"I'm not sure but we might have stumbled across the killer in action," Karrin says, "we heard an attack, but by the time we got there the killer was gone and the poor bert was dead, yet there wasn't a mark on him. He did say something about shadows, and there were traces of magic on him, but some Xaosmen showed up before we could give the body a good look over."
"Could you tell us what your source was arguing with Eliath about before Eliath disappeared?" Nari said, intently watching everyone's footwear.
"I guess we could give that black sail tavern a lookover "
"I'm not sure but we might have stumbled across the killer in action," Karrin says, "we heard an attack, but by the time we got there the killer was gone and the poor bert was dead, yet there wasn't a mark on him. He did say something about shadows, and there were traces of magic on him, but some Xaosmen showed up before we could give the body a good look over."
Derioch takes this in
"So shadows could be a fiend, or some cutter with shadowmagic. The Xaosmen are barmier than a Spire God, but they don't usually harm the barmies, as like sticks with like, and those Xaosboys are half-barmy to begin with."
Derioch thinks harder
"What d'yeh thinks going on with yer blood Eliath? Was he a Doomguard before he ended up in the Hive?"
"Could you tell us what your source was arguing with Eliath about before Eliath disappeared?" Nari said, intently watching everyone's footwear.
Derioch smiles at the shy girl
"Ach, my source is a bubber named Torm. He's on the street, half-barmy, but wont come here 'cause he ain't ready to give up the bub. Him an' Eliath got in some tiff over a sleeping spot by a tavern's back alley. Typical street-bubber guff. Torm ain't on me list of possible suspects, he's scrawny and gots the shakes. He's barely able to use his stems anymore to walk."
A sad look flits over Derioch's face.
"I guess we could give that black sail tavern a lookover "
Derioch turns to Merle
"If yeh could that'd be great! I'd go meself, but they don't takes kindly to us Bleakers over in that neck of the woods. See if yeh can find out from yer blood Eliath what's been goin' on in the Hive. I gots a feeling there's summat odd afoot. Keep me posted, an' I'll do the same. If yeh want yeh can come back here tomoorow at Peak an' we can lann each other the chant."
Justin finishes his beer as the three get up from the table and head out the door. As soon as they are out he rises and strides slowly over to the door, winking at Drazek as he passes. Once to the door he looks around casually, noting which direction the three are headed in, and then stands on the porch until they are out of sight before walking to the side to meet up with the others.
"I listened to what they had to say. Nothing very incriminating, but awfully fishy." He explains once they are all together.
"At first glance it was just a couple of 'experienced bloods' giving their newest member from a Prime the basics of his new gig. Only I've never heard of ANYone in ANY faction giving their newest raw recruit what sounds like an important job, or nice quarters."
Justin looks at Isaac and Drazek with a skeptical look on his face. "ANd when you confronted him in there, he was awfully nervous about something, the hair on the back of his neck almost stood up on end! IF he WAS just a new arrival from Prime, what's he got to be nervous about?"
JUstin fills them in on the rest, including the names of the other gents, and the place they set up the former-deaders new crib.
Isaac offers a grin.
"Aye, I picked up on his mood in there. I don't know if that itself is enough to raise hackles; plenty to be on edge about, 'specially for the Clueless or a berk what thinks he's Clueless. Especially when a strange (but dashing, clever and enviably handsome) barmy approaches you saying you were dead. It is queer they got him on the beat so early, though. It ain't unheard of, you know: bloods rise through the ranks much faster than berks. If a master smith walks into the Foundry looking to join up, he ain't going to be carting slag around. Waste of everyone's time. Everyone plays politics, which is seeming more and more to be at the heart of the case. A high-up blood (or someone claiming to be a high-up blood) may have pulled some strings getting their boy in. Like I was saying to Bethany; Toranna gets all the unknown corpses through her door and likely enough clout with the Dead to get some privacy to work. We're figuring that she gets them thinking they're dead, pulls 'em in, drains their brainboxes and sends them out to join other factions. "
He thinks for a second.
"My suggestion is that we follow up on Eliath's place and have a look-see. Then, we should arrange to meet our red-haired barmy in the antipeak. We write him a note, using his real name, saying that there's one more test or some such rot and that he should meet us somewhere. Have an urchin deliver it and see if he'll rattle his bonebox for us away from his new mates."
"If yeh could that'd be great! I'd go meself, but they don't takes kindly to us Bleakers over in that neck of the woods. See if yeh can find out from yer blood Eliath what's been goin' on in the Hive. I gots a feeling there's summat odd afoot. Keep me posted, an' I'll do the same. If yeh want yeh can come back here tomoorow at Peak an' we can lann each other the chant."
"Sure thing." Turning to her two companions "Well shall we go have a word with mr Eliath then?"
"Nice l'il scam they got goin'"
Drazek nods at Isaac's suggestion. "Sounds like a plan"
"I agree. Let us see what we can see at Eliath's home."
Despite the rain, Bethany takes to the air and follows from above.
Justin nods his agreement with a smirk.
"Sounds like my kind of plan. Sneaky, underhanded, and fun! Let's go see what Mr. Eli's home has to tell us."
"Sure thing." Turning to her two companions "Well shall we go have a word with mr Eliath then?"
Nari nods, still studying the ground. She was busy thinking things over. Had Eliath really gone crazy? Arguing with someone about a corner...Was there something special about that corner? Perhaps related to the thing Eliath had been looking for? And who in the world were the Doomguard? Sometimes it was like trying to translate from another language, but without any guide to what things meant.
"What was the name of that tavern . . . in case we have to track Torm down?"
"My suggestion is that we follow up on Eliath's place and have a look-see. Then, we should arrange to meet our red-haired barmy in the antipeak. We write him a note, using his real name, saying that there's one more test or some such rot and that he should meet us somewhere. Have an urchin deliver it and see if he'll rattle his bonebox for us away from his new mates."
Isaac, Justin, Bethany and Drazek regroup outside the Crooked Sword once the three Takers depart. They decide that Scholar’s Row and the elusive Eli’s kip should be their next destination.
Heading out from under the lintel they’d been sheltering under, the group walks down Sandstone Row heading towards the distant spire of the Hall of Records. The rain continues to pour down from the dark grey and yellow clouds, but the roads are much easier to traverse, as the cobbles are in good repair and the gushing rain waters are sluiced down large sewer grates. The pedestrians are neatly dressed, with nary a bubber or a jinkskirt in sight. Red-armored Harmonium foot patrols begin to appear regularly, swaggering down the street and giving anyone who looks out of place the evil eye. The stores begin to deal with scholarly persuits: Copyists, parchment sellers, accountants and the like.
Passing by the formidable tower of the Hall of Records, they group segues onto Scholar’s Row. The rain-hissing streets begin to fill with scurrying clerks and scribes, released from their daily grind by the advent of Before Antipeak. The several taverns the group passes are filling with black-robed stoop-shouldered men with the occasional flashily-dressed Taker high-up in residence like a peacock in a henhouse.
The Fated faction member’s presence is thick on Scholar’s Row. One reason looms out of the rain as the group walks on: The Hall of Information. The Hall of Information’s a stately edifice of blue marble edged in onyx, its sparkling crystal windows framed in turquoise. A pair of marble ramps leading inside run between three marble columns. The words on each column (one per capital) taken together summarize the Hall’s credo: COOPERATION, COMPLIANCE, and CONTROL. Outside the blue-marbled building is a milling crowd of fact-seekers, touts, scribes and various loiterers watching the crowd of Cagers all looking for some dark they hope to pry from the Heartless’ hands. Mercykiller guards in their signature spiked armor stand at the foot of the two ramps, their hard eyes scanning the crowd.
A few city blocks past the Hall of Information, Scholar’s Row begins to get a bit less orderly and dignified. Young cutters wearing Xaos multicolored mohawks and Bleaker black cluster around taverns with names like Back Row, Snapped String and Drunken Muse. Street performers begin to multiply, a sight that was in short supply in the other parts of the Clerk’s Ward.
Pawn shops, book shops, music shops and art galleries replace accountancy firms and scribe houses. Above all this a large randomly-colored building looms, with garrets and towers, spikes and finials, gargoyles and cupolas sprouting from its sides like a Slaad birthday cake. A sign in gothic lettering above an entryway proclaims the building as the Lazz School of Vivid Unpleasantness.
The road that runs down the side of it, linking Scholar’s Row to Crystal Dew Lane , is Scrivner's Court, where the kip of Eliath presumably can be found.
Wading through a clove-scented fog of dripping students busy searching out an evening’s entertainment, the group spots Falanna's Boarding House. It is a seedy pile, with peeling window casings and razorvine crawling up the patchwork stone façade of its first four stories. Shaky timber additions add another three stories to the building, leaning drunkenly over the street. The door is solid ironwood though, with a sign reading VACANCY: Inquire within. No musicians
"What was the name of that tavern . . . in case we have to track Torm down?"
Derioch turns to Karrin
"It's called the Butcher's Block. Yeh'll find it down at the juncture of Shatterbone Street and Laughing Cat Alley. It's a few blocks downward from Allesha's Pantry."
Nari:
Karrin:
Nari nods, still studying the ground. She was busy thinking things over. Had Eliath really gone crazy? Arguing with someone about a corner...Was there something special about that corner? Perhaps related to the thing Eliath had been looking for? And who in the world were the Doomguard? Sometimes it was like trying to translate from another language, but without any guide to what things meant.
"Sure thing." Turning to her two companions "Well shall we go have a word with mr Eliath then?"
"Bloody razorvine.,"he says, mostly to himself,"Guess climbing up ain't an option."
Carefully, Isaac takes a quick look up and down the street before trying the knob and knocking at the sturdy door.
"Bloody razorvine.,"he says, mostly to himself,"Guess climbing up ain't an option."
Carefully, Isaac takes a quick look up and down the street before trying the knob and knocking at the sturdy door.
Isaac:
"Bloody razorvine.,"he says, mostly to himself,"Guess climbing up ain't an option."
Carefully, Isaac takes a quick look up and down the street before trying the knob and knocking at the sturdy door.
Isaac:
** spoiler omitted **
Isaac knocks.
The brass gargoyle booms on the ironwood door. A view slit opens and a blue eye looks out. A gravelly voice issues from the small opening.
"What can I do for yeh cutter?"
"Hullo, cutter. Our mate, Eliath, was recently penned in the deadbook and we were hoping to have a look at his kip to see if anything's been left. Signs of a struggle, notes or anything what might give us a glimmer of who could have done him. May we come in?"
"Hullo, cutter. Our mate, Eliath, was recently penned in the deadbook and we were hoping to have a look at his kip to see if anything's been left. Signs of a struggle, notes or anything what might give us a glimmer of who could have done him. May we come in?"
There is the sound of a bolt pulling back and the door swings in to reveal a grey haired late-middle aged lady. Several cats twine their way around her voluminous bright-colored peasant skirts. She looks at the motley crew and sighs
"Ol' Eli's in the dead book? That's a right shame it is. He was me best boarder, took me biggest appartment, always payed up for the full cycle in advance. Never a bother, never had loud parties."
She squints at you all.
"Do yeh have a notice that he was put in the dead book? Yeh don't look like Fated after the death tax. I can't rightly let yeh into his appartment on jest yer say so. Though he has been gone for about two weeks. I was getting worried but he was allways popping off to this place and that."
You get the feeling that this lady likes to talk
"If yeh can gets a member of the Harmonium or a Fated with a warrant I'll be happy to oblige yeh, but I can't jest let any sod off the streets go traipsing through me lodger's appartments."
The group says their farewells to Derioch and Grendyll, and take their leave of the Gatehouse. The rain still falls down from the leaden sky, the wetness beginning to chill as the hour nears Before Antipeak. Despite the rain there are many beggars, bubbers, jinkskirts and barmies wandering about, many seeking shelter, others desperate to find enough jink to buy their way into a flophouse for the night. The fetid alleys are filled with the lost souls of the Hive, fighting, drinking and dealing under improvised ripped cloth tents.
The group walks to the Zaddfum Trestle, the gargoyle-encrusted span still packed with cutters crossing the turgid waters of the Ditch. The Hive Docks hum with activity, several large barges are lashed to the rickety piers, unloading barrels marked with strange siguls. Porters haul them up zig-zagging flights of stairs until they reach the warehouses perched on the lip of the waterway.
Across the trestle, the group enters Gramercy Street, then the Alley of Dangerous Angles. The street is filled with fiends and half fiends of every shape and stripe, looking like a battle in the Blood War without the bloodshed. Several give Karrin an appraising once over. They pass Caritas, the sound of singing coming up from the stairwell.
Entering the Gear District, the group sees many constructs and gnomes dashing about on errands. A mechanical owl hoots and lands on Karrin's shoulder.
"Hoo. You are flesh being known as Karrin Kind? I am Achemidio, friend of Olli the Modron. Olli says to give you greetings should I see you in my travels. He said to relay message that you should visit him sometime at the Lady's Library. I have realyed his message. Farewell."
With that, the enigmatic brass owl flies off.
After that interesting encounter, the group passes the Great Foundry and travels down Alehouse Row. The taverns are filling up for the evening, and the street is thronged with Cagers out for an evening's entertainment. For every innocent taverngoer there is a jinkskirt and a cony catcher about as well.
Passing the many taverns of Alehouse Row, they enter into Swordhold and turn onto Smith Street. There are fewer taverns here than Alehouse Row, but not by much. Despite the many taverns, only one is partially constructed of an old sailing vessel: The Black Sail Tavern. A few dubious-looking gents in Doomguard colors loiter about the alcove above the tavern's door. A sound of laughter and crockery breaking comes from within.
"Wow, Olli," Karrin says as she watches the automated owl fly off, "I haven't talked to him in a while! He must think I'm being a bad friend or something. I got to go see him when I get a chance!"
Karrin glances up at the tavern.
"There is a possibility that no one here knows we're looking for Eliath, and so maybe we should just look around a bit before we go asking questions. Also these doomguard guys believe in decay and stuff, they think everything's going to die anyways or something, and so they might be actively looking for a way to speed things along or something. I guess they're different from the Dustmen because the Dustmen believe everything is already dead or something. I think what I'm trying to say is keep your eyes open, these people are crazy stupid but I think they're the type to die for a cause . . ."
Karrin blinks, as if she were struggling to grasp at something profound, but what ever it was quickly slips away.
"Maybe if try to blend in we won't attract too much attention."
"Hullo, cutter. Our mate, Eliath, was recently penned in the deadbook and we were hoping to have a look at his kip to see if anything's been left. Signs of a struggle, notes or anything what might give us a glimmer of who could have done him. May we come in?"There is the sound of a bolt pulling back and the door swings in to reveal a grey haired late-middle aged lady. Several cats twine their way around her voluminous bright-colored peasant skirts. She looks at the motley crew and sighs
"Ol' Eli's in the dead book? That's a right shame it is. He was me best boarder, took me biggest appartment, always payed up for the full cycle in advance. Never a bother, never had loud parties."
She squints at you all.
"Do yeh have a notice that he was put in the dead book? Yeh don't look like Fated after the death tax. I can't rightly let yeh into his appartment on jest yer say so. Though he has been gone for about two weeks. I was getting worried but he was allways popping off to this place and that."
You get the feeling that this lady likes to talk
"If yeh can gets a member of the Harmonium or a Fated with a warrant I'll be happy to oblige yeh, but I can't jest let any sod off the streets go traipsing through me lodger's appartments."
"Perfectly understandable, ma'am and I hope you won't mind my saying that your discretion is quite laudable; in my line of work, I come in contact with quite a few less-than scrupulous landlords, more than willing to betray their boarders for a handful of greens."
"As for our identification, madame, my name is Isaac and these are my associates Bethany, Justin and Drazek."
He motions to the silver brooch that Renkar gave everyone yesterday.
"We are agents of the Silver Rose; a private securities outfit based off of Copperman Way. We found out recently that Eliath had first disappeared and was then recorded as deceased by the Dustmen. I'll spare you the details, since I can see that you were fond of him. Since the officers of the Harmonium are quite indisposed because of other duties and because of some tricky bureaucratic problems between the Fated and the Dustmen, we haven't been able to obtain the paperwork. We wouldn't even be bothering you in the first place if we weren't sure that Eliath's disappearance and unfortunate death needed quick investigation. If you would rather not ask us in (and as I said, perfectly understandable), would you mind answering a few questions about him and his stay here?"
... "As for our identification, madame, my name is Isaac and these are my associates Bethany, Justin and Drazek."
He motions to the silver brooch that Renkar gave everyone yesterday.
"We are agents of the Silver Rose; a private securities outfit based off of Copperman Way. We found out recently that Eliath had first disappeared and was then recorded as deceased by the Dustmen. I'll spare you the details, since I can see that you were fond of him. Since the officers of the Harmonium are quite indisposed because of other duties and because of some tricky bureaucratic problems between the Fated and the Dustmen, we haven't been able to obtain the paperwork. We wouldn't even be bothering you in the first place if we weren't sure that Eliath's disappearance and unfortunate death needed quick investigation. If you would rather not ask us in (and as I said, perfectly understandable), would you mind answering a few questions about him and his stay here?"Bluff: 1d20+5=21
The lady (Falanna?) ponders a bit then seems to come to a conclusion.
"Well, it's a rough peak out there it is, an' I can see yeh've been in the cold an' wet for a trice. Ahh, come in, an' I'll fix yeh summat to warm yer gullet up with."
The woman turns and shuffles inside, her cats following like a live bridal train.
"Would yeh slip the bolt once yer in? There's always cony catchers about this neigborhood. Bleedin blexpated students.."
The woman shuffles into a large sitting room and gestures at a long dining table set at the back of it.
"Have a seat there an' I'll fix us some tea and biscuits."
You all sit in the overstuffed chairs as she shuffles into what seems to be a kitchen. There's a clanking and rattling sound as she gets her dishes together. Looking around, the room is done in faded needleworks and tapestries, with several couches and chairs scattered about the large room. The furniture is well-kept but old, and there is a smell of old things, cats and mildew about. A line of water drips down one wall, escaping down a crack in the floor. Several cats investigate you as you wait on the lady's return.
The woman returns with a teapot and cups for all. She puts out some thin wafer crackers on a chipped plate and sits down
"Now, what would yeh like to know about Eli? If yeh could tell me summat about his passing I'd be much obliged."
"Maybe if try to blend in we won't attract too much attention."
"Worth a try I suppose" Merle responds before trying to casually head for the door of the bar. Ignoring the doomguards and heading in
Justin seemed content to let Isaac do all the talking once at the door of the boarding house. He listened with one ear, while looking about the front of the building and street, frowning himself as he eyeballed the razorvine plant.
Perception: 1d20+5=17, Search: 1d20+4=9
Surprised at Isaac's success, Justin gratefully follows the odd older lady inside, and obligingly shuts the bolt for her once Drazek and Bethany are inside.
He idly pets one of the friendlier cats while they wait for their hostess to return, noting the exit from the room most likely to lead to 'the biggest apartment' of the building, just in case they need to know that for later.
When the elderly lady returns bearing a tea service, he smiles with appreciation. "Thank you m'lady. This is very nice, I haven't had a proper tea since I arrived in SIgil." He says smiling. He keeps an eye on Bethany and the lady, seeing how they take their tea before fixing his own cup.
After accepting and fixing the tea the same way that the lady does, he sips it, raising an eyebrow at the unusual flavor.
"Now, what would yeh like to know about Eli? If yeh could tell me summat about his passing I'd be much obliged."
"Well," Justin says, glancing around at his companions. "I'm afraid the fine details of his demise are what we are trying to uncover. And there are some details we can't discuss as we were hired to try and find Elias, confidentiality for our client, you understand. But I don't believe that there is any reason that I can't tell you what we know from talking to people that you could talk to yourself!" He says with a grin.
"It seems that Elias was doing what he normally does, researching information from libraries for a client, when something,... Happened. Exactly what is what we're trying to figure out. BUt what we do know is that he vanished from his usually frequented spots, and was seen in the Ward, acting 'Barmy'. After that he was found, I'm sorry," He says softly, "He was found in an alley and taken by the collectors. The official report is that he was identified and then cremated."
Justin pauses and takes a sip of his tea, giving the elderly landlady time to digest this news.
"But, as Isaac mentioned, there seems to be several things out of place about his unfortunate demise. We were actually hoping that you might be able to tell us more of his usual habits, and if you noticed anything unusual about him or his behavior the last few times you saw him. And, of course, we were hoping that there might be something in his rooms that would help us to understand what might make an intelligent, quiet, well-known researcher suddenly,... give up a job and go missing?" He finishes with a smile.
"Anything you can tell us about the last time you saw Elias might be absolutely invaluable. And would be immensely appreciated." He adds, taking another sip of tea.
A mechanical owl hoots and lands on Karrin's shoulder.
"Hoo. I am Achemidio, friend of Olli the Modron."
With that, the enigmatic brass owl flies off.
Bethany follows the others from the air, marvelling at how close everything is built and at how ther is absolutely no sense of self preservation givenby other flying creatures. Even in her decidedly chaotic aerial society there are still laws that govern the passage of flight, but not in this forsaken hellhole. No, everyone just flies wherever the hells they want and others be damned!
She lands behind the others in front of the Boarding House and is content to let Isaac do the talking while she looks around at both the building and the passersby. She notes both the razorvine (which she will happily avoid after a slight mishap just after her arrival) and the fact that there seem to be a large number of musicians around, a possible way for her to blend in more easily if it came to that.
Perception Check. (1d20=13)
She nods to the woman as Isaac introduces her and follows the others in when they are admitted entry. She notes the number of cats warily and once in the sitting room she stands in a corner and shoos them away with her wings when the venture too close to her.
Accepting the tea from the old woman with a nod, Bethany sips the tea lightly and with practiced ease, glad that she finally has someone who appreciates the finer things and not just that horrid "coffee" that she was offered her first day in Sigil. She had to spend the next half a day trying to wash the taste out of her mouth.
Content to let Isaac and Justin do what they apparently do best, she stands silently in the corner and takes in everything that is said.
Isaac lets the warm tea cup heat his hands, breathing deeply from the steam rising from the hot drink. He nods as Justin speaks, content for once to stay quiet.
"Worth a try I suppose" Merle responds before trying to casually head for the door of the bar. Ignoring the doomguards and heading in
"Maybe if try to blend in we won't attract too much attention."
Nari hurries after Merle. She's noticed that her new friends have a tendency to walk into trouble and think about it after, so she figures that she'd better keep close.
I thought I had a wall of text when I finished writing, but it's only half the size of yours. lol
;P
Justin seemed content to let Isaac do all the talking once at the door of the boarding house. He listened with one ear, while looking about the front of the building and street, frowning himself as he eyeballed the razorvine plant.
Looking around outside,...
Perception: 1d20+5=17, Search: 1d20+4=9
When the elderly lady returns bearing a tea service, he smiles with appreciation. "Thank you m'lady. This is very nice, I haven't had a proper tea since I arrived in SIgil." He says smiling. He keeps an eye on Bethany and the lady, seeing how they take their tea before fixing his own cup. (He isn't picky, but he knows that in some societies, how you drink the offered tea reveals whether or not you are 'civilized', or at least well-mannered, and he doesn't want to offend the lady who might have useful information!)
After accepting and fixing the tea the same way that the lady does, he sips it, raising an eyebrow at the unusual flavor.
The landlady smiles at Justin
"It's so nice to meet a proper mannered gentleman."
The tea tastes relatively decent, most likely a Bytopian blend or something from Yen-Wang-Yeh's realm in the Outlands.
"Well," Justin says, glancing around at his companions. "I'm afraid the fine details of his demise are what we are trying to uncover. And there are some details we can't discuss as we were hired to try and find Elias, confidentiality for our client, you understand. But I don't believe that there is any reason that I can't tell you what we know from talking to people that you could talk to yourself!" He says with a grin.
"It seems that Elias was doing what he normally does, researching information from libraries for a client, when something,... Happened. Exactly what is what we're trying to figure out. BUt what we do know is that he vanished from his usually frequented spots, and was seen in the WHat is the name of the area? Ward, acting 'Barmy'. After that he was found, I'm sorry," He says softly, "He was found in an alley and taken by the collectors. The official report is that he was identified and then cremated."
Justin pauses and takes a sip of his tea, giving the elderly landlady time to digest this news.
She looks sutiably horrified, but eager to hear more
"But, as Isaac mentioned, there seems to be several things out of place about his unfortunate demise. We were actually hoping that you might be able to tell us more of his usual habits, and if you noticed anything unusual about him or his behavior the last few times you saw him. And, of course, we were hoping that there might be something in his rooms that would help us to understand what might make an intelligent, quiet, well-known researcher suddenly,... give up a job and go missing?" He finishes with a smile.
"Anything you can tell us about the last time you saw Elias might be absolutely invaluable. And would be immensely appreciated." He adds, taking another sip of tea.
She sips her tea and thinks
"Well, Eliath was a quiet man, very bookish, always had his beezer stuck in some musty wizard's tome. He used to take meals with me, I offer that service to certain of me boarders, but he wasn't much of a conversationist. I do know he was real busy-like the last time I saw almost two weeks ago. He had skipped a few meals, and he had mentioned he might have to go out of the Cage for a bit, one reason I didn't think anything was wrong, really. I can't say for sure when he was last here, me boarders have a separate entrance and exit around back of me building, and he could've been around for a bit, but I'd say almost two weeks for pretty much certain."
Bethany follows the others from the air, marvelling at how close everything is built and at how ther is absolutely no sense of self preservation givenby other flying creatures. Even in her decidedly chaotic aerial society there are still laws that govern the passage of flight, but not in this forsaken hellhole. No, everyone just flies wherever the hells they want and others be damned!
On the way over Bethany had seen a bewildering array of winged beings as well as several mudcrawlers using magic to cheat. The most interesting had been a brass-colored construct made in the image of a succubus that had flown several dozen meters over her head in the Gear District.
She lands behind the others in front of the Boarding House and is content to let Isaac do the talking while she looks around at both the building and the passersby. She notes both the razorvine (which she will happily avoid after a slight mishap just after her arrival) and the fact that there seem to be a large number of musicians around, a possible way for her to blend in more easily if it came to that.
"Worth a try I suppose" Merle responds before trying to casually head for the door of the bar. Ignoring the doomguards and heading in
"Maybe if try to blend in we won't attract too much attention."
Karrin, Naridre, Merle and Seph walk into the Black Sail Tavern
Inside the oddly-constructed tavern is a dimly-lit common room, with curving ship's timbers comprising the walls, still encusted with barnacles and wormholes. There are several alcoves with curtains arrainged so that people sitting at the booths can have privacy. A group of stained and nicked tables are arrainged out in the center of the floor. A large hearth is stoked with a blazing fire, and the room is very humid from all the rain-soaked cloaks drying by the flames. A smell of spilled ale and pipeweed sufuses the room.
About half of the tables are occupied by Doomguard and soot-smudged factory workers, all busy drinking and chatting amongst themselves. About 3/4 of the curatined booths are in use, the others have their curtains pulled back, revealing high-backed seats and a narrow table.
Some bubbers look up as the group arrives, but no one makes any moves or looks angry, more of an interest than anything. Several waitresses in imaginative takes on pirate wenches' costumes are busy shuttling drinks hither and thither. Two burly men hold down the bar, pouring ale into cheap clay tankards and stacking them on the bar for the waitresses to grab. There are a few stools at the bar, but it doesn't look to be a popular place, there's only one man sitting there, nursing an ale.
Karrin steers the group towards a table and sits down.
Justin nods as the lady speaks, and takes another sip of the tea. It wasn't bad actually. He considers himself big fan of Kafee, (If there's plenty of honey to put in it) especially when working long hours, but the tea was pleasantly flavorful. His eyebrow furrows as the landlady mentions the back entrance, and he glances at Isaac. He looks to the landlady with a small smile.
"Well, perhaps he was just a shy man, or perhaps very good at keeping his client's research confidential. What we know about him indicates that he could regale you for hours with tales of ancient history from probably a dozen planes!" Justin offers pleasantly. He thinks for a second.
"Out of curiosity, how many apartments and renters do you have? Elias seems to have been a quiet individual who kept mostly to himself. Besides spending some mealtimes with you, do you know if he spent any time with any of the other boarders?"
Justin bites his lower lip. "Ma'am, I'll be honest with you. The only reason that we can think of that someone might want to do,... anything, to Elias is to find out something that he knows. And anyone willing to take a person wouldn't have many qualms about searching an apartment. With your permission, I'd like to examine the boarder's entrance, make sure that no one without a key hasn't forced their way in. I'll sleep much better tonight knowing that the safety of your home hasn't been compromised." He says solemnly.
"You guys are going to need to keep your eyes open," Karrin whispers over to her companions, "I'm not to quick at spotting things."
"You guys are going to need to keep your eyes open," Karrin whispers over to her companions, "I'm not to quick at spotting things."
Nari nods her understanding, and keeps a careful eye on their surroundings.
"Out of curiosity, how many apartments and renters do you have? Elias seems to have been a quiet individual who kept mostly to himself. Besides spending some mealtimes with you, do you know if he spent any time with any of the other boarders?"
The landlady ponders
"I can't be sure, I rent to faculty and older students of the Lazz mostly. Eliath was one of the few wot didn't have a tie to the school that I know of. They knew him, I'm sure, but I'd bet Stingers to squash that none of them knew him all that well. He was a quiet cutter."
She frowns at Justin's other question.
"I have 18 appartments, all up to code. Some cutters pair up in their kips, but I runs a clean legal boardinghouse here, all by the books."
Justin bites his lower lip. "Ma'am, I'll be honest with you. The only reason that we can think of that someone might want to do,... anything, to Elias is to find out something that he knows. And anyone willing to take a person wouldn't have many qualms about searching an apartment. With your permission, I'd like to examine the boarder's entrance, make sure that no one without a key hasn't forced their way in. I'll sleep much better tonight knowing that the safety of your home hasn't been compromised." He says solemnly.
The landlady frowns
"If that's the case I'll get Mover Mirrebeau to come out an' open his kip up. He's the head Harmonium in this neighborhood. I don't want no trouble from the courts coz I was rooting about in someone's things."
"sure thing." Merle replies using her eyes (and ears) to keep watch
Perception
Merle:
Karrin steers the group towards a table and sits down.
A table that affords a pretty good view of the common room is open, and Karrin steers the others towards it. They sit and a young tiefling girl with blonde hair and small horn stubs with a silk-scarf wrapped tail saunters up to them. She smiles at the group
"Good Antipeak to yeh cutters! I'm Salja an' I'll be yer waitress. What's yer bub?"
"You guys are going to need to keep your eyes open," Karrin whispers over to her companions, "I'm not to quick at spotting things."Nari nods her understanding, and keeps a careful eye on their surroundings.
Nari looks about, but she catches the eye of a scruffy-looking gentleman in rusty chainmail. He leers at her, and it throws her concentration off.
"Good Antipeak to yeh cutters! I'm Salja an' I'll be yer waitress. What's yer bub?"
"Grog me," Karrin says, trying to sound morose (as she imagines the doom guard must sound), "I don't know about the others."
"Grog me," Karrin says, trying to sound morose (as she imagines the doom guard must sound), "I don't know about the others."
"Good Antipeak to yeh cutters! I'm Salja an' I'll be yer waitress. What's yer bub?"
Bub? Grog? Nari panicked as she tried to figure out what these things were. Why couldn't anyone speak plain common here? Okay, think. This is a bar. With unpleasant men in badly cared for chainmail. No, no thinking about that. If you ignore him he'll stop leering. Oh please, let that be true. So the waitress in a bar is probably asking for a drink order. This didn't exactly look like the sort of place that served drinks intended for the elven palate, so whatever she ordered would probably taste bad. And she didn't want to look like even more of an idiot than she already did.
"I'll have the same," she mumbled, staring at the floor. She liked the scarves decorating the girl's tail. They were very pretty.
Isaac clears his throat, seeming a bit embarrassed.
"Sorry to interrupt, ma'am, but... may I use your water closet?"
Isaac clears his throat, seeming a bit embarrassed.
"Sorry to interrupt, ma'am, but... may I use your water closet?"
The landlady nods
"Right off the kitchen ducks, small door by the pantry."