“Kondor walked through the Archer of Avelon locker room and addressed anyone who cared to listen. “Has anyone seen Jorin? I owe him some gold. I thought those orcs would be more than the Archers could handle.”

“Leave the gold with me and I will see that he gets it.” Osonia said with a snicker.

Kondor looked at her sideways and shook his head. “No. I will just pay him next time I see him. It is kind of strange that he was not at the game today.”

“Not really.” Adresin responded. “If he is not out stalking someone, he is probably running from the local clergy. I heard there are a couple of witch hunters passing through the region.”

Kondor smiled. “Well, I hope they stake him before I have to pay up. Fifty gold coins is nothing to leave on the table.”

On his way back to his office, Kondor thought about the game that had just been played. Coach Project had directed a good match. In the first half, the Archers were on the ropes and reduced to desperation plays. However, once in a while, desperation results in success. Nienna managed to pop the ball out and Throthradir picked up the ball in traffic and the cleared it out of danger then score. With a defensive score in the first half, the orcs had to play aggressively in the second. The aggressive play forced a gap in the orc defense that Nienna exploited to get the ball to Throthradir for a second point.

Kondor opened the door to his office to find a tiny shriveled and bent elderly woman in a dark purple cloak relaxing in the chair in front of his desk. He was completely befuddled until he noticed the dark red, jewel encrusted glove on her right hand.

“You are early Xolaxlexa.” Kondor said.

Xolaxlexa had recognized Kondor’s momentary confusion but was unhappy that he had recognized her so quickly. It ruined the game she had planned to toy with him.

“You are no fun today.” She said as Kondor took his seat behind the desk. “However, I must say that I enjoyed the last reconnaissance mission you commissioned. It was nice to go to Fathnore again, and trying to sort through the blond elf’s ancestry was challenging. So, I assume you have another face for me to research?”

The old woman stood and walked behind Kondor and began massaging his shoulders. A familiar shiver went down Kondor’s spine as he thought of Kydeth. Like Nienna, she was blond but that is where the similarity ended. This elf was tall, slender, and buxom with long strong legs and a contagious perfect smile. In Kydeth, Kondor had often found an unlikely ally in the club house.

“Ahhh.” Said Xolaxlexa after gleaning what she could from Kondor’s mind.. “You don’t know her family name. That will make things more difficult but I will manage.”

The shapeshifting spy stopped the massage but let her fingers delicately tickle down Kondor’s arm as she moved around in front of him and seated herself on his lap. But now, rather than appearing as withered old hag she had grown and filled out to the point where she had to remove the purple cloak and the clothing below it was entirely inadequate. The dress was now far too short and what was once a loosely buttoned blouse was nearly bursting. Her smile was almost too much for Kondor to bear.

She tickled Kondor under the chin with the scarlet glove. “Does anyone else come to mind?”

Again began to shift, but the change stopped and she scowled. “You do know how to ruin the fun. I will not be changing into Throthradir Falavoul. However, I will get you the information on s/him.”

Now it was Kondor’s turn to laugh. “I met Throthradir when he was a quality blitzer for the Archers. Now that she returned after a leave of absence, she is an outstanding catcher.” Kondor abruptly switched topics. “So blondie, I have a change to our contract. You only get paid for your services if they are rendered while the player is on the team. If they are killed in action I don’t need your information.”

Xolaxlexa stepped away from the coach for a moment and considered the situation. “I will be assuming more risk. I could have everything complete only to have the subject killed off the day before. I will accept the deal if the payment is increased twenty percent.”

“Ten percent.” Kondor said. “Not a crown more.”

Xolaxlexa turned on the charm as she prepared to barter. She batted her eyes and gave Kondor a lurid stare. “Agreed. But only because I love your ….”

A knock at the door and a shout from the courier Archie interrupted what could have turned into an expensive and passionate situation.

“Coach Kondor.” He shouted. “The Chaos Dwarf team is at the Tarnished Crown Tavern. The scouts scouting report should be here within the hour.”

Kondor headed for the door. “Thank you Archie.” He said looking back at Xolaxlexa who had not changed from her she elf form. “Kydeth was just leaving. I will meet the scouts at the Shining Bauble.”
”