Carol
Tabby arrives upon the plaza to further scout for her required vendors.
Sheila
Arriving within the plaza, Tabby would be met with a most fretful realization — the Exile's Watch, perhaps predictably, is *Immensely poor.* Gazing left, then right, carefully analyzing each building in the plaza, it would be revealed that there was not a single advertising-sign hung on any of its many-dozen buildings, with shabby exterior architecture. There were certainly some buildings that stood out, though to spot something as specific and luxurious as something along the lines of a jeweler or a blacksmith would be quite difficult, *If* They even existed in the first place.

Still, there was one building immediately of note. Its form was significantly larger-than-average, with a shoddy exterior, but a rather fine door at its front, seemingly made out of a most luxurious spruce. Within the plaza, the building would stick out ever-so-slightly from the norm, as if an extra degree of effort had gone into its construction, albeit only slightly. It still presented quite uncomplicated and inefficient architectural techniques, as was seen in the rest of the village, but nonetheless could be a potential location to investigate further.

The plaza, itself, is rife with a handful of market stalls — all empty, unfortunately. It seemed that something occurred within its midst some time ago that caused people to move out, for the time being. How unfortunate...

...And also, rather concerningly, there seems to be the still body of an aged old man, lain out in the middle of the plaza, seemingly having sustained a disturbing beating. Blood puddled about his head, and he laid most worrisomely *Motionless.*

 Aside from the concerning figure of the collapsed man, there are no other signs of life within the plaza, save for a single, cloaked man, sat on a bench. Until—
Helen
Suddenly appearing from within the plaza — as if emerging from a shaded location that was left unseen to Tabby's eyes, though she could not directly see where he came from, in the first place — a masked man, with a rather luxurious, accented coat and cloak over his shoulders, paced with a most intent step in his gait. Stood at a taller — yet not so abnormally tall, as were many of the Watch's residents — height of 193cm, the man's stature was imposing, his build slim, yet his very presence commanding and noble in appeal, his posture firm, upright, and delicate in nature.

His apparel was designed of a silky cloth, embroidered elegantly with a plethora of complexified designs utilizing golden strands of string, its coupling seams tastefully puffed and layered, as so to create an elegant and erudite appeal, if not a little pompous. At the fringes of his cloak, the cloth appeared almost gilded with the authentic resplendency of gold, yet not so conspicuously so as to brusquely flaunt his riches; it was simply present for the virtue of distinguishing him as an elegant and pure man, fluttering gracefully at his side as he rapidly progressed through the plaza. A porcelain mask lay atop his face, the man's glittering, golden eyes, which so perfectly matched the garb he donned, gleamed with a sharp gaze forth, scanning throughout the plaza, as if searching for something. The faint scent of the forest clung close to his body, as if he had earlier emerged from a deep delving throughout its midst, his white gloves ever-so-slightly dirtied by speckles and spots of dirt that had accumulated throughout his venture's course. 
_ _

A blade remained sheathed firmly at his right hip, its handle constructed of a pearly-white material, whereas its crossguard was constructed of a brasslike metal with golden accents. The holster, itself, seemed to be made out of a white-dyed leather of some sort, and so too was it accented by the man's ever-present theme of luxurious, yet subtle, golden metal.

The whole of the man's visage, hidden behind the mask, would reveal little of his intent and purpose within the plaza, yet the sharp gaze and way that he held himself clearly communicated something — he was *Searching.* In the moment that his golden eyes settled on Tabby, she could feel their inquisitive nature peer beyond her outer body and briefly into her very nature, and yet the man seemed to swiftly divert his attention from her, his apparent search unsatisfied by his observation of her *Alone.*

*```fix
"Hmm... There's one..."```*

...He whispered, his gaze shifting towards the man on the bench, and he raised a hand to his chin, his curiosity piqued. He would gaze briefly back at Tabby, tilting his head, his gaze briefly sharpening, as if confirming something. Upon confirming whatever that *Something* Was, he would give her no more discourtesy of staring so strangely at the stranger, bowing lightly, before pacing straight forwards — toward the tabaxi, as so he could make introduction.

*```fix
"Forgive me if I interrupt your business,"```*

He spoke, his elegant tone amplified to declare his presence to the artificer,

```fix
"But I am in need of some direction."
"I am a stranger in these lands, and I am in search of a particular individual, whom I have recently lost contact with."
"Have you noted any... Curious activity, within the midst of this plaza?"```

The masked man questioned, his golden eyes squinted, their gaze glimmering with a subtle, arcane resplendency.
Carol
*Ah, shit... Unless I get lucky that'll be some makeshift crafting for me.* She tsks under her breath; should've come prepared, huh. Her eyes lay on the body and she holds back a bit, in a sort of 'oh, shit.' response. The cloaked man here... How very interesting that they don't seem to have a care in the world for whatever may have transpired...


Tabby's hair stands on end in response to the piercing gaze of the man, yet she makes no attempt to snuff out the whereabouts, focused entirely on both the shops and the overall surrounding of the body. *Well... There IS a store around here that looks at least *Ppealing*... *Surely,* She thinks, *There must be a forge at least SOMEWHERE around here... The amount of knights and blades and armor suits tell me that much...*


Then, of course, Tabby's conspiracy-theorizing is interrupted by a white-masked man. Her Defender immediately jumps in front instinctively, getting into a defensive stance as if for some strange reason it expected the eccentric fellow to strike her then and there. The cat quickly waves her Defender away and bows her head to this seemingly kind stranger, the machine sheepishly stepping away, embarrassed by its kneejerk reaction. "Sorry 'bout him," The cat apologizes swiftly, "He has a distinct fear of masks that I haven't managed to find the time to fix.." 


She lifts her head back up, shaking it in response to the question posed to her. ".. No, not in the plaza - I just got here, only things I've seen are ourselves, the man who is likely dead over there, and that odd, cloaked stranger.." She sighs, "My partner here and I are just as new – we only found this place an hour ago at the most, and I spent most of my time in a nearby building." The cat intentionally keeps the details vague so to not draw any potential acknowledgement to what she *Actually* Was doing – or, instead, planning to.

_ _

"If anything were to stick out to me at all, it would be, well.." She motions to the corpse wordlessly, obviously not a sight someone sees every single day... Not one that brutalized indeed. The cat sniffs the air, "... Sorry, have you been in the nearby forest? You smell acutely of wood.."
Helen
```fix
"Hm."```

The man commented, somewhat taken off guard, as he witnessed the Steel Defender startlingly shift positions. His left hand would be drawn to lift itself between him and the defender, an air of caution about him as he stared at the machination stood before him. As the matter was explained and resolved, however, the man would subtly nod, adjusting the pristine, porcelain mask rested atop his face.

```fix
"A golem that thinks for itself. Novel."```

He commented, his left hand shifting along the surface of the mask and down alongside his neck, resting just above his heart. The masked-man squinted, his eyes of curiosity — yet a curiosity of caution. He carefully noted the nature of the machine before him, establishing a clear image within his mind to recall later. Everything, in this moment, was of note; he had much to memorize, and he wouldn't let a single detail escape his mind. His peering, golden eyes thoroughly scrutinized the automata's metallic form, piercing within and beyond its external shell, his inquisitorial nature surfacing as he remained silent in analysis for moments on-end.

The man lowered his left hand, using it to air his cloak which hung at his side. As Tabby further explained, the strange, inquisitive man gazed down at her, the faintly magical shimmer of his golden irises illumining the portions of his eyes overshadowed by the form of his mask. He remained silent, watching almost to an uncomfortable degree her motions and mannerisms as she spoke, his expression unseen beneath the unfeeling cream-white veneer of his mask — semblant of an ambiguous, feminine face — and would only slightly respond as she finished.

The tabaxi motioned to the limp body behind him, at the centre of the plaza. It wasn't that he didn't care to know more on the matter— it was simply he *Already did.* He knew whose body it was. He knew who the perpetrator of the beating was. He knew what the perpetrator's underlying motive was. And he did not care.
_ _

```fix
"Correct, but I am looking for a living man."
"Correct, I did emerge from the forest.```

He commented, curtly, in respond to her finishing query. Still confirming a handful of doubts, he did not appear all-too-intrigued in the matter of *Responding* To the artificer, but rather taking in the complexities of the information that he could glean from merely hearing and watching her speak. While initially mannerly, the man appeared to give no more effort towards looking prim or complaisant anymore; he rather seemed only to hold himself as such to open a door that otherwise may have been closed.

He slightly nodded once again, his uncomfortably-focused gaze shifting from the tabaxi toward the man sat on the bench.

```fix
"Well. I will hold you back with questions no further."
"Lest, you have some sort of relevant information to share with me...? I am in search of a man who I have been separated from."
"He should have been in the forest some time ago. Alas, I can not seem to find him."```

The masked man shot a golden glare to Tabby once again, his enchanted gaze peering to the very soul.

```fix
"Hm?"```

He questioned; though, if Tabby were not to offer the information he somewhat urgently needed, he would depart, pacing towards the man seated on the bench.
Carol
"Urmm, no...?" She replies, hesitantly. I already answered that question! "I haven't smelled wood on anyone else that I've laid eyes on aside from you, myself and my companion." She once again makes a curt motion towards the robot, who stands at attention — very aware of the man's seemingly magical gaze, yet not reporting that back to the artificer. She, of course, could feel it too, yet did not know the extent of what the magic was, due to not having *Detect Magic* In play. It could be any type of aura, though if she had to make a guess... Probably some sort of *Abjuration* On the mask itself. But, without a tool to diagnose, who's to say? Why abjuration? Well, everyone and their kit's uncle's dad seems to have abjuration going on around them.

As she prepares to part with the man, she makes an addendum to what she said previously; "Ah - oh, that's not all correct... I was briefly with someone who exited the forest at the same time as me, but... Surely they're not who you're looking for. Last I saw of them before we went our separate ways, they were at the base of the tower" - she points over towards *The Ascent* To aid exactly what she means. If he's new, he might not know already. This spurs her onto her next question. "Do you... Have any specifics about the target you're looking for? Name? Appearance? Fur like me, or not?" Tabby makes various motions as she speaks, actively talking with her hands. For fur she points to her long tabaxi fur, and then makes an 'x' to signify 'not'. 

She is well aware that there is nothing to hide, but perhaps they might have a similar goal; finding that asshole, Gaige.

_ _
Her robot taps her on the shoulder, signifying that maybe they should go check out the shop. The gaze of this man is starting to unsettle even the unfeeling metal hulk, yet, as with before, Tabby waves him off as she awaits any possible answer that would help her pinpoint exactly what the masked fellow was looking for in their comrade? Lover? Who knows? Not Tabby.