The Longtails Send Their Regards - RPLOG
Participants
Date
28/4/479
Log
Saints' Square is bustling with activity, especially around the stage that has been erected opposite the Church. Red curtains hide most of the stage from view and a long banner advertising "THE AMAZING MARVOLO" is draped across the upper reaches of the temporary stage.
Iorek wanders out of the Creator's church, his face brimming with a smile. The dog, walking with a cane briefly looks around before spotting the large stage with interest. Curious he takes a wander over, standing infront of the banner reading it.
Angus looks up at the sky, wondering why in the creators name it was so blasted hot today. Using his hat as a fan he walks by Saint's square, just in time to catch snippets of conversation about a Marvolo? His curiosity gets the better of him, turning to follow the growing crowd with his hat back squarely upon his head.
Kilani is moderately agitated with the presence of a crowd in a central location. She did, of course, have something to do. And somewhere to be. It would be impractical to attempt to shove through this large gaggle of beings, however, so she decides to resort to 'going with the flow', as they say. Perhaps there would be something to see. Maybe.
There is a little fanfare from somewhere back stage and the curtains swing open to reveal a simple, bare stage and a tall, thin, black cat in a finely tailored suit and sparkling white gloves. "Welcome my friends!" he calls out, "I am Marvolo! Prepare to be amazed!" He sweeps the tophat from his head and a flock of white birds erupts from the hat! "Prepare to be staggered!" he says, waving a hand and causing a spray of flowers to appear in his gloved hand, "Prepare for wonders like you have never seen before!"
The crowd in the square starts to congregate around the stage and the lone figure on the stage. This could be a good show!
Iorek smirks slightly, understanding slight of hand he's not really impressed by the appearance of the flowers, but he looks like a showman, this could be a laugh at least. Leaning heavily on the cane he wanders closer to the stage, joining in the crowd as it grows.
Angus slips into the crowd, snerking as he watches the magician perform 'wonders!' for all to behold. He reaches up to put his hand before his mouth to hide the smile, laughter hard stopped before it can be heard, his tail flicking behind him before he notices Iorek among the crowd, his ears perking for a moment.
Well, this was different. Magic isn't exactly an unfamiliar thing, but this wasn't your typical magic, it seems. Curious. Kilani places herself fairly near the stage, hoping to catch a gleam of whatever seems to be causing the bird phenomenon.
Trailing footsteps eke out on the cobblestone, as Galatea looks up to the Church, it's superimposed form looming over the square. She smiles to herself, before her amber-hued eyes pinpoint the bat. "Is something the matter?" she asks in a dulcet voice, approaching slowly.
The stage magician waves and bows at the mild applause, then beckons the audience to come nearer. "Draw close, friends," he calls, spreading his hands wide, "And I will stun and amaze you!" He points dramatically out at the audience. "But first! I will need the help of one of you!" he proclaims, "Who among you will assisst me?"
Iorek smirks as his tail give a brief, involuntry wag. He used to love these magic acts as a kid, but he's probably a bit too grown up for this. 'Yeah, I'll let one of the kids or someone volunteer. Maybe vonunteer their parents.' he thinks to himself as he looks around at the nearby crowd, inching forward slightly to make sure he can get a good view.
Angus slips through the crowd, stepping up beside Iorek as he watches the Magician. "So, hows the leg? I take it the cane means you haven't fully recovered." He asks the Lab, giving him a quick once over look before focusing back on the magician. A volunteer? My this would be an intresting show, the smile still hidden behind a hand.
A volunteer? Sure, why not. Kilani calmly and quietly raises her hand, the tall and thin bat easily sticking out from the rest of the crowd. I mean, it's certainly better than watching, and perhaps a closer look can be gleaned. She continues to eye the magician's glove and hat, determined to seek out whatever rune summoned the birds.
Galatea watches on silently as the volunteer steps for the stage, and she purses her lips.
Molly skipped into the square in a hurry, her dress bouncing with her jumps as she makes her way through toward the church. The beckoning and call of the magical feline catch her ears, however, and she quickly changes course to watch the show. Being so small of stature, she takes on a pattern of constant hopping up and down to get a view. In doing so, a certain labrador catches her eye, and she pauses her hopping to scurry beside Iorek and begin hopping there instead. The raised hands in the crowd catch her attention as well, and she joins them, frantically waving a hand at the peak of her jumps.
Fayrmune arrives dressed in one of her best courtly dresses instead of her usual flexible travel robe. She still carries her dai-sho on her of course, even if her social soul somewhat hinders her ability to use them presently. "How fun! A show!", she exclaims to no one in particular as she weaves her way gracefully through the crowd, looking for a good seat.
"Why don't we let fate decide?" the magician asks, grinning. He raises his hands into the air and dozens of playing cards shoot forth from his sleeves and spin and flutter over the beings in the audience, somehow never settling to the ground! The cards all float and dance in the air, ranging to and fro across the square until they start to slowly gather in a cloud above Iorek! The cards all start to rain down on the dog's head. "You there!" the feline magician grins, "Come! Join me on the stage, my friend! Bring your friends!"
Iorek turns to Angus when he hears his name, as he goes to answer, looking a little hesitant as he rubs the back of his head, the barrage of cards rain down on him. He gives the magician a dopey "Wha? Me?" kind of look before looking a little excited, before turning apprehensive. He's been trying to stay out the spot light, but I doubt anything will happen with Lord Solacious standing right here. With a shrug, he hobbles towards the stage using the stick, tail wagging occasionally as he tries to hide his excitement, badly.
Angus watches the bunny jump up and down in place, contemplating how exactly to help them with this issue before Iorek is singled out in the crowd. "...Well, I guess it would be amusing to see how this facade works itself out hm?" He states, sweeping his hand towards the stage in an indication that he would be accompanying Iorek for the trick.
Molly watches in awe as the cards shoot over the audience, grabbing at the air to try and catch them as they hang above - only to start pouring on her canine companion! She squeals with excitement, thumping a foot off the ground before starting off to scurry after Iorek, sticking close to wade through the crowd with him in hopes of finding a better view.
Fayrmune claps her hands as the cards fly every which way. She cheers when the magician--or rather card cards-- choose someone from the crowd. "Wooo! Show us some more tricks!", she shouts excitedly as more people join the magician on the stage.
"Good show," Galatea murmurs to herself with a languid smile. She softly applauds as the cards unfurl in the air.
The grinning magician welcomes Iorek, Angus and Molly up on stage, then waves a hand to the wings of the little stage where a pair of black foxes wheel out a large box with slots cut into the sides along with a rack of long swords. "Behold!" he cries out, "The box of DEATH!" The cat waits for his stagehands to place the red box in the middle of the stage, then opens it theatrically as they leave again. The box is, of course, completely empty, though it has a hole in the top, ostensibly for someone to poke their head through. "See, my friends," he says, waving the trio closer, "Nothing hidden here! No tricks!" He steps languidly into the box and pulls it closed. "I will thank you to latch the box and start stabbing the swords through!" he says, grinning from his place in the closed box, "You will find that they are quite solid and very real."
Iorek taps one of the swords on the gtound resulting in a satisfying *clang* showing they are indeed real, before he shrugs again, closing the box and latching it closed before he stands to one side, leaning on the cane. Hesitating a little to what will likely lead to the magician encouraging him, he stabs the first sword through the first slot, slowly.
Angus snerks, stepping away from the box to allow Iorek to continue with the show! "Why yes, they are true blades, let us hope our friend within the box does not become skewerd by them." He exclaims loud enough for everyone to hear. He himself did not care for such cheap thrills, but he would not ruin the fun for others when it wasn't necessary.
Molly gasps, covering her cheeks dramatically at the reveal of the box of DEATH. She scurries over to take a sword from the rack.. struggling with it in both of her hands as she grunts and aligns it with one of the slots, thrusting forward! ..And smacking just next to the slot, huffing and puffing as she lifts it just a bit to catch on the slot and slide in. She seems very, very concerned about what she's doing, but trusts the wisdom of a magician.
Fayrmune scoffs to herself when the magician mentions "real" swords. She pats the equisitally-made blades on her hip, knowing what folly that statement was. She does join in the suspense with the rest of the crowd despite her satire, oohing and aahinh as necessary when the blades are pressed into the box.
The black cat magician cries out as the first two swords slide home. "Continue!" he moans, "Do not stop!" There are four more blades and four more slots that will criss-cross through the red box. A rippling murmur runs through the crowd as they watch Iorek and Molly impale the poor magician.
Iorek getting caught up in the show, Iorek briefly juggles two of the blades one handed, before catching one with his tail. Sliding them both in at once slowly, one with his tail, the other with his free hand, even trying to add an evil laugh to add to the drama, but it comes out rather giggly
Angus starts to clap a bit, staying upon the stage as his smile grows. "let us see if he can escape this in time! Or if he bleeds upon the ground." His ears flick and twitch at all the sound, his gaze roaming over the spot for a few moments before his attention afixes upon the magician once more.
Molly returns to get another blade after she's pushes the first in fully, timidly scurrying back and forth from the rack, the tip of her blade dulling as it dragged across the stage behind her. She grunts nad huffs yet again, reaching to catch the tip of the blade on the slot, before gently sliding it in, shutting her eyes and wincing. She murmurs something about loving magic shows, hopping from foot to foot as she steps back from the box, standing beside Angus as she waits for Iorek to apply the final sword.
Fayrmune gasps, as no one could squeeze that much to avoid the swords, fake as they might be! Surely the occupant must be dead now!
The magician shrieks and moans as each sword slides home, skewering the narrow red box completely, the tips dripping with red. . . "THE LAST SWORD!" the black cat shrieks, "DO IT!"
Iorek picks up the last sword letting it flip in the air before catching it, he steps menacingly towards the box and thrusts the sword in viciously with an evil smirk "ah Ha!"
Angus watches the red drip from the box, he could not fault the magicians showman ship in the slightest. As the last blade sinks in he gently pulls the brim of his hat down in mock shock, before looking back once more as the thunk of it sliding home is heard.
Molly covers her muzzle, standing still as she could as she waited to see how the magician pulled off his trick. Though.. Iorek's showmanship did elicit a giggle from her, the rabbit's fingers tightening over her mouth to hide it.
Fayrmune's eyes are wide and she subconsciously tightens her grip on one of her blades. The suspense is high and she finds herself leaning forward in her seat, eagerly anticipating to see hwta happens!
The magician screams as Iorek thrusts the final sword home and begins to shake and convulse, continuing to shriek! The swords too start to shake and rattle in the slots made for them and slowly, agonizingly start to slide out. Suddenly, the blades all jettison themselves, clanging loudly to the stage floor, all sparkling clean! The latch on the side snaps open with a click and the box springs open, allowing the black cat to step out with a flourish, raising his arms into the air and stepping forward out of the box, his coat and person immaculate and untouched! The crowd erupts into applause!
Iorek joins in with the applause, genuinely impressed by the swords shaking out on their own and everything being clean. He grins at Molly and Angus before standing around slightly akwardly, wondering what to do now.
Angus claps in turn, a marvelous performance! "Well done, well done." He comments for the black cat, and for Iorek's help in the matter with a bit of a chuckle.
Molly cheers and claps, hopping up and down as she sees the magician walk out unharmed! "Oh, my goodness!" she squeals, hopping forward next to Iorek - though, it seems she doesn't know what to do with herself, as she quickly stumbles back to stand with Angus.
Fayrmune stands with the rest of the crowd and applauds the fantastic performance! "Amazing!", she shouts. "Well done!"
The well dressed black cat grins and bows at the audience and turns once more to Iorek. "Perhaps you will help me with one more trick, little friend?" he asks, leading Iorek to the center of the stage while his stagehands quickly remove the box and the swords.
"Now, ladies and gentlemen!" the magician says, waving to Molly and Angus to stand on either side of him, "I shall make my very helpful assistant here on a trip through the aether! He shall vanish before your very eyes as he goes on an ethereal jaunt!" The cat holds out his hand to a stage hand and accepts a wide hoop draped with red silk. "Now!" he says to Iorek, "Be still and prepare yourself for the trip of a lifetime!"
Iorek grins a little, his tail wagging as he gets caught up in the show, he nods and follows the stage hands directions slowly, still limping on his leg with the cane. He stands where instructed holding still, winking at the audience with a smirk.
Angus takes his place when he is asked, his hands sliding behind him, standing at attention as he watches over the proceedings. "Let us hope his trip to the aether is a short one then, I'd hate to have to explain to someone why he's gone." He quips, ears perked as he stands at attention.
Molly scurries over beside the kitty, watching with wide eyes as Iorek prepares for his trip in the aether. "Oh, dear," she murmurs, fidgeting worriedly, her tail flicking around behind her as she waits, near vibrating with the excitement and anticipation.
"Make him disappear forever!", Fayr yells, joking and heckling of course and not intending anyhthing malicious by it.
The magician waves the hoop about with a flourish, letting the fabric flutter in the warm breeze of the day. "A drumroll, please!" he calls out, and an unseen drummer starts to rattle along, building the suspense. He holds the hoop out over Iorek's head and slowly passes it over the dog dramatically, resting the hoop on the floor at his feet. "Are you ready?" he asks, then rises without waiting for an answer, still with that cheshire grin. He holds the hoop high, hiding Iorek completely. He whispers something to the hidden dog, then drops the hoop, revealing that the dog has vanished completely!
Iorek vanishes behind the curtain witha brief "Wait, no!" that can be heard by Angus and molly with a slight surprised gasp that trails off into silence
Angus blinks as he hears Iorek exclaim, taking a step forward. "A nice trick, now will you bring him back?" He asks the magician, gaze darting towards the sheet for a moment as he contemplates if it was a trap door or by other means that the Lab 'vanished'
Molly frowns, her ears drooping slightly as her excitement drops into a worried look. "Oh, my," she murmurs, hands pressed to her cheeks as she stares expectantly at the hoop, waiting for the return of the lab. She nods along with Angus, stepping forward beside him. "Is he okay?"
Fayrmune looks honestly surprised. She nudges the patron next to her. "Think he's just playing along or do you think he's actually gone?", she quietly asks them.
The Magician bows and waves to the cheering crowd, the applause drowning out Angus and Molly's questions. At least, the Magiciant does not seem to hear as he enjoys the acclaim of the crowd. "Thank you!" he calls out, "Thank you! That is our show! Please! Tell your friends about the Great Marvolo!" He steps back and looks at the other two beings on the stage. "Thank you for your help," he says, "Your friend will be returned to you shortly." He then turns and stalks away into the wings of the stage, his long, black tail swaying behind him.
Iorek finds himself in a dark place. Even darker after the bright afternoon sunshine. He lands hard on the cobbels under the stage. There are sounds of movement as the two black foxes emerge from the hazy shadows, grinning.
Iorek gasps as the ground knocks the breath from his lungs, standing slowly, cane still in hand. He eyes up the two foxes, now rather concerned that this was not was it seemed "Hey, so um... neat trick, huh?"
Angus scowls, sighing a moment as he turns to Molly. "If you would, could you please accompany our grand magician of a friend while I go find Iorek? I may have some questions for him." Turning he starts switching out soul gems, a bit annoyed with himself that he had only brought the sword at his hip today before he lashes out at the trap door with his boot, seeking to kick it open if it is locked.
Molly scurries after the magician, running after him and tugging at his clothes. "Um, mister Marvolo," she mumbles, pulling at him. "Mister Marvolo, I think mister.. um.." She turns back in time to see Angus hitting at the trap door, the bunny squirming with discomfort. "I think your trick is gonna be ruined, mister Marvolo."
"That was exciting!", Fay says, trying to ignore the 'actors' on stage milling about and trying to break the illusion.
The magician looks over his shoulder at Molly and he grins, showing more teeth than is strictly necessary. "No, miss," he says, turning and hurrying on, "My trick is already done." The cat turns and hops off the stage and starts to stride away across the square, accepting congratulations from the crowd.
The foxes below the stage produce long, wicked looking knives and advance toward Iorek. "No point in screaming, Kid," one of them says viciously, "Nobody is gonna hear you." They both lunge forward, but come up short as the trap door overhead crashes open and tumbles down, clipping Iorek hard on the shoulder!
The trapdoor, meant to be opened quickly, breaks and crashes down under Angus's boot. Some of the nearby members of the crowd cry out in dismay, but no one is interested in calling out a Solacious.
Iorek winces as the trap door hits is left shoulder, "You're right, didn't need to scream!" he breaks his cane over his knee, throwing half at each of the attacks, only trying to distract, not intending actual damage. He pulls a dagger from behind his belt as he runs at one of the foxes following the cane throw
Jumping in the air, aiming to plant a foot in his chest to knock him back and off his feet.
Angus sighs as the trap door hits the wrong person, grabbing his sword and tipping the scabbard so that he could drop down through the Trap door. When he lands on his feet he finally draws the elegant Rapier at his hip while surveying the situation. "Lets make this simple. Lay down your weapons and I promise you won't be harmed."
Molly whimpers at the display of teeth, her ears timidly lowering down as the cat starts off into the crowd. However, looking back at the commotion, she's struck with another burst f confidence, wading through the crowd after him. "Excuse- pardon-," she murmurs, doing her best to bustle through. "Get back here! Stop that magician!" she shouts in a panic, frustratedly pushing her way along.
The two foxes are unphased by Iorek's wild throws, but the nearest one gets a healthy surprise, or maybe an unhealthy one as Iorek lands hard on his sternum, sending him staggering backward. The other fox snarls at Angus and raises a large black ball to his lips, tearing something out with his teeth and then throwing it to the floor. Thick, white smoke spews from the ball, filling the air quickly as the black fox turns tail to run.
The crowd does not stop the magician, but enough people step aside for Molly to keep up with the well dressed feline. It looks like he is headed for a narrow alley off the side of the square.
Iorek taking a deep breath as he sees the orb thrown he follows up to where the fox he kicked was standing, grasping at the air to get a hold of him, I'm not letting them both get away. The moment he manages to grasp at some clothing he plants to plant a swift knee into the owner.
Angus sighs, ouf course they would not come quietly. As the small area starts to fill up with smoke he does a few quick mental calculations, calling upon the forces of air to see if he could not clear up the smoke before his prey could get to far!
Molly chases after the magical feline in the crowd, huffing and panting as she keeps up, the bottom of her dress bouncing with each bound. "Get your ass back here, kitty boy!" she screams at him, clutching her purse to her side to keep it close. She glares at some of the crowd as she passes. She doesn't seem to be making any moves beyond just following him, a worried look over her face.
There is a horrible CRACK as Iorek lands on his intended target, and it is not Iorek's knee. The fox cries out in agony as his partner vanishes into the smoke that is only spread by Angus's magic. This one doesn't seem likely to be going anywhere.
Molly does not quite manage to catch up with the cat before he turns the corner into the narrow alleyways. It might be dangerous to follow him in there. . .
Iorek throws the fox to the ground and puts a foot on his throat "Well, I guess it's only polite i return my regards TO the longtail's Huh? I'm sure we can come to some arrangement!" He looks up at Angus "Oh, so yeah, leg's fine I just thought it would be good for misdirection, you know? Next time remind me to move away from the trap door."
Angus coughs a little as the smoke doesn't dissipate, waving a hand before his muzzle as his blade still remains high and ready. "Mmm, next time don't fall for an obvious trap." He murmurs, his ears folded back in case the second assassin tries to double around for the attack. "Are you injuried? And what has this to do with the Longtails."
Molly pauses for a moment before taking a deep breath and continuing toward the alley with a huff. She approaches the corner cautiously with a hand raised and some magical equations in her mind, poised to strike should she find any threat.. though it's more likely her disoriented magic would just end up causing chaos. Nonetheless, she peeks down the alley, following tentatively.
The black fox gurgles a horrible laugh. "Longtails?" he wheezes, "Don't know nothing about any Longtails. But you're not gonna get away from Joker. He's not happy 'bout what you did to his brother." He lays back and says nothing else, his breathing labored.
Molly may have hesitated just a little too long. When she peers around the corner, she sees nothing. Just empty streets.
Iorek rubs the back of his head "Yeah... I guess they suckered me good, huh? the Longtails? That cat up there said "The Longtails send their regards!" as he triggered the trap door. I think i'm okay, got the wind knocked out of me and I think this shoulder is just bruised. I'll get someone to look at it later."
A sudden look of concern crosses his face as he realises Molly isn't yelling at him for getting hurt again. "Hey, What happened to Molly?" He rolls the fox onto his side, which he was told will ease breathing for people with broken ribs "You mean the Jacks. Damn, I guess the Freeswords let more than one get away. Joker? What a dumb name."
Angus slowly eases out of his combat ready stance, letting his sword slide back into its Scabbard. "Still, the longtails hae been trying hard not to fall back into what caused their downfall, I'll speak with Flora the next time I have a chance." As Iorek asks of Molly he steps over to the fallen fox, checking to make sure they will live longer then a few minutes. "Hm? The Rabbit? I asked her to follow the magician that dropped you in here."
Molly tugs down on her ears hard as she realizes that she's let the cat escape, covering her eyes and bowing her head for a moment. She takes a few deep breaths before she wipes her eyes, tucking away near the entrance to the alley for a few moments to calm herself down. After a bit of shuddering, the rabbit steps out into the light again, dabbing at her eyes with a handkerchief before starting back to the stage. She can be heard stepping around on it, but can't bear to look down into the trapdoor, instead whimpering from outside. "He got away from me," she says.
The beaten fox groans as he is rolled onto his side, but gives no further comment. Looks like things aren't quite finished with the Wild Jacks just yet. And this talk about Longtail involvement is worrying. But it will be a problem for another day.
Iorek seems far too proud of himself, maybe in denial that he could have very easily died if it wasn't just two henchmen down here and Angus wasn't present. He hears Molly's voice after noticing some dust falling against the light from the broken trapdoor "Oh, hey Molly! Don't worry about that, I'm glad your safe, we caught one down here." he turns to Angus again "Well I don't know anything about the Longtails, I think I played darts with one of that Flora lady's guards though. What do you want me to do, as I realise I have you to thank for the company I had while I was healing? I guess I owe you more than one."
Angus shrugs his shoulders. "We can speak upon it later, for now we have someone that is in need of attention, and questions." Stepping over to the trap door he laces his fingers and looks back to Iorek. "Now, why don't you go make sure your friend is alright, I can take care of our wounded guest."
Molly hops down, landing with a thud. "Oh my goodness," she gasps, looking at the scene she has just dropped into. She opens her mouth to speak again, but simply shakes her head, looking around at her two companions to scan over them for any injuries. "You boys hurt? She asks, tending to both their captive and the men themselves with her magicks.
