RP:The Dragon's Forge

Summary: Meri and Nikola meet for the first time. A delivery of benu wings and an ice wyvern’s rib cage is made. The two go on to discuss future hunts along with a potential order of weapons.

The Dragon’s Forge

Meri :: A letter would be sent to Nikola at the Forge within Craughmoyle, one that was simple and to the point. The letter is clear that all three hunts have not been completed but it announced a date and a time that Meri would be dropping off the animal parts that the guild has gathered for Nikola. It would be impossible to miss Meri on the day in question for the blonde would not be able to shove the wings of a benu or the ribs of a wyvern into a dinky little satchel. No, she would be arriving with two horse dragon carts, one cart is carrying the wings of the benu and the other slightly larger cart has been loaded full with the rib cage of a wyvern. Nikola requested very specific parts and that is exactly what she would get. Meat and feathers or scales have been removed from the carcasses at another location, so that all that is left within the cart are the pristine bones that were requested. What happened to the rest of the bits? Well Meri is a savvy business woman and the remains that Nikola did not request would probably end up being sold off to other merchants and craftsmen. The carts would remain outside but they would not be left unguarded for Meri was not traveling alone, a young but capable looking woman stands watch while Meri steps inside of the forge in search of Nikola. The tattooed blonde has never met the blacksmith before, so even if Nikola is within plain sight, Meri would not assume and approach. Instead, she calls out with a cautious, “Hello? Nikola?”

Nikola :: The quest duration was half a year's time. In truth, she didn't expect someone mad enough to take such a dangerous quest, though the pay out of gold is small... maybe. She does hibernate from time to time and the inflation and deflation of currency tend to happen. Regardless, her quest was to hunt three very dangerous beasts, the body parts could be used as crafting material, typically for magic weapons. When she recieved the letter, she was excited to meet this... Adventurer's guild. She met a member of them few months ago, though how the conversation went might need a bit of polishing. Was it the dragon's fault? etiquette tend to change in time after all. Regardless, the saurian is curious who this new person is. Nikola's workshop, The Dragon's Forge was a simple looking smithy, the exterior looks old and at the very front was the typical wooden signage that has a drawing of an anvil and a hammer. Though near the dwarven city of Craughmoyle and the very wind chills common travelers, the establishment appeared dry with no amount of snow upon its room, a chimney was bellowing smoke ontop, one could only imagine the welcoming warmth such store would provide. Two large steel braced wooden doors are the only entry way one would see from the front. Behind the workshop however was a three story tall home, lightly hidden away with a stone path at the left side of the shop leading to it.

Nikola has been waiting, she rarely speaks with anyone after all. Its always business for her as she felt that she has no other way to initiate conversations with another being. She felt the presence outside her doors but did nothing as it might be just some random traveller. However once her name was spoken, the large doors slowly swung open. Controlled by Nikola's magnetism, the doors looked like it was opening on their own while the saurian sat behind her desk, quietly sipping tea. She made sure not to adjust the tea cup in her hand for the eighth time as everything has to look natural. "Here! please come in."

Meri reached out to attempt to open the large steel-braced doors only to find that they seem to open of their own accord. Some might find this to be surprising, but the psion has personally caused similar events to occur. As the blonde passes through the doors, she is studying them to see if she can observe some sort of mechanism that might have caused this. Or maybe Nikola was a magw? Or better yet, perhaps the saurian also had telekinetic abilities the same as Meri? None of these thoughts are voiced as they pass through Meri's mind. Once past the entrance, booted feet carry Meri straight for the tea-drinking Nikola. As Meri's attention aas half claimed by studying the door while she entered, the blonde has not actually seen how many times Nikola has adjusted the way she is holding her tea cup. Once the tattooed blonde was an appropriate distance away from the blacksmith, an easy smile takes hold of Meri’s red lips and a hand is extended to Nikola. “A pleasure to meet you face to face, Nikola.” If Nikola takes hold of that offered hand of Meri’s, the blonde would give it a firm shake before releasing her grip. Even if there is a chair available for Meri to claim on the opposite of where Nikola sits at her desk, she does not take it. There is precious cargo waiting for Nikola outside, and the blonde presumes that at some point very shortly they will be traveling in that direction. Meri remains standing as she goes on to speak, “The name is Meri. Leader of the Adventurer’s Guild. Not that I am normally one to throw titles around but given the note you left on the board for us…? It seems like some very useful information.” This sentence is punctuated with another smile and a wink but the blonde keeps talking, “I have a partial delivery for you...and I was hoping to discuss the details of the last hunt that we need to complete on your behalf.”

Nikola stood up and shook the lady's hand. Smiling at her, nodding as she listens. "Yes... which request was this?" There are times that Nikola would ask for materials of various dangerous beasts that the quest would either remain posted upon the wall unresolved for hundreds of years. There are even times where she'd visit a guild once and return to check only to find the entire nation was destroyed and been replaced by something else. So far that doesn't seem to be the case here... still, sometimes she receive deliveries that she has no idea to whom it came from or when did she ask for it. "Would you like to have some tea?" pointing at the cup and pot on the desk before her, clearly business has been slow... to be expected as Nikola's wares are either too expensive or too unweildy, requiring the strength of great heroes to use them... which is what her quests are for, to find more customers. You gotta spend money to make money. Nikola extends her aura outward, normally she keeps it contained within the boundaries of her workshop and home. Though not visible, very small specks of metal dust is floating everywhere. naturally she could control this dust with her magnetism. She makes sure not to make them touch another person however as what's the point of a near invisible cloud if people could feel it. The dust finds their way outside and makes an outline of what is being delivered, from there Nikola could make an educated guess to what is being delivered. "Oh~ Benu Wings... and Wyvern Ribcage." the woman may have felt the sudden change of air as her mana is leaked away from Nikola's body but apart from that, she shouldn't be affected at all by the dust. "I did ask for those but weren't there a third thing? also. I promised to pay in gold, however my services can also be payment."

Meri :: As a psion, what Meri can detect is a bit different than what most would expect. Her abilities specifically fall within the realm of telekinesis, making the woman quite adept at controlling matter..but the more mass that matter has, the more aware she is of it. The movement of the dust is something that Meri is only very vaguely aware of. It is not enough for the psion to feel concerned, particles are shifting around the air all the time. There is plenty that the average eye cannot see. Mana was significantly harder for Meri to feel, as she has been lead to believe that she has no ability to harness it. Not like the mages do. So the blonde is looking very surprised when Nikola announces exactly what Meri has brought for her, for the blacksmith was not wrong. The blonde was just puzzling over how she figured it out. The question of tea is answered in a distracted fashion as Meri is looking around the forge, trying to work through the current mystery. “Yes, tea would be lovely.” In truth, Meri was not much of a tea drinker, but she could pretend for the sake of this business situation. “It seems that you have answered your own question already, you are exactly correct. Outside, there are the wings of a benu and the ribcage of a wyvern.” Meri gives up on trying to figure out how Nikola could have possibly known this, it must have been a very educated guess. How many other people have Nikola commissioned recently? Meri assumes only them and thus deems this mystery solved. “And yes, there was a third thing. That is in part why I am here. I figured I would drop off the materials that you requested...and while doing so, we could speak on the last part of the mission.” A brow is lifted as she goes on to say, “Initially, I was thinking that six months and ten thousand gold as payment was more than generous...but now that I am in the thick of these hunts, I am finding that I will need to ask for an extension. Hunting a creature of the deep is...proving to be very tricky.” The blonde speaks without any knowledge of what Nikola actually is, she assumes human despite what she says next. “Just like dragons can cover vast distances by air? Well leviathans do the same, but under the surface of the ocean. Where it is very hard for most people to travel, given that we tend to prefer to breathe air...not water. Long story short, we are going to need more time to complete the leviathan hunt.”

Nikola leans to serve the lady tea, there is a seat on her side of the table which the saurian gestures towards, ofcourse she can't keep her guest standing while they converse, waiting for her to take a seat before she herself does so, listening to her and said, "Ah... the leviathan hunt. I was actually surprised that someone is actually adventurous enough to take such a quest. It has been quite a while since..." looking to the side as if reminiscing long gone years. "An extension? Of course. As I said, I wasn't actually expecting anyone to complete it... But of course a quest is a quest...." the guild typically takes commission to these things and if a quest is not completed, an adventurer's name would be stained. "It would be ofcourse a lot better sounding if the client herself adjusted the terms of the quest." if the adventurers themselves asked for it, it would mean they are incapable of finishing. "A simple one. Either a Salamander's Pelt or A Bicorn's tail.... an additional ten thousand gold pieces. If you would also take this quest, I'd allow an extension of six more months." smiling at the Psion, hoping her request isn't that absurd.

Meri settles into that available seat as Nikola begins to serve the tea, letting her gaze fall to the steeping drink for a few seconds. There was a mild curiosity as to if she will be drinking some form of a green tea, or if she’ll see the liquid turn a deep shade of brown. “Ah, well, it would be hard for us to boast the name of Adventurer’s Guild if we were to back down from such a request.” Not completing the quest, Meri would agree that would certainly stain the name of the guild, if she was aware this was what Nikola was thinking. Renegotiating the terms was something that Meri felt would tarnish the name considerably less, depending on the client. Luckily for this guild leader, Nikola seemed more than open to the request. “I think that is a more than generous offer,” Meri says as she reaches out to take hold of her teacup. “And I would be a fool to not accept it. I appreciate your understanding and willingness to continue to work with us.” As she was only just served tea, Meri is in no hurry to get up and take her exit. The blonde makes herself comfortable in the chair, taking a careful sip of the tea to test the temperature. Still a bit on the hot side, so while she waits for it to cool, she attempts a bit of conversation with the blacksmith. “So, where would you like us to leave the materials we brought for you? I am also curious to know what sort of things you might craft from them?” Both questions were made in earnest, Meri was the sort of woman who had a knack for meeting people. The better understanding she had of what Nikola specialized in, the more chance that the blonde could send business to the blacksmith. “Do you specialize in weaponry? Armor? Or…?”

Nikola :: It is a simple green tea.... not exactly a common product one could procure near the dwarven city so its quality is so-so coz they prefer liquor obviously, temperature wise, it is quite warm to combat the near constant winter like temperature outside. Nikola ponders at the woman's question. "Well for its size, I could probably use them to make a ballista. The wings would become the limb while the ribcage could be used used to secure a bolt in center. I plan to use the Leviathan's spine as the weapon's body or stock... Then again very few purchases siege weapons nowadays, or dragon hunting weapons for that matter. If I use the parts sparingly, several dozen crossbows mayhaps? There are plenty of uses for these parts, adding the fact that they are pretty easy to enchant with magic using runes." taking a sip of her tea, heat doesn't exactly bother her as the Saurian typically handle equipment forging by hand, dipping her very fingers into vats of molten metal from time to time. "I specialized in weaponry. Though I also dabble in armor, armor tend to be either simple or outright complicated. I remember when someone asked me to forge using Blue Steel, that was painfully laborous. Though that story is something one would hear while ranting after a couple glasses of spirits." smiling at the Psion as she suddenly remembered something. "I did offer my services as payment as well. Though it would be best if the adventurers that accepted the job themselves would request items from me, I do alot of personalized work after all."

Meri :: While Meri might have been studying the tea to determine what type it is, she is not enough of a connoisseur that she would be able to identify the quality. Tea was tea. The blonde continues to sip at her cup of tea while Nikola explains the various objects she could make. The word ballista definitely seems to catch Meri’s attention judging by the way the blonde lifts her brow while hearing this description. She knew what a ballista was, the blonde opens her mouth to speak her curiosities once Nikola was finished speaking her mind. ‘Well if any of the people in my guild speak to me about wanting a new weapon, or perhaps even armor, I will be sure to send them your way.” Meri understood the importance of direct requests and personalized work, just with an entirely different industry. It was no secret that one of Meri’s talents was that of an artist, and most people seemed to prefer request tattoos over actual framed pictures. “Funny that you mention that no one tends to request siege weapons anymore. Something like a ballista would probably be pretty useful against some of the creatures that I pit the guild up against sometimes. I mean, we did just hunt a wyvern and are also planning on hunting a leviathan.” Meri pauses briefly for a quick sip from her tea, but goes on to ask, “So, hypothetically. If I say...wanted to put that extra ten thousand gold that you offered for this hunt toward gear for the guild. A trade, if you will. How many ballistas would ten thousand gold get me?” If Meri actually wanted to put all ten thousand gold toward ballistas, that remains to be seen, the blonde was just trying to get an idea of what Nikola’s prices were like. “I would also be open to crossbows and other weapons, you know...depending on cost.”

Nikola :: "Well now..." smiling as she lowers her cup and sat up straight. Ofcourse any conversation about one's trade is music to a craftsman's ear. "Well it would depend on the size and quality. Something small enough to be carried by a single donkey or large enough that it could rip off a castle gate. Cheapest ones are the antique models, wood and metal, something any craftsman worth their salt could make. The expensive ones ofcourse require special materials, like the ones you brought.... though I'm not sure how you'd bring it around." No nation would allow siege weapons enter their gates without proper clearances or reason after all. Same reason why Nikola is living outside Craughmoyle.

Nikola :: Pondering for a bit, the saurian suddenly stood up and said, "Wait here." And with that leaves this stranger alone in her store. Behind Nikola was a massive steel door, a connecting doorway to the house behind the workshop. She even left the door open, it was a kitchen, with a homey clean look in it, something that contrast the rustic look of the store.

Nikola :: Few minutes go by and Nikola finally returns with a massive rectangular case. She carefully places it down on the table while the door behind her closes on its own. The saurian opens it up, revealing a massive bow. It was covered in mithril yet its limbs, 'several of them' were made out of some unknown flying beast. It was a complex contraption with cables and runes visible everywhere. "This is my bow." She pulls the weapon out from its case and it quickly deploys itself. It was nearly 7 feet tall, easily towering its 5 foot high owner. "I have only met four people who could actually draw this apart from myself.. which gives me comfort knowing that." It is clearly a weapon for hunting dragons. Nikola would normally use her magnetism to wield the weapon properly while for others its probably impossible to use. With a quick well practiced move, the saurian draws the weapon... by standing on one foot, her other on the bow's center and her hand pulling on the cable. "Hehe... still got it." Clearly proud of herself... it seems maintaining one's figure isn't just the younger race's problem. On the case were two massive metal spears with a viscious looking head. Probably not spears.

Nikola :: Returning to standing position, she flicks her wrist while holding the bow, causing to collapse and return to its folded state. "Weapons that you could carry on your person would be easier to move around with. I mean, with ten thousand gold? I could probably make you a dozen or so of the cheap ballistas but I can't help you when moving them through borders."

Meri :: Under different circumstances, Meri might have taken advantage of the fact that she was left unattended in Nikola’s shop. The blonde resists temptation, knowing full well that if any items went missing it would probably be easily traced back to her….and that would most certainly be a stain on the guild’s name. Who would want to commission them moving forward? So Meri behaves and remains seated, emptying her cup of tea while she waits for Nikola to return. When the blacksmith returns carrying a massive box, the blonde lifts a brow, both because she is curious to see what is inside and because that box looks particularly heavy. However, Meri writes off that heavy weight of the box with the fact that Nikola probably spends her days swinging a heavy hammer to form metal. The woman probably has more muscle than Meri expects, it could not possibly be because she has inhumane strength, possibly because she is a vampire...or dragon. The blonde stands when Nikola retrieves her bow and begins to show it off. That was..one huge bow. Meri moves in a circle around Nikola so that she can study all of the details of the weapon that the blacksmith has chosen to show off. Once the bow is back in it’s container, Meri opts to remain standing. “Well, I would like to do a bit of research before I commit to any order. I think that by the time we have finished gathering the remaining materials for you, I will have a better idea of what sort of weaponry I might be interested in obtaining for the guild. Off hand, I am leaning toward spending a portion of the funds toward two ballistas. Not the cheapest of cheap, something that will last us. It doesn’t have to be the highest end ballista though either. In terms of size, I think something that could be carried by a donkey would be sufficient.” Meri wasn’t really thinking that she would have need to rip down castle walls, even if it would be a lot of fun to raise a bit of trouble in a place like say...Larket. “I am also considering a personal commission, with my own funds. Khitti once had Alvina craft a bow for me, and while I still very much treasure it...the design is not very...Meri.” In fact, many of the design choices reminded her of her ex-husband, which made wielding it weird. “But, we’ll discuss the fine details of these projects when I return with the rest of the materials. On that note,” Meri hitches a thumb over her shoulder toward the exit. “I suppose I should be on my way so I can continue planning these hunts. I will leave my companion with you to help you get your materials in and put wherever you want them.” And then said companion will return the carts that Meri brought them in back to the guild’s store house.

Nikola :: Using one's entire body just to draw a bow might not be something most would want for their weapon... Nikola thought it was cool even though she wasn't large enough to draw it properly. "I would presume something that would be able to load up all sorts of bolts?" When hunting beasts, it is always much better capturing one alive and whole, lots more material collected during then, ballista bolts that turn into weighted nets or made with a breakable material to apply poisons or tranquilizers upon one's foe. Nikola could already envision what design she would use, something she probably made before and knew of its reliability. "And when would you need these siege weapons?" she asks, making note of it already on a notepad present on her desk. "Though they won't really take a while to make, how about I make sure it is made before your final delivery?" Bicorns are just very wild horses, fast and strong but nonetheless just horses, same with a Salamander. Just a massive lizard that the guild could hunt in their free time, whichever they choose would extend their quest time by another six months and that is plenty of time for her to procure materials on her own. "I do... restore equipment, even move enchantments from one tool to another. There are times people even ask me to melt down their heirlooms to make something new while yet appearing similar to the previous item." The Psion has alot of options here, the Saurian's extensive knowledge when it comes to smithing and crafting, she could probably make something that would satisfy her needs. As they were talking however, the suits of armor on display started rattling before finally stepping off their podiums and began making their way outside. "Don't worry about that." As long as it is metal and is within her field of power, she could move it... just like how she could count how much wealth the lady before her is carrying on her person. It was rude but she can't do anything about it. As the lady was about to leave, she stood up and extends her hand toward her, as if to shake his hand. "Till next time then." smiling.

Meri made sure to answer all of Nikola’s questions before actually making her way out of the forge. The blonde remained standing on the opposite side of the desk, as some might consider it rude to answer questions while also walking toward the door. As Meri answered, it would become apparent that the two women were on the same page when it comes to what sort of bolts might be required. “Some bolts standard, a couple that might open up to nets, a healthy variety really.” There is a brief pause. “As for the timeline, given that it is a trade at this point, I am not a stickler for it. In time for the final delivery, which you have given us a six month extension on. Granted, I hope to not take the full amount of time...but….” The blonde responds with a shrug, finding it difficult to give the blacksmith a firm answer to this question. Chances are, since Nikola has been so generous with the Guild, Meri would offer the same patience and understanding to the blacksmith in terms of the deadline. “Next time I visit, I will bring the bow that Alvina designed for me and we can talk more about that commission then.” The blonde was only mildly surprised to see the metal suits of armor animate themselves, it is enough to give Meri pause. The blonde glances from the armor and then back to Nikola, silently musing over how Nikola was able to accomplish such a thing. Was she also a psion? Or was this some other form of magic? Maybe the blonde would brave inquiring during their next meeting. For now, “Until next time.” Meri flashed a smile of her own before turning and exiting back onto the streets of Craughmoyle.