Day 1 Night

[12npcs]

[ Over the murmur of conversations, explorations and violent attempts at escape, there comes a sound tick tick tick tick tick.............. CLICK.... The sky above snaps across the dome from blue to black... and everything goes dark.

A glow comes from the front door of each of the inns and one by one, you can see street lanterns begin to light up steadily past each of the gates.

The only flickering, organic light comes from above in the tower, spluttering high, high above everyone, through the slats of the closed shutters. After a moment, it's gone. ]

Comments

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[12npcs]

[The handwriting is sloppy with a bit of a loopy flare around the curves. It reads "Be kind to me. I have feelings."]

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[devotedtothecore]

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[devotedtothecore]

[ RESISTING URGE TO CRUMPLE NOTE ]

What kind of farce is this..........

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[devotedtothecore]

[ ......puts note back

wields broom

stick handle end of broom into drain to carefully pry it up further ]

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[12npcs]

[The grate groans and scrapes against it's metal and cobblestone settings before finally popping up a few more inches. There's probably enough room to clear your whole arm through there.]

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[devotedtothecore]

........... [ even if training hadn't taught him anything about sticking body parts down dark crevices common sense helps

kneeling by the drain again, putting the butt of the candle between his teeth. Takes the broom in two hands for better control, and carefully probes at what's down there ]

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[12npcs]

[The broomstick handle very, very quickly meets something solid, almost immediately. Changing the angle reveals some flat, smooth surface that when swept to the right, there's an audible thunk as it dips down, revealing some curvat-

It meets something solid... There's a clatter and a faint skittering sound as something is ... dislodged?]

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[devotedtothecore]

Damn--

[ freezes at the clatter, straining his ears to listen for how far it--- drops? Slides? ]

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[12npcs]

[Not far by the sound of it.]

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[devotedtothecore]

[ ....tries to reach it with the broom, if only to make contact with it. If he can get an idea of the distance involved... ]

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[devotedtothecore]

[ At least, if there's something down there waiting to bite unwary limbs, one might as well check if the attempt is worth it. ]

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[12npcs]

[The rotation of the broom hit's that awkward point where it's practically under you, before you hear that faint sliding noise again, just a tiny tap against the broomhandle.]

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[devotedtothecore]

[ ...grips the point of the broom resting on the edge of the drain, and pulls it out again, measuring the distance against the length of one of his own arms ]

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[12npcs]

[A little past the elbow, by your best estimate.]

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[devotedtothecore]

....




........

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[devotedtothecore]

[ PULLS OFF HIS SHIRT

WRAPS IT AROUND HIS FOREARM AND HAND

makeshift glove get ]

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[devotedtothecore]

[ reaches into the hole. CAREFULLY. Feeling out the interior of the drain with his fingers, mentally mapping it out... ]

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[12npcs]

[Your fingers brush across a smooth, smooth surface. Almost slick with how polished and unblemished it is... Your knuckles brush first, then fingers close around something sloped, something of a rounded wedge shape.]

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[12npcs]

[Against your shoulder, the pads of your fingers, you feel and hear that loud, heavy clockwork ticking begin...]

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[devotedtothecore]

[ ---!

LET GO AND PULL HAND OUT ]

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[12npcs]

[Your hand pulls free... it's a few moments of the sound, rising in intensity... before it dies away entirely, as quickly as it started.]

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[devotedtothecore]

[ hhhhheart pounding excitement


...nngh. Better not risk that further while he's on his own out here. Gets to his feet and eyes the guttersweeper again... ]

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[12npcs]

[It's strange, in a way, with the broom gone, it looks more like the sweep's own twisted fingers are the subject of his curiosity than the drain at his feet.]

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[devotedtothecore]

....



[ you came here to do a job. Do it, Chrysos.

...sets the broom over the drain and against the wall, and sets to work removing the sweep's jacket and shirt. ]

Re: [ MEANWHILE IN A DARK ALLEY ]

[12npcs]

[It takes a little clever movement and some patience to tug the cloth around unmoving arms, but you eventually get both garments off.

The chest and neck exposed have been carved with a good eye for detail, following human musculature and bone structure. The sweep neither has nipples or bellybutton, the area just smooth where either should be.

You do find faint lines, almost hidden by lines and indentations of the body itself, they make a long rectangle around the chest and abdomen.]