[center][img]https://i.pinimg.com/564x/4a/21/ee/4a21ee936abcb82390a3a31ddc4512cd.jpg[/img]

[hr]
[b]Event:[/b] Tall trees and long shadows
[b]Location:[/b] Loriindton
[b]Interacting with:[/b] Lady Talit [@Force and Fury]

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[h3]Otios' scheme[/h3][/center]

A single candle had been lit, flooding the room with the late evening's darkness as the small flame was hardly enough to reach the wooden walls of Otios' den with any significant intensity. The giant tree's soft bark pleased the Yasoi's sense of touch as he let his elbows rest on the rim of his 'balcony', transferring the weight of his chest onto them so to make it easier for him to look down at the vastness of Loriindton below. He had to be careful not to stumble backwards against his bed in the process for everything was quite cramped, but if one considered that this was not an ordinary house, but rather a pit carved into an humongous treetop so to give a single person not only the view of the city below, but also the heavens above, it all became a matter of relativity.

It had been Otios' first choice for his stay here: not only for the magnificent sight, but also for the gentle swinging of the tree that had a somewhat calming effect when lying in bed and for the naturally restricted access to this tiny hideout. Yet a mere couple of moments after having brought himself into position, Otios already stepped away from the pit's rim and dropped himself onto the bed so he no longer had to see the city. What had been an ocean of light on the ground underneath another ocean of light in the skies had somewhat turned into a dark abyss. Otios had spent the first couple of hours after the event down there, then decided not to go there again until the next morning. There was nothing but suffering and anger to be found and he certainly didn't need to drown his head in that seething cauldron. He needed to remain clear and calm.

At this moment, the single candle added itself to the countless lights in Loriindton that were no longer lit, even though in this case it was certainly not in order to avoid any seem of still celebrating anything. The flame had simply exhausted its fuel supply -- a very foreseeable issue.

Had Merit's death been foreseeable, too? He had hardly known her, but eliminating any kind of guiding figure had always been a good measure to cause trouble. The thought of failure struck Otios' mind for he had not helped or even just brought up the idea of locking the old lady away in a metaphorical vault until the whole Eskandr affair had been over. A mette'stiroi of this magnitude and rolled out in full publicity had been an open invitation for such a thing to happen, hadn't it ? At this point he could not even entirely rule out the possibility of Lyen indeed being the culprit or at least the helping hand even though he firmly refused to believe it. Dyric had fed on nothing but superficial matters at his initial presentation, but the vision of his audience also seemed to have narrowed down to the point where this sufficed…

Then, the face of a woman appeared perhaps a foot from his own, materializing as if out of thin air. “Keep quiet!” she hissed immediately.

Otios’ blood seemed to adopt the consistency of a bitter cold, viscous goo instead of a watery liquid for a brief moment, and while his heartbeat still accelerated his mind was already calming down again. At least a bit. Keep quiet ? An assassin wouldn’t ask this, but just do the job, right?

After a moment, as his nerves settled, the face resolved itself into a familiar one: Talit’yrash, straddling the branch right in front of his dugout. “Sorry to come to you like this, but it was the only way I could slip out without being noticed. I am supposed to be bathing right now, or so they think.”
Otios’ eyes widened for both the surprise and the fact that it was Talit herself who had come to him. He had expected something to happen after the debacle that had been the day prior, but the Lady herself still was an unexpected guest to say the least. “Talit ? You ?” he asked, half wonderingly, half admiringly. “What is the matter? I mean… not the obvious matter.”

“You look surprised to see me,” she replied with a smirk, perhaps able to leave the weight of the past day’s troubles behind her momentarily. “It’s a spatial spell.” Her smile waned weak. “Lady Merit taught it to me when I was fourteen. Anyhow, time is of the essence and you’ve fortunately managed to stay out of the worst of everything. You’re clean, Otios, and that’s why I need you.” She paused, adjusting her position subtly. “It’s why Lyen needs you, truly.”

The corners of the male Yasoi’s lips moved upwards slightly, even though the severity of the situation at hand was so obvious it did not go unnoticed by him either. “Since you stated my cleanliness so explicitly, I suppose it is time to get my hands dirty ?” He let his head sway to both sides repeatedly a little as if weighing his options, only to reveal the gesture’s purely rhetorical nature immediately afterwards: “I am certainly not opposed to that idea. But… we’re not talking about murder, are we?”

Just how little did he know about Talit’yrash! The first day of trial had somewhat served as an introductory lecture for him in terms of how the societal pinnacle of Loriindton looked like, but both logic and his bare gut feeling indicated that he, of course, was oblivious to most of its internals. The sheer sketchiness of his picture about Talit made his stomach cramp slightly as he awaited her response, for he could not entirely rule out her straightforwardly presenting him with a list of lives to steal. With the prosecutor gone, who else would be left to push Lyen’s case?

“No,” she assured him after a long moment. “I won’t rule it out, but that’s a last resort. There’s been enough murder.” She shook her head. “It’s… more about lies, and money changing hands. That Timewalker’s dirty.” Tali’s eyes flicked, ever so quickly, to the couple of inches that remained of her right leg. “She only cares about personal gain, but she’s going to be called to the stand and her word treated as unimpeachable truth. Dyric’s dirty too. He had all his ducks lined up way too easily and public and obvious Parrench supported murdering a known opponent serves his agenda very well. I think he’s going to try bribing her. We need proof, or we need a counter-bribe.” She grimaced for a second. “If it comes down to it and there’s no other recourse, then killing her might have to be back on the table. The Eskandr army is no more than a day’s walk away and, if we time it right, we can pin it on them.” Her eyes darted about for a moment in either justified wariness or paranoia. “Still a last resort, but she’s vile and has it coming to her. You know, actually, that army…” She trailed off, peering down into the abyss below. “It’s an opportunity if we’re willing to… do our duty as members of the Grande Armee.”

Otios traced Talit’s eyes as they traveled down towards the stump that was her leg, and a gut feeling told him that it probably was not something down there itching coincidentally right at that time. “You know what’s been shocking me ?” it burst out of him. “Just how the entire town hung on Dyric’s lips when he gave everyone a small scratch of the skin of what should have been the whole apple. I’d have to think for a while to figure out whether I’ve ever seen such a lack of imagination before! You probably know him a lot better than me, so: Do you think he’s a clever person? Because if so, then we know he’s doing foul play. Only dumb people would only see the superficial unintentionally or because they couldn’t do better.”

He looked down on Loriindton again, which by now even seemed to have turned a little darker than before. His focus got briefly stuck on the sight of a tight, elongated formation of colorful lights that seemed to move just barely above the threshold of perception. If these were the tiims’archa still in the race, then he was in a good position as the red light was making serious progress. Or was the track the other way round actually? Hard to spot from up here.

“It seems people believe him, that they want to see someone being punished, and if they already refuse to think more profoundly there, then I’m indeed worried about the Eskandr. Not because they might attack us, but because we might have hopes for them sparing us altogether should that army march around Loriindton harmlessly. I don’t trust those Southerners as far as I can spit and you know why ? Because I’m a thief myself! I know that once you start basing your whole income on taking other people’s property, you gotta do it again and again. So guess what will happen should the Eskandr have exhausted their spoils from the Parrench one day. The difference between an army of myself and an army of Eskandr however is that the former wouldn’t massacre everyone’s wife and burn down every place it comes across.”

“Maybe you’ve lived around humans too long,” Tali replied a bit shortly. “We’re not all that different from them, truth be told.” She shook her head. “From outside, I have to admit that it looks pretty damning, even if it’s circumstantial, but when people are emotional, and particularly in large groups.” She shrugged. “You know how it is: only takes one idiot to start baying for blood.”

She shifted position slightly, glancing about with renewed paranoia, or perhaps it was justified suspicion. “For what it’s worth, our people here would never willingly join the Eskandr, but I share your suspicions about the Southmen. They may hold themselves back this time but, overall, they make our self-appointed Parrench overlords look restrained and predictable by comparison. To hold ourselves back from taking a position is, in a sense, taking one.” Gazing down at the mix of forest and city below, she became still. “Unless there was some way to have one thrust upon us…” She trailed off, glancing over at Otios, gauging him, perhaps.

A slight trace of scowling flashed over Otios’ face as he listened to Talit’s words. He did not like it to be called out for the fact that most of his life so far had taken place outside of Yasoi heartland, but given the severity of the overall situation he was not going to start a debate about it –- at this point. Also her next couple of words, combined with her scrutinizing gaze upon him, made him focus on other things entirely again anyway.

“I hope that what you’re saying about the Eskandr is right, Lady Talit. I am a bit too young to have witnessed Parrench cruelties myself in a way I could remember, but would have hated it to learn that I’ve thrown my life into the balance for protecting the city of people who have been as evil or even worse than what those Southerners are doing now.”
He half-inadvertently returned the favor and glanced at her briefly in a gauging manner, too. After a deep breath and a sigh, the large Yasoi let his view return down towards Loriindton and continued:

“There is no real, long-lasting peace to be expected from Eskand. Anybody who’s going to argue that they’d be good, long-term neighbours or even allies because they don’t seem to harass our settlements in this war will try to sell you a military matter of course. Why fight two people at the same time if you can do so one after another, with an arbitrary period of rest and reinforcing in between ? The only thing their current stance towards us really says is that their leaders aren’t stupid, while at the same time they prove that they can be at least as reckless as the Parrench, if not even a lot worse.”

Huusoi… Otios could feel a surge of anger rising about them, one he had not felt in quite a while. Maybe Lady Talit was right about him having lived too long among them after all, but maybe not for the reason she had tried to point out, but because now the majority of all Huusoi nations had proven to be very bothersome for the Yasoi ? He could simply not remember having heard anything about his own kind having dominated Sipenta in such a vicious manner.

A thought blasted through his mind like one of his own lightning strikes. Lady Talit could probably guess it just by how suddenly he twisted his head around to face her again. “You want something that leads us out of this stalemate ?” He sat down onto the bed in order to extend his long arm down into the space beneath it, only to pull a large leather bag. “I should still have this map around I used on our journey to this place… I’ve got an idea!”

At this moment, with the parchment already halfway in his hand, he realized that the candle was no longer lit in order to properly illuminate it. “Oh…”

[i]How garrulous you are.[/i] Tali had wanted to roll her eyes more than once despite the overall serious tone of the conversation, but then he got an idea. It was plainly written on his face even before he stated it verbatim, and she set any other judgement aside. “Here,” she offered simply, creating a glow over the map with a simple arcane spell. “Now, what did you have in mind? We should hurry. I will be missed before long.”

Otios unfolded the map on what could only be considered a petty excuse for a table, but it was sufficient to provide a flat surface for Loriindton and its surroundings. “So…” he started, presenting Tali with a grin. “As far as I am informed, much of the Eskandr fleet has been destroyed, right? And while their armies are ravaging whatever they come across, there seems to be little effort to establish a more sustainable foothold with peasants, cattle, and all the other things that would be required for that, am I correct ? So basically their armies live from whatever they can loot from the settlements they encounter. And now please tell me what you don’t see on this part of the map.”

“Those weird sea monsters, demons, and fantastical forest creatures that huusoi are so fond of drawing?” she teased.
“No.” Otios replied, his intonation of the word forming a slight crescendo as he felt like having Tali taken by surprise. “It’s Parrench settlements. Sure, there are a few, but not many. So in order to keep supplied, the Eskandr army will have to move over much longer distances around Loriindton. So what would happen if, let’s say, some unfortunate event, destroyed a significant portion of their current food stock or rendered it unusable ? It would be something they just cannot ignore, and it would reduce the distance they can march until reaching something new to loot that’s big enough.”

She was about to tease him some more for brushing right past her attempt at levity, but then his idea was a good one. She pursed her lips for a moment and let out a low whistle, eyes darting about the parchment. “What. If.” she agreed, as they flicked hisi way. “I take it you have some method of achieving this?”

“Hm.” Otios mumbled, noticing that her eyes were focused on him and feeling slightly uneasy because of it. “That is the good question about it. It would be perfect if one could make it look like a natural occurrence, a disastrous case of bad luck so to speak. A thunderstorm hitting the wagons they store all the corn and bread it, for example ? Or some nasty fungus that colonizes the whole heap rapidly and makes it inedible ? Nature’s different here!” Part of him really hoped that Tali would understand that this had been a quite spontaneous idea of his.

“You’ve put some thought into this, haven’t you?” she asked, but it was really more of a statement. He likely had something in mind already and was merely asking after her rinput to show some deference to a superior. The thing was that Tali wasn’t a superior at all. She had turned twenty-four only yesterday, and this man was a veteran of much, who had been practicing magic and thievery, and combining the two since before she’d been born. “Personally, I’d say that the fungus is our best option, if you can find the right variety. I have seen how gifted you are with Thunder, but the Thunderspear’s magic use from Relouse is too fresh in people’s minds and they will turn to speculate about sabotage.” Tali threw in a shrug so as to guard against the possibility that she’d guessed wrong and allow him to state his true preference. She blinked and glanced over, onboard with the idea in principle, at least.

“It was a sudden inspiration.” Otios felt like he’d have to admit it openly as he noticed what he interpreted as skepticism in her question. “However over the years I think I’ve learned to distinguish the unusable from what can be practically implemented.” Did he just feel the first, subtle signs of sweat forming on his skin ? For the most part of his life, he had not had anyone to get orders from or report back to, but since the whole invasion began, he was working together with the Lady herself, and now this had turned into a very concrete instead of abstract affair. The Yasoi who didn’t know about her and her prowess first had to be found.

“So, erm… fungus it is. I can remember a species that might fit the bill for this. I actually used it once to ruin the day of some innkeeper I really disliked, but… I don’t know if it can be found in Loriindton, even though I wouldn’t be surprised if it can. We still have Lyen locked up in the prison, though.”

“Cognitive dissonance,” Tali chirped, smirking wickedly. “If people are busy fighting off Eskandr, they’re not going to also want to look poorly upon the Parrench. Their minds won’t be able to make sense of it.” She shook her head. “I know it well. Worse comes to worst, and it’s a distraction, at least. Allows us to reset the trial and start again without such a frothing mob having decided she’s guilty until proven innocent.”

Tali’s facial expression did not slip past Otios’ attention. It went beyond approval in some way, but the thief could not find pure joy in this fact. With some serious concern, he looked up to her and asked straightforwardly: “Is Loriindton ready for this? The Eskandr attacking this city is the ultimate goal of the idea and I think it’s merely preponing the inevitable, but still: people could die. In fact we will have to prevent any peaceful negotiation about sharing our resources with them, for that could destroy our current alliance with the Parrench and leave us standing between all chairs in the end.”

“How can you ever be ready?” Tali shot back. “But it’s either fewer die now or more die later.” She shrugged and looked a bit uneasy. “Now, I’m going to be missed, and you don’t look like I do and get to slip away unmolested. We need someone to look into the Timewalker still, and Dyric, but take the course of action you think is best. For now…” There was a moment where Ootios could, perhaps, feel a semi-familiar sort of energy collected in the air around him in sudden and massive quantity. Then, mid-wave of her hand, Talit’yrash was gone.

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At first, it was only Otios' foot that escaped the grip of his unstable slumber and hit the unforgiving wooden ground toes first. Then the inevitable pain from the latter caused the rest of him to ascend from his resting state somewhat unwillingly. Moaning, he opened his eyes and could only barely see the upcoming sunlight trough the thick pillow he had buried his head in. So it already was the next morning indeed ?

Lady Talit's disappearance had just been the beginning of things for there were plenty of preparations to be made if anything was to be pulled through. No less than three 'where'-s had to be solved: Where was the Eskandr army ? Where was the timewalkers' dwelling place and where could he find that fancy fungus he intended to use ? The army would make locating it only easier as long as it was still on the approaching leg of its journey around Loriindton, but the other two were much tougher nuts to crack. Or rather: had been. It dawned upon Otios that his distorted feeling of time was simply the result of too much nocturnal activity in order to make progress.

[i]Hyco'tar'thuum[/i] simply translated to 'small red fungus' in husoi language, but another commonly used term for it among yasoi was 'the red pest'. The innocent looking, very ground-dwelling plant fed on decaying wood like most of its cousins and produced rather heavy spores that didn't fly through the air for long, but instead were covered in a natural adhesive that made them stick to whatever animal had popped open the fruit body in the first place. Some time later they'd simply dry and fall off onto the ground again to grow into a new colony. Problems started however when these spores came into contact with things like bread or meat that wasn't thoroughly dried and salted, for then the fungus would switch its diet and send its mycelium on a feasting rampage. The plant was not highly toxic, but its vile taste was quite unbearable. There was no reason for anyone to sell or buy [i]Hyco'tar'thuum[/i], hence its alternative name.

Finding fungi around Loriindton was easy, but the people here had firmly eradicated all occurrences of the red pest in the city and its most immediate surroundings a long time ago in order to avoid accidental contamination. It had therefore been a few hours worth of riding and searching in the middle of the night in order to obtain a large jar full of plants. A couple of tiims'archa had helped -- both against the darkness and the lonelyness. Even they crept their way around Otios' special cargo though.

The time walker was a bit of a different matter though. First of all, the fact that Yasoi as a whole did not exactly pledge allegiance to the flag of 'private land ownership' made any question about the time walker's residence a bit invalid to begin with, but even more importantly Otios simply could not allow himself to ask too much, let alone in the middle of the night. The city was on alert and being too nosy in the public could stir up unwanted attention. There was a solution Otios deemed rather simple however: His would-be victim would have to show up at the trial, and with everyone else staring at that person's nonexistent magnificence and what he was doing with it, there'd be plenty of time to backtrack the footsteps and find their source.

Could there be anything more exciting than taking out a judge's house while said judge was doing his job ? The problem Otios saw however was that, by the time he'd have finished his double-job, the lack of sleep would have degradated him into a miscreant with sixth-wheel social incompatibility.