Kitsune Kaper Kapture - RPLOG
Participants
Date
13/2/478
Log
It is late evening outside the city jail and a small contingent of guards is waiting at the doors. The officer in charge, a heavy clanned bull with a sergeant's insignia on his shoulder frowns around, alternately at the darkness of the evening and his men, who seem a rather strange assortment. There is a remarkably fat wombat, a mouse who is swimming in a uniform obviously too large for him and an okapi who stands unusually tall. The bull look awfully nervous about all this.
"Why so timid?" Comes a voice as Lucasiel approaches, the metal-shod feline heard before she's seen. "We will be fine." She's without her axe today, but far from unarmed, and coming to a stop near the guards. "Do you expect outside trouble?"
Yvls makes his way onto the scene with a large cloak draped around him covering what else he might have brought to the party. He studies the situation for a bit and decides that it is worth staying, bowing his head politely to the contingent. "Need extra escorts, then? We're safe, I promise."
Angus tightens his weapons belt, making sure his rapier is secure. "So how long do you think your ship will be in dry dock?" He asks the shark beside him curiously, flashing them a smile before he notices that they where here at the jail. "Good evening." He greets the sergeant, ears flicking as he eyes the situation.
Despite the lack of ice, the mad Mare arrives in an impressive spray of snow! (Chalk it up to a blend of air and water magic.) After the flakes settle, Dupree can be seen standing in a pile of ice-dust, and looking uncommonly...well, brutish. Strapped on her head is a protective leather cap, and she wears a bulky sweater-and-hose uniform with her name stitched on the back, and some thick leather gloves. Most uncharacteristic, though, is the look on her face--a big, dumb grin (with a couple of teeth blacked out by stage makeup) and a hint of bloodlust in her eye.
"Hah! You call this a goon squad? Not an enforcer among the bunch!" she laughs, banging the blade of her L-shaped stick on the ground.
Serana blinks as the horse makes her entrance "Well..." he gives the mare one final glance before returning his attention to the fox "She's probably going to be spending a couple months, if no a year or two in the docks. Crew's either been sent home or they're finding jobs amongst the citizens of Firmament. As I had expressed before, she was badly roughed up." the shark responds, flicking his tail some as he eyed where he was a bit curiously "Another Jail?"
The bull, to his credit, only starts a little when Lucasiel emerges from the darkness into the ring of torchlight around the prison. "Good," he rumbles, "You're here!" He looks around at the arriving Freeswords with a habitual looking frown, which deepens when he sees Angus, but relaxes when he sees the nobleman's scars and distinctive markings.
"Can't be too careful," he says, "We're transporting one of those crazy shape shifting foxysunes!" He nods at his motley assortment of odd guards. "No canines allowed in the guard contingent, specially no foxes," he explains, "Then I had to pick some fellas who were pretty distinctive so the fella who got away the other day can't go imitating none of us!" He looks around solemnly to be sure everyone is listening before he goes on. "Prisoner hasn't told us nothing about her partner or how she broke into the jail and sprung him," he says, recognizing a couple of the freeswords as those who helped out before, "We got her all trussed up, so she ain't going to do no running, but her partner is still out there. Fella from the spook squad is supposed to take her into custody, but we gotta her across the city to his place. Any questions before we get the prisoner and go?" The bull has left out a lot of details in his hurry to get moving, but who can blame him?
"I..." Dupree stalls, scratching her leather cap with the blade of her stick. "Run that by me again, coach.
Lucasiel glances amongst the others before nodding at the bull. "Ahhh. So that's where we're taking them," she murmurs, mostly to herself. "Well, we shall certainly get them there. Just make sure you keep a full perimeter around them so that nobody gets close. I would like to take up the rear, so I can keep them in my line of sight at all times."
"Seems like we have enough men here. I'll just take the front, then." The lynx scratched at one of his large, tufted ears in a disinterested fashion. "Can I ask why he was in jail? Just so I know what I'm dealing with. Know thy enemy, know thyself..."
Angus crosses his arms as he notices the bulls frown, relaxing as soon as the situation is revealed. "You're dealing with a Kitsune? Well this is going to be intresting at least." His ears flick as he looks around to inspect the others, before speaking again. "I'll keep my distance away from the prisoner since it seems I'm the only fox here."
"I..." Dupree stalls, scratching her leather cap with the blade of her stick. "Run that by me again, coach." She frowns and furrows her brow...then sucks on her teeth for a minute. "No, wait, scratch that. This is all too complicated. Who do I hit?" she enthuses, 'hugging' the stick for a moment while she cracks her gloved knuckles for emphasis.
Serana frowns "He was in for some petty stuff, Robbery, some trickery. Scamming." He tilts his thumb to the bird "She tried to bust him out, thinking herself the good partner." he gives her a dark look "I honestly think we should break her legs, yeah we would have to carry her, but it would also make it harder for our feathery friend here to vanish with her partner, if her partner would ever decide to come back for her." the shark replies "He could just leave her to us, find himself a new kitsune to bed and enjoy."
"The first guy?" the Bull asks Yvls, then nods at Serana's explanation, "the shark there has the right of it. Con man and petty thief. Dunno why his lady friend was so fired up to get him out. Woulda just been a couple weeks of hard labor, then he'd be free. As it is, both of em are in big trouble for the jailbreak." He looks worried for a second. "Not to mention that it's damn eerie the way she can just change her face like that," he half whispers, "Scares me near to soilin' myself."
The sergeant waves to the tall okapi, who ducks into a low door. After a moment, he returns with a wheeled dolly, and a petite figure strapped to it. The crow woman is bound hand and foot and everywhere else as well! Her mouth is covered with a leather mask and a thick blindfold. Even with all that, she manages to look rather smug. "Just don't let anybody near the prisoner," the bull affirms as his men take up the nearest positions.
Lucasiel moves around to the back, to remain behind the prisoner and the rest of the group so that she may keep her eyes on anything that might happen. "They won't be escaping. With luck, maybe their friend will come to the rescue. Then we can catch them both. On your ready," she says, adjusting her helmet and making sure her sword is secure at her side.
"Ahh, they had a friend. And of course, a kitsune's powers are quite a thing to see. I almost wish the prisoner'd try an escape so I could keep the tricks learnt for future encounters...but perhaps the prisoner is too dangerous, given the escort." He slides his hand into a cloak to pull out his favorite small hand axe.
Angus did not like the look of that smug grin, before his gaze switches to the Lynx. "You may get more then you bargain for friend." With that said his hand twitches, and he rests it upon the guard of his Rapier, feeling that this will a unique escort.
Dupree gets up close in the face of the restrained Crow, looking her over close with a still slightly-bruised eye. "Hm. Tiny thing like you caused all that trouble?" She gives an equine snort of doubt, standing back up. "So...we're keeping this pest safe and looking for a Fox-fella who's not this one, eh?" she asks, a nod toward Angus to indicate that he's the "harmless" one.
Serana frowns "Should have just left her to bleed. Too much trouble." the shark growls glaring at the crow "You hear me, criminal? You're lucky guards have hearts." he humphs moving to the head of the pack "Shall we go? The quicker we get this pest off our hands the better."
The Bull sergeant nods to his men and the odd quartet starts to walk carefully down the evening streets with the Freeswords in a ring around them. After only a short walk, it becomes apparent that the group is heading toward Saints Square. The streets are not crowded, but at this time in the evening, they are far from abandoned. Beings are still going about late errands, many hurrying home from the market district and the academy. The Crow just sits there in her bonds as the okapi rolls her along. This might be an easy trip after all!
Lucasiel furrows her brow as the crowd on the streets rapidly begins to disperse, casting her eyes towards an alleyway off to the side. "Be on your guard," she says, dipping a hand under her cloak to pull her whip free, uncoiling its length. "There's something not right." She doesn't take her eyes off the prisoner, but she's certainly keeping that alley in sight.
Yvls is strolling casually along, not even seeming to think too much of the task given his smug swagger in his step.
Angus gives Lucasiel a quick nod in confirmantion, keeping in line with the rest of the group. His hand tightens on the grip of his rapier, his gaze switching to the alleyway for a few moments to see what happens.
Dupree is far too eager to take point and check people out of the way...but it's not long before there's nobody to shove. Something in the back of her mind sends of a little signal..."City streets aren't supposed to be this empty 'less there's something going on," she mumbles to the rest of the group, hoisting her L-shaped stick up to chest level and sending up a whirl of cool air around her, preparing for a fight.
There is a sudden flash of light and a loud BANG in the midst of the group, blinding everyone for a brief moment. When the blazing light fades, it takes a moment for everyone's eyes to adjust. By the time they do, the okapi wheeling the prisoner is gone! In his place is a grinning fox that at least some of the group will recognize as Miracle Manny, the con man!
Lucasiel
Lucasiel growls softly, bringing up a forearm to block what light the helmet didn't, and soon she's got her arm dropped and wrist turned, ready to lash at the drop of a hat as she sets her eyes on the con. "This has gone on long enough. Give up, or leave. I've got little patience for your games today."
Yvls hasn't been blinded by the light, having been in the front of the group. He turns around when he hears the bang though, and in his whirl both his sword and axe are both already whipped out and juggled into his hands. "Hmm? That isn't the prisoner..." He boggled, lowering his arms for a bit.
Angus averts his eyes as the light goes off, rubbing at them after to try and help clear his vision. He draws his Rapier, giving a bit of a huff as he moves into a combat ready stance. "There is no point of this, just lay down your arms." He states calmly as his eyes dart over the situation.
Fox? Check. Not Angus? Check. With those criteria fulfulled, it takes little time for Dupree to launch herself bodily at Manny, stick held parallel as she throws a cross-check at him, with a flap of her pegasus wings to give her a boost. The job of the enforcer wasn't to ask questions or negotiate or think it over, after all--it's to hit the man Coach told you to hit!
The grinning fox does not try to escape, but he does not surrender either. He just stands there, grinning until Dupree slams into him full force! He seems awful weighty for such a scrawny looking guy! The fox is thrown to the ground, leaving the bound crow to slip to the ground, where she wriggles ineffectually against the straps tying her to the dolly.
Lucasiel narrows her eyes, then moves to stand over the crow, one foot placed atop her to make sure she stays put. "Hold. That may not be him. Keep on your guard. It might be a decoy to throw us off. Don't take your eyes off of him, just in case, though."
"Hmm. One of the more well studied kitsune tricks involves playing with the senses...maybe mister Manny here is just the guard...with one partner fooling our eyes and another fooling our ears." Yvls offers, still keeping a careful eye on the situation.
Even as Lucasiel voices her warning, laughter bursts from all quarters of the empty street as a plethora of foxes in various outfits come bursting from alleyways and doors! There must be at least six of them, all identical aside from their outfits. Each of them makes some kind of rude gesture before dashing off!
The sergeant's two remaining men scramble after a fox each, calling out that they will catch the perp, even as the sergeant calls after them to stop. Looking back at the fallen fox reveals the poor okapi guard, seeing stars on the ground.
Angus flicks his ears as the trick is revealed and the foxes disperse in all directions. He whips his head around, waiting for the real attack to start as he moves closer to the crow while shouting at the sergeant's men. "It's just a ploy to distract us, none of them are the real kitsune!"
Dupree is already, quite literally, on her guard--she currently has the Okapi guard pinned beneath her stick. "Wait--wha--huh?" she asks dully. "Oh, damn! You looked like Manny for a--"
The Mare halts herself mid-sentence as a glut of foxes suddenly overrun the square. Even after she pauses and rubs her eyes with the heavy leather gloves, they still appear to all be Manny. "Either I've taken too many pucks to the head lately, or something awfully strange is going on. Oh! Er, sorry, man," Dupree adds as the Okapi seems to have recovered enough to give her an icy glare. "Lemme help," she mumbles, getting to her hooves and offering a hand to pull the poor Being up.
