Death Of Yordles

“You’re looking at him,” Shinu stated.  It was rare that Shinu got civilian visitors in his office.  If there was a death to be investigated, most people turned to the police as their first source, not the coroner himself.  Shinu often only got the assignments from the police after they were done investigating.

“And what can I do for you today?” he repeated, eyeing the yordle momentarily.  The visitor had a strange accent not of the city, giving Shinu the thought that the other yordle originated from some other city, like Piltover or Bilgewater.

“Y’mind if we talk about this inside? ‘nuff people seen me with tears and whatnot…I’d hate to start up again with the cryin’ when I try to explain this.” Hudson requested as he looked away to once again to wipe his nose.

Once they were both inside, Shinu closed the door and walked over to his desk.  In one swift movement, he hopped onto the tabletop and sat on the edge of it.  The yordle leaned back slightly, gripping the edge with both of his hands.

Inside the office, Shinu laid back on his chair with his feet on the table, reading a book.  To the right of him sat a small stack of papers, all neatly organized and complete.  To the left of him laid his pet rat, Ambrose, who was perfectly content staring at the wall and doing nothing.  All in all, the office lacked activity today, like most other days.

The nice thing about being a coroner in Bandle City is that deaths rarely occur, which unsurprisingly leaves the reaper with a lot of free time.

A deep voice resonated inside his head.  There are still two deaths that you have to investigate, you know.

The yordle glanced at the rat.  “I know, Ambrose, but the police still has to recover the bodies.  Until then, they’re not my problem.”  He turned his attention back to the book.  “Besides,” he added, “they’re expected to be delivered by tomorrow, so we’ll have plenty on our hands by then.”

Shinu didn’t get farther than two pages before he heard a knocking on his door.  Sighing, he set his book aside and got up with Ambrose hopping into the pocket of his robe.  The yordle wasn’t exactly dressed professionally, but he didn’t care - being an irreplaceable coroner had its benefits.

He opened the door and stared at the sniveling yordle in front of him.  Shinu’s expression didn’t change, as he’s had years of experience dealing with all sorts of people, whether they were mourning, angry, or just batshit crazy.

“And what can I do for you today?”

@the-zaunite-loan-shark

Young yordle, casual clothing, lowered ears…some kind of pet in his pocket? This doesn’t seem like the guy he was looking for at all. Maybe this was some sort of unpaid intern of some sort? Is that what they called them? Whatever they were called, Hudson wasn’t going to abandon ship just yet. A little faith in an informant goes a long way after all. 

Sniff, sniff.

“Ey there, boss. Pardon the waterworks, but I’m uh…”

Sniff.

The nice thing about being a coroner in Bandle City is that deaths rarely occur, which unsurprisingly leaves the reaper with a lot of free time.

A deep voice resonated inside his head.  There are still two deaths that you have to investigate, you know.

The yordle glanced at the rat.  “I know, Ambrose, but the police still has to recover the bodies.  Until then, they’re not my problem.”  He turned his attention back to the book.  “Besides,” he added, “they’re expected to be delivered by tomorrow, so we’ll have plenty on our hands by then.”

Shinu didn’t get farther than two pages before he heard a knocking on his door.  Sighing, he set his book aside and got up with Ambrose hopping into the pocket of his robe.  The yordle wasn’t exactly dressed professionally, but he didn’t care - being an irreplaceable coroner had its benefits.

He opened the door and stared at the sniveling yordle in front of him.  Shinu’s expression didn’t change, as he’s had years of experience dealing with all sorts of people, whether they were mourning, angry, or just batshit crazy.

“And what can I do for you today?”

He walked out of the forest shade, revealing himself in the moonlight bit by bit.  The yordle approached the carcasses and knelt by the younger one, carefully examining the body and smearing a finger against the spilled blood.  “I can take care of myself, thank you,” he stated, staring at the blood on his finger before cleaning it off and rising up to his feet.

“Hmmf.  Unfortunate that this one died.  Passionate, but also foolish to accept a suicidal task for his age.  He could’ve grown up to be something great.”

 A small figure poked its head out of the yordle’s robe pocket, staring at the two carcasses before raising its head towards the reaper.

You say the same thing for all of them.

The yordle ignored the voice in his head and turned to the other one.  He closed his eyes and took a deep breath through his nostrils before continuing.  “It’s not just blood that’s present, either.  There’s magic here, too.  Strong magic.  It must be residue left by the creature after his mauling.”

Or it could be the magic bow this one conjured up.

He arrived at the conclusion that the lack of aversion to the gore around him wasn’t a learned behaviour, and that Shinu was probably another nutcase. The bow throbbed in his grip, sending a jolt up Esen’s wrist. The wielder glanced down and remembered himself, easing the throbbing into a silent hum.

“You look a little too young to be lamenting the dead. You act like you belong here, when you shouldn’t.”

His gaze rested at the corpses, and deep down he knew. He would not be able to bury them in time before the trail is lost. 

The dead will be carrion for the crows.

And yet this boy was not afraid, said it was unfortunate, and that he could take care of himself. The words stung in his head as he raised his bow, an arrow materialising in his hands as he nocked it. The bowstring protested at the force of his draw, but he didn’t care, he could always make another. 

He didn’t let go of his breath as he loosed, nor did he as the projectile tore up the ground in front of Shinu, scattering leaves and landing just a few inches short of his feet.

He crossed his arms and turned his attention back to the corpses, though his thoughts were primarily on the older yordle.  What was he doing here this late at night?  And how did he even know a shadow beast was out loose anyways?  He certainly didn’t seem like he was from a scouting party, much less from the city itself.

Probably a hunter, Shinu thought.  Maybe from the mountains... but where did he learn to use magic?

His thoughts were interrupted by the magic projectile firing straight towards him.  The yordle didn’t so much as flinch when the arrow notched itself right in front of his feed.

“Well,” Shinu began, crossing his arms and turning towards the other yordle.  “That’s one way to greet a stranger, though an action like that would be enough to arrest you in the city.  What are you doing out here, anyways?”

“They’re already dead. Don’t bother.”

The brown yordle spoke dispassionately to the presence behind him, wrinkling his snout at the stench that had pervaded the air. The younger of the dead had soiled himself before dying, darkened blood still oozing from large gashes on his person. The older was slammed into a tree, frozen in the act of reaching for his knife, his eyes staring on a thousand yards ahead.

“Scout officers.” He began, his voice thick with disdain. “Sent a youngling fresh out of some prissy school to track a Shadow Bear that ran afoul south of the mountains.” Without turning, he conjured a bow in his hands and planted it onto the ground. 

“You seem ill-dressed for a hike, or a hunt. Should I be concerned?”

He walked out of the forest shade, revealing himself in the moonlight bit by bit.  The yordle approached the carcasses and knelt by the younger one, carefully examining the body and smearing a finger against the spilled blood.  “I can take care of myself, thank you,” he stated, staring at the blood on his finger before cleaning it off and rising up to his feet.

“Hmmf.  Unfortunate that this one died.  Passionate, but also foolish to accept a suicidal task for his age.  He could’ve grown up to be something great.”

 A small figure poked its head out of the yordle’s robe pocket, staring at the two carcasses before raising its head towards the reaper.

You say the same thing for all of them.

The yordle ignored the voice in his head and turned to the other one.  He closed his eyes and took a deep breath through his nostrils before continuing.  “It’s not just blood that’s present, either.  There’s magic here, too.  Strong magic.  It must be residue left by the creature after his mauling.”

Or it could be the magic bow this one conjured up.

  “Er… yeah, I guess I am,” he said, scratching his head and wondering why he suddenly sounded so unconfident in his answer.  He stretched out his hand and shook it with Bard’s.

  “Er… yeah, I guess I am,” he said, scratching his head and wondering why he suddenly sounded so unconfident in his answer.  He stretched out his hand and shook it with Bard’s.

Teo’s “Almost 200 Followers” Giveaway!

Hey guys! Ever since hitting 175 a couple months ago I decided that I’d do a giveaway for 200. Well, I got tired of waiting, and the one-year anniversary of this blog is only a month away! This community has given me so much, and it’s about time I started to give back and giving my thanks, so this is my first of two giveaways that I currently have planned. This particular giveaway will only have one winner!

The prize: - A full color digitally painted portrait of one character of your choosing - Examples can be found here and here - You’ll receive both a solid background and transparent version

Rules:

You must have been following this blog prior to the start of this giveaway

Reblogging and liking count as one entry each, for a maximum of two entries

The winner will be chosen at random

Your ask box must be open in order for me to contact you if you win!

If the winner doesn’t respond within 3 days I will pick a new one

Play nice!!!

Zen reddened slightly under his fur at being scolded like that, but followed the librarian regardless. “Okay..” He mumbled, looking up at the books. “Um..sorry..mister.”

"Just stay quiet.  No need to disturb the other readers here, young 'un," he smiled.

The yordle’s ears perked up when he heard the knocks. He gazed through the floor at the front door, taking note of two lights standing there. A hand reached up to his left cheek, and grabbed a black scarf off the chair at his desk. Nocke draped it on his shoulders so it covered his mouth and the fresh scars before he went downstairs. With an breath in for confidence, he opened the door.

"Nocke, don’t be ridiculous," he sighed, irked by Nocke’s overly assumptive reaction.  "I’m just worried, that’s all.  If you do the same dangerous thing you did back before, you could get more scars like that, or something even worse could happen.  Now tell me: What happened?"

Meanwhile, Ambrose tilted his head slightly at Nox.  He expected a more adverse reaction rather than a simple nod from the cat.

I can talk to you.  I can also speak a little bit of cat.

The rat walked closer towards the cat, still meeting his gaze.

Nox laughed to himself. He had not met a potential prey that could beg for mercy. This ‘Ambrose’ was becoming more interesting to him the more he spoke.

Alright. I’ll… bite. Clearly you’re not like others that I’ve hunted before. So what makes you so special?

Meanwhile, Ambrose circled around the cat's right paw.  He couldn't hear the cat's own thoughts as he wasn't a mind reader, but that didn't bother him very much.

I don't think you can talk.  But that's fine, I haven't met another animal that can communicate telepathically yet.