Under the Baron's silent gaze, Tanith is the picture of placid social pleasantry, though her dark eyes remain sharply connected to his. It is only when he mentions 'money' that the corners of her soft smile deepen.
"The names and current locations of those that killed you." The elf gives a nod. Her fingers curl into her palm as her hands find a resting place in her lap.
"The task you set forth requires tapping the network, and since we are at some significant distance from a formal Del Covas outpost, we will require payment security upfront for the transaction. Now," she continues, a hand lifting to slice through the air to suggest an important point, "House Del Covas does indeed accept significant intelligence as currency, but it must qualify under scrutiny as rare to the House, and not to the public. I'm certain you understand the difference. Confirmation of the quality of your information also requires access to the network.
"So, if you wish to provide rare information as currency for this transaction, we will require monetary security upfront until the exclusive nature of the information can be confirmed of value to the task. At which point, your coinage shall be returned." Tanith flashes him a winsome smile accompanied by a promissory bow of the head.
Her brows rise, hands turning over to offer an alternative. "Of course, you could provide additional detail of your unfortunate demise, and that would go some distance towards mitigating the cost, since the task would be less extensive in nature. Perhaps a description of your assailants, their number, the method of your destruction - similar such details could reduce the cost significantly since I will not need to obtain it from the network."
Min was too wore out to figure an easy way to speak to this individual, so instead he nodded as the ogre-like man spoke. Writing down a quick note on a piece of parchment, ripped from his journal, for Sprack to read later. He gave a quick rundown of what he had discovered that day, the encounter with the demon. The revelation he received from the Everwhen as well and the fact that as long as they wanted to with Min he wouldn't mind having them.
He was possible bargaining his soul with what he was doing but he felt that he was doing the right thing. Having the Lionhearts remain active and fighting against evil was better then them languishing in a dark hall with nothing to do. By the time he finished the letter his strength was beginning to fade, so quickly in fact that he was having doubts he could make it back to the stables.
He folded up the message and handed it to Chrugz before standing up and offering him his hand. "It's been nice meeting you Chrugz but I need to get going, please deliver this to Sprack..."
A calm smile spreads over the Baron's face. "An interesting statement, miss Tannith. Do you think that if I had such information at my disposal I would need the help of you and your network? The best I can tell you is that they were last known to be in Stormfare, and they had a child with them. And for payment, full and in advance? When I do not kow you are even capable of getting me what I require? Has Del Covas devolved into extortionists and con artists while I had turned my attention to other matters?" His tone is level and calm, as if to convey that he is merely teasing her with his statements. Before she can react to his casual insult, he extends his hand again. "No, of course not. You are to clever for that. You merely sensed an advantage and pressed it. I admire your attempt."
"It is surely no secret that my material assets are currently diminished. But payment shall of course be arranged to your house's satisfaction. I intend to offer my assistance to the house as a secret asset. You will, of course, treat everything I tell you as selfishly given and suspect, and you will be right to do this, as I am not about to endanger my own agendas. But I think we can both come to a satisfying agreement." He casually leans backwards in his chair again.
"Tonight, I will be hosting a feast to encourage the men that have remained loyal to me. I expect you will be attending? Tomorrow, I shall make my first payment, and you can return to your masters and determine its worth. I suggest you dress warmly, we will be traveling." He gives Tannith a cocky wink.
Tanith's head inclines towards her host slightly. "Ah. My apologies, Baron. I had not realized you were not acquainted with the manner of your own death. Generally, victims questioned have such details. So you do not know who killed you, but you are aware that they were recently in Stormfare with a child?" While the last question is stated with a casual inquisitive tone, there is no mistaking the conflict inherent in the phrasing. She continues, in summary of the services to be provided, "Do you therefore also seek the information regarding to the manner of your demise, or merely those that perpetrated it and their whereabouts?"
"With regard to payment, we are honoured by the return of your avid attention, Baron. As you'll note, I was merely asking for security, not payment. I believe you will find that you have never requested information of the House that was not supplied - or retrieved - for you.
"However, you cannot deny that your request is a substantial one: the identities and locations of an unknown number of people of any race, sex, or ethnicity, with no description whatsoever, that could have performed an act of aggression against you, the result of which was your death--the time, place and manner of which you are not providing." Her mouth rises in an amused smirk, black eyes twinkling. "Anyone in the Land could meet those requirements. I suggest you aim high in your estimation of cost."
Her hands part in an artful gesture, her demeanor softening to a more sensual fluidity with the indication that they might be nearing the end of their business discussion. "Still - Your offer is interesting. If it is your wish that I should attend tonight, I will be delighted to satisfy you."
So DRA is still pretty busy eh?
Hopefully we didn't scare him off lol. Just thought I'd ask you guys and btw how y'all doin? :)
He told me last night that he cant post at work anymore... and yeah, he's been busy in the evenings. Busy destroying our party on monday... One cohort dead, one character turned to stone at 10 hp and all alone in a weird planar mess (so effectively dead), another character dead, two characters in jail and very likely to be executed... It was a fantastic evening.
Holy cow! >.<; No problem I am in the same spot, been really sick for four days at work so its not been fun. :(
But I can't post at work to keep up either. =/ And with Two kids now my time is limited to a 30min- 1hr window that I should be using to sleep at night. Really sucks. But thats life lol, good luck in your guys game sounds like a real mess right now, :(
Is that game the same one that's taking place in DRA's world that we all play in and love here on Paizo? Anyone we 'know' bite it??
Well, most of you don't know Kai (aside from Azami's alter-ego's) and I don't think anyone met the monkey monk. Pike DeFazz and his brother are the ones awaiting trial... I believe the skynights encountered Pike, and most of you have probably encountered some of the nastiness he created.
"Lovely. I'm sure then that you have personal business to attend to, such as informing your house of any information about me you have uncovered... Do not allow me to detain you. I shall see you in a few hours. Dress is as informal as you care, though I do not suggest wearing anything that you cannot bear to have stained." With that said, the baron picks up a journal and begins writing methodically, as if the elven woman had already left the room.
Ahaha, ya, we met Pike, before he was turned(?) into a Lich. (although we're still not sure about all of that)
So, is Kai dead then?
Tanith's eyebrow arches upward at the word stained in what is quite possibly the oddest invitation she's received in a great while, and far from what she might expect from the Baron. Nevertheless, upon his attention moving towards the journal, the elven woman rises regally from the chair and heads for the door with similar boredom of a being centuries old, the gown whispering across the floor. The combined effect of their equally distant manner and lack of formal closure to the discussion creates an oddly casual atmosphere of things unfinished.
She exits to Stol outside the door. "Bring my coat. Please send a messenger to the inn half an hour prior to this evening's activities as escort." There was no use in hiding it - she was here at the behest of the Baron, and it made sense to utilize those resources to add a touch of public formality to her presence as well as remind the Baron of their business relations. Besides, it might keep Stol from leering as openly.
The inn leaves much to be desired by a Stormfare elite, but nonetheless, it is the best of the few in Inta. After reserving a room, Tanith asks the innkeep for directions to the supply shop and once again leaves the inn, heading as the innkeep directed, pulling her winter wolf cloak tightly about her. Within a short distance, however, she interposes herself between two barriers of view and winks out of sight.
With any tail likely lost, all she requires is a tucked away place where she will not be heard - which isn't terribly hard to find in an outpost town like Inta. Tanith activates her mirror and communicates - in a mixture of elven and infernal - what she has thus far learned of the Baron and his predicament to the network. When she describes both his request and his offer to them, Tanith allows her misgivings to show. "The Baron knows not his own method of death or would not share any of the details. It is suspect in relation to his interests in knowing the names and where his assailants currently reside - one would consider he would offer more detail to ease the cost and the achievement of it. The job's goal seems of only moderate importance to him - he seemed to lack the motivation of revenge one might expect for such a request. His wealth and power are diminished, looking to assert dominance over his claims before they rise up against him. So to set the House on a fools' errand with such a grand scope that could cost him significantly while only achieving a collection of names and places feels contrived. Therefore, I can only query whether he is giving us something to keep us busy and distracted from something else. It is set up almost as a test as well as bait."
Tanith informs the network of the travel to be taken on the morrow, as well as the dinner this evening, requesting that a parcel be sent to her rooms (locked, of course) to prepare her for the business of travel in the morning, as well as this evening's gathering.
When the escort arrives, she is already in the main room laughing with several of the locals. Noting her cue, she bids the men at the table a coy farewell, pulling up the heavy white hood as she follows the man out back into the cold to attend the Baron's dinner.
Ahaha, ya, we met Pike, before he was turned(?) into a Lich. (although we're still not sure about all of that)
So, is Kai dead then?
Kai is the statue, his cohort is deeeeaaaadddd. Pike isn't a Lich anymore and has amnesia...
The Baron continues writing into his ledger, making notes on supplies and troop movements. After a few seconds an awkward bird-like noise comes from the corner of the room. Looking up, the Baron speaks, "Oh, yes. Well, if you feel you must," and then returns to his notes.
The Tengu focuses his Ki and and turns invisible. Then, silently, Azu steps into the shadows and emerges onto the roof of the Baron's manse. He waits until he spots Tannith, unfolds his wings and leaps into the air.
When she enters the inn, he lands near the entrance and once more steps through the shadows.
He arrives in time to hear the innkeeper give the elven woman directions to the supply shop, and after she leaves follows her outside again.
Airborne again, Azu continues to watch her movements and spots her duck into a small space. He lands softly above, and perches there listening.
Azu lands deftly, but his perch proves to have been poorly chosen. He contains a shudder as the boards creak underneath him, and holds his breath, hoping it can be played off as a natural sound.
Tanith's dark eyes flicker in the direction of where Azu lands, seeing nothing, but now wary. She walks back the way she came at first, then changes her direction several times, pausing in silence in a wider open space before heading towards her final hiding place to give a report - out of earshot of that area.
On his perch, Azu listens carefully. He hears the noise of movement, seemingly leaving the space, but sees nothing. A few seconds pass, and the sound begins to disappear into the ambient noise. He focuses to himself, and lets the invisible world come into vision.
After a few minutes, Azu feels the creeping feeling of embarassment, and flies himself back to the Baron's manse.
Watching the tengu shuffle back into the room, the baron clicks his tongue disapprovingly. "Indeed. Well, it is doubtful she said anything that I have not already guessed. Let us both hope you succeed on your next mission. I need you to return to your Dwarf friend. You will leave tomorrow."
"STOL! Go and fetch Vinstromm!"
Before dressing, Tanith spends time in the main inn tavern, listening to an amusing anecdote told by a couple of the locals. Noting to the barkeep that she is awaiting an escort, she returns to her room and dresses for the occasion, covering all of it with her heavy winter cloak.
When the sound at the door comes, she calls, "Yes?"
"M'lady, your escort has arrived. Are you dressed?"
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I've joked with DRA about having the Baron hijack all the threads. He didn't tell me no...
@Tannith: Unless you plan on trying something funny, I will proceed to the feast scene tomorrow...
She exits the room, wrapped in her cloak, not answering the impertinent question. She follows the escort until they exit the inn, when she pulls up her hood.
[sits on edge of chair..]
Waiting at the door is a young man, dressed in furs and leathers just covering a what appears to be a very fine mail shirt. He is noticeably shorter than the other men Tannith has seen in the north, and much better groomed albeit in a deliberately roguish way. One hand rests on the pommel of a fine rapier and the other idly toys with a coin.
He gives Tannith a cocky grin as she brusquely exits the room, and leads her out of the inn. He saunters casually towards their destination, and when about tow thirds of the way there turns towards her, still walking, and smiles again. "My lady, I trust you are enjoying your stay here. We have snow! And cold! And more snow to go with that! We are truly a center of culture that a lady of Stormfare might appreciate. I am even now escorting you to a truly significant event..." He winks, "So I am told, at least." His accent is unique to Inta as well. It seems strangely familiar, yet exotic just the same. He bows, and leads Tannith to the entrance of the hall.
She cannot help but appreciate the joviality of her escort, despite her certainty that this likely means he is all the more dangerous for it. His boots crunch in the snow, adding a pleasantly rhythmic accompaniment to their trek across the town. Tanith casts a sideways glance at the man past her furred hood, her mouth an angled smirk. "Certainly the north does have rare experiences to offer that I doubt I would find elsewhere. Including your company. Will you also be in attendance at the event?" Her gaze casually scans the lay of the town around them as they walk. "I imagine you know who I am – but we have not been introduced."
"Well of course we haven't. You are all about the business, are you not? But then, so is our Baron. And as for myself, I am Vinstromm Vigsonge, and it is my pleasure to accompany you into this den of wolves." He bows elaborately, then opens the doors to the longhouse for Tannith.
The hall itself is quite spacious, certainly enough to hold a few hundred men as long as they didn't mind being cozy. And it seemed everyone not on active duty was there, mostly seated but many standing and bawdily socializing. It was well lit, with minor magical lighting on the walls and the support beams throughout, but mostly by the large fire burning at the center, with a large boar on a spit above it. Six long tables in sets of three on each side were prepared for the Baron's men, already set with pitchers and baskets of bread and cheese. Decorative tapestries depicting local fauna hung on the walls, punctuated with the with the weapons men would use to hunt them. The whole place was ripe with the smells of cooking food, and just a hint of the stink of warriors.
At the far end was another, finer table, and at its center Sat the Baron. Dressed in a fine mail coat and a grey fur cape on his shoulders, he lounged casually in his massive chair, but his piercing eyes gazed intently about the room. There were three seats on each side of him. The chairs to his right already occupied by a trio of fierce looking men, one looking significantly older than the others. The two to his immediate left were unoccupied, but the far left held a large bear of a man who sat there, struggling to contain his massive beard into a clasp, much to the amusement of lean looking warrior on the right. The Baron's eyes settled on Tannith as she entered with Vinstrom. He grinned and stood up, and silence quickly fell among the men.
"Ah, my honored guest has finally arrived! We shall begin as soon as she is seated!" ha said, gesturing to the chair on his left.