Hail friends,
You never know what to expect when you snoop someone else's backpack. Normally, you glaze over all the regular items, looking for the irregular, and then assess its value. Usually, you're time restricted and movement limited in your pursuit of the goodies. Preferrably undetectible, suspiciously under radar, and undeniably unheroic in every way possible.
(Tonight I was the villain.)
But first, I needed a victim.(You'll do.)
I peek into into his backpack and instantly -- I need a change of underpants.
It was stuffed with more (blessed) items than I could count, sprinkled with (unblessed) treasures here, there, and everywhere. I needed a distraction. I needed a decoy.
--And just like that, a jester's-hat-wearing citizen appears right on cue.(I knew these guys would come in handy.)
(Part time miners, part time decoys.)
I see what I like and the citizen keeps him talking.
Barter Town Citizen: Did you see that?
Se'an Silverwood: Yeah.
Se'an Silverwood: Chad.(Damnit.)
With my cover blown, with a backpack full of treasures, and with a citizen that can only stall for so long, I start grabbing wildly before it's too late.
One after another the treasures fall into my pack. Instead of running off, Se'an runs inside the bank and I was going to see this through to the bitter end.
But why run inside? Was he meeting someone here? Was he dropping off the goods? Why would he hang around? Why wouldn't he at least start stuffing his bank box with all the unblessed booty?
I pilfer, Se'an jumps away a few tiles, I follow, and Se'an insists that I've already taken the last of the unblessed goods.
(If you insist.)I finally go grey on a Royal Brittanian Guard Sash and the dance continues.
Up, down, over, and around (but not out), I follow the booty wherever it may lead -- to my death if necessary. There was too much to be had (and no reason to stop) even if Se'an's thief-hating friends were on the way.
Freshly tracked, the hunt continues.
Perhaps Se'an thought a little jog south would shake his trail (and my resolve)...?
(A ghost?)
(Not the thief-hating friend I was expecting, but I'm not complaining.)My tracking evaporates, Uzell goes east, Se'an goes south, I end up going somewhere between the two and lose sight of them both. At the healer's hut, I catch up with Uzell and let him do the tracking for me.
I try my luck on a 10 stone Artifact Rarity 9 Saddle.
(I fail.)
And the tour of Minoc begins and my confusion keeps on mounting.
Up to the provisioner's house, we go.
*peeks at profile*
Iantown Council Member?
(Of the Misfit Alliance?)
I take a breather on the side, Se'an takes a nap inside, and then... off we go.
Back at the bank, I test my greedy paws at the saddle one more time.
I fail a second time and the tour continues.
Was he trying to lose me in his dust? Did he think I'd quit so easily? Did he not know how many unblessed goodies he was carrying? Was he carrying it for a friend? Where were his friends? What was he waiting for? Who was he meeting? Where did Uzell go?
(Too many questions.)At the tinker's house and then back to the provisioner, the never ending tour continues.
With such easy pickings and equally easy prey, I had forfiet my rights as a hero long ago.
It started with a personalized Holy Sword and it just went downhill from there. (It's too bad the personalized veteran statues were blessed.) It's circumstances such as these, where the gradual beating of your own soul makes each successive crime that much more easy to commit. The wounds were fresh and the hint of blood was oh, so sweet. The downward spiral was in full effect and the point of no return had long since past. At this point, as far as I was concerned, this adventure could only end in one of two ways -- kill or be killed -- because nothing else was going to get in the way. This adventure was about to take a much needed (and hilarious) turn for the worst and I was going to see it through to the end.
(Tonight I was the villain and I was just getting started.)
The tour of Minoc had come to an end, but another tour was about to begin.