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Message: <blockquote data-quote="htetickrt" data-source="post: 1785902" data-attributes="member: 16534">The Arrogance of the ArchmageQuid reaches her breaking point with the archmage’s callous words, and dark thoughts coalesce abruptly into rage.  "Look you cryptic fancypants ****, we'll pay you your ****ing money!  You could have been a little more forthcoming with information and help instead of sneering your pretty boy face while sitting on your wussy ass. We'll get to the other priestess when we're damn well good and ready.  Our deal has no specification of time, so shut the **** up.  I… I….”Quidlyn slowly unclenches her fists, leaving behind angry red marks in her palms.  The tension of her arms relaxing, she slowly looks to the survivors, pointedly avoiding the archmage.  "I'm sorry.  That was stupid, I…."  Angry with herself for her weakness, Quid rushes past the archmage to exit the level.Trella stares at her as she passes, at a loss.  She drags over a goblin corpse and takes a load off in order to collect her thoughts.Kai, whose lower lip has been trembling for several minutes, pulls herself together after sympathetically watching Quid's departure.  Suppressing the tremors by compressing her lips past the point of whiteness, she finally turns to face the archmage with all the poise she can muster.  "A priestess of Kiaransalee in the Fane of Lloth?  A likely story.  We have paid for your failure to provide substantive aid by the loss of several friends.  We consider our original deal satisfied."  She watches the mage carefully through narrowed eyes, ready to dole out a passel of teleports at a moment's notice.As Kai speaks, Quid discovers that she is going nowhere, by foot anyway.  A horde of sleeping goblins lies sprawled out along an invisible wall extending from under the exit to the chasm, likely sealing it off until the archmage is done speaking.  He notes Quid's acknowledgement of this with a smirk, visible only to her.Her escape stymied by the invisible wall, Quid sits down dejectedly amidst the goblins."Are we finished with the theatrics now, or should I summon a playwright to record the melodrama for posterity?" he says in an amused tone, with a slight edge to it.  "The deal, as you agreed to it, made no mention of the White Lady or the Spider Queen, but merely required the elimination of all priests.  There is one more in the fane above.  The gold, obviously, is in payment for the slaves, who are useless to me now.  I was forced to have them put to sleep merely to silence their endless howling.  I will buy back the stone giant for a quarter of what you paid, if you so desire."The stone giant narrows his eyes, but makes no movement, apparently sufficiently afraid so as to dull his bloodlust.  The archmage continues in a harsher voice.  "As for my aid, without it only a fraction of you would have made it to the battle with Dorina, and those that did would have surely been destroyed.  You owe me your lives, insolent worms, and you are lucky that I do not take what I am due now."Calming, Solom concludes, "But perhaps you are broken, no longer able to finish what you have begun.  Very well.  I offer you an alternative bargain. You keep your gold and can depart.  All save you, that is."  Solom points at Rhien.  "You possess potent magic that you should not have, and I would learn its secrets.  If you are made my possession, I will consider the deal completed."Kai fails to restrain herself at this.  "We were to provide you with control of this outpost.  We have removed all opposition but one priest.  We consider any debt for your so-called aid completely repaid.  If the archmage of Szith Morcane is incapable of dealing with a single cleric on his own, perhaps he should reconsider his pretensions."The mage replies lightly, "Ah, another emotional response.  It is for this reason that women should not rule.  I have been more than generous with this alternative offer.  You may take either, or you may pit your combined might against my own, and see first hand my power."Rhien lays a gentle hand on Kai's shoulder.  "If we do not believe we can safely face the priestess above, then I will surrender.  I do not believe it would be wise to face the archmage at this juncture."  The monk is outwardly calm, but there is a slight eagerness in his eyes that is disturbing to those who know him."No!" ejaculates Quid. "Absolutely not. I will not make any more deals with you Solom, and never any that involve the trade of sentient life."Quid picks herself up off the ground, brushing the dirt off her well-tailored leggings, before turning to face the archmage once more.  Having somewhat collected herself, Quid flies up to look Solom in the eye and continues very deliberately, "I will abide by the terms of the gold deal Solom, out of my own funds if need be.  I gave my word, and the debt will be paid in due course. The other priestess we will also deal with, at the time of our choosing. But you have no right to keep us here. If you are to be of no help, then leave us and our charges be."  She gestures vaguely over to the goblins. "We will find you as necessary."Near simultaneous with Quid’s response, Trella jumps to her feet.  Visibly willing calm into her personal turmoil, the druid joins the party in facing the archmage."We are bent, sir, but not broken."  There is iron in her voice.  "Pursuant with existing agreements, I do no explicitly recall a timetable in the original, or amended, agreements.  Perhaps there was an implied time frame on your part, but being the civilized… thi—archmage that you are, I am certain you are intimately familiar with contracts, fair expectations of mutual reciprocity frameworks and the need for… shall we say, fully delineated terms prior to consummation of all oral agreements?  Therefore, being reasonable… individuals, you and we, I propose that you give us sufficient time to heal, replenish spells, relinquish extra equipment, mourn, and do whatever else is necessary to prepare to complete our duly agreed upon work at a time of our convenience.  You will be paid the agreed recompense for your… property, and the final priestess will be slain.  It would be helpful if you could suggest an area where we could deliberate without needless interruptions that, given our… current state, could retard our progress."  Her final remark is sufficiently double-edged to make its meaning plain.  She thanks Kyree for inspiration for the legal-ese.Kyree moans, “I just want to shoot things.”After Quid's and Trella's near simultaneous elocutions, Solom responds, "I thought as much.  Very well.  I shall allow you to leave and return to complete your part of the bargain under two conditions.  One, you pay me the gold now for the slaves.  There is no reason to postpone this; I was merely being generous before, a mistake I shall not repeat in the future.  Two, you will sit idly by while I geas the insolent priest," he indicates Quid, "to return to complete her task within five days, which should be no hardship.  The geas should never come into play as long as you are truthful."That is my final offer.  I suggest you agree to it."Quid concentrates hard on the archmage, but gleans nothing further.  Eyes boring into him, she says, "I see no reason why the deal should be modified. However, we can pay you the gold now as a show of good faith, but in return we first want all the information you can provide about the priestess and the powers the priestess serves. If it truly is your goal to bid rid of the priestess, this can only help you as well."As for the geas, I also do not see why I should submit to it. We had a deal Solom. That will suffice."Solom sighs.  "Very well."  After the gold is given, he says, "The priestess is the last member of the old regime.  Before you get overemotional about this as well, you have no deal with her.  She is dead, a ghost.  Her rantings prevent my full control of the city.  I could dispose of her myself, but since you have agreed to do so I will let you."  Solom smirks."She is a servant of the Spider-Queen, and so will not threaten you with her brand of 'magic.'  You must thus only prepare yourselves for her ghostly assault.  I am sure the pious among you know more than I in this regard.  Or perhaps not, but I am finished speaking."There is a pregnant pause as Quid continues to stare.  When she is done, Solom says, "I will dismiss the wall of force so that you may depart, but before I can do so I will give you a minute to retrieve your slumbering slaves.  Be quick about it."Trella goes to the little guys and awakens them.  She begins herding them away from the barrier and tries as best she can to keep them from seeing Solom.  They struggle at first, so the druid changes shape into a dire bear.  Then they faint.  She enlists help to drag their unconscious forms back to solid ground.Solom watches this impassively, looking slightly bored.  Quid attempts to ply him for information about the other drow faction. "In case we come across any of their minions, it would be useful to know what we are up against."Solom responds simply, “There is no other faction.  The priestess is the last of her House, and she is dead.  A ghost.  There are no others.”With an odd look on his face, he gestures for the wall to fall and says, “You will return within five days to finish your task.”  Quid starts as she realizes that the words were backed by magic.“You son of a b*tch!” she cries, to which he merely responds, “Ta,” and vanishes.Calla approaches Quid, “We’ll get him,” she says with conviction, and more than a little bloodlust.Trella lets loose a great sigh as she reverts to her usual form.  After gesturing obscenely at the rough location formerly occupied by Solom, she wakes up the goblins.  Trella informs them of their purchased freedom and gives them, as well as the lone stone giant, permission to go back or wherever since they are basically free men/women/goblins/stone giant.  She urges them to decide as a group to go, wait for the party to complete its business, or whatever.  The stone giant she says would be a welcome addition to the upcoming fight, but he has the right to leave, too.It takes a while and some translation for this all to sink in, but when it does the goblins bolt en masse.  Several fall screaming into the chasm, but most make it up the remains of the spiderweb and begin to ascend out of the crypt.  Kai and Kyree glare at them.  The stone giant gifts Trella with an, “Are you crazy?” look, and follows more slowly.Rhien approaches Quid and gestures to the bag of holding, saying gently, “How much do you think what we have found is worth on the market?”Quid recognizes the intellectual diversion for what it is but is nonetheless grateful for it.  She opens the enchanted sack and begins cataloguing its contents.  It takes only minutes for her to come up with a rough estimate of the total haul.  “One hundred fifteen thousand, more or less.  Add that to what we had, and divide by seven…” she momentarily pauses in sadness, before continuing, “and we each get around eighteen thousand gold.”Rhien continues, “And how much do you think it would cost to obtain a true resurrection for Khail?”Quid steeples her fingers as she thinks.  “Well, there’s obtaining the diamond, and finding a priest…I think I could get it for fifteen thousand or so, with some haggling.  I know some people in Athkatla who might be able to help.  Regardless, some of us should return there to regroup and resupply.”Trella replies, “Let’s leave here first.”  All in agreement on that point, the party makes the slow trek up to ponder its next move.</blockquote>

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