The tiles were slick with rain that fell from an ink-black sky.
Despite the rubber soles of his boots, Marius found certain inclines over specific spots still caused him to slip. He had become well familiar with their locations by now, as he came out nightly to breathe the cool evening air. Even rainfall did not deter his excursions; he found that the expanse of the ocean view, the bright colors of the city, and the endless canvas of stars above cleared his mind and renewed his spirit.
Lately, some of his duties had come to weigh more heavily on his mind. Marius had witnessed Justus shoot someone in the head. The accusation was that the foreigner, an Eorzean, was stealing Garlean weapons while the ship was docked in Kugane. The man was judged and executed on the spot by his commanding officer, without as much as a word in his defense. Marius knew Garlean law to be strict without mercy, but something about this case still did not settle easily in his mind. Just how did he manage to gain access to the weapons? Some of the inventory that was found was not meant for general trade, the technology was too advanced. So how had they come to be on the trade ship? Surely the Eorzean had other contacts to enable his access, but with the deadly sentence passed, no further questions could be asked.
Marius had initially inquired around about the dead man, but was immediately dismissed by Justus from the investigation. He wasn’t sure if it was a way that Justus was trying to minimize the appearance of flaws in security by leading the probe himself, or if it was motivated by something more.
He was curious about the truth himself, so he had been watching the streets at night as well as discreetly investigating the dead man and researching any possible acquaintances.
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All without gaining the notice of his superior officer.
These were the speculations that perplexed him, and he found running over the rooftops, sometimes at full sprint from building to building, released the tensions in his muscles and freed his thoughts from their usual constraints.
He skidded to a stop at the bottom of the sloped tiled roof, finding leverage with his wide stance and lowered posture. His quickened breaths came as small puffs of steam against the cold night air, his chest rising and falling after the run across the city. But his attention was drawn upwards, toward the towering wooden beams that overlooked the city from the north. He spotted a figure swinging from the wooden pillars, the silhouette visible only when it was set against the bright banners that hung higher up. He squinted to try and make out the details, though the person was dressed in all black and well hidden by the darkness of the night.
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With a curious smirk he decided to follow, and stepped over the tightly hung ropes with the lanterns hanging above the streets. He crested a few more rooftops before he was able to close some distance between them, and as he did so, he could see that the figure was a woman, with a gun holstered on her back. Well, well. An odd mixture of alarm and curiosity pushed him to continue pursuit, despite the fact that he himself was not armed.
As she leaped with ease from one pillar to another, he had to admire her dexterity. As he too liked to climb and test himself with balancing challenges, he made a mental note to try and test out her path through the pillars the next chance he got. Marius finally came to a stop at the end of the last building on the street, the courtyard of the Sekiseigumi Barracks opening up below him. The woman still continued to traverse through the air, although she too eventually reached the end of the rafters.
“Where will you go now?†Marius murmured to himself as he watched. He then arched both brows when she turned and looked directly at him, giving him a two finger salute. He thought he spied a grin.
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Then she leaped off the pillar.
Marius leaned forward as he watched her free fall through the air, until she grabbed at a high hanging banner, the fabric twisting and knotting with her weight as she gripped it firmly to slow her fall while she slid down its length. A high pitched whistle came from one of the watch towers; apparently the odd movements of the banner had finally caught an attention of a sekiseigumi standing watch. A few shouts rang through the air and Marius saw samurais darting through the streets in the direction of the woman’s descent.
Her silhouette disappeared beyond the walls and rooftops of the barracks, and so did the rushing guards.
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As he stood at the edge of the roof, Marius could not see the final fate of the pillar jumper. What a reckless thing to do, he mused with a shake of his head. But still, the adventurous part of him wanted to see if he could duplicate the feat himself.
When no further shouts came from that corner of the city, Marius turned and trotted the way he came. If she was caught, he would find out in the morning when he made his patrols, and if she wasn’t…
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Well, perhaps he would see her again tomorrow night.
But as he made his way back toward the Bokairo Inn, he noticed a flicker of light on the pier, near the Garlean trade ship. He paused and lowered his goggles over his eyes to get a better view, quickly spotting two figures on the docks. He frowned; only guards should be stationed near the ship at this late hour, and of the two that he could make out, only one of them wore the uniform. The other was a taller hyur, possibly a Highlander.
Could this be a lead into the Garlean weapons theft?
The rain began to fall heavier, now drenching his hair and snaking in rivulets down his cheeks. Bad idea for bad weather...
Â
But it was an opportunity that Marius could not ignore. He leaped down from the rooftops onto the streets below, and began to make his way toward the docks.
Despite the rubber soles of his boots, Marius found certain inclines over specific spots still caused him to slip. He had become well familiar with their locations by now, as he came out nightly to breathe the cool evening air. Even rainfall did not deter his excursions; he found that the expanse of the ocean view, the bright colors of the city, and the endless canvas of stars above cleared his mind and renewed his spirit.
Lately, some of his duties had come to weigh more heavily on his mind. Marius had witnessed Justus shoot someone in the head. The accusation was that the foreigner, an Eorzean, was stealing Garlean weapons while the ship was docked in Kugane. The man was judged and executed on the spot by his commanding officer, without as much as a word in his defense. Marius knew Garlean law to be strict without mercy, but something about this case still did not settle easily in his mind. Just how did he manage to gain access to the weapons? Some of the inventory that was found was not meant for general trade, the technology was too advanced. So how had they come to be on the trade ship? Surely the Eorzean had other contacts to enable his access, but with the deadly sentence passed, no further questions could be asked.
Marius had initially inquired around about the dead man, but was immediately dismissed by Justus from the investigation. He wasn’t sure if it was a way that Justus was trying to minimize the appearance of flaws in security by leading the probe himself, or if it was motivated by something more.
He was curious about the truth himself, so he had been watching the streets at night as well as discreetly investigating the dead man and researching any possible acquaintances.
Â
All without gaining the notice of his superior officer.
These were the speculations that perplexed him, and he found running over the rooftops, sometimes at full sprint from building to building, released the tensions in his muscles and freed his thoughts from their usual constraints.
He skidded to a stop at the bottom of the sloped tiled roof, finding leverage with his wide stance and lowered posture. His quickened breaths came as small puffs of steam against the cold night air, his chest rising and falling after the run across the city. But his attention was drawn upwards, toward the towering wooden beams that overlooked the city from the north. He spotted a figure swinging from the wooden pillars, the silhouette visible only when it was set against the bright banners that hung higher up. He squinted to try and make out the details, though the person was dressed in all black and well hidden by the darkness of the night.
Â
With a curious smirk he decided to follow, and stepped over the tightly hung ropes with the lanterns hanging above the streets. He crested a few more rooftops before he was able to close some distance between them, and as he did so, he could see that the figure was a woman, with a gun holstered on her back. Well, well. An odd mixture of alarm and curiosity pushed him to continue pursuit, despite the fact that he himself was not armed.
As she leaped with ease from one pillar to another, he had to admire her dexterity. As he too liked to climb and test himself with balancing challenges, he made a mental note to try and test out her path through the pillars the next chance he got. Marius finally came to a stop at the end of the last building on the street, the courtyard of the Sekiseigumi Barracks opening up below him. The woman still continued to traverse through the air, although she too eventually reached the end of the rafters.
“Where will you go now?†Marius murmured to himself as he watched. He then arched both brows when she turned and looked directly at him, giving him a two finger salute. He thought he spied a grin.
Â
Then she leaped off the pillar.
Marius leaned forward as he watched her free fall through the air, until she grabbed at a high hanging banner, the fabric twisting and knotting with her weight as she gripped it firmly to slow her fall while she slid down its length. A high pitched whistle came from one of the watch towers; apparently the odd movements of the banner had finally caught an attention of a sekiseigumi standing watch. A few shouts rang through the air and Marius saw samurais darting through the streets in the direction of the woman’s descent.
Her silhouette disappeared beyond the walls and rooftops of the barracks, and so did the rushing guards.
Â
As he stood at the edge of the roof, Marius could not see the final fate of the pillar jumper. What a reckless thing to do, he mused with a shake of his head. But still, the adventurous part of him wanted to see if he could duplicate the feat himself.
When no further shouts came from that corner of the city, Marius turned and trotted the way he came. If she was caught, he would find out in the morning when he made his patrols, and if she wasn’t…
Â
Well, perhaps he would see her again tomorrow night.
But as he made his way back toward the Bokairo Inn, he noticed a flicker of light on the pier, near the Garlean trade ship. He paused and lowered his goggles over his eyes to get a better view, quickly spotting two figures on the docks. He frowned; only guards should be stationed near the ship at this late hour, and of the two that he could make out, only one of them wore the uniform. The other was a taller hyur, possibly a Highlander.
Could this be a lead into the Garlean weapons theft?
The rain began to fall heavier, now drenching his hair and snaking in rivulets down his cheeks. Bad idea for bad weather...
Â
But it was an opportunity that Marius could not ignore. He leaped down from the rooftops onto the streets below, and began to make his way toward the docks.
-=Sentry's Wiki=-
(please note that this is still a major work in progress!)
