2017-09-06: Two Merchants in November

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  • Log: 2017-09-06: Two Merchants in November
  • Cast: Jacqueline Barber, Rose
  • Where: November City - Market Street
  • Date: 2017-09-06
  • Summary: Jay and Rose meet to catch up and discuss Guardian matters.

=======================<* November City - Market Street *>========================

November City is the greatest and the largest of the Seed Cities. When it appeared after the Night of Falling Stars, it was already a large settlement, built by the survivors of that day quickly. It has since grown enormously, appealing to people in the Badlands in search of some security and the refugees from failed and lost Seed Cities. Market Street, its main thoroughfare, demonstrates this. On the outskirts of the city, shantytowns and shacks pop up along the street, gradually becoming the larger buildings in the heart of November.

The street is named for the huge market that has sprung up across it, occupying the three and four story brick buildings along each side. It's a wide, paved road (a rare thing in the Badlands) and connected to Central Station, where all of the railways come. Here, one can find anything they want. The laissez-faire nature of November City's government makes the black market an open one, and this is one of the few places where ARMs and stolen goods from Aveh and Kislev can be bought with ease.

There are also saloons, taverns, restaurants, and hotels to be found. November City is a true melting pot, where Drifters from across Filgaia mix with foreign merchants and locals of every class. Men wearing suits brush by peasants in homespun, while Drifters and knights bump into each other. The police force usually prevents outright gunfights in the streets, but November City's officials are infamously easy to bribe.

BGM: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFi2pwQRRzQ
<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.

Jacqueline had been quite busy lately. Making deals, putting up fliers, ensuring they had enough stock for their plans...she was putting everything she had into making sure that the Caravan Kinship's Grand Opening was going to be a spectacular one. Of course, a person could only make themselves go for so long, and Jacqueline had decided it was time to take a well-earned break.

She had selected a saloon just off of mainstreet. It reminded her a little bit of home...but it didn't have that same homey feel of the Starfall to it, and they didn't know how to mix her favorite drink properly.

It's only a little bit crowded at the moment, but Jacqueline had managed to find a table to herself. Though for how long would that be the case?

<Pose Tracker> Rose has posed.
"Heeeey Jay!" comes Rose's voice from the side, as the merchant suddenly puts herself into view. Did she always have that big black tophat on her head or is that new? "You will never guess whose hat this is!" Oh, it's new. "Did you know if someone takes a Seraph's clothes the clothes become fully visible?! Look, touch it!" The hat goes from Rose's head to Jacqueline's head without more fanfare.
It's a pretty comfortable hat.
"So how do you like November City? Is your shop set up yet? Oh, we need to catch up! Did you know I sell Gears now? Well, just a couple, I want to get them off my hands but finding the right buyer isn't easy. Not a lot of folks willing to shell out for an entire Gear. Everyone just wants parts to fix theirs." The woes of certain types of merchandise.
<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.

Rose was the kind of person who was hard to miss. Jacqueline could hear her clearly, so she turns to offer her a wave...and is surprised to see her wearing a hat in additional to her usual ensemble. Oh, did she- wait, whose hat was it??

"D-did you take a hat from a Ser-" Jacqueline is interrupted as she suddenly finds said hat on top of her head.

...Okay, it was definitely a comfortable hat. She didn't exactly approve of taking it, but she could see why she would. Have appreciated it enough, she removes the hat from her head and offers it back to Rose.

"Well, we've been doing business here and there, but we won't be officially 'in business' for a few days." She replies.

"But oh, you have Gears? ...Come to think of it, that might've actually been a better idea. I...found myself in possession of one, and I'm putting it through some customization work, but I don't have many plans for it..." She replied. Of course, she had obtained said Gear by stealing it from Kislev during a mission to rescue a captured friend, but that wasn't exactly something she wanted to broadcast out loud. ...And come to think of it, that would mean selling stolen goods, and that wasn't exactly a good reputation for it...maybe it was better to keep it.

"A-anyway, have you heard much the Caravan Kinship? My friends and I are starting a new business..." She seemed rather quick to get off the 'Gear' subject, or at least the subject of her own.

<Pose Tracker> Rose has posed.
"Oh, I see, I see! I've heard of it, yeah! Tell me when you're officially open, I'll want to drop by and check your prices, yeah?" Rose playfully elbows Jacqueline a few times in the ribs. She's in a good mood today! Or already hit the alcohol. One or the other, you know. Can't really prove it!
Picking up on Jay's desire to avoid Gear talk, Rose obliges, motioning towards empty seats so they can sit down. No signs of Rose's ghostly friend, wherever he may be without his hat.
"Have you made any headway on the whole Guardians situation? I haven't caught so much as a whisper about these supposed statues we're supposed to find. Sorey's been looking everywhere without much luck, too. He's really invested in this. I think it's a nice distraction from his usual Lord of Calamity worries. Can't catch a break, right? Always has to be something threatening people. First the Metal Demons, now these messes. I haven't even decided what I'll do with the Medium I found!" Surprisingly she hasn't sold it yet.
<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.

"I'll be sure to let you know. Our Grand Opening will be in a few days, though. We'll be holding a big event here in the city. After that, though...all's you have to do is look for the golem that's following us around or our vehicle and we'll be glad to stop for you." Jacqueline replies with a light chuckle.

She's quick to join Rose at the seats she'd picked out and takes a quick look around.

The conversation turns to the Guardians then.

"Ah, so you met with them as well?" Jacqueline asks, curious.

"But no, I haven't heard anything. I've been keeping an ear out, but...like you said, not even a whisper. We may have to start doing some real research..." She replies.

"I'm not surprised to hear that Sorey is working hard on this, though. He seems like that kind of guy. Well, if I hear something, I'll definitely let you two know." She then chuckles slightly, at the mention of all the trouble.

"Yes...used to be the worst thing you'd have to worry about was monsters or bandits. Things have certainly been heating up lately..." She replies. At the mention of Mediums, though, Jacqueline reaches into her bags, drawing out her own Medium. She looks down at it for a moment, before looking back up at Rose.

"Ah, you've received one too? Well...I would suggest you hold onto it. I don't know if you can communicate with the Guardians...but if anything, it might hold clues to finding the statues." She replies. For her, holding the Medium was a more personal thing. She was still trying to figure out how to use it properly, but just holding it made her feel more relaxed.

<Pose Tracker> Rose has posed.
"Expect me!" Rose replies, making a mental note to try and find some time for Jay's opening. The Sparrowfeathers have their own work to handle these days, not to mention sticking around Sorey and Alisha not being spare time-friendly, but she's sure she can find a moment for her fellow merchant. "Got any spare fliers on you I can hand out? Us Sparrowfeathers already have our kiosks up, so I'll be happy to drive some customers your way!"
Oh that reminds me. "By the way! Had you heard of 'air conditioning' before coming here? Sorey and I found out what that is when we visited the Adventurer's Guild and I might not be able to live without it now! Who knew you could even do that?! Technology and magic to cool your house instead of killing people, talk about novelty!" She's been very sold on the matter. Desert heat sucks.
Oh, back to the Guardians. Rose nods. "Yeah. They weren't very open to the fact we're from Lunar, to be honest. There's some bad blood between Althena and the Guardians or something like that, and they view us as her children so..." She wobbles a hand in the air dismissively. "Well, they still gave us Mediums and told us how to help, so they must be really desperate. No idea if it'll work for me, haven't really... tried. I'm not good at magic." At least, not yet.
She ponders, then. "You know... if those stone Mediums are connected to the Guardians, what'd you think would happen if a lot of us with the same kind of Medium gathered up and used them? Maybe that'd be a way to pinpoint a statue's location, if you can find enough people and Mediums." It's an idea and something to try for sure, but success is another matter.
<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.

"Oh, definitely!" Jacqueline's expression brightens a little at that, and she reaches into her bag for a bundle of fliers to hand over to Rose.

As for air conditioning...

"Oh? Hm...actually, I think I have heard of that...Shalune - one of my friends - was trying to rig some of it up for our vehicle. Oh, I really should show it to you sometime, I think you'd get a kick out of it! But yes...it's great when people use their talents for constructive purposes!" Jacqueline replies with a nod.

"That's news to me. One of my people is from Lunar, but they didn't say anything specific to her...I see. I'll have to keep this in mind..." Jacqueline replied with a slight frown. The Guardians didn't approve of people from Lunar? What happened between Althena and the Guardians? She supposed that was just another one of those mysteries they'd have to search for answers to.

"Yes, it did seem like they're running out of options. But if you need help with your Medium, I have a few friends who are well-versed in their usage that might be able to give you some pointers." She offers. Rose provides an idea, though, and Jacqueline thinks about this.

"Hmm...actually, I can't say I've thought of that. Maybe it would empower the Guardian, at least temporarily...? I'd have to ask Catenna or one of the Baskar to know for sure, though..." She murmurs.

<Pose Tracker> Rose has posed.
Rose slips the stack of papers into her jacket, to ensure not losing them. But then Jay gets ahold of her entire, undivided attention. "On your... she can install air conditioning on VEHICLES? PLEASE introduce us and tell me how much she charges!!" It sounds like Rose is interested, and she can pay too. Anything to have to deal with the desert heat less is great in her book. Especially if it doesn't involve a spooky Water Seraph.
With things going back to the Guardians afterwards, Rose thinks. "Well... the best I could gather from the conversation, and honestly you should ask Sorey for more details, not me, it sounds like a long time ago Althena took people and left Filgaia to create, or at least settle, on Lunar. That much isn't new information but... what's interesting is that the Guardians seemed to resent her for it. I got the distinct vibe she didn't leave on good terms. Or maybe her leaving was seen as cowardice? I honestly don't know! But we'll probably figure it out if we keep digging."
Question is, from whom.
On the matter of Mediums, she asks: "Baskar, huh? I've met Catenna, we adventure together sometimes! Oh, I know Vin, too, the one who really likes fire and worships the Guardian of Fire. The question is, do we know a lot of folks with similar Mediums? Mine is the Sky Guardian's."
<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.

"Well, our vehicle is a bit special, so it might be a little difficult for yours...but I'd be glad to introduce you sometime regardless! I'm sure the two of you would get along really well." Jacqueline replies with a smile.

Jacqueline thinks over what Rose said about the Guardians.

"Interesting...I didn't actually know that... Yes, I'll definitely have to ask Sorey about it sometime. Honestly, I'd like to know a lot more about all of you." She replies. "I can imagine why they might be upset..but at the same time, I can't really blame her for looking after her own..."

Frankly, she couldn't really make a decision one way or the other, without having more information to go on.

"Hmm...my medium is of Grudiev, the Earth Guardian. And Cyre has Solais Emsu's Medium, as well, in addition to his Wind Medium. As for the rest of the Kinship, Shalune has the Mountain Medium, Catenna has Moon and Sea, Ethius has Star. Lunata has...Death, but she's a special case. And..." Jacqueline hesitates a little bit. ...Well, she could trust Rose with this information. She didn't seem like the type who'd turn in a friend.

"And Kourin as a Moon Medium, as well."

<Pose Tracker> Rose has posed.
"So we've got... two skies, two moons, and one of a bunch of others... I'd bet Vin has a fire one, and I think that's what Edna ended up with. I didn't see what Sorey picked up, come to think of it, but Alisha got ice, so..." Rose scratches the back of her head. "That's really not enough to try some big summoning. I think we might need to reach out to more people, but what if we get the Metal Demons' attention? They'll just crash the party, maybe kill someone, and then we're worse off than before."
Rose puts on her serious face for a moment, crossing her arms. "Geez, this is complicated. What to do... even if we assume the Seraphim might be helpful with their affinities, that still only gives us one fire, one water, one earth, one wind... guess Ragnell'd count as lightning."
Rose flops her head onto the table in defeat. "I was thinking more... ten! Where are we going to find even half that number with the same Medium? Maybe enough Mediums being used together in general would help...?" Magic, it truly is her bane.
<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.

Jacqueline frowns slightly. True, it didn't seem like they had anything nearly on the scale Rose was wanting...

"I know of one more person with Star, but other than that...I don't think there are nearly enough Mediums. We'd have to hope, but...like you said, it could just end up bringing worse trouble down on us..." Jacqueline murmurs.

This was a difficult question, certainly.

"Admittedly, we don't even know if this would work even if we had ten...it would probably be better to ask someone more well-versed in Guardian lore about this plan before we worry too much about it." She suggests.

<Pose Tracker> Rose has posed.
"Yeah... oh, that's an idea!"
Rose lifts her head back up, and retrieves Dezel's hat in the same movement, plopping back onto her own head. "I'll try and get ahold of Vin, see if we can sit him and Catenna down in the same room and ask our questions! It's a long shot but it beats any other lead I have right now!"
With that, Rose rises from her seat, hands on her hips. "That's settled, then! Hopefully nothing comes up for your big opening and I'll see you then, at least, give you an update on getting Vin's time and attention if you haven't beaten me to it or he isn't there to begin with. Though for now... I should probably get this hat back on the head it belongs to before he wakes up and notices. Hey, we learned something, Seraphim fashion is weird! You think if they can just will clothes into existence we could just have them will infinite clothes up and sell them? Ha, that'd be too good... bet there's some catch to it. Oh well! Take care of yourself, Jay! Don't melt in the sun!"
<Pose Tracker> Jacqueline Barber has posed.

Jacqueline nods. That sounded like a good plan.

"It is a wonder..." Jacqueline responds. Really, how did Seraphim work in the first place? What was it about them or anything malevolent that made them selectively invisible and intangible? ...Well, she could worry about that another time.

"Same to you, Rose. Farewell!" She replies with a smile, offering her a wave.