• Closed • A Royal Meeting

[Kura Wolfsdotter]

Timestamp: 31st of Saun, 717
Location: Kura's house, near Sweetwine Woods

Kura flipped through her papers as she stood up from her desk. Fortunately, it looked like there might actually be a delegate from Rharne coming, though there was no possible way for them to arrive until next season. That was well enough, she have to have something to prepared for when he arrived. A room at one of the better inns set up, of course, dinner at Cally's would work well. A meeting at the office, and then she would invite him to further discussions at her house, which she could use to show off the science the people of Scalvoris were capable of. Granted, Padraig wasn't the whole people of Scalvoris, but while he was the inventor of her plumbing system, he wasn't the sole creator.

So she could set the foreign affairs matters to the side for the time being. Right now, she had more pressing issues to deal with. She picked up the papers that dealt with Scalvoris's criminal system, then headed out to the living room. She paused for a moment to grab her pipe off the coffee table and fill it with tobacco, then headed outside her house and sat down on the rocking chair sitting on her porch.

She used her tinder to light her pipe, then took a puff of it as she starting reading the papers she had brought outside with her. She wanted to propose some changes to the criminal system, make it more useful, but for that, she had to fully understand what they already had in place. She also wanted to look at how the island handled unemployment, but she wanted to be sure she understood the prison system before adding another project to her pile. So she sat, read, and smoke, gently rocking her chair with her foot.

[Munchkin]

A grin spread across the Immortals face, seeing Kura from afar. It had been a fair while since she'd seen that face, and it was admittedly one she missed. Karem's daughter was more than just a soldier, she was family. She almost felt her own levels of motherly responsibility for the young girl, thought that she would never admit to anyone but herself and perhaps Karem.

Without any attempt in disguising herself from the girl, Raskalarn approached Kura. She had no doubt that whatever she was reading was part of a big strategy she was developing. At first no words left her mouth, the smile on her face speaking for her. She approached until she was at the end of the porch before speaking, whether Kura had noticed until now or not.
"Busy as ever, I see" she commented simply. To some it would sound blunt, perhaps even cold, but Kura would more than likely know better. It was Raskalarn, through and through. She was observing, not criticizing. Solidifying the idea that Raskalarn was happy to see Kura, she extended her arms to offer a hug to the girl. It had been too long for formalities. They had a lot to catch up on.

Raskalarn looked around, examining the area - as she always did. She took in the house, the area of Scalvoris around them. She rarely left the Eternal Empire, let alone to a place like this. It was admittedly beautiful, and she could understand why Kura would come here. It wasn't a match for the Eternal Empire, of course, but it was something. She finally looked back to Kura, a few trills of observing passed.

"Well, how have you been, Kura?"

[Kura Wolfsdotter]

Kura hadn't noticed Raskalarn's approach and looked up in surprise at her voice. Then she grinned widely and set aside her pipe and her papers to stand up. "Oh, certainly. Got to have something to fill the days or else I'd be turnin' lazy." she said as she hugged Raskalarn. She had always gotten on well with the intimidating Immortal of Conquest, possibly as a result of her own status as a Mortalborn. She stepped back as Raskalarn took in the area, then picked up her pipe and papers. "I've been...better. I'm sleeping nights, anyway." she said. When she had left the Eternal Empire, her Sev'ryn familiar had been giving her nightmares so intense that it Kura was hardly ever sleeping.

She looked better as well, not looking like she had gone the past three trials without sleep, which had been her usual look before leaving the empire. Now she just looked like she had only recently gotten out of bed, a look she had worn for the past century and more. "Come on inside, it's a little cooler." she said, opening the door. In truth, it was slightly cooler, but not by much, and that was mostly down to the plumbing, she figured. Of course, she was a terrible scientist, so it was possible she was utterly incorrect.

Speck, who knew Raskalarn nearly as well as Kura herself did, nodded at the Immortal, then put her head back under her wing and went back to sleep. Phelan considered the Immortal for a long moment, then rolled over on his back to ask for belly rubs. "Shameless you are.", Kura said, looking at her wolf companion with a grin. Cally, unseen to either, bowed to Raskalarn out of reflex, then went back to doing ghostly things. "Oh, I found I'm haunted, by the way. Cally's been hanging around since she died, so we're looking for ways to give her some form of life." Kura said, plopping into a chair. "So, what brings you all the way out to Scalvoris?"

[Munchkin]

Raskalarn nodded when Kura spoke that she's been better. As much as she cared for the girl, talking about her problems wasn't high on her agenda. Not today, at least. Besides, Raskalarn didn't imagine Kura would hesitate to ask if she needed something in particular. Life had it's rough patches, Kura was a strong girl - just like Karem. Very little would be bad enough, Raskalarn thought, to extinguish Kura's spirit - and spirit was all that mattered to overcome hardships.
Raskalarn followed in to the house, silently contemplating. She was genuinely happy to see Kura, but she was here for business. She had to keep this short and formal. Walking in, she felt the slight shift in temperature. It was slight, but it was noticeable. Why it was cooler, she didn't know. The temperature of the house wasn't high on her priority list.

Raskalarn looked down with a small smile at the wolf, kneeling and rubbing it's stomach gently. "How could I say no to one of Karem's?" she said with a grin to Kura. Her gaze then turned to Kura when she told she was haunted. Possibly the weirdest thing that had left Kura's mouth, she thought to herself. Although the Immortal knew it was possible, that didn't make it common.
Raskalarn stood, not taking a chair when asked the question. "Well, you did. Or more specifically, your 'talent', we'll say" Raskalarn started. "You're loyal, to the Eternal Empire, Karem and myself. You're also dangerous when you need to be. That dangerous side of you is what I came here for."

"An enemy of the Eternal Empire, someone hellbent on slandering our name and building an uprising, has come to Scalvoris. I need him dealt with. But attacking him outright would make his point seem valid, and would make myself look scared" she explained, before glancing to Kura.

"I need him dealt with quietly - which is where you come in."

[Kura Wolfsdotter]

Kura grinned slightly as Raskalarn knelt to rub Phelan's belly. The wolf, for his part, just stretched out and sighed happily, perfectly content with the world. When Raskalarn said what she needed from Kura, however, both the wolf and the owl quickly became fully alert. One did not sleep when getting orders, after all. Kura, meanwhile, looked rather like she had suddenly gone completely boneless, but Raskalarn should recognize the sudden lack of posture. Kura was giving what the Immortal was saying her complete attention, so much so that she was neglecting to keep her body looking alert. "You need an assassin." she said, bluntly, grinning slightly. "I won't get offended, you can just say that, you know." Kura had been Raskalarn's assassin before, after all. Taking out aspiring rebel leaders from half a city away was sometimes preferable to bringing in the might of the legions.

"So, to work then. I'll need every bit of information you have available. Location, appearance, name, age, hell if you know what his favorite kind of juice is, I'll find a way to make use of that." she said, grinning slightly as she finally stood up. "One moment." she said, disappearing into her room before before returning with the black leather armor she'd had since she was about twenty-five arcs, along side the bow she'd had for even longer. Both were of the highest quality, and they'd see her through this job as they had seen her through many others. As Raskalarn gave her the information she needed to finish the job, she set about putting the armor on. "Also, when you say quiet, how quiet do you mean? "Can't be traced back to The Eternal Empire" quiet or "No one will ever find his body." quiet?" she asked, her tone merely curious. The latter would be harder to pull off, but she could do it. Parliament of Owls would do the trick, she'd just have to get the guy alone for long enough.

When she had finished suiting up, she glanced at Raskialarn, then tilted her head as something occurred to her. "When I finish, it would be helpful to both what I'm doing here and The Eternal Empire if you and I could sit and talk politics for a bit." she said, her tone thoughtful.

[Pegasus]

"I need more than an assassin," Raskalarn responded, focusing on Kura to make sure that the half-mortal would be clear about what was being asked. "I need a political assassin who will be willing to do whatever it takes to keep the Empire out of it." It was important that Kura understood not just what Raskalarn was saying but also, what she was not saying, but still expecting. If this went wrong, well it was vital to the Empire that their part in it was not found out. By whatever means necessary, that should be achieved.

"I want you to think about it," the girl was an earnest and dedicated one, but if this went wrong, the consequences to her could be enormous. "It isn't yet, anyhow." Kura's question about information, though, prompted a nod of approval. "When the time comes, I will have the information delivered to you. It might not be for a season or more. We need to make sure that there is nothing traceable." Whatever it was, Kura knew well enough to know just how serious a business this was. "I will not be in touch again until after it is done. What we need is both. No trace back to the Empire, no idea what happened to him, no one will ever find his body. If you can make it look like he disappeared, that would be ideal. "

As for a discussion on politics? Well, Raskalarn gave a wolfish grin. "Yes, that's fine. What would you like to talk about? Tell me now, and then we can talk in more detail when I see you next. After the deed." It wouldn't be prudent for her to be seen around, after all. "How's the political career going, here?" It was strange to see Karem's daughter in this little place, but Raskalarn was sure that she would be among the movers and shakers of the place.

[Kura Wolfsdotter]

Kura raised an eyebrow at Raskalarn's clarification that she needed a political assassin, hearing what the Divine Empress wasn't saying as much as what she was saying. "I know. I'll make sure my involvement isn't traced back home if I get caught. Of course, I don't plan on gettin' caught." she said, smiling slightly. The benefit of her powers meant that Kura only rarely had to be near her targets if things got to the point where she had to personally eliminate a threat. Of course, she didn't have access to the resources she used to have, back when she was part of the Empire's High Courts, but she'd make do.

When Raskalarn told her to think about whether she'd do the job or not, Kura gave her liege a mildly annoyed look. "It helps keep our people safe, both the Empire and those on Scalvoris who still bear us good will. Of course I'll do it." she said, her tone blunt. If it kept their people safe, no risk was too great to take. When the Empress said she'd have the information delivered at the proper time, Kura nodded and stopped getting prepared for the assignment, no point in getting armored up without need. Then Raskalarn explained what would be needed and Kura nodded. "No trace. It may take me a bit longer to get the job done once the time comes, but I can do it." she said, her tone calm.

Kura returned the grin Raskalarn gave her at the mention of politics, then listened to her two questions and grinned slightly. "I'm on the rulin' council of the island, of course. Though they aren't particularly politically advanced. Before I got here, they didn't even have anyone handlin' foreign relations or commerce." shaking her head as she spoke. "From what I gather, the Pirate Lords prevented any sort of effective political system from bein' put in place during their rule." she said, before grinning slightly. "But I pointed out they needed someone to handle foreign affairs, and they gave me the job. Which, of course, is what I'm after discussin'." she said, grinning slightly.

"See, there's actually a fair amount of goodwill towards the Empire here in Scalvoris. It's not enough, yet, to be convincin' them to willin'ly join us, but it's a start. " she said, before frowning slightly. "It also means that comin' in and tryin' re-merge them by force would cause more damage to our influence in the area than anythin' else we could possibly do." she said, before smiling again. "But they'd be open to an alliance, and that presents all sorts of interestin' possibilities. We get an embassy set up, get these folk used to seein' our presence around and it'll make integration that much easier." she said, smiling as she spoke.

Then she gave a feral grin. "And not too long ago, someone discovered portals in the Ice Caves near here, some relic of ancient times, perhaps predating humans. There's two, one connectin' this place to Rynmere, the other to Viden. When the time comes to add those two territories to the Empire, those give us a way to have someone be openin' the gates for us. Be nice to save us the work of a siege, wouldn't it?" she said, grinning still as she spoke. Sieges were costly, difficult things and to avoid one...well, that was worth it's weight in gold, wasn't it.

[Pegasus]

Raskalarn listened to what Kura had to say and she nodded her head. "Good work. Especially interesting, the portals. If you can," and only if she could. There was no point to creating a situation where there didn't need to be one, yet. "Find out who's in charge of them. In name, and in reality. If they're two way, do they have to be? Who controls them there?" It would be potentially useful information, Raskalarn did not doubt and so she was sure that Kura would find out all she could. Logistics, size, usage and location. All good information and maybe, in the future, more than good.

Maybe vital.

Karem's daughter was potentially in a key tactical position, Raskalarn knew. This job would be even more important, that being the case. It might be that Scalvoris could be brought back into the arms of the Empire without violence, but it might not. Whichever happened, that was how it would be and they would face it.The outcome was what mattered.

"I will see you again, when it is done," Raskalarn said, standing and nodding her head towards Kura. "Not until then." It would be simply too dangerous. However Kura would receive her information at a time that was appropriate. Timing wasn't important, or of key importance. Efficiency, much more so. Still, she stood and she gave a smile.

"Nice house," Raskalarn said and glanced around. Kura had done well, was playing the political role well. "We'll talk more next we see each other. Stay safe." And with that, and without any ceremony, she turned and walked out of the house.

[Pegasus]

Kura

Overview

Kura is such a fab pc! I enjoy her no - nonsense down-to-earth approach to everything - and she's mutli-faceted too. She's determined, utterly loyal and you play her mortalborn status really well - she isn't human / Sev'ryn, and you play that really well. I enjoyed taking the last bit of this thread - I hope it was fun for you!

Points

XP: 15

Fame: +15

Loot

None.

Knowledge

Etiquette: Invite guests to where they are most comfortable
Etiquette: Surprise visitors are a good surprise!
Intelligence: Gathering information before a hit
Intelligence: Identifying what information is necessary
Intelligence: Considering repercussions of actions.
Intelligence: No such thing as an inconsequential detail
Intelligence: Gathering intel on means of travel
Politics: Setting the scene
Politics: Use local produce / goods
Politics: You have to know the place before you can affect change
Politics: Assassination is a fact of life
Politics: Acting as a political assassin
Politics: Avoid sieges if possible
Politics: The interconnected nature of political systems
Politics: Be prepared
Politics: Use all available resources
Politics: Harness good will.
Politics: Use intelligence gathered to ensure the best outcome