With the sun yet low in the morning sky, still hidden behind the single story rooftops of Dockside, Eirik could tell the weather was shaping up to provide for a perfect day.  With an invigorating bite to the morning air and a clear sky that promised afternoon warmth to come, it was obvious why this was his favorite time of day,<span style="font-style: italic">einn dagr</span>.  Despite the current chill in the air Eirik could tell that with a little exertion, say for instance dismantling this belying sign above their newfound headquarters, he would be sweating through his long coat.<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">"Good morrow, my goodman. You must be Eirik?"</span>The Saxian looked in the direction of the voice, which had a pleasant, straightforward quality to it - music to his ears after his previous conversation with Craw.  The man had the look of a rover about him, with his hard-wearing outfit of leathers and furs, and the exotic barbaric facial markings.  Added to this the versatile assortment of weaponry on his person, and Eirik would bet a soft mark to a hard pip that the man was another of Craw's recruits.  And since the Great Raven had given Eirik a brief description of their new brotherhood, it was easy to guess which one this must have been.<br/><br/>"Master Ashmodei, then?" he replied, extending a hand in greeting.  If the grip was accepted it would be noted to be firm but not forceful, and with the coarse rasp of callouses.  Eirik went back to work but continued to speak pleasantly as he did so, except for the occasional grunt as he navigated his way to the rooftop by using a discarded pile of lumber laying disused against the corner of the building.  "What kind of work were you in before this, if you don't mind me asking?" he inquired as he made his way to the shallow apex above the wide manufactory door.<br/><br/>He was curious about where Craw had gotten these men from.  Some were foreigners, he'd gathered - but others who lived in Danelagh were either going to be ex-soldiers from the recently fought war, or there would be some reason for their absence from the conflict, such as in Eirik's case it was because he was a known gimmicker.  He wondered idly if Craw would have been foolish enough to recruit nothing but urgists and gimmickers - if so he wouldn't be surprised if Universus were hanged one and all by the townspeople before the week was through.  Nothing inspired fear and outrage more quickly than the possibility of a cabal of black magicians taking power in the city.<br/><br/>"<span style="font-style: italic">Greetings.  Is there a Great Raven inside, by any chance?</span>"  Eirik looked down from his work, at the plated behemoth at the foot of the building.  Unless the Minotaur King of Krete himself had suddenly decided to pay Craw a visit, Eirik was guessing this was another recruit, the Alkhev.  He laughed jovially in response, and said "Well, there's a raven in there for sure; whether or not he's great however..." he joked.  "Alright, watch out below there," he added before a final jerk at the sign sent it tumbling to the ground with a loud crash.<br/><br/>Instead of climbing back down from the sloped corner of the roof by the woodpile, Eirik leaped nimbly from the apex where he stood, and as he fell he threw a gimmick to lift himself upward.  He was way too heavy an object to shift upward like that, but it slowed him enough to lessen the impact, though his feet did still throb for minutes afterward.  Maybe it would have been wiser to climb down again - he must have subconsciously wanted to impress the giant before him.  "Ruavia, was it?  Eirik."  There was something more than a little intimidating about seeing a nearly seven foot tall armored statue wielding a polearm that would have given the Minotaur King himself pause, but the Saxian greeted her warmly all the same, knowing that getting off on the right foot was half the battle.  He'd just have to trust Craw not to have hired an Alkhev as batty as the rest of her people.<br/><br/>"<span style="font-style: italic">Greetings</span>!"<br/><br/>Eirik looked around.  It took him a moment to notice the halfling on the feline mount, not just because of the size discrepancy between her and the armored knight, but also likely because his mind simply refused to acknowledge having seen something so unusual.  After a moment of staring he recovered and made to reply.  "Good morning yourself there.  Pleasant walk?"  Today was to be their first day of protecting the city, an uphill battle considering many thought of them as colluding with the enemy.  It wouldn't do to make a bad impression right out of the gate, so he made sure to exude friendliness.<br/><br/>"You can go inside if you wish," he said as an aside to Ashmodai and Ruavia, knowing that at least one of them had wanted to speak to Craw.