Sittin On the Dock of the Bay

OOC: JP with Lorem, Omni & Jaxx

After Voah and Hunter met Blackwolf , who is in the dungeon's Keep, they lean that a young sailor was murdered in a bizarre manner aboard 'The Hogue' while they were fighting the natives. Hunter was surprised by how much he missed since he was out of it while being rescued and on the way back to Ostiarium. Sadly because there was little evidence the Captain had Blackwolf and a few others arrested till they could sort things out. To make things worse they learn that there are rumors of a new drug being being related to the broken vials Blackwolf found at the crime scene. This investigation sound very complicated to Hunter and reeked to political and slum gang espionage. When Blackwolf asked him and Voah for help to prove his innocence he felt conflicted. Granted he owed Blackwolf nothing and it was not like he was being hired to do a job, but Hunter felt a weird need to help Blackwolf. He didn't get it but it reminded him of when Tarmen was there for him. Hunter wondered was this what Tarmen felt when he saved him? Seeing that Voah was all for saving Blackwolf, Hunter also agreed but was not sure where to start.

Voah was not intimately familiar with Boyce Blackwolf but she knew the man well. It was part of her business to read people and from the Wolf she read no malice. Whatever had happened on The Hogue had as much to do with Blackwolf as it did with the reconnaissance party, but with little information to go on, the Captain and authorities seemingly chose the first people on the scene and locked them away as suspects to be forgotten.

She knew little and cared less about the so called 'new drug' that had been circulating but Voah would do all she could to prove the man's innocence. Whether Hunter liked it or not, she had persuaded him to join the investigation to earn some of that new "perspective". The truth was, she needed a friend and there were about as much of those here in Arcadia as there were in Helias.

Voah and Hunter strode toward the dock ward, as swiftly as one can on an injured leg, until they reached the lane where The Hogue was docked; the ship's master stood puffing on a pipe as he oversaw the removal of fishing nets bursting with herring and mackerel. The smell of 'Cambena's deep' wafted over the ward with the wind.

As Hunter and Voah walked along the docks they could see the hustle and bustle of sailors, merchants and fishermen all around. The smell of the salty air was paired with musky men and fish. Hunter did his best to walk despite it being so busy on the wooden planks. After a bit of walking they found the Hogue and made their way to it. It was a bit of a chore walking up the gang plank to get aboard the Hogue. Once onboard they looked around and saw the Captain talking to two people. Once was Sgt. Carver and the other was a very feminine male. Hunter knew it was a man due to the lump on his throat like all men had. Not sure what he should say he looked at Voah to take the lead.

Sgt. Carver was just wrapping up discussing matters with the Hogue’s Captain. Her covert investigation squad had interacted with every venture at the docks and they were wrapping things up. Their tip to check the docks was unfruitful. Either it was a false trail to begin with, the word spread of their presence and gave the culprit a chance to hide away, or he perhaps worked at the docks but was not here at the moment. She would ensure that the guards that patrolled the docks continued to look for anyone matching the description Gonyaul had provided them with in the time to come.
Meanwhile Gonyaul wished that he had been able to identify the assassin. It would have given him more peace of mind to know the dangerous man was in custody instead of potentially around every corner. He was standing quietly off to the side as Sgt. Carver was concluding her business.

The ship fascinated him. How interesting that something so heavy and massive was able to float on water.

When he noticed the Arbiter, and what looked like her bodyguard, appear on the scene his face betrayed him with a sudden look of fear. It was brief, because he quickly got it in check; however, noticeable to anyone paying attention. He instantly regretted being caught off guard like that.

He knew what the Arbiter looked like in Ostiarium and had spent intentional effort to avoid her as much as possible; and from as much distance as possible. He grew up on the horror stories and nightmares of how arbiters were key contributors to the near extinction of his people. He made particular note of the sword she carried and that her very capable looking bodyguard had a limp.

Gonyaul took a calculated step back and a subtle stance, beneath his winter cloak, that would be good for both fleeing and decisive evasive action if needed. He lowered his head, so the hood cast more of a shadow down his face. He adopted a diminishing posture to assume a non threatening body language. Perhaps they would just ignore him? He placed himself calmly and slowly in such a way that there was Sgt. Carver and another soldier blocking sight lines from the arbiter to him.

All he could do was hope at this point that the Arbiter’s attention would get wrapped up in whatever business brought her here and he could slide out along with Sgt. Carver and her guards when they decided to leave.

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