A slight hesitation crosses the changeling when he hears Zarius; a bargain comes from the Tiefling's lips, much to his distaste in this moment; to the woman he's got beneath his knee. Personally, he'd like to clean this up without witnesses: the easiest option would be to leave them here in the bog— masking their deaths as victims to a bandit's raid, or a beast's attack. The bog could swallow them whole, preserving their bodies for generations further, and no one would have to know what really happened here.

Still, Zarius is an enigma: one that he wishes to remain on the good side of, for this moment, at least. If he's striking up a deal with the monster hunters, it would be ill of him to pursue further in the meantime. Closing his eyes in a defeated acceptance of the situation, Caedes slows his pace towards the crossbow wielder and the thrashing goblin; he opens his eyes as he comes to a stop paces away, simply watching them while Zarius, nearby, threatens the woman in his hands.

The crossbow wielder fumbles with their weapon, hands shaking; while Zarius leans closer to the woman.

"Do you agree to these terms? Or shall we remove your limbs and use you as bait for our own quarry?"

He looks at Zarius, watching the way the woman goes wide-eyed as he intimidates her; funny how the tables turn so quickly, isn't it?

"Stand down! We surrender!"

He looks back to the crossbow wielder, watching the man shakily look between them— and then toss his crossbow on the ground, hands up. He ignores the howling goblin; it was never really a threat to anyone but the spider, which is still holding its dagger like a trophy.

"Gather your fallen and leave. Now. Before I change my mind."

Caedes laughs; an icy sound in the aftermath of Zarius' grim tone, and smiles tauntingly at the crossbow wielder. "You heard him... Go quickly, then." Caedes watches a shiver pass through the man's spine, and he gathers up his yelling goblin companion, ushering the humanoid after the woman coated in mud, to gather their fallen companions. Caedes turns around, watching them attentively, to ensure there's no change in their wavering courage.

Eventually, they leave; he listens to the sloshing of water in silence with Zarius until it's finally vanished.

"Well, that was certainly something."

Given his earlier tone in handling the monster hunters, to hear Zarius' voice pitch in a way that is once again friendly and malleable is almost jarring. Caedes looks at him. "... I've been worse; and it's fine— quite happy with itself, in fact." The spider does seem quite pleased, actually; clicking around in the mud close to his feet, still holding the dagger in its fangs; and as he speaks, he reaches around his shoulder, grasping the crossbow bolt still in his shoulder.

After a moment of effort, he pulls it from the wound with a slight wince; the blood which sits upon the bolt seems... a little odd; darker, as if it's old in and of itself. Caedes tosses it into the muck, as though discarding trash. "But... that was certainly something, wasn't it? Here, I am, traveling with a researcher; but, it turns out you can also fight like a man possessed." Caedes looks back to Zarius; he doesn't seem to be holding back anymore; the small glints of acknowledgement and curiosity from earlier revealing themselves in an acknowledging smile, and tilt of his head as he looks at the Tiefling. "Almost like you were a different person, for just a few moments."

He lets his cloak fall naturally, allowing the silence in the air to hang only briefly as he watches Zarius' reaction. Eventually, he blinks; turning his eyes towards the gnarled old tree. "... We should finish researching your beast; I imagine it's still up there, nesting." he remarks, changing the subject almost entirely. He looks back to Zarius, seemingly waiting for his agreement. "Right?"

Zarius had caught the expression of defeated acceptance during the de-escalation of the situation. He couldn't blame him. He had deeply considered killing the monster hunters and Caedes wouldn't have likely argued, but he had his reasons. Those reasons he hoped would give him an edge with the changeling once they had the chance to talk openly. 

"...it turns out you can also fight like a man possessed."

"Well, if people are going to call you a devil you best be able to fight like one." He laughs. 

"Almost like you were a different person, for just a few moments."

Caedes observations weren't wrong. Zarius wore many masks which he could slip on and off at a moments notice. It was a practice drilled into him by his family both as a weapon and as a shield. It was how they had gained a place amongst the Ashen Fathers, though they were far from the top of that pyramid.

He starts trudging through the mud over to Caedes and the spider with a smile. "Indeed. Though I fear my viciousness pales in comparison to your efficiency and skill. Admittedly, I was merely channeling my father's energy. He uh...he is a very persuasive and fearsome man. I do not recommend crossing his path when he is in a foul mood." The words are genuine and there's the slightest bit of melancholy to his tone and a nostalgic gleam in his eyes. 

For a moment it's like he's going to go right up Caedes, but then he turns and scoops up his satchel. He proceeds to inspect the damage to it and its contents. The bag is full of notebooks, quills, and ink wells. Nothing too concerning, but then there were also red wax candles, small metal seals, what looked like a stick of black chalk or charcoal, a thin knife like letter opener, sheets of loose spare paper and half a dozen envelopes.

To an untrained eye, these merely appeared as items used to seal and send letters, but to those familiar with more underhanded tactics, the seals and the knife suggest these were supplies for creating forged documents. 

He closes the flap after checking that everything was still dry, then looks at Caedes. "My apologies. I know that it would have been your preference to kill those hunters and do away with their bodies as if nothing happened."

"However, it occurred to me that they might have families waiting for them to return." He pauses, a thoughtful look crosses his face before he looks at Caedes with a genuinely sympathetic smile. "There is already one too many children orphaned by needless bloodshed in this forest for my liking."

With that said he turns and walks back over to the tree waving a had dismissively. "That and my father always says that having the choice of showing mercy is a sign of true strength. If you are so threatened by the tiniest foe then that only speaks to how weak you are. True strength of character comes from being able to accept and face the consequences of your decisions, even if you have the choice and ability to run from them."

He grabs a vine and swings a bit from it, turning to face Caedes while dangling. "Do you think you have the energy for a rematch? Or would you like to wait down here while I check on our little ooze friend?" His smile shifts into a taunting grin.

Caedes crosses his arms loosely beneath his chest, watching Zarius as the Tiefling starts trudging through the muck towards him. The man wears a friendly smile on his face; almost as if, moments ago, he hadn't heard him threatening to remove a hunter's limbs to use them as bait. "Oh?" he inquires, "I don't know about that; it looks like you've got them running all the way back to Gazablaak with their tail between their legs, with only some simple threats..." There's a gleam in Zarius' eyes as he references his father; a genuine care, and a nostalgia.

For one shameful moment, Caedes feels something bitter rise in his throat; it's a tiny, envious flame. One that he hides with a laugh; allowing it to soften his features, where he fears lies could not. "Is that so? I'll keep that in mind, if I ever have the pleasure to cross paths with your father on a good day." he remarks; and for a moment, Zarius keeps walking with no sign of pause; but then, he turns. Caedes relaxes his shoulders, turning his eyes to watch the Tiefling from his peripheral vision, as he wanders over to his bag.

His own father was a man of patience; terribly dissimilar from what he can gather from the description of Zarius' parent. He was the type to hold grudges; to calculate the best course of action before a strike; to understand the use of those who worked for, and against him. The kind of man who dropped the temperature in a room simply by entering; who smiled when he was angry; and who commanded respect with his presence.

He was a loyal, cunning operator; the claws to The Crimson Hand.

Despite everything he was, he had still believed in family and loyalty; he imprinted those values into each of his children, into each of his students; tried to ensure that they and The Crimson Hand operated together like a pair of symbiotic beings. Always benefiting from one another; trusting that operations were performed with each other's best interest and guidance.

In a perfect world, it would have been unstoppable; but in the underbelly of Darkveil, where betrayal and mistrust breed in plenty, it was the nail in their coffin.

Though he appears to have been watching Zarius idly for most of this time; by the time Caedes' mind fully returns to him, the Tiefling is closing the flap on his bag. He has retained nothing of what he saw; but he smiles idly at Zarius as the man stands up and looks towards him. If only to hide his momentary distraction; of which, he internally scolds himself for.

Zarius could have taken him out at any point in that time, and he would have been caught off guard.

"My apologies. I know that it would have been your preference to kill those hunters and do away with their bodies as if nothing happened."

He's right, of course; that would have been the easiest course of action for any assassin to consider. An ideal kill is one with no body, and no witnesses. Had he not known to some degree that Zarius knew more than he let on, he would be more surprised to hear this from him.

"However, it occurred to me that they might have families waiting for them to return."

A puff of disbelief; a small laugh; leaves Caedes' lips at that comment. He is not terribly surprised; the family of a victim is often a hesitation of any assassin; if it's given too much thought. In the business of a hired killer, eventually, one starts to get used to it. They ignore it; because at the end of the day, no one wants to see their own family come to harm, do they? "I see; that's awfully kind of you to consider."

It's Zarius' next comment, however, that strikes Caedes like a bolt of lightning when he meets Zarius' eyes and sympathetic smile. "There is already one too many children orphaned by needless bloodshed in this forest for my liking." A crack appears in the masquerade; and an unguarded look of surprise flashes across Caedes' face; before it's gone again. He stares at Zarius' retreating figure, brows furrowing, and mouth slightly agape.

He closes his mouth, turning his eyes away from Zarius with a slight scowl on his lips while the man walks away, back towards the tree, as though he'd never said a thing.

Did... he just... ?

How much does he know; or how much have they leaked? Did he find out on his own, or was he told? Where did he learn his name, and why? Has his, and by proxy, his syndicate's fate simply become common knowledge? Just another tragedy that occurred in the underbelly of Darkveil? A show of power from a stronger syndicate?

... How long has it been since then?

Should he even be surprised?

"... True strength of character comes from being able to accept and face the consequences of your decisions, even if you have the choice and ability to run from them."

He takes a breath, steeling his expression back to neutral as he turns to look at Zarius. The Tiefling is dangling idly from a vine, looking at him; and for a moment, Caedes simply looks back.

... Zarius is a curious man.

... And he will get his answers in time.

After a moment, Caedes breathes a somewhat defeated sigh; the changeling turns to face him, pacing towards Zarius as he dangles on the vine. "A rematch?" he inquires, looking up towards the swath of branches. The young man reaches up, grabbing hold of the lowest nearby branch with a slight grimace; he seems to pull himself up with a bit of effort— but not nearly as easily as he had the first round. He does make it eventually; and Caedes pushes himself up to stand.

He rolls his shoulder, as if stretching it out with a slight sigh. "Need I remind you that I've been shot?"

He looks towards Zarius with a sigh; then cocks his head at him— a mischievous smile replacing his previous slight frown. "... So, it's going to be all the more embarrassing when I beat you again. Don't slip this time."

With that, Caedes hurriedly leaps to the next branch without awaiting an answer; clearly not actually all that bothered by his injury, and definitely just stringing Zarius along initially, in order to slip by with yet another headstart on the other man.

Caedes reactions were not terribly unexpected. Zarius had been slowly dropping hints this whole time to see if his hunch was right. So far, it seemed he wasn't grossly misunderstanding the assassin and his unfortunate situation.

He wonders if Caedes has been back to Darkveil since the incident. He probably would at least have worn a disguise if he did to keep the Crimson Hand from recognizing him and finishing the job. Unless he has been in on it all along, but that doesn't seem to be the case based on how he has reacted so far. 

His own knowledge of the events that transpired that bloody night are mostly from third parties. His family knew of the Shadow Creepers of course. They made it their business to know about all of their rivals' assets and connections if only for their own safety. Even to this day, his father is cautious of the Crimson Hand, knowing all too well that if their family was seen as a threat then they would suffer the same fate as the Shadow Creepers. 

Even before the incident though, they had learned of the Shadow Creepers while investigating a more personal tragedy and the assassin organization's name became synonymous with the boogey-man amongst the younger members of their syndicate. For the longest time, the Shadow Creepers were this looming untouchable threat of killer phantoms lurking in the shadows, keeping even the boldest of their members glancing suspiciously at every shadow. 

Yet here Zarius was, next in line to inherit everything his father built over the years standing within striking distance of the very monster the Crimson Hand used to keep the other syndicates at bay.

The thought to put Caedes down here and now never crosses his mind. Even if it turns out that Caedes was a part of the crimes the Crimson Hand had committed against his family, enough blood had already been paid for that. Currently, Caedes is more valuable to him alive than dead. 

He smirks as Caedes lays on the act of being too injured to climb thick. He was all too familiar with that act and he lets Caedes get his early lead before springing up to the nearest branch and quickly scaling the tree after him.

He does indeed catch up to Caedes again, keeping neck and neck with him in their speed climbing race. He spots a solid looking vine just in reach and grabs a hold of it before kicking off from the tree. He suddenly swings over to Caedes' side of the tree and cuts him off. 

"Oh, sorry. Am I in your way?" He's not hiding the mocking tone in his voice at all as he interrupts Caedes' rhythm.

Once they're within reach of the branch the slime was perched in, he slows down his climbing pace to limit any shaking their movement would cause. 

He cranes his neck around to looks at the underside of the nest. Good. The slime was still there, undisturbed.

With one last push, he gets up onto the adjacent branch and sits in the crook of the limb leaning against the trunk. All they had to do was observe at this point, so might as well get comfortable. He looks down at Caedes with a smirk and speaks quietly. 

"It does not seem that wound is slowing you down that much. That is good." He gestures to another nearby limb. "Help yourself. I do not know how long this will take."

They do keep their voices low to avoid scaring off the slime, but it was a good chance to talk a bit more after the earlier excitement. 

"Tell me, what are your plans for after this job? Lloyd probably will need more observations for his guide. If you are interested, I would happily work with you again."

He pauses, watching the slime slowly undulate in its nest while the afternoon sunlight bounces off of its gelatinous surface. "I understand if you have more pressing matters of your own to attend to."

It's closer on the second round; Zarius remains neck and neck with him up until a certain point, when Caedes lands on one of the upper branches. He's about to leap to the next, when Zarius suddenly flashes by and interrupts his pace; his breath catches in his throat, and Caedes swings just a little off balance.

"Oh, sorry. Am I in your way?" 

"Tsk!"

A short laugh of disbelief leaves his lips; he narrowly avoids tipping backwards by sharply readjusting his weight. His cloak sways as he swings forwards to right his balance, arms out— but he doesn't miss the way Zarius' voice lilts mischievously as he speaks.

This jerk.

Slamming his dagger into the trunk of the tree, he swings around it onto Zarius' original side and races after him— but for the rest of the climax of their race— Caedes is just a little bit behind. Eventually, their competition slows; the closer they get to the slime, the more they risk disturbing it with movement. So, at some point, Caedes starts to take it easy; he leaps from branch to branch, swinging carefully up onto an adjacent branch across from Zarius as the Tiefling settles down against the crook of the tree.

Smug.

If he needed to breathe, Caedes' chest would heave with the exertion of flying up the branch at the speed they'd been going; but as he is now, the young man's breathing is quite even. He looks up as Zarius looks down on him; and promptly, he rolls his eyes at the mention of his wound, paired with the smirk on Zarius' face.

There's something nostalgic about this moment; something he doesn't want to acknowledge.

"Like I said," He makes his last leap; the changeling grabs onto the branch nearest to Zarius and pulls himself up with a soft grunt— he swings one leg over, and kicks the other up onto the branch. He leans back against the trunk, tilting his gaze lackadaisically towards him. "I've dealt with far worse."

He's still a man, of course; the wound hurts. It stings. But he has dealt with far worse.

"Tell me, what are your plans for after this job? Lloyd probably will need more observations for his guide. If you are interested, I would happily work with you again."

"..."

Caedes crosses one leg over the other, taking a look down below the tree, where he sees the spider crawling up after them. It's still holding that knife— looking comically like a dog with a treasured toy as it scuttles up the rough bark.

"I understand if you have more pressing matters of your own to attend to."

Caedes breathes a slow exhale, tilting his head back to look at Zarius for a moment; does he want to waste his time with these jobs involving these ooze? Not necessarily; the ooze do not excite him; he does not care for the gelatinous beasts all that much. He doesn't even know Lloyd.

But...

There is a promise of something else on the horizon that he considers more worth his time than the gelatinous blobs.

He blinks, looking towards the ooze as it undulates in its nest; reflecting the light of the afternoon sun in its green body. It is content in this quiet moment, it seems.

"Well," he remarks, looking to his side as he feels a pressure tugging on his cloak; the spider has finally reached them. "Do I have more pressing matters to attend to than watching an ooze?" He reaches out a hand, allowing it to latch onto his arm, instead. Carefully, he reaches out to take the dagger in its fangs; reluctantly, the large arachnid releases it, and climbs its way up to his shoulder.

"Of course; but," He leans his head against the trunk of the tree, looking idly at Zarius with a lazy smile while he spins the goblin's knife between his fingers. "I'm afraid I'm... in-between said pressing matters, at the moment. I may have some time to spare for you; and for your employer and his... niche interests." He looks to the gelatinous blob in its nest, brows furrowing slightly as the blob seems to undulate and wobble a little more violently than before.

Zarius listens to Caedes while watching the ooze closely. After all, they were on a job and there had already been enough distractions. He made mental notes of the size, color, luster and estimated the weight of the ooze, anything that could show to Lloyd that they had indeed completed the task.

Though his focus is on the ooze, he still keeps Caedes in his periphery.

"Do I have more pressing matters to attend to than watching an ooze?"

When said aloud it sounds like a ridiculous question. Of course the assassin has much more important things to do. What possible value was there to someone like him in continuing to research oozes with a strange tiefling who knew more than he should?

Honestly, what value was there for Zarius to reap himself? The ooze research was really secondary for him, just a vessel for gaining Caedes trust and buying himself time to weigh the risks and rewards of associating with such a man. He was stalling. He knew that. Caedes likely had figured that out by now as well. And yet...

"Of course; but..."

There's a 'but'. Zarius looks at Caedes, his full attention on him now. He has a curious expression on his face as Caedes continues. 

"I may have some time to spare for you..."

That is all he needed to hear. The tension in his shoulders relaxes visibly and the smile adorning his face has a genuine quality to it that was different than the false smile he so often wears. He would certainly count this whole thing as a win in his books. 

Caedes change in expression is noted and Zarius looks back at the ooze. Its surface is disturbed and visibly gurgling. It shudders and shakes, making the tree limb bounce up and down.

As its irritation grows, it seems to swell and double in size. The branch bends down at a precarious angle. With a loud SLORP, the ooze tears in half and one rolls off the nest and falls from the tree.

Zarius looks down at it as it bounces off a few branches and then plops in the mud far down below. The remaining ooze bounces a bit before starting to dissolve the nest matter in a hungry manner. 

"Huh. Do you think we should note that it fell out of the tree or should we omit that?" Zarius asks Caedes with a laugh. 

With their task done, the two climb down and Zarius fetches his notebook to jot down their observations for Lloyd. The oozeling that fell down has already made its way off through the marsh, absorbing moss and plants as it goes.

"They grow up so fast, huh?" Zarius jokes and elbows Caedes playfully. He snaps his notebook closed once he finishes his notes. "Well, onward then. I do not know about you but I am in dire need of a hot bath."

It would be long, slow trek back to town. All things considered though, the venture was a success. Who knows what the future would hold, but Zarius was looking forward to it.