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  #121  
Old Nov 20th, 2022, 11:52 AM
Dylan Scott Dylan Scott is offline
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Grim
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Grim was for once at a loss for words, a very unusual situation for the young gregarious gnome. Yes at only 49 years old Grim was still young, barely an adult really, Its not that he didn't have something to say of course, just that he had so much to say he stumbled over what to say first and so for once remained quiet, taking a moment to gather his thoughts at all the information being thrown out at him and about him before mumbling his answers to thin air as Tilly had already left

"Half of nothing then you one eyed witch. I wasn't really going to give Talafax his drugs back without a fee but now i will just to spite you"

"Thanks alot you stupid great green oaf, what you tell her about the drugs for"


"Not a Chance, I'm not some honourless assassin" He was a great many things of course, some of them quite honourless but a hired killer he was not, even at the whim of someone as intimidating as Tilly

Grim didn't really expect any answers to his grumbling, he was tired and grumpy, the unexpected hug from Liana had certainly perked him up but the trek back through the swamp to the casino, even with the Half Orcs help had drained even that pleasant experience, He didn't even have the energy to appreciate the vision that was Sandraminae in one of the waitress's uniforms, if the few strips of fabric could be called a uniform, he gave her the briefest glance up and down before Tilly's instructions began and his grumbling followed.

He had no interest in carrying one of the buckets either, even if he could physically have managed the task without covering himself in the contents, sadly his personality was much greater than his physical strength. Not feeling in the mood to beg, or even turn on the charm for help, Grim slipped a gold coin from his pocket and offered it to an unhappy looking patron just stumbling out of the casino looking dejected and down on his luck, likely having just been fleeced at the games of chance.

"This is yours if you would take these two buckets down to the River and dump them out for me" He said with a weary tone, indicating his and Liana's buckets with a wave of his hand. He was only mildly curious to find out what Sandraminae had to say to them, even to his tired eyes it was clearly she wanted to talk in private so he followed the group as they all filed to the river, some carrying their own buckets, hopefully his newly hired retained following with his own though he truth he didn't look back to check and he truly didn't care or not whether the bucket of unidentified sludge made it to its destination or not


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Action: 1GP Bribe to a Passing Patron to bring two buckets to the river
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Last edited by Dylan Scott; Nov 20th, 2022 at 11:55 AM.
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  #122  
Old Nov 20th, 2022, 12:36 PM
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Liana Xirkul
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When Tilly left, Liana looked up at Vyeggar and glared.

"Why, I'm speechless."

She immediately proved herself a liar by launching into a tirade against the half orc.

"You sneering snivel souled bastard. Why don't you throw all of your companions under the wagon wheels?"

She quoted him, "Grim, you can tell Tilly about the one sample of Talafax's product we borrowed. Liana, you can fill her in about shooting at the kobold we were explicitly told to ignore. And Kara, you had a great story about shooting dead one of that witch's kobold guards.""

"You missed one," she scoffed. "You left Tarbin out? How are you going to punch him in the guts?"

"Well, the gods damn you, you verminous scumsucking filth of an orc. You cannot be trusted. Prove yourself a friend in one small thing, and you could earn a smidgeon of trust. But no. For no reason. For sheer pettiness ... for empty spite ... bloated with self-pity, you speak and act with complete and total selfishness. Not one shred or ounce of fellow feeling or respect for those who share danger with you. Vyeggar, do you even wonder why I held you in contempt, since the hour I first saw you abusing one of the serving maids? It is not because of the mishaps suffered by your face. I'm not that petty. It is that your soul has no place in it to show consideration for others. You think only of yourself, any your personal misery blinds you."

Trained in religion, she put on her preacher tone. "Repent and wake up, and look at these your companions who are trying to make the best of a hard hand dealt them. Turn, and give some thought to others," the tiny little zealot commanded. "Or the gods will see you die a lonely man and burn in a hell of isolation of your own creation; for as you do in small things so shall you do in the large, and so shall it be returned upon you."

She left it to others to carry the buckets. She did not have the strength to bear heavy loads.

 


Last edited by CatCanCook; Nov 23rd, 2022 at 12:08 AM.
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  #123  
Old Nov 22nd, 2022, 09:16 AM
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Damien Buranta
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Damien wasn't sure which surprised him more; that Vyeggar could be THAT reckless, or that Tilly was somehow willing to overlook all of the accusations of insubordination levied against them.

... actually, that was easy. Vyeggar was proving himself increasingly disinterested with notion of subtlety. What threw Damien more was that neither Liana, nor Vyeggar had placed any of the blame on him directly. Liana at least made sense; in presenting the tale of what had happened, she was trying to balance neutrality with protecting the group by speaking on them as a whole instead of singling anyone out. As far as risky maneuvers went, it was smart. Vyeggar on the other hand had shown no mercy in throwing any of the others under the bus... but he'd left out the detail about Damien leading the charge against Kasturr; arguably the thing that most defied what Tilly had specifically told them not to do alongside Liana's shot. So, why just Liana and not him?

The vishkanya remained silent as Tilly gave them new orders, preferring to quit while they were ahead instead of trying to pile onto an already volatile situation. Besides, he was burning to know what it was Sandraminae had to say to them all. As Grim and Liana took their turns laying into the half-orc for his betrayal, Damien wordlessly took two buckets without complaint; he was no stranger to dirty work after all, and considering where the group had just come from, a few smelly buckets of goop wasn't such a big deal.

Once they were outside the casino itself and a good distance from the building, Damien finally spoke up, first to Vyeggar.

"Vyeggar... when I said I was going to take responsibility for what happened, did you think I meant everyone EXCEPT for me? If your plan was to demonstrate that you have no loyalties... well done. But throwing everyone but Tarbin and I to the proverbial wolves is NOT going to get you whatever it is you're after." He sighed, pushing the remainder of the rant building in his head out. Liana had already lectured the man on his transgression enough that there was little point in beating a dead horse. "If you want something more for yourself than grunt work paying off a life debt, then you're going to need to work with what you have. That includes us. Call it mutual self-interest if you need to. You don't have to trust us, but you had better trust this: if it's oblivion you're looking for, you'll be finding it alone." It wasn't a threat per say. If anything, it was the closest thing to diplomatic that Damien was willing to be at this point. He didn't know what game the half-orc was playing at, but if he wasn't playing with them, he was playing against them, and Damien was more than ready to show what sort of player he was.

Turning next to Sandraminae, Damien cocked his head at the woman with curiosity.

"I don't know if you actually wanted to hear more about what happened. For what it's worth, Liana's account is... essentially correct. But if you'd rather get to the real reason you wanted to talk, we're all ears." For all his talk of teamwork, Damien was hardly the poster child for trusting anybody else without having some insurance first. There was something different about Sandraminae though; whatever her sins, she seemed to have something of a moral compass at work, and if she had a warning or a request for them, Damien was inclined to give her a chance. Not to mention, the woman would prove an invaluable resource if it ever came to pass that employment under Tilly ever needed... rapid restructuring.
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  #124  
Old Nov 25th, 2022, 07:09 PM
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Tarbin Haldar
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Tarbin raised an eyebrow slightly at the pair of approaching familiar voices. What exactly was being discussed Tarbin wasn’t quite sure though it certainly sounded as though it were important and quite contentious.

The sight of the buckets contain the black goop made Tarbin’s eyebrows raise further. As a farmer Tarbin had done plenty of work with manure and these buckets for some reason didn’t exactly scream human (or any other creature for that matter) waste the young man. Besides if it truly was buckets of excrement why was the boss personally emptying it? Somewhat cautiously the large man discreetly sniffed one of the buckets to see if the smell smelt like anything he had smelt before.

Tarbin then settled in to listen as Liana gave her report. A number of the group were the smooth talking type so Tarbin was more than content to stand back and listen. Unfortunately while Tarbin could be unintentionally less than diplomatic Vyeggar it seemed actively sought out being as undiplomatic as possible and it was Vyeggar who spoke next. Rather unsurprisingly Tilly had a few words to say about what had been said and after the Orc was gone so did the rest of the others. Tarbin had to admit he wouldn’t have been too surprised if things turned violent.

”Well that was an interesting choice of things to say to be sure…” Tarbin commented as he scooped up as many of the unattended buckets as he could safely carry.

”While we could stand here all day and pick holes in Vyeggar’s character I reckon Miss Sandraminae has something more important to say…” Tarbin declared as he nodded at the elven women.

”Miss Liana if you could make sure my path is clear I would be more than happy to carry your bucket…” Tarbin then offered though in actuality he had likely already picked it up.



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  #125  
Old Nov 26th, 2022, 11:49 PM
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Vyeggar Vugmuk
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"There she is," he said impassively, looking down at the rage-filled face of the halfling woman. "There's the woman behind the mask. You play like you're all sweetness and light, but this is the real you - at last. Would that I was as perfect as you, that I'd never made a mistake. Well you know what? At least I'm honest. I don't live my life behind a facade. What you see is what you get. And don't you worry about my soul, honey - I was damned long before we ever crossed paths."

He turned and looked down further at the gnome fellow and shrugged his shoulders. "Keep my take, then. You need it more than I do, especially if your redhead is waiting up for you tonight."

To Damien, he just stared. Then, taking two steps forward, he leaned close and whispered into the green-skinned man's ear. "You said it yourself - no sense showing her any loyalty among us." He straightened up and scooped up the remaining buckets, even yanking the ones Grim tried to pass off away from the passersby. "Mind your business," he barked at the retreating figure. He kicked open the door and muscled his way through, three buckets in each hand. Whether the others followed... Well, it didn't really matter much, now did it? He had walked alone before, and likely would again.

He could feel his eyes burning. He tried to convince himself it was all due to the contents of what he carried, and not the rage and shame and pain he was feeling at playing the role of pariah. I am the sum of my choices. Is it any wonder why everything I do adds up to nothing? The buckets were growing heavier with each step, but he savored the burning in his muscles. Physical pain he could endure. Physical pain was tangible; it could be managed. What he felt was not, and he wished he could simply pop open his skull and put some ice on his brain like he could on a sore muscle. Why had he done that? It was clear Tilly didn't care about him. She wasn't going to just up and tell him where his brother was just because he cosied up to her and ratted out his companions. She was more focused on this Kasturr guy, and his upcoming demise.

Damien had a good point - the only point that mattered. Doing grunt work wasn't going to be enough to get the job done. If he were to find his brother, he needed to find that chest. And if he was going to succeed in doing that, then he would need them more than they needed him. The realization was humbling.

"Goddamnit," he said, kicking a rock out of his way as hard as he could.


 

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  #126  
Old Nov 27th, 2022, 08:53 AM
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The Dead Mermaid's Casino J9 Harvest 103 of 120 2:52pm Sunny

A Scene Outside the Casino
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Sandraminae's grim look only deepened as you all became more hostile towards one another. The outbursts, the scene... it started to draw other eyes. Her own zipped about, trying to decide between irritation and disappointment. Anything to hide the concern that was bubbling in the whites of her eyes. One comment did, surprisingly, break through and make her smirk a little.

"Don't say you're as valuable as what's in these buckets," she told Vyeggar wryly. "An hour ago, it was a lot more valuable." It was hard to tell how much of that was a joke and how much was true.

Only Tarbin and Vyeggar were carrying buckets - Vyeggar had made sure of that, scaring off the passerby that Grim had bribed to take the buckets. Before Grim could possibly comment, Sandraminae had already told the gnome, Leave it. This isn't about stupid buckets," she hissed, watching as Vyeggar was already storming ahead. She told him, "Straight down the alley, even you can't miss the river," before she began to explain herself to the others, regardless of whether or not Vyeggar was still listening.

"This isn't me calling in that favour you owe me, just so you know. This is an order from your boss... well, your other boss." She gave a look back to the Dead Mermaid's Casino, still looming large even as you all walked away. Somehow it felt like the cuttings of mermaids on the top floor were staring directly at you all. Watching. Waiting. "Believe it or not, Tilly's probably the best thing for everyone who works here. Believe me, you did not want to meet the guy she replaced. Only the long-lifers know just what we owe her..." For a moment, her expression darkened. "It'll be the eighteenth anniversary of her killing..."

She stopped herself, her eyes widening a little. Horror. Plain, painful horror, though it was not obvious if it was trauma, surprise at the years passed, or just catching dangerous words before they slipped out. Looking rattled, she continued, "It's why she's in charge, not me. I care about the workers, she just wants the business. She keeps us all safe, in her own twisted way. Though right now, the matter of the Chest," she said, trying not to explicitly blame all of you with her tone, "- and some other stuff has her too busy to look after us properly. There's a girl, Ariadne, I'll point her out to you. Her boyfriend's a little errand runner for some minor gang. Nothing worse than any crimes anyone in this group's done. Except recently he got his hands on something magic, and the idiot's selling it to the highest bidder. He doesn't know it, but the idiot's kicked a huge hornet's nest."

By the river, on a small pontoon for personal fishing and dumping, there were some already empty buckets, several brushes, and a jet-black scar in the water. The goop was slow to move in the rivertide.

"So, tonight, I'm taking you guys off at about 7ish to go in bedrooms. I'll tell Tilly you've all got clients. You guys sleep, and at night, follow Ariadne home and make sure she's safe. Get the boy out of trouble if you're so inclined, but the important thing is that neither Ariadne nor Tilly know about this. Ariande's a nice girl but she's soft in the head, and takes any attempt by me to safeguard her as an attack. If she knew I'd arranged her protection, she'd go gallivanting off to Black Dog or Madame Tabor, and they wouldn't keep her safe at all. And as for Tilly... well, she wants you as 'her' guys. She's not a fan of sharing. And sometimes, with her, you have to have your cards close to the chest."

Sandraminae had already snatched one of the buckets out of Vyeggar's hands, tipping it out into the water. It took a while to actually fall out, and did so with nasty squelches and an equally nasty smell. "So, yeah, keep Ariadne safe tonight. I don't know what exactly you'll be facing, numbers or who. I do know some guys from out of town expressed interest, and if they came here just for whatever the boy's got, it can't be good news." She looked up to all of you. "Do you think you can manage this one at least?"

Last edited by Lentil Sponge; Nov 27th, 2022 at 08:54 AM.
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  #127  
Old Nov 27th, 2022, 10:22 AM
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Vyeggar Vugmuk
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The work, disgusting as it was, gave the half-orc something to focus on that didn't involve those he was unfortunately bound too. He had stayed about twenty paces ahead of the group, not wanting Sandramine or the rest of the bucket brigade to think he had ditched them and his duty. His teeth - his remaining teeth - were grinding in anger as he marched. There was much he wanted to say, but little of it was helpful and less of it was very nice. Maybe that's what I'll do - reserve my right to remain silent. Talking doesn't seem to be getting me anywhere with these jokers.

The water around him had become corrupted by the foulness of the buckets. He hunched over the edge of the water and wondered if perhaps he had done something in a past life to get such a raw deal. It didn't matter; nothing seemed to anymore. Every time he did what he thought was right, people got pissed at him. If transmigration of the soul was indeed real, then nothing he had done in this life would make the next one any better. A second thought, which didn't feel or seem much like him, popped into his head. If everything you thought was right was actually wrong, then why not try something else? The thought puzzled him, and he caught himself staring off into the distance across the river as he contemplated the meaning behind the words.

His minute of quiet contemplation and self-reflection was interrupted by the sudden wrenching of a bucket out of his hands. He looked down at the angry face of Sandramine, who stood there dressed like she was going to muck out stables inside a bordello. His eyes drifted to the others behind her. All he saw was hurt, anger, confusion, and indifference levied in his direction.

If everything you thought was right was actually wrong, then why not try something else?

Apologies were not something the Vugmuks had ever been known for. Apologies were a sign of weakness, and weakness was a crack in the armor that would let an enemy slip a knife in and take you down. Vyeggar never apologized, because he had always been right. Looking at the faces surrounding him, he felt the push and pull of his normal arrogant self-assurance battling against the novel feelings of smoldering guilt and shame at how he had treated his companions. He sighed.

"Listen. I'm sorry. I'm sorry for my behavior and for how I've been acting towards you all. I'm having a real hard time with everything that's going on, and I'm not sure who I can trust. I've only ever been able to trust my family growing up, save for my father who ran out when I was just a kid. That doesn't matter too much now, but it meant that I had to be like a dad to my two kid brothers. Well, now the middle brother is behind bars and the youngest one... well, he's missing. I know he worked for Tilly, but she's not being straight with me about where he's gone. I'm upset because she's holding the whereabouts of my remaining kin hostage until we recover this chest, and there's nothing I can do but play her games and recover her property. I'm finding it hard to trust her, but at the same time I can't risk defying her for fear of her changing her mind and shutting off that particular avenue of inquiry. I'm stuck working with people who I imagine under normal circumstances could care less if I lived or died, but with whom I am now reliant upon to solve this mystery. On top of that, we've got to play nice inside her little casino, working for peanuts and pretending the whole thing isn't all a big hustle? It's so much so soon, and I don’t know any of you well enough to talk about any of it, and even if I *did* know you, with the way I've treated you thus far you wouldn't care anyway."

What came out was a gravelly "Sorry." Vyeggar turned back to his work, listening only half-interestedly to Sandramine's words and thinking about her earlier appraisal of his character.

"Don't say you're as valuable as what's in these buckets."

He wasn't entirely sure he could anymore.


 

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  #128  
Old Nov 27th, 2022, 12:21 PM
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Liana Xirkul
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Liana could see that some of her words landed with a sting on the half orc, and that he had at least one or two thoughts chasing around in his meaty skull. Would any lesson sink in? Probably not.

Of course he lashed out with a verbal attack. But accusing of her of wearing a mask and letting a facade slip. What a fool. She was born and raised among entertainment workers, and so of course you lied. Clients never wanted the truth. That's not what they paid for -- and one could pay a terrible price for showing the wrong face at the wrong time. One wore masks, within masks, within masks.

In any case, there was more to attend to.

Making sure first that there is no one around except her companions and Sandraminae, Liana mentioned:

"I've made a study of religious matters, across the years. The gross bucket stuff... I don't know for certain but it reminds me of the practices of a particularly strange cult of Jeje. The cultists believe that the only way to awaken the full potential of their subconscious was to kill their conscious selves, they would entomb themselves in... something. It don't know what, the exact material changes from telling to telling... clay, or jelly, or oil -- stuff like that maybe? And they try to turn themselves into something like a zombie. I've never heard of this actually working, just producing a lot of foul-smelling and well-preserved corpses. Does this ring a bell with anyone?"

 


Last edited by CatCanCook; Nov 27th, 2022 at 12:26 PM.
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  #129  
Old Nov 27th, 2022, 05:09 PM
Dylan Scott Dylan Scott is offline
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Grim
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Grim was tired, and confused, and sorely tempted to just disappear and leave Tilly and the Casino behind him. He had the power to do just that and the worldly experience to just disappear and not even Tilly could have found him, but despite his short stature and unimpressive physical abilities Grim had never run from a fight in his life, his pride and the pride of family name would not allow it, even if it would have spared him several beatings over the years. So he stayed as the rest of the group argued around him, harsh words being thrown by most parties at the other until Vyeggar stormed off with the buckets and Sandraminae called out to let it go and tried to regain control of the group, the man who he had offered the gold too had been scared off by the Half Orc, wisely choosing to forgo the coin in favour of not facing Vyeggar's anger

Following the group, thankfully not burdened by a bucket of something that didn't bear thinking about, Grim finds his interests piqued by Sandraminae's request, though its likely he is just enticed by the thought of a proper bed again, this time without the distraction of the redhead, as enjoyable as that would be. Following one of the staff home and making sure she was safe seemed like a simple enough task even for him, between the six of them it should be child's play, but then he had thought the same about escorting a chest across the city so perhaps he should reserve his judgement until he was more well rested and awake.

Soon enough they reached the river and to Grim's great surprise, he heard an unusual gravelly word issue from Vyeggar's lips, in his fatigued state he was unable to hide the expression on his face at the half-orcs apology, but after a moment he regained his composure and gave the tall heavily scarred man a smile and flicking the gold coin he previously offered the passerby towards the half Orc.

"A Grimzinta always sticks to a deal. You carried the buckets to the river as i asked so you get the payment, just as you will get your share of our other agreement, a deal is a deal Mr Vugmuk"

Knowing the man is likely to argue with him, it was his nature it seems to be contrary just for the sake of it, Grim quickly changed the subject, putting on his cheekiest grin "Do not worry about the money my friend, should i be lucky enough to find a Redhead eager to share my bed again i am sure i can find some other way of keeping her entertained without it"


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Action: 1GP to Vyeggar for carrying the buckets
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  #130  
Old Nov 27th, 2022, 10:53 PM
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The Dead Mermaid's Casino J9 Harvest 103 of 120 2:52pm Sunny

A Scene Outside the CasinoWhen Liana noted what the insides of the buckets reminded her of, Sandraminae was surprisingly quick to reply. "Tilly's family, what's left of them at least, run in some odd circles. Occasionally she holds stuff for them."
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  #131  
Old Nov 28th, 2022, 12:23 AM
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Learn ye the TRUTH
Liana was thoughtful. "For anyone who has forgotten or neglected their religious training, Jeje is of the Heavenly Masters, and worship of her is part of the One True Faith."

"The glorious Queen of Self Realization is beloved by those who seek the strength to defend their communities. So, naturally I honor her greatly, though in no means as much as I adore Erotes, the Most Endowed. Jeje may be depicted as either a girl covered in seaweed or an elephant, Jeje is specifically the Goddess of Madness... but of a blessed sort that allow those possessing it to see the world differently to others. And so, her way has some appeal and sensibility to one such as I who practice psionic arts and altered states of mind."

"She is benign and kindly goddess, well, often. But I can see that her paths are difficult and her ways can involve wild and audacious results."



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  #132  
Old Nov 28th, 2022, 12:36 PM
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Tarbin Haldar
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”I must admit about being somewhat curious about what was in these buckets before they were in their current state but I guess it’s not my place to ask…” Tarbin commented as he slightly shrugged his shoulders while carrying the combined weight of a number of buckets.

Tarbin then listened quietly as Sandraminae spoke.

”Now if we’re not getting paid for it it sounds like a favour to me…” Tarbin declared with another shrug of his large shoulders. ”Though keeping a young lady safe is one such favour I would happily do for free..” he then added with a thoughtful look.

”The six of us skulking through the shadows though may be a little obvious and I am not exactly the stealthy sort…” Tarbin began with a thoughtful look. ”Could I not just offer to walk Miss Ariadne home?” the large man asked going for the simplest of solutions before he began to dump buckets of slop in to the river.




Last edited by Alatere; Nov 28th, 2022 at 12:39 PM.
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  #133  
Old Nov 29th, 2022, 04:07 AM
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Location Map Season Day Time Weather
The Dead Mermaid's Casino K8 Harvest 103 of 120 2:52pm Sunny

A Scene Outside the CasinoSandraminae released an amused breath or two from her nostrils as Liana went into her little ramble. "Well, now you sound like my old man. Preacher of Alchibarta, all fire and sword-blades. I just pray to the Hundred-and-Eleven now and then, when I truly need their help and can't turn elsewhere. In this city, the only real help you get is from yourself."

Tarbin's words only brought her brow lower, as if expecting the request for payment. But then he continued past, and made his suggestion. "You can't say my name, and you can't expect it to work," she pointed out. "Ariadne prefers to keep herself to herself. The only reason she's even in this line of work is because Tilly's paying for her kid sister to go to school. Like with everything, Tilly has her price for her help. Still, I'd rather keep her in debt to Tilly and where I can see her, then let her run off and get mixed in with someone worse."


Location Map Season Day Time Weather
The Dead Mermaid's Casino J9 Harvest 103 of 120 3:09pm Sunny

The Dead Mermaid's Casino
left-aligned image
Ultimately, it didn't take too long to clean the buckets of the slop. It was irritating work, and filthy at that. Sandraminae seemed ready to say one last thing, but then she noticed the pair of figures at the door and stopped herself. Her expression turned as grim as it ever had. "Of #*@!ing course," she hissed.

All of you have at least seen the pair of very distinctive security guards. The huge, hulking orc and the kobold who seemed permanently perched atop his shoulders. Only Liana had exchanged names with Larzon and Rozitto Maztablazta. Rozitto was idly swinging her truncheon about in one hand, when she spotted you all approaching. "Hey, friends. All the staff are on notice - if there's an old man making trouble tonight, make sure you tell us, ok? He is consistently a danger to other customers and himself, so it's been decided that we have to permanently ban from our reputable establishment."

Sandraminae's arms folded. "Rozitto, the hell do you think you're doing?" There was a sudden grunt as Larzon wheeled towards her. There was a noticeable size difference, with her barely reaching his chest, but she didn't seem phased. "Don't threaten me, Larzon. You know what Tilly would do to your wife if you so much as breathed on me." Then a wry smile came to her, which Rozitto just mirrored. "See, I thought you liked the old man! You can't get rid of him, who else would you beat up?"

"He likes us better than you. Last time you two met, he tried to choke you to death."

"Your point?"
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"... not much, really. Tilly does value you more than us, after all."

Whatever the tense standoff was, that ended it, and there was a very clear winner. Sandraminae's smile vanished again. Rozitto's was still there, wicked and commanding. Larzon looked ready to smash something with the less ugly side of his face. Rozitto turned her smile on all of you. "Older human man. Only... so high. Looks homeless. You'll know him when you see him. Just point him out to us." She looked to Vyeggar, one of the few people her husband was not as ugly as, and grinned even worse. "You could bring him to us directly, if so inclined. It would save us time collecting you."

"If they're not busy, of course." There's no reply, and Sandraminae brings you in. "I'll make sure to point Ariadne out to you when I see her."
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  #134  
Old Nov 29th, 2022, 08:00 AM
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Liana Xirkul on patrol
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Without advertising the fact, Liana paid keen attention when the old man was mentioned.

Later -- when they are away from the orc-and-kobold security couple, she decided it was time to speak with her companions. They all needed a bit of time to wash and prep for their next responsibilities, but Liana gathered the group of just her peers -- minus Vyeggar (sadly he couldn't be trusted) -- into a quick group huddle before people split up.

 


In the hours to come, Liana Xirkul will be keeping her eyes open. As requested by the establishment. More or less.

 


Last edited by CatCanCook; Nov 29th, 2022 at 08:04 AM.
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  #135  
Old Nov 30th, 2022, 07:36 AM
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Damien Buranta
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Damien's brow furrowed. He could only imagine the kind of hell the Dead Mermaid Casino had been before if this frustrating web of hushed secrecy and surveillance was the brighter alternative. Maybe looking back on those days made it easier for Sandraminae to view the status quo fondly, or maybe they really were just looking a gift horse in the mouth. All Damien knew was that, for a woman who so many owed everything to, Tilly seemed to find it habitually necessary to trap people into being in her service. There were cracks in the organization being compensated for... and while their group may have lacked Sandraminae's experience and knowledge, they certainly had fresh enough perspective.

But that was thinking for a later date. For the moment, there was the matter of this Ariadne girl. Much as the hot item her boyfriend was foolishly advertising to dangerous strangers held interesting possibilities, Damien wasn't about to gamble unnecessarily when it came to dealing with people he didn't know. The job was the girl's protection, and that was all the mattered for tonight. With Tarbin making mention of the obvious, that six people sneaking around behind her playing hide the security detail was hardly feasible, Damien had a small addition in mind.

"Whether or not you can convince her Tarbin, it hardly makes sense for the rest of us to all follow behind. Where is her home? If these interested parties are looking to get to Ariadne's boyfriend through her and they know where she lives, they could be staking it out already... one or two of us should go ahead of time. Conduct a little bit of counter-surveillance... and warn the others if trouble is waiting."

Their final approach to the Casino was interrupted by an oddly tense encounter with its iconic security duo. While Damien said nothing, enjoying the show as Sandraminae made short verbal work of the pair, their brief description of the banned individual stuck out slightly in the vishkanya's mind. He couldn't help thinking back to the old man that had fallen onto him at the gabeta board. The sense of familiarity between him and the two bouncers implied he was a repeat problem at the casino... and really, just how many patrons matching the description they'd given could be HABITUALLY making an impression with Larzon and Rozitto?

Before Sandraminae left the group to get ready for their shift, Damien flashed the elf a crooked grin.

"Sandraminae, I don't usually cross professional boundaries, but I feel like with everything going on we've never had a chance to really... talk. Much as I'd love to pick up where we left off at the gabeta boards sometime, if you ever just have a half hour to yourself to grab lunch out in the city, I'd love to pick your brain. Boss." His tone was just a step away from flirtatious, though as he kept his eyes on hers, Damien lowered his glasses slightly and gave Sandraminae a meaningful look that showed through the sly smile. There was no telling whether she would pick up on what he was getting at or not, but the elf was a smart one, and it wasn't as though he could talk shady business with her on casino grounds. Then again, she might still reject him outright, thinking he was just looking for a date or to suck up.

... or hell, she might take him up on it just for fun. He could use the good company for a bit.



As everyone was getting ready for their shift, Liana took a moment to pull them all aside (well, not ALL. Predictably, she hadn't included Vyeggar), telling them about her desire to speak with the old man before he was intercepted by Larzon and Rozitto. For the second time, Damien found himself thinking of the old man from the day he came looking for a job. As she explained her reason for wanting to talk to the old man, Damien narrowed his eyes a bit. A murderer... one that had taken family from her. That struck a chord with Damien... he'd never been able to avenge his father's murder. Too young and helpless... but even now that he wasn't, it was a part of his past that lay out of reach back in the land of his birth, a place he never intended to return to. But for Liana, the source of her torment was here in this very city, alive and well, in possession of something that belonged to her. Damien couldn't change his past, but he could help Liana get what she wanted here and now.

When the halfling had finished explaining, he spoke up.

"Grim... you remember our drunk friend? The one from the game we were playing the day we were hired? Larzon and Rozitto definitely knew him... Sandraminae too. It sounded like he had some past indiscretions and wasn't welcome. Could just be a coincidence of course, but he sounds an awful lot like this old man we were told to look out for, don't you think?" Damien shrugged, looking back to Liana. "We can't risk crossing Tilly... but if we spot him before they do, nobody said we couldn't have a little chat with him before turning him over, right? As for "Big Dog", I could ask around. If he's foolish enough to operate openly in the city, tracking him down will be easy. If he isn't... well, we'll just have to pull the threads of the underground a little harder and see what falls out."



Working the conch shell game again, Damien was feeling relatively comfortable. It gave him ample opportunity to keep his eyes on his surroundings, looking out for the old man... as well as any sign from Urin that she had what they had talked about the previous night. It would certainly give him something to look forward to at the end of his shift. Otherwise, his thoughts drifted between his companions. Their execution today had been... sloppy. He hadn't been exactly on point himself, but it was becoming clear that if they were going to achieve success together, it would require some changes. Better communication and cohesion... better leadership. Damien had to admit that, while he had his own personal reasons for wanting Liana to succeed in finding this murderer of hers, it didn't hurt that a little bit of good will could go a long way toward solidifying her trust. And honestly, while most of the group was keeping at least a few of their cards close to their chests, Damien was confident all of them had something driving them to be here... they had to. Only someone with strong ambition would have walked through those casino doors that day, and while each person was driven by something different, finding out their goals would bring Damien one step closer to earning their loyalty.

And then there was the matter of Vyeggar. The half-orc had also decided to man the conch shell games tonight, and Damien looked over at him from time to time, sizing him up. Vyeggar was a perplexing one, seemingly willing to do whatever the job required, but cavalier his disregard for respecting even those positioned above him. He was smart enough to understand and follow orders, but reckless enough to make light of them. And when it came to throwing the rest of the group under the bus, it had almost felt like he'd taken Damien's warning about showing loyalty and overcompensated in the most self-destructive way possible. Why was the man trying so damn hard to turn himself into an island? Or perhaps he simply felt he had no other choice; his personality and actions hadn't exactly ingratiated him to some of the others, particularly Liana.

"Hey." Damien leaned over to Vyeggar. "Tonight, before sleep. We need to talk."

Maybe the half-orc would dismiss him... but he knew how to listen when he wanted to. Maybe he might this time, and if he could listen, maybe all he needed was someone TO listen.
Rolls & Actions
Whooooof, juggling a lot with this post. Sorry, I didn't get a chance to respond to Sandraminae before the last game post was up, so I wanted to include it.

I don't think Damien needs to flirt to get his point across, but I figured I'd put a little spice on his "lunch" request to Sandraminae anyway.

Diplomacy: 15

Also trying to determine if he might already have heard anything about "Big Dog" based on his name and description.

Knowledge- Local: 13

Ugh, thank god for my bonuses, because those were awful rolls.
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