conversations: human
conversations:  One by one, you all arrive. Upon knocking, something that wasn't entirely human would answer. It's hand already extended to accept your invitation. A small letter delivered to each of you by various ways. Each letter instructed you to arrive at this mansion in Aronholt, upon this day, at this time, for a chance to make yourselves very rich. And so each of you handed over your invitation and were shown in to a living room of sorts. A fireplace kept heat in the center of the room. Several doors could be seen and all were tightly shut, not a window to speak of either. Finally as the last of you arrived and were shown in, the one who gathered you all here together presented himself. A door, on the second story of the home could be heard opening, and looking up you each could see him looking down at you all over the railing.
  
   "So glad that each of you have finally came. I have brought each of you here, to Aronholt, for a reason. Each of you is a criminal and there is no denying that. As already promised, any of you are free to leave at any time, but I do hope you will at least stay and here my proposal. I wish to enlist all of you into my service. The pay is good, and there are only two rules. Get the jobs I want done, done. And no killing each other. Now, who wants to become very rich." 
  
  He had bravado. That was for sure. His smile burning into each of you, he knew that you all would sit and wait for more information. The promise of riches, is what keeps criminals going. Before any of you could entertain more thoughts, he spoke again.
  
   "Your talents, are to be discussed at your own pleasure and pursuit. Now upon completion of your first job, I'll award the group as a whole, with enough gold to buy a safehouse of any sort, up to the group's choosing. And so, that leads us to your first job. A shop owner, who until recently has always paid for protection, has decided to hire his own protection, and to start selling his protection to some of our other customers. I want you to put him down. I don't care how and I'd like his company of hirelings to be dead as well. I hope that is all simple and well. Now then, I have a dinner party to attend, excuse me."
   
  
  With that, he left. And now you find yourself sitting in a room full of people who've spent most their lives on the wrong side of the law, just as you have.
  
  The doorman, who until has stood in the corner silent, speaks once again.
  
   "Master would like this job to be completed in one weeks time. Though that door, is a room large enough to contain the group of you. It has everything you need to plan this. I'll assist you if you need anything. Beds have been provided, as shall food for the duration of your stay here.  
  
  It's outstretched arm points to one of the many doors in the room, it leaves before any of you can speak. It's entire body, darkness that fades into the shadows of the room.
conversations: mrcarter11:
conversations: human
conversations:  Diana Malin:  
   Leaning back in her chair, the dull glint of her blackened armor visible under her cloak, Diana arches an eyebrow at the vanishing doorman.
  
   "Well, our host has a sense for the dramatic, I'll give him that."  Diana rises and walks slowly over to the fireplace, gazing deep into the fire.  "Introductions are in order, I imagine. You may call me Diana."  
conversations: Ithandor:
conversations: human
conversations:  Bokonon 
  
  Playing with the for on top of his dog Butch's head, Bokonon looks at the other three in succession, lingering a bit on what looks to be another archer. " Bokonon, " he says. " ...Bizarre room. "
conversations: Prendre:
conversations: human
conversations:  Adrian Moscuro  
  
  Human had a smile on his face during the whole meeting, fingering the quiver hanging on his back. He carried little else, besides the barely visible morningstar under his cloak.  "Most of these rich folk do, you'll find. They like to try and impress."  He stretched a little, blackened metal was visible underneath the cloak.  "The name is Adrian. You might have heard of me, you might not have. Either way means not all that much to me."  He walked over to the door that contained their ammeneties for their stay.  "I'm an assasin and an infultrator. Can't do a thing about locks though. And I am likely the best archer you'll ever meet."  He opened the door and stepped inside.
conversations: Jacior:
conversations: human
conversations:  Jamlamin  
  
  Smiling noncommittally, Jamlamin nods.  "Pleasure to meet all of you. I'm sure we'll get along famously."  He draws his short-sword from the sheath on his hip, idly examining the blade as though to ensure that it was sharp. It wasn't his real weapon, of course - nor was the one in his boot - but it never hurt to give the wrong impression now and then. He takes a glance around the room at the decor.  "Wonder how much one could get for all this,"  he ponders aloud, gesturing at the finery.
conversations: TheSkeward:
conversations: human
conversations:  "Probably best not to find out,"  Bokonon says, glancing around.  "At least not right now."  He resumes fiddling with Butch's fur and seems to sink into the chair.
conversations: Prendre:
conversations: human
conversations:  "Are you all coming? We have the murder of a shopkeep to plan and I'd rather get started sooner than later."  Adrian called from the other room, slightly  muffled.
conversations: Jacior:
conversations: human
conversations:  "Mm."  Bokonon walks quietly into the next room and sits on the bed at the far end.  "So what do we know about this merchant?" 
conversations: Prendre:
conversations: human
conversations:  Diana Malin  
   Diana follows Bokonon and Adrian into the room, surveying it briefly.
   "What's to know? A merchant with rent-a-thugs, most likely.   
conversations: Ithandor:
conversations: human
conversations:  Jamlamin leans back in his seat, then finally gets up to follow.  "You're all looking at this the wrong way. You know what's  really  interesting here? Why would this shop-keep hire guards out of his own pocket, probably paying more than the usual racket, knowing that it would anger his current benefactor? There's more to this man than we've been told. Or more to our employers." 
conversations: TheSkeward:
conversations: human
conversations:  Basic Idea of Room 
  
  The entered room has just two doors and not a single window to speak of. The side farthest from the door entered has five partial walls dividing several small sections into "bedrooms". Each small bedroom has a single bed and an end table for personal objects. The fifth section instead has a door, which you can assume leads to a bathroom as mentioned by the doorman. In the center of the room is a large oak table, with a scattering of chairs around it. Most important however are the notes and pictures on the table itself.
  
  Information on the Table
   
   Spoiler 
  
  Upon the table one can find many photos. They even seemed grouped by the subject of the photo. Along with each grouping of photos is a written paper talking about each person as well. In total six groupings exist.
  
  Grouping 1
  The subject of the photos seems to be a man nearing forty. Tanned skin upon a tall and gaunt frame makes him vaguely eerie looking. He seems to be very well dressed in fine garbs. Carried with him constantly seems to be a book. The information given states that the pictured man is the target of the attack. He's a noted man who in his younger years was well liked and considered prepared for any adventure. He eventually retired from those days alongside his brother. The book pictured seems to be a accounts book that the man never leaves out of sight and holds it at nearly all times.
  
  Grouping 2
  This man seems a few years younger then the one before. He seems nearly identical to the other man except for several scars that adorn his face and arms. In every photo he is dressed in the exact same robes. The information states the man is a well known wizard who adventured with his older brother in their youth. He was well known to be a very dedicated illusionist.
  
  Grouping 3
  A dark skinned gnome of sorts. Seen in light leather armor. Two small swords strapped to his sides in every picture. The information grants little insight. A martial fighter of some sort. He isn't known in the area by anyone. However one can assume his choice of weapons and small stature allow him to focus on nimble fighting.
  
  Grouping 4
  A tall and quite beautiful woman is shown. She is seen carrying a longspear upon her back. Her armor changes in the pictures, in some it is breastplate and in others fullplate. The information on her is vague as well. Known to be talkative and to be very intelligent. She did happen to get into a scuffle once that she won be firing lightning from the tip of her spear.
  
  Grouping 5
  This set of pictures contain pictures of dwarf with very little armor on. No weapons can be seen in any of the pictures. The information helps to shed some light on the subject. A well known sellsword in the area. He is able to channel some sort of energy to create weapons, which typically are claws, when the need arises. None the less he very rarely engages in drinking or brawling. Both odd for a member of his race.
  
  Grouping 6
  These pictures unlike the others feature the store/house that the target resides in. A single story store from the outside, it has a large wooden door and a single window on the front. The sides are closed off due to other buildings being put in next to it. The information given says that the basement of the store is where the target lives, so no information can be given on it. However it can be assumed that it is trapped and that is features some magical protection due to his brother.
   
conversations: mrcarter11:
conversations: human
conversations:  Adrian takes off his quiver and throws it on one of the beds, the one in the far corner. He picks up one of the photos and lets loose a small whistle.  "This is what thy can do with magic? It's like a perfect painting, no flaws at all."  He reads all the notes thoroughly and lays the pictures on top of the notes. He rearranges the notes and pictures so that they are lined up on the table: The Target, The Brother, The Armored Woman, The Dwarf and The Gnome. The pictures and information about the building are left out.
  
   "This should be our primary order of attack. Always eliminate the target first. Magic is a huge problem, so you kill the user's of it next. The mystery dwarf is a problem, he could trade places with the Woman and I wouldn't blink. The gnome, I am least worried about."  He says putting his hand on each picture in turn.  "It's none of our concern as to why he did what he did. Frankly, my policy is not to even ask what was done. But some people feel the need to explain." 
  
  He sits on the bed where he had thrown his quiver.  "Questions? Comments, concerns, opinions?" 
conversations: Jacior:
conversations: human
conversations:  You can almost hear the gears grinding inside Bokonon's head as he thinks.
  
   "I'll bet that we can get one of them alone... drug their ale or something. Maybe the woman, she seems social. I can probably find out her routine, with a little time." 
conversations: Prendre:
conversations: human
conversations:  Diana Malin:  
   
  Diana sifts through the information at her own pace, nodding occasionally as Adrian talks. She arches a considering eyebrow at Bokonon's suggestion.
  
   "Drugs are... crude. And detectable. The element of surprise might be more useful to us. Besides, I can be quite persuasive."  A soft laugh.  "The talent I bring to the table, I guess."  Diana mulls something over, before continuing.  "Adrian's assessment is adept - at face value, at least. With a skilled illusionist in the mix, there's no guarantees we can rely on what  seems . Whoever did this reconnaissance probably knows the motions of these individuals. If we could isolate them, or engage them outside of their stronghold, I'd worry less about the mage's preparations."   
conversations: Ithandor:
conversations: human
conversations:  Jamlamin nods.  "Sounds good. We wait for one of them to leave, tail them, kidnap and question them if it seems promising. Seems the best option available to us. What I'm worried about, though, is the mage divining the location of his missing comrade." 
conversations: TheSkeward:
conversations: human
conversations:  Bokonon raises a finger with an idea.  "If we can determine their routine--and I'm fairly certain I can--then we can simply wait for a time when the mage won't expect them back for a few hours and move in then."  He smiles, satisfied.  "If he doesn't know something's wrong, he's not going to be looking for anybody, and this process shouldn't take too long. Or, of course, we could just snatch the mage to begin with." 
conversations: Prendre:
conversations: human
conversations:  Adrian sighed.  "Ok, who here has even been hired for assasination? I'm curious."  He didn't really wait for an answer.  "This is something you might have overlooked in your ruminations."  He got up off the bed and came over to the table. He moved the picture around.  "Our Target,"  He pushed the picture of the merchant into the center of the table.  "Has hired three of these people,"  He arranged the Gnome, the Dwarf, and the Armored Woman around the Target.  "Specifically so that they follow him around constantly to defend him." 
  
  He moved the picture of the brother over to the side, away from the others.  "The Brother is the only person who is not guaranteed to be near the Target during any given moment. We must even consider that they stay near him while he sleeps. Indeed, it wouldn't surprise me."  He looked around at the others.  "This plan will not work because of the inherent reason we would use it. We can't catch one by themself because they are always protecting the Target."  He went back over and sat on the bed.  "Now please, continue brainstorming." 
conversations: Jacior:
conversations: human
conversations:  Diana Malin  
    "You make a fair point Adrian. However, assuming we can take our host at his word - by no means a given, at least with me - this  shopkeeper "  Diana says, putting peculiar emphasis on the word, as if it didn't fit in with its surroundings  "is hiring out said protection to other clients. That would lead me to believe that they must leave his side at some point. Then again, I'm no assassin, so I'll leave the specifics of our plan to those more experienced." she continues, smiling serenely. 
conversations: Ithandor:
conversations: human
conversations:  "It sounds like we need to know more about this group's movements. Maybe we should spend a day watching them,"  Bokonon says.  "There are too many things we don't know." 
conversations: Prendre:
conversations: human
conversations:  "Exactly what I was going to propose. A day to observe, a day to plan, then the rest of the time to kill."  Adrian let out a small chuckle.  "To kill, I slay me. I think we should get some rest, big day in the morning." 
conversations: Jacior:
conversations: human
conversations:  Diana Malin:  
    "Indeed." 
  
  Diana selects the free bed, and begins unfastening her bag and armor. She slides a dagger under her pillow, and begins chanting to herself, in a low, sonorous hum.
  
    A big day indeed   
conversations: Ithandor: