Chronicle of the Scavenger Lands (Exalted 3E) - IC

[Red Shadow Claws]

Quill takes a good drag from the hookah before responds, savoring the orange flavor. As he exhales, making three circles in rapid succession, and then sending a smoke arrow through them. "I have in mind a piece of jewelry that I wish to create, and a prospective client for it."

 

[jaydude]

Kahoda nods in understanding. "Would you like me to sell you the metal too? Gold, silver, or whatever you want to use?"

 

[Epiphany]

Catseye nods slowly, still thinking the scenario over. Then she flashes a wicked grin at Mara. "I'll definitely go with you, Captain. As for my nature, here's how I'd play it. Bring me along as your second, however you want to play it is fine. Let's see what kind of a deal they offer. If it's one you're happy with, give me a nod and I'll bind it. That'll tip my hand to what I am while making sure your interests are protected. And if it's not a good deal, they're not the kind of Solars I want to do business with anyway."

The Eclipse pats Mara's hand and leans back against the ship's hull, stretching slightly. "Ready when you are. Unless you want to give me a night to summon up something extra for the occasion."

 

[jaydude]

Mara gives Catseye a nod, clearly liking the idea. "Okay, I'll do that. I'm still waiting on a time and place for the meeting, though I don't think it'll be too necessary to summon anything just to help make this deal."

Then a glint appears in her eye. "That being said, what were you thinking of summoning?"

 

[Epiphany]

The Eclipse chuckles and shifts in her bed as she drums her fingers against one knee. "Lots of options, really. Depends on what you're expecting we'd need. A Blood Ape would buy us a bodyguard, muscle and might hold them up if we need to get out of there. So would an Agata, though, that would fly us right out of there in a hurry. And of course, there are elemental options as well. Given enough lead time, we could prepare any number of scenarios for these people."

"As they could for us, if they've got a Sorcerer with them."

Catseye ponders that a moment longer, then shrugs. "It'd be helpful to know what we can about them before we meet with them. With the crew ashore, maybe we should put out some feelers and see what their reputation is in these parts."

 

[Sherwood]

Since Ailera is about to be doing business with a possible pair of Solars, she decides to do a bit of intel gathering on Ryan and his people. Ducking down a quiet alley to be out of sight, she first alters her outfit to be able to blend in with the soldiers in their camp outside the city. Then, using her Essence to help make her disguise better, Ailera gives herself a quick make-over. Running her hands through her hair, it is now a short cut light blonde. But even more dramatically, she now is a man that is several inches taller than before!

Pulling a small mirror from one of her many pockets, Ailera gives her disguise a once-over. Satisfied with the results, she, or rather he makes his way back onto the street and heads for the encampment of Ryan's troops. Lets listen in on the talk about the camp to hear what his men are saying about this man.

Spoiler

Using Flawlessly Impenetrable Disguise to alter my appearance. It gives me 2 auto successes to my Disguise roll and double 9's.

Total of 6 successes

 

[jaydude]

With Catseye...
"No, I don't think we'll need any of those." says Mara, once Catseye has given her options regarding summonables. "And as for finding out more about our potential associates, it certainly wouldn't hurt to try."

She stands up and turns to look at Catseye. "I've already let the rest of the crew know what's going on, and I'll send a few of them out to gather what they can, and ask around myself. Would you care to join me, Catseye?"

With Ailera...
With her charm, Ailera is able to perfectly assume the form of a Crimson Fangs member. Upon donning her disguise and leaving the city, it takes Ailera a bit of time to find Ryan's camp, but she soon catches sight of a cluster of tents on the top of a small hill, almost out of sight of the city guards at the gate.

Do you want to try and walk straight into the camp, or go in a bit more sneakily?

 

[Red Shadow Claws]

Kahoda nods in understanding. "Would you like me to sell you the metal too? Gold, silver, or whatever you want to use?"

"I hadn't settled on the exact metal they will be set it, but I would keep this in mind. Now, is there any word from the Contemplation? Or any news you could give me regarding Nalia? After all, a count leaving it, and selling his signet ring isn't a common thing."

 

[jaydude]

"Indeed." agrees Kahoda. "I have had some news from our people in Nalia. It remains peaceful, but by many accounts it is merely the calm before a terrible storm. Quincel, the one who currently occupies the throne there, is on the hunt for anyone he suspects of supporting his sister, or otherwise attempting to subvert his rule. The count who fled here and sold me his signet ring was loyal to Ysandre, the designated heir of the previous king, and for that he was considered a traitor. He was not the first to abandon his title, lands and other possessions in order to flee for his life, and I doubt he will be the last."

"Our people however have remained safe. For now, Quincel has so far made no moves against them. As a matter of fact, his betrothed has hired one of our jewelers there to craft her a new diamond necklace."

 

[Sherwood]

With Ailera...
With her charm, Ailera is able to perfectly assume the form of a Crimson Fangs member. Upon donning her disguise and leaving the city, it takes Ailera a bit of time to find Ryan's camp, but she soon catches sight of a cluster of tents on the top of a small hill, almost out of sight of the city guards at the gate.

Do you want to try and walk straight into the camp, or go in a bit more sneakily?

I'll go ahead and walk on in. Right now, being sneaky is more likely to draw attention.

 

[jaydude]

As Crimson-Fang-Ailera approaches the camp, she is met at the perimeter by Sergeant Tannis, though to Ailera he's nothing but a slightly more important looking member of Ryan's group.

"You must be one of the men who accompanied the boss into the city. Did he send you back here?" asks Tannis, clearly buying the disguise, even if he doesn't perhaps recognize Crimson-Fang-Ailera. Behind him, Ryan's troops are going about their business, some of them sitting down and talking, others practicing with their swords.

 

[Sherwood]

Ailera nods, and in the gruff voice of her disguise, she replies, "Yes, Sergeant. He wants a status check on how things are going here. We may be on the move shortly." As she talks, she looks over the general condition of the camp and the men. Are they clean, and disciplined, or more ragged and sloppy? How many people are in the camp?

 

[jaydude]

"Ah. Has he found work for us already? Good to know." replies Tannis. "Things are all well here. No trouble, and the camp has been set up. The men here are resting, though we can be on the move quickly if necessary."

From what Ailera can see, there are at least a few dozen men within the camp, all of them fighters. Given that they are led by a Dawn Caste Solar, Ryan's troops and their camp give off a clear sense of cleanliness and discipline to the Night Caste. At present they seem more "at ease" than "relaxed"; they may be kicking back now, but the Night Caste gets the feeling that they could assemble into a formation or be ready to march off to war within a few minutes of receiving the order.

"Will you be delivering your report to the boss immediately? Or will you take a moment to rest in the camp?" Tannis then asks, his manner suggesting that either choice would be a valid option for Ailera right now.

 

[Red Shadow Claws]

"Indeed." agrees Kahoda. "I have had some news from our people in Nalia. It remains peaceful, but by many accounts it is merely the calm before a terrible storm. Quincel, the one who currently occupies the throne there, is on the hunt for anyone he suspects of supporting his sister, or otherwise attempting to subvert his rule. The count who fled here and sold me his signet ring was loyal to Ysandre, the designated heir of the previous king, and for that he was considered a traitor. He was not the first to abandon his title, lands and other possessions in order to flee for his life, and I doubt he will be the last."

"Our people however have remained safe. For now, Quincel has so far made no moves against them. As a matter of fact, his betrothed has hired one of our jewelers there to craft her a new diamond necklace."

Quill shakes his head "It is never good for business when things like that happen, and I so wished to go there, as I received information about a new place of interest for our people. But with this upheavel, it would be hard to explore this. Though it good to know that he hasn't moved against any of our people."

He then sighs as he drinks his coffee, and takes another drag from the hookah. "Any news from our brothers about any new development? I have spent a few weeks in the wilds, and had no contact." As he said this, he unhooked a pouch with the money for the sapphires he wanted. "And if you have any other unique pieces, I would love to hear about."

 

[jaydude]

Kahoda gives his own head a shake, before taking another drag from the hookah. "At this moment, I do not have anything else that I would consider unique. As for new developments...well, that depends. What sort of developments were you thinking of?"

 

[Red Shadow Claws]

Quill bursts into a short laugh "After two weeks in the wilderness, any development would be new to me."

"But do you have any idea where I might be able to find the Nalian count? I wish to hear from him about the situation there."

 

[jaydude]

The other man gives a shrug of his shoulders. "One of our people has established his own diamond mine in the hills north of this city, but that's about it. As for the count..."

He takes a deep breath, and then leans closer to Quill, speaking in a whisper. "When he sold me that ring, he agreed to take less money than I would have given him for it if I agreed to not tell anyone about him. The only reason I'm speaking to you about it, for better or worse, is because you too are a member of the Contemplation, and you and your companion seemed to have figured things out in my shop earlier."

"I don't know where exactly he is or where he lives now, but I do have an idea. I saw him on the streets a couple of days ago, in one of the wealthier districts of the city. I had gone there to deliver a work of mine to the client who'd commissioned it, and I saw him walking past me, carrying what appeared to be a wrapped painting under his arm. I was just curious enough to think about why he was carrying that painting, and I soon concluded that he had not purchased it, because there are no art dealers within the part of the city I saw him coming from. So if he did not buy it, I considered that it might be a possession of his that he intended to sell, or a work of art that he had created for a client. And if either one of those theories is true, that would mean that he has his home, or a workshop, or another place where he could have stored the painting within the district. Perhaps if you ask around there, you may find him."

Having said this, he provides Quill with the location of where he saw the former count, as well as a description of the man. Were Quill to pass this description onto Ysandre, she would find that it is quite different from how she remembers the count.

 

[jaydude]

Rykon and Esbilon
With Ryan and Ysandre...
As the two Solars carry on their conversation, a party of five athletically built men wearing buff jackets over travelling clothes step into the inn. The waitress who earlier greeted Quill and Ysandre approaches them, and seats them at a table across from the two Solars. None of them appear to be armed, with the exception of one who wears what appears to be a sheathed reaper daiklave. The scabbard prevents an observer from seeing what kind of magical material the weapon is made from.

 

[Red Shadow Claws]

The other man gives a shrug of his shoulders. "One of our people has established his own diamond mine in the hills north of this city, but that's about it. As for the count..."

"A diamond mine you say?" Quill exclaims, in a soft voice, but still. "I hope the new ruler doesn't try and tax him out. But have you any of the yield from that mine? Diamonds will always be a favorite of the ladies, and I would love to know more about the quality of these diamonds."
Secretly, Quill was already thinking of ways to capitulate on this.

"I don't know where exactly he is or where he lives now, but I do have an idea. I saw him on the streets a couple of days ago, in one of the wealthier districts of the city. I had gone there to deliver a work of mine to the client who'd commissioned it, and I saw him walking past me, carrying what appeared to be a wrapped painting under his arm. I was just curious enough to think about why he was carrying that painting, and I soon concluded that he had not purchased it, because there are no art dealers within the part of the city I saw him coming from. So if he did not buy it, I considered that it might be a possession of his that he intended to sell, or a work of art that he had created for a client. And if either one of those theories is true, that would mean that he has his home, or a workshop, or another place where he could have stored the painting within the district. Perhaps if you ask around there, you may find him."

Quill nods gravely, for it is always difficult to see a man of means reduced to selling his fortune. "I will definitely be looking for him. As it seems to me that he is selling what assets he has."

 

[Rykon]

Ryan activates Keen Sight Technique for 3 peripheral motes. This lasts for the scene. The full effect is in my sheet.

With heightened senses, Ryan takes several critical appraising glances at the new comers checking for heraldry, aspect markings of Exaltation, or any hints at the nature of the Daiklave in question. He spoke in a barely audible whisper amidst the commotion. "Guess that will have to wait for another time. I don't want to tip off people looking for a payout." He said, trying not to be too direct about the bounty on Ysandre's head.

jaydude let me know what I should roll to get more information on this group.

 

[jaydude]

With Quill...
"You needn't worry. As I said, the mine is in the lands north of Marita." replies Kahoda. "And yes, the ladies will always love diamonds. The owner has agreed to sell me what diamonds he can, and I have it on good authority that the majority are reasonably pure, with one or two particularly good ones every now and again."

As the conversation turns back to the count, Kahoda looks at Quill with a slightly concerned expression. "If you wish to investigate the matter, I will not stop you. But I will advise you to be careful. When I talked with the count in my shop, he was like a man constantly looking over his shoulder, out of fear that someone would stab him in the back. It seems to me the count fears that merely leaving Nalia will not be enough to ensure that the king will leave him be. And that fear may well be justified."

 

[jaydude]

With Ryan and Ysandre...
Since Ryan isn't socializing with the newcomers, give me a Perception + Awareness + 2 bonus die roll please.

 

[Rykon]

Rolling...

Since this is an Awareness based roll I will add 8 personal motes for an excellency and Suprise Anticipation method to get to 10d and double 9s.

6 successes

 

[jaydude]

Looking at the five newcomers, Ryan sees no signs of heraldry or membership of an organization, but he does notice that all of them have at least one telltale mark of a Water Aspect Dragon-blood: greenish-blue tints to their skin, damp-looking hair and watery eyes. He also sees hints of black jade on the handle of the daiklave.

 

[Rykon]

OOC: my bad, I meant sensory acuity prana, the other isn't on my sheet, I just got mixed up.

Ryan looks to Ysandre and gives an innocuous excuse to leave. "Well, it's about time we go meet our new friends. It's rude to be late after all."