Null's Game

[Oleai]

Oleai follows, of course. Curious as she is. Reacting much the same Kyrie, only not even looking for that long.

"I don't suppose.." She trails off, chewing her lip. "Nevermind." Before moving back below deck with a frown.

[Visavis]

"YEAH, GET'EM!" cries Rasmus. "KILL THOSE MAGGOT LOVERS!"

The fighters far below, of course, could not hear him. Rasmus likely knew this, too. Still, it has a cheering effect on him, if the fierce grin on his face is any indication. Wearing that same expression, he turns to the others still there and points down below.

"My dad and brothers are down there! Hey, Rhyme, can we help them out someway?"

[Shinigori V2]

"Uh...We gotta couple draconic bombs in the hold." Rhyme says. "Prolly wouldn't help much, I reckon."

[Kelne]

"Perhaps if we knew whose head to drop one on, that would make a difference," Triya mused, "Take out whoever's in charge and that tilts the odds. Assuming there is some guiding intelligence, of course."

[Idran1701]

"If we can spot Cannon or Bastion down there, they'd be my guess. Even if they aren't all mindless, it still holds well true for any major battle, I can imagine." Still staying from the edge, Kyrie doesn't even bother looking back down to the battle.

[Shinigori V2]

"That, down there?" Rhyme jerks her thumbs with a mild twitch of her wings. "There ain't no bigger mind workin' down there. Just a mindless slog. Barely even a fight'tall, really."

[Visavis]

"Yeah, my side's totally gonna destroy 'em," Rasmus says with a grin directed at Rhyme before looking back to the fight. He squints at the little blue figures down below, scattered about below among the Revenants.

"I guess we prooobably shouldn't drop bombs. We might hit the good guys," he says with a bit of disappointment. "Guess we'll just have to let 'em win it on their own."

[Shinigori V2]

"Yeah." Rhyme nods, grinning down at the battle again. "Nothin' they ain't able t' handle on their own."

At that, Rhyme quiets, leaning on the railing and observing the fight below, even as the airship begins to ascend, so as not to run into the quickly approaching mountain. Soon, the battle is out of view with low clouds obstructing the battle, and the only view to be had is a path up Mt. Kokoniel, narrow and marked with an occasional small cabin. The path itself has an odd light to it, almost as if the stones that line it at glowing with a pure white light. Outside the path is a different story- Rocky, snowy wastelands, riddled with signs of a war not long past, and mindless Revenants milling about without any direction. It's easy to see why the preferred method of travel is over the path, rather than on it.

As the ship ascends higher, breaking through another layer of lower clouds, ones higher still break. A mix of steady rain and snow begins to fall, as the crater of the mountaintop, Kokoniel proper, comes into view. The crater conceals and protects a massive city, with plumes of steam rising from pipes both in the city streets and buildings alike. Air traffic is far more dense than anywhere most of the group's ever seen, with the possible exception of Red. Dragons in their true form weave in and out of ships, some of which seem to be out on pleasure trips, others working in some way or another, and others appearing to just be acting as massive signs: Greenskin's Machinery seems a popular advert, in particular.

There is one that may catch an eye or two, though. A large Pixograph mugshot of a adolescent dragon girl, with purple scales and black hair with a purple streak in it. Large text underneath asks, "Have you seen this girl? Report any Null activity to the Whelpguard or Talonguard IMMEDIATELY."

The ship makes for a huge building that's raised considerably over the rest--The airship docks. The traffic in and out even seems to slow a bit, as the ship approaches, gently floating up to a skypier, with a boarding bridge extended out. As soon as the ship's secured, Rhyme, Calamity, Isol, and Biggs escort the group off- Red, of course, with manacles.

A pair of Talonguard, spotted easily by their scaled armor, approach, swords and shields at the ready, until Rhyme waves them down. Biggs gives Red a little shove off the bridge, before producing a key to undo her shackles.

"Welp, here y'are." Rhyme says, stretching her arms and wings. "Y'all'll try not ta get yerselves stuck inna big potta Rev'nant stew again."

[Idran1701]

While she's certainly amazed by the sights, Kyrie keeps her reactions to herself, wandering about the deck and looking almost bored as the ship descends towards the crater of Mt. Kokoniel. The signs warning of Null soon grab her attention, though; she hadn't expected such a blatant posting after all the seeming secrecy over this mission, and it starts her wondering if one of the other teams might not be in the city already.

With still no sign of Stray since the day before, even after the ship docks she doesn't yet make any move to disembark, glancing between Rhyme and Isol with a neutral expression. "I believe we're missing someone. You wouldn't know where Stray has gotten to, would you?"

[Shinigori V2]

Calamity shrugs. "We figured she was with you. Gotta be around somewhere, not like there's a lotta places she could hide on th' ship."

[Oleai]

Oleai, on the other hand, dashed all about the deck of the ship. For a tall lady, she had an extremely light footfall; not that it mattered much with the tambourine clattering on her hip. "Oh wow! Do you see that?! Look at that! Dragons! ... But like.. nice ones! Er, I think." She considered for a moment, but fell back on the confidence she was faster than anything that would try to swoop down. Not that anything would.

As the ship docked, Oleai found her way back to the party. "Want me to go look for her?" She offered to Kyrie and Calamity. Though she didn't really give them much time to respond, hopping from foot to foot as she did. Too excited to keep still, she'd be off searching for Stray in a flash.

[Idran1701]

Kyrie nods lightly to Oleai, stepping away from the gangplank. "I'll go with you. Like she said, there aren't that many places to hide here." She looks back to the rest of her group, tail swaying steadily. "I think the two of us should be enough to search this place, but if any of you want to come along, feel free. We shouldn't be too long, though."

With that, she heads back for the cabin, waiting for Oleai (and whoever else is coming along) to reach her before speaking again, keeping her voice low enough for just her traveling companions to hear her, frowning to herself as she keeps her eyes peeled for any sign of Stray. "Have you seen her at all since yesterday? After everything when we came aboard, I'm a little worried for her."

[Oleai]

"Uh-uh" Oleai shakes her head, already past the door and waiting for Kyrie! "I'm sure she's fine. I mean, what harm could she do right?" With that, Oleai set off into the ship. She'd explored it up and down during the journey, at least the areas she was allowed to go. The height of the ship in air didn't seem to bother her one bit, and on a few occasions she'd considered parachuting off the edge to fly around a bit on her own.

Confidence in her ability to blow back onto the deck wasn't quite high enough to actually attempt it, though.

Walking alongside Kyrie, though more a gentle energetic bouncing, Oleai asks, "What d'ya think we should do once we get off the boat? In all that camp stuff, I didn't really catch if we had any leads. We still gotta find Null, right? There was that sign we saw flying in. We could ask there?"

[Idran1701]

Kyrie falls into step alongside Oleai with eyes peeled, a light, wordless smirk at her appraisal of Stray, tail still behind her. "That's what I had in mind, but I haven't thought that far ahead either." A brief peer into one of the nearby rooms before moving on. "I suppose we might want to see if there's any way to find where that pixogram came from, or see if anyone can recognize the Lagomora." She takes out a small scrap of yellow cloth from a hidden pocket, running it between her fingers. "I found this in the cabin too; I've never seen anything like it before, but someone here might recognize it. It feels too fine to be handmade, like some sort of machine made it."

Another quick check into a side room, before looking back to Oleai with a light smirk. "I can say at least one thing for certain, though; I'm glad to be back to the city. A real bed, a real meal. Walking around outside without freezing my fur off."

[Shinigori V2]

As the fuzzy pair searches the ship, one thing becomes immediately to notice:

The triple padlocked cargo hold door is slightly ajar, with the padlocks themselves strewn on the floor, one with a lockpick still wedged inside.

Kyrie:

Spoiler:

Spinning Coin clan: Experts with all forms of lockpick.

[Idran1701]

Kyrie smiles slightly, falling quiet as she nods towards the door. She slips up through the door silently, peering around as she checks the inside, trying to spot Stray. She's a little surprised the crew didn't notice this...unless Stray hadn't broken in until just now? Either way, though, she can't help but feel a little proud for her.

[Visavis]

After disembarking, Rasmus spends a few moments just staring solemnly at the city. So many new experiences in so little time. Fortunately, he was the sort to take it in stride. It was only natural, really. His family and his people were all about adapting to new situations.

As Oleai and Kyrie go off to search for Stray, Rasmus turns his attention to Rhyme to ask, "So what's there to do in this place? And where can I send a letter?"

For a moment, his gaze flicks past her, to the Talonguards, and he tenses. This only lasts a moment, however, as his mental sizing up places him in the clear, with no small amount of bias.

[Shinigori V2]

Below Decks- Hold: Kyrie and Oleai make their way down into the now unlocked hold, noticing first and foremost that it's incredibly dark! Boxes and packages seem to have shifted around in flight, but it's hard to tell what anything is. There's a quiet scratching noise from deeper within, as the pair works through it all. And among other things is a hastily blocked off area with an impromptu fence. As the pair approach...

...

Something lunges out of the darkness with an earsplitting shriek! A red Razorbeak that's a little on the small side, squawking and warbling and making all sorts of pissed off noises. It suddenly calms a moment, making an odd, throaty bird noise, before spitting a distinctly fish smelling glob of sticky goo onto Kyrie's boots.

Gross.

Docking Station:

"To do?" Rhyme repeats, "here? Everythin', man! If yer wantin' a letter, ya'd hit th' post office, first. That's th' one with all the satchel carryin' dragons, th' little kiddy ones. Then ya'd prolly have a look 'round!"

[Shinigori V2]

Below Decks- Hold: Kyrie and Oleai make their way down into the now unlocked hold, noticing first and foremost that it's incredibly dark! Boxes and packages seem to have shifted around in flight, but it's hard to tell what anything is. There's a quiet scratching noise from deeper within, as the pair works through it all. And among other things is a hastily blocked off area with an impromptu fence. As the pair approach...

...

Something lunges out of the darkness with an earsplitting shriek! A red Razorbeak that's a little on the small side, squawking and warbling and making all sorts of pissed off noises. It suddenly calms a moment, making an odd, throaty bird noise, before spitting a distinctly fish smelling glob of sticky goo onto Kyrie's boots.

Gross.

Docking Station:

"To do?" Rhyme repeats, "here? Everythin', man! If yer wantin' a letter, ya'd hit th' post office, first. That's th' one with all the satchel carryin' dragons, th' little kiddy ones. Then ya'd prolly have a look 'round!"

[Idran1701]

When the razorbeak pops forward, Kyrie takes a small step back with narrowed eyes, near about to attack before she recognizes what it is (if not why it's here). About to say something, she stops when the bird spits, gagging as she backs away from the creature. Temper worn down fast, she looks about the room as she calls out, little interest in this point at keeping stealthy. "Stray, are you in here?"

[Shinigori V2]

Below: There's a slight crash, a clatter, and suddenly Stray is standing with Kyrie and Oleai--Though keeping a safe distance away from the bird. "H-Here I am!"

[Oleai]

Oleai, not really a subtle woman, didn't realize to lower her voice as they entered the room. Likely it was she who alerted the Razorbeak. As the thing popped forward, Oleai hopped back a few feet, hands up to blast at whatever it was!

Until it vomited on Kyrie. Then she began to laugh. "Hehehe! Oh, little fella doesn't like flying in a boat like this I bet! What's he doin' in here?" She looked down, oblivious to Stray's approach until the undead Nekana was at her flank. "Oh, Hi Stray. What are YOU doin' in here?" Over the trip, Stray had gone from the unfamiliar to the familiar; Oleai wasn't uneased around her as much any longer. At least not enough to keep her from taking hold of Stray's shirt and giving it a playful little shake. "What am I going to do with you? Runnin' off like that. You could've been in trouble! Tsk tsk." She scolded, while still flashing a smile.

[Kelne]

"Finding some accommodation would be a good start," Triya suggested, "That gives us somewhere to sit down and plan our next move, and somewhere to meet up after we've taken care of any personal business." None of them had expected to wind up in Kokoniel, and letting his family know he was alright had to be a priority for Rasmus.

[Shinigori V2]

Below Decks: "I..I was okay..." Stray says, quietly. "I, um...I just want to know what was down here. ...Other than a b-big bird."

Docking Station: "Yeah, that would probably be the non-stupid thing t' do." Calamity says, beginning to trudge off. "Nice meetin' ya. Don't get dead."

Rhyme frowns, shrugging. "I should prolly go with 'er."

[Idran1701]

Kicking her boots clean as best she can, she looks back to Stray with a smirk, walking up to her at Oleai's side and giving her hair a tussle while keeping her distance from the...giant bird. "Well, it was some impressive work. But we're landed now, and about to head off. Are you ready to see Kokoniel?"

[AlwaysAPrice]

Docking Station: "Aww, Biggsy, you gonna miss me?" Red smirks as she's unshackled, then takes a moment to rub at her wrists as if restoring circulation after a long confinement, even though it's been at best five or ten minutes she's actually been wearing them (presumably as a precaution against her causing any trouble while the crew was focused on docking the vessel). Biggs doesn't even answer, just shoves a sack containing her confiscated items into her arms and heads back to the ship, walking with a spring in his step as if a great weight had just been lifted from his shoulders.

Red starts digging through the bag, pulling out a pair of old brass goggles, which she puts on and leaves pushed up atop her forehead, and a hefty black belt decorated with a few more of the red feathers of her armor. It's of the style used by the Skyrazors to carry their pistols, ammunition, and spare spearheads, but its been heavily modified and repurposed with pouches and loops. She looks over at Triya at the mention of finding accomodations, "Heard the Cog and Sprocket's a decent place for outsiders to bunk when I was planning my visit." She slides a few throwing blades with feathers tied to their ends into slots on her cuirass, the look once they're slid away being that they're simply more feathery decorations. After tucking a sturdy slingshot into her belt, she pulls out a round jar of amber glass with an iron lid and Al Reisian script etched all around it. From the clinking in the sack, there's probably several more of them. She slips it into one of the pouches on her belt, then slings the bag over her shoulder and looks around for where the ship will offload its cargo.

Al Reis specialization:

Spoiler:

Anyone very familiar with Al Reis may have recognized Red's jar as an alchemical grenade. Not necessarily an explosive or weapon (in fact, they're most often used for farming), Al Reisian grenades house most of the pre-mixed ingredients needed for a particular alchemical reaction, with a single catalytic agent housed in a chamber inside the lid. A firm twist of the cap releases the catalyst, arming the grenade.

Cargo Hold: The underfed-looking razorbeak snorts derisively and cocks her head at the assessment of airsickness, pointing one big black eye at Oleai with a glint of irritated understanding. Another guttural, gurgling trill starts, but before she can let the Plainsrunner know what she thinks, Stray has turned up. Spitter gulps and squawks, hopping from foot to foot and giving her wings a couple excited flaps, strong enough to rustle the tarps over some of the nearby cargo, then ducks forward with surprisingly robust speed for such a sickly-looking example of its kind to tap the curve of her beak lightly on Stray's shoulder, to signify that she's found her. Spitter springs back just as quickly, wary of the two who came looking for her little unappetizing-smelling visitor, gives another screech and spits a second warning glob on the ground (though not at anyone in particular), then goes waddling off deeper into the cargo hold to wait, scratching at the floor impatiently, nearer the hold's bay door.

[Visavis]

For a moment, Rasmus just watches Red slip all of her belongings into place while wearing a deliberately neutral expression. Particular attention is given to the weaponry. Then his eyes flick to her ears, as though confirming that yes, this person is also an elf. Only after that does he look back over to Triya and reply, "Yeah, okay. We can find a place to stay first."

He turns and takes a few strides in the same direction as Calamity, as though he has any real idea where they're going, before stopping suddenly and slowly turning to glance back with a mildly embarrassed look. "Oh hey, uh.. I don't have any money."

[Shinigori V2]

Hold: Stray flinches slightly at the ruffling-- Clearly the only physical affection she's gotten in a long time has been...Rough. She does, however, give the side of the Razorbeak's head a slight rub before it retreats away again. "Oh, we've docked already? Um...O-Okay. I was just playing with the Razor a little, anyway...Um, s-sorry for worrying you."

With that, she begins off towards the main of the ship again.

Kyrie:

Spoiler:

But not before slipping a folded up peace of paper into your hand.

Outside: Biggs very pointedly slams the side door of the ship closed, sealing it with enough force that even the non-elves can hear the mechanism grinding the deadbolts home within. Rhyme and Calamity continue through the crowd, but Calamity turns and walks backwards for a moment.

"You better not pawn that sword I loaned you!" She shrieks. And then, both are gone, down the stairs into the city proper.

[Idran1701]

"Nothing to apologize for; things ended well, you had some fun. What else matters?" Kyrie gives Stray a light smirk as the three start out, reaching the door just after Biggs slams it closed. With an annoyed scowl, she rolls her eyes. "I guess they must've forgotten about us, then."

[Oleai]

"Should still try to keep close, though. Safety in numbers, you know!" Oleai gives the Razorbeak a confused look as it stared at her - Her tribe didn't have any razorbeaks. But a bird is a bird, right?

She slid out the door after the others when they left, pinching her nose at the scent behind them.

[Shinigori V2]

Inside: As Oleai and Kyrie head out, Stray in tow, they nearly bump into someone! A young woman to be exact. She's...Plain. Especially compared to Calamity, Isol, and Rhyme (Though more or less in line with Biggs.) Light brown hair hands over her face a little, and her clothes are a standard Wells affair; a simple vest and pants. As she backs up a step to avoid being bumped into, she stares at the trio. ...And stares. And stares. And one odd thing about her becomes apparant: The one eye not hidden behind her hair is...Amazingly vivid and colorful, with a whole prism of colors represented. She turns away after a moment, silently pulling a lever by the cargo bay door, and then making her way in to begin unloading.

"Uh...I d-didn't see her before." Stray says. "D-Do you think she was the one steering?"

[Idran1701]

"...maybe?" Quietly responding to Stray, Kyrie looks this new figure over as she starts at her work. "Isol's sister, maybe?" Though she does give a light shrug, she still can't help but watch her in confusion as she heads towards the door, turning the wheel and opening it up for the three of them. Stepping out of the way of the other two, she turns back for another look; something about that eye's just completely grabbed her attention, but she just can't tell what.

[Shinigori V2]

Outside: The group, along with Red and rejoined by the resident Demihumans, mills around a moment before the cargo door begins to open. A few Draconic dock workers, along with Biggs, work to unload the ship, though priority is given to getting Spitter out first so that the entire cargo hold doesn't catch the smell of disgusting bird spit. With that, it seems the group is done with the crew of the airship.

[Idran1701]

Kyrie keeps near to Stray, giving her a quick smile before looking up to the rest of the group with a thoughtful cast, a hand resting on her shoulder. "We've got a few directions right now: there's that pixogram I found, there's checking into that billboard. Asking around to find out what these people know about Null. Maybe checking about if any of the other groups are here too; could even be one of them put up that advert to try and save themselves some time. Should we stick together, or split off for them? If it were up to me, I'd vote for splitting up, but I'd hear from the rest of you before I start off."

[Visavis]

The look Rasmus gives Kyrie is a little odd. It's almost as though he's looking on her with new eyes. The moment quickly passes, however. With an indifferent shrug, he replies, "I gotta send a letter. Hey, what kinda money do they got here?"

[Kelne]

"Well, one idea was that we sort out some accommodation first," Triya put in, "That way we can each go off and do our own thing, but have somewhere to meet up afterwards."

"As far as finding Null goes, we do have a Clue," Sana said theatrically, producing a small, boxy draconic device from somewhere for the group's consideration.

[Idran1701]

"Mm...most large cities, they'll take whatever coin you've got, so long as it's worth something." Kyrie glances about as she continues replying to Rasmus. "But I'm sure we can find a moneychanger about here. What sort do you have?"

To Triya's comments, she nods, glancing over with blatant curiosity at the sight of the draconic device her genie produces. "Where'd that come from, then? And what is it?"

[Kelne]

"Oh, I got it from the revenants, who got it from Null's cabin," Sana said breezily, "The circle of looting, you know. If we can get it working, it's supposed to pluck otherwise inaudible words out of the air. Could be interesting to know what those words are."

[Idran1701]

"Inaudible words?" Her brow furrows as her tail begins to sway in thoughtfulness. "What does that mean? It makes a person sound louder?

[Visavis]

"What kind of money? I don't have any." Rasmus smiled, as though it was a joke. "I wasn't planning on taking a trip. And I'll believe what they said about that thing when I hear it for myself," he said, motioning at the draconic device.