Outside the de Beaux estate, Seth dashes to the stables. The stables are small, only holding half a dozen or so horses a bit off the manor. It seems to be the only building outside of the manor itself. Emile's servants must live on the third floor with the de Beaux family. Two of his mercenaries are midst story when Seth enters, a stableboy tends to some of Emile’s horses as well, trying not to listen to the bragging merc.
“-‘Twas this close to death, I was.” The mercenary man, Gael Favager, sits leaning by the gate of Seth’s horse. He seems comfortable despite having a hand on an old Guard pistol. He is a bit older than Seth, a bit green despite his age. Hasn’t earned a nickname or callsign yet. His hair is sandy and long, almost as long as his stories. He boasts to a vigilant woman holding a lance. She seems unamused by the fable she hears. Her chestnut hair is held tight behind her in a long braid. She wears less armor than both Seth and Gael, but has few scars to prove it.
“So the things tusks are half in me now, half out they were, peekin’ through my back. So I grab the beast, okay? Can’t move, gouged me good, it did, so I grab a hold of it. So there’s me, okay, bleeding over this wild thing, havin' a good grab on it, and me mom and pop can’t stop laughing. I wrestle the thing to the ground, still impalin’ me mind’ja, tie it up with its own leash, and remove the thing from inside me. Like I was sayin’ at the start of the story, you don’t give a boy a forest boar as a pet. Anway, that was me thirteenth birthday, don’t wanna talk about fifteen, that year they -” He’d have continued if the woman didn’t bring a quick hand to salute. He turns, rising to his feet facing Seth. “Boss!”
Seth informs the mercenaries of what is going on. Almost before Seth finished speaking, the woman, Amandina “Dauber” Deschampes, hops onto one of the horses. She nods, giving Seth a glance that tells him that she understands the mission. She has been in the troop for a while now, and while her silence leaves something to be desired, her performance is always admirable.
With a quick spur, she rushes the horse east. The hooves roar against a backdrop of fireworks. Gael and Seth return inside.
“Have the faintest what it’s like with her? ‘Tween her and the silent stableboy, I had to fill the room with conversation for three, I did.” He grins at Seth. “Aight, Boss, give me the orders and I follow ‘em to the letter, I will.”
