((s'alright, just a little challenge thats all))

Raine looked up at the Golem in thought, how does one explain something without words. She wondered if tracing her words in the air would be understandable to a golem. She traced some letters in the air as a start, looking cautiously at it as if asking weather this was acceptable. She traced the words, "Fool with kindness, steal when not looking"

Ruthie, sat on the cot waiting for everyone else to leave. Doing so gave her a few more moments to think. She ran her fingers over her secret pocket, and sure enough her key was still there. If only I could get to me room... She pondered, maybe then I might have something worthwhile on me body. Damn! Why didn't I bring me knife! She let out a disgruntled sigh and hopped off the cot to join the others trough the door. It was the smell of the room that got to her first. It was better than the previous room, almost livable in fact. She looked around. The others seem to have been paired off with their own golems. Ruthie sighed again. "When I said I wanted to be adopted, I meant by a real person!" She said under her breath. "Oh, well. I guess they ain't too bad then." She kicked the dirt at her feet and scanned the room again.

She looked over at the the contraption that appeared to be producing this golems. Glowing machinery? Had she not seen that before, she would've been shocked. Her orphanage had been in the factory district. She had been lulled to sleep to the sounds of people shouting, machines whining, pounding and groaning. She hung her head and waited.

With a pause and blank stare that suggested that the golem would have wanted a more detailed answer, the creature once more fed Raine a bit of it's extensive knowledge of crime.

"You should always learn about your mark first, as a poor mark or an overly aware or paranoid one would not be worth the risk you would need to take to rob them. Using the hustle and bustle of busy avenues is also recommended, as a pinch to dislodge a purse and the pull to steal it would be less noticeable when one is being pushed around by a crowd. You may note that such tactics could be used against you by other individuals, however. Now, tell us about how you would get about shop or stall-lifting." The golem obliviously did not care that the girl could not speak.

She nodded that she understood and then looked at the ground, contemplating how to answer, yet another question. Again she traced letters in the air. "Use busy, like with pickpocket. Wait until owners busy with other people. Sneak in unknowticed and take in small window"

She put her hands down at her sides and waited to find out if she did good this time. She knew she didn't know very much but she had to keep trying. That was the point of the game, wasn't it.

The golem wasted no time in greeting Ruthie and telling her about what would happen in the next hour. Like it's counterparts, it asked her if she understood it's instruction before it started the true lesson.

Ruthie looked at the golem that had approached her and nodded. She understood alright. Had they not told her that they were going to train her already? She had been waiting for it all night. She couldn't wait to learn, because learning meant she could leave sooner.

((asdfg, the " have gone too, now DX... Have to borrow and copy paste them.))

The golem seemed satisfied by the girl's answer and walked to the closed door to open it once more, letting through the cold breeze wispering whrough the entirety of the prison.

"That is acceptable for now. You may go on outside to earn you keep now. Unless you would prefer we accompany you?" The golem asked, looking at Raine once more and not seeming to care either way.

The golem could teach her some more in a more active environment but it would have to hide and was not the most reasuring or pleasant of company...

She looked at the golem for a moment thinking to herself, did she want to learn more from them in a more active environment. She didn't particularly like the things company, but then it COULD probably teach her some new things along the way. She was torn, she generally preferred to work alone. She took a long time to answer the question, probably long enough to be annoying, before finally writing with her finger. "I try alone" she said after a long while.

((my posts are so blah these last couple days. Sorry Artsy))

"We will begin by asking you to demonstrate how you would go about to beg for food and money. After you are done, we will help you polish your no doubt raw skill to something a little more viable, as begging is the most basic and therefore initially vital skill we will teach you." The golem said to Ruthie, waiting for her to start her act.

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((It's alright, I'll give you more stuff to work with in Raine' first Grand Adventure, maybe that'll help you then!))

"As you wish," the creature said as it stated to leave the cell, "you may want to leave our hunt for a day, as we will start to make it more secure and liveable for you and your young companions. Do not waste time and go out to find sustenance and currency, as we know you must be starving by now. Come back tomorrow night at the latest or we will hunt you down." With that the golem walk away into the darkness, apparently off to clean up the prison.

Raine should find the front door and leave for the day, as irritating the golems by her presence would be unwise.

((Poo-ey lols, I left all my stuffs upstairs xP))

Raine knew better then to irritate the golem's by staying. She may be full of herself but she wasn't stupid. She thought longingly of her stuff upstairs but thought it best not to even go for them. She could get the stuff again later that night if the golem didn't take it before then. She still had the rock, at least that she could use if she needed to. She left the room after the golem and slowly made her way back towards the staircase upwards. Eventually she reached the first floor and the door she could only assume led to the outside world. She placed her hand on the handle. The had told her to leave for the day after all. She just needed to remember to come back, thats all. She pushed the door open and stepped into the fresh air.

((But Raine will not need to sweep the floor, it will be done for her, success! *-*))

The front yard of the prison was quite a sight, with the front gate leading to the world outside torn off it's hinges and the walls half destroyed by some kind of explosive. The ground was scarred by deep holes filled by last night's rain and the road leading out of the prison premise was full of debris. A sole tree laid now dead to Raine's right, toppled over a destroyed well, to her left an old makeshift cemetery.

Nothing was left but desolation and death in this place, and Raine should go on in her journey, as the sun was already chasing away the pink of dawn.

((Good point, I don't miss having to walk across that glass again. The picture of the golems cleaning makes me giggle though.))

A destroyed tree and well, an isolate cemetery, and a broken gate to boot. She had no idea, when she thought back on it, why she had expected the outside to be less broken then the inside. She looked about her in what was almost pity, almost but not quite. After all Raine was damn near incapable of a useless feeling such as pity. She merely rolled her eyes a bit in annoyance and then carefully made her way over the debris that littered the path. There was clearly nothing for her to find here. The golem had been right, she was starting to feel slightly hungry. She was used to having very little food though so her stomach would hold out until she could beg or steal some. She made her way out the front gate cautiously and took one look at the prison before heading out.

((Should I put them in a pink apron? And real geography ftw!))

About ten minutes of walking to the west bound road found Raine near the cathedral city of Lichfield, as a nearby sign proclaimed. The golems obliviously did not account sleep and resting periods when they said that Manchester was 'a day walk north' of the prison.

Indeed, the sign further proclaimed Manchester to be sixty six miles away and in the same road as Rugeley, that was to the north-west seven miles away. Various small village surrounded the city on nearly all side and Raine could either try her luck in Lichfield of try for one of the smaller villages nearby.

Raine had to choose were to go for the day.

((Golems be trolling... or just don't care.))

The young boy thought about what the task the golem wanted him to perform. It didn’t take long for him to decide upon the method he would use to beg for coins. Taking advantage of one of his weaknesses he would beg. Nathanial limped forward, stumbling slightly before allowing himself to fall in front of the golem. A small yelp of pain came from him as he hit the hard floor. He looked up at golem pathetically. "Spare some change sir?” He pleaded as he made a bad attempt to get back to his feet. The boy hoped that this attempt at begging would work.

Aydan blinked at the golem, this was new to him, after all he never begged, that was the lowest of the low to him and he had dignity, though he did know his sister begged when he was off snatching food and drier clothes from stalls, but now he had to beg for his life and he didn't even know where to start. The minutes ticked away as he stood there, staring at the golem with his only working eye before he took a deep breathe and let it out slowly, he then sat on the floor, trying to make an expression that his sister always had. The starving look wasn't hard cause he was starving, had been starving for a while now. "Pleease jewst a bit o' breead for a blind lad?" he said as much in a begging way as he could, which he failed since it sounded more like a statement then him asking or begging, he tried to stare straight a head but he couldn't help looking up at the golem to see his reaction.

Raine walked down the gravel road towards, well where she wasn't even sure, but towards her first time out on the job. She really just hoped she didn't screw it up. She walked for about ten minutes when she came across a sign for a nearby city. Slowly she read the sign, at least she knew her reading would get stronger. But these words where rather big for her. After some deep thought she determined that they where names of cities. The numbers she though must be ....distance. 66 seemed like a big number. Probably best to try not to make that trip with the one day she had been allotted.

Her only other choice was either the smaller number or the city that was in front of her. She knew her time was ticking away as she thought about this. Her stomach let out a tiny little growl and she rolled her eyes. Lichfield it was then. She took a deep breath and then headed towards the entrance of town.

Nathanial

The golem nodded at Nathanial, showing it's approval as it said: "Very good, you will do well on this front. Now, we require you to show us how you would go about stealing and object from a bag." With those words, the golem took out a small fabric travelling bag from a dark nook in the stone wall and put a notebook inside it. "You will be required to steal this notebook from our possession without being oblivious about it to proceed. You may start."

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Aydan

"Pitiful", the golem said as it gazed at Aydan with what seemed like disgust on it's blank visage. "This may take a while, so listen carefully..."

The creature then started teaching the boy the basic of begging for the next hour, demonstrating some things and simply explaining others. Aydan learned to not follow people with his eyes while pretending to be blind and to not be such a big ham about his pleading.

"You will learn no more about this subject from us unless you provide us with payment," the golem finally said in it's emotionless voice. "Now, show us how you would go about stealing this coin purse from our person." As it said the words, it took out said coin purse from a corner of the cell and tied it to it's scarred hips.

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Raine

Lichfield was a small city build around a cathedral, Raine saw, the streets were wide and all seemed to lead to the imposing structure. As it was Sunday morning, the town was emptied, all it's inhabitants off to the Sunday service as religious chants, deep organ melodies and the resonating sounds of bells filled the city.

The few stalls and shops Raine could see were closed and the doors to the various homes lining the streets she walked down were locked tight.

What should Raine do?

Raine heard the chanting and the bells, and they frightened her slightly. She shivered and vaguely wondered if she should turn around and go to that other village on the sign. She also wondered where all the people where. The streets where, well, too empty. She was frightened, but then she thought about the golems back at the prison, shivered again, and thought to herself, the golems are definitely worse.

She tried the shop doors and stalls, hoping for one to be open for the taking, but she found them all hopelessly locked up tight. She let out a small sigh. She could NOT go back empty handed on her first day. She looked about her desperate for some person to beg borrow or steal from.....well perhaps not borrow. Then she looked up at the imposing building with all the chanting.....and suddenly she felt it....the people where there.

She gulped, and walked towards the big building.

As Raine approached the cathedral, she soon saw that the entire structure was made of exquisitely sculpted stone and complex mosaics, three spires topped with crosses seemed to reach to the heaven and touch it. Solemn statues of clergy men and saints stared down at her from their perch on the upper walls of the façade, as if they were judging her. The heavy wooden doors were opened, letting through the hymns and chants of the believer and permitting the girl to see beyond them to the main chamber.

To her left was a small forest, and to her right yet more houses.

Should Raine enter the 'house of God'?

Raine looked back and forth from the houses to the cathedral to the forest. She could maybe find something edible in that forest if she tried. But all the people where in that big ol'building in front of her. Her legs kept trying to go to the forest, but her mind knew she should go to the cathedral. Slowly, and quietly she crept into the church, and looked around her, shivering at the people in the church.

Inside the cathedral was what seemed the whole city praying with a few priests and a bishop. The interior was as imposing as the exterior with it's high arches, gated walkways and numerous carved wooden benches, and Raine was momentarily blinded by the light cascading down the massive faceted windows.

The citizen were all dressed in they best fineries and occasionally dropped coins inside a pouch passed around by small boys in white robes.

In front of Raine was a walkway leading to the bishop on his pedestal and on both of her sides were long empty corridors.

Raine watched almost hungerly as the finely dressed people dropped coins into pouches. Just one of those pouches would earn her a little less down cast from the golems. Her hand pressed around the sharp stone and contemplated ways to get those young boys away from the crowd. She could threaten them, but all those people looked very attentive, and she doubted she would get very far with it anyways. However where there was one coin there must be others right? She decided to back off for now and wait until the people left the building. Surly in the chaos she could gather something. For now she headed down the left corridor while she waited.

The service ended one hour later, the bishop mumbling one last sermon as the churchgoers stood up and slowly started to leave the cathedral. The altar boys and priests, however, walked beyond a door behind the organ and pedestal.

Now would be a good time for Raine to try her luck.

Raine followed them out of the cathedral. She longingly looked back at the boys but, she remembered her lesson of earlier, the crowd was probably her better bet. She scanned the area looking for someone as a target. Finally she spotted a woman with a bag not too unlike the one the golem taught her with and made her move. She was small, smaller then most in the crowd so she slipped through them until she sneaked up on the target and poked a hole in the bag like they had practiced this morning. She only hoped the bag would give way. She held her breath and stayed close.

((I hope this is ok?))

The bag ripped, but did the woman notice it through the noise and bustle of the exiting crowd?

[dice]3[/dice]