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"They've left the city. Yes, he's going after them. I don't know why! Ask that damn Inspector Trudal. We left so many clues they should both have been in jail by now. Yes, don't worry. I gave it to my man. He'll make sure she sees it before he finishes her. Yes, I am. I don't know when I'll be able to get a good signal again, but no matter what, I'll see that it's done.

What? Look, you can take that damn scroll and shove it up your ass. Don't threaten me. I told you I'll make sure it gets done, and I will! Your threats are pointless. I don't care if you send it to everyone at the whole damned Bureau. Oh.... yeah. I forgot about that. Can you cut that part out? I just don't look good in pink. Hey, it's not like I have my entire lingerie wardrobe with me! Well dammit leave it in then, I don't care.

Just... can you answer me one thing? Why? We've spent a hell of a lot of money on this, and I might lose my man over it if we can't get him paid. That's a lot of cost for someone we're just going to kill anyway. No, I'm not questioning his judgment! I'm just asking WHY?!

Okay. No, I understand. When it's done I'll send a full report and you'll see we followed the plan to the letter. Alright. I'll contact you again as soon as I am able. Yes. Goodbye."

***********************

The caravan began to depart before first light and a khajiit called from outside to wake them and to pack up the tent. Ra'Jirra felt Ko'Manir uncurled herself from around her.

"I must be getting soft," she said to herself as she got dressed. "I'd only known the guy a few days. Why do I care so much? Is it because he has a family that are waiting for him?"

As if they would never stop, the tears came back again at the thought. They are waiting on a man who will never return, and I'm not going to be able to tell them for a long while.

Ra'Jirra and Ko'Manir had discussed the plan late into the night. Neither knew the man they were supposed to give the device to in Kvatch, but he would surely come to them when Sarosh didn't show up at whatever designated place he'd planned. At least, she hoped he would. She really didn't want to have to carry the thing all the way to Elsweyr if she could avoid it. She had the secondary objective in Ko'Manir herself, and splitting up the objectives would increase the likelihood of success of at least one. However, she'd decided to leave the caravan before Skingrad and instead travel alone with Ko'Manir to Elsweyr directly from Kvatch. Someone had been anticipating their every move, and it was time to do something that was not according to any plan.

But her mind kept returning to the Dominion. Their shooter could have killed her, but he didn't. He didn't have to kill Sarosh, but he did. What was the connection? How did the Dominion fit in? Was he still out there? Would he kill Ko'Manir too? Worst of all, she couldn't think of a damn thing she could do to prevent it. The khajiits running the caravan had found no one, and no one had come into the camp.

The ride on to Kvatch was slow, and Ra'Jirra insisted that Ko'Manir ride between her and one of the camels all the way. That meant a very slow ride with no chance of moving ahead and taking a break. But they reached Kvatch in the afternoon and Ra'Jirra walked with Ko'Manir into the city. No one stopped them, and she saw no one particularly interested in them. The HMSS agent that Sarosh had planned to meet was probably looking for him, not two khajiits. She hoped he'd at least told the agent who he was bringing. The service was notorious for only giving information on a Need-To-Know basis, and this might be one of those times.

Fortunately, it turned out the Agent had indeed been informed. Less than an hour after they'd sat themselves on a bench in the central park of the city, an Imperial approached them and sat down beside Ra'Jirra.

"You Ra'Jirra?"

"I am. We... lost a man."

"Sarosh. Yes, I know. I tried to find him at the caravan. The khajiits told me something about it, but what they told me didn't make sense. A ranged weapon without an arrow, bolt or even a stone?"

"Look, this isn't the best place to talk. Perhaps..."

"Oh! I'm sorry. The name's Faelian. Come with me, I've got dinner made. I live in a house just a little way farther into the city."

The two stood and followed Faelian, happy to have a real dinner for a change after the meager food they'd eaten with the caravan.

The house Faelian took them to was small, but clean, in an older part of the city - a single man's house.

"No family?" Ra'Jirra asked as she sat at the table with Ko'Manir while Faelian began preparations in the kitchen.

"Family? Oh, you mean here. No. No family," he said has he brought out three glasses of wine.

"Here, a little something to get you started," he said and went back into the kitchen.

"Ew. Bitter," Ko'Manir said to Ra'Jirra after tasting the wine.

"Faelian, I think the wine may have turned," Ra'Jirra called to the kitchen and tasted her own.

"Well, it does taste a bit weird, but I wouldn't call it bitter," Ra'Jirra said turning back to Ko'Manir. But Ko'Manir was just staring at her, eyes wide.

"Ko'Manir? Are you alright?"

Her partner didn't move. She sat bolt upright, staring at Ra'Jirra.

"Ko?!" Ra'Jirra started to get up, but found she couldn't move her arms or legs.

The Imperial named Faelian walked back into the room, rope in one hand, a wicked looking knife in the other. It was not a kitchen knife.

"Faelian?"

"Yes, Ra'Jirra. I am Faelian. But let's let Romanov sleep, shall we?

He stepped to the khajiit and closed her eyes.

"What are you doing?!"

"In a moment. Ra'Jirra. Your paralysis will wear off in just a few minutes. Then I'll tell you everything you want to know. But first..."

He began wrapping the rope tightly around her torso and the back of the chair. When he was satisfied she was trussed beyond escape, he severed the end of the rope with his knife. Ra'Jirra just watched him closely, but she was thinking all the while.

"Firstly," he said, dropping the knife point-first into the table. She jumped a little at the sound. "I don't think I'm who you were expecting. In fact," he said, stepping to a closet nearby. "I think this is who you were looking for."

The body of a man lay within it, his neck slit. Faelian didn't leave the door open long.

"Why are you telling me this?"

"A good question. A damn good question. You see, I'm going to kill you when I'm done. Both you and your friend. So why explain all this to you first? It's stupid, but it's part of my contract. The party that hired me demands I explain everything to you first. My guess is that you pissed someone off, Ra'Jirra. Pissed someone very important off, and that someone doesn't just want you killed. Hell, I could have done that days ago in that alley! No, they want you crushed first."

"The alley. You're the Dominion man. You killed my partner," Ra'Jirra hissed.

"Oh, yes. That was me. Me and my friend. Would you like to meet my friend? Give me a minute," and he stepped out of sight into another room.

Ra'Jirra tried working her hands and feet. They were tingling, a good sign, but she still couldn't properly work them. He came back in, carrying what looked like a crossbow, yet there was no bow. Instead it was fitted with a long tube of metal beyond the stock.

"Say hello to my long friend," he said, and pointed the business end directly at her head. He shoved it inside her ear, pushing her head to the side.

"A long gun," she said. "I get it."

He pulled it back, smiling. "Not quite. A rifle, they call it. It's not just a bigger version of your little PUSS. The Dominion modelled it after your prototype, but they improved on it significantly. Inside the tube it has spiral grooves that set the bullet to spinning when it's shot. That spin keeps the shot true, when wielded by someone with accurate aim. Me!"

"Why?" Ra'Jirra asked, though it was obvious he was going to tell her anyway. But the longer she played along, the more likely the paralysis would wear off.

"All for you, Ra'Jirra. All for you. You were supposed to be arrested for that. An international incident. We would have made sure you got out, mind you, but that would be the first blemish on your reputation. But somehow you avoided that. How did you manage that, Ra'Jirra? Just curious."

"I happened to have met Inspector Trudal. There was, evidence that they hadn't considered."

"Ah. Dumb luck. That is the bane of any well conceived plan, you know. There's always the factor of dumb luck that can't be anticipated. The Dominion likes to plan things, but they never plan for that. Ah well, so it goes."

"You're... not a Dominion agent, are you?"

"Me? Hell no. I'm just an assassin."

"What about her?" Ra'Jirra asked, indicating Ko'Manir. "How does she fit into the Dominion's plans?"

"Oh, her? Oh, that's a good one! You better sit down for this... oh, that's right, you already are," he said, pulling a chair back, spinning it around and straddling it backwards.

He was obviously enjoying this far too much, but time was her friend. Ra'Jirra was able to extend her claws and began rubbing the rope against them gently.

"First shock for you... she's still working for Hammerfell. She was going to infiltrate your vaunted HMSS and send them back all she could on your methods. A mole in your own organization."

Ra'Jirra nodded. It did make sense. "But what about the device? Surely they don't want to lose that?"

"Old technology. They've already switched to a newer one. You can read all their old mail, good luck with that - they've already planned for it. It would do you no good."

"But... if that's all true, why did she..."

"Fuck you? Ah, that's the beauty of it all, and where the Dominion gets involved. She really is fascinated by you. You've been her sole field of study for months. I think she really likes you, as an adversary. But the Dominion needed her to do something special. They passed the plan onto her superiors, who passed it on to her. You were drugged, Ra'Jirra. She slipped you a drug as powerful as these I slipped into your wine, but with a different effect."

With that, he pulled out an odd scroll and held it before her. Her eyes went wide when she saw the pictures on the scroll. And it went on and on as he rolled it past her. Everything. Some things she didn't even remember doing.

"Goddammit Faelian, I get it already. Did you get your rocks off to us? Put it away."

"Me? No. My boss maybe did. I get off when I kill."

"So you've got pictures of Ko'Manir and me. What's the point?"

"The scroll will be released after your death. Your suicide, after you murder Ko'Manir specifically. They'll find the scroll. She was blackmailing you with it, and you killed her, then took your own life. Such deviancy as what's on this scroll... it could only end in madness."

"Jeeze Faelian, it's not that bad!"

"Of course not. But among some more conservative people it will be. And that's the reason. After you're gone, even the name of 'Ra'Jirra' will be a laughing stock, an embarrassment to the HMSS and to Elsweyr. The Mane will disavow your legacy. You will be forgotten, Ra'Jirra, as soon as the bad jokes stop."

Ra'Jirra saw it now. Someone really had it in for her! Apparently that someone thought she gave a shit about her 'legacy'. But it was time to try her gamble. She wasn't going to get out of these ropes in time.

"Faelian... how much are they paying you?"

The eyes that were scanning the scroll with a lewd expression suddenly turned serious and shot to hers.

"Why?"

"Elsweyr will pay you more."

"Ha! More than the fucking DOMINION?! Not fucking likely!"

"How much would it take for you let us go? Or at least just me?"

"And screw the Dominion? Oh, that would take a lot, cat. A hell of a lot."

"I have a hell of a lot."

For the second time their eyes locked. "How much?"

"Thousands. In my briefcase over there."

She nodded where she'd left it. Gears started turning in his head. She could practically see them. Golden gears.

"What's to keep me from just taking it then?"

"The lock. Unbreakable. They tell me that only with specific types of force could you ever get that thing open."

"How many thousands?"

"They started me with ten thousand. Rihad is cheap and I didn't gamble that much. There's got to be at least 7000 left."

"Now he's considering it," she thought. "He wants it, bad. But he won't let me go, and he sure as hell isn't going to flip on the Dominion. How can he get both?"

"I need to see it first," he said. "If you've really got 7000 in there, I'll join your HMSS. But I want a thousand per hit."

"Consider it done," Ra'Jirra said, knowing full well he was lying.

The assassin brought the briefcase over. "What's the combination?"

"Cat, Snake, Snake."