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(A lanky man with a hood and a scarf over his face enters the exchange faction HQ. He bears a wooden shield strapped to his arm and has a battleaxe dangling from his belt. He's wearing what COULD be a mithral breastplate, but it is too dingy and dirty to be sure. He pulls back his hood and down his scarf to show what is probably a half-elf, but he sports too many battlescars to be sure. As he speaks his voice sounds like he's lived off gravel tonic for his entire life.)
Is this what we were afraid of back in the Aspis? I tell you, back in the day, 'fore I switched sides, we were told stories of the Pathfinders. Madmen, we were told. A well-oiled tactical machine with battle training and strategies so far afield from normal that there were no countermeasures. Men who could turn into Hezrah Demons . . .spellcasters able to summon angels with the left hand, and devils with the right . . . men who could strech their arms out to thirty feet and ride the biggest of the dinosaurs.
I have to say, I'm greatly disappointed. It's like it's every man for himself here. No one backs each other up, in fact, I've seen y'all kill each other 'for fun!' D'yknow, the other day, I told a man tha' I spotted a trap, and was about to disarm it, and he just up and triggered it . . . on a lark! Died on the spot, and I woulda too if my reflexes weren't so quick.
Was this what we were afraid of in the Aspis? Don't get me wrong, y'pay better, and at least you tell us how screwed we'll be 'fore we go on a mission, but would it kill a few of you to learn how to find and disarm a trap? Or at least let a professional do it?
Ah well, leastwise ya don' go killin' people over the treasure ya find. Tha's a plus, I s'pose.
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A well groomed archer in mithril chain responds. The armor is clearly elven as are most of his items save for a jeweled wayfinder. He speaks in elven.
"I am Silver to the pathfinder society. My real name is Silvanus Talimah."
"This is the Exchange, warfare is generally bad for business. Less customers whomever wins. If you want the more martial branch, the silver crusade. If you want the more arcane oriented scarab sages & darkive. There is also Liberty's Edge but I don't dwell with them much so I defer judgement to to one with greater experience."
Not that I am unskilled in weapons, but it's a secondary skill. My interests lie in magical equipment; finding it, studying it, selling pieces that are of mild interest, and keeping those of note.
"You mean like me?" (The sound originates behind the elf)
Silver responds, "Yes Gamin, you are exactly the oddity I find most amusing."
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A human woman, dressed like a minor noble, pauses to listen to the conversation. She carries a fan, possibly of Tien origin, but no obvious weaponry.
"Master Kravenoff, when I was new to the Pathfinders I earned a few extra coins performing acts of sleight of hand, stage magic. I learned the art of showing people what I wanted them to see, and hiding that which I did not want them to see. If I appear non-threatening, it is precisely because that is what I want people to think. Can I summon demons?"
She pauses for effect, mutters a few words, and flickers of electricity run up and down one arm.
"Maybe, but if I can, I choose not to reveal it at this time. The threat that I might is often just as effective as having a real live Balor punching holes in the wall, and it is a lot less messy."
"As for traps, if I can disarm a trap without standing in its blast radius, I call that good risk management by me. If I can disarm a trap without other Pathfinders standing in its blast radius, I call that good not being an idiot by them. I think we are basically in agreement on that point?"
She smiles politely and waves her fan.
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"Perhaps as an Aspis Thug you are being sent with the Rejects and Bad Seeds because there is not enough gold that even a Trade Prince like myself could pay you, with which to make me certain of your loyalty?"says the man dressed in long multi colored flame themed robes. "The only Aspis that is good for business is a dead Aspis. I mean seriously what was Aaqir thinking when he allowed a snake into our homes and beds"
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"Perhaps as an Aspis Thug you are being sent with the Rejects and Bad Seeds because there is not enough gold that even a Trade Prince like myself could pay you, with which to make me certain of your loyalty?"says the man dressed in long multi colored flame themed robes. "The only Aspis that is good for business is a dead Aspis. I mean seriously what was Aaqir thinking when he allowed a snake into our homes and beds"
Ha! You think yet the first to question mah loyalty? I ran a small squad a' Aspis back in the day. One day, th' bosses told us about a simple mission, a milk run. Run into some ruins and place a few arcane marks or somesuch for scrying. Turns out it was a trap. Aspis leadership had 'leaked ' the mission to the pathfinders. Made it sound bigger than it was. Some real monsters showed up and beat us down, hard. See, they did it 'cuse they needed to divert pathfinder attention away from some lucrative smuggling they'd been doing. 'Course I found out about this after the fact.
Lucky for me, most of the team sent to take out my squad were silver crusaders. They decided to take us alive 'fer questionin'. I heard about what happened when the pathfinders figured it out, and switched sides.
I went through yer three year program, and had so many discern lies and zone of truths cast on me that I doubt my kids'll be able to lie. I got an atonement spell, and I found out that I could be a better person, so THAT's what the trade price was thinkin'. I've turned into a better man.
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"I still do not see where my first point is not valid, I have never been sent on missions with self serving fools and incompetents, in fact the only incompetent I know in Society is Drandle Dreng when talking to subordinates and secondly if you counted yourself a member of society would you be saying Our instead of your training program wouldn't you?"
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Ah yes, that must be it. Disregard all my training, all the divinations, and the not-inconsiderable number of missions I've gone for 'our' group. I have chosen one word poorly! Clearly I must be a liar and this a grand con. I would ask you to slice my hand with a blade of the open road to prove that it does no more damage to me then Ambrus Valsin, but then I suspect you would accuse me of having a stoneskin upon myself. You are a funny man.
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"That you speak to a Trade Prince such as you do , proves how much of a mercenary you still are in your heart of hearts, and why you get sent on missions with the other less professional and more Blood Thirsty members of the Society. Good Mercenaries are at least polite to their Officers and Employers. You find yourself judged expendable by the Consortium and the Society and you blame both for that judgment"
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(Kravenoff chuckles and takes a swig of his drink.)
So sorry to see this conversation end, but seeing as how you are now making up fantasies and outright lying, it seems you're out of anything of even mild intelligence to say. First off, Aspis are not mercenaries. Or rather, they are as much of mercenaries as pathfinders. Anyway, you seem to know more about the mercenary life than I, so I will differ to your superior experience; I assume that's where you got your information.
Secondly, I can judge only what I see. Members who blunder into known traps for fun, or who trick each other into picking up cursed items that cause death. That man over there all but admitted to killing fellow pathfinders over some treasure they found. Even if that is the bottom of the pathfinder barrel, which is entirely your theory with no proof I add, what does that say about the pathfinders that 'we' let such people in our orginization?
Lastly, I respect people with the ability to do things. Trade prince is nothing but a title that gets passed around like candy here. In fact, the idea that a blowhard like you made trade prince diminishes the title, I think. I respect and thank Aaqir for what he did for me, not for some title he has. Maybe you should strive to live up to your leader's example and look beyond your prejudices towards the bigger picture. But that might be asking too much from a man who has judged me insufficient to join the pathfinders before seeing me in action. And you criticize me as being judgemental. . .
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Gamin these people are very confusing.
My Lords, Pathfinder Silver expresses a concern that your dialog does not present a clear picture of what you want, so answering it becomes more difficult.
Many within the society have less than pure intentions, so long as we cooperate, explore, and report..it has ever been irrelevant the means by which it is done. One hopes that our actions favor the better angels of our souls. As by example, the society's successful crusade against the demons of the world wound. Is not that success which covers your misconception about the group in total.
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"I am only judging you on what you say happened, you come in here insulting all of us based upon such a limited experience with a selection of misfit and say how disappointed you are in us. Tell us how you were sent as a distraction by your former companion and how you are sent on missions with unprofessional and unfit members of the Society. You say how we pay better and so admit to being a Mercenary and yes I am very familiar with Mercenaries , I run a successful trade company and employ caravan guards and sell-swords" the Qadirans mans say.
"Secondly the Aspis Consortium is in fact nothing more then a mercenary criminal organization, a group of murderers and cutthroats that hides behind trade. People that create droughts and food Shortages to sell food to the starving and start wars to sell arms to both sides."
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"Secondly the Aspis Consortium is in fact nothing more then a mercenary criminal organization, a group of murderers and cutthroats that hides behind trade. People that create droughts and food Shortages to sell food to the starving and start wars to sell arms to both sides."
(Kravenoff's nose flares and he shouts in anger for the first time in the conversation.)
Wrong! The Aspis, the REAL Aspis, the ones you talk about, are a collection of miserly old men in their ivory towers who take starving street rats off with promises of wealth and power, and then use them as pawns and reuse. All for the collection of money. Just as you are not a member of the decemverate, I was never one of those selfish curs! Maybe, just maybe, I know more about the inner workings of the Aspis, than one who refuses to deal with them and implies that he kills them on sight!
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Katarina looks as if she was about to walk away, but then turns to reply.
"Trade Princes are like candy? I suppose I am sweet, and well-liked almost everywhere I go."
She smiles coyly at Kravenoff from behind her fan.
"You might learn a thing or two from the Trade Princes, though. There's no need to shout down everyone who disagrees with you. Discerning eyes will see whether or not you have the skills to get the job done. Your bluster may impress the simple and the gullible, but it's no great feat to sway those sorts in whatever way you want them to go."
"It sounds as if you're good with a trap, or a locked door, and you looked like you've survived your share of fights, but I hope you learn some focus before it's too late. If Trade Prince al-Tughrai can get you riled up, I shudder to think what might have happened if you had been dispatched to the Blackros Wedding."
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Gamin responds, "It is good my lord Silver was not dispatched to the wedding. It would undoubtedly result in a funeral..or dozen."
Silver snaps, "Gamin, Trade Princess Katarina speaks sensibly.... It is good to listen as well as speak."
Gamin responds, "My lord you would speak with a human...is that not my assigned task?"
Silver pauses, "No, I will listen. You may continue."
"My dear Silver, of course. Attention Trade Princess Katarina. My Lord Silver extends his gracious welcome. He may inquire if you are actually coated in sugar, or if that is a metaphor. I am Gamin, boon companion and designated communicator in the form of a fine longsword."
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A short Tian gentleman sitting quietly in the corner chuckles, and finally decides to speak up in a perfect Taldan accent. "As much as it amuses me to sit back and enjoy the bickering, I really must point out that only a very select few of our number are as you've described. I've met several of those of which your old allies spoke of. I even know a Pathfinder agent that is an Air Elemental. Riding ancient creatures, like dinosaurs and mammoths, isn't terribly common, but I've seen a few. I've several friends among the other factions who ignore traps, as they are hardly phased by them. Others I know try to harvest the traps for themselves to use against foes, ot safeguard their own dwellings. Hell I even know of a rather large dwarf with a statue of Lissala in his home. One that tries to kill him or those around him on a weekly basis. To say that we aren't an eccentric lot would be a lie, but I assure you, we aren't the murderous lot you've described as a whole. Also, if you ever need a translation or forgery, please come see me. I happen to be quite versed. If I cant help you, well...Let's just say I know a guy." With that he sits back down and takes a drink. When done he pulls up his hood, casting a shadow over his face.
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"Lord Silver, Master Gamin . . ." Katarina seems ever so slightly confused about where to focus her attention.
"I can't say that I've had the pleasure of conversing with a sword before. Another Pathfinder I know - he goes by Franklin Powers, Gentleman Adventurer - claims to have seen one once, but he's been known to exaggerate a bit if it makes him sound more dashing and heroic. In any case, no, I am not actually covered with sugar. I am merely playing word games with our angry friend because I don't wish to be drawn into swapping insults."
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"If the Trade Prince title were to be handed out like a child's treat I would find it insulting, both because my accursed brother has obtained the title, and I have not." A comely Half-Orc woman interjects grouchily.
"And to be honest, after that little affair in Riddleport, I have seen that the Aspis are...more despicable the higher a rank they hold. The grunts, or bronze badges, are just like Pathfinder initiates, men and women looking to make some coin, the difference is that the Aspis seem more inclined towards dirty deals and backroom negotiations. That said, I suppose I don't know much about the Pathfinder brass themselves, but nevertheless, no need to put someone down due to their past, it makes one look like a Shataz-Buub.
Miskai then seats herself in a chair nearby, procuring a book and a mug. "Cheers, to good health!" She proclaims, raising the mug enthusiastically before taking a hearty swig from the mug.
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Simply put, a surly, unkempt, dwarf, with dark blonde hair and beard, wearing chainmail of dwarven make, walks into the room.
So this is where all tha bicker'n happening? I share the same hatred that most of us all have of our pyrite faced rivals, but that is not going to stop us from what we ar' going to do!
The dwarf looks around the room, at what he calls prissies, bickering like a bunch of chirping birds fighting over seeds.
*Cough*
Anyway, we're pathfinders, we work together! If we don't we are no better than the Aspis twits that ruin lives!
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Gamin replies, Honored Katarina as a sword I have no eyes to view your unparalleled beauty...or lack of sugary coating. I must inferr such things from the conversation itself. If I make the wrong inference it is only due to limitations of my design.
Silver adds, a design I paid exorbitantly to improve. But costs are of no concern when collecting priceless relics are they Gamin.
I am beautiful, rare, and old like a good scotch.
Silver adds, you cant drink scotch and I prefer fey wine. But I do like listening and diskike talking so by all means continue.
You are a kind and generous man, Silver.
Elf... (growled out as if in rebuke)
Yes of course.
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Gamin adds, pray what kind of trade are you engaged in. I know the vulgarity of shop talk may offend some....Yet I feel it easier to ask rather than guess.
Silver speaks again in elven. Former Aspis agent, have you encountered the crusaders in past? Their ideal seems more in tune with your song. Or am I hearing the wind rather than the tune.
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The figure in the hood tilts his head slightly, and speaks again. Albiet, with a more northern accent this time around. "Is the sword speaking to me?" He pulls back his hood to reveal the visage of a scarred Hallit man. "I have my hands in a great many things. I specialize in infiltration, as you can see...or not? Forgery and translation are a large part of that, often enough. I am a Trade Prince as well, as Mr. al’Hakam sanctioned my businesses. I have several carvans to assist my in my lucrative, but less 'savory' dealings. My extended Family assists in my ample buisiness ventures, and I've always got a selection of items available at The Pickled Imp. Excuse me. I'll be back in a moment, the bar here has excellent Ulfen mead." With a grin, he finishes his tankard in one long draw and walks over to bar for another drink.
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"Most impressive, Ryosuke. I can see that you are good at what you do. If I hadn't seen you sitting at the table this whole time, I'm not sure that I would have recognized you."
Katarina then turns her attention to Gamin's question. "I own shares in a larger caravan company, transporting things like spices, cloth, and small luxury items. They usually take care of day to day business without needing a great deal of input from me, which is convenient when Pathfinder duty calls me away. My own particular area of expertise is in delivering things that aren't supposed to be there. Suppose you wanted to send a scroll of cure disease to your poor, sickly mother in Rahadoum. Or some day you may find that you want to return an ancient artifact to the Grand Lodge, but the stern fellow at the Osiriani border has ideas about how it's a national treasure and shouldn't leave the country. It's in those sorts of situations that I am best able to help you.'
She smiles and then adds, with a laugh, "When times are slow, I've also been known to deliver letters for young Taldan nobles who don't want their parents to know about their amorous escapades. It doesn't pay well, monetarily, but it expands my network of friends."
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Walking back over with a hefty tankard, Ryosuke picks up the conversation with Katarina. "I've been speaking to people all my life, but have since found my mimicry to be so accurate as to allow me access to areas usually unaccessable by those not in the correct circles. I still remember the first time I did a heist in Haseong, in my home country of Hwanggot. A noble from Lingshen had come to Haseong to buy some new art for his mansion home. While there, he offended several artists in my 'family's' turf. The noble never realized that he had done a great wrong in Hwanggot. Never tell any artist that their work isn't even good enough to hang in your privy, let alone one from my home."
Ryosuke chuckles, taking a hefty swig of his mead. "I walked into his room, while he was in the bath, disguised as him. His guard in the room questioned why "his master" was back so quickly. Told the poor sap not to question his liege and to wait outside while I changed into the noble's clothing and took as much gold as I could secret on my person. As I left I told the guard to go have a well deserved drink, and to report back to his post in no more than an hour. Even after the 'repirations' were given to the artists, and the family taking their cut, I had enough left over to enjoy a good drink myself. Not in that business anymore, though I do have several contacts on that side of the world still."
At this point, as the alcohol begins to affect Ryosuke, the accent is slipping more toward Tien.
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A man has been sitting alone at a small table against a wall the entire night. He's wearing comfortable loose-fitting clothing, and has no apparent weapons on his person. Though his body language is very reserved, the crimson and gold feathers taking place of his hair and sharp pleasing features make him immediately noticeable upon entering the room, only forgotten once realized that he listens for more than he speaks. As a matter of fact, you can't recall him speaking at all until now.
He looks to Kravenoff. His stare is piercing and unwavering.
"Any man who seeks to test his sport against me is free to try."
His face shows very little emotion.
"I'm sure you understand the mentality, especially in your life before the Society."
"I don't come to serve as a Pathfinder with illusions of grandeur or with some lust in scouring the human heart for virtue. You can't trust anyone. I serve my fellow Pathfinders because it's my job. They serve me because it's their job. Trust is an investment I've never felt comfortable making, so when the expectations of conduct are betrayed, I hardly feel reservation when showing them the...
...result of their action."
He turns his gaze to Ryosuke, still as consistent and unwavering as with Kravenoff. It appears he speaks to all people this way.
"That is not where my skills lie. In a way, I envy you. I know my way around traps and dungeons. I know the human body. But the human mind... baffles me."
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The Dwarf speaks up. "Yes, that is too true. Most things in our lives will be guided by money. As our careers here!" Barask lets out a loud laugh. "Though I have to say, what you did;" Barask gestures to Ryosuke. "To a rude noble, that is great! I mean, when you tick off the little guy, they do tend to bite back! The he grins wide, but then it turns into a small smirk. "I hope our former Aspis friend is alright. While we might have ran a bit hot, we were not against him in anyway. There are more dubious people here with even more dubious careers that have joined up!" Barask looks around, then sighs. "Well, if everything has been settled, maybe we can start to relax. Maybe something to drink or entertainment."