Solaria (IC)

[Bigmac]

"I ain't here to go scavgening through someone else's stuff. Besides, I'm here to make a deal. I'd rather not start on the wrong foot by proving that we can't follow orders."

[Neftren]

Pelemaeus

"Agreed. If we're here for a job, we might as well start off on a good foot with them, rather than annoy them. Especially if we've worked with them before...perhaps under a different name or banner?"

Pelemaeus takes the initiative and turns left at a brisk pace.

[Bronz]

DM

Pel turns left, and follows more steps that creak each time they are stepped on.

@Pel and those who follow him

Spoiler

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You walk down this stairway for about 15 more feet downwards, making another single turn. At the bottom there is a torch for light, and a closed wooden door, with a standard handle and knocker.

@Those who are indecisive and stay put

Spoiler

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The strange wind picks up, and the whispers of conversation turn louder. Those with an arcane background recognize words of power, but not of what they are intoning.

[The_Chilli_God]

The Harpist

Hearing the sounds of walking to the left, the Harpist follows in smug silence.

[Bigmac]

Marcus follow Pel down to the left, leaving those who were still deciding their fate behind. He was glad to see that Pel had chosen the same path as well as the Harper. Marcus grabs hold of the knocker and uses it to announce the groups presance to whomever was behind it.

[Bronz]

DM

When the knocker is used, the moment the crack of metal on metal is heard the door swings open. Inside there is a long table stacked with fresh meats, vegetables, and drink. On the sides the walls are lined with bookshelves, full with what must be some very interesting reads.

At the head of the table sits a strange looking man in simple black robes. He would be ordinary except for the small horns that protrude from his skull, and the reddish tint that his skin takes on. At his immediate sides you seem to see double, as the exact same person it seems sits there. This person(or persons) wears the same simple black robe, but has more simple features with a round face and fair complexion. They both almost seem jovial sitting there.

The man at the front of the table stands as you enter.

*Come, please partake. It has been prepared in your honor. We will speak business after the meal. My name is Tyerdius, and you are here under my invitation. *

With that, he sits down, and the chairs pull out as if under their own power, apparently waiting for someone to sit in them.

[Raistlin1040]

Elzaon

Elzaon hesitates, and then catches up with the others to the left. He takes a seat.

[Bitzeralisis]

Wilarmis the Wizard

Wilarmis reads the titles of the books on the bookshelves before sitting down.

[The_Chilli_God]

Teh Harpist

"We would be honored to dine with you, indeed," the Harpist says formally with only a small amount of emotion, as he slowly makes his way over to a chair and touches it with his hand to make sure that it is a chair, and sits down on it. "I expect that other subjects of conversation are not prohibited. Honor as proper may be offered if we had knowledge of exactly whom each of us represent."

The Harpist certainly isn't trusting the food.

[Bronz]

It would take far too long to read all the titles on all of the books in the room before sitting down, and quite possibly is rude even glancing. But what Wil finds are books in a very strange language that is incomprehensible to him, and that the vast majority of the books look very similar...as if they are journals.

Some titles are things like;
Athuskijotty, Zygurawawawa, and Minoplutrxpiwxjre.

The man known as Tyerdius notices the perusal, but goes back to his meal as if he saw nothing of note.

One of the "twins" looks up at the Harpist as he speaks and sits down. In a very dry and raspy voice, he answers.

*We are those who represent what is to come. We are those who do what is necessary to bring that to fruition. More than that need not be said.*

[Bigmac]

Marucs takes a seat at the table using the first available chair. He nods to each person at the head of the table as he does so. Since the host has already invted them to dine, Marcus will start to fill his plate up with samples of the food on the table. He will, however, wait to eat untill the host has done the same.

[Bronz]

After everyone is seated, the meal is joined. Whoever wishes to eat may do so, and the three at the head of the table actively partake of their own meal.

Soon, the meal is done and polite conversation ceases. Tyerdius claps his hands, and many invisible servants begin to clean the table. The dishes are brought back behind the three, into another room and through another wall. Meade, ale, and wine are left for refreshment.

After the clean-up, Tyerdius stands. He reaches into his robes and pulls out a short pipe filled with tabac. He uses a tindertwig to light it, and begins to pace around the front of the room.

After a few minutes, he begins to speak in a fairly soothing, but at the same time disturbing, tone.

*First I thank you for coming. If anything, at least you received a hot meal for your troubles. Second, I apologize for my associate's wards on our missives. It was a necessary step to prevent any falsehoods. As you may or may not know, Myus has done a job or two for me in the past, long before any of you were around. It is why I reached out to him specifically, as we have a...working relationship.

I ask now if I could put you all into my employ. Knowing what I do of Myus leads me to believe you are all quite capable persons yourselves. I am in need of these types of people.

I need something done that is of a...questionable moral nature. If any of you have any qualms about moral ambiguities, speak up, and we shall attack those questions first. If not, please ask any questions you wish now.*

[Bigmac]

"Morally questionable is a broad term. I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty and cause a ruckus if necessary, but I'd like to know what I'm agreeing to before I comment one way or the other. So what exactly about your task is questionable?"

[Bronz]

Tyerdius chuckles a bit to himself.

*Of course, of course. Suffice it to say this task involves a child and its mother. More than that I cannot say without...consequences. Does that satisfy you?*

[Raistlin1040]

Elzaon

No. It doesn't. What exactly do you want us to do to these two?

[Bigmac]

"A mother and a child eh? Seems too simple for you. I'm sure there is much more to it, but let us say that for now any of my moral concerns can be covered over...for a price.

[Bronz]

Tyerdius senses some tension in the room, and this time laughs a bit harder. Once he settles down, he speaks in a more serious tone.

He turns to El and speaks first.
*My dear outsider, as I have said, to speak further about this would require consequences. Those I do not know if you are willing to accept...yet.*

He then turns to Marcus, looking a bit more jovial.
*Of course there is a price involved, I would think that is the nature of business. However, since my normal dealings had been with Myus, and such a long time ago, I know not who negotiates for you. In any case, it is safe to say that the payment for this deed would be worth, at the very least, that fabled sword at your side.*

After this bit of dialogue, Tyerdius reaches down for a glass of wine, and drinks a bit heavily.

[Raistlin1040]

Elzaon

Elzaon doesn't seem to take offense at the outsider crack. Rather, he seems proud of it. Knowing what he does, it's not suprising.

Does it involve us killing them?

[Bronz]

Tyerdius answers back to El.

*Ah, good. Proud of your heritage. A good trait to have. But no you aren't supposed to kill them. Simply bring them here.*

[Bitzeralisis]

Wilarmis

"So, who exactly are we supposed to bring you? I mean, there are about a million plus pairs of mothers and children out there." He rolls his eyes. "Unless this is some spooky mystery where we're supposed to find out ourselves because you're bound by some magical contract and will turn into a pig permanently if you tell us?"

[Bronz]

DM
After Wil's remarks, it seems as though something changes with Tyerdius. He puts his pipe down, and when he looks up his eyes glow a deep, deep red.

*You know not to who you speak Riuertopklyweionvei! I shall NOT be spoken to in such a tone! I have already said that to know more would mean consequences, and you give me no choice!*

He then turns around and the door that welcomed you in now slams shut, the illusionary wall that the unseen servants walked through suddenly disappears, and a giant 10' mirror stands there. In seconds, it's mirror portion begins to swirl, until nothing is reflected and only a swirling gray mist is visible.

Tyerdius swings his head around, and marches right into the mist. One of the twins gets up and follows suit. The other stands, and turns to the group.

*He took offense, but our business is not concluded. He will settle down. Of course, now your only option is to follow, and he shall speak in more detail of what needs to be done, and you can negotiate price.*

With that, the only other person that was in the room that is not a Moonstar walks into what seems to be nothingness.

[Bitzeralisis]

Wilarmis

Wilarmis opens his mouth, obviously intending to say something that would probably insult Tyerdius further. "Well, I... oh, never mind." he mutters. "No point in annoying this guy." Wilarmis suddenly becomes stern, and obviously no longer wishing to be annoying, turns, and walks into the mirror without another word.

[Bronz]

As Wil walks through the mirror, he has the feeling of plane shifting, that much is obvious. This seems much more like a gate however, as he walks out of the same type of mirror on the other side.

He walks out and finds that he is in a normal looking house, though it is apparently mansion size. The room is another dining room, much like the one that the group was just in. The twins are walking over to it, and just now sitting down. Tyerdius already has a pipe in hand, and seems as jovial as a few minutes ago.

*Ah Wil, I apologize for that outburst. I don't take sarcasm well. In any case, please, take a seat, and we can get on with the real negotiations.*

He then paces around, waiting for the rest of the group to come in.

[Bitzeralisis]

Wilarmis

"Then I won't be sarcastic," says Wilarmis, taking a seat and also waiting for the others.

[Neftren]

Pelemaeus

Pelemaeus comes through the mirror, obviously unfazed by the planar shifting, although you can tell by his expression that he is curious as to which plane he is on now. He takes a seat, although he still has not touched any of the food, not requiring any of it, through his ring of sustenance.

"So my take on this is that we must venture forth, find the stated woman and child, return with them alive and healthy, and in return, we are paid a large sum of gold or material goods of value? So, that doesn't sound too bad, except I fail to see how that is morally ambiguous. While I believe in true freedom, I'd still like to know why it would be morally ambiguous."

Pelemaeus leans back, and awaits an answer from his hosts.

[Bigmac]

Marcus follows the others through the mirror. He had heard enough from the man to know that he would explain himself in good time. Marcus' questions had been answered for now. Instead of sitting, Marcus will lean up against the wall while he waits for the others to arrive.

[Bronz]

Tyerdius waits until everyone is settled in. Upon hearing the question, he finally decides to state the business at hand.

*You are all needed for this, my task, at hand. I am nearing completion of a...pet project of mine, and am in need of some special cargo.

To the north and west of Mysticae lies a small Fire Giant tribe, the Gurrs. Within this tribe there is a mother and an unborn son. I need the pair, unharmed, in the basement of the shop in Mysticae. I also ask that my trust not be misplaced with Myus' Moonstars, and that all contracts are kept confidential.

For this, I ask you to name your price.*

Tyerdius then finally sits down, grabs an apple off the table, and takes a big bite.

[The_Chilli_God]

The Harpist

Since I was away *Much cursing*, the Harpist was just inanely keeping silent and listening to all the parts of conversation, stepping through that mirror and such, waiting for the real deal.

And here it is.

Hm... Unborn children are rather difficult to resurrect, unfortunately. Though the Harpist isn't exactly the guru on such matters - best leave that to the bookworm - That's the Harpist's idea on morality.

"Dispensation to eliminate anyone blocking our way to the targets that are not the targets themselves, and to obtain possession of any items of value found amongst recently-deceased members of the tribe. Advance knowledge as to the exact size and location of the tribe, and notable features of the tribe's culture or location. Payment of one hundred thousand gold pieces, or items of use to us to this value, with ten percent of the payment offered in advance for purposes of completion of the task at hand. Alternatively, we can consider you in our debt until future actions rendered for our benefit sees the debt settled. Feel free to haggle."
The Harpist smiles. Even without the knowledge of what exactly fire giants are, he's quite certain that they wouldn't be pushovers if the Moonstars were specifically called for the task. Even so, it's always best to aim high for the price.

[Raistlin1040]

Elzaon

Elzaon nods at Harper's suggestion.

I agree. That seems fair.

[Bronz]

Tyerdius slowly gets out of his chair, and again begins to pace. He seems to be thinking, but about what you could only guess. Then he stops, all of a sudden, and responds.

*I agree to the right to dispense with any that are not the targets. In that regard, I do not lay claim to any responsibility for any fallout that that particular event may cause.

You may keep anything that you find. I would expect nothing less.

Advanced knowledge of the tribe would be up to you to get. I only know what I need. Information is not part of the deal.

I offer you the price of 10,000 gold each, or choice of an equivalent trinket I may have around.

What say you?*