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[Tio Silver]

Like an idiot stuck in a hole with a shovel, Willy just kept on digging himself deeper into his own grave. Did he honestly think that he was doing himself any favours by reminding them what a terrible human being he was? Or that their unwillingness to kill him meant that they wouldn't make him pay in some other way? Arlo was on the verge of shooting him already, and he didn't necessarily have to shoot him anywhere vital in order to exact fair retribution. After all one shot inbetween Willy's legs would ensure that no prostitute would need to fear being prey to his desires again.

But for now Willy's chatter, however disturbing it was, provided him and Arlo with a goldmine of information, and that thought alone sweetened whatever sour moods the thug created. But as soon as he'd led them to wherever Smith was hiding Tio planned to tie him up and leave him. They couldn't risk the chance that he might sell them out in a vain attempt to get back into Smith's good graces after all.

"The hard part is figuring out what to do after we've immobilised him. I don't think rope is going to do much to hold a teleporter." He whispered back to Arlo. "We could knock him unconscious and deliver him to the Fire Troops, but then we'd risk him waking up before we get to them. The only other thing I can think of would be to trick him into burning up all that magical energy stuff... what was it called, Ester?... so that he doesn't have enough power to escape when it matters. He seemed quite happy to flaunt his magic to make a point back in the tavern, and he's clearly more than a little bonkers, so I don't think it'd take much to make him go on a spellcasting spree with the right motivation. Of course, we'd need to provide him with a target to shoot at..." He shot a meaningful glance over at Willy.

The labyrinth of tunnels before them seemed like they connected to every major place on Scalvoris, and for a moment the task at hand was forgotten as the criminal part of Tio's mind jumped for joy at the thought of how useful they could be for evading the law. Even without these Consortium guys gone, Tio's connection with the earth should be able to help him find the entrances to these secret tunnels again, and then it was just a matter of picking the locks and sneaking through. Come to think of it if these guys were a criminal organisation then maybe they'd have some useful items stored away somewhere nearby? Something valuable?

"How about we have a quick sweep around for anything that might come in handy against Smith?" Tio suggested, looking around for anything that looked like it could have something expensive inside. "It won't take long, and we can get back to following the tracks to Smith straight after."

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[Pegasus]

14th Cylus 718

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Willy looked pleased beyond measure with himself and grew more and more sure of his immortality by the trill. Lyova, Arlo's unseen but quite handy to know little companion disappeared without a word, although he could feel her thoughts at all times. Willy's continued existence, on a thread as it was though he had no idea of such, seemed to be one where he just kept talking.

And not in a way that was likely to help him. "I don't know what he'll do with Shania, to be honest, once he's done with 'er. She's a squealer, though, an' he likes those." It sounded, for all the world, like he thought that Tio and Arlo would be approving. "You can always tell when he likes 'em. He cuts 'em. Right down her face, he did. Heh..." and yes, he chuckled.

Meanwhile, Lyova reported back, and the little diri really, really wanted to kill Willy. "Vega's asleep, I'm in her dream. She's in a room with her father and all her cousins. She's sleeping so that she can talk to me. I told her what's happening and she said that you should concentrate on looking after yourself or she's going to have to punch you." Lyova, never able to stop talking, didn't seem inclined now. "Her cousins are looking out, and they're on the other boat, not yours, so if there is an attack and they don't spot it, there's no one there who can get hurt. She said that they're not the ones stuck in a burning Inn in their pajamas so stop fussing over her and get yourself home." Lyova voice was clear in his head. "Want me to stay here with her? I think she's worried about you." Lyova considered the alternative. "Or, she's in a really bad mood with you. If you get hurt, even one hair, she's going to kill you." Lyova knew, of course, just what Vega's words meant, but equally she knew that Arlo needed to hear them. Because it meant that she was alright. "They've got people up the crows nest, everyone's on full alert so... " a sudden tinkling laugh sounded in his head. "She says stop lollygagging and hurry up home."

Tio, then, suggested that they stop and have a quick look around before moving on their way. Willy, ever the chatterbox, nodded his head. "There's stuff down here, yeah. But you shouldn't you know. The Consortium, they store stuff here. If you take anything, anythin' at all, you and yours will be marked for the rest of yer lives. I mean, you've still got a chance, here." Willy gestured around. "Get out, get yourselves away from here and don't poke your nose in Consortium stuff. I can try and put a good word in for you, they're reasonable... yeah, no, they're not, but they don't need a war. There's one of them comin' soon, anyhow." Shrugging slightly he shook his head.

"You steal from them, you're dead walkin'. Try and fight him, an' you're dead. Best thing you can do is get yourself out of here, and out of their sight."

And so, they had to come to a consensus. Whether Willy got a vote or not, of course, remained to be seen. But the dog? The dog seemed keen on following the tracks, sniffing and dashing forward and then running back at Arlo and Tio.

[Arlo Creede]

How to keep hold of a teleporter once he'd been mobilized would continue to be a conundrum unless or until they actually got to the point of trying it. Thanks to an ordinary seeming ring that he wore on his finger, Arlo could immobilize him temporarily. The rest would take some creative thinking. Unless they outright killed the man, which would not only be Arlo's preference if he was honest, but also the most expedient solution. "Ether?" he suggested. That was the extent of what he knew about magic.

Willy would make a fine target for all that magical firepower though. No doubt about it. After all, the man seemed to be under the false and stubborn illusion that Arlo intended to let him go when this was over. Much less let him live. For now, he'd continue to let him think it. At least for as long as he was marginally useful. Still, his pistol crossbow was never out of his hand, and the business end never strayed far from the center of Willy's back. He was all for looking around though before they moved on. They might find something useful for later.

When Lyova returned, Arlo could only sympathize with the diri's thoughts about Willy's chances of surviving the trial. And it was ironic too, that their connection made it possible for him to keep in touch with and communicate with Vega. While at the same time, allowed her to fuss at him from afar. Arlo appreciated irony, and besides, if she had the wherewithal to fuss and warn him, then he could feel reasonably sure that she and the others were safe at the moment.

As for what next, Willy didn't get a vote. He ought to just be grateful that at least Tio seemed to be feeling more invested in keeping him alive at the moment than Arlo was. But itchy fingers sometimes got their way, and if the man kept talking....? Clearly the dog seemed to know where he was going, and seemed to want them to follow. Though whether that was for the good or not, was anyone's guess.

[Tio Silver]

"Oh, you can put in a good word can you?" Tio replied sarcastically to Willy's comment. "Well I'm sure that will make all the difference. I'd certainly think twice about killing someone if another person I was out to kill suggested I shouldn't."

He headed over to the various piles of stuff looking for weapons, valuables and anything that might be useful for restraining a person. Something told him that a slave-trading criminal gang wouldn't be lacking for any of the three. "Forget any notions you had about going back to the way things were before. Smith is your typical, predictable psychopath. And now that he's ordered the three of us dead he's not going to relent until we are. He won't let you back in because there's a possibility that your loyalty is comprised, and he wont let you walk away because you might tell people about this Consortium group. There are only four options left: run, hide, fight, or scare them. And capturing Smith... if done correctly... can send a message that coming after us isn't in their best interests. And if we're going to take them on anyway we might as well pillage their stuff. Spoils of war and all that."

Once he'd looted everything useful he could find Tio turned back to Arlo. "Alrighty then, let's get back to following those tracks." He started walking down the tracks, subtly trying to keep as much distance between him and the dog as possible without making it obvious.

"So what did you mean when you said 'there's one of them coming soon'? Who's them?"

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[Pegasus]

15th Cylus 718

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It was hard to tell just how long they spent down there. They had a look around, looking for items of use and worth. And maybe they found them - or maybe they did not. It all depended, really, on how one defined terms such as "worth". There were boxes down here which, quite obviously, were someone's preparation for having to leave the island in a hurry. One crate, for example, had a few changes of clothing, some dried food, supplies for survival and a bag of coins and one of gems. There were weapons in each crate or box they looked in - basic swords, basic bows, nothing fancy.

There were also a few first aid kits, blankets, things like that. If they took the time to really explore, though, they rummaged in the crates more carefully and in there were nestled small bottles of what seemed to be drugs, potions and powders. Some of them were clear, others strange and unusual colours - still others seemed to glow slightly. But they all had one thing in common.

None of them were labelled.

So, yes, they had stuff. Clothes, medical kits, dried food (which would become very useful as they wandered in these apparently endless caverns) and equally, weapons, drugs, coins and gemstones. What they took - or left, was up to them individually. If no one stopped him, Willy wouldn't be the first of them to take anything, but if either of them did, then he would. But what he took was money, gems, nothing more and nothing else. But those two items? He'd take them and thanks very much.

So, they went.

As they made their way, Arlo putting up with a constant stream of chatter from Lyova and both of them having to put up with the same (and a lot worse) from Willy, they found themselves in a room which was some sort of underground lake or something. Either way, the room was filled with water, only ankle deep but still, their feet and lower legs were wet. The dog had run up ahead and Arlo, Tio and Willy were splashing their way through the water and then, from the darkness, there was a deep growling noise from all around them. Like they were surrounded.

Except it was the echo, of course, of the dog growling up ahead of them. Lyova told Arlo that she couldn't see what the dog was growling at, there was nothing there but there, in the darkness just a little ahead of them, the dog snarled, heckles raised at .... whatever it was that it was seeing.

[Arlo Creede]

It felt as if they'd been below ground for a very, very long time. But from Arlo's perspective? It had been a lifetime of having to listen to Willy running his mouth. Not that he had to. He was a very good acrobat. He could feign a stumble, a trip, any time that he wanted, and the bolt already primed and ready in his crossbow could just happen to off in exactly the right direction. That being right in the middle of the man's back. No tribunal in the land would convict him, Arlo was sure.

Of course Tio's interests might very well be different than his own. Sure, the Consortium needed to be stopped. No question about it. However, Arlo's top priority, considering the threats that had already been made, was to get to Vega and make sure that she was safe. Everything else came second or third. Tio was right on one point however. The Consortium already wanted them dead. No reason not to take their stuff, and Arlo had a very deep sack on his back. An ordinary bow, a couple of bottles one with a powder and one that might be a potion that glowed. A first aid kit because...Who knew? As for Willy's efforts? Arlo didn't care about the coins though he snatched away the bag with the gems, emptied a couple out into his hand and then handed the sack for Tio to take what he would.

So on they went, finally into a much larger chamber and Arlo mumbled, "What is it with Scalvoris and underground lakes?" as he splashed through, weapon aimed at Willy's back and prompting him to lead the way. Still, the canary in a coal mind. He stopped though when the dog began growling and peered into the shadows, seeing nothing. A dog ought to be able to see into the dark. In fact Lyova should have been able to. And yet neither of them, or at least Lyova, knew what it might be.

If there was anything there, it was already looking at them and had probably had plenty of time to end any one of them. Nonetheless Arlo found himself some sort of natural feature to place himself behind, pulled out a jar with a glowing blue stone inside it, and rolled it past the dog and into the shadows. Maybe putting a little light on the subject might work? And as soon as he sent the jar in the right direction, he tapped the smallest of his fingernails on the stone wall. Maybe that too might answer a question or three.

[Tio Silver]

Tio's eyes lit up like a child in a toy store as they uncovered the boxes of assorted loot. It may not be a treasure chest, but there were some items here that could be invaluable to their mission to capture Smith. First of all Tio picked out a pair of plain grey trousers, heavy boots and a short sleeved black shirt that were roughly his size and changed out of the pajamas he'd been in up until now, then threw a rough grey hooded cloak over his shoulders. He picked out two more hooded cloaks and chucked them over to Arlo and Willy.

"Put these on. A little disguise will go a long way to keeping unwanted attention off us if we end up heading back into civilisation. At the very least it'll make sneaking around easier."

Then they raided the weapons box, taking out a pair of daggers and attaching them to a belt along with his cutlass. The first aid kits, survival supplies, remaining gems and the entire bag of gold nels (because Willy didn't deserve anything) went in another bigger bag that he slung around his shoulders, along with a quiver full of arrows, a bow, and an axe to hold in his hands. There was no sense in being modest with armaments when heading into battle with a magician. He considered taking the whole assortment of potions, but decided that having them all clattering around in his bag was just asking for them to break. If one of them was something deadly he didn't want it spilling all over his back. Instead he took the three most fun looking ones; the ones that glowed the brightest, and slipped them securely onto his belt.

And finally he took a length of rope out of the box of survival equipment, wrapped it into a coil, and slung it over one shoulder. It could come in handy for restraining Smith, provided his was drained of enough ether to stop him burning it to ashes.

"Alright! All ready to go to war!" He declared chipperly, flicking up the hood of the cloak. "I kind of look like one of the Rangers don't I? Maybe I should apply for a job? I look damn good in capes."

They continued onward into a room filled with ankle-deep water, and the dog began to bark at some threat it saw in the darkness, causing Tio to jump out of his skin as the hellish yowling reverberated around the room in a monstrous manner. Spirit damned dogs! Why did all the nasty parts of his life involve dogs? Cautiously he raised his axe, prepared to fight if anything lay up ahead of them in the dark.

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[Pegasus]

15th Cylus 718

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They looted and collected up useful stuff. It was not difficult, there was a lot there - but it was time consuming to an extent. Still, they had more money, gems, weapons, potions, supplies and so on than they had when they started. Willy kept up a running commentary, of course and when Tio said that he was prepared for going against a mage, Willy frowned. "You mean Mr Smith? It's not going to happen on your terms is it? It's been trials, now. Trials since we left, I reckon. Mr Smith is long gone." With a shrug and a chuckle, he pointed out, "an' Shania's probably dead. If he was gonna come after us, we'd already be gonners. I reckon, he's either decided to let us go as not worth it or he figures we died in that fire." There was always the possibility that he'd left, too, Willy said. Maybe it had been someone's birthday and he couldn't stay or perhaps there was another job to do. Either way, he said to Tio, "if we're fighting him, it'll be when he chooses, not when you do." He seemed amused at Tio's foolishness.

Whatever you could say about Willy, though, just judging by the constant stream of noise, the incessant talking, the man had good breath control. Of course, Arlo was getting a double dose as Lyova also kept up a consistent conversation in his head. But either way, they were well equipped and much better than when they had got there.

Wading through the water, though, the dog started to growl and there was, absolutely and unequivocally was nothing there. Until, that was, Arlo tapped his fingernail against the wall. Tio saw that, when Arlo did that, a small flame flickered out of finger. What Arlo saw, however, was the reason for the dog barking. Ghosts. Not just one of them, but a dozen or more. More than that, they were all clustered around the area the dog was growling at. There were lots of them, and they were all screaming. Sometimes, ghosts were lucid and able to talk but more often than not, they were like these ones. Shouting, screaming, tortured souls. All of them were that kind and each one of them had deep slices across their top, as though struck from above.

The dog was barking, growling and fussing at the ghosts which were screaming - Willy was stepping forward, one foot in front of the other. "I don't see anything, it's just this dog," He kept moving forward, the dog continuing to bark.

As he stepped, Tio noticed a line in the wall - like an indentation which went from bottom to top - perfectly straight and thin. He couldn't see if it continued into the floor, because of the water, but if it did then Willy was just about to step over it.

[Arlo Creede]

Arlo was perfectly comfortable just as he was, dressed in nightclothes, boots and his trusty hat. He was skeptical to say the least, that proper day clothes were going to make any of them less recognizable so long as they were down below ground. After all, how many trios of men were wandering about below ground, this time of the trial, besides the same three that had previously escaped being burned alive up in the kitchen? He didn't argue the point, however, and just slipped on whatever shirt or trousers he could find that would fit him.

He had his own weapons however, one of them still pointed in the general direction of Willy's back, and was content with leaving it to Tio to collect what he wanted. Not Willy though. If Willy reached for a weapon of any kind, Arlo would make quick work of preventing it. "I'm sure the rangers would be proud to have you," he uttered dryly as they'd moved on. "And will you just shut up." That was for Willy, and Arlo's patience with the man was become more and more frayed with each trill that passed. "No, not you Lyova," he added then quickly as his little diri's lip, of a sort, quivered in response to his words.

If not for Lyova after all, he wouldn't have known whether or not Vega was safe and sound. The dog's barking was curious. Then again, he'd always thought that animals could see, hear and sense things that most humans or human-like people couldn't. Was that the case, Arlo wondered? Shedding a little light hadn't revealed anything worth barking at after all. But the tap of his finger revealed plenty. It wasn't a trick the storyteller liked using, or even having. He didn't like seeing or hearing ghosts. For him, ignorance was bliss.

But still, there they were in all their gruesome glory, and they seemed oblivious to him, the dog, Tio and Willy. It was their apparent cause of death however that struck him, and where they were all gathered about. A violent death, each and every one. A sudden one and on that had come down from above. Arlo's eyes drifted upwards then, at the same time he reached out and grabbed Willy by the collar to stop him walking forward. It struck him immediately that he could have just let the man walk on, and rid himself of a constant irritant. But it wasn't his nature, unfortunately.

"There's something ready to come down and cleave a passerby right in two," he uttered, glancing at Tio then pointing ahead, not far from where the dog was. "Just about there. I don't know if it's triggered by weight, or a trip wire or something else...But we're going to figure that out, and how to bypass it, if we're going to go any farther."

[Tio Silver]

Once again Willy started singing praises about how all-powerful and undefeatable Mr Smith was, and once again Tio rolled his eyes and tried to tune out the sound of him talking. Burning barnacles did this guy ever shut up? Perhaps Smith wasn't as powerful a magician as he'd thought after all? Maybe he just had a talent for tricking simpletons into thinking he was some kind of demon and relied on his reputation to win his battles for him? Honestly he was getting pretty sick of hearing all this nonsense about a guy who though that abusing helpless women made him tough. It was going to feel so sweet knocking his ass to the floor, provided they could find him.

Down in the water-logged room Arlo reached out to tap a finger against the nearby wall, and for a split trill Tio could swear that he saw a small flame light up on his finger. Arlo didn't react to it at all though, and so Tio decided his eyes must have been playing tricks on him. Arlo hadn't acted like he'd been burnt, and if he was a defier he'd have known.

When he started to talk about something cleaving people in two Tio frowned, confused as to how he could know that. "How do you know that? There isn't anything here but water." Still the fact that the dog seemed obsessed with barking at exactly the same spot couldn't be just a coincidence. If there was a trap in their way then somehow they had to get through it.

"Well if we don't know what it does then there's really only one thing to isn't there. We spring the trap." He said, drawing a lopsided grin onto his face and shooting a mischievous look over to Willy. "Good thing we brought a spare person. Off you go big guy, age before beauty."

He kept a straight face for about three trills, then broke out into a little chuckle. "Nah I'm just messing with you. You're annoying as hell, but not that annoying. I have an idea, but I'm going to no need a... well like a puppet or something. A ideas?"

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