The Stalker and the Stiff [Private: Saranade]

It was another day for Baal.  He was currently stationed in enemy territory; Oak Town for jobs there, taking as many jobs away from Phantom Lord as he can.  Well, if Oblivion's Truth wasn't located in a damned forest, he would perform jobs near there.  But lo and behold, no jobs are located within the forest.  The day was brisk, forcing Baal to wear the winter weight version of his military uniform.  Hands rested comfortably in his pockets as he walked down the street as magic powered vehicle drove by, giving off a chugging sound as they quickly scooted along.

Today was Baal's day off.  Decisions tore at him; should he go to the bar and enjoy a nice pint or should he go cause a ruckus within the town?  The day will tell, maybe he can do both at the same time.  Getting a stiff drink while causing troubles at a bar with a big bar fight.  Baal's breath was easily seen as the cold air mixing with his hot breath caused a fog to appear with every exhale.  Stopping for a moment to think of where he was and where he wanted to go, he looked up to the sky for a moment to see the dull gray covering of the clouds above him.  Sunlight couldn't penetrate the thick clouds above, giving today a drab feel.

Baal hated the winter.  With a sigh outward, bellowing out another thick cloud of air from his lips, he continued to walk down the street.  He needed some time to relax after performing request after request and spending so much time in the Marivel Heavy Industry's Research and Development division creating more weapons and armor.  One day, he will take over that business and become one of the most feared mages in all of Fiore.  However, today was a day off from his ambition.

Without looking, he stepped out on to the street only to pull back as a vehicle almost hit him.  The driver honked his horn and stopped long enough to curse at
Baal.  Oh, this was his chance!  With a bright light surrounding his right arm, it turned into pure metal.  Stepping in front of the vehicle, Baal placed his metallic arm upon the hood with a big grin upon his face.

"It's not nice to almost run someone over and curse at them, isn't it?" he asked before balling his hand into a fist, grabbing the vehicle's engine block and pulled it up over his head forcing the driver to unbuckle himself and hop out of the vehicle.  Upon hitting the ground, the driver ran for their lives.  Looking towards the man fleeing, Baal simply burst out into laughter before placing the vehicle back onto the road the very same way it was before he picked it up.  The hood was absolutely wrecked and he wasn't going to pay for those damages.  

A bright light flashed over Baal's arms as he dequipped the metallic arm and placed his hands back into his pocket.  With a little whistle, Baal crossed the street and continued on his merry way.

Baal was stopped dead in his tracks at the sound of a voice.  Baal tilted his head slightly, realizing the voice was that of a woman's.  A smooth and silky voice called out to him with a hint of indignation.  If only that woman spoke delicately, he would have found the voice charming and appealing.  But there was something else in her voice that lit a fire in his stomach; the sound of passion.  This tickled at Baal's inquisitive nature.

A stiff wind blew at his back before turning around to look towards the source of the voice.  His hair whipped to and fro with the wind before laying eyes on what seemed to be the most beautiful woman he had seen in a very long time.  He let his eyes wander for a bit before running his fingers over his hair, brushing them over his shoulders and out of his eyes.  

"I had no reason to kill him," he simply answered with a grin across his lips.  "He isn't a mark nor is he in the way of the things I want.  Besides," he said before turning his eyes skyward for a moment before breathing outward.  "You should have seen the look in his eyes," he said with the look of pure rapture in his eyes.  Fear is a complex emotion that he wanted to exploit.  It was an easy way to control people, which generally helped him with what he wanted to achieve.  

"Either way," he said as he started to walk towards the woman before him, stopping two arm lengths away from the mysterious, blood-thirsty woman.  He would serenade her with his charm and wit, but someone of her stature may have the capacity to fight back.  "I would have gained nothing by killing him.  Though," he said before turning his shoulders towards the street and observed as people carried on with their everyday lives.  People seemed oblivious to the conversation he was having with this mysterious woman in front of him.

"If we were to see each other again, the power I exerted before him will have stricken fear within the man, making him much easier to manipulate should the need arise," Baal said before turning to look back towards the woman with a confident smile upon his face.  Fires of ambition could easily be seen in his eyes.  The longing for more power, for more strength, for more everything.  However, even if he wanted more and more, he can't be too greedy and he'd have to be calculating.  

"While killing him would have solved a problem, it would have ended up with me having to kill many more and drawing the attention of the host guild and maybe the Magic Council.  And I can't allow that, can I?" he asked before tilting his head.  Baal quickly upright his head and bowed a bit towards the woman before him.

"Where are my manners?  My name is Baal Marivel," he introduced himself to the new woman.  "May I ask what yours is?" he asked as he moved his naked right hand out towards the woman as pale as the snow as if inviting her to take his hand.

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Tags:  @Saranade

Baal wrapped his fingers around her hand and lifted them up to his lips.  "Saranade, what a beautiful name for a beautiful woman," he said with a smile upon his lips, releasing her hand.  He realized that a woman like her might recoil at the action he just took with her, but she should consider herself lucky.  Baal would have already said some lavishing words to convince her into his bed; this one, however, seemed to have different thoughts in her mind.  A little chuckle came from the long-haired blonde before standing upright once again.  One of his hands ran up to the side of his head and scratched at it.

"I wouldn't say that I'm afraid of them, no.  But if I were to have started a huge..." he said before taking a brief pause before continuing.  "debacle.  It wouldn't be good for my family's business, nor would it be good for my band of merry men and women," he said in reference to the guild; Oblivion's Truth.  There wasn't anything merry about the band of ruffians that he was a part of.  Killers and murderers were better descriptors.   What he said, however, went against what he was actually planning on doing, but she doesn't need to know that now does she?

"Well, I was planning on going to get a drink or something to eat.  Would you like to accompany me, miss Saranade?" he asked, trying to convince the woman to follow him; to keep him company.  Beautiful people ought to keep the company of other beautiful people shan't they?  And with how Baal felt about this woman, she was the most beautiful thing he had seen in a while.  Oh, how good it would feel to get her into his nice, warm bed.  That would most certainly make the proprietress of the Pouncing Lion Inn jealous, wouldn't it?

"Or would you rather do something else that is," he said with another pause, tilting his head to the side and grinned.  "exciting for your taste?" Oh, this could be taken more than 1 way.  On one side, it could be to keep each other company in the comforts of a bed while the other one could be to find some unlucky individual, make them look like the aggressor, and destroy his livelihood.  Not that Baal relishes in destroying the lives of random people; but people he deemed deserving of punishment is right up his alley.  He would leave the interpretation of that double entendre to her.  This would show her true colors and for Baal to gauge the kind of woman this is.

"So?  What say you, Lady Saranade?"

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Tags:  @Saranade

The woman recoiling after the greeting was expected.  After all, these two have just met so he wouldn't expect any other reaction.  Certainly, he thought this woman was a bit on the insane side, but he, too, was also a bit on the insane side.  Mistreating people is a normal occurrence for him; unless, of course, they were of the finer sex.  Something about women intrigued him -- at least the beautiful ones did.  

What he didn't expect, however, was for her to wrap her hands around his arm.  Nothing that a stiff drink couldn't correct and with how confrontational Baal was, he would most likely start a bar-fight.  A reassuring smile came across Baal's lips with a silent nod.  "I know of a great place to warm ourselves up, from the inside and out."  Warming up the insides was in reference to the alcohol.  "The proprietress owes me a favor anyway," he stated before pulling his body forward towards the Pouncing Lion Inn, where he took a job recently to confront a man named Mr. Smiley.  

"So, what brings you here to Oak Town, hm?" he simply asked to the woman on his arm.  For being an ice-cold witch, she certainly felt warmer than he expected.  He would think that someone as fanatical about murder would be as cold as ice.  Just more proof that even psychos can be humans.  

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OOC: No worries. We all have those days.
Tags:  @Saranade