Sex, Violence, and Magic: Adventures in Eberron (Penny & RestlessPanda)

Crow breathed heavily. She managed to get out mostly unscathed. She oweed Rolan though. but that could come later.

"We've played nice. We've asked twice. I'm not asking again." She pulled the hammer back on her revovler with her thumb. "Where did you get the parts. And why is it so damned important to YOU that we don't know where they came from?"

The Warforged would be okay. But she didn't want to linger any longer than needed.
 
"You're crazy!" Oskar blusters. "You do all this just to learn where I get my product? After I tell you that won't do you any good anyway?"

"That's right, she's crazy," Rolin says, straightening up and moving to Crow's side. He transfers the cudgel to his left hand, then reaches over the counter and plucks the pistol out of Oskar's unresistant fingers, tossing it aside. "You'd better go ahead and tell her before she does something really unpredictable."

Rolin smirks down at Oskar, but the moment his hand is unoccupied, it snakes behind Crow and dives between her legs, one thick finger pressing against her groin for a second before Rolin pulls the hand away, straightening up and looking far less smug.

"Fine!" Oskar shouts. "His name's Eugene d'Cannith. Go try and shake him down. Just don't say I didn't warn you."

"Cannith?" Rolin's voice drips with skepticism. He looks at Crow. "He's talking out of a bull's south end. Put one in his knee."

"It's true! He'll sell me product from the House sometimes - stuff they won't miss, or at least won't miss enough to track it down. Makes him a little side money and I get magic gear without paying House prices. Usually just pieces here and there - these prosthetics are the biggest package deal I ever got from him by a long shot. Practically wiped me out."

"Yeah, until you turned around and sold each piece for two years' worth of gold!" Rolin thumps his fist on the counter. "You want us to believe this thing came from House Cannith? It don't even work right!"

You may make a Intelligence (Investigation) check to see if you recognize the name Eugene d'Cannith. You can make it with advantage since you're an artificer living in Sharn. The better you roll, the more information you'll get.
 
That hand.... She wondered if she could get it detached and keep it if Roland didn't want it after. But at the drop of d'Cannith, her face twisted. The name sounded really familiar.

"House Cannith.... Really?" She leaned against the counter, the gun still pointed at him, but drifting to his knee.

got a 16 on investigation
 
House Cannith is one of the dragonmarked houses. They bear the Mark of Making; their dragonmark aids in the creation of both mundane and magical devices. They are the undisputed leaders of manufacture and trade throughout Khorvaire, and even independent artisans and artificers often study at House Cannith institutions and adhere to House Cannith standards. The warforged, the lightning rail, and the magical lights that line Sharn's streets were all created by House Cannith. It has always been the richest house, but the Last War made it far richer, as every nation wanted weapons, armour, vehicles, tools - and, of course, warforged. Even the destruction of House Cannith's headquarters and the death of its patriarch and his heir in the Day of Mourning did not shake its position as the wealthiest and most politically powerful house, but now three factions wrestle for control of the House - Cannith East, located in Karrnath and led by Zorlan d'Cannith; Cannith West, located in Aundair and led by Jorlanna d'Cannith; and Cannith South, located in Breland and led by the young but brilliant Merrix d'Cannith.

Rolin's disbelief that House Cannith could create something that "doesn't even work right" is probably a bit overblown. House Cannith is considered the leader in manufacturing, but they still make mistakes - they're still human, after all. Nonetheless, if they sold a prosthetic limb that occasionally went rogue and started groping random bystanders, that would definitely be an embarrassment and a black mark on any House member's reputation.

Crow hasn't heard the name "Eugene d'Cannith" before, but that's not necessarily strange. Every House is a large, sprawling clan, and not everyone associated with the House is a big deal. The prefix "d'" indicates that Eugene d'Cannith has manifested his dragonmark, which means he has access to its magical powers. This is true for about half of all House members.

Before, Crow had noticed that the prosthetic limbs are very similar in construction to warforged physiology. If they came from House Cannith, then it is very possible that they were actually created using the creation forges, which were used to create the warforged themselves. However, the Treaty of Thronehold, which declared the end of the Last War, also prohibited the creation of more warforged, and all creation forges were, officially, dismantled.

"Yes, really!" Oskar exclaims, holding out a hand as if to ward the bullet off. "Look, Eugene - he's Merrix's cousin, the son of his mother's favourite sister. That means he's in Cannith South's inner circle, right? Except he's nothing compared to Merrix. Even with his dragonmark, he's never made anything of value. Merrix is a genius, and Eugene, there in his shadow, is just a screw-up.

"Now, Eugene's mama loves him, which means his aunt looks out for him, which means it doesn't really matter if he's good at anything. A man in his position could live off the family's money and never do anything his whole life, but Eugene's got too much pride for that. His cousin's one of the biggest names in Khorvaire, so that means Eugene's got to be important too. So, he runs these little schemes - forging coins, selling me House products that won't be missed, that kind of stuff. He doesn't need the money, but it makes him feel like a criminal mastermind, so he feels better about himself.

"I'm warning you, though. Don't think you can just walk up on him because he's a halfwit. He's got money, he's got power, and he's never faced consequences in his life. If he wants you to disappear, he can make that happen. People have died in Sharn for less."
 
Crow listened to him, not letting her aim waiver. Once he was finished she closed her eyes, sighed, and then smiled. "See... was that so hard? I"ll be the judge of whether or not I throw my life away." She spun her pistol and holstered it, glancing at Rolin. "Okay pretty boy, let's get out of here. Leave the good man to finish up for the night."

As she walked out, she picked up the arm of the warforged she downed and helped him sit up, patting his metal cheek. Then she exited the building, looking around for her goblin friend.

"Yoohoo, you there? We're going out for snacks if you wanna come."

Crow was intent on getting away from the area, just in case. But once she was sufficiantly far away, she looked at Rolin. "So... what do you think? About the Eugene thing?"

GOnna meander a bit, but head for a late night kiosk or cheap restaraunt. need to talk about the goings on.
 
The warforged is about three hundred pounds, making it difficult for Crow to help them site up, but they seem to appreciate the effort nonetheless. Oskar seems to hold them in less sympathy. "You call yourselves professionals?" he growls. "I've seen better security from drunks holding onto their bottles! What happened there?!"

"You...poisoned us," one of the warforged says, sitting against the wall.

"Poisoned? You're not even alive! You can't be poisoned!"

"We're resistant to poison," says the other warforged. "We are considered 'living constructs'. That means - "

"I don't care what it means! I don't pay you to talk!"

When Crow and Rolin step outside, Nasree is trying to fend off a crowd of gawkers, evidently alerted by the gunshot. There's nothing she can do to prevent them from seeing Crow and Rolin leave the shop, but none of them stop them from leaving the area, though some clearly take note of their faces. By the time they find a cheap pub in a different neighbourhood, it is well into evening, and drunken conversation fills the pub with loud background noise.

Crow said:
"So... what do you think? About the Eugene thing?"
Click to expand...

Rolin sighs. "I don't know. This whole thing's kind of your area, isn't it? You probably know about the Canniths than I do."

"Eugene d'Cannith?" Nasree asks. "Oh, I've heard of him! He was forging making counterfeit coins a couple years ago! I guess he couldn't use the Cannith forges because he hired some people from Khyber's Gate. I've never seen the Watch come into Khyber's Gate except when they came in to arrest them!"

"So I guess that tells us he's real," Rolin says. "And that selling bad prosthetics is the kind of thing he'd do."

He leans forward on the table, looking at Crow. "But I ain't ever seen prosthetic arms like this, except in Oskar's shop and on that Tariic fella. That's why I bought it - I thought it was better that the others. House Cannith ain't selling these types of prosthetics - so where did Eugene get them? He can't have made them himself - there's too many for one person to make, and if they did, they wouldn't turn around and sell them to some shopkeep, would they?"

He sighs, looking down at his cheap stew. "Does it even matter? If he's such a big shot in the House, how are we supposed to get to him? And even if we do, how do we make him help us?"
 
That was an excellent point. What could they do? It wasn't like they could waltz up, and demand he repay or repair Rolin's arm. If he wasn't supposed to be doing what he was, but had the money to cover it up.... What was the point? She drummed her fingers against the table and let out a long sigh.

"If the trouble goes up THAT high.... I don't know. I'm just a low level mechanic. I don't have a stake in something this big. if he's THAT high up he's probably got people who will bail him out even if someone comes with evidence that he did something screwed up."

Crow rubbed her face with her other hand. Was there anyone in the House that would look into this?


Trying to piece together who or what they could do to try and get a leg up on the situation. This feels prime for exploting or justice, but she's scratching her brain on a thread to follow.
 
"Is that bad?" Rolin asks. "You bail someone out with money, right? If they give me enough money to get a new arm, then problem solved, right? Or if they just build me a new arm that works. I don't care if Eugene gets away with it. I just want to get back to my folks and work on the farm with two arms that won't go off and start groping anyone."

"How do you make them listen?" Nasree asks. "Houses don't listen to people like us. Nobody listens unless you're powerful enough to make them listen - unless you're strong enough or rich enough or famous enough to hurt them if they don't listen. Or you have powerful friends."

By the way, I forgot to mention, this meal will cost 2 cp per person, or 4 cp for both Crow and Nasree. A mug of ale with your meal will cost another 4 cp, but Nasree doesn't insist on a drink.
 
Crow sighed ran a hand through her hair, looking up at the sky. The towers of Sharn blotted out most of the natural light, with only glimmers in the distance any hint to what might lie above. She felt useless right now, like all of her efforts had peaked and she still hadn't reached the top.

"I mean at this point, all we can really do is try to petition the house and see if they will do anything."

She didn't want to take up any more of Rolin's time and foolhardy endeavors. And she had her own work and Life to get to, one that didn't involve a handsome former Soldier and Spunky Goblin.

"But that's going to take time. You don't just walk up to the house and expect entry. So... How do we go about doing that?"
 
The sky above is purple streaked with orange-tinted clouds. It's well into the evening, now, and none of what little sunlight that remains makes its way this far down. It's only magical lights that illuminate Sharn's streets, and in a poor district like Callestan, each one is separated by long gaps of black.

"I told you!" Nasree stuffs a roll of hard bread, moistened with stew, into her mouth before pointing at Crow with her newly empty hand. "You don't petition the House. They don't listen to people like us! You find a friend who they have to listen to and who has to listen to you!"

"So who has to listen to us?" Rolin asks skeptically.

"Someone with the same problem as you! Someone with a fake arm or leg that's...what is your problem, anyway?"

Reflexively, Rolin lifts his prosthetic arm off the table to look at it, then puts it back down sheepishly. "It's not fake. It's prosthetic."

"Whatever! I told you about other people with prosthetic arms and legs. There's the ones from House Deneith, there's the one in the Boromar Clan, there's the pirate, and you already met Tariic! Find out which one is the most likely to make House Cannith listen, and then you convince them that their prosthetic is going to catch fire or explode or crawl up their asshole or whatever the fuck is that's happening to your arm! Tell them they need your help and the only way you can help them is to get an audience with House Cannith! Then they'll listen!"

Rolin thinks for a moment, then looks at Crow. "Tack Bluewater. He owns ships. He's rich! Rich enough to talk to House Cannith, anyway. I mean, they've probably hired his ships to transport their stuff before!"

"Finally," Nasree says. She licks the remnants of stew out of her bowl, making eye contact with Crow. "It's a good thing you hired me."
 
Crow looked at the two of them and nodded. "That's a pretty good idea... We get in with someone important, let them know there is a chance of something bad happening because of something they bought form Cannith. And then follow the trail up and see where it leads us. Hopefully you get a new arm, and we get some gold out of this."

She let out a sigh and closed her eyes, listening to the world around her. "Honestly... I'm kinda exhausted right now. How about we take to this in the morning and see where it leads us?" She pushed herself up to her feet and rubbed her eyes. "Stupid dwarf coulda just told us and saved us hours of the back and forth..."

Prolly head back home, deal with any work she can to get a few coins, and settle in for the night. Nasree is probably going to have to share a bed with her tonight, since she can't really conjure up another cot for her small room
 
"Yeah, some folk just have to do everything the hard way," Rolin says, standing. "I'll come by your shop first thing in the morning, then we'll decide on our plan. If you want my advice, we start with Tack Bluewater. I figure he's got enough money to make the House listen."

He starts to leave, then pauses. "By the way...I just want to say thanks, for helping me with this. I know I didn't make a good impression, and I'm not offering you much. I really appreciate you doing this for me."

Once Rolin leaves, Nasree leans forward in her seat. "I don't know what kind of work you do, but it's probably too late to get anything else done today. So! Where am I sleeping tonight?"
 
As Crow watched Rolin leave she let out a sigh. Deep down inside she WANTED to help him more, and the idea of a big payout certainly didn't hurt her motivations. But she was rapidly beginning to understand her own limitations. She was down her in the gunk, how was she supposed to shoot for the stars?

Nasree's words broke her out of her concentration. She pushed herself back from the table and stood, stretching.

"You're sleeping with me. It's not much but the bed it big enough for two smols to sleep comfortably. And it's not dank or humid, so thats a nice plus. Come on."

She motioned for her to follow and made her way back to her small abode. THe bed took up most of the one side of the small workshop, but it was comfy and soft. Crow let out a groan as she started to unbutton her vest and pull off her top.

"Gods I haven't done this much walking in a single day in ages..." she muttered to herself.
 
"Eh wha?" Nasree blinks up at Crow in surprise as she tells her where she'll be sleeping. Despite Crow's call to come on, Nasree sits in place, thinking hard, then looks Crow up and down. Only after a few seconds of intense deliberation does she nod to herself, seeming to come to a conclusion.

"Alright..." she says. "Okay. That's fine."

She follows Crow back to her home. Familiar with the city's back streets and shortcuts, Crow makes excellent time. Nasree has no trouble following her and does not seem surprised by the unconventional route. Still, it is truly night by the time they arrive, with even the sky directly overhead a solid black. In that black, only the moons are visible; the layers of magical lights running up Sharn's towers make it impossible to see any stars.

Nasree looks around Crow's workshop as she enters. She clearly lacks the knowledge to understand most of what she sees, but she is curious nonetheless. As Crow disrobes, Nasree sits on the side of the bed, watching her.

"So..." she says quietly. "How do you want to start?"
 
Crow pulled her hair out of a ponytail and shook hear head, her dark brown strands cascading down her shoulders. She stood in simple panties and bra, her form much curvier than one would think under her overalls. She looked at Nasree and tilted her head.

"Start...?" She asked, raising an eyebrow in confusion. After a few more moments silence her hands short to her mouth as her face turned a bright shade of pink. "ooooh shit I am so sorry I didn't mean... I mean... I hadn't intended..." She looked away, her blush spreading down her neck. After a moment she fanned herself and looked back to Nasree. "I REALLY hope I didn't give off the intent of me trying to sleep with you like that. Dear gods I must look like a lech. Not that I would mind per say just..." she trailed off looking away.

"I mean... if that something you're... okay with?"
 
"Wait, you didn't?" Nasree looks confused, then embarrassed. "Then - then why are you having me sleep in your bed? Isn't that what you're paying for? I..."

Nasree flushes, then crosses her arms. She breaks eye contact with Crow, focusing on a random corner of her shop instead. "I didn't think you'd want to sleep with me unless you wanted to fuck me. I mean, why would you...? I'm just..."

She goes silent, jaw clenched, before she gets the words out in a whisper. "I'm just some Khyber's Gate street trash."

Getting that out seems to renew some confidence. Her eyes return to Crow, if reluctantly, and her voice returns to normal volume. "I mean...I'm not insulted or anything. I was a little mad you didn't tell me when you hired me, but then I figured it was why you hired me and paid me so good. I've done it before, anyway, for people who weren't as nice as you. Or pretty."

Her eyes look up and down Crow's body. "I've never just slept with anyone. Not since I was little with my parents." She fidgets, wrapping a lock of hair around her finger, as she thinks. "How about we just get in bed and...and see what happens. If someone says stop, we stop, but until then, we just do what we want. No asking permission. And if that's just sleeping, that's okay, but if we get in a different mood..."

She trails off and shrugs, cheeks still flushed.
 
Crow's cheeks flaired, her ears turning red as well from what Nasree was saying.

"I hired you because I thought you'd be helpful and... well..." She sighed, walking over and sitting down next to Her. "I've been called street trash too... I've clawed my way out and someone gave me a hand when I needed it. And... I want to help people when I can." She looked over and smiled at the Goblin.
"You're pretty too. And... I haven't DONE anything like that... or this before... So uh... Just do whatever... Yeah." Her fingers inched over and touched Nasree's, here eyes looking into the shorter womans. "Can I..." then she stopped, took a breath, and let it out slowly.

And Crow leaned in and kissed her.
 
"Wait." Nasree puts her hand over Crow's mouth, halting the kiss. After a moment, Nasree smirks and her hand shifts, moving to cup Crow's cheek while her thumb plays over her lower lip.

"I always thought humans had such soft lips," Nasree whispers. It's not clear if she's talking to Crow or herself.

"Are you telling me you're a virgin?" she asks. "I don't believe it. You're too sexy unless you were saving it for something, and I don't think it's some girl you just met today - after she tried to rob you. Or were you waiting your whole life for a naughty, street-smart goblin to sweep you off your feet?"

Her hand shifts slightly, moving down to the corner of Crow's jaw, her fingertips brushing the skin of her neck. "What about that boy you were with today? Rolin, right? He had his hands all over you. You're letting him grab your ass all day long and you haven't even fucked him?"
 
She shivered under the goblin's touch, smiling a bit as she nuzzled her hand. "No I'm not a virgin... I just haven't "ordered" someone I guess? Like, yeah I've never done that before..."

Crow looked at Nasree and shrugged. "The hand is a bit wild, but he hasn't really shown interested, despite mine. So..." she bit her lip and looked into her eyes. "I guess when we ended the chace I just.... Wanted to have someone else nearby. You said you wanted food and a place to sleep and I wanted to not be alone tonight... Even if its not as explicit as I came across..."

her own hand slipped up to run through the goblin's hair, affectionately stroking it.
 
"You've never hired someone for the night, you mean?" Nasree asks with a smirk. As Crow's hand runs through her hair, she lets her head roll back and closes her eyes. She sighs happily, but then opens one eye to look at Crow. "Harder, please. Give me a good scratch."

Her hand moves down from Crow's jaw to her shoulder, then passes across her back to the other side. She holds Crow's far side as Nasree leans over and rests her head against Crow's shoulder, though due to her shorter height, it's more like she's leaning against Crow's arm. "Well, not a lot of people have hired for me for this, but so far, I like you more than most."

She chuckles, looking up at Crow's face. "Oh, and it's not just the arm. Every time it goes off he gets this guilty, excited look like a boy who just hit puberty and can't stop looking at boobs even though he feels bad about it. Maybe you don't see it because he hides it from you, but he doesn't think to hide it from me."
 
"Eh, maybe. But if that's the case, he's yet to own up to it." She said with a grin and shrug. She looked down into Nasree's face, stroking it softly. "I like you too. you're cute, insightful. And you got a cute butt." she said as her grin got bigger, licking her lips. She leaned back, until the two of them were laying next to each other. Her fingers curled into the woman's hair and scratched her scalp, chuckling a little at the noise she made.

"So I take it this is an okay setup then? You get a warm bed to sleep in and a possible partner to play with? It's been a while since I've been able to sleep and hold someone in my arms."
 
As her scalp is scratched, Nasree curls up against Crow's side, producing a sound of pleasure somewhere between a moan and a growl. She rests her head on the side of Crow's body, her nose and lips brushing up against one cup of her bra, while one of her hands strokes rhythmically over Crow's ribs and stomach.

"I got a great butt," Nasree chuckles quietly. "And tits. So do you, though."

Punctuating her point, Nasree's hands slides up Crow's torso to one breast, slipping her thumb under the edge of her bra to brush softly against the sensitive skin underneath before her hand returned to its previous stroking.

"Yeah, I like this setup." Nasree's voice is now a whisper. "A warm bed and a hot girl in it. I...I haven't slept with someone in my arms in a while either."

She yawns and nuzzles her face into Crow's skin. "And whatever happens...happens."
 
Crow shuddered under her touch, almost letting out a moan in the process. Fuck it'd been a while... She smiled, nodding and nuzzling the goblins hair. "Yeah... whatever happens happens...."

Reaching over and dimming the lights, the girls settled under the blankets, Crow wrapping her arms around the smaller woman and hugging her close, one leg hooked around the other. Her heart was beating fast... but eventually... she drifted off to sleep.
 
Crow may or may not notice that it takes Nasree a while to fall asleep as well, also distracted by the warm body next to her. Nonetheless, she does, and wakes before Crow.

When she wakes, Nasree finds that she has shifted position in her sleep, now lying almost entirely atop Crow's torso and her face nestled in between her breasts. For a minute, Nasree lays where she is, not wanting to risk waking Crow but also enjoying the feeling of her face on Crow's skin and the sound of her breathing. When she does move, she does so cautiously, trying not to wake Crow - at least at first. When Crow does awake, Nasree hopes, it will be to a pleasant and exciting surprise.

Slowly crawling backwards, Nasree's head travels down Crow's torso, leaving along her skin as she goes. When she reaches her panties, Nasree lifts her head, moving to one leg and placing another few kisses high on the inside of one thigh. Then she moves to the other thigh, this time giving a soft lick to the same sensitive skin. Only then does she put her face between Crow's legs, pull her panties aside with one finger, and slide a long, slow tongue over her pussy before focusing her tongue's attention on her clit.
 
Crow was noticably squirmy for someone so asleep. And it wasn't until a few moments into Nasree's attention to her clit that her eyes fluttered open, a moan on her lips and her cheeks flushed. She was disoriented, her mind a haze as pleasure was keeping her in an almost dreamlike state. Her legs spread unconciously as one hand began to play at her own breast, the other tangling in the goblin's hair and hooking a leg over her shoulder.

"Fuck." she breathed out as a tremor shook through her body. She wasn't just glistening, there was actively a wet spot on the sheets from how wet she was. She tasted like necter and her walls twitched every time the tongue slid in and out.
 
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