<div align="center"><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 14pt;">Socialization</span></div><br/>Kelda was a decent shot with the bow, but more importantly she had the strength to carry the elk they felled, draping it over her shoulders. "Mead is the favorite drink of all good Ulfen! And you have a sorry lack of it in your supplies. The first tavern that we get to, I'll show you why mead is the nectar of the gods!" she declared.<br/><br/>"Life in the Lands of the Linnorm Kings is hard, but that only makes us tougher! When we are not farming, we look for mercenary work or go raiding - but sometimes it doesn't go well, like when you found me." She paused for a moment of silence for the shipmates who didn't make it. "But on feastdays, we drink and celebrate, and compete in contests of boasting, poetry and wordplay. Hah, I bet you thought it would be physical contests, didn't you? There's already plenty of that in work and war!"<br/><br/>She nodded at Yazhu's explanation of her profession, "I have heard tales of the pleasure houses of Magnimar, from those traders and raiders who ventured that far south. I always wondered what made them different from the brothels at home - but that was before meeting you! Are all the women of Magnimar as extraordinary as you are? And Don't worry, the worst people will mistake me for is a caravan guard!"<br/><br/><strong>Social Link</strong><br/>Ameiko 5<br/>Baihu 2<br/>Sandra 2<br/>Shalelu 2<br/>Kelda 0-->1<br/>Spivey 2<br/><br/><hr/><br/><div align="center"><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 14pt;">Jol</span></div><br/>"My favorite Cutie-pie!" Marcius greeted Yazhu back. "We're not in trouble... yet, but the boss's wallet sure is! And your boss might feel the burn soon too. It's 100 gold a wagon to pass, that's not a toll, that's straight-up banditry if I ever saw one... I think they're haggled it down to 99 gold now, it's going to take a while at this rate..."<br/><br/>A quick count showed that would be 693 gp for the other caravan and 300 gp for the Jade Whore's own! Ameiko called for a Jade Whore team huddle to discuss the next plan.<br/><br/>"So we have two questions," Ameiko said, "First, whether we want to pay for the rest of the caravan, or just our own wagons. Second, whether we'll pay up with simple gold or try to<em>massage</em>their egos and other bodily anatomy for a<em>deep</em>discount."<br/><br/><strong>Ameiko:</strong>"The caravan wouldn't have been possible without support from Madam Jung and all the other businesses of Blowers' Alley. Even though it doesn't help us directly at this point, I feel like I owe it to them to make sure the whole caravan succeeds. That said, I see no reason why we can't pay with our skills instead of our gold."<br/><br/><strong>Baihu:</strong>"We're massage professionals, not common whores, and these Ulfens will get the wrong idea if their first impression of us is selling ourselves out! It's not like the caravan can't pay, they just don't want to hurt their bottom line. I say we pay for ourselves only."<br/><br/><strong>Sandra:</strong>"This is our first caravan, you might even call it a test run. What does it say about our business acumen if we can't succeed fair and square without resorting to trickery? We'll make up the losses somewhere else with our business skills, not our massage skills. I say we pay for the whole caravan!"<br/><br/><strong>Shalelu:</strong>"The rest of the caravan can and should take care of itself. We pay our own toll the cheapest way possible."<br/><br/><strong>Spivey / Kelda:</strong>"We weren't involved in this caravan business from the start, so we'll fine whichever way you choose."<br/><br/>All eyes turned to Yazhu as the tiebreaker.<em>What does Yazhu suggest?</em><br/><br/><hr/><br/><div align="center"><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 14pt;"><em>The Ugly Mug</em> tavern, Jol</span></div><br/>"Mead!" Kelda called out, and the fermented honey was delivered by a busty serving wench. True to her word, she was going to show the Jade Whores why mead was the best, whether by themselves, or entertaining certain important personages (depending on Yazhu's choice).<br/><br/>An Ulfen skald, sword on one hip and lyre on the other, was evidently deep into his cups when he leaped up onto the table. "I am Eldric Sylvig, best flyter in the land! Is there no one with the balls to challenge me!?"