Vyshael pales, and quickly raises his hand, whispering the words to one of the firs spells he learned then points, firing a ray of life at the foul thing. As it connects, he calls out, "It's a vampire... a type of vampire that's tougher than normal, but can't make spawn."
for
Gasping at the news, Neva quickly removed a scroll from her pouch, read the inscription and placed a ward on Rutter.
Rutter pauses in his approach when he hears Vyshael's warning, remembering their last encounter with vampires. He quickly shakes it out of his head in order to come up with another plan. "It sounds like we did you a favor, then, by clearing out the other residents. You can repay us by giving us this kid. He's the only reason we came here."
Vyshael recognizes the man for what he is, and quickly launches a beam of greenish light at him. It just barely manages to hit and he lets out the mildest hint of even acknowledging the injury. Neva, instead prepares to protect one of her own in the manner they needed to get Felgar back from the last group of them they faced. Rutter however is erring more on the side of caution, but still makes a bold claim.
"You dare enter my lab and attack me during parley, then demand I repay you? Your insolence comes with a heavy price, how you wish to pay is up to you." He snarls with incredulity at the notion.
Pay?
”Well, I think we are working at cross purposes here. Some are talking, some are attacking, but you really can’t claim we’ve hurt you yet. Perhaps we can start over. It’s been a most trying day, really, and you’re not catching us at our best. I, for one, really don’t know anything about vampires and wouldn’t mind hearing some of your stories. You must have seen many things, right?”
The nosferatu sneers, "I'm not here to entertain you with tales. It would be better if I didn't have to be here at all, but I'm at an impasse. I have purpose elsewhere. Control your dwarf, and mayhaps we might reach an agreement worth my time."
The gnome shrugs and nods. ”Oh, absolutely, I’m sure you have more important things to do. I was just trying to find something more productive than yet another fight. What sort of agreement did you have in mind? The dwarf in question is rather independent, so his knowing the terms will go a long way to determining whether he works with us or against us in this effort. I’m sure you’ve known others like that.”
Alarmed at the pale man's resilience, and then flabbergasted at Feldivar's chattiness, Raliscar turns slowly around to regard the group with wide, incredulous eyes. "Now, I know you weren't there, Feldy, but if Rutter's right about who that is lyin' on that slab there, then-" His sentence drops abruptly as a realization dawns on him and the dwarf slowly turns back to regard the pale man before them. "Yer Rolth then, aren't ye?"
Vyshael watches Feldar closely, righteous fury burning within him, Parley with vampires? Has he been dominated? Doesn't he know the evil....
He stops as his rational, logical mind engages, I know, after the daemonic thing we're in no shape to fight this.. Thing... But allowing it to live and spread it's evil is ... wrong! Except that, unlike a living foe, we can't hope to get lucky and go for mutual destruction - we fight, we lose, and even if we take him with us, he just goes off to his coffin while the rest of us stay dead....
His face twitches as the argument within him continues to rage, and his hands whiten as he grips his mother's blade even tighter. If we can get the boy and go, then that's a victory, especially if this one no longer supports the Greys... But... Still....
Neva felt her breath coming and going rapidly, ready for a fight, but her mind sensed that Feldy had other plans and her exhaustion made her wait and see.
She took a less aggressive pose and listened intently to the words being exchanged, hoping this would help defuse the situation long enough for Feldy to finish his ploy.
"Yeah, shootin' you is like calling me 'short'. Don't act injured. So where is it you need to be since you got 'purpose elsewhere'?"
"Rolth? Ha!" His laugh is cold and mirthless, "I'm no hack playing with undeath like a toy. I've had more years to forget more than he's learned about the subject." He pauses, and cocks his head with a light squint, "Wait, you haven't dealt with Rolth yet." he states rather than asks. "How much of this place have you left untouched? You are worn out, and still barely scratched the surface, so you need my deal more than ever. Very well, let us speak, that you may be able to offer me what I seek."
He folds his hands, his left held palm up, as the right rests atop it with long fingers curled like spider legs around the other palm. He starts with a small sneer of disgust, "I want to leave this filthy city, with its stink of salt air and fish. The constant press of filthy bodies, mindless cattle, plodding along through their petty useless lives. Forced here by my master, I wish only to return home to my laboratory and studies. For that, I need coin. I will sell you this," he waves casually and disinterestedly toward Ruan, "Varisian, that seems to interest you, for a mere two thousand gold to finance my travels."
Raliscar balks at the price offered. "It's plain ye take us for fools, but do ye take us fer obscenely wealthy ones at that? Who in their right mind brings that kind o' coin along for a fight against a troop's worth o' mud-suckin' cultists?"
At the offer, Vyshael tightens his grip on his sword even more and takes a step back, I can't be a part of this... negotiation.... I can't abet this evil thing by giving it resources.
"We are not wealthy, I am afraid, but we are not without resources. We could possibly transport you out of the city in lieu of part of such a princely sum. That would depend on where you need to go, of course, before we would part ways."
The nosferatu looks you all over, "Oh, you may not be trudging about within these dark demesnes with the heft of coin bearing down on you. Don't take me as some fool in thinking you do not carry wealth of some great form upon you. If you deem two thousand beyond your means, what sum are you willing to conjure to ensure I leave you and hand over this young man you seem so keen on taking possession of?"
”That’s a great question. We did not actually anticipate a ransom opportunity. May we have a moment to discuss among ourselves to see what we might have to offer?”
The gnome makes no move to leave, waiting for the nosferatu’s permission.
Raliscar waves his hand at Feldivarxon's question, a frown darkening his face. "No, no. I don't think tha's necessary." The dwarf sighs, shooting the other members of his group a pained look before wiping his free hand down his face in frustration. Shifting his gaze back to the pale man, he continues. "Ye're wanting out o' the city? Well it jus' so happens that I've got me wagon and horse tucked in upstairs waitin' fer us. Ye need a means ta move where ye wish without strayin' inta th' sun? Then tha's yer ticket an' there's no waitin' ta be done. It don't look all fancy on th' outside, but it's well kept and'll get ye where ye like."
Feldivarxon looks at the dwarf with no small amount of surprise on his face. "Are you sure you want to do that, Raliscar? I was thinking to offer to transport him in the wagon, true, but not until I'd actually asked you. But offering the wagon itself..." The gnome looks at the vampire, "I imagine you would have means of obtaining a driver so you could remain out of sight within the wagon during your journey, would you not?"
"Yeh, the girl that asked us to find him doesn't have anything to offer. Would be nice to return him to her, but..." Rutter shrugs, not particularly inclined to spend 2000 gold on a good deed.
Neva watched the negotiation proceed with growing interest. Sending this powerful creature out of Korvosa seemed like a good idea.
But where would it end up?
She held her tongue, but stood ready to either aid the diplomacy, or end it, if need be.
The vampire cocks his head, uncertain of the exact nature of the offer. "So, you are offering me the horse and wagon itself, or are you also offering to drive said wagon? Otherwise I will just have one sitting in the remains of the hospice until I can coordinate the hired help needed to drive me all the way back to Ustalav. The horse and wagon by themselves do me only so much good. I will either need the coin to hire a long term crew, unless the dwarf was also offering his services?"
Ustalav?! That place is half a continent from here and infested with vampires and other undead. That's a perfect place for him!
Neva nodded her assent to this line of reasoning to Feldy and Raliscar.
"I'm not drivin' yer bony arse all th' way to Ustalav! Ye can have th' horse an' wagon an' then hire a driver. Shouldn't be too hard, 'specially with all the recent happenings that yer roommates down here 'ave caused of late. Plenty o' capable folk would be lookin' for coin an' a way ta get out o' Korvosa until things settle." The dwarf's frown deepens as he taps a finger against his lips, considering the distance from Korvosa to Ustalav.
"Ardis is a bit more than 500 miles from here. That's about 3 weeks travel by wagon. If I were just drivin' someone else's wagon, I'd ask fer 5 silver a day an' all me food an' lodging to be covered. Probably would only get 4 silver a day, though. Add in feed fer the horse, an' say ye pick up two drivers instead o' just th' one and ye could afford that fer less than a hundred gold."
He pauses for a moment, silently considering his math, then nods, satisfied with his arithmetic. "Ye could get drivers cheaper'n me, and ye could put yer drivers up in common rooms while takin' more expensive private ones fer yerself. Presumin' ye found an inn every night between here an' Ardis an' ye went at a slow pace, ye'd be home in a month."
The dwarf then turns an inquisitive glance to the pale man, his eyebrow arched as the vampire considers the numbers himself.
”Since Raliscar is offering his wagon, I would be remiss to not offer something. I have a small sum of gold that I was saving for a rainy day that you could use to hire a driver. I would have to return to my rooms to get it.”
The nosferatu considers the discussion, as there have been a few suggestions, but only the horse and wagon had been officially offered to him. "I do not have time to wait, or the faith in you little one, for a promised return of coin. If I am to make this deal, I will need to leave this night, under the darkness that now resides above. It is also not the hour for me to find a driver away from the premises, so in its current state, the horse and wagon offer me no passage." He does not appear to be turning down the offer, but he is not satisfied thus far with its ability to deliver what he seeks.
Vyshael grits his teeth loudly, then growls, "I have two onyx stones on me that are worth 100 crowns, total. And a turquoise worth another 10. Based on the dwarf's math, that would be more than sufficient to cover your expenses, as long as you remember not to eat your driver. Give us the boy, and I'll give you the stones.... Though, by Ragathiel, if you're not long gone from here tomorrow -- or if you return in the next century -- I'll incinerate you."
Yeh. At this hour, it'd be hard to find someone to drive the cart, even if we do give him enough money to hire someone.
Rutter thinks on some of the people he knows around town. He thinks of quite a few people who would be interested in leaving, but he also wants to pick out someone shady enough that he wouldn't mind if the vampire killed them.
He looks to the vampire, "You be willing to let your driver keep the horse and carriage after he takes you to Ustalav? I might know someone who's itchin' to get out of town. Been complaining every night at the bar 'bout getting stuck here in the quarantine."
Raliscar frowns deeply, nearly missing Rutter's suggestion entirely as he makes a consideration he inwardly regrets almost immediately. Huffing under his beard and grimacing, he leans in and whispers to the halfling, "What about tha' mud-suckin' louse we got trussed up like a pig?"
He waves his hand dismissively, "I care not for the driver, wagon, or carriage. My only want is that I can be out of this wretched city before the break of dawn, and away from this inane cult and their ridiculous obsession with pestilence. Getting back to my home in Ustalav is all I desire."
Rutter turns to Raliscar, "He belongs to Kroft."
"Alright. I say we bring him along with us for now, see if Pete's willing to take him out of town tonight for the wagon and a bit of gold."
If the plan is approved, Rutter will go spend the money he needs to among his local contacts to find someone who's desperate enough to leave this night, if not Pete, the stranded merchant who sold his cart and horse when he became stranded here, then someone else..
He cocks his head, "You're not 'bringing me along' anywhere. If you have the means to gather this driver to the wagon you claim to be just outside, then do so with haste. Throw in, shall we say, two-hundred fifty gold? Then I will release this test subject and be about my way. May we never have to cross paths again."
Looking at Rutter, "You get Pete, I think I have 250 crowns, I will go get them and meet you back here."
"Alright. Just want to be able to wrap this up before anyone notices what happened here."
Rutter takes a collection of gold from the rest of the party to pay a driver. He then rushes out and starts waking people up to track down Pete Whatshisname, that he's seen grousing in the bar the last couple months.
As Rutter leaves to finalize the deal with the driver he had in mind, the nosferatu looks at the collected group of you before mostly demanding, "Well, won't you leave my room that I may gather my things? I do not feel the need to entertain guests at this hour."
Vyshael says, "Not without the boy. We'll give you the coin now, leave the wagon here, allowing you to pack your things and load it, and return the driver."
"In the meantime, why don't you tell us your story? What brought you to Korvosa and put you in league with these cultists?"
The vampire sneers at Vyshael, "I do not have my payment yet, and as such, you shall not have what I have promised until then. I will not, however, while away my hours talking as if we are engaged in story hour. So, it appears we just stand and stare, as you refuse to afford me my privacy and I refuse to entertain you with tales of yore."
Vyshael takes a breath, trying to calm himself, and doesn't quite growl, "Actually, we were offering you every part of your payment save the driver, and returning with that - giving you time to load your things onto the wagon which is already here. It certainly seemed a far better use of everyone's time than sitting around and staring at each other for hours would be, especially since you were so insistant on being away from here and needing to begin your preparations but a few moments ago."
"Bah, I didn't want ta hear none o' tha' anyway. You get ta readyin' yer things an' I'll get the wagon prepped. Vysh, give a dwarf a hand, won't ye?" Without waiting to be excused, Raliscar turns and makes for the door, gesturing for all of the party to follow him.
Vyshael nods, "Gladly.". He starts to follow the dwarf, then stops, "Remember, the trade is for the boy, not his corpse -- and not more damaged than he is now."
He follows the Raliscar out of the room, his knuckles popping from the tight grip on his mother's blade... which he finally sheaths.
The vampire rolls his eyes and scoffs, "I have no intentions of harming your new purchase. I just asked for a little respect towards my privacy in gathering my things, as I am not your prisoner." As the group leaves, he glides smoothly forward in graceful strides to close the door.
Rutter returns 3 hours later with the bleary-eyed merchant. "Did I miss anything? Deal still on?"
Once the whole group is clear of the vampire and up by the cart with the still bound and unconscious doctor, Raliscar grumbles, "Alright, I'm thinkin' we should let th' pale tart keep whatever bodies he's got, while we rouse Kroft an' any temple bigwigs we can while he waits fer Rutter."