Desat is a little puzzled by some of the complexities of the this city he is seeing for the first time.  He asks the first mate, Can you recommend a company that will deal with me fairly, without treachery ?
This message was last edited by the player at 05:07, Fri 13 Sept 2019.

 The Mate Shrugs.....there's a couple good Ones... The Silver Blades.. they try to  stay with caravan guarding....The  Broken Tree..they  hire out   to ehlp enforce the streets, if the   City watch wants help... then The Crimson Arrows... they ain't much differant then Most.. One of thier units is lead  by an Elf , used to be CAptain of the place guard...they have a big hate on for slavers.. they'll take time from a contract  to  kill them.. sometimes  leaving the bodies staked to dead trees, with  the Captain's  rune  carved into thier  forehead.....Most of the group  does  protection pay and Bounty hunting.l..stay  away from   The Night Stars...bad bunch , them blokes is... they  work out Of Olant..biggest    patch of  thieves  and Cutthroats  in the realms.... for some reson, they leave the trappers of the  Furman's chain alone...everyone  else  gets  killed  or  sold.... from what i hear. the  Ironmound navy has ships  that patrol, and  even put in there..but the   Empire's  people and Olant people, tend to   use Olant as neutral
This message was last updated by the GM at 02:57, Sat 14 Sept 2019.

Desat nods as he takes in the information, then he asks
Who does business with the Orcs ?
Someone has to.

  the  Mate   pointed to the ropes  for the hands to  toss to the Longboat men.

 as  far as  I know?... everyone , they do  ghood silver  work.. the Dwartves who live in the Mound itself..  trade for   that... and given them a prize on silver ingots... they do good   fur  making.. capes  and such, heavy cloaks..and theyb hir eout  to   merc  groups  in   'as needed' contracts.

Desat asks the Sailor
Where do I find the Silver Blades and the Crimson Arrows ?

Once given a direction Desat grabs his baggage and heads for the Silver Blades first.

  the first mate chuckles,..they'll find you.. soon as yhou walk down the gangplank, you'll be   aproached  by all manner  of  recrutiers....... The Arrows have an Inn.. " The Walk the Plank".. Can't  miss the sign... The Silver Baldes  have   a headquarters     near the  Blacksmith....Like I said.. yhou lookign for work?.. someone will find you...

  a few  Minutes  the  shup  was  warped into the  dock..  longshoreman begane   to  bring carts   as   an Offcial campe aboard  to    talk tot eh Captaon..  passangers   began to file off.

Desat let the others file of the ship first, and observed.

He was looking for people approaching those leaving the ship, and any symbols those approaching people may have.

He also looked for thieves plying their trade on the wharf.

  people on the docks  seemed to have thier  work to do.. but  at the   end of the Dock , where the Wharf and started  and the  Inns and  BArs  started ..  old  men  and  Young kids  Hustled,  talkign to anyone who   carried a  Blade, ax or shield..thus  far  he could not see any  markings.

Desat heads toward teh black smith and the Silver Blades, when passing by the Walk the Plank, he will observe, but continue to move on.

  As Desatwalked   down the Dock,  people begcame a bit  clear... some folks  merely moving , some going places.. and a  few  looking at the Inns  and BArs.

  and  older  fellow was  walkign up to him. He had a    drity  Brown  arm band that sported  a   flying   crow.

 eh... Hail, and  well met..how  would  ye like to make some good coin  and    Have the portection of a powerful Compnay?

 there is  a   joyful laugh not  far from them.. a LAd   around..maybe  16 summers  was there,..then he sure  don't  want to be a  Crow!... you just described the Crimson  Arrows for me....

 he  nodded to Desat, My  name is Fetcher.... If you're  inetrested , the  Walk The Plank is right  that way   I can lead you?.. 'less  youhave    somewhere  to go.. I can give  you  directions..or .. escort you for some coin?

Desat didn't like salesmen, peddlers and solicitators.  Desat gazes at the men approaching him and giving their pitches, warning them off.  Then he faces forward and keeps moving.  Not saying a word.  Looking for the Blacksmith and the Silver Swords.

He does mentally note the location of the Walk the Plank.

 being New  to the  city  he  can see bars   and Inns  on the wharf,   there  are some  folks  selling  cooked   meats, figuring  folk who live and work the docks see  even fish and  crab, or even serpent

 Acoss the  river Desat see the    'mound' rising up with some paths   wod in and  buildings   aorund the base.. serval    tunnel holes  can been seen..  to the south of it  , the spires of the Palce..

  an Ironmond, navy  vessel is   coing  from the  south.. on the  bow , on each end  at   4 Red Isle Haflings,, dangled over the edge...none of them still have   legs..all are  dead.. Behind the  Frigate..a red Isle slop   with a prize  crew follow in.

 he  can try to  find the place on his  own..or ask around.

Desat takes a moment, goes to one of the meat vendors, hoping for chicken or beef.  Buys a stick of meat, finds a wall and leans against it.

Desat didn't know where he was going.  Time to watch and learn for a while.  Desat looked for soldier and mercenary types, where they went, trying to find the most popular places.

  The  docks  are busy. There is a   woman, rather pretty, if  not tocujed  by  grease and a bit of charcoal.

  The food she has   ( according to her) are  rat on a stick...Beef on a stick.. or chicken that has been  fried in a  boiling  pot  behind her, where she  is  breading  some as well..

  She tells him she  as  these meats... and  she  has  goblin wine ( the cheapest to get in Ironmound )

 it is rather  cheap meal.. and she is smart enough to be  out side the Inns..those who don't want  to  mess with crowds  can buy off  her.. or grab something until they , get were they are Going.

 From where he stands. He sees Fethcher  talking to a woman with a  furred cloak  and wellused cvhain mail she gives hom a brief  nod  and a wave of her hand, as he leads her up the  docks to 'The Plank"

 The sign is  very unusual as it  has  a wooden puppet-like   figure  that  walks along a  piece of  wood.. it  steps off... and is  dragged  back into an opening, where  another   figure begins its  walk.

 Two , well dressed   folks  with   fine capes  and thin swords    are walking  down  the wharf, before  going into   a Inn two door s  down from the Plank

 there is a    measured thump of  feet as  5  Ironmound watch  troopers   walk up the middle of the  wharf, 4 troopers and a SGT.

  an Ironmound Sailor, Halfelven, it appears,  waves  to them  as he enters  'The Plank'... people are going in and  out of ins, up and down the wharf..Desat  figures it  would be busier  as the sungoes down.

Desat finishes his snack, goes to the door where the two well dressed people with swords.

   walking past the Walk-the-Plank., Desat hears  sounds  of  Music. laughter  and some  shouts  of Various kinds.

   the  Inn the , well dressed   folks  entered, was not  quite  as noisy.  'The Dockside Rest' seemed to have   a mixed  bag.. but most  folks were  sailors, some had the look of pirate types  a Human  woman, older  by still  fine to look at was at the   counter.. wenches    were moving  about with trays of  food   and drink... some folks  sat  by themselves in the    corners,  smoking a  pipe  or  eating, what  looked like, stew.

 an old  fiddler  sat   against the wall  by the   hearth, playing  soft ballads  and  tunes with no words to help folk relax  and   eat.

Desat speaks to the fiddler in a matter of fact manner
I'm looking for work, can I find it here?  I hunt people for money.

  The Fiddler  stops his play for a Moment, it does  cause  some  folk to look up, but they go back to their  eats band drinks.

  ahh.. ye  bet... there's  almost no place in the city you can't go, to find work like that... his voice  was  Low   as he  began to play a slow  song again,  to  make  folk  go back to their business.

 yer an Outlander, an' that's no mistaking it,   These houses of  drink, all have  people looking to fill thier  rolls  with  blades and bowmen, depends  how  dark ye  want yer money?.. this place?.. ain't got  folk who recruit, but  ye can ask the Tender, what he hears in the breeze?... others  places around this  ...fair...city have  folk who hold court there, and  ain't a bit shy  about  doing it.,,now? Ye ask about , quiet -like, 'less ye  want the wrong  folks to hear..an' by me sayin' wrong  folks?... it depends on what yer lookin' for... Pirates and slavers  recruit, just  as heavy  as those , that wanves more powerful, so's they  rise up  in  fame, and how to  get contracts  from the Crown, or the Merchants  who hold much  power..

Desat nods, drops a copper in the fiddlers cup and steps away to mull what he's learned.

After some serious consideration, he heads to the Walk the Plank.

  walking  back out, he sees  some smaller merchant ships, that they  didn't have to  raise the  drawbridges  for  sail into the    City..One  from the  north, and one  form the south...

 people   we    hustling to see where the ships would  put in., standing out side   watching the   puppets   fall off the  'the plank' and get  reeled  back into the  building, while a new   puppet  walked its  fate.

  Entering, the Building was  war, a  large heart  on the  north wall,  a bit   counter  with  racks of  bottles and   three  women behind  it...  other   women   came out with  trays of   hot   food or  cold  drinks...

 all manner of  folks were in here... sailors,  soldiers..or at elast,  they were at one  time or  another.. A flute  player played.

 but the thing that caught his eye  was a   Dwarf  with Wine Dark   hair and beard. he sat at a Table  with a Bowl of   stew in front of him,  and   some  purses .. he  was  handing  some  of these purses  to   a wench who went  down a   set  of stairs  behind him.

Desat worked his way to the bar, determined to be more subtle, heeding the fiddlers words.
He layed a silver on the bar and asked politely.  A spiced cider please

 The woman smiles,..of course?..  do you  want Apple.... Pear..or  Crest Mellon?

  The  smell of stew...  Chicken  and  some kind   of fish  waft through the air,  fresh bread and  butter

Desat had never heard of Pear Cider.
Pear please, and some fresh bread and butter would be welcome.  Also, is anyone hiring folks around here ?  Discreet work.

    she  nods   reaching  for the pear  cidar ,..you  want it Mulled  , or cold?

 one of the other  girls  came   out with a  small plate  with  3  slices  of fresh breads  and a  small stone   cup of   butter and a pewter  spreader.

 ..That Dwarf  right there?... he hires  folks for the Crimson Arrows..now?  if there is  anyone else in here trying to hire  someone?.. they won't  be here long...

 he Noctice the waoman  as a  tiny  ruby  arrow on  a chain around her neck.

In reply to Des (msg # 805):

Thank You.  Cold on the Cider please.

Once Desat gets his food and drink he eats a little bread and watches the dwarf.  When there appears to be a pause of opening he walks over, plate in hand and offers the dwarf a piece of bread and butter.

I'm looking for work