Private Eastern Brisshal Blank Canvas

[Corsair]

Corsair completed her daily circuit of the bounty board, picking off any of the leaflets that looked interesting. There were the usual hunts and gathers, but today something strange caught her eye: a wanted flyer that was blank.

It had the usual bordering and large QUEST header up the top, but in place of the standard information like the goal, name of the poster, and the reward, it just had an empty page. "Well how do they expect to find anyone with that?" She wondered, plucking the page for the board.

Maybe there's a secret message? She thought, flipping it over, but no. It was blank on the backside too. Just a pale page with no information. "Useless," she said, and was pinning the paper back to the board when a glint caught her eye.

Something on the back of the quest had sparkled. She tilted the paper and it flashed again. There we go. She held up the page so that it caught the sun just right, and the ever-so-slightly silvered letters spelled out a hidden message.

Tall Crust Bakery - Midday - Red Hat

She put the bounty back on the board, and went to buy a new hat.

The next day, at precisely midday, Corsair was ready outside the bakery. She wore the distinctive scarlet hat that she'd picked out, and would have felt silly were it not for her iron-clad self-confidence.

@Fina Drago

 

[Fina Drago]

As lovely as just living inside the game was, the mechanical overlords did not give Bianca a body that could swing around a giant battleax like it was weightless just so it could waste away inside the city borders doing nothing at all.

The perfect way to really get into this new world, at least as far as the girl understood, was to try out quests. Taking on something beginner-friendly, surely she would not be faced with anything that could spell her imminent demise. With that conviction, Fina would find herself approaching the board that she was directed toward, only to spot suspicious behavior even from a distance. A person who was making some rather strange gestures with one of the pieces of paper stuck to the board.

Observing them for a bit out of sheer curiosity, the feline did not even think for a moment that this could lead to anything. But when the other woman left with the paper still there, it piqued her curiosity. The interest building up within her only grew when she noticed that the paper was near-completely empty. At least until she mimicked what the other person did, revealing the very same message.

A conspiracy, perhaps? Should some newbie be really putting herself into whatever situation this could lead to? Hell yes! Well, she would make sure to stay some distance away in case something went south.

The next day, she was present at the bakery well before Midday, just trying to blend in. Or at least as much as a beastfolk with attire as hers could. Sure enough, she ended up spotting the woman from yesterday, who even wore the red hat the piece of paper asked for. Now things were getting exciting, as Fina did her best to stay calm and inconspicuous.

@Corsair

 

[Corsair]

The clock tower struck midday, Corsair looked around. There were a few people loitering in the street, but nobody suspicious. And nobody with a red hat. Just me then.

As the last chime sounded, the door to the café opened, and a old woman in an apron busted out. She crossed the street, making a beeline for Corsair, and handed her a hand-pie wrapped in brown paper. "Here's your order, red hat," she said, emphasizing the last words to make it clear what was really going on.

Corsair nodded and took the food. "Thank you," she said, but the woman was already leaving. Moments later she was back in the shop, and anyone watching would have to wonder whether an exchange ever happened.

She looked down at the pie. "Well, free food," she said, shrugging and taking a bite. In her experience, Honeyhome pies were either coarse rabbit or deer mince, or apple and honey. This one was paper. She froze, pulling back with her neck, a piece of folded paper held firm between her teeth. She unfolded it with one hand, shaking out the paper and showing her part of the street with little flakes of pastry.

Well done, Red Hat.
You are worthy of this quest.
Three nights ago a precious painting was stolen. The painting's name is Blank Canvas, and it now resides in the home of Uzias Gaul, head of the painter's guild. Retrieve this painting without him knowing, and you will be rewarded with 1000 gold.
There will be heavy penalties if your presence is discovered, and if anyone is killed in the retrieval of the painting then you will never hear from me again.
Once your mission is complete, return here again at midday for further instructions.

Corsair put the rest of the pie in her mouth, chewing on the crunchy, empty crust. "A thousand gold," she whispered. That would be enough to renovate her base a dozen times over! How did people throw around this sort of cash? She folded the paper and slipped it into her back pocket. First things first, find out where Uzias Gaul lives. She threw away the brown paper wrapping and headed through the crowd towards the merchant quarter, straight past where Fina was standing.

@Fina Drago

 

[Fina Drago]

Staying out of sight but remaining close enough to hear anything at all was quite a challenge. Detective games always made it seem so easy, but even with her character's exceptional hearing, the girl was having trouble making anything out. Possibly because there were so many other people around, all of their voices were like a flood that completely drowned out anything Fina hoped to focus on.

At least her eyes had no such problem. She observed the granny who delivered a… pie? To her target. Except Fina noticed that the other woman never ordered anything, which meant that this was a clue! Trying to focus real hard, she managed to make out only something about gold. Whatever it was, it must have been one hell of a conspiracy with all of this secretive shizzle going around! Not to mention that her target got up and started walking away rather enthusiastically. In the direction where Fina was, no less!

This was a chance. Quickly hatching a new plan in her mind, the feline would take several steps back as she worked her magic. Or… mastery, rather. The collision was imminent! Her back collided with Corsair as she was about to pass the cat-eared girl. It wasn't too bad, but the bump was noticeable. "A-ah, sorry!" Fina would quickly turn around and wave at the woman apologetically, doing her best to make it seem like a simple accident. Silly her wasn't paying any attention to where she was backing up to!

If everything worked out well, it would be that time when she would plant a small gem-like pin at the other woman's back somewhere. It was created with her Arcanamancy, which meant that as long as she would not run out of mana or get too far away, she would be able to sense the other woman's location! As long as she didn't notice anything, of course…

@Corsair

 

[Corsair]

"Oh no problem," Corsair said, as the careless woman bumped into her. It was a crowded market, and people ran into each other all the time. What was a little jostle here and there? They'd all taken much worse in battle. She took of her red hat, stuffing it deep down in her bag. There was absolutely not need to keep wearing it during the mission, especially if it was a solo affair.

Corsair made a line straight for the wealthier district of Honeyhome. Here the rooves were not just the iconic red of the little hamlet, but a lustrous, lacquered crimson. They shone like a wine sea, stretching out towards the church in the distance.

How do I find Uzias Gaul? She wondered, tapping her lip. Usually she'd just ask at the guild, or flag down one of the guards, but that would just leave a paper trail as soon as the painting was discovered stolen. She needed to be smart, so she headed straight for town hall.

The building was humble, yet well kept, and a little on the decorative side in the way that grandparents' houses usually are. Not extravagant displays of wealth, but art of the walls and nice rugs beneath your feet. A little pottery here and there. Honeyhome was proud of its residents, and so it displayed some of their work publicly.

She wandered around, looking for a painting with his name on it, and finally found a piece. It was several meters long, and looked like an inverted landscape of the forest surrounding the city. It was a gorgeous piece, and she spent several minutes looking at it. She was in no rush.

@Fina Drago

 

[Fina Drago]

Fina almost couldn't believe that her little trick worked! Well, it was probably solely because her body here was far more agile and capable than the one she had outside of the VR world. It was always such a strange feeling when she had to log off and wake up once more in a disabled body that had so much difficulty moving around when right now, she could run around the city tailing someone like it was nothing.

The magical pin made it quite a bit easier, too. Especially as the two of them left the more crowded places of the city. Being able to sense the position of her own creation, since she had to continuously feed it a small amount of mana to maintain it, Fina could follow Corsair in such a way that she was never visible. Always hidden behind a wall or something similar, she was a ghost trailing an unsuspecting victim!

At least until the other person stopped moving. They were both inside of a building now, so remaining hidden behind a corner or two was even more crucial than before. However, when the other girl presumably stopped moving, the feline could not help but try to get a little closer, peeking behind the corner to see what her target was doing, trying to listen to anything that would be said. Alas, there was only silence that tormented the lynx, whose imagination as to what was going on here was running wild.

@Corsair

 

[Corsair]

The magitech frog in Corsair's pocket crawled out, and along her hand, alerted by movement in the vicinity. While Corsair herself hadn't noticed the tracker, or that she was being followed, something in Fina's behavior had tripped the sensors of the construct.

It gave a ultrasonic warning warble, letting Corsair know that something was amiss. She looked around, and spotted movement from someone peeking around a wall. "Hello?" she called out, walking towards the motion.

She pulled Fujitsu, her attack spider, from her other pocket. It crawled and struggled in her hand, eager for a fight. I must be prepared for any possibility. Is the quest giver tracking my movements? she wondered, synthetic heart beating faster. Or has Uzias Gaul somehow caught wind of what's going on?

She rounded the corner, ready to confront whoever was there. This was not going to go on any longer. One way or another, the matter would be settled. Immediately she ran into someone, and Corsair fixed them with her most piercing gaze, activating her investigation mode for the added ocular glow. "Are you following me?"
@Fina Drago

 

[Fina Drago]

Corsair's sudden movements toward Fina's location and the subsequent call-out made the feline stumble backward as she tried to get up from her crouched position and bolt it quickly. That slip-up was probably why she didn't manage to disappear in time and ended up being discovered. Things were about to get interesting in seemed.

In her mild panic, Fina also created several floating daggers that were now poised by her side, forming half of a halo around her body while pointing at the other woman. They were more meant for defense, deflecting incoming attacks, that sort of thing. But from Corsair's point of view, they probably looked a bit more threatening than that.

"Of course I am! Acting so suspicious, as if you were about to commit treason! Give up your scheme!" Getting right back at the other woman might not have been the best idea, but the girl wasn't exactly in the best state of mind right now. She was just discovered and panicking, after all.

@Corsair

 

[Corsair]

Corsair cocked her head, as if the beastfolk in front of her were mad. "What?" she asked, in the slowest, most condescending voice she could pull off.

She looked around slowly at the city hall filled with artwork, as if suddenly expecting to find herself in the middle of a murder scene or bank heist. "What are you talking about? I'm here looking at art."

Sam the magitech frog crawled up Corsair's back. He was holding a little blue pin in his mouth, and corsair pulled it out, inspecting it. "Is this...a tracker? Did you put this on me? Were you tracking me?" she asked, laying on a thick spread of indignation, her robotic voice modulating wildly with the force of the words.

Inside, she was secretly impressed. She had no idea now long the woman had been trailing her, or what she'd seen. Thankfully nothing strange. What had she done today? Eat a pie and go to the museum? That sounded like a perfectly delightful day out.

And who was this beastfolk? Corsair's mind whirred with the possibilities. She looked the woman up and down, trying to discern her allegiance. Was she an ally? Opposition? Someone sent to check up on her progress? Nothing could be counted out yet.

 

[Fina Drago]

"Hmph, playing dumb, are we?" Trying not to be shaken up by the other girl's denial, Fina would do her best to come across as a cool and collected detective that could never possibly be wrong. She even wanted to show off her pride when the tracker was presented. "Fufu, that's right. You cannot hide it now. I know you've been in contact with-" Not getting much of a chance to finish her sentence, Corsair started sounding off about the whole ordeal. So much so that the brief changes to her voice managed to spook the feline a tiny bit.

"C-calm down, okay? If you keep shouting, we're drawn unwanted attention!" Trying to hush the to-be-thief down, she looked around to see if there was anyone who could have overheard them. The tracker dissolved at this point as well. No point in keeping it around; it was just wasting mana now. "A-anyway, I know that you accepted some kind of deal from… an unsavory individual, I bet! Now speak, what did they tell you to do! Steal something here? Torch the whole place?" A ghastly gasp followed. "Assassinate the person in charge of this place?!!" Okay, maybe she was getting a bit ahead of herself.

@Corsair

 

[Corsair]

"Why would I be worried about unwanted attention?" Corsair asked. "I'm just here enjoying some fine art." It was true, really. So far the most suspicious thing she'd done was wear an uncharacteristically gaudy headpiece.

Fina's mouth betrayed her true intentions, and Corsair swiftly re-assessed the situation. Her primary worries were that the woman had been sent by either her employer or her target. However, with those options seeming less likely by the moment a more palatable third option surfaced. "I accepted a quest in town, sure! That's what we players do, isn't it?"

She let the woman's speculations run wild, remaining calm. Despite not having joined her on the quest, the catgirl may still prove to be a useful ally. "Nothing so violent as arson or murder," Corsair admitted, drawing Fina in with crumbs of information. "In fact, if the job is done well then not a single hair will be harmed of anyone involved."

Corsair looked around, making sure no security had been called by their brief quarrel. "I'm looking for a second on the mission, actually. Have you done any stealth jobs before?"

 

[Fina Drago]

Well, of course the suspect would try to weasel their way out of this; that was only natural. There was no way such remarks and weak explanations would sway Fina! She had seen the process of getting here with her own two eyes and… whatever sense it was that she used for sensing mana. There was no way this little trip was as innocent as the other girl was making it out to seem. In fact, that much was soon to be admitted!

"W-well, that is what we do, yeah… but that doesn't mean the quest is all kinds of suspicious and wrong!" To try and get her point across a bit better, the feline figured she just had to make a bit of a connection to the physical world outside of this game. Or maybe it was because this reality was just as realistic from their point of view. "Yeah, I'd love to see you use that as an excuse to the cops after some shoplifting as to why they should just let you go. 'Cause no one was harmed…" Not to mention that the owner of whatever she was here to steal, probably a pointing, would be hurt monetarily.

Then also came the audacity to ask her to join her in the crime. "Wha- I came here to talk some sense into you, and you ask me to join you instead? Are you deaf? You're about to commit a crime! What if some NPC sees you and the guards permanently chase you out of this place?!"

@Corsair

 

[Corsair]

Corsair rolled her eyes. "Do you consider eating a crime? No? How about walking? Is that okay in your books? Is it illegal to look at a painting maybe, in whatever world you come from?" she kept her tone light, carrying only the barest dusted with the sarcasm she felt deep in her bones.

"Because if we're pointing fingers at people for crimes, misdemeanors and suspicious activity than may I suggest finding a full-length mirror and interrogating the clueless beastfolk that planted a magic tracking device on me without my consent and has been stalking me all morning?" The words were rimed with enough ice to sink Fina's poorly constructed raft of logic.

She'd been wrong. The cat girl wasn't a foe, and she certainly wasn't a ally. She was the worst possible thing to encounter on a mission like this: a busybody.

"Well, if you're not here to help me then please be off. I have a busy day ahead of me doing all sorts of illegal, criminal quests, like collecting Silkroot for Old Granny Spindlewick. I sure hope I don't accidentally assassinate anyone along the way." And with one last withering look Corsair turned and walked back down the corridor, making sure to stop and ask an assistant about one of the paintings on her way out.

@Fina Drago

 

[Fina Drago]

The fact that Corsair raised a good point only made Fina more determined. Hell, she even answered with a bit of a smirk, though she spoke no words. She let the other girl go all out, simply taking it all and standing her ground, more literally than metaphorically. The point this was all getting to was that when Corsair decided to leave, the feline would follow very closely behind. So near that if the magitech girl were to stop, Fina would probably bump into her the slightest bit.

Of course, she had no idea what Corsair was really up to. Though if she were to ask why Fina was following her, she'd just shrug with a simple answer. "Just feeling like it. It's pretty common in games to have someone follow you around for whatever reason, maybe inspecting your fashion or just curious about when another player is headed~." She had the physique necessary to keep up with just about anyone, too. And she wasn't about to let a suspect get off until she learned exactly what was going on!

@Corsair