[center][h3]--- [i]Eastern Part of Town[/i] ---[/h3]
[h2][i][b][color=6ecff6]Rinn Arniman[/color][/b][/i][/h2]
Interactions: [@xaltwind], [@ERode][/center]
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Rinn let out a sighed chuckle as his handkerchief was refused and he tucked the article back into his pocket. He watched the strange treasure hunter for a few minutes as she practically rolled through the dirtiest corners she could find in her search for... anything? She was certainly a strange one, though he couldn't fault her enthusiasm for the task. As she crashed her way through yet another derelict shop, Rinn occupied himself by looking further around the forge. As with the other locals, not one hint of what might have happened to the previous residents remained with broken dishware and rusted tools still in their cabinets and drawers. He carefully inspected what remained with a layman's eye but was no closer to unraveling the mystery when he spotted the wooden pedestal tucked away in one corner of the room, half obscured by a ragged sheet.

Pulling it away he coughed and waved a hand against the dust cloud he had generated but as it cleared he let out a thoughtful hum. The piece was rather brilliantly crafted, with delicate engravings hand carved along its wooden length. His finger traced the odd symbol on its face but there was no indication of what might have once been displayed. It must have been something rather marvelous to outshine the pedestal itself.

After carefully placing the pedestal just outside the front door, he made a mental note to retrieve it later as it seemed a worthy place to display his vielle, Rinn walked around the proper home attached to the smithy. It was a simple residence, or had once been before dereliction, but now wind whistled through the wall's many holes and cracks and a better portion of the roof had completely collapsed. There was little to see and Pickaxe-Girl had indicated nothing left to scavange, but Rinn still busied himself with a careful walk along the rotted floor boards. He came upon a bookcase in an old bedroom, stripped but for a hand full of volumes that simply crumbled to ash when he tried to pick them up. He could not even identify their titles, let alone what knowledge they might have once contained. Though he had never been a book worm, it made him a little sad to think someone had once cherrished the books yet had chosen, [i]or been forced[/i], to leave them behind. 

So lost in thought he was that Rinn couldn't help but start at the sudden gleeful shout of triumph from next door as Pickaxe-Girl found something of note. His sudden step back landed square on a particularly weak board and as it cracked he pitched sideways with a yelp of surprise. One hand instinctively grabbed the bookshelf for support but that too simply splintered apart at his sudden application of weight. Rinn went down hard as the bookshelf toppled though he managed to twist himself out of the way of the solid wood furniture piece as it crashed into the floor and broke apart.

The bard lay on the floor coughing for a moment, suddenly worried such a disturbance might bring the rest of the house down around him but after a few heartbeats it seemed things had settled. He sat up with a groan, rubbing his now-bruised shoulder, but spotted something that had been concealed beneath the bookshelf. Unlike the other books he had found, this leather-bound tome didnt immediately fall apart as he picked it up off the floor. An ominous creak from above gave him all the warning he needed to quickly struggle to his feet and make his way out the door and back out into the street. Pickaxe-Girl was walking towards him from up the road, looking just as dishelved as he though her face sported a triumphant grin. [color=6ecff6]"I take it you found something more interesting than a barrel, my lady?"[/color] He coughed again, clutching the book at his side as the entire roof of the smithy suddenly collapsed inward with a thunderous crash.