tushanshu_logs | Closed | Malicant Event

Characters
> Raimei Shimizu |

anomia
> Amelia |

willofjustice
> Korra |

alphatar
> Ariadne |

build
> Iskierka |

kazilik

Hei To, keeper of maps and law, leads this briefing by pinning (you guessed it) a map to the wall with a wide blue circle marked in an area southwest of Keeliai. This area known as the Quarry and was cleared to shell a few centuries back for the sake of harvesting panels of said shell during a fad fashion trend that died out quickly due to the cost of acquiring the near impenetrable substance. The Quarry has remained there since, abandoned and used only by kedan youth for hosting get togethers -- and the occasional gang initiation. As it falls outside the walls of Keeliai, the police have little jurisdiction there and leave things be for the most part. The concern, however, is that some areas of the Quarry run deep and the thickness of the shell in those areas is questionable at best. While all exposed areas of the turtle's skin are monitored day and night, this is one area where there is no security and yet a risk exists. With that in mind, he tasks the team with investigating the Quarry to determine whether there has been or currently exist any attempts to compromise the area and use it against Tu Vishan's health.

Dossiers:
Files are handed to each character that provide English transcriptions of an engineer's report on the state and site of the Quarry twenty years prior. A total of seventeen metric tonnes of the shell were harvested during its heyday, with operations stalling the deeper they went. The shell closest to the turtle's hide is young and proved economically impossible to harvest due to the resilience of the material. Recommendations made by the engineer state that the shell may be feasible to harvest within another two hundred years, once the exposed areas have further weathered. There are descriptions of abandoned tools that have been gutted of parts and observations of some litter and scorched sites of presumed bonfires. No structures were observed and no other signs of permanent presences noted. The engineer estimated the shell to be as thin as seven meters in the lowest areas of the Quarry.

Options:
A
Investigate the quarry site by making daily trips there and being debriefed at a Keeliai station each time. Hei To would outfit them with a kirin-led cart with sufficient supplies each morning and they would be expected to return it each evenining. The cart ride is three hours each way and the Quarry can be found at the end of an abandoned road reduced to ruts for the cart wheels by overgrowth. The engineer's report, though twenty years out of date, appears consistent with the state of the site to this day. The exception is the erection of three shacks at the very center of the site and a row of rock piles along the far edge of the excavated space that have been stacked carefully into mounds. The interior of the shacks measure two-by-two meters and are not furnished; they show no signs of inhabitation and there are the scuffle marks of numerous feet in the fine onyx dust there. The rock piles are roughly eight feet in length and four feet wide; attempts to disturb them would result in the discovery of a body under each. The bodies have been stripped of clothes and identification; they show signs of heavy decomposition and it is difficult to determine the causes of death under field investigation. Furthermore, three or four kedan can be seen observing at the edges of the Quarry, but attempts to approach them result in their hasty retreat.

Exact results of further investigation of the shacks, bodies, or attempts to contact the observing kedan would be provided with the next clue set if this option is taken.

B
Investigate the quarry site by making nightly trips there and being debriefed at a Keeliai station each time. Hei To would outfit them with a kirin-led cart with sufficient supplies each evening and they would be expected to return it each morning. The cart ride is three hours each way and the Quarry can be found at the end of an abandoned road reduced to ruts for the cart wheels by overgrowth. The engineer's report, though twenty years out of date, appears consistent with the state of the site to this day. The exception is the erection of three shacks at the very center of the site and a row of rock piles along the far edge of the excavated space that have been stacked carefully into mounds. These would be difficult to see on first arrival, but they do exist on site. The shacks measure two-by-two meters and there are lit torches set in brackets on the exterior of them, casting light on two kedan guarding each. There is activity inside the shacks that cannot be discerned from a distance, but a kedan carrying two crates of tools in and another carrying fabric-wrapped envelopes out is evidence of that. The rock piles, meanwhile, are almost impossible to see during night hours, but measure eight feet in length and four feet wide. Attempts to route around the shacks to investigate them would be met with kedan sentries spaced every ten metres around the Quarry. Players are asked to RNG the results of these encounters, including any attempts to sneak past them; they may also create names and attitudes for any kedan encountered.

Exact details as to the nature of the operations in the shacks and access of the rock piles would be provided in the next clue set if this option is taken.

C
Investigate the quarry site by making one trip out, staying for a period of five days, and then returning for a full debrief with Hei To. The team would be outfitted with supplies for three days, including a canvas shelter and bedding sufficient for the whole team; all this would be loaded into a cart with a mild-mannered lead beast for the three hour ride to the Quarry, which is found at the end of an abandoned road reduced to ruts for the cart wheels by overgrowth. The engineer's report, though twenty years out of date, appears consistent with the state of the site to this day. The exception is the erection of three shacks at the very center of the site and a row of rock piles along the far edge of the excavated space that have been stacked carefully into mounds. The interior of the shacks measure two-by-two meters and are not furnished; they show no signs of inhabitation and there are the scuffle marks of numerous feet in the fine onyx dust there. The rock piles are roughly eight feet in length and four feet wide; attempts to disturb them would result in the discovery of a body under each. The bodies have been stripped of clothes and identification; they show signs of heavy decomposition and it is difficult to determine the causes of death under field investigation. Furthermore, three or four kedan can be seen observing at the edges of the Quarry, but attempts to approach them result in their hasty retreat.

The moment that night falls, however, the seclusion of the site ends. Three teams of kedan move into it with an intent to search (forewarned by the observing kedan) and, should the Foreigners be spotted, will turn aggressive and try to remove them. Should the cart be left untended, the lead beast would be loosed and the cart itself destroyed. The kedan would try to apprehend any Foreigners they spotted and would question them roughly about the nature of their presence, investigation, and whether others are due on the site. The nighttime operations would not commence on the grounds of this security breach. Players can create names and attitudes of kedan associated with these operations.

Exact results of further investigation of the shacks, bodies, or outcome of any captures kedan would be provided with the next clue set if this option is taken. Please note the names of any captured Foreigners and also advise if any attempts to capture kedan in turn are made (players can use RNG to determine the outcome of such attempts), including what specific questions the team would ask said kedan if successful.

Deadline:
To permit creation of the next clue set, please reply with the option selected by the team by July 2nd at end of day. If no response is made at that time, a mod will RNG the option. A header has been provided in the IC section for your team for any threading relevant to this clue set. Questions and (some) additional details can be requested by replying to this comment with QUESTION - SET 01 in the subject line. Please be specific with questions, as generic "what happened to X" queries are too broad to answer fairly.

Going to assume we're going with option C despite missing our last voting member!

Confirming that Team 13 is going with option C!

Findings - Set 01:
Note: In the absence of details about whether Foreigners or kedan were apprehended, it is assumed that neither side was successful in capturing any party.

The bodies beneath the rockpiles remain consistent with the initial findings and prove almost impossible when it comes to identifying the cause of death this far in the field. Though the bodies themselves are thoroughly stripped, a few rusted knives can be found by rolling the corpses over in their graves. This is an old burial custom that some superstitious kedan executed when laying the bodies to rest. The only other finding would be the presence of a fine, onyx powder beneath one of the bodies; this powder appears to have no untoward effects upon contact or inhalation.

Further investigation of the site ceases upon nightfall; the three teams of kedan that arrive on site prove relentless in their aggression and shouts can be heard calling for reinforcements and heavy carts meant for cargo -- the intimation being that they will close up whatever shop they have operating and move to another venture. One team actively moves about the Quarry to seek out the Foreigners with the intent to apprehend them and attempt a hostage negotiation -- life for silence, or something akin to that.

Their core focus remains on the shacks, with two of the teams working there to defend and dismantle the structures. Some can be seen removing tools and crates that were not visible during the daylight inspections. Attempts to approach these activities are met with a violent defense, these kedan tasked with protecting it to the very death if they must. They begin with simple weapons -- swords, clubs -- but soon there are three archers posted around the edge of the Quarry to take aim at any Foreigner they see.

What began as an investigation has turned into an assault and siege, with kedan refusing to back down. They task three kedan -- their strongest -- to destroy the cart and free the lead beast, seeking to strand the Foreigners here where assistance cannot reach them. These kedan hit hard and fast, sending the beast fleeing into the night.

Options:
A
Attempt to steal a cart and kirin from the kedan teams; use this to return to Keeliai and report their findings to Hei To. There are some untended beasts at the far entry of the Quarry that could be stolen and used as transport to Keeliai. Upon said return, Hei To would debrief them on the graves found, the nature of the shacks, and for details about the kedan that arrived and drove them out. Then he would assemble a force of ten policekedan and offer the Foreigners to return to the Quarry with them for an official raid; warrants would be easily obtained with the presence of the bodies, for the location is does not have any registrations for the extremely rare and controlled practice of on-shell burial. They would return armed and ready to arrest or execute kedan that resisted them.

Exact details as to the result of this return-raid would be provided with the next clue set if this option is taken

B
Attempt to overwhelm the kedan at the shacks. There are a total of fifteen kedan including the archers at the edge of the quarry and they are moving in an organised fashion; three are frequently reported to by the rest, marking them as leaders of this group and these would be the kedan directing response to any Foreigner counterattack. Roughly five kedan could be taken out by stealth methods, such as utilising the landscape of the Quarry and whatever weapons that are available at their disposal. The three archers along the edge of the Quarry reposition frequently and would be difficult to apprehend; players are asked to RNG any direct encounters with them with a 75:25 ratio (with it being a 75% of escape on the part of the archers). The remaining seven kedan would regroup around the shacks and hold fast, taking hostage any Foreigner that came without the full complement of their team.

Exact details as to the result of this assault and the findings for within the shack would be provided in the next clue set if this option is taken.

C
Retreat, regroup, observe, and follow the three teams of kedan. While the grounds on the ground could be evaded, the team would have to contend with the archers stationed around the Quarry. The three archers along the edge of the Quarry reposition frequently and would be difficult to evade; players are asked to RNG any encounters with them with a 75:25 ratio (with it being a 75% chance of detection by the archers). The team could then retreat and attempt at a different escape route with the same odds until such time as they are successful; players are reminded that the archers would shoot with lethal intent, being unable to apprehend a whole team of Foreigners single-handedly. They would not, however, raise the alarm upon a sighting, simply trying to hand the threat more directly. Meanwhile, the kedan near the shacks would cart out supplies in crates and an unknown substance that is stored in sacks; they would then dismantle the shacks and load them onto carts driven into the Quarry in the interim. The Foreigners would be able to follow these carts once loaded up as they travel in single-file out of the Quarry area and then away from Keeliai. Kedan walk with the carts, keeping an eye open for barricades, brigands, or other forms of interference.

Exact details as to the destination of the carts and their contents would be provided in the next clue set if this option is taken.

Deadline:
To permit creation of the next clue set, please reply with the option selected by the team by July 7th at end of day. If no response is made at that time, a mod will RNG the option. A header has been provided in the IC section for your team for any threading relevant to this clue set. Questions and (some) additional details can be requested by replying to this comment with QUESTION - SET 02 in the subject line. Please be specific with questions, as generic "what happened to X" queries are too broad to answer fairly.

Despite the journal, going with option C, please!

Confirming option C for team 13!

Findings - Set 02:
The convoy of cart and kedan continues for five hours with only a single break made as the latter conduct a sweep of their route to ensure no ambush awaits nor any parties follow them. This sweep is cursory and done by veteran hands who, despite the scary at the Quarry, appear relaxed rather than alert. They bear the countenance of ones content with their security, for few have ever cared about convoys heading away from the walled city. The team, as such, could evade detection as they trail the group.

After five hours, the convoy comes to a stop and a simple camp is erected, sentries posted, and a fire started over which a stew is put together and left to simmer over the flames. Two kedan sit atop the sacks and are far more alert than the earlier sweepers, refusing to step off the goods even when the stew is ready. Conversations could be overheard debating the point with the sweepers, the conclusion being that they're not risking a payday by being lax now. There's also a discussion between most of the kedan about whether they should return to the Quarry now that the Foreigners have discovered them. This topic turns heated, with heavy gestures made in the vague direction of the site; there is talk about losing the burial ground, but particular focus is spent on the sacks. The term "Dust" comes up repeatedly, with one of the kedan atop the sacks clarifying that she's never called this Dust. She reminds them that this is a knockoff -- a designer drug that won't get them nailed to the wall by the Alderwood Commander so long as he doesn't realise how it's made.

That sparks a new round of discussion, with complaints made that the Quarry was the best site for grinding the shell into a powder. It's a hard task at the best of times, but at least there they had privacy. Comments are made that they'll just have to find a new location, with others suggesting they move on into a different drug. Dust, according to them, is unsettling and they're not sure if the demand'll hold up. Atop the sacks, the apparent leader rolls her eyes and tells them to shut up and get out if that's the way they want to run things. This quiets the discussion to some degree, but the arrival of an empty cart and six additional kedan brings it to full silence.

Finally, the lead kedan hops off the sacks to approach the newcomers, engaging in quiet discourse with their leader in turn. She shakes her head a few times before an agreement is reached and she signals for the sacks to be carried from their cart to the new one. Midway through the transfer, the deal turns sour as the newcomers attack their suppliers -- the fight turns bloody and will continue to the death should no intervention be made.

"Power Surge" Devices:
The team will have their "power surge" devices (PSDs) delivered to them prior to embarking on their outcome option. This will be delivered to them per the OOC announcement via means appropriate to their location. These devices are approximately the size of a small backpack and have straps such that they can be worn like one, with a simple control panel stitched into the canvas siding. These devices can each be used for a thirty second return of powers for one person and then must be recharged for a minimum of five minutes. If you have any questions about these devices, please direct them to the OOC announcement.

Outcomes:
Based on the findings of set 02, this team has one of two final outcomes for their clueventure:

A
Intervene directly in the confrontation, with or without the use of the PSDs (delivered by a speed-enhanced runner just prior to the convoy setting up camp). The team proves able to save more than half the kedan lives at stake, though the buyer kedan is killed outright by the leader of the convoy. The surviving kedan are apprehended and returned to Keeliai to face drug running trials; en route, the lead kedan implies that Evandau will have her killed for the Dust knockoff is made by grinding turtle shell -- an illegal activity at the best of times. Should this not gain her leniency, she will utilise the other prisoners to create a distraction, stealing one of the PSDs and using it to fully (and temporarily) restore her shifting so that she can take a powerful form and get out of dodge.

The team otherwise makes it to Keeliai without incidence and the sacks are confiscated by police forces; tests undertaken in the ensuing investigation show that the onyx dust is derived directly from Tu Vishan's shell and, for conspiracy to harm the turtle, the apprehended kedan are put to the death. Meanwhile, the team is thanked for their assistance, though the absence of their second PSD is greeted with a degree of suspicion that will see them garner quite a bit of interest from the police should they even toe the line of legality in the future. That's right -- watch out, otherwise you might be arrested for having too many braids in your hair according to cultural laws. This would also result in a few random searches of their suites in the future (handwaved) as the police move to ensure that they did not lie about the PSD theft. The Dust knockoff would resurface on the streets after a few months, though the kedan behind it remains deeply underground with her PSD.

B
Allow the kedan to continue their fights to the death; this would wrap up within an hour and every kedan present -- plus two cart beasts -- would be dead as a result. The team could then gather up the sacks and what evidence they feel appropriate from the bodies before returning to Keeliai. Subsequent investigations of the Quarry and the substances indicate that it is a knock-off drug modelled off of Dust, but this form created by grinding down the turtle's shell and then mixing the dust with a combination of sugar and sawdust before selling it on the streets. The bodies buried at the Quarry are determined to be those of kedan that sought to be out of the operation (or otherwise hampered it).

The team would be thanked for their contribution and both PSDs confiscated for control purposes. While their actions did not directly heal the turtle, they would still be held in higher regard by the police -- who would, in the future, look the other way if these particular Foreigners acted out of line with the law, so long as they didn't murder anyone. Meanwhile, the Dust knockoff is never again seen on the streets of Keeliai.

Deadline:
Please reply with the final outcome of your team by July 11th at end of day; this is to ensure that there is a known outcome for each team by the end of the event. If no response is made at that time, a mod will RNG the outcome. A header has been provided in the IC section for your team for any threading relevant to this final set. Questions and (some) additional details can be requested by replying to this comment with QUESTION - FINAL SET in the subject line. Please be specific with questions, as generic "what happened to X" queries are too broad to answer fairly.

We have our tie breaker and Team 13 is going with Option B.

TEAM 13

OOC

BRIEFING

CLUES

SET 01

Re: SET 01

no subject

SET 02

no subject

no subject

FINAL SET & OUTCOMES

no subject

OTHER

no subject

no subject

IC

CLUE SET 01

idk if we need posting order?? everyone just jump around? haha

*doesn't know either, totally winging it* ^^;

CLUE SET 02

CLUE SET 02

no subject

FINAL SET & OUTCOMES

no subject

no subject

doesn't know either, totally winging it ^^;