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Its Just Good Business (Violet)

Started by Salzem, June 17, 2017, 04:22:20 AM

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Salzem

Demagogue sat at his desk, sipping a small glass of wine (untainted of course), from a silver chalice while he looked over the various reports that came in this morning. As expected, the amount of customers and the value of their business only continued to climb and that meant their influence did as well. He was content, to say the least, that everything was proceeding right on schedule. It had been a busy couple of days without Nashya here... or maybe they just seemed busier... and longer. He found that there was no point in making the tea any longer, even to honor their little routine they set up. Nah... and besides... Demagogue couldn't really stand the stuff. He puts on a good show indeed, after all, poker-faces is what the demon does best besides being the most handsome demon out there. And so, he swapped the herbal blend for something he could actually stomach, his wine, proud to experience that he knew why people kept coming back for it...

Hours past and the demon continued to look over applications, mark out expulsion papers, glance over partnership deals with other companies and local businesses. He had to be exceptionally careful with those, knowledgeable about who they were and what direction they were going. Much like monkeys in the ocean, they will try to climb over themselves when their drowning to get to him first instead of just waiting for their turn. This was how he knew who to pass up and who to actually consider. So far...? They were all drowning and he will not rescue them to his company's detriment.

Demagogue looked at the clock then at the pile of untouched papers on his desk and scowled. Sometimes he hated this job... That was, when he had a pile of parchment and not a good conversationalist in sight to multitask with. He sighed, frustrated. Maybe he should add "good conversationalist" to the resume requirements... Might benefit HIM in the future... After all, they were making money hand-over-fist anyway so what was another employee?

Codex

The carriage rocked back and forth as the wheels conversed across the cobblestone path, rain pelting the wooden top. Inside a well groomed man sat with a look of nervousness, staring out at the rain. But he wasn't alone. In the other side of the darkened carriage, a young female sat idly by, humming a special tune as she tended the eye patch on her head. He gave her a few irritated looks, but was careful enough to not let her see them. It was thundering outside....

"How far is this... Special person?" He asked in a quiet, stressed tone. Cyn's humming stopped and she turned to stare at him with a quizzing expression. "Hm? Oh. Not far now..." She said, smiling as she turned towards the window and began humming again. And sure enough, she hadn't been lying. The carriage stopped outside a rather large building, neatly tucked away with the other large buildings in this district of Shadowfen. The distillery district. The carriage driver quickly got off his seat and rushed to open the door. Cyn smiled at him. "After you, Lord Fallrin."

He gave a nervous sigh, before pulling up his coat and stepping out onto the wet stone street. Within a few moments, the two had entered Bloodstone winery. The air smelled exotic and somewhat fruity, quite pleasing to the senses. Inside there were dozens of large vats and several people working on them. "This way please." She said, directing the Lord up a flight of stairs onto a catwalk that led over the multiple vats. They walked inside a door leading into a smaller brick hallway, until finally a man opened a pair of double doors for them. Inside was Demagogue's office. A rather large room, fairly decorated. However, the biggest attraction was the massive window that took up nearly the entire wall, overlooking the winery's operations.

"Have a seat!" She said excitedly, slumping down in an empty chair and putting her feet up on a wine table in front of it, carefully watching Demagogue with a devilish smirk.

Salzem

The demon hardly glanced up from his work, still shifting through mountains of papers. When Cyn told her guest to take a seat, Demagogue glanced up again, noticing that he wasn't obliging.... It was distracting.

"Yes, to have a seat, sir. I'll be with you in a minute." The illusion that showed over Demagogue's skeletal features was that of a tall, lanky man in clothes fit for the manager of the winery, a darker shadow cast over his eyes with almost silver-grey irises in the center and a wide toothy smile upon his face. In general, he'd look hardly any different from anyone else from his winery besides... of course... he was the boss. After a few more minutes of filling out papers, the demon with sigh, getting up from his desk and walking over to the man, holding a hand out for him to shake, smiling with appreciation.

"I'm sorry about that... Business has been rather quick these last couple of days... My name is Daniel Gans, though you may call me, Mr. G." Whether or not the man would shake his hand, Demagogue's expression wouldn't fall. In fact, his smile only widened. This man seemed quite on edge... No doubt due to Cyn's presence... He had received reports ahead of time explaining what their plans were for this man and what... unfortunate circumstances that fell upon him. Instead of trying to be intimidating, he wanted to be amicable... respectable... maybe he could worm out some genuine aid from this guy...

"Please, my good man... Would you like some wine...?" Demagogue took a bottle from where it rested on his desk, smiling generously. "Or maybe... you're hungry?" he looked over at the table and his eyes fell on Cyn.

"Cyn, please remove yourself from the table! We have a guest here!" Upon the table, luckily away from the time-mage's feet, were small slices of hard-bread with some sharp cheeses laid across in a meticulous manner. A snack fit for a noble, he might say...

Codex

Cyn made herself comfortable on the couch next to Demagogue's desk as the Lord carefully watched him. It was obvious he was still very nervous about this entire situation, but Cyn didn't really understand why. What reason did he have to be nervous? All he had to do was listen to what Dema had to say! Simple instructions! No stress in that, right? Regardless of her thoughts, however, he still displayed a cautious look towards the disguised demon. Cyn wondered how well his disguise would last without Nashya nearby. Where was that girl anyways? Cyn pondered the question for a moment, turning her head around the room to see if Nashya had been skulking in the shadows somewhere. She was disappointed to find nobody in the dark corners of the room. Her attention however, was snapped back to Dema and Fallrin as he scolded her for putting her feet up on the table. She gave a scowl and slowly put her feet on the ground like an annoyed child, crossing her arms and huffing, leaning back against the chair.

"I'm alright..." Fallrin said coldly, at Demagogue's offer for wine and food. Instead he simply sat down in one of the empty chairs across from the demon's desk. Cyn had preoccupied herself with an oddly shaped corkscrew, fiddling with the object between her fingers. Fallrin's attention soon focused on Mr. G, ignoring Cyn's childish attitude. "Daughter of yours?" He asked.

"Now can you tell me what this is about? What do you need from me?" He asked rather venomously, staring at Dema unblinking.

Salzem

Demagogue's smile wilted a bit as the lord took his offer and threw it back in his face as much as he dared, flashing the demon a cold scowl. He seemed visibly hurt by the man's tone, hurt that he would address him in such a way without anything inherently threatening being said yet. Clearly this man was having a bad day and, if what Cyn had told him was true... it was a VERY bad day... The demon cocked his head to the side, confused as the man looked at Cyn, asking if she belonged to him.

"Daughter...?" Demagogue followed his gaze, to Cyn, his eyes brightening humorously as she fiddled about with some object harmlessly. "An... assistant." He corrected before sitting himself down in the last remaining chair, each one of them sitting in a triangle with the wine-bottle and snack on the table in the middle.

"WELL! First, my lord, allow me to just say it is an honor to have you here in our most humble establishment." Of course, the best way to start up any negotiation (even one that's merely a veiled attempt at blackmail) is to butter them up... Makes it easier to escape them when their hands are around your throat.

"As you say, let us get down to business. Your prestige and reputation proceed you, my lord, most notably you influence among those of your noble class. Word gets around that men respect you... hold you in high esteem... owe you many favors."

"As a man of experience wisdom, one such as you acknowledges the need for having friends... And we wish to be among them." The demon intertwined his fingers, resting his palms on his illusionary stomach. "You will find, my lord, that we can be most... potent partners in both your economic and influential circles."

Codex

The Lord continued to eye Mr. G carefully as he answered his questions. He seemed like a reasonable man, at least more reasonable than this Cyn girl. Then again, if they were working together, that must've accounted for something. Even if he was involved with some shady business, he'd never work alongside someone as insane as this woman obviously was. This fact alone troubled him seeing as the man in front of him had obviously willingly chose her to be his partner.

"Aye, I know various people across Le'ranna that can be quite charismatic..." He responded, answering the demon's question. During this Cyn appeared to be quite interested in the conversation, but was careful not to speak. After all, Demagogue was the one in charge, right? "What is it exactly you'd like for me to say to them?" He asked finally, shifting uncomfortably in his chair as the words left his mouth. It was now obvious to Cyn that this was gonna be way easier than she had originally anticipated. Fallrin was far more interested in retaining his reputation and current business deals than fighting back against their black male. At least he was smart.

Salzem

The demon scoffed as the lord asked what the demon would want him to say to them... As if he needed this man's good word.

"My lord, all we ask is that we become one of your most trusted friends and allies. Surely, my assistant here has shown you just how we could be of benefit to you." He glanced at Cyn, forcing back a knowing grin. "I am not here to ask for any favors, my lord. Such an act would be the opposite of my true intentions. What I would like to do... is offer you a deal."

"We would like to be included in your circle, be among your friends so we could contribute for the benefit of us all. You, me, your resources, the city... It would be nothing short of a useful relationship for all those concerned. What we can offer you... is two things."

"One: Our business. If you've noticed, our success rate has only continued to grow since it's conception and soon, perhaps in the next year or so, we might be looking at a monopoly on wine in the area. Having us as a friend would no doubt be of use to you on a financial front.

"Two: A powerful ally. Like I said before, our business is on a consistent rise and, with money comes power. We would like to share this power with you... maybe move you up higher in position, my lord."

Codex

"Under most circumstances, I would be much obliged... However." He shot a glare in Cyn's direction. She simply returned the face with a look of confused innocence. "You did not need to go through such *extreme* lengths to get my cooperation. Cyn would display a thinking look for a moment, before smiling and snapping her fingers like she had just figured something out. However, she remained silent and kept watching the two converse.

"Money is power... But so is influence. I see why you came to me with your plight. And I doubt I have little choice in the matter." At this point, Cyn stood up. "But that's wrong! You, my friend, have all the power in the world! Just go about your business and pretend nothing had ever happened! That way we can be best friends!" She sneered, but then sat down again and remained quiet in case Mr. G disapproved of her little outburst. "I will talk with him, and not you witch!" He scowled. "I do business with business men, not murderers and thieves." At this she rolled her eyes. "You're unaware of just how close your own job is to both of those..." She chuckled.

Salzem

"Now, now..." Demagogue chastised them both, gently waving his hands in a suppressed fashion to get the pair's attention. If they continued to be rowdy and spat with each other, the demon would rise from his seat, glaring down at them both with a sort of intensity that could likely be felt throughout the entire building. He would stair down the pair, his smile turning into a flat-line as he waited for them both to fall into silence, slowly lowering himself back into the chair. He crossed one leg over the other, glaring at Cyn silently as if to let her know how close she had come to derailing all they had tried to set up.

"Let us return to the matter at hand, my lord. While my assistant has done some.... unsavory things, let us not forget all that we have to offer you. We are prepared to offer you a portion of what we make on a bi-monthly basis but, rest assured my lord, whatever percentage you receive will be... comfortable. Please, state your terms so we may close a deal that will benefit us both. I promise, you will not regret this."

Demagogue resisted the erg to glance at Cyn once more, wondering how far she was willing to let these negotiations slide. He contemplated what would happen if the lord requested Cyn's head on a plate or for her to be jailed... Specifically, Demagogue wondered if Cyn would use her time magic to obtain some past-or-future self to kill... he wanted to see that...

Codex

Cyn continued to quietly sit in on the couch, keeping silent now as she could obviously sense the Demon's uneasiness towards her sudden outburst. Instead, she decided to just watch and see how he would handle the distressed lord in the presence of the one who killed his wife.

"Before I was rudely interrupted... Tell me exactly what you want. Specifics if you can." He said through a cold glare. At this, Cyn smirked and raised her eyebrows towards Demagogue. Hoping he'd know what that meant, as there were a few documents that the Lord would have to sign... And she was going to stay here and make sure they were signed.

"I'm sure Mr. G has something for you..." She chuckled, before shutting her mouth again.

Salzem

Demagogue's glare flicked back to Cyn as she so blatantly alluded to what was coming next. He had hoped to surprise the lord with what he had in store but with the girl's constant breaking of silence... he was finding that to be hard.

"Yes, my lord... I have something you might want to see..." And with that, Demagogue walked over to his desk, withdrawing a small bouquet of scrolls. He smiled before handing them to the lord, sitting himself back down at his seat before nodding at the collection in his hands.

"What you have in your hands, my lord, is a set of deeds-of-ownerships from across Fallrin with your signature on them. You will find that these deeds are very similar to some of your own assets. Identical in fact... perhaps even the real deal... What we want is for you to sign us on as partners... let us aid in managing these businesses. With us as partners you have so much to gain. The wealth you will see in your coffers will be beyond counting and next year there will be even more."

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