Open Chronicles The Wrong Job

[Kala]

Alliria - Sewers

"That didn't work out too well." Kala commented to the others as she dropped from the ladder and landed with a thud on the stony outcropping just to the side of a river of shit.

Her nose crinkled slightly, lips turning as the contents of her stomach threatened to spill out onto the floor.

The three others with her glanced at her, two of them shrugging their furry little shoulders while the third simply shook his head. The job was supposed to have been simple, break into the Councilors home, steal his wife's jewelry, and then get out. What none of them had expected was that the Wife would still be there, whats more...none of them had expected her to be with the Head of the City Watch.

Sometimes there was just no accounting for all the missed details. Like the fact that the wife of a Merchant Councilor was having an affair with one of the most powerful men in Alliria.

"Did you manage to get anything at all?"

The only human among them asked, a man about her age, more of a thug than a sneak thief. "No, we had to get out of there too fast."

Unconsciously Kala thought about the three emeralds and necklace that she'd managed to stash in a small sidepocket on her thigh.

"We should worry more about getting out of town." And back to the Underdark, there was a tunnel nearby, but the sewers didn't run all the way there. "The Guard will be searching for us."

She would have to ditch them, it was the only way to get away. "Come on, cheer up. We got away alive.."

The Tiefling said with a smile as she began to walk along the narrow maintenance path.

 

[Acteon Cass]

The City Guard had been called for an all hands on deck operation. Not only that but even some trusted freelances had even been offered a chance for coin. Acteon, as a former member of the Allirian Guard, was one of those trusted freelances. Well perhaps trusted was not the right word, as many in the guard did not trust him at all, but he was known for being good at what he did and willing to take on special jobs. This turned into a special job.

Watch-Captain Caeris was not an idle man, never had been, but he was more energetic than usual as he addressed those assembled for the mission. His weight shifted constantly, his hands could not stay still, and he had a bit of a sweat already started for such a pleasant day. The man was even repeating himself a bit. The words "attempted murder and break in" were repeated several times. At least everyone knew why they had been assembled here, or at least the reason given for it. Something was off about the captain and Acteon was curious to find out what it was. Anything involving one of the merchant councilors got his attention. This particular one had not been one of the ones to cross his family and attempt to ruin them, but he could still use them as a tool later on in exacting his revenge.

Descriptions of the culprits were finally given and everyone was sent on their way to search. Acteon strolled on over to the rather frightened woman who it seems was attacked in her own home. She was shaken but looked unharmed. The Allirian smiled to her as he approached and held out a hand for her to take. "Greetings Mistress. I am Acteon Cass and I have been asked to help you with this incident. Can I expect the pleasure of your words?"

Kala

 

[Kekrizh]

Kekrizh shrugged his furry little shoulders. He always enjoyed outings with Kala, most folks tended to stay away from the Rous - and the ones that didn't almost always had ulterior motives. In his experience, she was different. Self-preservation and self-enrichment aside, obviously. Any good thief worth their salt would prioritise those things.

"You know what they say, best-laid plans of rats and men..." He smirked at his small attempt at a joke. He remained quiet for the rest of it.

Kekrizh was not a thief, he could sneak with the best of them, but he wasn't a thief. His skills lay solely in the killing, beating and maiming side of things. While the others had been sneaking about the house, he'd been on watch, ready to pounce on any sod unfortunate enough to come their way.

It hadn't happened, of course. Instead, he'd seen the crew flee the scene of the crime and the group had made a hasty retreat to the sewers. Although, this particular one was certainly a bit ripe.

"You know, I don't know about you... but I think these nobles could do with a bit more fibre in their diets." He spoke, to no one in particular, nudging away a floater with his foot as he scurried behind Kala.

 

[Roan Dorn]

The Mercenaries time at the Weeping Maiden had come to an end. The Tavern had been kind to him and he'd helped to clean some of the riff raff up but it was time for Roan to move on. He'd been destined for the Allir Reach when fate seemed to have something else in mind for him.

An Aide had approached him explaining that his services and expertise were needed to by one of the Merchant Councillors. Normally Roan would have politely declined but the Aide had made a point of adding that the job paid well. It had been enough to convince him and the attire of the Aide had convinced him that he served a wealthy patron.

Roan decided to travel light taking only his gladius with him which would be sheathed over his left hip. Otherwise he wore crisp, washed but common attire which included a tunic, trousers and comfortable boots.

---​

When Roan arrived at the Residence the City Guard was already in attendance indicating he was the last man on scene at this point however instead of being shown in through the front he was taken to the back. There it was explained to the Mercenary that his employer required discretion...

"Don't they all."

...was the only reply before the Aide nodded, explaining that he was a third party to this investigation and had been hired on by the Councillor specifically. It was further explained that though the Councillor loved his wife he may have had his suspicions about her, there was also something that was struck odd about the situation including the way the Watch-Captain zealously persecuted this incident. Once the Aide had told him everything he could he would permit Roan into the residence reminding him to be discreet.

With that Roan proceeded inside through the back entrance. Moving towards the crime scene so that he could examine where any confrontations had taken place he'd have looked for a point of entry the intruders had used...

 

[Ragamuffin]

Ragamuffin was bored. She'd already swiped a pair of dice off this chump thug who thought he was hot shit, and as she played with them in her hand she thought she spied his coin purse.

She wasn't taking things at this point because she wanted them, this was just because of how absolutely nothing was happening. She didn't even like to play dice...

"Still don't know-get why we ran-scurry," she blurted in the usual ADHD manner of most Rous, flipping a coin between her fingers. She brushed against the human again, spinning as she did so and gingerly tapped his pouch... yep, that was a decoy, which meant it was stashed under his clothes.

Smart man.

She showed the dice she had nicked, tossing them back to the thug as she spun again. Her mass of blankets and cloaks swirling like a whirlpool of cloth and she quickly bounded out of reprisal range like a fluid, formless mass.

"Nnnhh, could have taken something from the man-things," she moaned, concealing that she had snapped up an expensive looking mirror as she had fled, "Crew-Jobs always like this: Ragamuffin effortless-easy does her job, yes-yes, then help-things screw up."

She'd popped three locks, and was in the middle of going for a lockbox (which she was still carrying) when someone thought it would be a great idea to get them all caught. Atleast the mutual terror of watching two rutting humans stop what they were doing to try and catch you was entertaining.

"Nyeh. Do it myself-self," she stuttered, grabbing a pipe and seemingly gliding up and out of sight; the acrobatic rous had a habit of finding dark crannies to stuff herself into, "Go back in hour... come in through chimney, maybe, take-steal necklace..."

She didn't even know what it looked like, but rather was just complaining at this point. She didn't like botched jobs. While they did happen, they only ever seemed to happen when she had a crew.

"Bad luck bringing man-thing," she whispered in Squeek, "Too fat, too loud, nnnngh!"

Squeek was kind of like common, but instead it was if you were a rat. Technically you could learn it, but the language was more of a dialect and even at that it was difficult even for rous to speak. It stuttered and stressed in weird places, which lead to Ragamuffins peculiar vernacular.

 

[Kala]

Kala gave the rat man a disgusted look. "Don't do that."

She said to Kekrizh with a deep frown. A part of her liked working with the Rous, they were always an interesting bunch, and painfully predictable, but...some of their habits were utterly deplorable.

Who the fuck went into a sewer to touch the shit?

Her head shook from side to side, and unconsciously she tapped her fingers on her outer thigh. The job had gone painfully wrong, and by now most of Alliria would be on the lookout for them. She doubted they would peer into the Sewers, but they could not get to the Underdark without leaving the sewer.

"We'll need to leave the inner-city." Kala told the three of them. "Then someone needs to create a distraction."

In other words, she needed a way to escape.

Them? Well...she really only liked Kekrizh.

 

[Lord Skavius Drytail]

Lord Skavius Drytail placed a hand on his chin and chattered his teeth, as was his habit when thinking. His jowls quivered with the movements, and his brow was furrowed in displeasure. He sat on a golden chair... actually two chairs that had been welded together rather haphazardly, as either one alone was not wide enough to accommodate him. At his sides were two bodyguards, imposing rous in mismatched but quality armor and equally eclectic weaponry. Before the Lord kneeled a smaller, skinny rous. This one wore simple and tattered clothes, and appeared somewhat nervous.

"Say again... the whole guard?" Drytail spoke in a deep voice.

"Y-yes m'lord. Called in not long ago, came as soon as I heard."

Drytail hummed, chattering his teeth again. The spy had brought troubling news. He had commissioned a job to acquire some very unique and valuable trinkets from a noblewoman of the city above. At the request of his advisors, he had sent a good deal more muscle along with them than a normal snatch-and-grab operation. He had employed the services of some of the "Reesh Reckoners," a newly notorious gang that made lofty promises. To ensure cooperation, he had even sent his own general, Kekrizh, along for the ride. This scout's report was not a good first impression for them to make.

"Hmmm... they will need a escape route..." he pondered, "Or perhaps... a distraction." He turned to the guard on his right. "Fetch Crumbtrap, have him spread the word that all stolen goods from central Alliria will receive double price until morning. That should give the guard something to occupy them!"

He chortled to himself at the thought of the City Watch run ragged dealing with the flood of thieves that this order would no doubt bring from the Underdark, yet still he felt displeasure. This offer would cost him, and the commissioned job's pay would need to be adjusted accordingly.

He waved a hand at the skinny spy in front of him. "Well done, collect your pay from the door and get back to the surface. I want to know everything that happens from now until my jewels arrive."

 

[Kekrizh]

Kekrizh hissed and squeaked back to ragamuffin in the harsh dialect of squeak. "You know the rules kid, we go to the surface we bring a human. It's not up for discussion, they make the best fall guys." He sighed. He didn't like it either, but bringing a human into the fold on surface missions had saved his life on several occasions.

As he spoke to Kala his voice wandered in and out of common and Underdark. He knew the human amongst them was unable to speak the latter, so he used that for more sensitive topics.

"I sent a runner to Drytail, he'll think of something to get us out of here." He breathed a sigh of relief. Drytail was as good a boss you could ask for in this line of work. He rewarded success and forgave mistakes - so long as they weren't too frequent. He'd be eager to return the team back to Underworld, only so he can send them on another mission as recompense.

"We brought the human for a reason, we'll send him out under stupid orders and let him get caught." He finished in Underdark.

The human, who Kekrizh had to admit wasn't as stupid as he looked, grew nervous in ignorance. He looked like a runner. Good, but his time running wasn't just yet.

Kekrizh was on him in a heartbeat. His heavy guillotine blade of a Katar pressing lightly against the human's neck as the small rat looped his arm around his head.

"You forget, you're with us, we're in charge. You do what the lovely Kala here asks you to do... Capeesh?" The man nodded, in another heartbeat, Kekrizh was off him with his blade sheathed.

"Well, that's sorted then."

 

[Roan Dorn]

Inside the Councilor's Residence the Mercenary canvased the area. The Aide and other members of the household would have directed him to the Councilor's Wife but he would have seemed less interested in her. Unlike the men working exclusively for the City Guard the description of the perpetraitors was provided to him by the household staff.

Eventually Roan would have made his way to a hallway where it appeared as though a bit of a scuffle may have occured. It could just be that in their haste to leave the culprits had bumped around, knocking over some things on their way to a quick exit or it could have been more. It was interesting.

As Roan made his way down the hall he knelt down, checked an up ended side table and ran his index finger across the varnished wood. The Merchant Councilor's had never lacked for wealth and the quality of the furniture was obvious. Peering closer the quality wasn't what made side table interesting though, it was the bit of fur that Roan pulled off of it...

"Fucking Rous."

...he didn't have a particular hatred for the creatures but he knew many of them found work as pick pockets, knife-men, smugglers and fences. According to some stereotypes the Rous were synonymous with the underworld and criminal activity.

Rising back to his feet Roan had proceeded down the hall, following the small trail of overturned objects and impact points until he came to a broken window in the Residence. At least one of them must have went out this way in a hurry. The City Guard already seemed to be fanning out, many of them had their orders so investigating the Residence seemed like less of a priority. When he came closer to the broken window Roan observed a bit of crimson on the sill though, someone had been cut; it was probably on the leg if he had to guess.

It wasn't a lot of information to go off of. Fur and a bit of blood as well as basic descriptions which seemed to indicate that the Rous were working with at least one humanoid. Roan pondered, knowing they would either lie low or attempt to escape the city. After a moment the though crossed his mind, the sewers and leaning out of the broken window he'd have looked to see if there were any nearby access points before turning away.

 

[Acteon Cass]

Oh did Acteon get words from the councilor's wife. On and on she went about how things happened. A man, a komodi, and two rous had broken into her house as she was just waking up, how they had attempted to kill her (although left out the details on exactly how they attempted to kill her), and then how they were run off back the way they had come. It all sounded like the usual jokes you hear in an outer city tavern or a rumor in the inner city amongst the wealthy about why a certain merchant had lost so much in a robbery. Mostly he ignored it. He had approached this woman for another reason: her scent.

The woman smelled of dried flowers (her clothing), soap (her skin), and under it all was a mix of two scents. The first was her natural scent that everyone had. It was the combination of life and could tell you much about a person. But what was more interesting was that Watch-Captain Caeris' scent was there as well. Very interesting. Perhaps his hunk about the good, straightlaced captain had been correct and the reason for his nervousness and overreaction was related to his scent clinging to this woman. A card to keep in his hand for later. For now something the woman said got his immediate attention.

"Sorry Mistress. Would you kindly repeat what you just said?" Acteon asked in a tone of caring attentiveness that he did not actually feel.

"Oh yes of course Master Cass. I was saying that the scoundrels that broke in and tried to murder me also stole some of my jewelry." The councilor's wife said in an anxious way. It was clear from her scent as well she was truly feeling it. "Three of my emeralds and my favorite necklace."

"How dreadful. It is true evil to not just attempt to murder a woman but steal her favorite necklace as well." Acteon said making a sympathetic face and patting her hand softly. "How often did you like to wear them?"

"As often as I could. I even wore my necklace when I was staying at home. It is my favorite necklace after all. A woman has a right to feel attractive and comfortable in her own home after all." She said in a bit of a huff although a still anxious one.

Acteon smiled still making that same face from before. "That she does Mistress. Do not worry. I will find these would be assassins and get you your precious jewels back."

=======

It had taken Acteon a minute or two longer to get away from the woman after hearing what he needed to know. He had her scent, both for her clothing and her natural one, so now he just needed the scents of those involved. That meant going to her home, which he arrived at quickly.

Stepping inside the place, Acteon found the staff to already be in a bit of a mess. It was the kind of mess they would be in if an investigator or guard was already there. He knew Caeris would not have sent anyone here if his hunk was correct, so who could it be?

Then the Allirian got his answer as he saw Roan Dorn. The man had not been with those assembled by the Captain which meant he was here on someone else's orders. That meant the good councilor himself was looking into this matter privately as well. Even more interesting. Perhaps this job would be profitable and entertaining both in the end.

Getting a friendly smile going Acteon walked up to Roan. "Any leads? You are investigating this incident as well correct? Or did the staff just let in a curious bystander?"

Kala Kekrizh Lord Skavius Drytail Ragamuffin

 

[Roan Dorn]

He'd have been turning away from the broken window when he heard the voice of Acteon Cass address him. As he set his gaze upon the man he'd have made a quick examination which revealed the two of them were of comparable height and what was likely a similar build, it was difficult for Roan to ascertain if he was thicker than the man. The introduction made by the man revealed they were both investigating this incident though maybe not for the same person...

"That's right."

...he answered, confirming that he was also here investigating what happened though little else initially. After a moment he'd have said more, deciding that if nothing else this man might be able to assist him with his own insights...

"I don't by this attempted murder bullshit I've been hearing. Looking more like a burglary gone wrong. Let me show you."

...the Sellsword gestured for Acteon to come closer before revealing some of the Rous fur that he'd discovered in the overturned furniture. Nothing spectacular given that the basic descriptions of the perpetrators was already circulating however...

"From what I know about Rous most of them are agile and light on their feet. A Woman like the Councillor's Wife would have never heard them coming if they were coming to kill her. Not for sheer dumb luck anyways."

...he outstretched his right arm, directing Acteon's gaze to the hallway as he wove the presumed scene together...

"I'm not sure how they entered but presumably they left in a hurry which tells me they stumbled upon something unexpected. At least one or two of them came down this hall, knocking over the side table and running into the wall as they went. They left through the window behind me, there's a bit of blood on the sill. One of them must have been cut during their exit."

...Rous fur and a bit of blood, it wasn't much to go on but Roan's employer hadn't hired him to find the culprits specifically only learn what had went on in his home during his absence and whether or not any theories about his wife may have been correct. At this point Roan was more interested in finding the parties involved to learn what they'd seen rather than what they'd taken but he wouldn't tell the other man any of that.

Nodding his head once Roan moved forward, stepping around Acteon on his left side in the process while stating as he went...

"There's probably sewer access in one of the side streets nearby. They're Rous and they'll know people are looking for them. It makes sense they went to ground."

 

[Acteon Cass]

While Roan Dorn was taking Acteon in and studying him over Acteon was doing the same. The both of them were no doubt subtle about it but likely it did not escape either of their notice. Something told Acteon this man was perceptive and observant. Not something he particularly liked to see in competition and most certainly not something he liked in allies. Which this man was for him was still debatable, but for now he was proving to be a good tool.

Many details were shared and laid out. Rous fur, blood, and even some signs of what took place. It all proved his suspicions about the attempted murder correct and it only reinforced his theory about the council's wife and the captain. Now if only he could get an eye witness or two it could lead to some fun.

Acteon kept his thoughts behind a mask of curiosity as he followed every moment that this man made. Once he had finished Acteon began to rub his chin. "I spoke with the wife and she told me they chased her around a bit before they were scared off. The scene certainly disagrees with this testimony as does a detail she mentioned to me then as well. Seems some of her jewels were stolen, including her favorite necklace."

His thoughts went by fast as he began to put a few pieces into place, although some of them were currently unsupported. After a bit he said, "According to her testimony there was four culprits. Two rats, a lizard, and a man. Translating the racism that means two Rous, a Komodi, and a Human. That blood does not belong to the Komodi as their skin is more of a hide and the glass would not be able to cut them so easily. There is no fur and as small and agile as Rous are it is unlikely to be one of their blood as well. That leaves the human. Likely he cut is leg or torso."

Acteon moved over to the window as he spoke. There he got the scent of all four culprits and was able to tell apart the komodi and the human from each other. The two rous would be harder to split up the scents of as they all had a nasty habit of smelling the same. So he moved back to man and examined the fur more closely. Color and the individuals scent became more clear. Now he could identify them if they got close.

"I am thinking this was a robbery, but not a random one. Thieves tend to go for easy targets after all and a councilor's home is not easy. Too many guards and people about at all times. Looking at this exit I would say they did not get what they wanted, although they did get something." Acteon said as he looked to the other man. A smile came across his face once more. "The question now is if you will call that good enough of a job and report it back to the councilor or take it a step further and look for the culprits for the guard."

Acteon did not care which way this man went from here. He drew the line and made it known he knew who the man was working for here. If anything he just hoped the man would be lazy and call it good. This information was certainly good enough as it was. He was not in this to help out either side anyways but his own agenda here. The man leaving now just freed him up to continue on without having to keep up some kind of act or pretense. If the man did join him then at least he had another pair of eyes and ears for when this little adventure inevitably brought them into the sewers. With Rous involved it was always destined to end up in the sewers.

 

[Kala]

Kala couldn't help but smile at Kekrizh. Say what you wanted about Rous, but they were far more loyal to their friends than many other criminals would ever be.

The Reesh Reckoners were much the same, though not at all by any sort of choice. That was why she was careful when she selected who she worked with. The Tiefling never wanted to be the one to not do the betraying.

Working with a gang like hers assured that. "Glad that's sorted."

She commented with a smile.

"Now, we best move on. Otherwise Lord Skavius Drytail will have our hides." She somehow managed not to inject an extreme amount of sarcasm into the bosses name, smiling instead and quickly pattering down through the sewer.

Eventually they reached another entrance, motioning towards it.

"Kek." She motioned to her companion. "This should lead to the Middle-City."

Kala didn't want to go first.

 

[Kekrizh]

Kekrizh turned to regard Kala for a long hard moment, his gaze focused intently on her, but his mind was elsewhere. Middle-city... Midci... The worlds rattled around in his brain until clarity overcame him.

"Kala... Didn't pus-face have a safe house in middle-city?" He paused, shuddering briefly.

Pus-face's namesake had been accurate. He was a terrible man who had come to rule over a sizeable empire within the Underdark, all the while his face was adorned with weeping sores he wouldn't stop scratching. He'd fallen in the last year or two at the hand of Drytail... But a lot of his old haunts had remained intact.

"Small stone cottage, no doors, looks abandoned... Had that stone facade you could sneak through?" He grinned, remembering the building perfectly.

He gave the group a brief wink, hissed at the human among them, then scurried along into the pitch dark sewer that led to the middle-city.

 

[Jexlt Warren]

Kala Kekrizh Acteon Cass Roan Dorn Lord Skavius Drytail

Jexlt stood on the roof of the house that got broken into, scanning the area. He had been contacted, as a known vigilante and crime-fighter, by the Guard to help with locating the criminals. So, this was an actual official mission, not just Jex going rouge and stopping crime on his own, no, he was working with others, namely, Roan Dorn and Acteon Cass . They were inside the building, working some things out and going over the crime scene, so Jexlt was on watch duty. He didn't expect to see anything, but it would still be helpful.

Jexlt jumped down to the window sill, and landed on it. He knocked on the window, alerting the two to his presence. "Hey, found anything?" He asked.

 

[Roan Dorn]

The Sellsword had moved around Acteon Cass, walking down the hall and away from the window where he'd revealed most of his discovery when he heard the mans question. It caused Roan to pause midstep, clearly the man was thinking about something back turning his head back to look at Acteon he'd have replied...

"There's one more question I need to answer and I think I might only find what I'm looking for in the sewers. I'll see you there."

...he'd prepared to move away again so that he could navigate the residence and leave on the street level when a third man, Jexlt Warren dropped down onto the sill of the broken window causing him to look between the newcomer and Acteon...

"He with you?"

...Roan was working for the Councillor, he'd surmised that Acteon was likely in the employ of the City Guard but this other man he had no idea at this point. It was clear that Jexlt wasn't one of the group that had ransacked their way through the residence and was now being charged with the attempted murder of the Councillor's wife though. Looking at him Roan have eventually offered...

"Rous fur and some blood on the window sill where you're standing. Unless you know something we don't Rous goes hand in hand with the sewers. Meet you there."

...another pair of hands could be useful so Roan fed the man some intel then moved back to the ground level and towards the back entrance of the household that he'd entered from. He'd round the building then and start a sweep for any sewer access points he could drop down into.

 

[Kala]

Kala remembered pus-face, it was hard not to. The man had a visage that could've scared a Gorgon. In the back of her mind she had a vague recollection of throwing up when she'd first met him. Something which he'd never really appreciated. "I think so, now that you mention it."

The Tiefling said as she quickly followed along with Kek's steps.

Exiting the sewer was not too difficult. The shifting of a single stone was enough and Keke found himself crawling out from just beneath the Inner-City walls. Kala quickly followed after him with the other two stepping into place just behind.

For a brief second she peered around, watching for torch light or any sign of guard patrols before she motioned to her left.

"We should split up, you go that way and we'll head this way." She motioned to Kek and herself as she began to walk away. "Stick to the dark and don't get caught."

Kala said as she turned on her heel and broke into a jog. She knew Kek would be right besides her, and she whispered to him. "That idiot will get himself caught within the hour."

Good thing the moron thought she was a Komodi.

 

[Lord Skavius Drytail]

The safehouse was designed to look unremarkable. Dilapidated, small, with no discernible way in or out. The unassuming design was meant to have people simple overlook it, as if it wasn't even there. The stealth was only the first layer of its security, however. Within the small cottage was a well-hidden trap door that lead into several much larger subterranean rooms. One of these rooms was a vault, useful for hiding goods or people that the authorities should not find.

Pus-face had been a repugnant individual, and his territories in the Underdark were surely thankful at his replacing, but he had been resourceful, and Lord Drytail had not let pride blind him to the usefulness of his enemy's designs.

Should the thieves reach the safehouse in middle Alliria, they would find a lone rous within. His beady eyes would inspect the guests and require them to produce the proper passphrase before allowing entrance. Kekrizh would know it, and once they were inside, they would be quite safe from any Allirian guards.

For now the sentinel sat on the dingy floor, picking at his toe claws with a worn dagger. He was older, for a rous, and his muzzle had turned gray. He wasn't much for fighting these days but he could be trusted to stick a knife in anyone who came in uninvented. Thrrsk was his name.

 

[Acteon Cass]

The way that Roan Dorn told Acteon there was more to why the good councilor had hired him privately than just simply as assurance his home was safe. Some of them could be very paranoid. It was almost as if they knew a certain family survived their attempt to purge them form Allirian memory and had failed horribly at it. But those fools could wait. Time was on Acteon's side and this uninvolved councilor could be a tool. Perhaps his hired sword could be useful.

Then someone landed on the window from above as if they had come down from the roof. It brought about a question to his mind. It brought about a very important question. Why would any sane person be on the roof? Someone could say something about an bird's eye view but with the way the buildings in the city were built and designed it would be even harder to figure out what was going on on the ground from above than level with it. And most of the worst activity was going on below the streets.

So Acteon shook his head when Roan asked him if this newcomer was with him. This meant he was a third party. Perfect. The Allirian just needed another pair of eyes he had to watch out for and would waste more of his time as he went about his tracking. This job would be much easier if he could just keep on following the culprits' scents to where they had gone. But no. Nothing ever went smoothly or easy in Alliria when coins were involved.

"Yes, meet you there." Acteon said then went to head out the house. He needed to track which entrance they used and hopefully a bit of time away could help him speed things up.

Circling back around to the broken window, Acteon noticed there was some foot prints as well as a bit of a blood trail. It was obscured a bit but still a good enough start. The scents even confirmed they belonged to the culprits. So the man began to follow them and made a show of using his eyes here when he was actually following his nose. The trail got fainter as it went along until it was only very faint drops of blood with long intervals between them. But they took him to a sewer entrance like those investigating thought.

Acteon smiled as he looked down. Hopefully this trip proved to be interesting and profitable. And down he went into the underbelly of Alliria.

Jexlt Warren

 

[Kekrizh]

"Sounds good." Kekrizh nodded to the remainder of the group and quickly departed behind Kala. He knew the real reason they'd split up, the human had injured himself and wasn't a particularly good thief without his graze. He'd get caught pretty sharpish - even during the fading twilight hours.

It didn't take long for the two of them to reach the safehouse. Kekrizh stepped forward and brushed his hand against a loose stone, something shifted silently behind it. After a few brief seconds, a few stones fell away from the rest of the wall and allowed the group to step inside the safehouse.

"If I remember, it's got a couple of nasty traps. There's a spike pit up ahead and a head crusher just after." He grinned a wicked grin. The spike pit was simple enough, he leapt and cleared an almost invisible pit and then signalled the taller follower to duck. Head crushers only affected, Rous were too small to activate them - perfect deterrent really.

Eventually, he ran forward, entering a small room with an older figure sat - half-asleep - in a chair. Thrrsk, the screw. Wielded a pair of rusty screw-drivers. Nasty piece of work, but in his older years, he'd been assigned an easy life watching the safe house.

"Passphrase?" The guard said without opening his eyes.

Kekrizh didn't speak. Flexed his hand above the hilt of his katar. He knew the phrase, but he wasn't about to take orders from a thug. The enemy moved for his screwdrivers until he opened his eyes and spotted Kek.

He gulped, waving the party through to the next room.

Kekrizh smiled, thumping the guard hard in the arm as he passed.

 

[Roan Dorn]

Leaving the others behind the Sellsword would have met the Aide acting as his contact to the Councillor back outside of the residence. The Aide seemed distantly interested for his part but Roan would inform him of his findings none the less. Glancing back over his shoulder once he'd have stood closer to the man ensuring that no one was in earshot...

"Looking at the scene an attempted murder doesn't add up. Looks more like a botched burglary to me. The intruders may have stumbled onto something they weren't expecting. Let the Councillor know his suspicions about his wife may be correct."

...his report had been straightforward, he'd told the Aide what he'd seen and then the two men parted ways so that Roan could continue his investigation. He'd been promised a reasonable sum of coin for this endeavor and Roan was loyal after he'd accepted a job.

Circling around the exterior of the residence Roan's pathway to the sewer entrance may have been a bit longer and more involved than Acteon's. He'd find the broken window from the outside, kneel down and investigate any debris or markings from it on the exterior and note the faint hint of blood again confirming his thoughts. Satisfied he moved on in search of a nearby sewer access point.

Unlike Acteon Cass he didn't have the benefit of being able to scent the culprits so he worked on instinct. Arriving shortly after Acteon he'd have seen the man disappearing down into the sewers and he followed behind him.

Roan wasn't the most graceful of men, after he'd descended to a point he'd have leapt into the filthy shin high water of the sewers that pooled into this area with a -sploosh-. He'd take a moment to let his eye sight adjust, turning his head to regard the sewer tunnels...

"Why can't Rous stay on the ground?"

...he chuckled, looking at Acteon then looking to see if Jexlt Warren had joined them yet. If not Roan was concerned. Trudging forward he'd press through the fetid waters of the sewer, prepared to draw his sword at any indication of trouble.

 

[Jexlt Warren]

Roan Dorn Acteon Cass

Jexlt looked at them. "Nah, I'm not with anyone. I'm a vigilante, you know, crime-fighter?" He said. He nodded as one of them said that they were going to the sewers. "Alright, I'll be there." He replied. He jumped off of the window sill and onto the ground. He moved off towards the sewer entrance where they were going to meet up.

He arrived at the sewer entrance, the others already there. "What did you expect? A nicely lit pathway?" He said jokingly to Roan Dorn . He jumped in after them, landing in the sewer water. Well, it could at least be said that Jexlt never suffered for his job. He looked into the filth. "There, footprints. They're recent. They lead that way." He said, pointing down further into the darkness.

 

[Kala]

Kala gave the guard a small smirk before taking a quick three steps into the next room.

The safehouse was about as droll on the inside as it was on the outside. Kala let out a sigh, crinkling her nose as she smelled the rotting of the room. "There's something wrong with your people."

She mentioned quietly to Kek.

A part of her couldn't believe that they actually lived within the stink of places like this. She could hardly stand being around the scent for much longer than a few seconds. Still, it was better than an Allirian prison cell.

That much she knew for sure.

"We need to get into the Underdark." She said as she threw herself in a high backed chair that had likely been picked up off the street. "The Watch will search for us until we're in chains, and I doubt our local boy will keep much to himself."

 

[Lord Skavius Drytail]

The path to the Underdark from the safehouse would be treacherous, but that was by design. Escape route ran both directions, and a safehouse wasn't very safe if your enemies could come in the back.

Similar traps to those at the entrance would be employed, along with a fair few unsavory individuals, both affiliated with Drytail's gang and independent. Kekrizh's rank would pull weight with the former, but the latter was a tad more unpredictable.

A few of the more ambitious rous had just started to enter the sewers beneath Alliria. Word of financial opportunity spread quickly amongst their kind. It was more than likely a couple would cross the paths of the brave detectives in the sewers, and traffic out of the Underdark would be heavier than usual for Kala and her band.

Drytail drummed his fingers on the arm of his chair, drinking a black liquid that greatly resembled paint in its appearance and fragrance. He had not had any more runners from the surface, but it had only been a short while. He had needed to learn patience upon assuming his Lordship, and waiting was something he could do quite easily.

 

[Kekrizh]

Kekrizh turned to consider the remark, sticking his nose in the air and trying to detect the source of Kala's comment.

"No that's just Thrrsk, he's incontinent." He smiled, glancing around the room and awaiting his eyes to adjust to the pitch-black conditions within the safehouse. To her credit though, the place was a shit tip. He never could fathom why his brothers and sisters chose to live like their tiny unintelligent cousins.

Kek, on the other hand, had a quaint cave in the Underdark. Complete with festoon candles, minor gilding around the edges of the wall and a very impressive tapestry of some human battle he'd received as a gift. That said, he liked to keep his place nice - it drew attention and the occasional thief for him to maim.

Tacked to the wall on the opposite side of the room, a small note written in Underdark, smeared in the distinct scent of Drytail. Quite how his master always managed to get a communique here before them was a mystery, but Drytail himself could be an enigma.

He snickered, reading the note, before passing it back to Kala.

"He's doubling the worth of any trinket from Alliria... Heh." He paused, letting Kala digest the contents of the note beforehand.

"They finished that murder trail then?" He shuddered, gesturing towards the end of Drytail's note. Kek had known that Drytail had met with the Reckoners and some other major crimelords to discuss building a murder trail across Alliria - although he hadn't heard the result.

A murder trail provided the crimelords with a way to control thieves in and out of the Underdark. It consisted of a mixture of sewers, rooftops, abandoned houses and anything else in between guarded by a variety of rudimentary traps, dead ends and thugs. The advantage of it was that it provided a quick escape to, and from, the Underdark if an individual were familiar. However, if such a trail did exist, it was new, untested and unfamiliar.

"Do we... uh... risk it?" Very little unsettled the veteran Rous, but attempting an unfamiliar trail sent shivers through his spine.

Another disadvantage of such a trail? You never knew who was guarding or using it at the same time. Murders were frequent - hence the name.