Greed is Good (IC)

[Gullara]

The elf laughs along with her, and it's a surprisingly guffaw to come from a frame as slim and slight as Indrys'. He looks down at her notes, and then back into her eyes, and smiles. "Indeed? What is it that you have planned so far?"

"I'm going to open with the new song while I've got their attention and before they've got too much drink in them. Then I'll continue with several songs I know. I'll keep it simple later in the night." Cecily explains.

"As for the new song itself, well, take a look for yourself." The bard slides her papers over to the mage. Her handwriting is neat and elegant; it has obviously been very well practiced. On the other hand, the overall structure of her plans is all over the place. "I doubt you can make any sense of that by just reading it, though." She chuckles a little and proceeds to explain. It obviously needs some work, but she's got a good idea of what she'll be singing about and when and in what order. So it's something at least.

[Destro_Yersul]

Alec

The sailor wassn't dissapointed - the docks still had plenty of people out working, even in the growing storm. The sea was no longer so calm looking as when he had entered the inn. Now, it was rippling with waves, and anyone who might have thought to go out in it should have second-guessed that by this point. The boats, however, still needed to be tied down, or in some cases, bailed. Nets needed repairs, and below decks would have been dry enough. Alec was able to attract the attention of one sailor, heading back into town on some errand or other.

"Hello, friend. I've only a moment. What d'you need?"

Laelaer and Thorus

With the two passengers keeping the boat free of water, the sailor was able to steer the small craft into the shoreline. They were still some ways from the town, but now if they fell out they wouldn't be more than neck-deep in water. Not nearly so terrifying a proposition. The waves were rocking the rowboat, but the sailor steering it didn't seem keen to land.

"Reckon I can make it back to the docks," he said, paddling the boat parralel to shore. "Now that we're near land, at any rate. If that don't suit you, we could probably beach the boat and go on foot."

[Blarghy]

"Barrels of salted fish to take to Stormgate," he keeps it simple. Looking around, memories of the sea come back as Alec watches the sailors, busy even for so small a dock. "But it looks like you lot could use some help first, with the storm coming. Point me to someone in charge, and I'll pitch in for the afternoon; I know my way around this sort of work. We can trade afterwards."

A little exercise, nostalgia for his sailing days, the goodwill of some townspeople, possibly a discount on the fish he buys--what's not to like? If he goes back up to the wagons, he'll only sit in the rain watching the silk that no one's going to buy.

Spoiler

Show

Assuming Alec's offer isn't refused for some reason, you can sum up his labor and move him ahead in the day to the trading (which should be brief, I expect). Let's see if I can finally get a good roll here:

Profession (Sailor): (1d20+4)[14]
Craft (Shipbuilding) (for doing repairs and such): (1d20+7)[18]

[Sophistemon]

Once the bard has guided the beguiler through her plans for the event, the white-haired elf nods, pleased with what he's seen. "This looks very, very good, Cecily," he says. "I like what you've planned out, I really do. Now, then..." He lays his hands flat on the table. "How can I assist you? When, where, and how would you like my magic to accompany your music?"

[The Orange Zergling]

Filling the bucket with water from the boat, Thorus pitches it over his shoulder and off the side. He sniffles, trying to clear the sting of water from his sinuses. "Whatever works," he states flatly.

[Gullara]

"Well, it depends on how many spells you can cast before you're spent, but we'll base what we do around that." Cecily explains. "The clash of swords meeting here, an image of combat there, it'll be a great compliment." The bard points out some likely points in the song for such accompaniment, and is more than willing to take Indrys' opinion on the matter when he offers it.

[Destro_Yersul]

Alec

"Alright. No fishing today, so mostly we're giving the nets some repairs." The man pointed Alec at one of the boats. "That one, there. Talk to the captain he'll put you to work."

Sure enough, the captain had a few jobs that needed doing. Alec found the rest of his afternoon occupied with minor repairs around the ship, mending nets and filling cracks in the hull with pitch so they didn't widen in the storm. The holds smelled of fish, no wonder there, but after a while it ceased to be noticable. Once the work was all done, the captain came over again.

"My thanks for your help. I was told you wanted to buy some fish?"

Laelaer and Thorus

Taking Thorus' words as a vote in the favour of the expedient route, the sailor started taking the boat slowly back towards the docks. It was not fast going - the waves rocked the little craft, and more than once it nearly tipped over. They were almost halfway back when an especially large wave rolled in, tipping the boat up and spilling its contents over the side. The sailor came up coughing, standing in four feet of water and holding onto the boat.

"Right," he said. "That's it. Sorry about the dunking. Grab your things, and we'll walk the rest of the way."

Spoiler

Show

A roll for our sailor friend, to steer the boat back safely: (1d20+6)[8]

not a very good roll, that. Search tests to find the stuff that went over. This amounts to anything you weren't wearing and the three sacks of oysters. The oars and bailing bucket are floating nearby, and are easy to find.

[Blarghy]

The captain finds him in a good mood, happy to be back to what he knows. Alec shakes some of the water out of his hair and confirms, "Indeed I do. How much do you have for sale?"

[The Orange Zergling]

Thorus swears under his breath after his head breaks the surface. He takes a breath and bends down under the water, pawing through the turbulent water and silty bottom blindly for his things. He eventually finds his boots, coin pouch, the knife he kept at his belt and his newfound sack of oysters, but he's unable to locate his shirt. He decides to cut his loss and begins wading to shore, deciding he's done with diving for a while.

[Artemis97]

Sputtering and shouting a string of curses in her native tongue, Laelaer struggles to stand in the deep sand and persistent waves. As quickly as she can, the drowess gathers her things. She threw her weapons belt over her shoulder, and she found it to be complete, though she worried about the integrity of her spell components. Getting the chain shirt out of the sand was a bit of a battle, and Laelaer knew it was going to take forever to clean, if the chain mail was salvageable at all. If the salt water corroded it, it would be useless. A lucky step had the toe of her boot come across a missing dagger. The bag of oysters was a difficult find, the sack hidden in the stirred up sand, but Laelaer was persistent. She was not going to leave without it. She had been dumped in the ocean one too many times not to have earned her prize.

Soon Laelaer was slogging her way towards the shore alongside Thorus. She thrusts a soggy, dripping bundle of fabric towards him. "I believe this belongs to you."

[Destro_Yersul]

Alec

"A good number. We've had a lot of success, the past little while. Most of it gets stored on land, once it's salted, but it's all labelled. I can tell you which is mine, and you can take what you like for a fair price." Hopping down to the docks from the deck of his ship, the captain started walking towards the storage buildings constructed along the shoreline. Alec followed, the smell of fish getting stronger when the captain pushed open the door. Inside was a single room, stacked with barrels.

"We've been storing up more than usual, with the caravans coming through."

Laelaer and Thorus

He spent a while looking about, but it seemed the sailor was unable to locate the oysters he'd pulled up himself. Cursing and splashing as he pushed the boat towards shore, the oars and bucket tossed back inside it, he struggled to pull their craft up onto the beach.

"We'll be a sad sight when we get back," he remarked, looking down at his soaking wet clothes. "Least the rain can't make us any more wet. Help me stow the boat, and then we'll get back."

***

Once the rowboat was tied up to a large chunk of driftwood, and all the loose belongings that could be found were gathered up, the party of three headed back into town. The sailor had recommended the inn as their destination, since it was likely to be the warmest and they could dry off by the fire while they shucked the oysters. Without any better ideas forthcoming, they arrived back in the middle of a proper rainstorm, receiving the evil eye from Grimfist for dripping water all over the inn's floor. The space around the fire wasn't yet fully occupied, and they were able to pick a spot off to one side to begin, sitting around a small table and popping the oysters open with their knives.

Spoiler

Show

You can talk amongst yourselves if you like, or you can let me know if you've nothing to say and I'll move along with what you find.

[Blarghy]

The amount of storage makes sense, but disappoints Alec; he'd hoped that he could get an even better deal by buying most or all of the captain's stock, but it doesn't look like he can afford that. Still, he might have some advantage with making a bulk purchase, and there's still the matter of his labor this afternoon.

He holds up a gold coin over his shoulder as he inspects the barrels. "Sixty-five for...thirty pounds?" His silver should carry him to Stormgate and last until he can make more money; Alec doesn't plan to wait long before searching for new funds.

The price probably isn't strictly fair, and possibly not even acceptable, but there's only one way to find out. Personal principles demand that Alec at least try to haggle for a low price. He's starting to like this merchant business, in small amounts.

Spoiler

Show

Looking back, there's a big difference between what that one sailor offered us for the shortbow and the prices Destro listed in the OOC thread. Alec is basing his offer off of the former, because that gives him a much better deal. =P Although if you go off of the first sailor's price, technically this sale would value each pound of fish more highly. Still far cheaper than the book price, even with Seabreak's discount, though.

Diplomacy: (1d20+5)[19]

[Sophistemon]

"Well, it depends on how many spells you can cast before you're spent, but we'll base what we do around that." Cecily explains. "The clash of swords meeting here, an image of combat there, it'll be a great compliment." The bard points out some likely points in the song for such accompaniment, and is more than willing to take Indrys' opinion on the matter when he offers it.

The elf nods and then, surprisingly, even claps his hands together. "I can do that," he says, grinning. "I can do all of that. Sounds, sights, just enough to make them feel like they were there." He breathes out a sigh of satisfaction. "Working together, we can give them such a display as they have never seen before, and likely never will again... unless we opt for an encore the following evening!" He leans back in his chair and takes a deep drink of his tea, which has now cooled significantly but is still surprisingly good for such a small inn in such a small town. Perhaps he'd underestimated the peoples' sophistication. "In any case," he continues, "such a display will likely drain me of my daily allotment of spells. But it will be worth it, I think."

[Gullara]

Cecily grins at his enthusiasm. She found some of her own worries were slipping away as she spoke with Indrys. "I sure hope so. I think this'll be the biggest show I've ever done, if you measure it by how much preparation is going into it. I'll be honest, my nerves were starting to get to me trying to write it, but I feel a lot better knowing you'll be a part of it. I don't have a doubt in my mind that we'll leave an impression that won't be soon forgotten." She says, entirely honestly.

[Destro_Yersul]

Alec

The captain chuckled. "I could probably get more than that selling to one of the other merchants, y'know. You helped me out, but not that much. If you've sixty five gold to offer, though, I'll give you twenty pounds, and we'll call it even. How's that sound?"

Spoiler

Show

Nice diplomacy roll gets you a counter-offer. He was never going to take that deal as-is.

Laelaer and Thorus

Working mostly in silence, the sailor took out his knife, showing them how to pop open the shells and look for the pearls inside. "Most of these," he explained, "will have nothing. Just toss those in a bucket, or something, and I'll get the surly git as runs this place to cook them for us."

It was slow going, checking every oyster individually, and the afternoon wore on with the rain beating at the roof. They were dry inside, though, the fire serving to keep them warm and to solve the problem of damp clothes. By the time they had finished only half the oysters, it seemed like the cold and wet was nothing more than an unpleasant memory. They were halfway through before Laelaer found something. A small pearl, nowhere near the size of the sailor's, but valuable nonetheless. The second one they found, nearing the end of the pile, was much bigger, with a golden sheen to it that flickered in the light of the fire.

The sailor whistled when he saw it. "That's a true beauty, that one is. Lucky a find as any I've run across. I'd hold on to that, were I you."

[The Orange Zergling]

"Thanks." Thorus replies to Laelaer as he takes the soggy mass and wrings the water from it as he walks.

---

Thorus was glad to be back in the inn, and cracking oysters was more exciting than he had expected. Or, maybe it was just a nice change from almost drowning out at sea. Either way, he enjoyed himself. The first oyster was a little difficult to extricate, but it was an easy skill to pick up. When the pearls are discovered, Thorus can't help but whistle as he admires the lustrous prize. "How many of 'em have 'em, d'you reckon?" he asks the sailor.

[Blarghy]

"Sounds good," Alec agrees, pleased. He's pretty sure this is how the merchant game normally goes: the price starts unreasonably low or high, and they work towards the middle. Most deals probably aren't as quick as this, but he doubts he'll gain anything by haggling further, except maybe putting the captain in a foul mood.

Alec brings out his gold and pays the man. "Which barrels are yours? I'll take mine up to the wagons now."

Spoiler

Show

Sheet is updated.

[Artemis97]

"Oh, I intend to." Laelaer says to the sailor, sitting back in her chair, holding up the golden pearl and admiring its sheen in the firelight. "They're supposed to be rare." The drowess comments to Thorus. "Else they would not be so valuable."

[Destro_Yersul]

Alec

"This stack over here. I'll roll these outside for you, and you can take them from there." The captain pocketed his money, pointing out a low mound of barrels. He helped Alec count out enough to make twenty pounds, and then made for his ship. The pirate had, after all, said he'd need no help getting them to the wagons.

Laelaer and Thorus

"Couldn't tell you, for sure. Finding two in as many as we did was pure luck. Probably only about one in a hundred, usually." The work was finished quickly, and no more pearls were forthcoming. Taking up the bucket of oysters, the sailor headed for the kitchen.

"Be right back. Don't know about you two, but I'm getting hungry after all that."

[Slii Arhem]

The Forge

After much toil in the relative silence of the forge, Glaffin holds up what his mad inspiration required him to build. bent from pure steel rather than the fine silver of its brothers, and yet its notes sounded just as sweetly from his admittedly untrained lips as he blew a stream of air across it. Not even the spring-loaded mechanism hid inside the tube threw off its pitch, because of how Glaffin shaped the metal elsewhere to curve the vibration in his fevered efforts for perfection.

Of course, he knew it wasn't perfect even though it was serviceable both as an instrument and a weapon. Perfection would only be reached once an example could be made of the finest materials and processes, perhaps even enchanted in some fashion, and that could take days or months of work he did not have. Even so, the concept that his exhausted mind had formed and turned into living steel was beautiful in its uniqueness. A solid steel flute that would withstand being used as a club had most likely been thought of before, and perhaps even been executed, but without dwarven craftsmanship it would be hardly playable as a true flute would be. And dwarves seldom bothered learning the intricacies of wind instruments, save for the few horns they used to alert patrols to danger, because the resonance in their mountainhomes lent itself well to wall-drummings and other more percussive ways of expression.

And even if such an instrument had been made successfully, making one with a spring-loaded stilletto hidden in the barrel that did not interfere with the workings was truly an accomplishment. In truth, Glaffin did not expect his first prototype to work so well, but he supposed it would need more thorough testing from someone who knew what they were doing. Before that, though, he needed some sleep. He hoped Cecily would forgive him for missing her performance, but he supposed the gift of the flute and an explanation for what occupied him would have to be excuse enough.

"There, I'm finished in more ways than one now, and I'll leave you to get acquainted with your new tools while I sleep through the night. I'll be back in the morning to get the thirty five, with Alec in tow if he hasn't picked up his weapons yet. Take care of yourself and don't work through any more nights than you have to, not even dwarves are made for that." With a somewhat lethargic wave rolling off his numb fingers, Glaffin stumbles out into the evening light and heads for their wagon in the caravan. No sense buying a room when his bedroll was already there.

[Blarghy]

Twenty pounds of goods is well within Alec's ability to carry by himself; unless the fish is separated into many tiny, hard-to-stack barrels, he probably won't even need to make two trips. Either way, the captain assumed rightly.

After securing his new merchandise with the barrels from yesterday, Alec sits down in the wagon to rest a few moments out of the rain. There's little left to do except wait for tonight's show. That is, until Glaffin arrives, although he might not feel like chatting.

[The Orange Zergling]

The thought occurs to Thorus to be snarky, but he chooses not to be and instead settles for admiring the shiny pearl for another moment. When the sailor comments on food, he realizes just how hungry he is. "Aye, that was tirin' work," he replies. Some moments afterward, another thought occurs to him. He addresses Laelaer, "So, I can't help but notice that these two ain't the same size. How do we divide 'em?"

[Slii Arhem]

Twenty pounds of goods is well within Alec's ability to carry by himself; unless the fish is separated into many tiny, hard-to-stack barrels, he probably won't even need to make two trips. Either way, the captain assumed rightly.

After securing his new merchandise with the barrels from yesterday, Alec sits down in the wagon to rest a few moments out of the rain. There's little left to do except wait for tonight's show. That is, until Glaffin arrives, although he might not feel like chatting.

Caravan

Glaffin is nearly to the point of staggering by the time he reaches the caravan, but he gives Alec a nod as he stumbles the last few feet that may just be him falling half asleep. The flute is held lightly in his fist, and he holds it up for inspection as he sits heavily on the edge of the wagon.

"She's a beauty isn't she?" He mumbles, craning his neck to the side and eliciting three sharp cracks as his joints pop and settle back into place, "It's one of the reasons I worked out a deal to use his forge. I had an idea I just couldn't get rid of, and I didn't have the tools handy to make it myself. Go ahead, give her a look over." He passes the steel flute to Alec, who might note that it's surprisingly heavy even given the material it's made of.

The dwarf blearily peers at the extra barrels of fish, snorting, "I hope if it was you who bought those that you've got enough left over to pay the smith, or else you'll have to owe me for those weapons you ordered and I'll have to take a bit less on the tools. Not that I mind a few debts between friends, so long as they're paid eventually." In this state, Glaffin doesn't seem to remember or care that he and Alec had decided their outlooks were too different to be friends. He's just too tired for it to matter.

"How's your chest, all healed?"

[Blarghy]

As one recalls, Alec wasn't verbally opposed to friendship, although in private he definitely has his doubts about it. He doesn't particularly trust Glaffin, for one (rather ironic when you think about it). Still, there's no reason they can't be friendly. If nothing else, they've spoken more about their beliefs than they have to most of the others. Positive working relationships have been built on less.

He laughs to himself as he takes the flute. "Much better, yes. As for the fish, you needn't worry. I've known too many loan sharks to leave outstanding obligations. The smith'll have his money."

Weaponized musical instruments don't really factor into Alec's experience, so the flute's weight and material both puzzle him. He turns it carefully between his hands, tries to balance it, looks down the ends, and so on. It'd probably help if he knew anything about normal flutes, but at least he's smart enough not to play it without knowing more about the device. He finally hands it back to Glaffin.

"Nice work," he guesses, well aware that he probably can't appreciate the effort involved.

[Destro_Yersul]

The Forge

The Smith's answer to Glaffin leaving was a simple nod of assent. He was hard at work on his own projects, making the weapons that Alec wanted.

The Dead Man's Chest

Returning from the bar, without the bucket of oysters in tow, the sailor sat back down by the fire. "We'll have those cooked up for us in a few minutes," he said. "In the meantime, there's the matter of payment. I don't mean to badger, but I'll be getting back to work after eating, and I'd like to have money in hand when I do. The pearl's are your matter, they were in the Lady's bag, not mine, but I think you owe me a few silver."

[Artemis97]

[Dead Man's Chest]

Laelaer reaches into a pouch on her belt and counts out the proper amount, setting it on the table for the sailor.

She then turns to consider Thorus. "I cannot be responsible for your bad luck, nor my good. That was in the gods' hands. Surely you could sell your oysters to make up the loss, however? And we cannot say we had a boring day." The drowess notes with a smile.

[Slii Arhem]

As one recalls, Alec wasn't verbally opposed to friendship, although in private he definitely has his doubts about it. He doesn't particularly trust Glaffin, for one (rather ironic when you think about it). Still, there's no reason they can't be friendly. If nothing else, they've spoken more about their beliefs than they have to most of the others. Positive working relationships have been built on less.

He laughs to himself as he takes the flute. "Much better, yes. As for the fish, you needn't worry. I've known too many loan sharks to leave outstanding obligations. The smith'll have his money."

Weaponized musical instruments don't really factor into Alec's experience, so the flute's weight and material both puzzle him. He turns it carefully between his hands, tries to balance it, looks down the ends, and so on. It'd probably help if he knew anything about normal flutes, but at least he's smart enough not to play it without knowing more about the device. He finally hands it back to Glaffin.

"Nice work," he guesses, well aware that he probably can't appreciate the effort involved.

Glaffin shakes his head as the flute is pressed into his hands, slipping them under and around it and pushing what seems to be an ordinary key cover one would normally place their thumb over. Four inches of polished steel spring from the end of the flute, ending in a curved, double-sided spade point.

"That's the real beauty of it. Don't know what possessed me to make it, but I'm proud of getting it to all fit together. It was impossible to balance the thing for throwing while the blade's out, but when it's in you can toss it end over end easily enough. Blade's a bit delicate for my liking without a tang as well, so that might effect it if someone wanted to stab with it. Still, you can't see it at a glance while it's hidden, so I can't think of better discreet protection for a musician without resorting to magic." True to his word, the flute was balanced to the tip of a finger in the center at least with the hidden blade inside, but without a finer edge to rest it on it's hard to tell just how precisely he balanced it. With the blade out, it's thrown off a few inches towards the point.

After demonstrating he'll take it back, assuming Alec doesn't want to examine the now revealed mechanism a bit more, "When I left, the smith was still working on your order, so you'd probably have more luck checking on them after Cecily's performance. As for me, I need my sleep. Say hello to everyone in the Inn for me, but don't tell them where I am unless it can wait until morning, alright?" The dwarf starts to unstrap his bedroll from the top of his pack with slow, numb fingers.

[Sophistemon]

Cecily grins at his enthusiasm. She found some of her own worries were slipping away as she spoke with Indrys. "I sure hope so. I think this'll be the biggest show I've ever done, if you measure it by how much preparation is going into it. I'll be honest, my nerves were starting to get to me trying to write it, but I feel a lot better knowing you'll be a part of it. I don't have a doubt in my mind that we'll leave an impression that won't be soon forgotten." She says, entirely honestly.

"By the time we're through with our performance," states the elf, "nothing else will compare. We will have left them so thoroughly entertained that we'll have to mask our faces, so as to avoid them in the street!" His thin lips stretch wide into an uncharacteristically joyous grin - he really is liking the idea of fame and, of course, of the fortune that so often tends to follow after it. "But," he says, quickly sobering, "we can't let ourselves be caught up in the spectacle. Good people died during that bandit attack; we can't allow our rendition of the events to be too garish and flashy or we risk dishonoring their memories."

[Gullara]

"Of course. I understand that." Cecily's smile quickly becomes more subdued, but it's not gone from her face. "It'll be as good of a memorial as any one top of it all." With that thought in mind, an idea occurs to her. She takes one of her papers and scrawls out a couple lines.

"See, it's getting more and more complete all the time." Cecily looks thoughtfully at Indrys for a moment, and then a sly little smile comes across her face. She writes again, saying each word as it appears on the paper.

"Fair Indrys, master of magics arcane
Flexed his fingers and tongue and his prodigious brain
Though the great bandit leader roared and bellowed quite deep
With a few arcane gestures he was soon put to sleep"

"A fine addition, don't you think?" The bard says mirthfully as she looks up at him again.

[Blarghy]

A dead-to-the-world Glaffin will provide some comfort later tonight, surely. Assuming Alec can keep from waking him up when he comes to drop off his new weapons at the wagon before slipping off into the night for mischief. If the priest hasn't slept in a day and a half, it shouldn't be that difficult.

"Your secret's safe with me," he says. "I'll leave you to your rest." The sooner Glaffin goes to sleep, the sooner he can't see or hear anything inconvenient.

Alec gets out of the wagon and starts for the inn before changing his mind. Once the show starts, he'll have business. Before that, he should take care of something else. Time to find Adrian.

His greeting, when he spots the boy, is rather abrupt. "What have you learned today?" he asks straight off.

Spoiler

Show

After this little conversation (which I expect should only take one or two posts), I'll be ready to move onto the evening show once everyone else is. Seems like we're pretty close, from what I can see.