"Why not have Haleen introduce Narkû and Anapa as new fighter to Kardswann, then he shiv him, while we kill guards outside?" Ruika says softly, having drifted after Sarala like a soft footed ghost.
"Halleen, who is this Kardswann or Ugruk or Undrella? Narkû has not been introduced in a long time. Not since Narkû fought in the pits."
A look of concentrated thought processing comes across the half-orc's face, and this it is just as suddenly gone.
"Maybe introduction of Narkû would be a bad idea. Narkû is suppose to be 'infiltrationing'."
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"...But if Kardswann or Ugruk or Undrella catch wind of you, well, you might be in for a bad time." With a smirk, Haleen eyes Julius pointedly. "Well, since you've found me, I hope your quest was worthwhile."
Julius chokes slightly on the sip of his beer he was trying to take as Haleen's eyes drill into him. He flushes and finds his thoughts scattering as the mature woman seems to be focusing her attention on him. The lies he wanted to tell to assure they seemed like nothing but Narkû's quest companions just didn't quite seem to be making sense in his head. Pretty women always seemed to muddle his thoughts so much.
"Uh...I suppose it is...worth it...?" Julius says unsurely. He glances nervously at Narkû for support.
He clears his throat and asks quietly, "So...what exactly happens when someone is addressed by Kardswann? Just so we understand what we may need to...er, say." Julius waves a hand. "In order to fit in with the regulars who frequent the arena area."
Haleen is all too happy to provide her own summation of the battle market's hierarchy.
"Kardswann's the man in charge. He's no gnoll, but from what I've heard, he killed the previous chief with a single blow.
"Ugruk was the former chief's second-in-command. He was pretty quick to lick Kardswann's boots when he took over; the rest of the tribe followed suit. Pretty sharp for a gnoll, I guess... probably a flind.
"And Undrella... ugh. That harpy's apparently Kardswann's lover. However that works.
"The lot of them usually stay on the third level. The doors are kept locked, and the area is heavily guarded. Anyone that wants to speak with him is usually directed onto the battle stage. Depending on how introductions go... well, that could end horribly. Or less horribly, in my case."
Upon hearing Ruika, Haleen's expression turns more serious. She glances over at the bugbears, as oblivious as ever, before leaning in.
"Wait. Shiv who? Kardswann? Now that's the kind of talk that's going to get you killed in here. Are you crazy?"
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"Classic Julius charm," says Sarala, nudging the arcanist lightly, "So flirtatious, he makes himself weak in the knees." To Thurrios, she says, "Actually, yeah, how does a man-birdmonster relationship work?"
She glances back towards Ruika and then continues, barely taking a breath, "Eheh, crazy, yeah. Crazy like a fox." The Vanaran then addresses Lyssa, "No offence to you, Colonel Biteyface." And then back to Haleen. "But yeah, I'd imagine talking about that sort of thing is frowned upon in his battle market or whatever. As for the battle stage, as handy as I am in a fist fight, this doesn't seem to be the kind of arena that has an 'unarmed' event. They should, it'd be real exciting, two fighters battering each other with nothing but the clothes on their back and their limbs a-flailing."
The monk considers for a few moments, "So are there any conditions attached to your staying here? Or is it just... forever, until you die a violent death?"
Beneath her dark hooded cowl, Ruika has an expression of shock and annoyance at the potential insult causing her to stand.
"No crazy, I White Orc!" she balls a fist a thumps it to her chest in a classic Romanic style, before sitting back down. Lyssa however moves out from the robes and snuffles at Sarala's ankles as she addresses the fox, before moving back to mollify Ruika as they come up with a plan to work out whats going on around here.
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Julius spits beer foam as Ruika casually suggests attempting an assassination in full view of the arena during presentation. He wipes excess off of his mouth and nods along as Haleen encourages Ruika to keep her voice down.
He can't help but groan then when instead of instilling appropriate wariness, Haleen's words incite the orc(?) to a loud display of...racial pride? Julius is a tad uncertain about it. From what he's managed to see of Ruika's features under veil, she definitely seemed surprisingly more attractive than the few orcs and half-orcs he had seen in his travels so far. But who knew? Before meeting Sarala, he had never seen or even heard of a vanara, and his own reaction had been less than enlightened at the time.
"Calm down, Miss White Orc!" he hisses. "Just sit and sip your beer while we figure this out."
Assuming that Thurrios is present, Julius looks to him. "I don't imagine there is any reason to force her ladyship to be included in our ill-advised plans of increasingly evident foolishness." He takes the last gulp of his beer an manages to swallow it without choking or sputtering. He was starting to feel a warm tingle. "So Sir Furious...how are we doing this?"
"Social niceties, in any forum, are not my strongpoint. I have to suggest that you point us in a direction, and let's have at it."
Pouting at Julius' retort, Ruika moves her heavy scarf out of the way revealing her sylvan features beneath a light veil. She sips from the beer with a hint of distaste at it's crude slightly sour flavour.
"How about; sneak up there if confronted by a guard, tell 'em "We gladiators for private fight" or kill 'em and take keys. Me has no door opening abilities, how about you? Sneak around top floor find baldy & knife him." She states simply.
"Or we talk to Ugruk, incite him to kill boss? You good at talkie, blondy." Leaning back against her chair, tapping her lips, the thought of turning them against one another is appealing but unlikely.
"Alternatively we hide in mirror tomorrow & give to Kardswann as present, then pop out & kill him. But we ask spirits for it tonight."
Haleen lets out a decisively unladylike snort. "You'll also fit right in. Ever try to converse with an ogre before?" She shakes her head. "If it's a fight you're looking for, just step onto the battle stage. That'll get everyone's attention. At that point, you won't have to worry about 'social niceties.'
"At least 'orc-woman' here has a plan, though it sounds like she might have been smoking a bit too much flayleaf."
With a sigh, she looks back to Julius and Sarala. "Well, I'm not a prisoner if that's what you're asking. I fight, I get paid, I eat, I drink, and I can go wherever I want. Kardswann's just insinuating that leaving would be a bad idea. Which in all likelihood, means I'd be having gnolls nipping at my heels on my way out. As if I don't already have enough people trying to kill me.
"If you are serious about what you're here to do, I can only wonder who the hell put you up to it. And, well, how much you're getting paid." At this last bit Haleen leans in, grinning like a fox. (With Lyssa being there for a convenient comparison.)
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The pleasant feeling seems to grow and Julius feels warmer.
"Social niceties? What?" Julius asks evidently flabbergasted.
Before he can respond further, Ruika lays out her options and Haleen throws in her two cents. Julius feels much better about her as she's not immediately calling for the guards to kill them and prevent their questionable designs for the future of Battle Market's current operator. He grins at Haleen and then suddenly remembers he was going to say something.
"Soshul nyessseties? Wha—?" he repeats a tad less intelligible this time.
"I thought thish would be the time for marshel acshun. Not nyessseties." Julius blinks and looks at Anapa, Thurrios, and Narkû in turn. "Doncha you free live for that?" The arcanists waves his hand broadly in the direction of the gore soaked arena once again displaying a naivety of those whose careers do not align with his own.
Narkû just listens to the others, as they offer different options on what to do next, every now-and-then glancing down at the battle stage and gauging the distance of the jump.
"So Narkû just has to go onto the Battle Stage, and Narkû will get a fight? Seems simple enough way for Narkû to size them up."
"You strong orc, Narkû." Ruika says observing that Julius seems to be preparing for his berserk rage, like her clansmen used to, with lots of ale. "But challenging all-comers won't deprive the vipers nest of it's head - just get stuck in the entrails." She quotes the oft sang of proverb of the clan.
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"How much we're getting paid?" says Sarala, looking towards Julius, who is apparently just swaying unhelpfully for the time being. "Well... I guess we'll probably get paid, right? I don't think I was listening," she says, hopefully. "I'm not the sort who has sworn an oath to poverty or anything. I'm perfectly alright with climbing onto an ocean of riches."
She looks towards the others and says, "As for a plan, I dunno, I've never been great at convincing people. I think it's something about my tone. I'd say we just... well, let's hear more about the mirror thing. That sounds... different?"
"I think I'd pay to see you take on wave after wave of gnolls, Narkû," Haleen says with a laugh, "But your White Orc is right. Even you can't hope to take on the entire Kulldis tribe at once."
She lets out a huff when Sarala can't name an exact figure. "I don't know who your boss is, but you should probably have a nice chat with them. They could at least tell you how much you're getting paid before sending you out on a suicide mission."
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"Well, I'm sure Thurrios knows. He's our accountant, right?" says Sarala, crossing her legs on her chair. "I don't concern myself with stuff like that, since I'm more of a ruins researcher, though I did get a couple sweet rings out of the deal." She holds up her hands so that Haleen can see.
"So... hypothetically, you know, purely as a mental exercise. Like a fun little thought experiment. If you wanted to commit atrocious amounts of murder in the ways that we've playfully implied, what would your approach be? You seem like the kind of person who's plotted a murder or two." Sarala stares at Haleen interestedly.
Haleen dutifully drains the last half of her ale from her cup before addressing Sarala again.
"Murder? Nah, I wouldn't call it that. I've never killed anyone that didn't deserve it. Usually just the scummy folks who want me dead for whatever reason. Unfortunately, that happens a lot in Katapesh.
"As for what you should do, well. If Kardswann figures out what you're doing here, chances are he'll put a bounty on your head on the spot. If you haven't noticed, this place is chock full of people who wouldn't mind killing someone for gold. So stepping onto the battle stage probably isn't a good idea."
Ruika drums her fingers against the side of the tankard, thinking about potential options; "Sayings that mirrors captures soul? Well, I call spirits and can capture body too, put all of us into mirror for a night - but drop us out. Unfortunately mirror cannot be moved more than a pace or two." She replies to Sarala's query, with an unlucky glitch to her plan.
"Also I could sow thoughts in door guard - get him to let us upto 3rd floor...."
"Wait, put us into a mirror? What are you talking about?"
"Look, I'll tell you what. This shithole is really starting to reek. Usually I'd use something like what you're planning as an opportunity to get the hell out of dodge. But..." she turns to look at Narkû, a look of reminiscence coming over her. "This lug has had my back in the past. That, and whoever put you up to this must be loaded with coin. Because if she isn't, then you're all just plain stupid for coming here. So I'm gonna lend you a hand."
"Chances are, whatever you do is gonna raise a riot. There really aren't all that many gnolls in here, but some of the cutthroats and scoundrels might be inclined to come after you. Luckily for you, I've had a few drinks with some of them. I think I could convince them that whatever is about to go down is over their heads, and that they're better off laying low."
Anapa bows his head in thanks
"Any help will be appreciated. As for the gnolls..." he looks around
"Ive had my fair share of fights with them"
-Posted with Wayfinder
"Maybe help cut-throats into inerbriation. We could buy them some drinks..." Ruika adds, trying to help reduce the minor threats.
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"I guess I never thought about the philosophical difference between murder and justified killing. I just think of it as 'justified murder'," says Sarala, "Back where I come from, that's what we call it when any of us happens upon a snake. But I appreciate you lending a hand with that stuff, because even though we're pretty good at the straightforward approach, I believe that moderation is key."
She nods very seriously. "How long do you think it'll take to convince these people?"
"Less than two drinks!" Ruika says with a soft chuckle at her own joke about the lack of alcohol tolerance of the patrons.
"Alternatively we hide in mirror tomorrow & give to Kardswann as present, then pop out & kill him. But we ask spirits for it tonight."
"The killing of gnolls is always justified, as is slaughtering the followers of the Rough Beast. But I think that goes without saying."
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Ruika drums her fingers against the side of the tankard, thinking about potential options; "Sayings that mirrors captures soul? Well, I call spirits and can capture body too, put all of us into mirror for a night - but drop us out. Unfortunately mirror cannot be moved more than a pace or two." She replies to Sarala's query, with an unlucky glitch to her plan.
"Also I could sow thoughts in door guard - get him to let us upto 3rd floor...."
Ruika drums her fingers against the side of the tankard, thinking about potential options; "Sayings that mirrors captures soul? Well, I call spirits and can capture body too, put all of us into mirror for a night - but drop us out. Unfortunately mirror cannot be moved more than a pace or two." She replies to Sarala's query, with an unlucky glitch to her plan.
"Also I could sow thoughts in door guard - get him to let us upto 3rd floor...."
"As my companions has stated. Gnolls are a big problem and as such. Considered an enemy to the land."
He nods at the statement
-Posted with Wayfinder
The continued discussion regarding magical mirrors seems to go right over Haleen's head. She instead looks to Sarala and shrugs, addressing her question.
"Depends, I guess. The folks here aren't brightest bunch, but they know trouble when they see it. It's how they survive. Just give me the word before you do whatever crazy bullshit you're planning."
"Just tell Narkû what you want Narkû to do. Narkû will try to follow the plan as best as Narkû can."
-Posted with Wayfinder
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"Alright, well, I guess we're gonna try and be all diplomatic. In our hypothetical, we'd just try to get up into the third floor, as Ruika suggested," says Sarala, leaning back and tilting her chair so it's balancing on the back two legs. "After your signal that you've talked to some people, Haleen. Then some hypothetical violence will occur."