Swamped

"Hey. Were you at the hospital earlier?"

He doesn't show any sign of a response. So you decide to get a little more specific.

"There were some military types hanging out there. One of them was watching the emergency exit, but he said something about leaving it to Long for a little while. Was that you?"

You don't know how else to explain that you knew he was there.

"Don't know. 'Military type' is pretty vague," he says, shrugging slightly.

"The guy I'm talking about had a scar on his cheek." You trace it out on your own cheek to see how he responds.

"Ah! Burgundy. Now that I think about it, he said there was someone in purple who he thought was a little suspicious, but probably not who he was looking for." He glances you over. "I didn't think much of it, but maybe he meant you."

"Hold on," the leader interjects. "What do you mean, not who he was looking for?"

"Oh, my apologies. I think he didn't want me talking about that." There's a bit of a sly smile on Long's face.

You think that didn't quite work out. He basically turned your own ploy around on you and now you're the center of this conversation. You're going to have to think carefully about where to take things from here.

Thank Long for his help and reveal what you learned from your brief interrogation of the attacker.

"Well, since that Burgundy guy isn't around, I guess I'll thank you on his behalf," you say. "Things were looking pretty scary for a while. I'm sure he appreciated having someone he could count on to watch the door."

No response of any kind. But you've at least pushed the focus a little away from you, and you think it might be best to move it to your common foe. So you keep talking.

"Anyhow, I tried to distract some of the reinforcements. While I was waiting for a good chance to surprise a group, I overheard them say someone named Rennick had sent them to help out a guy named Heron."

"Heron's the one you knocked out," says the leader. "Combative, but also smarter than he looks. We figured he wasn't acting alone, but I'm surprised Rennick is involved. He normally stays out of power struggles."

Interesting. Not that you're sure what it means. You might as well keep this up, though. It seems to be building you some goodwill.

"Well, I also got a little info out of one of their guys. He said their main goal was keeping Badger from hiding out in here. Didn't seem to know why, but maybe you can figure something out."

The leader looks concerned. He pauses for a while, then turns to Long and asks him a question.

"Are you Kandrian?"

He actually seems intrigued by this.

"Through muck and moss," he says.

Huh, sounds like a proverb they'd say out in the swamp, though not one you've heard specifically. Doesn't exactly answer the question, though. And your interrogator doesn't seem sure where to go from there.

"And you say you were just passing by," he says after a while. "Is there a particular reason you chose to intervene on our side?"

"Yeah," he says. "I've met that Heron fellow before. Figured he wouldn't be up to any good. For all I know, maybe your crew isn't either, but I didn't think I'd go wrong messing with whatever he was scheming."

This conversation is proving tricky. You're trying to get a read on both Long and the guy questioning you, while he's trying to get a read on both Long and you. And you can't tell what Long is trying to do at all, though it's probably safe to assume he's looking for information too.

The end result of it is that the discussion shifts direction easily. It's easy for the third person to move it somewhere else if they don't like what the other two are talking about.

So maybe you need to find a topic that two of you can be on the same page about, then. Which is probably easier with the gang leader here, since you're having a hard time pinning Long down on anything.

Follow his lead, maybe. Build off his last question somehow. He seems lost in thought again, so this could be a good time to interject.

His interference in the fight might indicate that he's motivated by altruism. Perhaps now would be a good time to inquire as to the safety of the hostel residents?

His answer makes it sound like he just wanted to help.

Now, you can't get a read on him at all, so you can't tell if that's what he really means or if that's just the impression he's trying to get across. But either way, it seems useful to approach things from that direction.

"So, was anyone hurt?" you ask the leader. "I'm sure your people took a few blows, but there's also probably people staying here who have nothing to do with this mess."

"The fighting never reached them. Well, most of them, anyhow - there's some actors staying here who are putting on a show and leaving at dawn. Except there was some mess with the show, so who knows where they are now." The leader frowns. "Can't say for sure they didn't run afoul of Heron's crew - or opt to help them out, for that matter. Never know with actors."

"Weren't any around here," Long interjects, and that surprises you. "I saw one of their other shows and there weren't any familiar faces. And I got a good memory for faces."

Something about how he spoke seems off. You feel a vague sense that he was planning to raise a particular subject, and looking for an excuse.

So what subject is it, exactly? That he saw a show? Or that he remembers faces well? Or maybe it's just an attempt to lead into something else.

Well, if that's it, maybe your best bet is to take the bait and see where he leads you.

"What, were you expecting to see any of them here?"

Possibly a certain Laikenne...

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I have now moved the entirety of Swamped over to my new website

New updates will be posted here and reposted in the archives after one day. This is a blog post, so make suggestions in the comments.

The archive is over here for anyone who wants to binge.

Let me know if there are any problems with using the site.

I don't plan to update this thread any more. It's had a good run.