It was a dark and stormy night, or so the stories went, somewhere far far away from the Drunken Ogre Inn. Fortunately, this was not that somewhere. Alicia had grown accustomed to paying the inn a visit now and then, even when she wasn't actively delivering her wares - keeping abreast of the market, as one of her former watchmen would have put it.
Although the marketplace itself seemed noisier than usual this evening, once inside, it was blessedly quiet. The patrons minding their pints and quarts did little to announce her entrance, which was just fine with her for now; choosing her quarry wisely, she slipped over to where Maxnian was attending to his drink. Dwarves weren't particularly to her tastes in other realms, but tonight, she was in the mood to talk of times long past, and when the dwarven bouncer wasn't busy ejecting a particularly unscrupulous patron, he was more than willing to tell quite the collection of tales.
"Maxni, you're going to drink yourself under the table if you keep that up," she chided mildly as she invited herself to a seat at his table, "and then who'll throw out the other drunks?"
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Always good to see an old friend.
"If you want to get me under the table," he said, "it'd take more than a few drinks."
He laughed at his own joke, then shook a bit of ale out of his grey beard. "Good to see you, lass. How's buisness?"
"Business is as well as can be expected," Alicia chuckled. "With this big to-do Lyzia's throwing, most of my finer clients aren't looking in my direction at the moment... and her ships are blocking up the harbor with their comings and goings. What is all this fluff and nonsense about, anyhow, have you heard?"
He took a hearty sip of his ale, and eyed Alicia, leaning in a little closer. "But if that was all it was, I don't think she'd bother with the fancy. Some sort of business dealings, I'd imagine. She's had ships coming in loaded with goods - and Karvix told me she sent the Mouselord sniffing around after a bottle of Hanius. "
She looked thoughtful for a moment, before remembering her place. "... sorry about that. But it does seem awfully lavish for a party... and one bottle of wine means one very special, small group of people." She shook her head a moment. "Which means very dangerous business -- or perhaps even war."
He tapped his forhead thoughtfully. "If I were an upstanding merchant, you know what I'd do? I'd see about getting myself an invitation to that party.
Just to keep an eye on things, mind you. Someone has to."
Settling back in her chair, she decided it was time to change the subject before her mood got too dark. She had come here for a good time, after all. "So how are things here? You look like you haven't had a good bar fight in days... are people finally learning to respect the power of the great Maxni? Or have there just been a dearth of fools as of late?"
He didn't mind having an easy job, not now that he was getting older. It was a nice change of pace.
"Most trouble's been outside the inn, and that's the way I like it."
Thinking of her last visit, she cast a glance in the general direction of the corner, but the odd figure wasn't there. Probably moved on since, she mused.
"Hello." She said quietly, taking a seat.
She was trying to pass for a common, plain woman- but she did not realize she looked gaunt. She would have to find a way to improve that.
People who didn't know how to take care of themselves confused the old dwarf. In his day, self-sufficiency was very important.
Then Lena realized that she was supposed to be a normal, poor girl.
"Thank you sir." She replied, before walking over to the bar.
"Hey, what can I get for you tonight?" he asked.
"How about that, with some warm bread, and a nice mug of cider?"
She spoke honestly, and was glad to be in the company of someone who seemed friendly. "How are you today, Mikal?"
"Will this do?" She asked, offering it to the man. "I would be honored to do a good deed for you one day, Hector."
"Here you are, sir and do calm down..."
Max kept a careful eye on the partrons - particularly the red eyed elf, and the cranky pale patron at the bar.
(( OOC: Sorry guys- I've had a pretty busy couple of days so I didn't get to check into this till just now.))
Alicia chuckled, and looked to Maxnian. "And here I thought you were having a boring evening."
He kept his eyes on the two men. The one with the red eyes might be some sort of trouble, and the one at the bar- well, he might be trouble too. But he looked somewhat familar. Max'd met a lot of people in his time, so it was hard to keep track of them all sometimes.
"And someone's got to keep an eye out during the night shift, so Karvix can get some sleep. Can't trust that to the boy, after all..."
He nodded towards where Mikal was serving up the drinks, and looking kind of flustered.
"I've had some bad luck in the recent past."
She fished out a gold coin, and balanced it on a finger a moment. "Now pardon me while I see if I can't disrupt it." With that, she flicked the coin in the general direction of Lena's stool.
He gave her an amused smile.
Mikal, meanwhile, thought he finally had the drink and food orders under control. He settled back behind the bar to take a breather.
"I don't think I would be able to do that. I'm terribly shy, and cannot stand for strangers to see my face."
Despite how they look, this group is dangerous, his Spidey senses told him.
So Pigfish approached the bar with his hands in his hidden in his pockets. That was a sure sign he was not on the prowl. If he had been looking to snatch a purse, his hands would have been out in plain sight where all could see them. Or at least where all would think they were seeing them.
He'd been teaching young Maeve some self-defense, now that she was old enough to handle a weapon proper. The old dwarf had never had children of his own, but he'd practically raised Maeve along with the rest of the Drunken Ogre staff. Now that she was a teen, nearly old enough to make her way in the world, he had to make sure she was prepared.
"Good evening sir and welcome to the Drunken Ogre Inn. What can I get for you?"
She glanced up a moment, and noticed that the commons room was getting crowded indeed... even though some of its occupants were fleeing. "Or perhaps I should leave you to watch the room. It's getting crowded in here."
Max nodded to Alicia's comment on the crowd. "Well, if you've a mind to wander and meet some of 'em, that's fine."
He knew that she liked to socialize, particularly when it could be of interest to her business. Not to mention, she'd already spent a gold on one 'em.
One languid stretch later, she pushed feetwards, and decided to make her way over to settle in next to the dark elf. Dark elves were always interesting sorts, whether they were tortured souls or torturing soles, and those that dabbled in human affairs often needed a good businesswoman's assistance. To Mikal, she added, "While you're taking orders, I'll take a glass of house wine."
That was nearly two centuries ago now. A distant memory in the eye of most humans... but on closer examination, the man seemed less than human. Vampire. Hm... there was only one vampire he remembered fighting for the right side...
Max grinned as recognition set in.
"Heke! You old sod, is that you? I thought someone ground you to dust years ago!"
"How're you tonight?" he asked, pleased to see her.
He wasn't particularly fond of the Mercantors for the most part, and prefered to stay out of their business entirely. Still, one couldn't help but hear things.
Alicia smiled. Gossip, after all, was one of her favorite tools. Not her most enjoyable, by far, but... "And if the rumors about what she's bringing in for the party are true... well. I hear they're even importing ..." She looked from side to side, and murmured in a low tone, "Captives."
"Sit down, old friend. Let's have some catching up!"
"Scary, isn't it? I mean, ick..."
While slavery was technically illegal within the country, the import of 'captured goods' was frequently ill-monitored.
The old dwarf scratched his beard in thought. "Karvix might be the owner proper. Half-orc, but a good man. Honest as the day is long. Anyhow, he's the innkeep, that much is certain."
Noticing Heke's gaze drifting to Alicia, Max grinned. "That's Alicia- her and I go back too, farther back than I knew you, even. She's a hell of a woman."
He laughed at his own joke, and started to wave her over.
She paused, noting Max waving, and chuckled. "-- nevermind, maybe another time." Hefting her glass with a dainty air, she returned to the table where Max was talking shop with his newfound oldfound friend. "You gestured?"
The old dwarf smiled as Alicia joined them. "Ah, there you are. Alicia, meet Heke. Heke, Alicia."
He motioned Mikal over and order a round of drinks for them all. "Figure with all this business going on of late, we all need to stick together. After all, there's no friend like an old friend..."
And he was more than happy to introduce two of his oldest friends to each other.
Reclaiming her chair, she looked to each of them, smiling. "With all of this business, it seems a ripe field for speculation, wouldn't you agree?"
She was dangerous. Pigfish didn't know why, but he knew that much.
He couldn't imagine what the dark elf was talking about. Some kind of special food or drink maybe? What did dark elves eat? Was it different than what most people ate?
"You don't want a nice ale maybe? Some stew?"
His own keen ears were listening greedily. What the hell was the Scourge of Lillith? He hadn't gotten much of an education in his many decades as a slave beyond work hard or feel the business end of a strap. And we was only a child before that...
Something dangerous. Must be very careful.
She left a meaningful pause, and grinned. "Well, the town looks lovely."
"No, can't say that we have that. But is there something else I can get you?"
He listened to Alicia's assement of things, and nodded. "Aye, the people are rough at times. But that's what makes life interesting. If everything was calm and peaceful all the time, we'd never have a thing to do."
Max thought that being bored was the most awful thing in the world.
He noticed then that the candles on the tables were nearly burnt down- a sure sign that it was time to close for the evening. Mikal looked tired behind the bar. Maxnian didn't want to say goodbye, however.
"Heke, my friend - are you staying here at the Ogre? Maybe tomorrow night, you, me, and Alicia here can go out on the town. It's my night off from work, and I've a mind to spend some time catching up. "
He grinned. "I've heard there's a gypsy caravan camped just outside of town. There'll be having a Gathering, for sure."