"Remember, you two. Don't say a word. This is our last hope. I can't have you mucking everything up." A small blue-skinned dwarf reminded his two companions as he slid into a booth at the corner of a dingy bar on an obscure highway.
"Understood."
"Got it, boss. Not a word." The companions, a woman and an anthropomorphic dog, agreed, sliding in beside him, only to slide a bit too far accidentally end up squishing him against the wall for a moment before his slaps made them realize their mistake.
"Honestly! You two idiots need to be professional! Don't forget who we're meeting with. This isn't a playground. Don't insult these guys! They'll eat you alive, and have me for an appetizer, and I don't want to be lunch!" The blue gremlin scolded harshly.
"We understand, Lord Pilaf… But are you sure that this is our last option? I have a bad feeling about this." Shu noted.
"Well, too bad! This is our only chance! We don't have an alternative, and I spent a lot of money that we don't have in order to set up this deal! Now shut up, he's here." Pilaf berated, shutting Shu up with overwhelming verbal force, like always.
Like always, though, Shu and Mai didn't complain.
Instead, they shut up and watched as a man with a single, long black braid of hair that trailed down his back entered the bar and immediately stalked toward their table, radiating an unseen but palpable aura of 'Don't Mess With Me'
"My money." Sitting in the booth across from the Pilaf trio, Mercenary Tao didn't waste any time.
"First-" Pilaf started, but Tao cut him off.
"First, I get my money. Then I kill someone for you. Whoever you want… but the pay has to be worth it. Those are the rules. You have five seconds to produce my money, or I walk." Tao gave his ultimatum.
With an annoyed grunt, Pilaf produced a bag and slid it across the table. "Twenty-five million zeni. You'll get the rest once the job's done."
Tao picked the bag up, weighing it in his hand for a moment, as if he could count the money just by holding it. Which he probably could. Finally, he moved to stand. "This wasn't our deal-"
"Scared you won't be able to do it?" Pilaf goaded.
Instantaneously, the temperature in the room seemed to drop twenty degrees. Tao fixed Pilaf with a stare so intense that it felt like the blue gremlin was suddenly wearing a two-hundred pound vest over his small frame. He gasped for breath, because breathing suddenly felt nearly impossible.
The pressure lifted after a moment. "I can kill anyone. I'm the best, so I don't play games."
Pilaf leaned in, putting his hands on the table as he literally stood in his seat, "I'm not playing a game, here. Even for you, Tao, this target is dangerous, and he has something I need. You'll get your money, but only after he's out of my hair. I'm not wasting money on a dead man."
"You doubt me?" Tao's eyebrows arched.
"I told you. He's incredibly dangerous. I'm not taking chances, Tao. That's why you won't be working alone. Your partner-"
"I work alone. No exceptions. Nothing's dangerous for me." Tao responded.
"Then you'll have to prove that you're not holding me back, then."
"GAH!" Pilaf exclaimed, almost falling off of his seat as another individual seemed to simply appear in the seat across from his, leaning against the wall right beside where Tao had been sitting seconds ago.
"I don't prove anything. It's absolute respect or nothing. I'm the greatest assassin in the world. Give me one good reason not to kill all of you where you st-" Tao paused in place.
No. He'd been paused. The other man stared at the assassin blankly, as Tao's face slowly turned purple. "I'm not impressed." The man said, releasing his mental hold on Tao, who stumbled, barely holding himself upright with his hands on the table as he gasped for breath, "But you'll be useful as a distraction."
Tao stared at the man, his rage warring with his fear, while his pride fought both inside his head.
Eventually, the fear won. "I'm leaving."
"One hundred million more. Twenty-five million zeni higher than we agreed on. You act as the distraction, he pulls the weight. You can be sunning yourself on an island resort by tomorrow, Mercenary Tao." The blue gremlin noted.
Tao gritted his teeth.
Honestly, it wasn't a lump sum for him. He could ignore it… but the hit to his reputation was more than he could bring himself to handle. If people knew that he, Mercenary Tao, the greatest assassin on the planet, turned down an easy job like this that was worth this much money, the stain would never vanish from his resume.
He'd be the assassin with the 'almost' perfect record.
"Fine. Who's the target? Let's make this quick. Then, you'll pay me what you owe." He responded after a moment.
"Of course. I've compiled a file." Pilaf slid a folder across the table. Tao looked it over, flipping through one page at a time.
His eyes narrowed with every word. "Let's get to work. I want to get this done as quickly as possible." He finally declared, closing the folder.
"As do I-"
"Don't you dare forget my payment, too." The sitting man told Pilaf.
"Of course not." Pilaf agreed with a nod, "I have no intention of going back on our deal."
"You better not. Or I'll kill all of you on the spot."
"I'll keep that in mind as well."
"As you well should."