Metropolis (The World in Waiting) - Chapter One

[D20Dazza]

Ghost Hound Elf Bard

He had finally found Stephanie Zimmerman.

Ghost carefully approached the old elf and the girl, he nods his head in deference at the elder and then kneels before the girl child. A calming smile is plastered across his face as he looks the girl fully in the eyes "hello" he says matter-of-factly "My name is Ghost. What's yours? Want to hear a story?" Ghost launches in to a tale about a lost princess, an evil mage, and a white knight in shining armour.

OOC: using the Fascinate ability to enhance the tale and hopefully win me a place of trust.

 

[Bront]

Ghost carefully approached the old elf and the girl, he nods his head in deference at the elder and then kneels before the girl child. A calming smile is plastered across his face as he looks the girl fully in the eyes "hello" he says matter-of-factly "My name is Ghost. What's yours? Want to hear a story?" Ghost launches in to a tale about a lost princess, an evil mage, and a white knight in shining armour.

OOC: using the Fascinate ability to enhance the tale and hopefully win me a place of trust.

Taran sighs. "I don't think that will help Ghost. The Organ Harvesters took her soul too. She's simply an empty shell at the moment."

 

[Phoenix]

"Master Vulgrath, you seem quite well, dispite your new energy, and I can feel a renewed vigor in the comunity. What has happened in the few days I was gone?"

The old elf looks up with a genuine smile on his face, one that breaks the tension that usually wears on him. "It seems that we've all come together to help this young girl Taran, and it as made us a better people. Strange that all this," he gestures braodly, "could happen so fast though."

Ghost carefully approached the old elf and the girl, he nods his head in deference at the elder and then kneels before the girl child. A calming smile is plastered across his face as he looks the girl fully in the eyes "hello" he says matter-of-factly "My name is Ghost. What's yours? Want to hear a story?" Ghost launches in to a tale about a lost princess, an evil mage, and a white knight in shining armour.

Stephanie takes a step behind Vulgrath, peering out at Ghost with trepadation as he begins his tale. The bard's abilities seem to have no effect on the girl however, and she stares at Ghost with a look of confusion on her face.

Taran sighs. "I don't think that will help Ghost. The Organ Harvesters took her soul too. She's simply an empty shell at the moment."

Vulgrath follows Ghost's actions for a moment before returning to Taran. "And who is this stranger you;ve brought amongst us, and what have you discovered about our ward?"

 

[Phoenix]

For a moment Ba'aktar thought a fourth tooth had been knocked right out of his mouth without him noticing. A quick check though revealed that indeed onlyt three had been lost, and this tooth indeed looked how the smashed tooth should have looked were it whole. He scratched his head, puzzled by the child's change in behaviour, but he wasn't opposed to the new seemingly friendly demeanor.

"Erm, thanks," he said, accepting the gift and putting it with the other two teeth for later, "Listen young'uns... ah..."

He gave up on trying to explain the situation to the children. He couldn't even be sure that their caretakers were dead, so giving them a speech on the subject would be premature, not that the big half-orc was good at such things. He had to wonder how the orphanage would survive without the wealth that assumably came from the stash of gold. Ba'aktar was going to get a headache if he kept thinking about such things, the guilt would gnaw at his thoughts. He did his best to forget about it for the time being, he was working.

The small boy reaches into his pocket once more and retrieves a single gold coin, eaching forth and forcing it into Ba'aktar's hand. It was one of the coins that Yu'olan had shown him, in mint condition too. The small child smiles and points to the coin calmly, drawing te half-orcs attention to something on its face.

The coin bore the emblam of Metropolis on it, and on the other side was a face of someone that Ba'aktar did not recognize. Beneath the portrait, like all other coins, was the minted date. Stopping to think, Ba'aktar looked at the date, 1350AC. Considering that the year now is 1672AC, no doubt this coin would be worth a fortune.

As Ba'akar stares at the coin, a second drops into his hand next to the first, the small boy calmly pointing out the second as well. The face on it looked different, this one was a female's face, a female alf-orc by the look of it too, and the year was...

1945AC?

 

[Festy_Dog]

The small boy reaches into his pocket once more and retrieves a single gold coin, eaching forth and forcing it into Ba'aktar's hand. It was one of the coins that Yu'olan had shown him, in mint condition too. The small child smiles and points to the coin calmly, drawing te half-orcs attention to something on its face.

The coin bore the emblam of Metropolis on it, and on the other side was a face of someone that Ba'aktar did not recognize. Beneath the portrait, like all other coins, was the minted date. Stopping to think, Ba'aktar looked at the date, 1350AC. Considering that the year now is 1672AC, no doubt this coin would be worth a fortune.

As Ba'akar stares at the coin, a second drops into his hand next to the first, the small boy calmly pointing out the second as well. The face on it looked different, this one was a female's face, a female alf-orc by the look of it too, and the year was...

1945AC?

Without having to use words it would seem that the child was pointing something out to Ba'aktar. There was something very wrong about a coin which could apparently be from the future, but that was that, time travel just wasn't possible and he doubted it ever would be. On that note, one does not hear massed footsteps in the street and immediately assume it to be a parade of cross-dressed archmagi. More likely it would be an angry mob, and an angry mob of cross-dressed archmagi were probably far more likely in these parts than a parade of them anyway, as slim as the odds were. Thusly, Ba'aktar's current impression was that the coins were counterfeit, though where someone would find the inspiration to make coins apparently minted three centuries in the future was anyone's guess. He decided in light of the boy's offerings it was useless trying to be intimidating anymore, the job was just turning out far too weird.

"You bunch are a quiet lot aren't yas?" he asked, and looked at the coins again. Truly there was a mystery behind them, but the others would find the mystery irrelevent as long as it was real gold they were made from. The question now was, did Ba'aktar care about the story behind the coins? It would certainly be interesting to use his share of the gold to find out more about its origins. He pockets the coin from 1945, just in case a colleague comes downstairs, and keeps the old coin, ready to bounce it off one of them if anyone had any experience with appraising things.

 

[Bront]

The old elf looks up with a genuine smile on his face, one that breaks the tension that usually wears on him. "It seems that we've all come together to help this young girl Taran, and it as made us a better people. Strange that all this," he gestures braodly, "could happen so fast though."

Stephanie takes a step behind Vulgrath, peering out at Ghost with trepadation as he begins his tale. The bard's abilities seem to have no effect on the girl however, and she stares at Ghost with a look of confusion on her face.

Vulgrath follows Ghost's actions for a moment before returning to Taran. "And who is this stranger you;ve brought amongst us, and what have you discovered about our ward?"

"Well, it's good to see that at least something good has come of this. This is Ghost, and he was investigating the disapearance of this little girl in an attept to bring her back to her parents. Her name is Stephanie Zimmerman it seems, daughter to a nobleman in the city above. I made a few contacts up there regarding this issue, and there appears to be quite a few connections as well as leads, but we might be able to find more if we talk to the Noblemen, and probably the best way to secure is cooperation would be to bring him is daughter."

 

[Phoenix]

Without having to use words it would seem that the child was pointing something out to Ba'aktar. There was something very wrong about a coin which could apparently be from the future, but that was that, time travel just wasn't possible and he doubted it ever would be. On that note, one does not hear massed footsteps in the street and immediately assume it to be a parade of cross-dressed archmagi. More likely it would be an angry mob, and an angry mob of cross-dressed archmagi were probably far more likely in these parts than a parade of them anyway, as slim as the odds were. Thusly, Ba'aktar's current impression was that the coins were counterfeit, though where someone would find the inspiration to make coins apparently minted three centuries in the future was anyone's guess. He decided in light of the boy's offerings it was useless trying to be intimidating anymore, the job was just turning out far too weird.

"You bunch are a quiet lot aren't yas?" he asked, and looked at the coins again. Truly there was a mystery behind them, but the others would find the mystery irrelevent as long as it was real gold they were made from. The question now was, did Ba'aktar care about the story behind the coins? It would certainly be interesting to use his share of the gold to find out more about its origins. He pockets the coin from 1945, just in case a colleague comes downstairs, and keeps the old coin, ready to bounce it off one of them if anyone had any experience with appraising things.

From the stairs behind him came a thundering of feet as the halflings returned, this time towing Yu'olan behind them. All three of them had some measure of blood on them, though on Yu'olan it was little more than a splash, the halflings seemed to have bathed their arms in it.

"Baaky me friend," Yu'olan shakes his head and smiles. "Once more you've come up with tha goods. Well done Chief!"

Twirling the key in his hands he almost skips across to the door on the other side of the room and quickly unlocks it. The door gingerly opens and the three thieves peer around the opened door, eager to see their wealth laid out for them.

There is a tugging at Ba'aktar's leg and the small child smiles, winks, then runs for the stairs with the rest of his group swiftly following on silent feet. The three thieves don't even notice the children as they step into the room to claim their prize.

"Them dirty &^&@#%# priests!" The voice of Yu'olan was unmistakable. "All our trouble fer this!"

From the vault a small bag is tossed into the room, spillinga few dozen golden crowns across the hard floor. Ulam swiftly grabs once, wipes the blood from his hand, and stares at it in the fading light.

"Deez fings aint even dem ol' coins you waz speekin about Ollie...we bin jibbed!"

Hentre walks from the vault, head shaking. "Well, at least we kin sell deez kiddies for a few extra coins at least, or maybe jus' dere gizzards..."

 

[D20Dazza]

Ghost Hound Elf Bard

"Well, it's good to see that at least something good has come of this. This is Ghost, and he was investigating the disapearance of this little girl in an attept to bring her back to her parents. Her name is Stephanie Zimmerman it seems, daughter to a nobleman in the city above. I made a few contacts up there regarding this issue, and there appears to be quite a few connections as well as leads, but we might be able to find more if we talk to the Noblemen, and probably the best way to secure is cooperation would be to bring him is daughter."

Ghost stands and introduces himself to the Elder "Ghost Hound at your service most venerable one. The girl child is in a poor way? what have you been able to discover about her condition?" Turning to Tarak Ghost shakes his head "I do not think Zimmerman will care my friend. He gave me three days to find her before he was going to buy a new daughter. He wants her for the social status she brings him, and in her current condition she isn't going to bring him any. I'd guess he'd kill her as soon as we were gone"

 

[Bront]

Ghost stands and introduces himself to the Elder "Ghost Hound at your service most venerable one. The girl child is in a poor way? what have you been able to discover about her condition?" Turning to Tarak Ghost shakes his head "I do not think Zimmerman will care my friend. He gave me three days to find her before he was going to buy a new daughter. He wants her for the social status she brings him, and in her current condition she isn't going to bring him any. I'd guess he'd kill her as soon as we were gone"

"How vile. Is that how bad things have gotten on the surface? Noblemen buying children because of their social worth?" Taran thinks for a moment. "Perhaps he won't if we can convince him she can be worth even more as a figurehead. Her condition is horendous, and who wouldn't feel sorry for her? And perhaps if Zimmerman calls for a hunt on these Organ Harvesters, for the sake of his injured daughter. He could gain huge public support, draw the nobles to the cause, and it would stick him square in the spotlight as the one who lead the case against these horendous thieves."

 

[Phoenix]

"How vile. Is that how bad things have gotten on the surface? Noblemen buying children because of their social worth?" Taran thinks for a moment. "Perhaps he won't if we can convince him she can be worth even more as a figurehead. Her condition is horendous, and who wouldn't feel sorry for her? And perhaps if Zimmerman calls for a hunt on these Organ Harvesters, for the sake of his injured daughter. He could gain huge public support, draw the nobles to the cause, and it would stick him square in the spotlight as the one who lead the case against these horendous thieves."

Vulgrath looks to Ghost and shakes his head, saddened. "Unfortunately the girl has no soul, much of the magic that I can summon does little to help, and that which would effect her would be harmful."

Waiting to Taran to speak, Vulgrath continues. "Our priority is this child's welfare, rather than what this 'Zimmerman' wants. Have you learnt anything of the location of her soul, or the harvesters?"