On patrol...

[Phenominon]

Ticedo trudged into the market district and sighed. Earlier that morning, his captain had taken him off of guard duty and assigned him patrol of the market district, saying 'you'll enjoy it more' and 'it'll give you a chance to familiarize yourself with the city'. While it was all true, guard duty was very dull and performing it since he arrived here meant that he never really found a good chance to familiarize himself with the place, he found it disconcerting that he'd suddenly have to deal with both at the same time. "I guess it can't be helped." he muttered to himself. He checked the map the captain had provided him one last time, and began walking along his patrol route.

[Solum]

While Ticedo was patrolling the street, he may have heard the sounds of someone crying out "Thief", followed by a member of the Renard species running by.

After failing to robe from that one man, Ricalser had moved back to the streets to find new prey. He was starting to give up hope when all of a sudden a rather pompous and well-off person walked by, a bag of coins sitting nicely in plain sight. It didn't take much for him to take it after a quick shift to weasel form, but it was during the shift back that he had been spotted, leading now to the chase as he dashed his way through the crowds.

[Phenominon]

Ticedo was looking around in a bit of days, trying to learn the layout of the city all at once. Then, from the midst of the crowd he heard a distinct cry of 'thief!' and snapped back to attention just in time to see a someone dart past, presumably trying to be lost in the crowd. After a moments hesitation to process what just happened, Ticedo gave chase.

In other circumstances, the thief likely be getting away, Ticedo was thinking. My armor slows me down, and even if I weren't wearing it I bet he'd still be faster than me, the way he moves. But given the crowd, the armor was working in his favor. While the thief had to push and maneuver his way through, people hurried to get out of Ticedo's way, what with his heavy armor and the racket he was making running down the street in it. Many moved without even realizing he was a guard. When he got close enough to the thief, he lunged, trying to grab him.

[Solum]

Sadly for Ticedo, the Renard are a naturally perceptible bunch. As he ran he noticed the crowds behind him opening up, and so he had assumed someone had begun chasing him. The sounds of clanking armor helped that idea, so he decided to play a simple game of chicken with the man. He just kept running, keeping an ear out for any signs of the man trying to lunge.

When it sounded like he was about to, Ricalser quickly made a hard right straight into an alleyway. An amatuer thief would turn around and glance at their handywork, but Ricalser knew he had to keept going. Seeing a nearby window, he used it as a base to jump up onto a roof, where he would be much safer from a heavily armored man.

[Phenominon]

Ticedo lunged- and grabbed nothing but air. The Renard had waited until the last second before darting down an alleyway, and it took a couple seconds for Ticedo to regain his balance. He looked back just in time to see the thief jump off of a window onto a roof, and began to run off over the rooftops, leaving Ticedo standing there panting slightly from the chase.

But he wasn't a man to give up so soon, and after thinking for a moment and briefly checking his map, Ticedo began to follow the Renard at a moderate jog. Running on the rooftops made the thief difficult to get to get to, but easy to spot as long as you were looking for him. He has to come down sometime, Ticedo thought, and when he does I'll be waiting for him. The thief had already gone far enough that he wasn't likely to notice Ticedo following him from the ground, and Ticedo made sure to maintain that distance.

[Solum]

Ricalser kept running on the roof tops, jumping over them whenever necessary. He knew that as long as he was up here he was safe, but was in clear view of any guards. Sooner or later he would have to come down, and he already had a plan for that. Concentrating on the meager amount of magic he had, he felt his form start to shift as his transformation magic kicked in. His form began to shift into that of a weasel, though at the moment he still looked like a Renard. As soon as he hit another jump point, however, he fell into the alley. As soon as he touched ground he ran into the crowds, fully formed into a weasel.

[Phenominon]

Ticedo continued to watch the thief as he jumped back to the ground, eager to continue pursuit. But the then the thief seemed to disappear into the crowd. He looked around frantically. "No..." he muttered to himself. "NOOOO! AAUUUGH!" he then yelled, which he punctuated by slamming the nearby wall with his fist. A couple passersby gave him funny looks. He calmed down and said quietly to himself "...I've failed again..."

He slumped against the wall and remained in that position in a depressed stupor for a good 20 minutes before he mustered the will to continue on his patrol. He rose sullenly and trudged further down the streets of the market district...

[Solum]

Ricalser eventually stopped running after he heard a man yelling out in the crowd. He had a feeling that things were now safe, but just in case he headed into an alleyway before shifting back into his normal form. Pulling out the bag of coins, he started to shift through them to make sure they were real; they were. Satisfied at his haul, he kept the coins and threw the bag into the streets. He had no need for it, and things were safer in his pockets. His first stop; a tavern and a good, hot meal.