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[Word on gendarme's lips speak of the brutal, revolting murders at Quartier Marchand. The loathsome display of half eaten corpses sprawled on the cobblestone raise indignity and fear. Citizens are told to stay indoors, the authorities are on the look out for a wild beast.]
(http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z245/Failed-Bard/NWN%20Screens/DemBodies1.jpg)
(http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z245/Failed-Bard/NWN%20Screens/DemBodies2.jpg)
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Sarah the mute "Queen of the Seas" has recently appeared again regularly in the Mutinied Sailor Inn, occasionally in company of some friends of hers. She blows kisses to Jean as usual, drinks her poor quality beer, stays there and seems to be waiting for something. Someone can swear she has handed a message to Jean, probably a love letter. Sailors are romantic sometimes, they say.
(// Pm to Raven)
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Around the Press more than a Chat Noir has been seen going in and out from that establishment. Someone rumours maybe, despite the general commotion caused by the recent events in Port-à-Lucine, the Club is at any rate preparing something. People wonder if their next plan will be safe, or, in general of which kind it can be. The operations seem still rather secretive, nevertheless some of the workers of the area might swear they heard clearly discussions about flyers, and about a new opportunity for local talents to take advantage of. The cat seems to go where the food is better and the shelter safer. Some occasional autumn rain washes away the dirt and the bad memories of the past days. Hidden in a corner, a black cat licks her lips, waiting for the right moment to walk again in the alleys. Uncareful of rumours, yet feeding them.
(http://img692.imageshack.us/img692/9004/leschatnoirssmall.png)
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[Approved by DM Heretic]
the Gendarme of Port-a-Lucine are seen putting up a wanted poster in the main travel spots of the city.
(http://img651.imageshack.us/img651/6223/wantedposter.png)
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Art collectors and critics, in Port-a-Lucine were shocked to learn that the new Gilbert Lizotte showcase was to be held in an abandoned warehouse in the Quartier Marchand right on the water's edge. The showcase opens this evening, and is free to the public. It is said in some circles that it will be a great failure, due to it's dangerous location in an unsavory part of the city. Despite this the rumors of Gilbert's shocking work, and the emotional reactions they cause in the viewer may still draw a crowd.
//Happening tonight, and tomorrow
-
With the great success of Gilbert Lizotte's showcase, he has agreed to leave his display up, and open to the public for the next few days. While it will not be the huge influx of viewers it was on opening night, it is still expected that many stragglers will come to take a look at the infamous artwork.
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Locals could have heard the clash of steel on steel and the echo of spells in during the past twilight hours. Those looking out their window would have seen two armored men combating a very large force of Caliban Gangleaders. One of the men, seemingly the stronger of the two was very pale skinned wearing dark chain and plated armor. The cloak on his back bore the crest of the new Family that has arrived in town. The other armored man wore bright colors and wielded a large sword. These two seemed polar opposites and why they were working together, one could only speculate. The darker man could be heard shouting with the Caliban over the fray of combat, "These streets belong to the family now! Accept our embrace or perish!" He shouted. It would seem his words fell on deaf ears however as the Leader of the Caliban shouted back, "They belong to us! Time to die!" Soon after, the other warrior fell to the hands of one of the Gangleaders. Following his fall, the dark armored man could be heard shouting, "You have made your choice! These streets belong to Alexander the Destroyer! Now perish before the might of my blade! Die you filthy scags!" A moment later the fight was over and the Caliban bodies littered the ground. The Destroyer could then be seen healing the other warrior before fading into the shadows of the night...
-
Rumour has it that the known Tiefling, Lucinda, was seen leaving the city in the early hours of the morning.
A wise observer would probably attribute this with the increased Ezrite presence in the city.
-
[A large caliban known to work for the vardo is seen staggers threw the streets, blood runs from his back, he staggers and falls alot he can't seem to walk hardly, he is offered no help.]
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A small fire erupted in the upper floor of the Mutilated Sailor, burning one of the vacant rooms. The bed itself, was nothing but a shambling of dead wood and ash, clearly, the source of the flames.
An "eye witness", if you could claim such, as a local resident of the place, speaks of an oddity of a couple entering the same room; A man, marred with gruesome scars and smelling of decay and rot, and a woman of red beauty, who's elegance and demeanor were quite the opposite of the hideous "rot man" going upstairs into said room.
During the couple of hours they spent in the upper level of the establishment, a man's voice was heard screaming and shouting in pain, coupled with the thick scent of blood, sterilizing alcohol and freshly cut flesh was all that came from their room prior to the fire.
The drunken man claims, that only the man managed out of fire alive, as the woman was no where insight once the fire ate through the room, and tried spreading into the rest of the rooms, yet still, no body was found...
-
A simple note placed upon the notice board in an impromptu manner-
Who is Humbert F. Antome, and how can he be found? Solars for the answer
-
Madame Montte on reading the latest issue of LECT is heard telling all who will listen that clearly the coward that writes this rag is a social malcontent angry that he is not accepted by decent society and thus lashes out in his jealousy. While tired of his slander and lies she does not take that matter seriously since any who attended the service know that her visit was both polite and brief. She feels terrible that Madame Nightlyre must have the terrible memory brought up by this social pariah when she herself was present and knows the writing to be false. Madame Montte looks forward to his next batch of lies as decent society very much enjoy ridiculing and laughing at this person who is less than a man. She also lets it be known that the proceeds from her lawsuit against him will be given to charity
-
A simple solitary notice is placed upon the notice board
Seeking: any persons who can speak on behalf of Les Esprits Curieux Tract, any inconvenience of such a meeting will be recompensed
Please word of date and time if you wish to meet for me at the front desk of l'Hotel Gouverneur.
~Yonemaru
//PM me or figure something out in-game. login :Emomina Character: Reiko Yonemaru
-
*A pale skinned woman adorning two rather large and noticeable horns scurries around the streets of Port-a-Lucine hiding behind invisibility as she carefully slips flyers under the doors of all the locals businesses of Quartier Marchland and Ouvrier early one morning.*
(http://img10.imageshack.us/img10/1994/bluerose11.gif)
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[Every day more and more weary and haggard looking commoners flood into the city of Port-à-Lucine. Common folk displaced from the war, civil unrest, famine, and poverty make their way to the city in hopes of work, food, and safety only to find none. The Marchand and and Ouvrier quarters are filling to the brim with poor souls. Gendarme and Government officials are denying many groups entry into the city, and a ramshackle tent town has emerged just east of Port-à-Lucine where many of these people have taken residence.]]
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[Every day more and more weary and haggard looking commoners flood into the city of Port-à-Lucine. Common folk displaced from the war, civil unrest, famine, and poverty make their way to the city in hopes of work, food, and safety only to find none. The Marchand and and Ouvrier quarters are filling to the brim with poor souls. Gendarme and Government officials are denying many groups entry into the city, and a ramshackle tent town has emerged just east of Port-à-Lucine where many of these people have taken residence.]]
The Ezrite Marcus Hulford was seen distributing food amongst the angry citizens and encouraging them to be patient and peaceful in the face of these hardships; that the church would not abandon them, assuring them that plans were being put into motion to tend to their needs. Further civil unrest would only lead to greater pain and deprivation, he would have assured them.
-
[The corpse of a scantily clad woman and a brutish man with an axe would be seen on one of the piers of the docks. Uncommon about this would be trails of some sort of slime going from the corpses - many trails - past the pier and around to the ledge of the docks, ending right at the water. That the two corpses appear to have the same slime on them, and wounds that might appear as if something emerged from their bodies, could lead one to the conclusion the trail actually started with the corpses, with whatever having made the trail having made their way into the sea.]
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Numerous bodies are found scattered across quartier marchand with their throats ripped out and their bodies horrifically savaged. Gendarme and nobleman alike appear to have suffered the same fate.
The word on the population of the fair city's lips is 'loup-garou', but the gendarme have dismissed the very notion as being something out a fairy tale. Some whisper it is the act of the revolutionaries.
-
Word of mouth in the social circles of Port-a-Lucine say that an exotic Vistana woman, Serafim Ianescu, has opened up a fresh new dance club down on the docks. It bears the name "Le Sanctuaire" and hints at being more than just a place for men to go and watch women dance for their pleasure...
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[Shortly after the fencing competition held by Houses Dauphin and Montte, smoke could be seen rising from the Widow's Walk. By dawn, it was clear a fire had ravaged the club known as "Le Sanctuaire", leaving the warehouse it was located in entirely gutted.]
-
[A young man by the name of Nathaniel Fletcher was seen shouting for the Gendarme; Allegedly the man had discovered a fresh cadaver inside the Clockwork Goose's rented out Warehouse]
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[The old Warehouse between the Red Vardo Trader's and the Presses is light up this evening as The Clockwork Goose shop stays open through night and day selling all manner of weapons, armor, and oddments.]
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For a few nights now, a beautiful lady leaves the Vardo shop in the Quartier Marchand to hunt down thieves, burglars and thugs that lurks about the street. Rapier in hand, she turns them to ribbons, does that escapes her fierceness, might report to their leader that it could be a good idea to make a deal with the Vardo instead of escalating violence.
// Rose would love to make a deal with the local thugs to leave the street alone at night. Maybe when back from Vacation.
-
~Blood paints the streets red and the remains of many would be Cutthroats can be found in various states of dismemberment and desecration. Face's rent from their owners heads, limbs gnawed off and apparently missing. While it's certainly not unheard of for the bodies of thieves to turn up in the morning, generally they are not so thoroughly ravaged.~
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Recently some of the thieves and thugs of the Quartier Ouvrier have been found with their eyes removed, and their left hand severed. Both done neatly and left haphazardly near the corpse.
-
[A flyer is nailed to the door of the 'Les Presses du Savior'. On it, is a bloody hand covered in blood, or something similarly red. On it is written]
(http://www.alarab.qa/upload_ar/articles/images/large_1355964719.jpg)
"THE PRESSES HARBOR A NECROMANCER!
"Good citizens of the Port beware, a known necromancer and body snatcher works in this shop! Such a twisted, vile and deranged sociopath is a curse on our beautiful city! It wouldn't be a surprise why we have so many murderers around! in fact, the recent blood trail ran across the street near the presses! Coincidence? most likely not!
Beware of this foreign plague upon us! this dark wizard summoned spirits and wraiths!
He is a master manipulator! working in a guise as a social, well mannered stuttering scholar! But the facts can not be denied, he is wicked and evil!"
-
[The Notice is removed.]
-
[New flyers begins to hang across the port, a red blood print with the word 'NECROMANCER and 'Les Presses du Savior" written on them]
(http://1.hidemyass.com/ip-7/encoded/Oi8vd3d3LmFsYXJhYi5xYS91cGxvYWRfYXIvYXJ0aWNsZXMvaW1hZ2VzL2xhcmdlXzEzNTU5NjQ3MTkuanBn)
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Any posters found would be torn down Emanuele Quattrocchi, mumbling something about foolish rumor mills.
-
It is rumoured even Gerard Montte was seen tearing down and crumpling up one of the flyers.
There's most likely some kind of vague self-centered reason behind the action if the claims are true.
Then again, they are a rather atrocious and stomach-turning sight to behold with the bloody print.
-
The quartier Marchand was littered with corpses, in the following morning. Some within the hospice of the sisters reported sounds akin to a warzone in the dead of night, swords clashing, arrows bouncing off armor, etcetra. The dead would be Borcans, with remenants of oozes smoldering on the ground next to them.
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[Strange rumors have been spreading among the sailors. They speak of an increase in Reaver activity, that the Reavers have grown so bold as to attack sailors working in the docks in broad daylight. Whispered among the sailors, however, is not the Reaver attacks and abductions, but of their fellows who returned from a ship recently. They whisper things like, "They ain't right in the head," and "They musta seen somethin'," though no official statements by the Gendarme have been made, nor any level of intervention on their part.]
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A young, brightly dressed woman wearing a large purple and gold cloak and hood has been passing out copies of the latest paper of Port-au-Lucine: L'Homme Éclairé!
OOC: http://www.nwnravenloft.com/forum/index.php?topic=35447.0
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A grotesque scene welcomed travelers departing or arriving from the Quartier Marchand. As daylight broke over the port city, a scene of violence was revealed.
A human body was pinned to the Port's noticeboards by his right hand, dangling limply by a mundane dagger wedged tightly into the wood. The clothes were drenched in thick, fresh blood, while the body itself appeared ancient-- withered and decayed. Most notably, however, was the violent burning of the face. The victim was largely unrecognizable, wielding fleshy remnants and pieces of skin with thickly coagulated blood drooping from what used to be ridgelines of the jaw and brow. Written presumably in the man's blood on the message board above him are the words, "The Grey Hag must confess for her crimes."
Each of the man's wrists were severely broken and twisted, even the hand that was unattached to the signpost, suggesting potential abuse before death.
Even with the gross disfigurations, a more thorough inspection would reveal a telltale pair of fang-marks on the base of his neck.
-
[small notices placed up in a few boards, nooks, and shops]
(http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g138/yield2d/old-paper-parchment-plain_zpsd405c5e0.jpg)
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A number of these posters have been hung up around Port-à-Lucine:
Beware! Necromancers lurk the streets!
Renée Bellamy, editor-in-chief of La Bougie, was assaulted by a Nerull-worshipping necromancer last evening. The culprit was a deathly thin woman with cloth wrapped around her head, and wore what appeared to be a black tunic and pants with metal studs.
The culprit tortured Renée extensively before subjecting her to horrific necromantic experiments. Renée's face was cut off and an eyeball gouged out. Despite receiving prompt magical healing, she is still blind in one eye.
Exercise caution if you see the woman. She is capable of making herself invisible and knows how to move quietly to avoid detection. She can lurk out of the shadows at any moment to catch a person who has lowered their guard. She is also capable of casting see invisibility, do not rely on magic to keep yourself hidden from her!
-
[small notices placed up in a few boards, nooks, and shops]
(http://i55.photobucket.com/albums/g138/yield2d/old-paper-parchment-plain_zpsd405c5e0.jpg)
[The posters are refreshed]
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[A letter written in blood is posted to the wanted board in Port-a-Lucine]
Dearest populace of the Serene Republic of Dementlieu, in particular those here in Port-a-Lucine,
You have poverty ridden slums. People starve and resort to violance to survive. However, you all see it fit, to put such a large amount of solars on my head. Have you not noticed that still there is poverty and criminals in your streets?
Have you not noticed how incompetant your guards and government are?
You starve, but they will pay vast amounts of solars to whoever brings them my head. Who ever. It could be some one from some outlandish world claiming money that should go to your poor. Support the Halans who heal your sick. Provide houses to those without.
But no. They think it better to pay money to just anyone. Not the people they claim to care about.
Deaths embrace,
T.M.O
-
[A letter written in blood is posted to the wanted board in Port-a-Lucine]
Dearest populace of the Serene Republic of Dementlieu, in particular those here in Port-a-Lucine,
You have poverty ridden slums. People starve and resort to violance to survive. However, you all see it fit, to put such a large amount of solars on my head. Have you not noticed that still there is poverty and criminals in your streets?
Have you not noticed how incompetant your guards and government are?
You starve, but they will pay vast amounts of solars to whoever brings them my head. Who ever. It could be some one from some outlandish world claiming money that should go to your poor. Support the Halans who heal your sick. Provide houses to those without.
But no. They think it better to pay money to just anyone. Not the people they claim to care about.
Deaths embrace,
T.M.O
[The message is seen by the commonfolk of Port-a-Lucine come morning, who appear shocked or disturbed by dried blood being used as the medium for its composition, to the extent that few can get past the fact. Later in the day, a gendarme spots the subversive notice and removes it from the wooden board, carrying it off to his superiors.]
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Charlemagne Devereaux, proprietor of the Free People's Labor Union and Devereaux textiles, was seen earlier making a public announcement regarding a copy of the bloody message tacked to the notice board.
"My friends!" he was reported to have said before a crowd of working class citizens, rattling the announcement above his head with a wide smile. "It seems the fiend that has plagued our streets has seen fit to address people worthy enough that the monster deems people, while it murders our working class! Notice how the creature tries to speak to you, the working class, while it thinks we will forget that this beast has targeted only the proud men and women that run our mills and build our ships! This is a message to incite anarchy by claiming incompetence of our nobility, and those that would protect us, while this monster attacks our neighbors! Know that this is the true enemy here. Not the officials doing all they can to bring this abomination to justice. If this thing ever had a heart it would turn itself in, and donate its own reward to the Halan clergy it claims to have such high regard for!"
Monsieur Devereaux then burnt the notice in plain view of everyone, and spent a few more words urging them to be brave until this monstrosity was brought to justice.
-
[In the early hours of the day, another letter is posted on the board, written in black ink, though the signature remains in blood.]
To whom it may concern
False accusations seem fairly common here. Those of the higher classes merely try to protect themselves by spreading lies about their enemies. I have not killed your sailors, nor your working men. I have only killed your criminals. The criminals your government seems to allow to run rampant in the poorer parts of Port-a-Lucine. Open your eyes to their lies. The homeless should be given homes, that is, if your government gave a damn about them.
Deaths Embrace,
T.M.O
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[Edwin Aubert was seen entering the Gendarmerie with a bloodied nose the morning after a late night patrol - rumors abound in the ranks that he earned it in a scuffle in the Ouvrier district while saving a woman from being raped.]
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A new face at the Mutinied Sailor, a woman by the name of Sofiya, is seen almost nightly drinking her sorrows away when she isn't joining or instigating most of the bar room brawls the drinking hole is famous for. Due to the reckless abandon with which she throws herself into these brawls, some say she has a death wish.
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[Rumor spreads of Councilor Dominic d'Honaire, a rare sight in this part of the city, walking along the the Widow's Walk and up along one of the piers to speak with a ship captain regarding the possible use of his vessel. He seems to be preparing for something. But what, you wonder... (http://www.timeanddate.com/countdown/generic?p0=746&iso=20140627T20&msg=It%20Came%20from%20the%20Sea%20-%20Finale) ]
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((3 hours roughly until this happens.))
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[Overtime, many of the superstitious sailors who feared going out into the Sea of Sorrows regain their courage, after news is quickly spread of an alleged 'sea-beast' having been slain. The Widow's Walk is teeming with life and for those involved in the exportation of goods to distant shores, business couldn't get any better. Yet more than a few sailors have found themselves taken away from the sea -- their one true love -- and transported to Dr. Vilhelm Mikki's Sanitorium in Chateaufaux. They speak of madness -- of a city underneath the waves, inhabited by massive eel-like abominations, many of them simply waiting and biding their time until the end of days, where they might form their ancient empire anew. They call it 'inevitable'. They call it 'prophecy'. Obviously suffering from severe delusions, these men of the waves are locked away, where they will do no further harm to the general populace.]
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A young barmaid has been hired to work at The Mutinied Sailor, serving drinks and waiting on tables. Despite her semi innocent demeanor, some patrons question her intent, wondering if she's there to serve drinks or provide other types of 'services' to the weary sailors.
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After a heinous murder spree was done in the Ouartier Marchand, where innards, fecal matter, brains, hair, and other gore from the brutal slaughter of the roving gangs that seemed to be made especially horrific out of spite. Within hours, and before the sun rose over the promenade, it would appear that someone didn't like the message it was sending, and it was promptly cleaned up. Some whisper that it was the so called Knight of Song, glimpsed removing bodies in the earliest part of the morning.
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Several thugs are found torn open at the waistline, their innards half-eaten. The head of one cutpurse still in it's helmet is found pinned by a steel gilded feather engraved with "See no evil" on its side. Written in blood on the bounty board reads: "Parliament has arrived, prepare for judgement"
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[Various businesses like Les Tanneries and Moulin a Scie have been closed down, due to workers not showing up. Workhouses all over the city have been closed down, striking fear into the hearts of the gentryfolk. They have a surplus of goods that they can make use of, but what will they do when the goods stored in the warehouses are all gone? Rumor also spreads that a small ship filled to the brim with barrels of gunpowder and muskets was seized by the distinguished Maitre Wymmer Drukker and an associate of his.]
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A young Gendarme recruit can be seen trying to scrub out graffiti painted on the bounty board at the city's gate, in red paint:
Quand le dernier des tyrans sera pendu avec les boyaux du dernier prêtre célibataire, le genre humain pourra espérer être heureux.
((OOC translation: When the last tyrant is hanged with the entrails of the last celibate priest, humankind may hope to be happy. ))
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[Eventually, the general strike that affected the Quartier Marchand comes to an end. For most, the desire to provide for their family wins out over their hatred for the way things are and their wish to see them change. The men and women who spent fourteen hour days in the workhouse continue to do just that, though the particularly outspoken find themselves out of work, replaced by someone more amenable.]
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[Barricades have been hastily erected by the Gendarmerie in preparation for... something (http://www.timeanddate.com/countdown/generic?p0=746&iso=20150120T20&msg=%3f%3f%3f)...]
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((This is in roughly 20 minutes!))
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[Hostilities between the Gendarmerie struggling to keep order in the city and the armed revolutionaries that are present in Quartier Ouvrier have reached a fever pitch, following a gendarme's musket having discharged into a young urchin's skull. With the help of foreigners, the Gendarmerie were able to dispatch a large mob of armed commoners. Likely, this isn't the end of the fighting, and you can cut the tension in the city with a knife...]
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[In the late hours of the night, it is said that the Gendarmerie, under the orders of Capitaine Jacques Reynard, pulled back into the Quartier Publique. Shortly after this, the forward detachment of a large army led by the self-styled "Marshal", Armand Foquelaine, attempted to make a push into Port-a-Lucine's Quartier Marchand, when they were attacked by a large number of revolutionaries from the Quartier Ouvrier, forcing the better-armed forces of Armand Foquelaine to make a tactical retreat. It is said that they have surrounded the city and intend to make another push soon.]
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[Word spreads that after complaining by members of the gentry into the ears of Capitaine Alphonse Dupre, the members of the Gendarmerie typically stationed in the Quartier Marchand resumed their posts once more.]
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[Returning to his shop is Abernathy Gearling, who seems happy to be back with his family. He mentions taking an extended vacation to Mayvin with others, in light of turmoil inside Port-a-Lucine, though he's not left for his homeland of Darkon... yet.]
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[Zidonne LeFebvre, local celebrity composer, musician, and the Knight of Song, has been seen - bloodied and dirty from battle - walking the streets of Port A Lucine, playing a victorious tune on his violin and placing a poster on the Wanted sign in this districtt:
Foquelaine is dead! Viva la Dementlieu!
This is the time that we stand together, and rebuild our most serene Republic!
-
A new face to Dementlieu stands out, as a Falkovnian man has been seen moving through the city assessing the fallen, damage sustained to the city and its homes, though mainly he seems intent on assisting the various hospices scattered around the city, offering minor spells of healing from his goddess, Hala.
Some might know him by the name of Dietrich.
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[rumors speak of how with captaines Reynard and Dupree are missing currently, that Baron Edmond Montte has claimed to be the current acting captaine of the gendarme]
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A man known as Oskar, thought to have once been a noble of Lamordian descent in the old regime, frequents the Mutinied Sailor has been selling fanciful and jewelry clothing rumored to have been ill-gotten during the chaos of the revolution to sailors at a cheap rate. Some patrons might note that man once dressed in a suit, albeit dirty. But has adjusted his attire to be more in line with what the commoners and sailors of the Marchand following the regime change.
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[A bloody mess of the bodies of thugs and thieves is found throughout the Quartier Marchand. Not entirely unusual, the amount however is staggering. Some might report having seen the form of an Elven man cutting a swathe through the severely under skilled miscreants, in a line from the docks up through the rest of the Marchand and into the Ouvrier.]
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[Edmond has been seen patrolling the streets of the Marchand, looking to make sure that the people are safe from the thugs and criminals which have been taking advantage of the quariter in the chaos]
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Rumors originate from a member of the newly formed People's National Army which hint that Helene DuSuis may be betraying the spirit of the revolution (even to the point of beingcounter-revolutionary!) through her apparently recent relationship with former Councilors Dominic D'Honaire and Wymmer Drukker; asserting that only the People's National Army will alleviate the struggles faced by the citizenry, uphold the principles of the republic, and protect the rights of the citizenry espoused by revolutionaries across the city. Oskar de La Rose, in PNA uniform, could be seen by the Widow's Walk with other soldiers, attempting to get sailors cooperation in maintaining order in parts of the Marchand.
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Rumors spread that Mareta The Red Priestess of the Lord of Light was viciously attacked by some sort of were rat, her hand devoured during the attack.
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A filthy looking Nova Vaasan riddled with tattoos has spent the last several nights within the Mutinied Sailor. He seems to be looking for something or someone...
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[The citizens of the Quartier Marchand of Port-à-Lucine were awakened at dawn by the sound of a series of large explosions coming from the Red Vardo Traders' Service Building. The blasts were so strong that they could even be heard in the other districts of Port-à-Lucine. Quickly, curious and frightened citizens gathered around the burning building as help organized. A party of gendarmes and concerned citizens helped put out the fire as the the Captain of the Red Vardo Traders in Port-à-Lucine, Elias, was seen conversing with the gendarme officer Juste Marceaux. The rescue party worked all day to extinguish the flames and were eventually able to clear a path inside the building and save it from flames. In a scene reminiscent of the nights preceding the Revolution, gendarmes were seen manning barricades in the Quartier Marchand after dusk, to protect the building from vandalism and looters. Once the situation was fully under control, the gendarmes and the courageous citizens who helped them dismantled the barricades and the gendarmes returned to the Gendarmerie. For now, the identity of the vandals is unknown...some, among the populace, fear that it may be the first sign of another Revolution or perhaps the work of Les Ordures.]
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[A large misshapen hulk of a man wearing a mask made of iron and dressed in grime-covered finery can be seen moving from one alleyway to the next in the less opulent parts of Port-a-Lucine. Moving mostly at night, who or even what this enigmatic figure might be remains a mystery...]
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[A pair of attacks occur back to back -- the targets of these attacks in question? Young members of the Gendarmerie, both cut down viciously. Curiously, one seems to have had his arm removed, and another his leg. The party or parties responsible for both these grisly attacks are likely still at large.]
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[A note is left at the Red Vardo Office]
Brianna is looking for traders in unusual arms, armor, and trinkets. currently staying at the Manor retreat. Will be in town for one, maybe two days at most. Please contact me. I wear a black cape with a gold sun
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[An auburn haired man dressed in simple black and red wool robes is seen asking about delivery boys around the quartier.]
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[Rumors abound about the upcoming Golden pistol Contest that House Sallembier and the Red Vardo Traders are hosting together.]
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[one of Jean's regulars has recently returned to his old haunt at the Mutinied Sailor, the boisterous caliban Marcel has been restoring old friendships from his pre-mercenary days, usually found playing dice or throwing darts with friends, he seems to busy himself with vice.]
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[Last night, the Bullseye, a tavern of some repute in the Marchand, was a scene of confusion and chaos for a brief time. The normal din of conversation was broken by the sound of heavy boots and the distinct cry of cold steel being drawn from a scabbard. A hooded man drinking with a Fox Company officer was apparently cut down by an armoured chevalier who proclaimed himself to be one Cyrus Gallant. Scared citoyens fled from the establishment into the night before the gendarme showed up on the scene to assess the situation. Its said that those involved in the incident left just as the sun rose over the rooftops of the Marchand. ]
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Word would pass that the Chevalier, the Knight in question left an incredible sum with the barkeep to make reperations for the blood stained rug, and the loss of the nights business, and the expected loss of future business.
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This week, barrels of Bruyère's Aigre, a cheap apple cider produced in a brewery near Edrigan, are removed from tap-houses and emptied into sewer drains around the merchant's quarter. Though the brew was not well-acknowledged, for a drunken sailor's palate is not exactly picky, a handful of patrons inquire as to the reason their 'medicine' was discarded. The answer is... disconcerting.
Apparently, the brewery ceased operations after the owner was found boiled alive in one of the stewing vats.
The most unusual thing was that the vat in which Simon Bruyère's bloated body was found had its lid sealed.
As is the way in the City of Lights, speculation begins to fly, lending the sailors and laborers some morbid entertainment for a few nights. Perhaps a rival had Simon Bruyère done in? Had a deal gone wrong with smugglers? Or was it an unpaid creditor?
Whatever the case, Bruyère's Aigre is no longer on the menu.
// Rumor was DM-approved!
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Many citizens report a face-to-face confrontation between the disgraced Anselme Voclain and the Vicomte de Roissy's alleged retainer, Cyrus Gallant. The two swapped several of the same charges that have plastered every noticeboard of the city for several days now. But as dusk fell the two only stalked away, disappointing at least a few of the spectators who witnessed the exchange and who would have been relieved to see this festering wound lanced.
Coming on the heels of the disastrous auction that led to a challenge of honor at the Governor's Hotel, such open hostilities cannot go on forever before someone--guilty or innocent--pays the ultimate price.
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The silence in the lower districts of Port-à-Lucine was disturbed in the little hours of the night by the sound of clashing steel and the cries of terror of those assaulted. Mere thugs and criminals, all of which spared a grisly fate, emerging only with bruises and other such minor injuries. In their filth-ridden taverns and bars, they would tell their fellows of their purported assailant, a short figure dressed head to toe in simple, brown robes of burlap, holding a radiantly glowing sword in one hand, leaving them down on their behinds in mere seconds. When they awoke, later, not without a hurting headache, they'd find rolled up pieces of parchment in the folds of their vests, written in Mordentish...
Leave this way of life, and prepare for the next that will come to all in the Republic.
...Of course, in the subsequent nights to come, this robed attacker did not resurface, sweeping through those districts of the city just that once.
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A lone woman clad in black and white seems to frequent The Broken Spire and its environs. Spending the nights indoors and the days out in the streets near, she observes the populace of the Quartier in silence, not speaking to anyone until approached, or until her interest is caught.
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The Widow's Walk is disturbed by the screams of the dying and tortured at the small hours of the night. Blood runs freely through the gaps in the cobbles, some of it draining into the harbor waters, but most of this quadrant of the Quartier Marchand is painted grotesquely in red. Innards, the limbs of men and women strewn away from their bodies. A single decapitated head of a malnourished man in his thirties is impaled atop a post.
Such terrible horrors to greet the morning with.
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This eve, the lower districts as a whole felt the sting of death. Criminals and street rats, gang members, caliban, and many who brave the night, were butchered purposefully or left mangled, to bleed out their lives into the cobbles.
The streets ran red with the blood of the city's underworld.
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The days following the massacres seem quiet. No one is assailed out in the open streets of the lower districts, and no butcher strolls through on a mad rampage.
Was the lunatic stopped?
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[In the dead of night, at a certain secluded bookshop in the Quartier Marchand, a visitor leaves a letter with monsieur Foucault.]
To whom it may concern,
I am hoping to locate any remaining Friends of the Sorely missed Bernard du Bourg.
Please send return message to C.P, care of Ste. Mere des Larmes.
-
More and more action is seen around the Red Vardo Service Building, as costumers come in and out to check out the special wares that are going to be auctioned the next day. Rumor says the store will be open for an hour or two, for more costumers to check the wares out.
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[A woman in a meticulously kept dress uniform of the Company of the Fox is seen running at full speed, her stride doubtlessly enhanced by magic. She stops at the Bazaar to purchase ink then runs to the encampment, a wide smile on her lips as she pants.]
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A ship with the flag of Dementlieu, and a smaller Richemuloise one, has been docking for several days in the local harbour. It seems many of its sails are torn off, and has clearly some major damage in the hull, since its sailors are incessantly removing water. The name of the ship is "The Mist Rover".
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Eleanor Holmwood, the daughter of the Mordentish perfumer Martin Holmwood, is said to have arrived in the city at dusk accompanied by two armed retainers. They pay for lodging at the Broken Spire Inn, hauling several wooden chests and long leather musket cases upstairs.
The entourage depart without their luggage before dawn, making way to the Avenue du Progrès. The crack of musket fire is audible in the distant woodlands.
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A half-man, half-aquatic monster was seen lurking in the docks at night, leaving thugs and thieves bleeding on the ground in his wake.
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[A peculiar sight was briefly seen on the Widow's Walk, just as dusk started to descend upon Dementlieu. A finely-dressed woman with lily-white skin encountered a sizable group of children and a young woman wearing more plain clothing who seemed to be leading them -- they descended upon the woman as though a swarm, with the sailors watching the scene incredulously and in disbelief. As gangs began to beset the children present, they led themselves and the finely-dressed woman in their care inside... what happened after that, remains a mystery.]
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[Word spreads throughout Port-a-Lucine of the upcoming auction of the two-masted vessel, by House Passeleau. Gossip spreads that the event is likely to be a grand affair, which will attract many that may wish to add such a fine ship to their names... Rumor states that the ship, the Harridan, will anchor offshore of Port-a-Lucine soon, and that preparations will be underway to host the event on the very decks of the vessel itself, which will likely be a colorful affair.]
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[Those who were in Le Grand Bazaar yesterday were treated to a horrifying and yet mesmerizing spectacle -- a man sprinted past those shopping and browsing, naked as the day he was born, shocking many. He shouted about how hot he was -- he seemed merely delirious, at first... but then, suddenly, the man began to spontaneously combust, becoming wholly immolated by flames. In a matter of minutes, he was nothing more than a charred, smoldering husk.
A member of the Gendarmerie arrived quickly, as a bystander rushed to grab their attention -- Le Grand Bazaar was closed down for the day, but thankfully, with dusk swiftly approaching, businesses did not suffer overmuch. The bazaar re-opened the following day, but many common folk cannot help but talk about what transpired.]
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[In the early hours of the morning, several crates of weapons are seen being brought aboard the Harridan, before a young man dressed in red boards the ship himself. Soon after, the Harridan would be seen leaving the docks.]
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Sailors and late-night visitors have begun to turn up dead in Marchand, their bodies slashed and torn, as though with long, ragged claws. Reports speak of a hunched, limping form creeping in the darkest shadows, and one terrified woman remembers a horrible, grating whisper: "Murderess... Murderess..."
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[With the cresting of the dawn on the horizon, a macabre scene is illuminated in the Quartier Marchand streets. A horrific butchering, with the semblance of what was once a man grotesquely positioned and splayed out on display. Viscera lies strewn about the cobblestones and the man’s skin was flayed and discarded into a tattered, fleshy pile beside the still form.
Curiously absent, however, is significant traces of blood. Only a splattering of crimson stains the grey stone despite the excessive carnage. The now lifeless husk has been turned into a gruesome showcase demonstrating the depths of the depravity of an entity that stalks the concealing shadow of the night. After all, the most radiant light casts the deepest and longest of shade…and there are no more luminescent of locales than the City of Lights.]
(http://i.imgur.com/un3WjzW.jpg)
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A man clad in a dark leather armor, wearing a brown tricorn hat has been seen moving about the streets of Quartier Marchand, inquiring about the fate of the ship known as "The Bounty." However, so far it seems as he has not received any kind of answer, to the question.
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It happened in late morning, after all the trade and fisher vessels were loaded and set off on their various routes, and all the returning vessels from previous ventures docked and unloaded their goods and sailors, just around the midday meal when the ruckus of dock life begins to settle down and disperse. A lone, lost ship returned to port after being away too long unaccounted for at sea. It came in on a quiet afternoon wind, with a torn sail and a tired, sunburned and weary crew disembarking. Lingering dock hands rushed to take in what remained of the cargo with a bewildered relief. Not all lost ships return to dock, after all. A particularly tall red haired sailor, disheveled like the rest of them, is seen waving farewell to the crew, checking in at the dock office, and promptly heading indoors to rest at the nearest inn. While ships caught in doldrums are not uncommon this time of year, it is said that there had to have been a skilled healer on board to bring back as much of the crew as they had.
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[Hushed whispers spread throughout the Quartier Marchand of a woman wearing an expensive silk sun-gold gown with intricately braided raven hair entering the Dock Office, and a meeting with a member of House Couvreur -- A House known for its history in sailing and maritime endeavors. The following morning, dockers began to bring fresh timbers and supplies to the docks, wherein shipwrights began to undertake extensive repairs on the vessel. It is said that it had suffered critical and debilitating damage on its last voyage several months ago, losing many of its hands, and Captain. By the following evening, gossip had spread thoroughly enough of it's name and class. A retrofitted forty-four gun Carrack by the name, "La Grâce de Damon."]
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In the late evening, workmen are seen delivering a large, sealed crate to Les Presses du Savoir. They sweat and strain under the weight of the man-sized container, and under the direction of proprietor Martin Beauchamin, take it into the basement.
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During the night the crack of gunfire can be heard all throughout the Quartier Marchand and Ouvrier. As the sun rose over the bay, the bullet riddled bodies of various street gang members could be found. A few whisper that a group of amateur bounty hunters, incensed over one issue or another, cleared several dozen names off the Gendarmerie's Bounty Board in a a single night.
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Late into the evening of the 19th of Février, nearly a dozen Gendarmes adorned in meticulously polished steel cuirasses marched throughout the Quartier Publique, before mustering at the entrance of the middle terraces into the Marchand. A young female Officer of raven hair and fair skin, adorned with a red sash and Sargent's chevrons, flanked by a Caporal, lead the combat-ready Gendarmes into the night. The cracking of pistol fire and the clattering of metal resounded as a sudden purge of the streets was had, the cut-throats and vagabonds so keen to prey upon the innocent were brought to heel in a bloody crucible before the Council of Brilliance's Right Hand, and... Come dawn, the same number of Gendarmes that had entered, had left. Though, their target, a body wrapped in a cloth carried and lead by a Lamordian wearing a meticulous clean and white coat, and two armored Gendarmes, was recovered and brought back to the Gendarmerie. By the following noonday sun, all seemed to return to normal, though the rumors persist. Some say, a Gendarme was killed in cold blood that eve.
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A flurry of activity can be seen taking place along Port-a-Lucine's docks in preparation for something of considerable magnitude, with a well-dressed noblewoman of dusky complexion and dark green attire seemingly at the center of it all...
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As the evening drew nearer on the 25th of Février, bustling activity took place on the docks with sailors, dockers, and a handful of merchant marines. All of this activity seemed to surround a tall and heavy Carrack that has spent many months in the harbor of Port-a-Lucine, the magenta sashes worn by many of her crewmen a sight that became fast frequent in the pubs and the locale. Resplendent upon her mast, was a flag of a dark cerise bearing the vessel's sigil, flanked on her bow mast by a deep blue flag bearing the coat of arms of the Gendarmerie Nationale de La République de Dementlieu. The dark wood of the vessel was nearly polished by the sea, the marble-white line of paint along her hull meticulous and pristine, flanked by a deep blue as dark as the sea itself. In elegant letters, written in High Mordentish was her name, 'La Grâce de Damon.' And by all measures, she was large and well-armed for her classification. The colony of crewmen that lived upon the vessel began to slowly flock back to it, one-by-one as preparations to make sail seemed to be imminently underway...
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A duel and fatal outcome in Port-a-Lucine!
Rumors circulate in the city around the sword duel and its respective outcome, between commoner Alphonse L'Heureux and member of the nobility, Monsieur Jacinth de la Rochenoire. The swirling rumors offer contradictory speculation regarding to the conflict's origin. A sobering consensus, however, is that Monsieur de la Rochenoire lay dead in a duel that was supposed to be non lethal, a gentleman's option to yield purportedly to serve as the conclusion of the dispute. Alphonse L'Heureux, at the conclusion, was abruptly escorted away by a detachment of Gendarmes, accused of murder.
(https://i.imgur.com/mrRhafE.jpg)
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Screams are heard in the middle of the night as the sound of battle came from the streets of both the Ouvrier and the Marchand. Under the moon, outlaws, murderers and calibans were fighting for their life. Someone was out for blood, and it was found in those who walked the streets at night. A gruesome spectacle awaited those who would walk the streets the next morning. A multitude of bodies, their heads and limbs separated, could be found everywhere in the streets. Rumors quickly spread that only someone mad with rage could have done something like it...
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Gossips and those with an ear for rumors may hear tale a curious development that can seen throughout the City of Light's poorer districts during the evening hours. It appears a local militia calling themselves the "Quartier Watch" have begun setting up checkpoints in Marchand and Ouvrier enforcing a curfew on all non-essential parties. It is said some night goers are searched for contraband while others are escorted to the safer sections of the city. Be they benevolent, benign or baleful ... the jury is still out.(https://i.imgur.com/OwIqVKl.png)
(https://i.imgur.com/umioR9V.png)
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A poster has been going up recently in the Marchand's upper terraces and entering Ouvrier...
MISSING!
(https://i.imgur.com/pYxEKkG.png)
Have you seen me? I have long blonde hair that is usually tied up in a bun and am always in the plain Dementlieuse dress of navy blues and grays. I wear an oval silver locket with my initials etched into it - S.D.
Send word for me at the Broken Spire, and be rewarded!
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A young man in a tacky vest is seen putting up more notices around Marchand and Ouvrier...
MISSING!
(https://i.imgur.com/pYxEKkG.png)
Have you seen me? I have long blonde hair that is usually tied up in a bun and am always in the plain Dementlieuse dress of navy blues and grays. I wear an oval silver locket with my initials etched into it - S.D.
Send word for me at the Broken Spire, and be rewarded!
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Rumors begin to circulate that the Captain of La Grâce de Damon, a young and comely Dementlieuse maiden of braided raven hair and fair skin, has been spending some of her evenings performing and playing at the Mutinied Sailor in the company of members of her crew, company and the sailing men of other crews as the long nights of the City of Lights carry on. Patriotic tunes and jaunty shanties were played to the delight of some.
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Under the cover of night, several hand-made notices are posted in the various corners and alleys of Ouvrier and Marchand
WATCH OUT FOR THE TRAITOR!
ALL GOOD PEOPLE OF OUVRIER AND MARCHAND!
WE PRONOUNCE SYLVIE COULETTE A SNITCH AND A TRAITOR TO HER PEOPLE.
HER CRIMES ARE AS LISTED:
AIDING HER LOVER, JACINTH DE LA ROCHENOIRE, IN COVERING UP HIS LIES. ALTHOUGH HE CLAIMED THAT SHE WAS PRESENT DURING HIS FIRST ASSAULT ON THE QUARTIER WATCH, SHE WAS NOT THERE.
COMPLIANCE IN THE FACE OF BRUTALITY. SHE WATCHED IDLY, AS HER LOVER, JACINTH DE LA ROCHENOIRE, ASSAULTED A MAN, WHO DISCOVERED THEM DURING INTERCOURSE IN AN ALLEYWAY, ALMOST KILLING HIM.
ASSAULT UPON THE DENIZENS OF QUARTIERS OUVRIER AND MARCHAND AND DECEIT. SHE KNOWINGLY APPROACHED MEMBERS OF THE QUARTIER WATCH IN ORDER TO SPY ON THEM FOR HER LOVER, JACINTH DE LA ROCHENOIRE, USING LIES AND MANIPULATION. AT THE SAME TIME, HER HAND ROSE AGAINST THE POOR PEOPLE OF OUVRIER AND MARCHAND.
IS SYLVIE COULETTE WHAT CHURCH OF EZRA HAS TO OFFER, AFTER CLOSING THEIR DOORS IN OUR FACES?
GOOD PEOPLE OF OUVRIER AND MARCHAND, OFFER SYLVIE COULETTE OR THE DISHONORABLE BRUTE, JACINTH DE LA ROCHENOIRE, NO AID, NO FOOD, NO PEACE, AND NO INFORMATION!
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The notices are refreshed...
A poster has been going up recently in the Marchand's upper terraces and entering Ouvrier...
MISSING!
(https://i.imgur.com/pYxEKkG.png)
Have you seen me? I have long blonde hair that is usually tied up in a bun and am always in the plain Dementlieuse dress of navy blues and grays. I wear an oval silver locket with my initials etched into it - S.D.
Send word for me at the Broken Spire, and be rewarded!
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Late into the evening of the 12th of June, dozens of sailors and security personnel on shore leave in the Quartier Marchand cut their daily routines short, and begin to vacate the docks and surrounding recreational areas. The retrofitted carrack "La Grâce de Damon" begins to come to life as her crew returns to fill her hold once more, bringing on what is said to be a variety of food, water, rum and cases of black powder and shot. Shortly thereafter, the large vessel's mooring lines are cut from the docks and without further word, the sails come to life. The ship's Captain, a young Dementlieuse woman wearing a wine red coat and with braided raven hair is seen organizing the departure, before being seen onboard at the helm as the ship slipped its moors and made way into the Baie de Parnault.
Speculation surrounds the sudden departure of the vessel whose runs were infrequent enough that its crew and presence in the Quartier Marchand became something of a feature, and the docking fees the pleasure of tax collectors -- Though, a thing short-lived. In the days that came, La Grâce de Damon and her crew did not return home to its moors in Port-a-Lucine.
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The bustling commotion and clamor of masses of individuals pouring into the Quartier Marchand echoed over the cobblestone streets come morning. Rumors swirl of the recent and substantial influx of fresh bread at markedly discounted prices being offered by Pain et Fromage in Le Grand Bazaar. Crowds begin to form and lines sweep through the market hall, the hungry gathering and scrounging together what means they had for purchase of this expensive and scarce resource while so close to the looming shade of war.
The source and timing is subject to much scrutiny in gossiping circles. That the bread supply was so scarce and exorbitantly priced one day and on the heels of the next significantly reduced in price and abundant in supply leads to a frenzied speculation. Who provided these provisions to this one merchant and, given demand and even at discounted prices, how much do they stand to profit? The speculation does nothing to deter the throng of the hungry who scrape together their solars and flock to the Grand Bazaar, piling inside.
(https://i.imgur.com/Xqixvfo.jpg)
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A strange, black candle is seen near the door of the Red Vardo Store. Set during the night, the candle burns slowly, but surely. Without question, the placement of this otherwise harmless wax light sings an ominous tune. Those who gaze upon the candle are struck with the typical array of questions. Who? Why? ... When?
Time will surely tell.
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As mysteriously as they arrived, the black candles cease to appear among the door of The Red Vardo Store. Timing suggests that the eyes once glaring upon the collection of red cloaks has now moved on.
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[A few days ago, a tall red haired man affectionately known around the docks as Le Géant Rouge by fellow sailors was seen working a long shift, and then another, and another. When he could not pick up another shift, he wandered over to the bullseye, and hasn't been seen leaving it.]
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An overall quiet giamarga woman has taken up residence in Quartier Marchand, purchasing one of the smaller rooms in the local rentals. With posted notices outside her door requesting her neighbors to warn her if she becomes too loud, she occasionally practices her singing by the window where she hangs her laundry. She appears fairly comfortable in the Marchand, occasionally recognizing and catching up with some who remember her as a child.
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"The husks of three bodies are found drained of blood on the docks of the Marchand. Two puncture marks can be seen on the necks of each victim, along with cuts and bruises across the body and arms."
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Barricades and bulwarks! Torches and Traps! A checkpoint was erected on Widow's Walk during the middle of the night!
As the sun sets behind the city the sounds of construction could be heard on Widow's Walk. A hammer's thump and the dull moan of a saw blade drone on until their masters work is complete. Passersby would be denied passage. One women would even surrender a sizable coin purse to those manning the garrison. Theft? A bribe? An illegal toll? Could it have been unscrupulous highwaymen seeking to waylay the citoyens of the republiqué? Perhaps it was work the Quartier Watch, be they common thugs to some or protectors to others? Perhaps still it was the Gendarmeire working to keep the city of lights safe- Or even some holdouts from the ill fated provisional government!? Whatever the truth, its clear Widow's Walk lives up to its reputation.
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The sun rises over the Marchand on a cold winters day, a gruesome scene revealed by the early morning sunlight.
The door to Warehouse 3 covered in a spray of blood, slumped up it a thug of the night. Mouth, chin and cheeks painted with blood, jaw wide open to show the distinct lack of a tongue. Brutally carved into the mans forehead a single word;
S O R A N Z O
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A series of explosions from Warehouse One in the late evening and early morning attracts much attention in the morning as the scene is later crowded by gendarmes who refuse to answer questions as to what occurred. Undoubtedly an investigation was underway to understand what disturbance occurred there.
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In the early hours of the morning a short woman in a dark coat pins a notice to the door of Warehouse 1.
The Luminaries are closed for repairs.
(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/607938450154455046/769583131526692944/The_Luminaries_small.png)
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Sometime well after midnight a woman sheathed in golden-hued armor is seen fleeing from Joseph Fogg's establishment, an enormous brutish monstrosity in pursuit. Once in the Quartier Publique and confronted by roused Gendarmes, the lumbering assailant retreats, having lost sight of his much smaller quarry.
Diners in the Golden Fig, however, might notice a visibly shaken female, who nursed a single cup of coffee for several hours before saying a prayer at dawn and then departing.
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Recently a hooded and masked woman seems too have taken up residence within the Broken Spire. She spends most of her time pouring over books and notes occasionally seeing if something has arrived
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The hammering of nails and sawing of wood can be heard coming from the Warehouse One, a simple sign outside the door was placed prominantly so any onlooker would spot it as clear as day
The Luminaries are closed.
Repairs in progress.
(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/607938450154455046/769583131526692944/The_Luminaries_small.png)
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A deathly pale, black-haired half-elf in a white topcoat is seen leaving Le Presses, scowling heavily. Those close to him would hear him grumble the words "Spilled ink" a few times.
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A red-haired woman dressed in a green gown and a man dressed in a black, white and taupe leathers enter the Gearling Family Firearms Dealership at noon. They leave soon after, the woman carrying a musket, and soon gunshots and laughter are heard ringing across the quarter as they practice on some statues. The practice session is ended by a cry of pain and a small explosion as the musket backfires on the woman.
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[WILDCAT STRIKE! Following what is said to have been an impassioned speech by one "Simon", the sailors that normally toil upon the Widow's Walk have decided not to show up the following day. True to their word, the sailors that normally walk to and from various vessels loading and unloading cargo are largely absent; only a token number of scabs labor, unable to keep the usual breakneck pace of shipping orders coming in or out.
The effects of this impromptu action are immediately felt. Supply chains are heavily disrupted as maritime imports and exports stay where they are, untouched, in crates and barrels within ships or warehouses. A few restaurants elsewhere in the city, reliant upon freshly caught fish or exotic ingredients for their dishes, either are forced to work with a limited menu or outright close. The ferry that would normally offer transport to Ghastria or Blaustein during the day does not operate. Discontent grows among the nobility who, highly inconvenienced by the sailors' strike, openly vocalize that someone ought to show them "their place".
It is said the strike will end tomorrow and the sailors will return to work that morning, yet others are unsure as to if this will truly be the case..]
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The night before the strike, a number of the dock workers were escorted home by individuals predominantly in the uniforms of the Gendarmerie and Jeune Compagnie. Afterwards, the same personnel conducted a sweep of the Marchand, suppressing gang activity - at least for a time.
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On the night after the day of the strike, Bluecoats are seen marching through the Marchand and Ouvrier again, patrolling on order to tackle such gang members as are present.
(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/381882521647972359/788225968388177920/unknown.png)
(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/381882521647972359/788225811605487636/unknown.png)
They greet peaceful passers by.
(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/381882521647972359/788228138685169715/unknown.png)
But alas, for some, they are too late.
(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/381882521647972359/788228757064122408/unknown.png)
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[As morning comes, the sailors can be seen working the rigging of various vessels once more and crates of goods are moved to and fro. Restauranteurs and major importers and exporters breathe deep sighs of relief. Not all, however, rest easy. The gentry and well-to-do merchants of the city now know that the sailors' threats are not hollow and that if they are not made happy or appeased, they will follow through with them, perhaps for longer this time.]
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Once more, a uniformed night patrol takes place through the Marchand and Ouvrier.
(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/381882521647972359/788846909384163328/unknown.png)
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Gendarme patrols continue to push into the Marchand at night, with some fierce fighting against a caliban gang breaking out last night.
(https://i.imgur.com/UAVe3A2.png)
Nevertheless the patrols in force continue.
(https://i.imgur.com/8OuZWcZ.png)
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Once more, the cobbles echo to the sound of military boots, shot, and intermittent skirmishing as the Gendarmerie and Jeune Compagnie patrol the Marchand.
(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/381882521647972359/792155465738879016/unknown.png)
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Patrols continue to sweep the Marchand, although the one tonight is unremarkable.
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Today, on the first of the new year, after a fortnight of unexplained absence, the body of a large red haired man was found coming in on the tide, to wash ashore near the harbour. The cadaver brought in by local deckhands and later identified as Lexington Gray, still clutching the hilt of the blade Remembrance. No word yet on the mysterious circumstances of his untimely demise has spread, or how such a strong swimmer succumbed to the tides in this way.[\i]
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A patrol of Gendarmes sweeps the Marchand, encountering the aftermath of a mugging that was foiled by a monstrously formed Luminary.
(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/381882521647972359/796079189815853136/unknown.png)
Yet when escorting the victim to the Publique the Gendarme patrol was attacked, and one of the Gendarmes nearly lost his life when he was lured into an alley ambush. His wounds were later treated by the Baronesse de Mouisset in the Publique.
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During the daylight hours, the Richemuloise assistant curator of the Musee was seen examining ship schedules in the dock offices. It seems she is looking to charter a ship
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[On the morning of the 17th of Janvier, mustered Soldats of La Compagnie du Phénix began to congregate in the Quartier Marchand from their dwellings in Port-à-Lucine. The stylized emblem of a Phoenix rising from ash, and the numeral, "I," beneath it in the midst of a reef suggests that these men are from 1e Bande de La Compagnie du Phénix. By noon, a hundred stand mustered and regimented, boarding two separate vessels outbound for some distant location, the Dame d'Estellier and her retinue, the Garde de Commandement, sallying out first...
...Late into that evening, the Dame d'Estellier and her retinue return wounded, battered, and covered in blood. A handful of Soldats disembark, carrying a little over a dozen wounded, and half a dozen dead. The main contingent of the force did not return until several hours later, bringing crates of cargo of salvaged arms and armors. Dockworkers whisper, that dozens of Falkovnian Zweihänders were among the collected items -- Perhaps nearing forty, followed by their beaked helms, and Invidian-styled armors and weapons pushing the collection into the hundreds. These were stored in warehouses thereafter, the Zweihänders seeming to be marked as trophies of sorts. Most notably, nearly all of the breastplates had been compromised by penetrations from musket balls.]
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Gossip spurs around of a man in a brown coat known as "Le Hunter" having been arrested by the Gendermie Sargant Antole de le Rochenoire. It is was said the man was charged for espionage though some think it was more for the fools blurting of "Viva le Barovia" after cheers of the Republic of Gundarak during the day of the tournament of pistols being held. Clearly most think him a fool as many had turned holding pistols out to the man who oddly and calmly smiled hands raised with a smirk on his face. It is uncertain of his fate but gossip none the less among the Marchand prospers of what may have occur of the man's fate. Never the less time moves on as resound gossips and rumors' fill the streets of various activities.
-
Two of the women living in Novak's rentals, Lily Ryan and Michelle Anciaux, are seen leaving the building with well packed bags. Enough luggage to suggest that they intend to be gone for weeks, at least. They leave the city's gates from the Marchand, and aren't seen to return.
-
Former Teacher At La Lumiere Dans Le Grenier -- Elodie Eppinette has seemed to vanish from the Port Scene out of thin air...She left no word with anyone, and left no trace to where she might have went....two weeks have past since her last appearance.
-
Gossip lingers amongst the mouths of many around Pistol Street as talk of an imposing looking woman with a scarred face and an unusual foreign accent traveled about. This woman apparently bested a number of challengers at arm wrestling, utilizing impressive strength not too commonly seen around Port-a-Lucine. To add to these rumors, this so called 'Iron Wolf' as proclaimed by one of the spectators bested even a couple of nobles in the test of strength. As for why these nobles were lounging in such a location, nobody knew. Possibly to observe the Iron Wolf in action.
-
A series of fliers are put up around the Quartier Marchand and Quartier Ouvier, focused upon the docks most of all.
(https://imgur.com/zkHCtp4.png)
(https://imgur.com/w9QEBYu.png)
Text:
The Peace and Prosperity Charity Fund needs YOU!
Workers sought!
P&P Fishing is purchasing fishing ships and hiring the men and women needed to man them. Positions include captains, sailors, cooks, and more. We are looking for shipwrights and laborers to build new and maintain ships within our purview.||Wages vary between 8 to 25 solars per day depending on position.
Fair wages, safe conditions, reasonable hours, all guarenteed by the Peace and Prosperity Charity Fund!
Applicants and Inquiries should be sent to Shop One in the Quartier Savant, for Mme. M. Anciaux.
This is a non-profit venture and the first venture provided funds through the Peace and Prosperity Charity Fund.
-
An average, unremarkable commoner was seen leaving Les Presses du Savoir, struggling to carry a stack of what must have been very heavy boxes, yet she was clearly in high spirits doing so. Could this be a new run of freshly printed and bound books?
-
The business of the day is interrupted by an procession of Black Army of Gundarak soldiers and House d'Espérance retainers, led by the Baroness de Mouisset. A shipment of southern grain accompanies them and is soon gifted away in attempt to blunt the claws of famine that clutch at the stomachs of the city's poor. Cheers for House d'Espérance and their "Gundar-amite" allies break out amid the charity.
-
[In the high areas of the Quartier Marchand, intense chanting can be heard in the faint recesses of the Publique. Red mists and a circle with several bodies are strewn about within it, and in its center a grotesque pile of brains. At the height of the moon in the witching hour, there was a scream. Then, silence — a silence strong enough to wound the mind with infinite possibilities.]
(https://i.gyazo.com/a0d2940c9a9a6a5b5b78f99110976c05.png)
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Shortly after the scream a tired-looking Halfling woman in casual attire arrived upon the scene with a small contingent of uniformed Gendarmes. She set them to work immediately: collecting and documenting the evidence, removing the bodies, and cleaning up the crime scene in a quick and orderly fashion. Before sunrise the detachment departed again, back to the Gendarmerie, bodies and evidence in tow.
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[Word spreads of Captain Carina Glaese being released from the Gendarmerie's custody, with word spreading that the once thought dead magistrate Gaston de la Vigne ordered the case to be dismissed. The same Gaston de la Vigne who let the pretender Voclain get away with the murder of a journalist working for L'Observateur; the same Gaston de la Vigne who rendered the bizarre verdict for the woman who is now Agnès de Mortigny, Duchesse d'Ameranthe; having been reportedly dragged from his home in the dead of night, he is now back where he once stood...]
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In the early morning hours, a man in a brown leather trench coat could seen scrambling from nook to cranny, alleyway to alcove, dropping lyrics for some sort of chant or song as he went. They read as follows...
One, Two, Three, Four! WE'RE NOT GOING TO TAKE IT ANYMORE!
Five, Six, Seven, Eight! WE WANT ANSWERS! SET THE RECORD STRAIGHT!
We're staying shut till we get paid, fewer hours, no more a slave! No more work till freedom is sung!
NO PEACE TILL VARTEUR'S KILLER IS HUNG!
-
A woman is seen carrying picnic equipment through the Marchand heading out the east gate and towards the shore. She begins setting up seeming to await others to follow her.
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In an odd situation the candidate for the council of Brilliance Phillberte Gatteux is seen with a travel bag and an annoyed expression boarding a riverboat destined for Richemulot
-
A young Mordentish woman with shock-white hair seems to work in and around Novak's rentals, often dressed in rugged tradesman's apron filled with tools, as she carries bundles of wood over her shoulder with another older looking gentleman up to the attic. The amount of lumber suggests there is a great deal of furnishings and renovations being done to the space. Rumor may have it that the woman does not intend to let the earnest attempt at a space for education to go to waste; it would seem that the "Light in the Attic" hasn't gone out just yet.
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A ship known as the Lady Von Zarovich slides into a berth of Port-a-Lucine, and the crew hurriedly sets to work shifting crates from the cargo hold to a wagon, and then on to the Government Food Providers of the Ouvrier. An adolescent boy also leaves the ship, dashing off to enter the presses for only a moment before returning.
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Rumor spreads of a kidnapping in the Quartier Marchand. The youngest daughter of the Duc de Chantres, Marion Lécuyer was seen leaving the bazaar with a guard escort laden with fireworks. She did not return to the upper class areas of the city. Later in the day, joint searches were conducted by the Gendarmerie and the Duc de Lécuyer himself, with numerous guards. A raid was even conducted on the mutinied sailor, leaving many sailors upset at the intrusion.
For now, her fate seems unknown.
-
A slight fellow has become a fixture along the quay. He meanders along the piers, taking notes as cargo vessels make berth. He also spends some time inspecting the fittings for the cranes and winches. A diminutive espionage agent, a ship fancier, or a dock officer? Surely not the latter; he'd be the laughing stock of salt-hardened sailors.
(https://i.imgur.com/vKPQb00.jpg)
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One Ouvrier nobody spreads the word at a few Ouvrier and Marchand drinking establishments that a "Lucien de Bellerose" is looking to donate money to widows and orphans of men lost to the sea and asks for documentation.
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The later afternoon of the docksides was interrupted as a scene involving the Gendarmerie Nationale and the newly risen head of the dock's union, Simon Brosse, with a great deal of noise.
There are vague mutterings among the sailors that he was unlawfully detained by the Gendarmerie as they failed to find their original target of Sacha Frelon. For whatever they may need these two individuals all of a sudden is not clear, but in the morning, Simon Brosse returned, working closely with his sailors, and despite lurid promises of a strike from him and the solidarity of sailors around him, there is none. Not yet at least.
It is very possible he is not afraid to rally the sailors as needed in future, but he keeps the docks steady with a grim expression; there is a lurking anger in his eyes clear as day for anyone to see as he goes about his work.
In lesser rumor, it seems there is a concerted effort of late that the docks are being outfitted with a wealth of lanterns by local means. Whether this has any effect on the criminals at large in the nights of course, is uncertain.
If they are knocked down, they are replaced in the mornings, as pointless it may seem against the tide of thugs, bootleggers, and smugglers alike.
-
[A series of hand-written posters, accompanied by a sketch of a young Souragnien woman can be found on the various noticeboards of Marchand and Ouvrier]
(https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/851839629555793980/866768066645327872/Untitled.png?width=353&height=447)
HAVE YOU SEEN MY SISTER?
Her name is Marisol.
Marisol is dearly missed by her entire family in Port d'Elhour, and was last seen departing on a ship bound for Port-à-Lucine.
Any substantial information about her whereabouts is welcome and will be rewarded!
Contact Miss Henrietta Voltaire at Jacques Roussin's Tenements, room 3.
-
In the dead of night, someone painted a wall in the Quartier Marchand. Although hurried, the piece managed to be effective. Above it, dripping in bold letters: "VENENUM".
(https://i.imgur.com/U5zcYp3.png)
A buxom lady of hoarfrost hair wielding frills, laughter, and a blood smeared bone-saw stands indomitable over a corpse. With one stiletto planted in its back she reveals too much stocking, as her pointed look all but says: "The doctor will see you now."
-
//WRONG QUARTIER//
-
During the morning two people a man and a woman can be seen follow the tracks of paint, the two follow the road walking towards the quartier ouvrier.
-
The Bounty Board of Quartier Marchand was vandalized last night with the following image:
REMEMBER VARTEUR AND PASS THE AMMUNITION
Canonized in fast strikes of oil paint is the likeness of Jacques Varteur. The dead diplomat is peaceful in repose and crowned with a brilliant sun disc. The true son of Leon. Red petals burst from a bullet wound in his chest.
-
A short-lived altercation colored the evening with sounds of struggle at the Broken Spire Inn. It ended when a pair of bluecoats emerged into the night air with a nobleman in shackles and another man in a dark suit who trailed behind. The prisoner's angered cries struck the windows of run-down Ouvrier residences all the way to the Gendarmerie, before going quiet.
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A Warden of Ezra with cheerful disposition is spied posting notices about the district; she greets all who she encounters, offers aide to those who appear to need it, and spends time offering healing and comforts to those that accept – at whatever cost to time and resource may be required. She encourages those that see her posting the notices to attend.
The notices indicate an upcoming Fifth Day Sermon (https://www.nwnravenloft.com/forum/index.php?topic=61261.0) to be held at the Ste. Mere – and identify the Warden as Abigail Shuttleworth, the woman holding the event.
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A group of suspiciously well-dressed individuals linger about, before boarding a ship and immediately setting sail.. they aren't seen for some time.
-
A handwritten posting is placed upon several notice boards and walls in the Quartier Marchand.
HIRING - Bodyguard
The Lueltar family seeks to hire an individual of martial prowess as a protective escort within the city of Lucine. Preference will be given to local applicants; however, anyone of polite disposition will be considered. Command of the Mordentish language is an asset, but not required.
Salary starts at 500 solars a week.
- Shrixenna of Lueltar
Broken Spire Inn
// OOC: send a message to Siobhan (https://www.nwnravenloft.com/forum/index.php?action=profile;u=7207) on the forums
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In the middle of the night, a white robed armored warrior with Ezra's own insigna can be seen, or even heard, fighting and yelling on top of the last terrace of the Quartier, next to the Cathedral's walls.
There, screeches, loud thuds, inhuman wails and lightning discharges can be seen even from far away, all clues that it is not with ruffians he is fighting with.
-
Far from Maison da la Vue, the city's dockworkers and sweatshop toilers hear and care little of the excess of the rich and noble as the Lady-Governor's Fete occurs across the water. Word spreads, however, of an announcement from the Lady-Governor herself; the outcome of a joint investigation between Dementlieu's Gendarmerie Nationale and its institutions of justice to uncover the murderer of former Councilor Josephine Chantreaux, prior to the Revolution of 770. The declaration that slain Ouvrier-folk hero Guy Maurice pulled the trigger sends waves of anger throughout the city's Falkovnian refugee population, many of whom owe Chantreaux their lives and the lives of their children. Scattered brawls break out between hawk-branded workers and Maurice's native supporters, with a handful of stabbings and beatings resulting in bodies in alleyways on either side of the disagreement.
-
Warehouse 3 sees a flurry of activity as artisans set to work. Within hours after they leave, the smell of smoked meat wafts from the building.
-
A great smear of graffiti is left behind in the Marchand, a tied and executed body of a gang-member beneath it.
(https://i.imgur.com/NYdLZQo.png)
(https://i.imgur.com/xvKFjx6.png)
-
[During some previous nights, the Marchand specifically sees some sporadic gunpowder blasts and shrapnel, leaving dead and wounded thugs and bullies. Someone is testing trap based ordinance]
-
[During the last few evenings, the Olive or Twist has seen more activity than usual, guests coming and going and laughter to be heard from the establishment. However at times, the noises abruptly ended. At the break of dawn, a well dressed halfling could be seen roaming the alley in front of the bar, somewhat aimlessly, staring at the dead bodies of thugs outside]
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The tranquillity of the day in the Quartier Marchand is shattered by the sound of arguing voices, then several shots fired, likely from one of the upper floors of Novak's Rentals. True to the Marchand's character, few people react to this.
The off-duty gendarme Dorian de Sauvre is then seen entering Novak Rentals. He runs out a few moments later, blowing a whistle and flagging down a pair of Gendarmes, before leading them back again into Novak's.
A while later, he is seen leading a distraught-looking Madeleine Voland out of Novak's, towards the Quartier Publique. The two Gendarmes exit a while later, carrying a large, mutated humanoid body between them...
-
The weather in the Baie is rough this morning, a strong gale blowing in from the west that makes prudent captains forestall setting their sails, at least for the day. Thunder rolls south of Pierre du Morte, the flashes of lightning illuminating in miniature through fog and the distance of leagues all the way to the docks of Port-a-Lucine. The folk of the Marchand shake their head at the disruption to business, and a few others say a prayer for whatever fresh misery the storm might bring for the huddled masses within Dementlieu's island prison.
-
The Harlot's Razor, having limped back to safe harbor after last month's storm, finishes her repairs and sets right out to sea. A handful off mercenaries joins her, and whispers along the docks say the Red Vardo Traders have struck some accord with Captain Gamelet Deneuve that will secure a tidy windfall for both the Traders and the Razor's crew. They return the following evening, the crew somber faced and the red-and-black clad traders as inscrutable as ever. More notable is the malnourished and broken assemblage of humanity disgorged by the vessel. These unfortunates are feted and have their wounds looked to at the headquarters of the Red Vardo Traders, and those with families recount a tale of enslavement and abuse at the hands of criminals unknown. Florence Clémenceau herself sees the rescued common folk of the city escorted to the Gendarmerie to recount their tales in the coming days, and a surge of goodwill to House Clemenceau and her crimson-and-black clad retainers swells in the city, at least for the moment.
-
A letter, written in neat but concise handwriting, is left addressed to a Mr Delmar in the Red Vardo's shop.
-
[Recruitment posters begin popping up about the Quartier Marchand as a Gendarme recruitment official sweeps through the streets laden with stacks of paper]
(https://i.imgur.com/lEIyYcX.png)
//placed in game
-
Panic sets in among a subset of moneylenders, merchants, and traders in the Quartier Marchand when news breaks that a large shipment of Bellegarde Consortium goods was lost to bandits while traveling south to the city of Mortigny, vanished beneath the trees of the Champs Silencieux. A half dozen Bellegarde men are reputed to have been killed, among them a handful amateur agents and notable one promising company man. His wife is reputed to have had the foresight to find herself in the arms of a son of boardmember Johan Phfalz, whispered to have been seeking solace for her grief for a week before her beloved husband's death. Alarm among investors is short-lived, as promises and guarantees made on the trade result in only a small loss of capital despite the magnitude of the missing shipment.
-
An elven woman astride a horse and wearing the insignia of the Bitter Flame mercenary company on her mail passes through the city's western gates. The Gendarmes posted there take little notice amid the heavy daylight traffic of wagons, toilers, and merchants, but her passage sparks one or two curious speculative tales among the dock workers of the Widow's Walk.
-
A small band of people in colourful uniforms that mimic the People's National Army uniforms of the old revolution were rumoured to have gathered in the Broken Spire. Curious denizens noted they seemed to be looking for Dementlieuse nationals with 'The spirit of 770' to fight a just cause abroad.
-
Lanterne d'Espoir in the Quartier Marchand is swarmed by a half-dozen government officials from the Department of Public Institutions, headed by none other than Councilor Wymmer Drukker himself. The Lamordian docteur wastes no time in inspecting the grounds of the building before affixing a seal-stamped notice to the door personally. He's then trundled off by carriage to continue his work of ensuring the safety and and well-being of the city's downtrodden and destitute.
-
Setting out to it's monthly voyage from Port-A-Lucine, Private Trade Vessel - The Green Monarch set sail on the 10th Month, 2nd Day, Year 777 to it's intended destination of Blaustein before meeting her ill-fate near the skirt of the Sea of Sorrows. As of this date, only one of it's crew was found adrift amongst the remains of wood that had splintered from it's hull and lives to recount the tale. Picked up by a Mordentish Trade Vessel, the crewman has been returned to Port-A-Lucine and as of the 3rd Day, nothing further has been said for mention.
(https://c4.wallpaperflare.com/wallpaper/987/922/437/artwork-fantasy-art-rain-sea-wallpaper-preview.jpg)
[Captain, Corbin Huett] - DEAD/MISSING
[First Mate, Donald Morman]- DEAD/MISSING
[Cabin Doctor, Heinrich Moufwell] - DEAD/MISSING
[Quartermaster, Henry Wyatt] - DEAD/MISSING
[Chef, Big Wiggus] - DEAD/MISSING
[The Green Monarch Crew, 43 Men save for one that survived] - DEAD/MISSING
[Guests/Passengers, last recounted being 6 in total] - DEAD/MISSING
Those who's lives were lost to the Sea of Sorrows, shall be remembered by drink and tale. It is said the Green Monarch was attacked by a large beast, bearing six arms and came upon the vessel during a shroud of fog and bad stormy weather, of those on board, the passengers gave their lives to fighting to the last man as the ship was struck three times, the last hit splitting it down and dragging it to the bottom of the cold icy depths. The Beast will bear the wounds of one shot of cannon fire, before it won it's day.
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The coming and going of the Trade and Commerce Advisor to the docks and workhouses of the lower two quartiers is not so strange a sight as to cause a stir, but today his visit to the Red Vardo Traders with a small contingent of Palais bureaucrats, gendarmes, and his personal retinue draws eyes and puts tongues to whispering. Despite arriving in force, Councilor Andrei Palascu enters what is effectively the seat of power for House Clemenceau alone. When he departs, some minutes later, it is with a jaunty step and a whistle upon his lips. His wandering eye towards the mesdames of the Quartier and his casual air belies what the soldiers and taxmen in his company make obvious; this was official Palais Dirigeant business.
-
[Various pieces of furniture, regal-looking carpets, suits of armor looking slightly dated by Dementlieuse standards and still more can be seen being carried inside the warehouse that once housed L’Oiseau Bleu. Once the laborers have successfully moved everything in, a banner is unfurled just outside the door leading in, depicting a serpent with white and black stripes on a field of burgundy flanked by nine stars.]
(https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/725837263896051823/1050039092508889138/0f78226424d1dd0a5c5034f59b60d7ea.png)
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Some days after its departure, Le Délice, a Bellegarde ship captained by Esther-Chétienne Abbadie limps back into Port-a-Lucine. Its sails are badly ravaged, and it's clear by its exhausted and bedraggled crew that ship has been through mist-wreathed hells and back. It becomes apparent, however, that its ungainly arrival is not alone a matter of frayed lines and a skeleton crew. When the Bellegarde crewmen come ashore, they unload an over-stuffed hold's worth of rice and with it, delicacies; barrels of strange shellfish, eels, squids, crates of exotic fruits like persimmons and loquats, fine hinoki chests of spices and sauces the defy description to the Dementlieuse pallet. After that comes the silks and teas, and then the jewels; pearls and jade. Generous payments are distributed to the widows and children of those common men who did not survive the journey, but for the nobility and their merchant friends, Rokushima Táiyoo has relinquished a vast trove of reward through the Way of Venomous Tears.
-
Word gets around that a diminutive man approached the butcher in the Grand Bazaar, and placed an order for a bucket of sheep eyes, of all things. How grotesque! Is this man involved in the occult...?
-
[A note is affixed to the door of the freshly-minted Borcan consulate, reading as follows:]
Due to ongoing security concerns, all meetings with the Consul and her staff will occur on the grounds of the consulate and nowhere else, until further notice. Those who wish to meet with the Consul are advised to to arrange an appointment ahead of time, as walk-ins of those who are not vetted may be turned away at the door.
Thank you for your understanding, and Ezra's blessings upon you.
-
During the evening a blonde woman steps in to the Fantaisies Luciniennes Cabaret, she spends the evening enjoying the ambiance before handing a letter off to the bartender on her way out.
-
The Captain of the Silent Fields, Baudouin de Courcillon, is seen entering the city from the East accompanied by a Borcan Condottieri, a member of the Company of the Bridge, and a small retinue of retainers that have clearly seen battle. In their care is a line of seven Dwarves and one man of Vaasi descent, chained in irons. The group is marched directly toward the Gendarmerie Nationale. He and his retinue are greeted with loud cheers, and many a drink is lifted in toast to his name.
-
A flurry of activity has overtaken the attic of Novak's Rentals. Furniture and all manners of tomes, new and old alike, come and go at all appropriate hours. When the doors close at dusk the sounds of labor still carry softly down to the common space below. A simple notice hung at the entrance warns of the ongoing renovations and promises the opening of some new enterprise shortly.
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A line of candles is laid down along the docks in the middle of the night. They wind their way through the streets up to the attic of Novak's Rentals. There the door hangs wide, a soft illusory fog drifting down the stairs. At the top, half visible through the mist hangs a sign naming the enterprise, 'The Lodge of Veiled Truths.' It seems the unseen proprietor had opted for a soft opening, lacking any pomp or fanfare.
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[Amongst the rough and ready streets of the Quartier Marchand, The one-eyed Gendarme, Caporal Corbeau can be seen plastering a new recruitment poster onto prominant noticeboards.]
(https://i.imgur.com/BtkYfII.png)
The Gendarmerie de la Nationale seeks any able-bodied men & women to serve in the nations military forces. Protect your home and family the right way. Defend your nation and it's people from the dreaded enemy of the east! Don't let our Serene Republique fall to bloodthirsty monsters!
Receive a steady wage, get fed well, earn respect and learn valuable skills!
The Gendarmerie de la Nationale wants
YOU.
Pour la République,
⚜ THE GENDARMERIE NATIONALE DE DEMENTLIEU ⚜
-
During the hours of the late night, a cacophony of booming arcane magics and clashing blades echoes throughout the cobbled streets. Some dastardly altercation or another is said to have taken place within the Quartier Marchand, beyond the usual skulduggery and thuggery that one might otherwise dismiss. The details remain hazy, whispers chaining from one circle to the next, but the fumes of long burnt-out fire, seething acid and streaks of blood mark the pavement in vibrant, yet morbid patterns.
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A red-haired noblewoman is seen accompanied by two Red Vardo Agents as she goes on a recruitment drive around the more impoverished places around the city. In the early morning, she stops by the Mutinied Sailor. A palpable tension could be felt in the air, with double-edged words seeming aimed between them and a Bellegarde Trading Consortium sponsored grouping to the Isle of Markovia. After a routine speech, the Red Vardo Traders left the establishment and continued putting recruitment posters up throughout the Quartier Marchand and into the Quartier Ouvrier.
[Notices go up around Port-à-Lucine, with focus in the Quartiers Ouvrier and Marchand.]
(https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/1006454187174924359/1078785440645128192/EastVardoCompany.png?width=422&height=676)
| | JOIN THE RED VARDO TRADERS!
The Red Vardo Traders are seeking able-bodied men and women in Dementlieu and abroad. We are seeking mechanists, salvagers, solicitors, and others who might fit the criteria of becoming an agent in our Dementlieuse branch office in Port-à-Lucine. Steady wages and rewards are offered to those who perform exceptionally.
Additionally, we are accepting offers and pitches for investment ideas and patronage without the commitment of membership. Those seeking help in financing their hopes and dreams for a greater tomorrow in our Serene Republic can schedule an appointment with agent.
Those interested should write to Lt. Delmar or Mlle. Éléonore Ambroiseux at the Red Vardo Traders office in the Quartier Marchand.
RECRUITMENT BONUSES
The Red Vardo Traders are offering special bonuses for those who are successfully inducted and reach the rank of agent...
For ALL prospects who successfully becomes an agent:
- 10,000 solar bonus for any local Dementlieuse citizen
- Recommendation for citizenship for exceptional foreigners after at least three months
- Sponsorship and a full undergraduate scholarship to the University of Dementlieu
For solicitors or aspiring solicitors who become an agent:
- 20,000 solar additional sign on bonus
- Sponsorship and a full scholarship to the University of Dementlieu for both undergraduate and postgraduate studies
|
Red Vardo Traders — Dementlieu, Port-á-Lucine Branch
(https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/1006454187174924359/1019002161373401109/rvt2-inverted.png?width=676&height=676)
|
-
[as the Harlot's Razor reaches the Harbor during a quiet evening, three figures clad in red and black step outside, one of them being considerably shorter. Shortly after they return with a group of similarly dressed figures, assisting the ship's crew in unloading several crates. A few are promptly shipped to other parts of Dementlieu, while several make their way to the warehouse of the Red Vardo Traders in Quartier Marchand. The crates bear the mark of the merchantile association.]
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Chanting in a strange, foreign, tongue can be heard echoing about the streets of the Marchand in the dead of night. Odd flashes of red discolor the night sky. The remains of a Gendarme are found before dawn, by a trio of people. The body has had its organs removed and preserved in make-shift canopic jars.
Whatever was responsible for the bizarre scene appears to have failed.
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Fire guts a building in the Quartier Marchand. The building seemed abandoned, and the locals work to protect the other houses surrounding it. What started the fire? No-one knows.
(https://i.imgur.com/bIlv3OX.png)
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The night's gang warfare brings an unusual crescendo of viciousness, with even more dead bodies greeting the dawn sun than usual. What sense does this violence serve? Or is it all indeed senseless, killing for killing's sake?...
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The sun rises on another trio of grisly murders; this time three innocents' bodies lie outside the food bank...
(https://i.imgur.com/n6aRWnR.png)
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The sign for La Dama di Porcellana is removed. Additionally, it can be seen that several items are being removed from the location. It remains locked up tight. Additionally, posters previously made for Chess Socials and Book Clubs with the venue's name upon them, are removed from where they were posted. It would appear that the establishment as it was once known, is proceeding to its next chapter.
... With a new front door to begin with, to remove some unsightly scratches.
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[a commotion is said to have occurred in the evening hours at the Bullseye tavern in the Marchand. A smartly dressed Mordentish gentleman is said to have clutched at his face, screaming in pain, after a container of liquid was splashed at him by a foreigner, who he was previously conversing with at a table. There are swirled rumors that the liquid caused the Mordentish man's skin to sizzle and smoke alarmingly, burning his flesh. Cries of "Acid" and, "Assassin", were said to be heard from the Mordentish gentleman.
A pair of apparent bystanders evidently attempted to rush to aid the Mordentish man, but he fled from the tavern into the night, screaming in evident agony.]
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A group of investigators are seen coming across a grizzly scene in the Quartier Marchand, pausing briefly to speak with the Gendarme on duty..
(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1107123931678261338/1110073227381846067/image.png)
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The ragged form of Sieur Basile Corbeau is seen in the presence of several people alongside the Marquise de Givremont and two civilians, badly wounded and covered in make-shift bandages which appear to have been made of his own uniform. He stiffly nods to any and all who view his current appearance with trepidation and concern, marching towards the direction of the Gendarmerie..
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An explosion rocks the Docks just after night fall: a ship is seriously damaged. Two members of the night watch crew are killed. The cargo, fish from Lamordia, had already been unloaded during the day...
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A patrol of Gendarme into Marchand during the small hours of the morning following the explosion to take stock. Access to the damaged pier and ship is quickly blocked with chevals and red tape as the Gendarmerie National investigate the cause. The Deputy Coroner picked bits of salvage and remains from the wreckage like a vulture, bringing them back to the Gendarmerie for investigation.
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Some shots echo through the Quartier Marchand. What's unusual is that it's not coming from the Rue des Pistolets. Gendarmerie Patrols find only a pool of blood, and no body...
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Two women wearing blue are repeatedly seen going back and forth with heavy crates and carts in the second warehouse, which seems to have recently acquired a new owner. Only a blue bird symbol is left on a sign outside the door.
(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1138639850266968105/1141536855238643793/24b07c0b5becfae424be6d62525417ac.png)
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Boxes and the like are seen being moved out of the Mutinied Sailor, with some time after new crates of items being moved inside.
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Once more, the De Sauvre foundation does the rounds, buying up debt contracts from the city's least well-off in order to forgive them. Rumours speak of dozens of contracts being bought up and torn up, freeing many families from the shackles of wage-slavery.
Yet this generosity does little to change the fundamentals of the city, and the families freed today remain in the same circumstances that saw them entrapped before...
((Approved by DM Erebus!))
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A young man, toting about a stack of papers, is said to have been asking around the presses for a group that meets within.
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Even more crates, and now marble stone are seen being moved into the basement of the Mutinied Sailor. Clearly some heavy work was being done within the basement, based off of the noise coming from the depths of it.
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A large squad of Gendarmes is seen entering Warehouse #1 in the Quartier Marchand. Later, they exit; and the door is boarded up...
(https://i.imgur.com/QCWgFRP.png)
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A note is pinned to the door of Warehouse #2.
To the leaseholder of Warehouse #2,
Please contact Lt. Dorian de Sauvre at the Gendarmerie Nationale to register your business or public interest.
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As the day wears on, activity starts to flourish around Warehouse One as cleaners, movers, and builders move in and out of the warehouse, directed by a woman with wine-red hair. Seems the warehouse has a new owner, though it remains to be seen what she will use it for.
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[Some sailors among the Marchand speak of having seen a ridiculous drunken scene one morning. Apparently coming from L'Artiste, a blonde and tall woman hoisted a short man in a purple cape over her shoulder, all the way up to the Broken Spire. Some call them foolish, others worse, and others yet laugh about it.]
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[Just before dawn, in rapid successions, sounds of explosions and flashes of light are perceived near the docks. The ordeal doesn't last a minute. Those who dared to peek through their windows swear they saw a short individual enshrouded in dark magics. In the morning, those who arrive in the area find the cobblestones under the ramp that ascends to the gates to be scorched. Small fragments of gravestones and tiny stone debris are left scattered over and around the marks, something was blown to pieces. Thankfully no structure receive any blast damage. On the docks itself two creatures known as "Reavers" were found cut asunder.]
((Didn't leave a proper mark at the spot, apologies.))
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A submission is left in the dropbox of the Society of the Erudite by a notably dark-skinned elf. They do not stay for long.
(https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1058277806221561948/1194448861905817690/6ebb99780083e23c999b92aa346ee926.png?ex=65b06430&is=659def30&hm=f508065e1e75a8a4fdad1ddf1241428f24d90cbd118ecebaf55dfb1f6ce679d4&)