Charas-Project
Off-Topic => Archive => RP Board => Topic started by: WarxePB on March 27, 2012, 01:22:52 PM
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[spoiler]So, I've got an itch that can only be scratched by some play-by-post forum gaming. This particular board hasn't seen activity since October. And I'm still trying to get better at writing. So let's solve three problems at once with a new RP.
This particular one's called "The Infinite World", mostly because it's a generic name that could mean a lot of different things. My idea for the setting is that of a standard high-fantasy world undergoing an industrial revolution - so we've got standard high fantasy stuff like magic, as well as technology, and probably some steampunk and magitek here and there. I don't want to set too much in stone just yet, since I think part of the fun of RPing is building the world and characters, so anything goes for now.
I also don't really have a main plot or story hooks for now. Again, anything goes. If something sounds good, we'll go with it.
Rather than posting an "Inn" topic as usual, we'll just put all out-of-character (OOC) topic in spoiler tags. Or I might just post an Inn topic, we'll see.
So on with the show![/spoiler]
A waifish figure, dressed in ratty clothing and tightly clutching a package to their chest, ducked into a back alley. Pursuing this person was a hulking figure, dressed in a full-body black cloak and wielding a jagged poleaxe with a blood-red handle.
"Come back here!" the man ordered, his voice rough and weary. He was out of shape, but he had no need to run: he pointed his left index finger at the figure, firing a stream of wispy yellow energy at them. The energy wrapped around the figure's ankle like a lasso, tripping them. The package clattered to the ground.
The imposing man strode to the figure, picking them up by the collar of their cape. She was a young woman, barely 16, with unkempt dark-green hair. Her face was dirty and scarred, especially around her left eye, which was milky white and useless; her other eye, a strange bluish-green, was wide and panicked. Based on her attire, she was just another one of the many street rats living in the city of Sodeam.
"Pah! Just more ghetto scum." The imposing man threw the girl to the ground. "If it were my choice, I'd kill the lot of you!"
The imposing man picked up the (no doubt stolen) package that the girl was carrying. He ripped off the brown paper it was wrapped in, revealing a picture of the girl and others framed in black wood.
"P-please, sir..." the girl cried. "It's mine, I swear!"
"And I'm the damn King!" the imposing man said sarcastically. "Who'd you steal it from?"
"It's mine! I took it in-"
"Enough!" The man threw the picture against the alley wall, breaking the frame in two and shattering the glass. He dismissed the magic lasso, instead holding the blade of his heavy poleaxe against the nape of the girl's neck.
"I'm sorry sir, please, I beg you!"
"If I let you live today, you'll no doubt go and steal more in the future. The way I see it, I'm just improving the streets of our fair city by disposing of trash like you." He lifted his poleaxe, and...
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"Stop."
The word was a command, not a suggestion. The man whirled around as if struck, an odd look painted across his face, to find the only woman who had the authority to ruin his day.
"The city is rife with unrest and what do I find you doing again? I should execute you for incompetance right now."
"Captain Knotte" he said, backing away slightly. "This girl was... this girl was stealing! She's no regular street urchin but a theif as well! The locals couldn't possibly..."
"Look around you" snapped Knotte. "This area is all slums. You think she doesn't have friends here? Every time you go on one of your patented killing sprees you tempt them into riot. Unintelligent cur."
Captain Knotte was very tall for a woman; in fact she stood a little higher than the violent man, a fact that was exaggerated by her demeanour and allowed her to look down at almost any individual. She wore the smart uniform of office, the same as the man, but in a deep red that matched her lipstick, one of the few feminine attributes she allowed herself to display.
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"I... hmph. By your leave, Captain." The man, a lieutenant named Arkray, bowed to his superior. He seemed less than pleased at being robbed of the opportunity to 'clean up the streets', as he often put it, but even he knew better than to talk back to the Captain. He walked off, silently fuming.
The girl got to her feet, wiping the tears and grime off of her face with her sleeve. She looked into the face of her savior; he was... no, she was a woman. She was tall, tough, and she had the posture and demeanor of a man, but her thin red lips were a dead giveaway She was a Captain of the city guard, identifiable by the eight-pointed star badge emblazoned over her heart.
Realizing who this was, the girl bowed to Captain Knotte, muttering a quick "Thank you" in appreciation. But she abruptly stopped mid-bow, as something had caught her eye; she fell to her knees and scampered over to the broken picture frame resting against the alley wall. The cobblestone streets, still slick with rain, had smudged the picture within to the degree that the faces were little more than vague blurs. She fished through the broken glass and picked the picture up, but it fell apart in her hands.
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The end.
EDIT: Just kidding. I haven't got time to post right now though. I urge someone else, possibly prplmage or someone equally rp friendly, to join.
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"...thank you, ma'am." The girl took one last look at the tough Captain towering above her, before running off into the street. She was so impressive...
But, without that picture... She leaned against the wall and began to sob again. It was a stretch in the first place, but without that picture, she didn't have any leads left. All she had was... her stomach, which growled loudly. She hadn't eaten in at least a day, and even then, her last meal was some moldy bread she'd dug out of a dumpster. What she wouldn't do for a hot meal, heck, even a lukewarm meal would be nice... maybe some fresh bread, or a bowl of vegetable soup. Her stomach rumbled again, making her forget all about her near-death experience.
She needed either food, or money. Either would work. But she was terrible at picking pockets, and that man was still hanging around, ready to chop her head off if she did anything. And she'd long since used up her free meals at the local bakeries and restaurants. She could go digging for some food in the garbage again, but her mouth was watering at the thought of a warm meal... okay, money then. She did have a couple of talents that could earn her a few coins.
"Excuse me!" She ran up to a figure she'd seen glancing at her from the corner of her eye. "Excuse me! Can, I can read your fortune if you want! I'll tell you something good, I just need to see your hand!"
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Elaine Knotte had only watched the girl for a moment before turning sharply on her heel and striding towards the main street. The cobblestones that now crunched under her leather boots were loose and uneven, as if the roads no longer had the care to hold together, and she could see the same sentiment reflected in the eyes of those she passed.
She felt sorry for these people, she realised, every unwashed face and malnourished beggar she passed sending a small trickle of emotion through her. This kindness was, largely, neither noticed or returned. The people scowled at her, or hid in their hovels as she walked by, wary of any arm of the law. Maybe they were right to be so, she mused. If the king's judgement was to be trusted, then these very people might soon become her enemies. Trouble was brewing in the city of Sodeam, and in these slums it lay the thickest.
OOC: Hey, should I delete that last post? XD I thought it was funny at the time.
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OOC: Just noticed this, just didn't expect it enough to be on the lookout.
The rain had pounded the roof and hovels of the lower streets the whole day. Many were staying inside on days like these - at least the ones who could afford it. People passed in the streets, their minds troubled by their own personal lives. Few were the troubles of these commoners, or should one call them lowlife? But on the higher steps of society stood those who's trouble was the smallest things; quality of food, colour of fabrics, endurance of the furniture and the overall styling of fashionable imports.
Many were the troubles for these people and with those trouble came desperation, and with desperation came Caul.
"Another fine day eh?" The shopkeeper asked with a murky grin as he accepted a parcel over the counter.
"A fine day indeed you old coot." Answered a slim man in a cloak as he avoided the man's breath and accepted his payment. "Same thing next week then?" He said and stroke his pitch black hair back across the scalp.
"Yer, same thing Caul. And I guess you're gonna be on time next time eh?" The shopkeeper chuckled as he put away the parcel. Caul simply turned and waved his hand uninterested as he walked away.
"Next week then!"
Caul watched across the streets as a sully guard exited an alley, the look on his face was grim and full of resentment, he struck a bowl of fruit with his poleaxe and yelled at the owner.
He grinned, guards and their suppressed feelings. Someone better keep an eye on them unless they do something worse.
But in the middle of that though he noticed that one girl exiting the same alley. That one girl he had noticed many times before. Not out of affection but rather that nasty eye. She looked miserable yet relieved. But there was that drive that he used to see in many people. That urge for something. Whatever it was - people always had that look.
"Excuse me! Can, I can read your fortune if you want! I'll tell you something good, I just need to see your hand!" Caul staggered. She was standing in front of him, a bit shorter than him, looking up at him with that eye of hers.
"My fortune? Well, I don't see the hurt in that lass." He dug through his pocket and grabbed a series of coins and placed and held them out to her. The girl quickly scooped the coins and placed her hands around his. Her hands seemed small and childlike compared to his as she closer her eyes and started humming.
Caul watched her closely and didn't even mind the things she said, he had never believed in fortune- except the one you made yourself.
"It's like enlightenment!" He said cheerfully as she finished, his grin not slow to follow.
The girl bowed in thanks and was about to leave. But Caul clenched his hand and trapped her fingers. He realised just then what the urge was.
"How 'bout I get you some real classy food?" He started, he wasn't sure if it was empathy, loneliness or the afternoon spirits - but he wanted to help this girl. "I know this gentleman who runs a tavern up the street. He owe me some."
She looked at him, somewhat frightened and he remembered that he was holding her."Some food in that belly and maybe if you help me out with a couple of things - you'll get more food tomorrow...eh" He realised how creepy he must sound and shook his head and softened his grip of her hands and let her go.
"Sorreh, I run a business, I get what people need. And sometimes simply what they want. Sometimes it's what one needs but the other wants." He felt that he was losing her. "I could use pair of hands like yours, there are a lot of things to be delivered... And to acquire."
----
It was with a smirk on his face that Eirik left the tavern. The day was still young but the ladies in there even more so. Truth to be told, the tavern was not the most honourable management. And to be even more frank. It was a brothel.
He scouted the area outside as he pulled on his gloves, his cape still hanging over his shoulder, he noticed something any normal soldier wouldn't want to see in a situation like this. But in Eirik's case it was just another opportunity to prove his standing.
Eirik hurried along the road and caught up with a authoritative figure walking among the commoners. He pulled his cape of his shoulder and started to fasten it.
"Elaine! What a delighted pleasure to see you here." He started which made the figure glance back just a little but not enough to stop the woman in her tracks.
"That's Captain Knotts. Even for you." She answered coldly.
Eeirik grinned, the exact reaction he expected. "But my dear captain, surely you cannot see past my recent promotions and the praise from our most gracious count? Never before have a person so young reached the position I'm in - not even you."
Eerik thought he detected something from the captain but he wasn't sure. "We both know the reason behind your recent promotions and we both know that it has more to do with your blood than skill or honour."
"Now now, I have proved myself many times." He said, well aware that both of them played the same game. "Beside, we'll be of equal rank not far from now if this lucky streak of mine continues."
"At least if your father makes it so."
OOC: Sorry about the lenght
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The slim man in the black cloak seemed familiar. Had she seen him before? The name "Caul" came to her as she looked into his palms. That's right, she'd heard of him here and there. He kept a low profile, so she had no idea what he actually did. But she got the feeling that, no matter what his profession was, he was trustworthy.
"I could use pair of hands like yours, there are a lot of things to be delivered... And to acquire." Caul said.
The girl's eyes lit up at the prospect of a steady job. "Oh, sir! I would be honoured to work for you! I know the streets of Sodeam like the back of my hands, and I can get anywhere without being spotted! I promise I won't let you down."
Caul simply smiled and nodded. The two of them walked down the bustling road, dodging horse-drawn carriages, peddlers hocking their wares and other pedestrians trying to shield themselves from the downpour. Only the very rich and the very poor spent any amount of time outside during Sodeam's rainy season; the former because they could afford horses and carriages, the latter because they couldn't. The rest of the city's denizens exiled themselves to their dwellings, doing their business through telegrams or sending spells.
The two unlikely compatriots stepped into another back alley, where a worn wooden sign advertised the entrance to "The Dancing Monkey Inn & Tavern". The girl ran ahead and practically threw the door open, though she hesitated to go in before Caul; she'd been kicked out of this place more than once, and the owner was known to have a short temper when dealing with kids.
"Oh, I'm sorry! I never told you my name!" she said to Caul. "I'm Silf. I, uh, it's nice to meet you, sir."
They stepped into the Dancing Monkey, a dimly-lit hole-in-the-wall place that had a somewhat notorious reputation. Nonetheless, the atmosphere was friendly enough, helped by the aroma of bread baking and deer stew bubbling in the back. The proprietor, a fat old man, regarded Silf with suspicion.
"Get out, you- Oh, Caul." said the man, noticing the slim man calmly walking in behind her. "So you conned another man in here with your fortunes, eh Silf?"
"Shut up!" Silf snapped. "Er, Mr. Caul, sir, I'll be right back." She ran into the back of the tavern as Caul pulled up a seat.
"Bloody urchins. They'll do anything for a quick buck." the man said, shaking his head. "So, Caul! What can I get for ya?"
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Rain was falling heavily now; and men were making their way inside, women bustling their children to move a little more quickly. Knotte did not mind the rain, as trouble rarely began during a downpour - and to her displeasure and a little surprise Eirik too shunned the refuge of shelter to continue matching her strides.
Knotte clucked her tongue quietly. Eirik was impossible to discourage. In all the years she had known him he had initiated every conversation, and batted away every one of her unfriendly comments as if it was all just banter. Was he stupid? No, she knew better than to think that. He simply believed himself to be a winner in every way, and treated relationships as he did his own personal goals. Everything was within his reach, and neither of them had any doubt that his desire to achieve the rank of captain would be fulfilled with little trouble. She resigned herself- as she often had in the past- to some form of conversation with the man. There are things the nobility hear that would never find their way to a captain's ears.
"How is your father? What does he make of the king's insistance that civil war looms over us?"
She spoke with some skill, masking her words from each and every civilian whilst ensuring that Eirik could hear her clearly.
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"So, Caul! What can I get for ya?" Asked the owner as Caul loosened his cloak and gently slapped away the water from his face.
"Well, I'd say 'the special', but we both know that there's nothing special with that." He started and both of them let out a quick laugh.
"The wise guy as always. Why do I even keep up with you Caul? The owner asked grinning and shaking his head.
"Probably all that money you owe me." Caul said and grinned back.
"And what are we gonna do about that eh?"
"I'd say I'll just keep coming here and eat the thing you call food and you put it on my tab." Caul smiled, this was one of those rituals they had. Both knew what was going on. But this made Caul feel like he was in power. And at the same time the owner didn't have to fear a dagger in the spine.
"You said it, not I. The usual then?" The owner asked and sighed, Caul nodded. "What about your lady-friend?" He said and smiled, an honest smile at least. The owner got a blast out of making fun of Caul's company.
"I'd say the usual for her as well. She should be able to handle some of that spicy stew, not like the contents matter that much after all." He said but then changed his mind. " But let's let the girl decide for herself, I think she's coming back now."
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"How is your father? What does he make of the king's insistance that civil war looms over us?" She asked him. A question he honestly didn't expect.
"Well my dear captain. The crown officer is holding up quite well. I'd say he's looking far more busy these days though." Eirik answered as he wiped his face with his cape. A part of him wished he was back at the reputed tavern. And with that feeling came the impulse to challenge his peer a little further.
"But you know what they say - the crown officer pleases the wishes of his lord. And I suspect that whatever he's preparing for is of great importance to our glorious regent." He continued with a wink. He too making sure that none of the commoners would hear their discussion. Right now they were just two ranked soldiers walking down the street. But if they knew that he was related to the crown officer - things could get ugly.
"But it's probably for the best..." He said suddenly as he increased his pace and strayed from the main road with his hand on his scabbard. The door to a butcher's shop laid in splinters and a pack of people were yelling threatening at each other inside.
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Silf returned from the back of the tavern, dressed in an oversized brown shirt she'd borrowed from the innkeeper while her sopping wet clothes hung out to dry. Her face and hands were properly clean for the first time in months, and her hair was tied back with a torn strip of black cloth. She smiled at Caul as she took a seat at the counter.
"So you suckered Caul into paying for your supper, huh?" the owner joked.
"No, I'm paying for it!" she said, slapping down a few coins on the counter top. "Give me some of that stew and some bread!"
"It's not enough," the owner said flatly. Caul motioned over to his pocket, but the man stopped him. "Tell you what. Tell me my fortune, and that'll cover the rest."
"Fine." Silf grabbed the owner's hands and closed her eyes. The owner, visibly unimpressed by her tricks, fidgeted around she started to hum, then abruptly stopped. "Despite the best efforts of everyone around you, you're gonna live a long and prosperous life. But you've also been building up a lot of bad karma, and that's gonna come back to bite you in the *** if you're not careful."
"I see." The owner frowned. "Not much of a fortune though. If you really wanted your supper, you'd have told me that I'm going to get rich off of a long-lost relative or something."
"Any two-bit hack can tell you you'll get rich. It's only the good ones that tell you bad things too." Silf said.
"Yeah yeah. I suppose that's good enough." The owner stepped behind the racks of foreign and domestic wines into the kitchen, returning a minute later with two heaping bowls of deer stew and a fresh loaf of bread. "Enjoy."
---
Eirik and Knotte stepped over the splintered remains of the door and into the dingy butcher shop. Arkray, the fuming lieutenant from before, had a beefy man in a white apron suspended in midair via his lasso spell, trading insults with the disaffected commoners while another group stood behind and supported him - though all of them kept their distance due to the poleaxe in his grip.
"I've known him for 40 years!" an older man shouted from the opposing crowd. "He's no more a spy than the Count himself!"
"He's always been shifty!" a woman shouted back from behind Arkray. "He's a spy for Aurol, I know it!"
"Silence!" Arkray's voice, amplified by magic, deafened the crowd with a single word. "This man- Oh! Captain, Vice-Captain! Excellent timing." He bowed to the two soldiers, though he kept his gaze upon the man hanging in midair.
"What's this about?" Knotte asked.
"A reliable source has passed on some troubling information to me. According to them, a number of businessmen within Sodeam are actually spies, sent to undermine our great city by the verminous Count of Aurol." Arkray said, a smug grin upon his face. "He has, of course, denied any involvement with Aurol, but a couple of the department's officers are searching through his belongings right now. As I understand it, there is a plot to dispose of several high-ranking figures within the city, including the Crown Officer - a fact that should interest my good Vice-Captain.
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Caul watched how the girl ate, he was surprised of the speed it happened and smiled a little. It wasn't everyday that he had the opportunity to do a good deed. Well, he did have enough money at the end of the day to pay for all the people in the dancing monkey but that wasn't the point. Paying for people wasn't a solution, they had to get their own gain.
"Y'know. I could use one like you." He started and took a bite of the steaming food. "You seem to know your way around and you fit like a glove. I have a few people who run errands for me, some know more and others know less of what they are actually doing. It's bothersome." He said and broke the bread in two.
"Bread?" He said and put the bread in her hand. "Sometimes the job is easy, take the parcel. Sometimes you gotta travel a bit further, meet some new people." He laughed, some people they were.
"But at the end of the day, you'll have some coin in that palm of yours. The bigger risks you're willing to take - the better the pay." He dipped his bread into the stew and let it suck up the stew.
"Delicious food this huh?" He asked the person sitting at the other side of the counter. And received a shy nod in response from the reluctant customer.
"Just a fair warning, there will be days when there are few things to be delivered. Sometimes I won't require your help to deliver at all. Those days won't be paid for since you aren't delivering anything. Y' clear?" He shrugged, better not give her too high hope.
"...But I'm not just running deliveries..." He whispered enigmatic as he leaned towards her and her bowl. "Just so you know." He chuckled and returned to his plate.
"So what do you say?"
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"I'll do anything you want me to, sir, long as you pay me for it!" Silf said happily, in between practically shoveling the stew and bread down her throat. She wasn't too concerned about the quality of the food, though it certainly was delicious; the stew was just the right amount of spicy to make the mouth tingle without requiring milk to wash it away, and the bread was fluffy and buttery. She was mostly just happy that she was getting good food at all.
The owner put two mugs of frothy, amber-colored beer on the countertop. "Compliments of the stranger in the back." he said, gesturing behind them. Silf and Caul glanced over their shoulders, to see a foreign-looking man in a blue overcoat and a metal mask/helmet resembling a horned skull. Noticing the two's eyes upon him, he wordlessly shrugged in response.
"Creepy." Silf whispered. She put down the spoon long enough to gingerly sip on the beer, though she visibly gagged as she choked it down. "Ugh, this is terrible! People actually drink this stuff? Er, anyways, I'm ready to start any time! Just give the word!"
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Knotte cursed silently. She didn't have nearly enough information, or time, to pass proper judgement over Arkray's claims, and she knew that, if wrong, he could be spearheading a disaster. But confronting him now, and revealing disharmony to the crowd, could be a great deal more dangerous.
"Lieutenant Arkray is detaining this man as he may well be a danger to us all" announced the captain, instantly drawing every gaze. "We will wait and see what is found in his belongings and pass no judgement until then. It does not benefit any one of you to condemn this man without evidence, or to defend his innocence until you know the facts. Now disperse, all of you. This will be handled by officials and not gawping onlookers."
Knotte had never displayed a particular talent for magic in any area other than her voice. This, however, was reknowned. She could halt an enemy with a word, or issue a command that was difficult to disobey. On the word disperse the crowd instantly began to shuffle back, sensing that the fun was over, until none but the hapless man, the three officials and one civilian remained.
"He... he's my cousin!" the civilian trembled. "Please... He's no spy!"
"If he is innocent then he will not be harmed" Knotte said plainly. "You have the word of a captain. Now go."
He backed out of the damaged doorway and out of sight.
"Arkray" Knotte said. "Who is this source?"
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"You see, I've been hearing rumours to that effect for a few months now." Arkray said, making sure to keep his lasso tight around the struggling butcher. "I have catalogued and filed them appropriately, though I do not think anyone has seriously pursued them besides me."
"Put me down!" the butcher cried. Arkray obliged, letting the man stand on his feet, though the lasso remained around his midsection. But Arkray brandished his poleaxe, making sure it caught the butcher's eye, as a further deterrent.
"But earlier today, a personal friend of mine - his name is Enos DeWodan, he's a business owner in the West End - came up to me and reported that he'd overheard several men talking about a potential invasion from Aurol last night. Enos has a degree of telepathy, and in my humble opinion at least, his reliability is unquestionable."
"He's a damn liar!" the butcher growled. "Captain Knotte, this man burst through my door like a man possessed and started accusing random people of being Aurol spies. I stuck up for my customers, so he turned that spell on me and nearly lopped my head off before they stopped him. I've lived in the city for my entire life, and yes, I have family and friends in Aurol, but my loyalties are with the Count."
"We'll let the courts decide that." Arkray muttered. "I do believe it would be prudent to let him spend a night in a cell while I conduct a more thorough investigation of his activities, but of course, that is your decision."
-
Caul laughed as the girl gagged.
"A toast then for your future life!" Caul said cheery as he raised his own mug, the substance within beckoning him. "Skoal!" And with that vanished the contents of the mug.
But with the drink gone Caul glanced over at the stranger in the back once more. There used to be one or another oddball tracking him down, sometimes in more ridiculous costumes than others. Simply because they didn't want to be recognized. But this person - man or woman didn't seem to emit that kind of aura. And that mask made it hard to read whoever it was and the intentions.
A skill, or magic perhaps. The face of a person told many stories, and somehow Caul was able to read those stories before spoken. Which probably was why he was such a negotiator.
"Now Silf." He began as he returned his attention to her. "To ensure that you have what it takes to work for me... I want you to track me down tomorrow. Track me down and I'll give you the assignment of the day." He gave her a heartfelt smile. It wasn't to vex her, just that he didn't want to spread the word we're he'll be with all those money.
She looked confused but still a bit excited. "Find me at sunrise and we'll discuss this further. I have an encounter that should be finished by then."
The door of the tavern opened and two guards stepped in, they looked around and took the owner aside for some questions.
"Wonder what mess Sodeam is in this night." He mumbled as he avoided the gaze of guards. And at the same time noticed that their anonymous admirer had disappeared.
----
"Well done Arkley." Eirik said with a smile. "It's good to know that our brave soldiers are keeping the peace assured in our streets. A truly well done job." He knew that his captain was giving him the evil eye. She always had a soft spot for the commoners and the thing called justice.
"Thank you vice-captain..." The soldier mumbled in response, obviously still not truly satisfied with the current situation.
"Tell you what, next time inform one of your superiors and we'll do well to assist you. When things happen like this there is hardly any time to steel ourself to the situation. But we'll take it from here. Be sure that they'll hear your and your informant's name when this proves to be true."
Arkley nodded and Eirik clenched his fist aimed at the butcher. A thread of silver chains formed around the man and wrapped itself around his torso, locking the arms to his body.
He nodded at his inferiors and simply said "Carry on."
But as he turned to begin his walk with the arrested he noticed how this business now had attracted more people than before. Rumours spread quick and to say that all the commoners gathered outside the butcher shop were there to support the man would be a grave lie.
-
A fire crackled in the brick hearth, combatting the relentless rain battering the nearby window pane, and Elaine Knotte warmed herself there, her scabbarded sword resting neatly on the side of her familiar leather armchair. There was often a great deal for her to think about here, in her sanctuary of isolation, and today was certainly no exception.
The previous few hours had been trying upon her patience. She had been able to do little to help the butcher as he had been dragged away to the royal dungeons, and the information on the man's background had been sent straight to the king, upon his request, before she had been given a chance to see it. The more she mused upon it, the more she was convinced that foul play was afoot. Could this really be the king's plan? To unite his kingdom against Aurol by inventing fictional spies? Or was the danger real? Was her stubbornness clouding her judgement?
On the heavy oak desk beside her laid some thick paper with the stamp of the city guard upon it. She pushed this aside, upsetting her pet owl who fluttered mournfully to his perch above the fire, and reached into the sliding draw for a piece of plain, less traceable paper. This was a letter she could not afford to let the wrong people read.
C
I have a task for you. I must have all information all available regarding the histories of butcher Sebastian Griss and the business owner Enos DeWodan. This will be no simple thing: the data may be being held in the royal palace. I know this is a little outside of your comfort zone but you are the only person I can trust to ensure that the mission is carried out discreetly, and you usually have some strings you can pull if necessary.
Payment will be generous. The information on DeWodan is desirable but not essential. The information on Griss is vital.
If necessary, contact me by the usual method.
K
She rolled up the paper, tucked it into her owl's carrying pouch and whispered 'Caul' into its ear, and then opened a window. Then Muuyii ruffled its feathers, sprang into the air, and, after a small amount of hesitation, flew out into the bitter weather.
-
"Sol Arin? Owner of the Dancing Monkey?" Lieutenant Arkray asked the fat owner of the tavern.
"Yes, that's right. What can I do for you fine men tonight?" the owner asked nervously.
"We need to ask you a few questions. Please come with us." Arkray and the other soldier walked behind the counter and took Sol into the kitchen. He noted the two familiar faces sitting at the counter - that street girl from before, and a shady-looking man he recognized as 'Caul'. Neither of them had done anything illegal in front of him, but if they were smart, they'd leave before he was finished questioning Sol.
"I believe it is time for us to turn in." Caul said, fastening his cloak.
"Yeah, good idea." Silf had noticed the soldier too - he'd been the one that had nearly killed her earlier. And without Captain Knotte to call him off, she suspected that he wouldn't let either of them off so easily. "I'll see you tomorrow, sir! I'll find you first thing in the morning, I promise!"
She jumped off of the barstool and ran into the back of the tavern, where an older woman was tending the inn. Her clothes were hanging downstairs, in the laundry room - they were still damp when she put them on, but she probably wouldn't be staying dry for very long anyways.
The older woman waved to her as she took the back exit - only to run into the man with the horned mask from before, standing underneath the awning just outside the door.
"Oh, young miss! I was hoping you had not already left." He ushered her back into the lobby of the inn. "I have a favour to ask you."
"Uh, sure, what do you need?" she asked. She couldn't see any of his actual face underneath the mask, but he had to have one... right?
"I saw the demonstration of your gift earlier. I did not wish to ask you there, but since we are both alone now, would you be willing to show it to me?" He spoke slowly and carefully, almost as if he wasn't quite sure about the words he was using. He had a moderate accent, though she had no idea where he was from.
"Oh, um, sure." She took his hands and traced his lifelines with her finger, but something was wrong about them. His hands were calloused and arthritic from a lifetime of heavy labour, but based on the patterns she was seeing, he was only around her age. It didn't make any sense at all... either way, she couldn't do a proper reading.
"Is something wrong?" he coolly asked.
"I... I'm sorry, I can't see anything." she said.
"How unfortunate." She couldn't see his face, but he definitely seemed and sounded disappointed. Nonetheless, he reached into one of the many pockets on his overcoat and fished out a key. "Stay dry tonight, young miss."
The key was tagged with a room number of some sort. Before she could ask what it was for, he stepped through the exit. Before she could run after him, the old woman tending the inn looked around the corner.
"So that's what he meant." the old woman muttered to herself. "Okay then, dear. That man, whoever he is, made special arrangements for you."
"Wait, he got me a room?" Silf asked.
"Yes. But if you steal anything, God help me, I'll turn you into the Watch myself."
Not that she was complaining, but why would that man get her a room? Silf pondered this as the old woman led her upstairs. Especially after she couldn't give him a proper fortune, why would he still be willing to give up his room key? It just raised too many questions. She noticed the old woman glaring at her as she unlocked the door to her room, but she didn't pay any attention to it.
The room was sparsely furnished, with only a bed, a nightstand and a chest of drawers off to the side. Not that it mattered all that much - she didn't plan on staying up all that long. She had her work cut out for her tomorrow, and she'd need every last bit of sleep she could get. Above anything else, she needed to make sure Caul knew that he could depend on her... and maybe she could figure out who that man was. But those questions were for tomorrow. For now, her stomach was full and she was in a warm bed; her mind lingered on the ruined picture, but for now, she was perfectly content.
-
Backdoors of buildings usually told guards that something eerie was in place. So eerie that the person found the need to sneak out the back. A mistake that once cost Caul the use of two fingers. Simply because a soldier found him suspicious and went a tad bit too physical. A memory that had scarred Caul since that day he was 12 - nowdays he never used a backdoor.
"Great dish Anne!" Caul called to the cook in the kitchen as he signalled for his bowl to be collected. The woman nodded surprised as Caul fixed his cloak and walked out the tavern. One of the guards followed him in the back of his eye but Caul didn't have anything to hide this day.
The weather had gone from bad to worse and Caul felt the need to pull up the hood of his cloak, he melted in like a creature of the dark. Not drawing nay attention, not revealing anything.
The rain made the cobblestone wet and even a bit slippery, leather boots did not appreciate that as Caul walked up the main street and through countless alleys. Just in case someone followed him.
And then he was finally there. A tall building with five floors. Yet the fifth floor was completely sealed from the main building aside from an attic. Instead he walked round the back of the house and squeezed himself through a small gap in the wall. A little bit in was a ladder which he used to climb up.
"I should probably invest in something more comfortable." Caul mused as he reached the top of the building and unlocked the window there.
The view from this rooftop was amazing although blurry this special night, yet he noticed a fluttering shape drawing closer. And not just closer - towards him.
He sighed and pulled himself up into the window and threw of the cloak into a pile of similar garments. he then cleared a thick desk from it's contents and placed a hook-like decoration on top of it.
He waited patiently and lit an oil lamp at the ceiling as he watched the damage done to his outfit. His frilled shirt was soaked and his vest moist, the contents of his shoes could probably fill a glass with water and his dagger could use a cloth.
Then his visitor finally decided to swoop in. The fluttering of wings and feather descended through his window and landed on the decoration on the table top. The owl ruffled it's feather's and hooed.
"Good evening sire owl." Caul said kindly as he strode over to the owl and unlatched the message it held. He then pulled of his shirt and picked up a bowl of seeds and placed it in front of the owl.
He read the message and scrabbled some notes on a different paper. Names first and then a sign next to each, symbolizing the priority. He then wrote his codeword for the palace 'birdcage'. With notes taken he folded the letter and stuffed it into the lamp.
"Well done sire owl, give your best condolences to your master" He said and lit another lamp at a second desk. He placed the note there and sorted some documents. Tomorrow would be another good day to invest some money, investments cleared himself of loose cash and improved his connections.
But he had to make some special arrangements for the birdcage. Some people could help him with that. But he didn't trust any of them enough. They didn't mind the extra income but they wouldn't put their own lives at stake for someone. He knew who he had to contact, an outsider he was. But his skills with these things were superb. And well, as long as he was sober the job could run smoothly.
Caul finished up and put aside a suit for tomorrow's pleasures, he stacked his documents and letters on the desk and then ordered the owl out of his flat. The owl flew off and Caul closed the window.
Tomorrow was the day when Caul perhaps could be part of the construction of the Sodeam tracks which would improve the country's economics immensely. But he also had to pay a personal favour and visit the birdcage.
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OOC: Do you want me to make the drunk character, or do you want to?
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OOC: Do the drunk thief if you want to. I really don't mind.
-
The first rays of morning crept over the streets of Sodeam. They were warmth without true heat; a shining layer of light which settled on every brick and paving slab but could not quite dispel the damp chill that the night had left behind.
The city was large and empty; the air tense, waiting for the first traders to awaken from their modest, scratchy beds and begin their morning rituals before shambling to work. It reeked of activity yet to come. But one man, at least, was able to admire the view.
"She breathes now, mark'd by hoof nor shoe; a moist exhale that starts afield, yet knows that here is where she stays; a humble breath to start the day and chase the evening webs away" poet said to himself. Then he smiled, and shook his head. "That's ghastly. A child's ramblings to a tolerant mother! A dim man's attempt at romanticising the mundane! I do come out with such trash sometimes."
He picked up his wine glass again and sipped from it nonchalantly, watching the red stain cling to the sides. The early morning was when he considered himself happiest and most level headed - before he began to crash and the inconvenience of sleep would overtake him as it always did. The rain last night had kept him inside his rented rooftop room for the most part but now he was out on the roof proper, looking down upon the city like a newly painted map, his eyes straining to pick out details and fighting his brain's attempts to blur the entirety together into a more manageable abstract piece.
"I," he announced, standing upon the short stone wall that skirted the entire roof like a safety rail, "am ready. I have energy inside of me, and alcohol inside of me, and the time is now!"
At this he lost balance and nearly fell. He corrected himself, however, from a potentially fatal fall, and stood up straight again, undeterred.
"Let me tell you a story! A story that will move your blunted hearts and blossom the soul of the city until mass understanding is the only possibly outcome! Share this with me, my brothers!!!"
Shutters burst open from the side of a house a little way below poet and a hairy, angry man popped his head out. "Quieten down, you freak!! You woke me up again! I'll kill you!"
"You are an ape in a bald cap" Poet said, keeping a straight face until the end of the sentence after which he broke out into hysterical laughter. "Your opinion is noted and discarded, my good man! Enjoy the rest of your morning!"
"Note this! I'm coming over there today! I've had enough! I'm surprised the folks below you haven't lynched you already, the way you've carried on the last few days!"
Poet mused upon this. He had heard banging coming from the floor that night. He had thought it most perculiar and had even replied in a similar fashion. He had locked the door to the roof using a simple spell and apparently they hadn't been able to open it up and get at him.
"Worry not!" he cried at the house opposite once more. "I will move. You have been a wonderful, wonderful audience!"
He started to stroll back towards his door, then felt light headed momentarily and bent over, vomiting. The vomit was thin and contained little that had ever been solid.
"Uugh.... I need to pack and find breakfast!" he stated. "And then a new place to live I suppose. Maybe outside of Sodeam? What a bother! I had hoped to find time to chat to old Caul whilst I was in town. A friendship is a lantern that fades with distance and dims with time."
-
It was early in the morning. People were starting to move about. Kids running down the streets before they were filled with people and wagons. Caul saw the market open up and greeted some of his regular customers. He handled most merchants' imports of the rarer goods. He paid people to acquire them, he paid them and then delivered those items and the merchants paid him. Everyone would be happy unless some prick got the idea to skip Caul in the process, or even Caul and his supplier. He didn't earn a fortune of what he did, but it was more than most people would doing a bit more honest work.
He stopped at a booth and bought some fruit and bread and as he paid up the owner leaned over the stall.
"Caul, can you get your hands on some of those Leloms fruits? Y'know the Aurolian melon like things although greenish inside and sour?" She asked with 'Aurolian' barely a whisper.
"I'll look into it, two weeks from now sounds good?" Caul replied hastily and scribbled it onto a note. "AU. fruit, W.beehive, F", said the note. He said farewell and hurried along. He had a meeting soon but wanted to greet a friend.
----
The door opened and a familiar face stepped outside into the nearing sunlight.
"The rays of the divine orb shines gently on thine face oh fairest Poet." Caul said with a forced accent.
The man, one of many acquaintances over his years smiled at him. He was never hard to track down. Or rather, it was easy to find out where he stayed because of the commotions he usually took part of.
"Caul, what brings you to these neighbourhoods? And what is that in your hand?"
"No time for the morning hugs my friend." Caul said as he handed over a bag of the food he bought. "Walk with me." And set out towards the higher streets of the city. Although the man seemed to have round soles. The stride wasn't as straight as one could wish for.
"Long time no see. I suppose you wouldn't mind assisting me with a matter would you?" Caul said as he pulled out a package and placed it in one of the city's postboxes . "There is this request you see. And your 'skills' would greatly assist me with that. There's a matter regarding the birdcage." He looked back at his friend to make sure he listened.
"Meet me at the usual place five hours from now to reminisce and we'll discuss this later." Caul said as he watched the clocktower and the time which was drawing close. He stopped and placed a hand on Poet's shoulder.
"And please try to be as sober as possible."
---
The meeting with the supervisors of the tracks had gone according to plan. Caul was now an investor of this revolutionary invention. He'd taken it upon himself to supply a percentage of the required iron. A task which had gotten harder thanks to the gloomy relationship to Aurol. He just had to make those arrangements tonight.
For now he had to withdraw some of the fund he'd placed in various businesses around town to make sure that he could afford get iron from Aurol to the workers in Sodeam.
He sat there, on a plateau overlooking the future location of a train station and he mused what the future might hold for him when the tracks were finished.
"Mo'nin boss." Said a childish voice as one of his youngest boys appeared. "whatcha got for me today?"
"Morning Sam." Caul replied as he pulled a letter from his cloak. "East storage. Show the letter, get the goods and deliver it." He declared as he handed it over.
"Gotcha!" The boy said as he ran off.
It was just a matter of time before his other 'messengers' would pop in, and if lucky - A young girl with a knack for fortunes.