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 Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 2:37 pm
Marcus St. George was a large, square man. He was the type of man that people automatically walked a few feet out of their way to avoid running into on the sidewalk. They were doing just that as he stared up at the building he had been summoned to by letter. He didn't notice, he never did.
After a second of staring at the building he looked down at the worn piece of paper in his hand. It hadn't been so brown and crinkled when he first got it in the mail that morning, but it was now. Only a few hours had turned it into a ratty looking scrap that looked faintly singed around the edges, although how, even he wasn't sure. He didn't have any fire abilities.
Slowly he reached up and took his almost finished cigar out of his mouth, ignoring the dirty looks of an old woman as she walked past as he put it out on the sole of his shoe. "Trust me, lady, I feel just as heartbroken over the loss of a good cigar as you," he called after her as he tossed it into a nearby trashcan and walked into the building.
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 2:40 pm
Seated behind the front desk of this little building was a very tall woman with long pink hair. Her tresses hung straighter than most rulers and a large silver visor covered her eyes. The woman's fingers moved deftly across the keys of her computer as she waited for the newly arrived Marcus to state his business.
After a while, she spoke, "Did you want something?" her tones lacking emotion and very to the point.
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 2:43 pm
"Yeah," he said as he crossed to the desk, laying the sheet of paper on the table. "I got this in the mail this morning. And I was just wondering what in the hell it meant."
Then he looked at her, his glowing eyes lighting up the top half of his face even in the lit room. And he gave her a crooked smile. "I don't owe anyone anything. And I sure don't have some great uncle dying and leaving his stuff to me. They're all already dead. So what is this... paperwork about?"
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 2:48 pm
Kayen didn't even glance up from her work to look at the paper. She knew what it was - she'd sent it after all. "It is a letter stating you are required here and that I have something for you. In this case, it would be a child. Your paperwork is complete already so all you need do is pick which you want."
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 2:52 pm
His grin fell. He stared at her blankly for a long moment, the room seeming to still with him. Then he paused, his mind flashing through a few things. "A kid, huh?" he finally said. "They take what, twenty years or so to grow up, then they're gone."
He sounded as if he was talking about a pet. "Sure, why not?" he asked suddenly. "Might even be entertaining. So I get to pick it out?" Like it was coming out of a litter.
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 2:54 pm
"These will take less than twenty years." Kayen stated matter-of-factly. "And yes, you get to select the child of your choice. They are from combinations of mythical beasts and humanoids that we are studying for our research. They will need to be brought back and forth frequently." she stated calmly, standing and leading the dragon slayer towards a hallway lined with doors.
"You may look in at all of them, but make no promises."
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 2:57 pm
"Promises? Honey, I never make promises," he said as he looked at the doors. His hand reached up, only to realize that he no longer had his cigar. He shrugged it off and stepped into the hall, reaching for the handle of the first door and opening it.
He didn't say a word as he looked in, just observed.
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 2:59 pm
The first kid was a rather boring specimen - oversized white feathered wings (rather messed up by the looks of them), light white fur with brown spots, and long brown hair. A cute child to be sure but strange and a little too peaky.
"She is to be left alone." Kayen commented lightly. Apoxi would not approve of this man for that one.
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 3:02 pm
He nodded and closed the door, not interested, anyway. Then he headed for the next one, opening it just as quietly as he had the one before that. Did he want a girl, or a boy? Girl, he decided. A girl would be easier to handle, and he just preferred females to males on a general basis. A male would get some stupid idea about beating him, or becoming like him, or even stopping him for some reason.
A female was much less likely to do that.
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 3:08 pm
The next little one was young female with pale blue skin, light blonde hair, and scales all along her body. Her feet were large and seemed to be like dragon claws - luck dragon to be specific - and she had several sets of small royal blue wings along her back. A pleasant girl, very soft and cute.
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 3:10 pm
Theoretically the small and cute, cuddly thing was what he was supposed to be looking for. But he had no urge to cuddle her, and she looked like... well... a dragon that he would rather not remember at the moment.
He closed the door. "So..." he said, then seemed to think better of it as he went to the next door. Who cared if they were using dragons for their experiments? He sure didn't.
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 3:14 pm
The next room featured a much more badass looking girl, even for a toddler. Her hair was long and black, wild and she had long pointed ears. Her eyes were beady and black, skin pale white. She floated in a tank of water, a black shark's tail in the water and small dragon wings on her back, lightly wrapping around her torso. She seemed tougher somehow, stronger, but still a girl.
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 3:18 pm
He blinked, his eyes narrowing as a little grin pulled at his lips. Then he gently closed the door. "I like that," he told the woman showing him around. "Is she to be... what did you call it? Left alone? Or can I take her?"
That look of challenge on her face had killed him. He could easily see her holding her own, even against the little hellion that lived in the houseboat down the bay from him.
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 3:19 pm
"You can take her, though I warn you she might not be completely keen on your profession." Kayen stated, "You may go in and greet her while I finish the paperwork."
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Posted: Mon Dec 21, 2009 3:23 pm
"No one really is," he admitted, after getting over the fact that she knew exactly what he was, and was still willing to give him a kid. He opened the door again and stepped into the room, only to bite back a curse as a splash of water hit him straight on.
It looked like the little one had already learned how to use her tail. It reminded him of something from long, long ago.
"Layla," he said. "If she needs a name. It's Layla."
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