I just realized Eru forgot two things: to answer Lanik's question, and to start the lingering healing spell. Next post. :P

I had something written the day after you replied, but it focused too much on the basic activities and not nearly enough on chatacter or thought, so I'm rewriting it. I'd originally envisioned Erudessa kind of shrinking away from everything in fright, but I realized that's not who she is. Frandur is going to be with her up to a certain point, and being old as dirt, he's her de-facto advisor. He would be able to walk her through this time.

So expect some character development. ;-)

Great! I'm excited.

Hey @Thinslayer!

I've just got to say you're really upping your ante with your recent posts. Good for you, I'm glad you're pushing you're writing into new more challenging territory. This'll serve you well for any other RPs you end up doing.

My response might be a bit, I have a feeling it'll compound a lot of things with Lanik and Darian and hopefully I can introduce Laniks daughter at some point. Remember that whole scene with Darian and Serani? Let's just say their original plan with the whole convoy wasn't going to pan out. Can I assume the the king has children?

The king probably has dozens of children, now that I think about it. The slave traders definitely subverted Cassius and Darian's plans by getting to Erudessa first, so we'll see what drama ensues from that. :P

@BellBottomBlues
There's a potential plot problem coming up that I've been stewing over. If there is to be any romance between Eru and Lanik, his wife must be removed somehow. Erudessa is over 200 years old and has sufficient conviction and self control that she would totally refuse any romantic interest in a married man. If anything, she'd work to reconcile the couple. The tale works more smoothly if Lanik is a widower, unless pairing him with Eru was not your intention. She can function quite adequately without any romance. Your thoughts?

@Thinslayer
I definitely understand her mindset. I feel in due time the Serani and Lanik thing will be addressed, I'm still toying with the idea. Though, as far as romance goes progression should be as natural as we can make it. Right now Lanik is in her debt for saving his man. If there is a spark of any sort it would be for organic reasons, trial and tribulation and mutual understanding. Even if there is none I like how strong both our characters are in their own ways, they compliment eachother well as either romantic interests or companions.

@BellBottomBlues
Need me to create a stronger hook for you to reply to? I was hoping we could transition to the Auctiom where the drama takes place.

Sure! That would be awesome. I was planning on getting those post up this weekend.

Gotta work on a bit of lore before I make the hook.

Once upon a time, auctions were stage shows, deliberately designed to maximize the slaves' powerlessness. Auctioneers would bring up one or two slaves at a time, crow about their features, and sell them off to the highest bidder. The trouble was, that could take a while if there were more than a hundred or so. Conquered cities yielded thousands of slaves. So instead of auctioning each individual slave, the traders assigned fixed monetary values to various slave profiles and sold them in displays.

* Language Fluency: +2 gold for understanding, +3 gold for ability to speak it, +4 gold for fluency
* Youth: +1 for childhood, +2 gold for adolescence, +3 for an adult, and +1 gold for every 100 years estimated remaining lifespan. Goes to zero if past prime/elderly.
* Strength: +1 gold for average build, +3 gold for a fit build, +5 gold for a bodybuilder/soldier
* Attractiveness: +1 gold for average/decent looks, +2 gold for catching eyes, +5 gold for a stunning model
* Professional Ability: +1 gold for competency, +2 gold for expertise, +3 gold for genius

Frandur, for example, would earn +4 gold for his fluency in Common, +3 gold for maturity, +2 gold for having about 200 years left on his lifespan, +5 gold for being a bodybuilder, +2 gold for his eye-catching looks (most notably his gorgeous hair), and +10 gold for his competency or expertise in multiple professions. He would be worth a whopping 25 gold, a stunning profit - if the slave traders knew all his abilities, that is. Captured people aren't particularly eager to earn their captors a profit, so much of the challenge is getting slaves to reveal their abilities.

Yanduin would fetch +3 gold for his rough understanding and speech of Common, +3 gold for maturity, +8 gold for elvish youth, +5 gold for being a bodybuilder, +2 for his eye-catching looks, and +1 gold for competency in basic architecture. 3+3+8+5+2+1= 22 gold.

Lanik, if he were sold at auction, would fetch +4 for fluency in Common, +3 gold for maturity, +5 gold for being a bodybuilder, +1 for average looks (i.e. not being ugly), and +1 or +2 gold for his mechanical inclinations. 4+3+5+1+2= 15 gold.

Erudessa would fetch +4 for fluency in Common, +3 for maturity, +3 for fitness, +5 for stunning beauty, and +2 for mechanical expertise. Given her youth, most evaluations would put her remaining lifespan at about eight centuries, but they have no idea yet that she is immortal. The auction house would value her at 20 gold, if her rare silver hair didn't warrant putting her on special auction.

For comparison, a typical foreign human slave fetches +0 gold for not knowing Common, +1 gold for average looks, +3 gold for maturity, +1 gold for average build, and +0 gold for having no other marketable skills (besides farming or housekeeping), total value 5 gold. City dwellers often fetch little more than 4 gold (usually +3 for adults, +1 for either average looks or average build, but not both). Children are even worse off, earning no more than 1 or 2 gold, and the most profitable slavers either leave them, raise them, or sacrifice them, since feeding and sheltering them can cost more than they earn.

@BellBottomBlues
Darnit, I'm drawing a blank. I have a rough idea of what I want to write; I need to set the scene for the Auction. With the new influx of slaves, it'll be a busy day, and a profitable one for Gurgle Moor. He'll want to make a spectacle of Eru's auction, and might even be inclined to sacrifice her instead. I imagined Lanik visiting the Auction (for reasons I wouldn't know) and seeing Eru about to be destroyed, so to stop the sacrifice, he'd offer to buy her for the asking price. Or something like that.

Hmm.. If you write up until a hook of her about to be sacrificed I can take it from there.

Does Lanik have other slaves? I'd imagine he might have a few to keep house. Or does he perhaps live in the family estate, which would almost assuredly have slaves?

Eru is a special one. :). The Ranger Covenant and those associated can't own slaves. She'll be the first Ranger slave. Haha.

So if they can't own slaves, he'll have to keep her secret somehow. Her pointed ears and unique hair are hard to hide.

It's more of an unspoken rule, there isn't written legislation on it. Kind of like an honor code.

I see. I may have to rework the character development arc I had in mind then. The idea I had in mind was that she would learn not to brush him off as just another Imperial slaver, while he would learn to treat her with the respect due to a person. She would be grim and spiteful at first, and over time, she would work that out and come to respect him, heralded by a more jovial attitude and the occasional prank. If he basically frees her right off the bat, it would deal a blow to that arc.

But at the same time, you gotta be able to live with yourself as the roleplayer of the character, so I propose a compromise. Perhaps he's compelled to acquire a slave due to peer pressure, not for any selfish reason of his own? Like, maybe the members of the Ranger Covenant own slaves just like the next person, and it's this particular story in their history that drives them to halt the practice?

Maybe I should ask a different question first: What char dev arc did you have in mind?

Well considering the elves killed his brother Marcus Lanik wouldn't have the best disposition towards her in the first place. He's in debt, but he still can hold on to grudges. And also, he's smart. How would it look if a man of his stature bought a slave and immediately let her go? Imperial eyes are on him, and he has a daughter to worry about. Any bad limelight could easily have him accused. I know up until now he's come off with a pretty liberal ideology compared to most Imperials, but I guess I haven't emphasized the fact how dangerous it is for him to be spilling such ideas in public.

Buying a slave, especially an engineer/healer like Eru, would be an investment for him, then. He'd have to make more profit from her than he lost acquiring her, which might give him reason to put pressure on her to produce results. Combined with his preexisting disposition against her kind, there's plenty of room for conflict. I like your thinking. Let's roll with that. :)