked him out. Milen watched him drop. The second drew his sword, and came running. Milen grabbed his neck, lifted him and slammed him against a table, breaking the table and some of the bones of his back. A few people got affected by the damage, and as violent ready as the drunken lots were, they saw Milen's stunt as the lighted flare of the olympics, and engaged themselves in a brawl. The bar turned into a pen of hungry wrestlers fighting for absolutely nothing of worth.

Milen dropped a few bronze musc, and slipped past the unconscious hunters and the raging mob, and hurried into town.

Going through town won't be a problem, even if he is sorted for: dead or alive.

He needed to find somebody, a woman, one who could give him answers, the town's infamous harlot: Czarina. If anyone knows something, that trickstar will. She must've slept with one of these men seeking him out, or probably the ones he expect.

  *****

¶Milen ran his hand through her thighs and under her dress, slowing feeling the warmth and tender skin underneath. Pleasure at times like this were best savoured, knowing it could be your last. He placed gently his lips against hers, slipping his tongue between them, then he softly kissed her neck; all round to the nape, throwing her into a near climax state. He moved down slowly from her neck, kissing her shoulder, her chest, and moved his tongue all the way down to the groin and back up again to her lips, causing an outburst of pleasurable moans. He threw her against the matrass, unbuckled and unzipped, and dove in for more...

"Cza-ri-na -" He said in between breath, clenching to the thinnest muzzle of air he could grasp. "- Czarina. I'm certain you've heard about the --"

"The bounty on your head?"

She cut him off the rest of his words, as she pushed down the sheets, uncovering her nude and turning to face him.

She is well informed, so her response wasn't surprising.

"Its huge I hear, and downside is, only a few bounty hunters recognize you."

"Cza --"

"Don't worry, I can't sell out my best customer, but you gotta lay low a bit, hopefully it blows over"

She cut him half way again, and stared as he slipped out of bed, stuffed his legs into his trouser, pulled it up to his waist, zipped and buckled.

"Thank you Czarina. For a whore, I actually trust you"

He smiled and winked at her.

"Sharp tongued as always pervert!" She said smirking and grabbing the sheets harder. "I'm sorry, but that's all I know, so you can now get the fuck outta here before I get into trouble"

She smiled again as she watched him pick up his jacket, pulled out a few dunari notes and slammed it on the table, grabbed his sheathed katana rapped in a clothe, and head for the door. "Bye lover boy!" She waved at him.

"Tsk!" He cursed while grinning and slamming the door behind him.

    ¶He hadn't gotten enough of the information he needed, but one thing was certain, most of the bounty hunters lacked some the necessary details about him - making his work easier -and also, Czarina had set him up somehow. He decided to stay around town to gather more info. Stealth was best suited for reconnaissance, but hiding was bullshit to him.

He was in the town's center -the town's square -sitting on the edge of his slantingly motionless motorcycles, watching passersby, merchants with their merchandize, heavy soot from moving trucks, the crest guards pummeling a thief and almost beating her to death.

He spat out the cigarette his mouth held, and decided to leave the spot he sat. He stood up blithely, and sloppily began his steps, pushing his bike as he move, looking for the best spot to mount it. But his movement was halted upon a small frail but firm hand, that grabbed and tugged at his jacket. He turned to the kid, who was a bit above his waist, black hair with dirt patched between them. His clothes were covered in mud, torn and pieced together at some areas.

"What?!" He looked directly at the kid, shocked. He stared at the boy whose eyes were deeply engraved in thick blackness, and blood dripping from his nose.

"Get lost k--"

The kid went straight to words, cutting him off completely.

"The sennight beckons.

The heroes will rise again to usher in the light of the Amarethean.

In Colchis, beyond its river's waves and tides, will you find answers to your tears"

With the end of this words, did the young boy disappears into the storming crowds.

Milen searched for him, but he was lost in the multitude. He listened hardly to the pounding of foot, hoping to hear the scuttle sound of a scurrying youngling.

The more he listened, the more faint the steps became, 'til he finally found it; he looked up, and saw the boy running between the huge hides of horses and humans, pushing forward through the heavy fumes of machineries and the gust it exhaled. Without haste, he began a chase, pushing through the crowd and screaming at the kid to stop. He chased, running after the sound he hears, and the head he sees, until he finally caught up; grabbed him by the back of his shirt's collar and lifted the poor boy above ground. Upon realising that he had the wrong the kid, he dropped the already struggling child, and turned to leave in frustration; ignoring the attention and peering gaze he had attracted to himself.

"Colchis"

this was the only word that echoed on and on in his mind as he paced about in contrition. It wasn't an unknown place, but it definitely is a dangerous one; a kingdom where magic and sorcery thrived above any other, and whosoever sent him the message, seeks his attention.

"I'm sure who ever sent that message, knows more about this Amarethean shit, and I doubt any ship will want to loiter around the borders of Colchis. But before that, I need to find a witch willing to guide the way to Colchis"

He ended his walkabouts, and finally concluded on a decision and the next step to take.

¶Pushing forward the leaves of the pub's door, he headed for his usual seat, and called out the woman he came seeking.

"Amelia!"

"You're back, even after all the trouble you caused this bar last time"

The blonde petit bartender, having a yellow stained apron fitly hugging her waist hissed as she brought Milen his usual drink -Scotch.

"I'm sorry Amelia, but I need your help"

He sniffed his cup's contents, took a quick sip, and awaited her response.

"If I wanted you poisoned, I could've coated my lips in it" she scoffed, moving to another customer, having part of her attention on him. "What do you need my help with?"

"Colchis -" he freed his grip on the cup, and gave her a stern look. "- I need you to guide me -us -there"

"No!"

"Amelia, I really need y--"

Milen pounced the cup's bottom in annoyance against the table, as he stood up to face her.

"I left Colchis... No, I deserted Colchis a long time ago, and I'm basically not welcomed there anymore. I'm Sorry, I just can't."

Amelia walked over with a clothe, and mopped the spilled liquid off the table.

He sighed and grabbed the seat, drew it closer and sat on it, running his hands through his thick noir hair, and over his face too. He sighed again, and drank what quantity of scotch he had left in his mug.

"Its for a few hours only, and I can pay what ever amount you require."

He was persistent and desperate, he didn't know a lot of witches, at least not one out for his throat. Asides Amelia, he trusted none other, and so, he was eager to persuade her with what ever means.

"I need half of what is on your head. The bounty."

"How did you? I mean where did --"

This was a shock. He thought nobody knew about the bounty and who he was.

"Some men just began pasting your poster around Zhang today and the neighbouring kingdoms -" she walked over to where he sat, and replaced his empty cup with a half filled one "- it may not look a lot like you do now, but who wouldn't notice the resemblance."

She raised a brow as she looked him in the eyes, and then hurried away to attend to a more sobered up man. He just stared at her, clothed in insecurity not fear.

Milen cleared his throat before responding.

"I'm sure I'm a lot more attractive in person than the guy in the poster"

He grinned at her, following her with his eyes as she came back to him.

"You might be the only one who knows I'm a --" she turned left and right before whispering  "-a witch, but I will only accompany, if you pay me handsomely."

"Yes!" Excitement shot across his face.

"But -" Amelia killed the merriment that had already began its drums in him "- I also have a reason to be there, and you must be beside me until I accomplish it"

"Sure!"

He hated being bound by anyone, but what worse could possibly happen if he followed the sexy bartender? Nothing right?

"Go prepare a ship for our voyage, and come along with an extra pair of Jeans - you'll need them. We set sail tomorrow, upon the Sun's first light, right before the full sunrise."

Milen agreed with a nod, picked what was his, and rushed out of the pub.