[IC Thread] Delving the Mists

[Salzorin]

Quilan piles on some beef and some chicken onto his plate and grabs a bowl of stew as well, putting a couple pieces of bread on top of each and then heads to the table. After scarfing down some food and listening to the other two speak, "Aye, I'm inclined to agree with Orum. 'sides, you can't take away my kitchen! I'd go poor if I came here to eat every time my stomach got angry with me."

Quill takes a few more bites and then continues, "As for the comin' and goin', I'd like to set up a couple alternative exits to the building that should take care of that problem. As you said, we're likely to draw some attention... and I've never been appreciative of attention."

Having said his piece, Quilan focus his attention on more important matters... seconds!

 

[Fangor the Fierce]

Alyson, already full from her breakfast, decides that she will only have a light lunch, as she orders a bowl of fruit. She sits at the table, letting the others talk. She gets right to the point, not hesitating, "So what's with getting us all in one place? Seems like there must be a good reason besides our past work. Is there something that needs our attention now?"

OOC - I updated her character sheet, and will be travelling to night to pick up my little sister for vacation. I will have access to internet, but not on a regualr basis until sometime tomorrow.

 

[Telsar]

As Natalie slowly eats her chicken, so she won't finish too much sooner than everyone else, she smiles at Orum and Quilan, saying "I should have thought before suggesting tearing up the kitchen. We all have different priorities. But perhaps we can find some room in the place we can use for wardrobe, bathing, and such. And Quilan's idea of alternate exits will help deal with spies. Emergency exits the staff can use if we're attacked would help too."

 

[Pyrex]

Anton orders a bowl of stew and a mug of ale for lunch. After spending a few minutes watching everyone else trying to get their measure, he speaks up.
"We can set up a screen to partition off some space in the sleeping area. Given that we won't usually be living on-site that should create enough space for bathing and changing without sacrificing the kitchen.

After addressing the group, he turns to Mr. Pettigrew;
"What can you tell us about the three guards that have been assigned to us. Did they volunteer for this or was there some particular reason they were assigned here?"

 

[Cerebus13]

Arthur chuckles over the discussion about a changing room. "I'll leave it up to all of you on how you want to arrange the interior of the new building."

“And I’d like to know a little more about Rickert. What’s his story? Does he have family? He seems a little too young. The building might very well attract the criminal element, or something worse, and we all know there are lots of ‘something worse’ out there. We do need a runner, but the likelihood of him getting in trouble seems very high.”

"The boy's only family is his mother as he is an only child and his father died a few years ago. He is quite capable of taking care of himself and the money we give him helps feed the two of them, but if you have concerns that he will be in danger by loitering near the building...you could simply meet him elsewhere. I believe that the guardsmen will keep most of the riffraff out so he should be perfectly safe."

"As for the comin' and goin', I'd like to set up a couple alternative exits to the building that should take care of that problem. As you said, we're likely to draw some attention... and I've never been appreciative of attention."

"There is a smaller door in the back of the building that leads to the block on the other side, but aside from the windows on the first floor I'm afraid there aren't anymore exits."

"What can you tell us about the three guards that have been assigned to us. Did they volunteer for this or was there some particular reason they were assigned here?"

"They were all assigned here based on their ability to handle themselves without direct supervision. They are all quite capable fighters in their own right and take orders quickly when needed. We found their disciplinary records to be impeccable and felt that they deserved a change of scenery."

"So what's with getting us all in one place? Seems like there must be a good reason besides our past work. Is there something that needs our attention now?"

Arthur sighs and pushes away his almost empty bowl. "I would rather speak of this when we are in the wagon and on the way to our next destination, but yes there is a bigger reason for inviting you all here." He leans back and stretches. "Are you all finished with your meals? We can continue on if you don't have any other questions."

 

[Salzorin]

Quilan finishes up his meal in haste and grabs another piece of bread for the road. While up and grabbing the bread, he thanks Sulin for the magnificent feast they had offered.

"I'm all set. Thank you for the exquisite meal Mr. Pettigrew."

 

[Telsar]

Natalie finishes picking at her chicken, saying "I'm quite finished. With the meal, that is. As for more questions, I'll wait a bit until I see how everything is working out." As they leave, Natalie looks over at the building they'll be working from, seeing how close other buildings are, in case a rooftop-to-rooftop journey is ever required, still thinking on alternate routes to escape when one of those 'something elses' comes knocking.

 

[Fangor the Fierce]

Somewhat satisfied that there is a job to do, Alyson finishes her fresh fruit, and follows the others out of the establishment. Upon exiting the building, she takes in her surroundings, looking for anyone else in the streets, or in the area.

 

[Cerebus13]

As they leave, Natalie looks over at the building they'll be working from, seeing how close other buildings are, in case a rooftop-to-rooftop journey is ever required, still thinking on alternate routes to escape when one of those 'something elses' comes knocking.

Natalie notices that on each block the buildings are usually within four or five feet of each other. Unfortunately where streets end blocks there is no way across unless they can hurdle the width of the road.

"Let's finish up the rest of our tour then shall we?"

Leading the party into a waiting wagon outside of the restaurant Arthur waits until they are several blocks down the road before explaining their special situation.

"Part of the reason you have been placed here is to help solve a rather gruesome series of murders that have been occuring over the last seven or eight months. We've concealed the true nature of the crimes rather well so there isn't a general panic, but we believe they were all commited by the same person. The horrible part of it all is that each body looks to have been..." Arthur grimaces, "Harvested for it's meat." "We're not sure what the killer does with the flesh of these poor souls, but the neat flay marks made by a sharp implement are hard to miss."

"We shall be arriving at the morgue soon so I can show you where it is, but unfortunately we cannot allow you to view one of the recent victim's bodies because there are still too many people around that we cannot trust to keep the secret. I'll attempt to arrange something for this evening so I will send you a note sometime later with a suitable time to return here."

A few minutes later and you arrive at the outside of a rather large drab building. Arthur spends the better part of an hour showing you the inside of it, but it is just room after room of bodies being examined or store before burial. Arthur says, "We don't handle every person that has passed on within the city, because many people who die of natural causes are often taken care of by the family a undertaker. Anyone whose death is a crime is brought through here first to be examined and then preserved through," he whispers, "Magical means. This lets us keep a body around for repeated examinations or if we need to call in a more specialized doctor to look at it."

He finishes up the tour quickly and you board the wagon again to go to the police station and the mayor's office. A few more hours of looking at the boring interiors of offices and the like begins to wear on you, and you are thankful when it finally comes to and end.

"I apologize for the rush but I really must be going to another appointment I have. I'll see if I am able to get an appointment with our private doctor at the morgue this evening to show you the last victim, so I will send you a quick note if and when it is taking place. Miss Madeline will have a list of other recent unsolved crimes that are important enough to give you relavent details on, so you can begin working for a few hours before the sun goes down if you wish."

The coach soon pulls up in front of your office again and Arthur waves to you all before departing for the last time. You enter the building once again and Madeline stands up with a few sheets of paper in hand.

"Arthur told me to give you a brief list of criminal investigations that are ongoing currently so that you could choose one to begin working on before some appointment you may have this evening. I'll list them in brief and I can give you a larger file with more detail if you wish. They are:

- two unsolved break-in/rapes, unsure if they are related
- a fight at a tavern leads to a man being stabbed to death, perpatrator never caught
- a string of pickpocketings on a few of the poorer business block, unknown if it is the work of one or more persons
- a suicide with note explaining another murder that the victim helped perform

Which of these would you like to examine further? Or would you simply like to wander around the city for the rest of the afternoon?"

 

[Fangor the Fierce]

-
- a fight at a tavern leads to a man being stabbed to death, perpatrator never caught
- a suicide with note explaining another murder that the victim helped perform

Which of these would you like to examine further? Or would you simply like to wander around the city for the rest of the afternoon?"

At hearing the cases, she takes note of the stabbing and the suicide. "I would like to hear more about the suicide or the stabbing. I believe I may have greater luck in those two cases. Although I am sure there are some that will take to some of the other cases." She turns and looks at the others, waiting for their responses.