"Give over, you...," he trailed off as he turned to see Leon. After a brief moment of realization, he flipped the hammock over twice before hitting the sand face first. Scrambling to his feet, he reached for his Navy issue saber before realizing that it was leaning against the tree nearby.

The other marine really was asleep.

"Wha-what are you?" he said. Then it dawned on him. "By my mother’s grave, a Mink! You stupid oaf, I thought a bloody lion was attacking!" He stood, dusted himself off, and turned away. "I meant what I said. The Shadow will be dealt with. I’m not gonna give any more info to the likes of you. We have the situation under control. Now, be gone!"

Tony's brow furrowed and he kind of looked around. Does that mean you have The Shadow in custody? I assume not, since there are still wanted posters up. Tony shrugged, "I guess if you don't want him found, then we two Minks won't offer to help in the search." Tony really turns up the nonchalant-ness. "I guess you have it handled and you're currently taking a little break from searching so hard." Tony turns to his brother. "I guess they have it covered brother. They are obviously right on his tail, and wouldn't want to risk two new comers finding this villain first." .

The marine chuckled. "Oy, oy, you’ll see, hairball," he said. "If you really want to help catch him, go speak to the mayor. Now get out of my sight! You’re blocking the view."

He relaxed and went back to lounging.

Tony knuckled his forehead in a half salute and started to paw forward up the little road before slowly stumbling in a backward lurch before pausing. And the Mayor's name is? And he is located where?"

"Come on Tony. These lesser Minks clearly have lesser brains as well." Leon says turning up his nose at the Marines, "We'll leave these children to their naps and find the mayor ourselves. These two are doubtless too incompetent to manage even that."

Barring further interaction from the Marines we'll head into town and look for the mayor's office.

"Give over, you drunken fleebag!" he shouted, pointing without opening an eye much less turn toward the Mink.

The direction he pointed, toward the center of the town, had a huge building with a sign: TOWN HALL, it said, with MAYOR’S OFFICE right below.

Around the time of the Mink brothers' arrival, Thane Bristol was in a worn down pub on the backside of the town, legs kicked up on the table while reading the most recent edition delivered via News Coo. Thane couldn't help but smile at the government's blatant hypocrisy. "They never change," he muttered to himself as he put the paper to the side to take another swig of his drink. After swallowing, Thane began reminiscing of the days where he partook of much higher quality sake while sailing on the open seas, salt-tinged air in his nostrils. However, the desire to return to the sea quickly faded when Thane remembered who else still sailed upon those seas and the past he was running from. All of a sudden, a pair of patrons entered the pub, talking loudly with excitement. Thane overheard one of them claiming to have seen Minks at the docks. The prospect Minks in Coconut Village sparked curiosity within him, and Thane decided to find out what had brought about their arrival to this town he had chosen to protect. Exiting the pub, Thane made his way through the backstreets in the direction of the docks, keeping his ears open to the conversations of the townsfolk as he passed them. Many were discussing the arrival of the Minks, and to Thane this was a nice reprieve from the constant chatter and debate he normally heard concerning The Shadow. Another smile came across his face as his excitement began to build.

Leon opens the door and strides right in to the mayor's office without even slowing down. His quick purposeful strides take him into the huge building and and he follows signage toward the mayor's office without regard for guards or receptionists, "Come along Tony! We've got to speak to someone with authority on the issue!"

"What is the meaning of this!" the Mayor demanded as Leon barged into his office. His face went white for a moment at the sight of Minks, the regained his composure, standing up. "What do you want? Here to try and collect the bounty on the Shadow? I can see it on your faces. You aren’t the first. Ha! Maybe you can, but several have tried to no avail, and you won’t go on wantonly destroying things just to try and stop him. Measures have been taken, and he’ll be dealt with shortly. Today actually! Nothing you need to be concerned about, now. Move along, gentlem...minks."

He turned back to his paperwork, checked the time on a grandfather clock in the corner, and waved them to go.

"Explain." Leon says leaping up onto the mayor's desk and sitting on his papers with crossed legs. He rests his face on his hands and his elbows on his knees, putting him nose to nose with the mayor, "What measures have been taken? You are not convincing me that wanton destruction in pursuit of The Shadow shouldn't be my next step."

Tony followed his brother, puffing his chest a little. As Leon sat on the desk, Tony leans against the desk, his chest on his brother's back, and puts his head on Leon's shoulder, putting him also face to face with the mayor.

The mayor raised an eyebrow, standing.

"You two will get out of my office immediately, or I’ll have you escorted off my island. Have I made myself clear?!"

He did not even try to answer Leon’s question. Something fishy was going on around here.

"You have not." Leon says straightening up so they remained eye level, though he remains seated on the desk, "I think I'd like to see you try."

"What do you think Tony?"

The mayor’s face went red, at first in anger, and the shifting to a flush of embarrassment. Leon had called his bluff.

"Okay, fine," he said, sitting back down, still looking angry but angry at having no other choice. "I cannot divulge their details, because it will ruin the aforementioned measures. However, I can tell you that it will happen today, very soon, by the docks. I am certain the Shadow will show himself there shortly."

The man frowned at a stack of papers, then started leafing through absently.

"Satisfied?"

"Quite!" Leon says the he unfolds his legs and swivels himself to leap off the desk sending papers flying in every direction, "Thanks!"

"You heard the man! Let's get back down to the docks and see what happens! I hope the Shadow shows up, he sounds so cool!" Leon says and races out of the office and back the way they came.

Just as the pair made it back to the beach, the merchant vessel that was coming into the harbor raised a black flag—its Jolly Roger! The skull of it was red, and bore horns and fangs, the crossbones appeared in front of the skull, rather than behind it, like an X crossing out the demon skull.

Without delay, the ship fired on the beach, sand spraying into the air. No one was injured; in fact, no one was near the blast. It seemed a warning shot, strange coming from pirates coming to raid a village.

The cry of alarm raised. The small Navy presence seemed ready, suddenly on their feet, rifles or sabers in hand, beginning to form ranks and file toward the docks. None appeared to be preparing to engage the pirates, though. The seemed waiting for something else, glancing away from the beach, like they expected an ambush.

Having been on his way to the docks, Thane was nearby when he heard the blast from the ship with the newly revealed jolly roger. Finding a back alley with no one around, Thane pulled out his mask, preparing to enter the fray. "Pirates. Always doing whatever they want, whenever they want. At least the Navy keeps most of its unjust dealings to the dark." Thane let out a sigh to steel himself for the fight to come. "A shadow has nowhere to hide in the daylight, but it looks like I have no choice." Emerging from the alley into the docks, Thane slings a throwing knife at the jolly roger now flowing in the wind above the ship. Without any hesitation after the throw, Thane warps onto the deck of the ship, not knowing what awaits him there. As he lands on the deck, his throwing knife finishes its course in the sky: slicing through the flag hoisted over the ship.

_{I rolled a 12 for my knife throw, and my Knife skill is a 19, so I assumed it was a success. Also still new to the die rolling aspect, so let me know if there's a better way to do it.}
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 15:07, Wed 19 Aug 2020.

Tony marched along at his brother's side as they made their way back to the docks. Suddenly a loud blast rang through the air, the sound coming right from where they were headed. Tony grinned and looked at his brother, a gleam of excitement in his eye, then took off in a run toward the commotion.

"Tony look!" Leon says pointing at the jolly roger as it flutters down to the deck, "The Shadow is going after those pirates! Come on! I want to go see!"

And then Leon realized his brother had already taken off running and hurries to catch up smiling broadly, "WAIT FOR MEEEE!!!"

As the flag was cut from its pole atop the mast, the deckhands all turned their heads upward, then back toward the land to see who through the knife. While their heads were turned, the man who threw the knife to cut the flag free vanished, appearing on the ship’s deck without being noticed.

"Kusoooo!" roared what looked like the captain, taking to the helm. He wore a red long coat, gold trim down the front and at the wrists, white embroidery decorating the collar, and firm yellow epaulets at the shoulder. He wore a tricorn hat now that the flag had been raised, a plume of flack feather sticking out of one side. He wore a neatly trimmed, pitch black beard without the mustache. His face was a worried grimace. "I think it was him, men! He must have done it from the shadows!"

"What shadows, sir? It’s midday...," said a deckhand, who shrank back, instantly regretting the comment.

"I DON’T BLOODY KNOW!" the captain snapped. "But they bloody call him the Shadow. Where else could he be?"

The ship was at the docks now, and the men moved to prepare another cannon blast!

Hearing the captain give his orders, Thane decided he wanted to end things as quickly as possible. Drawing his dual kukri knives, Thane warped directly behind the captain saying, "Don't forget about the shadow that clings ever so closely."

_{I rolled a 13 for my Warp 16 and a 12 for my Fast-Draw 17.}
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 15:07, Wed 19 Aug 2020.

Tony slowed a little to Allow his brother to take the lead, and prepped his claws for battle.

As they run Leon frowns at all of the Marines lined up in front of them then he smiles as a crazy idea enters his mind. He passes his brother and quickly stops at a yardarm on the large dock wrapping his arm once in the rope and whipping out how katana, "Grab onto me and hold tight!"

As soon as Tony get a grip Leon slashes down on some of the control ropes for the big crane and as the counterweight drops the it sends the arm spinning and the rope reeling upward rapidly. Leon let's go of the rope at the apex of it's arc and the brothers are catapulted through the air toward the pirate ship menacing the harbor.

"WOOHOO-HOO-HOO YEEEEAH!"

ST-Based Katana! 23, rolled 9, so success by 14.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:35, Mon 03 Aug 2020.

Tony grips his brother tight with one arm and produces his claws from the opposite hand. He grins as he sees his brother cut the rope and can't help but let out a small cheer as he feels the exhilaration of the air rushing over his fir.

Leon and Tony vaulted off the dock, flying through the air while clinging to the cut rope. The pirate crew and Navy soldiers all focused on this dramatic spectacle. Some of them simply stood there, staring in confusion.

"What are they doing?" someone on deck murmured, half to himself. "They could have just walked up the gang plank...."

The captain was even distracted for a moment, though he spun wide-eyed at the sound of steel rasping behind him.

"He’s here!" the captain snapped. "Seastone nets at the ready!"

The crew snapped out of their stupor, dropped everything they were doing and grabbed nets. The marines lined up on shore snapped their rifles up at the cry of alarm.

The two Minks landed directly opposite the helm from the captain, now behind him since he had turned to face the Shadow. They with the Shadow and the pirate captain stood completely surrounded by enemies with nets in hand.

Now’s probably a good point to say that combat has begun! That is, take one second worth of actions at a time. ^_^