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Demons in the Mist (October 9th update)
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<blockquote data-quote="Desdichado" data-source="post: 4890125" data-attributes="member: 2205"><p><em>I'm still experimenting with tense and a few other things. I like past tense better to read, but the game itself took place in present tense. The last entry I tried to keep as present tense, thinking it would be less work for me to edit (and it was) but... I don't like it as much. So, back to past tense.</em></p><p></p><p>Ricardo coughed and spit rose petals from his mouth, unable to muster the sort of volume that would draw the guards' attention, and carried on in pursuit of the fleeing youth. "Guards! Guards! Stop that miscreant! Your mistress' honour depends on it!"</p><p></p><p>Meanwhile, Shautha managed a quick grin and smirk at the tentpole and the girl in the bedroom before jumping out the window. She grunted heavily as she crashed into the soft loam, painfully stood up and then trotted over to Kirov, morningstar at the ready. Scritch waved his kukri past the nobleman's face and grinned menacingly...before curling up a fist and punching him solidly in the stomach.</p><p></p><p>Ricardo stood gingerly and brushed off his velvet clothes. Recovering a bit of his aplomb, he bowed to her ladyship up in the window. He then drew his rapier. "You see, your ladyship, we are as good as our word. How shall we dispose of this ruffian?" </p><p></p><p>Shautha grinned at Scritch almost ferally while standing menacingly over Kirov. Vuukran minced towards Kirov in slow, deliberate steps, his face a tight grimace while picking shards of glass from it. "Oh, he's going to pay for this. Hold him down for me so I can spill his guts all over the street." </p><p></p><p>Kirov sat up woozily, shaking his head. "You've got me," he says. "I surrend<em>uuurk!</em>" Lash dragged himself from the rose bushes, saw the huddled Kirov, pulled his pistol, and shot him. Lash's shot took him in the chest and Kirov fell over. For just an instant before he went down, everyone saw an odd vision; as if a smoky, translucent mask of someone else's visage was being pulled off his face, then it disappearred and Kirov stopped breathing. </p><p></p><p>Shautha looked up surprised from her menacing. "Wait, are we supposed to kill him?" Her face was confused. </p><p></p><p>"Cht. I didn't think so." Scritch checked Kirov's vitals to see if he was still alive or not...and checked his pockets for valuables or clues. </p><p></p><p>"I can't think of a more effective way of preventing him from delivering a message." Vuukran scratched his blood-soaked chin for a moment. "Oh, wait! would you rather we just cut his tongue out instead? Hmm, but then he might still be able to write a message... Cut off his hands, too?" </p><p></p><p>Shautha's brow wrinkled in at attempt at thought. "Why don't we just tie him up and drop him at the Lady's feet?" </p><p></p><p>"Oh, dear," Castellana called down from the balcony. "I suppose I better call for my chirurgeon. And then we need to talk some more. Things have become more serious."</p><p></p><p>The chirurgeon was a small man with very thick glasses that made his eyes look gigantic. Mousy gray hair poked up crazily from behind his ears. He tsked and shook his head on seeing first to Kirov, who was then dragged away and locked in the cellars, and then he attended to each of the others. </p><p></p><p>Scritch's features softened and became more human as they waited for the chirurgeon. After the small, ginger-smelling man bandaged the shifter up, Scritch quietly joined the rest of the group upstairs. He sat - squatted, really - as everyone gathered together again. </p><p></p><p>"This reminds me of the time I was hired to steal the Coruscating Jewel of Emen-Nuhal. I was running down the hallway, jewel in hand and ten score of the Empress's personal guard hot on my heels, when the hallway ended abruptly on a balcony and - Hey, free pistol!" On the way back to the Contessa's chambers, still picking shards of glass from his face, Vuukran stopped to pick up the pistol Kirov dropped during his ill-fated escape attempt.</p><p></p><p>Shautha rolled her eyes at Vuukran's story. (Note: Ricardo still hasn't seen Shautha from the front in proper lighting.)</p><p></p><p>Ricardo needed no second request; he was back into the house and, taking a few moments to adjust his outfit (making sure it's clear he played a role in the desperate battle, but that everything's still looking stylish), he followed Castellana back into her boudoir. He refrained from returning to his former seat beside her on the daybed, but appeared helpless to control his smouldering glances in her direction. "Dear lady, now that the immediate threat is gone, perhaps you could explain why the Kirov family would have any interest in a shipment of lace?" </p><p></p><p>Lash, still pulling thorns from his backside, said, "Yes, good Lady, why would Kirov be snooping in your chambers, and, more to my immediate interest, when can I finish ripping his throat out?" </p><p></p><p>The chirurgeon tsked again, following them into the lady's chamber. "These field dressings will never do. I'll see if I can tend to you better when we're not so rushed." He shakes his head ruefully again, then packs up his little black doctor bag, mumbling to himself about not trusting people who don't have the good sense to heal right when a doctor's trying to patch them up <em>(as an aside, I had the doctor's ministrations act as if they were a CLW... but almost everyone rolled really, really low.)</em></p><p></p><p>By now the sun had finished setting, and the lady's servants had stoked a fire in the fireplace, and lit lamps and candles. Her private security had thoroughly searched the grounds (one guard was found unconscious--no doubt the way in which Kirov entered) and vetted the room for secret meetings. It was dark and shadowy, however, and the flickering flames gave off poor light. Castellana sat in her usual posture and place, very composed as before. Her younger sister Francesca sat quietly in a corner, still wearing the short silk robe and nothing else (that you can see) and still scowling at her sister.</p><p></p><p>Once everyone was finally seated, she answered Ricardo and Lash's questions. "It seems that some of you have had run ins with the Kirovs before. I did not know before now that you were so well suited for this mission, then. The Kirovs are an old family from Vogorizov, and have been trading rivals of mine for years."</p><p></p><p>"I should also tell you that the shipment of lace is... if you'll pardon the pun... laced with some other items too. Items that the Kirovs particularly want to get, and sell on the black market to expansionist powers in the north like Xoth-Sarnath and Erau. They are mass poisons and other weapons of terror, manufactured by our allies below the Mistline and their value in the wrong hands is incalculable. My brother Gaspar was to take delivery of these items in Zin and from there make sure that only trustworthy allies had access to these weapons."</p><p></p><p>"I fear, also, that this younger Kirov may have been able to get a message through after all, in spite of your brave attempt to stop him. I saw from the balcony; that effect as if another face were being peeled off of his skin? The Kirov's have in their employ many powerful psions, and that effect is a trademark of theirs when they are 'riding' someone else; seeing and hearing everything that their host does. For that reason, I fear that the job I initially hired you to do may be more dangerous than I had hoped. I think it wise to send my chirurgeon, Doctor Livingstone, with you in case you meet unexpected dangers. I also advise you to choose a route to Zin carefully; if you fly directly there, no doubt you will meet agents of the Kirovs along the way waiting to ambush you, but if you fly more indirectly through the peaks and tablelands, taking care not to be too closely marked as you go, you may be able to arrive without molestation." </p><p></p><p>Shautha shuddered at the mention of psions. "Lady, what way do we have to determine if someone is being 'ridden,' as you say, by one of these creatures? And how do we get rid of them once we find them?" </p><p></p><p>"I don't know. You would have to consult with someone with psionic talent to answer that, I'd guess. It's not been my practice to keep psions on staff here."</p><p></p><p>Ricardo followed with, "But my dear lady, will you be safe here with no one to protect you? Perhaps you should consider accompanying us where we can be sure of your security -- I promise you I at least will not sleep soundly worrying that you are at the mercy of these unscrupulous Kirovs." </p><p></p><p>Castellana laughed. "I appreciate your concern, Ricardo! I assure you I will be fine. I am meeting with my chief of security immediately after we are done to discuss how to cover this latest gap in my defenses. It will not happen again.</p><p></p><p>I do have other things where I need to be seen publically and I need to deal with, though, so I'm afraid I cannot accompany you, as much as I would enjoy the adventure." </p><p></p><p>Scritch listened intently as Castellana spoke, absently rubbing the Doctor's poultice over his gunshot wound. <em>Politics...always the politics.</em> "When do you expect us to arrive? This will affect our travels plans...sooner better than later would be wise." His vocabulary budget exhausted for the nonce, he returned to examining Kirov's fine rapier, taken from his body, with interest. </p><p></p><p>"I have no strict timetable. I will begin to worry if you still haven't arrived in Zin in three weeks, but not before." </p><p></p><p>"Travel to Sènt-Andriu and hire air-ship to meet us at Zin?" suggested Scritch. "That gives us an escape if trouble finds us there, also decoy in case we are followed. We could take airship to Iclezza and then second airship to Zin. Also could split up into groups, throw trackers off scent." </p><p></p><p>Shautha's brow furrowed in confusion (something that seemed to happen frequently). "I would think that splitting up would not be a good idea." </p><p></p><p>Ricardo nodded and leered, still unable to see Shautha's features clearly in the shadows. "Indeed, my dear. I believe remaining close will be essential." </p><p></p><p>Castellana waved breezily. "I leave such details in your hands. After all, you're the ones who will live or die by those details, so plans handed down from me are pointless." </p><p></p><p>Ricardo bowed. "Then we will do our best to fulfill your desires, your ladyship. When does our ship depart?" And his eyes said, "What are your plans for tonight?" </p><p></p><p>"I have an airship ready to depart from my private dock at first light. So make the most of tonight, while you can." She turned directly to Ricardo as she said this last sentence, her eyes clearly inviting him to come back later... </p><p></p><p>Before breaking up the meeting, Lash made a suggestion. "My Lady, surely in light of recent developments, namely that the mission's level of danger just dramatically increased, and the minor matter of capturing a spy your security detail overlooked, perhaps we could revisit the amount of compensation discussed?"</p><p></p><p>Castellana smiled. "That is reasonable. I will instruct my brother to have an additional 1,500 gold crowns to pay you as a bonus. It will be 2,000 if you arrive inside two weeks." </p><p></p><p>Lash bowed his acceptance and withdrew.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Desdichado, post: 4890125, member: 2205"] [I]I'm still experimenting with tense and a few other things. I like past tense better to read, but the game itself took place in present tense. The last entry I tried to keep as present tense, thinking it would be less work for me to edit (and it was) but... I don't like it as much. So, back to past tense.[/I] Ricardo coughed and spit rose petals from his mouth, unable to muster the sort of volume that would draw the guards' attention, and carried on in pursuit of the fleeing youth. "Guards! Guards! Stop that miscreant! Your mistress' honour depends on it!" Meanwhile, Shautha managed a quick grin and smirk at the tentpole and the girl in the bedroom before jumping out the window. She grunted heavily as she crashed into the soft loam, painfully stood up and then trotted over to Kirov, morningstar at the ready. Scritch waved his kukri past the nobleman's face and grinned menacingly...before curling up a fist and punching him solidly in the stomach. Ricardo stood gingerly and brushed off his velvet clothes. Recovering a bit of his aplomb, he bowed to her ladyship up in the window. He then drew his rapier. "You see, your ladyship, we are as good as our word. How shall we dispose of this ruffian?" Shautha grinned at Scritch almost ferally while standing menacingly over Kirov. Vuukran minced towards Kirov in slow, deliberate steps, his face a tight grimace while picking shards of glass from it. "Oh, he's going to pay for this. Hold him down for me so I can spill his guts all over the street." Kirov sat up woozily, shaking his head. "You've got me," he says. "I surrend[i]uuurk![/i]" Lash dragged himself from the rose bushes, saw the huddled Kirov, pulled his pistol, and shot him. Lash's shot took him in the chest and Kirov fell over. For just an instant before he went down, everyone saw an odd vision; as if a smoky, translucent mask of someone else's visage was being pulled off his face, then it disappearred and Kirov stopped breathing. Shautha looked up surprised from her menacing. "Wait, are we supposed to kill him?" Her face was confused. "Cht. I didn't think so." Scritch checked Kirov's vitals to see if he was still alive or not...and checked his pockets for valuables or clues. "I can't think of a more effective way of preventing him from delivering a message." Vuukran scratched his blood-soaked chin for a moment. "Oh, wait! would you rather we just cut his tongue out instead? Hmm, but then he might still be able to write a message... Cut off his hands, too?" Shautha's brow wrinkled in at attempt at thought. "Why don't we just tie him up and drop him at the Lady's feet?" "Oh, dear," Castellana called down from the balcony. "I suppose I better call for my chirurgeon. And then we need to talk some more. Things have become more serious." The chirurgeon was a small man with very thick glasses that made his eyes look gigantic. Mousy gray hair poked up crazily from behind his ears. He tsked and shook his head on seeing first to Kirov, who was then dragged away and locked in the cellars, and then he attended to each of the others. Scritch's features softened and became more human as they waited for the chirurgeon. After the small, ginger-smelling man bandaged the shifter up, Scritch quietly joined the rest of the group upstairs. He sat - squatted, really - as everyone gathered together again. "This reminds me of the time I was hired to steal the Coruscating Jewel of Emen-Nuhal. I was running down the hallway, jewel in hand and ten score of the Empress's personal guard hot on my heels, when the hallway ended abruptly on a balcony and - Hey, free pistol!" On the way back to the Contessa's chambers, still picking shards of glass from his face, Vuukran stopped to pick up the pistol Kirov dropped during his ill-fated escape attempt. Shautha rolled her eyes at Vuukran's story. (Note: Ricardo still hasn't seen Shautha from the front in proper lighting.) Ricardo needed no second request; he was back into the house and, taking a few moments to adjust his outfit (making sure it's clear he played a role in the desperate battle, but that everything's still looking stylish), he followed Castellana back into her boudoir. He refrained from returning to his former seat beside her on the daybed, but appeared helpless to control his smouldering glances in her direction. "Dear lady, now that the immediate threat is gone, perhaps you could explain why the Kirov family would have any interest in a shipment of lace?" Lash, still pulling thorns from his backside, said, "Yes, good Lady, why would Kirov be snooping in your chambers, and, more to my immediate interest, when can I finish ripping his throat out?" The chirurgeon tsked again, following them into the lady's chamber. "These field dressings will never do. I'll see if I can tend to you better when we're not so rushed." He shakes his head ruefully again, then packs up his little black doctor bag, mumbling to himself about not trusting people who don't have the good sense to heal right when a doctor's trying to patch them up [I](as an aside, I had the doctor's ministrations act as if they were a CLW... but almost everyone rolled really, really low.)[/I] By now the sun had finished setting, and the lady's servants had stoked a fire in the fireplace, and lit lamps and candles. Her private security had thoroughly searched the grounds (one guard was found unconscious--no doubt the way in which Kirov entered) and vetted the room for secret meetings. It was dark and shadowy, however, and the flickering flames gave off poor light. Castellana sat in her usual posture and place, very composed as before. Her younger sister Francesca sat quietly in a corner, still wearing the short silk robe and nothing else (that you can see) and still scowling at her sister. Once everyone was finally seated, she answered Ricardo and Lash's questions. "It seems that some of you have had run ins with the Kirovs before. I did not know before now that you were so well suited for this mission, then. The Kirovs are an old family from Vogorizov, and have been trading rivals of mine for years." "I should also tell you that the shipment of lace is... if you'll pardon the pun... laced with some other items too. Items that the Kirovs particularly want to get, and sell on the black market to expansionist powers in the north like Xoth-Sarnath and Erau. They are mass poisons and other weapons of terror, manufactured by our allies below the Mistline and their value in the wrong hands is incalculable. My brother Gaspar was to take delivery of these items in Zin and from there make sure that only trustworthy allies had access to these weapons." "I fear, also, that this younger Kirov may have been able to get a message through after all, in spite of your brave attempt to stop him. I saw from the balcony; that effect as if another face were being peeled off of his skin? The Kirov's have in their employ many powerful psions, and that effect is a trademark of theirs when they are 'riding' someone else; seeing and hearing everything that their host does. For that reason, I fear that the job I initially hired you to do may be more dangerous than I had hoped. I think it wise to send my chirurgeon, Doctor Livingstone, with you in case you meet unexpected dangers. I also advise you to choose a route to Zin carefully; if you fly directly there, no doubt you will meet agents of the Kirovs along the way waiting to ambush you, but if you fly more indirectly through the peaks and tablelands, taking care not to be too closely marked as you go, you may be able to arrive without molestation." Shautha shuddered at the mention of psions. "Lady, what way do we have to determine if someone is being 'ridden,' as you say, by one of these creatures? And how do we get rid of them once we find them?" "I don't know. You would have to consult with someone with psionic talent to answer that, I'd guess. It's not been my practice to keep psions on staff here." Ricardo followed with, "But my dear lady, will you be safe here with no one to protect you? Perhaps you should consider accompanying us where we can be sure of your security -- I promise you I at least will not sleep soundly worrying that you are at the mercy of these unscrupulous Kirovs." Castellana laughed. "I appreciate your concern, Ricardo! I assure you I will be fine. I am meeting with my chief of security immediately after we are done to discuss how to cover this latest gap in my defenses. It will not happen again. I do have other things where I need to be seen publically and I need to deal with, though, so I'm afraid I cannot accompany you, as much as I would enjoy the adventure." Scritch listened intently as Castellana spoke, absently rubbing the Doctor's poultice over his gunshot wound. [I]Politics...always the politics.[/I] "When do you expect us to arrive? This will affect our travels plans...sooner better than later would be wise." His vocabulary budget exhausted for the nonce, he returned to examining Kirov's fine rapier, taken from his body, with interest. "I have no strict timetable. I will begin to worry if you still haven't arrived in Zin in three weeks, but not before." "Travel to Sènt-Andriu and hire air-ship to meet us at Zin?" suggested Scritch. "That gives us an escape if trouble finds us there, also decoy in case we are followed. We could take airship to Iclezza and then second airship to Zin. Also could split up into groups, throw trackers off scent." Shautha's brow furrowed in confusion (something that seemed to happen frequently). "I would think that splitting up would not be a good idea." Ricardo nodded and leered, still unable to see Shautha's features clearly in the shadows. "Indeed, my dear. I believe remaining close will be essential." Castellana waved breezily. "I leave such details in your hands. After all, you're the ones who will live or die by those details, so plans handed down from me are pointless." Ricardo bowed. "Then we will do our best to fulfill your desires, your ladyship. When does our ship depart?" And his eyes said, "What are your plans for tonight?" "I have an airship ready to depart from my private dock at first light. So make the most of tonight, while you can." She turned directly to Ricardo as she said this last sentence, her eyes clearly inviting him to come back later... Before breaking up the meeting, Lash made a suggestion. "My Lady, surely in light of recent developments, namely that the mission's level of danger just dramatically increased, and the minor matter of capturing a spy your security detail overlooked, perhaps we could revisit the amount of compensation discussed?" Castellana smiled. "That is reasonable. I will instruct my brother to have an additional 1,500 gold crowns to pay you as a bonus. It will be 2,000 if you arrive inside two weeks." Lash bowed his acceptance and withdrew. [/QUOTE]
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