Even Newer(er) Tavern Thread: The Hanged Man
- Thread starter L4W Facilitator
- Start date
Giving a mean little smile to himself, Ngo Xuan looks at the tavern door with the name Hanged Man above it, then looks back down at the small map of the city.
Yes, this is certainly it, he thinks as he rolls up the map and sticks it in one of the many pockets hidden on his courtly robe. Smiling again he walks up to the door, guarded by a burly bouncer, his wooden platform shoes making little clack clack clack noises again the cobblestone street.
He gives a slight bow to bouncer, introduces himself, then stands and enters the bar. He was never much of an adventurer before, but there's no way faster to accumulate magical secrets. Straightening his fancy hat, he gives that sly smile again as he takes in the scene.
Deciding it would be best to scan the room from the bar, he heads over to it and gets the barkeep's attention. "Yes," the genasi says, his highborn Tsugo accent draped over his Common like a wet blanket "have you got any rượu rắn, how do you say it, snake wine? No? Well, just give me some of that over there."
The barkeep pours out some of the barbarian liquor into a tumbler, which he curls his clawed hand around and sips slowly as he looks over the room. Hopefully an employer will make himself known shortly.
Yes, this is certainly it, he thinks as he rolls up the map and sticks it in one of the many pockets hidden on his courtly robe. Smiling again he walks up to the door, guarded by a burly bouncer, his wooden platform shoes making little clack clack clack noises again the cobblestone street.
He gives a slight bow to bouncer, introduces himself, then stands and enters the bar. He was never much of an adventurer before, but there's no way faster to accumulate magical secrets. Straightening his fancy hat, he gives that sly smile again as he takes in the scene.
Deciding it would be best to scan the room from the bar, he heads over to it and gets the barkeep's attention. "Yes," the genasi says, his highborn Tsugo accent draped over his Common like a wet blanket "have you got any rượu rắn, how do you say it, snake wine? No? Well, just give me some of that over there."
The barkeep pours out some of the barbarian liquor into a tumbler, which he curls his clawed hand around and sips slowly as he looks over the room. Hopefully an employer will make himself known shortly.
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When the stranger in the robe enters, Lilli looks up from one of the books that she's been perusing on a table stool. Her eyes follow him about the room, studying the pattern on the robe's fabric with interest. She frowns when she hears the stranger speak; "Hmmm, now that's a new one on me," she thinks.
Lilli closes the book; with the spirit spider clinging to her back, but keeping its eye clusters on the bundle, the small woman goes over to Ngo Xuan and addresses him in Allarian.
"Good day to you; my name is Lilli," she nods her head in greeting. "Forgive me for asking, but where do you hail from? That's a most interesting fabric that you are wearing; it so happens that a friend of mine would certainly be interested in seeing it."
Lilli closes the book; with the spirit spider clinging to her back, but keeping its eye clusters on the bundle, the small woman goes over to Ngo Xuan and addresses him in Allarian.
"Good day to you; my name is Lilli," she nods her head in greeting. "Forgive me for asking, but where do you hail from? That's a most interesting fabric that you are wearing; it so happens that a friend of mine would certainly be interested in seeing it."
Xuan looks down at the gnome as she approaches his spot at the bar. He favors her with a full smile, revealing teeth all filed down to sharp points. Though an attempt is made to cover it with the scent of saffron, an acrid, chemical odor wafts from the Genasi.
"Good day Madame Lilli," he says. The smile is clear in his voice as he responds back to the gnome woman in his heavily accented Common. "I am from the distant lands of the Jade Kingdom."
He lightly touches the hem of his sleeve when she mentions his robe. "This? It is silk from the mulberry groves of Thạnh Hóa. Very fine, but if I read your meaning correctly, it is otherwise unenchanted." He says the last bit with a hint of bitterness in his voice.
Xuan's eyes drift to the overlarge spider squatting on Lilli's back, but he doesn't say anything about it for the moment.
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"Ah, I thought it was silk, though not from a spider, I'll bet; I've seen clothing before now, but nothing with that styling or indeed such a sophisticated pattern. Though the silk gauze feathering of my own travel cape's hem is rather splendidly done. Kingdom of Jade, eh? Now, I've read a little about it, but the source's authenticity seemed somewhat doubtful to my mind, but it'd be a long, long way to travel to look for myself without magic."
Lilli slowly steps back towards the books piled on the stool as she talks.
JoeNotCharles
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A large, thick log has been rolled against one wall. It suddenly convulses and, with a rustle of leaves, heaves itself upright.
"...and then we jumped into the vortex and I found myself back here. I will never use a ship again. From now on I do all my travelling by vortex." Ironheart looks around and realizes that while telling his story he has somehow moved halfway across the room. He seems totally unaware that he blacked out for so long in the middle of his tale.
The wood woad lapses into silence and stares around the room in confusion, trying to see what has changed.
"...and then we jumped into the vortex and I found myself back here. I will never use a ship again. From now on I do all my travelling by vortex." Ironheart looks around and realizes that while telling his story he has somehow moved halfway across the room. He seems totally unaware that he blacked out for so long in the middle of his tale.
The wood woad lapses into silence and stares around the room in confusion, trying to see what has changed.
Xuan sips quietly from his drink as he listens to the gnome self identified as Lilli mostly talk to herself. His interest seems piqued, however, when she talks about books she has read bout the Kingdom.
"Is information about the Kingdom of Jade difficult to . . ." the Wu Jen begins, but trails off suddenly as some kind of strange combination of a man and a tree stump materializes in front of the bar.
"This certainly is an interesting place," he muses, mostly to himself, as he looks at the Wood Woad from over the lip of his tumbler.
Lilli takes a sip of beer, but somewhat conspiratorially whispers from behind the tankard, "Watch yourself now, this place can be more than a little rough at times."
A ghostly disembodied hand replaces the tankard on the table top above Lilli's head before winking back out of existence.
"The problem about the Kingdom is that even those that managed to speak the language seem to differ on cultural points. There may be bad interpretations for several reasons, but I wondered if it isn't as centralised a society as one might first be led to believe."
Lilli makes a gesture around her with one hand, whilst the other drums a brief gentle rhythm on the topmost book, "Now, as for this place, I think there have been other patrons from there who have spent time in this establishment, but I haven't been introduced, nor I believe in attendance when they have visited."
