I didn't expect this one to take so long. Critiques/comments welcome!
Phoenix looked over at Montaron and Xzar. "I am glad that you are not easily dissuaded. I would have had to employ acid." She said, scowling. Before she slept again, she would need to run this scene out in her mind until she found an acceptable solution. She couldn't spare the attention right now. She didn't want Montaron to speak for them, and Xzar should say as little as possible. Of course, Xzar was currently telling the nearest passerby about dragons with the feet of rabbits. At least he'd put the wand away.
Montaron leaned over and started picking through the dwarf's pouches with a practiced hand. She pealed off his steel chain mail shirt. It was dwarf sized, it wouldn't fit anyone here. Montaron was the only one that wore armor, and it seemed very unlikely he'd want armor that made so much noise. He was also about a foot too short and not heavy enough to fill the armor anyway.
"Excuse me a moment." She said, and walked over the bartender. He looked down at her with a vaguely frightened look on his face. He had just sold her the book she'd taken to Firebead before this whole matter, but it was clear his opinion had changed. He was quite pale, and breathing quickly.
"I understand that you did not have time to call whatever guards that Beregost may have. That is fine, it is not up to you to protect me from assassins." She assured him, evenly. "I apologize that the scuffle broke two tables and a couple of chairs. I would like you to offer my injured...comrade... a room to stay in until his leg heals up. I am prepared to give you this steel chain mail shirt, as the dwarf is not alive to make proper reparations for attacking us in your inn. Steel seems to be worth a lot of money at the moment, so I expect that this will cause you to be quite generous, making sure my comrade is well fed and tended to. I would suggest you send someone over to help carry Khalid to the room you intend him to stay in."
The bartender nodded, still pale, looking a bit confused, but agreeable. He waved a couple of bar wenches over. Phoenix turned back to Montaron. The bar wenches took a stammering Khalid upstairs.
"Reparations, lass?" Montaron's voice was a low growl, but reflected more amusement than threat.
"I don't know about you, but I'm going to have to come through Beregost again and I would rather smooth this over now while it's easy."
Montaron nodded. "Jus' checkin'." He smiled, continuing to look through the dwarf's pouches, then deftly collected beard clips, rings, and a few hidden knives with gems in the pommels. "Yer acid woulda ruined the chain mail anyway, so no harm in it."
From the dwarf's backpack, Montaron pulled out a roll of parchment, she watched his eyes as he read it. He looked at the parchment again and snorted contemptuously.
"Ye've made a friend, lass." He smirked, and passed her the bounty notice.
She smiled back, a small, grim spreading of the lips, with no teeth. The amount of money offered for her head had gone up. "Are you my friend, too, Montaron?" She asked, eyes dark. If he was going to kill her, now was the time. Better now than when she was trying to sleep or study or eat. She didn't want to have to worry about a short sword in her back every moment she traveled with him. She liked him, in spite of the danger of his company, but that didn't stop it from being dangerous.
"Bloody hells, lass, I ain't so thick as to fill an order for 'anyone of villainous intent'." He snorted. "Payin' that kind of thing a lick of notice is askin' for a blood-tap in yer back." He said grinning.
Phoenix nodded, smiling reluctantly. He hadn't just claimed that he wouldn't kill her... he simply claimed that this was not the situation that would cause that to happen.
Bhaal's Youngest: Chapter 52
Started by
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, Jan 07 2007 09:12 PM
8 replies to this topic
#2
Guest_Ananke_*
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Posted 08 January 2007 - 08:38 AM
Such a resolute girl! :sighs, contented: She knows how to bargain, *and* how to correctly interpret words. And not to antagonise the local populace.
I really liked your rendition of Montaron's language, especially this:
I'm just wondering for whom Montaron's picking up the gold now. Is it his treasure or party treasure?
I really liked your rendition of Montaron's language, especially this:
"Bloody hells, lass, I ain't so thick as to fill an order for 'anyone of villainous intent'." He snorted. "Payin' that kind of thing a lick of notice is askin' for a blood-tap in yer back." He said grinning.
I'm just wondering for whom Montaron's picking up the gold now. Is it his treasure or party treasure?
#3
Guest_Scavenger_*
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Posted 08 January 2007 - 01:03 PM
What a clever clever and cold-blooded girl she is. I can certainly sympathize with shocked bartender. And more than a few adults (me, most likely, included) would be significantly less reasonable and eloquent after such events.
By the way, I suspect that if she will try to raise Gorion as some sort of the undead she will have much, much more problems with Jaheira than with Zhent duo.
By the way, I suspect that if she will try to raise Gorion as some sort of the undead she will have much, much more problems with Jaheira than with Zhent duo.
#4
Guest_Cel_*
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Posted 08 January 2007 - 09:04 PM
"Excuse me a moment." She said, and walked over the bartender. He looked down at her with a vaguely frightened look on his face. He had just sold her the book she'd taken to Firebead before this whole matter, but it was clear his opinion had changed. He was quite pale, and breathing quickly.
All in all, it's a wonder that bartenders don't complain more when you kill people under their noses!
"I understand that you did not have time to call whatever guards that Beregost may have. That is fine, it is not up to you to protect me from assassins." She assured him, evenly. "I apologize that the scuffle broke two tables and a couple of chairs. I would like you to offer my injured...comrade... a room to stay in until his leg heals up. I am prepared to give you this steel chain mail shirt, as the dwarf is not alive to make proper reparations for attacking us in your inn. Steel seems to be worth a lot of money at the moment, so I expect that this will cause you to be quite generous, making sure my comrade is well fed and tended to. I would suggest you send someone over to help carry Khalid to the room you intend him to stay in."
Diplomatic, yet forceful.
"Reparations, lass?" Montaron's voice was a low growl, but reflected more amusement than threat.
"I don't know about you, but I'm going to have to come through Beregost again and I would rather smooth this over now while it's easy."
Montaron 0 - Phoenix 1
Montaron nodded. "Jus' checkin'." He smiled, continuing to look through the dwarf's pouches, then deftly collected beard clips, rings, and a few hidden knives with gems in the pommels. "Yer acid woulda ruined the chain mail anyway, so no harm in it."
Imagine if you really could loot everything a character might conceivably be carrying!
"Bloody hells, lass, I ain't so thick as to fill an order for 'anyone of villainous intent'." He snorted. "Payin' that kind of thing a lick of notice is askin' for a blood-tap in yer back." He said grinning.
Finally we have the explanation for all the incompetent assassins: the competent ones are too smart to take up an offer with a byline like that!
Phoenix nodded, smiling reluctantly. He hadn't just claimed that he wouldn't kill her... he simply claimed that this was not the situation that would cause that to happen.
Perceptive, especially considering her age.
#5
Guest_Dadri_*
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Posted 09 January 2007 - 01:12 AM
Such a resolute girl! :sighs, contented: She knows how to bargain, *and* how to correctly interpret words. And not to antagonise the local populace.
She is wise for her age, disturbingly so. Poor Gorion had to deal with a child that knew his tells when he was hiding information or nervous or angry or anything.
I really liked your rendition of Montaron's language, especially this:
Quote:
"Bloody hells, lass, I ain't so thick as to fill an order for 'anyone of villainous intent'." He snorted. "Payin' that kind of thing a lick of notice is askin' for a blood-tap in yer back." He said grinning.
Thank you! Montaron is almost as fun to write as Xzar (I realize that Xzar didn't steal the spotlight this time, but Montaron has his place too). His language is like a puzzle to me.
I'm just wondering for whom Montaron's picking up the gold now. Is it his treasure or party treasure?
His treasure, of course.
#6
Guest_Dadri_*
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Posted 09 January 2007 - 01:38 AM
What a clever clever and cold-blooded girl she is. I can certainly sympathize with shocked bartender. And more than a few adults (me, most likely, included) would be significantly less reasonable and eloquent after such events.
You are right. She is cold blooded. That is something that surfaces most noticeably in combat- and has since the first one. When the first assassin tried to kill her she lost her cool only after the encounter, and that was in response to the idea that she should have been frightened and that maybe her not being frightened meant that she truly was evil. (And that her being evil would mean that the people who loved her wouldn't love her anymore= and that caused her momentary panic). But she has also assimilated the knowledge that she is being hunted by assassins, and will be until she can deal with the source of them. The attack wasn't the shock that it would have been if she didn't know that these bounty notices were out.
By the way, I suspect that if she will try to raise Gorion as some sort of the undead she will have much, much more problems with Jaheira than with Zhent duo.
You are correct.
#7
Guest_Dadri_*
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Posted 09 January 2007 - 02:57 AM
All in all, it's a wonder that bartenders don't complain more when you kill people under their noses!
Yeah, that's what I thought.
Diplomatic, yet forceful.
She is developing charisma. She may have inherited it from Bhaal (my Bhaal has charisma, don't know if you noticed...) or may just be getting it from him hanging out in the back of her mind...but he isn't the only one she could be getting it from. And he's certainly not where her sorceress powers are coming from.
Montaron 0 - Phoenix 1
Yes, she is impressing him.
Imagine if you really could loot everything a character might conceivably be carrying!
I'm figuring the game couldn't handle that, but I do consider these things, that's why Phoenix got a spell book off of Tarnesh (even though she has two barred schools of magic like D&D magic rules) and why Montaron's getting beard clips...oh, and why he and Xzar are already loaded up with items from Silke's and Garrick's valuables which they stole from the rooms. (That wand was Silke's). Of course, to compensate for this, I'm not going to allow my thieves to rob every commoner this side of Amn.
Finally we have the explanation for all the incompetent assassins: the competent ones are too smart to take up an offer with a byline like that!
Exactly! When I first read the notice I laughed out loud!
Perceptive, especially considering her age.
Perception is one of her stronger points. She isn't always right. But she is always watching, listening carefully, trying to gauge what is going on. The world is a big puzzle to Phoenix and now that Gorion isn't around to look after her, she feels very vulnerable. There is no way she could learn so much (level so quickly) if she weren't paying very close attention to everything happening.
#8
Weyoun
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Posted 13 January 2007 - 11:03 PM
Montaron leaned over and started picking through the dwarf's pouches with a practiced hand. She pealed off his steel chain mail shirt. It was dwarf sized, it wouldn't fit anyone here. Montaron was the only one that wore armor, and it seemed very unlikely he'd want armor that made so much noise. He was also about a foot too short and not heavy enough to fill the armor anyway.
Perhaps just a bit tight around the waist.
The bartender nodded, still pale, looking a bit confused, but agreeable. He waved a couple of bar wenches over. Phoenix turned back to Montaron. The bar wenches took a stammering Khalid upstairs.
Bartender in the Realms seems to be a dangerous occupation.
She smiled back, a small, grim spreading of the lips, with no teeth. The amount of money offered for her head had gone up. "Are you my friend, too, Montaron?" She asked, eyes dark. If he was going to kill her, now was the time. Better now than when she was trying to sleep or study or eat. She didn't want to have to worry about a short sword in her back every moment she traveled with him. She liked him, in spite of the danger of his company, but that didn't stop it from being dangerous.
"Bloody hells, lass, I ain't so thick as to fill an order for 'anyone of villainous intent'." He snorted. "Payin' that kind of thing a lick of notice is askin' for a blood-tap in yer back." He said grinning.
Besides, it's only about 100 gold. You can scavange a bow lying around in the wilderness which'll pay more than 100 gold anyway.
Sarevok's very cheap... Phoenix nodded, smiling reluctantly. He hadn't just claimed that he wouldn't kill her... he simply claimed that this was not the situation that would cause that to happen.
Short, but sweet.
TnT Enhanced Edition: http://www.fanfictio...rds-and-Tempers
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Sith Warrior - Master, I can sense your anger.
Darth Baras - A blind, comotose lobotomy-patient could sense my anger!
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"The New Age? It's just the old age stuck in a microwave oven for fifteen seconds" - James Randi
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Sith Warrior - Master, I can sense your anger.
Darth Baras - A blind, comotose lobotomy-patient could sense my anger!
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"The New Age? It's just the old age stuck in a microwave oven for fifteen seconds" - James Randi
#9
Guest_Dadri_*
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Posted 14 January 2007 - 07:27 AM
Perhaps just a bit tight around the waist.
Nah! No rolling around in clinking armor for Monty!
Bartender in the Realms seems to be a dangerous occupation.
Yup! It's amazing how their taverns and inns manage to survive all the adventurers brawling and killing in them, and magical battles and barbarian attacks and you know, normal realms life...
Besides, it's only about 100 gold. You can scavange a bow lying around in the wilderness which'll pay more than 100 gold anyway. Sarevok's very cheap...
Yeah, fortunately, it's not the right price early enough to make a difference...
Short, but sweet.
Thank you.
And thanks for reading it!
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