As Pika speeds through the town Ciryl falls farther and farther behind the rest of the group, ultimately shouting his frustrations after them as he does his level best to keep up and fails.  At the fishmonger, it is only as the conversation picks up that he finally arrives.  He leans heavily on his cane, panting, "Wha... I wha..." he gulps a breath before finally gasping, "You nearly lost me" and wagging a finger at their guide.

In reply to Ciryl Fontaine (msg # 170):

Pika shakes her head.

"Didn'a ken any of them.  Govnor keeps me busy, an my schedule won allow it."

She watches Ciryl wheeze with wide-eyes for a moment as she finishes the last bit of eel on her stick.  Finished, Pika places the stick carefully on top of a barrel and opens one of the booklets she carries.

"Last'un were 6 days past, poor girl gone overnight like.  Parents say she were there for prayers, then gone in morning.  Records fer income, tax, finance an the like?  That'd be with the Master of Coin."

She blinks at Titus, sniffs defiantly, and answers.

"No names in common among them, ken nothing to do with one another, apart from their age, and all wen missing.  One worked up north side, selling pelts for a trapper."

In reply to GM (msg # 171):

D'ye ken the names of the girls taken and their parents?  When did they take the pelter's daughter?

In reply to Titus Blackwell (msg # 172):

"Aye."

She pulls out a piece of paper to consult.

"Lily, that's the last ohn gone 6 days past.  Olette, she'r the one worked selling pelts, gone 13 days.  Rose, gone 19 days."

In reply to GM (msg # 173):

An' the parents?

In reply to Titus Blackwell (msg # 174):

She reads out their names.

OOC: I'll just refer to them as "Lily's parents" etc. because I don't want things to get too confusing.

In reply to GM (msg # 175):

"What's this town's population? How many young maidens, roughly, would you say there are?"

He frowns slightly.

"We'll want to narrow down who's likely to be the next victim, so as to prevent it."

In reply to Brennan Otthild (msg # 176):

"I dunna ken."  Pika frowns and looks off in the distance, clearly doing some sort of higher math.  She pokes absently at the inside of her cheek with her tongue.

"Fifteh children, maybe seventeh?  Half of them girls."

In reply to GM (msg # 177):

"So two-score targets, roughly, at worst," Brennan muses. "Thank you, that's very helpful."

He taps his fingers against the top of his wrist absently.

"Do you know anything about Keller?"

In reply to Brennan Otthild (msg # 178):

If you were us, what would be yer first move?
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 16:40, Fri 12 Jan 2018.

In reply to Titus Blackwell (msg # 179):

"Oh, I'm no investigator... talk teh the parents?  Master of Arms already had ees men search fur the girls..."

"Kelleh?  I..."

Pika scans her notes, then starts flipping through.  Her search becomes more and more frantic and upset as she goes.

"I dunna ken oo is Kelleh?"

In reply to GM (msg # 180):

Titus pulls out a new sheet of paper and draws Keller on it.

Not the best likeness mindee but bettern nuttin. 

In reply to Titus Blackwell (msg # 181):

Pika looks at the picture carefully, but only shrugs.

In reply to GM (msg # 182):

"He lived in the shanty town out there, and was in league with the kidnappers, but he's dead," Brennan says. "Before he died, he mentioned that someone rich and powerful on this side of the wall was his patron. Someone who gave him a forged badge of office. We find that person? We find the kidnappers."

He frowns.

"I've spoken with the Master of the Hunt and Arms. It might be worth speaking with the Master of Coin, if only to round out the lot. Who else employs those badges, and how many of them would you say exist?"

"The Guild Mistress," Ciryl volunteers, "I spoke with her after I arrived. Word in the market is that she does her job, not much else to say."

In reply to Ciryl Fontaine (msg # 184):

When Brennan describes the badge, Pika nods.

"Aye, only other'd be Master of Coin."

In reply to GM (msg # 185):

So there are five in total? The four Masters...and your own?

In reply to Brennan Otthild (msg # 186):

Pika nods.

In reply to GM (msg # 187):

"Who makes them for you? I'm assuming one didn't just go missing recently, and someone would need to have the mold to make such a perfect replica as the one I found in Keller's home."

In reply to Brennan Otthild (msg # 188):

"Oh'n the badges do eu mean?  Well there's near twenty of those I ken.  One fer each Master, the Govoner, then there's the klerks an agents fer each, tha'd be me."

She counts off fingers.

"Smitty makes them, guildmistress Rayne holds the mold."

In reply to GM (msg # 189):

Dun suppose you ken how many badges are given t' each Master?  Ken eu give us a list with each person who should have one.

He turns to Brennan

T'way I see it... I ken we count up the badges and find one is missin'.  Keller had the real deal, not a fake see.  If'n we ken who is missin' a badge we can start pullin' threads... catch my meanin'?

In reply to Titus Blackwell (msg # 190):

Pika nods.

"Each Master will have an accounting.  Is up to them who they deputize."

"If that's the case there's no reason to assume the guilty party kept Keller's badge on their list.  Unless Smitty's been counting the badges himself anyone who's half clever could cover that right up," Ciryl observes.

In reply to Ciryl Fontaine (msg # 192):

Titus waves off Ciryl and Pika

Does the mayor's office ken how many badges are given to each master individually... example, 4 to the master of coin, 6 to the master of arms... so on.  Or does the master of arms jus go to the guildmistress and ass'r fer mold and have smitty make them up.  'Haps the guildmistress ken the list of who asked fer it? 

In reply to Titus Blackwell (msg # 193):

"That's a ken," Pika agrees.  "Not in my records."