Blood and Iron [Support: Reiner the Bastard - Event Quest - Bruma & Marcello]

**Bruma** · Wed Jun 09, 2021 5:00 pm

Guild :

Guildless

Jewels :

305,000

Rank :

D-Rank

Race :

Human

Experience :

27,250

Reputation :

700

Class :

Spellhowler

Magic :

Oddr Frost

Strength :

1

Speed :

1

Constitution :

11

Endurance :

13

Intelligence :

31

Mana :

200

Tasked once more with assisting Reiner, Bruma and Marcello found themselves shifting through piles of wreckage in search of maps. These maps supposedly detailed the location of vast quantities of iron close to the old border separating Bosco and Stella, specifically that which could be found on the old Stellan side. The maps, if they actually existed, would have been prepared by a local prospector and Boscosi agents had reason to believe he would have kept him in his house which was unfortunately destroyed in the initial occupation. It was up to Bruma and Marcello to locate them, but it was beginning to appear that it would soon become their job to locate the prospector as well, no small task considering half of the town they were in had been destroyed.

Bruma focused on searching the cellar, a task that first required her to use her magic to break through several locked wooden doors that were much more intact than the rest of the house. In fact, once inside, the cellar proved to be the most durable aspect of the house as she hardly noticed any integral damage from the inside. It was still a mess, however, and the floors and tables were covered with empty drinking mugs and broken bottles of alcohol. Their prospector was something of a drunk it seemed but also a bit wise as Bruma could not make out any maps in the basement, suggesting to her that he fled with him. Still, she would await to see what her partner uncovered first.

WC: 257
Posts: 1/3

**Marcello** · Wed Jun 09, 2021 5:42 pm

Guild :

Guildless

Jewels :

280,000

Rank :

D-Rank

Race :

Human

Experience :

27,250

Reputation :

700

Class :

Adventurer

Strength :

30

Speed :

1

Constitution :

14

Endurance :

11

Intelligence :

1

Mana :

200

Weapon :

Iron Battleaxe

Off-Hand :

Iron Battleaxe

Body :

Splint Mail

There were no traps to be wary of and no hostile persons nearby, so Marcello felt at ease walking through the rubble of the destroyed town. Manhunting wasn't a speciality of his, neither was tracking, but he had a notion of what to do as Bruma had done it so many times before. First, search the premises for clues or left over information. Second, ask anyone nearby about the person of interest. Lying was a surprisingly rare skill among anyone anywhere, even Fiorians, who often practiced espionage and statecraft, were lacking at times.

Entering the cellar, there was a peculiar clean spot amongst the clatter and empty bottles. For a drunk he made too much of an effort in that particular spot. A desk kept clean by a prospector is not unusual, but a night stand left spotless was strange. Even more strange were the bottles carefully placed on it. Normally, humidity and leakage caused a ring of fluid to form at the base. These bottles were previously emptied, dried, then left ontop of the nightstand. What for? Unless he was a model ship builder he would have no reason for it.

Upon closer inspection, the nightstand was made of a strange, soft lumber, structural lumber intended to be weight bearing. Most furniture was made of hard lumber for its aesthetic value. Perhaps he was a spendthrift? No that didn't make sense, the piece wasn't made locally. Marcello thought outloud, "Who lugs around a-"

With a surprising shatter, all the bottles slid off the top of the previously thought to be night stand, revealing it to actually be a disguised storage chest.
Marcello called out:
Bruma?

wc: 268
Post: 1/3

**Bruma** · Wed Jun 09, 2021 6:29 pm

Guild :

Guildless

Jewels :

305,000

Rank :

D-Rank

Race :

Human

Experience :

27,250

Reputation :

700

Class :

Spellhowler

Magic :

Oddr Frost

Strength :

1

Speed :

1

Constitution :

11

Endurance :

13

Intelligence :

31

Mana :

200

Bruma was not far from Marcello when he called for her, which made it somewhat irritating when he yelled out her name. She took a slightly heavier step against a creaking floorboard to help the deaf young man figure she was there, looking for him in fact after finding nothing of use in the cellar.

“I’m right here,” Bruma answered him as she ducked her head under fallen wooden beam to come face-to-face with the wooden chest that was surprisingly well-hidden, either intentionally or not by the rubble of what remained of the room. She hoped the maps were in there, wondering if it would really be that easy before giving her husband another unimpressed look. “Please, allow me to use my immense strength to pry the chest open,” she announced in her somber, sarcastic tone as she raised her hand above the chest, forming a magical cyan seal that shot an ice arrow straight down as she dragged her hand toward the chest. The magical ice arrow snapped the lock of the chest off with a loud clank.

In somewhat dramatic fashion, Bruma reached down and gently pulled the chest open as if light might blast out of it at any moment and shine their faces with the glory of the maps they were seeking. There they were: more fucking alcohol bottles. Obviously. However, unlike the ones in the cellar, these looked familiar. In fact, they were brand-named after one of the pubs the two had passed. She raised one of the bottles up and handed it to Marcello.

“I guess we’re going to a pub.”

WC: 267
Posts: 2/3

**Marcello** · Wed Jun 09, 2021 7:58 pm

Guild :

Guildless

Jewels :

280,000

Rank :

D-Rank

Race :

Human

Experience :

27,250

Reputation :

700

Class :

Adventurer

Strength :

30

Speed :

1

Constitution :

14

Endurance :

11

Intelligence :

1

Mana :

200

Weapon :

Iron Battleaxe

Off-Hand :

Iron Battleaxe

Body :

Splint Mail

Marcello truly thought there would be maps or jewels inside, and for a moment felt a pang of dissapointment. Secret and hidden compartments were usually either death traps or treasure hordes, so this broke his heart and his inner pirate. That was alright though. He wondered if Bruma stopped drinking, since Marcello rarely drank and he had rarely seen her drink.

"Okay let's get this over with. I'll avoid the acting this time." The pub wasn't too far from their original location. Draped in Boscosi flags, Marcello took a deep breath and reminded himself to look for the prospector, not make a fool of himself. Surprisingly, upon entry, the pub wasn't as full or as rowdy as one might have thought. There were a few tables with lone diners and couples, the loudest table was a table of three speaking at normal volume. Two barkeeps polished glasses and pretended to keep busy. Maybe there was enough time to grab a bottle of something to treat Bruma with? Well, back to the job, the prospector was a known drunk, but appearances can be decieving. Marcello knew his best bet was to just ask the barkeeps. Marcello spoke evenly:
"I'm looking for a prospector, he drinks heavily and frequents this bar. Do you know him?"

Both barkeeps instinctevly looked towards a table at the entrance of the bar. Marcello turns quickly to see a man in a brown coat dash madly and make a break for it, only to stumble, fall, and pick himself up once more. Of course, bottle in hand. He continued to sloppily make a "break" for it, if you could even call it that, mumbling something under his breath.

WC: 253
Posts: 2/3

**Bruma** · Wed Jun 09, 2021 9:02 pm

Guild :

Guildless

Jewels :

305,000

Rank :

D-Rank

Race :

Human

Experience :

27,250

Reputation :

700

Class :

Spellhowler

Magic :

Oddr Frost

Strength :

1

Speed :

1

Constitution :

11

Endurance :

13

Intelligence :

31

Mana :

200

Bruma did not expect to be impressed by the sight of the prospector and that expectation was on point. Standing next to Marcello, she looked behind them as the bartender pointed them toward their target and he looked like the pub itself smelled, which was not great. She felt a tinge of adrenaline as the man immediately made a bolt for the door before falling down and through it. Then, that urge to run after him subsided as it became apparent he was too incompetent to get away from either of them. Bruma resolved to just walk after him before finding him on his stomach outside, looking as if he had already been beat up.

Bruma lodged her foot under him and after a moment of struggling with his weight, pushed him over onto his back. He was somewhat conscious as Bruma kneeled down to bring her face just over his and ask him pointedly, “We are looking for iron in the area. Would you know anything about that?” The man appeared to ponder the question with what brain cells he had left but then it became apparent he was drifting off instead. She snapped her fingers several times over his face to bring him back somewhat. With tired yet bewildered eyes, the prospector managed the impossible task of reaching into his coat and producing a slip of paper. It was too small to be a map and upon opening the paper up, she found only an address.

“I keep… all my valuables… there,” the man explained before passing out, perhaps believing they were just there to rob him. As if to solidify himself as a gross pig man, the prospector sounded as if he were urinating on himself as Bruma stepped away and handed Marcello the paper.

WC: 298
Posts: 3/3

**Marcello** · Wed Jun 09, 2021 9:45 pm

Guild :

Guildless

Jewels :

280,000

Rank :

D-Rank

Race :

Human

Experience :

27,250

Reputation :

700

Class :

Adventurer

Strength :

30

Speed :

1

Constitution :

14

Endurance :

11

Intelligence :

1

Mana :

200

Weapon :

Iron Battleaxe

Off-Hand :

Iron Battleaxe

Body :

Splint Mail

The night had turned out dissapointing. Marcello was beginning to feel tired, but the end was close enough anyway. Not seeming like one to hold back information, he threw the drunkard back into the bar, a sign of goodwill from Reiner. He decided this should be done with quickly now.

Marching forward, but always within dashing distance of Bruma, the two made their way to the address on the paper. He always checked himself, despite being able to swing two iron battleaxes about, Marcello was much much worse off mentally without his wife in close proximity. Almost like a pug left at home while the owner is at work. Another short distance away and they arrived. It was a small shack of a home with no cellar, at first glance one may think it were a garbage dump or city storage.

With a quick swing of his axe, the door was open. Not to be embarassed again after calling Bruma about the box, Marcello began scouring through every crate, nook, and cranny. He felt like a dog looking for a bone at this point. Maps upon maps, reading and more reading, truly his forte. At the very least Bruma was enjoying looking at some old maps of Baska and Fiorian cities. Seeing as how the search was producing no results, Marcello began to do as his name implies, and break open any crate in his sight. Finally, after scouring and scouring, they came across a map with a network of tunnels leading to the mines. There was even a staging area. The method to enter was right at their feet.

WC: 270
Posts: 3/3

Blood and Iron [Support: Reiner the Bastard - Event Quest - Bruma & Marcello]

Wed Jun 09, 2021 5:00 pm

Wed Jun 09, 2021 5:42 pm

Wed Jun 09, 2021 6:29 pm

Wed Jun 09, 2021 7:58 pm

Wed Jun 09, 2021 9:02 pm

Wed Jun 09, 2021 9:45 pm

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