Timestamp: 20th of Cylus, 721
Location: The Earth Quarter
"Oh inquisitor, thank goodness you're here!"
Odd was panting heavily, but even as he heaved for breath he forced his eyes to scan the room for anything unusual. Only a few minutes ago a civilian had some running to the door of Bracken Post and told him that there had been a kidnapping down at The Glass Greengrocer, and without wasting a moment he had sprinted over as fast as his legs could carry him. The Glass Greengrocer, despite not actually being in the glass quarter, was one of the higher end shops in the earth quarter, and well regarded for the freshness and variety of its produce as well as its friendly customer service. Because of that it was one of the more successful shops in the area; a fact made evident by the simple but stylish white decor and overall cleaniness. It was the sort of place rich enough to be worth stealing from, but not rich enough to afford private help: the perfect target for a thief.
The shop owner was a huge, muscular man with bronze skin, a shaved head and a long, grizzly scar running from below his right eye to his chin. In other circumstances he was the sort of person who might be mistaken for a war veteran, or even a criminal, but the clean white uniform and frilly apron he wore did wonders to negate how scary his face looked. Moreso than that however the timidness of the man's body language; the way his shoulders hunched together in uncertainity, and that his eyes were wide and soft with clear emotion. It was like watching a bear acting like a bunny. Odd noticed the name stiched across the top of the apron in cursive black letters: Myson Flowers.
Determined to present a professional image, Odd drew his back straight and looked up directly into the man's eyes. "I'm inquisitor Mercuriavellie. Tell me what's happened." He ordered in the most authoritative voice he could muster. Admittedly it wasn't an impressive tone by any stretch of the imagination, but apparently it was enough for Myson.
"I was out taking Jason for a walk through the earth market, when I got distratced for a second by an antique on one of the stalls." Myson replied in a timorous voice. "When I turned around Jason was gone. You know what little ones are like; always wondering off the moment you take your eyes off them. So I searched and I searched around the market, but I couldn't find Jason anywhere! I've always told him that if he ever got lost to come straight back here, so I hoped he'd done that..." Tears began to well up in the corners of Myson's eyes. "But when I came back this-... this note had been pinned to the door."
With trembling hands Myson handed a sheet of paper to Odd. On it a bunch of words had been cut out from various books and stuck together across the page to spell out a message.
We have Jason. Meet us behind The Pit and midnight tomorrow. Come alone, or he dies.
Odd felt his gut twist in disgust. What kind of sick freaks kidnapped and threatened to kill a child? And for a handul of coins no less? Wait-... actually now that he read it again the note did not specify an amount. Did they assume that Myson would bring all the money he could anyway?
"Don't worry sir, I'm on the case. I'll track down Jason in no time." Odd declared confidently. "Could you perhaps describe Jason's appearance to me?"
"Of course." Myson replied. He held his hand out about a meter off the ground. "He's about this tall, and weighs about ten pounds."
Just a toddler then. No wonder they had wondered off at the market. The poor kid probably didn't even realise what was going on. Odd pulled out his notebook and scribbled the description down. "I see. Anything else? Hair colour and style?"
"Red and combed. Oh, and he has a very red face too."
That didn't sound unusual for a toddler. Weren't they supposed to cry a lot? In that case it was only natural that the boy would have a very red face. "I think I'm starting to get a picture. What clothes was he wearing?"
"Nothing."
"I see-... wait, what?!" Odd looked up from his notes in surprise. "What do you mean nothing?"
Myson let out a weary sigh. "Don't get me wrong, I've tried to dress his up many times before, but he just wont have it. It's the socks I think; nobody can make ones that fit him properly, so his toes just shred through them."
Odd's expression twisted from surprise to sheer confusion. A toddler had feet could shred through socks? That was certainly unusual. Still in a sense it might be fortunate. If the child was barefoot and had unusual looking feet then people might remember seeing them around. "Could you tell me more about Jason's feet."
"Of course. Let's see now... they're yellow, clawed, and each have four toes."
... Excuse me?"
"I said he has four toes on each foot. Oh, and he has the most beautiful beak! He has such a warm, happy smile." Myson continued, unaware that Odd's jaw had dropped so low you could sail a ship through his mouth.
Wait... yellow feet? Four toes? A beak? Was Jason... Excuse me sir..." Odd began hesitantly, "but is Jason by any chance an avriel?"
"An avriel? No, don't be ridiculous! Why would I be out walking with an avriel?" Myson replied. "Isn't it obvious? Jason is a chicken."
Odd was panting heavily, but even as he heaved for breath he forced his eyes to scan the room for anything unusual. Only a few minutes ago a civilian had some running to the door of Bracken Post and told him that there had been a kidnapping down at The Glass Greengrocer, and without wasting a moment he had sprinted over as fast as his legs could carry him. The Glass Greengrocer, despite not actually being in the glass quarter, was one of the higher end shops in the earth quarter, and well regarded for the freshness and variety of its produce as well as its friendly customer service. Because of that it was one of the more successful shops in the area; a fact made evident by the simple but stylish white decor and overall cleaniness. It was the sort of place rich enough to be worth stealing from, but not rich enough to afford private help: the perfect target for a thief.
The shop owner was a huge, muscular man with bronze skin, a shaved head and a long, grizzly scar running from below his right eye to his chin. In other circumstances he was the sort of person who might be mistaken for a war veteran, or even a criminal, but the clean white uniform and frilly apron he wore did wonders to negate how scary his face looked. Moreso than that however the timidness of the man's body language; the way his shoulders hunched together in uncertainity, and that his eyes were wide and soft with clear emotion. It was like watching a bear acting like a bunny. Odd noticed the name stiched across the top of the apron in cursive black letters: Myson Flowers.
Determined to present a professional image, Odd drew his back straight and looked up directly into the man's eyes. "I'm inquisitor Mercuriavellie. Tell me what's happened." He ordered in the most authoritative voice he could muster. Admittedly it wasn't an impressive tone by any stretch of the imagination, but apparently it was enough for Myson.
"I was out taking Jason for a walk through the earth market, when I got distratced for a second by an antique on one of the stalls." Myson replied in a timorous voice. "When I turned around Jason was gone. You know what little ones are like; always wondering off the moment you take your eyes off them. So I searched and I searched around the market, but I couldn't find Jason anywhere! I've always told him that if he ever got lost to come straight back here, so I hoped he'd done that..." Tears began to well up in the corners of Myson's eyes. "But when I came back this-... this note had been pinned to the door."
With trembling hands Myson handed a sheet of paper to Odd. On it a bunch of words had been cut out from various books and stuck together across the page to spell out a message.
We have Jason. Meet us behind The Pit and midnight tomorrow. Come alone, or he dies.
Odd felt his gut twist in disgust. What kind of sick freaks kidnapped and threatened to kill a child? And for a handul of coins no less? Wait-... actually now that he read it again the note did not specify an amount. Did they assume that Myson would bring all the money he could anyway?
"Don't worry sir, I'm on the case. I'll track down Jason in no time." Odd declared confidently. "Could you perhaps describe Jason's appearance to me?"
"Of course." Myson replied. He held his hand out about a meter off the ground. "He's about this tall, and weighs about ten pounds."
Just a toddler then. No wonder they had wondered off at the market. The poor kid probably didn't even realise what was going on. Odd pulled out his notebook and scribbled the description down. "I see. Anything else? Hair colour and style?"
"Red and combed. Oh, and he has a very red face too."
That didn't sound unusual for a toddler. Weren't they supposed to cry a lot? In that case it was only natural that the boy would have a very red face. "I think I'm starting to get a picture. What clothes was he wearing?"
"Nothing."
"I see-... wait, what?!" Odd looked up from his notes in surprise. "What do you mean nothing?"
Myson let out a weary sigh. "Don't get me wrong, I've tried to dress his up many times before, but he just wont have it. It's the socks I think; nobody can make ones that fit him properly, so his toes just shred through them."
Odd's expression twisted from surprise to sheer confusion. A toddler had feet could shred through socks? That was certainly unusual. Still in a sense it might be fortunate. If the child was barefoot and had unusual looking feet then people might remember seeing them around. "Could you tell me more about Jason's feet."
"Of course. Let's see now... they're yellow, clawed, and each have four toes."
... Excuse me?"
"I said he has four toes on each foot. Oh, and he has the most beautiful beak! He has such a warm, happy smile." Myson continued, unaware that Odd's jaw had dropped so low you could sail a ship through his mouth.
Wait... yellow feet? Four toes? A beak? Was Jason... Excuse me sir..." Odd began hesitantly, "but is Jason by any chance an avriel?"
"An avriel? No, don't be ridiculous! Why would I be out walking with an avriel?" Myson replied. "Isn't it obvious? Jason is a chicken."