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Gun Runners (DragonSong)

Started by Kingfisher, January 21, 2018, 05:21:14 PM

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Kingfisher

For the past few days the wagon rolled south.  Loaded with iron, it was slow going, first through the valley that was Connlaoth, then into the pass through the mountains that separated it from Serendipity.  Now the wagon, a green panelled structure with a rounded roof, travelled a dusty road in Darken Vei, grassland and cattle country extending in all directions.  The ox that pulled the vehicle had fattened up nicely in their time here.

For the past few days, Joshua had been casting arquebuses to sell to a mark.  The smith was not fond of how cavalier his partner seemed about their objective, so he had been putting together a plan of his own in secret.  He did, after all, have a vested interest in his own survival and he liked to hedge his bets.

"So," Joshua said, not directing his speach toward anyone in particular.  "Not long now.  Hopefully, we should reach this town in the next day or two..."

DragonSong

Tara arched her back in a long stretch with a quiet groan, joints popping. "Good. Gods I'm stiff, sitting up here endlessly can't be good from my back," she muttered as she slumped back against the driving seat of the wagon, almost pouting.

"Tell you what though, I'm ready for a real bed. And maybe drink or two." She sighed and glanced sidelong at her travelling companion. The man wasn't much for conversation- or maybe she just hadn't been pressing the idea of talking. Either way, she found she still didn't know all that much about him.

At least he wasn't going to slit her throat in her sleep. She was fairly certain of that.

Kingfisher

Joshua had little to say about himself.  That came from the fact he lived - and traveled - alone and he had so many secrets to keep.  Though he was aware that Tara was unlikely to use such information against him, old habits die hard.  So, the smith kept his mouth shut.  He had asked few questions himself, aside from small talk and such.

The peaks of the tallest buildings in town were soon visible over the horizon.  "I'm guessing just another half hour, give or take.  Have patience that long."  From what he could guess, this seemed a tall order for the bard.  He said it anyway...


Joshua had no idea what the name of this village was.  He had no familiarity with Serendipity, its culture, or anything else really.  "Would you mind taking the lead here?" he asked.  "I need to park this thing and put up my ox and I have no idea where to go..."

DragonSong

The bard practically vaulted off the wagon the moment int was stationary, throwing her arms wide as though to embrace the sky itself and drawing in a deep breath. A mixture of herb-scented air from the market and wildflower-heavy breezes from the moors filled her lungs and she smiled.

She was a traveler by nature, but Serendipity would always be home.

Tara glanced over her shoulder at Joshua, smile lingering and eyes bright. "Yeah, sure. There should be a place to board the ox for the night at one of the bigger inns, and no one should have a problem with you just parking the wagon in the courtyard or something." She wasn't overly familiar with the town- she thought it was called Farroway- but she'd passed through once before.

Or perhaps that had been the neighboring village...ah well, either way, didn't really matter. She could always just work some persuasive magic if she needed to. "Come on, this way." She started off.

Kingfisher

Joshua was thankful for whatever familiarity Tara had with this town.  The pyromancer was absolutely certain he looked like a greenhorn and worried he'd be taken for all he was worth if he was not careful.  He would eventually unhitch his wagon before following the bard to stable his beast.  He was stuck using Connlaothian money, which luckily did not seem to be overly odd.


Joshua accompanied the bard into the inn.  "I'll buy the first round while we figure out our next move?" he suggested.  He was not familiar with Serenian drinks, but really, how different could it be.

In fact, given the stories he heard, Joshua had expected to see more magic: surreal architecture, people practicing their craft in the streets, but so far, everything seemed mundane...

DragonSong

Tara shrugged and shot him a grin. "Hey, I'll never say no to a free drink. You're on." She steered him into the taproom of the inn and nudged him toward the bar. "I'll grab us a table- order me a firewhiskey, and have whatever you like, it's all pretty good- ah, strong though, if you're used to Connlaothian booze." Most of it was aged magically after all, if not overtly created by magical means.

She turned to find them an out-of-the-way place to sit, and managed to grab a skinny child by the shoulder as she tried to slip between them. Lowering her voice so Joshua didn't hear, she told the girl, "Fork it over," and twitched her fingers.

With a pout, the tiny pickpocket returned the coin purse she'd attempted to filch from Tara's belt. In theives' cant, the bard warned her not to mark herself or her companion again, and suggested she spread the word to the town's other urchins. "You treat us right and I'll see there's a hot meal in it for you, alright lass?" she added softly.

The girl darted away without a word. No telling if she'd take her up on the offer. Tara watched her go a little sadly before weaving her way through the room. She remembered that age, that job. Traveling minstrels couldn't always make ends meet, and picking pockets wasn't so different from plucking lute strings.

Kingfisher

At the bar, Joshua placed his order.  He collected two drinks: one "firewiskey" as requested and a glass of something he hoped was weak.  He was not entire sure, but going by what Tara said, folk in this town favored distilled drinks.  A quick sniff of his drink burned his nose; this was not a beverage, it was an antiseptic.  Still, it would be rude not to at least try it.

Returning to the table, he set the wiskey in front of his companion before taking his seat.  He decided to take stock of what he had ready for the deal.  "I have a couple dozen matchlock arquebuses ready for the mark.  I can easily render them useless if things go south," Joshua explained, touching on the first part of their plan.  "I don't know if his crew will have any mages and unless they're fire users, I'll be useless against them."

He gave the room a once over, expecting a few dozen eyes to be glaring at him.  That was not the case, thankfully, since the smith did not seem to stand out in any meaningful way...

DragonSong

"Mm..." Tara accepted her drink as she turned his words over in her head, considering. She sighed and shook her head at him as she took a sip. "Useless against fire users," she huffed. Well, that's what happened when a mage grew up in Connlaoth, she supposed.

Speaking of... She watched the way his eyes darted warily around the room and sighed, then smirked. "Joshua- no one here knows, or cares, who we are," she pointed out with a chuckle. Well, at least they didn't yet.

Guessing that it was an instinctive fear of being found out as a mage, she hesitated, then reached across the table to touch his arm lightly. "You don't have to be afraid here," she murmured a little hesitantly. "At least- not for the reasons you would in Connlaoth."

Kingfisher

Joshua could not help but let out a mirthless laugh.  "I can see that," he said.  He gave his drink a dubious look before taking a sip.  The harsh, flavorless burn of alcohol triggered a coughing fit as soon as he swallowed.  "How do you people drink this?" the smith hissed, trying to keep his voice down.

He tried to move on to more important topics.  "This Karian fellow...what sort of people does he usually work with?"  Joshua gave Tara an odd smirk as he added, "Besides crooked gunsmiths, that is."  Self deprication at its finest.

Then a thought came to mind and before better judgment could set in, he asked, "Why are you after him, anyway?"  Too late to back off now.  "All I have is a basic idea, but I'd like to hear what you have to say on all this."

DragonSong

Tara rolled her eyes and teased, "Lightweight," before she downed about half her firewhiskey in one go. At the expression he pulled upon tasting his own drink, she couldn't help chuckling. "Look, I'll order for you next time. Some fruity wine or something, that should be weak enough for you."

But then he started in on the questions, and her expression went blank, eyes hard and cold. She supposed it was actually surprising that he'd waited this long to really ask about Karian- but it still wasn't a conversation she wanted to have.

"His pack changes every so often. Normally because he gets bored and kills them off." She downed the rest of her drink, not quite meeting Joshua's eyes. "So. He works with the sort of people who will take that kind of job. Either arrogant enough to think they'll be the exception, or too dumb to care." She shrugged and propped her elbow on the table, letting her chin rest in her hand.

"I'm after him because he's after me," she continued after a moment. That was mostly true. "I'm not in the habit of playing passive. If I'm being hunted, I'm gonna hunt back. Preferably faster, and with more success." She shot a smirk at her companion.

Hopefully that would be enough to satisfy his curiosity for the moment.

Kingfisher

Joshua could tell she was holding back.  There was more to this than just mutual aggression but the smith decided not to push the subject further.  She did not feel comfortable sharing so let her keep her secrets.  It was not really his business anyway.  He was here because Tara had offered loot.  No other reason...none at all...

He tried another sip of his drink and hissed at the sensation it carried with it.  It was not as harsh as before, though definitely still quite fierce.  "So," Joshua continued, redirecting the conversation.  "How does Karian normally get in touch with his contacts?"  He did not like to linger, it reminded him of waiting for a second shoe to drop.

DragonSong

The bard watched him nurse his drink with an amused little quirk to her lips. "Ah. See, that typically depends on the contact. I'd imagine with the lovely man we met back at that inn...he'd probably send a crony into town to fetch him out to a meeting spot. So we need to make it seem like you're the contact. And I'm..."

She frowned, turning over a few ideas. "Well. Probably best if it's not clear we're traveling together. I doubt any of Karian's men have been with him long enough to recognize me, but just in case."

Kingfisher

Tara's suggestion seemed reasonable.  If Karian was indeed hunting the bard, looking conspiratorial with her was the easiest way to get himself made.  But that begged a number of other concerns.  "If they know you by sight, you being near might be enough to tip them off," he explained.  "If Karian is as bad as you say, he might just try to kill me for leading you to him..."  Emphasis on 'try.'

He drank again from his glass, this time more than a sip.  The alcohol did not even burn going down and he was already starting to build a very definite buzz.  Joshua mulled over a few ideas in his head.  Growing up a practicing mage in Connlaoth made one cautious and Joshua was a planner and a hedger.  He had no interest in dying for Tara and her vendetta (or whatever she chose to call it).  The smith tried to look relaxed as he said, "I guess if we want to avoid suspicion, we should avoid each other for the time being."

DragonSong

Tara sigh dramatically and gave him a nod and a pout. "Unfortunately, what you say is true. I shall have to deprive you of my sparkling wit and charming companionship for the time being. Truly a loss." She laid a hand over her chest and pretended to swoon back into her chair.

She sobered quickly and sat up straight again. "Here, take this." She slid a few coins across the table to him. "Get a room for the night. I think we can risk staying at the same in, but it's probably best if we use magic to communicate for the time being, rather than risk being seen together."

Kingfisher

As he took the money, Joshua wondered at Tara's last statement.  "At the risk of seeming even more pathetic than I already do," he began cautiously, "But you'll be able to handle that yourself?  All I have is my fire."  He had, after all, grown up in a nation where mages had to constantly hide or suppress their gifts and trying to connect could get you killed.

The smith quickly drained his glass.  He did not plan on having another, though he wondered if the aftertaste he detected would have seemed so pleasant if he were fully sober...

DragonSong

Whoo boy.

He was certainly going to be feeling that in the morning.

Tara suppressed a smirk and nodded in answer to his question. "Should've known you're useless outside pyromancy. Alright, I'll work something out." She made to stand from the table and patted his shoulder.

"Unless something unexpected happens, just...try to blend. Karian's calling card is a blood lily, look for that around town- a real one or a symbol etched somewhere, could be either. I'll see what I can find out and talk to you by midday tomorrow."

Kingfisher

Joshua almost corrected the bard regarding his magic.  What he did was not pyromancy in the strictest sense.  Still, he was not properly sure how else to explain it, though.  The smith elected to keep his mouth shut.

By now the room had started to spin a little and he did not trust himself stand for the time being.  "I guess I'll see you then."  As Tara left the slightly inebriated man, Joshua was content to sit back and study the room.  He wondered if he would recognize a blood lily if he saw one.

DragonSong

Just slightly tipsy herself, Tara swayed her way to the innkeep to reserve a room for the night, then made her way up the stairs to her assigned door. She performed the usual, cursory checks once she was in the room, then set up a few basic wards with a softly whistled tune.

It was nice not to have to watch her magic use constantly. She forgot how insufferable Connlaoth could be until she left it.

With a tired sigh, she collapsed onto the bed and closed her eyes.

Kingfisher

After Tara left for bed, Joshua has a similar idea, waiting a short while to avoid looking like they were a party.  Using the coin the bard had given him, he paid for a room, and still slightly intoxicated, shuffled off to bed.  No one had seemed to pick him out, so he figured he would meet a contact tomorrow.


In the morning, the metalurgist discovered how much he truly hated Serenian drink.  The persistent throb in his head would linger, he knew.  Still, no to worry about that.  Dressing, Joshua left his room and ordered a bowl of porridge.  He would not be ordering breakfast for the bard since they would not know each other...

Waiting for his breakfast, the man studied the room.  It was early and unsurprisingly, few other patrons were about.  He wondered if Tara was already about...

DragonSong

"Feeling that hangover, huh?"

Tara's voice would emanate from the air just beside Joshua's ear, as though she was leaning over him to whisper. In actuality, she was perched on a stool at the bar, resting her chin in her hand- and speaking to a small, charmed stone hidden in the curl of her fingers.

Considering the gunsmith had no magical communication tricks of his own, it was the best she could do. He could hear her, but she wouldn't be able to hear him, and it would only work over short distances. But it was better than nothing.

"I'll probably head into town soon, but you can take your time. Look for that blood lily, remember." She paused, then added, "Tap your table if you're hearing me."

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