One day at a time...

[xeon]

The sky, as usual, was dark and cloudy; which was a blessing to the youth who was presently fighting with a splitting migraine. His third of the day, not that anyone was counting. Not that today had been any different from the last three. Hey, noone said fighting an addiction was fun; and an addiction from a darkness-tainted stimulant was even less so.

Michael knew he wouldn't last much longer without taking a small dose of the drug. He knew as soon as he saw a heartless, he would make more out of their essence. He was also beginning to think that his attempts were futile, and that it was impossible to fight his addiction. His stubborn pride, however, was still holding off this knowledge from the surface; so he would last through the day, making this the longest period of time he'd ever gone without a dose of "Crying Night". Unfortunately, his withdrawal was also becoming more violent, which was something he couldn't have imagined a few days ago.

His vision was blurring in and out as he walked down a side-street in the first district, making his way to the gate. He was currently staying in the hotel...something that he could only afford because of his job; which he was now in danger of losing due to the severe symptoms of his withdrawal. Even if he could stave off his urges to take the drug for a few more days; it would end up costing him his livelihood, and he wouldn't live long after that. At least, that was the excuse he was feeding himself to justify taking the drug.

He'd decided that he'd dose up when he got back.

[Rolt |The Immortal|]

Ah, Traverse Town. The place where anyone who didn't have a world went. The place where... Well. You could probably find anything here if you looked hard enough. Which is why Vidrel was here in the first place. He needed some information, some possible opportunities for acquiring loot. After all, what else would a pirate do in his free time? If all else fails, he could just steal from a shop.

As Vidrel walked through the streets, he headed to the Cafe. People liked food after all, so it was a logical choice. There was one problem though, it was dark. Not too many people were out after dark. However, in this problem there was also a blessing. Those who were out were usually the shady type, and he was much more likely to get good information from them. As he walked down one of the numerous alleyways, he noticed a man stumbling down his way. "Hey, you! You seem to have knowledge of... interesting things... Where might I find some good treasures?" he shouted, grinning a little. If he didn't know, well... He seemed to be a man that he could scare a bit in his current state.

[xeon]

Already regretting his decision somewhat, Michael proceeded on his way to the gate. He tried to regain control of his urge, but it was too late. His will had already faltered; his wall of mental resistance was crumbled. All he had to do was make it through the second district gate and to his hotel...

"Hey, you! You seem to have knowledge of... interesting things... Where might I find some good treasures?"

What was intended, Michael was sure, as simply a loud, friendly greeting reached the drug-addicted youth's ears as a piercing assault. His migraine flared at the unexpected noise, causing him to stop in his tracks. His vision blurred slightly, and he decided that it would be unwise to continue forward in his current state; not to mention rude. Despite all of the negative feedback his body was giving him because of the shout, Michael was grateful to the interloper.

The temporary distraction was enough for him to gain control over his urges once again, and fight his addiction. His single-minded pursuit of his next fix. He wouldn't be able to keep it up for long, and he knew that he would still end up dosing tonight; but it wouldn't be a full dose. He could control himself now. He wouldn't admit his weakness to the person who had called to him, but he would try to indirectly show his gratitude by helping him in any way he could.

"I'm sorry, but I don't know of any great treasures in Traverse Town." Michael started to say as he walked toward the newcomer, who seemed around the same age, "But the customers I've overheard at work mentioned an interesting place that you may be interested in hearing about."

It was difficult to talk so politely with the source of the noise that had aggravated his symptoms; especially considering how unstable his emotions were at the moment. The young man had his gratitude, however, and that wasn't something that was easily overridden in his mind.

[Rolt |The Immortal|]

"Yeah, I 'might' like to hear about these treasures. Come on, tell me then! Or... Maybe you'd like to come along! Surely you, as one who has to deal with customers, wants to have a little... fun... with them!" he replied, walking closer with a grin. Ah, yes. He might be able to kill two birds with one stone here... If this man was indeed intoxicated by something as he suspected, his mind might not be functioning correctly. As such, he probably wouldn't make very good decisions. On the other hand, the man might normally be this way, and could trick him. You never know.

"So. What's it gonna be? Tell me the story, or tell me and come with?"

[xeon]

"Well. I don't really have an issue with telling you about his stash; but my coming with you might not be the best of ideas." Michael explained, pinching the back-most part of his nose with his thumb and forefinger, trying to distract himself from the blinding pain coming from his head.

The customer of whom he spoke was a criminal of the worst sort. He'd gotten his money by having his men steal from the people of the town that showed up from other worlds. He'd let that slip, along with the details as to where he cleverly hid his money under the people's noses while talking to a friend of his from another world; apparently trying to impress him. Michael had wanted to do something at the time, but he lacked the strength necessary to confront him directly while he was in withdrawal. Thinking about all of this swayed his opinion...he most certainly did want to come along with this newcomer; if nothing else than to feel like he'd had some part in getting back at the thug.

"On second thought...I'll join you. It's through the gate and in the second district."

It certainly wouldn't be a treasure...but from what the young addict had heard, there was quite a fair sum of munny in the stash. Hopefully this mysterious stranger wouldn't be disappointed by what they found. Rubbing his temples as he did so, Michael turned toward the gate to the second district. He'd need to take a small bit of "Crying Night" to have any chance of staying conscious through this escapade.

"We need to stop by my hotel room first though...if you don't mind"

[Rolt |The Immortal|]

Bah. Vidrel didn't really want to stop by the man's apartment... But he did want to have a little fun. Plus, if all else failed, he could just rob this guy's apartment. He'd know where he lived. Yes, that settled it. "Sure, whatever. Lead the way, but hurry up, I don't want to be sitting out here waiting on you endlessly." he grumbled. As if he were mocking the man, he backed away, and bowed, extending his arms towards the Second District Gate. "Lead the way, Highness. Your desires are mine to fulfill." As he stood back up, he shook his head laughing.

"What do you need from your apartment anyway? You'd best not be wasting my time. There might be some consequences if you do." As Vidrel spoke, he let the spikes on his gloves heat up, and flashed them to the man. Vidrel didn't really intend on fighting with him, but scaring him anyway couldn't hurt.

[OOC: Sorry for the short posts, I'm used to Speed RP'ing. I'll try to lengthen them up in a non-boring way pretty soon. Also, sorry for the late post >.< Been kinda busy.]

[xeon]

[OOC: No worries chief. I need to get back in the groove of things myself RP wise...I'm nowhere near where I was at when I left...

As to the busy bit, take your time and don't mind me; I just act impatient to mess with you guys; trust me...I understand busy completely]

All the light-show succeeded in doing was making his splitting headache flare again. Along with that flared his irritation, but he had no idea how strong this guy was; nor did he really have any intention of picking a fight with him. The effect of his withdrawal from the drug, however, tended to make him unpredictable at the best of times. Reminding himself that he owed this man for protecting him from his own weakness, the young addict rubbed his forehead and calmed himself down.

"Don't worry chief, It'll only take a second." He reassured the bitingly sarcastic youth he was now leading into the second district. "As to what I need...you'll find out when we get there now won't you?"

He led his temporary companion through the door to the hotel, and into the second room on the left; the room he was currently staying in. There was next to nothing in the room beyond an alarm clock, a semi-stocked mini-fridge, and the furnishings that had originally come with it. To call the room "Spartan" would be an accurate summery; there was nothing in the room that he didn't use in his daily life...and certainly nothing valuable. He was an addict after all.

Michael crossed the room without hesitation and opened the single drawer in his nightstand, pulling out a small vial filled with a pure, black liquid. Holding reign over his urges was a nearly insurmountable task as he opened the mini-fridge and pulled out a half-drank bottle of water. Carefully taking the lid off of both, he dropped one tiny drop of the black liquid into the water, which instantly turned a translucent black-gray. Screwing the cap on the small, glass bottle, the teen dropped it into his right pocket, then guzzled all of the tainted liquid in the bottle.

The relief was almost instantaneous. He saw his eyes flash yellow briefly in the mirror, and his aches and pains drained away swiftly. He felt much like his old self again, albeit weaker and ashamed; but at least he was fully functional now. He sighed deeply before turning around and signaling to the other youth he was ready.

"Alright. Time to move out."

[Rolt |The Immortal|]

As Vidrel followed the man, he took note of his surroundings. He may have to return here later... The man turned into a hotel, and led him to his room. He had mentioned that he would see what he needed when he got there... It may have been a trap, but given the state of the man, he doubted it. As for the hotel, well... There could definitely be improvements, to put it lightly. He definitely wouldn't take anything from here. Vidrel leaned up against the wall as the man crossed the room to a nightstand, and after taking out a vial, to the fridge.

He opened it and took out some water, then poured some of the contents of the vial into it. It immediately turned a dark color, and the man put the vial into his pocket. Vidrel was intrigued, and tensed up. He didn't know what it was, but seeing as the man straightened up after downing it, he assumed it was a source of the man's previous stature. Something was off here... He heard a sigh, and the man gestured towards the door, telling him it was time to go.

Vidrel walked to the door, and stopped. He turned around, and chuckled. "So. If we're going to be traveling together, I might as well know your name. Otherwise I'm gonna call you 'Drink.' The name's Vidrel. What's yours?" he said, leaning against the frame. He wanted to know what was in that vial...

[xeon]

"Honestly, I don't care what you call me..." Said Michael as he opened the door and walked past the man who called himself 'Vidrel' and led the way into the hallway "But since you asked, my name is Michael."

He didn't know much about this new arrival, and certainly wasn't about to give him any information about what was in the vial; especially considering how dangerous such information was. Instead, he would simply follow through with his original plan, and show this man the bandit's stash, and then move on with his half-life. As much as he owed Vidrel; the young man's attitude was beginning to wear on him.

The newly-restored Michael led the way back down the hallway and out of the hotel; not checking whether or not Vidrel was follwing. What else was there to do in the hotel? As he exited the building, he pointed to the Clock Tower, indicating it as their destination.

"The stash is hidden in there...not many people go through it after dark." he explained, "Or at all for that matter."

[Rolt |The Immortal|]

[OOC: Sorry again >.< I meant to reply to this last night but I went to bed before I remembered]

Ah, the clock tower. Such an obvious hiding place, yet at the same time, one nobody would expect. Right out in the open, that wasn't always the best place to stash loot, but in this case... "So am I correct in assuming this'll be an easy job?" he asked with a hint of dismay. If nobody went there, chances are there wouldn't be much to get in the way. Micheal seemed like an apathetic kind of guy, though, so he probably didn't much care. Vidrel wondered why he was even going through with this...

On that note, He didn't really need to listen to his captain, did he? Maybe he could just overthrow the current crew of the Dragon's Disgrace, and form his own... This guy didn't seem to have much going for him anyway, so he might be a good candidate, but he'd have to further evaluate him. Vidrel wasn't one to be a captain, anyway, so he wouldn't take that position. He'd just have to set it up so that he wouldn't have to take orders. Yes, he would evaluate this man. Whether or not he decided to follow through on the rest of his plan... Well, he'd have to see how he felt later.

[xeon]

{OOC: lol Don't worry about it...it seems like we're both in the same position as far as this thread goes xD Sorry for the late post}

"It should be fairly easy." Said the former knight, adding a hint of sarcasm as he continued, "Unless you can't handle the old janitor if he happened to stay late; then we might be in a pickle."

He didn't think his travel companion was very happy about that fact. It almost seemed like he wanted a fight to break out over this money. Shouldn't he be more grateful that the young addict-who had more than his fair share of problems-was helping him at all? It was true that he owed this Vidrel character, but it's not as if the young pyromancer knew that. The only person who was aware of his weakness for the "Crying Night" was himself; and hopefully that weakness would not remain for much longer.

Sighing loudly, he opened the front door to the bell tower and waltzed right in. Despite his sarcastic jibe, he knew that the janitor would not be here at this time of night. All of the good, sane citizens were in bed at this point. Only the lower element would be out at this time. Or someone walking home from a late shift at work, as he was; then sighed again as he reminded himself that he qualified as both at the moment.

"This is the place. It should be hidded behind one of the floor bricks in one of the corners. That's all I know." Michael called to Vidrel from inside the tower, "It shouldn't take us long to find it...the man who hid it here didn't look exceptionally bright to me."

[Rolt |The Immortal|]

He walked inside the clock tower, following Micheal. "The corner tiles? Man, this guy must really be stupid. Let's get to work." he said, walking to the nearest corner. He tried prying out the tile to no avail. Not this one. "So what, you just gonna stand there? This tower is more than just one floor. It'll take forever if it's just me." he shot at Micheal as he walked to the next corner. This one wasn't the right one either. Vidrel wondered just how many floors there were. He had said the man didn't look too bright though, so it would probably be in a fairly obvious spot.

"Wait a minute, what kind of fool would openly talk about his storage, no matter how stupid? There's gotta be a catch." he asked, standing up and readying his fists. "Be on the guard, there's probably something wrong here."

[xeon]

Michael clenched his teeth at Vidrel's jibe, more easily maintaining his cool now that the "Crying Night" was awash in his system. Moving to the corner opposite his armed companion. He listened to more of the man's complaining before he heard him finally say something that was worth putting into words.

Why would the man have spoken to another criminal about the location of his wealth unless it was a trap? If he thought it through carefully, that's the only way the situation would make sense...even if the guy was a total retard. Unfortunately, just as Vidrel voiced his thoughts, Michael pulled up the brick, which happened to be the right one. Sure enough there was a lockbox buried beneath it.

However there was also a strange red wire connected to a trigger on the side of the brick. Some kind of pressure plate...though nothing happened when he had picked it up. He looked at Vidrel questioningly as he did so, hoping that the pyromancer would have some idea of what it was.

Coming from a Quasi-Medieval world...the former knight didn't recognize a silent alarm when he saw one.

[Rolt |The Immortal|]

Vidrel replaced the brick as he spoke. He turned to where Micheal was, and saw him looking at him with a look of confusion on his face. He quickly ran over to him. There was a wire connected to the brick, and it seemed to have done nothing. However, judging by the way the room got slightly darker, Vidrel rationed that it must have been an alarm of some sort. "Grab the box, now! It was an alarm, something's coming!" he said, looking around. There was a slight murmur of voices, they seemed almost inhuman. "Must be the Heartless..." he said quietly, looking around. He saw some stairs, and motioned for Micheal to follow him. He didn't know if Micheal would be able to fight, and was planning to have him leave if he couldn't.

"I suggest that if you don't have experience fighting, you get out of here. There should be an exit a few floors up, though it only leads to the roof. You figure out what to do from there. If you can fight... Don't get in my way."