Colin's posts

Ash raised an eyebrow when he heard that.

"Intriguing." he said.

"She sounds like she'd fit right in." he told her.

"Hmmmm..." he then mumbled, tapping on the laptop again.

"Welp... can she stop by here in the next couple of days?" he asked. "Specifically, actually, IN two days?" he asked further.

"I can arrange a little interview, see if she's got what it takes."

Ash listened to what Sydney had to say, but obviously froze when she mentioned about the candidate being Desiree's daughter.

"...excuse me?" he asked.

"She... has a daughter?" he asked further, before shaking his head.

"Bet there's a story behind THAT..." he mumbled.

"But all right... interesting..." he said further.

"Well, if you can vouch for her character, that's a big step, but... what's the situation with her bounty hunting right now?" he then asked her.

"As in, what's her claim to fame, so to speak, and why is her current bounty hunting status in question?"

"....a strategist?" Ash asked, sitting behind his desk and booting up the laptop that was on it.

"Lemme check." he said.

"I'm thinking she IS... but I need to make sure." he went on, as he tapped away on the keys for a few moments, and then stopped as he looked at what was brought up.

"Sheeeeeeeee... is!" he finally said.

"Crystal's going to be going on maternity leave in the next month or so, and she's been talking about quitting as a full-time hunter anyway, to focus on her child." he told Sydney.

"Essentially, turn into a contractor-for-hire, I suppose." he went on.

"Why do you ask?"

"Well, as you said, we're a day's walk away from the Capital." Ryker responded.

"So, I mean, if you're up to it, we CAN make our way there." he said.

"If you feel you're not ready, we can see what this town has to offer, in terms of sightseeing and such." he went on.

"All comes down to you." he told Eke.

"What do you feel prepared to do?"

Ryker got off the bed and made his way towards Eke, stepping up beside him and placing his arm over his shoulders.

"Hey." he said.

"Relax." he said further.

"The more you try to force yourself to remember your dream, the harder it'll be, the more you'll frustrate yourself." he went on. "So don't try so hard." he suggested.

"So just let it go for now, and I'm sure it'll come to you." he then said.

"...probably at the most inopportune time." he added with a wry chuckle.

"......" Ryker was silent, before reaching into the minibar beside the bed and grabbing a bottle of water from it.

"Here." he said, handing it to him.

"Have a drink of water." he told him.

"Just concentrate on your breathing, and focus on where you are." he went on.

"You're here. You're in the hotel room. You're not alone. You're safe."

The heard the other hunters muttering and talking amongst themselves, and Ash sighed.

"Nowhere NEAR as good as you, though." he said.

"Seriously. I got a loooooong way to go before I reach anywhere close to YOUR level." he chuckled.

"But I DO have a 95% win rate." he said proudly as they walked towards his office.

When they reached the closed door, he unlocked it, and they stepped inside, with him closing the door behind them.

"Grab whatever you want." he told her.

Ash raised an eyebrow when he heard that, before looking back to the table, after his opponent had taken their shot. He sighed, before shaking his head.

"Gimme a sec, Vyn." he said.

He then made another shot, narrowing his eyes as the balls clattered around... and won him the game. Barely.

"That trick shot's got a 45% chance of working." he muttered, as he handed the cue to another person, and walked over towards Sydney.

"And yeah, it is. But I have the key." he informed her.

When Eke landed on the floor, Ryker was jolted awake, and looked over towards him.

"Woah." he said.

"You all right?" he asked.

"You look right stressed out." he commented, clearing his eyes a little.

'What's wrong?" he asked. "You had a nightmare or something?"

Ash had finished his shot, and watched as the balls clacked around. Once everything had stopped, he looked over towards Sydney.

"Fraid not, Vyn." he responded.

"Remember, she's on a hunt for the Lava Larva." he told her.

"And those things can be slippery little buggers." he chuckled.

"Frankly, I don't expect her back for another week or so." he lamented, shaking his head slightly.

"Why? What's up?" he then asked her.

Ryker blinked a couple of times, and shook his head.

"Heh." he chuckled with a smile.

"Of course." he said.

With that, he got comfortable, himself, and laid back down.

He closed his eyes, and allowed himself to drift slowly to sleep. He figured he and Eke should have similar sleep schedules, at least... plus, he was getting tired as well.

Ryker just smiled back.

"That's right." he said.

"You are who you are, and nothing will change that." he told him.

"Also, you look pretty damn tired." he then commented.

"Maybe you should consider hitting the hay, huh?" he suggested. "If nothing else, take a nap."

Jaden just gave her a thumbs-up, as what they ordered showed up. And it seemed that Jaden had ordered a coffee for himself, as well as a sampler plate of their pastries.

"To share." he said.

"Nothing goes with coffee like pastries." he reasoned with a chuckle.

"....by the way, dibs on the tiramisu square." he then muttered.

"Mine." he reiterated.

Jaden thought for a moment, and nodded.

"Makes sense to me." he said.

"And you know that Desiree and I will look after it." he told her.

"Just the fact that it grows to be only slightly bigger than a house cat is a big draw. And she REALLY loves the colouration of it." he continued.

"So... yeah, that's pretty much it. I've been doing research on them, and it'd be great for her to have." he shrugged.

"And if you'll find one, I'd be greatly appreciative." he then told her.

"I know they're buggers to even find in the first place."