“Time is short, so I’ll tell you exactly what it is you need to get the job done.” Aramil’s smile seemed tempered by anguish of some sort, though he continued nonetheless. “I have been a merchant in this city for several years. Though business is good and trade is profitable, the reputable and unspoiled image of this city’s trade is little more than a façade covering an environment where many of the merchants commonly engage in cut-throat tactics to drive their rivals out of business. Some are willing to delve to great depths to gain the upper hand on their business dealings when even a sniff of profit is concerned. Until recently, I have largely been immune to all of this, though it seems that at least one of my rivals has seen me as a target and engaged in some underhand tactics to make life difficult for me. My warehouse has been broken into, barge captains now refuse to transport my wares and several of my caravans have been ambushed on the trade route to Ordulin over the past two months. This has been very difficult for me, though manageable until yesterday.”<br/><br/>He pauses, taking a deep breath before continuing, “I received word yesterday that one of my caravans on the Eastern Way was ambushed. The driver is missing, I have lost several crates of exotic silks and spices and, most importantly, my daughter who was aboard the caravan and under guard, has not returned. In her place, I found this attached to my door by a crossbow bolt this morning…” He pulls out a tattered parchment, riddled with poorly scrawled handwriting and bearing a hole towards the top, and shows it to everyone present.<br/><br/><div class="quoteheader"><div class="topslice_quote">Quote</div></div><blockquote class="bbc_standard_quote"><em>FOREIGN SCUM. YOU HAVE FAILED TO HEED THE WARNINGS AND NOW YOU MUST PAY. WE HAVE TAKEN YOUR DAUGHTER. YOU HAVE ONE WEEK TO CLOSE ALL OF YOUR BUSINESS INTERESTS AND LEAVE TOWN. ELSE YOU WILL PAY WITH THE BLOOD OF YOUR FAMILY.    X</em></blockquote><div class="quotefooter"><div class="botslice_quote"></div></div>