Laying Low [Everyone]

Sunrise sighs. "And did 'Gharak' happen to say who this interested party was and why they wanted her?"

"And I'm sure you know," points out Sithani, "that sometimes the stain of crime... splashes. Sometimes just being too near is a very unfortunate turn of events. I'm sure in the fullness of time, you will be found blameless, to the regret of us all."

"I've heard him mention the name Durug Redfang often," he offers cheerfully. "As for the why, I couldn't say. I can't think Gharak would've known, either. Too many questions gets in the way of making a living, I'd imagine."

Glen has many things to say to the guard, but keeps most of them to himself so as to not derail the interrogation. "Who were the men with you, posing as guards? Do you know them?"

"The new recruits? Cug, Grogar, and Ollask, I believe. All Redfangs, actually. Funny coincidence but I figured the name was like Miller, but for orcs."

"Thresen." Glen's gaze is steely and serious. "Listen. You tried to enact a false arrest, you attacked the Commissioner of the Feytower, and you did it with enlisted men you knew were posing as guards. Are you keeping up this act because you're afraid what the Redfangs will do to you if you tell us the truth? Or are you really that big of an idiot? She" he nods towards Sunrise, "isn't kidding about what she'll do to you if you refuse to cooperate. And with you putting up this act, I'm inclined to let her."

"Actually, I did not," the man explains to Glen with patience. "I ordered several suspicious characters to come with me to the guardhouse. Your party responded to the order with lethal force and then I fell unconscious--I suspect through the use of magic inflicted on my person. If any of my men attacked the Commissioner while I was asleep, I can hardly be held accountable for their panicky bad decisions. As for the new recruits, I am at most guilty of believing my second in command when he told me they came through the proper channels. Perhaps I should have been more suspicious of their surnames, but I'm not a racist like some."

He lets this sink in and then looks to Sunrise. "I have been entirely cooperative, so I really don't see the need for continued threats," he points out.

Glen laughs loudly, folding his arms. "I'm not going to argue with you. Please remember later, when this goes badly for you, that I tried." He looks to Sunrise. "He's all yours, friend."

"'Gharak,'" Sunrise says in a passable imitation of his voice, "'do you remember the fresh batch of wanted posters we were sent out to put up this afternoon? Anyone here look familiar?'" She sighs, looking tired. "That was you, falsely claiming that we're on wanted posters. That was you, drawing your sword and advancing on us on an accusation of trying to kidnap the commissioner - the commissioner who had just told you that he had the situation under control and your help was not needed." She shakes her head. "You're not cute enough to pull off playing stupid. I feel like you think it will somehow benefit you to not admit out loud what you were doing, and in addition to it being extremely annoying, that tells me that you still think legal repercussions are the thing you should be most afraid of right now."

She leans back. "Besides you and Gharak, how many guardsmen are in the pay of the Redfangs?"

"The courtyard was poorly lit and I asked Gharak if you looked familiar, yes," he agrees, tight-lipped. "And I had assumed a high lady like yourself would appreciate not having to lie later."

Taking a deep breath, he closes his eyes and counts. "Maybe two dozen? That I know of, which is hardly the same thing. And there's a lot of overlap with the other gangs. Paid informants aren't usually picky or loyal, unless they're kin or otherwise closely connected."

Glen grins at Sunrise, impressed she was able to break through when he wasn't. "And you were going to take the young lady to Durug, yes?"

The man gives Sunrise a genuinely confused look, not understanding why this is being rehashed without the safety of hypotheticals for everyone involved.

The look she returns him is cool. "Answer the question. I'd also be interested in hearing what, precisely, you planned to do with the rest of us."

He looks as though he still can't quite believe this group. "Hypothetically, anyone who didn't resist would've been taken to Durug for the same chat. If the situation was salvageable, say by greasing your palms to look the other way, you would've gone home richer for your troubles. If you decided to be unreasonable, then your corpses would've been tossed in the sea. Hypothetically."

A flicker of amusement crosses her face. "Hear that?" she asks the room. "We'd all be fine as long as we didn't do anything unreasonable, like objecting to the kidnapping of someone we'd promised to keep safe."

Shaking her head, she adds, "I assume there was a backup plan, just in case your, uh, crack team of guards and pseudo-guards somehow didn't succeed. Any idea what that plan might be?"

This riles him just a little. "Taking one party to meet another is hardly kidnapping. I assume Durug has business to conduct with the girl. And why shouldn't we succeed?" He furrows his brow. "Durug didn't mention she'd be accompanied by mages, the bastard."

"It is when the first party doesn't want to go," she says dryly. "I didn't see you backing off when she protested that she didn't want to come with you. As for not knowing there'd be mages..." She gives him a quizzical look. "Do you really have no idea what's going on or who this is?"

Glen folds his arms. "Brilight's finest apparently are lacking in common sense and investigation techniques these days."

"Now, now," Sunrise says, mock-chiding. "Don't get carried away. This is hardly Brilight's finest."

If the jibe bothers the man, he doesn't show it. "I know that girl is supposed to be some hotshot mage's kid," he admits, nodding at Tree. "But there's a big difference between one single apprentice who's supposed to be a sickly little thing and... this."

"Well, that's just a failure of imagination," Sunrise sniffs, then looks around. "Other than a list of which guards - that he knows of - are corrupt, he doesn't seem to know much that's useful. Anyone else want to ask him anything?"

"Know anything about the bandits Durug is working with?" He shakes his head. "Wish we'd brought the other one too. This one doesn't know anything."

"Why would I want to know anything about what goes on outside the wall?" the man points out wearily. "I get paid to not ask questions. That's the entire point."

Sunrise peers at him, apparently genuinely curious. "Do you enjoy living your life in ignorance? Doesn't it get tiresome?"

He snorts at this. "Lady, I'm a town guard. That's my actual job. I make a little extra on the side running odd jobs and information to gang leaders and politicians, but it's still basically guard work. I don't ask gang leaders or politicians why they do what they do, because they won't answer and then they won't pay me. Any more than I ask Captain Callahan why he does what he does. You think that makes me boring; I think it keeps me alive and gainfully employed."