[h2]Zoe[/h2] [quote=@Terrans] [h2]Aden[/h2] ... “Tell me Miss Spyrou. Is this dance an attempt to change my opinion or to gauge it?” He made sure to keep himself eyes locked with hers; no need to give away anything by glancing around the room. Her gaze was dark and piercing and he gave a defeated sigh as he answered anyways. “Truthfully, the promise of pay is probably too tempting. I would keep an eye on the man. Especially if he starts to get foolish notions.” A ache ran down his spine as Zoe adjusted her grip and Aden gave a reflex hiss as it landed on the tender scar. [/quote] "Does that hurt?" Zoe asked, lightening her grip as she studied Aden's expression, "I'll try to be gentle, but it is remarkable how well you're healed considering how recently you were hit," she assured him. "You dance well," she commented as they moved across the floor, "This may be especially arrogant of me, but I hadn't expected you to have had much of a chance to practice this art," she gave a slight, self-deprecating smile, "Idle scions of noble houses have very little else to do, most others do not." "But as for your prior question," she said, her expression turning back to her more usual one of slight amusement, "I'm neither trying to change your opinion nor gauge it. I have already guessed at it, and I'm usually relatively good at these things - though always excited to be wrong! I'm merely sharing my insights into the dynamics in our merry band so that you are prepared if Mitteland proves to be a crisis point." [hr] [h2]Arkadios[/h2] [quote=@Bingelly] Volodar Naesandoral "Captain, a word before we return if you will," Volodar gestured for Arkadios to pull off into one of the cabins with him. "What is your intent when we make land and make contact with the Mittelvolk? Miss Spyroe promised some of this adhoc crew payment in exchange for their service. A single bar of that gold could likely outfit a regiment or keep one in the field longer than our enemies, and I fear she may be overly generous for what amounts to a fortnight's worth of labor." ... [/quote] Arkadios stopped in the corridor, chuckled, "You are thinking along the same lines that I am. I sense that Miss Spyrou, despite knowing the location of that vault, has very little idea as to the actual value of that gold compared to what someone might typically get paid. I would not have pledged the amount of money that she has." He paused, then nodded as if confirming something to himself, "Given the need for those funds to support the war effort I would suggest that it might be fair to offer a substantial bounty to those who did assist with the recovery, far more than one would typically offer, in place of the promise of a percentage of the gold. It wouldn't be the same value as what Miss Spyrou has promised, but it would be in currency rather than gold bullion, which would be a lot easier to actually spend. While some of them might be upset, ultimately this would be in everyone's best interest."