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You caught me (Brenner)
Posted: Sat Apr 17, 2021 7:31 pm
by Evana
43rd of Glade, 120 AS
The Godless Bar
The gods were not really present in Zaichaer. Sure you could see the sun in the sky, and yes, babes were born and old people died. To Evana this suggested that the Gods were still out there, doing their godly duties and whatnot. It was just that, in Zaichaer, they were markedly absent. There were no temples, no churches, no alters. People in cloth didn't walk around thumping their holy books on sinner's heads like Eva was pretty sure they did, and the steam heads definitely did not require some divine mandate to execute you and your 4th cousin twice removed. Gods, magic, and happiness were all things that were almost explicitly forbidden within the towers of steam. So it was ironic that there was a bar that made a claim of being 'godless like it was something special.
"I told ya'," A gruff voice said over the sounds of clattering plates and ruckus laughter the next room over, "I didn't order no package. Ye' got the wrong place."
The voice belonged to a shorter fellow with a thick beard and a mean look in his eye. Short though he was he still stood several feet above Evana who gave him her best scowl, "Listen here Gerber, I got me a list." From one of many pockets Eva produced a piece of paper between two furry fingers, holding it up for the man to see before making it disappear once more, "It said I was to deliver a package here, to this location, at this time." Her tail whipped around, dropping a small square parcel just a bit bigger than her palm into her hand. She looked at it, checked the list, and extended it to Gerber, who was growing redfaced, "It's got yer name 'n everythin'. Thattle be 3 silvers sir."
"That ain't mine rat." was the reply, followed by a swift backhand in an attempt to knock the parcel aside. Evana was used to this sort of reaction though, and she ducked away before giving the man a rude gesture.
"No one said you were supposed to WANT the package." Evana said with a sneer, making the man paused in the act of grabbing a large kitchen knife.
"What's that supposed 'ta mean?" Gerber snarled, but there was a hesitation in his eyes. Evana smiled wider and held the package up.
"I'm just the messenger sir. Someone from the alley REALLY wanted you to have this." the man's eyes flickered to the package, and Evana extended it to him once more. After a second he reached as if to take it. Eva snatched it back with a ticking sound, raising her open palm with a meaningful expression. With a growl, a few silver were dropped into the palm, and Eva curled a clawed hand around the coins before dropping the package in the man's outstretched hand.
"Pleasure doin' business with ya. If yeh need a Runner one day, yeh know who to ask for." Evana smiled as she bowed, slipping between the bodies and heading out the door into the main bar. Behind Gerber looked at the parcel in his hands, his face growing pale as he read something written on the side Eva didn't notice before. She didn't spare him a glance though. This was the way of things here. If you call your bar godless, of course, a few demons were gonna set up shop. He should have known better.
Blinking Evana opened her eyes to the lines, a series of threads that wavered and twisted all around her, touching people and objects alike. Some glowed a vibrant blue, other green, teal, and a variety of other odd and interesting colors. When she moved in this part of Zaichaer she always kept her vision open. Thus she was able to see as one blue line, in particular, grew extra tick, and her attention flicked to the bar just in time to see a man's elbow knock a half-finished glass off the edge. Almost reflexively Eva leaped for it, snatching it from the air just before it hit the ground
Behind the bar, the man raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything. He was good people. Eva liked his bald head. Returning the glass to its right place with her tail Eva waved to the barkeep, "Get this one a water before he makes a mess."
With that Eva slipped out into the streets, pulling up her hood to hide her long ears and ratlike face before turning right in the direction of the Grundgeworks.
Re: You caught me (Brenner)
Posted: Mon Apr 19, 2021 5:46 pm
by Brenner Dornkirk
"A Hytori, a Rathari and a Human find themselves in the presence of a genie who offers each of them one wish..." Brenner began, gesturing with his pewter beer stein and grinning to the three men standing in his corner of the bar.
"The Hytori says, 'We elves need to return to return to our roots. I wish all Hytori were brought back to our ancient lands.' The genie nods and the Hytori vanishes. The Rathari says, 'My people need to return to power. I wish all Rathari were delivered back to our ancestral home.' The genie nods, and the Rathari vanishes. The human looks around and regards the genie with a raised brow, 'Let me get this straight- The Knife-ear wished for all the elves to be gone and the Beastboy wished for all the rathari to be gone?' The genie nods, 'Very well,' said the human, 'Then I'll have an ale.'" Brenner raised his stein by the handle to punctuate the punchline, and took a hefty sip as the others broke into peels of laughter.
Smirking, Brenner placed his stein down on the bartop, inadvertently nudging a glass with his arm as he did so. He might not have noticed, until a small figure flashed into his periphery and he turned his attention toward the motion. His eyes widened, as he reflexively uttered a string of Kathalan curses which, judging from the terror in his eyes, probably translated to something along the lines of: "Holy shit! What the fuck is that fucking thing?!"
Brenner's steely blue eyes met the bright little beads of what appeared to be some sort of bipedal vermin person. He froze in place, abjectly mortified. It was as if fate had plucked a monster from Brenner's deepest, musophobic nightmares and placed it before him. He was frozen stock-still until the creature spoke, but it took a few moments for him to process the insult, by which point the pestilential person was slipping out the door.
"Are you all right, mate?" One of Brenner's companions inquired,
"Did that thing just...?" Brenner's fear quickly transformed into embarrassment at having been seen in such an abject state of terror. Then anger at being put in that situation. He snarled toward the door in time to see the tip of the tail sliding out of view. Clenching his teeth, he bounded toward the door, even as his mind screamed not to. It was just a Rathari or something. It had to be. It was no worse than any of their ilk, it just happened to resemble Brenner's phobia fuel more than most.
"Oi! You!" His rational mind tried to sooth his instinctual brain as he brought himself nose to... snout with the thing. "You think you can just lob insults at perfect strangers and then slink back to whatever sewer pipe you crawled out of?" Now that the beady eyes were fixed on his, he had to remind himself to breathe. His skin was prickled with goosepimples at the mere sight of the creature.
Re: You caught me (Brenner)
Posted: Thu Apr 29, 2021 8:41 pm
by Evana
"The Bakley's, Mrs. Marlow, Alan Sheperd--" As she whispered the names Eva steadily counted them on her fingers, and then her toes as she checked a torn scrap of paper. She had hit most of her marks for the day, which meant she should be free until the following week. The next market wasn't scheduled until the 52nd, and the Covens would be preparing. There was a change in the guard rotation on East End recently that was causing quite a stir, but that shouldn't affect the market itself. Still, Eva would need to stop by there sometime to memorize the new pattern.
Just hope they don' add more Reconcilliators this time. the rathari thought with a shudder. They were a pain to deal with at the best of times, but they tended not to mix with the normal guard. That was both a blessing and a curse because their patterns were even harder to track. You had to be more than a little lucky when there were a lot of them in the area, especially during market hours.
Just as she was tucking the torn paper back into her sleeve the rathari felt more than heard the sound of footsteps heading toward her with determination. She turned and came faced to face, or rather face to chest, with a rather irate human who had better hair than wits. Instinctively Eva stepped back as the man loomed over her, crouching slightly as she curled her tail around herself, perhaps protectively, but in reality, it was to be closer to the dagger in her boot. Then she stared, dumbfounded at the man as her ears twitched in confusion.
"I don' know what yeh be on about--" he was probably a drunkard or one of those sorts that lashed out on those smaller than them when their own life was going wrong. Whatever he was though Eva took two more steps back, "But I ain't insulted no one ta'night. Now if'n you'd excuse me, I gotta be back to meh family. They are waiting on me yeh see."
It was a lie, and with that Eva quickly made as if to disappear in the crowd. No way she was getting beaten by a drunk tonight. She learned her lesson the 6th time.
Re: You caught me (Brenner)
Posted: Thu May 06, 2021 6:38 pm
by Brenner Dornkirk
"Halt!" Brenner barked, and stomped forward to close the distance the creature had created between them. His hand snapped to the holster at his hip, though he stayed his hand short of drawing on her.
"I am an agent of the State and well within my authority to detain you if I deem your behaviour suspicious." He asserted with a snarl,
"And oh..." He shook his head, "...do I find your behaviour suspicious." But was it her behaviour to which he took exception? The way her naked tail moved forced him to fight off the reflex to shiver and flee. But perhaps that was more about the tail itself existing than what she did with it. Indeed, Brenner's concern had everything to do with her appearance, rather than her actions.
"What were you doing in that bar?" He snapped, sharply. "I got there a few hours back when it was just me, my mates and the barkeep in the whole building. You can't have spent much time there, or I'd have seen you earlier." He was thinking aloud and using all the rhetorical talents in his mental arsenal as he worked at rationalising the detainment. Even if his reasons were primarily based in his marked aversion to the cut of her jib, he could legitimise an arrest if need be and call in the constabulary to pick her up. He reckoned most of them would share his revulsion, if not the adjacent phobia, and show her the inside of a cell and likely the business end of a nightstick or flail.
"So, again, I ask- What were you doing in that bar?"
Re: You caught me (Brenner)
Posted: Fri May 07, 2021 3:19 pm
by Evana
Evana didn't stop but glanced over her shoulder at the man. Her fur stood on end, bristling as her pulse quickened. There was a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach, a familiar feeling born of fear when facing death. Still, she couldn't show it, she would not show it to one of his kind. They could smell fear, and this one like the rest seemed out for blood.
Slowly, carefully she turned and raised her hands over her head, still moving backward step by step toward the nearest building. Around them, the crowds were beginning to take notice, and Eva watched as their eyes glanced at her, then at the man, and then subtly shift away. Well, screw them anyway. She was invisible after all, except when one like this showed up. He could shoot her dead here and now and none around would even bat an eye. Her fingers twitched her tail following the nervous motion as wrapped halfway around a light post that now pressed against her back.
"Nothin' untoward, sir." She tried to smile, but it felt wrong on her features so she stopped. This wasn't the smiling sort of situation.
Fuck why here? I don' wanna die in the streets like this. She thought with a quiet curse. She'd seen that look in men's eyes before. He had a beef with her. Over what? Didn't much matter. There were only 2 ways this would go. Either she could run and pray she made it away before he could call his friends, or he'd take her. Evana knew she wouldn't survive the night if he did.
"Dropped off a package. I'm a courier yeh see, simple like I am. Ain't got much brains, but I can do that much." She glanced around furtively. Was there a 3rd option?
Re: You caught me (Brenner)
Posted: Mon May 10, 2021 6:03 pm
by Brenner Dornkirk
Brenner's fingers rolled in gentle waves over his holster as his eyes remained fixed on the creature. His heart was still racing- Spurred to pulse apace due to the nature of his particular phobia for the smaller, quadrupedal pests she so resembled. In his periphery he noted the slowing of steps around him, as some passersby took interest in the action. Others seemed apt to flee afield of the trouble, lest they become collateral victims to the altercation that threatened to erupt between the human and the vermin woman.
"Is that right?" He inquired, as he took another step closer to where she stood against the pole. "If you aren't up to anything untoward, why were you so keen to flee when I addressed you?" He pursed his lips and looked her up and down, before settling back onto his heel.
"What sort of package were you dropping off and to whom?" He asked, as he hazarded a glance away from her to see whether he could scope out any actual constables who might aid or even supplant him in this impromptu interrogation. Whilst he certainly didn't trust this thing or want to permit it to go free to cause harm to honest, hardworking humans, he also wasn't keen on making a citizen's arrest in a dodgy district when he wasn't even in uniform.
His taut lips softened to a slight smile when the rat woman suggested that she wasn't particularly intelligent. He supposed that stood to reason, if she was an even hybrid of man and beast. Rats were intelligent for what they were, but their minds were far inferior to those of men. He had no idea how Rathari worked or what traits they acquired from what side of their lineage.
"Sometimes dropping off a package can be enough to cause all manner of havoc. You must know that the city is on high alert ever since the Tragic Events of Glade the 8th..." He trailed off, returning his full attention to the woman, having consummately failed to find a proper policeman to join him in this endeavour.
Re: You caught me (Brenner)
Posted: Fri Jun 18, 2021 5:32 pm
by Evana
The sound of blood rushing in her ears was distracting. Her nose twitched at the scent of fear that came off her own fur, and Eva felt a pebble under her bare foot that immensely distracting. What was with all the questions? Had she done something to this man that she didn't remember? The cold metal of the pole against her back was grounding, and with a few deep breaths, Eva struggled to keep her nerves in check. She hadn't done anything wrong. Not this time at least.
"I girl's gotta eat sir." Unconsciously Eva made herself smaller, hunching her shoulders slightly as her hands worked nervously in front of her, "What happened with all that was scary, terrible actually, but I still gotta do my work. I dunno what the package was, it not my place to ask things like that. Talk to Gerber." She pointed back toward the bar where they had come from, a slight tremble there in the motion that she tried to mask by quickly dropping her hand to her side once more. "He can vouch I was bringing it ta him."
There was a wall to her left, with a pipe running up to the roof. People blocked the street to the right, and in front was a man with a gun. The pebble rolled beneath her toes and she glanced down at it. A small thing, inconsequential, unimportant, yet somehow it was causing so many problems for Eva at this moment. The added discomfort made her frazzled nerves ache.
"I ain't keen to flee cause I did somethin' wrong sir." Her heart beat faster as she looked up at Brenner, but something else, something deeper than fear pushed the words from her lips, "I... I jus' don' wanna die today."
Re: You caught me (Brenner)
Posted: Sun Jun 20, 2021 3:44 pm
by Brenner Dornkirk
"Very well." Brenner softened his stance and let the hand that had been massaging the grip of his sidearm fall to his side. He cleared his throat, before saying:
"I won't press the issue further than this, but I'd advise you to be careful." He bade with a slight scowl,
"You've got a shifty look about you." He noted, looking her up and down with a critical gaze. His intent was clear enough without his having to explicitly state that her supposed 'shiftiness' was part and parcel to her resemblance to pestilential vermin.
"Are you native to Zaichaer or some sort of immigrant?" He inquired suspiciously. It was worth noting that 'native to Zaichaer' was not the same thing as 'Zaichaeri' in Brenner's lexicon. Such a creature could never been Zaichaeri, though it might have been born within the borders of their realms. A beast of her ilk fit better into Brenner's vision of what one might expect on the streets of Kalzasi. He wondered whether such things skittered about the alleyways in great abundance there, and was grateful to live somewhere where he'd spent nearly thirty years never having to had to lay eyes upon a rat woman before today.
"Anyway, just..." He shifted his weight to one foot, "Don't let me see you doing anything dodgy again, or I'll take you in for interrogation. Now you get home and have a nice evening without any mischief, all right?" He forced himself to stare into her beady eyes for emphasis, even though it was terrifying to do so.
"Hail Zaichaer." He said, with an accompanying salute, and stood his ground- waiting for her to make her move, if she was thus inclined.
Re: You caught me (Brenner)
Posted: Thu Sep 29, 2022 9:37 pm
by Rune
R E V I E W
Lore: 8 each
Points: 10
Injuries/Ailments: None
Loot: None
Notes: