With your antics over the past few years, you've decided it's time to move from Nexus, the city you've been living in. Not wanting to go to the militant, structured Lookshy for somewhat obvious reasons, you decide to join a merchant caravan traveling into the Marukani lands.

The long trip was quite uneventful and to your liking. The merchants didn't ask too many questions for your comfort, but provided some much needed company and entertainment for the long journey. Arriving in Mishaka, you bid the merchants farewell as they go off to continue the work of their business and you are free to begin yours.

Oh the money I could have made off that lot with another week to gain their trust, I didn't even gamble with drovers...Ah well, I suppose one wasted opportunity won't hurt me.

Carede coughed a little and re-adjusted the pack on his shoulder, and glanced about the small city square he had parted from the merchants in.

I suppose first things first, I had best find a place to stay for a few days, then scope out the city, see if I can set up a few games of Find the Lady for starters, investigate the money lenders....erk, I best see how active the watch is too. Ah, but first an inn, preferably with a tavern attached.

With a gentle tug on the reigns he walked his horse down the street. He didn't find a tavern or an inn. He tried another street. No inn.

With a frown he finally sighed and grabbed a passerby.
"Would you be so kind as to direct me to a relatively cheap inn of decent repute friend?" he said, flashing the man a smile, and giving him the steady unwavering gaze of an honest man. He had spent a lot of time cultivating that gaze.

The man stammered out a series of directions and Carede thanked him with a beaming smile. He followed the man's directions and eventually came to an inn. A bit more run-down than the buildings in the square he had come from it nonetheless looked respectable.

He wandered into the stables, and passed off the reigns to the stablehand, before entering the inn proper, looking about for the innkeep.

Walking into the pleasantly warm building, you promptly pick out a man behind the bar routinely serving drinks and ordering the waitresses around. The room is quite a bit more full than you might have expected at this time of day. You notice a staircase on the right wall of the building leading, presumably, up to the rooms.

With a little smile Carede walked forward towards the bar, when he felt a little nuzzle on the back of his neck.
He groaned inwardly. This would be the time 'sedge would pop his head out. He didn't let it show as he approached the bar where he took a seat and smiled at the bartender.

"The proprietor I assume?" Carede flashed a smile. "How much for one of your rooms for a few nights? And stabling for a horse?" he asked, idly spinning a single coin on the bar like a top.

'sedge for his part, had climbed out on Carede's arm, and was sniffing at the drink of another man in the bar, and making little begging sounds at the bowl of nuts.

I swear to god, it's like a child bent on making as much mischief as possible. I think I actually miss when he was only really active at night. Waking up with a face full of fur or no.

He cocked his head and waited for the answer, a dozen plans running through his head, not least getting 'sedge to do a little night time pilfering of the place, though if he didn't send the blighter out with instructions he was more likely to get half eaten crusts back than anything of value.

"Few nights? And a horse? That'll be 'bout 7 Yen," the thin man of average height says as he reaches under the counter for a key. "You'll get the room at the top o' the stairs, down two, and on the right. So, you're new here in town, I take it?" Looking at your pet, he smiles. "Tha's a cute little feller ya got there." After serving a drink to another patron, he turns back to you, "Well, make yerself at home. And jus' tell me if ya need anythin'. My name's Tahn," he smiles warmly.

"Aye." Carede said warmly as he took out the required coins "I just rolled in as a matter of fact. Got a job lined up but, wouldn't you know it? Paperwork got fouled up and they won't be ready for me for another two weeks. Don't suppose you know of somewhere where I can get some short work for a week or two?" he laughed "I doubt I'll be having much more than water for the next fortnight otherwise. The merchants I came down with practically skinned me."

Inwardly Carede smirked. The man had well and truly stepped in it. 'Sedge was an incorrigible beggar, and he could as good as understand human speech. After hearing the mans comment it was inevitable that 'Sedge would hound him for every scrap of food and attention the little scamp could wring out of him.

Taking the coins, Tahn thinks for a moment. "Well, I don't really know what there is. But I'm sure there's lots of things that need doing. You might try some of the stables. They seem to always need more help. Mine is taken good care of, but there are lots of stables in this city."

A moment after Tahn had finished speaking, the building slightly shakes from what sounds almost like an explosion. Everybody begins to run outside and see what had just happened. Following them, you get out the doorway just in time to see a man surrounded by a raging inferno rush past at speeds twice what any normal man could achieve. He leaves a trail of fire where his feet step that seems to stick to the ground even though the street is only dirt.

Looking around, you see a bright, pale yellow light from behind a few buildings; a light that only a Solar's Anima could create.

Carede's mind seemed to freeze over, and he got a sudden feeling, as if he were standing on the ledge of a precipice.

Merciful Dragons... he thought. One of the Ana-a Solar beyond and a Terrestrial running. There's precious little else it could have been other than a fight, and now the Dragon-Blooded know there's a Solar Exalt in this city. Or will when that one finds his mates...If he finds his mates. Flaming footprints seem like they would be easy to track.

He snorted at the thought. Another Solar had already tried the same thing, and hadn't managed to succeed. Why should he fare any better? Dismissing the point he made a mental note to not attract any unnecessary attention for a while.

Turning towards the light he felt a strange...tug. Almost as if something was compelling him to go towards it. He balked. Every instinct he had picked up over the last few years screamed at him not to go. Yes, such an event would cause chaos, and in chaos there was opportunity, but at the same time there was a limit. This sort of thing was more likely to present the opportunity of running for his life, than fiscal gains. He had never been one to distrust his instincts, for better of for worse. Nope, he wouldn't go investigate this. Of course not. Such an act would be silly and irresponsible and foolish.
...
But he would go for a walk. He did, after all, have to scout out the city for opportunities.

He wandered back into the stables and patted his now-stabled horse, before going digging through the pack of belongings and clothes still in the saddle bag. He found what he was after in short order, a rolled up blanket in an oilskin covering, two leather wrapped handles just barely peeking out from between the rolls of the blanket. He slung it over his back and exited the stables.


After all, it wouldn't be good for anyone to find these while I'm away. It's not like I think I might have use for them.
'Sedge for his part, immediately burrowed into the folds of the blanket, and squirmed a little. His nose just peeking out of the blanket.

Stepping back out into the street, Carede glanced around once or twice before turning and walking down the street, threading through the crowds. After a few minutes of walking, he took a turn, at random. A few more and he decided to wander down an alley.

A few more turns later he dimly realized he was heading directly for the light.

Ah. Well. I suppose there's as much city this way as there is in any other direction. So long as I don't get mixed up in anything it will be fine.

He whistled as he walked. He didn't know why but he felt somehow...right. Tiny snoring sounds started to come from the blanket sac on his back

While walking toward the crisp, pale yellow light, you take the time to look at everything as you pass and to enjoy the leisurely walk. You pass by a small merchant square off to one side and, inevitably wherever there are merchants, near to the square is a seedy back ally that looks to be where any thieves would run after stealing something from one of the stalls or people milling about with full purses. You notice that there are far more stables in this city than you are accustomed to. As you continue walking and the buildings become more residential, the glow in front of you suddenly bursts forth, becoming brilliantly white for a few brief moments before fading back to it's usual crisp pale yellow.

Approaching near enough to finally lay eyes upon the being the illumination is shining from, you see a tall man, greatsword in hand, walking slowly toward what appears to be the edge of town. He was obviously in a fight with the inferno of a man as evidenced by the few burn marks on his clothing. He seems to be in a cross mood at the moment.

Carede strolled into the square, watching the blaze of a man carefully. He made sure to walk small here, the last thing he wanted was to be noticed. As the man walked away, Carede realized that he had been sweating. He was nervous, out of place. He took several deep breaths.

I am no-one. I am everyone. I am just a part of the crowd, I have a dozen histories, and a thousand alibis. Just because I was in the same square as that man...No. No one could fault me for an accident of timing.

Carede made some show of examining the stalls of merchants as he wandered about. his eyes however, kept on flicking back to the tavern, and his path was a long winding one, that nonetheless took him slowly and slowly closer to the tavern. As he finally came upon it, he didn't even pause to look at the name, but went right on in, without hesitation.

Entering the tavern again, you find quite a bit more excitement than before. Immediately, you see a man that seems familiar, though you aren't sure why, hanging from one of the rafters by his legs while drinking out of a pitcher with a long straw. As you go to find a seat you notice the cutest little ... monkey. Well, actually, it looks more like a lemur to you, but you're not quite sure what it is. You can only be certain that it is adorable and quite intelligent as it walks among the crowd of people, seemingly enjoying itself.

Carede grinned a little in spite of himself, he couldn't help but be amused by the man's and the monkey's antics, even if it meant that he was unlikely to find the somewhat more grim information he had gone looking for. He wandered over to a table near the hanging man. Grinning and elbowing a passer byes, with sumless bets, and a few jokes he managed to secure a seat at a table fairly close to the center of the room.

He took out a pack of cards(suitably, and subtly marked of course), and began idly shuffling them, trying to catch anyone's eye, to see if he could strike up a game. Men's tongues tended to loosen when they were drunk or otherwise occupied. This little place seemed to have taken care of the first, winning a few games against the silly little man who didn't seem to know how to really play the card game he started would take care of the other.

Finishing his pitcher of drink in record time, the man hanging from the rafter jumped down and landed with a light thud, pulling the whole motion into a bow. He then went to sit on a stool at the bar and order a tankard of tea.

This whole time, the lemur has been putting on quite a show, jumping between tables and off anything hanging on the walls. After a short time, it jumps onto the edge of your table and sits there, watching the games and periodically looking at the cards in your or your opponent's hand.

The man across from you seemed to be a simpleton and, if nothing else, provided a way to pass the time. He chatted about the events of his day to day life tending the Marukani Steeds and the odd quirks of those horses in comparison to others.

Carede cocked an eyebrow as the man ordered a whole tankard of tea. A pitcher of beer was usually enough to sate any man, and often two, but then to pile more drink on top of it? The odd man was liable to burst.

Carede pretended to ignore the man and grinned and laughed along, both at the monkeys antics and the man's little jokes he tossed into his speech. Carede wasn't a terrible rider but he had relatively little interest in horses.

He sighed inwardly though, that he hadn't managed to attract anyone more interesting than this fellow. He casually lost the first two rounds despite superior hands, folded on the third, bluffed on nothing on the fourth and lost for it. The other man seemed smug, confident his opponent wasn't quite sure how to play. On the fifth hand Carede dealt himself a nice little hand from the bottom of the deck and took the other fellow for all Carede's money, and some of his too. He sighed a bit to himself, small mark, small profits, he supposed, but he had so been hoping to find someone who was relatively new to the game, and with a great deal of disposable income. He glanced aroudn the seedy tavern. Wrong place for he supposed.

The acrobatic man, now sitting at the bar asked for the bet money he'd accrued for his stunts, took it, then walked toward the largest group of patrons and began speaking with them comfortably, either as if he'd known them for ages, or through a practiced effort of cordiality. He pulled a joint from his pocket, assured there were no protests, then lit it.

Smoking casually and liberally handing joints out to various patrons, he proceeded to create a soft white-gray cloud that swelled in the tavern, causing the patrons to clump more, gathering in large groups to share stories and jokes, filling the building with laughter. The lemur seemed to be having a great time as well, jumping back and forth, hopping onto random peoples' shoulders and performing his usual tricks and antics in an attempt to garner as much attention as he could.

As the hours went by, you having joined the merriment both to enjoy yourself and to learn what you could about the people, the crowd grew with more of the nightly patrons entering. Everybody seemed to be thoroughly enjoying themselves, having a wonderful night unlike what they may have expected normally.

Suddenly, as the night begins to draw to a close and the patrons are dispersing back to their homes, shouts in the street shatter the joyous mood. Some, you can make out...

"Where did the Anathema go!? Answer me, peasants!"

Going outside to observe more closely, you see a group of four colorfully armored men crowd around some villagers menacingly. The men, obviously Terrestrials by their demeanor and armor, are probably on the hunt for the Solar you saw earlier that day. You aren't certain what you should do, but are quite curious of the other Solar.

A few moments later, you hear a familiar voice from above you, "Excuse me, noble Dragon-Blessed. You seem to be disrupting the general populace in your investigation. Mayhap 'twould be better if you were to ask folks who might know the answer, eh?" the acrobat that has been the center of tonight's festivities grinned playfully as he lay down lazily across the lip of the roof.

Turning around to glare at him, one of the Terrestrials belts out accusingly, "And who might that be? You? Don't get involved in matters that don't concern you. You may find them to be beyond your league."