<blockquote><div><cite>Dagnyr wrote:</cite>"With all due respect, Sgt. Ananda, it took out <span style="font-style: italic">Vignar</span>, I'm not sure you would have made a difference. We might have just been out <span style="font-style: italic">two</span> of our top officers."</div></blockquote><br/><blockquote><div><cite>Alyssa wrote:</cite>"Captain Vignar was counting on you to maintain order in the square in his absence. Without your efforts, we might have lost the demon mages we captured as well, and who knows what else."</div></blockquote><br/>“Hmph,” Sgt. Ananda replies, carefully avoiding either of her officer’s gazes. The scowl marring her expression remains as dark as ever, but the antipathy behind it is lacking; what little remains is more bullheadedness than real emotion. Alyssa has seen the expression often enough in training, usually when the Sgt. was struggling over a point of fact that didn’t sit well with her ego. She’ll come around eventually.<br/><br/>… or sooner, if Dagnyr happens to know the magic words<br/><br/><blockquote><div><cite>Dagnyr wrote:</cite>"We need to follow up on our leads, and hopefully get some actionable information that'll put us on the right trail."</div></blockquote><br/><blockquote><div><cite>Alyssa wrote:</cite>"We may not have Elona, but these Alley Cats may know her whereabouts. In addition, I have a report from Captain Vignar on the nature of our enemy, and a possible communiqué discovered by Mr. Locasta. I feel that both should be delivered to the watch commander immediately."</div></blockquote><br/>Sgt. Ananda pauses, tensing subtly as if something particularly fascinating had caught her attention. Her eyes follow Dagnyr’s gesture toward the catgirls, gleaming with interest as she assesses the new prey - er, suspects - then slowly turns back to the constable, grinning broadly. At least, it looks like a grin, in the sense that it involves upturned lips and teeth - lots of teeth.<br/><br/>“Excellent thinking, Constable,” the Sgt. says, a little too cheerfully. “I’m sure these two will have some<span style="font-style: italic">very</span>interesting things to say once we ‘’follow up’ thoroughly.” She pauses for a moment, relaxing her grin briefly as she turns to Alyssa. “Captain Lanzo is in his office right now, or was the last time I saw him. If you can find him under his paperwork, I’m sure he’ll listen. The rest of the commanders are in the field, or - yes, what is it?” The Sgt’s smile mercifully vanishes as she turns to face Larynn, replaced by her usual dour expression. All things considered, the latter is probably the friendlier expression - and definitely safer.<br/><br/><blockquote><div><cite>Larynn wrote:</cite>“Pardon me, but I’d like to volunteer in the search for Lady Elona. If there’s anything I can do help, just say so.”</div></blockquote><br/><blockquote><div><cite>Kaelen wrote:</cite>"I will also offer my services, such as they are, to the investigation. We've likely drawn their attention, if nothing else, and it's likely much safer to stay in a group, at least for the time being."</div></blockquote><br/>“Hm.” Sgt. Ananda pauses for a moment, considering her new volunteers, along with the quieter pair of Angel and Padma hanging back at the carriage. The Watch would likely be understaffed in the wake of the festival incident, and her present company looks at least moderately capable of handling themselves - which is more than she can say of certain regiments. It couldn’t hurt to at least test them...<br/><br/>“Alright,” she announces. “I think I may have some use for all of you. Constable Thuror, you and Miss.... Rynn, was it? Gather yout things and follow me. Bring the prisoners as well. The rest of you will go with Adjutant Niberos to see Captain Lanzo - if you’re that keen on getting involved, he might as well hear what you have to offer. Any objections?” The Sgt. pauses, daring someone to speak up. “Good! Now, get moving - we’ve wasted enough time as it is!” Without another word, she about-faces and marches toward the Watch house, sparing a glance to make sure that Dagnyr and his adjutant<span style="font-style: italic">pro tem</span>are following.<br/><br/><br/><span style="font-weight: bold">&lt;&lt;Dagnyr and Larynn&gt;&gt;</span><br/><br/>It’s quieter in the Watch house than Dagnyr remembers. On a typical night, the place would be bustling right about now; full of freshly arrived second shift officers, and maybe a few rowdy drunks they hauled in from the tavern district on the way in. Tonight, there’s barely a soul in the main lobby - a testament to the festival invaders’ impact, both on manpower and public morale.<br/><br/>There’s no time to mull things over, however - despite her heavy armor, Sgt. Ananda keeps a remarkably swift pace through the lobby and beyond, fast enough to make even Dagnyr and his long stride hustle to keep pace. For a civilian like Larynn, the Sgt.’s pace is even more challenging, particularly with a pot of expensive ambrosia to manage as well. Fortunately, it’s not far to their destination: at the end of the main hallway, Sgt. Ananda turns down a smaller side passage leading to a set of worn stone steps. A locked darkwood door greets the trio at the bottom, guarded by a heavyset officer with a face that looks quite literally chiseled - or maybe pounded out with a hammer.<br/><br/><div style="padding: 3px; background-color: #FFFFFF; border: 1px solid #d8d8d8; font-size: 1em;"><div style="text-transform: uppercase; border-bottom: 1px solid #CCCCCC; margin-bottom: 3px; font-size: 0.8em; font-weight: bold; display: block;"><span onclick="if (this.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('div')[1].getElementsByTagName('div')[0].style.display != '') {  this.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('div')[1].getElementsByTagName('div')[0].style.display = ''; this.innerHTML = '&lt;b&gt;Spoiler: &lt;/b&gt;&lt;a href=\'#\' onClick=\'return false;\'&gt;hide&lt;/a&gt;'; } else { this.parentNode.parentNode.getElementsByTagName('div')[1].getElementsByTagName('div')[0].style.display = 'none'; this.innerHTML = '&lt;b&gt;Spoiler: &lt;/b&gt;&lt;a href=\'#\' onClick=\'return false;\'&gt;show&lt;/a&gt;'; }"><b>Spoiler: </b><a href="#" onclick="return false;">show</a></span></div><div class="quotecontent"><div style="display: none;">Knowledge (arcana or local) DC 10 recognizes him as one of the Forgeborn, a golem-like race created by mortals during the Age of War. The original Forgeborn are long dead, but the same forges continue to produce their descendants in smaller numbers. Most work for the Watch, or in the forges themselves.</div></div></div><br/>“Two more for interrogation,” Sgt. Ananda announces. The Watchman on duty rumbles an acknowledgement in dense Autonic, and steps forward to unlock the heavy door while the Sgt. idles.<br/><br/>“You arrived just in time, you know,” Sgt. Ananda comments. “I just ordered the interrogation cells readied for those demon spawn you captured at the square. I’d be in questioning them right now, if we weren’t so short-staffed around here... But that won’t be a problem now, will it? ” The Sgt’s face curls into that disturbing smile again, just long enough to give the spine a good chill before the click of the door behind her draws her attention. She turns to the stone-faced officer with a nod, accepting two proffered keys from his hand as she walks past. The officer waits patiently for Dagnyr and Larynnn to follow before swing the door shut with a resounding thud and click of re-locking.<br/><br/>The room beyond is noticeably different from the rest of the building. Rather than the plastered walls outside, the surfaces in here are stone and mortar, supported by thick wooden beams overhead. The adjacent wall is lined with heavy doors like the entryway, half a dozen in all, each bearing a solid iron lock and latched sliding panel. The only furnishings in the room are an empty weapon rack and a small table, the latter holding a book, pen and inkwell.<br/><br/>“Cells three and four,” Sgt. Andanda instructs, tossing the keys to Larynn. “Lock them up, then come over here and disarm.” Following her own orders, the Sgt. draws her sword and places it carefully on the rack, followed by a pair of foot-long kukri knives that appear from somewhere below her cloak. “Weapons and magic both are prohibited during the interrogation,” she explains. “Of course, certain weapons are a gray area - Constable Thuror’s fangs, for instance, can’t exactly be disarmed. I imagine there are certain types of magic that might fall under the same purview.” Sgt. Ananda pauses for a second to stare pointedly at Larynn, her forehead in particular. “I’ll handle the cat in cell three myself,” she offers. “Cell four is all yours. There should be plenty of room for the three of you - sorry, the<span style="font-style: italic">two</span>of you to work.”<br/><br/><br/><span style="font-weight: bold">Part 1 of 2</span>