Only Cheaters Prosper [IC]

[Tome]

Only Cheaters Prosper

"So we have a deal" said the cat approvingly, black as midnight with eyes that glimmered like stolen souls. It lept off the table and prowled over to the same window it had entered from. "I'll be back in seven days" it added as it slunk off into the night.

Things are silent in your little hideout. Cait Du, god of cats (and thieves) just paid you all a visit. More than that, he hired you for a job, though he framed it as a wager at first. You have a week to steal the Lord Tyrant's regalia from the uppermost floors of the tower and in exchange he will grant each of you one wish, a difficult job with a commensurate reward. It's a little shocking, really, but only a little. You knew you were good and this just confirms it.

People have tried to steal from the Lord's Tower before. How could they not? It's a great bloody tower visible from every point in the city, with the treasury somewhere inside. No one's ever pulled it off though. Then again, no one has ever been you.

The elections for the new Tyrant will be held on Friday, the coronation the Monday after, barring any accidents or assassinations. Preparations are already being made over in the noble district, whether for the coronation or the funeral. There'll be a lot of traffic going in and out of the Tower, which could make things harder or easier, depending on how how you play things.

It's Sunday morning with the sun just about to peak over the horizon, the sky is dark and grey and, judging by the oncoming pitter-patter that just started hitting the roof, the rainy season has begun. You look around at the rest of your group gathered about the table, faces still lit by flickering candlelight. It's time to go to work; What's the plan?

OOC Thread (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showthread.php?344430-Only-Cheaters-Prosper-OOC&p=17432392)

[Princess K]

Wix liked the cat god. She liked clever things, and Cait Du was cleverest of them all.

O-ho? Is that so, little spark?

"Yes, yes, you're very wise as well," she said aloud, tilting her head to the side as she addressed the Invented God. Afterward, the girl rolled off of her chair, grabbing one of many identical metal canteens off of the ground. She shook it in hand experimentally, frowning at the paltry clinking it made. "Jaquelin?" she called. "We'll need more black powder. I think someone might've drank all mine."

[Steel Mirror]

Lefty

Lefty sat down heavily in one of the creaky old leather chairs spaced irregularly around the room. He had a pretty good poker face, but it wasn't every day that you got a job from a talking cat. Or hey, from a god. He might have boasted once or twice in the past that when gods were looking for something particular, they talked to Old Lefty to get the connection. Now it was literally true.

"I'm thinking a drink or two to soften my brain until all this sinks in. Anyone else?" He looked around at the others' faces, hoping to get someone to bring him a tankard. He was an old thief with a crippled hand, after all. Past his prime. Useful more for the people and secrets he knew than the skills he brought to the table.

...Or so he had thought. When the god of sneaks and cons came to you, personally, for a special job though, that might spark a re-evaluation of your self-image.

He pondered the job for a moment. High security, high stakes, all the attention and plotting that there could possibly be. Almost guaranteed to fail. On the other hand, the biggest heist in city history. They'd be telling the tale in whispers for a hundred years. The reward almost seemed beside the point. It was the chance he'd never allowed himself to believe he'd been wishing for, ever since he lost his hand.

He found himself smiling. "Never mind, I'm getting the drinks. Who wants to share a toast?" He got up, mind whirling with what he knew about the fortress, the regalia, the upcoming coronation and all the myriad politics that swirled inevitably around it. There was always a way in. The trick was knowing who to ask.

[Sartharina]

The catgirl perched on the table smiled as the lord of cats and thieves offered her yet another task. She was a young, lithe woman, dressed in an outfit that clung to her body and left her mobile in a manner that probably wouldn't be fashionable for another 500 years. "This should be an interesting challenge. Of course, if it were possible for me to just sneak in, he could have come alone for me again... maybe." she mused, her brown tabby tail swishing behind her. "I could probably get inside and scout around on my own to get an idea of the security against us. Wix should be able to help, and not just with her inventions." she explained as she hopped down off the table and looked to the inventive youth affectionately, brushing her tail against the teen's legs.

"On the other hand... with the coronation so soon, would the regalia be moved during time? It could make things interesting, and far more embarrassing for the establishment." She sighed and walked around the room for a bit, thinking aloud. "... I don't really have to worry about being caught - though I prefer to go unnoticed, it's not like they won't know I'm responsible for the crime," she smiled, flashing one of the medallions she leaves with all her targets, with a cat paw embossed on one side, and her signature carved into the back. "... I wonder which of this city's vigilante heroes will learn of this heist first. Got any knowledge or contacts within the tower's guard, Jaq? You still have the respect of some of the lawmen, right?"

[Steel Mirror]

Lefty

Lefty poured a small drink (he wanted to be relaxed, not pickled) for himself while Cat mused, then returned to his seat, tankard in hand. He waited a bit for others to chime in, thinking about the several dozen plots and intrigues that he knew about relating to the vote and coronation, then spoke up.

"Information gathering is the right frame of mind, Cat," he said, referring to her offer to scout the tower's defenses. "And I think I can offer you an introduction in that regard. Word is my pal 'Arm and a Leg' Armand is part of some shady business involving sneaking into the upper tower after coronation day. I wouldn't believe it, but if there is a man to get it done, I suppose it is Armand. He might be able to share some details about security that you could put to good use in determining a burgling plan."

"As for Wix and her area of expertise, there is a troubled chap named Murphy who may be contemplating venting his frustration with city governance . . . explosively. I've been keeping an eye on his plot lest he cause so much of a ruckus that it became bad for business for the rest of us, but he may become useful now as a distraction. We don't want to cause unnecessary collateral damage of course, but it's an angle worth examining nonetheless. Even an unexploded bomb could prove very useful at a crucial moment."

He took a long sip of his ale, thoughts churning through the myriad kernels of information that he had gathered as a matter of course, to give him a pretty good idea of what was going on in his city at any one time. Somewhere in there was the key to accomplishing this job. He just had to be clever enough and persistent enough to find it.

"The good news is that there is so much intrigue around this coming event that our own little conspiracy may well get lost in the press until it is too late for anyone to do anything about it. The bad news of course is that I have no idea how we'll be able to pull it off." He smiled a smile that was twenty years too young for the craggy face it appeared on. "Not yet."

[Princess K]

Wix

"The clock goes tickety tock, drowning out the cat's talk..." The girl mumbled a singsong rhyme to herself as she listened to Cat and Lefty speak. Her eyes flicked between the two, a warmth present in her expression that was usually reserved for particularly intricate machines. Along with Jaquelin, this little band of thieves was the closest thing to family she had. When Cat mentioned scouting out the tower, Wix tilted her head to the side. "Scouting..."

If only there was a better way to bring back information, hmm?

The young girl's eyes brightened, the familiar spark of inspiration flickering across her electric blue eyes. She begins to murmur quietly to herself, lost in the fugue of invention. "Mechanical eyes, ever blinking. Painting memories, firelight for ink and silver for canvas. Hmm, but light flows like water, in waves like the sea. Burning kelp makes a fine brush for bright-ink. Portraiture unmagical! Many uses; steal papers without stealing, remember places, copy faces..." Wix blinked, returning to the present. "Whether we see the man or see the tower... I think I can build something to help."

After Lefty finishes Wix looks up at him earnestly. "Murphy... I could give him suns or firecrackers. Whatever plan you make, Mr. Lefty."