When the Night Comes Down (Jygust 30th ET)

[Uli Orange]

It wouldn’t be long before the sun left Roque. That time between sunset and sunrise had been more of a home to Uli than any place had. His relationship with the night, it must be said, had unquestionably affected Uli and brought about a few less than welcome developments. It was still the cue for his mind though to come alight with brilliance and for him to show his respect to his wise god, Pan. He would take to the festive scene, its drinks, drugs, and dancing once it was nearer gravetide, when the Roque would be besieged by others seeking a good time and a little secrecy. Whilst the criminal sort were just preparing for a night of profit was the best time to seek them out. They would likely be awake, yet not too consumed with their business. The first task Uli had in mind was to find out who sold the drugs in Roque and where they got them from. While it was easy enough to get information on how find drugs for purchase, Uli wanted that little bit more that would help him understand not only who he’d have to compete with, but how he should go about doing it. For that he needed someone who wasn’t too close to the dealers, but that knew more than just their prices. While such a person might be hard to find for most, Uli had a good idea of where to look.

As a passionate consumer of hemp, Uli knew as well as any how satisfying it was to roll one up and smoke it as the sun disappeared from the sky. The ideal place for such smoking, most smokers would agree, is somewhere high that overlooks the city or, preferably, a body of water. Upon arriving in Roque, Uli had immediately identified the Mer’s aesthetic offerings as the perfect smoking companions. Hopefully, he would find a friendly and loose-tongued fellow on the cliffs overlooking the Mer to enlighten him on the state of his favorite sort of trade here in Roque. With his mind made up to make the hike, Uli took a moment to roll a very large halfie of the dazzling hemp he had carried with him from Kislovan. He didn’t really like smoking it unless it was a special occasion, but he had nothing else to roll at the moment so he forced himself to continue.

On the cliffs above the Mer there were a dozen people or so scattered along a section that jutted out over the water slightly. Uli lit his halfie and began walking casually along the Cliffside, watching those he passed. As he passed by a couple sitting not far from the edge, the man turned to his lass and made an mmmmm sound while rubbing his belly. The girl laughed and snuck a peak at Uli before turning back to look out over the water.

“The Mer here is breathtaking. There was nothing like this to admire back home,” Uli said loud enough for the couple to hear.

After pivoting his body to face Uli, the man said, “Yes, it’s quite magical isn’t it? Where do you come from?”

Uli could now afford to move in and join the couple on their rock. He sat down next to the girl and held out the halfie to her as he exhaled a cloud of smoke.

Once the girl had taken the halfie, Uli replied, “I come from Kislovan, though not near the ocean or any lake as fine as this. My name is Uli by the way.”

The couple took a few seconds each to offer Uli a greeting and an introduction. The faces were no longer just faces, but Adrian and Livy.

“This is some fine smokery here. An import from Kislovan, no?” Adrian asked as he passed the halfie back to Uli.

“Yes, it was the one thing I made sure not to forget because I didn’t know how hard it would be to get good hemp here.”

Once Uli had finished speaking, Livy commented, “Oh, it’s not hard at all to find good hemp here, or whatever else you’re looking actually.”

“Really?” Sextus asked suggestively.

Livy replied, “Yeah, you can get hemp in Happenstance Bazaar or from someone at a tavern generally. The other stuff, well, I definitely know the place to go for that. I used to work aboard the Dragonfly, a pleasure boat, and everyone on there stayed higher than the sun at tradetide. Captain Diego, the man who manages the Dragonfly, was always receiving gifts from customers who were impressed by the quality of the drugs he provided. I’m not sure where he gets his stuff from though. After all, there are countless smugglers and traders in Roque. To get drugs from him you’d most likely need to book yourself a stay on the Dragonfly which is quite pricy.”

“You’d have better luck finding a source from some desperate criminal at the Broken Blade Arena than from that tightwad,” Adrian said sarcastically.

Though he didn’t know it, Adrian had actually given a very promising suggestion to Uli. What he could not see, Uli could. Within the holding pits of the Broken Blade Arena there was sure to be a library worth of knowledge about Roque’s criminal activities and characters. There was also desperation which called gently to the ears of all those who thrived on business. What were the competitors at the arena desperate for? It was easy enough for Uli to piece together a few certainties. Men who could die the very next day undoubtedly wanted drugs to feel the peak of happiness one last time. They would also want drugs that would make them stronger, more alert, or make them feel no pain. Then there were those who would likely just want something to help them sleep through their anxiety, the smell of death, and the snoring of dozens of slaves and criminals.

Handing what remained of the halfie to the girl, Uli stood and wished them a good night and morrow. He would pay a visit to the Bazaar or perhaps the gardens tomorrow and see if he could scrape up some desirables for the combatants at the arena, which he could trade for in depth information. He would also need to think of a way to gain an audience with the combatants since they weren’t likely allowed visitors. If his hopes for the Arena proved unfounded, he could resort to surveying the scene at the Dragonfly.

[Brytan]

OOC: Locking temporarily, will PM shortly on the how and why of it.