Act 2: Upheaval II - Revelations and search

Konrad pulls out a pouch, picks out five gold coins, (telekinesis is so convenient) and counts them out quietly to himself as he pushes each one beneath the frame of the door (this specific action he avoids using telekinesis for), hoping to give the old drifter on the other side a different reason to keep shaking.

Mihai grabs a copper from his pocket and tosses it at Steve by flicking his thumb.

Hit 19

Sleight of Hand 24

"Trust me, I know it sir. That's a two way street really. Why-" That's when the copper connects with the back of Steve's head. He jumps a little and then looks around to see what happened. He sees the copper on the ground and then looks around at the crowd.

Awareness 20

Konrad hears nothing but the anxious breathing of the old man and the sound of the gold coins scrapping against the floor. Once the five pieces of gold are on the other side of the door, it takes a short moment before the squatter picks them up.

"Oh fuck," he exclaims. "They're fucking real. You're shitting me."

He keeps examining the coins for a few more seconds until he finally says through the door, "Okay, I'll come out, but you stay away from the stairs. Okay? You stay away from them!"
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Mihai hasn't lost sight of Amber and her suitor. In fact, he appears quite pleased to be holding her like that.
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Steve notices Mihai walking by and disappearing into the crowd.

"What happened?" the merchant asks. "Are you okay?"

He spots Mihai in the crowd walking towards what he assumes is the building. Oh right, the plan. Here he was talking about Zelk like a love-struck doofus, which he is now that he thinks about it, when he should be doing his part of the plan. He turns back to the stall merchant and says, "Oh, I'm fine. I just spotted my friend in the crowd just now. Thanks for the book! I'll be sure to come back for any other book needs I might have!"

He grabs his purchase, stays just long enough not to be rude, and then starts walking after Mihai. He wants to catch up, but he doesn't want to make a scene if you catch my drift.

"Alright. I'm going down now." Konrad walks down the stairs and stands over by the door to the front. He pockets the smoke bomb he had been floating behind his back.

"You can come down."

"Uh, have a good day then!" the bookkeeper shouts at Steve.

With some effort, the black mage succeeds in spotting Mihai in the street, and far off in the distance, he catches a glimpse of Amber and her lovely date. People around him pay no attention to his rushed gait, probably on account of the number of tourists present in Odwaz at the moment.
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For the next minute or so, Konrad hears the squatter slowly exit his room and walk down the stairs.

"You still here?" the old man inquires apprehensively. "Don't you jump me you– you damn weirdo!"

Steve keeps Mihai in sight but otherwise just follows at a distance. He also remembers to keep an eye out for any tails in the crowd.

Awareness 20

"Yes, I am still here." Konrad continues to talk while the man walks down the stairs, just to signal his own location. "I'm not going to give you any trouble, I'm not up to any tricks or any funny business. I will wait patiently for you to leave, and hopefully you won't see or hear from me again."

Konad had just finished speaking that the drifter ran down the stairs and through the back door, fleeing from the building as fast as he could.
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Mihai and Steve detect a tail; this one is a young man in casual clothes who's keeping 60 feet between himself and the black mage. The adventurers fail to learn more however and their tail slips away, using a group of loud Myrzens as cover.

My, isn't he excited. I suppose I would be too, if I was a rodent like him. Scurry along to your next drink, or your next fix, or that warm touch you haven't felt in months, nay years, my elderly scamp. It's our show now.

Konrad takes up a position on the side of the back door that is hinged to the frame, using the door itself to obscure himself, and makes himself silent. He puts out the torch, and levitates a smokebomb and the tanglefoot bag, so that he doesn't have to take any extra time to pull them out later.

Half a minute later, he decides to make sure the front door is closed and locked.

Stealth 21 (take 20)

After ten minutes walking in the labyrinthine streets of the Market District, Amber and the target have now finally arrived to the abandoned building. The teenager gestures at the building and says something to her suitor. Meanwhile, Mihai and Steve observe their surroundings and see two other people walking in the street. They must decide whether or not to keep walking or find a spot from where they'll observe Amber and the drug dealer.

Mihai's sister goes towards the display window and looks through it while her date tries the front door.
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Konrad hears people making noise at the front of the building.

Mihai keeps walking casually, only long enough to find a spot he can vanish into to keep an eye on Amber.

Steve keeps walking. He'll head out of sight, wait for 5 minutes, and then double back.

Here they are. Konrad tenses up, ready to move. Walking or running, he only has to wait for Amber to come through that door.

The young man finds the front door locked and then turns to Amber. She hasn't moved from her spot.

"It's locked," he tells her. "There's nothing here, let's go."

"Pussy," the teenager retorts. "You stay here and have fun. I'm going in."

A grin forms on his face and he follows Amber into the alleyway that leads in the back. He glances at Steve but quickly sets his sight on Amber's back instead.
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Konrad can hear Amber's voice slowly approaching his position.

"We can kick down the back door," she says.

"You mean I can kick the door," a young man replies. "I doubt you can kick anything down with these legs."

"Keep talking and you'll find out, jerk."

He chuckles.

Mihai moves in so as to keep them in their sights, without letting himself be seen. Just on the edge of the alleyway.

Stealth 32

Konrad can now discern the silhouettes of Amber and the young man through one of the windows. The knob of the back door slowly turns.

"It's open," Amber says. "Guess we won't have to kick it down."

"Maybe I should go in first," the drug dealer suggests.

"Too late, already going in."

The teenager opens the doors and enters the room. The air is thick with dust and because of the boarded windows, there's not much light that can get it. Amber turns to her date who is still standing outside and asks him, "You got a light?"

Mihai is in the alley, observing this scene from the corner of the building. He can't see Amber anymore, but he has a good view of the drug dealer. If the young man decided to flee, he could bolt down the back alleyway, away from Mihai's position.

There she is. Konrad suppresses the impulse to wave and wink. Now is too early. Wait until the date gets jumpy, that's the plan. I wonder, is he a summoner? Is he a mage at all?

Spellcraft 25
Can I tell whether this guy is a mage? Can I sense any active link to an aspect?

Konrad:

"Yeah, sure," the young man replies.

He pulls a box of matches out of his pocket and follows Amber into the room. He then attempts to ignite one.

Mihai moves up to close the gap, right next to the entrance. Once Drug Boy is in the building, he will sneak in and shut the door behind him.

Stealth 21

Konrad twitches with energy, ready to move on Amber the minute the match is struck.

Ready Action
The second the match is struck, I grab the girl.

In almost perfect synchrony, the two adventurers stealthily move towards their targets and get the drop on them. Just as the tip of the match bursts into flame, Mihai steps inside the abandoned shop and closes the door behind him while Konrad grabs Amber by the arm. She yelps in surprise and immediately begins to fight off the red mage's assault. At the same time, the match slips from the drug dealer's hand and falls to the wooden floor, but luckily for everyone here, the flame goes out before it can burn anything else.

The young man also drops the box of matches and freezes in terror when he sees Mihai.

Mihai doesn't move and just stares at Drug Boy. Ready Action to rush him down, grab and pin him if he decides to bolt.

Intimidate 16

Konrad struggles with "the girl" toward the front room, hand over her mouth. "Don't make this difficult," he whispers, trying to be convincing for the young man. He'll kick the door shut when he gets inside.