A bar was the best place Wight could find. A drink might just be what he needed to loosen up. Not just him, but it might help loosen up the tongues of the other townsfolk as well. What was a few drinks compared to the knowledge they were about to acquire? Wight pushed open the door to the bar itself, noting the smell that came out of the establishment. Several men were already seated at tables, drinking to their heart’s content.

Wight and Kames stood out from the rest of the group. One because of his hair, the other because of his clothes. Wight took a seat in a place where he could hear the rest of the customers. He ordered himself a simple and sweet, treating himself. The barkeeper raised an eyebrow at the order but complied once Wight put down the money. “Oh, sorry. Forgot to get you something. Hey barke-“ Wight said but was interrupted by Kames. “No need, not much of a drinker myself.” He instead got some light snacks for himself. They looked odd to Wight but he chalked it up to weird taste of the people.

Kames snacked on his foodstuffs while Wight looked around. He noticed a man sitting near him, all by himself. This man had an inviting feel about him, attracting Wight to strike up a conversation. Kames spoke through bites of food, “He’s like an informant. Knows all about the gossip in town. Just gotta give him some encouragement, you know how they are.” I’m a lawman, of course I do, he thought.

He walked over to the man, who looked up to acknowledge him. “They say you’re the type of guy who knows stuff,” he said.

“You hear that from that friend of yours?” he said, pointing to Kames.

“I could have gotten it from someone else. You never know,” Wight replied.

“I do know, in fact. That’s what makes me the knowing guy. No one’s told you so much as a lick of what’s happening, haven’t they?” the man said, drinking a glass of water. “Pretty good demonstration. Now can you tell me a few things?”

The man rubbed his throat in an exaggerated manner. “Oh, if only there were something to wet my throat, I’d be ever so inclined to help the fine gentleman who rids me of this ailment,” he said.

Wight sighed at the sight. If I wanted to end up in a troupe, I’d pick one with less booze than this. He slammed down another dim onto the table, asking the barkeep for the man’s favourite. “Now a name would be good, or is informant what your friends usually call you?” he asked the man. “That would be Vuuto, if you would be so generous to use my name. Now, what do you want to know?” Kames had inched closer to them to listen in on the conversation.

“Who was the ruler of this place? I see a castle, but no guards, no nobles, nothing,” Wight asked.

“That’s a bit tricky. There wasn’t one singular person taking care of us. They were trustmen. Took responsibility for a while, then left when the opportunity arose.” He said. Trustmen? What kind of noble was that? Wight thought.

“Wight, you confused about something?” Kames asked. “Don’t think I’ve heard of trustmen before,” Wight answered. “Must have stuck to the big cities, then. They stay for a while, ruling over us, making sure the village is running, right? Then the king gives them some tax benefits for a while. Last one we had was called Traks.”

Vuuto raised his glass. “And what a right bastard he was. May he rest in Sefper.” He took a swig from the glass, making Kames uncomfortable in the process. “I’m guessing this Traks person wasn’t very well liked. What was he like?” The man took another sip before replying, “Started off fine enough, then he just shut himself up in that big castle of his. People started going missing, crops started doing worse, stuff that makes you think that the person ruling over ya doesn’t have your best interests at heart. Poor arse died in that stone prison of his. Couldn’t even find a body.”

“He isolated himself? That seems like a bit of a shift,” said Kames. “I agree, something must have happened to make him so. Did he have any family?” asked Wight. “Not any that lived here, no. Seems he liked being alone for the most part. I think it drove him a bit kooky.” Kames finally had enough of the man’s accusations. He stood up and spoke, “Trustman Traks might have been a bit selfish, but he was an honest man! I refuse to believe he suddenly had a change of heart and became someone like that. Are you even an informant, or a man who finds enjoyment in spreading falsities among your community?”

The entire pub looked at Kames with disbelief. Wight was caught up in it, as people saw them walking together. Wight stood up and whispered to Kames,” Seems we’ve caused enough of a ruckus for today, friend. What say we call it a night and leave the investigation for tomorrow?” Kames stormed out of the pub, leaving Wight to deal with the rest. As he was walking away, Vuuto tugged at his clothing.

“The drink was for my throat. How about a coin for my work?” he asked Wight. Wight grunted and tossed another 10 dim coin at the man, running after Kames to make sure he didn’t get himself in trouble.

****

Kames couldn’t stand the thought of his old friend being slandered like this. He wouldn’t do this, would he? Wight walked out after him, his coat getting stuck in the door. It took a bit for him to pull it out, at which point he dusted himself off and began speaking. “I’m guessing you and this Traks person had some sort of working relationship?” Kames laughed at what he said. “Yeah, something like that. It was more of a ruler advisor thin-“ A fist caught him on the side of the jaw before he could finish his sentence. Wight immediately burned the water in his satchel, releasing steam into the air, blinding their attackers for a second.

He ran over to Kames, only to notice that the man had gotten into a fighting pose. He whispered to Wight, “Think you can keep this fog up? It’d really help me out if you could.” Wight nodded as Kames put on some knuckledusters. One on each hand. They looked metallic, with the tops blunt. Kames disappeared into the steam that Wight had released. Wight himself decided to take care of the men with weapons first. He ran up to a man in the corner.

The thug swung his small blade at the man, Wight had to push himself with steam to get out of the way for that one. He kicked up some dirt into the man’s eyes, blinding him. That wasn’t the main purpose, however, as Wight raised his hand to the man’s face and blasted it with hot steam, burning it. Had his eyes been open, it would have done some sort of permanent damage. The man fell down, dropping his blade in the process.

Another man with a small cudgel faced off with Kames. He saw Kames charging at him, so he swung his cudgel in a wide arc. It seemed to pass through the homlin man, behind him being another Kames. The second one was as solid as could be, as the thug found out after the wind was knocked out of his lungs. The fake out had worked perfectly. By now, the steam had cleared up, leaving only a few remaining a small distance away. Kames used his Wheel again, making the thugs feel as though someone was tapping on their backs. They all looked back, giving Wight enough time to launch himself forward and throw a burst of steam at two of the men’s faces. Kames ran to the last person, creating an illusion on the right of the thug’s field of vision.

Positioning mattered when it came to Trick Wheels the most. Illusions couldn’t be created right in front of a person, lest they find out that it is indeed an illusion. The man, however, was tricked long enough for Kames to hit him hard on his ribs, likely cracking one.

The man fell down hard on the ground. If the hit hadn’t cracked a rib, that fall must have. Wight and Kames nodded to each other before one of them spoke up. “Steam? Really?” Kames asked. “Buzz off, it has a multitude of uses,” Wight replied. “Yes, if I’m ever in the mood for a relaxing day at the spa, I need only call upon you. Or if I’m fancying a nice serving of rice,” Kames said with a smile. “Or if you feel as though you want to embrace your scalin origins and peel off your skin. I could help with that process greatly.” “Duly noted,” Kames declared.

“These men will be incapacitated for a bit. Let’s see if we can’t get some information out of them, shall we?” Wight asked. Kames nodded in agreement.