Lost Trails Chapter 20: Bloody Sunrise

[Lord Skybolt]

"Well, I will certainly help as much as I can in finding out whomever killed him ."Alain answers .

[ewancummins]

"Well, I will certainly help as much as I can in finding out whomever killed him ."Alain answers .

The Watch officer nods, stroking his neatly-trimmed black beard.
''Good, good. The party you fought broke into Cadorna Textiles. We aren't sure yet that they are the assassins but it seems likely. They appear to have stolen a crystal ball from his office. This is the second notable burglary in two nights. Do you know the Velvet Glove?"

[Lord Skybolt]

"The Velvet Glove ? No I've never heard of it, what is it ?"Alain asks in response .

[kintire]

Kat makes her way to dockside gate in the city walls and onto the wharves only to find the ship that's to carry her to the south already boarded by Watchmen.
No way they're the guys from the inn, unless they grew wings.
They are questioning the crew.
She sees Benn on deck, talking with one of them.
After a moment, the black tabard turns away from Benn and moves to speak with a man in a fur hat and felt-lined brown cloak. Possibly the shipmaster from the air of command about him.

Benn steps to the rail and looks over the dock, as if searching for someone.
He shakes his head and turns back to pace the deck.

The Watchmen are searching the vessel now.

Kat watches as if mildly interested in the spectacle, then moves on through the thickest crowds she can find as if headed elsewhere. She tries to find a spot she can see the ship and wait without drawing attention: a food stall or breakfast place perhaps. She waits, unobtrusively, hood up against the cold morning hiding her face and hair, until the Watchmen's search is over. Once they have left the ship, and she thinks they have not left any spies behind, she boards it swiftly and heads straight to her cabin.

[Wolfglide of the Fraternity]

Klokulf walks down the stairs to the inn's common room to meet with the Watchmen.
"My word!" he says, surveying the concentration of law officers with an expression of surprise. "Does this have to do with that Harper scum that attacked us in the street?"

[ewancummins]

KLOKULF


The goateed Watch leader blinks at 'Harpers.'

"Oh? Got any proof of that affiliation? It may be very important."
He listens intently to the priest...

[ewancummins]

Kat makes her way to dockside gate in the city walls and onto the wharves only to find the ship that's to carry her to the south already boarded by Watchmen.
No way they're the guys from the inn, unless they grew wings.
They are questioning the crew.
She sees Benn on deck, talking with one of them.
After a moment, the black tabard turns away from Benn and moves to speak with a man in a fur hat and felt-lined brown cloak. Possibly the shipmaster from the air of command about him.

Benn steps to the rail and looks over the dock, as if searching for someone.
He shakes his head and turns back to pace the deck.

The Watchmen are searching the vessel now.

Kat watches as if mildly interested in the spectacle, then moves on through the thickest crowds she can find as if headed elsewhere. She tries to find a spot she can see the ship and wait without drawing attention: a food stall or breakfast place perhaps. She waits, unobtrusively, hood up against the cold morning hiding her face and hair, until the Watchmen's search is over. Once they have left the ship, and she thinks they have not left any spies behind, she boards it swiftly and heads straight to her cabin.

Kat waits for an hour, but when the search seems to be over the guards no not all leave. It looks as if their officer has posted two at the pier leading to the ship and left at least two others on board.

He comes back up the pier with two more men, headed toward the gate.

She briefly loses sight of the Watch in the thin crowd gathered before the waterfront wallgate.

Then she sees the officer talking with other guards at the gate.

And the gate slowly swinging shut...

[ewancummins]

LATER....

KAT


Kat has been laying low, looking for a way out of a city swarming with black tabards.

Something's really stirred up the Watch!

So far as she can tell, the guards are delaying or stopping ships from leaving the waterfront.
But she does see small fishing boats out on the Moonsea.

She picks up some rumors.

Burglars have stolen something of great value. Much speculation about what.

Spies have been discovered in the city.

Someone tried to burn down the Textiles District.


The closed gate reopens in an hour, but now people are being asked their business by guards, some showing papers...

[ewancummins]

KLOKULF, ALAIN
LATER THAT MORNING


The Watch officer seemed very quick to pass on to his superiors Klokulf's tip about Harpers.
He told Alain that the Velvet Glove is a festhall popular with the city's wealthy. Someone robbed it the other night. This might well be completely unconnected with the Cadorna case, but then again...who knows?


The Watch has questioned both men and released them for the day, with a request that they both remain in Phlan.

The guards took the items Alain seized from the dead burglars(Harpers?).

Both men are supposed to show for an afternoon inquest at the Temple of Tyr, god of law and justice.

[ewancummins]

AT THE PARTY'S INN

COURTYARD

TONIO watches the grooms walk a guest's horse around the yard for morning exercise as he polishes his knight's spare boots on the back steps.

[kintire]

Kat shifts back through the streets to her personal inn, sliding into the front room with a broad grin on her face

"Hey, um, sorry, I meant to be back earlier but.... night on the town, you know?"

She lets him draw his own conclusions from her "just had a really good time" smile.

"Hey, I, still need to, you know, crash? here's my bill..and a bit. Rooms still free, right?"

She wanders upstairs, humming happily, forgetting even to remove her hood.

Thus preventing and funny questions when she heads back down later for some food, raven black hair framing her face.

[ewancummins]

Kat shifts back through the streets to her personal inn, sliding into the front room with a broad grin on her face

"Hey, um, sorry, I meant to be back earlier but.... night on the town, you know?"

She lets him draw his own conclusions from her "just had a really good time" smile.

"Hey, I, still need to, you know, crash? here's my bill..and a bit. Rooms still free, right?"

She wanders upstairs, humming happily, forgetting even to remove her hood.

Thus preventing and funny questions when she heads back down later for some food, raven black hair framing her face.

" Sure, I remember you. "

The man gladly accepts payment.

Later...

The innkeep raises an eyebrow at the change in Kat's hair. But he shrugs and goes back to work without any questions for her.

Breakfast is fried fish, brown bread, butter, and hard cider.

[ewancummins]

BENN

At last, he has discovered the way home!

Surely this time.

And these bungling gendarmes are in his path, impeding and interfering. Investigations, spies, burglaries. Is this truly his affair? A man dead, but...

He has told them what little he knows and has not been officially detained, not yet, though they have delayed his sea voyage. How long?

His wife, his children calling from behind the DOOR IN THE MISTS, the portal he is certain waits in Raven's Bluff! He has heard those voices every night since.
And in his dreams also, Jonathon Matyr's words

I KEEP MY PROMISES.

-- a threat to Benn' s loved ones or just some trick of the Mists?
He cannot ignore the dread possibility.

He cannot stay here.

Pleading with the shipmaster proves useless. The man is too canny to trick.

The guards are no help.


Watching the fishing boats on the Moonsea, a smile slowly grows on the Lamordian's face.
He checks his purse.
Yes, he has his full share.
Now, a nice walk along the waterfront....

[kintire]

After the change in appearance is complete, Kat casts out between the inn and the waterfront, trying to find a way between the guards to contact one of her friends. She could probably get out of the city herself, but it is unlikely she would see her friends for several months, and if Benn finds the door in the mists, he wont wait for her. nor would she want him to.

[ewancummins]

SIR CLIVE


The priests of Tyr speak of Law and Justice, of bringing order and civilization to the wilds, beating back the Beast-Ogres of Thar and the humanoid scum of Far Vaasa.
It reminds him of romantic tales of his home, the young Empire, the early crusades.

The clergy not only treat him graciously, they even offer to help find him his own way home to the Empire. He has travelled months with Benn and the others and come no closer to that goal. Duty cannot be abandoned. He swore fealty for life to his Empress.
If he understood all the talk of portals and planes, returning to that strange mistbound world might well put him even further from home than he is now.
Service until the midsummer and then the patriarchs of the Church will plane shift him to his native world if it can be reached.
A proposal worth considering.