Into The Tainted Waters

Souphouse

(Viewpoint of Viktoria)

I watch everyone else leave through the portal, leaving me and Nikolai standing in the hall. The tiger walks up to me and nudges my leg. "Yes Nikolai?" I ask. "I have an itch right behind my head that i can't reach, can you help me here" he says rubbing his head on my leg. "Yes silly" I chuckle, bending down and scratching his head. "Ahhhh yes, much better" he says beginning to purr. He took notice to his purring and stopped, walking towards the portal. "Well, shall we be off then" he says to me. "Sure thing" I say walking behind him. I set the computer on the wall to bring us to a random section and step into the glowing circle.

We come out to a town with a large canal running through it with boats passing through. There were bridges to cross but very little land space. The buildings were stone with tall pillars and high arches supporting the walls. The windows were long and wide, with mosaics filling them in. The people were wearing frilly outfits with heeled shoes and many vibrant colors. "What is this place?" I say aloud. "This looks Italian, Venetian even, mid fifteenth century maybe" Nikolai says with intrigue. "Ooooh, I heard Venice was nice" I say. "Well, for the wealthy at least, but we look to be in a wealthy part fortunately" Nikolai replies. "Shall we get something to eat m'lady" Nikolai says inquisitively. "Oh yea, I haven't eaten since we left to find that lab" I reply, stomach growling.

We walk around trying to find a sign that indicates food. All the while we see brilliant architecture and many ships going through the waters. "This place is beautiful" I observe. "Yes very much so, I believe I see a restaurant over there" Nikolai points with his tail to a building with smoke coming out the top. "Oooh, cooking something big" I say hungrily. We walk over to it, with the smell of food beginning to hit our noses. "Mmmm, that smells delicious" I say getting more excited. We get to the building and enter, getting hit with a gust of heat. "Hehe, I guess they heat this place up with all the cooking" Nikolai jests.

We walk up to the counter to see a man stirring a big pot. "Ambrogio, you have customers" a female voice says from around the corner. "Eh, oh i do" Ambrogio says walking up to the counter. He is an older gentleman dressed in chefs attire. He has a graying mustache and a strong jaw with blue eyes. "Ah, what can i get you two lovely peop- ehhh lady and tiger?" he asks us. "What do you serve sir" I ask him. "Well, we have soup" he says. "Do you have any specialties?" i ask him. "Why yes i do, in fact what's in that pot over there is my special Manzo e Verdura soup" the man states, pointing to the pot behind him. "Well, then we'll have two bowls of that please" I tell him excitedly.

"Excellent choice" he says pulling out a pen and paper. He jots down some math and looks up at us. "That'll be sixteen Dirua" he says. "Dirua? What is that?" I ask. "Ah, i should have told you this earlier" Nikolai says. He quickly explains the currency system to me and I pop out a few bills. "Here you go sir" i say to the man giving him sixteen Dirua. "Ah thank you sweetie, you can have a seat over there, i'll bring it out to you when it's ready" he says with a smile. Nikolai and I take a seat at a table in the room next to us. "Ah, it'll be good to finally get some food in me" I say. "Indeed, being a tiger has made me hungrier than usual" Nikolai says laying his paws on the table.

"So how long have you been around?" I ask him. "Hmmm, that's a good question, well I was a servant to Lady Catherine the Great when i matured into an adult" he says thinking "That was around the mid 1700s, so I guess I've been around for almost three hundred years". "Oh wow, you're an old kitty" i say jokingly. He chuckles and says "I'm not even close to some Sentinels, there are some that are well over two thousand years old" he tells me. "Now that is old" I say chuckling. We both begin to laugh as Ambrogio brings out our food.

"You two having a good time?" he asks with a smile. "Yes sir" I answer nodding. "Hehe, well here is your meals, enjoy" he says setting down the soup. "Thank you" I say as he walks off. "Oh this looks good, let's dig in" I say looking at the soup. I take my spoon and take a big scoop, filling it with meat and vegetables. I take a bite and get hit with an amount of flavor i have never tasted before. The meat was beef with, carrots, potatoes, onions, leeks, and cabbage mixed in the broth. The broth itself tasted like it had a red wine base with the beef and vegetables adding to the mix, creating a perfect stock. I finish my bowl rather quickly and look up to see Nikolai with his face in the bowl, licking it down clean. He looks up, licking his lips. "Hehe, you have soup dripping from your fur" i say laughing. "Eh, oh so i do" he says cross eyed looking at it while laughing. He cleans it off and we head out. "Thank you Mr. Ambrogio" i say before leaving. "Oh no please, it was my pleasure, you two be careful now" he says waving goodbye. We leave the shop and entee the town to do some more exploring.

(Viewpoint of a stranger)

The boss and I are perched on a rooftop, watching a girl and a tiger come out of a shop. I turn to my cloak shrouded boss and ask "Are they on the list?". "Yes, they were there" he says in a croaky voice. "Go into that shop and ask for information" he says waving me off. "Will do" I say excited to start working. I walk to the edge of the building when the boss says "And Asesino, kill the chef and his wife, loose ends and all". I smile and reply "Nothing would make me happier". I jump off the building and onto the street, heading to the restaurant.