Scene Listing || Scene Schedule || Scene Schedule RSS
Owner Pose
Kale Hearthward Kale Hearthward is, usually, a fine upstanding Lawful Evil individual, the sort that would not get involved in an illegal weapons trade.

So the issue with moving into a territory with a blossoming illegal weapons trade, and inheriting a stake in it, is... an issue.

Kale walks the backstreets and the alleys, trying to get a sense of the area, and try to brainstorm what to do. With Anima City being warpgate-adjacent, he shouldn't stand out *too* much, and he's left his Paladins regalia and insignias at home - he's just another birdman here.

... Albeit one that's becoming well known amongst the other expeditioneers, if someone were to go looking for him.
Redshift Operators     Kale's search for a contact is fruitful, in a sense. Around a corner, he encounters a sudden SCHWING! A blood-red blade held by a mechanical arm, held out as an unspoken warning: Stop, don't keep walking. But the heavy stomping sounds behind him, indicate that it doesn't mean to go the other way.

    A woman with unusual goggles and a respirator emerges from around the corner, sheathing the blade at her side if Kale doesn't continue forward. "Chevalier Hearthward. It's typically unwise for a lone Paladin to make their way through the darkness of <The Underworld>. Even a candle as bright as a Paladin can often waver in the vastness of the cursed black..."

    The sound of walking behind him is someone else, a giant man, at least eight feet, with hardsuit armor that wails softly with each motion, and only one good main optic. His voice is deep, gravel and dust and blood and menace. "A man like you could get hurt. I think you don't want that, do you?" (After all, it's important for Red Giant to make sure he helps out a new friend if he's having trouble with the local culture? And he vaguely remembers seeing a picture of this guy, when his leader was explaining something they needed... "Explain *what* you're trying to do here." Too bad about his nervous habit of weird emphasis and vocal awkwardness.

    The rest of the gang isn't here. But it looks like these two were keeping watch over something, so they might be nearby.
Kale Hearthward Kale stops.

His right hand twitches, as if it's itching to reach back and grab his own blade, but he doesn't make a move. If all else fails and the 'warning' turns into a 'threat', he's got a 'weapon' at the ready that's as easy to use as shouting.

"... Even the... cursed black can get burned on a bright enough candle, he returns."

He stays still, aside from risking a glance backward at the giant. There's two of them. Two that he can see, he doesn't know their capabilities, doesn't know if there's *just* two of them... And the red one's making threats. "I see..."

"... I'm scouting." Maybe a straight answer will just get them to not escalate here. He doesn't need a fight. "For... how well my interests here can *exit* the underworld trades. It's... toxic assets, for someone like me. I have a reputation to uphold. But I can't just let those toxic assets go for nothing, since I'm in a conflict with Wiremu."

... The red guy loks like he could snap Kale in half, with one hand. No sudden moves. "So I'm trying to figure out how to offload them. Does that answer your question?"
Redshift Operators     An eyebrow quirks under the goggles the woman wears. The giant's expression is invisible under the helmet. The former speaks: "Yes. A Chevalier in charge of weapons trade? Hardly a sensible thing."

    "People would get ideas."
    "Certain assumptions would surely be made."
    "How about we *help out*?"
    "Though, I believe our leader already has some designs on your efforts. The schemes he plans... this way, Chevalier. We can come to a mutual agreement." The woman turns to knock a few times on a side door in the alleyway, while the giant walks relentlessly towards it as well, like a human wall boxing Kale in towards the door.

    If he chooses to get closer and follow along, he might hear someone yelling something about, "...fucking munitions supply problems..." Or "...Vast Marshes freedom fighters..." And so on. Inside the backroom of a closed business, a gruff gunman is arguing with a representative of the local underworld.
Kale Hearthward This feels like...

... starting out with a small problem, and then walking right into the middle of a larger one.

"Does he have designs, now..." says Kale, softly, in response. He's getting funneled into the entrance - there's a bit more reluctance on display now, going indoors immediately cuts off his otherwise easy escape route (straight up at top speed).

Still... he lets himself get funneled inside. He'll just have to fight his way out, if things turn sour, and...

... Well, that red giant is clearly not friendly, and liable to not listen to reason, but the swordswoman seems to at least be more open to talking than swinging first. He hopes.

In for a penny, in for a pound of C4.

Besides, the Vast Marshes are one of Wiremu's territories... maybe there is some common ground here.

Still warily, he heads on inside...
Redshift Operators     "Red Dwarf." The woman calls in as she walks through a hall and into a side room.
    "Aren't you supposed to be on watch?"
    "Of course. And I bring you the fruits of that labor."

    Kale is guided to the room where a gruff fellow is harassing an Underworld rep. They're across each other from a table, apparently arguing over various unofficial documents. "Hell. Hearthward. You're not here to put us in the slammer, right?"
    "He claims he intends only to divest himself of illegitimate holdings, and make his claim over this area more legitimate."
    "*Really.* Whatever. Here's the deal. Lot of logistics infrastructure here, made to move a lot of guns that vanished. Total monopoly, poof overnight. I need weapons for freedom fighters in the Vast Marshes. You wanna *take* the Vast Marshes. I've been up and down the logistics here *trying* to track the last of the hot guns and get them in Marshlander hands." His helmet's optics configure into a scowl. "I know you've been feuding with the cat. You willing to play ball, or no?"
Kale Hearthward Kale stops a medium distance away from the table, looking over at the pair there - though focusing his attention on the gruff fellow.

"I'm not so stupid as to march into a Watch HQ and try to arrest everyone there," he says, which is...

... Probably true? A year and a half ago, it wouldn't be true, and Kale would be tempted to try clearing this space out, at whatever cost.

"... Do I want to play ball? Well, that depends on what the game is."

He crosses his arms, and idly admires how they have such expressive helmets. Not something to admit out loud.

"The feud with the cat is... secondary, to making sure I walk away with my hands clean. I operate on reputation, Dwarf, and if I lose that I lose a *lot* more than a dick-measuring contest with the Concord."

"And I can't *really* just ignore you all. That *said*..."

"... If you're gonna cause her a lot more problems than you'll cause me, well - I can only do so much at once, and I'll have to... prioritize, right? Deal with more important problems than a couple weapons and a couple dealer contacts that you take off of my hands."
Redshift Operators     The gunman rises from his chair, and approaches Kale. "Legitimate. Yeah, I've heard about your *vegan colonization* or whatever. Hands clean, I bet not. But right now you're the lesser evil. That means you get invited to play ball. I *don't want* Autocthon colonizing the Vast Marshes. I've already got another Chevalier playing ball. Are you gonna too?" He crosses his arms.

    "Your whole air-empire, you keep that *above* the Marshes. Light hands on it. Lighter than the damn industry hell-city the cat's got colonizing it. And you help me take it down. You do that, I'll help *you* turn the old underworld munitions logistics net into legitimate shipping. You keep the clean hands, I find my guns around here, nobody walks away with a black mark on the rep."

    He shifts his shoulders around. "Willing to play ball, bird?"
Kale Hearthward Kale crosses his arms harder, defensively.

"Another chevalier..." He doesn't inquire *explicitly* as to who, but the question is clearly on his face.

"..."

"*Light* hands on it," he agrees, uncrossing his arms. "No trying to industrialize it, and airborne infrastructure instead of on the ground, as much as I can. I'll take only what I need from it."

"Deal. I'll play ball."
Redshift Operators     The gunman nods grimly. "Alright. Then we'll be backin' you up on that. But only so much. Lesser evil means we're still gonna run into problems one'a these days, empire man. This lasts as long as it lasts." He's pretty emphatic about that.

    "Until then, enjoy Hearthward Urban Shipping Partners." He turns back to the Underworld rep. "Lucky you, pal, now I don't gotta go shoot your bosses. You ready to go legit? Now, here's how we're going to do this..."

    The giant standing in the doorway nods. One flickering optic regards Kale... The wall of a man stands aside, an implicit invitation for Kale to hit the road. He watches the bird carefully... Because he wants to make sure Kale gets back out of here okay! It's a dangerous neighborhood, he sure hopes Kale will be okay! So he says: "Good promise. Keep it. Would be a *shame* if this neighborhood had anything in store for you."
Kale Hearthward "And lesser problem means I'm still going to have to go deal with you eventually," says Kale. "And for the record my hands *are* clean."

Your definition of 'clean hands' may vary.

He turns and goes to leave, maybe stepping a bit faster to get clear of the giant.

Jeez, that guy just loves making threats, doesn't he...