Participants:

Adrian_icon.gif

Special Guest Appearances: Awful Scheming Smugglers & Thedas's Sassiest Fennec

Scene Title Making A Friend
Synopsis Adrian goes to investigate the business of unsavory sorts, and makes a friend on the way.
Location The Wounded Coast
Date 03 Justinian 9:31 Dragon
Watch For ADORABLE FENNEC
Logger Steel

The Wounded Coast had its name for a number of reasons. Not the least of which were the great many of unsavory folk that had a tendency to set up camp around here. This evening, one such group has set themselves up in a cozy little outcropping. They've been a menace, this set of three men. Whispers through the city, a little shop, set up now and then in Darktown, in Lowtown, anywhere they can get away with. Necessary goods for excessive prices. Prices people could pay, but only just. Do you eat today, or do you buy the tea that will keep your child's fever down? When not that, then goods gone missing. Do you eat this week, or do you buy back the heirloom necklace that went missing two weeks ago, the last thing you have of your mother? They're turning a pretty profit, and recently have expanded business into exotic goods, two days a week they make a show at 'legitimate trade' up in Hightown. The three sit before a fire. Off on a "job" to retrieve a lost child. In truth, they only took these jobs for the excuse to get out of the city for awhile. Well, that and the meetings for shipments of new goods they arrange at the same time. Crates make their seats as they joke and drink boisterously, and near the back of the camp, a number of smaller boxes sit covered by a canvas. The smell of roasting meat fills the air, savory and rich.

Having heard several sad stories on the trouble caused by these three men and their greed Adrian had gotten an itch to do something about it. The bard may be an entertainer but he also has some considerable talent at stealth and moving unseen. The dark blue of his cloak blends with the evening light, the hood up as he lurks near the camp trying to stay quiet and hidden for the moment. His lute is not present today but his daggers are along with a small vial of harmless smoke powder he bought from an alchemist in case he needed a distraction or escape. The vial is tucked into one of the pouches at his belt unseen for now. He crouches carefully behind a rock near the outcropping. He doesn't move yet, he just watches peeking out occasionally, careful and cautious as he looks for a way to disturb the unsavory business of these three men or to take them out altogether.

The men continue their speaking. It continues this way for some time, even. After all, they were simply planning on sitting and drinking the night way. And by the scattering of bottles through the outcropping, they seem to have been making good on that plan. One of the boxes under the canvas shifts and moves, a high pitched yipping coming from within. One of the men takes up a rock, cursing at the unseen creature, and throwing it to knock against the covered cage, inciting a yelp. This, in turn, brings uproarious laughter from the little camp. Some moments later, one of the men rises, making some passing comment about taking a piss, and wanders toward the front of the camp to find a place out in the darkness.

The yipping coming from under the canvas is given a look from the shadows. Adrian's eyes narrow slightly but he remains still, even though he plans on liberating all their 'cargo' he remains careful and patient about it. He had planned to let them drink themselves to sleep then rob them blind. But the sound of a living creature at the mercy of these cruel men has his blood boiling. Cages were something he despised no matter what form they took or who was in one. The man moving toward the front of the camp to take a piss is noted and daggers are quietly drawn before he gets close enough to here the quite whisper of steel. And as the man finds a spot to relieve himself Adrian moves as silently as he can, creeping up behind the man on light feet. He tries to quietly slit the mans throat from behind, one dagger reaching up to slice the flesh of the mans neck.

These men are not untrained fools. Getting up close behind one makes that fairly obvious. Whipcord muscles tenses through his arms, scars here and there, battles seen long ago. At the very least, this one has seen battle, likely more than once. It does not seen to help him, however. As he fails to spot Adrian's approach, and a knife to the throat will kill anyway with just about the same effectiveness. It's a messy endeavor, however, and while Adrian manages to cut windpipe and stifle a yell, there is blood everywhere. It seems, for now, though, that his partners do not seem to notice.

Adrian scowls a bit as he slips away back into the shadows, trying to creep closer to the camp now. His has blood on his shirt and his skin! And while you can take the spoiled noble out of the mansion you cannot take away his desire to remain clean and tidy. Now the noble is annoyed and while there is a niggling of guilt in his mind for killing that man he reminds himself internally that the man had it coming. He could have been a respectable member of society instead of a cruel brute leeching money and happiness from others. That in mind the bard drifts as close to the other two as he can get without being seen or heard. He stays hidden and watches waiting to see how they are positioned and if he can take out at least one more if not both by stealth. The canvas is given a look as he creeps about. And he also considers simply freeing whatever is in the cage and letting it help him tear into those that caged it. For now he is quiet, silent and weighing his options.

It seems the men are well and truly drunk, and do not notice Adrian's approach. More yipping comes from the cage under the canvas, more movement. Something pokes against the canvas, growls, takes the canvas in small teeth, tugs it. The canvas pulls, then slips, catching the cage up in it. The cage tumbles to the ground with the canvas. Rolling down into the camp. A fluffy creature with white fur is inside. Large ears, a bushy tail, shiny black eyes. White as snow, little larger than a large housecat.

As the cage rolls into the camp and the creature is revealed Adrian's eyes widen at the cuteness of the fluffy beast. But only for a second. He moves fast now darting around behind one man and trying to stab and slice him hard in the neck before the creature gets hurt. He slashes again for good measure and keeps moving whether his hits land or not circling around the cage and darting to attack the other man now. Adrian tried to make a point to take out the what looked like the biggest threat to his fighting style first, though it remains to be seen if it worked or not. A soft voice with a Starkhaven accent leaves the bards lips but he isn't talking to the men but to the animal in a soothing tone. "Shush…it's okay little one. Let me get rid of the ones that caged you and I'll set you free alright?" Because fluffy animals deserve freedom too! And the thought that these men would cage something so cute only strengthens the bards determination to win. As he passes the cage the bard quickly uses his body to try and stabilize and steady it a bit and keep it from rolling further or rolling into the fire. That done Adrian focuses on the fight fueled by what may very well be a form of righteous fury.

The first man shouts as he is cut, though the shot does miss his neck, landing solidly in shoulder. It bleeds profusely, but he's not about to fall over dead. His partner, however, is less lucky. Necks bleed so, so much. More blood, everywhere, the whole situation is just a terrible mess. The crates about him are… Well, you aren't gonna be selling those to anyone with a decent reputation, that's for sure. The cage hits Adrian's leg and stops, the door popping open through some act of providence. The creature scrambles out, darting to bite the still living trader's ankle with a satisfying little chomp. Standing, he yells again, kicks at the best, who rolls out of the way with a little growl that is more adorable than terrifying, and then rounds on Adrian, throwing a punch. The weapons were across the camp, and he didn't have time for that. But he is drunk and his punch catches shoulder, staggers, and doesn't actually do all that much at all.

Two down one to go. Adrian watches out of the corner of his eye with pride and no small amount of satisfaction as the little creature chomps on an ankle. That look turns murderous as the man kicks the little fluffy creature away. The punch is taken and while Adrian staggers back he response with a dagger aimed at the mans heart and another slicing at the neck. The creature gets another glance. "Are you okay little one? Don't worry, he is definitely going down for doing that…" Daggers keep flashing and no matter if the man punches him again Adrian is determined to bring these men down for good.

This guy is a right sight better in a fight than his two friends, it seems. Daggers flash and weave and slice, and the man knocks them aside, taking surface cuts to his arms, but he can tend to that later. Stepping up on Adrian, he pushes for ground, and throws a well aimed punch to the rogue's face. It smarts, bad, there's an unpleasant pop, and the taste of blood in the back of the throat. The nose is likely broken, he'll need a healer for that later.

Adrian is getting annoyed, this idiot just messed with his face! Kicking animals, and punching him in the nose has made the bard seriously pissed off. He spins slightly twisting his body to the side and slicing out one dagger aiming a vicious slice at the mans leg while the other reaches up to stab at the mans neck only a second later. The bard picks up speed trying to dance back and slicing viciously at an arm next and then a slice at the other leg as he moves about.

This guy just will not quit. The cuts to his arms are deeper this time as he brushes away cuts to his neck. The slice to his leg hits home, but does not cause him to fall. When he swings next, however, it is somewhat more desperate. This blow comes to the side of Adrian's head, ears ring, the world wobbles, footing is hard to find.

Adrian stumbles but he isn't going to give this bastard any satisfaction. Another deep slice is aimed at that leg he just hit and then the bard aims an upward stab into the mans chest before he loses his footing. He shifts and tries to roll with the fall moving his daggers so he won't hurt himself in the process. He tries to quickly roll away and then tries to leap back up again. His head is ringing but the noble is too stubborn to quit now. He almost has this! Or so his optimism degrees.

That second cut to the man's leg finds artery. More blood everywhere. This was a messy business, killing people. The small fennec jumps away at the arterial spray, growling at it, and its penchant for staining light fur red. Tail twitching, it watches as the man falls to his knees, swiftly losing consciousness from blood loss.

Man down! And that makes three. Adrian staggers to his feet just in time to see the man lose consciousness. After he rights himself he sheaths his daggers and his shoulders slump in relief. A pained yet gentle smile is given to the little white fennec. "Its okay…they are all dead or almost dead. They cannot cage you again." His words are soft and soothing and he reaches a sleeve up to stem the blood flow from his nose. Then holding the sleeve to his face he goes to try and see what other cargo they have. After doing a quick survey some cooked meat from the mens' dinner is also stolen and offered to the little fox in an outstretched hand. "See you are free now. All is well yes?"

The other crates contain imported goods of various origins and authenticities. Mostly snake oil lark, there are nevertheless a few gems here and there. A bottle of what seems to actually be powdered ivory. A gem of some worth, green and sparkling. A few fine leather goods from Antiva. Aside from that there are basic supplies, salves, poultices, teas to ease fevers and pains. The whole of the crates doesn't add up to too much, value wise, but it's useful none the less.

The little fennec sniffs at the offered meat. Squints her dark little eyes up at Adrian, swishes her tail slowly back and forth. Eventually, with one dainty paw, she steps forward - prim as you like - and snatches the meat away. For all her previous delicacy she eats the bit with a startling ferocity. Her tail swishes faster as she swallows, and licks clean her muzzle with aid of her paw.

Silently Adrian is making a note of whats what and where it should go. The powdered ivory he isn't sure what to do with but he pockets it and the gem, maybe he can find some use for them later. Some of the smaller leather goods will likely be taken back to the city and be donated or maybe sold. The supplies is going straight to the clinic in Darktown and what is not needed there will be donated freely to the sick and poor. However the bard is breifly distracted from his thoughts by the dainty and rather haughty acting little fennec. He seems quite taken with the little creature and as she snatches the meat he reaches to procure her another decent sized piece, its offered as well. "You are beautiful you know? I am glad I had the chance to set you free…anyway I should get back to the city." Once she takes the next piece of meat he straightens up and begins to gather what his taking with him into one small easily carriable crate. He glances back at the little white creature a few times. The pain in his nose is unpleasant but he soldiers through it feeling the pain well worth it. "Take care and don't let anyone catch you again okay?" He says the the little furball as he begins to lift his newly packed crate.

Another swish of a sassy tail at his instruction. None the less, she has food to focus on. Idly, the fennec watches him back things up, watches him go. Her nose lifts into the air and she sniffs, twitching slightly. Her ears turn, taking in sound. Until that canvas had come free, she hadn't seen the outside world since she had been captured, and she has not the slightest clue where she is. Adrian gets a good ways from the little camp before a weight falls upon his shoulders. Silent as the night she'd bounded after him through the sand, leaping to his shoulder and then curling so her nose tickles just under his ear, and her tail drapes over his chest from the opposite shoulder.

Blinking in surprise Adrian stops humming and casts a glance at his new passenger as he walks. "Or you can come with me…that works too." A soft chuckle is given and he smiles happily clearly glad for the company. He begins softly humming again as he walks back to Kirkwall, a gentle spring in his step as he heads for his destination. And so the ebony haired bard and snow white fennec make their exit from the camp, this may very well be the start of a beautiful friendship.


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