Intertwined Island: IC

[Likar]

Intertwined Island is a different kind of an RP. You make your character, stuff like that, but the main RP is very different.

It takes place on a island, remote, with a small port. You are a citizen there: whether you choose to be a vampire in a abandoned mansion, or a mercenary down below, you all are on the same island.

The Islands lore is built by us the players with more being added with each new player with new players being encouraged to read the over view.

Our objectives are simple; safeguard our island home and survive the conditions that befall us.

You decide what you want it to be. Its up to you.

Every 10 pages into the RP, there is a day-night cycle completed, 7 pages for day, 3 for night.

There is also weather. Every 5 pages the weather is changed, and I roll a dice to decide what weather it is: it can be sunny one day, but alter be flooding.

But the nice thing about this RP, its up to the players to shape it, and not just me.

OOC link: viewtopic.php?f=31&t=463212

[Likar]

As per thread, I have rolled the dice, and the number is..

Number 3, so that means rain.

[Rykil]

Island Forest, Cabin
Aldia in his lonesome
Theme

Rain, something that often caused Aldia to retreat back to his cabin, whether it was for simply attuning with the peace plunking of raindrops or writing. The Obelisk was a little ways over a few trees, and the thought of it in the rain gave a strangely calming feeling. He was in the center of the room, legs crossed, hands outwards, and silently thinking. He was clad in his full gear, which others may consider unhealthy or abnormal, but to Aldia it was a habit. Of course, he took it off when bathing. He thought of his arrival on the island, the strange tidiness of his weapons, the Obelisk, and of course the island in general. It was a strange place, with bizarre technologies, customs, and people. He had never heard of lands outside the ones he knew of during his time as a Nightingale, such as his homeland and the other known nations in the world. But now, this was a whole new world, or was it merely an unexplored place in the world he knew before? Then, he snapped out of it. It was a sudden but silent action, followed with a stretch. He had been doing this for a while now, after all. Getting up and stretching again, he lit a candle in the relatively dark cabin.

The cabin itself was a simple two-room dwelling, with one room essentially containing everything he had and the other dedicated to bathing when he needed it. His sword, knives, kukris, and garrote wire were all hung on a weapons rack. His extendable blade was always attached to his right gauntlet, so that was always on him. Walking over to the dining area he fetched himself a bite of bread that they had bought the day before, precipitated by the removal of the beak mask. The mask's removal revealed the gaunt-faced Aldia, his greying and untamed hair falling about his head. Later in the day, perhaps, he would head to the Aviator's Shelter.

[Likar]

Apartment 808, Downtown
Akira Xing; alone

Akira glanced at the window. Its pouring outside, every little thump being heard. She closes her eyes to think; she thinks of ideas best while she has a steady beat of sounds. She thought of her rent; it was coming up quickly, and, she was 70$ short. She was given free food from the lady who Akira worked for, but payed only a little over minimum wage. She would not starve, but she might be on the streets, or might need to cut down on her spending. Maybe no electricity for a week, or maybe she will just have to wear the same clothes for a little while.

She opened her eyes, and once again looked out of the window. The thumping on the window sent a small shiver up her spine, the feeling of a cold hand on her shoulder. She decided to take to her "hobby": video games. She boots up her "GameChild" and opens up the main menu to "Ogres and Warlords", before quickly forgetting everything she had thought about, and then, passing out on her torn up couch, game console in hand.

[Kaziimar]

Under Mount Cyrac
Shinji, Lord Firethroat's Lair

If anybody was outside on the island that day, which not many seemed to be...they would've seen a shadow pass over them briefly before disappearing only to crop back up somewhere else just a mere moment later. A dragon with deep blue, almost black scales was heading toward a large mountain in the back of the island but surprisingly, none of the island’s residents seemed to act in very much fear. When the dragon landed, it seemed to disappear before a blue-haired, yellow eyed boy appeared in its place and walked toward the open mouth of what was once an underground fortress carved into the base of this mountain.

“Dad! I’m back!” Shinji hoisted his bag over one shoulder and his steps echoed through the stone walls, and in a great pile of an odd collection of treasures (mostly the typical gold and silver coins, but sometimes things like statues or even books) there was a great red dragon, partially buried beneath the hoard. The smoke that rose from his nostrils whenever he breathed out was his only sign of movement. “Dad!”
Lord Firethroat slowly turned his head and opened brilliant green, reptilian eyes at the sight of the apparently inconspicuous child. “You insist on walking around in this human shape, Shinji.”
“Well, it’s easier to get back and forth, y’know. Places my dragon form wouldn’t fit in very well. Climbing up, he perched on his father’s back. “Did you find anything of interest?”
“Got some stuff that floated in along the shore, but not much else.”

[Foxfound]

Downtown
Betty DuVall

On the sidewalk, umbrella in hand, walked a figure most residents of the town would recognize. If the red hair and eyes still bright despite the gloomy sky didn't give it away, the waitress outfit and apron would tell locals that this was Betty DuVall, proprietor of the Aviator's Shelter saloon. She was well-liked; perhaps a bit formal for her young age, but always good for a chat, and ready to lend a helping hand to those who found themselves in a fix.

Nobody suspected that she was an unholy being that fed on human blood, and for her and everyone else's sake she wanted to keep things that way.

Though she didn't like getting wet, the rain was welcome for her. It meant she didn't have to spend as much energy warding off the sun with her magic. Unknown to her, the umbrella had the added effect of blocking her view of the dragon flying far overhead.

Presently she entered the downtown's small grocery store. There wasn't anything here for her, of course, but she needed ingredients to serve food to her customers. Perhaps she'd make a meal for the new girl staying at the saloon as well. She had just arrived last night.

She frowned briefly. The new girl worried her; she had the air of a runaway, getting here with so little money and so little plans on a ship meant for cargo. She began putting the ingredients she needed in a shopping bag, humming to herself. If anyone else was shopping at this hour, they might start a conversation with her.

[Likar]

Downtown
Akira Xing; alone

Akira wakes up from her quick nap. She decides to leave her apartment; it was getting stuffy. She yawns, and then snags her jacket from her jacket rack. She then goes down the stairs and steps out the door. The cold wind pushes into her face, and drops of rain drop on her head. Annoying, yes, but being a little wet doesnt hurt.. right?

She steps into the shop next door. She grabs her quarter and puts it into the arcade machine. She then begins playing Street Fighter, beating 29 rounds before losing, and then hitting the arcade machine.

[Cossack Khanate]

Outskirts, Alec Ramz

Alec Ramz sat on a stool under a straw hut, ejecting the casings of his revolver with his cleaning rod. He mentally went through each victim as he cleaned. Click The thug who tried to block his entry onto a luxury boat. Click The sailor who tried to raise the alarm. Click, click The armed guards who tried to fire at him. Click A missed shot that ended up in a doorsill instead of the captain’s head Click The bullet that went through the captain’s head.
Ramz sighed and looked out into the rain. Rain was a good thing, according to him. Being sneaky is easier, and no one questions a man wearing a hood. He began to reload his 7-shot revolver with .45 rounds. He finished and spun the barrel.
Ramz ran a small but powerful gang by the name of Tobide, which meant “fort” in Japanese. Their base of operations was a large compound, walled with concrete 8 feet high. Inside was two stories of houses, storehouses, and multi-purpose rooms. The gang had massive support in the area, because it defended the district against the larger gangs of the city proper. There were only a handful of full-time gangsters, mainly highly skilled combatants like Ramz. The population of Tobide’s compound mainly consisted of youth from the neighboring areas who wanted to gain more opportunity.

Ramz holstered his revolver on his right thigh. On his left was a combat knife, and his Glock 19 was holstered on his right hip. He flipped up the hood of his light rain jacket and walked off...

[Hothnia]

Luciana Vespazzi

Plink, Plink, Plink


Despite the ruckus inside her establishment, Luciana could clearly hear the rain hit off the tin bucket that always sat in front for he building across the street. Luciana sighed as she wiped down another mug, putting it back in its place on the rack where all the clean mugs sat. “ Hey Antonio!” Luciana called out to her younger cousin and employee. “ Go have the rest of the day off. It’s slow today and I can handle it.” Antonio didn’t argue or even hesitate, but immediately took off his apron and dashed out the door.

As soon as the door slammed shut from the boy’s swift exit, it opened again, revealing the heavily muscled form of Huan Yao Ming, Taiwanese sailor and frequent customer of her bar. “ Hey Luca, four beers!” Luciana acknowledged his call with the flick of her middle finger at him and the large man chuckled,taking a seat at a table with three other sailors.

Luciana grabbed the four beverages and made her way over to the table, almost shoving the beers at the sailors. Luciana put her hands on her hips and purses her lips at Huan. “ How long are you guys in port?” “ Well nice to see you too, darling.” Huan took a long sip of his drink and shrugged. “ At least theee days, maybe up to ten.” He grinned at her. “ And you’re stuck with us all the while. Luciana started to walk back to her bar. “ I can at least make some money off you stupid oafs while you’re here. We have Poker tonight at 8.” Huan raised his beer. “ We’ll be there sweetie.” Luciana grinned as she returned to cleaning her mugs in preparation for the night.

[Cossack Khanate]

Alec Ramz

Alec made his way down the streets. Sometimes, although he knew many people and everyone in his district knew him, he felt lonely. Perhaps that’s why it felt good to shoot. Perhaps that’s why it felt good to do his business. He discreetly spun his revolver under the cover of his large overcoat. He slipped the gun back into his thigh holster and drew his Glock 19, taking it off safety and twisting it around in his hand.

His contact from one of the city gangs had informed him that there was a bounty in the area. 80 dollars on the head of a sailor. Ramz had followed the target for the past hour, carefully watching for his opportunity to catch the sailor by himself. Now, the sailor walked in front of a bar, just behind four heavily muscled others. The others had just made it through the door, and the target had just made it to the doormat, when Ramz struck. He drew his revolver, firing two rounds that hit the target in the chest. The target crumpled to the ground, blood pooling on the sidewalk. Ramz crouched over him, checking his pulse.

[Rykil]

Aldia
Umbrella? Yes.

He picked up an umbrella he had bartered with in town, as well as holstering his various knives, kukris, and sword, excluding the garrote wire. His full set of gear was already attached, although with a few crumbs on the cloth due to his morning breakfast. Beak mask was tight, and Aldia stepped outside into the rain. The mud squelched underneath his feet, complimented by the metal talons attached to his toes. It left predatory footprints in the mud which would soon be washed away, just like that of the world he knew before. Walking along the forest path he had worn after a while Aldia came across the foreign town he found himself in. He was considered both a stranger and an oddity by many, mostly due to his speech, practices, as well as the fact that he was half unholy nightstalker. There was good reason to avoid conversation with him, and a better reason to sit away from him at the Aviator's Shelter or Luciana's Pub, whichever one he went to. Cutting through an alleyway and into the streets, he took a rather long breath, taking in the rainy scent. Tis was a pleasant scent, after all.

The peaceful scene was interrupted by gunfire, and looking over he could see a hooded figure checking a victim, likely the victim of the shot. There were gangs and bounties about, and Aldia would've preferred if it was kept that way.

It was peaceful until you started killing, hmph. He thought to himself.

[Cossack Khanate]

Alec Ramz

Two bullets?, Ramz thought, shaking his head at his own poor marksmanship. You can do better than that

He raised his head to see a figure with an umbrella. It seemed that the figure was not police of any sort, so Alec took to cleaning his gun. He swung the silver cylinder out and poked out the casings, reloading then with shiny new rounds. He locked the cylinder back in place and spun it, standing as he did so.

[Foxfound]

The Aviator's Shelter
Mariana Strange

At the edge of town, near downtown and near the docks but not really part of either district, was a small military airstrip from the Second World War. It had lied abandoned for some time now; the runway was being reclaimed by nature, the small control tower had been felled in some past hurricane, and the single metal hanger hadn't held a plane in decades.

Of more interest to most was a two-story wooden building wedged awkwardly between the hanger and the intersection of two roads. This was the Aviator's Shelter, one of the town's two main bars and gathering points, and were it not so early in the day it would probably be bustling with activity. But right now the proprietor was out on an errand, and the tenants that rented upstairs were either out and about or still sleeping off their drunkenness. Except for one.

A girl with wearing a small knapsack and a look of determination came barrelling down the stairs and across the dining area to the door. She stepped outside, not really paying any attention to the rain. It had rained in Tokyo, and she'd dealt with it just fine there, hadn't she?

She didn't actually have a concrete plan for the day. At some point she hoped to get her mailbox tip system up and running again, sure, but Mariana had never been one to have long-term plans for the future. If she did, she probably would have gone to college instead of hopping a supply ship to some island she'd read about in obscure places.

Thinking that she'd need to know the lay of the land if she was to investigate this place, she made a sharp left turn and started for the downtown area. She was probably the only person without an umbrella or raincoat, but while her face suggested otherwise she quite simply didn't care about the weather, unless it was relevant to a mystery.

Edge of Downtown

She hadn't been walking for more than a few minutes when she heard two gunshots coming from far down the street. A sound like that traveled far on such a quiet morning in such a quiet town, and Mariana had spent enough time wandering Tokyo backalleys to know what it was.

She broke into a run. She didn't know what she was getting into, but she knew she was getting into trouble.

And that was just where she liked to be.

[Cossack Khanate]

Alec Ramz

Alec had just stood up and was about to slid his revolver back in it’s holster when a shout came from down the street. I don’t have time for this, he thought, turning around. A tall muscled man, wearing a light clear poncho over his sailor’s uniform, was striding towards him. His left hand was pointing at Alec, his right was holding an iron bar. Oh shit thought Alec.

The man crossed the distance between them faster than Alec thought he could. The man was two feet in front of him when Alec fired twice into his chest and ducked. The bar came swinging over his head. Alec rolled to the ground and came up, one knee on the ground, revolver held out in front of him. The sailor staggered a bit before swinging his arm back to the throw the bar. Alec fired.

The sailor’s neck was pierced by the round and he flopped to the round. Alec spit on the ground before he was hit over the head with something. His eyes spun for a moment, and he instinctively turned and fired off 3 rounds. His assailant was hit, clutching his arm and shoulder. Alec, unwilling to spend his last bullet unless necessary, resorted to a sidekick between the neck and chin. The last thug hit the ground, blood seeping down his shoulder.

Alec holstered his revolver and dre his Glock, just in case he was attacked again.

[Likar]

Downtown
Akira Xing; alone

Akira walks down the damp street, before an idea comes to her head: what if she rents out her apartment with a roommate? Sure, it would be annoying having a random person sleeping there, but it is better then being without a house. She quickly walks home, and sketches a piece of paper. She decides she wants to go around town and get a roommate. Or at least entice someone to come and help pay rent.

[Foxfound]

Downtown
Mariana Strange

It didn't take long for Mariana to come within view of the grisly sight. She had seen things like this before in Tokyo, but not often, and not in broad daylight like this. In any case, it made her very uneasy, though she did her best not to show it. More obvious was her anger at this man who had seemingly murdered these innocent bystanders.

The look on her face suggested that she was about to charge him head on, but Mariana was not stupid. She halted her run before she got too close so as not to appear a threat and turned the corner into the alley in a brisk walk, as if she was trying to avoid the violent scenario. Now obscured by the bar building, she took off her shoes, waited a few moments, ducked back around the corner, and threw them hard and fast at the man with the gun, one after another

Then she charged him head on, keeping low as she tried to give him the powerful uppercut he deserved.

Downtown
Betty DuVall

A few streets over, Betty was finishing up her shopping. She had heard the gunshots; though they were muffled from inside the store, she had heard the sound before.

She sighed. She didn't understand why there was so much gang activity on such a small island. Its isolation made it an easy target, probably. It had been one for the Americans during the War, and for the Japanese before that, her mother had said.

After paying for her groceries and leaving the store, she began the walk back to her saloon, a bit more briskly than usual. She would have tried to help if it was feasible, but there were just too many things working against that. She had no idea what had just happened, for one. On top of that, her shotgun was back at home, and while an umbrella could hurt someone Betty just wasn't that strong, especially during the day. And in the end, problems in town were best left to the police; this place was supposed to civilized, after all. A lady arriving with a firearm would only make things worse.

[Hothnia]

Luciana Vespazzi


Gunshots. Of course it was gunshots. Right outside her pub too. That might ruin business for the next few days.

Luciana locked eyes with Yao Ming and raised an inquisitive eyebrow. The large sailor sighed and helped hoist one of his comrades to his feet. “ Cmon boys, lets go take care of this for Ms. Vespazzi over there.” As the four men bundled out into the street, Luciana let out a sly smile before putting up her dishrag and heading up the stairs of the pub, towards her living quarters. Although she had no doubt the sailors could handle the situation, Luciana had to be sure. Entering an almost empty room that used to belong to her late parents, Luciana flipped open a long black chest tucked into the corner of the room, revealing a rifle.

The rifle, she had been told, was her grandfathers, from his service in the Great War. It was bolt action, carried five bullets, and made of solid, light brown wood. Luciana hoisted the rifle and inserted one of the four cartridges she always kept with the rifle. Cocking it, Luciana walker acrossed the hallway to her room, which looked over the street in front of her pub. As she looked down I tot he street, she saw a man, reloading an ornate revolver standing over a sailor. Luciana couldn’t tell if the poor man was dead or just critically wounded. Then, two shoes flew from an alleyway, headed for the man. Luciana shook her head and shouldered the rifle, it’s optics trained on the mans head, just in case her raised his weapon to fire on someone else.

[Rykil]

Downtown Brawl

The brawl was getting a bit too real now, and innocent bystanders could be hurt. Sure, Aldia had to "silence" some in his time as a Nightingale, but on the Island it would be preferable that as few civilians as possible were involved. Already had some innocent gotten themselves involved, tossing their shoes at them beforehand. Then, four sailors left the bar to join in on the ruckus. The time was ripe for the Nightingale, and he took it. Tossing a retracted umbrella into a crack on the street where he could safely retrieve it afterwards. The raindrops hit him, but did not deter him. With a quick motion he drew his sword, wielding it in one hand. In the other hand he had a series of throwing knives, ready to meet their marks. Swiftly looking both ways for a car, he ran forward with a knife or two in midair, each one aiming for the same sailor.

[Cossack Khanate]

Alec Ramz, Downtown Shootout

The first shoe hit Alec straight in the shoulder, causing him to look and duck to avoid being plastered by the second. He slid to the ground on his knees as the woman charging at him swung her fist upward, grazing his chin.
This is getting a little too public, he thought. Usually bystanders knew to keep out of gunfire. He backed way up, almost so that he was standing on the other side of the street. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the pub owner aiming from her window, bolt-action trained on him.
What is this alliance?, he thought, looking between the fist attacker and the pub owner. He was sure that the rifle would hit him if he fired his Glock, so he kept it concealed in his jacket. He even saw a silver object heading towards one of the four burly men that were striding towards him.

“Hey!” he yelled at the pub owner. “No reason to involve yourself in this. I’ll take the men away and no one else will get hurt,” he said, motioning towards the prone bodies on the ground. You have no reason to use that gun. I’m not here to kill anyone else, they were attacking me and I defended myself, and I had a job to finish. If you have a problem with this in your area, talk to Tokiro. I won’t hurt anyone unless I have to, and this won’t happen again here if you leave me alone”

Tokiro was one of the bigger gangsters of the city, a mob lord who controlled practically everything about the underground world. He had several rivals, and the men that Alec had just killed were foreign sailors working for one of those rivals.

Usually, Alec would have fought it out with the woman trying to punch him, but he was at a disadvantage. Not cornered, but a disadvantage. He had his ways out if things got worse from here...

[Hothnia]

Luciana Vespazzi

The man was adept. She’d give him that. He had noticed her, sitting in her open window, the four sailors, the bystander in the alleyway, and a few more chaps. Good on him. Unfortunately, even if she wanted to, she couldn’t just let the man run away with the bodies, no punishment. Wouldn’t be good for business. He mentioned Tokiro, not a good sign. Luciana sighed and cocked her trained her weapon. Although it was unlikely Tokiro would go after her life, because she was a young woman, he would go after her business, which could be worse. And there was only so much her sailor friends could do against Tokiro, since he had possession of almost all the brothels, gangs, and weapons trafficking of the island.


Luciana shouted out from her window. “ I’ll make you a generous deal. You leave your weapons with my boys down there, and I’ll give you a five minute head start before I call the police. If you don’t agree to that...” Luciana shrugged and mocked pulling the trigger of her firearm. “Boom.” Luciana hoped the man didn’t call her bluff. She hasn’t shot a firearm for ten years, and was in no condition to hit a target, especially if it was moving. Although her father always deemed it important that she knew how to shoot, she hadn’t shot since his death. Now she was beginning to see his reasoning. At Luciana’s nod, Yao Ming stepped forward and reached his open hand out towards the man, beckoning for his weapons.

[Foxfound]

Downtown
Mariana Strange

Mariana was tense, her hands clenched into fists, but inside she was glad things had suddenly turned more diplomatic. Truth be told, incidents like this had left her more than a bit traumatized over the years, and if people were willing to talk she might learn some things about this peculiar place...

"Who's Tokiro?" She suddenly asked, with a raised eyebrow and in a tone more befitting an investigator. Were the situation not so dicey she'd probably have her notebook out right now.

The way things were going it seemed like Tokiro was some kind of gangster, probably the sort to call the shots, and this troublemaker was one of his lackeys. Mariana had had run-ins with thugs before, of course, but it looked like she might be about to get in over her head. Not that she'd ever admit that to herself.

[Likar]

Downtown
Akira Xing; alone

Akira continues to walk down the street. She was only able to make a few posters, and she put those up. She walked nearby a store, where the windows were broken. Akira peaks inside. Someone threw a rock in, and attempted to destroy it. Inside, the floors lay with cans, foods, and leaflets in Japanese. They read the following:

"Join The Rebellion! Dont Let The Immigrants Take Your Jobs!"


She walks around a block of broken windows.

[Rykil]

Downtown Scene

The action had calmed down, good. The fighting had stopped and allowed Aldia to put his sword back in his sheath. Tensions had flared very quickly and died down very quickly. He hadn't checked to see if his knives actually did anything against the sailor, but that mattered none. What mattered was that no innocent bystanders were hurt. The only real issue now was that the hooded figure was in bit of hot water, and that could escalate just like this scene had. The girl who had tried to attack the hooded one had to get out of here, they had a bit of an uneasy air around them, and the situation was looking a bit tense again. He clapped his hands once and pointed at them.

"You, girl, I recommend you exit the scene. There are some things that should be left alone at times." Aldia's voice was a bit deep and didn't sound very threatening, but it carried an unnatural weight to it.

[Cossack Khanate]

Alec Ramz

Alec turned to the woman bystander. “If you don’t know who he is already, it’s best that you don’t know”, he said. “And plus, he’s right. It’s best for you that you leave now”

Alec looked back at the bar owner.

Alec turned her offer over in his head. Part ways with his weapons, and walk away from an armed scene with nothing? And only five minutes to call the cops? He could deal with the police, but that still wasn’t a good deal. Plus, Alec didn’t like the idea of giving a loaded gun into the hands of a hulking Taiwanese sailor.

He had his Glock concealed under his coat, so he pulled his revolver out of it’s holster and took a step back, so that the sailor was almost between him and the window. He stuck the handle halfway between himself and the sailor, but when the sailor reached to take it…

Crack!

The first bullet went through Alec’s coat and into the abdomen of the sailor. He doubled over, only in time to receive a knee-kick to the face, which sent him upright again. Alec used the staggering sailor as cover as he aimed his gun at the window, shooting the windowsill and sending splinters of wood into the air. He didn’t want to have to kill the bar owner; she was just defending her business. The other sailors tried to tackle him, the first leaping at his gun hand. Alec held on to his gun and kicked out with his leg. The sailor let go. Alec began to fire indiscriminately, being careful not to give the bar owner a clear shot, but also being careful not to hit the figure with the sword, the bystander, or the owner.

[Foxfound]

Downtown Scene

The action had calmed down, good. The fighting had stopped and allowed Aldia to put his sword back in his sheath. Tensions had flared very quickly and died down very quickly. He hadn't checked to see if his knives actually did anything against the sailor, but that mattered none. What mattered was that no innocent bystanders were hurt. The only real issue now was that the hooded figure was in bit of hot water, and that could escalate just like this scene had. The girl who had tried to attack the hooded one had to get out of here, they had a bit of an uneasy air around them, and the situation was looking a bit tense again. He clapped his hands once and pointed at them.

"You, girl, I recommend you exit the scene. There are some things that should be left alone at times." Aldia's voice was a bit deep and didn't sound very threatening, but it carried an unnatural weight to it.

Downtown
Mariana Strange

For a moment she seemed calmer.

"I know... but I haven't followed that advice for a while now and it's a bit late to start."

Alec Ramz

Alec turned to the woman bystander. “If you don’t know who he is already, it’s best that you don’t know”, he said. “And plus, he’s right. It’s best for you that you leave now”

Alec looked back at the bar owner.

Alec turned her offer over in his head. Part ways with his weapons, and walk away from an armed scene with nothing? And only five minutes to call the cops? He could deal with the police, but that still wasn’t a good deal. Plus, Alec didn’t like the idea of giving a loaded gun into the hands of a hulking Taiwanese sailor.

He had his Glock concealed under his coat, so he pulled his revolver out of it’s holster and took a step back, so that the sailor was almost between him and the window. He stuck the handle halfway between himself and the sailor, but when the sailor reached to take it…

Crack!

The first bullet went through Alec’s coat and into the abdomen of the sailor. He doubled over, only in time to receive a knee-kick to the face, which sent him upright again. Alec used the staggering sailor as cover as he aimed his gun at the window, shooting the windowsill and sending splinters of wood into the air. He didn’t want to have to kill the bar owner; she was just defending her business. The other sailors tried to tackle him, the first leaping at his gun hand. Alec held on to his gun and kicked out with his leg. The sailor let go. Alec began to fire indiscriminately, being careful not to give the bar owner a clear shot, but also being careful not to hit the figure with the sword, the bystander, or the owner.

"I'm new here. And things I shouldn't know happen to be my area of interest."

Then everything was chaos, and it ended any hope of Mariana taking a diplomatic route. Her face became a mask of rage, though if there had been time to really look at her it could be seen that her resolve was starting to crack.

"Murderer!"

She gave two direct, sudden punches. Though she was smaller than the man with the gun, her arms were stronger than anyone would expect. Of course, there was no telling if she'd hit him anywhere painful, if she hit him at all.

Edge of Downtown
Betty DuVall

Betty was crossing the street to her saloon when she suddenly stopped.

That was funny. The door was ajar. None of her tenants had ever left it unsecured, they'd known better ever since the robbery last -

And then she heard more gunshots. A shout. And she remembered the girl from last night. She must be out. Surely she wasn't caught up in the mess back in town. But she had been acting so reckless...

If anyone walked by a few seconds later, all they would see is a stray umbrella lying in the crossroads. Betty was gone, running full tilt back up the street.