[Mkguild] Life As We Know It XVIII

[Jack Moore]

Life As We Know It - XVIII

Many of the roads in Keep Town look the same, cluttered and damaged from
the Yule assault.  A beating like the one I had seen was only a momentary
disruption, quickly swept away.  When I returned to the street, the crowd
had returned.
“Okay, this is where I arrested Chamomile.” I said.  “I had to escort her
back to the Watchhouse to keep the mob from terring her apart.”
“No time to get names?”
“Correct.”
“How bad could the mob have been?” Remmie asked.  “We got clubs.  All we
need to do is crack-crack ‘em and they’ll back down.”
“Yes but I try not to crack them unless I can help it.” I said.  “Now, you
take the streets to the east, I’ll take the west.  Remember my description
of the witness.”  Remmie nodded and we set off.
In the Romances a Warden’s life is endless action and intrigue.  No one
ever writes about the hours spent walking up and down the same streets
scouring for witnesses.
“Her name is Chamomile; she was walking in this area earlier today?  Are
you sure you haven’t seen her?” I asked an age regressed young girl.  I
curled my tail around my legs.  She shook her head.
“Sorry lady, I’ve been inside most uh today.”  She pointed at the symbol on
my tabard.  “That looks nice, where’d ya get it?”  I looked at the lantern.
“I got it for joining the Watch.”  Her eyebrows raised.
“Metamor Keep does have a watch!  Wow I forgot you guys existed.”
“Have a nice day ma’am.”  Sadly, that was the third one to tell me they
didn’t know we existed.  It’s nice to be appreciated.  My legs ached from
walking and my tail ached from having roughly a million people step on it.
Including the little girl as she walked by.  “Owe!”
I sat against the side of a building and pulled my tail into my lap.  I
rubbed at the bruised and now bloodied tip.  “I need…I don’t know what I
need.”  I sighed.  “What on Earth do I do now?”
'Janelle you can whine or you can walk. Which will it be?' I stood up
again, still rubbing my aching tail. 'Good answer.'
I tried to drape my tail over my shoulders and set of looking for new
witnesses.  I turned down a side street and came upon a Tapir.
The Tapir’s fur was pale with age and his whiskers had grown long.  Two
tufts of fur marked his drooping ears.  The fur on his arms was patchy and
his fingers were gnarled with age.  The Tapir smiled as I came up and I
noted his left eye looked milky.

He was sitting in a chair with wheels crudely attached to it.  He was
dressed in a dirty tunic with a blanket wrapped around his legs.  Beside
him sat a Nine Men’s Morris board with an upturned bucket acting as a
second seat.  I moved over to him and waved.  He gave me a nod.

“Good day Warden, how goes it?”

“It goes well.” I lied.  “I’ve been canvasing the area looking for
information relating to someone, a human woman.  I was hoping to speak to
you about any information you might have.”  I gave Chamomile’s description,
which got his trunk to raise.  “Do you know something?”

“Chamomile?  Yes I know her.  She’s been coming around for the last week or
so.  I know where she’s livin’.”

“Where would this be?”  The Tapir grinned.  I knew that grin.  “Excuse me
I’m being rude, what would you like for sharing this information?”  Because
there is always something.  Never forget there is always something.  The
Tapir gestured at the bucket.

“Have a seat?  I’d love to talk ‘bout where Chamomile is.”  I sighed and
sat down, trying to find the best place to put my tail.  Eli blast this
scaled monstrosety.  I settled curling it across my lap.

“As I am a member of the Watch you should give me this information for
free.” I said.

“Yep, should but won’t.  Names Valez.”  He grinned as best he could with
that snout of his.  “And I don’t want much.  Just a friendly game of
Morris.”  I frowned.  “I gotta sit outside all day, I watch people walk or
I play games.”

“Why not just read?” I asked.

“Don’t like ta read, like to play games.  You want in or not?”  I grit my
teeth.  “Atta girl Warden, we’ll have a whole lotta fun.”
What he assumed was that I was over a barrel for information, and he was
correct.  He also assumed I couldn’t play Nine Men’s Morris.  Oh very bad
mistake.  Kaysar’s checker board had a Morris board on the back side and we
had played many times.
The key to all board games I find is focus.  Never think about how much
better you are than them.  Never think about how much better they are than
you.  Focus and plan what to do next.
I set up a mill quickly and snatched a piece.  He got me back but I did two
mills in a row, taking two more.
“Heh I guess you’ve played before.  Most people ‘round here don’t have time
for games.  Least not this one.”
“That’s great.” I said.  “Move or answer my questions.  He formed a second
mill, instead of blocking my piece.  This allowed me another quick two
mills.  “I’m two pieces away from winning.  You want to finish this after
we talk?”
“Nope, we finish the game no matter how short it is.”  Valez eyed my hands,
the board and then turned his gaze to me.  He slid one of his pieces hoping
to set up a double mill.
I blocked him, creating a mill in the process and snatching his set piece.
 “One more to go.”  Valez gave a nervous laugh.
“No no no, now I’ve got you right where I want you.”  Quickly Tapping him
revealed, no he did not.  Valez moved a stone, but it didn’t matter.
Another mill, another piece leaving him unable to win.
“Okay well that was short thankfully.” I said.  “I am in the middle of an
investigation which by my count only has twenty-one hours left.  As such I
do not have time for this, I need answers and I need them now.”
“How did you beat me?” Valez mumbled.  “Do you know how often I play this?”
 My patience, already short, was gone.
“Answers!” I slammed my fist against the board, bouncing all the pieces.
 “I’m not here to discuss games.  Tell me about Chamomile.”
“Janie!” I glanced back, to see Remmie running over.  “Janie glad to find
you.  I saw a few people who remembered her walking around, but I got the
houses of a few she talked too.”  I nodded slowly.
“So she did talk to some people?  That’s interesting.”  I stood up.  “This
fine gentleman is Valez, who was about to tell me the inn where Chamomile
was staying at, wasn’t he?”  Valez gave me a very oily smile and nodded.
“She was at the uh Shoeshine Inn.  She went there every evening, I know cuz
she told me over a game.  Usually we played when she was comin’ back from
the library.”  I nodded.
“How often did she visit the library?” I asked.
“Every single day.  Never brought a book back, only went after harrassin’
people.”  I nodded.
“What did she harass people over?” Valez shrugged.
“Don’t know.  Just know she did.”  I nodded and turned to Remmie.
“Come on Warden, let’s march.”  I took her far enough so the Tapir couldn’t
hear us.  “I want you to go to the library.  Find out every book Chamomile
rented, if…who is running the library?”
“I don’t really know…” Remmie laughed.  “I know it’s someone new.  Hope
they can remember.”
“They won’t remember every book.” I said.  “We just need some.  Our goal is
to get a good idea of what she’s reading.  Do you have the names and
locations of the people she spoke too?”  Remmie nodded and handed me a
scrap of parchment.  “I’m going to check these out, then the Shoeshine Inn.”
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.integral.org/archives/mkguild/attachments/20170216/3dc641ad/attachment.html>