An Evening Between Rovers

Toryc was quite pleased with himself, he had managed to restrict the legitimate methods by which the Fairchilds could flee the island, and had set it so that the illegitimate means would give him a heads up if they went that route. It had cost him a bit more than he was really comfortable with, but the Pale Sodium would recoup all of this, though he still couldnt fathom what Alistair had done to make Lord Fairfax so upset.
Still though, this trip still had the potential for immediate profit. In addition to a number of investments he managed to make in the fair, the vessal 'the Heat' seemed like it had potential. It was small and rickety, which ment that it would be expected to hold to the lower end docks, away from the tighter restrictions of the upper crust, it would be overlooked by pirates actually concerned with making profit, and it could go to a more random assortment of places without raising questions. Toryc felt that this could be a good way to start leaving 'drops' in some areas attended by Nokklug outriders. Now, all he had to do was wait for Captian Juliana Highland, to arrive at this odd little human watering hole, and hope that this thrice cursed limited language didnt lead to anymore faux pas for the evening.

Juliana had done her best to dress up, though her limit in fashion knowledge had given her the impression that wearing her old factory work clothes, making sure her socks were even, tying her handkerchief around her neck instead of head and ticking in her shirt was fancier than the white dress she had gotten on Phiah. This had proved troublesome when the tuxedo wearing eelman in front of her refused her a table.

"Madam, this is not a place for common... workers. Please leave," The eelman replied, looking on at the girl with some disgust.

"I'm not a commoner, I'm a Cap'n," Ana replied, her face twisting in irritation at the suggestion that she wasn't fit for this location. "I'm also a Highland an' meeting someone 'ere."

"That is lovely, but I can not allow you in wearing such filth," The eelman replied.

"Filth!? This filth's good enough for the king of Coxland, thank you!" Ana replied, a mixture of anger and hurt on her face. She had always thought it was a good enough dress for anything.

Toryc heard the commotion at the door, and turned out of curiosity, apon recognizing the apperantly offended party, Toryc sends one of his temporary guards (Nick and Rick still bieng assigned to a more... important role) to handle the situation. The human walked up to the eelman, and whispered somthing into what passed for the creatures ear. The server straightend with an indignant look, "Sir, she is hardly dressed for this establishment! While I mean no offense to Sir Toryc, I would not see this establishments reputation damaged by giving the image that we allow rabble in the building!" The thug gets a sardonic look, "Then put some curtians up in the area, ya puffed up slug. Hows it good for business if your degrading some poor soul lookin for a bite to eat at your door?" The eelman looks like hes going to say more, but the thug cut him off, "Look, sushi, your interrupting the bosses business with your poor manners, hows about you let the lady in, put some curtians around Torycs table, and we can all go back to enjoying our food, eh? Or do we need to have a word with your manager?" The eelman gives an irritated sigh and waves Ana through, at which point the guard leads her to Torycs table.
Toryc looks up at the young woman as she approaches, "I appologize for the staff, that man will be fired when we are done with our business here. Please, order, then we can get to business."

Juliana hesitantly moved to sit down, muttering, "I wasn't planning on letting him lose his job. I jus' wan'ed in 'ere was all." She then proceeded to look over the menu and nearly fell out of her chair when she saw the prices on some of the dishes there. Her entire family could be fed for a week on the prices there. Her entire extended family could be fed for a week. Meekly, she set down the menu and ordered when the waiter arrived, "Jus' a salad and wa'er please."

Toryc turned his head in a manner that might have seemed quizical if performed by a human, "Are you alright, Captian Juliana Highland?" then he considered her dress, and vessal, "If its an issue of the price, dont worry, I offered to pay, and I stand by my word." With that, he orderd a good sized steak. He then turned to the Captian, "I ordinarily would get straight to business by this point, Captian Juliana Highland, but I find that that usually puts your species in a funny mood. Tell me, how would you start the conversation from here?"

Ana stared blankly at him for a few moments then replied, "I'd jus' get right down to it myself. Don' need any sor' of small talk or nothing. In fac', could 'ave jus' discussed it back on the ship."

Toryc realeases a hooting sound, "I like you, Captian Juliana Highland, though it couldnt have been handled back on the Heat, sad to say. Your crewman had quite thorougly offended me, and I needed some time to 'cool my head' I think the expression goes. Though to business, what routes does your vessal tend to cover?"

"Don' really go' a route, sad to say. See, I'm currently looking for my bro'er and I'm following 's trail right now," Ana replied.

Toryc leaned back in his seat, "Brother you say? Im unfamiliar with that word, though I heard it used to describe the relationship between Mr. Lucas Fairchild and Mr. Alistair Fairchild. Would you kindly explain the word to me?"

"It's when... well... It's when you 'ave a bro'er, you know?" Ana sputtered out, her brain cranking for a good explanation. her mind was having difficulty trying to process how to explain such a universal concept as a brother. "It's when your parents got ano'er kid. Migh' be older, migh' be younger, they're still your bro'er."

"Ah, a broodmate then, your people are very different from mine, arent you?" Toryc is suddenly distracted by the arrival of the food. After getting himself situated he looks back to Ana, "And what direction will you next be headed to continue your search, Captian Juliana Highland?"

"I guess we are. If you don't mind me asking myself, why call them broodmates? That sounds like of impersonal, like you're talking about livestock an' not someone in your family. An' the next place we're 'eaded is Audum. 'Ear it's a nice enough place, if not a bit windy an' dangerous."

Toryc places his fork down on the table for a moment, raps his fingers against his arms, then picks his fork back up, and says, "From what information I have been able to glean, the reproductive cycle of our two species are vastly different. Ill spare you the details, though I have not had any contact with my broodmates in approximately 40 of your years. Audum though... what makes you think your brother is out that way?"

"Well, when we were off on Phiah, I did a little looking into the ship departure records. Apparently 'e was on a ship tha' went to Audum from Phiah, So, we're going to Audum to see if we can find 'im there." Ana replied with a glance upward and a hand on her chin.

"Interesting, and would you be interested in performing a task for me, Captian Juliana Highland?" Toryc asks, between gulps of food. "I will compensate you for the journey, and I anticipate minimal danger to you or your crew." He scribbles a number on a napkin and passes it to the young girl. The number could cover repair and resupply for the Heat for the next 3 months. "Half paid up front, the remainder to be paid upon conformation of the delivery, what do you say?"

Juliana looked over the number and smiled widely. Enough finances to cover 3 months? That meant she wasn't going to have to sink down to illegal means for her income after all.

"Sounds great to m- Wait, what's the task?" The last question was asked with some hesitation. She knew it was a bad idea to agree to do something when you weren't sure what you were doing.

"Delivery" Said Toryc. "Four crates, dimensions: 1 cubic meter, mass: 91 kilograms each. Two boxes are to be delivered to the sheriffs office, one to Dr. John Michaels at the local hospital, and the final to a Mr. Thomas 'Snake-Eye' Ross, who frequents the pub."

"I should also like to mention, that I will be considering this a litmus test of your ability." Toryc said, "If you do well, I would be happy to provide you with additional work on a free lance basis, or if you do well enough, and you get done with your little journey, Id also be pleased to have you on retainer."

"Sounds innocent nuff," Ana replied, thinking over the offer. Last thing she wanted to do was to be caught doing something illegal, or be framed for something. "I'll be willing to take the task, though remember it might take a while. Audum's a pretty big place from what I 'ear."

"The town I need is on one of the southern islands, called Backwater. Its the... less visited port, so do be careful, but there should be little to concern yourself with once there. Do you need any more information about this task, Captian Juliana Highland?"

"Wot's in the crates?" Juliana asked.

"An experimental medicine one of my servants created. The exact effects are a tad technical, but the end result is that it provides an adrenal boost in humans, expanding awareness, reflexes, and reducing the need for sleep. The sheriff wants it to increase the effectiveness of his officers, Dr. John Michaels believes that with proper application it could be used to extend the period of time he has to operate on certian individuals, and Mr. Thomas 'Snake-Eye' Ross declined to say why he wanted it, but that is his privilage as buyer." Toryc said, "If youd like a sample of it for yourself or your crew, I could give you an employee discount per sampling, though as I said, it is still quite experimental."

"I think I'm fine withou' tha'," Juliana replied, offering a nervous grin. She had read enough books from the trash can to determine that experimental never ended well. "Though thanks for offering."

Toryc dosent seem the least bit put out by the rejection, though he's still difficult to read, so who knows? "As you wish, Captian Juliana Highland, if you need more to be satisfied for this job, please ask, though if you are content with the terms, I have questions for you." Toryc says, as he finishes his steak and calls for a desert menu. "The least of which bieng, would you care for some sweets?"

"Wouldn't mind sweets at all, if you don' mind sharing them. An' wouldn' mind answering any questions you got," Ana replied, her face lighting up at the notion. Sweets were definitely something that was far out of her price bracket.