Another Round Of Wine Collecting

Job Details:

Job Sign-Up: Page 13, Post Number 314

-50 Meters away from the Abandoned Cabin, 12:17 A.M.-

Dressed in her usual outfit of purple t-shirt and black skirt with white thigh-high stockings and black tennis shoes, Diana had traveled here from Capital Crocus on another job for Vanessa Lexington, the young woman who was fond of collecting rare wines. In her left hand was clutched a silver protective case exactly like the ones she had used for the last job. In her right hand was Saint Sinner Valentine and it was loaded with normal rounds because zombies did not require any special bullets to put them down like ghosts, werewolves, or vampires did. A single shot to the head with an ordinary bullet was all that was needed to kill a zombie.

Diana was going to the cabin to search for a rare vintage of wine called Bonhomie. According to Vanessa it was another limited edition wine made long before either of them were born and it was rare because Bonhomie was reported to have a taste that was so pleasing that anyone who drank it was compelled to finish the bottle. That property led to previously abundant supplies dwindling over the decades until less than sixty bottles of it remained in the world... or so Diana was told.

The sky overhead was cloudless and a crescent moon was shining, but as beautiful as it was that celestial body did not provide nearly enough light to clearly see by, so Diana supplemented it with her night vision mode to get a better look at her surroundings. When she could see clearly Diana could not help but to notice that the cabin was surrounded by zombies moaning and mindlessly pounding against the structure's wooden walls. She could not get an accurate count of how many there were since some of them were behind the cabin and out of sight, but there were at least forty, if not more gathered in front of it and around both sides. In between her weapon and her magic she could easily deal with them long before they could get close to her.

Diana looked all around her position to make sure a zombie had not somehow managed to sneak up on her while she was scoping out the cabin. Once she was sure that she was not going to be attacked by the local walking corpses Diana calmly lifted Saint Sinner Valentine and pointed its barrel into the air before firing off a single shot. That action alerted the zombies besieging the cabin that an easier meal had arrived and they began to peel away from the wooden structure like wallpaper peeling off of a wall. The blonde stood her ground and began to use Saint Sinner Valentine to pick off the walking dead as they began to shuffle towards her.

Diana aimed at the head of each one and fired a single shot, killing twenty-nine zombies in twenty-nine shots to the head without missing a single one. When she was out of ammunition in the current magazine she tapped the reload button and waited for the weapon to reload, then started picking off more of the zombies. Their slow speed was their undoing because she eliminated the rest of them without any trouble... they were all dead by the time they could get fifteen meters away from the cabin.

Aware that her weapon had made a lot of noise, Diana stayed where she was and looked around for any enemies shambling in from the sides. She did not see any yet, so she focused on what was in front of her again and spotted seven zombies moving around from the back of the cabin to come after her. The blonde waited until she was sure that no more enemies were going to emerge before she quickly took out the smaller group with a single carefully aimed shot to the head apiece. When all of the walking corpses were finally down for the count she tapped the reload button and waited until Saint Sinner Valentine was reloaded before moving towards the cabin itself.

When she had gotten here the building had been surrounded and the zombies were making an effort to get inside, suggesting that someone had barricaded themselves in the cabin. Diana wondered if they were still alive or if they had been bitten, died from their wounds, and reanimated as a zombie. She picked up the protective case with her left hand while holding the rifle in her right hand and approached the wooden structure ready for the worst. When she got to within ten meters the door swung open as if she was being invited to go inside.

Diana carefully approached it with Saint Sinner Valentine ready to fire if whatever was inside was no longer among the living.

[Post Word Count: 800]
[Total Word Count: 800/10,000]

Diana continued to slowly and carefully approach the building and when she got to within five meters of it out stepped a black-haired young woman wearing a denim jacket over a black t-shirt and blue jeans with white tennis shoes. She had green eyes and was as tall as Diana and her hair was shoulder-length. On her hip was a sword belt and in her left hand was a silver shortsword. She peered down at the dead zombies lying outside the building, then looked at Diana.

"I'm so glad you're here!" The young woman greeted Diana with an exclamation of relief.

"I've been trapped in there for the past five hours. I explored the basement and was about to leave when I ran into the big crowd of zombies you saw outside. I got inside and managed to block the door, but I didn't know if it would hold long enough for help to get here. I was about to retreat into the basement and look for another way out when I heard gunfire." The young woman explained how dire her situation was before Diana's arrival. After that she put away her sword and Diana reciprocated by putting the safety on and slinging Saint Sinner Valentine over her right shoulder.

"Whoever you are, you're a lifesaver." The other mage continued. Diana read her magic signature and noticed that it was at slightly above a novice mage's level. She wondered what they were doing here but swiftly decided that it was none of her business.

"The name's Janine. Janine Miller." The young woman introduced herself.

"Diana Winchester." Diana gave her name in return. Janine moved away from the cabin and carefully stepped past the dead zombies until she was within arm's reach of the blonde. She then stopped and made eye contact with Diana.

"When exploring the basement I found this really old bottle of wine. At first I thought I'd take it and sell it somewhere, but when things started looking bleak I considered drinking it. I left it alone, though." Janine told her. Diana kept eye contact as a question came to mind.

"Is the name of the wine you found "Bonhomie"?" Diana asked. Janine shrugged her shoulders.

"I think so. The name starts with a B, but I didn't pay all that much attention to the label because I had bigger problems than learning the name of what I was holding. All I know is that it looked pretty expensive." Came the answer. Diana would have to inspect the bottle herself to learn its name.

"Hey, wait a minute! I owe you one for rescuing me, so lemme go get it for you!" Janine said. She spun around on her heels, walked back towards the cabin, and disappeared inside for a few moments before emerging with a wine bottle carefully held in both hands. The black-haired mage soon presented it to Diana.

"Here you go, Diana! Take it with my compliments!" Janine held it out for Diana to inspect. The blonde's eyes immediately went to the label, which featured a black-and-white sketch of well-dressed men wearing formal suits and top hats sitting around a table loaded with food and holding wine glasses. Above the sketch was the name "Bonhomie."

"This is exactly what I was after." Diana remarked on being given the wine she had been sent to retrieve. She quickly set the protective case on the ground and opened it, then put the bottle of Bonhomie inside and closed the case. She secured the latches and took the handle into her left hand.

"Well, I'm going to leave while the going's good. Maybe we'll meet in Capital Crocus some time." Janine said. Diana held out her right hand in a "Stop!" gesture.

"I will go with you, Janine. I have what I came for, so there is no point in me staying here." Diana stated. The other mage smiled.

"All right then, Diana. We'll set out for Capital Crocus right away!" Janine said. The black-haired mage took the lead and Diana followed at her right side. Diana could not believe her luck... she had expected a lengthy search for the wine but it had been handed to her. All that was missing was gift wrapping for the bottle and a silver platter for it to be presented on, but the blonde was not going to complain about her good luck. However, the blonde did not want to seem like she was taking advantage of Janine, so Diana would give Janine part of what she earned from finding the bottle of Bonhomie when she got back to Capital Crocus and gave the rare wine to Vanessa.

[Post Word Count: 778]
[Total Word Count: 1,578/10,000]

-The next night, outside Sombras Manor, 12:26 A.M.-

Upon reaching Vanessa's home in Capital Crocus yesterday she had given the bottle of Bonhomie to the client but did not receive payment for the wine since this time the client established that Diana would not be paid until she completed the job. Diana had been forced to promise Janine payment at a later date, a bargain that the black-haired mage had readily accepted. Now the blonde was standing outside Sombras Manor and was poised to enter it so that she could find the second bottle of wine she had been sent to collect and come a step closer to keeping her word to Janine.

Tonight's target was a rare bottle of wine called Sommelier's Friend. It was a vintage that was said to have first been made roughly fifty years ago by a winery that was particularly selective about what grapes went into making its wine. Each bottle was rather expensive, but its flavor went with a wide variety of haute cuisine that when it was available it became the go-to choice for sommeliers who needed something to offer the pickiest of wine connoisseurs. However, unlike some of the other wines she had found for Vanessa in the past, this one was still being produced, albeit in small quantities because the winery still persisted in selecting only the best grapes according to strict standards.

Armed with Saint Sinner Valentine in her right hand and a protective case for the wine in her left hand, Diana was ready to go inside the manor, but there was one last detail she needed to take care of. She set down the case and used her left hand to tap the white heart that would change the contents of the magazine from normal rounds to Silver Bullets for use against the spirits that called this place home. Diana waited until the changeover was complete and when the weapon was loaded with the specialty rounds she picked the case up and slung the rifle on her shoulder, then went to the doors of the manor and opened the left one. She then went inside and shut the door behind her.

-Inside Sombras Manor, 12:28 A.M.-

Diana turned around and looked down the hallway ahead of her with both normal vision and her spectral vision mode to spot any threats that might be waiting for a visitor, but it was empty except for the suits of metal armor on stands positioned on both sides of the hallway. She recalled the way to the basement wine cellar and went left, walking with her right hand empty in case she needed to use a spell at a moment's notice. She reached the bend in the hall and went right, then spotted the stairwell to the basement. Diana approached it and heard disembodied female laughter from somewhere close by and paused in place.

She soon spun around with spectral vision mode activated to see if the source was standing behind her, but the blonde mage spotted nothing but empty air and a wooden door. Diana returned to normal vision and faced forward again and walked to the basement stairs, then began to carefully go down them.

-In the basement, 12:30 A.M.-

At the bottom of the stairs Diana turned right and looked ahead of her with her spectral vision mode to see if the source of the laughter was waiting on her down here. Diana saw nothing out of the ordinary, so she immediately switched back to normal vision and walked to the first door on the right, then opened it. She walked into the room and shut the door behind her.

-Inside the wine cellar, 12:32 A.M.-

Diana recalled the location of the hidden lever and pulled the arm holding the brass lantern that was sitting to the left of the door. The hidden floor panel opened up again and Diana saw the stairs that led down into the hidden section where the truly valuable wine was kept. She put her right hand on her head to protect it from the low ceiling as she walked over to the stairs, then put her left foot on them before immediately descending into the darkness.

-Inside the hidden section, 12:36 A.M.-

Diana had completed the descent and was now in the secret wine cellar, which was quite cold for some reason. She recalled having to deal with spectral servants who were not happy about her taking the bottle of Imperator '88 and suspected that she might encounter more ghosts some time soon. That would not stop her, though. Diana was working towards a big payday and was not going to let a few angry spirits get in her way.

She faced forward and began walking towards the shelf of wine sitting against the back wall.

[Post Word Count: 804]
[Total Word Count: 2,382/10,000]