also there's a disthread now https://questden.org/kusaba/questdis/res/137091.html[/spoiler]

<strike>GET YE FLASK</strike>

ok but really, do you have any nondescript but tasteful jewelry your sister might like? might not hurt to grab it
also money for the doctor and dinner (i'd imagine what you've got should cover but i can't say i've been to a "Discreet" doctor before)

I'd say pocket $1,000 of the dollars you have in your room just to be safe. It's better to have cash now that we can pay them with if they ask for compensation instead of being broke right out the gate.

for the love of God please take the spare glasses

grab everything your gay little hands can carry. why come back to a hotel room you got stabbed in? you KNOW theyre gonna make you pay for carpet cleaning

grab the spare glasses, fake ID, and at least a few hundred dollars of that cash. you never know what you might need it for and it's best to be prepared

take more cash and the fake ID. you don't know what ángel might want for dinner, or what trouble might be coming your way.

did siobhan give you a dossier on la marca?

so does a stab wound count as an item slot?

1/2 Marn 2022/02/25(Fri)23:12 No. 1024713 ID: f581d4
File 164585956266.png - (147.97KB , 700x600 , 12.png )

> for the love of God please take the spare glasses
> ok but really, do you have any nondescript but tasteful jewelry your sister might like?
> take more cash and the fake ID.

Your SPARE GLASSES, $1,000 CASH, a TASTEFUL NECKLACE, and your FAKE ID have been added to your personal inventory! You can assume that you've grabbed all of these from your room before leaving the hotel.

> so does a stab wound count as an item slot?

Would that it could.

2/2 Marn 2022/02/25(Fri)23:12 No. 1024715 ID: f581d4
File 164585957430.png - (152.32KB , 700x600 , 13.png )

> did siobhan give you a dossier on la marca?

Sort of. Most people in the city know Bice La Marca from reputation alone. She's the unlikely and very recent head of the La Marca crime family, due to the four people who were in line for the throne ahead of her dying in a helicopter accident. You've never met her one on one, but you've seen her at parties and heard from gossip around the city that she spends her money like it's going out of style. She lives in a penthouse somewhere around here and frequents the casinos, though you hear she's not very good at gambling.

Oh, and she has absolutely no idea how to run a mob. She's a little younger than you are, and is definitely one of those people who's enamored with the aesthetics of crime and mobster shit, but doesn't want to get her hands dirty or busy herself with budgets and politics. If she keeps throwing her money and newfound clout around as loudly as she's been doing, someone's probably going to beat you to taking her out. Maybe even someone inside the La Marca family.

is it good or bad for you if someone gets to her first?

is she single

We can think about how we approach her after we've dealt with this little stab-wound of ours. Let's hope that guy Ángel sent doesn't take too long.

get the stab wound taken care of while considering the hotness of mobster women

do you have to kill her specifically or is it fine as long as she ends up dead? because if its the former we should hustle

Well, it'll be a lot better for you if you can say you were the one to stick the knife in her, but that's a lot harder when you already have one in you.

Can't waste time, but not dying has to come first

lets fix that stab wound, yeah!

1/2 Marn 2022/02/26(Sat)22:44 No. 1024875 ID: f581d4
File 164594424218.png - (113.46KB , 700x600 , 14.png )

> is it good or bad for you if someone gets to her first?

Bad. Siobhan assigned you the hit as a way of getting back into her good graces, and you'll stay excommunicated if you can't pull it off. On the other hand, you've kind of been ignoring the assignment since you got to the city three months ago.

Unlike Merritt and Yelena, you're a con man. Even having to injure someone usually means your job has gone very, very wrong. Murder is not your area of expertise, and was never supposed to be. Siobhan knows that, but she also thinks you want her protection and resources badly enough that you'll do as you're told.

> consider the hotness of mobster women
> is she single

Depends on the time of day. You've heard Bice La Marca also goes through romantic partners like they're running out of style.

Technically, now that you're really thinking about it, there might be some interesting opportunities if you were to seduce Bice. Like getting the La Marca family's protection instead of Siobhan's. And you're pretty good at seducing people. That was a good chunk of what you did when you were just starting out in the con game.

Anyway. Something to mull over when you're not in need of immediate medical attention.

2/2 Marn 2022/02/26(Sat)22:44 No. 1024876 ID: f581d4
File 164594425377.png - (157.21KB , 700x600 , 15.png )

Speaking of which, your hotel room's door (which Nana left slightly ajar) swings open to let a complete stranger inside. You can only hope it's the guy Ángel sent over.

"Hm," he says. His affect is flat, his expression perfectly and politely neutral. "I'm guessing you can't walk."

PLAYER CHARACTER UNLOCKED: BECK BRISKER

Player characters will unlock whenever they first appear in a scene (phone calls and texts do not count). There is currently one PC available to unlock besides Beck and Paz. You may choose to switch between PCs at any time.

BE BECK BE BECK!!!

BE BECK

if bice goes through partners that quickly seducing her might not be a good long term plan

aslo BE BECK

BRISKER TIME and then scoop up the dumbass we were just playing as (what are Paz's pronouns, by the way?)

>>1024883

paz is a he/they kind of fella

real briskie hours, time to scoop up your associate's dumbass twin

> ALLY OR BETRAY?
Yeah... no, Bice would make a shit ally. She goes through partners fast, sounds like a dumbass, and probably has multiple people gunning for her life; plus, you don't have the best long-term romantic track record yourself. This does seem like a good "in" for getting close enough to kill, though. Really, this is just like a normal con: get close to the target and trick them into doing what you want. Only, "what you want" isn't "give money" in this case, but instead "become vulnerable."

> RESPONSE
"I didn't want to risk it, that's for sure!"

> BE
Beck, baby! Paz isn't really in a position to make many decisions. Looks like you'll need to find a stop-gap for this dumbass before you try moving him out of the hotel.

1/3 Marn 2022/02/28(Mon)21:12 No. 1025072 ID: f581d4
File 164611152072.png - (184.43KB , 700x600 , 16.png )

You are now BECK BRISKER, the KANSAS CITY BUTCHER. You're a freelance hitman with no current employer, here in town to track down a lead on some personal business. You were sucked into a life of crime without getting a say in the matter, but you've accepted it, and you excel at it. You're more of a planner than a doer, but you have nerves of steel and you don't back down from a fight unless it's tactically advantageous.

You see the resemblance between the guy on the ground and Ángel immediately, though he's much sleazier-looking than Ángel. And less fashionable. You guess you shouldn't be judging him when he has a knife stuck in his gut, though.

"Don't think I wanna risk it," the guy - Paz - says, in response to your question.

"Fine," you say. You planned for this, anyhow. "Lennon?"

2/3 Marn 2022/02/28(Mon)21:12 No. 1025073 ID: f581d4
File 164611153484.png - (158.47KB , 700x600 , 17.png )

Your partner Lennon is waiting outside in the hall. Ey's stronger than you are, and understands immediately what you're asking of em - ey flash you a quick salute and move into the room to scoop Paz up in eir arms.

"Mind the knife," you say, shuffling out of the way to let Lennon leave the room first.

"You got it, boss." Lennon winks at you. Ey mostly calls you boss as a joke - you're the brains of the operation, Lennon's the muscle. But you split everything 50/50.

"You're Paz, right?" ey chatters to Paz, hauling him down the hallway. "I'm Lennon, that's Beck. What sorry sonuvabitch tried to use you as a knife block?"

"Long story," Paz grinds out, between his teeth.

3/3 Marn 2022/02/28(Mon)21:12 No. 1025074 ID: f581d4
File 164611155551.png - (100.23KB , 700x600 , 18.png )

You all pile into your and Lennon's car - Lennon up front, you and Paz in the back so that you can keep an eye on the patient. Paz is on a towel you've hastily laid out on the seat. Blood is difficult to get out of the upholstery.

The ride to the Silver Moon is roughly fifteen minutes, and Lennon will drop you and Paz off at the back entrance when you get there.

> Chat with Paz
> Review inventory/goals
> Check phone
> Something else?

check inventory and goals, phone, and also keep a VERY close eye on paz. angel would probably be sad if paz died. just how deep is that knife wound anyway?

check inventory! also, ask Paz if he's hurt in any non-obvious ways (hit head when knocked down, that kind of thing)

Look at your phone, you phone-addict you.

hiii lennon :) also check your phone, it doesn't seem like paz is in a state to hold a conversation

Review inventory and especially goals while keeping tabs on Paz's condition. Maybe get him talking if he starts to look out of sorts - letting him pass out is something we can't afford.

Chat with Paz to ensure continuing aliveness.

lennon :)

review goals/inventory & chat with paz!

check phone! there might be important messages coming in as a part of your mysterious hitman deal

1/1 Marn 2022/03/01(Tue)17:46 No. 1025117 ID: f581d4
File 164618559809.png - (164.04KB , 700x600 , 19.png )

> Check inventory and goals

CURRENT PLAYER CHARACTER: BECK BRISKER

Status: Healthy
Location: Sentiment City
Employer: None yet

Player characters who are freelancers can bounce between employers, and even have multiple at once. They have no lasting ties to any particular organization, unless they build strong and meaningful relationships with the people in command.

INVENTORY (SELF)

DRIVER'S LICENSE - Your legal license.
$340 CASH - A sensible amount of spending money.
HOTEL KEYCARD - To the room you share with Lennon.
POCKETKNIFE - A good weapon to have in a pinch.
WRISTWATCH - For punctuality's sake.
MINT TIN - For making a good impression.
CELL PHONE - To keep tabs on your contacts.

INVENTORY (ROOM)

SNIPER RIFLE - One of your weapons of choice. Lennon taught you most of what you know about shooting, and you're better at providing cover than you are at close range fighting.
$5,700 CASH - Most of the haul from your and Lennon's last job.
HUNTING KNIFE - Your other weapon of choice. You can throw it fairly far, or just inflict some quick and dirty pain. Whoever stabbed Paz seems to have had the same idea.
SPARE POCKETKNIFE - In case the first gets confiscated.
FAKE IDS - Several of them. For undercover work.
EYEPATCH - For when your custom glasses bother you. You save a lot of money on contacts.

GOALS (PERSONAL)

- Find the real Kansas City Butcher

GOALS (PROFESSIONAL)

- Find a new employer

Talk to Paz, then. Maybe he knows a guy you can take on jobs with?

eat a mint! and then ask paz if you can keep the knife.

chat with paz, but maybe don't mention your job search yet, it seems like the guy has enough on his mind right now

"find the real Kansas City Butcher" 👀 that has some fun implications about your identity. Sounds like a later problem, though.

For now, talk to Paz if he's in a state to do so.

the *real* kansas city butcher huh? interesting...

check to see if paz is still (relatively) okay and offer him a mint

1/3 Marn 2022/03/13(Sun)21:58 No. 1026162 ID: f581d4
File 164723391083.png - (139.75KB , 700x600 , 20.png )

You elect to spend the rest of the short car ride talking to Paz, mostly to ensure they don't pass out. You're not much of a conversationalist, but you vastly prefer small talk to having an unconscious body on your hands.

"You and Ángel are twins," you say.

"Uhh," Paz says. "Yeah."

They don't elaborate. You were hoping they would be as talkative as Ángel, but apparently being stabbed isn't doing much for their desire to be social. They also look a little paler than they were when you found them.

"Ángel never mentioned having siblings," Lennon chimes in from the front seat, rescuing you before you have to think of something to say next. Good partner. "I mean, we haven't really known 'em that long, but you'd think -"

"We got - estranged 'n shit, after school. Didn't really talk much 'til I showed up in town," Paz says, which is perhaps more context than you would have liked on his and Ángel's relationship. You've only known Ángel herself for roughly a month, which is enough time for you to come to trust each other, but not enough for either of you to get into the gritty details of who you were before coming to Sentiment City.

While you struggle to think of an appropriate response, the car rolls to a slow stop in the alley behind the Silver Moon.

"Alright, everybody out," Lennon says.

2/3 Marn 2022/03/13(Sun)21:58 No. 1026163 ID: f581d4
File 164723393664.png - (61.41KB , 700x600 , 21.png )

You position yourself as a human crutch for Paz and help him inside while Lennon peels out to find a parking spot. You flounder a bit once you're through the door - you usually only visit the Silver Moon to see Ángel, and she didn't give you very clear instructions for how to find the on-call doctor she called up other than "go through the back".

The single guard occupying the hallway gives you a sidelong glance. "You Beck?"

"I am," you say.

"Ángel said you'd show up soon. Doc's just through there," he says, nodding to a door with a porthole window that you would have assumed was to a kitchen or laundry room. Well. That was easy.

3/3 Marn 2022/03/13(Sun)21:59 No. 1026164 ID: f581d4
File 164723395885.png - (118.18KB , 700x600 , 22.png )

You drop Paz off with the doctor in a cramped room that smells heavily of bleach and antibacterial soap, and elect to wait out in the hall. You have no desire to watch that knife coming out of him, nor do you have any desire to watch him being given stitches. You've had enough stitches of your own to understand the experience intimately.

The guard is gone, probably back to his original post now that he doesn't have to wait for you. You lean against the wall and check your phone. Four unread text messages - one from Ángel, two from Rory, and one from an unknown number.

read your texts but also take a peek and see if you recognize the doctor! you can never know enough doctors!

check in with ángel and let her know that her brother isn't dead (yet)

seconding updating Angel. also see if the unknown number is spam or if it's hitman bullshit

>>1026166
seconding!