Solon didn't seem to handle himself as well as his claimed hiver heritage would suggest. He did his best to follow the others, and pulled it off, but not easily. "I have been among the stars too long, I have forgotten the crush of humanity."
"Heh! Think THIS is bad? Jes' Ye wait, we've na' got to t' worst part yet."
"The worst part is when they all turn to cannibalism... Or does that not happen dirt-side?" Skarr cracks mild grin
"Huh...I was jes talkin' about when we's get to t' part when people stop usin' soap..."
"I am wondering how I fit a mag-boot all the way up into my mouth..."
"With great determination?" Liam suggests deadpan.
The lift slows in the final feet of its descent and with a release of pressure locks into place. Stepping down from the platform into the seething mass of people in the grand hall is a unique experience – the mass seems to at the same time pull away from the newcomers while simultaneously absorb them. Peddlers of all types shove their goods in your face, offering the best prices on the planet. Others call out their services as escorts and guides in the great and mighty Vaxanhive. Hands reach out and grasp at your belongings from the writhing mass of flesh, and you are sure you have lost at least 1 or 2 valuables as you surge through.
With time you find yourself nearing the far end of the Grand Hall, and looking up, see a distinct blue illuminated sign: >>> HIVE TRANSPORT >>> pointing down the right stairs to a lower level.
As you continue down the stairs, a second sign hangs <<<TRAM<<< >>>HACK CAR>>>, offering either public tram or private rental car. As you pause to consider your options a voice erupts somewhat boldly and engagingly from the crowd. ”Well ahn’t yeh just be’en discreeht an all. Yeh not the loudest buncha offwuhld fools I’d evah seen, but I be bettin’ det yeh ahn’t got no decent means a getting’ up’ive, nor a bed teh lay yeh ‘ead on, meanin’ yeh be in de guttah tonight, an’in det means yeh be getting’ shanked tonight. No right, no good, yeh be needin’ a friend. A fren det be ‘avin’ an eye for truhbl. Cuhz I be thinkin’ I ‘ave an eye, an’in it seems like yeh all ‘ave an eye, thinkin’ we cuhld be frens. Yeh catch me?” A diminutive man steps out of the crowd an into your midst, a grin on his face as a lho stick dangles from his lips. His frame is short like a child, but a quite a bit stockier that you’d expect from a hiverat. He wears the coveralls of a manufactorum worker, accented by several belts, a vest, and a sizeable pack on his back.
Turning to face Liam, Skarr will give him a motion towards the small man.
"Friends eh? Yah' one can always use a "Friend" cain't ya?
O' course, some friends can be a lill' too friendly eh?
Might mistake someone stepin' offa the deck fer someone not knowin' t' score."
Liam then turns on his most disarming smile and chuckles.
"But ye got t' eye eh? Same as me, can spot a swinging blade from miles away me, gotcha good an' proper like.
An' when blades meet blade, there's merriment fer all eh?"
The diminutive man, who is indeed very small, perhaps a meter in height, chuckles at Liam's words. " Sure es sure, yeh got an eye, but I ahn't be no-in' 'bout swingin' blades an-in det, prfer meh 'ead on meh shooldahs. Buttin' I be sent by an eye... teh keep an eye... out feh othahs weth an eye... teh be deh gide." After a moment of pause, he taps the ash of his lho stick, then more quietly says. " Yeh do 'ave an eye, don't yeh?"
He looks at each of you, smiling expectantly.
"Oh, Ah' got me an eye indeed on me..."
And with a combination of reckless bravado and experienced caution, Liam will flash his badge to the little man, confident that eye and "I" are one and the same in this case.
A massive grin spreads across the pint-sized rascal's face. "Yeh best be-in a bit mowa deskreet, det might get yeh shanked or worse. But cuhm, Rory's deh name. Dis way." He turns and heads toward the tram platform.
He moves through the crowd surprisingly well for someone so small, and a few times he slips out of sight before reappearing again looking back for your company. Each time he seems to have a new item of food in his hand that he is quickly scarfing down. As you catch up to him on the tram platform, he points to the far end. "Froun cah 'ill be best, mossin' peepl duhn't wenna walk det fah. Too lazy." With that he heads down the platform and slips into the final set of doors.
"He's gotta point, never under'stimate t' power o' bein' jes plain lazy."
With a similar grin, Liam slips into through the doors as well.
If'n it is a trap, might as well be me who goes first, seein' as it was me whot got us 'ere an' all.
Plus Ah'm t' most likely t' survive ifn' it is a trap.
"Idleness begets corruption." Following Liam in suit.
It is the "I" that sent us into this bilge. I would say we got the "I" a little too much right now.
" Excuse me Rory, our mutual friend mentioned that you might be recognisable by a rather nice pistol you carry. Could we see it? For identification purposes only of course"
Praetus will try to keep the group in sight but will allow the rest of the group to handle the interaction with this man, keeping slight distance.
Following the half-pint hive rat into the front car of the tram, you note that his statement is correct - while earlier cars you passed were crammed with passengers, only a few others are seated in the front car, and Rory sits down at the opposite end from them. As you gather around him and offer your questions, a wry smile crosses his haggard face.
"Be-en cehfuhl, det is good. Yeh, I gout a skrat, buttin' who duhnt? I mean, duhn'ive at leest. Ehvruhn is pakkin' suhmthin', right?" He gingerly reaches into his coverall pocket and slowly pulls out a small, utilitarian looking stub pistol. It is a simple affair, probably mass produced from stamped parts in a matter of minutes at one of the many manufactorums in the hive. After showing it to you, he slips it back into his pocket.
Uh oh, this cain't be good if'n it is a set up. We've done gone exactly where 'e wanted us.
Ah did not think 'e was supposed t' be our contact, only takin' us to 'im...but he didnae say no when 'e was addressed as Rory.
Liam takes a step behind the others, so it is not obviously that he is gripping his armsman gun on the sly.
Stepping in front of Liam as the reclamator moves to the back, Skarr blatantly puts his hand in his sash,
"Pray tell, adept."
" Now you have shown me yours, let me show you mine. Look see the barrel is pointing at you. Talk fast little man, for you are not the man you claim to be. Whilst my colleagues watch the doors i suggest you tell us who you work for. And you best make it quick i may be an adept, but i know how to use this."
Gaius will openly draw his pistol matching 'Rory' at first, switching to a proper grip at the last minute.
" Oh and you can show us behind that prosthetic on your face and what that is on that chain. They may be the only things that can help you right now."
Skarr settles his eyes on 'Rory.'
"This isn't adding up, adept. This man may yet be who he says, and we are about to make a show of this."
The tram car jerks forward as the transport begins its journey toward Vaxanhive. Though none of you are thrown from your feet, the sudden movement jostles you each around and Liam's rifle clangs against a pole, drawing the attention of the passengers at the rear of the car. Eyes go wide before they turn to the small, sliding door that leads into the next car. The metal wheels outside squeal along the track as the passengers dart out the doorway and into safer grounds.
For his part the strange fellow who identified himself as Rory seems unphased by your threats, and drawing a fresh lho stick seems almost amused.
Well, thataint no good, but as 'e said, every'uns packin' in a place like this, ah doubt anyones goin' t' bother us.
But 'es much MUCH too confident fer mah likin'.
Somethin' is fishy 'ere, right enough. Either 'e IS who 'e was supposed t' be, or 'es got some escape plan already panned out.
After taking a drag from the lho stick, the suspicious half-pint looks up at your company. In a starkly different dialect and accent, he responds to your interrogation. ” ‘Onestly chaps, the leaf in these is shite to begin with, but then they soak it in so many chems that smoking moldy grox dung would taste better. What I’d give for a touch of the pipeleaf from back ‘ome.” Despite his words, he takes a long drag. ”Yee’d best be careful pulling arms in so public a place. Now, if we were down’ive or under’ive, or at least in an alley or backroom in the mid and upperhives, then it wouldn’t be such a shim sham. But ‘onestly, in a tram car while still at the star port station?! Yee’ve done mucked it up good, likely got yeeselves on the Rods’ watch list. Think about it, if I wanted to trap or ambush yee, I would’ve taken you to a private car, then drove you off into the woods, or the depths of the ‘ives, and ‘ad my way with you. Why on nine planets would I ever use a public tram? As for me cheek, that stays on – it’s called a disguise. A big scar on a little man is recognizable, so I only let those I want to see it actually see it. To my pocket-“ He reaches into his vest and withdraws a black-rimmed green monocle, which he places into his left eye, ”does that satisfy your curiosity? Or… need we measure sizes, cause I know mine is more impressive…?”
Putting his gun away rather sheepishly
"My apologies sir. I have a knack for spotting details and saw the flaws in your disguise before the cogs whirred and 2 and 2 finally became 4. I am more used to investigating from a more obvious side and subterfuge is still something I am learning. I hope you will not hold my lack of skill in this area against my fellows"
"Let us continue on. People die for less than this, and we have important matters to attend."
After the jostling and the other riders are scared from the car, Praetus will just sit down as the lone remaining passenger at the rear relaxing but remaining silent.
The half-pint looks up at Skarr, smiling, "Indeed, people die everyday over the most petty of follies. No reason for any of us to die today though, right? B'sides, then yee'd miss out on all the fun to be 'ad. And Gaius, no 'arm so no apologies necessary. Truth be told, I figured one of yee'd get rough or draw down on me, though I didn't think it'ould be the scholar of the bunch. Smoke?" He holds out his pack of lho sticks, offering to all of you.
After a few moments (and those who want have taken one), he stuffs the pack back into a pocket, tucks his monocle away and takes another drag. "'ell, we got the care to ourselves-" he nods to Praetus, "I am sure you 'ave questions, and I doubt there's any bugs about, so go on an' ask away!"
" Well as we have now discovered my brain takes time to process, i had better get it started whirring. I'm guessing our mutual employer has told you what we are looking for or you have spotted something which is the reason we are here?"
"Assuming you do, do you have any data on violent crime in the hive? I am particularly interested in ritual killings or particularly violent crimes? Is there anything you can tell us about the mission? Have you any leads? "