First stop (Open to all)

[kindjalsonnet]

It had taken far too long to get into the city; almost as long as it had taken her to get packed, and she had lost some equipment along the way. No one respects guard certification anymore, she thought exasperatedly. It had taken her several hours to explain why exactly she was armed, point out that all of her weapons were registered and properly wrapped/sheathed, and even then they'd still taken her spare gear. At least she still had her leather repair kit & sharpening stone in her saddle bags, so she could repair the equipment they'd let her keep.

Still, once she had gotten through the hassle with her lute intact (imagine how she'd felt when they'd said that was a weapon! She'd had to sing them a song to prove that she was a bard,) and her weapons and armor still attached to her person, the city itself was rather impressive. Big, busy, just a little bit of spice that suited her chosen profession well...

Speaking of spice... another pony bumped into her, almost knocking her lute off of her back. She staggered for a moment to regain her balance, and then flipped back on her wings to get in front of the other pony. "What's the big idea? Don't ye know a lute's a delicate instrument ye fool?" she said angrily.

[Red Charge]

Firefly

"Whoa, easy peasy lemon squeazy!" An equally indignant voice responded. Harrier was facing now a white Pegasus with a golden hue to her mane, something in itself strange, but her fiery mane, brightly yellowish in the roots and golden at the fringe was definitely standing out against the dull gray background of the city. It was kept loosely (which is presumably a word the uptight population of the city rarely heard of if at all) but neatly tidied in elegant locks.

She seemed in exceptional shape, even for a Pegasus, and her padded vest bore an insignia familiar to all Pegasi, the Razorwing Family Crest, of a wing made of sharp blades. To compliment this outfit, two studded leather boots were dressed on each hoof, only somewhat stylish, but very efficient looking. This pony seemed rather pragmatic, and her facial features showed signs of past hardships that it was doubtful a standard Manehattanite would ever meet.

"I wouldn't have collided with you if it weren't for that clumsy ox of a pony!" The mare pointed at a middle aged stallion in fine clothing, who turned to look at her condescendingly, "Yes, you!" She called out angrily., causing said pony to lower his head and scurry away in panic. The fiery mare sighed, and turned back around, revealing her cutie mark for but a second in profile, a wing comprised of metal and flames.

"Firefly," She introduced herself, "Was just about to tap you on the shoulder to ask if you're a mercenary for hire when that blind bat ran into me."

[kindjalsonnet]

Harrier saw the Razorwing crest on the pony's jacket and withheld herself from rolling her eyes. The Razorwings hadn't really been good to the mercenaries in her experience; they tended to treat anypony who practiced it in as if they were some sort of thief or cutthroat. No one respects guard certification anymore... She'd heard they'd been rather harsh about it when there had been attempts to factionize the mercs into a guild; she hadn't been involved with that effort, however.

Still, the pegasus had apparently been looking for a practicing merc. Not a specific merc, either, just a merc; that usually meant only one thing. "That I am," she said, giving a short flourish she'd picked up from before she'd chosen to be a fighter. "Harrier Sonnet, bard-merc and master of the Titan school combat style. And what would you be needin' a merc for?" She gestured for the other pony and started walking. She may have been raised in the sky but she'd been around long enough to know it's not all that good an idea to stand in the middle of the street in a busy area like this. "Never heard of a Razorwing wantin' another pony to fight for 'em."

She paused for a second to make sure that Firefly was following her, and to check on her lute. It was a fairly sturdy instrument but that strike had been on the neck of it, one of the weaker areas of the instrument. It didn't look like the wood had split anywhere, which was the big danger, but one of the strings had come loose; she'd need to retune the instrument. She made a chiding sound and continued walking. Ah well, it would need tuning before she played it again anyway, and it didn't seem like the string had snapped, just gained some slack.

[Red Charge]

Firefly

"Titan School Combat Style?" Firefly raised an eyebrow skeptically, "The only Titan Combat Style I know is the Razorwing CQC, made by the Sky Titan himself." She commented, "Regardless, it's good that you know how to fight, I am a budding mercenary in need of a partner to help me get started." She began, taking a step forwards, "Any chance you might be looking for work?"

The odd mare certainly had a certain persuasive appeal to her, maybe it was her enthusiasm, maybe it was the way she didn't even flip a buck at the way she was being stared at by other ponies around her, or maybe it was just because she knew exactly what she wanted and got right to the point. Whichever was the case, the white Pegasus threw a captivating grin at Sonnet. She preferred a female partner anyway, best not to have any stupid distractions.

[kindjalsonnet]

Harrier shrugged philosophically about the other pegasus not hearing about her school of fighting. She'd gotten the "Razorwing" comment in the past, but as far as she knew the school had nothing to do with that Titan. The old guard who had been in charge had said it was founded by someone named Sky Titan. It didn't matter to her, although as she recalled several other pegasi had left when he'd said that it had nothing to do with Titan Razorwing. She'd wanted to learn fighting, who came up with the combat didn't matter to her.

"A Razorwing merc? That's a novelty," she said casually, a rugged smile coming to her face. She flapped her wings, twisting to avoid another pony hitting her lute again. Didn't want to really damage her instrument; it was old and rather important to her. "Last I heard Razorwings didn't think much a' mercs. But yes, I'm lookin' fer work." She stopped at a crossing, looking back at Firefly with curiosity. "But yer lookin' for a partner? Why would that be?"

[Red Charge]

Firefly

"I'm trying to get the family to branch out. Maybe even start our own company, what with all the monster attacks recently the army can't do it all. An organized organization could certainly help provide security to those unlucky enough to need it." The mare thought for a bit, pondering on how to best express herself. She brushed a hoof through her hair as she did so.

"I have no experience in mercenary work, no idea of what the market entails, the supply and demand, nor the price range. In short, I need someone who knows the business to help me learn, and help me brush up on the knowledge and skills required. Most military duties don't send us into Everfree, or Dragon Mountain, however Mercenaries frequent these places."

She moved her hoof much as she talked, drawing shapes on the floor, as though explaining a tactical map, or summarizing a stack of orders. "I already read much of the flora and fauna of the forest, but nothing beats hands on experience. So I would like to, 'hire' you, to come with me as I familiarize myself. How about it?"

[kindjalsonnet]

Harrier chuckled, doing her best not to point out that the mercs had tried to organize and had been shot down by the filly's family. She did think it wouldn't be a bad idea to point out that what she was talking about had been attempted, though; she'd rather that the girl get a guild together than to make a Razorwing mercenary company. There were more advantages to an official organization which passed out jobs; it'd make it harder to get into mercenary work without guard certification, assure that jobs are given to ponies who can handle them, and could make the whole thing a lot less dangerous. "An organization? Ye mean like a guild?" she commented pointedly, finding a place where they could sit and talk without disturbing traffic.

"Now, it does sound like ye have a good head on yer shoulders for lookin' fer a partner," she said once she'd taken a seat, carefully setting her lute aside. "An' I'm probably one of maybe three ponies I know who I'd recommend fer this, as far as temperament an' experience. But ye should know that bein' a merc's not easy, an' it's nothin' like the military work yer used to. Our skills need to be a lot more varied. We do what th' ponies ask us to, whether it's protectin' them or trackin' a friend; I refuse t'work for shady characters, but ye'll see plenty of them too." She gave the pony a long hard look, making sure that her words were heard. The other pegasus was growing on her, but she wasn't going to take on a partner who didn't take it seriously.

"That bein' said, if ye understand me I'm up fer takin' ye on as a partner," she said, calculating a few things in her head. This was a job, and she was going to treat it as such; she had to figure out costs now. "20 bits is my flat rate fer hirin'; there's extra bits based on where we're goin' and what we're doin', but I'll cut my rate fer that in half since I assume ye'll be fightin'. I'll even take it off entirely if ye pull yer weight entirely. That's if it's not a job, an' just practice; I'm not gonna charge you fer any jobs I take on with ye. I'll split profits with ye... 60/40 as a base, with that rate goin' up when ye pull more weight; if ye fight at all ye'll probably average 50/50. If this sticks, we can negotiate returnin' yer 20 bits, because ye'll be a proper partner. Sounds fair?"

She stuck her hoof out, measuring the younger pegasus as she did so. She seemed fairly earnest, and she had the right build for a fighter, especially for aerial combat. This could work out if the pony was willing to listen to her.

[Red Charge]

Firefly listened carefully, she seemed very dedicated and open to ideas from a more experienced pony. Of course, she assumed it would be different work than that of the army, and it's not like she didn't have the money to hire Sonnet. But then again, she also had to wonder if she was closing a deal to early, there might be other more experienced mercs around she could use. But then again, even a bad deal is experience, she could be making a mistake she could learn from in the future, and that was good enough for her for now. Of course, if she was making the right decision, it would be even better.

Taking Sonnet's hoof she shook it, more like a stallion than a mare, really, while making sure to look Sonnet in the eye as she did, "You got yourself a deal." She said with a smile, and then, when another pony brushed into her as he passed her on the narrow sidewalk she turned to him, "Watch where you're going, what are you, blind? Go on, git!" The pony stared at her in shock, "I said GIT!" She called, and he fled.

[kindjalsonnet]

Harrier looked at the other pony with a wry smile as she shouted at another pony for brushing against her. This one was certainly full of fire, she'd give her that much; time would tell if that would be a refining fire or one that could destroy her... For now she could be certain that it would make her life interesting enough. Who knew? Maybe the younger mare would have a knack for finding jobs, instead of trouble.

It had been a long time since she'd done this job with other ponies; as a matter of fact, the person she'd thought she'd partner up with back after school had found a different profession... She'd been freelancing ever since, although she'd done some work from the military when she was younger. It would be interesting to see how well this panned out.

She broke the hoofshake and strapped back on her lute, getting ready to go. "It's a deal then," she said casually. "Good to be workin' with ye, Firefly. I'm sure ye'll do just fine." She started walking again, her eyes glancing from building to building as she went. She hadn't ever really been to Manehattan before, and she'd need a place to stay for the night; a tavern would usually be good for some jobs, as well.

"Say, how well do ye know the area?" she said back to the other pony after a few moments. "I need a place to stay, but I don't know where the inns n' taverns are. Might find some jobs, too." She waited a few moments for the other pony to reply. If she knew a good tavern that could make all the difference for their jobs, and if the other pony knew the area it'd be good to know.

This could also work as a good way to test the mare's nose for the job; it's not something that one needs to do well as a merc but if she could find them a job this easily it'd make her more successful early before she gained a reputation. She paused and waited for the other pony's thoughts. If nothing else she could always look for an inn.

[Red Charge]

"Inns and taverns? This is Manehatten, there's Hotels and Motels here, not inns and taverns. There's juice bars around, but nowhere good to get any info. There's a public service board out in the square, but only has a couple of missing items and pets on it." She thought for a moment, "However, we can drop by the industrial district, or the police station. I bet they'll have bounties or stuff to do."

The mare took to the air for a moment, nearly bucking a passing Pegasus for telling her to be careful where she's flying, calling out to him, "Maybe if you weren't day dreaming about clouds or whatever, you'd not crash into other ponies, you lofty airhead! What is with you ponies and bumping into ponies, gosh!" She asked, frustratingly flying past him and heading towards the police station, as it was the closest from the two.

"You coming?" She called out to Harrier.

[kindjalsonnet]

Harrier rolled her eyes a little. Did she really want to fight over terminology? It wasn't as though she needed a place that called itself a tavern. Her place of business up in Cloudsdale hadn't been a tavern, it had been a bar, but she still had called it that for the sake of convenience. The point was that she had been looking for a place where she could get a room for the night, or information & a place to meet ponies, or both. Only difference between a tavern & an inn as far as she was concerned was that one had a place to stay the night.

Still, she had provided her with what she'd been asking for - a place to get jobs, and a place to stay, so she just gave her a sharp look to get her point across and withheld from mentioning it. "I'd suggest the industrial district," she said casually. "Police seem to think they're better 'n us." She really would rather not be looking for bounties at all, anyway; part of the reason she enjoyed using a tavern as a base of operations was because then you could get to know the pony you were working for and could get jobs you were suited for.

"Since apparently there's no such thing as a place to say that has food, drink, jobs 'n company, I'll need somewhere else t'stay as well, if ye could point me towards a place like that," she added as well, mulling things over in her head. If that was the case Manehattan probably wouldn't be as good for jobs as she'd thought it would be; she'd assumed that with this many ponies around that there would be a lot of traffic in any reasonably easy to find bar, especially one that had rooms for rent.

She supposed she hadn't really expected to know the area at all, anyway. In her mind she'd sort of expected to not find too much to do anywhere; just pick up a few jobs in an area and move on to the next one once they were finished. This had been going to be some sort of trip around Equestria just for the sake of it, hopefully finding a new place to stay along the way. She hadn't expected to pick up another pony this soon.

Still, it wasn't all bad; if this stuck there was very little chance that she won't have found a new place for her to stay, in which case there wouldn't really be a point for the journey she'd been planning. And even if she hadn't a partner would probably mean more jobs, especially one with connections like this. She shrugged idly.

[Red Charge]

"I have an apartment rented right over there, actually," The fiery mare pointed at a balcony on the other side of the road. "Let's go there first, so I can change to something better than this. Gotta be credible in order to get jobs in the Industrial Quarter, and looking like a Razorwing is probably just going to get us shunned away." She explained, "C'mon, let's go." At that she landed on the balcony and went inside, leaving the door open for Harrier.

"Make yourself at home, you can obviously use the guest room. Just don't touch anything you don't know what to do with." Firefly said, disappearing to her room.