Rinkaiel: Kidnappers

For in-universe game play. Journey through both familiar and foreign settings, explore lost ruins and forgotten cities, and try to bring light to the darkness of the world... or, you know, blow stuff up. Either way.
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Graybeard
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Re: Rinkaiel: Kidnappers

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"Feel anything weird here?"

Yeah, the whole thing's weird,
thought Layla, but I don't think that's what she means. "I haven't learned much detection magic yet," she said, "other than just being able to sense that it's there. And yeah, it's there all right. Damn if it isn't there. There's magic on those doors, I have no idea what it does. At least one of the statues is magical too, same comment. And it sure as hell feels like there's more around here somewhere -- one hell of a lot more."

She subsided for a moment as a pair of young women passed by, pushing small children in strollers and talking about rather generalized motherhood things. For a moment Layla felt a twinge of envy. To be able to take one's child out in a carefree, comfortable way like that, without worrying about a hit to make or the possibility of being hit (or worse, having Zachary kidnapped) ... On the other hand, she couldn't rule out the possibility (getting paranoid here, she thought) that those two were also in town for -- business. Their dark skin colors suggested that they were from the east coast of Farrel. What were the guilds like over there? Layla couldn't remember, to her considerable chagrin; a Wraith had to know what the competition was like, it was an essential survival skill. Anyway, these two were probably nothing to worry about. They looked legitimate enough, and they also felt like what they looked like. The only magic they seemed to be carrying was on a timepiece that one of them wore, and Layla's practiced eye didn't note any signs of concealed weapons. No, they were just young mothers out enjoying the nice day ... and Layla's envy returned, tinged with just the tiniest bit of resentment.

Back to business, she scolded herself. "Look at that," she pointed out once the women had passed. A walkway seemingly leading deeper into the ruins had been blocked with a barricade, and a sign proclaimed "NO PUBLIC ENTRY, unsafe conditions ahead". Layla cocked an eyebrow at Jade. "Any idea what that's about?"

Of course, she was also thinking and how do we get back there?, but some things just went without saying.
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Jack Rothwell
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Re: Rinkaiel: Kidnappers

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"Any idea what that's about?"

"I've only ever seen signs like that for one of two reasons." Jade replied promptly. "Reason number one; it's genuine, and it's there to stop people born without working brains from going past and injuring themselves, then demanding money from the people who own the property because they couldn't take responsibility and watch where they were walking (OOC Imagine what a fucked-up world that would be.../OOC) or... it's a bald-faced lie to cover up a profitable secret."

She barely paused.

"Want to place a bet?"
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Re: Rinkaiel: Kidnappers

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"Want to place a bet?"

Layla chuckled, getting a responsive giggle from her son that almost caused her to lose interest in the conversation entirely, but there'd be time for mommy love later. "Improbable as it sounds, I'd take door number one here. This ruin has been around a lot longer than Rinkaiel has been organized enough to take care of it. Anything worth stealing must have been lifted a long time ago." She waved at the ... explicit ... statues and friezes. "I'm honestly surprised those are still here. Must just be too heavy and unwieldy for anyone to have taken, I guess. No, I'm guessing this sign means just what it says, for once. If so, the area behind it may be just what we're looking for. The sign will keep nosy passers-by out, and we can set up some surveillance without detection. I'm not too worried about decrepit buildings, we're used to that. And I'm not sensing any magic close by, not that that means much since I'm still not up on my detection skills. What's beyond here is probably as well suited to our purposes as we can hope for."

She was wrong, of course, but there was no way to know that ... yet.
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Re: Rinkaiel: Kidnappers

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Jade shrugged at Layla's hypothesis.

"I defer to your experience in sneaking around. So... are we crouching in the shadows to pass the time of day or do you have something that can monitor the place without us?" She mulled it over. "Personally I'd like to map this place from top to bottom. The craftswoman in me demands it."
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Re: Rinkaiel: Kidnappers

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Layla had to laugh at that. "The craftswoman in me demands it." That was something a good Wraith might say.

She was just about to answer when Joe took her arm. "Layla, we'd better move on from here," he said, a clear tone of worry in his voice that she recognized: he'd spotted something. Without protest, she took his arm -- might as well keep up the young-family act, even though Joe wasn't exactly the family type -- and the group backtracked just as a rough-looking man passed them, heading for the barrier, his eyes flicking from one to the other.

"Just a minute," she said. "This carrier's pinching my shoulder." She stopped and took Zachary off her back, thereby achieving two other goals beside comfort: she made sure the concealed gun was close at hand, and the move also gave her a chance to look behind them. The man was stepping around the barrier and continuing down the blocked walkway. This observation made, she replaced her son on her back and moved on.

As soon as they were out of earshot of the barrier and any passersby, she turned to Joe. "What was that all about?"

Joe's voice dropped. "That guy's Seeadler. Name's Quince, or at least that's what he goes by. Rhett told me a little about him. He's way up in the organization. We don't want to cross him."

Layla stopped to fiddle some more with the carrrier. "Wow. Good catch, thanks." She turned to the Silver Hands mercenary. "I don't suppose you folks know anything about that guy?"
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Re: Rinkaiel: Kidnappers

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Jade racked her brain for the name Layla had mentioned. Quince... Quince? Was there a flicker? Something Rufus might have mentioned a few days ago?

"We haven't had much of a chance to form ties with many... erm... 'information brokers' in the town just yet, but I think the old man could have said something. He told me 'It was best to get the lowdown about the competition'. So, Quince... 'brains and brawn rolled into one' and something about 'back alley deals with unscrupulous mages'. Beyond that, we don't know." She finished lamely.

The blacksmith looked doubtfully at Layla and Joe for a moment, wondering briefly if the old man's definition of 'competition' would ever include the friends she'd made since staggering into town.

"Should we follow him? I think I could just about manage to stay quiet."
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Re: Rinkaiel: Kidnappers

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"Should we follow him? I think I could just about manage to stay quiet."

Layla shook her head. "If he's important in the Seeadler, he'll have minions here, and they'll be watching. In fact, look up there."

Her keen eye had picked up movement in one of the decrepit turrets beyond the sign. Yes, that looked just like someone doing for Quince what they'd want Oskar, or Jade or Rufus or somebody, to do when the exchange occurred. Where there was one, there would be more.

"Let's keep it in mind, if we can't find anything better, but I'd rather not tangle with those people if we don't have to. I do wish I knew what they were up to, though." She retraced her steps to the main tourist path; there were plenty of ruins to cover here, after all, and the Seeadler wouldn't be infesting them all -- probably.

[OOC: OK, got any other color you want to bring to this place? Go wild...]
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Re: Rinkaiel: Kidnappers

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The interior of the temple was... well... calling elves 'ostentatious' would be an understatement in the blacksmith's view; it was almost as if they'd taken a conciliatory pleasure in their retreat from civilization with the relics they'd left behind, smug in the knowledge that the 'mortal's would never be able to match their achievements. Jade stood, mouth agape, at the room the tourist path had led them to. The domed ceiling seemed to have been constructed in the same luminescent material as the doors to the temple. Murals of stunning figures were etched into this feature, incredibly lifelike as if the glow had taken the pictures into something beyond mere art.

"I wonder if there's any technology knocking about that the looters didn't get to..." She half-whispered.

The room was octagonal, it's main feature was a circular, intricate, iron stand in its middle from which a thick flame billowed continuously upwards. Tiny, nymph-like cravings poked out from the top of the walls just before the ceiling started the slope in. the figures seemed to be pointed to the over-sized lamp as though there was something of significance to discover there. Jade drew attention to them with a point of her own.

"Why do I feel the sudden urge to start poking around where I probably shouldn't'?" She mused out loud.
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Re: Rinkaiel: Kidnappers

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"I wouldn't," Layla said. "That thing is magical as all hell. I can feel it without even trying. Luminosita's Nethers, I'm surprised you can't feel it. Elven magic is nothing we want to screw around with."

The ceiling, now ... that offered possibilities. She was pretty sure there was still magic up there too, but it didn't have that same active feel to it. Furthermore, the gaudiness (well, "splendor") of the figures might distract eyes down below from people watching through the slit windows.

"Do you suppose we can find a way to get on top of that dome?" she mused, as soon as she was sure nobody outside the immediate group was listening.
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Re: Rinkaiel: Kidnappers

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Jade looked at the domed ceiling doubtfully; the curve of the thing was a challenge beyond a relatively inexperienced climber such as herself to do, and as far as getting up there without drawing attention? No chance.

The overhanging nymphs at least would presented an easy way of getting to the difficult part; but then the blacksmith consider the broken spire outside. Using that to gain access to the roof would be fairly straightforward, identifying the chamber from there should be doable. Eavesdropping once in position could be solved with a knife and a loose panel in the mural overhead.

"Maybe... from the outside." She heard herself say to Layla. "Unless there's a hidden alcove in the mural. I sure don't see it."
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