Closed Rumors of Violet And Shadows

[Loken]

40th day of Fall, 517 A.V.

"Fool ...these terrible people want to keep you here, to infect you with a disease that will close your eyes. Do you not see them, they are everywhere! The Cats! THE CATS!"

They were the words of a beleaguered old man who precariously stood on the railing of a bridge, looking like he was about to jump. As Loken walked along the pathways of Ravok, he managed to stumble upon the spectacle due to the small build up of foot traffic at the start of the bridge. "Move." He began repeating the word to disperse the people blocking him. Today, Loken wore his usual black armor that worked as his on duty guardsmen attire and the very distinguished cherry red Cherry skullcap. However, unlike many days, he wore an open long black wool coat over it.

As Loken walked further onto the bridge to stand right in front of the man, the citizenry of Ravok took that as a sign to simply move on with their day. Apparently, a crazy man on a bridge wasn't enough to keep many peoples attention now that a guard was their to deal with it. “Please embrace your calm and kindly keep your voice down. You are disturbing the peace with your nonsense.” The man stood tall, using the bridge railing like an award pedestal. "Calm? CALM! I am calm, you calm down!"

Loken moved closer, within a meter of the man as he stood just to the side. He inspected the man with eyes that betrayed no emotion. Loken's manner had the air of one scolding a small child. "Elderly human male, possibly mid to late seventies. Physically average. Apparently an able-climber." His eyes fell to the mans feet to check on his foundation on the railing. "Ankles shifting, shaking."

The man swayed where he stood, then cringed to a post protruding upward from the railing that acted as a piece of design architecture for the roof of the bridge. "WHAaooo!" The man started to shout as his grip started to slip as his body fell backwards. With the speed of a fast punch, he slammed his palm into the mans chest, then grabbed the front of the mans robes with a vice grip.

With a single tug, he changed the mans fall trajectory so that he would fall onto the bridge instead of the lake. When the old man hit the ground with a heavy thud, the Guardsmen stood tall over the elderly man. As the man got up onto all-fours in attempt to stand up, Loken lifted a boot to press it into the mans back to force him back onto the ground. "So we are clear. I'm using aggression to brake through your shock and madness. Now listen closely." His boot moved from the mans back to press his heel to the nape of the mans neck. "Go home or be arrested. The guard have better things to do then deal with a senile old man. This is you're last and only warning."

He removed his foot from the mans neck as another Guardsmen walked over to him. "Old man making trouble again?" Loken quirked a brow as he spoke to his colleague. "This happen often?" The other guard simply nodded as the both watched the old man stand up then walk away like a defeated puppy. He gave the other guard a curt head nod before moving on with his own patrol.

You could tell a lot about a person from the way they walked. Loken, for example, had an aggressive elegance to his stride. He had no issue with simply walking over to a group of people who loitered around, invading their space to force himself into their business. It was also very easy for people to remove him from their presence, all that people needed to do was simply smile at him or greet him kindly. He didn't do this on the high traffic areas of Ravok, no; he walked the back alleys and more narrow pathways. If people were up no good, then they would disperse rather than linger around.

As he turned the corner of one such back alley on The Merchant's Ring near Mystic Eye Fortune Telling, the air in the area suddenly felt incredibly oppressive, thick and hard to breathe. Even the very walls seemed to take on a new more malevolent nature. Loken froze in place as his eyes fell upon a person laying at the center of a dark alley half hidden as it laid next to barrel and a few crates.

"Do you need assistance?" He called out in a firm tone of voice, still standing at a distance in attempt to see if the body would show any sign of life. He waited a chime before entering the dark alley. As Loken moved closer, he began to smell the strong ammonia of urine. The smell was made even more wretched by the strong influence of feces that also lingered in the air. Those smells alone were palpable enough to be compared to a scene commonly found in Sunberth rather than Ravok.

He walked over to crouch down next to the body to examine the body. "How and why did you die?" He thought to himself as he gripped the shoulder of the corpse that laid face down on the ground, then forced it to turn over. "Human male, about thirty years of age." As he stared at the dead man, he noticed that it held the distinct visible trait of being violet and grey in color. His eyes narrowed as the rumor he heard a few days ago rang through his mind. "The Killer?" He spoke a loud before starting to pat the body down, running his hands along it to find any stab wounds or injuries.

As he started to pull up the sleeves of the corpse, he found a darkened hand-shaped bruise on the left arm. "No injuries, but lots of discoloration? The hand on the arm suggests a strong grip? However, there are no signs of strangulation around the neck. Interesting." Loken mused softly to himself, unable to really discover how the person died.

He shifted away from 'the how', and started to search for a motive for the man's murder. Loken started to shift through several of the mans pockets and belt pouches, finding them all to be empty. As he closed one of the belt pouches, he spotted a severed string hanging from the belt. "Something was stolen from you?"

Nano WC:1086

[Maya Lark]

Maya walked past an alley, seeing people huddled together and talking about the recent killings. A chill ran down her spine as the girl thought about the strange descriptions people have given her. The bodies were discolored and frozen in place. No blood was around them meaning there was not way the people were killed with a sword or dagger. That made the woman nervous knowing there was something very wrong going on. Shaking her head the dark haired girl tried her best to push the strangeness out of her mind for the time being.

“I need to see a body for myself. I don't trust other people's information that well,” the young Lark said trying to think.

There had been reports all over the city about different bodies appearing out of no where. Standing with her back against a brick wall, she listened closely to what the group close by was saying. Cutting her eyes, she turned her head just enough to see who was saying what in case there was any need to find them later.

“I heard they were purple with strange bruising,” an older woman stated.

“Oh? The strange smells of urine and feces is how they have all been found from what I've heard,” a stockier man said looking at his female companion.

Glaring some the woman moved on before being spotted by anyone. The last thing she needed was for people to start asking her what her business was. A hand slipped into the bag on her side as the girl felt the papers that marked her as a citizen should the guard stop her. After several chimes, the only thing that could be heard was the click of her boots. It was strange to not hear other people around her, but it was also strangely relaxing. It did not take long before loud shouting caught her attention. Turning down an alley, the woman hurried down it stopping at the end that opened to a large group of people. Facing where everyone was watching she saw a man trying to through himself into the lake. Shaking her head, the girl was not surprised recognizing the man. He was known to be a drinker and have a failing mind.

“Seems the rumors on him were not untrue,” Maya whispered to herself quietly.

Moving to the side, she allowed people to go past her as the crowd dispersed when a man in armor appeared. Raising her head some, the girl looked at him from head to toe. A red helmet with solid black metal all over his body, she made a note in her journal to find out more about him. The woman did not recognize the man while watching him save the old man from becoming fish food. Once two others appeared, she moved on back towards town stay close to the edge of the alley's trying to find any strange smells. They would help her find any of these strange bodies.

“There may not be one here,” Maya stated before finally coming upon a strange smell.

Making a face, the girl coughed turning to her right seeing the legs of a body. Confused she walked closer putting a hand over her nose for a moment. The girl was not surprised to see a guardsman at the scene. As it turned out, he was the same man from before at the bridge. Boots clicked announcing the girls arrival before she actually announced herself listening to his observations.

“Sounds like another body has come up,” Maya stated and took a look at the severed knot work, “the purse was cut away from his body.”

The woman looked up at him as she seemed to finally have his attention fully before lifting up the arm with the bruising. She turned it over looking for anything out of the ordinary or some kind of signature.

“My name is Aya. With no distinguishing features on the bruise, it appears you may need some help. A softer face may help getting information if you don't mind me aiding you,” Maya stated using a shorter version of her first name. She did not give out her last name lightly especially to a guard.

NaNo Count710 words

[Loken]

Loken pursed his lips faintly as his entire focus drifted towards the unexpected woman, considering her very seriously. Given that he had just stumbled upon a murder, Loken was far from trusting of anyone who was not apart of the guard. “Aya, you say?” He mused aloud to himself. Loken started to compare what he had seen on the corpse against her physical features.

The woman seemed very well pampered, a reliable indication of good health. Her face was angular in a geometrically attractive way. Her hands also looked free of calluses telling him that she had not preformed any hard labor; at least in the past season. Her hands were also too small to have left the bruise marks on the victim. He took note of that when she started lifting the bodies arm.

“If the rumors are correct, there have been several other murders. And this amount of killing cannot be without cause. What are the killer's primary intent? Is the killer acting on his own or as part of a group? Is this an uprising of criminal enterprises? Is this a selfish, cause-specific, or emotional thing?”

Loken was mainly talking to himself, looking over the body again as he patted down the thighs of the body. Even yanking at the boot straps to shake them, listening out for any anything within them. There were no fingers missing, the shoes were never removed, so all limbs were intact. "No dismemberment, mutilation, or evisceration. Simply, death."

The Guardsmen stood up to his full height as he walked over to the entrance of the alleyway. As he stood there, he waved an arm towards another guardsman walking along a distant pathway. It took a moment before the person noticed him, then started to jog towards him. His current location was off the beaten path, so as the person took a small chime. Within that span of time, Loken glanced over at his shoulder towards Aya.

"I shall allow you to accompany me. As you said, you're softer features could be of use to me." The approach of the other guardsman cause Loken to turn towards the other Cherry who looked to be in their late teens, possibly a very recent addition to the Guard. "There has been another murder. Return to Fort Chrysone. Report to Commandant 'Muffin' that Loken has found a body near Mystic Eye Fortune Telling." Before the other guard turned to run away, Loken stopped them. By setting a hand on the young mans shoulder. "Halt, repeat it back to me... what did I just say." His tone was one as if he was scolding a young child.

He stared down the teenage Cherry for a long chime, staring at them until the other Cherry had spoken his words in verbatim. Loken then let the other guardsman run off as he glanced back towards Aya. "If you did not hear that, my name is Loken. You're help is appreciated, but If I feel you are hindering my search in anyway, I'll assume you have something to do with the murder. Let us hope that if that time ever arises that you have your citizenship papers on you."

Loken's first thing to do when dealing with his work was ask form peoples Citizenry papers. From the way he spoke to her, it was clear that she did not earned his trust, but he gave her the smallest amount of leeway. "We are going to question everyone in this area of The Merchant's Ring, then proceed across the bridges to the neighboring plazas within the docks."

Loken walked over to the side of the plaza to look into the canal as a Ravasoloman guided their empty boat across the water. He lifted an arm up which cause the man to stop the ship, then moved to prepare it to be boarded.
"No, I do not require a ride at the moment. I simply wish to talk to you." The Ravasalaman seemed surpised to hear that from a Cherry, but seemed happy to converse with the guard.

"For the record, what is your name?" He said as he started to look the man up and down. The Ravasalaman appeared to be a dark skinned male, with intensely bright eyes. The man was obviously of Benshira heritage as he looked over the mans dress attire.

"My name is Bedivir. Why have you stopped my humble Ravosala if not for passage?"

Loken refrained from mentioning anything about the murder just yet. "How many times have you been through this area lately?" Bedivir canted his head slightly upwards at the way the guardsman said the question. He was not quite sure if he was in trouble, or looking for trouble. "My work takes me all over the city, this canal is not well traversed so is a short cut of mine. So yes, I've been through here often."

Loken made a slight smile as he simply wished to appear polite. "So you would know who's been in this area upon seeing them?" It was a pointed question that he did not give the Ravasalaman time to deny. "There has been a murder in the area. Anyone who you manage to give a ride to, bring them to me first before taking them to their destinations... that is unless you have a reason to help a murderer within the city walls?"

Loken then motioned a hand towards Aya. "Have you seen this woman around the area within the past few bells?" He had a feeling the woman was innocent, but wanted a second option on the matter. Bedivir narrowed his eyes at Aya as the man seemed to go into deep thought about her. "No. Not that I can remember. And I'd remember such a beauty on first sight."

Loken gave the man a small nod as if sharing that same sentiment. "Thank you for your time. And remember, bring people to me if you are innocent." The boatman then went on with his day. Loken wasn't sure if the man would do as he requested, but made it seem important to do so.

As he looked up and down the pathway along side the canal, he saw a scattered amount of people on this path. Loken walk towards the high traffic area in front of the Mystic Eye Fortune Telling. Now there were various people to be questioned: a couple in love, a group of thee young woman talking, an old woman holding a book, a man in red robes in front of the Mystic eye, and various other people.

"Alright Aya, lets see what you can do. Use your gifts to get someone to stat talking..."

Nano WC: 1114

[Maya Lark]

Maya followed the man when he exited the alley way. She stayed back partially hidden among the shadows when the new guard member arrived. He appeared to be afraid of the older man before him, batting her eyes some the dark haired woman continued to watch them. Once the little one ran off the girl came out of the shadows just before the older of the pair turned around to address her once again. She nodded her head before following him out into the open world once more. He approached the young man that was working on the Ravosala and began to question him about who all had been in the area earlier that afternoon. Looking at them strangely the woman was not surprised when the the topic seemed to change in her direction. She knew that the man did not seem to trust her just yet.

“I can hear you,” the dark haired woman stated matter-of-factually.

The woman turned to look towards the Mystic Eye Fortune Telling up ahead of the pair. Now there were various people to be questioned: a couple in love, a group of thee young woman talking, an old woman holding a book, a man in red robes in front of the Mystic eye, and various other people. Maya looked at the group of people trying to decide who would be easier to act around. She could use her looks to get the solitary man's attention, the three girls looked like a bunch of snobby brats that wouldn't give anyone the time of day without getting some kind of attitude, the older woman would be an easy target if she could come up with a way to get her attention, the in love couple would prove to be difficult, if handled wrongly the guard may be arresting her instead.

Deciding on her target, Maya began to make her way into and through the crowd. The woman slipped around the group of girls hearing them instantly start talking about her outfit. She was not surprised her hunch about the stupid girls were right. The woman began to “sniffle” and used her hair to hide her face as she approached the older woman. She instantly stood up and gently moved the girl to sit beside her asking what was wrong trying to console her. Making sure her eyes were covered at all times, Maya knew the “fake” tears being found out would break the spell.

“I..It's just that,” Maya wept more making sure to sound broken, “my Br....brother was supposed to co...come down he...here for a me...eting. But he hasn't come home, ha...have y.you seen him?”

Coughing some, a few real tears came to her eyes when the ache in her chest would not stop. Clearing her voice some the woman continued the charade. The old woman marked her place in her book and set it down while rubbing the girl's back. She still had no idea the whole act was fake. It helped her feelings.

“No, dear. I'm so sorry, I heard a commotion early this evening. But I was not able to tell what was going on or who was in trouble. Let me know what he looks like and I will watch for him,” the woman said.

Maya thanked the woman and gave her the description of the dead man within the ally before walking away still hiding her face for the most part. Once she had went back to reading, the girl straightened up and rubbed her eyes while clearing her voice. The “sobbing” had put a small strain on her vocal cords in her throat. Popping her neck the dark haired woman gave the man the information she had gotten though it was not much of anything useful. If nothing else the woman had proved she could get something out of people. Coughing again while turning her head the girl glanced through her hair to see the woman getting up leaving in the opposite direction of the pair. She was thankful the older woman had not noticed the change in her stance, or apparently her existence had stopped moving by the man with the strange red cap.

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[Loken]

Loken lingered around the area like a statue. His eye slowly following Aya as she moved towards her selected target of choice. The fact that she went after the elderly said a lot about her as a person which did not escape his notice. Or rather, her grasp on picking out a target. "Did she do this often?" He thought to himself as he watched the way she forced the emotion of sadness to hide her true intent. He saw her as a tool, but it was a good thing that Aya was actually being a useful one. When she returned to him to relay what the old woman had said he simply took it to memory before moving on.

"Tell me, what is your primary trade skill?" He spoke out softly to Aya as he moved past her. It was obvious that he did not expect an immediate answer from her, in fact his very intent was to see if she would craft some type of lie. But that would be dealt with upon hearing her response. He walked over to the group of three young women who Aya had avoided previously.

Loken decided to use a similar story that Aya had used against the old woman, but with a twist. "Excuse me ladies. I can't help but notice the fact that you are each incredibly beautiful." It was something that he did back in Ahnatep when speaking to Eypharians. Start the conversation with a compliment before speaking again, giving them no time to express themselves. And did just that as he quickly pressed the conversation forward; It also helped that the citizens of Ravok enjoyed having Cherry guardsmen around. "A friend of mine said that he was going out to court a beautiful young woman last night. Would one of you be her? Or might have seen him around here last night with anyone? He was about this tall..."

He started to then list what the murder victim looked like in as specific detail as possible. "Didn't Melissa say she had a gentleman caller last night?" One young woman spoke before another chimed in. "No, that was Lora..." That same young woman leaned in towards Loken before adding, "She has a man in her bed every other night..." The three of them then all started to gossip among themselves about which of their friends were the biggest harlots. "Thank you for your time, ladies. I must be off to go find him."

That was when he returned to Aya. His eyes staring at her as he expected an answer to his previous question. "They knew nothing, which was not unexpected." His focused shifted to the other remaining people of interest in the area. The couple and the man in red robes. Loken then pointed at the man in red robes. "See what he knows. I'll deal with the couple." His turned to head towards the couple, but simply stood there to receive her answer before he would move on.

Nano WC: 501

[Maya Lark]

The woman was not surprised about him looking at her skeptically. He was not used to people being that calculated it seemed. Her left eye twitch for a second when he asked her what her “trade” was. It was not a question she had figured would come up. It threw the girl off her game for a chime or two as he walked up to the three women. She watched him while trying to come up with some kind of answer for his return. The girl would have been very surprised if he didn't spot her moment of shock.

'Son of a petch! What do I do now?' Maya asked herself while watching him flirt with the three girls trying to get answers.

She was surprised to hear him use a modified version of her lie to the old woman. Popping her neck the girl decided to give him a vague answer knowing there were two markets the slaves and the people's market. Both could be a very good reason to learn to watch the crowd around you. The woman finally decided to just say the Market; the man could decide which one he wanted to take as the actual spot. The girl did not know how her father would react to the guard knowing about the families work. The Lark's preferred to put on a pretty face in public, then do their dirty work behind closed doors. His news of the three girls not knowing anything did not surprise her in the least. They appeared to be nosy and messy when it came to gossip. Nodding gently she looked over to the man in red trying to decide how to deal with him. He appeared to have more confidence in his stance.

“I work at the markets. I can do that,” Maya stated before walking over towards the man staying wide watching him.

She tried to make notes on his stance, any kind of jewelry or mark of marriage, or a weakness for drink. There appeared to be nothing of special importance, the girl asked someone near by about the man wanting to know more. The group knew very little about her target making her want to kill them all. Finally deciding just to wing it the girl walked up batting her lashes. Changing her walk to something more flashy and showy, the woman made sure he was paying her plenty of attention.

“Hey handsome. What are you doing after work tonight?” Maya asked with a husky tone to her voice.

“I... uh... I'm going out for a drink miss. How uh can I help you tonight madam?” the man asked watching her with a soft blush watching her every movement.

“I need some help finding some body. Do you think you can help? After wards maybe we can get a drink together as a thank you?” Maya asked while playing with a strand of hair and batting her lashes again. The woman knew how to use her body to her advantage against a man.

“Of course madam. His appearance?” the man asked looking her trying to focus on her face. Maya gave a brief description making note to use the same excuse as before about it being her brother. The male stood there and thought for a moment trying to recall anyone of that description.

“Not that I can think of. I saw a group of three men go into the alley way down there, but only two came out later. I was called away to tend to a disturbance inside so I did not see where they went,” the man said looking at her.

“You don't remember what they looked like?” Maya asked with a skeptical look.

“No, I am afraid not. It was getting late and I only saw them for a moment before they entered,” he said once more and watched the woman walked away to meet her companion.

The a slight glare to her left, the woman wanted to just beat the answers out of him. Unfortunately there was no way she could with Loken that close. She told him what the man in red explained to her not sure what their next move would be now with no direction for the people responsible.

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[Loken]

Aya was proving to be a sly little fox. Acting sad one minute, then flirting the next. He was not sure why the woman who he allowed to be his companion continued to lie to him, but it was a mystery he would save sooner or later.

As he watched the woman talk to the man in red robes, the sounds of a stick hitting against the plaza caused him to turn towards the canal. He immediately spotted the Ravosalaman called Bedivir. The boatman gave the guardsman a subtle up-nod of his head. Then motioned his head towards a passenger riding in the boat.

The Ravosala parked along the edge of the plaza at the same time Aya finished with the man she was questioning. As she told him about what the man knew, the passenger in the small boat started to question why they had stopped.

That was when Loken directed his full attention towards the man. “I know what you did…” He simply left that open ended statement up in the air. His tone of voice was as solid as a rock, meaning it was clear that the statement was concisely directed towards the man.

The passenger appeared to be a portly looking middle aged male with hands covered in jeweled rings. His clothing showed some signs of being in the upper classes of Ravok, and yet the words the Cherry spoke cause him to start sweating profusely.

“Step out of the Ravosala, you’re coming with me.” At that point, even Bedivir seemed shocked at what was happening. Not because it was wrong, but because the boatman was becoming amused with helping the Guardsman.

“What! NO! I swear, it did not mean to hit her last night! That’s what whores at the Immortal Pleasures are for!… you understand, right?”

All of a sudden both Loken and Bedivir stared at the man in utter silence. The Cherry raised a brow as he turned to look at Aya. “This whore..., she saw what you did. They may work as prostitutes. But they are citizens, free to do what they which their their bodies… you assaulted a citizen. Bedivir, please take him to The Fort.”

Loken then stared at the man who was clearly no where near the alley during the time of the murder. “You broke the law, but will most likely be fined. However, if you run I’ll hunt you down. And I know where you live… take him away.”

Bedivir instantly pushed the boat into the center of the canal, meaning the man would have to jump overboard into the water to get onto the landing. Loken did not care if the man turned himself in since he had a murderer to find. But since the man seemed dumbstruck by the whole situation, he figured the man would be too confused to know what was the truth and what was a lie. Even more so since he dragged Aya into it... how would he know that she wasn't a prostitute?

When he turned back to Aya, he simply looked her in the eye. "You said you work at 'The Market', so I assumed you meant that you 'sold yourself'. If you were a merchant you'd have said which specific market. That is, unless you wish to correct me?" It was a small joke, but one he used to try to use her own pride against her. Would she be agitated enough to correct him and give any better details?

"Come, come. Lets go across the bridge. There are people on the other side who look promising."

The other side of the bridge led to The Nitrozian Plaza where Thorin's Forge was located. Thorin Valdinox himself stood out in front of his own business, talking to a few men about warehouses. Of the other most notable people in the area, their were two men who looked like they worked as labors, a woman who was obviously a slave given the collar she wore, and a man dressed in black leather armor who did not seem to be a City Guardsman.

Loken turned to Aya, then motioned a hand towards the group. "You know what we are here for. So pick your target."

Nano WC: 706

[Maya Lark]

Maya took a small step back watching as the ravosala coasted up to the landing beside them. The woman watched the porkly man as he tried to form an argument. The woman was surprised and glared at the back of the Cherry when he pulled her into the charade. She fixed her face when he turned back to look at her after dismissing the pair within the ravosala. The dark-haired woman put on a soft smile when he spoke of her being a prostitute so casually. Walking over she batted her lashes a few times before whispering to him.

“Nice try handsome. I’ve met your kind before, play to my pride in hopes I slip up. All I have to say is that no one can pay me enough to touch this,” the woman said before heading across to the other side first.

She wanted to piss the man off, make him think she was playing with him. The girl waited till he reached her side, before picking a target. A face in the crowd made her nervous, one of her brothers was there with his slave. The young Lark cursed in her heading knowing he would rat on her just for fun. Her gaze continued to the two laborers who were milling about after finishing their work for the day. She knew they would be easy to coerce into speaking, but her brother would not take kindly to them touching her.

The slave was not an option unless she put down the act and spoke softly to her brother hoping to convince him to keep up the act of not knowing each other. That left Thorin who was talking business with what appeared to be a couple of other merchants. Nodding the girl besides to go speak with Thorin, she put on her business face approaching with a confident stride befitting any family member.

“Thorin, it has been some time,” Maya stated announcing herself to the group before turning to look at the others. A scared look appeared on their faces for a moment realizing who the girl was almost instantly.

“Hello to you as well miss. I hope that your uncle is well and in good spirits?” Thorin stated and bowed his head just slightly to acknowledge her position in the family.

“Yes, he is doing very well and very pleased with your business lately. I have to say, it is not easy to impress my uncle,” Maya informed the man stroking his ego before addressing the two with him, “hello. I do not believe we have had the chance to be introduced. I am Aya.”

The taller thin man shook his head putting on his own business face trying to work through the shock of a Lark just prancing up them like she owned the place. Though knowing the family and where the group currently stood it would not surprise him, if they did own all the buildings. A hand raised as he adjusted his glasses to sit higher up on the ridge of his nose.

“Good evening to you as well miss Aya. I am Mikayas from the Emporium just down the street,” the man said as Maya noted his grey hair in the light of the torches.

“It is good to meet you, and you must be mister Darnel. My mother has raved about your sweets for many seasons now,” Maya stated looking at the other man knowing him from her visit there.

“Yes, miss I am. What can we do for you this fine evening?” Mikayas asked gently.

“I am looking for some very precious to me. I was wondering if you wonderful men have seen him,” Maya said in a soft innocent voice using the change in subject as the reason for the shift.

She described what he looked like and about how tall he has. The woman spoke in a whispery tone much like a lover would about their significant other. She was not surprised to hear that they did not know of where he currently was, but that they had seen the group going across the bridge. The woman tried to press for answers, but they all swore to never see the other twos faces. Thanking them the woman returned and told Loken what she had learned.

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[Loken]

A person should never tell a logical man that their body has a price. Aya walked away, he started to compare and contrast her body against what he would pay if he were to sell her as a slave. He did not say it out loud, but thought to himself. “Five hundred Miza as a permanent transition. Ten miza per escort as a whore.” He thought about it in such a factual manner that he simply moved onto a new thought once it was completed.

Just like before, he watched her like a hawk to see who she would initiate conversation with. The way she quickly avoided the man in armor meant that she knew the person. He also took note that she really needed to keep her emotional reactions suppressed because it showed drastically through her body language.

Loken walked closer to the two laborers, giving each of them a nod of his head as he walked around them as if on patrol. His true intent was to eavesdrop on Aya’s conversation. He kept himself in position to always remain behind the woman’s back as to stay out of her sight line. He only got close enough to hear them when they spoke a loud. Standing towards the canal as he let his eyes keep watch on the bridges.

“Thorin. Aya’s Uncle. Mikayas & Emporium. Darnel’s 'sweets'.” They were all interesting words that he managed to pick up during the conversation. Although he learned nothing of importance about the case they were looking into, he did learn that Aya’s uncle was a man of some importance. Well, Important enough for three different business owners to respect her family.

The way she spoke to them like she belonged there also did not escape his notice. When she returned to him to relay the true events of the conversation, his brow raised as he then needed to stow away his personal feelings on the matter. "The man in red robes mentioned a group of three men. So far that has been out only clue. The old woman with a book heard a commotion, which means their was possibly some type of struggle between the group. The robed man then mentioned, two men exited. So, would match that the third man was the victim.."

He then started to walk over towards the man in black armor. Loken knew that the man mad Aya nervous, so did not say that she needed to follow him. "Hello Citizen." He spoke out in a clear, yet authoritative presence in his tone. As the man was about to return any type of greeting, Loken outright interrupted him. "A crime has been recently committed in the area. Please produce your Citizenship papers."

As the mans slave approached their armored mans side, the man looked quite dumbstruck that someone would speak to him like that. However, the man made a sly smirk as the man handed the slave his papers, then used the slave as a middle man to hand Loken the papers. Loken saw that type of pride among Eypharian's who believed that dealing with people directly would lower their station in life.

As he took the moment to read the papers, he spoke the mans name aloud. "Xander Lark. Primary occupation, mercenary." As Loken said Xander's last name, a smirk crossed the mans lips as if Loken would treat him differently now. "Mr. Lark, you're occupation means that you have some amount of proclivity towards violence, correct?" Loken knew nothing of the families of Ravok, so had no reason to teat the man any differently. It was hard to intimidate a person with reputation if they knew nothing of it, so that caused Xander to speak up for the first time since the interaction began.

"You should watch your tone, Cherry." The candor of Xander's tone had instantly become quite aggressive. "Your hostility is noted, Mr. Lark. Please, express the reason for your hostile intent? Otherwise I'll have to assume you are hiding information in regards to said crime and arrest you here and now." Loken was keeping information about the crime a secret on purpose, only talking about the vague idea of 'crime' to throw the man off balance.

"I am a member of The Lark family, a family of respected merchants of great renown in this city, Guardsmen. It would do well to memorize that name."

All the Guardsmen did was simply nod in acknowledgment of the mans statement. "Well them as a merchant of some renown. You must have visit The Merchant's Ring quite often, correct?" Xander narrowed his eyes at Loken, trying to gauge where the man was going with that obviously pointed question. "Yes."

Loken forced himself to make a slight smirk, to express that he was happy that the man played along. "Have you seen this man.." He began to express in gruesome detail the appearance of the corps, the smell of fecal matter and urine, its pained expression as it laid dead on the ground. "Only a...mercenary could preform such violence against another citizen, wouldn't you agree?"

Xander's nostril started to flare in slight anger as he realized that he had seen the man the previous night. "I see what you are trying to do, guardsman. And I was not involved with that. I saw that man with two others last night. The two exited from an alley of the Merchants Ring without him. I don't know the other persons name but they did have red hair."

Xander then made a slight chuckle. "But lucky you, I do know the other man's name. His name is Leopold, upright bastard who's always trying to steal from merchants in the area. I hear he regularly visits the Plaza of Dark Delights."

"Leopold and a red haired person." He said aloud as now Xander had a reason to nod proudly, as if he just managed to avoid getting arrested by a petching Cherry. "Thank you for that information, have a great day.... Citizen." He made sure not to even acknowledge the mans last name. As Loken walked away, Xander went in a different direction. Xander got quite a distance away before stopping, the slight yelling of the man at his slave could be heard in the distance.

"Hey!"

The voice caused Loken to turn around to see the female slave walking towards him. "My master requires his citizenship papers." The woman huffed out of breath. Loken stared the woman right in her eyes as he held the papers up. "These are important documents. I will only hand them to their proper owner. Fetch your master and tell him he needs to get them himself." It took several chimes for the slave to run back to return with Xander. He then held out the papers which the man quickly took. "Again. Have a great day, Citizen."

Loken then watched the man walk far out of sight before turning to see if Aya was around. Upon finding her again, he spoke to her. "We are heading to the Plaza of Dark Delights." He then started to walk off towards his chosen destination, but as he passed Aya he made one comment to see how she would react.

"Come come, Miss Lark. We don't have all day."

He did not know if she was a Lark, but the profile fit. She had important family, she avoided Xander, and she acted like she belonged among other obviously well respected merchants.

Nano WC: 1249

[Rook]

Your grades are here!

Loken

Skills

*+1 Intimidate
*+5 Observation
*+2 Persuasion
*+2 Investigation
*+4 Interrogation
*+1 Leadership

Lores

*Aya: Not What She Seems
*Interrogation: Gathering Information With Compliments
*Loken: Doesn’t Care What Your Name Is
*Dead Bodies Smell of Ammonia
*Need to Find Someone? Ask a Ravasalaman
*Interrogation: Using Authority to Make the Guilty Confess

Rewards & Penalties

*No Rewards or Penalities

Notes
I love Loken! He’s super sassy.

Maya Lark

Your expenses have not been paid for Fall of 517! Once you've got them updated, send me a PM and we can get you your grade!

This was a really fun thread to read! I had a great time grading it. Don't forget to edit/delete your grading request in the queue, and PM me if you have any questions or concerns!