"Lord Toede would like to see these additional eggs first," the Chamberlain said after the hobgoblin had spoken. "And if they are what you say they are, he might be interested."

Caitlin inclined her head in an affirmative gesture "As you command." she agreed and opened the bag like she had done before. Five more eggs lay on rugged cloth, clearly the same origin as the others. "Don't they look just as beautiful as the others?"

Lord Toede said something and the Chamberlain walked up to Caitlin and examined the eggs before he returned to his master. After Lord Toede spoke again, the Chamberlain addressed them. "Lord Toede will take those too. Was there anything else?"

"Anything else?" she repeated, "Do you have anything specific you refer to?" the sorceress asked, feigning ignorance.

ooc: Bluff check 28.

Moonflute waits quietly as Caitlin haggles with the Lord over the remaining eggs, giving their first reward the once over.

"Our agents often discover more than they were looking for," the Chamberlain said. "Many prefer the simplicity of letting us take it off their hands." He stopped there to give Caitlin an opportunity to add something.
This message was last edited by the GM at 04:58, Wed 03 May 2023.

"Just these extra eggs," Moonflute adds and waits to see what Toede will offer for them.

"Excellent," the Chamberlain said after Lord Toede had spoken. "In that case our business is done for today. Let us know when you want to use the library. Or we will be in touch when we have a new mission for you." It seemed as if Lord Toede expected to get the additional eggs for free. He had already paid for the eggs after all and finding eleven where there should have been six didn't make their job any harder.

Upon the Chamberlain's answer a cloud seemed to cross Caitlin's features and with a deft movement, she closed the bag with the remaining 5 eggs. "There seems to be a misunderstanding. The mission was to recover six eggs that were stolen, anything beyond that could be kept by us. Since your Lordship has received the items in question any extra eggs are ours to keep. As you decided not to make an offer, we shall take them for appraisal and see who is interested in purchasing them from us for a fair price." she said, delivering her perspective with a friendly smile, which did not reach her eyes.

"It was a pleasure doing business with you, your Lordship." the sorceress added, taking a step backwards, causing the large owl on her shoulder to rotate her head by 180 degrees.

ooc: 13:23, Today: Caitlin Merrywick rolled 33 using 1d20+19.  Diplomacy.

Moonflute nods to Lord Toede and moves back ready to exit the room with Caitlin.

Caitlin rejected Lord Toede's offer to take the additional eggs off their hands at no additional cost and thanks to her persuasiveness, they were able to leave his mansion with life and limb intact.

[To the stable to make arrangements for your horses?]

Caitlin was not in a good mood. Perhaps she should have been, persuading the lord mayor of Flotsam to let them go with what he wanted was no small feat. But then he probably reasoned it was more important to keep a successful group on his payroll rather than taking the goods and their heads. Which allowed them to hopefully sell the eggs at the next opportunity. The question remained where they should store them and who would buy such a rare find? All those questions weighed heavy on the sorceress' head and her feet automatically steered her to her favorite inn, while her hand rubbed the handle of her uncle's old dagger, the one she had found lodged in the heart of her uncle's killer. "Any idea how we want to continue?" she asked Moonflute and Kel.

Happy to let another handle negotiations, especially with finding 'Lord' Toede so disagreeable, Keliantharas couldn't help but feel a growing sense of dread as insatiable greed and willful ignorance ground against each other.

<aqua<>"I have some thoughts, naturally.  There is another White Wizard in town who might be interested providing a fair price for the eggs, and between her and Toede's library I should like to expand my repertoire.  And, all being well, I may be able to search for clues as to the sword we found."</aqua>

"Perhaps she might identify the gem for us as well. I am hopeful that it might be a Tear of Mishakal," Moonflute says, nodding her agreement.

"Huh?" the sorceress let out, being torn from her own thoughts by Keliantharas. "Right, agreed. Let's do it that way." Caitlin confirmed, gesturing for the white wizard to lead on.

Moonflute falls in behind Caitlin as they head toward Kelianthas' arcane contact.

They left Lord Toede's estate and walked through half the town to the marketplace. Once there, they quickly made their way to Geon & Loren's Mystical Goods. When they opened the door, a brass bell announced their arrival. Most of the shop was behind a counter as long as the shop was wide. It smelled of arcane materials.

There were bags, most of them full, various open baskets, each with a different good, closed boxes, vials with various contents,a small library of books and a larger library of scrolls, a few rings, a number of wands, and many and varying items on shelves behind the two proprietors. The female half-elf wore white robes and the human male was dressed more practically.

There were only two other customers in the shop, one of them buying a few things from Geon and the other seemingly browsing with Loren. Soon enough, the first customer was done and Geon looked at them.

"How can I help you," he asked.

As they passed the marketplace, Caitlin drifted over to one of the alleys, finding Maliak the beggar sitting with his back against the wall. She gave him a knowing nod and dropped a steel coin in his lap. "See you later." she muttered under her breath, then continued following Moonflute and Kel to the Mystical Goods shop.

Entering last, the sorceress began browsing on her own, curiously looking at this item or that, wondering if they had anything for her that would help her or Athena staying alive longer.

The steel coin quickly vanished from sight and the beggar returned Caitlin's nod.
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:37, Mon 15 May 2023.

OOC: I'm going to wait for Keliantharas to deal with the business.
This message was last edited by the player at 06:46, Thu 18 May 2023.

ooc: Waiting for Kel to handle the situation.

Given the choice, Keliantharas would have much preferred to deal directly with Loren.  It wasn't just that Geon was human, or that he was merely a sorcerer.  The common ties between one white wizard and another might do well to cut through the tedium of things like payment.  Still, no sense in being overtly rude.  The mage's smile was pleasant enough, if a little haughty.

"I was hoping Loren could help with some research.  And perhaps that the two of you could help us unburden ourselves from a collection of unnecessary luggage."  Keliantharas replied, fighting the urge to glance straight on past Geon to where his partner was assisting another client.  Further self control prevented him from simply pushing right on past the other customer, who represented to Keliantiantharas a slight delay in business far more pressing than whatever luck charm or love potion the customer was no doubt inquiring about.  His smile turned somewhat more friendly for a moment, as the wizard tried to lower his booming voice to a personal aside.  "What is the going rate for amphidragon reagents?"

"Unburdening is one of our specialties," Geon said. "I can help you with that until Loren is ready to talk about your research. What do you have?"


"What amphidragon reagents do you have?"

"Materials to be viewed and discussed with extreme discretion."  Keliantharas replied to the question with a note of annoyed brusqueness.  He made a slow, if deliberate, show, of glancing at the shop's competing customer as though he doubted his subtlety had delivered his point.  Finally, his eyes returned to Geon, and he offered the man a stiff smile that denoted the edges of the elf's tact when it came to any business venture.  "Perhaps more suitable to a backroom or private library?"

Caitlin stayed in the background, patiently waiting for the elf to finish business.