Soren smirks to the barman and gives an acknowledging nod as he pulls the bowl closer prodding through it with his utensil. He takes a few bites letting the moment of silence between them linger  before replying "No not really much for the sea, though I have spent a good deal of time on ships."

After a few more mouthfuls he points down to his bowl then her bowl "It's not too bad and it's warm, come eat, then you can get to your room." he says with half a mouthful taking a sip of coffee then adding "Shipwright that sounds like fun is that how you ended up here, a job?"

Mezzaline lets the barmans comments of her being more dragon than damsel slide, instead taking both coffee and key with a soft but polite thankyou, immediatly taking a mouthful of the hot liquid and nodding again in thanks as their food appears, keeping her expression grateful despite the warmth of the coffee doing little to seep through her. Not a lot hot food could do for damp clothes, but still.

She was cold.

And unaware of the awkward silence that seemed to have driven the barman off, half-aware of Soren's question but nodding anyway. "Partially. Any good ship has a shipwright, work is not hard. Mostly I came here for...hmm, personal business...I think..." She goes quiet and withdraws a little - too much strangeness happened too quickly, and her arrival was already a difficult thing to explain without the rumors that would inevitably follow.

He offers a few nods as she speaks looking up to her in between shoveling spoon fulls into his mouth. He paused for a noticeable second as she ends her statement in a questionable way. He can kind of understand though, maybe she ended up here like he did and is just looking for an opportunity like he is. Once his bowl is empty of all solid foods he looks around "So does that mean you are going to be around for a while or do you think you'll be leaving soon?" once again his tone was very nonchalant. She seems well enough as an ally in these new lands. Would be kinda bad if she would be leaving. He thought to himself ,though he would also guess in this place it wouldn't be too hard to find allies.

"It... it depends." Mezzaline answers, although she isn't certain why - she knows nothing of the stranger opposite her save that he is, if nothing, decent to strangers.

"I still have some things to sort out." It wasn't a lie "And I can't imagine it would be hard to find work, as a shipwright." She alternates between coffee and stew, clawing any warmth out of them she can as she looks across the table.

"And what about you, mysterious stranger?"

He leans back in the chair as he looks around the room, scanning the area. He places his hands on his legs then speaks "Well I plan on sticking around for a while to see the sights and find some work. Then who knows I may stay longer or adventure may call." His eyes move to the floor it seems as if some movement may have catch his eye.

 "One really can't tell what might happen between now and next week. Though I really think this town might have more in store for you and me." he said as he looked back to her face with a smile. As if he had just remembered something he placed his bag in his lap and opened it once again looking through the contents.

"I'm not aware of Tideswallow having 'sights' to see, but I haven't been past the docks, so..." Mezzaline trails off, not needing to explain more as she finishes up eating while keeping an eye on Soren. She finds his words a little more cryptic than she likes but otherwise amiable.

It also occurs to her she doesn't actually know his name, and she blamed the fact that her morning had been exceptionally eventful.

"You almost sound like there's a 'we', and you haven't even offered your name yet. How strange you are." Mezzaline does her best to sound more teasing than accusatory - no sense pushing away decent people just because of strange days.

"Well 'We' as in two new people to these lands and city. Both fresh from the sea with a new start in life, in a place where no one is the wiser." he said in an excited tone. The type one would use when starting a new job or moving to a big city. He looked out towards the door and pointed "Not just the town and people but the lands outside. All kinds of adventures. It's going to be......something."

 He had turned back around any joy gone from his face as he finished off his drink. His face was as apathetic as one could be as he stared at her, or perhaps through her. His eyes never seemed to settle to meet her gaze or her face. Yet he was looking at her. In a flash as to break the silence that had just started he replied "Soren, and your name?"

Mezzaline looks darkly bemused - 'new' life could not be both more right and wrong in every possible way. It'd certainly been an interesting few hours, and as her mind traveled back to her arrival she shivered involuntarily.

Right. Still cold and damp.

She has to take care of that while remembering her manners and clears her throat a little, ignoring the sting of saltiness and says "Mezzaline. A little odd, but it is mine. Now, as much as I want to get answers out if Tideswallow, I'm very uncomfortable and I'm going to fix that." She stands up and takes her key and thinks about stalking off, but stops. Soren was a little odd to her, but he had been kind, and if nothing else, it would probably be good to have someone sort of trustworthy around.

"Here." She places a gold piece down on the table and gently slides it to Soren. "I shouldn't be too long, but I have to clean and dry myself and my stuff. Have some wine on me. I will be back soon."

He watches her ever move wondering how much of her demeanor is due to her comfort ,or lack there of, and how much might have to do whatever happened to her on that ship. As she slides the coin toward him part of him wonders if this gesture was meant as a slight against his kindness. Is she declaring my offer of hospitality is not accepted? pushing the thought aside for the moment. His manner gives nothing away as his eyes meet hers his lips part slightly as he looks back to the coin and then to the bar "By all means do freshen up. Would you like to go see some of the town when you return?"

Mezzaline pauses and shrugs. She hadn't really thought that far ahead, even before the insanity that had occurred with the shipwreck. Answers would be a start.

"Perhaps the dockmaster? I have some questions about...things..." She trails off and waives a hand dismissively. "I'll think about it while cleaning up."

Key in hand she make her way to the room she'd rented and inside with the door locked, dumps her gear onto a table and shucks her clothing, wringing out whatever water remained and started with both magical and mundane methods to begin drying and cleaning her gear and herself.

Focusing on cleanup helps distract her from thinking too hard about earlier in the day - she shipwreck the drowning, the not drowning - and the strangeness of everything up to this point. And the questions...

She's mostly through getting clean and dry and redressing as a violent coughing fit hits her and she collapses, coughing up more water than should have been possible as she vaguely remembered the crushing panic of being dragged under with the wreckage and the panic as her lungs burned and then - then it was a blur until she was dumped onto the deck of the fishing ship that rescued her.

Groaning as she got to her hands and knees and spitting the last of the water, Mezzeline slowly stands and redresses while both wondering who she would even ask about such a thing and how long it could be ignored - there was already too much to deal with today and it hadn't reached noon yet (As far as she could tell)

As clean and dry as she could manage and purposefully ignoring the puddle of seawater on her room floor, Mezzaline returns to the shared table. "I think I would like more drink."

Once she is leaves to go upstairs Soren looks back at the coin reaching forward to pick it up. He glances about the room looking over the people there his eyes checking people over. His eyes move over their clothes and checking to see who stands out. He puts one strap of his pack over his shoulder and then stands to make his way to the bar.

He stops to make some conversation with a few individuals to see what's going on in town and what places are worth going to see. One thing he is looking for are places where they rent rooms aside from the Inn he is at now. Some with an eye on him might think he is casing the place for a mark with some of the actions he is making.

When he finally gets to the bar he takes a seat. He waits to catch the man's attention before asking"Excuse me but what would you like me to do with the dishes as I noticed you seem to be short of help right now?" As he points to the table he used he then adds"Oh yeah and I'd like two cups of wine and how much do I owe you... uh, I'm sorry I forgot to ask your name."

As Mezzaline returns he nods then points to the barman and replies "Yeah I figured you would so I ordered two cups I thought it might be too early for a bottle." he looks over noticing she looks a little more lively. He smiles to her as he returns his attention to the barman.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:33, Thu 28 Jan 2021.

Mezzeline smirks with bemusement as she returns to her seat. "'Early' is just a concept, but you might be right." She says as she leans back a little to be closer to the fire and to finally take a moment to take in the tavern and its patrons properly.

OOC: 21:49, Today: Mezzaline Thessaly rolled 18 using 1d20+2.  Perception.

“Well no harm there, seein’ as I remembered not to give it. Name’s Mortimer. Ya can just leave the dishes on the bar here; someone’ll get around to em eventually, likely as not. As for the bill and the wine... Figure 5 silver should cover it; long as ya ain’t looking for a room as well.” He gestures over to some open space on the long wooden bar top, just passed a dwarven woman who appears to be passed out on her stool.

---

Mezzaline: The tavern proper is a single room with a high, slanted ceiling, with nearly every inch of it being made of wooden planks that immediately remind you of a ship’s interior. While it’s hardly bustling right now, likely thanks to the city-guard presence that is quietly dispersing as you come back down, around the room you can see a few individuals lounging about. The dwarven woman at the bar is clearly asleep; face down on the counter.

A group of five gnomes are quietly playing cards in a corner booth near the edge of the bar.

The red tiefling man whom the guards had been interrogating is now sitting alone with just the captain of the guards remaining; the rest of the retinue having been dispersed.  They wordlessly make their way out of the building while the captain remains behind, staring daggers at the tiefling from across the small table between them.

An elven woman dressed in furs and simple druidic ceremonials (bone amulets, runestones, antler-trimmed boots, a belt positively packed with herb pouches) enters the bar, sees its not completely deserted, and promptly tucks herself away in a small booth to avoid drawing attention. The bar tender eventually wanders over to her, takes a whispered order, and goes back to the bar; clearly in no hurry to fill it.

A small, hooded and cloaked individual wrapped in bandages beneath cloth-and-leather armor you’ve come to recognize as the typical outfit of a thief, pickpocket, or vagrant, is seated at another booth nearby and is glaring with solid, blood-red eyes as the guard captain across the room from them.

A human man and woman sit across form one another enjoying a drink and a very bland-looking fish-based meal at one of the small, squat barrel tables near the middle of the room. Your spot by the fire remains the only middle table occupied besides theirs.
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:42, Fri 29 Jan 2021.

Soren slides 6 silver to the barman from under his cloak,with a slight nod, within moments of hearing the tab. He follows Mortimer's finger over to the spot by the sleeping Dwarf and brings the two cups of wine with him to the table placing one cup in front of Mezzaline as he gently puts his cup down and quickly brings the used dishes back to the bar placing them far enough from the sleeping dwarf, in case she moves wildly in her slumber or wakes with a start. As he makes his way back to the table he adjusts some of his gear under his cloak.

 As he takes his seat he takes another look around then returns his attention to the young woman. A sip of the wine to get it's flavor and then a longer drink before setting the cups down. After he wipes his lips with a handkerchief he gestures to Mezzaline as he speaks in his usual tone "You seem to be doing a little better now that you're dry and warmer. Have you thought about taking a walk or would you rather have the rest of the day to yourself?""

Mezzaline took a moment to think while taking a large sip of wine. She had things she had planned to do before the incident that seemed pointless now, and yet she had no real idea of what else to do with herself immediately now that she was cleaner and dryer than before.

"Hmm..."

"I have no... current agenda that I can remember, and there is a lot of city to see..." She takes another sip.

"You seem to have a destination in mind - what's your plan?"

He sits watching the elven woman and the man who is staring at the guard. After a few sips from his cup he takes a longer draught setting the cup down when it is empty. He keeps his eyes on the elf for a few moments after the bartender walks away from her.

Without looking to Mezzaline he starts to speak in a bemused voice "No not really so much just wanted to see the area to know what the wares are, where the inns are, what kinda fun places they have."

He turns in his seat to look back out the door then to the guard captain, then to the man small man who is absorbed with the guard captain. He chuckles lowly and looks back to Mezzaline as he taps his fingers on the table while speaking "And uh find out if there is any place close by where they allow hunting or trapping." he shrugs "Maybe see what kind of illicit actives one can stumble upon in this city. They all have something If it be gambling, fights, smuggling, or if there is anything you can think of." He sat back into the chair and watched Mezzaline waiting for a response as half his focus was on the three people he had been watching.

"It's a large city, illicit activities are a given." Mezzaline says with another sip of wine. She wouldn't call herself an expert on vice, but she knew sailors of all kinds and once you knew who to ask, what to look for wasn't hard to find.

She does however give Soren a hard looking over, for perhaps the first time since they'd interacted. "You seem... ahm, forgive me for how this sounds, but not the vice inclined. Are you looking for illicit things because you can, or...?"

He smiled at her comment. He checks the cup as if he forgot he had just finished drinking it all as he asks "And what does a person who is vice inclined look like?" He sets the cup back down and starts to stretch raising his arms into the air letting out a low groan. All that time on the ship had made him board and stiff. Now that he was off the ship and on land he realized he spent most of it still sitting around.

 "It's just uh, good to know what kinda stuff goes on around town. What kind of people are around town. Also you never know when one might come across an item or piece of information that might benefit someone else if you don't know what the market desires." he spoke in a quieter voice as he checked his bag once again "Besides all that, having some connections in the shadows is always a good thing. Some thieves aren't all bad you know."

Mezzaline isn't certain she fully believes Soren's explanation for looking for some of the seedier people around, but it wasn't as if she expected the man to fully be an open book - it would be incredibly hypocritical of her if nothing else.

Finishing of her wine with another large sip she indicates with various tilts of her head or half-hearted waive and says "Well, lucky for you, we don't really have to go far - who do you prefer? The tiefling? The outdoorsy one? The obvious bandit? The bar is your oyster, as the saying goes." She says with a smirk, goes to sip her wine and finds the up empty, leaving her frowning in disappointment as she puts the cup down.

"If the bar is too obvious, I would wager a gold piece we'll find almost the same group of people at the dockside. Wouldn't take us more than fifty paces."

 He stood and started stretching, his cloak moved open revealing his blades sheathed on both sides of his body. After he straightened out his cloak he picked up his pack and slung it over his left should under the cloak, adjusting the cloak so it was over and on the inside of the pack exposing his left side.

 Taking another look around he shook his head as he spoke "Nah This place was fun but I'd much prefer seeing where all the fun is. The city is new to me and I'd much rather see what it has to offer." he left hand moved down to his dagger on his left front side as he leaned his hand on it for support or minor comfort but he seemed to have no intention of using it at the moment. His head tilt pointed towards the door "We might be able to find a bottle of wine elsewhere. If not a possible job offer."

 With his right hand he rubbed his chin in a thoughtful manner. Definitely wanna to get a good lay of the city, maybe a map. Maybe a vagrant or something could be a quick guide? He looked back to Mezzaline with a shrug. He wasn't even sure who she was or why she was in the city much less if she was going to stay. Alone or with company though he needed to get situated if he intended to make any kind of start in this town. Who knew he might even be able to increase the reach of the group to this city if all worked well.

"Well, if nothing else, I'd like to find the harbormaster for my own reasons, but there's bound to be someone or something you're looking for." Mezzeline says in agreement as she drops a gold piece on the table and stands, indicating to the door.

"You lead, you know what you're looking for."

He spoke as he made his way to the door "From what I learned before meeting you, we can find the harbor master then circle back around to the entertainment district towards some college. Not really much but I am sure in one of those areas we can find more information." As his foot crossed the threshold he turned his head towards her and added "Plus we can get to see some of the shops and other fun legal stuff to do in the city." The way he spoke the word 'legal' was as if the word itself was boring.

 Once outside he looked left and right, nodding to a few people, and instantly started walking off to the right back towards the docks. A bit of a bunch to his step weaving around people when necessary. He glanced back a few times to see is Mezzlina was following keeping one hand at his dagger and the other hidden under his cloak.

 When he reached the docks he stopped the first person who looked like they worked there, where they needed to go to see the harbor master.



OOC: I don't know if you want to switch to the docks or not. 
This message was last edited by the player at 06:03, Tue 16 Feb 2021.

In reply to Soren Wolfgard (msg # 180):

The scene outside is much the same as when you entered. The crowd has dispersed significantly, but several patrons are still out beside the tavern finishing drinks or simple meals. This time you take notice of one who is clearly not a patron, but likely the bouncer for the bar itself; you’re confident you passed him on the way in, but he seemed to pay you no mind then. This time, he turns his attention away from the gathered drinkers and raises an eyebrow in your direction as you pass his spot beside the door. “Everything quieting down in there, yet?”

A moment later, two more guards, their arms caked in drying blood from fingertip to elbow, come down the stairs and head out the front door behind Soren. They push passed without a word, clearly just wanting to be done with whatever business was going on upstairs. The bouncer nods. “Well that’s a good as a ‘yes’ to me.” He claps his meaty palms together and calls out to the rest of the patrons: “Alright, pack it in boys and girls! Back inside before you make any more of a mess on the siding!”
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:54, Sat 20 Feb 2021.

Mezzaline raises an eyebrow as she slows down a touch in following Soren out of the establishment, watching to see what else she can glean from the unusual actions of the guards and wondering how she didn't see it earlier when she was upstairs cleaning up blaming it on the rather stressful morning.

She would keep her ears open, however, and it's hard to avoid noticing the exceptionally bloodied guards leave just behind Soren. She shadows them enough to slip out the door without being immediately behind them, but it's all noticeable enough that all she can do is make light of the absurdity of the situation.

"Nothing to do with me." She says with a humourless smile as she moves to be out of the bouncers reach. "We might need different lodgings later. Where to?"

OOC: Intrigue!

Soren nodded to Mezzaline as he waited for her to catch up "I had already planned to go to one of the places, probably in the Roe" he had spoken matter-of-factly "I had heard it's the part of town where it would suit some manner of privacy. Not sure much about it except it is the 'run down' part of the city."

 As they had kept walking he had talked about making their way around from the docks to the east to the entertainment district and they could follow it round to the road between the town square and the artisan districts. This would give them the chance to do some window shopping and see the sights as well as mingle with the town's people and get more information. After that it would depend on the time of the day and what else they wanted to do. He had mad no mention at all of the guards if he had even seen them or not. Though if he did it didn't seem to have bothered him at all, perhaps not the first time he had seen such a sight, or maybe he was just oblivious to it.

-To the Roe-

OOC: I don't know what about the docks area I figured we would be going there because Mezzaline wanted to see the dock master. If it was for story purposes or a behind the scenes thing I dunno. Or we can skip a little time jump and be in the entertainment district doing some mingling, Whichever
This message was last edited by the player at 09:18, Tue 23 Feb 2021.