Czlaplon Quest

[Kasbak]

I'll thank the maid kindly and tip her an extra silver piece. Kind of short notice getting me set up, and the extra service for it is appreciated.

I'll probably be awake or already rousing myself by the time Mekhitar comes around. For the most part, just normal wake up business; stretch, get fully alert, check over equipment, so on. Since we were working more with written material last night, I'll take a few minutes in the morning to update my travel journal before heading down.

[arcomniflash]

If I have time, I'll do a morning karma ritual, though I suspect there isn't enough time for that. So after having a quick wash and getting dressed, I'll head downstairs to the table. Sitting down, after a short pause, I'll say "Good morning" to all present and dig into whatever meal has been prepared for us, since it's likely the second last one we'll have on land for a while.

"So..." I'll say to Mekhitar, putting down my fork. "...you want to take us shopping for better clothes today. Do you know where we'd be buying them, and whether or not they're expensive?"

[TarlimanJoppos]

Sorry, Isaac, no time for a karma ritual before breakfast. Lots to do. People to see. Have to get to that later.

"Well." Mekhitar, as usual, speaks with a lot of hand gestures. He starts with rolling his right hand over, palm up, indicating an empty hand among other things. "It's not like we have the entire city to choose from, don't you know. We have to find something that's ready-made and can be tailored to fit in less than a day." Left hand joins the right. "And it would take a good deal more time than that" - fingers folded in, index fingers and thumb left out - "to make the necessary alterations to the seat." He rolls his hands over, palms down, touches his thumb together, indicating a very large, rounded gap. "So we'll have to find a tailor who caters to the non-t'skrang, which means our choices will be limited. What I'm thinking is that we can find something that comes close to fitting, and works with your skin tone, and then I can put in a few quick stitches tonight, and do a fitting in the morning, and make any final alterations before the soiree on board Athenar's Fancy tomorrow night."

"Cost?" prompts Shaliko.

"Oh, that," Mekhitar waves dismissively. "Don't worry about it. If you come up short, Uncle Mekhitar can take care of that." He reaches down his shirt, and pulls up a small leather bag on a thong, hefting it a couple of times before dropping it back down into its hiding place.

"Considering our poor luck yesterday," says Garsevan, "I'll stay here and see what more of the parchment forest we can hack through." He nods to Kolbeinn, who looks relieved at having some help.

"Fine," says Gudrun. "Go and see to your clothing issues." She shoves her breakfast dishes aside, and opens a book, the human-pocket-sized journal seeming absurdly tiny in her hands.

[Kasbak]

Since Mekhitar is taking point on the planning for this trip, I'll let him carry on, making sure to listen in and note the important points. Hopefully having something pre-made with necessary adjustments done after the fact will keep the up front cost down as well. And though I would like to make myself useful to the group, I have to at least be honest with myself that going out clothes shopping beats going through more writing on my desirability chart.

"If I can add one more stop to make while we're out." I'll interject when there's a pause. "I'd like to pick up some inferior supplies suitable for target arrows. I'd rather not use my good hunting stock for entertainment displays." Hopefully that won't be too difficult to find or take up too much time. "I can assemble the pieces while we're en route. I figure that will give me another demonstration for the passengers." Maybe not as exciting, but something realistic and possibly more relate-able. "Who knows, maybe I'll even find someone interested in trying to help put a few together just to see them fired off." Throwing that thought out mostly for feedback from Mekhitar, since he's the entertainer and would have a better gauge on how that would be received.

I'll make sure the rest of my breakfast is finished off as the conversation wraps up. I already went over my gear when I woke up, so I should be all set. "I'm ready when everyone else is." I'll offer after Gudrun gives her dismissal. Let's waste no time in getting the day's activity started.

[arcomniflash]

"Yes." I'll remark, quietly finishing my breakfast along with everyone else. "Let's go." I'll also be following behind Mekhitar - I trust him a little more now, but just to be safe, I'll keep an eye on him for the duration. The main problem is a monetary one, Mekhitar looks like the kind of elf who would spend a whole lot of cash to make everyone look fashionable. While I can see the need for better clothes for the coming trip, I don't want us to burn a lot of our resources on it - resources that could be better spent elsewhere.

Of course, I'm not going to outright confront him with his, but subtly steering him away from anything that is more expensive than we need would probably be a good plan. I'll walk near just behind everyone else as we move, a group of adepts moving through the city is likely to draw a lot of attention, so I'll tip my hat to whoever looks in our direction. No sense in being impolite.

"When we board the ship, I'm not sure exactly what I should say. I could relate my travels with the Bearer's of the Helm to the guests...outside of that though, I don't want to fill their minds full of thoughts of Horrors...or talk to much about myself, I still have a lot of bad memories there. Perhaps some demonstrations of swordplay would be wiser, what do you think?"

[TarlimanJoppos]

Mekhitar gives Alston an approving nod. "Oh, yes, children especially might like that, and there might be an adult who likes working with little fiddly bits. Anything that helps pass the time during the slow part. Never let the audience get bored. We'll make sure you get, well, whatever it is that archers use to make arrows, sticks and feathers, I don't know." He waves a languid hand dismissively. "I know how to make new strings for a lute and pick out the wood for a whistle. Shooty things just aren't in my line of work."

Garsevan rolls his eyes but doesn't say anything.

Mekhitar continues with Isaac. "We're going to go with dark and mysterious for you, I think. Things better not talked about, ominous warnings, that sort of thing. People like to be close to someone dangerous as long as they're not actively so. If someone asks a question about the Horrors, just brood about it and pull your hat down low, like you do, and mutter that there are things better not talked about. Give them a little shudder. They'll enjoy it, strangely enough."

And so off you go out into the Floating City, Mekhitar, Alston, Isaac, and Garsevan. You spend the morning going to a couple of tailor shops up on the north side, places that cater to the non-t'skrang. Mekhitar does most of the work, but checks with Garsevan on a few things. He's a Swordmaster, he understands flashy. Mekhitar does the bargaining, and is either doing very well at it, or is throwing a lot of karma into his Haggle Talent, as you get out with most of your coin.

Isaac, you now have two pairs of loose, baggy trousers, with drawstrings at the waist and ankles, one in a dark blue with yellow and red embroidery down the side seams, the other pale green with lots of smocking in yellow and fuschia at the waist. They're cut in a t'skrang style but made to fit a human. They're a bit large on you, but between the drawstrings and a few quick alterations, Mekhitar thinks they'll be fine. You also have two shirts, of a blousy style again in the t'skrang style but sewed for a human, with baggy sleeves and a square-yoke neck. One is white with blue and red embroidery, and the other a deep wine red with black embroidery. "Day and night," says Mekhitar. To complete the ensembles, you've got a bright blue sash with silver tassels and a dark green one with deep yellow tassels. Those get wrapped around the waist and tied off with a knot that lets the tassels sway when you move. You'll look like a t'skrang pirate captain. And it only costs you twenty-eight silver.

Alston, you end up with one outfit. Mekhitar and the tailors are both apologetic, and they commiserate on the problem of finding clothing for a windling. The only reason the tailor had this outfit in stock was that the former owner sold it to help pay for his passage back home, having given up on the Floating City. It's a forest-green tunic, knee length, with angelwing sleeves, embroidered with asphodel blooms in white and blue, and a dark brown undertunic that comes down to your ankles and shows a bit of sleeve out past the ends of the tunic's sleeves. "Rather elven, don't you think?" Mekhitar asks, sounding very pleased with that. He talks the tailor down to eight silver for the ensemble, pointing out that it's used, and a little worn, and will need a bit of work to really fit properly.

Finding arrow-making supplies takes less time and is simpler. There's a couple of shops at the edge of the dock that cater to adepts, and carry all the impedimenta you would need to stock up on before leaving on an adventure. A handful of cheap pre-turned arrow shafts, a bag of feathers, a few colored feathers for nocks, and a bag of cheap tin bird points sets you back nine silver. The shopkeeper will throw in a small pot of glue for free.

Isaac, make a Perception test.

[arcomniflash]

Perception Test (1 Point of Karma spent for an additional 1d8) - 12+6 = 18 (reroll of the d12) 4, 18+4= 22.

[Kasbak]

As we depart, I'll make my way toward Mekhitar and gesture toward his shoulder. "May I? We've a bit farther to go than is comfortable to fly." He's not exactly my first choice, given his high degree of movement, but he's the one on point, and I believe my eyes are needed most up front. Between Isaac and Shaliko, I think our flanks will be well observed, though of course I won't ignore them.

The outfit does meet with my approval, and I'll give an agreeing nod to Mekhitar's comments on the style. "Yes, this should suit me fine." The sleeves would probably get in the way for a combat situation, but for our purposes it should be fine. It's much better than I expected to find for my race in this market, and the price isn't bad at all.

Since the arrow making would most appeal to children, as I've been advised, I'll try to get as vibrant of fletching colors as I can. Just something to try and make them stand out, though I won't make any changes that would up the price.

[TarlimanJoppos]

Isaac, one of the people you tip your hat to, a rather nondescript elven man who only stands out because he's not a t'skrang, hanging out in the shadow of a merchant stall, seems a trifle perturbed, perhaps even annoyed, at being noticed. He steps back, putting the stall between himself and you.

Mekhitar cocks his hat to the other side to make room for Alston. "Of course. My apologies, it's been a few hundred years since I traveled with one of your people. I should have thought about the problem of keeping up with us larger folk."

As far as arrow fletching, this is a t'skrang city. Getting feathers in garishly dyed colors isn't going to be difficult and won't step up the price. The shopkeeper has a larger supply of brightly dyed feathers than ones that are still their natural color.

So you wrap up your shopping, get food from a couple of pushcarts (fried fish on a skewer for the non-elves, garlic bean spread with cress on flatbread for the elves and other vegetarians) that runs you two silvers each, and head back to the Breaching Sunfish. You've got till tomorrow afternoon before you have to board the riverboat.

"I'm going to catch a nap," says Mekhitar, "and then see about a bit of extra coin before we depart. No sense leaving the city without having worked a few taverns first. See you for dinner." And he goes off up to his room.

Once he's gone, Shaliko turns to Isaac. "We need to talk about him."

[arcomniflash]

I'll find somewhere to sit down, perhaps at a table a little ways away from the bar, and beckon Shaliko over. "So, do you mean Mekhitar or the man who looked like he was watching us?" This spot in the inn should be far enough away from the front that we can have a quiet conversation without being overheard by those who aren't specifically listening to us. For those who might be, I'll keep an eye out. Theoretically speaking they shouldn't be that hard to spot if they are, but it pays to be prudent.