Phineas' Prologue: Night Resonance Recedes

[truemane]

Town of Orlandaar
Border State of Haarn
Lakeside
High Mid-Summer
Late Evening

The Borderlands.

Standing on the prow of the skiff, Phineas thought that part of him always knew he was going to end up back here. Someday. All the time he spent trying to escape and all the things he's done to get away and it turns out that, all the time, he was only making his way back here. Phineas was used to operating just beyond the edges of rational thought. Used to acting on a moment's instinct, a bare second's worth of insight.

But all the same the idea that this place had called to him somehow, had been sitting here, waiting for him, a warm spot all ready for his arrival, sent shivers up his spine and he found himself pulling his travel cloak closer despite the warmth of the evening.

The skiff was wide and long and crowded. Pilgrims and merchants and farmers and all manner of folk stood, murmuring to themselves. Waiting for them to arrive in Orlandaar, all of them hoping to find something. Or to escape something.

Phineas didn't know what he was looking for. And wasn't running from anything except maybe himself. And so, as the skiff passed under the arches of the great wall that surrounded the town, he felt his aloneness more keenly than he could ever recall.

After a time the skiff landed up against one of the many piers that clustered along the banks of the lake. Lakeside was bustling with activity. Loading and unloading. Buying and selling. Coming and going. All under the watchful eye of several armed constables and a couple of professional soldiers.

The sunlight was fading and already the torches along the main streets and along the walls of the central keep were being lit. Phineas slipped into the shadows and made his way from the lakeside into the deeps of Orlandaar.

Looking. Always looking. But for what he did not know.

Spoiler

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Welcome to End of Days! Than you for your patience during this initial process. I should be able to move along more quickly now. A lot of this is up to you, of course, as we've left Phineas' opening phase pretty free of hooks.

So, as to why he's here in this town, anything goes really. Maybe he knows someone? Maybe his monk-friend mentioned someone? Maybe he's here to do something? Find something? I'm happy to throw out some ideas, but for the initial stages I'm not too particular.

[Ryuuk]

Phineas

A fresh start. Phineas prowled through the shadows for a few blocks, his eyes darting from side to side, going from an old man that seemed too focused on finding his way home to notice a quick hand slipping into his pockets to a flapping window, unlocked and easy to reach. This was was his natural state, and his mind only caught up to it after he'd spotted a fruit merchant that was closing his stand, his first thought was dinner, his second was to stop. He stood up and looked down at the ground. He was of a modest height, thin, had unkempt hair and a suntanned complexion. Standing still he could feel the weight of his leather armor against his skin, covered by a shirt and an old coat. He could feel the bandages that kept hidden daggers up tight against his forearms and right leg. He could feel the rattle of his lock pick and tools in his pack. Lastly, he could feel the weight of a fine, military grade blade resting in its sheath against his the left side of his waist. He hadn't felt it for a long time. This was a fresh start, a chance to begin anew.

He left the darkness of the alleyway and stepped into the busy streets. Now his eyes and ears paid attention to conversations. A gathering of dockworkers where heading to a nearby tavern, a woman spoke to an old couple about how her husband had been mugged last night, a shopkeeper told another how he was staying a nearby inn. There was a lot going on, and standing tall, in the middle of a crowded street, he hoped that something would point him to a place to stay for the night and a way to pay for it. He had to start right.

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He'll spend a few hours listening to the local chatter, maybe starting a conversation with other travelers and trying to find a place where they gather, where there might be use for an extra hand.

No ranks in Gather Information might make this hard though. He'll use his precognition, hoping it'll lead him to the right people. He'll gather himself afterwards and recover his focus.

Gather Information (1d20+2)[12]
Time: (1d4+1)[3]

[truemane]

There was indeed a lot going on. The ground rose up from the riverside into the city proper and then again to the peaks of Orlan Keep. All around the base of the hill was clustered the various districts, most of the marked by no more than a prominent street. Most cities tended to grow in small, discrete units, with a wall around each new protrusion so that the interior was a maze of walls and gates. Orlandaar had grown quickly, all at once, and so had no such internal divisions. It made for a disorientating walk.

All the same, people are people, and Phineas was no slouch at reading them and at speaking with them. They were all more than happy to point him toward this landmark or that neighbourhood and they were all less-than-willing to discuss much of anything else.

Several hours later and he had a reasonably good sense of the layout of the main districts and no idea what to do next. It was then that he noticed he was being followed. And he found that the knowledge had been growing on him for some time, a tickle at the edge of rational thought, that suddenly coalesced into certainty.

There! He saw a round and dirty face, an urchin's face covered in an urchin's rags. But the eyes were deep and sharp and the hands were clever and unmarked by an urchin's hard life. Those hands were cared for and tended daily. Those were the hands of someone who didn’t make their life picking garbage from midden heaps.

Those quick eyes never left Phineas as he made his way into the Western Quarter.

[Ryuuk]

Phineas

Perhaps not it wasn't what he was hoping for, but it was something. Something that didn't fit, but something, nevertheless. Now he had to confront his stalker. Lets give you what you want then.

His step doesn't falter, he'd been in the man's place enough times to know that strange changes in behavior where red flags, that it meant the trap was being turned. His friend didn't seem to be like the type to know this, and if he was, then the last thing he wanted to show was that he knew of him too. With a natural walk, he continued to head towards the Western Quarter, though he took the least crowded route possible. If his friend is still following, he'll give him his chance now. He steps deep into an empty alley, looks around briefly and kneels down, putting his back before him. He pretends to be absorbed in its contents, letting it look like his guard has dropped. After a few minutes, he'll turn towards his friend. "Can I help you with anything? You seem worse off than I am."

[truemane]

This was not exactly a new experience for Phineas. Old, ingrained instincts kicked in immediately and he found he was able to keep the young kid in sight while he made his way into a sparsely populated part of the town and into an empty alleyway. The boy was good. Quick and nimble and careful and quiet. But not good enough to evade notice once he'd been spotted.

It was all simple enough. And he found himself, as always, able to pick the exact moment to turn around and speak, certain that his tail would be near enough to see that he was caught.

Simple enough. As he stood and turned, he saw the younger boy lurking at the mouth of the alley, and this close he could more clearly see the sharp eyes and wary gaze of a lifetime of experience on the fringe.

The boy didn't flinch or move as Phineas stood and spoke to him. He stood, his gaze flickering from place to place before lighting on Phineas's face and the barest hints of a smile touched his lips. And then, from behind him, Phineas heard a voice. It was a deep voice. A rough voice. The voice of a man who'd walked a lot of miles and done a lot of things to survive.

"Keep yer eye bent on young Carville here, young inrinaad and all will be well," a moment's pause and then the voice came again, closer, "Yer a sharp one. I said as such meself when we seen you on the river, like. Sharp as ever was, I said. And ere ye are. Sharp enough indeed. Now, be turnin' around, please, slow as ever and hands where I can see 'em. Young Carville there looks but a babe, but he's put men in their graves afore now. And he'll do so again if I so much as whisper. So steady, little inrinaad, steady."

Spoiler

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His accent comes from deep rural areas of the northern coasts. 'Inrinaad' - 'illegal man' - is a blanket term for anyone who operates outside the law. It's not quite an insult, but it's a term usually used for the young and inexperienced.

[Ryuuk]

Phineas

Phineas closes his eyes and takes in a long breath. You win some, you lose some... There was no more to it than that. With a sigh, he does as he's told. He keeps his gaze on young Carville, and slowly raises his arms until his empty, open palms are touching the side of his head. He calmly turns around looking the young accomplice over before turning to the veteran that bested him. His expression isn't one of anger or fright, its simply one of acknowledgment. A look a friend would give another after he realizes he's been bested in a game of skill.

Once he's facing the old man, he turns to meet his gaze briefly before resuming the role of the captive and lowering his own. He gives him a faint smile.

[truemane]

The face that greets Phineas as he turns is familiar. Not familiar in the sense that they've met before, familiar in that Phineas has seen many many men just like this one in many other places and as a rule they run true to a type. The man was older, just on the upper cusp of middle-age. His skin was rough and wind-burned and pox-marked. His nose was a mush, many times broken, and covered with the spidery red blooms of a hard-drinker. His teeth were clearly well-cared for but age and poor nutrition have taken their toll and only half of them remain. His face is network of small scars and the bumps and crevices of a hard, hard life. But his eyes are bright and clear and alive with intelligence and cunning and determination.

His clothing is rough and dirty ad ragged, but it's hard to tell if that's for show or if that's all the man can afford. He smiles at Phineas' acquiescence. He nods to show his appreciation of dealing with a man who knows the rules. Behind him, Phineas can hear a barely-audible shuffle as Carville repositions himself.

"Now, inrinaad," the older man says, "All we need to do is work out the terms of yer stay. And we start that by talking about yer Game and telling yer how it works 'round here. And we'll start with why yer here a-firstly. Ye've come from the north, that much is easy enough. But are ye on the run? Hiding here in the Borderlands? Before we discuss what to do with ye, we need to be a-certain ye're not bringing trouble on all our heads. Quick now with it, youngling. And if ye know so much as ye seem, ye know there's no point in trying to lie to me."

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I'm just going to say this because I know a lot of DM's are jerks about this kind of thing: just because HE says there's no point in lying to him, that doesn't meant there isn't any point in lying to him. I'm not saying you have to lie to him. Do what you want, but HIS opinion of himself isn't the DM talking. It's him talking. Just wanted to make sure the distinction was clear.

[Ryuuk]

Phineas

As Carville moves behind him, Phineas' eyes try to follow, but stop before they force his neck to turn. With a veteran in front of him, it'd be best not to give him the excuse. "Guess there isn't a point in trying, damn, was I really that obvious?" He remains calm, his voice sincere, practically amiable. "Well, lets see. To start, I ain't looking for trouble right now, I'm just looking for place to sleep. My game? I just do enough to get by, no more. Really, I didn't think I'd stick out. There's no one after me though, no one's gonna come raising hell for my scent. I'm at the border simply because I got sick of the roads and had no real place to go..." He shrugs "It seemed like a good idea at the time."

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Noted, its pretty close to the truth anyway though. I just omitted that he's trying to retire form the game and that he thought he might be able to do so down here.

[truemane]

The older man listens, his bright eyes locked onto Phineas' face and a small smile playing about the corners of his lips. He doesn't move at all while the younger man is speaking. All of his attention is locked onto the voice and face in front of him. Phineas can hear no sound behind him. Carville has either stopped moving altogether or started moving so quietly that he is beyond notice.

"Yer obvious enough, perhap, for one watching for one such as you. But you haven't the air of one a-running. I'll be topside about that. Here in Orlandaar we get all kinds, mind. Drifters and malcontents and all manner of one and one what's stepped afoul of the Dukes and the Jadens backaways. But you've none of that about you. And yet you've not set all you could. Wise enough, perhaps."

He stands, hands on hips, for a moment, still and silent. He seems to be running something through his head in the effort to make a decision of some sort. After a moment or two, he nods. To himself more than anything, but the moment he nods Phineas hears a quiet shuffling just behind him and he sees Carville float past the very periphery of his vision and make his way back out into the street.

"See it, then. I'll tell ye this for free. Orlandaar's a dangerous place for one such as yerself. It's a rich town. And 'bout to be richer if ye buy the swill they spill in the pubs. And where there's gold to be had, there's them such as willing to kill for it. No one runs this town just yet. But there's lots as wants to. And so long as ye don't have any friends, ye're likely to make naught but enemies, if you follow."

Another pause. Another moment's thought. Another nod.

"The Ir'n Boat is still open. Alre's place. Up the block and round the hill a-ways. Neutral ground, mind. Take ye there for yer meat and a rest if ye've a need. Everything else, well, ye'll learn or ye'll bleed out inta the dirt like most. But I've a thought you've got better things in mind."

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"I'll be topside" - I'll be upfront, honest, out in the open.
"Dukes and Jadens" - Sort of short-hand for 'the system' or 'the man'
"See it then" - 'Look here' or 'So, anyway..'