Anima Beyond Fantasy IC Mercenaries in Dalaborn

[flame12]

The job offer from the Marquis said to show up at his manor at noon on the fourth for full details. When you showed up, a well dressed young woman led you to a large meeting hall on the second floor of the manor and asked you to wait for the Marquis to arrive. The hall you find yourselves gathered in seem like its being under utilized, meant for much larger crowds as opposed to the couple dozen people gathered here today, with a large round table in the center of the room, surrounded by about thirty seats, one of which is clearly reserved for the Marquis. Looking around at the others, a wide range of attire is on display, from heavily armored warriors, through to robed individuals who hide their appearances. At precisely twelve on the dot, the Marquis enters the room through a separate entrance than the one used by yourselves and the other people being recruited. The Marquis is a taller man, well built, with a long white braid flowing down his back and a gold trimmer great sword strapped to his back. He appears to be wearing dark red finery, with silver trim, except for his purple cape that swishes behind him. He stands at the end of the room and stares at each of you for a few seconds, before moving on, as if evaluating everyone individually who showed up to his manor. After examining all of the people in the room, he nods once to himself before speaking.

"Greetings to all of you this day. As you are all aware, I have need of some skilled warriors to deal with any threats that may be nearby to the new mines I am setting up. What the notice did not say, and what I did not want spreading to the general public, was that there is a very particular threat I need dealt with. Some of my scouts determined that there are some rather disturbed individuals in the woods, and while my own forces could probably deal with them simply enough, its always good to try out other options. Furthermore, a small task force is more likely to be able to sneak up on them without giving away their positions, rather than sending a battalion into the woods to hunt them down and allowing these individuals to scatter into the woods from the noise."

As he speaks, he paces slowly forward, his steps even and measured as he heads towards the recruits assembled before him. Some of the other mercenaries in the room seem to murmur to one another, although most seem to be attempting to be subtle. The Marquis raises a hand to silence the room as he stands beside the table.

"I am sure you all have questions about this assignment. Please, feel free to ask them, but lets do so in a civilized manor, yes?" He asks, as he takes his seat at the table, setting his sword aside, while smiling to the gathered group. Looking around the group to make sure he has everyone's attention before continuing, he asks, "Now, who wants to start us off?"

[FriendlyLich]

"I have a question"
Nolus shifted uncomfortably under the sudden attention of the room, a suppressed grimace signalling his immediate regret in drawing attention to himself.
"By "Disturbed Individuals", that seems to be something other than mere bandits, yes?"

[flame12]

"You would be correct in that assumption. These individuals are what most would consider cultists, although under better circumstances I would rather they be thought of as merely over enthusiastic artists. If they weren't using the blood of my people to make their art, I would almost find it beautiful from what little of it I've seen. However, my scholars assure me that it isn't merely artistic indulgences guiding these individuals. I do not know what creature they are trying to communicate with, but it must be stopped."