Blake Haughton | Joshua nodded to those around him, a silent ‘thank-you’ for helping him with these men. “You misunderstood me. I didn’t mean to question your judgement, I just meant there probably isn’t a clue towards who did this. By all means, let’s go to the place.” These assassins… they were sugar dancers. In the pit of his stomach, Joshua felt a strong sense of pity, and anger as well. “These sugar dancers,” He asked the cleric, “Are they very common? It seems I’ve had experience with them before.” It felt odd asking that, but he didn’t really have much to draw off of. Zada and Renault were speaking in low tones to each other- from all of that ring nonsense earlier, he guessed they were wooing each other. How woefully inappropriate… Those are our leaders. He let out a quick chuckle before turning to the sugar dancers, who were beginning to stir. |
Jet-Kyo | ((Y u no reply to PM blake?)) —-Ian—-
Ian’s attention was drawn to the sugar dancers once more. A few started to wake up and he grinned, crossing his arms. They probably wouldn’t give to much away, but who knew? He’d had a pang of thoughts about them, nothing particularly important it seemed. But one thing he knew was they must have been insane for taking this job. “What are we going to do with them?” he chuckled as he asked Renault. —-Rram—-
Rram shut the door in his room quietly. He placed the bow and quiver near the bed post and walked to a corner of the room, placing one hand on the wall and the other on his forehead. “Why don’t I remember you??” he asked himself. The image of the girl continuing to bring pain to his head. His mask began to fog, and he slipped it from his face with reluctance, placing it on the mantle. He whipped tears from his eyes, slightly confused. He didn’t feel like he was crying. He began to search his pockets irately, looking for anything that could clue him in to who this girl was or who he was. He threw his fist to the wall in aggravation and put his mask next to the bed. He fell into the mattress. He wasn’t going to sleep tonight, but he felt that that was a normal thing for him… |
Althis | -~~Renault, “Ulicis”~~- Renault nodded to Zada’s comments. “I don’t know if splitting up would be a good idea. We would be vulnerable, but we could cover a lot more ground like that. Let us check through the castle, then proceed from there. That is the best course of action for now.” He said, turning away from their conversation. “We need more information.” The innkeeper looked up from where he was polishing a glass. “What kind of information?” Renault turned, almost forgetting that the man was still there. “Anything that will lead us…” And he stopped, thinking. What were they looking for exactly? The assassins, yes, but they were to be dead on a battlefield. Was it the king, or someone else? “..Will lead us to find out whoever wanted us dead.” The innkeeper shrugged, sighing. “I couldn’t tell you anything, but if I hear any words, I will relay them to you.” Renault smiled, “Good.” Across the room, several of the assassins started to wake. “I don’t remember if anyone is good at interrogations, but we might as well get started.” Renault said. -~~Ferin, “Fable”~~- Ferin sat up and watched over the various assassins as they began to wake. Then she walked over to where Renault stood next to Zada. “Captain!” She saluted, without even thinking, suddenly dawning a quizzical look. “I…I am going to to retire for the night.” Renault smiled, “Captain? That’s new.” Zada snorted, her arms crossed, but a smile was crossing her face, lighting up her features a bit. Ferin made her way upstairs, and down the hall that the Ulicis had rented out. A weird sound emanated from one of the rooms, Rram’s. She knocked softly on the door. “Is everything alright?” |
Jet-Kyo | —-Rram—-
Rram nearly jumped at the sound of the soft knock. He really wasn’t paying attention.
“Is everything alright?” he heard Ferin ask.
“I’m supposed to be dead, I don’t remember anything, and the only thing I can even slightly remember seems to be some kind of terrible nightmare. So I guess my answer would depend on what you defined ‘alright’ as,” he said, still staring at the ceiling. He brought his mask closer, unsure if he had shown his face to any of the group. He probably had, but still… he bit his lip, unsure if he wanted to let Ferin in if she asked. —-Ian—-
“I don’t remember if anyone is good at interrogations, but we might as well get started,” Renault said. Ian chuckled, walking over to one of them. He placed his foot on the man’s back, “So.. sugar dancer.. Who had the kind of money to hire you to kill US? I mean, we were supposed to be dead. But if we survived death the first time, why would you even bother with it?” the sugar dancer just laughed at Ian, so he put more pressure to the man’s back. “That’s not an answer. Start talking, I may be a knight but I don’t remember anything honor bound to keep me from breaking you bones until you tell us what we want to hear.” This was slightly a bluff of course, as the man was tied down Ian had no reason to kill him. But he did need the information, and the sugar dancer was small. So maybe he could get away with it. - This reply was modified 102 days ago by Jet-Kyo.
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Alex | ~~Gable~~
He stood at the foot of one of the assassins, his hand instinctively reaching back to check his quiver to count his arrows, but it came back empty. The thought of interrogating the men made him queasy. It was probably the bleached white teeth and the crazed look that seemed to come along with their habits. He stepped back, closer to Zada and Renault, considering retiring for the evening until he heard them mention armor, “If I may,” He interjected quietly as Renault formed an answer to whatever Zada had said, tactics about what they should do, “I would gladly volunteer to go retrieve our armor. I’m just as uneasy about not having it as you are. I’m sure our visitors will be more than happy to pay for the repairs.” He smiled lightly, the unease he felt near the sugar dancers mounting, along with a strange feeling of anger. They looked at him, skeptical, “Honestly I need to get away from these guys, and I am more than happy to wake the blacksmith, or finish the repairs myself.” Zada looked at him, rolled her eyes, “Fine.” She spat at him, “Don’t get yourself killed. I don’t know how you managed to stay alive with us this long. You don’t look like you could even lift the armor.” Gable nodded to her, “Ah, you’d be surprised, Zay,” He paused a moment, the name had slipped out unintentionally, like he had called her that before, “Sorry. This physique strikes fear into the hearts of mortals.” He grinned again, mirroring the small smile on Zada’s face. He turned and grabbed a coin purse from the pile of weapons and walked out the door. ~~Zada~~
She couldn’t help but smile at Gable, and feel remotely unsettled that the nickname felt so natural to listen to, like deja vu. She turned to Renault, “I agree, of course. I just think both avenues are worth trying.” She almost stepped forward as Renault asked about interrogation, but the obvious choice, Ian, stepped forward and proceeded. She snorted at him, “Oh yes, Ian, that’s definitely the way to make him talk.” She stopped next to him, “I don’t even think he can talk. From the looks of it, he’s too far gone. Has to be to challenge us.” She turned away, and found a chair to prop herself on, “Proceed, try not to mess it up.” She grinned, a fire of mischief playing in her eyes. |
Blake Haughton | Joshua looked over all of the sugar dancers. He felt oddly calm near them, but he still felt a sense of burning rage against them at the same time. “Ian… Don’t hurt the man.” His comment made him feel a bit upset, even angry at himself. Why though? What is my attachment to these Sugar Dancers? “If he takes too much damage, he might not speak at all if he’s capable. There’s got to be a better way to get it out of him.” Joshua’s first thought was to find their drug of choice and offer it to them, but the rage inside him only grew with that thought. He was conflicted on what to do- he couldn’t be relied on in this situation. He had some kind of personal tie to them, and that was a weakness to them. He grew quiet for a moment, then turned towards the door, muttering “Forget what I said. I’ll just watch the door.” |
Althis | -~~Ferin, “Fable”~~- She smiled, leaning on the door lightly. “I’m supposed to be dead, I don’t remember anything, and the only thing I can even slightly remember seems to be some kind of terrible nightmare. So I guess my answer would depend on what you defined ‘alright’ as,” he called from inside. “Well, you are alive, isn’t that something?” She said, trying to be cheerful, but somewhere inside, she just wasn’t buying it herself. Her happy-go-lucky smile disappeared into the gloom that was her inner thoughts. “Heh, well, as long as you are alright. If you need anyone to talk to, you know we are always here for you. Even if we can’t remember ourselves!” -~~Renault, “Ulicis”~~- Renault was listening to the conversation, mulling over the words that people said, along with several other things that moved through his head. Joshua seemed really uneasy about the whole affair, and an instinct inside of Renault kicked into gear. “Wait, Joshua. You have a point. Have we found any of the drug on any of the men?” Ian looked up from the man he was on, Joshua looked away from the door, and even Zada looked at Renault for a moment. Renault paused, thinking out his next move. He opened a coin purse and dug through it, retrieving a singular gold coin that seemed slightly out of place, as if the gold was not the normal color. Raising the coin to his nose he smelled it. “This isn’t gold.” |
Jet-Kyo | —Rram—-
A faint smile passed across his face, “…I–” a grim feeling passed threw him. Rram shivered, “I’m fine. I’m fine….” He cracked his knuckles and took his mask, walking to the door. He slowly pushed it opened, smiling at Ferin, “Thank you, though. I appreciate it.” he put his mask back on and walked down the stairs in time to see the situation. “Wait, Joshua. You have a point. Have we found any of the drug on any of the men?” Renault said.
Everyone looked up in surprise as he pulled apparently false gold out of the coin purse. “It seems I’ve come back at the right time. Sorry for the disturbance earlier.” he said as he walked over, “What exactly do we have here?” —-Ian—-
Ian looked up in surprise at Renault’s comment, “What do you mean ‘this isn’t gold’!? Is it there drug or..?” Ian said, keeping his foot on the man’s back. As Rram walked down, Ian didn’t look at him. The situation was more important then Rram’s sudden change in attitude. ((sorry for the short post. won’t be on for a while, dunno about tomorrow, and im tired. sooo POST)) |
Alex | ~~Gable~~
He cheerfully undertook the task of retrieving the armor. As Gable neared the blacksmith’s, he could hear the distinct sounds of the man at work over their weapons and armor. He came to a stop a few feet from the forge, and eased himself into a spindly chair, the blacksmith nodded “Evenin’. Come to get your gear? It’s almost finished. Careful, some of the armor has been stained. Should be dry, but can’t be certain.” Gable glanced to the armor, seeing Renault’s had had a bit of red added to the center of the flower, he spotted his own armor, the hole that had been in the armor had been repaired with white leather, in the shape of the flower. Zada’s looked about the same as always, though all of it was now a blue shades darker than that of their blue. Interesting choices, but he like them. He turned back to the blacksmith who had continued to talk, “The arrows you asked for should be dry as well, two different odd feathers, you’ll see yours, I used all the extra feathers you gave me. The others are there as well.” As the man spoke, Gable began collecting the armor, wrapping each piece in a protective cloth from the large pile available. He paused a moment an idea hitting him about the sugar dancer assassins, and he stopped paying attention to the blacksmith as he pointed out the different weapons and his bow, and explained that he was putting a new leather grip on Zada’s halberd. From what I can perceive about the sugar dancers, they can’t go long without a hit, Which means they carried it with them. What better way to hide it than… He reached a hand into the bag, feeling each coin, until his hand rested on one that didn’t feel cool like metal should. He slipped the fake coin into his pocket, not wanting to spread the piece to the poor blacksmith. Gable plunked the full purse onto the bench near the forge, and to the blacksmith’s widened eyes didn’t ask for change, and was told the gold well overpaid what was owed. Gable collected the armor and weapons, quite laden down he walked back to the inn. ~~Zada~~
She looked at Ian, “Take your foot off his back. He can’t answer with your brutish strength crushing him to the floor.” She snapped, then turned to Renault, his words finally registering, “You want to give them their drug? Seriously?” She rubbed her face, stalking away from Ian and, nearly rounding on Renault, but she paused, “Great idea. Unless they’re too far gone to even remember how to talk.” She flung her hand towards the door, “The ones out there couldn’t even form words.” She plopped herself on a table right beside where Renault was standing, her feet resting on the bench, “We’re putting our trust in an addled sugar dancer. Great.” She looked the piece of gold-that-wasn’t-gold in Renault’s hand over, gave it a delicate sniff. The scent registering somewhere deep inside her, starting up an ache of longing desire for what was in his hand. Zada recoiled instantly, “Makes sense. They can’t live without the stuff.” The door opened behind them, and Gable returned, and set their equipment on a table, she noticed Rram walk in after having his little fit, “That’s it, isn’t it? They disguised it as gold.” Her voice was quiet, “Nice of you to return from your hissy fit, Rram. We missed you.” She gave him a fake pout, then went to retrieve her own items. Gable crossed to Renault, and held out a coin that looked similar to the one in Renault’s hand, “I found this in the coin purse I took to pay the blacksmith.” He handed the coin over, “I didn’t want to unwittingly spread it around. They look identical, I assume that they all have it.” |
Blake Haughton | Joshua nodded at the familiarity of the coin. “Yes, they should all carry one of those.” He suddenly shook his head, surprised he had known. Gable had returned, and Joshua readily put his armor back on, glad to have the gash in it patched up, although he felt like his Ulicis mark was slightly marred. His face scrunched with anger at Zada’s remarks about giving them the drug. That wasn’t what he wanted; if they spoke up, then they might end up getting a hit, and with the way he felt about them, it was still pretty unlikely. Grabbing a coin out of one of the pouches, he walked over to one of the sugar dancers, kneeling down to their level. “This is the only time I’m going to ask politely.” He held the coin out so they could see it, “You want a hit don’t you?” The sugar dancer nodded enthusiastically, “Well then… Tell us who hired you, and I’ll give it to you.” |
Althis | -~~Ferin, “Fable”~~- Ferin walked back to her room, and opened it to remember that there was an unconscious man on the floor. She grabbed his shoulders and with strength albeit her size, she drug him to the stairwell, then called to the room below, “I have another one, though he is still out. I don’t want to drag him down the stairs.” -~~Renault, “Ulicis”~~- Zada had made a valid point, but as Joshua soon showed, he wasn’t about to give the drug to the dancers. They were going to have to earn it. As their armor was assembled on the tables, he grabbed his parts. “They fake some of the coins to look like they are real, so that they can move the drugs easily, and keep enough on them to keep the high, or to meet a fix.” Renault turned to face the room, “They hired sugar dancers because a little ‘sweets’ and they won’t be able to talk much. However, Joshua seems to be doing a pretty good job at breaking them.” |
Jet-Kyo | —-Ian—-
Ian watched, interested as to how this would play out. He didn’t remember much of the drug at all, everyone else seemed to start remembering it all over the place. He sighed and watched as Joshua tempted the tied up assassin with the drug. The man’s mouth was drooling. Ian scoffed, “This is useless.. Do they even remember how to speak?” —-Rram—-
“oh, ha-ha. Good to know you still care,” he said, lightly shoving her with one arm as he passed. He meant it only as a joke. He sat down next to Ian, laying his feet on the table. But just as he did so, Ferin called that there was another one. “I’m coming..” he said, standing back up. He walked up the stairs and leaned in to see what was happening. A man lay on the floor and he took a belt from the man’s robe, tying his hands. “Forgot about this one, did you?” |
Blake Haughton | Joshua glared at Ian, but kept working. The man’s teeth brought fear to him, a fear he didn’t understand at all. His gaze was locked on the fake coin, and he struggled against his bondage.
“Come on… Tell me a name, and this can be over. You can have your precious ‘sugar.’” Joshua said quietly. One of the other sugar dancers began to laugh, a high-pitched insane laugh. “Y-you can’t get the name from them. T-t-they don’t tell it to us. But I know you… I’ve seen you before.” The eyes of this sugar dancer became solid, full of hatred and rage, “You Ulicis, you attacked a sugar den. You were with them… Joshua Arden.” Joshua’s eyes grew larger, surprised that one of these Sugar Dancers knew him, and possibly the others. “Tell me what you know about me.” The sugar dancer just continued to laugh, “I said tell me.” Joshua demanded, tone becoming incredibly low and serious. The man still said nothing. “Tell me, or you’ll never get another hit again. Tell me!” The entire room was silent for a moment before the quiet drawl of the sugar dancer pierced the silence. “You were looking for someone in our den. Lyndis. That closed our den, and forced us onto the streets, which brought us h-here.” |
Alex | ~~Zada~~
As Zada calmly put her armor back on, the pieces effectively covering the simple clothing she had been wearing before the new blue of the armor standing in contrast to the light tan of her bare arms. Being this close to the drug was making her uneasy, and the light shove from Rram made her stumble. She felt the uncomfortable feel from before. She didn’t like where the questioning was going, she felt the unfairness, but she pushed it away, “Oh, yes. I cared so much.” She smirked at him, turning her attention to the sugar dancer as he spoke, his voice grating along the lines of sanity. She turned back to Rram, gave him a shove of her own, putting a decent bit of strength behind it, “Hope you got it out of your system, lest anyone be confused into thinking there are three girls in this group.” Zada wanted to say more, but Ferin’s voice distracted her, and Rram went to help with the last of the assassins. She smirked, then crossed to Joshua, the heat from the flames dancing along her skin, her confidence returned with her armor, she bent down in front of the man who talked, her face inches away from his. She could smell the sweetness of the sugar, could almost taste it. She licked her lips momentarily, then turned a glare on him, “What in the name of Solure are you on about?” Her tone was hard, and she softened it to a tone more suited for persuasion. A smirk spread across her lips, “You can tell us what you mean for a little bit of the sugar, can’t you?” ~~Gable~~
He stood by Renault for a few moments until the questions began to fly from Joshua, Gable chose that time to gather his armor and his weapons. He wanted the dagger he had lent Zada back, but he didn’t want to bother her, plus he had plenty for the time being. As the man began to talk, he tried to focus, tried to make sense of what the man said, but nothing was coming to him. He felt useless not able to really do anything. He feared that that was all the information that the man would give, and that still didn’t give them much to go on. He turned back to Renault, “These men didn’t need to be paid to want to kill us, yet someone paid them anyway. I fear this makes them all the more powerful. Why waste money on hiring these people?” |
Althis | -~~Renault, “Ulicis”~~- Renault watched in silence as the various members of the Ulicis tried to gain information from the reluctant sugar dancers. Finally some ground was made, but he was still very uncomfortable with the entire ordeal. He unfolded the parchment the cleric had given him; a map of the surrounding areas, along with how to reach the Ulicis castle. Obviously they needed to cover ground quickly, and the sugar dancers had a lead: Lyndis. Apparently the name meant something to Joshua. Renault closed his eyes, mulling over information. “Joshua, Zada, come here.” He motioned to a side of the room, where the two stopped their interrogations to see him. He looked at the swordmaster first. “You clearly know your way around the sugar dancers. Take your lead to find Lyndis, or whoever did this. Within the city walls, you should be fine. However, something is telling me we are going to end up in that city.” Renault pointed to what appeared to be some major town, Livrius. “I am not sure why, but I feel like it will be important.” Zada raised her hand to say something, but Renault looked at her pointedly. “You and I are going to cover as much ground as possible. I believe that the castle won’t have much information for us, so I figure that we can get there and to Livruis at the same time that the rest of them make it. This way we can get the most information, and we should be safe. Ulicis castle is less than a day’s walk away. Livrius is two.” Renault made eye contact with the two soldiers. “You need to trust me on this. Zada, we leave tomorrow at first light for Ulicis Castle. Joshua, take the rest and find information.” -~~Ferin, “Fable”~~- After watching the group begin to interrogate the would-be assassins, Ferin decided it was in her best interest to go to sleep early. She made her way up to her room, and turned off the moon candle. She lie in bed, enjoying the softness, taking in life for the first time, she felt. Maybe coming back was to show how much you missed. |
Blake Haughton | The sugar dancer now seemed to continually beg for the hit, which Joshua didn’t want to give. His interrogation was interrupted,
“Joshua, Zada, come here.” Renault looked down at him, “You clearly know your way around the sugar dancers. Take your lead to find Lyndis, or whoever did this. Within the city walls, you should be fine. However, something is telling me we are going to end up in that city,” He pointed at Livrius, and Joshua grimaced. A city of sin and destruction. How do I know all of these random things…?
Joshua nodded to Renault, “Thanks for the extra backup… I have a feeling I’ll need it. It’s the same rule for my camp; we leave at sunrise, get some rest.” Joshua walked back over to the talking sugar dancer, and dragged him over to a secluded corner of the room. “Now… You still want this right?” The sugar dancer nodded at him, again with a seal that surprised Joshua to no end, “Who is Lyndis?” “Lyndis was a part of our den. She came in regularly, and since you invaded our den, she hasn’t returned.” The man’s crazed eyes met Joshua’s, “How can you not remember?”
Joshua broke off a piece of the coin, shoving it into the sugar dancer’s mouth. “That’s all that you get. Get clean now, before you have another meeting with my blade.”
Feeling satisfied, Joshua headed up to his room. Lyndis… |
Jet-Kyo | ((OOOOO SNAP. and this is my only post till thursday)) —-Rram—-
Rram waited for Ferin to go into her room before retightening the belt on the sugar dancer’s hands and going back into his own room. He figured they’d have to get up tomorrow and move, so he took his mask off again, placing it on the bed and laying tiredly across it. He sighed and waited for morning. —-Ian—-
As Renault, Joshua, and Zada conversed in the back of the room, Ian watched the crazed sugar dancer. He was disgusted at them. “Do you remember the den?” the man asked him. “We’re asking questions here,” Ian glared. Joshua came back and dragged the sugar dancer away, asking another question. When everyone started to leave, he walked up to Joshua, “So what is the plan? Do we head to the Castle or not?” he asked. |
Blake Haughton | Joshua smirked, “We head to the city. If there’s anything happening in the castle, I’m certain our appointed captain can handle it with his lieutenant. Or at least I would hope. Just be ready when the sun rises.”
((Short post is super short)) |
Althis | ((I will be posting on Sunday. Sorry guys, out of town.)) |
Alex | ~~Gable~~
He watched quietly from where he stood, hearing Renault talk with Joshua and Zada in hushed tones. Gable just figured they were working through plans for the next day, not necessarily anything he felt he should be concerned about, though he knew it was a guarantee that it would be at first light. Before they finished talking, Gable slipped off to his room. The best way he had to contribute to the group’s effort was to be lively in the morning, which meant sleeping now. As he took off his armor, and carefully laid his weapons in a pile on top of it next to the bed, it all felt so backwards. The feeling of tiredness, the desire to sleep. It was all so normal, he felt that there should be some side effect to having been dead, but he reminded himself that the trade-off was not remembering. Not remembering the child-like face with the adult terror. All was a mystery that must be resolved. He groaned, finally laying back in bed, dozing off. ~~Zada~~
She moved to Renault, listening carefully to his plan. She only wanted to interrupt once, and put a hand up to show that was what she wanted. Renault ignored it, but addressed the matter she had on her mind, “Fine by me. Glad you saw it my way.” She grinned triumphantly, happy her plan of splitting up was used. When the city of Livrius was mentioned, Zada smiled My type of place. Plenty of people willing to fight, perfect way to hone my skills. Too bad their morals are twisted. I don’t have enough time to fight everyone. She nodded her consent to the plan, “It seems the best plan of action. The more ground we cover the better, and it’s best to not waste everyone’s efforts on the castle, especially since it’s doubtful that we’re going to find much.” She nodded at Joshua, “Livrius in two days. Solure guide you to Lyndis.” She nodded to Renault, and turned for the stairs, “I’ll be in my chambers.” Somehow, she doubted much sleep would be earned inside the cramped walls of the inn. She much preferred outside, and the soft flexible walls of a good tent. Or so that’s what she thought she remembered. |
Jet-Kyo | ((Althis! where you at bro!?)) |
Althis | ((Hey guys, sorry I haven’t been on. Life has gotten in the way of me being able to post. Goodness knows how long I will be around, but I will try!)) |
Jet-Kyo | ((LIVE THREAD! LIIIIIIVE!)) |
Althis | ((One month and five days later, I have time to sign in and say hello to all those who still are subscribed to this thread. Goodness. I am sorry to say that this may be the last you see of me for a while. School has become a full-time deal. Once this semester ends, I am going to England for a month. While I thoroughly love writing stories with you guys, and let me tell you it has been an adventure, I just can’t find much of the time to sign in and reply. However, I still find some time to read your ideas and stories. I wish you all the best in writing, as you have some of the most creative minds I have seen. Much love, Althis)) |
