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Numair listens in, enjoying his breakfast, as Calendir outlines their objectives.
That is an organized collection, Calendir. With you as our scribe, we shall certainly not overlook anything. I refrained from mentioning the Hammer to Artemis as that was a personal request not related to the Society. Macavity's suggestion is a good one. Kallistiel, you have the bearing and decorum of a true blue blood. Would you mind terribly assuming the role of our leader? As your bodyguards and entourage, we would be honor-bound to ensure your safety and keep you company while you venture into dangerous lands. Your motives for being in the Worldwound are your own; they are none of our business, and none of anyone else's, should they inquire. What say you?
My ARROW!! Give it BACK!: 1d100
My fault on that. I was thinking it was five points (this is what happens when your first post goes five minutes after you roll out of bed). I did say that it was a fat pheasant. :) Anywho, to modify my original (half-awake)call, I will say that, while the deer bucked (causing your arrow to miss), you did find it again in a trap. It's all yours.
As for the arrow...normally in my games a roll that low would be a miss, but since I am admitting to my mistakes...the arrow is found.
At sometime during one of their conversations, maybe during a meal, at whatever point all are gathered, Calendir will also address the following with the group:
I've had sometime to ponder what lies ahead for us, and if I am correct, we seem to have several tasks ahead of us - he pulls up a few crumpled pieces of paper, with multiple scribbling on them, fiddles with them for a while, then lays them down on the table - Ok, so... As far as we have been requested, we have to...
** spoiler omitted **
So all of these will take us to Tsar proper, and may consist of several weeks of investigation - the common tie is that they should all be circumscribed to the same general region.
Unfolding another crumpled piece of paper, he adds: Otherwise, we have been informed that:
** spoiler omitted **...
Done. Let me know what you think. :)
Elen stays completely silent when the negotiations start, hoping no one notices her.
Date: 3/16/4707
As the three of you are heading to the docks, all of you notice the various smells of the dock areas. Most are actually not that bad, the oil and grease helping to keep the boats afloat, the various oils that keep the fish 'fresh,' even the sound of the seagulls seems to be thick in the air as you look for the boat that Artemis had mentioned.
Soon you find it, and you're not sure if you have found the right place. It is a shallow river barge, that much makes sense to you, given that, near its headway, the Sellen river can be as shallow as 4 or 5 feet. Giving the boat a cursory inspection from a distance, it would appear that the barge is big enough to hold the entire party, plus the horses, with some room to spare. It's nothing about the boat that is throwing off your opinion, so much as the man standing in front of it.
Niles looks out at the people walking by. As a barker, his job is to get people to want to place their cargo with his ship, the Lady by the Bayand move it along. Business has slowly picked up as the port at the far end of the journey, Gundrun, has finally begun picking up steam after all these years. He was happy, the Captain liked how he managed to fill the cargo holds (which were always profitable) and Niles is just an all around decent fellow.
This morning, however, is not one of Niles' better days. He woke up hungover, but that wasn't terribly unusual. What was unusual was that his normal clothes were on the poop deck...of another ship...whose sailors smiled and waved at him as he came to retrieve said clothes. He was not sure what exactly happened the previous evening, but he didn't remember any strange men in there. Just a lot of pretty women...With his clothes a mess, he had to borrow from elsewhere. Thus when he stepped out onto the deck to begin his day, he was wearing a poofy shirt (at least one size too small, particularly around the chest), short pants, and bare feet. It was going to be a long day. But, things looked a little promising. Three people (well, two elves and an upright ox), were walking towards him, and they weren't immediately put off by his clothing (at least he hoped).
In a flat, nasal tone, you hear the short-pants wearing monkey say "Good day to you ladies, might you be looking to send some cargo up the Sellen?"
Ally sits crosslegged on Ruul or Lavinia's shoulder, in an apparently innocent but actually calculatedly provocative pose, distracting whatever person they're talking to, making helpful suggestions and comments at just the right time.
The ox talks?!?! What kind of a morning is this? "Well, um...sir, well I can't get inland, but my Captain can get you as far as Gundrun, will that work? Also, how many are in your party, including the horses? We have enough room for about a dozen horses at this point."
Ruul nods, "Gundrun will work."
"There are eight of us in total, eight horses, and a large... cat", the bull explains.
"Oh great, I love cats. What's his name?" Niles thinks about it for a moment. Cats are always good pets to have on board a boat. And the ox seems like a nice...guy? Straightforward type."to get you from here would be...um, carry the one, add a pinch. We'll call it two grand for the lot of you. Just don't tell my Captain I cut ya a great deal."
Ruul looks to the ladies accompanying him and then to the sailor.
Most ships do not specialize in passengers, but many have the capability to take a few along when transporting cargo. Double the given cost for creatures larger than Medium or creatures that are otherwise difficult to bring aboard a ship.
What check do we roll to figure out if it is a decent price?
Deciding that the man isn't trying to gouge them for the price of the boat ride, Lavinia slowly nods. "I suppose that sounds like a fair price. When does your captain plan to leave? We will need to go make arrangements to have our luggage, horses and provisions delivered to the ship."
"We plan to leave with the high tide tomorrow ma'am. We are figuring that it will be cloudy and windy and we hope that the wind will be in our favor. When do you wish to being everything on board?"
The minotaur nods.
"Do you have more men to help load your vessel? We will bringing several week's worth of food and drink."
"We do. They'll be along by this afternoon if you need help."
Ally continues to ride on Ruul's shoulder as the three head to the marketplace. She exclaims excitedly, "This fur is so soft! I admit that I thought your fur would be thick and coarse, but this is just fluffy! You must take very good care of it,"she adds as she rubs her legs and torso into Ruul's shoulder luxuriantly. She winks at Lavinia and Elen.
The pastries were fine, but you can't bring that kind of thing on an expedition. You need non-perishable foods, things that can be cooked easily and provide lots of nourishment. Are you herbivorous? Omnivorous? I'm familiar with what humans and elves eat, and I assume macavity's diet is similar.
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Being able to guess that Ally is teasing them, Lavinia hopes that she speaks Celestial and that Ruul does not...
Lavinia sighs as he mentions the challenge that bathing may be. "I fear you are right about that. I certainly do not relish the idea of having to bath in an ice-cold river. There is also a lack of privacy that goes along with river bathing that I do not enjoy."
When he mentions his horns, Lavinia asks: "They do look quite large and impressive. Is there a purpose for the runes carved into your horns?"
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Lavinia looks a bit surprised when Ruul mentions the pasties. "I thought the one I ate was quite delicious, however I don't know how well pastries will keep on the journey. We may have to pick sturdier fare to eat. Maybe some bread made to last, dried fruits and meats, hard cheeses, plenty of herbs and spices to flavor our food and to make teas, some grains to add to our stews. I do love a good barely and beef stew. Oh, and I suppose I should warn you guys now, I occasionally get sick on boats if the water is rough. So I'd really like to get some calming herb teas as well. Perhaps some chamomile and mint."
At Elen's question about food, Lavinia wonders aloud. "Do we need to provide enough food for the cat too or will it hunt its own? Will it eat dried meat, because fresh isn't going to last long on the trip."
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"Uhm, thank you. I will be sure to remember your offer if I ever have to bath in the river." Maybe later I can attempt to explain the concept of privacy to him...
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"Well, we know what we want, now we just need to find someone that sells it."
Lavinia looks about the market for someone who looks like they are selling trail supplies.
As they enter the market, Elen sighs at a gaudy sign advertising "Krazy Ackbar's Magickal Items" with a caricature of a man in a turban. "I suppose people here have no idea of real Kelish culture, but is pandering to that ignorance really necessary?" As this shop is the first after entering the market, she asks the others to stop by this first. She peeks into the tent, and gives a happy cry, running in exclaiming loudly in Kelish. Neither Ruul nor Lavinia speak the tongue, so assuming they follow her in, they see her jabbering away in the foreign speech at a man dressed in the stereotypical Qadiran fashion. "Ruul, Lavinia, this is my old friend and mentor in the Qadiran Pathfinders, Shams al Din. He's an excellent merchant -- so why the 'Krazy Ackbar' nonsense?"
"Flower of the forest, they all assume we of the desert are named 'Ackbar' or 'Abdul' or some other such name, and get annoyed at us when we don't wear out-of-date fashion like this headwrap. This is an experiment, my dear, to see whether meeting these northern barbarians' expectations will result in better sales."
"Ahem!" Elen indicates her friends.
"A thousand pardons, sir and madam," the man says. "I spoke hastily -- by no means are all northerners barbarians, nor ignorant. Do either of you speak Kelish, by chance? No? That is all one, I can see your wayfinders and know that we are bretheren nonetheless." To confirm, he pulls a wayfinder of his own from beneath his vest. "So! For you, I have a special. You are going exploring, yes? Heading to the Tsar? No need to deny it, that dark elf was the center of attention in the Happy Duck last night. On the way here, I found a crafter of magic desperate for funds, who sold a huge stock of items at prices I could not have hoped for. Many of them I have already sold but I have more of these than I cared to count, and I think they would be very useful to you on your journey, yes?" He points to a chest of brooches, made of silver and copper, with a sign on it saying "Brooch of Cleanliness -- 400gp" He whispers to the three, "For you, 100. Only a bit more than I paid. Completely tested. Keep you as clean as a pampered harem sl... servant." He glances at Elen as he barely avoids saying the word "slave".
"That sounds like a wonderful thing. Would save on having to bathe in cold mountain streams -- although I do like that occasionally to be honest -- and the other elf, Kallistiel, as well, was complaining about cleanliness at the tavern. Shall we take 8?" asks Elen of her friends.
Seven, then, and if anyone else doesn't want one, they'll be spares or gifts.
Elen takes the remaining 5 Brooches of Cleanliness, other than the ones for herself and Lavinia. She goes first to Kallistiel, and speaks to her in Elven:
Elen shows Kallistiel the copper-and-silver brooches, one of which she is wearing, and then lifts the hem of her skirt to show the cleanliness of her black leather boots.
Kallistiel blinks as she looks at the broach and then at Elen's clean clothes and boots.
She then takes the offered broach and puts it on. Nothing happens, since she is already clean, but Kallistiel moves to a corner of the room where she had seen a dust mote earlier. She picks it up and rubs it between her fingers, and smiles in glee as the dust dissolves from her fingertips.
Friends, we are going to need to transport the food and supplies further, from Gundrun to the camp, yes? I suppose we can distribute the supplies between all of us, fill our high-capacity backpacks to the brim, and load our horses with anything else. Hmm, should we assume everyone will have approximately 100 lbs of capacity in their packs? I'll have more than that, I know, but others might have heavier gear. If so, we have 800 lbs to work with, and the horses can carry more if needed. That's actually a lot. I mean, 8 people can live for, I think, maybe a month or more on 800 lbs of food, especially with hunting and such to supplement.
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With the other busy Azaraunt applies himself to some research. If this town has a library or if the guildhouse has research aids he will avail himself of them.
His areas of research and scores taking 10 include:
Wolves and Dire Wolves: Knowledge Nature= 23
Worgs and Winter Wolves: Knowledge Arcana = 25
Werewolves and Lycanthropes in general: Knowledge Nature = 23
The Worldwound: Knowledge History= 23, Knowledge Planes= 27, and Knowledge Geography =23
TSAR and its gate guard: Knowledge Local = 23, Knowledge History = 23, and knowledge Planes= 27
Gundrun: Knowledge Local]= 23, Knowledge History =23
Aorden’s Hammer: Knowledge History = 23, Knowledge Religion = 25
He will take good notes to share with others, that I hope will serve to aid their research if they have time to look into some of this.
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"What a wonderful idea Elen, these broaches will save me from hypothermia. No ice cold rivers for me this trip. And no having to explain that I don't need someone to guard me during bathing...
"I've never provisioned a long expedition before, but that certainly sounds like plenty of food for a while. In addition to hunting, we can try our hands at some fishing while we are near the river, I also know a bit about gathering edible herbs and of course I can prepare a spell to give us safe drinking water and another spell to purify anything that may spoil."
With the other busy Azaraunt applies himself to some research. If this town has a library or if the guildhouse has research aids he will avail himself of them.
That is an organized collection, Calendir. With you as our scribe, we shall certainly not overlook anything. I refrained from mentioning the Hammer to Artemis as that was a personal request not related to the Society. Macavity's suggestion is a good one. Kallistiel, you have the bearing and decorum of a true blue blood. Would you mind terribly assuming the role of our leader? As your bodyguards and entourage, we would be honor-bound to ensure your safety and keep you company while you venture into dangerous lands. Your motives for being in the Worldwound are your own; they are none of our business, and none of anyone else's, should they inquire. What say you?
"Hmm, a ruse? It could work. Those with more training in the art of diplomacy could still do what they do best, if I take the stance that I do not deign to speak to my lessers," Kallistiel says. After a pause, she continues with a smirk, "They say it's always good to mix a little truth with the lie."
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"Excellent suggestion Numair, and thank you, Kallistiel for accepting." Macavity replies. Great lies and misdirection are best wrapped in heavy layers of fact and truth. "Now everyone should develop their own role enough for us to describe it to someone outside the group, like Kallistiel, our noble leader and sponsor who's 'motives for being in the Worldwound are her own.'"
"For example, I would suggest that I am her personal security expert, which is actually my area of specialization."
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It would be no ruse for me, if I swore to protect you. And you are searching for something in the waste. I have no intent of providing knowledge of our try purpose to those who might seek to do us harm. I can honestly answer that I am here protecting you while you are here to any who might ask. Anything else is not their need to know.