Private Tales A Silver Tongue Turned Gold

[Inara Irren]

~~ 3 days later ~~
​

Daven was probably sick of Inara by the time the night of the ball rolled around. She had given the man a list and he had come through. The dress, makeup, jewelry, and pins for her hair plus a mirror. Daven got it all and he got it all rather quickly. His taste in dresses wasn't bad either.

The seafoam green of the gown matched her eyes perfectly. The gold earrings and necklace matched the gold details on the dress. Her hair was curled and pulled up with little ringlets falling here and there. She looked beautiful and she hoped that she was a decent enough distraction.

She came down the stairs to find Tal so they could get this over with.

 

[Tal]

Tal was waiting in the office, and surprisingly he was not dressed in the finery that one might expect. No expensive suit draped over him, no wonderful and silks graced his skin. The clothing he wore in fact made him look like a wastrel.

A man who would be more in place on a beggars street than in the midst of a party. "Ah, lovely."

The Prince said as Inara descended the stairs.

"I see Daven got you what you needed." Tal said with a wide smile. "He's always been inextricably reliable."

Unlike some of the other louts on the Docks.

 

[Inara Irren]

"He did and I do like him better than you so I guess as far as jailers go," Inara snarked back at him. It wasn't a lie. Daven was alright. He had not treated her with anything other than a person and he certainly didn't smirk at her like Tal did. She wanted to punch him.

"You look..." She growled. Sarcasm was so difficult when you couldn't lie. It was a cruel torture all by itself. "Anyways, can we please go get this done with?"

 

[Tal]

The Underboss glanced through the window, watching Daven order some of the others around. "Maybe I should promote him."

He mused to himself quietly.

The Dragonborn had proven somewhat useful over the last few years, and he'd been a good jailer apparently. Least from what Inara said. A musing fell over him for a brief moment, but he dismissed the thought with a shake of his head.

That could be taken care of later.

"Of course we can." Tal told her. "Right this way, My Lady."

A sarcastic sweeping bow was offered, ushering her out the front door and towards the gates which kept the docks contained.

 

[Inara Irren]

"You should, he deserves it...especially with you as a boss," Inara gave him a tight lipped smile as she started to follow Tal. His ridiculous sweeping bow was met with an exaggerated roll of her eyes but she also let a small smile curve her lips.

"We certainly look like an odd couple so I can only guess that you won't actually be going into the ball with me?" She raised a brow as they walked towards the gate.

She had worn comfortable flat but she still hoped there was a carriage or something waiting for them. She would feel quite silly walking to a ball but, honestly, she wouldn't put anything past Tal at this point.

He was a strange, confusing man.

 

[Tal]

"Me as a boss? Before I came along Daven was a dock worker. That man loves me." Tal said with a chuckle.

There was indeed a carriage waiting for them outside of the main doors, one that had clearly been selected just for this night.

It was the sort of thing one might have seen a Prince or Princess riding in. As fine as any in the Merchant Council could get ahold of. Enough to catch the eye, but also not out of the ordinary at the type of party they would be attending. "I'll be there."

Tal assured Inara as he patted her hand.

"Don't you worry about that." He walked over towards the Carriage and opened the door for her. "I just have a different role to play."

The Underboss smile. "I don't always have to be the Prince."

He said, offering the first slip of insight into what he was.

 

[Inara Irren]

There was no small amount of relief when she saw the carriage but she didn't show it. She just looked the carriage over and then smiled at Tal as he opened the door for her.

She was settling herself into her seat when his next words brought up short. The Prince? Was he being sarcastic somehow? Prince of the docks?

"Prince?" Inara asked trying (and probably failing) to hide her curiosity.

 

[Tal]

Tal smirked at her, still holding the door. "Tell you what."

Amusement flickered over his features.

Sometimes he enjoyed these little games more than he enjoyed actually getting what he wanted. There was something fun about it. Something he couldn't quite put into words. His gaze flickered up and down over Inara, then he continued.

"Be a good girl tonight and I'll let you ask three questions." He mused. "Maybe even let you take a peek at my crown."

Before she could say anything at all Tal closed the door, clambering up into the drivers seat a second later as they set off towards the Inner-City.

 

[Inara Irren]

Inara once again wanted to punch him in the face. It was a feeling that she was starting to associate with his smug face as soon as she saw it.

"Be a good girl," she mocked quietly as her owner got into the drivers seat and they set off.

It was not that far of a trip thanks to the carriage and Inara was starting to feel some nerves. She understood that she was supposed to be a distraction but how? Why? So many unanswered questions made her head hurt so bad. She was a planner and she could not make proper plans with Tal's cryptic answers.

 

[Tal]

Before long they passed into the inner-city, the light of torches casting over everything as they road through the streets and hit the Palace district.

Dozens of buildings sprouted up here, most of them surrounded by thick limestone walls. It was a sight that most would have swooned over, but for Tal it was just another day. A short while later he cut the carriage through a side street.

Quickly they joined a line of similar carriages, Tal drawing them to a stop. "Take over."

He whispered to Viktor, slipping off the drivers seat and drawing himself to the side of the wagon.

"You're going to arrive shortly." Tal told Inara, peeking through the window. "Tell them that Talmanese invited you."

Distinctly not a lie. "And that you're here to see someone very important."

His smile touched his lips.

"Everything else I'm sure you can improvise." He hung on the door.

 

[Inara Irren]

Talmanese. She had wondered if Tal was short for something. That was certainly a name. She was curious where he was from now but she was not curious enough to add it to her list of three questions.

Inara just nodded as Tal told her what to tell whoever was manning the enterance. She noted that they were not lies and she was curious if he had started to believe her finally. Either that or he was just trying to cover himself in case it was true. It didn't matter.

She sat back in her seat as the wagon moved closer to the destination. Once she was there, Viktor opened the door for her and she ascended the large stone stairway that led to the mansion in which the ball was being held. She was not sure who owned it and she didn't care. She had a job to do.

Once she reached the guards at the front door, she told them what she was supposed to and they actually let her in. She was sure they would want to know who she was there to see but they didn't. Interesting. She entered the home and a servant led her to the grand ballroom along with some other guests that had arrived at the same time.

Inara made sure to thank her guide before she grabbed a glass of something from a passing tray. She took a sip and looked around the hall.

 

[Tal]

Tal had known he couldn't walk through the front door.

Not because the Merchant Councilor would have objected, in fact Tal was pretty sure the man would have welcomed him with open arms. The Problem was Marcus. The moment that the man saw Tal he would have screamed bloody murder.

Rather, his guards would have swiftly tried to run a knife over the Underbosses throat.

It was something he would rather have not dealt with, and thus instead of walking through the front door he made his way towards the back. His garb was that of a servants, and it was that entrance which he used to step into the estate.

A few gold coins.

Some terse words.

By the time Inara took the glass from the tray Tal was standing on the upper balcony just above the main ballroom. He seemed to almost lounge there, his clothes changed, his hair swept back as he peered below. He was the very picture of just another attendee.

He caught his companions eyes as he stood there, offering a small wave before mouthing. Ghost.

 

[Inara Irren]

Inara nodded shallowly to Tal and looked around the room slowly. Her hazel eyes found the man easily. He was tall with dark brown hair that had been peppered with some grey and light brown eyes. The long scar on his face was her confirmation. That was Marcus. That who she was supposed to subtly harass...ghost...whatever.

She took a sip of her drink and started in his direction. Her lips tilted into a small smile as she saw that he was staring at her from the corner of her eye. Good. Inara slowly turned so he could see her better and called over to one of the servers.

From what she could see, the look on his face was exactly what Tal had wanted. The poor man looked like he had seen a ghost and she was that ghost.

 

[Tal]

Tal watched silently as Inara did just as she was told.

A part of him had wondered if she would try to do something. If she would attempt to make a break for it or perhaps approach Marcus by herself. Yet as he stood and watched he couldn't help but feel pleased as she did exactly as she was supposed to.

He smiled, watching one of the Triumvirate that had ruled his life for so long fall off the driven path. He could see the wondering in the man's face, the panic.

The moment he saw her face it was obvious.

It was like something had snapped in his mind. A tether. Wondering and concern was sent through the man, a hint of panic. Had he seen his daughter? Was she here? Marcus began to cut across the room, and in that same moment Tal booked it down the stairs.

Within a heartbeat he was standing in front of the man, his hand coming to settle on his shoulder. "There there Marcus."

Tal whispered softly.

"Seen a ghost lately?" The man looked up at Tal, rage flickering over his features.

"You...what in the fuck...what are you doing here?"​

"Don't you worry about that now." Tal told him. "I'm here to help you. To reunite you with your daughter."

He smiled. "But...I'm going to need you to do something for me first. Otherwise I'm going to carve my knife through her throat."

 

[Inara Irren]

Inara watched Marcus take off across the crowded room and she followed at a distance. He turned the corner and she heard Tal's voice answering his question. She stayed back so she was out of sight. She was sure that Tal would be irritated that she followed Marcus at all.

"Don't you worry about that now. I'm here to help you. To reunite you with your daughter."

Inara's blood went cold as she focused on the last sentence. Daughter. Tal had used her to fuck with this poor man that had lost his daughter. What the fuck kind of monster was he?!

"Otherwise I'm going to carve my knife through her throat."

Her throat? His daughter was alive. The clues were there but her mind wasn't putting them together.

 

[Tal]

Marcus paled as he stared into Tal's eyes.

The two, at one point, might have been friends. The Old Crime Boss had been very much like Tal in his youth, back when his foray's had landed him with an illegitimate daughter. He had been brash, bold, and entirely too clever for the liking of many men.

That was how he had ended up here, as one of the leaders of the Syndicate.

He stared at Tal, his mind running through a dozen different options, thoughts. Then, after a few moments he nodded his head.

"I know what you want."​

The man's voice sounded defeated, resigned. No surprise colored Tal's features. Marcus was just as smart as he was, there was no doubt he had looked into Tal when Vora had promoted him after such a short time. He wouldn't be surprised if the man had expected this in some way. "Good."

Tal said, pulling his hand back. "Then you can meet us tonight."

His voice sounded almost cheerful.

"Yldrin's Cottage, out by the Swamps." Tal said happily as he turned away from Marcus and headed back towards where Inara hid. "Bring what I need, and I'll be sure to have what you want."

 

[Inara Irren]

As Tal turned the corner, Inara joined him in walking back towards the party. The scowl on her face made it clear she had heard everything and she was not pleased to have been used to torment the poor man so horribly.

"What the fuck, Tal?!" She whispered harshly. "You used me to make him think he saw his lost daughter? Lost, dead...whafever?! That is beyond fucked up."

The pieces still hadn't connected in her mind yet.

 

[Tal]

Tal didn't even flinch as Inara approached him, stepping to his side as though she had always been meant to walk there. "That man has butchered dozens, cut off hands of people who steal from him, and runs one of the most brutal crime organizations in the world."

The resort was a swift lash of the tongue.

He was under no allusions that he was any better of course. He was the Prince of a Kingdom that ran on slavery, an Underboss in the same organization Marcus came from. No one could deny that he was an evil man, or at least close to it.

"Do you want me to feel sympathy for him?" Tal asked, glancing at Inara. "Because I rarely feel that even for people that do deserve it."

And few did.

 

[Inara Irren]

"And he had me killed..."

The words fell from her lips and she knew that she shouldn't feel bad for harassing Marcus. No, he deserved it. Maybe she was just projecting her own parental issues here. The fact that she never knew her parents and she had always wanted to made her sad for the man who had lost his daughter. Sure, he was a monster, but at least he seemed to care for his blood. That was more than she had from her own parents.

"Sorry, you're right..." Her voice was soft now. Any of her normal sass and spark was gone as she walked beside him in silence. He should enjoy her admission because she didn't admit it often.

 

[Tal]

Tal shrugged, not confirmed her words. "Maybe I am. Maybe I'm not. The world is neither fair nor nice."

A lesson that he had learned early on back in Tyre.

He would not, could not pretend to be any sort of decent. Even from a young age his rebellion had not been against the structure of his city, but simply the insistence of his father. Tal was no better than Marcus, and he damn well knew it.

"Marcus may not deserve my sympathy." He continued. "But he deserves someones."

The words were cryptic, and before Inara could ask Tal switched tack. "Lets go, it's a long ride out to the cabin, and you'll want to change."

 

[Inara Irren]

The trip out to the mysterious cabin was a boring one in which Inara found herself dozing off half a dozen times. Before they had gotten on the road, Inara had changed out of her gown and into a pair of black pants, black boots, and a green top. It was more her style than the dress and she was much more comfortable now.

She did not speak to Tal throughout the journey and once they had arrived Yldrin's Cottage, she followed him quietly. Inara had too many questions and she knew she would get no answers. There was no point in wasting her breath.

 

[Tal]

The cabin was an unassuming thing. Sat in the middle of a swamp and about as well kept as a shack, but that was mostly the point of it.

For near a hundred years this place had been kept as a sort of...safe point for all sorts of criminal meetings. It was well understood that Ydril's cabin was to be violence free. It was a pact made among thieves, murderers, pirates, and other criminals. There were a dozen reasons as to why, though no one knew if any of them were true.

Nevertheless, it had served as a meeting point for all sorts of nefarious events. All kept safe and violence free thanks to some old story. Tal never put much credence to it, but it was an asset he would gladly use.

Unsurprisingly they arrived before Marcus, and as Tal and Inara stepped from the wagon and walked to the Cabin he glanced at her. "Cheer up, buttercup."

He told her. "You're going to get your answers."

 

[Inara Irren]

Inara wondered if this cabin was a sort of neutral ground. The way Tal had mentioned it to Marcus made it seem like that was exactly it's purpose. It didn't matter. She would soon have her answers and then she would...what? She had no idea, honestly. She supposed she would do whatever her owner needed her to do.

"This is my happy face, Tal," she plastered the fakest smile she could muster on her face as they approached the cabin.

"How long before Marcus arrives? I still can't believe you would dangle the man's non existent daughter in his face."

Inara was smart but for some reason Tal flustered her so much that she seemed to forget basic things like putting two and two together.

 

[Tal]

"She exists." Tal assured her cryptically, approaching the cabin and pulling open the old clearly rusted door.

The hinges let out a loud creak as he revealed the inside, something that was surprisingly well kept. Though from without the cabin looked like a ramshackle mess, it's inner setup was almost nice. A large table sat in the middle of the room with two chairs on either side. The length of the opposite wall was decorated with a bar, and everything else seemed well made, if not plain.

It was clear that at least a little bit of effort had been made to maintain the place, if only so no one fell through the floorboards. "He'll be here soon."

Tal mused.

"I've never known Marcus to be an unpunctual man." No, in their business it paid to be on time. Less could get you killed.

 

[Inara Irren]

Inara just let out a hmph as she walked around the cabin a couple times then plopped down into one of the chairs at the table. It was easy to see now that this was, indeed, a neutral ground that was used for negotiating and whatever else needed to be done without the threat of murder.

She knew if she hadn't taken the seat, she would be pacing like a wild animal that had been caged. Inara had never been known for her patience and she wanted to know what the fuck had happened to her.

It wasn't too much longer before the door opened again and Marcus walked into the cabin. A scowl to Tal and that shocked looked to her.