Visrace followed the tall, slim yet menacing man out of the building to a courtyard lined with small box rooms.

“This one’s yours,” he said, gesturing to the only empty one situated in the corner of the area, “name’s Lest, you need anything you ask me, don’t talk to anyone else unless they talk first, and even then, don’t be tellin’ ‘em who you are. Until the first fight, don’t leave this street, can’t have you getting nabbed before you’ve served your purpose. But within here you can roam freely, just try not to twist anyone’s foot off,” Lest said with a wry smile, “also, you smell like an unwashed arse, so go out of the building here to the first door on the right, ask for Suus, tell her you need cleaning up, on Mr. Graffsif’s orders. She’ll sort you out and maybe even take a liking to you. You can have some food back here when you’re done, so get going.”

For the first time in years, Visrace felt like a child. Being given strict instructions caused him to clench his teeth and fists with equal force, and yet, he knew he’d have to do as he was told, at least for now, as the ends would hopefully justify the means. With that, he silently left the courtyard and wandered back out through the building and onto the increasingly darkened street outside. 

Heaving a heavy sigh, he walked toward his destination, outside of which sat a scantily clad, tired-looking woman. It was clear what type of establishment this was.

“Got cash ‘ave ya? Them boyish good looks won't get you very far in here without money,” the woman offered, taking a long drag on her half-smoked cigarette.

“Suus, Graffsif sent me, I need cleaning up” he replied, not making eye contact. 

“I coulda told you that”, the woman said before stumbling into the building and eventually reemerging and gesturing to Visrace to go in.

The corridor, lined with numbered doors on either side, was laced with dust, scratches, and scuffs, and had a strong atmosphere of unpleasantness like a mist unwaveringly clinging to the surface of a swamp. At the end, soft light appeared as a door opened and a tall, slender figure stood waiting. Visrace’s pace slowed slightly.

“Come on, we haven’t got all day,” the commanding and slightly gravelly voice spoke. It belonged to a young woman, perhaps only 5 or so years older than him, dressed in a revealing silk nightgown that hung gracefully over her darkened olive skin. Her brown hair, which was wrapped up into a sort of coil, jiggled slightly as she talked, and her dark-colored almond-shaped eyes narrowed as he drew closer.

Entering the room, Visrace was hit by the smell of her perfume, at once sweet yet bitter. It was undoubtedly the most unique thing he had smelt in the last few years and wasn’t, admittedly, completely unpleasant.

To the side of the room was a large wooden bath warmed to a comfortable temperature by a stone-covered fire which it rested upon. Drapes dangled from the ceiling, obscuring the cracked, damp-covered walls, and several burning candles dotted around left a sweet, fragrant smell in the air. While taking in his surroundings, the door closed behind him and Suus’ hands rested softly on his shoulders. Visrace, without even thinking, shuddered and jumped away, startling the woman momentarily.

“Easy… you can’t have a bath with your clothes on, can you?” Suus said.

“I can do it myself,” Visrace replied, turning away to hide his blushing face as he began to pull off his tattered clothes.

“I’m sure you can, people don’t usually come here to do things themselves,” Suus laughed somewhat bitterly.

“I’m not here of my own volition.”

“I see, well, all the same, hop in, you certainly look like you could use it.”

Setting his clothes in a neat pile on the floor, Visrace slowly clambered into the bath, his bruised, scarred body being revealed in the room’s low lighting.

The warm water stung initially, but as he soaked deeper, a calm aura fell upon him. In his momentary sense of bliss, he found himself completely unaware that Suus, who had disrobed and was now sitting next to the edge of the bath, had slipped her hand into the water where it met him. Without thinking, Visrace grabbed her submerged wrist, twisting it violently as Suus’ bronze naked body flopped backward onto the edge of the bath next to him. Visrace blushed again, releasing her before turning away.

“I’m sorry,” he muttered, “you… surprised me. I don’t want any of this, I’m just here for a bath as I’ve been instructed, nothing more.”

“Very well,” Suus replied as she rose to her feet rubbing her wrist, “wouldn’t be the first time a customer got rough anyway,” she stated with a sour expression, “I’ll help you wash, at least.”

“Fine, just…”

“Keep my hands above the water?”

“Y-yes,” he replied with reddened cheeks.

“How’d you find yourself in a place like this anyway,” Suus enquired.

“It’s a long story…” Visrace replied.

“Aren’t they all,” Suus sighed as she glided a moistened sponge across Visrace’s thin yet sturdy shoulders. “I’m sure each of these cuts and bruises has a story of their own, don’t they?”

“Nothing anyone would want to hear.”

“They never do,” Suus spoke quietly.

The pair spent the next period of time in silence as the warmth of the water enveloped Visrace. Just as he began to fall asleep, the sudden rush of water falling down his scalp and back into the bath jolted him awake.

“Good thing we did this last, your hair’s so filthy the water is almost black now,” Suus piped up as her voice suggested a strange sense of satisfaction akin to nearing the end of a spring clean. “Whatever Mr. Griffsraf has in store for you, I’m sure you won't be needing your hair getting in the way, so here,” she said, tying his long flowing locks into a ponytail that began just as his skull sloped backward. “I’d say you’re all done, so you best be on your way.”

“T-thank you…” Visrace wondered how long it had been since these two words, some of the most commonly used of his language, had escaped his lips.

“My pleasure, and if you’re ever in need of any other types of relaxation, you know where to find me, you look like you could do with it.”

Visrace raised himself out of the bath to put his clothes back on.

“And wherever all these marks came from, I hope they get what’s coming to them,” Suus said, sitting down and lighting a cigarette after a job well done.

“They already did, but they got off lightly,” Visrace stated firmly, buttoning his shirt.

“They always do,” Suus replied as a stream of smoke wafted from between her full, reddened lips.

Upon returning to his room, the door of which Visrace kept wedged open with a piece of wood, he found a tray of food waiting for him. He did not even notice the surprisingly pleasant flavor of the roasted meat, stewed vegetables, and fluffy rice due to scoffing everything in a flash before washing it down with a half-full mug of ale which, after the bath, sent his already lightened head into a swirl. Laying his weary bones down, he instantly drifted into a sleep that not even the revelry of Graffsif’s men outside could disturb.