Zoo

A multitude of animals are caged up here, some of which you recognize - the mountain bear, unicorn, and water snake - whereas others are bizarre beyond belief. One thing with three too many heads hisses at you menacingly and in the adjacent cage, something that looks like a bright yellow hydra is sleeping. You notice empty cages and walk up to them to inspect them. It would appear that the inhabitants of these cages were eaten somehow. Looking around, you see a massive lizard, close to the size of a dragon. Tapping on the glass of its cage, you startle it awake. A massive, rope like tongue whips out towards you, only to hit the glass. Looking carefully at the framing, you can see holes where bars might once have been. You can only assume that this is what ate the others.

Valrae is arguing with the zookeeper. He seems frustrated, his face red under the large patch of facial hair that covers the top of his lip. The woman is gesturing to the bear cub cage, her blonde curls swaying with the movement, with her voice rising enough to have a small group of people turning to watch as they pass. The air reeks of animal refuse and too many human bodies. The sun was hot above the crowd, small windows of relief came only when fat white clouds lazied by. Most of the animals were hidden away in the shade of their enclosure, if they were lucky enough to have any. The witch was demanding to know why the bear cub had an injury, one that was obviously going untreated, and why his cage was allowed to stay so filthy. She was so busy giving the man hell she wouldn't have remembered to keep her eye on the person who had been shadowing her steps. He was average looking enough, with short blonde hair and a face that needed a bit of a trim. He was younger too. He dressed plainly, could blend into the crowd of civilians easily. To the untrained or careless eye, he was an ordinary man watching a woman berate the zookeeper for the poor state of his charges. But, if you were looking closely you might notice the way he stood was rigid, his hands clasped behind his back and his shoulders straight. His brown gaze was hawkish. This man was either a solider or a guard, someone with formal training.

Blut was trailing Valrae for a while now previously from rooftop but now on ground. It would be impossible to identify the assassin without the ability to see through illusions due to the fact he constantly swapped faces and clothes when he entered a blind spot through the people. He would enter a blind spot every so often and in that moment his would change without suspision of being the person before. Blut used a old survey technique to identify shadows he serveyed the area around Valrae up to 20 meters anyone suspisious would be instantly marked and anyone who stayed within the 20 meters would be marked until they left or interacted in a friendly fashion with the target. Blut had his eye on this man for a while now but he stayed atleast 10 meters away from both Valrae and her stalker.

Valrae is too busy arguing to notice the man following her, let alone Blut. As it were, the man tailing her was too busy laughing at the look on the baffled Zookeeper's face to notice him either. Jasper was his name. He's been following Valrae for somewhere close to a week. He's seen her going to work, in her home, shopping alone or with friends. He saw her going into a bar with an unfamiliar woman but that was the only mildly suspicious behavior he'd noticed from the woman. He knew other things now, things that wouldn't actually be of any use to his employer. He knew that she woke early, sometimes before the sun. He knew that she always had tea with her breakfast and that she never ate meat. He knew that she was early for work and sometimes the last to leave. He knew that she always carried at least two books with her, one for reading that changed with the days and the other for spells, and that when she was reading them her brows would pull together in concentration. Now, under the hot sun and in the middle of the sweating crowd he knew that she was quick-tempered. He pulled a small notepad, one that held the Larket guard's crest on it's black outer cover, from his pocket and flipped it open. He un-tucked the charcoal pencil from his ear and scribbled a few notes. No, the queen wouldn't be very impressed with his notes. So far, Valrae was a witch clean of all criminal or even vaguely suspicious activity. Maybe too clean.

Blut noticed the notebook which solidified his suspisions he never left susspision range and now he was noteing things downs. Blut identified the stalker however he was informed not to engage this man nor to let him find out that he was being shadowed himself. Blut circled round the crowd before walking through a public blind spot where he changed into a very convinseing disguise the face and clothes of the private larket detective Ariendle Frostbane as he walked over to the location of the stalker. He tapped the man on the sholder and held out his badge "Private detective of Larket I would like to ask you some questions." Blut asked in his most cencire voice if the man meet Ariendal in the past he would be pretty convinsed as Blut was a splitting image of the man. The voice was identical as well.

Jasper jolted at the man's voice. He'd been too busy with his notes to notice his approach and he was recovering now, running a hand through his hair and keeping his chin down to hide his embarrassment. "Ah, excuse me?" He asks. He's never met Ariendal so with no truth to compare it too Blut's disguise seems to be the truth. "What can I help you with detective?" He gives the man a once over and then his gaze slips over his shoulder, to where Valrae was. The witch had apparently come to an agreement or impasse with the Zookeeper and was weaving through the crowd away from him. Jasper snaps his note book closed, sighing in frustration.

Blut smiled "sorry just a few moments of time I'm sure your a busy man. Now I wish to know have you seen anyone with suspisious behaviour in the local area. Perhaps seen anyone akin to these two" Blut held up his note book showing a picture of a criminal pair that was killed years ago in Cenril. "Any information would be a great asset to the delivery of justice in our fair city." Blut asked perpously stallking paying close attention to the mans behaviour.

Jasper manages to pull his eyes away from the retreating sight of Valrae's golden head and look at the pictures the detective holds aloft. He scratches the days old scruff on his face. "Uh, I can't say I have." He answers, a little quickly. He shoves the notebook back in his pocket, his hands follow. "Look, I wish I could help you more but I'm in the middle of a job myself man. They've got me keeping an eye on one of those witches, right?" He gives Blut, who he thinks is another man working on the front-lines for the crown, a long-suffering smile. "I guess they think she's involved with that stuff going on with the protests or something." He shrugs. "Between you and me, I think that's bull. She's okay to look at but pretty damn boring."

Blut sighed as he shook his head "Damn it I didn't know. Sorry for interupting your work." Blut flipped his notebook to a different page as he smiled " but damn do I get you." Blut sighed and shakeing his head and looking at him with a warming smile "the things we do for the crown. Say maybe you can give me your name and I treat you to a drink later." Blut asked with a short chuckle.

Jasper shares the smile, even gives a short laugh. "It's alright, man." He offers his hand. "You had no way of knowing. I'll just catch her back at her home." If they shake hands or not, he puts it back in his pocket. "It's Jasper, Jasper Isles." The young man sticks the charcoal pencil back behind his ear. "I'm sure I'll see you around." He steps around Blut and starts off in the direction Valrae had went.

Blut smirks as the man walks around his as he sneaks a bronze coin into the mans pockets. Even if the man noticed that Blut snuck that in there Blut would have already got a new disguise and disappeared into the crowd. If one were to look at the coin it would look like a regular bronze coin but on the rim were runes that leached off the coin and after half a hour the runes would be imprented on the inside of the mans coat . The runes can be used to guide a compase the resources of the mage guild comeing being very helpful in its creation. With this incantation it can lead a specially enchanted compass to his location. Blut continued his way back to cenril to report back to Leoxander.

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RP:Working Class Hero

Zoo