Davina disguised as domestic help, leads the way to her home.
Before leaving, Leora swaps her scale mail for the black and red studded leather armor, Chelish armband, and amulet. Once Rexus and Sabrina are ready, she heads out with them.
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As Jessibel makes her way carefully, Kiri follows behind, using the hunting instincts of her ancestors to make sure she doesn't lose the noble girl. The two cross Bleakbridge by tagging along at the end of large groups, paying their pinches for the toll as needed to avoid unnecessary attention. As they approach The Greens, Jessibel is careful to avoid any guards or militia members, and Kiri does the same. The crowded, narrow streets of Argo Isle give way to wider, but more sparsely populated streets of the mainland city, winding their way through the Yolubilis district.
To avoid a Dottari patrol, Jessibel ducks into a side street, hoping to rejoin the main avenue shortly, and Kiri follows her. In an area full of warehouses, with no pedestrians, Jessibel spies a flash of red out of the corner of her eye. She turns quickly, looking around. "Who's there?" she asks.
Kiri sees this and instinctively ducks behind the corner of a building where she can watch Jessibel.
A red-haired woman in a dark red cloak steps out from behind an old wagon, a light crossbow loaded and ready to fire. "Stop right there, nobby girl. I seen you ducking away from the guards. You ain't gonna yell for help when you don't want to get caught by them neither. Drop everything you're carrying that's worth anything, and I'll let you keep your miserable human life."
Jessibel sings a few words of magic and then asks, "You don't really want to do that, do you?"
The woman blinks, looks a little confused, and says, "No, I guess I don't... why was I pointing a crossbow at you? Are you alright, um... um... what's your name again?"
Kiri realizes from her hiding spot that Jessibel must have used a spell to charm the woman into not attacking her.
At the Long Roads Coffeehouse, Laria, a jolly halfling lady with short blond hair , greets them like old friends. She presses hot mugs of coffee and fresh pastries into their hands, and invites them up into her office to "catch up on old times."
"Laria, this is Leora and Sabrina," the Victocora heir says, "they're interested in the proposal I've made for them. They need a place to stay the night, and then in the morning, some others will come to discuss it further."
"Well, the bunk room is unoccupied, except for your stuff, Rex. I hope you three don't mind sharing a room." She looks Sabrina and Leora over critically. "Not a bad idea, dressing up like the militia. Probably got you here with no trouble, eh?" She takes a closer look at Sabrina. "I don't remember their uniforms looking quite so flattering, though," she adds with a wink.
Lydia agrees to the exchange, taking the wand as well as the potions. She returns to her chambers, exhausted from the day's events but filled with an excitement for what comes next.
"My friends call me Abby," Jessibel lied smoothly, flashing a friendly smile. "But who are you? Are you with the Chelish Citizens' Group? It's crazy and dangerous on the streets today! Why, I saw a Queensman smash an unarmed woman in the face with his mace at the protest, and a bit later saw someone throw a brick at a dottari patrol that was just passing through. No one's safe! Madness I tell you!"
"Nice to meet you, Laria," Leora replies to their hostess. She relaxes when Rexus shares the reason for their visit - clearly he trusts her to some degree. "The disguises were a good idea, nobody bothered us."
Leora slouches back in a chair in the office and enjoys the coffee and pastries. "These are great. Thanks."
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Jessibel recalls hearing rumors of the Red Jills, a loosely organized band of thieves led by a mysterious figure whom few of the gang can admit to having met. It's said that they have no human members, mostly recruiting from the tiefling population of Kintargo. That would explain the hint of red in her irises, and the slightly longer-than-normal fingers, tipped with sharp fingernails, that she has wrapped around the crossbow. (Some tieflings are so close to human that that they can only be identified from close examination, and even are susceptible to spells that most tieflings are immune to.)
"Madness yeh, but it's madness the Boss Lady likes. She's got the 'spawn like me, those who be passin', sneakin' 'round the city, lookin' for folks who look like they're tryin' to avoid the guards. Like you were, but I'd not have followed you if I knew who you were, Abby. No hard feelings I hope? There's not a lot of hooms I like but I'll make an exception for you. Most of 'em are, um... that fellow Piet from Galt calls 'em the booge-wassie, says they are pressin' down the folk like us, and it feels pretty depressin' sometimes! So I've been practicin' a little re-distribution of wealth, from their purses to mine." She grins, and her teeth look sharper than a human's ought to.
Kiri vaguely recalls a tiefling named Piet who was stirring up the s~&~ a few years ago in the slums, talking about the oppressed tieflings (and strix) rising up against their oppressors, joining in solidarity with the halflings and destitute humans and overthrowing the tyranny of the aristocrats and the merchant classes.
[b]"So you haven't been to the Livery yet, right?" she asks, and Rexus replies affirmatively. "I doubt that old ruin will be a suitable hideout after all these years. There's some old smuggler's tunnels below this place, but with the way things are going, I've not been using them for ages. They'd make a great place for people who want to remain hidden."
"Sebbe's a pretty name," Jessibel replies in a friendly voice. "I'm sorry to hear about the plight of your people, but hang in there--change is in the air! I think the new Lord-Mayor means to crush the aristocracy and merchants...but I don't think he'll stop there. If you don't serve House Thrune, you don't serve a purpose in his eyes. Oh, where will it all end?"
"I guess only time will tell!" Jessi gushes with a fresh grin. "Not much simple folk like us can do about any of it except stay out of the way and let the chips fall where they may! It was a pleasure to meet you, Sebbe. Stay safe, and try not to get yourself confused with one of those Thrune Patrol people."
Jessibel continues on her way, pleased with her clever escape. She'd wanted to plumb the tiefling for more information about the Red Jills, but that group wasn't the enemy at the moment (so far as Jessi knew), and she didn't want Sebbe to be too angry with her by asking for too much information about the Jills, just in case their paths crossed again once her charm had worn off.
Besides, Jessibel had a bigger, even more dangerous encounter before her: telling her mother and the Aulamaxa matron about the day's happenings at the Aria Park Protest...and her own actions at the event. She'd be lucky if she walked away from that meeting as unscathed as she had from the one with Sebbe.
The next morning, Jessibel stalks into the Long Roads Coffeehouse decked in a suit of form-fitting studded leather armor chocolate-brown in color; a dark gray cloak with a tan lining billows from her shoulders. Her hair, too, has been colored brunette. A rapier hangs from her left hip while a shiny buckler's strapped to her left forearm.
The young noblewoman herself looks well-coifed yet somehow frazzled--her eyes wide yet blinking frequently, like she's excited for action but didn't get much sleep last night.
If Jessi needs to track down the current whereabouts of Kintargo Opera House Society members, she'd leave home at the butt-crack of dawn to ask around in inns, taverns, or with street merchants in the Opera House's surrounding blocks.
Jessibel would've made one stop the GM didn't mention when you trailed her home: at a place called the Dashing Rogue, where she picked up her armor and backpack.
When she leaves home in the morning, she likewise makes a side-trip to the Newt Market, quickly visiting a herbalist there.
After that, she might have needed to make an information-gathering run in the streets around the Kintargo Opera House for a couple hours (but waiting on GM info/ruling on that).
Davina leads Lucius and Dom to a three story house not far from the Alabaster Academy.
She leads them to the front door, and removes her disguise.
"Here we are Eradon Manor. Welcome to my home. She pulls a small key from her belt pouch and opens the door.
There shouldn't be anyone home except for the cook/housekeeper. My family should all be out lecturing. I'll show you your rooms for the night, and then we can head to the laboratory to get cooking.
On the way to the laboratory she points out the kitchen, waving to the cook letting her know there will be two extra for dinner, and the library. She offers to let them use either one if they would like.
The laboratory is neat and dry with lots of tables to work at. She begins to work on the Alchemist Fires.
As Jessi finally began to make her way to the coffee house Kiri waited until the two were in aback alley and began to creep closer to the young woman, it was time to see what she was made of...
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Slightly less than an hour later, long after Jessibel and Kiri have left, Sebbe suddenly blinks, and lets out a litany of curses. "Lousy mind-fiddling magic-working human b$~&&!" she screams at no one in particular.
Eradon Manor just got its basement windows blown out again.
Domitius is a little surprised to see the odd-looking creature talking to the dottari. When they’re safely out of earshot, he says in a low voice to Lucius, “That was a tengu, wasn’t it? I’ve heard of them but never seen one before. Wouldn’t have thought any nonhumans are really in Thrune’s good graces,” he shrugs.
Upon arrival at Miss Davina’s house, Domitius looks it over appreciatively. Not as big as the Sarini estate, but I’ll bet that there’s also much less of a populated-with-mudhoka* problem, Dom thinks to himself. ’Cept for Miss Sabrina, she’s turning out okay after all, d’spite her dad’s best efforts.
“Well, thanks for the hospitality, Ma’am. I’ll uh, I’ll just stay out of the way while the two of you do your thing. And I’ll try and use the front door like civilized folk, ‘nless it becomes necessary,” he smiles.
While the other two do their thing, Dom spends some of the time perusing a few of the books in the library, doing his best to be careful with everything. To him, the books seem to cover a dizzying range of topics; Domitius is no dummy, but a lack of formal education sends his head spinning after reading any of them for more than a moment or two.
While leafing through a book on “Arcane Subcutaneous Transfer” by a man named Zelatus, Domitius hears a whooshing sound, and a concerned gasp. He drops the book and hurries for the workshop. Two steps from the lab, he pauses to realize he shouldn’t have just dropped the book on the floor like he did, but then focuses.
“Are you guys okay in h- whoa!”
it was time to see what she was made of...
Laria's frankness surprises Leora, but she answers with equal openness. "Some ale would be great. You're absolutely right -how did you know? The only thing I thought was obvious was the flask. " She looks at Rexus and Sabrina to see if they'd seem through her disguise before she'd let them in on her secret. Leora doesn't reply to the comment about the Badger, she only nods with a serious look on her face.
Once the topic changes to the livery, Leora asks Laria "Secret tunnels? Where do they lead? When was the last time you were there? Anything we should prepare for besides rotting floor boards or the ceilings caving in? " During the conversation, Leora sips at the coffee and gladly eats the pastry, since she hadn't thought to take Jessibel up on those sandwiches before leaving Songbird Hall.
EDIT!! I can make things easier for Wascally Kiwi! Jessi's temporarily moving out of her family manor and in with Sabrina, so she'd have her backpack with her. She'd put her winter cloak inside it because if she wore the cloak over the backpack, she'd look like a hunchback (And that ain't happening--so not Jessi's style!).
If you peek inside Jessibel's belt pouch you'll find 1 pp, 7 gp, 9 sp, and 7 cp...along with 20 small packets containing a white powder.
[Best Puss in Boots Impression] "Dat eez not mine." [/PiB Impression]
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Davina turns to look at Domitius as he comes into the room. What he sees is her gem green eyes and white teeth gleaming from a soot covered face. She grins at him. "Used too much saltpeter again. Presenting the house of blown out windows. The glazier will be by tomorrow to repair them. He has a boy who checks on the windows every day." A greenish smoke is rolling out the blown out windows. She is completely unconcerned about the damaged windows or the smoke. Her body language says this is a fairly normal occurrence.
Lydia awakens the next day, gets dressed and suddenly feels very foolish; despite knowing that she would need to travel to the coffeehouse today it had entirely slipped her mind to pair with a group member to ensure safety.
"Well, nothing to be done about it now. I'm sure I'll be fine." She certainly is not going to miss something as important as the history of the Silver Ravens for some trifling safety concerns.
Lydia puts on some old clothes from before her life as a priestess; dressed as nothing more than a fine young lady of the merchant class, it would be entirely feasible for her to be going on an innocent morning walk. She hopes so, at any rate.
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Jessibel's trip to the Coffeehouse is uneventful, except for Kiri's successful lifting of her purse.
"The tunnels connect to the sewers, which lead out of town, which makes them perfect for smugglers. They're actually in pretty good shape -- solid stone walls, ceiling, and floors. I'm a Tiller myself, so what I've been smuggling are mostly people -- lots of my folk, but humans and others as well. It's been too rough around here for that nowadays, though. The Glorious Reclamation maybe thinks they're doing good, but they're also stirring up a whole s!&@load of trouble."
Leora recognizes that a Tiller means a leader in the Bellflower Network, a underground society dedicated to freeing slaves, particularly halfling slaves, which uses agricultural names -- Tiller, crop, Farmer -- to sound less suspicious. Some of her late Caydenite friends had connections to the Bellflower Network.
"My friend Nan is smuggling more conventional stuff using the tunnels, though. Varisian textiles, he says, which I think might be Sczarni slang for flayleaf. He's good people, though, even if he is a Sczarni human. Thing is, I haven't seen him for a while now, he went down to the tunnels to move some goods and hasn't come back up. He might have gone out somewhere else, but I'm a mite worried. Haven't had time to deal with it. Nothing to be done about it right now, though."
Laria looks at Leora with a bit of concern. "How have you been holding up since that night? You don't look like you've been living on the streets. I've got food, clean clothes, even a tub for a hot bath in my room if you need one."
The next morning, the three are able to make the short trip to the Long Roads Coffeehouse without any trouble.
Lydia makes it to the Coffeehouse with no trouble, even at Bleakbridge where she needs to pay the 1 pinch toll to a pair of bored-looking Dottari.
Lucius spends a little bit of time making his own ammunition before heading over to Davina when he hears the sound of beakers breaking, but seeing that she was alright Lucius accepted it as one of the risks of working with volatile components. Hearing an older lady yell down Lucius looks askance at Davina, but seeing her brushing it off her assumes that it's a normal thing. The next morning he quickly raids the kitchen for food before they get to the Coffeehouse.
Dom stares with mild amazement at the mess. "I was kidding about the windows! 'Least, I thought I was kidding...!
Whether it's a thing or not, when the older lady starts yelling, Dom's reflexes kick in, and he does his this-isn't-for-my-ears, I'm-part-of-the-furniture routine, staring straight ahead at nothing.
Jessibel stalks into the Long Roads Coffeehouse decked in a suit of form-fitting studded leather armor chocolate-brown in color; a large, stylish matching backpack is strapped to her back. Her hair, too, has been colored brunette. A rapier hangs from her left hip while the light mace she claimed from the CCG goon dangles from her right. A shiny buckler's strapped to her left forearm.
The young noblewoman herself looks well-coifed yet somehow frazzled--her eyes wide yet blinking frequently, like she's excited for action but didn't get much sleep last night. Catching a wave from Sabrina, Jessi struts over to where her friend's seated, a wide grin spreading across her face.
"While Mother said you're always welcome at Aulamaxa Manor, she suggested we both lay low for a while a bit further from the Greens and your father," Jessibel tells her redhead friend. "Since I know you likely didn't plan your escape very well...and since I know you probably won't be able to stay away from Angus Vashnarstill for very long, I brought along my stash of night tea and bought a little more at the Newt Market on my way over here."
Jessi's grin turns into more of a teasing smirk as she adds, "You're welcome, you slu--HEY! My belt pouch is gone!"
Lydia has to fight the urge to march over to the gossipers and ask what doghousing is so she can be properly furious about it. It is becoming increasingly clear that the revolution could not come any sooner; this sort of reign of terror would cause all citizens of Kintargo to suffer, even just regular people living their everyday lives.
For one moment, Lydia imagines Barzillai executed with one of his own cruel methods, before retracting the thought in disgust. She finds her way to the coffeehouse and waits for her co-conspirators to arrive.
Unobtrusively, Kiri entered a minute behind Jessibel, and followed her to the table with Sabrina. She waited for the inevitable outrage from the girl and, when it came, decided it was time to point some things out to the young woman. She stepped up behind Jessi and held the missing money pouch out and tossed it into the air and caught it as she said, "If you're going to go anywhere alone you need to learn to watch your back better. Had I been out to hurt you you'd never have known I was there till you felt the slice of a blade across your throat or a thwack to the back of the head left you helpless to whatever I had planned to do to you. Consider this a lesson and go nowhere alone Jessibel, you'll live longer that way."
"I guess I'm doing alright, considering everything. Honestly, I want nothing more than to strangle Thrune and his cronies right now. So working with Rexus will probably be a better way to blow off steam and still stick it to Thrune. I never thought going to a protest would be a way to make new friends. There are so many people with reasons to hate Thrune - I'm glad to see we're all meeting up, even if it's under such crummy circumstances."
Leora listens to Laria's description of the Livery and its hidden tunnels carefully. "I'll keep an eye out for Nan while we're there. If he's smart, maybe he left Kintargo like you said. Not a bad idea right now."
"Good morning everybody," Leora says, coming down the stairs to the main room of the Coffehouse. She rubs her eyes as if she'd just woken up recently even though it's close to noon. Her long hair is unbraided and she hasn't put her armor on yet. "Anybody else want something to drink? Laria serves some good coffee and pastries, if you hadn't guessed by the name of the place. We can take it up to my room if we'd like some more privacy."
Lydia gives Leora a wave, happy to see a familiar face. "A cup of coffee would definitely be good for me right now. I'm afraid I'm a bit rattled at the moment... I heard some gossip about Barzillai's latest antics on the way here. You wouldn't happen to know what doghousing is, would you?"
Davina walks into the coffee house, and waves to Lydia and Leora. "Coffee and a cheese pastry please.", she calls out to the server as she heads toward them.
"Good morning ladies. I'm glad to see you both made it here safely. We didn't have any trouble getting to the house or here this morning. Is everyone here?"
Lucius follows closely behind Davina into the coffee house looking around at the opulence of the place to be able to survive just on selling coffee. He takes a seat and looks around at the establishment before ordering. He wasn't sure if he would live to see tomorrow so he decided to get a nice morning meal today. "A coffee with some sugar on the side and a pastry with some butter on the side as well."
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When Jessibel enters, Sabrina smiles brightly, the smile getting a little forced as the other young lady sends some pointed comments her way, but is ready to reply with her own barbs when Jessibel's lost purse comes to light. When Kiri reveals that she took it, Sabrina says, "Well, Jessi, darling, she's got you there -- you're always better at drawing attention than paying attention."
of excruciations vary wildly, but most are relatively simple affairs such as pillorying or public caging. In extreme situations, lethal sentences such as impaling or crucifixion are carried out. Barzillai Thrune is something of an artist when it comes to his preferred methods for all matters of discipline, and this extends to his taste in excruciations; his preferred form is known as "doghousing".
When a prisoner is doghoused, he is put inside of a small wooden dog house, the walls of which have had dozens of nails driven through. The confines inside are incredibly cramped, making it difficult for the doghoused victim to move or shift position without being stabbed by a nail, and making it impossible to stand or lie down. Twice a day, at sunset and sunrise, the victim is allowed out of the doghouse to scavenge for scraps of food and water left by the dottari, but he must contend with two or more feral, ravenous dogs that have been chained in reach of the food—if the victim isn’t quick, the dogs eat the food, but if the victim goes for the food, he’ll likely be bitten at least a few times before he’s forced to seek shelter in the doghouse for another day.
Generally, doghousing lasts for a week, and if a victim survives that week he is released with a stern warning. Repeat offenses result in longer terms in the doghouse.
Laria's morning waitress takes the orders and relays them to the kitchen. Laria herself is still asleep, having overindulged a bit the previous night. It's a mistake for a halfling to try to match a human, especially a Caydenite who's used to drinking regularly, drink for drink. As usual, Leora is not troubled by hangovers or other side-effects of last night's drinking, something she has always taken as a sign of the Drunken Hero's favor.
The Coffee House has a steady stream of customers in and out of the door as the students of the Alabaster Academy get their morning cuppas before class.
Jessibel jumps and shrieks comically as Kiri catches her coin pouch and speaks into the oblivious noblewoman's ear. While Sabrina enjoys a good giggle at her friend's expense, Jessi herself is less amused.
"By all the gods fair and foul, that wasn't funny!" she scolds the strix. Her anger subsides swiftly, though, as she realizes both Sabrina and Kiri are right.
"I was trained to act, sing, and dance--not sneak around and spy on things," the girl grumbles. "And the only reason I went off on my own was because I had to warn my family about what had happened at the protest and time was of the essence."
The girl stands and glares at Kiri for a moment, her arms crossed before her chest...until she realizes just how much the stance makes her look like the spoiled little rich girl she is. Then she unobtrusively unfolds her arms, lowering them until one hand is on each hip. She doubts the new stance is as intimidating as she'd hoped. Finally, Jessi lets out a sigh and her arms drop to dangle at her sides.
"I never even saw anyone get close enough to lift my purse," the girl admits sheepishly to the strix. "And I learned my lesson about alleys after...never mind. The only alley I passed through this morning was when I left the Newt Market. Were you following me then?"
"It's good you wewren't amused, this was a lesson, not entertainment. As for how long I've followed you it's been since you left the temple yesterday. It would have been simple to take someone along with you, there wasn't a need to go alone." The young strix sighed then, a kind of low trilling sound, and said, "If you wish I can try and teach you how to be quiet and unseen, but it would mean obeying my instructions and accepting my methods of discipline for failure."
"There was nothing simple about me getting home yesterday in a timely fashion to warn my family," Jessibel replies petulantly. "Dom, Sabrina, and I were set to go, and then there was talk of dropping off folks at Mrs. Eradon's home and the coffeehouse and maybe delivering a message to Lydia's parents...it was taking forever! Yes--it was my own foolish antics at the protest that endangered them in the first place, but I couldn't compound that mistake by taking my sweet time in owning up to that mistake and giving my family fair warning that reprisals might be coming from Thrune if I was recognized."
Again the girl lets out a deep sigh and calms herself. "I'm sorry; I won't do that again. Lesson learned."
"Wait...you've been following me since I left Songbird Hall?" Jessi asks suddenly. "Then you know about my encounter with Sebbe?"
Jessi quickly tells the others about her near ambush in the alley by the Red Jill and what the bard learned from her new 'friend.'
Turning back to Kiri, Jessibel says, "I'd love to learn some stealth techniques from you...and I suppose I probably need to learn to be more cognizant of what's going on outside my own personal space. I'd appreciate any pointers you could give me."
Then her eyes narrow as she asks, "Just what are your methods of discipline for failure?"
Kiri grinned almost evilly and replied, "I learned by natural consequences and so will you. That could mean as little as a thwack to the back of the head to being chased by feral dogs to being chased by an angry mob. I doubt any of it would be fatal."
Kiri looked downright creepy when she smiled like that, but Jessi thought it best not to mention that little fact.
"I don't like the part about feral dogs," she began cautiously, not sure if she could get away with haggling or not (but you never know 'til you try). "The rest of it sounds doable, though. You are the teacher--I am your student."
Deciding that Sabrina was looking far too smug about Jessi's humiliation at the hands (and, especially, quick fingers) of Kiri, Smoke decided to quench some of Fire's glow by telling her of the invitation she'd received from the Kintargo Opera House Society.
"It's such a special honor...so few are chosen," she tells the others, taking that exact moment to make the briefest of eye contact with Sabrina. "The Society's filled with the brightest minds and most popular talents in all of Kintargo," the bard gushes. "Once I've been accepted into its ranks, I'll have access to all sorts of powerful people who can aid us in our fight against House Thrune. It's a rare opportunity and one I cannot pass up."
In a much quieter voice, the girl adds, "All I need now is to come up with somewhere between 250 and 500 gold sails to pay the admittance fee and my first semester's tuition...."
"Would any of the tunnels under the coffehouse get us closer to the Livery?"
"Rexus, are you planning on coming with us to the Livery tomorrow?"
Leora enjoys the opportunity to laugh, drink, and curse Thrune with Rexus and Laria that night, staying up later than was probably wise.
Leora sits back and enjoys the opportunity to wake up as Kiri, Jessibel and Sabrina talk, smiling at the exchanges. "Congratulations Jessi, that's great."
Once Davina reminds them of the actual reason they're all meeting, she ticks everyone off on her fingers. Let's see, we've got me, Sabrina, Davina, Lydia, Jessibel, Kiri, and Lucius. Did Dom come with you this morning, Davina and Lucius?"
Davina peers around the coffee house. "He should be here somewhere."
"Jessibel tell us more about this Kintargo Opera House Society opportunity. The Opera House is no longer an operating venue. Why would they be approaching people to join them now?"
"Lydia did I hear you ask about Doghousing as I came in? It's a disgusting practice designed to humiliate and some times kill it's victims. People who are being punished are put in small dog houses with nails driven in them and forced to stay there except when they are allowed out to fight for food with feral dogs. The victims usually don't come out on the winning end. It's not something Kintargo likes to have happening here." She shakes here head sadly.
"Lydia did I hear you ask about Doghousing as I came in? It's a disgusting practice designed to humiliate and some times kill it's victims. People who are being punished are put in small dog houses with nails driven in them and forced to stay there except when they are allowed out to fight for food with feral dogs. The victims usually don't come out on the winning end. It's not something Kintargo likes to have happening here."
Although horrified at the sound of the practice, Domitius tries to laugh it off. "See, Miss Jess? And here, you were worried about hangings." Noting her new outfit, Domitius says, "That looks downright subtle compared to yesterday. I was half-expecting you to show up as a nine-foot tall bronze statue of Aroden." With a cup of coffee and a hunk of bread in front of him, Dom waits until the crowd is thinned out to just "friendlies" before asking, "So, when do we start our little expedition...?"
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In response to the question, Rexus looks thoughtful. "I had thought that I would, but that beating I took from the militia goons makes me wonder about the wisdom of such a course. My health is not the best -- the alchemical extracts I take regularly are vital to maintaining my life as it is, but they take their toll as well. Though your healing helped the injuries, I still feel the weakness in my bones."
Sabrina's smile takes on a brittle edge again as Jessi boasts, but looks more pensive when the issue of money is raised. "Money's going to be an issue. Where's Miss Laria? I want to ask how much it is to rent a room here long-term."
The waitress, a middle-aged halfling with red hair showing a bit of grey, replies, "She'll be up before lunch, most likely. Not the first time she's slept off a little too much prayin' to Cayden."
As Jessibel makes her way carefully, Kiri follows behind, using the hunting instincts of her ancestors to make sure she doesn't lose the noble girl. The two cross Bleakbridge by tagging along at the end of large groups, paying their pinches for the toll as needed to avoid unnecessary attention. As they approach The Greens, Jessibel is careful to avoid any guards or militia members, and Kiri does the same. The crowded, narrow streets of Argo Isle give way to wider, but more sparsely populated streets of the mainland city, winding their way through the Yolubilis district.
To avoid a Dottari patrol, Jessibel ducks into a side street, hoping to rejoin the main avenue shortly, and Kiri follows her. In an area full of warehouses, with no pedestrians, Jessibel spies a flash of red out of the corner of her eye. She turns quickly, looking around. "Who's there?" she asks.
Kiri sees this and instinctively ducks behind the corner of a building where she can watch Jessibel.
A red-haired woman in a dark red cloak steps out from behind an old wagon, a light crossbow loaded and ready to fire. "Stop right there, nobby girl. I seen you ducking away from the guards. You ain't gonna yell for help when you don't want to get caught by them neither. Drop everything you're carrying that's worth anything, and I'll let you keep your miserable human life."
This will be theatre of the mind to save time. I will move for Jessibel since she's away from the computer today. Kiri is 60 ft away from Jessi and the woman, behind the corner of a building. The woman is 15 feet away from Jessi. If you look on the map,
Jessibel sings a few words of magic and then asks, "You don't really want to do that, do you?"
The woman blinks, looks a little confused, and says, "No, I guess I don't... why was I pointing a crossbow at you? Are you alright, um... um... what's your name again?"
Kiri realizes from her hiding spot that Jessibel must have used a spell to charm the woman into not attacking her.
"My friends call me Abby," Jessibel lied smoothly, flashing a friendly smile. "But who are you? Are you with the Chelish Citizens' Group? It's crazy and dangerous on the streets today! Why, I saw a Queensman smash an unarmed woman in the face with his mace at the protest, and a bit later saw someone throw a brick at a dottari patrol that was just passing through. No one's safe! Madness I tell you!"
"Sebbe. Abby, eh? Named after the queen? Nah, I ain't with those idiots, though they're right useful these days. I'm one of the Red Jills."
Jessibel recalls hearing rumors of the Red Jills, a loosely organized band of thieves led by a mysterious figure whom few of the gang can admit to having met. It's said that they have no human members, mostly recruiting from the tiefling population of Kintargo. That would explain the hint of red in her irises, and the slightly longer-than-normal fingers, tipped with sharp fingernails, that she has wrapped around the crossbow. (Some tieflings are so close to human that that they can only be identified from close examination, and even are susceptible to spells that most tieflings are immune to.)
"Madness yeah, but it's madness the Boss Lady likes. She's got the 'spawn like me, those who be passin', sneakin' 'round the city, lookin' for folks who look like they're tryin' to avoid the guards. Like you were, but I'd not have followed you if I knew who you were, Abby. No hard feelings I hope? There's not a lot of hooms I like but I'll make an exception for you. Most of 'em are, um... that fellow Piet from Galt calls 'em the booge-wassie, says they are pressin' down the folk like us, and it feels pretty depressin' sometimes! So I've been practicin' a little re-distribution of wealth, from their purses to mine." She grins, and her teeth look sharper than a human's ought to.
"Sebbe's a pretty name," Jessibel replies in a friendly voice. "I'm sorry to hear about the plight of your people, but hang in there--change is in the air! I think the new Lord-Mayor means to crush the aristocracy and merchants...but I don't think he'll stop there. If you don't serve House Thrune, you don't serve a purpose in his eyes. Oh, where will it all end?"
"I guess only time will tell!" Jessi gushes with a fresh grin. "Not much simple folk like us can do about any of it except stay out of the way and let the chips fall where they may! It was a pleasure to meet you, Sebbe. (Jessibel vigorously shakes the tiefling's hand.) Stay safe, and try not to get yourself confused with one of those Thrune Patrol people."
Sebbe accepts Jessibel's hand, and smiles at her. "Stay safe now," she says as she pulls her hood back over her head and heads back towards the main road, to look for another mark to follow.
Jessibel continues on her way, pleased with her clever escape. She'd wanted to plumb the tiefling for more information about the Red Jills, but that group wasn't the enemy at the moment (so far as Jessi knew), and she didn't want Sebbe to be too angry with her by asking for too much information about the Jills, just in case their paths crossed again once her charm had worn off.
Once everyone's there, Rexus suggests they go upstairs, "...so we can catch up on old times in peace, and let these ladies and gentlemen tend to the crowds of students in peace."
In the private rooms of the Coffeehouse, Rexus says, "Well, now that we're all rested and ready, I suggest we make our plans. Things seem much quieter today. Miss Lydia, did you have any trouble getting here, even over Bleakbridge? No? I thought not. I think Thrune is trying to sweep the events of yesterday under the rug. First thing I need to say is that I'm not sure it would be best for me to come with you. I have talents, but I am also rather frail, and after yesterday's beating I'm concerned I might be a liability for you."