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

[Red Shadow Claws]

Quill examines the precious stones, checking out their quality, cut, and estimating their price while he talks with the merchant.

 

[jaydude]

Each stone is cut in a different way; one is octagon cut, another is princess cut, a third is emerald cut, and the last one is cut in the classic round style. Quill's examination tells him that the stones are all flawless, and that in terms of his average annual earnings, paying a fair price for all four of them would set him back at least a year with his current level of resources.

 

[Red Shadow Claws]

Quill sighs "These are good stones my friend, but as you surely know, if I were to make a single piece of jewelry with four stones, each a different cut, I would not be lauded for my craftsmanship." And then he decided to try his luck with this one and said "But perhaps if I contemplate the Jade setting, it could work." Giving the first part of his secret organization's membership, to see if this was a fellow scholar.

 

[jaydude]

The jeweler blinks twice at these words, before he leans forward and gives the organization's countersignal. "Perhaps. Such contemplation of Jade can lead to finding fortune."

He then nods towards Ysandre. Quill senses that he's nonverbally asking Quill if she can be trusted with details about the Jade Contemplation.

 

[Red Shadow Claws]

Quill's eye twinkle at the familiar words. But he shakes his head slightly towards the merchant. He preferred to keep this a secret for now. Loudly he says "Your words ring true, but perhaps we can talk them over a coffee and hookah." Indicating that it is a business best discussed in private.

 

[jaydude]

The other man gives Quill a nod of understanding. "Yes, perhaps so." he says before clearing his throat. "But to get back to the present matter, I apologize for causing you confusion with these stones, my friend. I was merely showing you a selection of the cuts I have on hand. I do of course have multiple sapphires of each shape."

 

[Red Shadow Claws]

Quill claps his hands in delight "Ah, my friend, I see. I would be pleased to haggle with you over the price of four princess cut sapphires, perhaps over said coffee and hookah? Name the time and place, and I'll be there." And he then turns to Ysandre, and with a slight bow, says. "My dear, let us find us a place to rest, and recover from our travel."

 

[jaydude]

The jeweler nods, and tells Quill of a place in the Decadence District he occasionally visits, as well as a time in the evening he can expect to find him there.

"Will that be all?" he asks, assuming that his business with the two Solars is concluded for the time being.

 

[Red Shadow Claws]

Quill shakes the merchant's hand and bids him farewell.

 

[Rykon]

Ryan and his entourage make their way to the Darkened Dirk Inn as advised, taking note as to what lies in the surroundings. By the sound of it, he'd expected a fairly dim place haunted by cutthroats and cutpurses, eager to prey on what little money floated through the town. Hopefully, the riff-raff is far enough away for a little merchant or noble to be sufficiently confident in hiring help there. Though I reckon I should expect the usual second-hand communication from retainers, stewards and the like.

 

[Red Shadow Claws]

"shall we go find this accommodation so we can refresh ourselves?" Quill asked Ysandre.

 

[Esbilon]

Ysandre listens to the banter between the merchant and Quill while taking in the surrounding market. She has no great interest in jewels at the moment, and while she realises that there is some subtext to their discussion, she does not begrudge the other Solar his privacy. She has enough secrets of her own for that to be the very height of hypocrisy.

As he finishes his conversation, she turns back to Quill and nods after a moment's thought. "Yes. With any luck, we'll find well-informed travellers in such a place."

 

[jaydude]

With Ryan...
Ryan and his men walk through a small stone arch with the words "DECADENCE DISTRICT" carved into one side. They come into what looks like a lower-mid income area of the city, and as they head towards the Darkened Dirk in, they soon see what gives the district its name. Namely, a number of establishments that are clearly bars, opium houses, gambling dens and brothels, as well as one or two scantily-clad prostitutes standing in every other alleyway and calling out to passersby. Many of them give Ryan flirtatious grins as he and his men continue on, but they go no further in their attempts to entice him.

The Dawn caste and his entourage reach their destination shortly after entering the district; a tavern in a three-storey building that doesn't look entirely wholesome, but also isn't a completely disreputable place by its appearance. There are two wooden signs on the building; one on the wall next to the door, the other hanging over the street from above the door. Both signs have a stylized image of a knife on them, with the words "DARKENED DIRK INN" below.

From within the building, Ryan hears what sounds like excited cheering, before a heavily-built man suddenly flies out through the door to land and roll on the street below, after which he lies there unconscious. This is followed by the loudest cheer yet, with the noise from the building then quieting and calming down.

Elsewhere...
Quill and Ysandre return to an inn they passed on their trip between the city gate and the Market District, a moderately wealthy place called the Wanderer's Rest. As they step inside, they find the place about a quarter full, with the other customers either enjoying drinks or polite conversation with each other, mostly revolving around their recent journeys. The vast majority of them are wearing clothes and boots made for travelling, hiking, or work in the wild.

Shortly after the two of them enter, they are approached by a young and friendly looking brown-haired woman who wears a white shirt and a brown, ankle-length skirt. "Hello, you two. Are you planning to rent a room, or just get something to eat and drink?" she asks politely.

 

[Red Shadow Claws]

Quill gives a slight bow of his head to the waitress, before gesturing towards Ysandre, as if to say 'what would be your desicion?'

 

[Rykon]

Ryan gives respectful nods at the various denizens of the decadence district. Surely not everyone present was here because it's what they wanted out of life. Upon approaching the Darkened Dirk Inn, he sidesteps the commotion to take in what was going on. As if by reflex, he lowered a hand to the man on the ground. "Havin a bit of bad luck rough-housin today are we? You alright stranger?"

 

[jaydude]

With Ryan..
The man starts to stir as Ryan speaks to him, blinking his eyes rapidly as he returns to consciousness and takes in his present circumstances. He glances at Ryan out of the side of his eye, before tilting his head back and groaning.

"Urgh...how was I supposed to know she was a Water Aspect Dragon-blood?" He mutters to himself.

 

[Rykon]

Ryan grins, "Oh is she now? I guess I'm about to be in for a hard time. Stay alert boys, this one might have a temper." After helping the man to his feet, Ryan would poke his head to get the lay of the land within the establishment. "Evenin' ladies and gents. What's all the fuss about?" He'd ask, probably having to elevate his voice to pierce the commotion.

 

[jaydude]

With Ryan...
At a glance, Ryan can see that the bar is roughly three quarters full, and that the vast majority of the clientele are clearly professional fighting men and women, judging by the weapons they wear on their belts or harnesses, the swagger with which they drink, boast, laugh and converse with one another, the muscles, scars and bruises some of them bear, and the attire they clothe themselves in, ranging from protective lamellar and hauberks, to lighter and more flexible leather and chain shirts, and even - in the case of the more "barbaric" patrons - nothing more than boots and scraps of leather and fur over their private parts.

Among the fighters, a handful of merchants, nobles and other such individuals can be observed discussing possible employment with them, while on one side of the bar is a large noticeboard which currently has numerous job offers posted on it, along with instructions on how to follow them up. In one corner of the room, a band can be seen and heard playing for the benefit of all the patrons.

Whatever happened a few seconds ago, business has now gone back to normal, with the patrons drinking and/or conversing, and bar wenches moving between them serving drinks. A number of the people look up at Ryan's words, and the bartender - another muscular man who wears a sleeveless grey shirt and sports a prominent moustache and recently broken nose - replies to him while cleaning a flagon. "If you're referring to the fight that took place before you came in, someone thought he was being cheated in a game of cards. His opponent denied it, they fought, and she ended up knocking him into the street after spending a few seconds just toying with him."

At these words, most of the patrons glance towards another of their number sat alone at a table in the center of the room. She's a young woman with bark-brown skin, hazel eyes and blackish-brown long hair, wearing a blue greatcoat with a white shirt underneath, as well as a black bandanna, brown boots and cream-colored breeches. Sensing all the attention of the room briefly turning to her, she leans forward in her chair and looks up at Ryan with a playful grin.

 

[Rykon]

Ryan smiles, content to make small talk for a time. With a dismissive gesture, the others of his company would disperse to evaluate the papers posted to see what jobs might suit their unit. "I see we are in the presence of divine talent, may I ask your name then sweet princess of the earth?" He offered with his own playful bow before taking a seat.

 

[jaydude]

"Oooh. A flatterer, are you?" asks the woman as Ryan takes a seat in front of her, leaning forward and resting an elbow on the table. The smile she gives him suggests that the flattery isn't entirely unwelcome.

"My name is Mara. Just Mara. Or to be more specific, Captain Mara of the Resplendent Dolphin of Sparkling Waters." she says. "And you are...?"

As this is going on, two of Ryan's soldiers head over to the table, but hang back in order to avoid disrupting the conversation between Mara and their leader.

 

[jaydude]

Sherwood

In a corner of the room, close to the stairs leading up to the Darkened Dirk Inn's upper levels, a young and smallish-looking woman is sitting alone at a table with a half-full flagon of mead in front of her, observing the rest of the events going on in the room. In spite of her somewhat short height and the presence of all the other people in the room, she is able to see Ryan enter and sit down at the table with Mara.

It has been about a day since Ailera first arrived in Marita, following her most recent escape from the Wyld Hunt two days ago. She has so far amassed a purseful of silver by pickpocketing others, and arrived at the inn just in time to see Mara playing cards with the man she would later fight with, and to see that the Dragon-blood did indeed cheat her opponent; Mara might have a high level of skill, but Ailera learned larceny at an early age and was chosen as one of the Unconquered Sun's champions. After that, she witnessed Mara easily subdue and kick out her attacker with the skill of an expert brawler, before sitting back down as if nothing had happened.

Ailera has so far remained unnoticed by Ryan and Mara, but the Night Caste's eyes are drawn to the Daiklave Ryan wears, not just for its monetary value, but because it indicates to her that he is an essence user, like her.

What does Ailera wish to do?

 

[Rykon]

"I am Knight-Captain Ryan Shepherd, and I lead the Crimson Fangs Company. We're relatively new, so I don't expect it to mean much to one with such an esteemed station as yourself." Ryan wasn't usually one to overwhelm one with flattery, but then again, what rumors he heard of these Dragon-Blooded seemed to imply they were to be addressed with a great measure of formality. "May I ask, what brings you here to grace us with your presence, my lady?"

[Also, what does Ryan know of Mara by reputation? Does she wear a Realm insignia, Lookshy Insignia, or one of her own making? etc.]

[Note: Activating Mastery of Small Manners for 5 personal motes and Rolling Int + Lore... +4d for 4 peripheral motes. 9 successes.]

 

[jaydude]

Mara chuckles and leans back in her chair. "Shouldn't I be the one asking a question like that? After all, I was here before you and your men." She then shrugs and looks away absentmindedly. "But seeing as you asked, I'm just here with some of my crew to relax and unwind after our most recent job, and then look into the next one."

Now a lot closer to Mara, Ryan is able to get a better look at her. He sees no insignia of the Realm, or Lookshy, or any other faction he knows about on her person. He does however notice a brooch of black jade on the lapel of her greatcoat, in the shape of a River-dragon, which leads him to realize who she is...

As she just told him, her name is Mara, and she is the captain of the Resplendent Dolphin of Sparkling Waters. What she hasn't told him is that she is also the leader of the Cerulean River-dragons, a group of river-bound mercenaries and adventurers who, much like Ryan and the Crimson Fangs, are relatively new, and subsequently little-known at this point in time. Their ship is a junk built for river operations, and it is agile, nimble and large enough to carry a crew of several dozen people. From what Ryan can recall, Mara and her crew have so far confined themselves to this general area of the Yellow River, typically dealing with river pirates or hostile tribes on or near the riverbanks. There has been no knowledge of them engaging in piracy themselves, or otherwise harming innocents, and they have not expressed sympathy for either the Realm, Lookshy, or the Wyld Hunt. Mara herself is an Outcaste Dragon-blood with no expressed interest in hunting down Anathema.

 

[Sherwood]

Ailera snorts. If she is going to cheat, she should at least be good at it. She takes a long pull of her drink, before setting it down on the table. She leans back in her seat, eyes still on the pair. Then, she says, "If you are going to deal from the bottom of the deck like that, you need to work on your technique a bit. It was a nice effort, but still rather clumsy."

Spoiler

I want to spend 4m 1wp from Personal Essence to activate the Charm Living Shadow Preparedness. It gives me a pool of 6 successes to add to any Stealth or Larceny roll I make.

 

[jaydude]

Mara and a few of the people stood between her and Ailera all turn around at the sound of her voice, Mara tilting her head down a bit to see the other woman looking back at her.

"Eh...noticed, did you?" she asks, her smile turning bittersweet.