logs | (open) catch-all

[ It always starts small. There's no expectation, and no plans in the early days of an operation. Sure, there were all the grand plans in the afterlife, but one had to be realistic, and understand that there were things that one did not understand yet. This world was truly vast, and unknown, in a way that the Eye of Zaun was not used to. He had the basics, but this was like moving to another land entirely, and Silco had lived in the undercity his entire life. It's like being caught on the backstep, and he's had to start compensating, heavily. Starting out is difficult, but it's easier than the first time he'd started an operation from the ground up. He's done it twice now, twice from relatively nothing, and the third time was no more challenging than the last two. Sure, the challenges were different than when he'd been a boy, establishing the lanes, or an adult, putting together a shimmer operation in secret -- but they weren't harder.

And information... that was worth something. It was a good way to get his fingers on the pulse of this place, it was an even better front for any other activities, and he wouldn't want to start an operation without a front. Not in a place like this, and not with the Hierarchy breathing down the necks of those they suspected of "heinous acts", and well -- Silco certainly looked the part, didn't he? Between the eye, the scars, and the clothes, he was the picture of someone to keep an eye on. Therefore, the key was to keep his head down. At least until he had sufficient power to stand up to the Hierarchy properly, at least.

Head tipped, he listened to the child, with dirty feet, who spoke to him. He's in an alley -- somewhere off the beaten path from Mirth, but close enough that the music filtered from the bars close by. The kid doesn't look any older than 13, and Silco's down at his level, crouched, listening, his shoulders hunched as he listened, before he pulled a coin out from his pocket -- payment from the star metal -- before he handed it to the kid. Quick as can be, the child is gone, and Silco lingered in the alley, paced occasionally, smoked some truly foul-smelling cigars, and waited for the next feeler to come by. He'd passed a few coins about to the inhabitants -- generally the young adults and teenagers who looked like they were lurking in the city's streets -- to get the word out that any prized pieces of information, anything that was truly unique, there was coin to be had.

So far, not much luck, but these things never happened immediately. If approached, he will turn, and look at the interloper in the alleyway, a lift of his chin, in invitation to come close. He's expecting a secret, but you're welcome to disappoint. ]

[ Moving about the city, it's easy to get lost in the entirety of it. Faces kind of blurred together, that's normal in a large city, wasn't it? People weren't really recognizable, but he'd always been used to walking through a city's streets with full knowledge of any that were of particular import. Sure, he might not know them all, but he knew enough. Stygia -- being not the city he had been born in and died in -- was different. From the docks, further into Mirth, it was all a blur of unrecognizable faces. That wasn't new.

He doesn't even notice it, walking through his usual routine through the day, when someone tried to get his attention -- one of the younger types who'd he'd paid a few times for information. He'd seen someone wave to him, in the corner of his eye, but he hadn't even comprehended that it had been for him -- thought it was for someone past him -- but it happened again. Someone tried to meet his eye in the markets, and another when he'd been smoking in an alley.

To shake it off, he'd headed into one of the bars in Mirth, and ordered a drink, surly as he stared at the glass, a single eyebrow knitted in consternation, even though he couldn't put it together. Why were strangers waving to him. Was it something on his face -- other than... everything he already had? -- or something else? ]

[ Coins exchanged hands. The wares were varied, a kaleidoscope that reflected the unique and varied residents here. Everything from jewelers, to carpenters, to anything in between. It was always thriving. That was good, at least. It was no Black Lanes, but... it was vibrant enough. There's plenty to purchase, and there's even some who sell what would have been considered illicit in anywhere other than Zaun.

He's leaned forward, inspecting a knife from a blacksmith, turned it over, trying to figure out if it's worth the steep price. ] Do you really think this ill-weighted thing is worth the price you're charging? I'm likely to stab myself instead of someone else.

[ His lip curled, after he said it. Likely, he hadn't meant to say that out loud, had he? ]

[ Moving through the market, he'd been about to head back to where he was most comfortable. Mirth held its allure over him -- how could he resist a place that made him feel like he was more at home? His eye followed along with the plethora of wares, even so. One never knew what types of things people sold, and he was still familiarizing himself with the trends, the ebb and flow of the market's wares. He'd taken notes at a few shops in a small booklet, a better memory than he could ever hope to have, before he tucked it back away into his pocket, and moved to the next, and then another.

He came on one, selling -- of all things -- monster parts. He didn't even bother to jot down what was here -- it seemed impermanent, this set up, but he did stop to look over the wares. ]

Do people...actually buy these?

[ It's only... slightly judgemental. ]

Edited 2022-11-09 07:13 (UTC)

Please don't. [He's within earshot, and intentionally so. Jayce caught sight of Silco walking the marketplace and followed, his footfalls stealthy as he could make them, until he opened his mouth. Ever since meeting Bruno, Jayce acquired an appreciation for careful movement — handy, in this instance. At every turn, he swore Silco caught sight of him, and yet... he made it here.

He followed Silco into the smithy, hovered at the threshold.]

[ Casual as anything, Jinx drops into the seat beside Silco and lifts her legs to rest her chin against her knees. She steals a straw from behind the bar and starts chewing on one end. When she speaks, it pokes out from the corner of her mouth like one of Silco's cigars. ]

I made a new prototype today. Submarine bomb. It sinks into the water before it explodes. I'm not sure yet if it'll kill the fish or just stun them but either way they'll be easier to catch.

Ah.

[ Ares draws the word out as he takes his seat next to the scarred man. He settles into the seat and muses over how he will pay for his drinks. Turning his hand over, he stares down at his palm and think before taking in his accidental companion. ]

The best reason to drink is in celebration of a proper victory had, don't you think? [ In fact, he is thinking of having the bar experience that joy by filling the space up with malice. He isn't certain what his power will allow, but he longs for bloodshed even in this deathless place.

But he stops -- not out of any goodness in his heart, but to analyze the person sitting next to him.

Pinching his chin, he analyzes him -- there is something there; perhaps, it is the scarred face or the manner in which the man carries himself, but it is enough to give him pause. ] Wait, are you one of mine?

[ Silco didn't jump, as much as he whipped his head around, to fix his gaze on Talis. His fingers tightened on the knife, but he carefully set it down.

No need to hold a deadly weapon, when he could tell his shadow was close to the surface, threatening his control. ] Stab myself?

Thankfully, the easy solution is to simply not purchase it. [ A beat. ] I can't imagine you're concerned about that, are you?

[ The sensation has been happening all day. Seeing people that didn't seem to be all that familiar, despite the feeling that they were... someone he should know. The bartender had been like that too, although it was faint. Like swimming in a sea of vague familiarity, and Silco had kept the most of it to himself, because he could stumble through conversations easily enough, pretending that he knew who someone was. He could even use context, to fiddle out why some had approached.

Nothing had felt like this.

It's an overwhelming sensation, that felt like his brain had overcooked, like he was working into overdrive, because he knew that he knew this person. More than anyone he'd met in this place so far, more than any other face, he was struck like it was a board to his head. He should know this person.

So then why did their face look completely unfamiliar? Why could he not connect a face to the name?

It took him a moment, of odd searching, his eyes danced, trying to figure it out, before he looked back down at his drink, if just to get overwhelming sense of familiarity to stop. ]

Did you?

[ He asked, not really understanding if this was a good thing, or a bad thing. ] Are you trying to become a fisher?

[ He could play this off. Surely...? ]

[ Silco has, in front of him, his usual glass of whiskey. An unfamiliar voice -- truly unfamiliar drew his glance up. It didn't come with the usual sting of overwhelming unfamiliarity, the kind of thing that felt almost close to face blindness, the way he hadn't been able to recognize them. This person was truly new.

He almost breathed a sigh of relief, but caught himself, when the man continued to speak.

One eye narrowed, and he tipped his head, curious in the way he worded it. He certainly hadn't agreed to anything. Why would he belong to someone? ]

I don't remember agreeing to belong to anyone, but my memory is a bit...sparse these days. [ His smile is tight, his hands spread, palms up. ] Perhaps you could... enlighten me on what you mean?

[Leaned against a building in the alleyway, Kainé watches the exchange. She's surprised to see a man who looks as badass as this guy seeming to cater to younger people.

When he meets her yellow-grey gaze and lifts his chin, she drops her crossed arms to her sides and casually strolls towards him, her heels clicking on the cement.

The woman who approaches him is dressed in lingerie and heels with bandages wrapped around her left arm and leg. In her silvery-white hair, she wears a flower with a magical quality to it.]

What's a tough-guy like you doing out here with a buncha kids?

[in the gloom of the tent, leaning against one of the supports, felix watches the throngs of people pass by just an arm's length away. there was something familiar about it—the crush of a crowd, and the quiet of a vendor's tent full of wares. nearby, one of the stall's mysterious owners tallies up his hunts, marking a ledger for each different monster part he's delivered in a script all their own.

at the sound of another patron's voice, the owners look up—and immediately away, when they realize it's just another rubbernecker.

and felix, in a rare mood, answers the man's out loud wonderings.]

They do. Don't ask me for what, though.

[in the background, one of the vendors is chopping around an eye to clean off the fleshy bits. the thunk of a knife echoes in the tent.]

Don't stab anyone else, [clarified hastily, he shoved his hands in his pockets.] Although it's not a bad idea to keep your distance from any weapon, by the look of it.

[Bold, behaving so sharply with Silco. But Jayce's veneer had been fracturing.]

Why are you even here?

[ A crease etches itself between Jinx's eyebrows. She looks back at Silco curiously, tilting her head from side to side. The straw bobs up and down, anchored between her bite. It was a weird question but maybe he simply didn't connect the dots. ] What? No. Just trying to make some coin without dying from boredom. Which is what would happen if I had to stand there with a stick and string.

[ Silco had just handed off a coin to one of the younger ones, and an extra for the information -- something to do with movements from the Hierarchy -- they were much more well informed, and younger folks saw... everything, and most paid them no mind. It was the way of cities, and Silco had been a Sump Rat in one of the worst of them, grown up scrabbling and scraping until he was at the top.

So an extra coin could go far, he well knew.

He straightened from his crouch, and only blinked with one eye at the person who walked up to him. Ostentatious, wasn't she? He leaned against a wall, and pulled a cigar out from his jacket. It's an idle motion, and he doesn't take to lighting it quite yet. ]

Paying them for their work. [ He said, casually. ] They tend to be ignored, and see a great deal more than people give them credit for.

Fair enough.

[ It's said, and there's a grunt of Silco's usual acknowledgement, but...

Is she talking to him because she knows him? He can assume so, given the way she seems familiar, but the reminder slipped through his fingers like sand. It's frustrating, and he ran a hand through his hair, as if that would jog his memory.

It doesn't ]

I thought the whole fishing "job" sounded rather demeaning, personally. I suppose, though a bomb would do the trick.

[ Nice. Perfect. See? He can do this. ]

[ Silco's lip curled into a slight, half-smile. There, and then it's gone, as fast as could be. ] Hm, well, you never know.

After all, last month, I was almost trampled by a headless rider. You can't expect me to be completely defenseless.

[ A beat. ]

Which is why I'm here. Obviously.

[ Sounds like in the back, they're dissecting them. That was a familiar sound, at least. The butchers in Zaun would dissect the sea creatures pulled up from the River Pilt all the time, and his eyes flicked up, and toward the back.

He wondered what sort of place would offer them. If there were restaurants in Mirth that sold such fare? If that was what it was used for. ]

Food, maybe? [ He turned mismatched eyes first to the shopkeeper, who was tight lipped as they came, and then to the man who was clearly selling parts, and then to the parts themselves.

Huh. He'd seen some of them around, but Silco certainly wasn't going to be challenging beasts like this. ]

Felt like fighting something, I take it? That doesn't look like a pleasant encounter.

[Being ostentatious isn't the reason she dresses like this. She has her reasons, namely the state of her body.

He's right. Children notice more than adults give them credit for. Kainé could always hear the adults in the Aerie whispering how she was some kind of demon or witch when she was ostracized from the village as a little girl. How they would close their windows and doors whenever she came into the village to get Grandma's medicine. Or how they hushed their children away from her.]

Nice to see some appreciation for the younger ones. They got it the roughest.

[Kainé would know. She was on her own for years after Grandma was murdered. Kainé stops before him and crosses her arms under her bust.]

[[ooc: lol Kainé is getting in with all the bad dudes. She's also hanging around the Darkling.]]

There's only one way to keep improving skills, and that's through practical experience. [it's said matter-of-factly. he doesn't move from where he's standing, still waiting for his pay.

he does cast fresh eyes at the butchering, though, considering the question.]

Maybe different people here can stomach them. I haven't found any worth eating yet.

[ It's because of Silco that Jinx has never had to work the sorts of demeaning jobs that most people in the undercity need to get by. He taught her that she deserved better, like all the people of Zaun. He gave her the support and resources to become something more. She had hoped he would be pleased to see her devising a way around the most demeaning parts of the job, and his words do say as much.

But that doesn't distract her from what his body language says; running a hand through his hair is usually reserved for tenser moments than this. She cocks her head curiously. ] What's got you all stressed?

That is unfortunate to hear, and I shall hope it is not an ailment I will suffer.

[ There is a dismissive tone about lacking in memories. It comes from being uncertain if the man is being serious or not. So, he airs on the side of caution and decides to treat it as a joke -- even if it is not. ]

But you ask me what I mean... in all places, in all realms, there is war. [ A laugh follows. ] Strife, hatred, jealousy... all the things that some would say that make men no better than beasts; I say that it shapes them into something greater than what they could ever hope to be if they lived in peace and prosperity.

[ Ares smiles. ] I am the god that rules the realm of battle and destruction. Though, there are some that have guided more to the realm of the dead than I can hope to ever send... I still am quite pleased with the lot I have slain.

[ An appreciative stare. ] You have the feeling of one that has seen war and so... I must ask again, are you one of mine?

They do. [ He agreed. Of course, Silco wasn't... kind to children. He was putting them to work after all, but well. At least then they could eat. He remembered being a starving sump rat, and how he'd had to work for the topsiders to just feed himself when he'd been a boy. He'd worked hard to get out of there -- learned to read, learned logistics, all the skills that served him well as an adult, but none of them were thinks dead children would learn.

He tipped his head. ]

Besides, they don't really have many ways to safely make coin. At least this way, they can eat, hm?

[ And he got information in return. Silco was always focused on the business deal, but he wasn't opposed to putting these kids to work for it.

He snipped the end of his cigar, before he pulled out a match, and lit it. ]

Worried about them?

[ Silco's hand paused, still held into his hair, before his head tipped towards this strange -- but so familiar -- girl.

Yes, Silco ran his hand through his hair only when he was stressed, or frustrated -- but how did she know that? It wasn't like he let anyone in, except for --

-- his mind slid right over the thought, that eerie, overwhelming sense of familiarity took hold again. He'd only noticed the feeling this morning, but...

Was this a part of being dead? His lips tightened, as he considered his words, but without knowing the significance of what he was saying, he said: ]

People I don't recognize keep talking to me. I'm not used to being so popular with strangers.

[ Silco listened to the way he described it. He had never been one for the fight, for war, not like others in his life had been. He was a man of numbers, logistics, and words.

That did not, however, mean that he did not understand or use bloodlust to his own devices. He had prepped to wage war on the very city that subjugated him. He had let shimmer run in his streets as thick as blood, and built monsters from what he'd produced. He'd drowned them in it, and made them fear what they could do.

So no, Silco didn't need to fight, to understand that. Understand what war was, or what it could do. He used war, and therefore, perhaps this man recognized something like that in him. His lip curled, slightly. ]

I don't know if I am one to fight in such things, but... I understand it. I have changed men into something greater and more terrifying than mere humans, and made my enemies tremble so much, they were willing to give me what they wanted, just to keep me from marching on them.

[ If only he would have given up one thing. Which he wouldn't have done. ] I had planned on razing them to the ground.

So I suppose, you could say I am, in a way.

[ Good thing he's met other gods of a sort by now, or else this would be an awkward conversation about how he was an atheist. ]

(open) catch-all

Ⅰ - Mirth

Ⅱ - Stygia - During the Full Moons

Ⅲ - Stygia - Marketplace

(CLOSED) to FELIX

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😭

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I just finished Arcane and need CR with Silco! (Kainé will probably remind him of his daughter)

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yee, I hope you liked it!! (And yes, she uh, absolutely will :')

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I loved it! And are you familiar with Nier? Kainé is also kinda cray cray but not as bad as Jinx lo

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I'm only familiar by rp-osmosis, but I've gotten the vibe before lmaoooo

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