Secret Hideout I (FFD)

The Assignment
The two pickpockets, fresh from their adventures on Bikke's pirate ship, returned to the clandestine thieves' guild in an abandoned building east of the inn. The stern guildmaster welcomed their arrival though seemingly unimpressed with the key they pilfered from Bikke. The guildmaster sported a mohawk and disguised himself as a homeless man that patrolled the inn during the day. "Let me see here. You woke up most of the ship with a warcry. You clumsily rammed into two merchants and got captured. And you barely escaped, mostly thanks to your newfound companions. I should slit both your throats and feed you to an ogre. But you did pilfer Bikke's key, and for that I'm willing to give you another chance."

He brushed his mohawk back with his hand and continued. "I'm giving you both a set of lockpicks that can handle non-magical locks… a curse upon all the mages of the world. If you succeed in this mission, you get to keep those lockpicks and will receive the official marking of the Pravoka thieves' guild. All you need to do is break into the chief merchant's house in the far southeast of town and pilfer a key he holds in his nightstand. Now get out."

Stephen and ToST waited until evening and walked confidently toward the merchant's house. They didn't feel the need to hide as they were two of the least shady characters wandering about town.

Two of the merchant's guard -- Kyzokus -- stood on opposite sides of the door. The thieves knew these men needed to be taken out.

Battle 1
[Preemptive strike. Battle begins. Targets KYZOKU12]

First Strike!

ToST: 1-Hit 15-Damage against KYZOKU2

Stephen: 1-Hit 15-Damage against KYZOKU2. The surprised guards regroup and prepare a counterattack.

[ToST 103/103, Stephen 104/104. KYZOKU12 remain. Please enter your command]

ToST: 1-Hit 15-Damage against KYZOKU2

Stephen: 1-Hit 10-Damage against KYZOKU2. Terminated. Advantage pickpockets due to their teamwork.

KYZOKU1: 1-Hit 23-Damage against Stephen

[ToST 80/103, Stephen 104/104. Only KYZOKU1 remains. I will autobattle after this next round. Please enter your command]

ToST: 1-Hit 22-Damage against KYZOKU1

Stephen: 1-Hit 16-Damage against KYZOKU1

KYZOKU1: 1-Hit 20-Damage against Stephen

[Autobattle]

Stephen: 1-Hit 19-Damage against KYZOKU1. Terminated.

Victory: Party members gain 120 experience and 120 gold

ToST dragged the corpses into a nearby bush while Stephen commenced his first successful lockpicking endeavor on the front door. The two prospective thieves were inside without further alarm to the residence. Inside the atrium of the building, Stephen noticed a large aquatic tank flanked by marble stairways leading to the second floor. Two additional Kyzokus sprang from the second floor to the first as the tank seemed to come to life.

Battle 2
[ToST 80/103, Stephen 84/104. Battle begins. Targets OddEYE12 KYZOKU12. Please enter your command]

OddEYE1: Stun ineffective against ToST

OddEYE2: Stun ineffective against ToST

Stephen: Misses against OddEYE1

ToST: Critical! 1-Hit 46-Damage against OddEYE2. Terminated.

KYZOKU1: Misses against ToST

KYZOKU2: 1-Hit 22-Damage against Stephen

[ToST 80/103, Stephen 62/104. Battle begins. Targets OddEYE1 KYZOKU12. Please enter your command]

Stephen: Misses against KYZOKU2.

KYZOKU2: Misses against Stephen

OddEYE1: GAZES Stephen

KYZOKU1: Misses against Stephen

ToST: 1-Hit 28-Damage against OddEYE1. Terminated.

[ToST 80/103, Stephen 62/104. Battle begins. Targets KYZOKU12. ToST please enter your command as poor Stephen is stunned.]

KYZOKU2: 1-Hit 14-Damage against Stephen

Stephen: Cured!

ToST: 1-Hit 28-Damage against KYZOKU2

KYZOKU1: 1-Hit 15-Damage against ToST

[ToST 65/103, Stephen 48/104. Battle begins. Targets KYZOKU12. Please enter your command]

KYZOKU1: 1-Hit 23-Damage against ToST

ToST: 1-Hit 18-Damage against KYZOKU2

KYZOKU2: 1-Hit 21-Damage against ToST

Stephen: Critical! 1-Hit 52-Damage against KYZOKU1. Instant death!

[Autobattle]

KYZOKU2: Misses against Stephen

Stephen: 1-Hit 11-Damage against KYZOKU2. Terminated.

Victory: Party members gain 204 experience and 130 gold

The two thieves nodded silently to each other and ascended the opposing staircases. At the top, an ornately carved double-doorway clearly indicated where the chief merchant spent his nights. The door was, of course, locked. Unfortunately a splash interrupted Stephen's lockpicking efforts. Apparently, two other freakish creatures resided in the first floor aquarium, and they were quite agitated.

Battle 3
[ToST 21/103, Stephen 48/104. Battle begins against SAHAG12. Please enter your command and let me know if you did any sort of healing in the interim.]

Before the battle begins, both individuals chug a HEAL potion for 30HP

SAHAG2: 1-Hit 15-Damage against ToST

SAHAG1: 1-Hit 11-Damage against ToST

Stephen: 1-Hit 16-Damage against SAHAG2

ToST: 1-Hit 12-Damage against SAHAG2. Terminated.

[Auto]

SAHAG1: Misses against Stephen

Stephen: 1-Hit 23-Damage against SAHAG1

ToST: Misses against SAHAG1

SAHAG1: Misses against Stephen

Stephen: Misses against SAHAG1

ToST: 1-Hit 18-Damage against SAHAG1. Terminated.

Victory: Party members gain 60 experience and 30 gold

Success
Another battle under their belts, ToST efficiently picks the bedroom door and assumes the look-out post, leaving Stephen to snoop about the room. Fortune was with Stephen, as the third nightstand drawer he opened contained the suspicious looking key. The two pickpockets completed the heist and returned to the mohawk-clad man.

If the guildmaster was pleased with their progress, he showed no sign. "One successful mission out of two does not a successful thief make. That said, you two have proven adequate enough to serve this guild." He nodded to two of his assistants who, before the inductees could protest, branded their arm with a serpent and ushered them from the guild. They were thieves now and they retained a set of lockpicks able to pick basic, non-magical locks.

[Quest (1) Secret Hideout I (Thieves only) completed. You are now free to roam the city and make purchases for your next update. Please let me know if you do not want to undertake the Meriweather quest, as Undine is strategizing the party structure.]

Continue to Call Me Meriweather (FFD)