Shanty Stealing Shenanigans - RPLOG
Participants
Date
3/8/476
Log
Dusk falls over shanty town, painting the ramshackle hovels a dull red, one set of inhabitants rising while another heads to their beds. The place never really sleeps, but on the outskirts where dirt ends and grass begins, there is a small line of workmen heading home for the day.
"Thank you all for coming," a clever-clanned owl addresses the group, removing his helmet and holding it to his chest. "I'm Ignatius, and I'm foreman of this worksite. What we've been contracted by the Good King to build here is a public fountain, bringing in water from the Sweetwater so the locals don't have to rely on water-sellers or the local wells, both of which are extremely tainted. I'm personally surprised they live as long as they do.
"However, there've been some problems lately with the theft of building tools and supplies from our various worksites around the shanties. We tried to locate most of the new facilities beyond the limits of the shanty town proper to discourage vandalism, but this isn't a couple of hoodlums stripping copper off fence rails for a handful of crowns' melt value. This is an organised effort, I'm sure of it."
Cyhawk looks around the sight, never really having been there before, and looking at the group he doesn't reconixe many in the group. Takeing a breath he looks back to the Owl "so how can we help, stake out, gaurd, anything?"
Reading the notice board and eager to walk around a bit, as one might say, lion arrives, equipped with a handy hand crossbow and his typical coat. With his usual gleaming smile, he approaches the owl and peer around the supposed site. "Interestin' name there, lad," he comments, crossing his arms and listening in to his request. "Can't say theft surprises me in this town. What makes you think this is a group effort? Perhaps a pattern of sorts?"
Lidiya stretches out, being all lazy-like in her mannerisms. Meeting up with the others, she watches each of them and quickly realizes she doesn't really know anyone. So... she checks in and sort of hangs off to the side, waiting for the details so she can wander of and break things. Or people, preferably both though.
Arimia starts to wander around the site, nearby enough to hear the owl and make herself heard but not caring if the owl wants her to or not. She's wearing her usual cloak covering herself. "I can ask around Shanty Town. They'd tell me what's goin' on if any of 'em know. No guarantee I'd tell you, but you'd have to settle for that."
Ignatius gives Cyhawk a small nod. "Yes, please. We would like you to stake out this location tonight and see if you can catch the thieves in action. Ideally we would like you to apprehend them, but just stopping them from carrying out further theft of our building supplies will be sufficient."
He turns to Dio. "What leads us to believe that? The thieves somehow knew when the shipments were to be delivered, and struck the night after on the last two occasions - we just got one here this afternoon, which leads me to believe that this site will be targeted. Other work sites with more mundane and rather heavier materials at hand were completely ignored - instead. I personally suspect there may be someone in the guard feeding the thieves information, which is why I put out a private call for help paid out of my own pocket. Of course, I'll put it on my invoice at the end of it all."
Finally, Arimia is addressed. "That would be appreciated, Miss, but as I told the friendly lion over there, we're expecting them to strike tonight. Perhaps if they don't turn up, any information you can gather would be appreciated."
With that, he turns back to the group. "Are there any questions, or should I commence with a brief tour of the fountain we're building?"
Cyhawk considers this and worrys "I don't think I will be much help, I'm not really good at hiding." Showing his large fram and weapon, but gets an idea "but do you have a spot that I could sit and provide backup with magic in back. I don't releaae mind where just a good spot."
Dio turns his head and waves to the new arrivals. There was that jackal that seemed to enjoy hitting things, as far as he was aware, and the spooky dark magic bouncing raccoon. "'ello there, lassies. A fine day in the Shanty, is it not," he chuckles, turning back to the wolf and owl. "Do ya know what kinda materials they might be takin'? Rather than profit, they could be tryin' to delay the buildin' for as long as possible, fer reasons I have no idea. Suppose we'll just have to catch one 'n' find out." The lion smooths out his coat and gives his hand crossbow a once over, nodding once he feels satisfied. "Sure thing lad. I'm ready to get started when you are. When yer ready, I'd like to setup a simple snare in a nice spot. Never know what you could find."
Arimia flicks her eras slightly and nods her head. She looks around until she finds somewhere she can hide and still have a clear view. She slips something from under her cloak, a bow, and holds it in her hands, one her pink fur the other... Not. She then steps off to hide herself in the spot she's found, saying, "Unless I spot somethin' better on this tour this'll be my post." Still holding the bow she steps out and toward the owl again.
"Yes. They're mostly going after the metal - previously, several lengths of steel rebar were stolen, along with some stacks of piping. They seem to be going after anything with significant melt value, it would appear." He looks askance as Arimia chooses her hiding spot, then moves to the other three in the group. "Well, seems like the miss there has chosen her place. If you'd like to have a closer look, pick out your spots..."
The fountain is rather wide, its diameter about as wide as four beings are tall. Only half of the bowl and drain about the rim has been completed, but the spout is finished, located smack in the middle of the bowl. Stacks of stone, cement sacks, bronze and clay piping and other building materials lie about the unfinished side, and the earth has been dug up partway leading away from the fountain, presumably for the piping to fit into. There's also a little scaffolding left over on the far end of the fountain about about the spout.
A tall spiked fence of plain, sturdy iron rings the whole area, with the only way in or out past a small guard house.
"And that's about it. If you ask me, I'm rather confused about the whole matter. Why would the people of the shanties actively sabotage something that's being given to them for free, and would help them all?" He shakes his head and tucks his helmet under his arm. "Well, the more of the thieves you can catch, the more we'll actually be able to do our job with minimal fuss in the coming days and get clean water flowing as soon as possible. I'd be mighty glad if you can get them all."
Cyhawk looks around not finding a good spot turining to the owl "I'm sorry I don't see any good spot ot hid...I think it would benfite everyone that I should leave sorry." With that he walks off back to the nearest town.
"Quite strange indeed, lad. Though if I've learned anythin', there are some thieves out there that'll steal anythin', even from churches." Dio shakes his head and looks over the area, taking note of the tarp covered materials along with the guard house. "Must be a sneaky bunch o' fellows to get past that," he mumbles under his breath as he takes out a bit of rope and starts tying it into a snare-like trap, attempting to disguise at as a random and loose piece of rope among the materials. "Let's see how this works out..." Brushing off his coat, he walks back to the owl and looks to the guard house. "Think I could stay in there lad? I'm interested in seein' what the guards would see."
Lidiya had picked out her hiding spot earlier and she sits there. It's about then that she realizes she's... got no way to alert anyone without breaking things. The brief moment of concern passes and she settles back, content that if she spots something, everyone will definitely hear it.
Arimia flicks an ear and shakes her head. "Any number of reasons. Could be as simple as lookin' for crown right now rather than the eventual payoff of havin' clean water later. Some of us ain't exactly the most forward thinkin' sorts. Or it could be the gang nearest to this point feelin' you're cuttin' in on their territory. Or worried that a new steady supply of clean water would cut down on their control of their areas." She shakes her head slightly and begins to move about. Stringing up thin strings with bells in the areas she judges to be the most likely entry points, a simple alarm system. "Or it could be you clan-folk. Not you, specifically. But others, who hold no love for us Apostates. Anythin' to keep us from 'gettin' above our station'."
Ignatius shakes his head sadly as Cyhawk leaves, but gets over it soon enough and turns to Dio. "By all means,please do. We haven't quite completed it yet, but there's a lantern and a seat in the guard house if you'd like to take up a post there. We were planning to place two of our lads there tonight if no one had responded to our call, but I'm a bit worried. If they know there's a shipment tonight, then they might know we might have planned that. But do as you wish." He looks a little upset at Arimia's words. "Well...I had never imagined working this close to the shanty town would be easy, but I certainly hadn't imagined some of those possibilities. In any case, I wish you all the best of luck. Creators bless." With that, he gathers the last two of his workers and is gone.
Waiting...waiting...watching...watching. The sun sinks ever lower on the shanties, dusk giving way to a moonless night, pinpricks of light flaring up behind veiled windows as the more nocturnal inhabitants of the shanties start their day in earnest. One hour, two...and then, barely perceptible against the shadowed mess of hovels and huts, a group of four beings detaches itself from the edges of the shanties, two handcarts between the four of them. They whisper amongst each other, and it might be possible to make out some details about them at this distance, if one had the eyes for it.
"Two lads ya say? How interestin'..." Dio enters the guard house shortly after and looks around, finding the seat and lantern without much trouble. There probably wasn't any use in hiding within, as he was mostly sure they'd be expecting a guard stationed inside. To be safe however, the lion doesn't light the lantern just yet and instead chooses to sit and relax out of sight within.
Lidiya can be seen some short distance away. She looks around, claps her hands together, then puts her hands down on the ground. A line appears in the dirt, then splits open into what looks like a grave, that she promptly hops into and with a bit more earth magic, covers back up, leaving a small mound with a viewslit.
Arimia slips to her hiding spot, a hidden area on a scaffold, and watches the approach from shanty town. She checks her bow before turning back to watch, ears swiveling as she listens to hear if any bells are being tripped.
Slowly, the carts trundle towards the entrance, stopping a good ten metres from the guard house. Now that they're closer, anyone looking on might notice that the two in the middle are burdened with the pushcarts, while the other two are armed with crossbows, postol sidearms at their belts. A lantern has been hooked onto the side of one of the carts, and from its light it's possible to spot that all four are Apostates and sporting the gang colours of the Blue Shell gang to boot.
One might have expected the potential thieves to continue, but they don't. Instead, they point at the darkened guardhouse and mutter amongst themselves, looking clearly uneasy about the guardhouse's empty appearance - without warning, one of the crossbow-toting gang members pulls a small bag and hurls it straight into the guardhouse. It explodes as soon as it hits one of the the interior walls, releasing a cloud of white powder!
Dio awaits in the guard house, ears twitching at various noises here and there. Typical sounds of the night, until the footsteps and sounds of wheel upon ground begins to appear. Still, he stays in his seat and refuses to move, wanting to make sure that if they were of malcontent, they'd be first trapped inside the safty of the fence. But first, he'd need reason to beli- And then it nearly hit him and strange dust flew everywhere. Knowing that whatever the powder was couldn't be good, he takes a deep breath and covers his mouth until the it settles upon the floor.
Lidiya almost jumps out of her hole at the explosion of dust, but stops herself short and gets an evil look on her features behind that mask. She cracks her knuckles and settles down, readying her hammer while she watches for them to come closer. She's sure they'll be fine for now at least..
Arimia watches and waits. When that bag flies she draws an arrow and puts it to her bowstring. She doesn't fire, however, instead just watching and waiting. She recognizes the gang colors easily, but doesn't react to the recognition, apparently unconcerned about them.
Seeing no response from the apparently empty guardhouse, the Blue Shell gang members engage in a little more heated discussion amongst themselves. The ones with the pushcarts look worried and shake their heads, but the crossbow-wielders urge them onward. Perhaps a little rank-pulling has been going on, but the pushcarts move forward, if a little reluctantly. Closer and closer they inch towards to the entrance, before the first of the carts cross Arimia's tripwire's and sends the bells jangling to the ground.
The reaction from the already spooked thugs is instantaneous. "We're busted! Run like the boss told us to!" With that, the pushcarts are flipped over, perhaps in an effort to use them as shields, and all four turtles make to flee - quite speedily too, considering their species. There's only so much time left before they make it to the safety of the shanty's alleyways!
It would appear that the jig is up! No use in stealth anymore. Dio takes and ignites the lantern as he slams open the door, quite eager to get back at those who threw some powder nearly at his face. With a light lion roar, he begins sprinting after the group of turtles and attempts to tackle one to the ground! Getting closer and closer to a shelled fellow, he leaps and throws his entire body weight into him, bringing them to the ground, hoping he was perhaps the one that threw the powder. "Yer stayin' right here lad, if ya know what's good for ya."
Lidiya notices the game's up and kicks the edge of the hiding hole. The first kick doesn't really help though and it's the second one that suddenly fills the air with the sound of shifting earth and what looks to be a building wave of Earth, though it almost looks like there's a weird woman riding along with it. There's a crash as she hops away from it and lands, looking around at the... debris.
Arimia watches as the lion catches one of the turtles, then the earth magic from the jackal, which leaves only the last of the Blue Shells running. She lifts a metal arm and seems to just wave it, though those skilled in mathemagic would know that gesture is the outward focus of her spell casting. A spell designed to cloud the mind and confuse the fleeing would-be thief, and make him turn back.
It's done. All four thugs have been subdued, one under Dio's impressive weight and personal aura of decay, two knocked off their feet by Lidiya's wave of earth, and one running about in circles, utterly blindsided by Arimia's mathemagic. The pushcarts have been scattered, perhaps by Lidiya's earth magic.
"Ugh, I TOLD you it was an ambush," one of the two immobilised by Lidiya's quake. "We should've cut and run the moment we noticed the guardhouse was off. All right, all right!" the turtle says, raising his voice as best as he can. "Uncle! Uncle! I'll talk...we'll talk, we'll go quietly. Just don't hurt us any more..."
Dio continues pressing his full weight on the turtle underneath him, putting his hands upon his arms and reminding the shelled thief occasionally of his sharp claws and carnviourous teeth with a nasty grin. "Let's start talkin' then, lad..." He presses his claws lightly into the turtle's skin after a short pause before speaking once more. "Why are ya tryin' to steal from project that could help everyone in the long run? Dumb, simple profit?"
Lidiya walks over to the two she's knocked over. She plants her foot on one with a cheery grin behind that mask and drops the hammer by his head with her hand resting on the handle. She doesn't say anything of course as she stands there, but she's trying to do the intimidation thing.
Arimia hops down off her perch and walks over. When she reaches the one set to running she casually sticks out a foot and trips him. She looks to the one of the gang who has spoken and says, "Why is an interestin' question, but I don' care as much. You all may know me by sight, may not. But I can almost guarantee you've heard of me. I'm Arimia. An' this construction site is to the benefit of all of Shanty Town. So I'm lookin' out for it now. Tell your bosses, an' anyone else who listens that it's off limits. Or they'll be havin' a very personal chat with me."
"I dunno!" the thug pinned under Dio wails. Under his gang colours, the poor fellow's not much more than a teenager. "I ain't paid to think! The lady boss just said to take them, stop the hobnobs from building their fancy things...she gave us details of what to expect, where and when...and we just figured taking the metal bits was easier an' lighter than stealing the stone an' cement. At th' end of the day, it's the lady boss who gives us a meal, and not nobs like you..." Arimia's words stop all four of them dead cold, though - at least some of them recognise the 'coon. "Yes'm. We'll tell the lady boss like you said." Another pause. "Are you going to have us 'auled to the guard?"
Dio loosens his claws on the turtle just a little, still pushing his weight upon him. "Just hired thugs are ya? Shouldn't have expected anymore..." The lion looks towards Arimia, immedietly noticing her pull and thinking back to their previous Shanty Town adventure. "Seem like yer quite well known around these parts, lass. Do ya know about this lady boss perhaps?" He gives the turtle one more squeeze and then smiles. "Perhaps ya know the best punishment fer these turtles I'm sure."
Lidiya looks over at the lady boss part and looks quite confused. She leans forward, looking down at the one she's standing on and grinds her heel in, then frowns. He's not really in a place for her to pantomime lady boss. So she stands there, grinding her boot and thinking, then crouches down and writes, 'lady boss?' in the dirt and lifts the guy up by his collar enough to read it before dropping him and standing up.
Arimia points at the one Dio is on, and the one she'd tripped and says, "I suggest we let these two go back to spread the word. The other two that the jackal is on you two can hang onto. See if you can find out more about this boss, an' then we'll have them to show the one who hired us that we did our job." She steps back and lifts her hood saying, "Go on! Go tell your lady boss 'bout what I said." After saying that she steps back further, and does her best to fade into the night, planning to trail the two she's letting go back to their boss.
"She ain't the big boss. None of my pals know who that is. But she's th' one who looks after us and doles out the petty cash, an' manages the safehouse..." the turtle swallows hard at the sight of Arimia again, and then the moment Dio lets him up, he grabs the thug Arimia previously blinded and they run off in the direction of the shanties after giving their two grounded companions an apologetic look, not noticing Arimia trailing them.
Lidiya watches the other two run off and takes a step forward to swing her hammer down, stopping just short of slamming it into the other turtle. She frowns behind that mask and taps the hammer lightly against the turtle, then she leans down and with a bit of earth magic, secures their hands in big blocks of stone and at least one heavy anklet of stone. Looking to the others, she then hauls them to their feet and hefts her hammer before using it one handed to point down the road towards the guard outpost nearby. Seems she's leading the way.
Dio nods towards Arimia and gets off his captive, letting him run off into the night. "Sounds like a good plan lass," he comments, walking towards the turtles caught in the jackal's earth magic. "Come on lads, we got some chattin' to do," he says, pushing the chained up turtles towards the guard house.
