Dante: The Job

The water wasn't cold, but it was nonetheless water. Dante held the urn of the clear liquid to his mouth, drinking very slowly, taking many breaks. The little town was alive all around him; people walking to and fro with loads on their backs, the smell of food wafting from the street side restaurants, a guard or two with their long spear and poorly maintained armor. The road was grooved two pairs of cart-wide wheel divots, serving as both a track for the drivers and a warning for the pedestrians. These grooves were not intentional, but the result of hundreds of carts passing over the roads.

The public well Dante was standing at was just at the mouth of the city streets, but he could already see his destination: a high-standing structure with expensive white-tiled roofing. It had its own gate, as if it were a government building, and its own guards. In fact, Dante could see the government building off to the west, and it was far inferior to the trappings that this wealthy man had constructed for himself, a monument to his own achievements.

Dante disliked the rich, but they usually paid in full.

He took one last slug of the water, tipped the urn over his hands and washed them and his face, and then set it back on the edge of the well. A swelling sense of refreshment floated over him as he strolled slowly toward the building. He was always surprised how fuzzy his concentration could be when he was dehydrated, and always more surprised that he never noticed his lapse in focus until after he was finished with it.

It only took him a scant ten minutes to reach his destination. The sky was already striped with thick bands of gold and lavender, the early signs of dusk. If he were one of these rich gluttons, he'd probably find shelter for the night and meet with his employer in the morning, when it was culturally more acceptable to do so. But Dante had neither the money nor the patience for such luxuries, and decided to enter now. A young guard stood at the left side of the gate, rubbing his eyes with fatigue. His shift was almost over, made obvious by the way he kept glancing between the barbecue restaurant and the ramen cart.

Perfect.

"Sir, state your name and purpose." The young lad snapped alert as Dante reached the edge of the entryway.

"I'm here about the job." Dante replied, politely but shortly. The man seemed hesitant.

"Is...is Lord Wei expecting you?"

"He is."

The young man thought a moment, thinking through the exact thought process Dante thought he would. He was less experienced, more afraid of making mistakes. Obviously the interior would have armed guards as well, but from a strict security perspective it would be safer to keep him outside the walls if he was uncertain. However, these wealthy, powerful men had wealthy and powerful friends. Not letting someone in who was supposed to be let in could be a far worse offense.

Obviously this young man had either made that mistake before, or seen someone make it, because a moment later he was yelling over the wall to let Dante in. Dante was wordless as he stepped quietly through the entry way and into the grounds.

The grounds were indeed impressive. White stone gravel served as the walkways, forming perfect borders around the neatly manicured foliage that dotted the grounds: trees, bushes, bushels of flowers. There were a few different buildings within the walls, but the largest currently had the most commotion. Servants darted in and out a side door with steaming plates of food. Silhouettes of people sitting down at a low table could be seen against the silk screen walls, laughing and talking loudly. Tendrils of foreign smoke slithered lazily through the air.

Dante could see one of the other guards near one of the smaller buildings heading toward him, probably to take his weapon, but Dante moved faster. Before the guard could open his mouth to object, he had already slid the door open, releasing a wave of smoke and food smells into the air. Four men sat at the table and looked up, shocked at the sudden, filthy visitor. There were also two women in the corner, sitting at a much smaller table.

"What's the meaning of this? Who are you, what are you doing here?"

"I'm here for the job." Dante replied with the exact tone and canter he did the exterior guard. The four men looked about to one another, but focused on an older, plump man in the center.

"I uh...I think we need to..." Dante noticed the man, probably Lord Wei, glance toward one of the women in the corner. She shot a sharp glare at him, motioning almost imperceptibly with her head. "Speak in private."

"Very well." Dante replied. The rotund Lord Wei rose to his feet with the help of two nearby servants and escorted Dante back through the door and onto the gravel walkway. The gravel crunched underneath their feet, Wei's steps seeming to sink just a little more than Dante's. A moment later they were in a nearby tea house: vacant, and dark, save for the singular candle Wei lit. The dusk had grown to twilight now, and Dante's senses were tense. He couldn't help himself, the darkness always made him wary, especially in the house of an unknown.

"Well, um, good man, the reason I uh...summoned you...is a delicate...um matter of...quite importance..." Wei's words tumbled out of his mouth, one over the other. Dante remained silent, offering no help or way out of his awkward tirade.

"Bao, get out of here." A woman's voice snapped from the dark corner. The rotund Wei, or Bao, released a heavy sigh of relief, and trod through the doorway, sliding it shut behind him.

"Then you must be Wei." Dante said to the darkness. "Though I was informed I would be working for a lord, not a lady."

"You were not misinformed." The woman was older, thin, with ample wrinkles lining to length of her face. Her silver hair was gathered behind her head, her hands were bony and frail. Still, the light of her eyes was bright. A cunning woman. "Despite who is in charge, I am forced to take deceptive measures in order to meet certain...cultural expectations. Bao is my nephew. A total idiot, but completely loyal as long as he has his fill of food, women, and wine."

"Whether 'Lord Wei' is real or not is of no concern to me, as long as the money is real."

"Hmph. My information about you is quite accurate." Lady Wei said, gliding through the darkness and sitting down on one of the seats of the tea house, her body and face half lit in the circle of candle light. "So I am assured you are you. I must admit, however, I am surprised that a man like could be bought at all. I mean, to think that the Red Striped-"

"Dante will be fine." He cut in, shutting of her musings. She looked surprised at his abruptness. "Or, if you prefer honorifics as this province does, you may use padrone."

"Padrone? Master? Ah, but yes..." Half of her face curled into a smile in the warm light. "Your skills are certainly masterful, that is certain. But I am not one to observe culture, as you have probably surmised. Nor am I one to engage in pointless prattle. So, Dante, let me explain to you the nature of this assignment."