Let's make a deal (Devon and Libelle)

[Libelle "Onyx" Ryoko - Council]

Self made business woman was what Libelle was, it was something she prided herself on. She had slept with, done deals with, and stood strong in the face of people who wanted to walk over her in order to start this business. After having her life fall apart she figured out how to move on. Now a few years after those dark events she was the Dragon Lady mistress. Her girls were home to many men in their time of needs for separation of coin. 

All was well, until the night a shady looking man came into the Brothel. Libelle wasn’t one to judge but something about him didn’t sit right. So she chose to take the man as her client knowing if something went wrong she could fight the man off. As she led the man to her room, it didn’t take long. The door closed and his hand was around her throat. Libelle beat on the man's chest as he pushed her to the door with all his strength. His hand moved to his pants and it was clear he planned to have his way with her in a rough manner.

He leaned in and whispered in her ear “How do you feel that this is where your life ends you whore.”  Libelle nails sharpened and she slashed the man across the face who jerked back in pain. She pushed him with all her force out of her room and down the stairs not caring his junk was waving in the air. She kept pushing with all her strength until she was at the main doors.

Casting her fear gaze upon him she spoke harshly, “Let me be very clear if you ever touch a woman again and I hear about it. Your life will be mine.” She slammed the door in his face and turned around to a bar room filled with people staring at her. She tossed a smile to the crowd. “Nothing to look at, someone who broke the rules is all.” Libelle let out a sigh as she walked behind the bar pouring a drink to calm herself.

Ruby, the woman who had worked for her the longest came up behind her. Her eyes focused on the door. “I know you said no to it before but I think we should hire those guys who help a lot of people around. I have a contact if you want me to reach out.” 

Libelle gave a heavy sigh. “Yes, tell them to meet me tomorrow.” she finished her drink and took her way back to her bedroom. “Thank you Ruby.”

“Yes Mistress.” She said as she quickly wrote a letter sending on of the children that delivered messages to The Rogues with the note.

-

When the next morning came Libelle rose and threw on her robe, only not bothering to tie it tightly around herself as she made her way down the stairs to the bar that was empty. She got to work making breakfast for the girls after a long night of work. She reached in a bucked she kept around with nails and took one in her mouth eating it as she hummed to herself.

[Devon Sawyer - Council]

Devon made his way back through the busy streets and towards the brothel, making sure to not be seen by anyone from inside. Lifting his head, he tried to guess as to which of the rooms might be the one in which the girl had been claiming she'd been attacked, knowing that was a lot more easily said than done. The only thing he could be fairly sure of was the one that was not which was Libelle's since that was the only one he'd actually been inside. Frankly, he didn't exactly like the idea of her catching him trying to sneak in and ending up unconscious the way Clyde had been. She must've really knocked him good, though it wouldn't be the first time a woman had come swinging his way. He may have deserved it then, but this was still rubbing him the wrong way. This wasn't something capable of Clyde. It wasn't making much sense, especially since he would've been so easily caught one way or the other.

He placed his back against the wall of the storeroom that was attached towards the back of the building. Peering through the rotting wood planks, he heard the door open and one of the girls come out to dump a bucket of water before heading in again. Devon sighed and took a quick glance around him to make sure no one was near before placing a boot into one of the slabs and beginning his climb. Once reaching the first of the rooms, the windows were closed, but he could certainly guess as to what was happening on the other side which involved the sounds of two people feverishly enjoying their company. Paid company, anyway. The Rogue continued onward to the next bedroom where this window was open. Ruby was sitting at a table where she brushed her hair, but it was clear she was troubled. Devon believed her concern for Libelle was true. After the mistress was attacked, she seemed genuinely worried for her friend and he was usually a good judge of character. Maybe he could even talk to her privately when she left the Dragon Lady at some point if he couldn't find anything now.

Devon moved along the creaking wood of the roofing and heard a scream. He moved faster then, passing the room he knew to be Libelle's until finally stopping at the open window of the corner bedroom where voices drifted outside. Lowering himself, he listened to the conversation and was only more confused by what he was hearing. Scale? Devon heard the door open again and moved around the bend to the room's second window where he was able to lift his head and see inside without being noticed. Libelle was on the floor, a man's back was to him and he was crouching over her with a blade. Near the door was the girl who had been hysterical and accusatory of Clyde, clearly not feeling so upset anymore. 

A short whistle rang out. One he recognized as a Rogue signal. Devon looked down to the street and saw Jerry below who shrugged his shoulders as if to ask what was happening. Devon signaled for him to go around the front of the building before taking off towards the window he knew to be Ruby's. Vaulting himself inside, the woman startled which was no surprise, but he'd seen that she was heading for the door with a look of fear before even coming in. If he had to guess, she had probably heard Libelle's cry and was going to see what was happening. Devon put a finger to his lips to indicate for her to stay quiet. "I'm not going to hurt you and I think you know that. Let Jerry in. He's downstairs." Ruby seemed to think on it for a moment before nodding and opening the door slightly. The hall appeared empty and the two moved out, quietly separating as he headed towards the bedroom and she ran for the stairs. 

Devon pulled the knife he had strapped to his belt and reached for the knob. Turning it as quietly as he could, he pushed it open the rest of the way and immediately grabbed the girl who had apparently been playing Libelle all along. He lifted the blade to the woman's neck and pressed the metal against her delicate skin. "Let her go."

[Libelle "Onyx" Ryoko - Council]

“Who am I?” The man looked to Gemma with a crooked missing teeth green before looking back down to the Drake he had pinned with the golden weapon. “I am of the order meant to kill you foulest of beast. Having the powers you do, being fused with the blood of the Dragons is a sin.” He spat out towards her as he trailed the golden blade lightly along her collarbone that caused a sizzling of her flesh which seemed to cause a reaction from the man of pure glee. “I have killed many fakes of your kind in the name of the banishers. To bring home the scale of the black dragon will gain me the position of chief.” He giggled out like a toddler who just refound his favorite toy.

“B-banishers.” She managed to get out through gritted teeth as she fought back the screams that wanted to release into the room. Ruby had to hear the first one if she was there, she would come and help. There was no way that she was about to lose her life to this man. “What is your name? I want to know the name of the man who so believes that someone born the way they are is wrong.” She hissed out and tried to shift which caused the man on top of her to shift his weight fully on her and press the golden blade to her neck.

She whimpered out towards the man who hissed out towards her, “Orym.” he spoke his name as he pressed the blade harder to her neck the sizzling sound filling the room. Just as the rogue pushed open the door and entered, taking hold of Gemma who let out a scream herself. Libelle felt the dripping of her blood from the blade sizzling away on her skin. Her scale being pressed making her unable to use any of her abilities in that moment. 

“Get him off of me.” Was all that left Libelle lips in a rough manner as her eyes closed from the pain that was wracking her body. 

“Kill the girl, I got what I wanted.” He said with a huff as he wrapped his fingers in Libelle hair as he pulled her head back to expose her neck fully before pulling back the golden knife to take a swing along the flesh of her neck.

[Devon Sawyer - Council]

Devon could see the way Libelle's skin burned from across the room. It was something he was familiar with, given that he was a blacksmith. It tended to be the first injury any tradesman of the kind received when learning the work. Of course, there was no fire here. He tried to ascern what it was that was causing the torture to the woman, and finally saw the unique blade that the intruder held. A golden blade. An odd choice for anyone to have, rare, and very specific. Something like that seemed more appropriate for decoration than murder. This was no happenstance encounter either. All of this was clearly planned out which meant the knife was too.

As the man raised the knife, the Rogue pushed the girl aside who gave a short yelp before falling to the floor once he realized she was no bargaining chip. Devon flipped his own blade in hand and tossed it through the air. The weapon embedded itself in the upper shoulder blade of the assailant which caused him to instantly drop the golden knife with a grunt of pain. Crossing the room, Devon grabbed hold of the top of the man's shirt to lift him up and off of Libelle, but he spun around with a new iron dagger in hand. He thrusted it towards his midsection, but Devon was able to catch the man's hand, taking a punch to the chin for his efforts. 

The sound of others came barreling in behind him then and he saw the wild expression of the man realizing he was not going to win out now that he was sorely outnumbered. He quickly turned and made for the window, hopping over the sill and clamoring across the roof. Jerry was right after him and the chase was on. Instead of following, Devon reached down to help Libelle, knowing the Rogues would fan out and search for the man who had nearly ended both their lives. His eyes moved about her reddened skin as he shouldered most of her weight to carry her to the nearby bed, noting that the girl who had betrayed Libelle had gone as well. 

Ruby was at her side immediately with a face full of concern. "Go to the blacksmith near the center of town. Ask them for the honey and herb mix. Tell them I sent you. It will help with the burns. See if one of the other girls can get some water and dressings." Devon moved his hand into Libelle's for comfort and to squeeze it through the pain. "You want to tell me what's really going on?" he asked her lowly, looking to her scalded skin that was in no way a normality. "If you don't tell me, I can't help."

[Libelle "Onyx" Ryoko - Council]

Everything was slowly becoming more of a blur and she felt the fight leaving her as she felt her fingers going numb. All there was, was the pain that was radiating through her core. The only comfort she had was knowing that the black scale would be reborn and probably to a better leader than she had been. The moment Devon had taken hold of the man and lifted him off of her. She took in a deep breath as the clarity once she could roll on her side. A coughing fit left her as she tried to release her gas, yet her strength and ability hadn’t returned to her. 

All the commotion had faded just as quickly as it came. Feeling the hand wrapping around her helping her to her feet she was still weak. This was a strange feeling for her, to feel as if she couldn’t stand on her own two feet. She leaned into him as she worked on gaining balance of her own head that was spinning. Her eyes looked to Ruby as she came into her view. “I’m okay.” She managed to get out before Ruby would nod and leave her side.  She took a ragged breath in as she was sat down on the bed that was in the room. 

“I’m not overly sure how to explain without sounding crazy.” She said as she shifted for a moment. “Have you seen enough of this world to know that there are things that aren’t human?” She questioned him as she reached behind her to feel the skin around her scale was damaged there was a threat of her losing her scale, and her life. “You may have run into many that aren’t human, though we all present humans.” She said as she frowned deeply, “My kind are rather rare though, Lycans, Mystic, Fae are a dime a dozen.”

“I am what is known as a Drake. My ancestors were dragon riders who fused their line with dragons to stop them from being attacked by a group called banishers.” She held up the arm that he wasn’t holding the hand of, he would watch as her skin seemed to ripple and turn into scales hardening into armor. “My kind comes with a rather large weakness though, we have a scale on our lower backs that if pressed on or hit we become powerless. If it's removed, we will die shortly after its removal. The banishers have learned this through time.”

Pearl and Ruby entered the room shortly after that and Pearl looked at Ruby seeing the scaled arm. “Guess the secrets out.” She said lowly as she moved over with the water and bandages. Ruby handed the bottle that Devon requested to him as she glanced between the pair to gauge how he was going to react to the mistress' secret.  Pearl gently moved behind Libelle and looked at her scale, with a soft gasp looking at Ruby with a horrified look, which caused Ruby to come around and see that the skin around her scale was damaged and her scale was threatening to fall out.

“Bandage it, it will heal.” Libelle said to those behind her. “No reason to fret over what we can’t control.” She let her flesh turn to normal as she winced as Pearl got to work on bandaging the most wounded area. “My kind are weak to gold also, it's why Ruby often handles the coin handed over for services, though it's beneficial in knowing if the coins are real. I believe the man from the other day and this man are working together. The one who held my hand closed around the gold coin, probably to confirm I was a Drake.” She winced as she bit back the pain in her voice.

[Devon Sawyer - Council]

Devon reached behind him to the nightstand to grab the bottle of rum sitting there, pulling the cork out with his teeth and handing it to her. It could at least help with not caring or feeling so much of the pain for now until Ruby was able to bring the salve. He didn't say anything. Instead, he waited for her to relay what she needed to take it all in finally. He wasn't expecting anything remotely close to what Libelle began to say. 

Drakes? Sometimes he didn't think he would ever fully understand all the different types of creatures out there in the world that weren't human. Each time he learned of a new one it only made him feel even smaller. His eyes widened slightly as Libelle presented her arm to demonstrate the change her skin could take. "You should've done that when he had you pinned," he quietly joked. The armor that appeared across the limb looked just as sturdy as any of the king's guards. Hell, even more so. He'd worked with plenty of metals and created countless weapons and pieces of armor, but nothing looked as perfect as Libelle's second skin that was perfectly attuned to her natural shape. It was impressive despite the circumstances. 

The Rogue's eyes looked to the women when they returned and he let go of Libelle's hand to receive the half filled bottle which was covered in flecks of soot. Tearing a piece of the bedsheet, he first let the fabric soak in the water and gently pressed it to her collarbone where the attacker had cut her with the dagger. The searing of her inflamed skin was starting to bubble and he didn't even want to touch it because he knew it would hurt no matter how careful he tried to be. Gently trying to clean the raw wound, Devon put the mixture next to the mistress so the girls could help with her back. 

The reaction by the other woman made him glance up. He knew it must've been bad, but he also didn't want to pry or make it worse by going to have a gawking at it himself. Instead, he dipped the new cloths brought to him into the salve before placing it carefully over the now cleaned wound. "Drake," he repeated the word quietly. "Can't say I've heard of them, but I also don't know much about all the others out there." Devon suddenly had the realization that it probably meant she purposefully had others that weren't human staying here in the house. It seemed unlikely she would share the secret with just humans unless she really trusted these girls despite. He'd have to inquire about that some other time. 

"Why are they coming after you? These Banishers. Why do they have this problem with your kind?" He lifted her hand slowly and rested it on his shoulder to begin wrapping the area on her neck he'd been treating, tying it around her back and beneath her arm to hold it in place. "Is this from the former lover? Was he part of their group or something?"

[Libelle "Onyx" Ryoko - Council]

Libelle fingers wrapped around the neck of the rum bottle, grateful that she kept something close by in each room just in case it was needed by her or any of the other ladies. Taking a long swig from the bottle she let out a shaky breath, her body felt as if it was completely on fire so the burn of the liquid down her throat was cooling more than anything. Feeling this weak was not something she liked, she didn’t like relying on others for help but she knew long ago most of her life she would need others help in case something like this happened.

The Mistress of The Dragon Lady shot him a glare knowing he wasn’t simple, “Sadly all my powers even my armor doesn’t even work.” Watching him admire the armor made her give a chuckle past her lips. “I usually charge men to look at me this way Devon.” She let the natural armor move and shrink, turning back into the freckles all over her body. She flinched at the feeling of the wet cloth against her burning skin. She whimpered softly at it, not caring to keep up the façade of being strong right now. “Thank you.” She said between her whimpers.

She could feel Ruby concern for her in that moment, which only caused her to feel worse then she had before. Yet she forced her gaze to focus upon the man who was in front of her to speak, “The world is filled with other species, some stronger, some weaker, some scarier, some nicer.” She said softly with a sigh as she thought of all her run-ins with others, “I will say Mystics are the worst among them. Besides the Banishers that is.” She gave a glance to Ruby over her shoulder with a smile, “Lupines are the best though.” Seeing Ruby give her a glare but holding a smile made her look back to the human. “There is a reason we are one of the best brothels around. We are all beasts in the sheets.” she joked with him.

Her expression faded for a moment, “I wish I fully knew the answer on why they wanted our kind dead. My father was a Drake, but he died shortly around my birth as he was trying to escape them. All my mother could tell me is they were created by Dracula in hopes to rid the world of the one thing the Sanguine feared the most. Dragons, since we are part dragon, They have yet to die out.” As her hand squeezed his shoulder while he began to wrap her up realizing more now how naked she was in front of him. All her scars in view.

“Yes the scars are from a former lover, he was a bastard who used me and made me believe love was possible. Only to beat me for it.” She said with a sharp tongue before looking away from the human. “That isn’t a story I like to tell though I have moved past it. The Banishers have found me because I have been settled into a place for too long. They believe if they take out the Black Scale Drake it would end them all not realizing it just moves to the next Drake to be born.” She gave a short snort,  “They never claimed to be intelligent I guess.”

[Devon Sawyer - Council]

Let's Make a Deal

"Kill first and ask questions never. I know plenty of others like that."

Devon caught the knowing look between Ruby and Libelle then. So he had been right in assuming this place was filled with more than just the normal human working girl. He had the feeling the mistress was also in the line of keeping other girls safe here from the people of the world that chose to do them harm for being what they were or a past they all were running from. The Rogue couldn't blame her. He knew exactly what that was like given the people who had joined him and his cause over the years. They were all running from something they couldn't let catch up.

He carefully tucked the tied cloths he'd finished wrapping Libelle in, making sure they would stay as secure as possible. He'd lost count of how many times he'd had to help mend a Rogue now and then from the mayhem they were caught up in. He'd gotten good at it. Even learned how to sew up wounds, including his own when necessary. Putting the excess dressings and salve on the nearby table, Devon grabbed one of the simple wooden chairs in the room and turn it round, straddling it as he continued listening to her story, his weight causing it to creek. 

"Sanguine fear you?" His head was spinning. There was so much he still didn't know about the world within the world. It was hard to keep up. "Are the Banishers then made up of sanguine?" He supposed the man who had attacked Libelle could be one. It wasn't like he was directly in the sunlight and from what Devon understood of their kind, that was something they couldn't tolerate much of. The sun had barely risen then, so it wouldn't much of a threat. However, the Rogues didn't know how to deal with those kinds of beings. Maybe that was how the stranger was able to keep alluding them. Perhaps the girl that was working for him which was in turn working for Libelle did all the dirty work while the sun was up for him. 

"Kill first and ask questions never. I know plenty of others like that," Devon replied with a tone of sadness, as one of the other girls came in with a new chemise and blanket for Libelle since her other one was now covered in the salve, blood, and other reminders of the attack. He stood and turned the chair and himself around to give her privacy while she changed.  "Doesn't change anything. You and I had a deal and I'm hoping given the current and revealing circumstances, you're willing to keep hold on that."

He could then hear the pounding of footsteps on the staircase and stood to meet the men at the open door just before they could walk in, covering most of their view with his body and a stretched arm leaning against the doorframe. "What you got?"

Jerry looked out of breath and so did Milo when he finished catching up. "Bastard ran to Lord Billingham's gate and was let in by the guards there. He knows him. Has friends in high places, Devon." 

That did change the game a bit. Lord Billingham was one of the wealthiest among the powerful. He had acres of land and staff to tend it, not to forget the guards which Jerry had just mentioned. Getting to him would be quite the feat. However, that only screamed challenge to Devon and he really did like a challenge. Especially the ones that could muck up the doings of a lord who didn't care for those in lower stations. 

Devon gave a single nod to them in understanding with an upwards tilt of his chin and he watched them head back downstairs before turning his head slightly to the side to see if Libelle had finished dressing from his peripheral. "Looks like the boys found him." Turning, he went back over and straddled the chair now that she was decent. "I'm hoping our deal is still good and I'll have a few more of them here to stick around should anything else go down unwanted."

He took the rum bottle, glad to see there was still some left in the dark bottle and drank a good amount of it, licking his lips slowly at the welcoming taste before looking to her. "Tell me.. Has Lord Billingham been in here?"

[Libelle "Onyx" Ryoko - Council]

✧ Let's Make A Deal ✧

What could she say, she knew the addictive touch that her girls had on people. Being otherworldly was what made them the money they needed to keep going, and protected most of them through the roughest of times. If Libelle was being honest she was glad the shots were being taken at her and not the others. She felt like she was the strongest of them all even though they all had their own strengths they brought to the team. She winced a few times as he wrapped her up. Yet she could tell he was skilled at doing so, probably due to his line of work. Her ladies would have helped but in the end she accepted his help, it proved for the moment he wasn’t on the Banishers side.

“No, there was this Sanguine that believed he was god, the only beings that proved to be a threat to Dracula.” she let the name leave her lips in a venom filled tone. “The mad Sanguine started to hunt down the dragons to prove that he was stronger, leading to the creation of drakes. Dragon Riders would die if their Dragon died. Fusing with the Dragons meant it would be easier to hide among the walking, but it came at its own cost. A whole new breed was created but two older ones died out.” She said as she tucked her hair behind her ear. “When it became harder to find us, Dracula made his own breed, the Banishers. They go mad around Drake blood, a lust to kill sets in. They are of the dead but aren’t Sanguine. It was rumored that he had help from a scientist.”

She shifted letting out a grunt of pain as she took the chemise and blanket. As she slid it over her sore and battered body as he turned his back, “You know most would have taken the free chance to get an eye full.” she teased him for giving her such respect. It was rare for her. “Given the circumstances,” looking over her shoulder to Ruby who gave her a nod of approval. “And of course with the understanding that Ruby would rip you or your men to shreds if you turn on us. I would like to continue this business relationship. It's clear to me that your men did nothing wrong. I hope you can accept my apology for earlier and my actions.”

Her face filled with regret thinking he and his men were the enemies when the enemy had been under her nose this whole time. When the footsteps filled the air and he was there she listened closely to what his men had to say. Friends in high places were just the short of it seemed. She arched her brow and dared to shift to her feet to move closer to where he was. A groan of pain left her lips.

“Please leave Milo and Jerry among those you will have filtering in and out, Ruby knows and trusts them the most.” she said as she picked up the bottle of alcohol from the cabinet beside the bed. Taking a long sip from the bottle she moved back to the bed and slowly lowered her body to the mattress. She gave him a look that read of course the dusty lord had been there.

“The man used to be desperate for me to see him three or more times a week, and wanted me to be his personal concubine.” She scoffed out as she took another long drag. “I never pegged the man to hire someone to kill me for saying no, but rich men have very big egos that are so easily bruised when a woman wishes to make her own way and not get on her knees nightly for a single man.” Looking Devon over for a moment. “Who do you know in the supernatural world, most humans would have called me mad before I showed my powers. You seem rather understanding of this world.” She cocked her head to the side with the questioning look playing upon her features.

[Devon Sawyer - Council]

Let's Make a Deal

"Outcasts and exiles tend to get pulled to us somehow."

Devon's mind was working out all this information she was giving him on the history of her kind and how it linked to this new threat, but smirked at Libelle's mention of not watching her dress, his thoughts suddenly interrupted to other more pleasurable imaginings instead. At least for the moment. "I didn't rightly pay for it or was invited, so seems unfair. Also this might not exactly be the best time for attempting to get a peek, especially at the mention of Ruby tearing my guys to shreds, I'm certain that also passes on to me." Devon was now rightly curious on what Ruby was hiding behind that beautiful face and glanced over his shoulder briefly at her, still grinning. "Apology is accepted though. I know you are just trying to protect you and yours."

He wasn't surprised to hear that Billingham had frequented the place. The man was on in years and probably didn't have much luck in the way of finding another wife since his first had died some years ago in child birth. From what he'd heard, the lord was a bit aloof and frivolous when it came to his wealth, much like the rest of people like him that could afford to do so. "I don't really peg him as the type either..." Devon quietly replied, letting his mind wander. "More like he's just being used for access to his grounds as a place of safe return for your admirer. Since the lord seems to know you so well, it's possible the stranger has been in here before and noticed the connection you two may have had. Played on that and then planted the girl in here." 

He continued on, already trying to think of a way to get more information on the murderous Banisher. "I really doubt he'll try and make a move here again. He would have to be stupid to do so now that he's been exposed, failed, and knows we'll be looking for him." His eyes moved out to the window in thought as if he could see Billingham's property if he looked hard enough, getting some chance to see the Banisher again and what he was planning next. "Do you think he would bring more of their kind here in order to kill you? It sounds like you are very important to them to risk this much seeing as you hold the.. black scale, was it? Will this blood lust make him slip up?" 

Sometimes he really wondered how oblivious he was to the fact he was surrounded by more non-humans than he thought. It didn't help that many of them appeared just like any other person, hiding to most what they were. His eyes came round to Libelle again when she inquired about his knowledge of the supernatural. He didn't answer right away as he promised them all that their identities be kept quiet. That appeared to be a common trait among their kinds.

"A few," he answered, remembering how those specific people had come into his life, all of them seemingly on the run from something in their past. "Mystics, wolves, and fae." A smile automatically rendered across his face, thinking of how some of them were actually the closest people in his life. "They found their way into the Rogues. Outcasts and exiles tend to get pulled to us somehow. They fit right in with the rest of us just trying to find a way. I'm sure that's how some of your girls fell into this place by finding you."

[Libelle "Onyx" Ryoko - Council]

✧ Let's Make A Deal ✧

 Libelle was used to most people bending the rules for the benefit. Most people didn’t seem to have a code of honor but it seemed that Devon did, along with his men and now she felt a twinge of guilt for her actions prior. “I admire the code of honor you have, even though it may be because of the Ruby threat.” She gave an easy chuckle flinching in pain. “Some of these girls only have me. Well almost all of them only have this place and me. And I know attacking first is bad. Yet I have never had a threat as dangerous as this before.” She felt that fear rising up, she really didn’t want to leave the home she made here.

“Is it possible that the Lord has himself in a rock and a hard place so to say? Maybe he owes the man? He was always rather loose with his money here, before he realized I couldn’t be swayed with the wealth he offered.” She gave a gentle sigh remembering the man. Yes he was an older white man with power and let it get to his head, but could he hire someone to kill her? “Or promised that I would be delivered to him by this attacker? Though if my scale was fully removed I would be dead in a matter of minutes.” She moved slowly back over to the bed after being dressed. “Well this is true, but his face isn’t one I remember either.”

She gave a nod of her head but moved to rest back on her bed for a moment. “Well the problem with a Banisher is there are more than one, always. We will have to go into high alert around here. Meaning I may need a few more of your men.” She gave a gentle groan as she shifted to look at him better. “There are probably at least two others with him, minus the girl. The girl wasn’t one of them. She didn’t give off the vibe they carry. So she must have been hired so they could get close. I wonder if Billingham is even alive.” She mused aloud then as she waved her hand to dismiss Ruby. She felt safe enough with Devon at this moment.

“I can only hope the blood lust would make him slip up. But they have always been smart, and skilled warriors. This was the first time the attack seemed sloppy.” She sighed realizing she was going to have the fight of her life on her hands very soon. Though in this moment of pain she was filled with Curiosity, she needed to know how much of the supernatural world he knew. So she knew how much skill he had with this underground world among humans.

Her eyes noticed the smile that crossed his face when he mentioned Fae. “Well tell me Devon, the fae, do they have your heart?” She wanted to tease the human a bit, but she herself had fallen in love with someone who promised her the world and disappeared all in one. “The rogues are a good safe ground for the different kinds of species there are, so it makes sense. You offer safety when there is so much unsafety in this world. It’s why the girls come to me, I make them safe and we almost lost that today. Thank you for coming. I know you didn’t have either.”

[Devon Sawyer - Council]

Let's Make a Deal

w/ Libelle Ryoko

• "We made a deal. I intend to honor it." •

Devon's eyes turned up towards her when she inquired about his connection to the fae. It took him by surprise and halted him which was hard to do being the man he was. Apparently Libelle could see through him. Perhaps it was in the way he said it, but either way, it revealed something about him he wasn't trying to put off. He supposed if anyone could do it, it would be Libelle. After all, her entire work was based around being able to read others, men especially, to figure out what they wanted and needed, even when they couldn't find the stomach to voice it themselves.   

His eyes turned to the floorboards again for a moment before looking back up towards her. Thankfully she didn't press the matter further as the conversation turned to his merry band of outcasts and outlaws. Devon didn't think he would be able to put whatever her question was into a fully thought out and sensible answer anyway. Another odd thing for someone like him. 

The Rogue gave a shrug and smirk at her gratitude as he folded his arms across his chest. "We made a deal. I intend to honor it. It's good to have allies. You never know when you'll need them and in these streets lately, it's more often than not." His tone became more serious then while he thought of the possibilities to come now that their enemy was known and seemingly desperate. "I'll have several of the guys here, me included. We'll place a couple at all the usual spots and then others as patrons looking for some time with your girls in the main area downstairs and up here in the bedrooms."

Devon stood then, spinning the chair back around and placing it back where it had been. "I'm going up to Billingham's to have a look around. He's probably still alive. He has too many on his grounds and home to not have noticed his missing and the guards would've come crashing through his gates already, ready to cause problems among the rest of us in search of who killed him. Wouldn't surprise me if he ended up dead when this is all over though. I'm sure that Banisher isn't going to want to leave many people alive that have interacted with him enough, including that girl he got in here too. I guess if  the Banishers do plan on coming back here though, they may kill as many as they see fit given the way you've made them out to be." He actually knew one of the girls that worked in the estate and figured she might have some useful information to pass along if she was in the market today. That and he didn't particularly like the idea of her being killed if that was the bloody path the Banishers were on. 

"You should rest," he started, moving closer to the door and leaning against the doorframe for a moment to look back to Libelle. "I'll have more of the boys over here soon. I won't be gone long. Just checking up on a few things that may help us later. Maybe get Ruby up here in the mean time." A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. "She seems to be the scary one amongst us all." With a wink, he headed out of the room and out into the streets once delegating orders to the Rogues so they would hopefully be ready for whatever planned on coming to the Dragon.

[Libelle "Onyx" Ryoko - Council]

✧ Let's Make A Deal ✧

Something about the way Devon’s eyes turned up towards her when she inquired about the connection to the fae he spoke about made her chuckle, which only caused her some pain as a result. She really did enjoy her skills on being able to pick up on males and the things they care to keep hidden. She often would keep those little secrets locked away till she needed to use them, which she didn’t want to use against him. She got the confirmation she needed from his gaze casting down to the floorboard.

She gave a gentle smile towards the man as he spoke of honoring their deal. “I will admit, I am rather impressed with you wanting to keep our deal knowing that the factors are rather supernatural in nature. Though since you have had your own brushes with them it makes sense that you wouldn’t blink an eye at the deal.” She mused more so to herself at the end of her thought. He was right that the need for allies in these times were rather high. “That sounds like the best plan at this moment. Till we know this banisher has been handled.” She said in a gentle voice that was filled with pain.

Libelle gave a gentle frown for a moment as she thought of him going on his own to Billingham’s. “Maybe you should go with Pearl? She has magical abilities.” Libelle offered one of her girls to go with him “Just make sure you don’t go alone is all I am asking. Banisher’s I have only had a handful of run-ins with them. I know more about the myths of them than the actual skills they have.” She had no idea if they could shapeshift into a person while hunting or if they are strictly brutes. “I don’t think I could handle it if you or any of your men got hurt because of me.” She finally said really hiring the rogues was a last resort for her. She only wanted to keep her girls safe.

“In case you go and need a hell Mary.” She said reaching for a bottle that had one of her knockout gas stored. “Shatter this and run.” She placed it in his hand before he made his way out of the room. “Ruby will watch down the stairs. We can hold together for a little while.” She smiled softly towards him before fully laying down. “She is a beautiful scary creature for sure.” She chuckled thinking fondly of Ruby. Once the door closed, so did her eyes and she slowly fell asleep listening to the gentle buzz of the other girls in the brothel.