acidust
New Member
Lush greenery grew over the crumbling ruins, vines overtaking the complex structures and slowly breaking them down. The remains of guardian droids lay twisted and disfigured, taking on an odd look as nature overtook them. There was a single operational building, strangely out of place with its automatic glass doors and flashing lights. Lodging for the stray adventure, the seeker of solitude, the refugee, or more often than not, bounty hunters. They were the ones that kept “Kill Inn” up and running, with their specific requests and generally large appetite. On top of that, they paid a near ridiculous sum to change the name from it's previously bland name, “The Inn”.
Leaves crunched beneath her cracking leather boots. After being ambushed on her last job, Veda was less worried about shoes and more about stretching her last bit of money. She had lost her target to a gang of amateurs who had gotten lucky. There was generally a good amount of work, considering everyone in Vokama, Kryox's region, was revolting. In the distance, she could easily see the rising megalopolis, it's towers nearly blocking out the sun. Part of the city was raised, kept afloat by... well, she wasn't sure how, not anymore. It used to be a sorcerer's job, but times had changed. This massive platform was reserved for royalty and the elite.
Veda had not been blessed with much magic, being a mutt. Her ears were distinctly pointed, but she was fairly tall and physically strong. She was able to learn basic spells, sometimes, and with much concentration, though she quickly forgot them. All that stuck with her was a simple heal, so she had to survive other ways. Her family and past was unknown to her; the last she remembered was waking up outside of Kryox, eleven years ago, desperately grasping the only sniper rifle she ever used.
Bounty hunting was one of the few ways left to stay alive. There were prices on everyone's head, Kryox side or rebel. She chose to work both angles, though this was a precarious decision as it required her to keep an almost invisible status. Recently, since the influx of hunters, she had developed a disguise and an impeccable alter ego. She would tuck her waist length black hair under a hood until she was in the city, letting loose the curls to create an illusion of rank. The only aggravating part was changing clothes. City hunters were less ragged than she was, so this required a stopping point to change into what everyone else wore – something that, she whined, didn't even look like they had killed anyone in. This way she could pick up two targets at once - one rebel, one for a Kryox resident. When she turned in the leader to the king, it gave her an almost always perfect chance to take out the other.
Before the current royals, the immense amount of available technology was limited and moderated, whereas magic ran rampant. Kryox was the first to do away with this, allowing any and all to use whatever they desired. In addition to this, they put restrictions on magical uses, saying who needs magic if you have a robot? Inevitably, there were riots, then a war that brought the entire region of Vokama to near ruins. The once peaceful, almost medieval towns, fell apart and were not being rebuilt in a different manner. There used to be only a few implements, such as the guard droids, cyborgs, maybe the occasional television, and their main form of transportation – the high flying, solar powered ships. Kryox had wisely decided to keep them in the region, but within the city there were cars and highways.
Yuma once was a peaceful planet, and most of the nations surrounding Kryox – once seeing it's ruin – did not follow in their footsteps. There were some who tried though came to the same solution. A few were able to successfully combine technology and magic, one of them being Veda's favorite city, Varlor, who had no royal family, but a board of dreadfully old wizards and witches who were able to maintain a perfect balance.
The inn sat right on the edge of Vokama, a mile or so from the not as natural looking as they had hoped for trees. Well, to a blind eye they were perfectly fine, but Veda and many others knew they were equipped with cameras to alert the Kryox of anyone leaving or entering. Inside the city, the surveillance was nearly impossible to dodge; the impetus for her need of disguise. She had plenty of contacts to sell her targets to, but few carried enough gold on them to buy the higher priced heads. Besides, she knew that getting into the city was needed in she was going to stay ahead of other hunters. No one worked both sides as long as she had without getting killed.
She had accumulated enough money to regularly upgrade her costume, buy a new horse and was even once received by the king – who struck her as a rude, idiotic man and if she could have killed him without her head on a spike, she would have. Bright eyes glanced down at her shoes, and she scowled; of all the things had gotten, she forgot shoes. Her horse tugged against the lead, and she turned around abruptly, pointing a long finger at him.
“Shut up! This is your fault!”
The young, dappled stallion had quite literally planted his ass when she attempted to guide him on board of the ship back in Varlor. Her previous horse had loved flying, but she was old – and lazy. This one, who she was simply calling Mister because he had not yet proven himself to be worthy of a real name, was stubborn, but she couldn't deny he was fast and tireless.
A boy took Mister's rein from her hands and assured her he would get her bags to her right away, right after eyeing the sniper she had strapped to her back. She nodded and waved him off. Stable valet was exactly what she needed. She walked through the frosted, glass doors, estimate everyone's level of drunk was enough for them not to remember her, and pulled her hood down, letting a single braid loose.
Wary, green eyes swept the room. It was beautifully decorated. Wooden floors, massive bar and cushioned stools, a fireplace that permeated the air with the smell of woodsmoke, and further in the back were hefty tables of varying sizes. The innkeeper was the only one who recognized her, and he was paid well for his silence and loyalty. The bald, red-faced man waved her over, gauged her walk and expression, and pushed over a shot of brandy and a key. She took it quickly, feeling returning to her toes. It was not too cold, not yet, but after three weeks outside, it wasn't warm, either.
“Here, these are all that ain't been collected yet, as far as I know. Headed to the city tomorrow?” he pushed over a pile of papers, “Also, the set upstairs is working if you wanna see watch the bounty scroll. No one's been lookin' at it, so they're all yours. I'll smash the screen in afterwards,” he winked.
She shook her head as he poured another, bigger, shot, “No, unfortunately. I was attacked, a week outside of Varlor,” most anyone outside of Kryox hated televisions, but they were a good source of new targets, so she sucked in the information while she had the chance. She said thank you, took the key, and wandered upstairs. It was an open area that overlooked the room below. There was nothing there except a few sinfully comfortable chairs and probably the only working TV in the building. She kept her eye on the front door, waiting for the stable boy and also trying attempting to stay awake.
