The Invitation (Hidden Blades Intro/Artemis/Job)

NOT ALL OF US ARE BORN DEVILS

AND THAT'S SUCH A SHAME

Ahote C. Laspor.

This was an interesting recruitment, perhaps a little on the risker side. When Blanche had brought to his attention the severe lack of recruiting being done to fill the vacant spots in his guild; Artemis had felt nothing if not intense pressure. After all, it had been his employment as the Chairman of Hidden Blades that had resulted in the severe drop in Operatives. Loyal to his father and unwilling to work under new management. Artemis wondered if they would feel any different if they knew he was, in fact, the previous Chairman's son. He doubted it, it may have swayed a few minds, but the majority of those who had left would most likely still resigned. After all, it was clear to the Operatives that Artemis was much younger and much more inexperienced than their previous leader. How could he expect them to stay when they neither respected nor trusted him. So, he had been pulled into a meeting, following which his underlings had demanded that he come up with better means of recruitment. As far as he had been able to tell he'd been doing okay. Recruiting the likes of Shark, Troubadour, not to mention he'd even gotten Deleronark to join, which was a relief, to say the least. But it wasn't enough; they needed more significant numbers, experienced mages who'd worked in a similar field to his own.

So he had gone off, brainstorm ways to figure out how to find members — getting in touch with his old criminal connections to find out any news of mages in need of work. That was when he heard about a certain guild that no longer existed. He couldn't remember all their faces, there were too many that day, plus he hadn't really paid much attention to the whole event. Back when he belonged to Black Rose, and his Guildmaster at the time had carried them all on her back to a particular guild in Mount Hakobe. So much potential, and now it was gone. The faces he did remember, were the ones he had ordered the Intelligence department to take a look at. Dig up any history they could on what they were capable of. There were clearly gaps in their knowledge, most likely due to the severe lack of staff in the Intelligence sector. But it was something. The first person he had decided to target was by far the most interesting. He had never actually spoken to him, only looked at him from across the room of the guild hall. He doubted the man would be able to pick him out in a crowd; they never exchanged any conversation at all, he was pretty sure the guy hadn't even glanced his way that day. But still, there was always the risk.

Even so, to recruit a character list this, capable of running a criminal organisation like he had, well it was sure to benefit Hidden Blades in some way. He just had to convince him, and hope that this new item's magical abilities and voice changing mechanic was enough to hide who he was. The pros, in this case, outweighed the cons. It was just something he had to do, for the sake of Hidden Blades, and getting the weight off his back. He wasn't wearing his armour today; instead, he was trying a new product. A prototype that was given to him by his father, something he was to test out and if effective was to distributed into the guilds arsenal. It was a ring on his finger, a casual silver band; however, it had the ability to change his appearance. The twenty-two-year-old red-head now resembled a man in his forties. With black hair and blue eyes, his skin was deeply tanned and his skin quite wrinkled. He stepped up to the bar; he had been here before a few times. As for himself, he was quite the regular, but in this guise, he was a stranger. Memories of when he had met a hot little red-head during a dance competition floating in his mind. He certainly missed his old life.

The club was quiet, in fact, if anything it looked closed. But still, Artemis pressed his hand against the door, pushing it open. It was dead, completely dead; they must have closed it early. Interesting, at least they could talk in private. Artemis stepped inside, allowing the door to shut behind him. He spotted him, sitting at the bar, a glass of water in front of him and the recruitment letter in hand. He made his approach, pulling up the chair next to him, the disguise he wore was fitting in a long white shirt, and black trousers. It was a simple attire, because what else did you need when making an offer like the one he was about to.

"Evening, Ahote." He said, his voice sounding much deeper than it normally did, a voice to match the guise of the middle-aged man he appeared to be. "I see you have our letter before we start. Are there any security cameras on? Forgive my caution, but this is a business so I imagine such devices would certainly be fitted in such an establishment and I can't allow the risk of incrimination to occur once I tell you my offer." It wasn't that he planned to reveal too much about the guild anyway, but just enough to hopefully pique the man's interest. Even so, he had to cover his tracks; he sincerely hoped the man wouldn't lie. That would create a problem for both of them.

NOT ALL OF US ARE BORN DEVILS

AND THAT'S SUCH A SHAME

Artemis listened to the man response regarding the security cameras. He nodded, satisfied with this answer, it didn't seem like he was lying. It made sense, and at least they could move on to the matter at hand, his recruitment. It was strange to have to behave so cautiously, the last time he had been in this mans presence he had been himself. The carefree youth who loved to drink and party all of the time so much had changed. Now he was a guild master with actual responsibilities. Responsibilities that if weren't handled correctly, would likely result in his own demise.

Ahote offered him a drink; he considered it for a moment. Boy, did he want a drink? He rarely got to enjoy any alcohol these days. It had been a dry month for the Dagger heir. All of his free time was being entirely consumed by his job from initiating members, recruiting candidates, juggling responsibilities and doing paperwork. His life seemed pretty non-stop lately. In some ways, he had noticed that he was starting to enjoy certain parts of it. The authority, the way people didn't seem to judge him on sight. Mainly because they couldn't see him, nor did they know who he was. But still, it was nice not to be looked down on because you didn't fit the quota of what society expected of you. Yet, as he considered the offer, he shook his head. As much as he wanted it, it was best to stay level headed in this scenario. "No, thank you." He declined. He cleared his throat, figuring now was the best time to get straight into it. There was no point wasting any time.

"The organisation I belong to. We are a discretionary business that has a tendency to handle matters that our clients would prefer not be handled by the general authorities such as legal or independent guilds, or the Rune Knights. The work they request of us is design to be effective but leave no trace; often it can be unpleasant or unsavoury. But the impact that we have tends to be anything from minor to monumental. Our goal is to serve our clients needs to the best of our abilities without the knowledge of the public; we are what you might consider a 'shadow organisation'. To the outside world, we don't exist, but we play our part, pulling strings and making changes according to our client's requests. I've seen what you are capable of Ahote, and I personally feel, you would be a valuable asset to us, which is why I'm offering you employment. You can work with us, under an alias of course. There will be no association with your actual life and your life in our company; only I need to know who you are." He stopped, eying the man to see how he would react, was his interest peaked? Or was Artemis flogging a dead horse? The man had after all been the guild master of Basilisk Fang. Would he care to be an agent in a secret organisation? Unfortunately, Artemis didn't know enough about the man to predict his response.

NOT ALL OF US ARE BORN DEVILS

AND THAT'S SUCH A SHAME

Artemis had been prepared for questions, he always was. Although he had been surprised how little people actually asked when he was recruiting them. Often, folks agreed so easily he wondered if they were really worth hiring. The simplicity of just taken a 'shady' position such as the role of an undercover agent in an organization like this. But then again he wasn't dealing with just any recruit, the man wasn't just another worker bee looking for a payout. He wanted to know more, and Artemis respected that. His first comment, caused Artemis to smirk slightly. It did seem that way didn't it? Perhaps Mercenaries was a better way to look at it, at least Artemis felt so. But his perspective of the guild was unfortunately not so pleasant, the term mercenary seemed so 'noble' to him, yet there wasn't really anything 'noble' about what they did. Not in his eyes at least. But still, he had to embrace it, and sell it for what it was worth. So that was what he would do. He took a breathe, the next question he would need to addres 'carefully'. While he wanted to recruit this guy, he couldn't risk telling him too much information on the guild. Were he to say 'No', it would potentially put them in jeopardy.

"Whilst I cannot explicitly tell you names, I can tell you this. our Clients do not contact us directly but through shelf companies, created by us. Clients know us by various different names, aside from the one we actually exist by. So although they know that they can put requests into this 'companies' and have certain jobs completed for then, they by no means know who is actually doing the job for them." He explained, "So if anything, our client-base is not sourced by one faction, but many. I can assure you, there is no shortage of work for our members." He added if anything the guild master could do with less work. Sitting here trying to recruit this guy was about as close to a break as he had gotten in a while. The guild was pretty non-stop from his perspective, have been around for a long time, they had to accumulate a great deal of clientele through the 'fake companies' that had been created for that purpose. That brought them around them to the man's next question, an important question at that. The offer he was really making, what would it be that would sell it to him. Artemis thought for a moment, before speaking once more, beginning with his own question.

"Have you ever felt stuck? Like you're floating from moment to moment, trying to exist somewhere, only to have it either ripped from under your feet or to learn that you never belonged there in the first place?" He asked the ex-guild master, he wasn't sure just how much he would be able to relate. But it was the only thing Artemis could think of, describing his own experience in hopes it would help him understand why it was worth joining. "Well, I have, and quite frankly it's nice to have some ground under my feet. If it's glory and fame you want, then this company cannot help you. Our members live their normal lives and work under aliases to protect them from a repercussion that comes along doing our kind of work. If you join us, you wouldn't be 'Ahote C. Laspur', but whoever you chose to be. Sometimes, when individuals are particularly skilled at doing our kind of work, they fall into factions that do not protect them. Their lives become stained with the work they'br done, and they become targeted by those who find this... unacceptable. Except that doesn't happen with us, because the people we become when we do this work, well technically they don't exist. They are shadows, and therefore cannot be touched." He shrugged, thinking about how to continue, he didn't want to ramble on for too long. Else he may risk boring the guy and losing his interest entirely. He needed to wrap this up, and so he continued.

"Honestly Ahote, more than anything, what I found this place to be, is a fresh start. An opportunity for an experience that rivals anything you would find elsewhere. So let me ask, are you by any means interested?" He asked looking at the main with a stoic expression. He figured he had said enough at this point to warrant confirmation, it was only going to go two ways. Either the man would say 'no' and Artemis would leave, crossing him off of his list and disappear from the man's life without a trace. Or he would say yes, and so would begin his membership within Hidden Blades. Artemis knew what outcome he would prefer to be the result, after all failure wasn't something the man enjoyed. If he went back to the guild empty handed, then it would just go to add to the Directors suspicions that he wasn't up to par. Even if he hadn't wanted to take over this guild in the first place, didn't mean he wanted it's members to look down on him. He'd just about had enough of that for one lifetime.

NOT ALL OF US ARE BORN DEVILS

AND THAT'S SUCH A SHAME

It seemed that the man was satisfied with Artemis's answer, which was good. However it didn't seem like it would end there. He didn't answer Artemis's question about whether he was interested. But instead would continue with his own questions. It seemed that Ahote was still somewhat suspicious of Artemis, or at least that's what his words reflected. Again, it was a valid point. He made a reference about girl scouts, and giggled at his own joke. He was much more playful than Artemis expected a man of his history to be, but then what did he really expect of a openly dark mage. When he was done, Artemis eyed the man, thinking his answer. He certainly was clever, and his words were like a picklock, carefully attempting to pry more truth from Artemis. Were he able to be himself, he probably would've enjoyed hanging out with the man. But instead, he had to remain guarded, for the sake of himself and the task he was bestowed as Guild Master. He reached up, running a hand through the dark locks of the man, whom he was disguised as. His expression was thoughtful, as though he was contemplating the best way to explain things to the man sat next to him.

"I've never thought to ask my agents why it is they join our company, I only ever ask if they'd like to. However if I had to take a guess why they don't question my identity, I suppose it comes down the simple exchange. I offer them work, money and freedom from consequence, and they instil they're trust in me." His dark eyes would meet the man across from him, his expression stern as he continued. As much as he had not wanted to take up this role, he had grown to understand it very well. The responsibility it came with, how much was at stake, if the man made one mistake. It could crumple away, and the devastation it would leave in it's wake was stupendous. He could ruin his family, everything they'd built. Dagger Corp would be torn apart, and the crimes they'd committed in the shadows would all come to light. As much as Artemis loathed the ways of the Dagger family; even he did not wish that upon them. Then there was a matter of the guild itself, all the individuals that had agreed to work with him and what they'd put on the line.

"You see, it's not just my privacy on the line, but the whole system. If I was exposed, then so would the company, and as a result everyone in it. There is a mutual understanding that if I am to protect them, then I need to protect myself first." He explained, he sat back a little. There were obviously contingency plans in place, if the guild were exposed beyond repair then the guildhall would self-destruct, and all sensitive information along with it. Then there was a team prepared to deal with the guildmembers, and ensure their silence until the next step was decided. Then there was the affiliated 'shadow companies', and all their employees, which would need to be handled. When Artemis had read those protocols, he had realised just how important it was that this didn't happen. He in no way wanted to put that action plan into place, he didn't think he could stomach it.

"It may seem absurd to think people would take such a risk but then what is opportunity without risk. It is just a matter of exchange. I can assure you, I've had no complaints so far." As it said to him, it occurred to him that he never actually asked his father about his reign as Guild Master of Hidden Blades. He didn't actually know how he had led it, instead, he'd just taken it in his stride. He knew that Lucarius was greatly respected by the older members of the guild, but there was also a deep layer of fear too. Was that how Artemis wanted to lead? Not really, but then again, he was still figuring it all out - this 'leadership' thing.

NOT ALL OF US ARE BORN DEVILS

AND THAT'S SUCH A SHAME

Artemis got the feeling the man was expecting a more exciting response. The way his face shifted, as he spoke he even looked a little disappointed. Artemis didn't know what to say. Perhaps things had been a little more excited when he was a guild master. But for Artemis, it really was all work and no play. There wasn't any exhilarating secret to what he did, it really was just a job. You worked, you got paid. the work was dirty, but it didn't affect what you did. You remained free of consequences, there wasn't anything else to it. He would continue, talking about his time in Fairy Tail. Artemis knew of the guild, having not long since gone to the festival held by the guild. They were an independent faction, although his family didn't generally associate with them much. So there wasn't much else he knew on them. Ahote continued to talk about the last of Basilisk Fang, and mentioned someone named 'Famine'. Who Artemis had no knowledge. Artemis reached over and patted the man on the shoulder sympathetically.

"Sounds like a real shit sandwich." He commented bluntly, before lowering his hand once more as the man banged against the table. Artemis couldn't really empathise with the man, but he acknowledges that his experiences had at least been unpleasant. Artemis hadn't even wanted a guild, he had been forced into it. But he could only imagine the circumstances may have been different for the man next to him. Although Artemis wasn't entirely sure, Ahote was proving to be a more curious character than he first realised. A little more whimsical than he had expected of someone with the experiences he had. It made him hard to read, Artemis couldn't tell if he was being real or if the man was attempting to toy with him. It was better to keep his guard up for now.

The man continued once more, talking about his own grievances. He remarked on Art's potential to understand, the Chairman's eyes would narrow a fraction. It wasn't the comparison of the difference between running a shadow organization to a club that irked him. It was the almost assumptive attitude it reflected, that Artemis may not be able to grasp the man's suffering due to his own position. In Art's mind, his own like had been a neverending influx of shit, that fate it seemed had no favour for the boy and more often than not he was slapped with the harsh truth. That life simply was not fair. Had Artemis been able to be himself, he would've chewed him out. But Alas, he couldn't do that. He had to remain, professional after all.

The man circled around once more, summarise the experience he was undergoing, to finally give Artemis an understanding of where he stood on the matter. Artemis's felt himself relax something, at the very least. All of his efforts had not been wasted. He could go back to the Directors with some good news. Perhaps a few of the other acquaintances he had come by would also be a success. The man would only hope so, anything to get them off his back. "I am glad to hear that." He replied. The man continued to tell him that he had planned to join in spite of what Artemis said. Artemis cocked an eyebrow, so he had been toying with him. Although his reasoning for doing so was a little more innocent that Artemis anticipated. If that was the real reason.

"In that case, I will get in touch soon for your initiation. Hopefully, we'll be able to liven things up a little for you." Artemis remarked, grinning at the man. "Thank you for meeting with me Ahote, it had been... enlightening. For now I will take my leave, I have some paperwork to attend to." Artemis climbed off of his stool. With a nod, he moved towards the door of the bar, as he reached it, he paused.

"You said earlier, about how odd it is for me to be able to recruit so many people without so much as giving my name. As true as it is, I recieve no complaints about the name by which they know me. Should you truly end up in our ranks, then you'll know me as The Chairman. Arrogant isn't it?" He commented with a chuckle, "I suggest you think of an alias too, but until then, see you soon. Ahote." With that Artemis pushed open the door of the club and stepped into the night. Making his back to the guild, a satisfied grin on his face. Finally, a job well done.

NOT ALL OF US ARE BORN DEVILS

AND THAT'S SUCH A SHAME