Edgar patted Ryoko on the head and walked past her, disappearing into the crowd. Mishka dumped the coins from her hand back into the pouch and approached Ryoko, shoving it into her chest.
“Count out 10,000 of these when we get back to the inn, and put them in a separate bag.â€
“Seriously? That’ll take forever!†protested Ryoko.
“Being an apprentice means you get to do all of the shitty jobs. You think I didn’t go through the same thing?â€
“It must have been so hard, screwing the Knight Commander for promotions,†Ryoko countered, sarcastically.
Mishka simply shook her head in frustration. Grabbing Ryoko by her ponytail, she marched toward the entryway of the coliseum, ignoring the pleas of the girl being dragged behind her.
Back at the inn, Ryoko set about counting out 10,000 gil while Mishka perused their new selection of arms and armor. Their new wardrobe included full-body suits, black as night and weaved from a synthetic Garlean fiber. They were padded with a flexible but resilient material which Mishka had never seen before. Under the pile of clothing was a dossier which, upon inspection, contained sketches and diagrams detailing the use of the various Magitek devices included in the delivery, all meticulously translated into the Ishgardian holy script. Mishka attempted to read them aloud.
“Obdow…uh… ah-oo reh… reh… Gods dammit!†Mishka became irritated and chucked the manual at Ryoko. “Read this when you’re done counting.†Mishka returned to rummaging through the drawers. “I don’t see how you can make sense of that shit.â€
“Maybe if you’d practice more? It’s kind of important to be able to read these things…â€
“Hey, I’ve been hunting witches for years and never once needed to read anything! Everything in those dossiers are basically suggestions anyway,†Mishka explained, shrugging.
“That’s probably how you ended up in prison, don’t you think?†inquired Ryoko, snidely.
“Gridanian prison. It was practically a vacation, and I left as soon as I felt like it. Those tree-huggers couldn’t stop a blind and crippled man from escaping…â€
Ryoko skimmed the pages of the report, making note of the sections on optics and weaponry. On the last page were a set of vague instructions phrased in the form of some unusual questions. With some effort, Ryoko read them off and pondered their purpose. She looked up from the dossier in time to see Mishka pull long and elegant dress from the drawer.
“Ah crap, they want me to wear this for something, don’t they?†asked Mishka. Ryoko looked down again and flipped through the dossier, landing on a note bearing the seal of House Fortemps.
“It says we’re supposed to have dinner with a trade prince in three days time. Apparently we’re escorting Emissary Rondelet.â€
Ryoko watched Mishka tossing various garments from the dresser, each one as lavish and expensive as the last.
“More diplomatic work… how do I always get pulled into this nonsense?†complained Mishka. Ryoko stared blankly at the clothes.
“Why do they do this, Mishka?â€
“Do what?â€
“The fancy clothes, the dinners, the bribes… Ishgard can’t afford these things! People are starving!â€
Mishka seemed unconcerned. “Just keeping up appearances, I guess.â€
“But…maybe if the other nations knew how poor our people are, they’d want to help!â€
“Ryoko,the Church is full of stuffy old men who will do anything to protect their pride. They’d shit a brick at the mere thought of Ishgard accepting charity. Besides, Ul’dah is the last place you’d ever look for it. Poverty is the fuel that keeps this place running. If they found out how desperate we are, they wouldn’t think twice about taking advantage of it. If we want anything out of them, we have to appear strong and in control.â€
Ryoko stared at the floor for a moment, reflecting on the conversation. She sullenly returned to counting coins.
“Count out 10,000 of these when we get back to the inn, and put them in a separate bag.â€
“Seriously? That’ll take forever!†protested Ryoko.
“Being an apprentice means you get to do all of the shitty jobs. You think I didn’t go through the same thing?â€
“It must have been so hard, screwing the Knight Commander for promotions,†Ryoko countered, sarcastically.
Mishka simply shook her head in frustration. Grabbing Ryoko by her ponytail, she marched toward the entryway of the coliseum, ignoring the pleas of the girl being dragged behind her.
Back at the inn, Ryoko set about counting out 10,000 gil while Mishka perused their new selection of arms and armor. Their new wardrobe included full-body suits, black as night and weaved from a synthetic Garlean fiber. They were padded with a flexible but resilient material which Mishka had never seen before. Under the pile of clothing was a dossier which, upon inspection, contained sketches and diagrams detailing the use of the various Magitek devices included in the delivery, all meticulously translated into the Ishgardian holy script. Mishka attempted to read them aloud.
“Obdow…uh… ah-oo reh… reh… Gods dammit!†Mishka became irritated and chucked the manual at Ryoko. “Read this when you’re done counting.†Mishka returned to rummaging through the drawers. “I don’t see how you can make sense of that shit.â€
“Maybe if you’d practice more? It’s kind of important to be able to read these things…â€
“Hey, I’ve been hunting witches for years and never once needed to read anything! Everything in those dossiers are basically suggestions anyway,†Mishka explained, shrugging.
“That’s probably how you ended up in prison, don’t you think?†inquired Ryoko, snidely.
“Gridanian prison. It was practically a vacation, and I left as soon as I felt like it. Those tree-huggers couldn’t stop a blind and crippled man from escaping…â€
Ryoko skimmed the pages of the report, making note of the sections on optics and weaponry. On the last page were a set of vague instructions phrased in the form of some unusual questions. With some effort, Ryoko read them off and pondered their purpose. She looked up from the dossier in time to see Mishka pull long and elegant dress from the drawer.
“Ah crap, they want me to wear this for something, don’t they?†asked Mishka. Ryoko looked down again and flipped through the dossier, landing on a note bearing the seal of House Fortemps.
“It says we’re supposed to have dinner with a trade prince in three days time. Apparently we’re escorting Emissary Rondelet.â€
Ryoko watched Mishka tossing various garments from the dresser, each one as lavish and expensive as the last.
“More diplomatic work… how do I always get pulled into this nonsense?†complained Mishka. Ryoko stared blankly at the clothes.
“Why do they do this, Mishka?â€
“Do what?â€
“The fancy clothes, the dinners, the bribes… Ishgard can’t afford these things! People are starving!â€
Mishka seemed unconcerned. “Just keeping up appearances, I guess.â€
“But…maybe if the other nations knew how poor our people are, they’d want to help!â€
“Ryoko,the Church is full of stuffy old men who will do anything to protect their pride. They’d shit a brick at the mere thought of Ishgard accepting charity. Besides, Ul’dah is the last place you’d ever look for it. Poverty is the fuel that keeps this place running. If they found out how desperate we are, they wouldn’t think twice about taking advantage of it. If we want anything out of them, we have to appear strong and in control.â€
Ryoko stared at the floor for a moment, reflecting on the conversation. She sullenly returned to counting coins.
