Quest Totally Legal Deals

[Kala]

Elbion

Kala didn't like Elbion.

She never quite knew why, but she always felt like she was being watched. It was a feeling at the back of her neck, one that seemed to constantly trickle down her spine. A part of her suspected that it was magic of some sort, but the more reasonable part of her said that was nonsense.

If any place was being magically watched it would be Vel Anir, and she never had that feeling trawling those streets.

Still, needs must, and she had once again come to Elbion.

In her pocket was a gem known as the Heart of Trill. It was a necklace with magical properties of some sort, though just what that was she had absolutely no idea. Generally she liked to know before hand so she could gauge the cost, but this time she wasn't asking for a bag of money.

No this time she needed a favor.

The card she had created in Vel Anir still sat within her vest pocket, the Rune upon it just as mysterious as the day it had been copied. Her contact here would hopefully know more about it, and if not perhaps she could point Kala to someone who did.

With a quick step the Tiefling slipped into the Usual meeting point; A tavern by the name of the Boars Belly.

 

[Kara Orin]

Evening drew close. The Boars Belly [sic] saw a slow increase in guests as the working day finished. A few tables already had occupants. The bar remained almost empty with most people looking for a meal.

When Kala entered the tavern, Kara already sat at a table by herself. The mage shoved another spoonful of mystery stew down her throat. She wore a dull, gray robe instead of a College one. The cloak covered the things attached to her belt. However, the shape of a longsword could be seen.

In previous interactions with Kala, Kara informed the tiefling of her association with the College as a mage. While she did not reveal the source, Kara told Kala that she had the means to pay for interesting, magical artifacts that Kala might “acquire”.

For that moment, Kara remained focused on finishing her meal and failed to notice Kala.

 

[Kala]

Kala sat herself opposite Kara, frowning slightly as she watched the mage ingest some of the stew which the Boars Belly was famous for. "You know they haven't cleaned out the pot for that in a thousand years?"

That was the claim anyway.

Apparently the family who owned his place prided themselves on what they called the "eternal stew". They never cleaned out the pot, never dumped the remains. Instead they kept the fire going, periodically added more water, meat, and whatever else they had on hand.

Kala had seen some disgusting things in her time, including Rous eating the corpses left after a battle but that stew...the idea made her want to wretch. She'd have thought basic hygiene would at the very least be a requirement for most humans.

Disgusting.

 

[Kara Orin]

When Kala spoke, Kara finally looked up to see the tiefling. She still chewed the bits of meat and vegetables in her mouth from the stew.

“Mbub-“ she tried to speak with her mouth full.

Kara took a second to finish her bite and swallow. She rested the spoon in the bowl – her hand still grasping it.

“Yeah, makes it delicious,” she replied to Kala.

In the village Kara came from, the stew would be called a hunter’s pot. Enough inns made these stews for it to be a common practice. And for Kara, who grew up on a farm with limited food, she hardly found an issue in eating such stew.

“How have you been?” Kara asked as she began to scoop up another spoonful of the stew.

It was a question Kara always asked first when the two met.

 

[Kala]

Gross.

She couldn't believe Kara could even stand to put that junk in her mouth. It reminded Kala of some of the sewage that she had seen in the Underground. Lips thinned for a moment, and she shook her head as she decided to focus on the task at hand.

"I've been worse." The Tiefling said with a shrug. "Had a little run in on my trip to Vel Anir."

Not that it had gone particularly bad, it was what lead her here. "Encountered a problem I could use a little help with."

Kala cut straight to business, Red being fully on her mind. The other Tiefling was little better than a slave right now, and she had promised to solve his problem.

The least she could do was try.

 

[Kara Orin]

Kara took another, small spoonful of the stew while she listened to Kala. She silently chewed with her mouth closed.

When Kala paused, Kara just asked, “What's the problem?”

This would be the first time Kala mentioned something like a having an issue. In the past, Kara and Kala would just exchange coin and magical widgets over a few words. Less time together gave less of a chance for people to notice a connection between the two.

“I’d be shocked if it’s about Dreadlords,” Kara added, “Since you’re alive.”

 

[Kala]

Not Dreadlords. Kasimir had called himself a 'Forsaken', though just what that was she hadn't been entirely clear on. Perhaps she should have stuck around and asked a few questions, but matters had been rather pressing.

"This." She said as she pulled out the playing card from her satchel.

On the card was a Rune of some sort. The thing was incredibly complex, small lines and etches running over and through it again and again in a complicated weaving. Even a master Rune Mage would have been hard pressed to decipher it.

"It's some sort of...magical slave collar." She explained. "A friend on mine had it placed on them. I need to break it."

Unfortunately from what Kasimir described, it was not as easy as simply cutting into the Rune or doing any of the normal counters to Rune Magic. That had apparently already been tried, and more often than not it lead to death.

 

[Kara Orin]

“Hmm?” Kara muttered as she set down her spoon and pushed aside the bowl of the most delicious and most serene thousand-year stew.

The card drew the attention of her eyes immediately.

A rune.

That was her thing.

For Kara and those of similar study, they classified runes as either base runes or complex runes. A base rune was exactly that – a simple rune that could not be broken down any further. Letters and symbols for fire, air, and south served as base runes. Complex runes would take those base runes and add shapes and lines to create specific effects. Some to change the magnitude of the base rune’s effect, some to sequence the effects. The more complex, the more control the rune mage had over how the effects manifested.

For base runes, one would have to rely on memorization to know them much like memorizing characters in a complex logographic language. For complex runes, one would need to follow strict, logical patterns with the base runes’ meaning to interpret the effect.

Immediately, a beginner rune mage would recognize this as a complex rune. A very complex one. Apparently thousands of small, intricate lines. Kara’s eyes initially looked upon it with wide-eyed curiosity. Given its source, an Elbion taught mage would have to decipher its effects.

Yet the more Kara stared at the card, the more her eyes sharpened into a seething glare. Nails dug into the table’s wooden surface.

The protected and secret Forsakens’ brand reflected in her eyes.

“To break it?” Kara asked.

A pause followed.

Whether or not Kala confirmed, Kara relaxed her face and said, “What are you offering for my help?”

Kara leaned back in her seat. Her hands still rested on the table, yet the tension in her digits disappeared. She continued to gaze at the rune with downcast eyes.

“Even with just this,” Kara aded, “If you’re caught, I’ll be the one with a Dreadlord problem.”

 

[Kala]

"Neutralize it." Kala clarified with a frown. "Without killing whoever it's applied to."

She wished that the mage wasn't as smart as she actually was. Kasimir had warned her that if any of the Nobles learned about this the rest of the Forsaken would hunt her, and it seemed that Kara had made that connection rather quickly.

The Tiefling had no idea if Vel Anir had spies in Elbion, but there was always a possibility information would somehow filter back. Her fingers tightened on the tabletop for a moment, and then she shrugged her shoulders as if it weren't a big deal. "I have the Heart of Trill nearby."

That was what she had been meant to bring originally, though the price for that had been only coin.

"A war was fought over it, you know." Again, that was just rumor, but Kala would use whatever tactic she had to here. "Must have some powerful magic."

She waved her hand. "Besides, I won't ever get caught. You don't have anything to worry about."

Except knives that might just suddenly appear in the dark.

 

[Kara Orin]

Kala added further clarification on what she wanted. And told Kara her offer. Kara leaned back her head and closed her eyes for a few moments. She released a sigh.

Then, Kara leaned forward in her seat once more. When she reopened her eyes, she looked to the bowl of stew and dragged it back toward her. She glanced around the tavern for anyone paying attention to the pair.

“Okay. A way to break the rune for that, then,” Kara told Kala as she scooped up another spoonful of mystery meat and veggies.

After finishing that bite, Kara continued with, “None of the options are easy, though.”

Pointing the spoon to herself, Kara said, “For one, I do it. But I can’t afford to travel to your friend.”

Kara then said, “I'll be here if you can trick your friend or use drugs for a kidnapping. If aware of what you're doing, your friend might kill you or the ‘collar’ chokes the life from… her?”

Then, Kara pointed the thousand-year stew covered spoon to Kala, “But if that can’t be done, you'll have to do the deed in my place...”

 

[Kala]

She frowned. "I doubt he would be able to come to Elbion without some...setup beforehand."

Kala briefly thought about the cards in her satchel, considering for a moment if taking Kasimir back through the Paths would be at all possible. The trip would be tricky, and she had no idea how his mark would fare there.

Lips thinned, and she shook her head. "Why can't you travel there? Lack of money or the College clamped onto your foot?"

Money wasn't exactly a problem, as long as Kara was willing to scoot through the underground. Of course it could also just be that the Mage was too afraid of Vel Anir to actually venture there. Kala couldn't blame her if that was the fact.

It was clear though that the Tiefling didn't consider doing the breaking of the Rune herself.

She didn't want to put Red's life at risk.

 

[Kara Orin]

“I won’t travel there,” Kara calmly clarified.

As for reasons, Kara never gave a reason to Kala that she was short on gold. And depending on how much Kala attempted to look into Kara, she might have found out that Kara was able to move about outside of Elbion and without College supervision.

With a gesture of the thousand-year tainted spoon, Kara added, “I can meet halfway at the western portal stone, if that helps.”

In that case, Kala would only have to find a way to move Kasimir south along the edge of the Falwood forest. It would more than halve the distance to travel – at least, for an overland route.

But after a pause and with a glance toward Kala's right shoulder, Kara just asked, “Can you cast any magic?”

 

[Kala]

Kala's features tightened slightly. She hated admitting her own magic, if only because it cut some of the mystique from how she was able to accomplish half of what she did.

"I have my own abilities." Kala said slowly.

The deck of cards in her satchel were tricks she had learned long ago. Not quite Rune Magic, but close enough that most thought of it in that way. A more accurate description of the abilities would be impression magic. She was able to craft images onto the blank cards, and with those cards create the effects of the image.

It took her hours to craft even a single one of the cards, and she'd found there was an upper limit to the amount she could create at a time.

Of course, that was not her primary ability. The thing that allowed her to be such a grand thief, what had allowed her to survived was a thing she called the Paths. That ability stemmed from the first, but it was far more important...and difficult to describe.

"It may help me with transporting him." She said slowly. "But I am unsure how his mark will react with it."

Kala hesitated a moment more. "I can show you, though it might take more time than a single night."

It was always a crapshoot when entering and returning.

 

[Kara Orin]

“To my understanding,” Kara said as she pointed at the rune, “The key is him not knowing your goals.”

With the bowl now empty, Kara pushed it aside once again for good. She then folded her hands and sat them on the edge of the table. She still leaned back in her chair.

“If you have ability, I can give you everything you need to do the act,” Kara informed her, “And I don’t mind seeing a demo of your skills, if needed."

Another pause followed. Kara looked away from Kala as she then said, “But if these options are too much risk, another is to bring the collar maker to me.”

Returning her eyes to Kala, “In full health is optional.”

 

[Kala]

Kala considered for a few moments.

The trouble with Kara's last suggestion was the fact she had absolutely no idea who had created the rune. She supposed it was likely some Dreadlord or Noble, but Kasimir had made it seem as though this had been a practice for a long while.

There was only one way of figuring out who had placed the Rune on Red, and that was to ask him. If she did that it would likely give the whole thing away. Plus, she wasn't entirely sure she could go toe to toe with a Dreadlord and come out victorious.

Kala considered for a moment more, and then slowly nodded. "Teach me to do it ."

It would be the easiest path. Getting Red to Elbion likely wouldn't happen, so she would have to learn how to undo the Rune on her own.

 

[Kara Orin]

“Okay,” Kara replied.

Reaching into a pocket beneath her cloak, Kara pulled out a few copper pieces for the meal and sat the coins on the table.

Pointing at the rune once more, Kara asked, “How was this applied? A tattoo, brand?”

Then to pick the specific mean that Kala would have to use to disable the rune, Kala also asked, “How long can you wait until you’re ready?”

 

[Kala]

"It appeared to be a brand." She only saw the thing for a few seconds, and there hadn't exactly been enough time to study the damned thing.

Kasimir had said that even messing with it caused him pain, or rather she had managed to infer as much from the way he'd reacted to her questions. It would be problematic to apply whatever fix Kara came up with, but she figured she'd cross that bridge when she got there.

"The faster the better, but there's no set timetable." Kala said with a shrug. "This isn't exactly a...planned thing."

She just couldn't stand that one of her kin was in a situation like this.

 

[Kara Orin]

Looking toward the coins she left, Kara said, "I need to get the tool you'll need."

"Meet me at the C.R.T.C. yard at the Port District in fourteen nights," Kara told Kala.

The Cairou River Trading Company used their yard to make any quick repairs to their vessels or temporarily store materials just received or about to be shipped.

There was no guarantee that was enough time, though.

"We'll do the exchange there," Kara said, "I'll be able to show you what to do then."

 

[Kala]

Kala nodded, pushing herself up from the table without another word and gently knocking her knuckles against the wood.

It was an odd quirk that she had developed since childhood, a way to ward off bad luck it was said. When you left a table you knocked on it. Simple as that. "I'll see you then."

The Tiefling offered before she turned and left the Tavern.

 

[Kara Orin]

“Stay safe,” Kara said with a wave.

After a couple minutes, Kara would get up and leave the table without giving a knock. She flipped her hood over her head and headed out the door. She gave a quick glance around for anyone out of character – potential followers.

Despite having no known fans or stalkers, Kara realized that she talked for Kala for far longer than they normally did. And of some sensitive information if the wrong person heard it.

Kara would then walk down the street to get to work on Kala’s request. If not followed by Kala, the next time the Tiefling would see the mage would be in two weeks at the Port District…

 

[Kala]

True to her word two weeks later Kala appeared at the docks exactly where Kara had directed her to be.

Half of her suspected that it was some sort of trap, that the mage had set her up so the City Guard could capture her. It was not out of the question, but she'd prepared herself for that eventuality just in case.

Despite the fear though Kala was still there. She wanted to help Red, enough that she would even risk a possible clash with the authorities here in Elbion. As she stepped slowly into the shadows of the dock the Tiefling peered around.

"Hello?" She called out to the empty space around her.

 

[Kara Orin]

The yard stored boxes stacked in wooden mountains of various sizes. A very small ship stood on lifts. Half its hull missing for a rebuild.

A watchman hired by the trading company napped nearby in a watchman’s box at the yard’s perimeter fence. Despite his job, this particular watchman was a heavy sleeper.

An orange glow bounced off the crates in the yard. In an open space, a small burning fire pit would greet Kala. Kara sat on a stool near the fire. She held a metal rod with the tip buried in and obscured by the fire.

As soon as Kala spoke out, Kara would glance toward her. Then, she would gesture to an empty stool near by the pit.

“Welcome,” she greeted Kala.

 

[Kala]

"Nice place." Kala commented as she sat on the small stool opposite Kara, a frown settling on her face.

Briefly she wondered if this girl had read a crime novel or something of the sort. This was like a meeting straight out of one of those awful books about thieves and their contacts meeting in the middle of the night. The Tiefling frowned, but decided not to ask the question.

After a moment of silence, Kala prompted. "Did you figure it out?"

Two weeks wasn't all that long a time to figure out how to break a Rune like that. At least she thought it wasn't. Perhaps Kara was some sort of genius.

 

[Nicodemus]

To claim that few things off important happened within the city of Elbion without Nicodemus knowing would be a lie. The city was too large and too busy for that kind of boast. However when magical artifacts entered into it he had cultivated a large web of informants and friends over the years, that’d trade whispers and rumors for coin or favours. He had greedy eyes and ears in all manner of places.

It was due to one of this friendly whispers Nicodemus found himself by the docs, a late evening growing colder by the second. He was thankful he was dressed in a long thick coat, broad hat and gray trousers instead of his normal uniform. The only things he left from his every day attire was the small black edged knife on his hip, the bracelet on his left arm hidden beneath his coat, the tool pouch slung across his shoulder and the medallion hidden under his shirt.

The information he had received had been spares, even as rumors went. There had been a meeting at a shady bar, Boars Belly which seemed to be off interest to him. While his informant had been unable to supply him names and more than a vague description of the two, he had been close enough to eavesdrop on parts of their conversation. Enough to realize that they were negotiating. The exact nature of the exchange the informant had been uncertain about, but he believed it was to do with fencing some stolen magical items. They hadn’t spoken much before agreeing to met at the docks in two weeks time.

This alone would have piqued his interest, but hardly been worth the time or effort to look into until his source mention he had caught the words “Heart of Trill”. Now that was a price to make a man move mountains, lay siege to cities or like Nicodemus hire men of questionable moral fiber to find out more.

In the end he his search hadn't amounted to much. His informants had been unable to find the stranger or her contact. Nicodemus assumed the later to be someone connected to the college with an interest in magical artifacts, but that was a very large pool of people. As such he had hired what finer people would call private contractors to keep an eye on the docks, and to inform him when the two of them resurfaced.

A few of them were scattered around the dock area still, close enough to rush to his aid, but far enough away to avoid being suspicious or escalating the situation. He hadn’t come looking for a fight, if he could buy whatever the stranger was carrying he’d prefer that. Even so he was prepared to injure or threaten to get his hands on not just the “Heart of Trill” but whatever else they might be bartering over.

By the time he slipped out from a narrow side street towards them, the duo had sat down by a small fire. His stride confident, like his approach was expected. He could hear one of them ask a question as he moved closer. He didn’t know what they were supposed to have “figured out” but if he hadn’t already been intrigued he was now.

“Hello friends” Nicodemus said as he approached, not exactly how he imagined a seasoned underworlder would have done it, but he was getting colder and wanted to get it over with. He had spoken out early as to not startle the potential dangerous and armed duo. The only visible "weapon" was the metal rod use to stirre the fire. But that was no guaranty for safety. While his shoes were already soaking through and he very much would have liked to share the fire, he came to a stop a few meters from them.

“I’ve been informed that you are looking to trade a certain artifact for coin or favours" the sorcerer said. His hands spread in a non threatening manner, his eyes looking between them to keep both within his field of vision in case either made any sudden moves. Bellow his shirt his medallion was shaking ever so slightly, the entity bound within reacting to its masters focus and attention.

Kala Kara Orin

 

[Kara Orin]

“Yeah,” Kara replied.

Then, Kara procured a small, roughly one-foot squared wooden board that had sat by her feet. She dropped it on the ground between Kala and her. She began to rise from her seat with the rod in her hand. She put effort in to lift it with one arm. The end peek out from the fire – showing a circle shaped tip much like a stamp.

Yet before Kara could do anything else, a strange voice spoke out from the dark.

Kara reacted instantly. She let go of the rod and swiftly drew the sword strapped to her belt. She pointed the sword at the obscured figure standing some distance away. Runes etched into the blade began to glow blue. The azure shine illuminated part of Kara’s gray cloak. It would be the only thing that would not appear as a silhouette due to the fire being to Kara’s back.

“Identify yourself,” Kara ordered, “Now.”

Kala Nicodemus