Walking down the street, a lone figure dressed entirely in black robes wanders along his way, occasionally pausing to look, and listen, around for anything that might be following him – or lying in wait.

The figure's black furred muzzle, all that shows out of the hood he wears, sniffs the air momentarily, and then he continues onwards.

A lean and hungry-looking Kavi stands under an unlit lamppost, idly flipping a metal coin. Iron, probably. He has that look about him … as if he's just daring someone to cause him some trouble. He idly glares in the direction of the black-robed figure, but doesn't pause in his coin-flipping.

Ah, sodesu! You are not far now. Only a couple blocks more down this street,

The Kavi gives no sign of hearing the disembodied whisper.

Nodding slowly to himself, the figure pays just a mere passing glance to the Kavi, and continues on towards his destination.

A skunkette stands under another lamp-post – this one lit, unlike most – and gives the black-robed figure a wink. A skunk? Not too many of those have been seen by this particular black-robed figure … and he certainly hasn't been given a race-name to attach to it just yet. In any case, it's hardly likely that the skunkette recognizes him. She'd probably wink at a toothless old Zerda walking by, just as easily.

Ahead and to the left is a sign hanging in front of one of the few establishments that appears to be open for business. It doesn't have a lit lantern in front of it, but the ambient light from the lamp-post down the street allows the lettering to be seen. It reads, "The Missing Shekel". The windows are boarded over, but slivers of light can be seen peeking through the gaps, and shouting can be heard inside, drowning out whatever passes for music in there.

The black fox tilts his head slightly at the skunkette, but pays her no mind. He is curious, yes, but he has other things on his mind right now.

Here. In back. You have not much time.

Stopping outside the entrance to the Missing Shekel, the fox turns and looks at the door. He looks up and down the street first, then walks into the bar.

You are brave, Five-Tail. There are safer ways to reach the back.

Inside the establishment, the Kitsune can see that it is dominated by a single main room that is tall enough to encompass two floors. Along the way in are several curtained booths, dark inside, just the way some people probably like it.

The main room, once it widens out, has several tables, with "dividers" in the form of stacks of crates here and there in no particular order. Sometimes the crates are used as tables, or chairs. Actually, a real "chair" is rarely seen – Most of the items used to sit upon are broken barrels, blocks, stools … or a busted chair being propped up by something else. This place has a real look of disrepair.

Plus, there is the occasion axe or knife – or patron – imbedded in the wall. A chitin blade flies past the Kitsune, imbedding itself right next to the door. Perhaps that's the way of greeting newcomers. Several other knives stick there as well.

Most of them don't have bloodstains on them.

Francisco pauses for a moment, just inside the threshold, then starts to walk in as straight a line as possible from the entrance to the back of the place. Even if other patrons are looking at him, he tries to keep his eyes fixed on where he's going and not looking at those looking at him.

It would seem that the Kitsune has walked right into a full-fledged brawl. One of the few remaining chairs is used to bludgeon a Jupani. Bottles and other projectiles are thrown this way and that. As for the back way … well, it requires crossing the battle zone, but the door is very clearly seen. In fact, it's currently ajar, held open by the body of some patron (the species is indeterminate from this distance).

The fox considers his options, watching the conflict before him. In the end, he waits for a lull in the fracas, and makes his way towards the back straight through the middle.

Amazingly, nothing hits the fox. For a moment, it looks as if a drunken Rhian is sizing him up for a table-toss … but the table sails past, smashing a couple of Skreeks instead. The Rhian looks satisfied, then falls over. The doorway is within reach … all that remains is to step over the body of an unconscious or dead Lapi. An alleyway can be seen out back.

The Kitsune looks back over his shoulder at the brawl still-in-progress, and cracks a thin smile to himself, then steps over the Lapi through the doorway.

Outside the doorway, things are much more quiet. The Kitsune can hear the sound of shambling footsteps, as some shadowy shapes dash away from pilfering a few bodies that lie in the alley – It seems that this is where the victims of the night (or, by the smell, of this whole week) are piled up and out of the way.

What catches the eye of the apparently one-tailed fox, though, is a flash of garish color. Could it be? Yes! A Shiga skin, brightly colored with a dazzling pattern of rainbow splashes! It definitely makes a statement. So does the chitin dagger protruding from the back of the Shiga who happens to be still wearing the skin in question.

Do not worry. I can fix the mark made by the dagger.

The fox walks over to the body, kneeling down by it. Fine, he thinks, but now what? It's still… occupied.

There is more than one way to skin a he'bi. The knife could be one of them.

Francisco winces. "Gross," he says under his breath, but pulls out the knife and looks for where to start.

The underside might be a good place to start, so that lovely colorful pattern isn't ruined any further (even if the Kitsune's unseen friend says she can fix such things).

The black fox awkwardly begins removing the skin. He's out of practice in this 'art'. Not to mention finding it difficult to hold and use the knife in the same hand as something else he is already keeping a hold onto.

The disagreeable task takes quite some time. During that time, another body – this one of a bird-like Korv – gets thrown into the alleyway. At last, it's just about done.

"Ugh," rasps the Korv. Hmm. Guess he's not dead after all. He starts to stir, reaching one claw-hand up to his battered avian head.

The fox briefly glances at the bird, and then turns back to finishing off with the skin.

The Korv gets up, blinking a few times as he watches the fox finish the task. "Ah … hey … you're … BLEARGH!" The avian leans over, coughing, then caws at the fox, "You PERVERT! What're you DOING?"

A rip and a tear, and the colorful hide is free of its previous occupant. It will take some treatment, of course, before it can be part of suitable attire for a fashionable fox mage.

Francisco folds the skin up best he can, and looks the Korv directly in the eye. "Shiga skin handbags are selling well in the Bazaar, didn't you know?" he says with a slight grin.

The crow is silent for a moment, his beak moving up and down, with no sound coming out. But then he fills his lungs and starts shrieking, "CANNIBAL! PERVERT! CANNIBAL!" A funny thing to be saying around a pile of dead bodies, and next to a bar where murder is a nightly occurrence, but he's quite loud all the same.

Some of the lurking shadows – pilfering Kavis, probably – start to appear again. The dim light glints off of their curious eyes, as they hide behind empty crates and piles of rubbish, watching the grisly scene.

"Cannibal?" the fox asks. "No, no… you have that wrong. I don't have that much appetite for snakes, really."

He's attracting attention.

"Get back! Get BACK, I say!" caws the Korv, as he scramble-waddles clumsily backward, banging into a wooden water-barrel. "HELP! CANNIBAL!" he shrieks again.

Francisco turns around to leave. I had noticed, thank you.

Several lurkers disappear into the rubbish as soon as the fox turns around. There are more sounds from the shadows. So far, it doesn't look like anyone is coming to the crow's rescue … but perhaps the denizens of this wretched place are curious to see just what a "cannibal" looks like.

The fox starts walking down the alleyway doing his best to ignore the raucous bird, heading for the dark mass of shadows up ahead.

Nothing impedes the fox's flight from the scene. As he gets back out to the street, though, the bloody Shiga skin in paw, he gets a bit more notice from the citizens he saw before. The skunkette habitually winks at the black-robed fox again … and then her face contorts into an expression of fear at the sight of the skin. She shrieks.

The lean-and-hungry-looking Kavi across the way, under the darkened lamp-post, catches his iron shekel and puts it away. He grins toothily. "Well, well… " he chuckles.

Doing his best to ignore them both, the fox continues along the street. He doesn't look at them, but keeps his ears pricked just in case.

The skunk doesn't appear to be doing anything except for expressing her fear loudly … and in this part of town, nobody's likely to investigate except curiosity-seekers … or vultures. The lean-and-hungry Kavi, however, seems to be walking to catch up with the fox. A flash of the dim lamp-light off of chitin betrays a wickedly-curved dagger held in one of his paws.

Upon catching a glimpse of the dagger the Kavi has, Francisco shuffles the skin to hold it under his other arm, and palms the dagger he picked up from the dead snake into his hand, holding it by the blade.

"Pssst! Buddy," hisses the Kavi, just behind the fox. "What's the story behind that hide you're carryin'? Something stashed in it?"

Francisco continues walking, not turning around. "Nothing, unless you're into snakeskin," he replies.

"Heh, heh," says the Kavi. "Hey, buddy, I don't like your attitude. How about you stop while I'm talking to you? And lemme take a look at that skin of yours. I'm just curious. Seems to be worth something to you, huh?"

Sighing inwardly, the black robed fox stops, but fingers the knife he holds ready – just in case. He turns around slowly to face the Kavi, just enough so that the Kavi can see the snakeskin under the fox's arm.

The Kavi grins. "All right … hand it over." He makes a "give it here" gesture with one hand, while he picks his teeth with the chitin dagger held in the other. "Just wanna … borrow it."

As the Kavi looks at the skin, though, a brief expression of uncertainty flashes across his face. Perhaps he was expecting something more than just … well … a Shiga skin.

"Sorry," Francisco says, "it's not for loan or sale."

"Good … DAGH!" hisses the Kavi. "That thing's real!" He holds his dagger out, pointing it at the fox. "You … you watch it, buddy! I … I know how to defend myself, see?"

The black fox grins toothily. "So do I," he says. "How do you think I got this?"

With that, Francisco gives the Kavi a glimpse of the dagger he's holding.

"Wha?" The Kavi looks surprised at the dagger … but Kavi reflexes can prove to be quite quick. Fortunately for the fox, Kitsune reflexes – at least in this case – are quicker. The wickedly-carved dagger in the Kavi's hand thrusts through the air, but misses the fox cleanly. The ferretoid spins about to recover from his ill-planned attack.

The fox backs away a little, trying to put a little more distance between him and the Kavi.

The backward movement comes just as the Kavi spins around to face the fox again. Still, at the moment, the Kavi isn't within arm's reach. That might give the fox a second to do something.

The Kavi makes a chattering noise, his ears flat back against his head, and his eyes wide with fear and anger. If he's trying to say anything, it isn't coming out as anything intelligible.

And try something the fox does. He uses what distance he has now to take his blade, and throw it at the Kavi's arm that is holding the blade.

A flash of light off of chitin is the only warning of a dagger flipped from the paw of the black-furred vulpine. Alas, the dagger is poorly-weighted, and flies far from its mark. The jumpy Kavi, however, dodges aside anyway, missing his opportunity to make an attack of his own, at least in this instant.

Frowning, the fox has lost his only weapon, leaving him with only one option. He lunges for the Kavi with what sounds like a battle cry with hands open as if he were going to claw the Kavi, except for the fact that his hands are gloved.

The Kavi momentarily braces for the expected attack … except that none comes. However, at just that instant, a shrill whistle can be heard down the street. "Halt in the name of the Temple!" The voice sounds distinctly lupine. "Everyone, drop your weapons, and get down on the ground now!" The slapping of heavy boots against cobblestones can be heard, getting closer very quickly … and the distinctive clacking of Zelak mandibles!

"Dagh's dirty diapers!" curses the Kavi … and he stumbles back from the fox, falling momentarily down to all fours, then he spins about and dashes back to one of the darkened alleyways.

It would seem that the fox is all alone, with nobody to save him from capture by the Temple guard now. Oh no!

Shutters slam shut. A few barrels fall over in the alleys. Skittering feet can be heard retreating further into the pervasive darkness.

The black fox chuckles at the departing Kavi, shaking his head. He bends down to pick up the skin he dropped when he lunged for the Kavi, and starts to resume his walk out of Darkside.

No guards ever materialize. How curious.

Nice work, Francisco-san.

Francisco grins as he walks along. No problem, he replies to the voice in his head. That's the nice thing about 'held spells'. I have the Temple Guards in the palm of my hand.