Graded [The Underbelly] An Unexpected Demise

[Shatter Shard]

Dayle Keller
"Red Star's Bastard Dog"

Strength
Precision
Intelligence
Vitality
Speed

[ D ]
[ F ]
[ E ]
[ E ]
[ E ]

E

Active Titles:
Human | Thug | Unruffled

-Ryke-
Underbelly of Ryken, Colosseum

Code by: Shatter Shard

Dayle held back a chuckle. Seeing Lykra so frustrated and angry strangely gave him a joy. Back then, her anger was unwarranted although understandable. Now, being the cause for this anger that's more like a tantrum, as well as repelling an attempt at 'manipulation', was quite satisfactory for Dayle. Not today, woman. Not ever. "I swear on my name-" Dayle looked at Lykra with seriousness. "-and I swear this with my life on the line, nothing anything related to Auregnog will ever be spoken to anyone, except to only you." Dayle could see Lykra's grumpy mood and didn't want to make it any worse, so he stood up with haste. "Then I'll see myself out. Expect a report later."

Dayle went out the door and beckoned his men to go with him. "Uh, boss? Why are you smiling?" Zeke asked, but Dayle held it in until he was far enough from the office, before laughing heartily. "I thought this day was busted, but who would've thought I'd have fun?" Zeke and Roy widened their eyes and looked at each other. "I didn't hear anyone punching anyone though?" Zeke whispered to Roy. "I did hear an angry voice from that woman though." They both looked at their boss' back as they walked.

This was a big deal to Dayle. He felt frustrated dancing on the palm of someone else's hand, so how intoxicating would it be to see through someone else's 'lies' and avoid their manipulation completely? If the manipulator becomes angry, it would become a nice bonus for him. It was as if Dayle found out that he be able to get out of Mr. Loren's grasp if he just tried hard enough.

Zeke and Roy shrugged. "If he's happy, we're happy." Zeke nodded his head. "That's a sappy line for someone such as you, Zeke." Roy remarked, causing Zeke to laugh. "Ah, you've never had a bit of the cheese with the boys huh?" Roy rolled his eyes and paid him no more attention.

"We're going to the champion's chambers." Dayle informed to his two men in a whisper. "This place is hard to navigate, and we'll have to keep out of the eyes of the guards." Zeke and Roy nodded to his instructions. "For that matter though, we gotta go to the gladiator's lobby, and the entrance for that is at the other side." Dayle whispered, before sauntering over to the exit and going back at the outside of the colosseum again. If the other two made it, then he would guess they'd be also currently moving towards the champion's chambers as well.

Mentions: Shatter Shard Skyhunter

 

[Elvario]

Victorique Sopheana
​

Mentions: Arthur Skyhunter | Orchid Lucius Cypher

Victorique was stunned, surprised, shocked, bewildered, confused, astonished, bedazzled and perhaps even a little startled. Had Arthur really just... apologized? Despite calling her after one of those rat-dogs mere moments ago? This... It didn't add up, but even at the best extend of her insight, it sounded genuine. What in the world was happening? Out of all the drama and chaos in the underbelly, this development was what threw her off the most. Was it the Orc's words? Were they magic? They had to be. That would explain a few things, such as why Arthur had been a brain-dead fool in the arena. He'd been caught by some orcish mind-magic...

Nah, that was silly. Or was it? She truly needed a bit of time to figure out her thoughts and whatnot. Eventually, she hesitantly replied. If anything, it was more to test he waters than a confident reply. “I eh... guess I'm not always the easiest to deal with either.” That was the extend to which she was able/willing to go for now, as this was all weirder her out way more than any of the blood and gore did previously.

She decided to distract herself by focussing on the Orc's questions instead. Whilst it was great to learn she wasn't on the menu (she hoped the Orc was speaking truthfully, but after Arthur, she started to distrust her own insight), the ominous threat of a large cannibal being near was still there. Being hostile would probably only worsen that though, so for now it would be best to cooperate. “I asked Arthur to get me into the Underbelly and into wherever I'll need to go to investigate. He never really formally agreed, but he said he wanted information and started walking to get us in, so I'm assuming he's on board with that part.”

She then debated a bit what to say next. “As for me... well... eh, I investigate. I can probably outrun most folks if need-be. That's about it. Unlike mister Xix here, I haven't yet found away to overcome any size disadvantages if things get rough, so eh... if you want in, that getting rough part would probably be your thing.” She was a bit hesitant, in particular with regards to a point Arthur had also brought up. “I'll be open about this in advance. I can probably arrange some monetary compensation, but after seeing the bags of gold you make here, it'll be little more than spare change. The only thing of real value I can offer would be the fame or acknowledgement that comes with helping us figure this out, or if you like, the knowledge you helped stop a new Controls War from being plotted.” She wondered if she should mention the Adventurer's Guild, but decided not to do so. The people here probably wouldn't like them or anyone related to them.

Victorique clicked her tongue when the goblin mentioned more fights having taken place. “More fights taking place? That's an interesting one. Taking down someone like Auregnog wouldn't be easy, so it'd make sense to scout him out a little. Fighting him in the arena would be a great way to do so without raising any suspicion. Were any of his opponents strangers to this place? They might've been sent to test him. Alternatively, if I learned anything about him, it's that he'd be the type to get rid of frustration through fighting. If something or someone was getting on his nerves, he'd be going here more often to calm down. Did he seem particularly aggregated during his fights? Perhaps a little more brutal and a bit less collected and calculating?”

She then looked at the Siren. “With how little we know about the situation at the moment, everything might be of interest. The one thing that is by far the most mysterious to me, is how someone of such renown and power is taken down without any people noticing it. I still wish to check if he had weaknesses, such as people that he cared about, whom could be exploited by third parties. Kidnapping, blackmailing, that kind of deal. No matter how strong you are, if you love someone dearly and they're not within your realm of protection, you're as weak as they'd be. Finding someone he holds more dearly than the Underbelly itself and obtaining said person would be the easiest way to take Auregnog down. If you're handling the business side, do you know if he has made consistent payments to particular people? That might indicate the existence of such a person. Or, alternatively, did he make any sudden payments without clear reason? The latter might indicate he's being blackmailed...” After her long rant, she realised there were still many ideas she could further exploit.

However... she was straying off way too much. There was one primary objective that she shouldn't delay. All these other questions and theories could follow later. “Actually, I believe getting to his room takes precedence. Any evidence that's left in there won't get any clearer with time. Can either of you take us there?”

 

[Lucius Cypher]

Tags: Skyhunter Elvario ​

---

With a slight smile, Orchid nods as the two quickly made up. Always good to cut that right in the bub. The Redman formally introduced himself as Arthur, and to her surprised he had a gun. A magic gun, but a gun nonetheless. Orchid hadn't seen a gone with a gun before and it immediately pegged the man as an Isekai'd person. There's a good chance this Victorique person might be one as well, though Orchid could only assume because of association. "Fascinating. I'm not much help afar, so it's good to know you have my back if we run into an enemy outside the reach of my blade. Since you've seen me fight, I don't need to explain too much what I'm capable of. But I can also do some basic first-aid. Won't save anyone's life, but if you're hurt let me help you."

Victorique followed up and seemed flabbergasted at Arthur's change of attitude. It's understandable, Victorique is out of her element here. She's likely just on the defense and doesn't want to be deceived, which Orchid could understand. She herself has gotten into a few situations where she assumed good will and was caught in a trap, so the suspicion and gruffness is warrented. All the more reason that Orchid wants to formalize a contract so both sides know that there is boundaries and keep things professional. Otherwise they may expect too much from one another, this creates dissapointment and resentment, breaks down of communication that results in increase hostility. Just bad stuff. "Fast and cunning. That's good for an investigator. Leave the violence to me and Arthur, I'm not really smart so I'll leave the sleuthing to you. But if you need some violent persuasion, by all means let me handle it. But only as a last resort, I tend to eat people as part of my interrogation, so not great for making friends. As for payment, I won't ask for much, but I will ask for some form of montentary compensation for the sake of professionalism. Not really one to accept payment in exposure. Though if you can reference me to anyone who needs a blade for hire, I'd appriciated it. Networking is important!"

Soon Victorique started talking to Xix and Sticker about the champions Orchid didn't have anything to say, so she took some papers and ink and starts drafting a contract for herself and Victorique. She's taken some time to review what sort of contracts actual mercenary groups have when renting out individual warriors, so Orchid's contract will be similar. In short, for the duration of Victorique investigation in the Undercity, she will protect and fight on Victorique behalf. Victorique can expect Orchid to defend her from any threat, and should Orchid flee from a fight without Victorique premission, refuse an order to defend her, start a fight without Victorique knowledge or consent, or accept a contract from someone who is hostile to Victorique, then this contract is null and Orchid would owe Victorique compensation equal to ten times the money owed to Orchid. In exchange Victorique will owe Orchid a stipend per day she is with Victorique, and Orchid is not liable for any crimes committed on Victorique orders. So if Orchid murders someone because the halfling told her to, Orchid is only an accessory while Victorique herself is the murderer. This ensures that Victorique doesn't use Orchid to blatantly commit crimes, or at least accepts that if it does happen she can't just throw Orchid under the bus for it. Once Orchid was satisfied, she made a copy that said the same thing.

Orchid was never much of a literal writer back in the old world, but she's gotten a lot more practice coming here. Literacy isn't too uncommon, but good penmanship is, so Orchid tries to write clearly and legibly. Being able to keep good notes and accounting is important for everyday living, which fortunately her Domestic Arts skill bolsters, so her handing writing was pretty good. Readable for most literate people at least. Once the inked dry, Orchid writes her signature on a dotted line waits until Victorique is done getting her awnsers from Xix and Sticker before handing the contracts to her. "Our contract. It's not as formal as a proper Merc contract, but it should work for our arrangement. Please sign both copies, I'll keep one for my records, and you can keep yours to give to your client or whatever. After that, just tell me where we need to go and who needs to die, and I'll take care of the rest!"

 

[Skyhunter]

The Bloody Defiance


​

As they left Lykra's office, they would come to back to the arena where it seemed the crowd seemed to have calmed down, above them they would see the open roof of the Bloody Defiance and the ground that separated them from the overworld. On the top were a few large birds overwatching the arena, their eyes looking all around making sure no trouble was happening. As Dayle made his way through the crowd and to the other side of the arena, Roy would notice there was a couple of hooded figures following him at a distance, their faces hidden in darkness. They were close to the Warrior's Respite, but they could deal with these figures, not like they would do anything in a crowd.

Warrior's Respite



Arthur Verg

​

" Sweetheart, I'm not just proficient in guns. " Arthur scoffed as he extended his hand again as a crowbar appeared in his hand, the end stained with old blood. It looked worn; the weapon disappeared as Arthur lowered his hand. " So I can help with fighting in melee as well. " Arthur pulled on his coat to adjust it, " First aid will be detrimental if one of us are hurt, we also have another joining us with a couple of his own goons. " Arthur remarked, " A guy in a eyepatch and two similar looking gabooshes. " The cold man gave a smile, a actual smile. But his disappeared when she mentioned interrogation and that she could take over for that, " Listen, " Arthur placed a hand up, " I specialize in interrogation, Orchid. I was made to interrogate and murder people. " the former hitman stated coldly with crossed arms. His eyes moved to Victorique who said that Arthur never formally agreed, " Formally no. Yet I still got you here, you are a smart gal, you'll have information I need. Hopefully. "

Xix stood next to Sticker as both stared at Victorique, Xix looking a bit bored with all the talking and Sticker looked like she wasn't paying much attention as she was looking at the clipboard she held, looking over notes, when the halfling finished speaking, Sticker looked at Xix who looked at her and shrugged. " Don't speak too much, Sticks. Guild doesn't need to know much about our home. " The goblin told the Siren who nodded, " You're right... Alright Vicky, well, we aren't sure what happened to Auregnog. He just disappeared after the Gang War, when he sent out the Blooded Guard. After that he wasn't seen since, and when he didn't show up for his Champion's Fight today, it was apparent something happened in the last two days. " Stickers explained, " He spends most of his time in his chambers so it didn't seem weird that he was gone for a couple days. But it was weird he wasn't seen today, he usually will come out to talk to me about bets and put money down on himself. " Sticker looked at her clipboard and sighed a bit. " Usually I spend most of my time here in the Warrior's Respite, so I see most traffic come through, but no one goes into his chambers. Ever. No one has seen them besides him. Heck, his own doors have a customized and hard lock to open. I can take you to it but I doubt you'll be able to open it.. " Sticker walked pass the group and beckoned the group to follow them, " So come on. " She smiled at them, Xix sighed and followed after Sticker.

The Siren had the group follow after her through the Warrior's Respite, " He has a stairwell that leads to his chambers but the door itself is at the bottom, I am sure he lives under the arena. " Sticker explained as she then brought the group to a stairwell, at the bottom there would be a large door with a black and red shield etched onto the door, on both sides there were locks with what looked like a broken handle of a sword and the other had a large lock that went into the door deeply, almost like a lantern type key would fit in. This looked impossible to open up, even the best locksmith wouldn't be able to open this up. Auregnog picked the best of the best. But... There would be a small detail, the door was slightly cracked open. Just wide enough to stick a few fingers in.

 

[Elvario]

Victorique Sopheana
​

Mentions: Arthur Skyhunter | Orchid Lucius Cypher

Victorique looked over the contract drafted up by Orchid. It seemed pretty decent. There was one thing that Victorique wanted to quickly check. “Rather than a flat amount per day, would you not prefer taking a percentage of whatever I'll end up with? It's probably going to be a fair bit more than what you'd get now upon success, but I haven't exactly been paid in advance, so you'll have to do with pocket change instead if you wish for a daily stipend instead.” That was pretty much the only way that Victorique could guarantee a semblance of fair (non-symbolic) pay without the risk of having an angry orc decide to take payment in halfling meat. Whether she'd spent her last private savings on it to guarantee a daily (yet low wage) stipend or give a worthwhile share of whatever reward money she herself would stand to gain (at the risk of both gaining very little), she'd sign the contract upon confirming Orchid's preference. Having a scary orc to boss around (to a degree) was oddly exiting, for that matter. It was only the casual cannibalism that kept making her feel shivers down her spine, but perhaps she could learn to use that in her favour as well. Having signed the contract, she quickly put away her copy of the contract in her [Pocket Dimension].

That brought her to the next part. Sadly enough, Xix and Sticker had already found out her relation to the Adventurer's Guild. It was probably due to those blasted titles. Perhaps she should figure out a way to hide them in case she wanted to go undercover. That was too late for now, however, as they'd already learned of it. “For what it's worth, I'm a very goal-oriented person. Whatever I learn that doesn't end up connecting back to figuring out what's up with the champion is something I'm more than willing to forget about.” She was truthful in that regard and made sure to sound persuasive [Persuasion D]. Perhaps it'd make them a little more at ease to know that she didn't care much for all sorts of other illegal stuff going on here and that she definitely wasn't here to scout out the place for a take-over by adventurer's.

She decided to ignore the nickname Sticker gave her, despite hating it. Making an enemy out of every single person she met would only grow tiring. She did, for just a split second, wonder if Orchid would actually attack Sticker without question if she ordered the Orc to do so, now that their contracts were signed. However, that was a thing for alter. For now, there were a few thing she made sure to memorise. Disappeared two day ago after sending out the Blooded Guard for the Gang War. She instantly wondered if those events were closer related than she thought it might be. “Is there any chance the Gang War was used as a manner to get the Blooded Guard away from him?” It was a bit of a stretch, but not an impossible one.

She did, however, grow visibly excited at the prospect of breaking into the campion's secret lair. Perhaps it was some of her mystery novel writing past or perhaps her new halfling nature made her weaker towards giving in to certain childlike tendencies, but she couldn't help herself from being eager to explore that which was clearly not meant for exploring by strangers. She couldn't help herself from displaying bits of that excitement either, which her halfling nature made out to be an almost childlike glee.

The moment she spotted the door, however, she clicked her tongue. “Hold up.” She went in closer, just to check something. “I think this may have been tempered with... Let me check.” She quickly went on to see what she could find out. Was the door being slightly opened due to having been broken into? Was it open normally? Was it open because it'd been trapped instead? She was committed to being the [Ultimate Detective]. Upon having figured out whatever she could and making sure it wasn't trapped, she'd nod towards Arthur and Orchid. “Alright, time to see what's inside.”

D Grade Cooldowns (0/2)

• Ultimate Detective – Appraisal D, Heightened Hearing F, Heightened Sight F, Insight D, Investigation D, Perception D – Character combines all their applicable senses and knowledge to get to the bottom of a mysteries or to be on high alert for clues, dangers or hints. - Grade D – 2 Post Cooldown.

 

[Lucius Cypher]

Tags: Skyhunter Elvario ​

---

"A percentile base? Don't know what your contract owes, for all I know you volunteered for this job. Don't worry about paying me everyday, I'll just keep account of what you owe me and you can pay me when the contract is over. Unless you plan to end the contract soon and don't have the money on hand... In which case, we can negotiate something later." Ordinary a percentile based contract was fairly lucrative, but that's only worth while if you knew the contract holder was going to be raking in big bucks. Orchid didn't know Victorique well enough or her work here to know what sort of money they're talking about, and Orchid imagines that Victorique isn't too aware either. Plus, Orchid didn't want to write a second set of contracts. She stuck to the original contract, having both Victorique and her sign it. "And with that, my blade is yours. Let's get going, boss."

Orchid follows Victorique to Auregnog room, prepared for danger. She was expecting Blood Guard since they've been doing a decent job cracking heads, and even Orchid knows they're a set above most gladiators. But to her surprise, there weren't any guards here. That was suspicious. Even more so when the door was already open a crack. Was someone here before them? She would imagine that no one would be able to get inside of Auregnog but himself. Maybe there was another who had access. Someone from the Blood Guard perhaps? Would explain why they aren't here if they're inside. "Weird. Well then Arthur, why not use that crowbar for it's original purpose? No interest in losing my fingers to a masterwork door, but I bet you can wedge the prybar in that crack, pop it open."

 

[Shatter Shard]

Dayle Keller
"Red Star's Bastard Dog"

Strength
Precision
Intelligence
Vitality
Speed

[ D ]
[ F ]
[ E ]
[ E ]
[ E ]

E

Active Titles:
Human | Thug | Unruffled

-Ryke-
Underbelly of Ryken, Colosseum

Code by: Shatter Shard

Roy noticed the hooded figures and whispered to Dayle of their presence. Dayle, without hesitation, turned to look at the figures at the distance. He gave them a look, before giving them a provocative smirk. Whoever they were, they had not bothered with him yet. However, he would remember them. He walked the last few steps towards the entrance before giving the hooded figures another glance. Dayle could not let these people go near the champion's quarters, so he decided to station both of his men first. "Zeke, Roy, keep an eye on those bozos while I get inside the lobby." The two nodded in affirmation. "Got it, boss." "As you command, boss." With a nod, he stepped into the front of the Warrior's Respite.

Although he was a thug, he still had some certain manners. As a guest, it was only right to knock first. Clearing his throat, he knocked on the door. "Hello? Someone told me this is the place for the warrior's... respite." Dayle spoke. "And as it turns out, I need to get inside. Can I come in?" He asked as he leaned on the door frame. Although he could use Lykra's name, there was never a confirmation for him to do so. For now, he was going to ask politely. As for the second time? He will ask a bit less politely.

Mentions: Shatter Shard Skyhunter

 

[Skyhunter]

The Bloody Defiance


​

As Dayle, Zeke and Roy made their way through the arena, it would become more apparent there were more robed people following the three. It went from two following them to five, then to seven. Even as they made their way to the Warrior's Respite door, there was a door waiting for them with a couple of guards next to the door overlooking anyone who came to them, they were wearing heavier armor and held larger weapons than the others. When the three approached the door, the hooded figures disappeared into the crowd. Just as Dayle walked to the door, the two guards stared at him then at each other before looking ahead. Knocking on the door there was no response for a moment until a small slit in the door opened up in the door. " Who's there? " An angry orc asked, looking through the slit that opened up, they looked down at Dayle, " Who are you? " They asked, they then looked up pass the three with wide eyes. " Oh shit! " The slit quickly closed, when Dayle and his men turned around, they would see the hooded figures standing there again.

​

Then, the two guards readied their weapons, pointing large spears at the few cultists. Suddenly the two guards next to three fell onto their knees dropping their weapons as they held their throats. Two figures came down on the two, pulling wicked daggers out of the necks of the guards. There were now seven of these hooded men, looking at the three. " Hello, Dayle, it's been a few days. " One of them stepped forward, his robes were black as well, but he had red outlines on the ends of his robes, his dagger had old blood stained on his dagger. " The Red Star's Dog. How was it seeing your previous men be devoured? " He asked, having purple eyes glowing under his robes while he revealed his face to Dayle, not that he would probably recognize him at first.

Arthur Verg


​

Arthur saw the crack in the door as they made their approach, Arthur saw the opening in this masterwork door, Xix and Sticker saw this as well, both looked surprised. " Oh no. " Sticker gasped a bit. Arthur moved forward just as Orchid suggested he use the crowbar he could conjure to pry open the door. " That's the plan, sweetheart. " Arthur conjured the crowbar into his hand, he looked inside, not really being able to see anything inside. Arthur checked the door making sure there wasn't anything stuck on the door. " Yeah... I should be able to open this up. " Arthur made sure to make his weapon physical now, (Spiritual Ordnance: Expert - B - 4 PC) Arthur slammed his bar into the door, he then began to pull on it, trying to pry open the door, he groaned but wasn't able to on his own, he then lowered the bar in the door to try and open it from below. Arthur began to pull on it again, Xix then came over to help, getting on the side of the bar and began to push. Together, the door began to slowly open before it quickly broke open, causing both Xix and Arthur to fall over as the door opened up. The crowbar disappeared as Arthur and Xix stood up.

Champion's Quarters

​

Upon entering the room, the room would be pretty dim, there was many items within the room, moving through the room there would be a large armor on the bed that was too dark to see, moving through the rest of the room there would be quiet whispering and the sound of something falling over. Moving to the corner where a wardrobe door was open, looking into that direction there would be a figure wearing white. " Damn it, there's nothing here... " The female spoke as she threw a necklace across the room behind her. Eventually as they crept up on her, it would be revealed to be a thief, but just anything. It was Clover, Arthur would recognize her, as would Dayle if he was here. The woman jumped and quickly turned around flinging her chain and kunai at the group. " Fuck! " She yelled, Arthur recognized the voice, " What the hell? Clover? " Arthur shouted seeing the woman straighten up. who pulled her attack back. " Oh fuck. " She sighed.

​

OOC: Thank you for joining! This will be the end of part 1, I will make part 2 sometime later this week, thank you all!

 

[Skyhunter]

Isekai Hell RP Grade
​

RP went very well, it was cool to see everyone get to use their characters in their own ways, titles were used and overall I think the RP was a big success, gotta say it was one of my favorites to do since the first Dead Awaken RP I did. Didn't really have to wait on anyone and the RP was gradually fast compared to the few I've done in the past. Other than pacing, seeing characters interact was my favorite thing to see, Victorique and Arthur's constant arguing, a battle of egos and wit. Dayle handling himself with Lykra and the constant putdowns because of his Red Star association. And Orchid, who is honestly a pretty cool character, fight with Xix and deal with being a newbie in the fighting ring. It was honestly a breath of fresh air, despite being in a very shitty place. One last thing was how much writing there was, there wasn't too much fluff as most things had a purpose to be written down, and everyone gained the maximum amount of points! Thank you all for joining and I hope to see you in Part 2! (Titles will be given at the end of this questline so hold your asses)

Arthur (GM) - 59 Points

Victorique - 42 Points

Dayle - 42 Points

Orchid - 42 Points