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acatalepsy_logs2018-05-11 12:01 am
kathashun) wrote in acatalepsy_logs2018-05-11 12:01 am
( NPC LOG ) WORLD JUMP # 1: EL MINHA.
𝚔𝚊𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚜𝚑𝚞𝚗
𝚜𝚘𝚕𝚎 𝚜𝚘𝚗 𝚘𝚏 𝚕𝚊𝚝𝚎 𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚔𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚊𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚛
𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚓𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚕 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚍 𝚍𝚎𝚜𝚎𝚛𝚝
𝚋𝚎𝚑𝚘𝚕𝚍𝚎𝚛 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚋𝚕𝚎𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚙𝚑𝚘𝚎𝚗𝚒𝚡
𝚠𝚒𝚎𝚕𝚍𝚎𝚛 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚙𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚛𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚘𝚕𝚍
𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚛𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝𝚏𝚞𝚕 𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚐𝚞𝚊𝚛𝚍𝚒𝚊𝚗 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚕𝚊𝚗𝚍𝚜 𝚘𝚏 𝚎𝚕 𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚑𝚊.
[ kathashun, throughout the duration of your stay in el minha, can be found in a plethora of locations in the city. whether he approaches you is a luck of the odds, apparently . . . but if you approach him, he certainly won't turn you away.
additionally, it may also be hard to spot him, because while he is very easy to place near the palace, in his deep purple robes and constant crown guard presence, he is not so easy to place elsewhere . . . mostly because, for the sake of some amount of privacy, he ditches the royal colors and instead wanders around in a loose outfit with a white linen hooded cloak, much like the rest of his people, to blend in.
some opportunities to see him, though (and some information to gather, should you ask the guard), are as follows: ]
( A ) The Palace:
[ king kathashun does not allow people inside the royal palace. should you ask the crown guard why, they will explain (in terse terms, as the king has instructed the guard to answer questions reasonably) that the late king was murdered, and security is on high alert. no one is allowed inside the palace without express written permission from king kathashun himself, and if you don't have that? piss off.
however, king kathashun can be found on the grounds (with constant guard presence). conversations here will likely be short, as the guard is protective and unwilling to allow you too close to the king. after a few minutes or so, they will likely tell you to fuck off. but you're welcome to try! ]
( B ) The Fight Ring:
[ should you wander to the fight ring, you can find kathashun dressed in (still nice, but not super nice) linens with a cloak, watching the fighting and sparring below. he seems to be scanning the crowd with his eyes, and should you approach him, he will happily speak with you. but he may also approach you first, with a knowing smile, and a finger to his lips, should you recognize him. his hood is still up, but quietly: ]
Are you here to challenge the Champion?
[ judging from the look in his eyes, kathashun seems 100% prepared to encourage your entrance into the contest, but who knows? you might be misreading him. ]
(C) The Casino/Syndicate Territory:
[ the one place you will not find kathashun is the casino, due to the rampant syndicate presence here, and the current war between the two.
that being said, you may find a man wandering through the streets in syndicate territory asking people of their needs. he is dressed in dark clothing, atypical for the desert heat, but doesn't seem to be bothered by the sun. instead, he is asking the citizens questions.
do they have enough food? what do you want the crown to provide more of? are you safe here?
and should you approach this man, he appears to be in his late-forties, but he won't be interested in speaking with you. ]
Later, later, enough --
[ absent dismissals when you approach him, and he brushes past you, heading down a nearby alley.
do you want to follow him? ]
no subject
eventually, if sam chooses to still follow, they come out to a smaller open-aired market -- nowhere near as grand and illustrious as the grand market in the wealthier section of el minha. this seems to be a lot seedier, more "black market" fare, and the eyes in this place seem to be a little more skeptical of folks who haven't been here before. still, no one seems to say anything, and so the man keeps moving, and ducks into an alcove on the right, in between two stalls.
should sam follow him, there is -- no one there. it's almost as if the man vanished.
whether or not he did vanish might require a bit more poking.
meanwhile, an older woman is washing clothes in the alleyway giving sam something of a questioning look, skeptical of the outsider, but definitely not hostile. she's hanging up linens to dry and collecting up a new basket to move inside. ]
no subject
The empty alleyway presents something of a dead end. It immediately makes him wonder if he's been spotted despite his efforts at not attracting any attention from the man he was following, and if he's been led into some kind of ambush.
At that thought he's giving the alley a thorough look, both along the ground and up along the walls on either side for any unusual looking shadows or threatening gleams of metal.
The old woman is the only thing that immediately stands out, and Sam offers her a brief, polite nod when their gazes meet. He'll be keeping an eye on her movements too, even as he gives the alley a careful inspection, because if nothing else turns up he'll be asking her a couple of questions. ]
no subject
it's only reinforced when a voice appears from what appears to be the wall, sounding tinny, as if speaking underwater -- and the older man sam had been following steps out from the shadows, his eyes glowing a faint gold. ]
Why are you following me, traveler?
[ it's quiet -- not hostile, but curious. ]
no subject
He does try to turn to face the figure he can dimly see moving across from him. He doesn't recognize it, not yet, but he is trying to squint at the face. The man seems calm enough, so Sam will respond with a similar level of neutrality, since he would really rather not get into a fight unless he has to.
The real answer is that his first gut instinct was that something was weird about this guy, but once he had Sam's attention he'd realized that something strange was going on here. ]
You were kind of suspicious. People around here have been dropping dead under suspicious circumstances. [ No huge leap of logic needed there. ] I know that how you people do things around here isn't really any of my business, but I'm not gonna stand by and let someone get murdered in an alley.
[ Obviously the fact that it could have led to him being murdered in an alley hadn't been a sufficient deterrent. ]
no subject
You're misunderstood.
[ the golden hue in his eyes seems to brighten, and the person's form shimmers before, out of the static image of the man sam had been chasing before, kathashun steps forward. an illusion, it seems, or a change in appearance due to magic, but the visage fades from view, and kathashun's eyes return to their normal dark brown, his tone dry. ]
If anyone is going to be murdered in this place, it would be me.
[ he pauses -- his voice is still tinny, the pressure still in sam's ears. it seems that kathashun hasn't dropped that particular spell, whatever it is. ]
But I will warn you that I am far more formidable than I look, if you are still seeking a murder in an alley.
no subject
He eventually closes his mouth as he reassess the situation.
And he's still debating on what to say to hopefully make this less awkward when Kathashun seems to be suggesting that he could have less than noble intentions here, and he has a protest to that. ]
What? No, I'm not... I didn't come here to hurt anybody. Especially not you. [ and, a touch belatedly ] Uh, your highness.
[ He shakes his head, briefly making a face at the sensation of weight against his ears, and holds up his open hands well away from the blade tucked away in his cloak, in a yielding gesture. ]
I just thought somebody might be in trouble, and if they were I was going to try to help, that's all.
no subject
[ with a slight wave of his hand, at the usage of title. this man is not a citizen of his, and even if he were, his highness was his father. kathashun still isn't quite used to the burden of the crown yet, and he likes his name. he'd like people to keep using it. ]
Rather noble, for being a stranger in these lands, to pursue a stranger in an alley in the hopes of protecting someone you do not know. Brave, even. And a bit stupid.
[ but kathashun seems to relax, at sam's explanation, and he lowers his hands, in a show of his own peace, folding his hands into the sleeves of his robes before he glances around the alleyway. ]
I apologize for the barrier. I cannot afford to allow anyone to see or hear me. We are hidden here, in this . . . pocket? We shall call it a pocket. [ it's kathashun's spell, so he imagines he can call it whatever he wants. ] But it does tend to give the less arcane-inclined a headache, after a period of time, so I will make our conversation within this space short. For your benefit.
no subject
[ Sam can't really argue with that assessment, though he wouldn't call himself noble. He was just curious, and suspicious, and he has a reasonable amount of faith in his ability to get out of tricky situations. If it's a choice between self-preservation and helping someone he's going to go with the latter, and that can definitely lead to some reckless behavior.
He's still catching up to the idea that he's standing in an alley with Kathashun himself, but he can already see what the man means about headaches. That weird sense of pressure reminds him of the sensation that preceded his visions years ago, and those always hit him hard. So he shakes his head at the apology. ]
No, I understand.
[ He's aware that he has a rather unique opportunity here to talk to the King himself without a bunch of guards staring him down, but not for long. ]
I overheard some of what you were saying, asking people about the state of things down here and that's great but... why come here yourself?
no subject
My father was a tyrant, who executed people regardless of what they were charged with. He was not a good man, or king. And the people remember that, especially the poor. His death has no mourning, in this portion of the city. I cannot blame them.
[ he pauses. ]
So I come here, to ask what they need, to know the truth. They will not speak to me, otherwise.
no subject
Is there anyone you would trust to help you with this?
[ Maybe he's projecting, but Kathashun seems pretty isolated. Probably lonely too.
He shakes his head at himself. This isn't really the time or place for personal questions like that, assuming the King wanted to talk about it at all. There's so much he wants to understand about this intriguing man, and apparently he's the only one who can offer any insight. ]
This magic... Is it a 'blessings of the phoenix' thing?
no subject
[ with a slight laugh, and a wave of his hand, at sam's first question. he doesn't seem to be lying; he does seem to have some people he trusts, in this city.
but at the second question, kathashun's eyebrows arch slightly, amused. ]
You've read my family's history.
[ he pauses. ]
I'm sorry that it's so boring.
no subject
He almost expected the man to be annoyed at all the interest in himself and his family's legacy, but the humor and blunt remarks are the exact opposite, and Sam can't quite resist a chuckle of his own in response. He couldn't have known what to expect from Kathashun outside of his official duties as King, but he wouldn't have anticipated him to be this personable. It could be an act, granted a very good act, but it's hard not to like him.
It does occur to him that he didn't exactly get a real answer to his question, but it's not like he's going to hold a knife to his throat to try to get one out of him. ]
I didn't think it was boring. A little hard to understand in places when I don't know much about how magic works here, but the culture of this place is actually pretty fascinating.
[ The pressure in his ears is a constant reminder of the fact that they can't stay here too long, though he'll suffer through a headache if he has to. He's done it before. And he doesn't know when, or even if he'll have a chance to talk to Kathashun again. His expression sobers as he considers the whole reason they're having to be this careful just to have a talk in an apparently empty alley. ]
Do they really want to kill you just because they think you're going to be like your father?
no subject
[ it's a blithe response, but a rather honest one, with a slight shrug of his shoulders. he appreciates sam's candor, though, and his appreciation of his history -- or, at least, kathashun seems inclined to speak to him a bit more, as a result. ]
But his behavior toward these people, and this city, certainly doesn't garner much trust. It's an uphill battle, and the Syndicate doesn't help.