Melia goes up to the door and knocks.
"I told you as much. I am a free man from Avinoax - I left home to pursue a murderer, and got tangled up in one mess after another. I can certainly give you details on my travels, but that'll take a while to cover, just warning you. As I mentioned, bids for power by different mighty people that threaten to upset the balance in a way detrimental for my homeland. I dealt with the situations that came up as there was no one else I could have handed the task off to. I surpassed what I considered the limit of my own Arcane Powers multiple times, during my journey. I left my forest, and now I'm hunting for castles on golden pillars. One of them being Beaumont. He seems awfully well informed about the Concordat, sponsors nationalist plays, and advocates aggressive foreign policy.
Needless to say, anything good for the Concordat is bad for my people. With all I have seen of nobles in this city, so far, I trust he is in league with foreign powers and advocating policy to his own advantage. There is nothing I can prove just yet, but I only just got started. If you are in leagues with him, that's your chance to get out. As I said, I do not act alone. There are others of my kind - even if you silence me, you won't save him. And yes, I am well aware of the hypocrisy, because what I am doing is foreign meddling in local affairs, as well. But I will prevent a war that would inevitably tip the scale in favor of either nation." Túrion remains highly alert, looking mostly at 'Isabella' but also at the goons.
"Look, there is little I can do without components. I would be significantly more relaxed if you could ask these gentleman to wait outside the door, so that it's just us here. Or if we could slowly rotate places so that I am not cornered here between you. For obvious reasons, I am concerned, as I have no idea about your end goal in all of this or intent with me. You do not want to share, that's fine. But if you don't want to give up information, at least help me get slightly more comfortable here. We do want to find a solution here, right?"
The door is opened by a young man in his early twenties wearing finely tailored clothes of ambiguous rank that would be fitting for a lesser noble or a wealthy merchant. He smiles "Hello and welcome. How may I serve you all?" He looks at dog-sized Nelly. "Excuse me but pets are generally not allowed inside."
"Isabella" listens intently and one of the orc guards gives a low whistle when Turion mentions Avinoax. The other elbows him roughly to shut up. "Isabella" waves them outside the door at Turion's suggestion but she doesn't look particularly relaxed. "Very interesting, elf. I would be very interested to know if this all were true. Maybe I can have a few spells cast on you to have a better idea of whether or not you are lying?" She is also clearly searching Turion's face to judge your motives and try to read your next move before it happens.
Melia recognizes the young man as one of the finely dressed servants from their previous visit. The young man seems unaware of whom Melia is referring to but is impressed by her good dress and fine manners. "Please wait inside while I ask after this Janus." He gestures you in to a finely appointed sitting room and another servant provides you with tea. Soon after, the Madame comes in and meets with you alone. "I see you all have returned. I hope you will not damage any of my walls today. Your associate left here yesterday evening, escorting a young former member of my staff, Isabella. He made fine promises of giving her a new life. I hope he keeps them. He seems a sincere enough fellow but quite odd."
As the Orcs leave, Túrion slightly gestures their way:"You know their kind also got mixed up? Used by the Concordat? If this is another of their operations...we will not be friends."
When she scans him and suggests using spells on him, Túrion shrugs:"Oh, there's plenty more interesting I could talk about. Could. Point being, I am reasonably certain I could identify what spells are being cast, even if they are divine in nature - but if not, I'll not risk being exposed to some spell effect that may...be detrimental to my well-being. It'd be easy enough to proof, though. In fact, you would have learned most of what I already told you if you only had come with me that night - I would have told my companions about my plans with you, and you...well, the basics of why we would remain in the city a few days longer before leaving."
Túrion does also not allow himself to relax, but attempts to appear as unthreatening as possible.
"I know you are afraid of someone coming after you and your group. And you assume I was specifically interested in you. If that was true, then I would know things about you, about what you do. Maybe lets start there to make this a dialogue. I am not asking for anything sensible, but tell me in broad terms what your deal is and why I would be after you? If you are right and I am, then you are not telling me anything new. If I am right and you kidnapped me for no reason, then I'll at least know where we stand. As said, if you work for the Concordat, we will not find common ground. A reaper? Maybe we can work something out. Some agent for a noble? Something else entirely? I could have left if I wanted. I'm here because I want to find some solution to this, preferably leave with my belongings and with everybody alive and satisfied with whatever agreement we reach. Thank you for removing the guards, but lets continue working towards common ground. Help me understand where you stand to make that easier."
Quietly he turned to Kaz. "I might have somethin', but if I'm peerin' inta the spirit world I'll be blind 'n' deaf, and need ya to lead me around. M'be even carry me. Ok?"
The Madame raises an eyebrow at the news that Janus has disappeared and tuts disapprovingly. "Well I hope you find them both, then. I was very surprised she agreed to go along with him, barely knowing him as she does. They walked west down the street. The young lady, Isabella, is in her mid-teens, a little over five feet tall, and has wavy dark brown hair. She was wearing an elegant servant's dress."
"Isabella" keeps a wary eye on Turion and then speaks "Well I will follow your plan to a certain extent. If I am not satisfied, I will insist on more certain measures." She chuckles. "And I'm sure you could leave any time you want. But you haven't. So you're either recklessly curious or bluffing. As for me, I have no love for the nobles of Bannerhold or the Reapers. And while I work with some orcs, neither I nor them work for any orcish faction. Now, tell me more about why you sought out a young lady. Just to teach her to read?" She snorts.
While he switches over to a casual tone of conversation, Túrion still is highly aware of how close he is to passing out again, and remains alert.
When I met her, she was a "slim, red-headed girl of about thirteen", so size and dress seem to fit, age and hair are not really a match. She was also said to wear a simple travelling cloak, so pointing out the dress might also be misleading.(as the brown haid and mid-teen).
Like, Nelly would not know, just trying to figure out if she is trying to give them a wrong description.
Stepping out, Melia reports what she's learned to the others.
"Isabella" chuckles slightly, tossing the sap a few inches up and catching it. "My reasons are similar to yours, roughly speaking. My 'Isabella' persona grants me access to information and an unassuming identity in which to hide, when necessary. I have powerful enemies, such as Duke Beaumont, whom I anger frequently." She looks thoughtfully at Turion then tosses her sap across the room. "I'll disarm myself and you relax and we can discuss whether or not I can cast a truth-telling spell on you."
"Isabella" grins. "Fair enough. But I may elect to keep my mouth shut in the spell, depending on your question. After all, this is my interrogation." She knocks on the door and calls out in a loud voice "Get the big scroll case but keep everyone on alert." Then she waits by the door, tapping her foot. A couple minutes later, one of the orcs hands it inside. She opens it and selects a scroll. She takes a moment reading it carefully then casts a spell from it.
"Right. Nelly's been sniffin' round. You got his smell, Nell?" he coughs once "If not, I might be able ta do it by openin' me'self up to the spirit realm, but I'll be blind and deaf ta the real world while I do, so someone'll have ta drag me 'round."
"Oh, I have been sharing information willingly, so far, and you will find the questions I have are not very hard to answer. Or will give me an answer even if you elect not to.", Túrion responds.
"A persistant Zone of Truth. Acceptable.", he comments as she finishes her cast. "Your reading is coming along admirably. Just a few days ago I was buying illustrated storybooks, now you're already doing scrolls. I truly am a masterful teacher.", he jests, hoping to get a smirk out of Isabella.
Nelly doesn't find anything near the brothel, either. She is used to the great outdoors. There are so many confusing scents in these stony gathering places. She would know Túrions scent from all of them, but some, like perfumes, are so strong it almost hurts in her nose. And the scents are all over the place.
She finds no trail to follow.
Hal is able to figure out a fair bit from his spell. A pair matching the description of Janus and Izabelle were seen last night heading south down Prince Street from the bordello, down off the palatine. This would be in the direction of your apartment.
"Izabelle" chuckles at Turion's remark on her reading and then changes the subject suddenly. "I could appreciate having connections in Avinoax. Do you know anyone influential? Maybe you could be useful to me."
Túrion, who had stood casually until now, puffs out his chest - not very imposing but a gesture nonetheless:"And I feel personally offended that you would measure my potential usefulness by whom I know. We value freedom and independence. We listen to specialists and elders, but tasks are tackled by dynamic organization. I was not a social butterfly, but I know many people. But your definition of influential will not hold for Avinoax."
He relaxes again, then focuses his eyes on "Isabella":"So, how will we do this? Alternating Questions?"
As you walk down prince street, Melia's sharp eyes detect a small, rust-colored streak on a cobblestone leading into an alley.
"Isabella" does not seem concerned by Turion's brief tirade. "Interesting enough. Yes you may ask a question if you like. I will, of course, be selective in my response. I hold more lives in my hands than I am comfortable with." At this last sentence, her smug, aggressive demeanor slips for a moment then the emotional mask is back in place.
She turns to Nelly. "Laeg Nel, an féidir leat boladh Túrion?" she asks in sylvan, gesturing at it.
"Very well. As said, my questions will provide answers, no matter if you choose to speak. I will ask two, as they are essential to continuing here, and will of course extend the same courtesy to you.", Túrion pauses shortly, then continues: "My first question is: Have you been truthful about the reasons you gave for my capture? In other words: Are the reasons you named the ones that caused you to act? And my second question: If you find what I say is the truth, are you willing to let me go? I am not talking about terms of my release, just if you are at all willing to part amiably."
Túrion focuses his glance at Isabella, trying to read her mind with pure force of will - her momentary lapse may have been truthful - or an act. It was so hard to tell with humans.
Nella approaches the stain, then sniffs in circles on the cobblestone, running into the alley and back and forth on prince street nearby, desperately searching for a trace of her companion. She was his guardian. She did not like the city, and understood that sometimes he had to leave her behind. But if anything happened to him, she could not return to the pack. Not that she would have wanted - she'd find whoever was responsible...and then rip and tear until it was done.
Nelly grows very excited and agitated by the scent and starts sniffing around.
Turion detects no trace of falsehood, but is unsure whether that is conclusive or not, as "Isabelle" replies [b]"
Nelly grows very excited and agitated by the scent and starts sniffing around.
Turion detects no trace of falsehood, but is unsure whether that is conclusive or not, as "Isabelle" replies "Yes I gave truthful reasons for why I captured you. As for releasing you, I may need more than the truth from you. Regardless of your intentions, your knowledge could be a threat to me and those I am responsible for. Now for my next question: What interactions did you have with orcs?"
"You did not answer that second one. I said I am not talking about the terms. Just if you are at all willing to part ways amiably if you find you were wrong. As said, not answering will give me an answer. I understand if you consider me a threat, but if you cannot tell me, in good conscience, that there is a chance I can walk out of here upright, then where is my incentive to give up any more information?", Túrion presses the point of his second question, then takes a moment to remember about her next.:"I told you I was pursuing a murderer. I found the one I looked for en-route to Kazad Gravr, and found he was not working alone. During the fight, his allies escaped, while I met a Runewarden of the Dwarven Hold. I accompanied him to his home with the hope to catch the murderers allies. We found the Kazad overrun by an Orc Invasion - that, as we later found out, was orchestrated by the Concordat. We did not go out of our way to kill them, but those who raised arms against us or blocked our path had their lives cut short. When we eventually caught up to the two Concordat Agents and learned the truth, we made sure it was them that would not leave the Inner Sanctum and even allied with a group of orcs, trying to save them from a cave-in and sailing with them to our next location. That about sums up my interactions with orcs that I think are relevant for you."
"I'm bloody useless. Even odds on whether I make it better or worse." he mutters, before adding "You got this Nell! Good girl!"
He looks to the others "If this don't work, I've got somethin' - but it'll be at least 10 minutes."
"Isabelle" replies to Turion's question "I cannot let you go if you are simply innocent. But if I am convinced of your intentions and that it is worth the risk to let you go, then we may make a deal." In response to his tale, she nods "Fair enough. I am glad to hear you are one who does not dispatch orcs out of hand. It is your turn to ask."
Harold finds a lingering trace of an invisibility sphere spell.
"You talk about deals, about association, but I have no clue what it is you are doing in the first place. Besides kidnapping benevolent people and getting in trouble with nobility. Since you are unwilling to let me go unless there is a deal, you may as well spill the beans: What is it that you and your cartel, or whatever is is, do? Your purpose or modus of operation?" He also briefly glances at the door to make sure it is still shut.
"Isabelle" shrugs at Turion's indignation. "Innocent you may be but by your own admission you are some sort of operative. So helpless you are not and you knew the risks. I have people to protect so I don't get to leave loose ends lying around just to help me sleep at night."
When Turion poses a very direct question, she mulls a moment exactly how she wishes to answer then supplies "I suppose the safest thing to tell you would be that the most unsavory thing we do is maintain operational security. We try to minimize collateral damage and you, if you proved too dangerous, would be the worst case since last year. The second most unsavory thing we do is steal from certain nobles to fund our primary operations. That primary operation itself I think an Avinoan would approve of. On moral grounds, not political."
Then he shakes his head:"You also just evaded the question. You reserved that right, but if you want my cooperation and think I would approve, I don't quite see why you don't go ahead and tell me what your primary operation is? Unless you are afraid I would not be interested in cooperation, and fear that I will run. In which case, since we are being brutally honest with each other, I assure you we would meet again, because I will come to retrieve what is mine, but I have no political motivation to cause trouble for you beyond that. Unless you work for the Condordat. But you'd hardly delude yourself into thinking an Avinoan would approve of that. Either way, your turn."
"Isabelle" shakes her head. "You misunderstand me. You are dangerous either way. I do care whether you are intentionally or incidentally dangerous and how useful you could be." She holds out her hands to form the plates of an imaginary scale. "The first point helps me judge the risks, the second, the reward." Then she proceeds with her next question, another apparent non-sequitur. "Describe your experiences and perspectives on the humanoid races of the continent that you have encountered and their cultures." From her face, she genuinely cares about your answer.
[spoiler=MHKN]
[/spoiler
"What's that, Nelly? Janus fell down the well?"
Túrion thinks back to see if there were any others:"I think a Gnome served on a ship I travelled with for a while, but I honestly had too little interaction with her to get even a superficial picture. I could tell you what I read about them, but that'd not be experiences as you asked for. I think I met no others."
He waits a moment to see if the answer was satisfactory, then decides that she was also evading his questions, so that was what she'd get. "My turn, I suppose? Since I still have no idea what your primary goal is, and you seem reluctant to tell me, there's another question to measure you: How many sentient beings have you killed for your operational security in the last year, and which was the case you doubted most, were most unsure about, or regretted most? If you are not sure about the number, a rough estimate will do. But I need to know if you are a surgeon or a butcher."
Isabelle seems satisfied by Turion's answers. "Good enough, for now." She sighs when he asks his own question and replies "Four. They were retainers of the unsavory Duke Beaumont who stumbled into something they never should have seen. I don't believe they knew what the Duke was sending them into. One of them was barely a man, perhaps eighteen years old." Then she regains her hard composure. "My turn. What is Avinoax's immigration policy, both for elves and non-elves?"
Waiting a moment to see if any clarifications are needed, Túrion asks his next question:"So, if we were to cooperate, what would I gain from that? Please don't say my freedom and my belongings. I am reasonably confident I could have both of that by other means that don't see me blackmailed into cooperation. And it would be little incentive beyond next week. Why WOULD I want to work with you? If you think that is a good chance to spill the beans on what you are actually doing or attempting to accomplish aside from pissing off nobles, feel free to consider that the question - otherwise give me a pitch on why I - or anybody in Avinoax, for that matter - would be interested in a partnership?"
The humanoids do not prove much help but Nelly is able to start following the scent trail well enough, though somewhat slowly. She leads you down the alley and around a corner until she is pawing at the backdoor of a modest residence. Modest, that is, for this neighborhood on the outskirts of the noble, palatine district.
"Isabelle"'s face grows deadly serious "Me emigrate? Never." She spits on the ground. "You would be best served by talking to ME and not trying to guess three steps ahead. If you guess wrong, you will annoy us both. If you guess right, there may be other problems."
Your interrogator weighs your words thoughtfully and then nods. "Yes I think it is time to lay my cards on the table. As long as it is my own table." A flat, open-centered metal disc appears in her hand from nowhere and speeds across the room toward you!
As the metal disc suddenly speeds towards Túrion, he is glad he stayed cautious and did not let his guard down. With a word, he vanishes, reappearing about 800 feet straight up in the air.
Her muzzle and eyes almost seem worried, but the rest of her body looks tense, her legs and abdomen under tension, ready to spring forward and bite someone.
The only thing stopping her from trying to break the door and indiscriminatingly mauling her way towards the source of the smell was her awareness that Mel had the same goal and was more suited to lead the pack in these stone mazes.
You appear above the docks and begin racing accelerating toward the ground! Below you, you make out winding streets, warehouses, and docks. You slow yourself down and start descending at a more reasonable rate then suddenly you hear something whistle through the air. An arrow? Everything goes black...
Melia knocks on the door.