Cottonmouth

Paragon's End [Modern/Fantasy/Anime/Adventure]

"Oh... well, I have lots of friends." Nemo replied, somewhat halfheartedly. "Business friends. They do favors for me, and I do favors for them." Nemo clarified.

Nemo broke eye contact with her, resting his arms on his lap and looking downwards. "I suppose that doesn't really count, does it?" He admitted. "No, I haven't ever had a friend. People were never very fond of me because of my appearance. In the beginning it was hard, but I've gotten used to it. Now I see it more like an advantage, my lack of any type of relationships makes it impossible to use against me." Nemo explained.

Paragon's End [Modern/Fantasy/Anime/Adventure]

The enthusiasm in Nemo's face and voice seemed to have been curbed by Raiya's response.

"I suppose you're right... It's probably not a good idea." He replied, tapping his pointer fingers together. "We could try doing some bonding exercises?" Nemo suggested. "We could hug? That should probably work."

Nemo didn't seem to have much experience with what he was talking about, which wasn't much of a surprise.

Paragon's End [Modern/Fantasy/Anime/Adventure]

"I'm sure one will turn up sooner or later, and I'll be waiting for that day." Nemo replied, holding out his hand to levitate the sword back to him. "I've got it, for the handicap I'll just have to use this. I need practice anyways." Nemo said, sounding somewhat enthusiastic about it.

"Do you think we should come up with some sort of combination spell?" Nemo asked.

Paragon's End [Modern/Fantasy/Anime/Adventure]

"I got it as a spoil of war from one of my past jobs. It's former owner was a man with samurai heritage living in Kyoto. The sword was passed down as a family heirloom for quite some time." Nemo replied. "That's how I knew the sword's effects were real. As I got to see it's influence on him first hand." He added. "It was a worthwhile fight, and a worthwhile reward."

"I get my hands on a lot of things." Nemo said, wiggling his fingers. "If there's anything you need, all you need to do is say the word."

Paragon's End [Modern/Fantasy/Anime/Adventure]

"Things are often better when they are make bespoke to you, aren't they?" Nemo commented, sitting back up in the couch inspecting the sword from his seat. "I suppose you might be interested in some of the things in my possession then. My favorite type of weapons to collect are the ones considered to be cursed. I can sort of relate to them in ways. For me they are the closest thing to a companion I could get." Nemo explained. "And without a doubt, this is one of the finest pieces I possess." Nemo said, waving his middle and index fingers in front of him, causing a distortion in the air and spawning a black katana. It floated there for a moment before Nemo extended his right hand out to catch it as it fell.

The first thing to note was that the blade seemed to have it's own magical presence in addition to Nemo's own. It was certainly ominous and dark, matching the color scheme on the sword, which seemed to compliment Nemo's own in a yin yang black and white sort of way. It had a dark iron pommel, black silk wrappings on a rayskin handle with a iron oni caricature ornament, a circular iron tsuba designed to look like a person's head, iron spacers, and a black lacquered saya with a black saego cord.

Nemo gently placed it down on the same table Raiya's sword was on. Compared to Raiya's katana, Nemo's was a shorter standard size. "This is a Sengo Muramasa blade. I won it in a duel long ago, ever since it's been one of my favorites. It's been a match for me, seeing as all of it's 'downsides', uncontrollable blood-lust, and the need to kill after unsheathing the blade have no effect on a anti-magic user such as myself. Regardless, I don't want to disrespect it, every time I do draw it, it's to kill." Nemo finished.

Nemo didn't show the actual blade on the weapon, but anyone who has knowledge on Muramasa's blades would know that it probably has a mirror image hamon, with a shallow valley midereba pattern between a cluster of gunome shapes. And a fish belly tanagobara shaped nakago.

Tsuba style

Paragon's End [Modern/Fantasy/Anime/Adventure]

Nemo let out a giggle in response to Raiya's statement. "Now that's what I like to hear. Your determination inspires me, Raiya. Plus it's quite cute when you get all huffy." Nemo cheered, slumping over lazily onto his side on the couch after he was done.

"Your sword, it's quite nice. I started off as a sword duelist myself. Rapiers and sabers were my specialty, later I picked up larger European swords as well. Blades will always hold a special place in my heart, despite the fact that I don't use them as frequently as I used to. The details are exquisite, the extended blade length is nice, and don't think I missed that kogatana pigsticker you have in that saya pocket either. Along with it's kozuka handle it's a nice added touch." Nemo remarked, still laying on his side like he was about to fall asleep. "Overall you have an impressive and versatile piece, how did you happen to come across it?" He asked.

"I have multiple pieces from Japan myself too. My other moniker isn't "The Collector" for nothing. Though I must admit one in particular is my favorite." Nemo added.

Paragon's End [Modern/Fantasy/Anime/Adventure]

"Shame, I thought the no magic idea could make things interesting. Maybe another day." Nemo noted. "We'll match then, after all this mission really is an opportunity to let our partnered strength shine. It'll be almost like I'm part of your Crux gang, I'll look like your bodyguard now. Not exactly the most appropriate attire for a boat, but inappropriateness is the heart of punk fashion anyways." Nemo began to reassemble his firearm, finished with it's maintenance. Afterwards he placed it down on the table.

"I know what we're up against now, while it is indeed more dangerous than my 'recon mission' ended up being, it's not as dangerous as that could of been. I know a fair bit about Rutger and Johhny, and more about Seidon and his crew. I've even had dealings with Seidon's smuggling operation in the past before I was imprisoned. Unless God himself is waiting to personally smite us behind that storm, it wont be that bad." Nemo explained. "Seidon is strong, the top people in his crew aren't pushovers either, but in the end they are just smugglers. Rutger and his protege will by far be the biggest obstacle to overcome. Given that we are the muscle of this party, it's probably going to end up being our job to handle them."

"From hereon out I'll make sure you tag along on all my little midnight runs. I am Nemo Smiley after all, I have a reputation to uphold. If we get ambushed, if things look bleak, I'll just have to slaughter them all." Nemo stated, with a tone much more serious and deadpan than usual.

Paragon's End [Modern/Fantasy/Anime/Adventure]

Nemo leaned back in the sofa, using a small rod with a soft brush at the end to clean and polish the cylinder's chambers. "Yes, the ambush-ee has become the ambush-er now. Knowing the opposition, I'm confident I can keep you relatively out of harms way... You didn't miss out on much, there wasn't anybody really worth while where I went. What can I do to make it up to you, hm?" Nemo asked, picking up on her tone.

"You and me, we'll be like Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid now... except without dying. Some people say they made it out." Nemo added, switching to cleaning the barrel of the revolver now. "What should we wear? Should we do matching outfits now? I could probably fix something up for that motorcycle gang look. I'll wear whatever, I'll do this whole next mission in this bath robe if you want. Oh, how about that? You can handicap me. Straight-jacket? No magic? Fork only? I think blindfold would be a little much though." Nemo suggested.

Paragon's End [Modern/Fantasy/Anime/Adventure]

Nemo ran a hand through his hair and nodded. "Very well Travis, we have time anyways." He replied. "I trust felix will be able to hook us up with transportation, if not this is going to be a bit harder than I first thought. We just need to get somewhere near the Boston Harbor." Nemo said, turning to Felix.

"In the meantime, I'll be preparing in my room." Nemo added, giving a small salute to the team and rising from his seat and walking up the stairs to his quarters. He started by snapping his fingers, using a small spell to drop the needle on the record player and turn it on. Afterwards he undressed and jumped into the shower. According to some of the members, he smelled like death. Nemo would never be the culprit of using up all the hot water, as he always showered with cold water.

Once finished, Nemo dressed himself and sat down on a sofa in the room. He now wore his usual jewelry, black glove, a white tank top, black silk boxers with white polkadots, and a hot pink velour bathrobe. He retrieved his revolver and began to disassemble and clean it on a small coffee table after his last usage while listening to the classical music playing.

Paragon's End [Modern/Fantasy/Anime/Adventure]

"Simple, Seidon is a freighter and a smuggler. He's scheduled to pick up a couple of cargo crates before leaving. We sneak into the compound and hide in one of the shipping containers before it's loaded onto the ship. With my magic I can disguise our presence from any of the wards. Seidon loads all kinds of foreign magical items all the time, so it wouldn't raise any suspicions when we pass through." Nemo replied.