A Hunt For Ravens!

[*Selebius]

The following posters can be found all over the Cage:

100 Jink

reward per killed fiendish Raven!

Too long have this pests haunted the streets and attacked innocent citizen.

It is time to get rid of them.

Elina Thurus

Deliver the corpses at 234. Mechanus Road, Lady's Ward to claim your reward.

(( Mechanics Explained:

I sometimes put a few ravens in the cage and I do so that they are always close to an NPC or a notable location.

A player who has a character who wants to capture or kill a birdie can write here in this thread about what the character does- sneaking up, throwing a stone, glassing the whole yard with an maximized DBF, whatever.
In case of several players trying to get the same bird the one who wrote first got that raven.

Also if a character decides to examine/test/do conversation with/cook the birdie please put it into this thread. I will answer here or per PM, as fitting.

BTW- always tell where you found that bird- like 'close to Layla' or 'at the Mortuary' ect. ))

[*StarSight]

Verdant, having heard of "fiendish ravens", notes an odd raven by Khazeet. A quick word with the barkeep results in a bigby's grasping hand seizing the avian for capture and study.

[*Selebius]

The creature is surprised by the sudden magical attack and soon gives up its struggles, the bird smart enough to realize it cannot escape the spell.

It looks up at its captor, fluffing its feathers, awaiting it fate.

"Good riddance!", the Efreeti says, then turns to Verdant. "Next drink is on me. That bird always gave me the creeps with ithis accusing look from its beady eyes."

[*StarSight]

Verdant posts a few fliers of his own.

One Platinum Mechanus Cog
Per fiendish raven captured alive.

Deliver the birds to Verdant Waves at the Foul Olde Spirit Inn.

[*Kiuna]

Kiuna limps a little distractedly around Lady's Ward, not really paying attention to her surroundings. The large panther that follows her, on the other hand, keeps a wary eye on anybody they pass, rumbling a warning if it thinks a particular anybody comes too close.

Sighing dejectedly, she lowers herself down her staff and onto the ground, resting her aching leg for a while. As she feels herself watched, she looks around and spots a large, black raven sitting next to what appears to be an ominous pyramid. The whole place seems to exude waves of dark energy, and Kiuna shudders a little, wondering why she hadn't noticed how close she had gotten to it. ((Temple of the Abyss in Lady's Ward)).

With an effort she climbs up her staff and stumbles a bit closer to the bird, looking cautiously around. The posters didn't bode too well for the animal.

"No, Anacail!" She quickly reaches out to catch the panther by the nape, effortlessly keeping the large cat back, more through the goodwill of Anacail, than the strength of her frail body.

The panther grumbles annoyedly at not getting to pounce on the bird, but Kiuna ignores it, tilting her head in the direction of the raven, muttering, "You'd better get out of here, friend, before someone else finds you..."

She takes the last couple of steps toward the bird, reaching out for it, expecting it to take off.

[*Selebius]

The bird fluffs is feather, caws into the panther's direction flotters up to sit on one of the spikes that adorn the temple's walls, cocks its head eying Kiuna warily.

It seems not to be afraid but she feels that the bird is rather unconfortable being as close as it is now. Unsure what to do, how to react to the strangers attention it fluffs its feathers again and starts to preen in a rather hectic way- a typical displacement activity often found in corvidae that are torn between two choices.

As she reaches for it the bird eyes her hand, defecates on the temple's wall and flies off, only to land on the ground a few paces away from her, stanging in a tense low crouch, ready to escape, but still curious about this stranger.

**************************************************************


In the meanwhile poor Verdant is swarmed by people bringing him all kinds of black feathered birds, hoping for a reward.

There are 3 ravens among them, two crows (one a rather annoyed familiar!), a blackbird and something that looks like an undead pigeon covered in tar.

But there is also a fiendish raven among them, busying itself by pecking a hole into the bag it is kept in, cawing and struggling until the man who brought it threatens it with his club.

[*Midnight]

Emila takes down on of Verdant's posters. She takes it to the temple of the abyss, and after a few moments prayer at the shrine of Pazu she finds the priest a preadetory smile on her face.

"Some one is collecting them. Alive. What would you do if he found her? Scared? You should be."

[*StarSight]

Verdant tries to keep his patience as fraud after fraud is brought to his attention. How stupid do these people think he is?

He is almost at his wits' end when the real deal is delivered to him. Verdant looks it over and with some relief gratefully pays the reward as promised.

[*Selebius]

After Emila finished the priests lips curl into a smile- something not seen often and there are even fewer people who can tell having seen that smile.

"I am terrified.", he answers in a dry voice- and Emila feels something has changed. Gone is his fear, his nervousness. He knows something or planned something or perhaps something changed.
However when he continues his voice is businesslike if not exactly friendly.

"What can the Temple do for you today?"


*******************************************************************

The man pockets the coin, bows many times, blesses Verdant in the name of several gods and powers (Verdant is quite sure the man does not even know what most powers mentioned stand for) and then hurries away, hiding his treasure from the prying eyes of the other cutthroats around.

The familiar can still be seen hunting its captor over the bazaar zapping her with touch spells undoubtly channeled from its master.

Then a woman approaches- and she looks different. Refined, pretty... not the kind of woman who would roll around in the mud to capture birds. Behind her is servitor construct, a creature of wood and ropes and dried leaves, carrying a large golden cage, inside 3 fiendish ravens.

She adresses Verdant with firm but polite voice. "You are the one looking for those, are you not?"

[*Midnight]

The priests dry tone earns her ire. It does not take much. She decides to thrawt him for little more reason that to feed her own ego. She gives the man a fanged grin.

"No but I shall be back."

She leaves the temple and taking on a bat shape flies to the room of the foul olde spirit Verdant, with whom she is passingly famliar has listed on his flyer.