[Game Thread] Book 2 Chapter 1: A New Dusk

[Unforgiven]

John Yug (Yg'ffwla'vngl'asr) John does his best to make sketches of the arm, drawing each pieces he could see in great detail and furiously scribbling away with notes and using his detect magic to notate what type of magic is in each piece and how strong it is. He creates a magnification lens from thin air, and uses that to more closely examine the arm, continuing to scribble notes in one hand while using the other to hold his magnification device. The whole time his clockwork bird is making comments and insights on how the arm works and what makes it work. He will even attempt to use a spell to speak with constructs to see if the construct arm can shed any advice on the secrets that it holds within. When the server lady comes over, John only briefly glances at her before going right back to looking at the arm; "Hmmm yes food stuffs, need to eat to live, need to live to build. Yes nice cat lady, might I get raw bird, if you have bird, raw sheep otherwise. One steak and liver please and thank you. No alcohol, just water, clean, clear water."

[jj_wolven]

Kalbee, Central US - Tuesday, noon

The tavern begins to fill up as a small band plays off to the side.
John starts sketching, but the low light of the tavern and the glow coming from within making the angles difficult to sketch quickly. The clockwork bird returns shortly after he has began this, with no response to his inquiry, but John is not surprised. He has made several such requests and they often take a bit of time for a response. The bird will either need to be sent back a few times, or ordered to wait for a response. In the meantime, the birds clicking voice comments as the arm is studied.
John pulls and slides the arm, moving Grant's body the whole time as he tried to get better views. The magic attempt garner little beyond faint Universal magic deep inside the arm that seem to flicker in and out of existence, with the speak with construct garnering nothing and indicating that it is not an independent construct.

A short time after they sit down, another ratfolk that Chester knows, a man that goes by Sprinkles, seats himself next to his kinfolk. He leans over a bit to look at the arm then sits back then waves for an ale.
"I seen a glow likes that a'fore," he says is a tone that comes off conspiratorial, though Chester knows this is his norm, "Comin' from a somthin-or-other out east."

[Evil Abed]

Grant Walker Grant gives a low shout as the waitress goes away "I'll have an ale, if it isn't too much trouble ma'am." Grant turns to Chester "I'm from around these parts. I was living outside the city walls for a spell. That's where I lost my arm; damn demon spawn came down took out most of the caravan crew. They took my mother and killed my father and brothers. Left me for dead but that was years ago. Now I spend most of my time recently going out on the caravans. I got back from Kansas City a few days ago. How about y'all? Any time spent beyond the shield?" Grant jerks around as his arm is tugged at and pulls it back a bit. "Whoa there feller. It ain't coming off. I said you could take a look at it not take IT."

[Unforgiven]

John Yug (Yg'ffwla'vngl'asr) After getting all the information he could off the arm without disassembling it, he nods to the human, "Hmmm, yes, we are both from Kansas City. Different districts, but same city. My district builds, we build nice and beautiful clockwork constructs, many times in the image of the angels from before. Long ago, we built things like your arm, great and wondrous, but those secrets died with the holders." When he hears the rat speak he becomes very interested and leans over, "Ahhhh Rat - friend, you know of where more technology like this is out in the eastlands?"

[Jeffkevlar]

Chester chuckled to himself. Sprinkles was a character. In the relatively short time Chester had been in Kalbee he had come to like the other rat person. Still, he hadn’t heard of any glow to the east.

"How Far East? Worth a foraging expidition, you think?" he asked his kin.

He turned to Grant, "Well I sure haven’t lived out there past the shield. Back in Kansas City we mostly dug through the old ruins. Lookin’ for good stuff. Found some too. Jon here was a good customer. My longest time outside the shield was the trip over here from the city. That was plenty and we were a pretty well kitted out crew."

Chester regarded Grant with admiration tempered by just a touch of skepticism. Could he really have lived outside of the shield?

[ricktur63]

Joya smiled when Chester spoke and made a mental note.

She tried her best to smile when John spoke but she failed not miserably but fairly well. It was halfhearted at best but the attempt was plain for anyone who took notice of such things. She even cringed slightly at the thought of raw food. Fish maybe, but the thought of fowl or mutton were... unpleasant. Joya had to stop him. "We don't serve raw food here. If you want fresh fowl or mutton I suggest you try the market. We have a mutton steak if you like but no liver today. As for water... Cookie has some boiled water but she uses it in her cooking and she don't like to part with it. The rest is drawn from the cistern and its collected rainwater mostly. There is a well out back you're welcome to help yourself to it."

When Chester spoke she nodded with a smile. "So that makes two ales and one mutton steak cooked. I'll be right back with your orders."

She walks back quickly toward the bar and orders the drinks and then steps back into the kitchen to talk to Cookie. Within two minutes she is back with the two ales. She sets them down before you and smiles convincingly at John when she explains that his mutton steak will be out shortly.

She made another circuit of the tavern room checking on each table making sure everyone was alright before she stopped back at the bar speaking quietly with the barkeep. She was sure that was the same fella that showed her his teeth today in the market. She thought the one man was the tinker scavenger that had a stall in the market.

She took another mental note and she considered how she would broach the subject at supper tonight with her papa. Something was up and the council was sure to take some action, that much she was sure of, Joya just had to be prepared and ready to be a part of that action. Hopefully she could convince him that she was ready. She needed a plan and she might just need some help to pull it off.

[Caveman]

Tam, sitting at the table one along from the bigger group had been half listening in to their conversation. There was no doubt that there was something about them - they triggered his long-dormant curiosity and made him think that perhaps they might be a group worth keeping an eye on. Though their chatter was not related to the oddities that had brought into town, that was what had brought them together, and the lure of the unknown outside the Stones seemed to be a draw to them all. "Ah, hell with it. he thought to himself""Might as well join in."
Half turning to them, Tam leaned in and growled to the barmaid. "Hey, you. Have a seat - I'll stand you a drink if you like. Saw you hanging around the market today. Mighty interested in the bodies you were. What's yer business with 'em. I know yer da's one o' the council - mayhap you know a thing more'n'the rest of us eh?"

[Evil Abed]

Grant Walker Grant takes a look around at the table's current occupants, gives an invitingly sly grin, and asks "I've been round here a while and go help out with security on the caravans. I haven't seen you lot in that type of work, so what is it that y'all are into around here? I've seen the stall yer runnin' what kind of goods do ya peddle? Maybe you might be interested in some future items I bring back from a caravan trip."

[Caveman]

Tam scowls and takes a long pull on his beer, then raises his half-empty (always) glass to Grant. "Aye, I've seen ya. Good luck an' all. I don't hold much with "work" myself. Gets in the way of the drinkin'!"

[ricktur63]

OOC: Somehow I missed this game thread yesterday. Sorry!

The feline server stalked over to Tam's table and politely informed him. "I answer to Miss or Joya never to 'Hey you!' so please do try and be civil sir. Was there something I might help you with?" When he repeats his questions she takes a seat for a moment before she answers.

"Yes I was in the market today as were this group over here." She pointed at the table with the three 'men'. "It would seem we were all interested in what has happend to those poor souls. My interest is more clinical than most. I like to study... oddities. Yes my papa is on the council but so far he has rebuffed my attempts to glean more than 'they were brought in and are under quarantine. So the answer is no I know little more than anyone else at the moment. Believe me I've tried to get more out of him." She politely declined the offer of a drink. She never drank while she was working. There was too many things that might go south in a hurry.

[Unforgiven]

John Yug (Yg'ffwla'vngl'asr) John whispers to his clockwork bird for a moment, sending him off to harry the council members about his pass, and his clockwork raven flies off to wait for a council response. As he listens and awaits his drastically over cooked mutton steak, he smiles awkwardly at Grant, with only one side of his face holding the smile and one eye drooping, but he speaks with an excited tone; "Ohh yes, potential customer-Grant, this on- I mean I make many wondrous and exciting marvels. I have a semi exoskeleton that I can show you as an example of my craftsmanship should you desire. I also can perform all blacksmithing services, I can make weapons or armor, I can bore firearm barrels and craft them into firearms, I can make alchemical concoctions, I can make leather armor, steam crafted machines, and clockwork automatons. So if there is anything in my many purview that you might need, I can work with Chester-friend to get the materials and craft your desired device for a premium!" John seems most happy with his crafting abilities, and pulls out a notepad order form to take down an order should you think of something you want. Then he smiles at the server "Ahhhh Joya-Feline-server, I am hoping that I may have a pair of warrants from the council allowing entrance for myself and Chester-friend to study and possibly dissect the creatures and machines in the tents so that I might share their secrets with this town!"

[Jeffkevlar]

"I don’t sell much myself," Chester said to Grant. "Usually I protect my cousins while they sit around in the ruins. If things are quiet and you have a caravan job lined up, let me know. I’m a fair shot and always up for a bit of fun."

[ricktur63]

Joya was polite to John but she was doubtful of his chances of getting such a 'warrant' or pass. "Good luck with that. But I don't really see your chances being any better than mine because if my papa Louis wont let me in, someone he's trained since I was a small child, I can't see you getting a pass either."

She leaned in conspiratorially and lowered her voice to just above a whisper. "Something is going on with the council. They're worried about something. I cant say what but I believe they will act very soon."

[Unforgiven]

John Yug (Yg'ffwla'vngl'asr) John keeps his odd smile at the server and replies happily; "Ahhh yes, you unfortunately have no expertise in the scientific studies, I am requesting access as a scientist to aid them! I believe I will get access, there are few more qualified to be dissecting the creatures in the tent and making determinations on whatever the council wishes to know about them."

[ricktur63]

Joya stood up and tried to keep her smile pleasant. Her voice still low. "You sir are making assumptions that you have no logical basis to make. You know nothing of me or my training, formal or otherwise. You will see when your requests go unanswered or simply flat out denied."

With that said, Joya turned and strode away with confidence in her words regardless of what John thought or said.