[OP - F2][MM] Bloodhounds

[Ruby 0]

Ruby had looked over in the direction in which Hestia had pointed towards, she had let out a hum questioning why in the world he would be over there... however it doesn't seem like a spot most people could find the guy in. She had looked back over to Hestia and nodded her head to continue to follow behind her and it wasn't long until everyone had grouped together and speak things over, Ruby honestly had kept her mouth shut around this time, she didn't have much of a opinion to give as she was more of a follower than anything else. Looking at the group she also said out "Could it also be possible that he might have some secret allies on his side? After all a good villain never works alone, I feel like we just need to do the safest thing here and be cautious about it instead of invading his territory." she had given out her own opinion however she was going to leave it to her partner in this situation Hestia, she would simply agree to whatever she agrees to do.

- Ruby will vote for whatever Hestia votes for.

[Plot Master 0]

Lessa allowed the discussion to flow without interruption. It seemed that many players had theories of their own, and in most cases, their logic was sound. That's good, the young woman mused, shifting the journal from one hand to the other. The people she had with her had to be bright, or else they would not be successful in apprehending Wyson, and stopping the killings. It was only when the black haired woman spoke to her directly that she entered the conversation. "A mixture of disguise and hiding skills got him as far as the Black Iron Prison," came her matter-of-fact explanation. "At that point, the NPC guards didn't seem interested." Perhaps her delivery had been stricter than it needed to be, but the question did not seem all that helpful to the task at hand. Sure, there was a chance they could learn from the tricks player killers used, but it also felt like an unnecessary look in Aereth's direction. After growing oddly close to the orange player, Lessa had begun to understand why he made the choices he did. She would never condone it, of course, but he was more passionate than anyone she knew when it came to hunting other PKers. They had a strong ally in Aereth when it came to defeating Wyson.

Now that she had reinserted herself in the mix, Lessa decided it was time to make the call. The rain had lessened to a sprinkle, a soft patter rather than a boom against their stone hideaway. They would have a long walk, and this break in the weather might not last very long. "Sounds like we're heading to Taran," she stated, tucking the book in the waist of her pants. She let her shirt fall over it before she eyed the search party. "It's a trek, but we should be able to get there in under an hour if we keep the pace up. Hopefully, the weather will cooperate. If we don't turn up anything there, we can always go for the coordinates later."

With that, Lessa wove her way through the other players, and back out into the open. Thunder still grumbled, but it was distant now. The rain had been reduced to a haze, a wet warmth where the cool storm breeze had existed before. The second floor was one of her favorites for that reason alone - the seasons, and the unpredictable weather that accompanied them, reminded her of home.

They were welcomed into the village by a guard who manned the gate. He was also willing to direct them to The Fortress, a tavern settled nearly exactly in the town's center. The atmosphere was perfectly tailored to fit the stone village, complete with a roaring fire and animal pelts on the walls. Lessa gave it a once-over, appreciating the attention to detail, before moving toward the bar. If any of the ten occupants found the rag-tag group of players interesting, they gave no indication.

The barkeep, however, raised one white eyebrow at their approach. "Birthday party or something?" he asked dryly. "We normally encourage reservations for this kind of thing."

"Cute," Lessa replied blandly, before lifting a hip to rest on a stool. "What can you tell us about Wyson?"

Something about her demeanor seemed to amuse him, as he smirked. "What are you, some kind of a detective?" Then, as her question settled in, the smile faded. "Oh, that guy. What a pain."

Lessa's blue eyes flashed - they were finally onto something. "You remember him?"

The barkeep snorted, the movement unsettling his perfectly manicured handlebar mustache. "How could I possibly forget? What is it that you want to know?"

Spoiler

In this cycle...

• Use this opportunity to ask the barkeep questions.
• Be sure to read the posts made before you, so the same question is not asked more than once.
• Do not write the barkeep's reply - I will provide that in the next Plot Master post.
• If you have no questions, you may also simply explore the tavern.
• The next cycle will happen in approximately 24 hours, or when everyone has posted, whichever comes first. Please notice that this time limit is a bit shorter than past cycles!
• You are also welcome to brainstorm in the Mysterious Murders discord, but remember, all discussion there is OOC.
• All questions can be directed to Lessa!

 

[Hestia 0]

I sigh softly at being outvoted on what i thought would be a rather good idea as i keep the location tucked in the back of my mind. Knowing that i could probably take on this Wyson myself with what i have on myself. Though taking him on without having to kill him is another matter entirely since i don't have any means to restrain him if i could even find him within the area of the coordinates provided. With that i head on over towards Taran village remaining silent for the duration of the trip towards the village to keep myself from saying anything about the situation since doing so would be just a childish tantrum and that going to the village does make sense for following the next location to the other. When they arrive at the village and enter some sort of bar she glances on over towards the barkeep and grins to herself as he offers to give them information as she makes her way towards the front to ask her questions that she has had time to think of on the way towards this place.

Evening sir i have some questions i would like to ask. First off i would like to ask about a certain location upon a map we have. I was curious if you knew where that would be and if you did what the location would be and any information about it. Secondly regarding the man Wyson when was the last time you saw him, and or any of his companions if you have seen him have any such people around him. Finally do you have any idea where Wyson or any possible friends of his went to last? I asks the man with a smile on my face as i look towards @Lessa to provide the coordinates towards the barkeep for my question about a certain location. With the second one knowing that if Wyson truly did have friends and any sort of them around him recently then finding them can lead towards the culprit as well to take him down swiftly from interrogating them.

[Blood 0]

Blood motioned for Michael to come closer so they can have a whispering session. This was a good opportunity to find out more about this individual, Wyson, and although Blood passed up on the previous few votings due to disinterest, this was something that she must participate in. Under her hood, she asked Michael what he thinks would be a good question that could lead them to the Laughing Coffin. 

"Laughing Coffin? I thought we're just hunting some random player killer for fun?" Michael blurted out in a semi-whisper to Blood's dismay. Blood sighed, making a quiet sign with her right pointer finger and looking around in case any faces turned their way. This was one reason that Blood could not keep Michael for the long run. He must die before her plans come to fruit, and she must make sure that he is not part of her future when the time truly comes, for he is one of those characters who can ruin a step in a plan with an unexpected snap of fingers. Right now, his presence is needed because she is still so weak... but when she becomes stronger, his uselessness will become a burden, and all burdens must be eliminated.

"Look. Right now, we're not even sure if this guy is part of the Laughing Coffin, but if he is, his appearance will be very useful to us. Currently, we can't even spot if someone is part of the player killer guild, but if there's a unique characteristic in the gear of all the guild members, then it will be far easier for us to find the Laughing Coffin and join them." Blood whispered, paying careful attention to those around her, for this was something that simply cannot be known to any other player apart from them. "So... what do you want me to do?" "Go ask him if there's anything special about the man in terms of gear and equipment, you idiot."

With a smirk, Michael casually walked over to the barkeeper with a nice, cheerful face. "Why don't ya get me the best beer you go out here, and while you're at it, we can get a conversation going. You remember this guy, right? When you saw him here, were there any special things that caught your eye on his gear or equipment?" Michael exclaimed, adding, "It might help us with our investigation" and with that, both Blood and Michael awaited for the answer after Hestia's own.

[Baldur 0]

Baldur looked around the Tavern. Hestia had asked most of the questions he would have, and even the guy he had never seen before asked for a good one about what Wyson actually looked like. But he didn't want to crowd around the bartender and harass him with questions or answers they couldn't necessarily be sure of. Instead, Baldur watched to watch the people around them. See if anyone else in the bar reacted when Wyson's name came up, or people started asking questions. Wyson could still be here, for all they knew, or at least his friends could be. So Baldur tried to pay attention for people suddenly leaving, or trying to pay attention without looking like they were.

Slowly, the gaijin samurai walked around the bar, not leering at people, but examining the bar itself, and trying to see if his instincts told him any of these people were dangerous.

[Ronin Dragoon 0]

Ronin dejectedly stayed at the back of the group as usual, crossing his arms and looking around. His last attempt at speaking, despite his best efforts, had embarrassed him and he was afraid to try again. Not that he would admit it to anyone of course. His natural self defense was just to be angry to ward off others around him. He glanced around the tavern, looking for Wyson, even though he didn't know what Wyson looked like. It was mostly because he wanted something to hit and was still too worked up to be thinking straight. "That Wyson is in for a pounding if he made the mistake of staying here", Ronin thought. Unfortunately, the tavern did not agree with Ronin's decision to discover any clues. It seemed to be normal, people sat and talked, drinking and having a good time. He looked back to the group and the bartender, who were exchanging conversation. "I hope they know how to investigate".

[Plot Master 0]

"The whole gang has questions," came the man's reply, his tone sharp with snide amusement. "Now where's Scooby Doo?" At Lessa's glare, he shrugged. "Fine, whatever. Let me take these in order."

Turning first to Hestia, the barkeep listened as Lessa provided the coordinates. Then he shrugged again. "Get yourself a map, kid. I have no idea where that is, or what you'll find there." At the mention of Wyson, he seemed to find himself in more familiar territory. "Last time I saw the guy was a few weeks ago. Maybe a month? Pretty weird, actually, since he and his pals are regulars here." As this answered Hestia's next question, the barkeep continued. "Yeah, they come in together all the time. Always wearing full armor, like some hotshots in a movie. Dramatic as all hell, always talking in stupid accents and demanding I give them information." His brown eyes flashed. "I don't deal in information, but they seemed convinced I was withholding a quest or something. I just run a bar, that's all." As if to demonstrate, he plucked a tin cup from the bar and began to clean it with a dirty rag. "Those idiots ran off a lot of my business with their adventuring, and while I've got no idea where they went, I say good riddance." 

When Michael spoke next, the barkeep rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I remember. Wyson was the one in the massive suit of armor. Not sure how the guy could move in it, honestly. And he carried a ridiculous sword, which just looked stupid in a place like this." Narrowing his eyes in thought, he continued. "Another one of them wore armor too, but not as flashy. And another had robes. The girls had these short little colorful numbers." He shrugged. "I dunno, the big armor I remember, though."

When the questions were finished, the barkeep looked expectantly to Lessa. "Anything else, Daphne?"

Lips pursed, Lessa slipped from the barstool and gave the man a level stare. "Just one thing. Do you think this guy is capable of violence?"

"Violence?" At this, the man paused his cleaning of the cup. "I mean, I guess if it was part of some question or something. Why, is he in trouble or something?" Concern ghosted across the man's face, and if Lessa had not been composing a careful study, she may have missed it. "Look, the guy and his friends are pretty stupid, and bad for business, but I think they're pretty harmless. Just a bunch of kids, really. You've almost got to admire the way they're making the best out of this whole floating prison thing."

Lessa considered for a moment, and then gave a slight nod. "Understood. Thank you for the help. We'll be back if you need anything else." Turning to address the search party, she added, "Let's head back and meet up with Aereth's group. It's getting dark, so we can compile our information, and see where we're at. If we decide to go back to those coordinates, we can do so in the morning." She gave a small smile, and added, "Nice work today, all around."

[Plot Master 0]

Rewards

Vigilon receives 2 SP and 100 col (4 posts)
Krysta receives 0 SP and 40 col (2 posts)
Fae receives 0 SP and 40 col (2 posts)
Baldur receives 3 SP and 160 col (7 posts)
Jomei receives 2 SP and 80 col (3 posts)
Seul receives 0 SP and 40 col (2 posts)
Blood receives 2 SP and 80 col (3 posts)
Ruby receives 2 SP and 100 col (4 posts)
Hestia receives 3 SP and 160 col (7 posts)
Morgenstern receives 0 SP and 40 col (2 posts)
Lessa receives 3 SP and 160 col (7 posts)
Ronin Dragoon 2 SP and 100 col (4 posts)

SP rewards were determined at a rate of 1 SP per 3 posts (per site OP thread rules), with an additional 1 SP given for completing at least three posts.
Col was awarded at a rate of 20 col per post, with an additional 20 col given for completing at least three posts.
(Please alert me if I mathed incorrectly.)

You may now collect these rewards. Be sure to document them correctly.
Follow Team Aereth's journey here.
Your story will continue shortly.

Edited July 5, 2018 by Plot Master