[Killroy's] Is it test time yet? (Levi)

[Bob Barton]

10th day of Fall 511 AV

How long has it been since Bob has been working at Killroy's? Pretty damn long enough. Its has been a season already and Killroy still has not given him the secret job. After all the shyke he has been through over here Killroy should at least trust him a little bit more or consider him a lot more valuable. He almost died on more than one occasion thanks to his job. That had better count for something. Killroy's was just getting too hectic to work at right now. If Bob still could not get the job, he would be better off finding some new prospects.

After figuring all that out, Bob went to look for Killroy. Where was that man? Only one place and that would be the counter where he tries to swindle everyone else and that's in the main building. Easy enough to find. Walking through just like anyone else with reason to come to the Kennel's, Bob went straight to the front desk where Killroy was.

Bob knows that Killroy was not his number one fan so he would have to approach him a little bit more subtly. The man was a conniving joker, it shouldn't be too hard. "Hey Mr Killroy, I've been doing the same things over and over again. Yes, I might be getting better but do you have anything interesting you need me doing?" like the secret job? "You and me both knows the importance of new and exciting things right boss?"

[Leviathan]

Bob entered the room, passing a man in a strange looking suit, fancy and expensive it was. His head, which was full of youthful black hair, slick and smooth, was covered by the oddest of black hats, that looked very good paired with the outfit. Wherever he was from, he was a wealthy or important man. When Bob turned his attentions to Killroy, he would see something that was ever so rare in the Kennel master. He was brooding in a silent rage. His face had never been such an frightening red color, his jaws were grinding viciously against each other, and Killroy could only stare past Bob, glaring at the spot where the visitor had been only seconds before. He was gone now, but it was obvious Killroy wanted to wrap his fingers around the man's neck and choke the life out of him. What was perhaps the most frightening about this situation is that Killroy didn't strangle the man. Whatever was infuriating about that moment that so genuinely angered Killroy, it was unknown. "Bitch... bitch..." Killroy whispered to himself as he continued to glare out that door. He seemed to not even hear Bob's words, if he even noticed his presence at all. "It won't happen, not this way. No... no. Bob! Then he was noticed, full attention. Killroy reached over his counter and grabbed Bob by the shirt and pulled his shortened body over the surface until his feet were no longer on the floor and he was pretty much lying across his belly on that counter. Never had Killroy's face been so close to Bob's, and it was obvious, even more now that his heated breath bit at Bob's eyes and nose. "Bob, I need you to kill that man. No, no. Don't kill him. Bring him to me. No, wait, yeah, kill him. I need him gone, forever. I want him gone, to death. Kill him, kill his reincarnated child-form. Kill his sisters and brothers and daughters. No, rape the daughters. That's it! Bring him to me alive, bring me his family, and we'll rape them in front of him, then we'll kill them, kill him, and then when they reincarnate we'll kill them again! Bob, follow me." It was obvious, this was not the sort of thing Bob was expecting. Then again, Killroy was never a predictable man. And now in his frenzied rage, and with Bob literally being drug by his clothing, Barton had no choice bu to follow his fearless, maniacal employer. For two miles the duo traveled by foot, Killroy's enraged, long strides and surprisingly powerful grip at Bob's shirt, and Bob barely able to keep up with the sudden jerks and pulls from Killroy himself. They eventually reached the Seaside Market and the pair were both panting and sweating by now. "You see that boat there Bob? That's his crew. They're loading their ships." Then Bob found himself nose to nose to Killroy again as he lifted him onto his tippy-toes. "He has Hannah."

[Bob Barton]

Wow that man was very nice, what was he doing here in Killroy's? Alright, stupid question. Obviously he was here to buy some things. Bob could not help but try and guess what he bought. It could be dogs or horses but those were too mundane. Just look at the man. It would be something exotic. Could be a kelvic. A big kelvic bodyguard. He was dressed so nicely he won't be able to walk through Sunberth without getting harassed unless he had protection. Bob's eyes lingered on the man until he passed him and then, he saw Killroy.

And Killroy was just so red. The first time Bob has seen his boss this way. "You got a heart attack boss?" Couldn't be that. Killroy would be on the floor instead of staring right past to where the man was. Oh, that could be it. Maybe Killroy was not able to sell something for a nice high price to the man. If it was Bob he would be pretty angry too. Well, Bob could not care less about Killroy losing business as long as he get paid. Better still if he gets paid more.

Getting paid means working and Bob was here for just that reason. His work was completely cheap and boring. He went up to the counter where Killroy was, ignoring Killroy's bitching and said "Hey boss, I-" before being cut off by the not-so jovial man's rage which brought him on the counter. Bob tried to look away away from Killroy's face not being so comfortable with a man's breath so close until the man started talking about killing and raping. That got Bob's attention straight away.

So Bob got dragged into the streets by one angry Killroy. After hearing that Bob felt a little bit sorry to whoever crosses the man's path now. On the way he tried to ask more though it was hard to speak when someone was dragging you. Bob had to try anyway since he had no idea what was going on. "Don't you think killing and raping is a little bit extreme boss? There could be other ways of making him pay or I know some fellows who would do it gladly for free. So whats going on anyway?"

He found the answer when they were both looking at a boat. "That's a niiiii" So that was what it was. They have Hannah. "Who? What? How? Why?" he cried out almost immediately in shock. Bob could not have foreseen that Killroy would care so much about Hannah after seeing how he interacted with her but still, if the situation was that bad Bob would have to help. After all, he needed to return Hannah the favour for helping him in the Kennels as well.

"Whats the plan boss?" Bob asked raising up his weapon. "Do we attack now or later when we are better prepared?" Either way it was going to be one hell of a day.

[Leviathan]

Killroy still had a hold of Bob's shoulder, using him now more of a crutch to hold him up rather than to drag him around town. Killroy didn't look well. Between some kind of emotional agony and rage, he looked like he might pass out. Never had Bob, or probably anybody, has seen Killroy in such a manner. He panted lightly before barking out a fierce laughter, which ended in a weak cough. "Extreme? Petch yes it is. That's the point Bob. That's the point. We need to punish him." Killroy stood there for a long moment, just staring at the vessel at the harbor as he was grinding his teeth behind closed lips. "I don't know, Bob. What do we do?" Killroy finally admitted it. He had no idea how to do what he wanted. He was crazy, but he was logical. He was emotional, but was mentally sound. It was such an odd combination that it didn't quite seem possible. "We can't attack him. Not the two of us. He has guards." Killroy finally lifted his hand from Bob's shoulder. He seemed like he was resigning, for a moment at least. "Bob, they don't set sail until tomorrow. You have until then to find a way to get her back, or to stop their sailing. Here." Killroy handed the short Bob a heavy purse of coins and jewelry. "Ninety gold mizas, and another one-hundred and eighty in jewelry. Use whatever you have to, to do whatever you have to." As Bob looked up at Killroy, he saw that the man's color had returned, his eyes were crazy once again, rather than despairing, and most of all, he was watching Bob with a hungry stare. Killroy was depending on Bob's success on this one, and it was clear to Bob by now that failure was not an option, not with Killroy, especially not now. "I'm going to get some teeth, I'll find you soon enough, and that man, his family, and most importantly Hannah, better not have left Sunberth." Killroy gave the ship one last glare before turning and walking back away, leaving Bob and the nearby docks behind. Bob, now, had to figure out a way to make something happen.

[Bob Barton]

The man obviously had strong feelings about this which called for the extreme punishment he wanted to see. But just knowing what Killroy wanted was not enough because clearly that was stupid and stupidity was all he can get from the frustrated man. Frankly he did not even know how the man was keeping Hannah. Was it a kidnapping...or was she there on her own free will? Bob knew that Hannah and Killroy did not have the best of relations despite all the attention he seems to give her so it would be no surprise that she left? That should be a pretty good explanation especially since there is a reason Killroy pays his taxes and that is to protect himself from any hostile acts. A kidnapping would probably he out of the question.

Especially now when Killroy gave the purse which he was told contained two-hundred and seventy gold mizas? He could use that to pay the ransom instead! The amount and Killroy's sudden act of actually giving it caused Bob to stare with the man in shock, clearly known with his loss for words as he put away the purse to not get any attention. All Bob had to do with this money is make sure that none of them leave? He would tell Killroy that there was limits of the power of money even in Sunberth but he decided against it when he saw how crazy the man was. The only thing he could stupidly say was "teeth...?" because it was another of those things that he could not get with the man as he watched him leave.

Bob had until...tomorrow to do whatever it is he had to. Which gave him enough time to find out more about this strange man who is rich and powerful enough to own a guarded ship. But he could not directly ask anyone involved which forced him over to the next best thing. He looked around the docks for the people he knew would normally stay around the place with no problem. People like the beggars. He approached some of the ones closest to his target's ship and handed them a silver miza each courtesy of Killroy with a few simple questions he hope that they would be willing to answer in return. "How has been the pickings been around here recently? I am pretty sure that its good with him" thumbing back to the ship "around the place. Nice guy, but I never did know what he does and why he needs all those guards...maybe you would since you are always here?"

Not that beggars would know much but at least they would give Bob a little idea of who he was dealing with. If he wanted to know more, his next best method was to just talk to the sailors. Growing up in Zeltiva, he kind of knew how to deal with them. All you needed to be was a little bit tough even if you wanted to be friendly. He watched for a while, waiting until they gathered for a little break as they normally would and walked up to the group. He felt the eyes going right through him as they normally would for the shrimp but he ignored it as he presented the question "Anyone up for a little game?" crunching the dice he had together in his hands.

Normally Bob played to win, but today he had other prizes in mind. He started off slow, putting in a silver or two in each time. No point in hinting that he had a lot of money in. "Two!" he yelled uncaring of the results because while it was being resolved he slowly pointed them to where he wanted with statements like "this may be exciting now, but I am sure that you get a lot more during your voyages." Yes...the nice talk about voyages which brought to the great question at the next roll as Bob yelled "four!" The question about the current voyage they are preparing for. "Where is your next adventure my friend? I see that you are loading up for a lot" of things that Bob should know about. "One!" he yelled caught up in the excitement of the game as much as they were when he asked what he needed. "You must have worked for your boss for a long time. What does he do?"

Hopefully all his questions will be taken as curiosity instead of attracting any suspicion. After asking a little more like where the sailors will stay tonight in case Bob feels like another game...or make sure he returns to the ship when it is less busy and whether the other workers, like the guards will join them just to find out if they are all one big happy gang, Bob left the sailors to their work where he will try to plan for what his next actions will be. Whether he would need more information or whether he will need to acquire help and tools to get into or stop the ship.

[Leviathan]

Luckily for Bob, he made up for his short-comings by being devilishly intelligent and cunning. Often times the best was to force information out of a person was not force, but gold. However, that hardly ensured that there was any guarantee the information he would get was relevant, or even truth for that matter. Even for gold, men would lie. Bob's first sudden source for information was a beggar on the docks, who was eating something that looked as black as tar, but smelled more like burnt hair. Disgusting, but the man was obviously starving. With the offer of the silver coin, the beggar didn't hesitate to take and speak. "Oh hur dem' es 'o' 'iva... Ah... Cap'n! Ho ho ho! M'n a bis'... Hur oh yah! Gig o' kets! Legs! Uh legs en oh! Ho ho ho!" The man sputtered and, in some way, spoke. Though his broken language, which sounded mostly Common to some extent, was too butchered to truly comprehend. Next up was the sailor Bob decided to shoot dice with. Thankfully, this hardy young man, scarred up from a life of physical labor (and probably more than a few fights), was both jolly and spoke well enough to understand, even if he spoke with a heavy accent. "Damn dice. They nev'r fav'r me. Ah, yeah, good money with this guy, but he's not meh boss. The Cap'n is drinkin' tonight. We runnin' a crew to esc'rt him and his family to the sand lands. Ya' ev'r h'r of that place? Ahnasop? Ahnakek? Whatev'r it is, the people th'r gots too many a'ms for th'r bodies. Beautiful gals though, won't both'r to look at us sail'rs though... or humans. But nah, he ain't my Cap'n. He's the client. Paying us well f'r a trip from Zeltiva to h'r, and h'r to Ahnagoat. Not sure his business, but he's got his own men with him, along with us. Suspiciously cautious he is. Makes me wond'r if he's cursed. Gods have m'rcy on us sail'rs if so. Damn dice." The information was good here, but still left so many gaps to fill. Bob know knew the man Killroy was after wasn't the owner of the ship or crew, but merely a wealthy man paying them for their ship and protection. Bob knew the man had his own personal guard, probably for fear of his hired sailors defecting. And lastly, he knew he planned to travel to the land of Eypharians. An odd choice. Still, the sun still had a few hours before it started to fade, which would roughly mark the halfpoint to Bob's deadline, and as of yet there was nothing he had done to impede progress of the ship's departure. Information was valuable, but action was necessary. And necessary action was crucial.

[Bob Barton]

You could never tell what you got from beggars, this one included but Bob was lucky he did not get bitten like the last time he tried something like this. The only words he could truly recognize from the beggar's broken common was captain and legs. Sighing at the beggar, Bob told him in case of "next time, don't eat tar. Its not good for me or you" and flicked the silver coin at him. The beggar might not have told him anything useful but Bob could not help but give him the coin just so he could at least get a proper meal for the next few days but Bob had better things to do than to take care of the beggar. He needed to find out more about the ship.

Who better than sailors, they always worked on the ship so they should have something good to tell if they wanted to. This one might have looked a little dangerous...but he was very friendly. Bob learned a lot of things which would help him plan. Like the target was not the owner of the ship. He was completely separate with his own group of thugs to protect him. Which meant whatever method Bob will use to stop the ship, he can't do it too well or they will just hire a new ship. He can't do it too badly either or they can just fix it really fast and be on their way. Unfortunate stopping the ship will be a whole lot better than sneaking in to get at Hannah. Suspicious and cautious only made it a lot more harder for Bob to get in...

Would the information of where they were going or coming from help? Bob did come from Zeltiva but...that was a long time ago. The Ahna-place also did not help much. All Bob knew about it was from old romantic tales of the city from dreaming sailors who wanted at the treasure of the desert with its goods and exotic women. Like this one who was complaining about never looking at him. Could this mean that the ship was loaded with valuable goods for trade? There would be a lot of people in Sunberth who might want at it. A lot of people which Bob sadly did not know or could use unless he looked for them now.

The beggar might have given Bob a lot more help than he expected. He actually reminded Bob about the man who ran the docks. A man named Legs who had a wharf named after him nearby where he repaired the boats. Bob could try his luck there without wasting much time elsewhere. He quickly ran through the Baroque Bay straight to Leg's Wharf after noting down the name displayed on the ship like all did if he remembered the Zeltivan Docks properly. Before entering, he composed himself with straightening his hair and clothes so that he would not look like someone who was dragged to the bay by a maddened man.

Anyone in there he could find and is willing to talk to him he asked if he could be directed to someone who manages the bay. He had to cautiously go with his question. It ran through his mind over and over as he made his way here. "I am here to deliver something for...Killroy? Some sort of exotic animal to be taken to Ahnatep. But I kind of forgot who to and I can't go back or the boss would kill me..." not that much of a lie because Killroy might actually kill him if he failed this. "I think the ship was from Zeltiva to Ahnatep and is leaving tomorrow. The names of the captain and owner would help a lot in my delivery. Don't want any posers to trick the goods out of me right?" giving a nervous chuckle at the reference. After he got what he wanted he'll add another question whether "they trade in animals right? Don't want to wrong people here..." hoping that he will be corrected with the actual goods if they are able to.

Bob would base the rest of his plans according from the information he can get if any. Whether he had to go shopping because he had to go in alone, or try and recruit some other helpers along with him. Either way, this job wasn't going to be easy at all...

[Leviathan]

It was a bit funny how Bob tried to weasel and lie his way into obtaining information from Old Legs. The aged man didn't bother too look up from his feet as he sat in silence on an old wooden crate. He looked as if he might have been napping, except that when Bob had approached his head bobbed enough to show a brief moment of eye contact to Bob's legs. As Bob stuttered his questions, silence followed. An eerie, lengthy silence as the one-legged laborer just sat there. It must have been a good twenty seconds before he lifted his head and glanced up at Bob. He looked tired, yet still held some shimmer of youth in those hardened eyes. "Dun' care if you die." And that was all Legs bothered to say as he spat to the ground and lowered his head. It took only a few moments before a soft snoring was heard. Perhaps it was feigned to get Bob to leave him alone, but he was very old. Was such a sudden slumber impossible? Bob's initial attempt at gathering information from Legs failed, which left him no closer to stopping Hannah's inevitable departure. At this rate, Hannah would never be seen again, and Bob would be burned alive, or perhaps donated to Doctor Petricious. You could never know what connections existed between folk here. A glance into the sky would show the sun had fallen just a little more, time was running out. He still had a full night to work with, but daylight wouldn't last but a few more hours. He needed to act soon else his life was forfeit.

[Bob Barton]

If there was one thing Bob could say about Sunberth, it was that it was full of jerks. Wait...Sunberth...Bob just realized that he had no reason to work so hard with this. He was no longer in the more civilized cities like Zeltiva, Syliras or Ravok anymore. This place was an urban jungle full of animals which stalked on two legs and if there was one thing working with the animals in Killroy taught him, it was that animals took whatever they could by strength and force. Not by intelligence or by being glib.

He just shrugged off Old Leg's remark and mumbled "same to you too old timer. At least I have a longer way to go than you" once he was out the door to look for a lesser person. The one in charge would have told him what he needed but he was senile so it would come to a lowly employee which he hoped would be a lot like the sailor from before. He walked through the piers in Baroque Bay asking those who worked for the Leg in the fixing question a question what could be very well born out of curiosity. "Say there buddy, what kind of damage would force a ship to come in here for repairs for a few days? Because I just want to see if I can get a short job here." Any scrutinizing looks would be answered with Bob flexing some of the muscles he built from his training back in Syliras.

After he would have an idea how to damage the ship, Bob would need help. People who lived for destruction are plenty in Sunberth but he needed the right ones. Ones which would only need a little nudge to get to work. So he patrolled around the docks for a bell or two just watching. What he was watching for were people like him. People looking out for opportunities but their opportunities won't come from people. It will come from the ships around the docks and their cargo. Bob would take note of who lingered around the docks and especially those who were observing the ships and their cargo. He would of course do it discreetly from a safe distance. Eyes peering from under the hat and head never staying towards their direction for too long. They would know about him once he knew that they were good for the job.

How would he know which were suitable? For those that caught his eye, maybe a group or two he would risk going slightly closer to them to try and overhear what they say. He could only afford one pass but if they said anything promising, Bob would stoop down to pretend to fix his shoes muttering that "the boss should pay me better..." as he hoped that the time would be enough to hear more about them before continuing on with his walk again.

[Leviathan]

Bob's words seemed to pass over Legs as if the "Old Timer" was actually deaf. The fact was, however, that Legs knew something that was ever so valuable. Words don't do shit in Sunberth. Actions is what makes things happen. If you wanted to be poetic or mysteriously verbal in Sunberth, you would not only find it unwelcoming, but generally ineffective. Now, Legs, he favored action. And the only action he got from Bob, was him leaving his sight with a lingering little insult floating about. Perhaps Bob's idea sounded good, but the short man still didn't seem to quite grasp how things worked, truly worked, here in Sunberth. There were people who had power. People who had respect. People who had authority. And then there was Bob, who had none of these. The first person he questioned about ship damages and repair also happened to be the first man to grab Bob by the throat and glare at him as if Barton had just insulted his Saint of a Mother. "Oh, little man. You dun' talk about workin' on ships on Ol' Legs' turf unless'n you talk to Legs about it. Stupid shyke. Nobody 'ere is gonna help you 'less Legs tells um to. An nobody 'ere gonna take yer little man help 'less Legs tells 'em to. I catch you again talkin' stupid here, an' I drown you." And with that final threat that Bob felt was quite truthful, he was tossed backwards into a stumble, which landed him on his hands and knees with the angry "Legs Supporter" walking away in a very sour mood. How much time was left? An hour of Sunlight remained, and even that was a faint shimmer of orange over the horizon. Wouldn't be long before torchlight and shadows dominated the streets.