Prison Break (Open to Two)

[Gordie]

"Just what the fuck is going on? Out with it already man." Alberdyne said and waited for a response.

The response the young smith got was not the one he expected. The keener hearing of the shapeshifter picked up the urgency in the guards' voices. Bottlebrush had spoken up in the slight lull, his back still making him look like he was dealing with the small child.

"If the matter is urgent, give me a moment, and I will lead you to a more private room, squires." The young shapeshifter extended his hand toward the door behind the bar, before directing the young child out the door. After he saw the child and his guardian leave, he led the trio, two guards and apprentice smith, into the storeroom behind the bar. The quartet of people entered the stores room, which had a pair of chairs, as well as a straw matress in one corner of the room. A small table, big enough for what would seem as a small child, maybe of about ten or eleven. On the small, straw, mattress was a threadbare blanket.

[Alberdyne_Cormyr]

Dyne listened to Bottlebrush for a moment and nodded. The information that these people had for him was probably really serious. Dyne looked at the troubled guards and sighed for a moment, then he went over towards heading in the general direction that Bottlebrush pointed towards. "All right let's be quick about this, I'm sure you gentlemen are rather busy tonight. I don't want to take your time up." Dyne said as he walked towards the empty room. The guards followed and closed the door behind them. Only one of the guards entered the room with Dyne.

The man was considerably taller than Dyne was. He saw that the man had sharp facial features, tightly cropped black hair that was also slicked back, and brown eyes. His hair was damp with rain and sweat. Dyne also noticed that the guard had a thick beard. On his chest he wore the symbols of the Corone Armed Forces. He appeared to be heavily armed and prepared for a long excursion away from home. Under his eyes was a thick trail of crow's feet. Dyne had a funny feeling that the man hadn't slept in days.

Turning his attention towards the guard, Dyne folded his arm across his chest and prepared to receive the dreaded news. "What's the news of the hour then?" He asked of the guard a certain amount of audible respect in his voice. Only just so. Dyne noticed that for a moment the man simply just stood there as if listening to something very far away. "I don't have a lot of time." The man began. "Dangerous times are coming to Corone. As you know the nation is enveloped in a Civil War." The man said. "There will always be casualties as long as the Civil War continues." Dyne frowned at that series of words. "Hear me out. Your Master, Krugor Hakhim has become one of the latest casualties of the Civil War."

"What!? When!?" Dyne suddenly yelled loudly so all could hear that were present in the Tavern. A sudden sense of foreboding gripped his intestines and refused to let go. "Tonight. While you've been here. Someone is beginning to target the most skilled craftsmen of the Empire. I need to put you under protective custody." Dyne shook his head upon hearing that. "I'm no coward. If someone is targeting craft people then that's your job to protect us." Dyne said harshly. Seeing the man's facial expression change to a grim one, the psionic bit his tongue. "What do you know?" Dyne asked. "Not a whole lot. His body has been found in a poor condition. There are no suspects. He was ripped to pieces...nobody is stepping forward to claim responsibility. We haven't ruled out the Corone Rangers as possible suspect." Shaking his head, Dyne looked at the man. "The Corone Rangers are defenders of the people! They would never harm a tradesman like my master." Sensing the tension in the room, Dyne decided to drop the subject. "Who knows of Krugor's death? Has his family been notified yet?"

"A secret dispatch has been sent. You were contacted because you are one of Krugor Hakhim's top apprentices. You know him quite well in life. You will be invaluable in help us solve this case. The Corone Armed Forces will protect you when it can." Listening Dyne laughed at that. "Protect me!? You can't even protect yourselves. You're not welcome here sir, you've over stayed your welcome. Don't bother me again." Dyne yelled and began to leave the room. Reacting, Dyne felt the man place a powerful hand on his shoulder. "Stop. I truly speak in jest. Your master must've meant a lot to you. I am sorry for your loss. If you want to help us apprehend the people responsible for your master's death please contact me again. I can always be found at the City Barracks when I'm in town." Letting Dyne's shoulder go, the man began to walk in front of the youth and opened the door to take his leave. "Dyne. If I were you I'd be careful about which side I chose for during this Civil War." The man said with a dark grin, and left. Dyne, spat on the ground but absorbed everything that was just said to him. He could do nothing more and went to his room to call it a night. His head was filled with dark thoughts.

[Gordie]

Standing there, watching all this, the young shapechanger just chuffed at the retreating guard. "Be wary, soldier," he muttered in a very low voice. "There are enemies far closer to you than you believe." Bottlebrush turned to the young smith whom had stayed beside the bartender for most of the interaction.

The young shapechanger had nearly attacked the guard purely out of spite, and that would have caused an even bigger scene than Alberdyne did with the guards. "How about," Bottlebrush piped up cheerfully, his human features taking on a slightly feline look in that particular light, "we get you another Vanilla tea, on the house, and celebrate your master's life." The young shapeshifter casually led the younger smith out of the room, and back into the main tavern.

[Alberdyne_Cormyr]

Dyne marveled at how Bottlebrush seemed to always be there at opportune moments. Thoughts passed through the youth's head as he considered his master's life. The youth felt like crying and falling asleep. He'd just learned that the man he'd considered a second Father had passed and the C.A.F. needed his help in solving the case. Dyne knew the time would have to come when he align himself with the C.A.F. They appeared to be the overwhelming power in the current war for Corone. Dyne just wanted to avoid everything about the war, but it was obvious that he couldn't at this point.

Listening to Bottlebrush's offer, the youth nodded. He felt completely numb at the weight of the news he'd just been given. It seemed impossible to him that his friend and teacher was gone. Now a member of the Antifirmanent, the man's brilliant life was forever snuffed out by a mysterious party. He wanted to blame somebody, even the C.A.F. for the murder. Dyne shook his head for a moment. He looked down at Bottlebrush as he clenched his teeth. "Some tea would probably be a big help." That's when he finally broke down.

Tears started to stream down his face. Images of the time spent with Krugor Hakhim flashed across his head. He placed his hand against a wall as he cursed out loud to nobody in particular. The youth closed his eyes as tears flowed down his face and he broke down sobbing before he even realized what was happen. Though he was an apprentice blacksmith, he was still a "normal" 18 year old youth. Dyne clutched at the wall for a moment as he stared directly in front of him.

Once he'd regained his composure, but still kept crying, the youth walked over to an empty table. Sitting down, he put his head on the table and began to openly weep. The youth did not notice, nor care, that several of the tavern patrons were looking in his general direction. Alberdyne Cormyr lost one of the most precious people to him that day, and he knew that there would come a time to mourn. Dyne wondered vaguely how the loss would affect his job.

[Gordie]

Bottlebrush watched closely as the younger apprentice mournfully stumbled over to a nearby table, barely concealed tears streaming down his youthfull face. The young shapeshifter watched in awe as alien thoughts came pouring into his mind from places even he didnt know existed.

Bottlebrush knew that part of Dyne's heritage was tied to the Corone Rangers, and his contact had said they'd pay triple his current income, why not share some of that wealth.

The young shapeshifter walked over to the waitess that was working with him. "Lucy" Bottlebrush spoke in a lower tone, "The young man over there just lost someone dear to him." The thirty-something woman looked shocked and stared over at Dyne, who was now openly crying at the empty table. "See to it that he gets whatever he needs, on the house. Use my tab if you feel it's necessary." The older waitress nodded sympathetically, still staring at the blubbering apprentice smith, as the bartender walked back behind the bar, putting a pot of water on the black-iron wood stove once he got there.

[Alberdyne_Cormyr]

Alberdyne Cormyr thought of his master for a long moment. As he thought about him, recollections passed through his immediate memory. Each of the recollections was a precious gem to the youth. More valuable than any of the Thaynes' Artifacts. To Dyne, he'd lost a second Father, a friend, and a teacher. Most importantly, he lost a teacher. Krugor Hakhim was known as an esteemed gentleman in Radasanth proper. Dyne's family knew that to be the truth. In underground networks, Krugor Hakhim's works were requested by the members Radasanth's leadership body. Dyne knew that the man had reached the esteemed rank of Mastersmith by the time he was forty years of age. From Dyne's understandings, the man smithed objects of war and destruction ever since then. Having close ties to the Corone Empire, Dyne could recall times when his Father, Melothac Cormyr, and Krugor Hakhim had vicious arguments about current events and politics. Dyne just wanted the two most important people in his life to get along. Despite these fights, Melothac Cormyr and Krugor Hakhim had developed a relationship that was going strong for many years.

Alberdyne Cormyr knew that to be true. It was the relationships that bound everyone to six degrees of separation. Observing from afar, Alberdyne Cormyr could only watch the ups and down of the relationship. As his memories flowed, he found himself remembering various matters of the man's life. Dyne wanted to celebrate the man's life, but the youth could not stop crying. He'd been through a lot in the past few years whilst he attempted to become a skill Blacksmith himself.

Dyne could see dark spots of his tears on his clothing and on the table beneath him. After about half an hour, he felt a warm hand upon his shoulder. Blinking the tears away, Dyne sat up and wiped his eyes. He had crow's feet under his eyes and they were puffy from crying. At the end of the day he was just a kid that lost someone very dear to him. Looking at the woman, Lucy, Dyne sighed heavily. "I-I'm sorry. I lost someone very close to me. They think it was murder." Dyne said calmly, deathly calm. The last word was pronounced very deliberately.

Lucy's eyes went wide and she sat down next to him. Dyne flinched visibly when she took his hands into her own but did nothing to stop her. His head was still overflowing with memories. He could have sworn he sensed Krugor Hakhim's presence in the room there with him. The youth looked around but saw nothing. At least not yet. Dyne was too preoccupied with the moment at hand, the initial loss of his mentor. Dyne's lips trembled as he thought about the situation further. His eyes quivered, but he held fast and strong.

He knew that his mentor would want him to be strong. He looked at Lucy for a moment as he regained his composure. "Is that tea ready? I could use a drink." Dyne said calmly. His voice broke as he spoke, and his memories were fresh in his head.

[Toy Soldier]

Tobias leaned against the outside wall of the tavern, standing underneath a makeshift awning in the alley that barely provided cover from the pelting rain. He’d grown impatient shortly after both he and Talisman were rushed out of the bar quite rudely for no reason at all. The injustice led the child to want to become uproarious over the incident while being ousted, but the wiser Talisman fiercely grabbed Tobias’ mouth shielding any audible and understandable word from fleeing his lips. “How much longer is he going to be?” The child tapped his foot impatiently. Grail had left him nearly a half an hour ago. “Stay here. There is something that I have to do….” The wagon world resident was never one for much explanation, but Battalion learned that when Talisman told him to do something, he’d better comply with his orders.

Sometime later, Tobias looked down the end of the alley and saw his companion emerge from the corner. He still possessed a stern countenance as if no time had elapsed at all. “Let’s go child.” The boy was clueless as to where they were headed or what they’d be doing, but he once again complied. Following Grail, the two walked up the steps of the tavern again. The lights had not been doused, but instead burned brightly. Several individuals could also still be heard behind the heavy wooden door. Talisman withdrew a thin long device from his pocket and stuck it in the keyhole, unlocking it. The warm air of the establishment engulfed them as the two reentered. Nervousness had also enveloped the boy for reasons that he couldn’t quite put together. Yet the answers to these feelings of his had began to be revealed when his wagon world cohort approached one of the dwellers that they saw before they were kicked out of the tavern some time ago.

“You look like you’ve lost someone,” Grail said to the gentleman who was sobbing with a shirt drenched no doubt from his tears. There was a wide grin across his face as he crossed his legs and sat back in his chair. “What if I told you that I could bring him back?”

When Tobias heard this, a wave of fear washed over him. When Grail said something he never bluffed. However, there were always strings attached. Hopefully for this young man’s sake he would realize that too.

[Gordie]

The strange man walked over to his new friend, Alberdyne, and Bottlebrush barely heard wisps of the strange man's statement. Necromancy, even in it's good-est sense, was trifling with forces even the small shapechanger himself didnt mess with, and generally came with more strings than a marionette.

A snapping of fingers drew his attention back to the table at which Bottlebrush was currently waiting. How long had the young shapeshifter drifted over to Dyne's table, one minute, five, he had no clue.

"Are you going to take my order?" A gruff humanoid, with green skin, growled in a very heavy accented tradespeak. "Or are you my dinner?" the humanoid mention, smacking what Bottlebrush took to be his lips.

"Umm" The young shapeshifter stammered, his mind still mostly across the room with Alberdyne.

[Alberdyne_Cormyr]

(Sorry for the delay on my behalf boys. I am still in this one)

Dyne's hands were shaking when the tea arrived. Feeling the grip around the goblet, the youth shakily took the tea in an attempt to relax himself. After a long moment, the man, Grail, approached Dyne's table. Alberdyne's eyes went wide once he realized what was being offered. He knew that the Monks of Ai'Bron often worked Necromancy, could this be the same thing? Dyne was numb to the world and simply listened to what the man had to say. He looked at Grail's companions for a moment and saw an interesting child, Tobias, that appeared very powerful to his eyes.

Alberdyne Cormyr simply waited for the right words to come to him. They never did. Instead, he stared incredulously at Grail for making such an offer. "I-I don't know what to say. The matter is not up to me." Dyne said calmly. "I am not in possession of my master's remains. Please understand. If it were up to me, I would allow my master's murder to be justified. But its not up to me. Larger forces are at work apparently for the Corone Armed Forces to want my help in solving the crime at hand."

Dyne took a long pull of the relaxing tea, closed his eyes as he focused on memories at hand, and put his goblet down. His eyes then returned to Grail's person. "Alas though, I am afraid that you will have to take a place in a long line after this." He said calmly, meaning no disrespect. "Pardon me, I am still feeling quite the mess." Alberdyne Cormyr said sounding quite educated for a ruffian lad of Radasanth.

"This herbal tea is good." Dyne said to nobody in particular. He turned to look at Grail some more further analyzing the man. "I thank you for your courtesy though. There aren't many gentlemen left in this world." The youth said and after a moment extended his hand towards Grail. "The name is Alberdyne. Alberdyne Cormyr."