Mister O, Roka and Zuri on the Trail - RPLOG
Participants
Date
1/3/479
Log
"If you could be more specific, I could be more helpful," says the graceful clan egret looking over ledgers and shipping manifests, "It's not as if every transaction comes through here! We do customs checks and keep records of major transactions along with leasing market space."
The office is well kept, if small and every wall is taken up with shelves of scrolls and carefully bound manuscripts. The late morning sun filtering through the window makes little dust motes dance in the air.
Aloysius idly saunters into the building, some official documents in hand. "I bet my poor steed can't wait to get freed from his bonds." Aloysius says to Jugu as he knocks on the office's door before entering, "Excuse me, is this the Majistrate's Office?"
The elephant-being follows along next to his squirrel friend. The being is wearing his heavy robes today, which hide most of his features apart of his face and the general bulk of his frame. "I agree, the poor thing." He looks around the inside of the building idly. "Do you think this will take long?"
"Yes," says the Egret in answer to Aloysius, "Be right with you, sir. As soon as I get this taken care of." The egret is talking to a large husky in embroidered linens that a well traveled being might recognize as being of Dacha make. "P-p-p-please," the Husky says with a distinct northern accent, "I am looking only for the ones who are b-b-b-buying my animals. I w-w-w-wish to speak with th-th-th-them." Hard to say if he means the animals or whoever bought them. "Is an allig-g-g-gator who b-b-buys them from me for his c-c-c-captain," he stutters, "I am not remembering name of ship."
The egret rolls his eyes and waves the stuttering canine toward a stack of scrolls. "Those are the shipping manifests for the last three weeks that include livestock," he says, "Feel free to look for yourself." Finally he turns his attention to the newcomers. "How can I help you gentlemen?" he asks, "Looking to lease a space?"
Aloysius eyes the husky as he speaks, raising a brow before raising his hat in greeting for both beings. "I did not expect to meet someone from as far as Dacha here." the young squirrel says with his Andrussian trill before looking back at the egret, "Greetings good being. I simply want to register my loyal steed, and I have been told this is the place to do it." he says with a grin.
Jugu also spares a quick glance at the husky. As Aloysius moves to the front counter he steps aside, looking every bit like the bored friend who just came along for the company. He peers over at the scrolls, and waits as he observes the stuttering husky off the corner of his eye.
"D-d-d-d-dacha is not p-p-place," the husky stutters, "Is a p-p-p-people. B-b-but is c-common mistake." He goes to the scrolls that the egret has pointed out and starts carefully reading through.
The egret, for his part, looks a little crestfallen when he learns he is not about to make much of a commission. "Very good," he says, "I have the paperwork here, and I will have to come look over your animal, of course." The snowy bird fishes out a woodcut made form and a quill and small pot of ink for Aloysius.
Aloysius nods his head at the husky, "Then my sincerest apologies for such a mistake, good sir. I am afraid that I am not the most well versed being on geography." he says with another tip of his hat before looking back at the egret, "Hmmm, then we have a conundrum here. My mount is left in the trade ship that I have arrived with here. I am pretty sure you would know it, the Merchant's Coin. Probably the only Andrussian ship in the docks. I am willing to wager that your records must have a mention of my mount in the cargo section." he adds with a smile, "Maybe we could check your ledgers on foreign ships coming and going from Firmament? It must be there."
The elephant being wanders over to the husky's side, looking up at one of the posters up on the wall before looking over at the scrolls he's reading through. "That's a lot of paperwork.." He idly comments. "Did the guy behind the counter not even help you look through them? Figures, so called 'public servants' in this city don't know how to be helpful." He says in a hushed tone, as if confiding with the canine.
"N-n-no," the husky stammers, "I d-d-d-d-on't mind. He's g-g-got his own w-w-w-w-w-work to d-do." That stutter is terrible! But the foreign canine is moving quickly through the scrolls, eyes scanning along the words with impressive speed. "I am h-h-happy to s-s-se-s-search on my own." He looks at the little elephant, a touch of embarrassment in his icy blue eyes. "S-s-s-sorry," he stutters, "D-did you n-n-n-n-need these t-t-t-too?"
The egret official looks like he is ready to start pulling out his own feathers after listening to the husky slog through such short sentences. He visibly stuffs his irritation back down as he looks at Aloysius. "Of course, sir," he says with a strained smile, "As soon as my other. . . client finishes his search we can look it up. If you would finish the paperwork, I am sure it will be only a moment."
Aloysius nods his head and begins filling out the paperwork, "Ah, I forgot to mention. My mount is a selsouros, just in case there are some rules regarding that." the squirrel adds, assuming the egret might have heard of such a creature before, "And here is my ownership document." he adds as he hands the egret a piece of paper signed by the Andrussian government before he goes back to filling his paperwork.
The elephant watches the husky at work for a bit more before he sighs. "Look, why don't I give you a hand, hm? What is it you're looking for exactly?" He steps towards the scrolls and grabs one of the nearest one. "Shipping manifestos?" He takes the opportunity to casually glance over the document, just in case he struck gold and found just the right one on first try.
"A Selsouros?" the egret asks, eyes widening, "I have only heard stories! You mean that you actually have one? Here in Firmament?" The bird takes the offered document and scans it with a clerk's efficiency. "Yes, yes," he says, "everything seems to be in order. Let us just match it with the shipping manifests. The Lucky Coin, did you say?"
"N-n-n-no th-th-thank you," the husky stammers out, "I-I-I am doing this f-f-f-f-fine on my own." And he really is making very good progress. His eyes flicker across the pages with remarkable speed. He has managed to move through several full scrolls already. Honestly, he moves through them so fast that it would be difficult to read along. He must know exactly what he is looking for.
The squirrel being raises a brow at the unexpected enthusiasm of the egret. "Hmmm, yes...I hope that is okay?" he asks as he finishes his paperwork, "The Merchant's Coin." he adds as he eyes the husky, "But I guess we should wait for your other client until we can access those scrolls."
The elephant nods and puts his scroll back down. "As you wish." He steps aside and watches the husky at work, fidgeting with his walking staff as a way to pass the time.
"Him?" the egret says, "Oh, not at all. If I had realized that you were properly Andrussyan, we could have looked up the ship's records right away!" The egret turns to a shelf and brings three scrolls with him. "Let's see," he says, "How long has the ship been in port? The stuttering slob over there is digging through three months of transport from Thera'Dor. No need to wait for him. But please, tell me more about your animal! I confess that I have a fascination with the more exotic creatures that walk our fair world."
The squirrel squints at the egret and stands up immediately, "How uncouth, sir. To insult a client of yours right to his face, why in Andrussya such a transgression spawns feuds." he says before shaking his head, "Besides, you confound me, good being. If you are indeed interested in exotic animals, I would have assumed you would see a Dacha coming into your office on such a non-busy day as a gift from the Creators. Are you not aware of their own exotic animals? I have heard stories of creatures such as reindeer and hunting animals the size of buffaloes." he adds idly, "But regardless, I will not continue this transaction until you apologise to your client."
The elephant looks up at the others as the conversation seemingly heats up. He shakes his head. "No need for such language indeed." He looks at the husky. "Three months of shipping information? That's madness, to be doing it on your own. Are you certain you don't need help?"
The egret stares at Aloysius in dumb shock. "What?" he asks, "Him? Maybe he is Dacha, but a lesser tribe. They raise purple bison! Hardly even suitable for pulling carts!"
That does it. The Husky is on his feet and striding across the room, though the scrolls are left neatly stacked and unharmed. The husky is surprisingly large as well. He did not seem nearly so imposing when he was seated. "B-b-b-b-buffalo is n-n-n-n-noble c-c-c-c-c-creature!" he growls, his stutter becoming even worse now that he has been antagonized, "Y-y-y-y-y-you are t-t-t-t-t-taking b-b-b-b-b-b-ack y-y-your w-w-w-w-w-w-words!" He literally picks up the egret by the collar and raises him a few inches off the ground.
Interestingly, the scroll he was reading seems to have been left open to a shipping order from about a week ago to a ship called Vengeance.
The squirrel raises a brow at the egret's dismissive attitude before standing aside when the husky comes into view. The squirrel eyes the elephant and shrugs before looking back at the other two beings, "Now, now, good beings. There is no need for violence. I am sure that the egret here understands his mistake and will apologise for it." he says with a sweet smile, maybe the youngest of the three will break off this commotion before it turns into a fight.
The elephant being spots his chance. He steps towards the table and tries to surreptitiously snatch the document while everyone is distracted. He shifts his stick to his off hand as he passes by the table, quickly flicking his right hand out to grab it and stuff it inside his ample and concealing robes.
"Of course!" squeaks the egret, "My apologies! I misspoke! I meant other buffalo! Not Dacha buffalo! Not at all! Finest animals to be had! I've always said!"
The husky snorts and lowers the egret to the ground, turning without a word and going back to his records, picking up the next scroll on the stack.
The egret, flustered now by his close brush with fate, does his best to recompose himself. "Um, very sorry about that," he says, trying to tuck his shirt back in, "Now, where were we?"
The squirrel nods his head as the husky departs before looking back at the egret, "You were looking for the ship the merchant's coin, and you were asking me about selsouros." he says with a nod of his head as he takes back his seat.
The elephant being goes back to idling, tapping with his staff and smiling reassuringly at the husky once he returns. "Well done fella." He crosses his arms with staff tucked between them as he waits around a bit more, then pushes off the wall he's been leaning against to walk up next to Aloysius to listen to his conversation.
The agitated husky only grunts in answer to Jugu, apparently not trusting himself to try and speak as he goes back to scanning his documents.
"Oh, yes, of course," the shaken egret says, going back to the set of scrolls he brought out. "Here are the shipping manifests from the West," he says, "Cliffside Braevales and Andrussya. I am sure that we can find your ship here quite quickly." He hesitates and gives a worried look over at the Husky, who is still hard at work. "Now," he says, leaning in and speaking a bit softer, "Tell me about this magnificent beast of yours! Are they really bigger than a plow horse?"
The squirrel purses his lips and looks back at the husky, "Oh, by the way, good being. If you are looking for who is buying your livestock, I remember seeing a Freesword bunny being who rode a purple buffalo not a week ago. He might be one of your buyers?" he asks before looking back at the egret, "Well, there is nothing much to say in my opinion. And that really depends on the breed we are talking about, there are some breeds that are slightly smaller than a plough horse, but most common breeds tend to be larger. The largest breed you can get can reach up to two meters in height." the squirrel adds as he looks at the scrolls with the egret, the party sure did have a lot of wine, and who knows? Mr O might have bought some of it from Cliffside or even Andrussian fruit wine.
The elephant being plants his staff on the floor again, standing next to Aloysius. "Riding one is quite the thrill. You simply tower over everyone but the biggest heavy clanner." The small being smirks. "They're a bit temperamental, but once they get to know you they become quite affectionate."
The canine shakes his head. "I am n-n-n-n-not selling m-m-m-my b-b-b-buffalo," he stutters, "Th-th-they are b-b-being st-stolen. D-d-dacha do not s-s-sell our b-b-beast for money." The canine focuses, trying to force down the stutter. "If B-bunny was riding b-buffalo, b-buffalo w-w-w-w-was g-g-g-gift." The speech seems to have taken a lot out of the husky. No doubt he is more comfortable among his animals.
"Stupendous!" says the egret happily, his shaking seeming to have passed without leaving a mark on his psyche, "Affectionate, you say? How very strange! Not at all like our skrith then." The bird is looking through one list while leaving the other two to Aloysius. And Jugu, should he care to join in.
There is not much of note in the shipping manifests. Finding the Merchant's Coin is simple enough, since Aloysius knows very well when it came into port, but there seem to be only a few large shipments of wines or imported foods and most of that went to the inns or to the Castle district.
The squirrel shakes his head, "My sympathies for such news, good being. I hope that you find this thief of yours, is it like a single being or an organized crime cartel? I heard rumours that such organizations as the Longtails and the Thieves guild operate around here."
Aloysius then looks back at the avian, "Well, affectionate to their handlers perhaps, but they are quite aggressive to strangers when their owner is not around. It is also why we have what we call an adaptation period for them once they move into a new environ. They tend to get agitated, or even hostile, in a different kind of weather." he adds with a snicker, "'Like a rampaging selsouros' is a proverb that did not appear from nothing, but that is certainly worth it once you can finally tame one, they are both quite loyal and intelligent."
With a shrug, the rodent sets the scroll he had down, "Hmmm, couldn't find it." he simply adds as he takes the other scroll and begins inspecting it as well.
Jugu crosses his arms impatiently, tapping his foot as he waits. "Mmm..." He paces towards the center of the small office, looking around boredly.
The Husky gives Aloysius an aggrieved look. Conversation is obviously not one of his strong points. "I am n-n-n-not knowing," he stutters, "I am only kn-n-n-n-n-owing th-th-th-th-that they are st-st-stolen."
The egret sets his scroll aside as well. "No Merchan't Coin in this one," he says, "It must be in that last one."
There are certainly a lot of wine shipments in the last week or two, but nothing that seems out of the ordinary. All of the large shipments seem to have gone either to inns and other large establishments, or to the cellars of the wealthy.
The squirrel being raises a brow at the scroll that he is reading, focusing more on the odd details of odd and expensive wine bottles, making doubly sure he committed them to memory. He will have to investigate those if they ever prove relevant. "Ah, but where are my manners, Aloysius, what is your name, good being?" the squirrel being asks the husky before looking back at the egret, "Not in this one either. We must have missed in the first time. You look into the one I looked in first, and I will do look into yours." the squirrel says as he picks up the third scroll without leaving room for disagreements and begins looking through it as well.
Jugu walks back towards Aloysius, stopping by his side to wait for him to be done. He smirks. "Lost your ship, old friend? Surely it has to be there somewhere?" He plods forward and picks up the second scroll, giving it a once-over as if trying to help his friend find the correct entry, while keeping an eye out for anything suspicious.
The Husky sighs and stands, carrying his current scroll over and dropping it on the table. "I am c-c-c-called Esten," he stutters, "Th-th-thank you f-f-f-for your t-t-time." The Husky turns dejectedly to leave.
The egret seems uninterested in the canine's departure and is absorbed in searching the scroll Rokarion first perused. "Ah!" he says, "You simple missed it!"
Still, there seems to be nothing untoward in the accounts. If O got his goods from the East, he hid his accounts well.
The squirrel nods his head at the egret "So, I have. My apologies for this mistake." the squirrel saysas he tips his hat to Esten, "And a pleasure to meet you too, Mister Esten. I hope you find who is stealing your livestock, also if you are going to stay in Firmament for a while, might I suggest the Academy district, they have a number of good inns there that serve foods from all over Promise." he says as he looks back at the egret and smiles, "So what know?" Looks like the squirrel is not getting any leads from here, except perhaps Esten and his livestock, those might be of note.
The elephant puts down the scroll he was browsing, and looks up at his friend. "Well, finish up and let's go get your mount, friend. Poor thing must be getting agitated after solong without seeing you" He smirks. "And maybe we can go find ourselves one of those good inns you keep mentioning."
"With the paperwork done and your fee paid, you are free to bring your remarkable beast ashore," the egret says, finishing some paperwork, "I just need your signature here. Happy to be of service!"
The squirrel snickers and shakes his head, "Just repeating what our innkeeper keeps telling us." the squirrel answers back before signing the paper he is given and paying his fee. "A pleasure doing business with you as well sir. Shall we, old friend?" he says to Jugu as he stands up.
The elephant nods at his friend, tapping his walking stick as he turns and heads out of the building. He peers back after they leave the magistrate's office, and waits until they are well out of line of sight before producing the document he pilfered. "There you go sunshine." He says in a low voice to his lover. "Maybe this will give us a few new leads to follow up on, eh?"
