Shrike's Story: Sensitive Documents

Dear Diary,

Some lady was watching me and Adric in Fitzroy's, so I snuck off while Adric and the others were giving Fitz a hard time over those bluecoats that stopped by. I just went right up to her and asked her what her problem was. She said she recognised me from somewhere, and I got the feeling she knew more about me than she was letting on. She told me her name was Grace, and asked for my name. I knew it would be bad to use my real name, so I took a cue from Adric and the others and told her I was called 'Shrike', and that I was named after the bird that impales its prey. I was trying to come across as tough, but she just laughed at me. She applauded me for hiding my true name, as it might be unfortunate if people knew who my brother and I were. That was definitely a threat. She said she'd be seeing me again, and then left. I really didn't like her.

-

I got in over my head a bit tonight. Three creeps tried to mug me during my latest jaunt into the city. I managed to beat the crap out of two of them, but it took a lot of me, and the third guy would have got me for sure if not for this cloaked woman coming up behind him and stabbing him in the heart. That was pretty gross, but who knows what he was planning to do if she hadn't shown up, so I was very grateful. She called herself 'Mercy', which I think Adric would call irony? Anyway, she seemed impressed with me, and offered to train me how to take care of myself better. I was wary, but I agreed. She seems pretty badass, and I could use whatever she can teach me to watch out for Adric.

-

So I guess I'm with a crew now. I ran into them during my patrols of the city, while they were in the middle of a getaway. They got jumped by a feral ghost, which was about to possess one of them when I grabbed it and tore it loose, then I stabbed it and freed it from its torment. They were impressed with my abilities and they told me how to get in touch if I was looking for work. Well, since I know Adric would have a fit if I even asked to help out with the Feathers, I figured this would be a good way to put the skills I've been learning from Mercy to the test.

The old guy, Paving, is the one in charge. He's got a big old grey beard and ink-stained fingers. They've got a Leech called Hammer, a Tycherosi guy with bluish skin and instead of hair his skin just seems to form long spikey bits that kind of look like hair. They've also got a Lurk called Maralie; I think she's a woman, but she's got that whole maybe, maybe-not look going on, like what's-their-name. Alex? Yeah, a bit like that.

-

First job with the new crew today. The Bluecoats were transporting a shipment of evidence for some kind of court case. The bluecoat in charge of organising it is Jeren, who Paving has some sort of history with, so he wanted to make him look bad by messing up the shipment. I figured I might also find some evidence in there that could help me get Grace off my case.

The plan was that Hammer would pose as one of the Bluecoats guarding the carriage, while Paving and I staged an accident along the carriage route, halfway between the station house and the courthouse. Hammer would suggest an alternate route of our choosing, and then we'd ambush them in a side street out of public view. I don't know where Maralie was for this; maybe Paving had her waiting as part of a backup plan? He's a crafty old coot, so I'm sure he had some sort of plan B ready.

The plan started off about as we hoped, with Hammer riding along with the carriage, but he wasn't the only one. Some bluecoat officer guy hopped on to hitch a ride as well. We went ahead with the plan anyway. Paving and I rolling a cabbage cart into the street, tipping it over as it collided with a chicken stall, blocking the road. The chickens flew out and went crazy, some of them gobbling up the cabbages, the others flying in peoples faces and causing a ruckus. It was hilarious.

Hammer suggested his route, but it seemed like the officer guy argued against it and they went a different way. I got worried, but Paving said he'd planned for this, and sure enough, when we took our positions near the planned ambush spot, the carriage showed up and Hammer started passing out some cigarettes to the driver, the other outside guard and the officer. He must have put something in them, because they all clutched their heads in pain and fell over. Then he dropped a smoke bomb into the sealed carriage to flush out the guard riding in there. It was pretty cool.

The last guard came out, coughing badly, with a gun in his hand. That's where I came in. He was so disoriented he didn't see me come up beside him, and I kicked him in the back of the knee, bringing him down to the ground, then cracked him in the head with a nightstick I got from one of the other bluecoats to knock him out.

Once all the bluecoats were down, we took the carriage to an old warehouse and unloaded the documents onto a gondola before setting the goats off to drag the carriage back in the direction we came from. I got a coin's worth of pay from what little valuables were among the confiscated evidence, and Paving says we should each get another coin's worth once he's put the evidence to use in some blackmail. Feels a bit dirty, but that's just the way things are in Duskwall, I guess.

-

Met Mercy again, and she asked if I was ready to start training. Of course I was, but at first I thought she was messing with me, because her 'training' seemed a lot like playing hide and seek. But what she was really teaching me was how to blend in with my surroundings, stalk people from the shadows, move without being seen or heard. She said I was strong, and that was good, but that sometimes its not enough because there will always be somebody stronger. To defeat a stronger foe, she said, I would need to learn stealth and cunning, so that's what she's teaching me for now. It was pretty cool.

- Mara Penderyn Shrike