***** Erebor Time & Weather Service ******************************************

** Real time is: Fri Mar 17 06:55:55 2000, GMT -8 ** 
Elendor time is: Late Night (2 AM) on Sunday, 30 October 3019. 
In the Autumn sky, The waning gibbous moon rides through the firmament like a
gleaming ship. 

****************************************** Erebor Time & Weather Service *****

Ardin

Ardin is a young looking dwarf with brown hair and eyes the colour of jade. He
wears a dark green jacket matching his eyes, a blue shirt, dark brown baggy
trousers and sturdy boots. If outside, Ardin wears a maroon felt hat. On his
hands, he carries several rings with big gems, around his neck he wears a big
golden necklace with a halibut shaped, sky blue sapphire.

Caitlin

Each strand of dark spiraled hair has been painstakingly drawn back and
interwoven into submission then bound with a simple leather band. Such a simple
hairstyle makes this woman's softly rounded face look closer to one of teen
years then one closing out her twenties. A tiny pair of golden rimmed
spectacles sit upon the bridge of rather small and non-descript nose. If truth
be told, the only feature worth notice upon her face rests below her hazel
eyes, spectacles and nose - soft well drawn lips. 

 Her frame is small and well structured. She covers it in a gown of
non-descript fabric and plain colour. The gown is split at the front, perhaps a
slit beyond the limits of decency. And yet peeking from between the split is
the black of her pants tucked into the tops of a pair of finely crafted leather
boots.

Center of Merchant's Way

  During the day the traffic through this area is extreamly heavy. Boxes,
crates, and other such transport pass back and forth through Cargo Lane. All
the goods brought from the docks to the south come up from Cargo Lane to either
be brought to the Market Square to the north, or to be kept in some of the
storage rooms here when they aren't suited for storage in the warehouses at the
docks. Merchant's Way crosses right through Cargo Lane and runs to the east and
west.

  Two marked doorways stand in the buildings along the southern side of
Merchant's way and on either side of Cargo Lane. The doorway to the east of
Cargo Lane is the entrance to the Merchants Guild, the one on the west is the
to Crafts Guild. The rivalry over the years between these two guilds has been
great, but one can not survive without the other.

Obvious exits:
 Copper Doors leads to Crafts Guild.
 Brass Doors leads to Merchants Guild.
 North up the cargo lane leads to The Market Square.
 South down the cargo lane leads to Esgaroth Docks, Western End.
 East along the street leads to Avenue of Tales and Merchant's Way.
 West along the street leads to Bowman Street and Merchant's Way.

Caitlin comes down into the street from Cargo Lane.

The moon's pale light casts black shadows in the alley. Everything is quiet
until suddenly something crashes to the ground somewhere and shouting and
cursing errupts in the darkness ahead. A door is opened and the flickering
orange light of torches and lanterns chase spidery shadows through the
darkness. A dwarf stumbles out into the street, burdened by a huge bag, "Tarin,
you miserable dog, I don't believe your arrogance! Get thee gone!" he roars.
"Shut up Ardin and finish packing if you truly want to leave tomorrow!"
somebody shouts before slamming the door. Out in the darkness, Ardin puts the
bag to the ground and groans, "O why do I have to do this? Why o why?"

[Caitlin(#29321)] Standing enveloped in the darkness, two cloaked figures watch
with mild amusmenet as the dwarf appears to be tossed out on his ear. The pair
exchange a few words through a silent exhcange of hand gestures. This seems to
be enough for one who steps out of the shadows. 

Grinning ear to ear the young lad approaches the dwarf. Placing a hand on his
shoulder her offers to help, "Would ya be need'n assistance sir?"
Smoke pours from Mt. Doom as the Dark One's evil sorcery lags the game.
The smoke clears as good triumphs and the database saves.

Ardin whips around, hand on his dagger, saying "Hands Off, Thief!" With his
left hand he gropes around on the bag, looking for something. As he doesn't
find anything, he stretches to his full height and says, "Have you no light on
you, so that I may see your face, stranger? I am not in need of any help, the
stable is right across the street, thank you."

[Caitlin(#29321)] As quickly as it appeared, the smile on the young man's face
disappears, "Is that how all ya dwarven folk greet those who wish to aid them?"
He spits on the ground by Ardin's feet, "Perhaps just for that I will take your
bag?"

Ardin says, "Now now, let's not be hasty now, shall we?" Leaving his right hand
on his dagger, he takes the bag with his left hand and drags it with him as he
starts walking backwards, towards the door.

[Caitlin(#29321)] A sharp whistle emits from the lads mouth, and two other
figures step out from the shadows of the alley way behind the dwarf. They
themselves begin to walk, aiming for the same door as Ardin. Folding his arms
across his chest the young lad smiles once more at Ardin, "If ya set the bag
down - we won't touch ya..."

Ardin let's go of the bag. Suddenly he hollers like a raging boar, "To arms!
Thieves! Tarin! Ilin! Come out now!!!" He draws his dagger and tries to keep an
eye on all three thieves.

[Caitlin(#29321)] The two thieves appraching from behind step along side of the
door. One of them places himself infront of it, ensuring that anyone who wants
to come out that door has to come through him first. The other begins to close
in more on Ardin as does his companion the young lad. 

The young lad, makes only the smallest of moves and a dagger of his own drops
into his hand, "Now why did ya go and do that for huh?" Shaking his head he
snakes his leg out and kicks the dropped bag behind him.

Ardin doesn't move at all. Only his eyes travel from the dagger in the youth's
hands to the two thieves by the door. He takes a step back again, into the
street. He takes another step checking left and right for further surprises.
Waiting. Suddenly, finally, heavy footfall can be heard inside the house.
Shouting, the clanging of gear.

[Caitlin(#29321)] Finally the last cloaked figure steps out from the shadows,
more diminutive the three other thieves this one bends down and grabs the sack.
Taking it in both thier hands this figure steps back and makes their way
quickly from the alley. Effectively disappearing....

The man by the door looks to the other two men left and makes a movement with
his hand. The lad before the dwarf, smiles once more, "It appears your
enforcements are on their way. And that is our cue to leave. " With a small bow
he takes a step back, "It was a pleasure doing business with you.." And he too
runs off into the darkness. 

The last two glance at each other and begin to back away from Ardin and the
growing commotion.

The door is kicked open and bright light floods the street. In the center of
the street, Ardin stands, without bag, dagger in his hand and desperately
trying to blink the glare away. Two dwarves spill out into the street, armed
with axes and a small buckler. A third dwarf, much younger, stays in the
doorway, carrying a huge lantern. He deposits a second large lantern into a
little niche to his left. One of the two warriors shouts "Robbed you, did they?
Miserable orcs! Cursed evil ungrateful stinking vermin! And you didn't defend
your wares, oh miserable cousin?" Ardin shouts back, "Stop whining and catch
the vermin! This way!" He points in the direction he saw his bag disappear. The
other warrior suddenly detects the other two thieves in the shadows by the
door, too close for comfort. He raises his axe and shouts, "Aye, there's one
hiding in the shadows!!" Ardin answers, "Tarin, follow me, Ilin, grab the dog
and stay!" He jumps ahead into the darkness, Tarin following him.

Long Lake shimmers gloriously, heralding the coming of the morning.

[Caitlin(#29321)] At the sign of the other dwarves one of the thieves left
behind bolts. He turns on his heel and runs down the length of the alley,
giving little to no thought to the one companion he left behind. 

The dwarfs cry seems to have roused more then just the others from inside,
more heavy footfalls can be heard coming from the marketplace. Within moments
two of the king's guard appear at the mouth of the alley, swords drawn. 

The last thief looks from dwarves to king's guard and drops to his knees.

Ardin and Tarin run full speed towards the guards. Suddenly they slow down,
surprised. Ardin hails the guards, "Thank you for your quick appearance,
guards! I was just robbed by four thieves. This is one of them, but we pursued
two others down this alley -- have you not seen them?" Both dwarves try to peek
into the marketplace, but they see nothing suspicious. The early birds are
opening their little shops. Nobody is obviously running away. "They must have
slipped into one of the side streets," says Ardin. He turns towards the
kneeling thief and says, "Maybe this villain knows where his friends are
hiding!" An evil grin accompanies his words.

[Caitlin(#29321)] With a brief shake of his head, the guardsman Victor steps
forward, "At this time of the morning it is hard to distinguish one of these
bottom dwellers from the merchants who carry their packs in on their backs." He
stands silently as his companion, Luthitic, closes in on the kneeling thief.
Gripping the back of the thief's cowl he draws the man to his feet, "Odd that
he just stayed..." Victor turns to Ardin, "Can you describe any of the others?"

Ardin nods, "Aye, there was a small mean looking one. He took the bag, so he
must be rather strong. I hope a cousin of mine caught the third one back in
front of the store, maybe we could go back and check what happened. Or find
some traces the may have left behind. What say you, officer?"

[Caitlin(#29321)] Victor steps forward, "Luthitic take that vermin to the
jailhouse, we'll question him later." A curt salute and Luthitic walks the
thief out the alleyway and up towards the jailhouse. 

Turning his attention to the dwarves assembled Victor continues, "Aye lets
take a look. It is not often these bastards leave a trace unless it is an
intended one.. but let us look..."

Ardin nods and turns back, leading his cousin and the officer back into
Merchant's Way. As they approach Ardin's store, they see a small crowd blocking
the space in front of the door. The store windows are still barred eventhough
day has broken. Ardin shouts, "People, let me pass, this is my store! Excuse
me, let me pass!" He pushes through the crowd, Tarin follows.

[Caitlin(#29321)] Victor stops and sheathes his sword. His voice calls out over
the growing crowd, "Everyone has 30 seconds to move before I call for more
guards!" Almost immediately the crowd begins to disperse, and the guard moves
on, "Destroying a crime scene..." Grumbling he follows behind Ardin, "Alright
tell me exactly what happened..."

You say, "I had just left the house with a big bag full of travel gear, you
know what it takes, tent, covers, food, knives, the complete thing, anyway. We
talked, then Tarin closed the door. I put down the bag for a moment. From the
shadows the first thief approached me, offering to help. I told him to go. Two
more appeared and tried to block my way back to the house. I put the bag on the
floor and shouted for help. At that, the last thief, the small one, appeared
and took the bag. The first and the last thief ran towards the market place,
taking the bag with them. The second thief, the one you caught, followed. The
third thief stayed behind and I ordered my cousing Ilin to take care of him."

As the crowd disappears, the fellows see Ilin lying on the doorsteps, bleeding
from a gash on his forearm. The young dwarf that had held the lanterns is
tending the wound. Tarin bends down and starts talking to Ilin. After a short
exchange he returns to Ardin and the officer, "Hrm, the thief carried a long
knife in his left hand and surprised Ilin. We had no time to arm ourselves." He
shoots Ardin a dark look. Ardin gives Ilin an encouraging nod and ignores the
look. He starts looking around. "Hm, can't see anything suspicious..."

[Caitlin(#29321)] Victor scratchs his beard, "So we have three escaped thieves,
one caught and no descriptions?" He grabs a local citizen who stayed behind by
the arm, "Fetch a healer.. and be quick about it..."

Ardin suddenly stops, takes two steps to the left and bends down. He picks up a
little something, a stone perhaps, or a pebble. He looks closer. "Intersting!"
he says, "Look at this!" He hands the pebble to Victor. It looks like a dark
brown marble with an intricate black swirling pattern. Ardin says, "Looks like
a piece of jewelry, doesn't it? We're also in the business of gem cutting, so
perhaps I could go around and ask a few friends of ours..."

[Caitlin(#29321)] Turning the small stone over and over in his gloved hands,
Victor archs a brow, "It looks like a fancy rock to me sir - but in this matter
I would trust your judgement more then mine. "Extending his hand he offers it
back to Ardin, "If you can identify the stones origin we would be most
thankful. Perhaps it can help us." Stepping past the dwarf he walks the alley
way for a few minutes. Crouching down he studies the footprints in the dust and
dirt, "Perhaps you would like to assist us in the interrogation sir?"

Ardin shakes his head, "Unfortunately, I have urgent business to attend to
which will take me out of Laketown for quite some time. My cousin Tarin here
will be in charge of all matters."

[Caitlin(#29321)] Sifting the dirt through his hand Victor grumbles, "I am
suprised they did not leave something this time..." Sighing he stands, "Then I
wish you a good journey master. We will notify Tarin if we recover your goods,
which I admit I have my doubts about..." Brushing his hands off he salutes the
dwarves present, "I need to report in...good day"

Ardin nods, "Thank you for your concern, sir. Tarin will inform you if he
discovers anything interesting for this jewel. Have a nice day." He waves and
watches the officer disappear amongst the people that are populating Merchant's
Way. "Damn, this will delay me even longer. What are you waiting for, Tarin?
Let's get going and prepare the entire mess, again!"