"How are you...?" Calvorn stammers, before recovering himself. "All of Vard's men believed you to be dead."

"Not for much longer, I'll warrant," replies Aldaran grimly as he slides adroitly down from the tree to land before Marabir.

Caled takes a step forward, raising his blade as Aldaran lands near Marabir, but the prince raises a hand for the young knight to stand down.

"Can somebody please explain to me what is going on?"

"Remember that Vard agent I was telling you about who had that record of eighty four amethysts from that varim shell game?" begins Calvorn.

"Eighty six," corrects Aldaran with a hint of smugness.

Calvorn rolls his eyes.

"Well, this is him. Aldaran was one of our best agents. That was, until he never returned from a mission roughly ten years ago. As I said, everyone believed him to be dead."

"Which was doubtless for the best," replies the other darkly. "Is that you, Dalmar Argant?" he adds with a quizzical glance at Falnis. "I must say you are the last person I would have expected to find keeping company with Prince Marabir."

"Dalmar Argant?" repeats Calvorn, glancing sharply at Falnis, though no one else save perhaps Aerendir appears to recognise the name.

OOC: Calvorn Areldan rolled 18. Knowledge (Mereldinor).
This message was last edited by the player at 07:37, Mon 13 Mar 2023.

"Lord Falnis Orthran, actually," Falnis corrects him with a lazy smile. "Eyesight not what it used to be, Aldaran?"

OOC: Dalmar Argant rolled 30. Bluff Check.

"Hmm," mutters Aldaran, eying Falnis for a moment longer before shrugging. "Orthran, eh? I suppose you know old Cormyan, then?"

OOC: Aldaran Enlain rolled 22. Sense Motive.
This message was last edited by the player at 07:53, Mon 13 Mar 2023.

"Who in Mereldinor does not know Lord Cormyan?" Falnis says evasively, before steering things back on track with a firm, "However, I very much doubt you came here to reminisce about the fair lands of the north."

"Who is Dalmar Argant?" murmurs Larend to Calvorn behind them, seeming to feel the reaction to this name warrants some kind of explanation.

"Oh, only the most infamous assassin in Mereldinor," Calvorn murmurs back, staring at Falnis with a look of newfound comprehension.

OOC: Calvorn Areldan rolled 31. Sense Motive.
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 08:07, Mon 13 Mar 2023.

Tyronius ignores the pair, his attention on Aldaran.

"Yes, much as I hate to be in agreement with a varim, I also presume you did not summon my brother all the way up here to discuss varim personalities?"

OOC: Tyronius Carendil rolled 19. Sense Motive.
This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 08:12, Mon 13 Mar 2023.

"Indeed," replies Aldaran, turning his attention away from Falnis. "I actually summoned Prince Marabir here to speak with him in private," he says pointedly. "So, if you have all satisfied yourselves that I am not a threat, I shall ask His Highness to accompany me a little deeper into the forest where we shall be able to converse away from prying ears."

"We have satisfied ourselves of nothing of the sort," Tyronius sneers back. "A rogue Vard agent who fakes his death and shows up randomly after a decade? You could be working for any one of our enemies."

"And you wonder why you have so many, with an attitude like that?" snorts Aldaran.

"I don't wonder anything," Tyronius retorts coldly.

"Nor does anyone else," Falnis (or, as Calvorn has correctly surmised) Dalmar, murmurs.

"We didn't come all this way to argue," Marabir says firmly. "I have no qualms in accompanying you deeper into the forest. Aerendir can accompany me," he adds to Tyronius. "He will be able to see if I'm walking into any kind of trap, but we can find somewhere where he is able to see us, but not hear us, agreed?"

"You may be surprised at the capability of eleven hearing," Aldaran replies with a suspicious glance at Aerendir. "But very well."

"Fine but leave your weapons behind first. I'm fine standing back as long as you aren't an assassin, but if you are, I'm at least going to make it effort for you to assassinate him."

Aldaran sighs, unslinging a bow and quiver from his back and withdrawing pair of what Dalmar recognises as varim longknives from his belt, all of which he places at the foot of the tree.

"Satisfied?"
This message was last edited by the player at 09:20, Mon 13 Mar 2023.

"I think so," Aerendir says, picking up his bow. "If he tries anything, Marabir, signal to me and I will shoot him."

"That bow is handcrafted eldarwood, so do try not to damage it," Aldaran directs darkly at Aerendir as the trio set off into the forest.