It was late in the afternoon with the blue sky slowly becoming specked with orange hues as the sun turned in for the day. Alyssa found a pleasant cool breeze awaiting her as she stepped outside the tavern.
There was not much happening other than people walking along the side of the road with a few wheeled carts passing by on the dirt. Workers were returning home from the docks bringing with them the smell of the sea which mixed in with the burning scent of spices carried by warehouse employees who picked up crates all day.
But none among them was the rat that was just in the tavern, not even his shadow. It was clear that he left in a hurry.
The breeze was a welcoming sensation to Alyssa as she tugged the door shut behind her, eyes elowly scanning her surroundings. Momentarily dissappointed at the lack of sight of a certain quarry, she only dwelled on the emotion briefly before letting it slide. No sense in waisting time with such simple things if she had any hope of taking advantage of the dwindling daylight.
She carried herself forward, eyes moving to the ground and such around her, searching for even the smallest clue of where her little 'friend' might of scampered off too. Her eyes were well adjusted to such tiny details, due to her rather deep interest in the subject of insects, and the detailed eye required in this study. Not to mention she certainly had some knowledge of rats. They were always so useful in her.. experiments. Less flighty than birds, afterall.
She supposed at the very least if she could not locate any clues from her surroundings she could question one of the approaching workers. Likely the figure she sought made somewhat of an impresaion during his departure, he seemed the sort to attract a few uneasy glances.
Given how upset the rat was and how it seemed to want the whole tavern to know, Alyssa could see just the faintest footprints made up of dust and dirt on the floorboards of the patio. The trail led off into the alleyway behind the tavern where the creature's prints became more obvious on the ground.
If Alyssa followed this trail it would take her behind some older stone buildings at the other end of the block. The tracks disappeared suddenly in the middle of a new alleyway going out to a different street.
Nearby was an iron bar grate that looked into the basement of a two floor stone walled building, and next to it an entrance where the handles were bound by chains and locked.
She could see people at the mouth of the alley way passing by, but not very many and too few dared to even look her way. Wistvale has always been a place for ruffians, of course, and going down an alleyway this late in the day was asking for trouble.
Alyssa smiled a little to herself at her success as she followed the path left behind by the rat figure, a tale told in every twist of the print. This way and that she followed, walking in a rather oddly stooped manner refusing to lift her eyes for anything lest she lose sight of her trail.
When she finally came to the end of it, her eyes finally shifted around a little, but seeing it was definantly the end of the line she straightened to take in her surroundings. Being fairly new to Wistvale, she was likely lost already, but such things hardly bothered her. The demeanor of those just at the mouth of the alley and passing by was a little unnerving, but again it didnt really bother her.
After a quick look around, she decided the grate looked to be her best bet and moved towards it, kneeling down to peer in curiously.
There was very little to see in the basement with the lack of light, as the only source of it Alyssa was blocking. Nothing could be heard or noted worthy. She would have to get inside to do a proper investigation.
A few pedestrians happened to notice the young lady looking into the basement like she dropped something but thought nothing of it and continued on their way, probably muttering something like "she's asking for it."
As she was peering into the basement, Alyssa could hear footsteps approaching from around the corner.
Alyssa's brows knit together at the lack of information gathered from a simple glance. She contemplated other sources of light, maybe shifting as to see better, but any thoughts of further investigation fled at the sound of approaching steps.
Biting back a string of rather unladylike curses that would have been quite shocking coming from the lips of such a fragile looking figure. Jumping to her feet, her eyes skimmed her surroundings in search of a place to hide. Anything would do, and she silently prayed to whatever deity was watching over her.
Being of a smallish frame it was quite easy for Alyssa to hide herself behind a stack of old boxes piled up against the wall at her back. the footsteps continued along their way and stopped, presumably, at the end of the alleyway.
"I thought I heard sumthin or uder in here." said one stupid sounding voice. "Keep to the shadows, moron. The point of shanking people in an alleyway is for them not to see ya comin'." said someone who learned basic language skills. "Too right, sowry bout dat. You tink da rat's come by yet eh?" "Probably missed him, don't need anymore crowding our territory."
With that the men continued on their way until Alyssa was sure they were gone.
In her attempt to be as quiet as possible during the muggers' exchange, however, she failed to even notice someone coming up to her side.
"It's quite dangerous to be wandering these alleyways alone, stranger."
He was a tall, apparent slender man with pale skin and a handsome face with short, black hair. He wore a black shirt with similarly colored pants and had one hand in his pocket while another extended itself to help Alyssa out of hiding.
Alyssa ground her teeth out of excitement. They had mentioned the rat! Surely it must have been the same one that she was pursuing. Her thoughts trailed off to what action she might take, perhaps follow after the strangers and find her quarry. However she was so distracted in plotting, she didn't even notice they had already left until a hand at her arm jolted her back to reality, a noise of surprise jumping from her lips.
Tipping her head slightly back to look up at the taller, good looking figure, she calmed some upon seeing that he certainly didn't seem to be a hostile man. Dipping her head in a small nod, she allowed him to lead her out. "Alyssa Su'ulik" she answered. "As for danger well, it only adds excitement if you ask me~"
"Su'ulik," Bacon repeated, not quite correctly the first time, "Quite an exotic name, Alyssa."
There was a certain air about Roger that separated him from the rest of the citizens. He seemed almost as much a stranger to Wistvale as Alyssa was. There were no indicators on his person that would confirm otherwise; at the moment he seemed to be just a passerby.
"Are you a dangerous one yourself? Only the foolish wander back here in the evening. You never know what is watching you in the shadows, after all."
It was not a lecture, in fact his tone of voice seemed entirely amused. Roger turned on a heel to head back out to the street, "Do be careful, Alyssa. I would advise you walk out with me but I suspect you have suspicious intent in these alleyways. Au revoir."
With not another word more he walked out and headed down the street.
"Bacon." Her retort seemed laced with amusement. "A curious name yourself."
As he spoke her eyes drifted around the alley, but eventually snapped back to him to answer periodically. "I wouldn't say I have malicious intent or the like... though I'm not as defenseless as i may appear..." A mysterious edge touched her tone, coupled with a wry upturn at the corner of her lips as her bronze colored irises shifted to glance at him from her periferal.
He seemed intent as any to avoid this alley, but that begged to question his own presence here, and Alyssa was never one to bite back a burning curiosity such as that. "Actually one might question your own presence here as well.. perhaps though, you could answer me a little inquiry?" She moved forward, holding out a hand briefly in an attempt to halt him. "I'm searching for someone. A rat like man, short, stocky, rather covered in his attire and likely in a dreadfull rush. Perhaps you have seen him?" She kept her tone light and casual, betraying no ill intent and only a genuine curiosity of innocent intent.
::OOC Assuming I followed the same trail Alyssa did, but feel free to delete or edit if I am incorrect.::
::Neko had edged out the door to the tavern not long after the girl and the cloaked figure before her, but already they were out of sight. With a careful look in the fading light she was able to find the trail they had left and moved in that direction as she tugged her halfmask up over her face. She kept her head down, her eyes on the trail and avoiding contact with those around her as she gave the air of someone just trying to get home.
She followed the twists and turns the trail made as she felt the shadows grow about her with the setting sun. She smiled behind her mask as she knew the more timed pasted, the more of an advantage she would have when she finally found her quarry.
She was about to turn a corner when the sound of voices caught her ear and pulled her up short. She pressed herself to the corner of the building nearest her and strained to hear the sounds of a girl and a man speaking down the alleyway ahead of her. The girl seemed to be asking about a rat-man...
Interesting, perhaps the girl was not a part of this afterall. But she could still not be sure...
Her hand slide across her body towards one of her Kopi as she tried to listen for more...::
Roger stopped in his tracks to slate Alyssa's curiosity, which seemed to intrigue him, "There all sorts in Wistvale, but you don't often see the rat folk in town. They are generally an unwelcome sort, even among the morally depraved in our community. I wouldn't know where to find such a creature even if I wanted to."
Bacon seemed to be intent on leaving for sure this time, before making one last remark, "But if they're anything like their more rodent cousins, I imagine they'd hide in a sewer." and then he walked away and down the street.
As Neko listened intently, she was unaware that someone had actually been sneaking up on her. [Low Survival]
Before she realized, an ugly claw wrapped around her mouth and a sharp nose poked over the side of her face accompanied with an ugly hiss. His other hand grabbed a hold of hers where Neko had her weapon drawn.
"I can smell it on you!" he whispered, "You have one of the cards of Solomon! Where is it?"
Even though the rat caught her by surprise, his grip was not terribly strong and Neko could possibly force her way out of this situation.
::Where one skill failed her, another may just save her life.
As the figure grabbed her wrist, her body reacted. Instinct and training took over faster than thought as she shifted one leg back between those of her attacker and her free hand came across her body to try and grab the wrist of the hand that clutched at her own. Whether she was successful or not, her body was already in motion. She pressed her shoulder back against the weight of the body against her as she twisted sharply at the waist, pulling his weight forward and around and using her leg to try and trip him up.
In training, this move would knock her attacker off balance and make it easier to pull him around to slam against the wall she had been pressed against. Her thoughts now catching up enough to her body to allow her to hope it worked.
And with those thoughts came the shame of someone getting the drop on her. Especially when she was so intently trying to get the drop on someone else...
As her brain continued to play catchup with the rest of her, she was now able to register her attacker and those raspy words whispered in her ear. It seems she had found the mysterious figure from the Inn that the girl had been following.
-FLARB! He wants the Card!-
She cursed herself for not turning the Card over to Father, or maybe even Uncle. Or pitching the thing into the fireplace and watching it burn as was her first instinct. Instead, she could feel it pressed against her body in the pocket in which it rested like a lead weight that may just drag her down...::
Although his words initially left her quite disappointed, the departing comment gave a small grain of hope. Such a simple fact she had missed! It was all too understandable to make such a connection, she could make the same assumption over her own self. She certainly did share some mannerisms as her beloved insects afterall.
Once more her eyes trailed over her surroundings, but the intent to research her surroundings was broken with the sound of a scuffle from behind. Instinctivly she shifted, tensing internally in a preparedness, a wary expression in her eyes. Had someone followed her? It was doubtful, unless perhaps whoever it was also held an interest in her quarry. Afterall, she was hardly a figure of interest right...?
Er... bad question.
Slowly, cautious and mindfull of her steps, she made her way towards the corner, moving close to the wall. Stopping at the end she would begin to defensivly draw her insects along her arm and outside of her flesh, but keeping them hidden beneath her sleeve. The moths that she gathered were her favorite for going into unknown situations, adaptable to a variety of situations as she saw it.
As she prepared herself for what she might see, she began to cautiously peek out.
His voice changed, dripping with malice, the kind you get from a powerful obsession. The rat's nose trailed against Neko's body.
"You have it! You have it!"
As Alyssa peeked around the corner, she found the rat purposely losing the advantage it had over Neko. It spun her around quickly and pushed Neko against a wall.
There was an odd aura surrounding the creature, a sickness that which can be felt even against the soul. It was black, crazy, and ravenous. The rat's eyes glowed bright with lust as it looked directly at where the card was hidden on Neko's person.
And there, on its person, Neko also saw it. A glowing shape, a card, rested in the rat's pocket. As the outline of it showed itself, so too did hers.
"I have found you, Oblivion. Come join The Horde!"
Then the rat set itself to attack Neko, and claw out the card from her armor like a rabid dog.