B.C.A. [26/01/17: Where The Interview Is Not About Her Job]

Emma Scaledskin

Seconding Kleeka.

A pretty lizard girl can always find work .. heh heh heh heh

> Sarah Skalaberg
> Nelly Eidechsestein

> How did your folks die?
> Why are you even here if humans loathe your guts?

Vivian is not your birthname, of course, but you adopted it because you did not want to appear like the uncivilized hick from the boonies you are. It also sounded a bit like ‘long shadow’ in your native tongue so it feels oddly fitting, considering your past. The little twins chose to be called Emma and Sarah, but your other… well, the less said about him the better.


You decide to check out the marketplace first.

The streets are crowded which makes you nervous. You stick close to the walls and alleyways as you flit from one safe spot to the next, dodging important looking humans and their orc servants. More than once a cart or wagon passing by forces you to leap aside or risk being run over, the driver simply not paying any attention to you. Here and there you spot others like you, beastfolk large and small, staying at the sidelines trying not to be noticed. Them too you give a wide berth, just in case they turn out to be savage and dangerous.



Natural causes.

Back at the Evermarsh that included wild animals, sinkholes, raiders, and good old fashioned Black Pox. It has not been long since you left, but you have already sworn to never return to that fetid hell-hole. Over there the biggest ambitions are to live long enough to pop out a couple of kids and then to die relatively painlessly. Your entire life you have wanted for something more out of your future, and when your parents passed you saw no reason not to go and find out what.

Nevertheless, this place does not feel like a home yet. Its sounds are confusing to you, the jumble of peddlers and beggars and prophets shouting over the din of industry and the low rumble of heavy machinery burrowing underground pierced by the incessant shrieks of ill-tempered seagulls is a stark contrast to the swamp’s lethargic silence.

And the smells… exotic spices from cooking and incense wafting from the temples mingling with horse dung and salt, salt from the sea and from the mines and from the million bodies sweating under the harsh glare of the sun, iron and anthracite and creosote and tar from the docks, all these and countless more swirling into a dizzying broth in your nostrils.

You much prefer the night, when the cool breeze arriving from the sea drives away the heat scent of the day and dulls the noises, but even then city never truly sleeps. You like it that way, though - this place is scary and in some ways as perilous as the swamp, but also more exciting than anything ever before in your life!




You realize your mistake as you arrive to the deserted marketplace. Of course the Anniversary would be a holy day in the empire and all the human merchants, the ones with a license, have closed shop. Odds of anyone hiring you now are slim to none, but you might just as well take a look around. You would not believe what the humans throw away just because they considered it “spoiled”!




Unlike some of the people you know you have not considered that line of work. Your little sisters look up to you, and you want to give them a reason to be proud of you. You would rather go hungry than see them disappointed in you!



Humans do not hate you, in fact most of the time they do not even notice you. The first couple of days after your arrival you got constantly shoved off and knocked down, until you learned to get out of their feet. Sometimes you get hassled for a laugh - especially when asking for a job - and you are vary of human children - you once got chased by them for several city blocks and you are not keen on repeating that experience anytime soon - but so far no-one has taken the effort to genuinely hate you. In fact some of the people you have met seemed to consider you little more than a clever animal mimicking human speech.

Orcs, however, seem to all hold a deep smoldering grudge against you and you cannot understand why. Unfortunately they tend to be employed as guards and low ranking officials, which makes getting around the city bit of a bother.


On to the business! Where you decide to look first?

>Call him "Master Splinter" and ask if he will teach you the ways of a ninja

> That barrel seems "fishy". ... ...... Maybe it has salmon!
> That fella in the shadows looks pretty cranky. Try to not give or get his attention. It could spell trouble.
> What's in that building with the cycloptic triangle? Check it out.
> Ask that fortune teller looking dude if he has any tips on making money in an honest way. If he insists you pay him, apologise and insist back at him that your "hypothetical welfare" would be mutually beneficial. Actually do the latter first, starting up a conversation with good manners is like one of the unwritten rules of building healthy relationships.

Ohgod you love salmon!

Nope! The barrel and boxes contain just some wilted rutabaga leaves and other refuse from the market, waiting for the dustmen to pick it up. Usually one person’s garbage pail is your bargain bin, but these are good just for a stew not for making cash.




No, no, implying that he is some sort of shadowy character skulking in the shadows would be a certain way to get into his bad graces!






The conversation having come to an end Timothy gathers up his stuff and leaves. Before he goes he tells you to think about his offer, and that he can be found here at the marketplace. While he seemed like a bit dodgy character, the deal he is suggesting is not bad at all.

>Do you have the power to wall climb like some lizzards and geckos do ? Because it would come mightily handy right now

>Yell at them they could jsut wait for the fraking feast tonight rather than eating scrawny little you in the street.

> Vivian: Be the Long Shadow.
> Vivian: Get the hell out of Dodge.

Most certainly, being fleet of foot and adept at stealth have been survival traits for your people for generations - and you believe yourself to be better than the most.




The thought blazes through your mind like a brush fire. You chose ‘Long Shadow’ because of the sadness in your past - but maybe it could also mean other things - quick, clever things hiding and biding their time in the night… You come to and realize that they have you cornered - you need to stall and wait for an opening!






You know this person, they live across the street from you!

>I am now my warrior goddess......i mean uh....

>Yes