Ketsuki

It's just as the sun is setting, and there's a small commotion going on outside the city gates. Traffic is backed up slightly and it seems that the root cause of this back up is a carriage drawn by four black horses. The carriage itself is lovely to look upon and obviously of fine design. Something that your average person would never be able to afford.

"Sir, we need your traveling papers if you want to enter the city." This from a guard who is talking to the occupants of the carriage rather than the driver who is staring aimlessly forward as if he'd do anything to separate himself from the conversation going on.

"Come closer would you sir?" Asks the voice from the carriage, a heavily accented voice but the accent is unfamiliar. And the soldier obediently begins to do so.

Halani is behind the carriage, enough paces back to be polite and non-threatening, but still close enough to stick her nose in. A long, straight piece of wood with a sack tied on the end is slung over her shoulder.. she switches it to her other shoulder as she sidesteps enough to see around the carriage. "Oi!" she calls out. "Why's this taking so long? I'm going to miss the dinner special at the Den, yeah?"

Seldan is in the line not far behind this carriage, having spent the day roaming the wilderness. It shows in the leaves and branches that cling to his rough-and-tumble leather jerkin, shirt, and leather trousers, in the few scratches and scrapes on hands and face, but the beaten leather knapsack over his back might just bulge a little fuller.

He peers past the head of the person in front of him, frowning up ahead, trying to see what the holdup is.

Now much more free to depart the city, Un'eth still finds herself making trips to and fro. This evening, she moving fro, exiting the gate, or attempting to, as traffic is rather halted. Traffic; another problem that the city has that is not an issue outside the walls. Another cordon? An extension of the one that was emplaced around the temple district? She is uncertain, though it does raise some interest. More, even, given the current level of wariness.

Jinks is going the opposite direction, at least so far as to the edge of the shadows cast by the city's walls. He rides behind a gnome lady her teal hair in a loose updo, his chin on her shoulder and arms around her stomach as they chat idly. They both smile easily, chatting in quiet, rapid-fire syllables of the mother language they share-- but then the gates are busy and she needs to be off.

Jinks offers a good-bye peck on the cheek and then slides off the back of the pony. An awkward, stumbling dismount nearly ends with a headlong fall into a rain puddle but he catches himself after briefly teetering on the brink, standing and tugging down his coat to smirk away any near-disasters.

GAME: Jinks rolls Perception: (3)+7: 10
GAME: Un'eth rolls perception: (17)+28: 45
GAME: Seldan rolls perception: (5)+7: 12
GAME: Halani rolls perception: (17)+25: 42

A stack of massive supply crates has seemingly decided to grow a gigantic pair of muscled legs and begun moving its way towards the northern gates and the manned gatehouse stationed nearby. A weathered and wary looking portly man moves ahead of this odd sight looking rather harried and bothered as he leads this strange procession onward. "Many thanks. When the wheels broke on the carriage I didn't know how I was going to get these requested goods here.."

"You are welcome." rumbles a deep voice with monolithic business tinged with the heavy plodding accent sometimes associated with those from the north. The man draws up short, however, upon seeing the curious happenings and he blinks while the crates themselves move forward a few more paces and then themselves stop - allowing Arngrim to lean from back behind them, revealing himself now as the one carrying the load while peering around at the happenings with squinted eyes.

"Hmmm? What is all this now? More troubles? Something else to break this fragile city?"

The guard leans into the carriage and then pulls away, waving the other guards off from the carriage. "His papers are fine."

"Yea, but where are they?" Asks another guard who's standing next to Halani. He shakes his head at the frown he gets from his fellow guard and he rolls his eyes to Halani. "Some stuffed-shirt forgot his papers at home it seems. We'll get things moving in a moment."

The other guards are conversing quietly and the first guard seems insistant so they slowly start backing away from the carriage in question.

Un'eth knows little of the guards' procedures or orders, aside from what she personally experiences passing through. She did not require papers, and is not so familiar with their purpose. It is not papers, precisely, that now concern her, though. Eyes and snout follow the first guard. "You should check these paperss again," she suggests to the others guards while point a claw at the carriage.

Halani's eyes narrow a bit. Not that she's of the mind to tell guards how to do their business, usually. And it's not like she's really hungry, so her impatience isn't that big a deal. Still.. with the look of someone who isn't quite sure she saw what she saw, the turns a bit.. validated by the Sith Makar's comment about the issue. And then she spies Jinks. "Hey, Jinks!" she calls, waving. "Might be a while. Looks like someone's cheating to get through, yeah?" Then her eyes widen when she spies Anrgrim. "Ooo... he's big."

GAME: Jinks rolls Knowledge/Nobility: (10)+9: 19
GAME: Halani rolls knowledge/nobility: (7)+3: 10

Seldan's eyes, too, narrow, but unlike the others, he doesn't speak up, merely - watches - the carriage closely, his eyes unfocusing for the space of a few breaths -

And, as quickly, refocusing, his entire demeanor instantly on guard, straight, tall, and watchful. He has his papers out already, and does not take his eyes from the carriage, except to fish briefly in the knapsack, and pull out a small vial. This he tucks in his belt pouch without comment, and returns his attention to the carriage.

"Tallman." Jinks greets back, twisting his hips forward-- both in turn-- and looking over his shoulders to make sure the tails of his riding coat aren't dirtied. The shoulders of the coat are a darker blue for the rain, the wet a dipping half-circle down his back, too. He twists a band set with three blue topaz as he walks over to the Xian. "Just wait until he says 'These aren't the wargolem you're looking for,'" the gnome lowers his voice, half-mimicking the overheard accent, "and then they'll start this processional moving again."

Halani can smell the gnome when he gets close, the perfume piercing the earthy scents rain conjures. "Ketsuki just wants you to remember his storied lineage." He waves a finger from the gates down past the people waiting. "... long lines?"

"Wait here.." rumbles the colossus Giantborn to the Alexandrian that he had assisted. He shifts the weight of the stack of crates to one arm and then lowers it with careful measured movements to the ground, balancing them perfectly and handling them with a single arm despite the immediate implication of their weight upon an audible thudding impact and groaning and creaking of the boxes as they settle.

Arngrim then straightens back up, dusting his hands off and then beginning a steady plodding approach closer to the gates and the backed up line. It's pure simple nosiness coupled with a mild instinct for always expecting the worst, that leads him forward. He's little awareness of local politics and only a basic grasp of such laws of entry based on his own needs to come and go from time to time..but..one doesn't learn if one doesn't stick ones nose where it doesn't belong.

The soldier straightens and nods to the sith-makar. "I think I will! There's something off about all this." He heads for the carriage and the door finally opens revealing a tall man. Very tall given his xian heritage. His dark hair falls to his shoulders and he makes his way to the gathering of guards, seeming to quickly pacify them with his words and general mein of good cheer. Even the suspicious guard is quickly falling to his graceful wordsmith.

It doesn't take long before the xian man is headed back toward his carriage. He stops there before entering it once again as if sensing he's being watched and nods to the gathered people. "Pardon the wait good people." His accent is not xian. It has the flavor of lands unexplored. His eyes land lastly on Seldan and he smiles before moving to slip back into his carriage.

GAME: Seldan rolls will: (17)+31: 48
GAME: Jinks rolls Will: (18)+4: 22
GAME: Arngrim rolls WILL: (2)+8: 10
GAME: Halani rolls will: (13)+17: 30
GAME: Un'eth rolls will: (14)+20: 34
GAME: Seldan rolls knowledge/religion: (13)+15: 28

Seldan returns the smile with an inclined head that might be something out of _Don Giovanni_, so stone-like is it. Cool, unyielding, and calculating. He says nothing, though recognition of _something_ flashes across his features, for those who are accustomed to reading his quietude. The man is saying nothing for the moment, but he sure knows something.

Halani's eyes are still on Arngrim. Now, she's seen giantborn. She's fought giantborn. This one makes them all look elfish in comparison. She has to shake her head when she realizes Jinks is talking. "Oh, not that long. Would probably be inside already if," she jerks a thumb at the tall Xian, looking at him again, "Something funny wasn't going on here. And..." Then her eyes widen again, though for a different reason. "Hey. Did you steal that shadow? That's a neat trick, yeah?" Her stick and sack is still balanced on her shoulder, though she cocks her head sideways. "You know.. they like it if you follow the rules here."

"No, I mean-- nevermind." Jinks, once again forced to live with the irony of his jokes going over tallmen heads. "Kyu Ketsuki. Carriage-makers by day, scourge of lycanthropes by night?" The gnome won't begrudge a fella a little false shadow but it'll earn a quirked eyebrow. "... though that doesn't make much sense. You should fight the werewolves when they're still people and then buy a lamp for your workshop to make the carriages at night. Wouldn't that be so much simpler?"

Un'eth's eyes shift from the man, to the recently-mentioned shadow, and back. A low hiss begins low in her through and her tail flicks apprehensively. Still, perhaps it is a completely explainable situation or misunderstanding. Her head tilts slightly in curiosity as she asks the noble, "Did you leave your ssshadow elsewhere, along with your paperss?"

Yes, Arngrim is pretty prodigious where his kind is concerned. This comes with its various forms of benefits but not without its troubles as daily life for him is often akin to an elephant attempting to blend in and live among a herd of sheep.. but it does make for an imposing entrance and a sort of lazy looming swagger to his steps as a result of his oversized and far to muscled limbs. Arngrim, as of yet, has no cause for personal alarm at what goes on although he inclines his head increasing curiosity, practically sinking it against the barrel like immensity of his neck.

"Hey..what goes on here? There are crates to be delivered, bodies to break and food to consume.."

One of those three things is not like the other but ..well..question him if you will. Regardless, his movements carry him alongside the outbound line and towards the gate itself where the hold up is and within easy sight of any who care to single him out. Not that he doesn't stand out anyway considering..himself.

Ketsuki stops as he's about to go into his carriage and sighs. He pulls back out a little, eyeing the adventurers now lined up to question him about his shadow. Or lack of one. "It is a familil curse, but others find it unsettling so I do what I can not to advertise it." He glances toward the guards who are waving him forward and he ducks his way into his carriage and closes the door firmly behind him.

The guards seem more than happy to let him go, motioning his carriage forward. Only for Arngrim's mass to stop its forward progress once more. The horses stop, not wanting to run the massive man over and the guards look enmass at Arngrim to see what he's up to. "Would you... Move sir?" One of the guards asks plucking up his courage and managing some words in the face of Arngrim's mass.

GAME: Jinks rolls Perform/Sing: (8)+13: 21
GAME: Halani rolls sense motive: (6)+25: 31
GAME: Un'eth rolls sense motive: (8)+6: 14
GAME: Arngrim rolls sense motive: (13)+0: 13
GAME: Seldan rolls sense motive: (12)+19: 31

Halani raises her eyebrow at the werewolf hunter's explanation, but then who knows what form curses might take. So she shrugs. The unfairness of the 'paperless' entry only bothers her because of the hassle of having to carry her own, which she produces as a bit of a crumpled mass from inside her robes. With them in hand, she responds to Jinks. "Oh. Ketsuki's his naaaame.." she says, drawing out the last word. "I thought you were just trying your word play stuff again, yeah? Wonder what he's doing here, then? Pretty sure the silver lady's people have that lickenthrope stuff handled."

Un'eth doesn't obstruct the carriage. It isn't her place to overrule the guards, and her comment before was only a suggestion. She spies the Moon Knight, there. If there were true trouble about, she knows he'd be diving face-first into it. In the end, another obstruction makes himself present, anyhow, and she looks to the wee giantkin.

"Oh." The fact that the horses might not want to try to get around him hadn't even occurred to the giantborn. Arngrim purses his lips in thought and considers this while also becoming acutely aware of the fact that more eyes are turning to him then he, perhaps, had first intended..and he's quite used to being seen and noticed. Still, there is rising embarrassment and discomfort now as it seems that all is well after all. There was something about curses or what have you but..

"Perhaps all is well after all." he simply concludes before finally taking several steps off to the side and clearing the road of his meaty presence. He turns to look over the others now and then simply gives a large expressive shrug to all of it.

"Maybe Goddess Dreaming's knights are too busy keeping tired People from taking a proper nap in Coyote's house and they're having to import people to do Actual Work." Jinks posits, grousing none-too-subtly on the matter as he crosses his arms. "Though that led to a happy accident..." he turns to glance down the road where the gnomish lady and her pony have disappeared behind the crowd. "But! ... they can all still suck sour eggs."

"He's very rich," the gnome picks up the topic of visiting nobles without so much as a 'well, back to the other thing.' "And his family is from your corner of the world. You should get to know him." He slaps the Xian woman's thigh lightly with the back of his hand and cants his chin towards the wagon. "Get in close, I mean. Then get me an easy job that pays really, really well."

That really seemed like it was about to go another way.

"Perhaps Her knights have no more information on what is happening than anyone else." Seldan recognizes the gnomish bard - he's hard to miss, small or not - and a small smile tugs at the corner of his lips. "I would not approach the gentleman alone, were I you, although it may be needful to do so. He looks from face to face, inclining his head to those he recognizes, but he seems suddenly - impatient?

With the carriage moving into the city now, the blockage is eased and forward motion can resume apace properly. It seems that peace has been restored (at least here). The next person in line moves forward and the guard checks them to see if they need to bring anything into the city that requires them to do more than the most cursory glance-over and then motions them on through.

Then the next.

And the next.

Un'eth watches the departing carriage for a moment before she looks passingly to Jinks, then Seldan. "A hunter of lycanthropes implies there may be prey to hunt. I hope it is not within the city. It is becoming far too crowded as is." A brief thought that it might be easier for the denizens to relocate, given how popular the city seems to be with fiends, undead, fae, cults, abominations, muls…

"Ew. Why would both of you think I'd even wanna get close to him? He's a... mainlander.." Halani says, as if that's a thing. She grins broadly, showing teeth as she thrusts her crumpled papers into the guard's hands... though Seldan's last words, 'although it may be needful to do so' tug at her mind. Once she has her papers back, she hurries, through, saying over her shoulder, "C'mon." When she passes by Anrgim, she waves up at him. "Hey big man! Long time, yeah?"

"Well I suppose if my return to the city is one where I miss a giant dragon going for a stroll and instead simply see a backup jam caused by an issue of paperwork and ancient curses then..well..then..I'm honestly still not quite sure what to think." concludes Arngrim as he turns, swiveling his head like some sort of turret, to look after the movement of the carriage and watch as it moves into the city proper.

"Lycanthropes..?" he rumbles upon overhearing that. "Hmm...now that's new." But when Halani passes him by he turns to give her a look and recognition flashes into his expression, actually softening his gaze and his features a bit into a true smile, "Aaaah. Hello! Yes, I've been away. Back home. Family trouble. The worst sort of trouble."

He lets them and others move ahead of him, giving Seldan a return nod before moving back for the city and towards the stack of crates he'd left by the road.

The line shortens, and things proceed apace once the line is unblocked, but Seldan suddenly is urgent and quietly focused. When Arngrim mentions lycanthropes, he's just finishing with his own papers, and he takes them back, looking up - way up - at the mountain of a man. "Not lycanthropes. Vampire. I shall return.'

"Hello, hugeman, I think it's been ten years. You might be getting smaller. Do your people shrink with old age?" Jinks is glad the sun is setting, he doesn't have to shield his eyes when he looks up at Arngrim. "That one might be able to show you a dragon," he adds, tossing a thumb at Un'eth before adding "at least I think it's that one..." The gnome just shrugs at Seldan, grumpy that he couldn't crash at his usual self-pity safehouse regardless of the larger sociopolitical context.

And then Halani is calling him to adventure. He needs wings like Merek. Or one of the flying discs. Or a carpet like Cesran-- but INSIDE carpets are hard enough to keep clean. Can you imagine flying around OUTSIDE on one? -- he snaps out of his musings to realize people are already a half-block away. He sighs, again, and hustles to try and at least keep them in sight.

Un'eth blinks at Seldan's addition. Abominations? That's markedly different that lycanthropes. She pivots to follow Seldan and/or the carriage. Upon passing Jinks, she notes, with a snort, "Not in the city." Also, did the giantkin call her giant? Is that a compliment due to his heritage, or some form of insult?

The carriage is going slowly, so as to not run people down in the streets. Not more or less slowly though, than any other carriage of its kind. It's clearly headed for the nobility district and soon enough makes its way there. It stops outside one of the homes and the gentleman atop the carriage jumps down and opens the door for Ketsuki and not one, not two, but three ladies who make to follow him into the door.

The sun has set by the time you reach the nobility district, and the light completely faded. It leaves you in twilight darkness that is all too quickly fading to true night. "Oh well that is much worse." Arngrim had rumbled in response to hearing Seldan, expression blank as well.

Jinks actually drew a laugh out of the behemoth and Arngrim simply answered, "No. Bigger. Especially me."

Ultimately, he takes up the rear guard of this strange newly formed procession as they follow after the carriage and observe the happenings with the others from a distance. One hopes that someone got those crates back at the gate moved as he sure didn't.

GAME: Jinks rolls Knowledge/Local: (10)+10: 20
GAME: Un'eth rolls knowledge/local: (11)+8: 19

Jinks tries to look casual as he struggles to keep pace with the rest but still has to half-jog every few steps. By the time the others have stopped, though, he's lagged behind entirely and stands stock still on the other side of the road, more than a stone's throw from the carriage and the grounds beyond. Well, maybe not an Arngrim's stone-throw.

"We shouldn't be here." He hisses, his wide, black eyes like empty sockets in the half-light. He drags a hand down over his mouth, smoothing his goatee as he shifts nervously and takes a step back.

So a slow moving carriage tends to be pretty easy to follow. It also means it's hard not to be obvious about following it. When she spies it after stepping through the gates, she stops for a moment to consider what to do. That's when she realizes who is following her. Jinks get's a small fist pump, and Arngrim.. she looks up at him again. "Well.. that narrows the choices, yeah?" Seldan's last words stick around, though, in the back of Halani’s mind. Vampire. It's almost enough to make her want to forget the whole thing.. but her glance down the opposite road is a short one. So she sets off after the carriage, trying to keep a reasonable distance.

When the destination is revealed, she turns to take stock of who else came again.. and sees Jinks having fallen back, and frowns, seeing his ill humour. Halani sets her travel bag aside, stick and all, then points at him before putting her hands to the side and shrugging.

Un'eth thinks that many of the 'noble' structures here look much like their neighbors: too much space, too much ornamentation, to much... waste. There is something familiar about the one the carriage halts at, and not due to recent damage (that area was possibly already passed). It isn't until the gnome hisses (of all things) that the association is spurred in her mind. A low hiss echoes Jinks' as her snout snaps towards him. "The slaver?!" she inquires sharply, semi-rhetorically, and, with effort, not so loudly.

For the entire journey, Seldan has been quiet, though not silent, and courteous, but focused on his goal, whatever that may be. "Slaver?" he whispers, looking to the others for information.

"We are here now." offers Arngrim, words of little comfort no doubt. "So let us make some use of the fact that we took the time to come here. Yes, slaver? In Alexandria?"

Ketsuki stops just before entering the domicile, nodding low in the direction of those who had followed his carriage, and following the three ladies into the house. The driver takes the carriage around the side of the building and disappears. The streets are silent in the wake of this.

The gnome isn't coming any closer. In fact, he's slowly backing away as he looks over his shoulder-- or up to the sky. He shakes his head at Halani and cups his hands over his mouth. The notes he hums are too quiet to come across the block but they can see the pink motes fall from his hand to the ground, twisting and cavorting as they swim across the cobbles to spiral tight at Halani's feet.

"Altay. That's his house. Ties to Charn. Sacrificed his wife at Swadling's party just to stir the pot. Almost-certainly works for... Him." The gnome's whisper spills from the spiraling pink motes on the ground as if he were standing right there.

Halani's brow furrows in confusion.. still looking at Jinks, she completely misses Ketsuki's acknowledgement of the motley crew's tailing of the carriage. But as Jinks's carried message finishes, as her mouth is opening as if to question... her eyes go wide as understanding sets in. Even she pales a little bit, whipping her head back to look at the door the Xian visitor disappeared through. She's shaking her head firmly, then. "I don't think we should knock on that door," she tells those closer, then looks specifically at Seldan. "Jinks says the people in that house probably work for Him."

"He sent slaves as statues to Charn," Un'eth notes in a harsh w-hiss-per. "Sith-makar, even children!" Emphasis, not exclusivity. "If the carriage-rider is a hunter, may Altay be his prey." Not likely, but one can always hope.

"..We are here now." repeats Arngrim while watching the house and the carriage and listening. As the driver moves the carriage off he then adds, "And now we should leave. I believe you are right..." Seems ilke that's enough information for the colossal Giantborn. "There are better and more secure places to discuss this, if this is who you say it is. Come.."

He backs away laying a hand against the wall of a nearby building to push himself a bit and then steps backwards with the intention of withdrawing. "I do not believe much will be accomplished now, tonight."

You leave the cold dark streets of the nobility district for warmer climates, and for some surely - a stiff drink to go with it. There's a house on this street that bears watching however. But... perhaps not tonight.

-End