Quest Dead Like Me

[Anselm]

Dead Like Me The Morning of the 72nd of Summer 512 A.V. Zeltiva, near the Old Quarter Between the University and the Old Quarter of the City of Zeltiva lay a neighborhood comprised of homes not too poor and not too wealthy. The small houses – cottages really – on one side of the street were almost too bright to look at under the intense blaze of Syna's gaze, while the houses on the other side were still cast in shadows. The sky was cloudless, the air warm. It was going to be a hot day. It was through this neighborhood that Anselm strolled on this way to the marketplace, although it was considerably out of his way. He made it a point to take a different route every once in a while so as to acquaint himself with more of the city. He was wearing the new silk robe he had purchased the previous day. It was a deep burgundy color, covering his head with a deep hood and flowing gracefully to his feet, and it had two deep pockets, one on each side. A light blue silk sash functioned as a belt of sorts, more for decoration than utility. Anselm kept himself covered as much as possible when out in public so as to avoid shocking people with his appearance. His current body had deteriorated to the point where it was no longer practical to try to disguise it. A touch of peach-scented perfume obscured some of the smell of death that hung about him, but even that was becoming increasingly difficult to cover. And this is what was on Anselm's mind on this particular morning. The problem was that acquiring a new body would almost certainly require him to leave Zeltiva. Not that there was any shortage of satisfactory bodies wandering around the city. But to appear in one body on one day and then a completely different body the next, was disconcerting to people. Especially if they happened to recognize the new body. He still had in his mind a clear recollection of the horrified expression on a child's face when she came face-to-face with the body of her father who had been buried two days earlier. Very awkward. If Anselm was to remain in Zeltiva, which he very much wanted to do, he would have to acquire a body similar to his current body and not belonging to anyone from Zeltiva. And that most likely meant a trip abroad. LEDGER : 1 silk robe, -5 gm 1 silk sash, -4 gm

[Noaru]

The morning light slowly crept into the window of the small cottage, illuminating the inside portion with a speckle of light. It was a cottage that had been abandoned for quite some time; dusty and dirty inside, no one wanted anything to do with it and thus it was left abandoned. The outside would tell a different story, it was particularly clean and well-kept in order to deceive the unwary into buying the old home. Noaru was inside this house, resting from a long nights haunting and causing all sorts of mischief.


Noaru could hear the outside world from the inside of the small cottage, it was quiet and no one made a sound around the building. It was only then that the shuffling of feet caught his attention; he opened his eyes and disappears from the door. He was now outside, light from the morning sun shines upon him: an uncomfortable experience and time for Noaru, as the morning wasn't his favorite time to linger about.


Noaru shifts his eyes to the movement on his right: a man walking down the quiet street with a deep burgundy silk robe. It was odd for him to see someone this early and wearing a robe without a cloud in the sky made him observe the stranger from afar. He ‘’blinks’’ disappearing from one spot and reappears in another just a short distance away from where he was before; he blinks two more times before he's just a cottage away from the person he's been observing while unseen. Noaru waits for the stranger to pass him so that he may follow.

[Anselm]

Anselm eventually found himself at his place of business, a large tent located on the edges of a busy marketplace. He tied back one of the flaps to provide easy access, and put out a sandwich-board sign that read: ANSELM THE SEER Fortune Telling, 1 GM Warning: Be careful what you ask for. Disclaimer: The management assumes no responsibility for appallingly bad news. ALSO A COLLECTOR OF RARE AND UNUSUAL OBJECTS RUMORS OF SUCH ARE WELCOME ALSO A FINDER OF LOST THINGS AND SOLVER OF MYSTERIES INQUIRIES REGARDING SUCH ARE WELCOME He had added the last part a few days earlier. The inside of the tent was entirely empty except for a table and two chairs, one on each side of the table. Anselm sat in one of the chairs facing the tent entrance, folded his hands together on the table top, and waited for his first customer. A short time later, an elderly man approached the tent and paused to read the sign. He hesitated and then entered and sat down opposite the fortune-teller. “I would like to have my fortune told,” he said, pushing a single gold miza across the table toward Anselm.

[Noaru]

ANSELM THE SEER

Fortune Telling, 1 GM

Warning: Be careful what you ask for.
Disclaimer: The management assumes no responsibility for appallingly bad news.


ALSO A COLLECTOR OF RARE AND UNUSUAL OBJECTS
RUMORS OF SUCH ARE WELCOME

ALSO A FINDER OF LOST THINGS AND SOLVER OF MYSTERIES
INQUIRIES REGARDING SUCH ARE WELCOME

Noaru approached the newly placed sign as he did so, he was reading the information the sign displayed and took an immediate interest! He had never seen or known of fortune telling this was something entirely new to him and the mysteriousness of it all made him cautious as well. The possibility of his fortune being bad was likely to be on a medium scale from five to nine.


Noaru enters the tent with ghostly gracefulness and disappears, reappearing on the left of the table with his eyes focused on the gold coin! He couldn't help himself and using his soulmist--pushes the gold miza back towards the old man, grinning as he did so. He was looking forward to seeing the old man's expression as seeing his coin returning back to him would surely cause some kind of humorous reaction and so he waited to see what would unfold!

[Anselm]

The coin moved when Anselm reached for it. It slid back across the table and stopped in front of the old man. Anselm peered at the man from under his hood. What is he up to? He wondered. The old man let out a “Whoa!” and abruptly stood up, knocking over the chair. He gave Anselm an angry look and said, “What kind of trickery is this?” He snatched up his coin and walked away. Anselm did not move. He drew his attention inward and let his auristic senses spread out like ripples from a stone tossed into a pond. He was feeling for heat, which was how he usually experienced the presence of magic. He didn't find anything. He concentrated his Djed in his eyes and let the area in front of him shift slightly so that auras became visible. The table's edges softened and blurred a bit. It shimmered for a moment and the produced a dim yellow-green glow. The chair lying on its side on the tent floor shimmered with the same glow. The tent walls took on a pale pink tint. He saw something move out of the corner of his eye. A bright yellow aura around something irregular in shape. He slowly turned his head so that he was looking directly at it. A soul without a body. Interesting. He thought. This was not the first time Anselm had encountered a Ghost. They were common enough and he had lived for nearly four hundred years so he was bound to run into one now and again. His mind travelled back to the first ghost he had met. He had inadvertently wandered too close to a cave it was using. It manifested itself as a translucent blob and came at him fast in a series of jerky blinks. Anselm stood his ground and it stopped a few yards away. Then it started throwing small stones and pine cones at him. When that failed to intimidate the Nuit, the Ghost floated to within an arm's length of him, produced an appendage and touched him. His touch was cold. Uncomfortably cold. Anselm backed away and said, “Okay. I get the message. I'm leaving.” Then he walked away. “So,” said Anselm. “What brings you to my humble establishment?”

[Noaru]

Noaru was quite pleased with the old man’s response; he had thought of sliding the chair and tripping the old man with it! Oh what an experience that would have been for him to see! He enjoyed the short experience and as he thought of such things, he saved the memory of his surroundings within his mind, making sure nothing escaped his attention or changed without warning.

He moves away from the table and materializes in front of it, revealing himself to Anselm. This was yet another interesting being he’s met in Zeltiva! Thoughts of him staying longer in this city started to manifest and curiosity of its inhabitants began to swell as well! To think more interesting individuals with weird talents lingered here! These thoughts developed as well! So many pleasant things were brewing inside his mind but all would come to naught because of his disruptive nature.

I found you interestingly different from the others! You stuck out to me and thus I followed you here to observe you, harmlessly of course. '' Said Noaru with a smile…

The spirits demeanor was quite odd and his appearance didn’t help defeat the oddness either! He resembled a large black hound with black eyes that in the center of them remained grey circles that housed white horizontal snake-like pupils within them. These eyes of Noaru's were cold and unwelcoming seemingly glaring at whatever he fixated them upon.

[Anselm]

The creature's polite, almost genial speech contrasted incongruously with its physical appearance: A black, gruesome-looking, man-sized hell-hound standing on two legs; dark eyes with white squiggly pupils; heavy metal collars around the neck. If evil had a signature look, this would be it. “Your materialization is … unusual,” Anselm said. “Probably a little frightening to most people.” He knew that Ghosts' materializations sometimes reflected whatever obsession kept them tethered to the world of the living. “Why do you choose this form?”

[Noaru]

This form wasn't of my choosing! I awakened to find myself this way after my destruction!'' Said Noaru


Noaru was quite curious about the stranger before him, he seemed ''different'' way to peculiar looking than the ordinary humans he would see lingering around. This stranger was able to sense him, no ''see'' him using some form of super magic ability! He wasn't sure, nor could think of anything that would allow someone to see him in his unseen state; Zeltiva was truly an amazing place indeed! A city filled with unique individuals and strange places; it’s a shame, that Noaru has been here for so long and only met such individuals now!

[Arcane]

A hand reached through the folds of the tent, and pushed open the flaps, revealing a short and balding middle-aged man wearing iron-framed spectacles. His eyes were the squinty-sort, which told of years of reading texts under poor lighting conditions. His other hand beheld a cotton handkerchief, which he used to mop his sweating face as he let himself into the tent. "Anselm... Investigator, yes?" He said nervously. Reaching forward to sit himself down in front of the nuit, he continued, "I recently... acquired a property not far from the Mirahil Pass. It is, of course, considered under the jurisdiction of our fair city of Zeltiva. However..." He began to glance about, his beady eyes betraying his trepidation. "Strange things are happening within my property. Can you fix it for me?"

[Anselm]

Anselm considered the Ghost's bizarre materialized form for a few more moments. Apparently he is not aware of any link between his natural materialized form and the method of his death, he thought. It was a violent death. I wonder if he remembers any of the details? He was about to ask about this when they were interrupted by a short, balding man who stepped into the tent, unceremoniously plunked himself down opposite Anselm and presented his problem. The Ghost had vanished as soon as the man appeared. Anselm stared out at the stranger from under the deep hood that mostly obscured his face. Obviously not an outdoorsman, he thought. He worked up a sweat just getting here. More likely used to a sedentary life. Spectacles were a bit unusual, even in Zeltiva. Perhaps a scholar … maybe from the University. “Perhaps,” Anselm said in a deep gravely voice that sounded like he was gargling gravel. “However, I will require a little more information before I can make any further determination.” He knew the Ghost was still hovering somewhere in the tent but decided to ignore it for now. It didn't appear to intend any harm. “A few questions if you don't mind. Three to be exact. First, what sort of 'strange things' are happening within this property of yours? Second, why do you not ask the Zeltivan authorities to look into the matter? Third, what do you want me to do exactly?” Anselm was pretty sure the man was being less than forthright with him.