Sun, Streets, and Suspicious Sausages

[Kitan]

Availability: Open!

Posting Speed: Standard

Characters Involved: Ferric, Brokk, Julius

Thread starting date: 122PW, February

Location: Market District

Summary: Ferric investigates a man called Desorte, suspected of smuggling some highly illegal stuff into Marn in the shape of tiny statues. Brokk occasionally dispenses aid while Julius... has been sent to the torture chambers.

Other Notes: None

[Brokk]

So what we have so far is three idiots sharing the same space. So we're going with a witness angle. Some dude got murdered and Julius is the only witness, but it turns out Ren was outside when the accused did a runner and so saw his face. The accused is a member of some noble family or other and is keen to silence any witnesses, so Ferric has to keep Ren and Julius out of trouble.

[Brokk]

Ok, I've given this more thought and here's what I've got.

A former flame of Julius, whom he scammed, sends someone to kill him. Julius does a runner and in the chaos, ten and ferric get involved. Ferric is questioning them when they are attacked again. One of the assailants is carrying a keepsake Julius gave to the one he conned. Julius recognizes it and we have an address. When we get there, the place is empty and trashed, someone having left in a hurry. A search produces evidence of a missing weapon/ rare metal shipment that the guard have been after. Our suspect was planning to sell it on and panicked, thinking we were on to the scheme. We track her down to where she is meeting the buyers. The buyers kill her and vanish, not willing to compromise themselves further.

Thoughts?

[Kitan]

Not sure why our assailant is carrying a token that Julius gave to his lover. One would think that if you send unarmored, untrained thugs to attack a superiorly equiped and trained guard you wouldn't do that. For that matter, one would think basic self preservation applies here. I'm going to say the thugs will be trying to work around Ferric to hit the witnesses rather than charge in like Leeroy Jenkins. Ferric isn't a good fighter compared to your average guard, but there is no way they should know that.

What is more reasonable for tracking them down is to give Ferric some time alone with someone they catch. I might bring the NPC Braken along for some torture or just have Ferric beat one of them until they talk. He could also use his trademark psychological warfare skills. We'll see how it goes, since that is something we can work out in rp.

Finding the weapon shipment is ok but I'm going to say the guard was previously unaware or else it comes across as a silly coincidence.

Also, how is Ren involved in this? It's too bad her cart is a push cart rather than horse drawn or the first attacker could have used it for a getaway.

We can leave the ending more open than that too, no reason to lock ourselves off.

[Julius]

Just random thoughts to try and move things along:

Before Start of Thread, Jan-Feb 122PW: Julius tires of his newest mark, a wealthy woman whose husband is always gone all hours of the day. Not much stealing was needed as she pampered him with the money her husband thought would buy her trust. As it turns out, her husband participates in smuggling in magic weapons and items in hopes of selling them to rebel groups or a wealthy, danger-crazed eccentric. The husband soon discovers his wife's betrayal and discovers the whereabouts of Julius. Ferric had been investigating these operations for weeks and discovered that a bystander got involved. He decided to use Julius as bait to lure out the husband and catch him in an unfamiliar setting, alone. Outside of Tiger's Crossing is a cart of miscellany and someone (Ren) lying beneath it under a blanket, seemingly asleep. Julius lays a fine, silk jacket given to him bye his recent mark atop her cart.

Start of Thread, Feb 122PW: Ferric enters Tiger's Crossing, guised in clothes befitting the establishment, and immediately spots Julius playing music for the small crowd of customers and guests. Ferric takes a seat at the bar. After finishing his tune, Julius approaches the bar like a playful hunter and speaks to Ferric. Julius speaks in code to Mr. Svireppy (asking if Ferric would like a particular drink they associate with marks). Svireppy replies in fashion (suggesting a drink associated with guards). Briefly stunned, Julius attempts to slyly wander off. At this point the husband enters Tiger's Crossing in a rage. Almost immediately behind him follows Ren attempting to sell a "beautiful, hand-crafted jacket worthy of noble blood" to the patrons. In the confusion, the husband twists immediately at the sudden sound and the two trip over each other. Out of instinct, Ren breaks the man's arm in the tumble, believing it was an assault against her. Ferric apprehends the man and begins to leave. Julius is commanded to follow Ferric as the man likely informed his associates to succeed where he may fail (which he did). Ren follows quickly after the two demanding compensation for the, now ripped, jacket. Once outside, the associates of the man see both Julius and Ren with Ferric (who is dragging their mangled friend). Ferric knows that both Julius and Ren will be in danger without him so they both are ordered to follow.

That's all I've got.

[Brokk]

Well the original assailant was an assassin hired anonymously to kill julius. He doesn't know who hired him, he was just told to show Julius the token before he killed him. That way Julius would know why he was being killed. He thought it was a stupid idea but it was worth more money to him so he took it. It gives us a reason to keep Julius involved in the search. Our other option is for him to leave the token at his lodgings and find it there when you go looking. Otherwise if Ren and Julius were in danger Ferric would just lock them up for their own protection and investigate himself.

The second group of assailants are a different bunch, better trained. What they do is strictly hit and run. We could have it as just one or two marksmen who take out the would-be-killer. They were hired to kill the assassin and once he goes down, they flee. So we're left with a corpse that Ferric can identify. The idea being that the group the shipment was being sold to got wind that their contact was risking their cover, so they decided to cut their losses and clean house.

If we follow this angle, Ferric, knowing that they were professional and thus would know the guard were sniffing around, could maybe use Ren and Julius as bird dogs to find them. In this scenario, when they attacked, Ren would get conscripted when Ferric and Julius used her cart for cover.

Its either weapons or titanium ingots but either way its something that should whet the Guard's appetite to investigate further.

Actually we can meld Julius' idea into this version too.

[Kitan]

Alright.

Maybe what we need is a reset. It is probably best if we just start with something simple and work out the finer details as we go.

Premise: One of Julius' marks, a rival of Ren's, has "given" Julius a small, expensive looking object, probably a statue or figurine (and by that I mean Julius stole from him). Ferric, investigating the mark for smuggling certain objects into the city, wants the object for investigation. Ren has previously wanted the object for what she has heard is its resale value, and tags along, hoping to convince Ferric to let her keep the object. (He has a decent chance of letting her do so, depending on how things go.)

Since it is Ren's rival, she'll want to help bust him, and since Ferric is too cynical to assume Julius is innocent, he'll demand Julius come along and prove his ignorance as to the object's properties in the process.

This gives us a more open RP with less predetermined paths, as well as valid reasons for everyone's involvement. What do you all think?

[Brokk]

I'm not buying Ren's angle, its not how she works, but sure, why not?

[Julius]

I likes it *noms imaginary cookie* <3

[Kitan]

I was willing to let one slide but how is everyone noticing that Ferric is a guard? He's out of uniform and his weapons are concealed.

[Brokk]

Editing.

[Julius]

I wasn't insinuating that Svireppy knows he is a guard, simply that he noticed his eye on Denorte and that he is sitting quietly, not talking or drinking.

[Kitan]

Cool. Thanks guys.

[Metarie]

I am confused by Julius' post. How does he suck the soul in a vampiric way??? This was not in the app.

[Brokk]

Now I too am confused. Please Julius, enlighten us. *waggles eyebrows suggestively*