A Story Told (Invite Only and/or Dachaigh)

[The Selkie]

This is a Dachaigh-Roleplay, the first of its kind. Let's have some fun, people!

Rover, Selkie Trading Ship.
Approaching North Jadia.
Captain Shane Sclábhaíocht of the Tribe of Wicklow smiled.
His contractor had send him off from Silverport nearly as soon as he had returned with a load of slaves of unimportant origin and loot from his last raid on some villages or the other - and he decided to go for North Jadia. The Kingdoms of Airkhaos always needed slaves and many Selkie-Raiders were more then happy to deliver.
Captain Shane would keep a hefty sum of the profit of selling the slaves, it was simply that way, they would be worked to death whereever needed and it all would start all over again. It was an endless circle.
As long as Captain Shane and his crew made profits, none of them could be bothered to care.
A hundred slaves started the journey, around ninety were still alive, most of which were men between 15 and 30 springs (that was their estimate), adding in a few older people and a few women - none of them were children. They were slave traders, not monsters.
The few women were exotic, maybe beautiful if taken care of properly, while many of the young men were split between cheap everyday workers and a few rather strong looking fellows, which needed speacial persuasion to come along with them.
To ensure none of them rebelled, they not only were bound together by rope down in the cargo hold, but also guarded by a dozen fully armed and armoured warriors. Adding in, that many of the sailors didn't carry their daggers for fun and it were insurmountable odds for the slaves should they choose to rebel.
They could rebel as much as they wanted in their new home they would be sold to. Bulk suppliers would take care of the shipment and would pay him - after that, they would stay for a few days in North Jadia and have some fun.
It would be profitable, Captain Shane knew that.

[Airkhaos]

Velio, Island of Jadia,
North/South Jadius Border, Kingdom of Airkhaos.
As always Velio was bustling with activity,
Great Caracks and multiple Caravels lined the docks, men and women alike unloading their precious Cargoes of Silks and Spices. The City it's self was rather large, spanning both sides of the River Kirill, the low built house's roofs painted a assortment of Bright Colors, except for the huge fortress towering over the port in the Hilltops, which only bore a cluster of bright colored ribbons waving in the wind. The rolling hills around the City where covered in Grape Vines and specked with Olive Trees, two signature exports of the Island. Velio was an extremely important City, as it sat at the mouth of the River Kiril the only way for ships to reach the Airkhaosi Capital of Jadius. Hence many ships would stop at Velio to refill food supplies and or drop off more...

Rowdy Cargo.

--

Three men stood at the end of Velio's main Harbor, too any outsiders their appearance would mean nothing, however the people of Velio knew that if the Conte and his men where waiting on the Docks, Someone or Something important was coming. Conte Leonardo Pasquale was a patient man, his Comandante however was not.

"With no disrespect, Sire we have been waiting here since Sunbreak, Are you sure this 'Selkie' is truthfully coming?"

The Lord of Velio turned, his brown eyes calm. "I am indeed certain that Slave Trader will arrive soon, his kind will do anything for a bag of Silvers, he won't miss this opportunity, anyway it's not like he can turn away from this, he's selling slaves to King Argo, for Imraos' sake."

The Comandante grunted, adjusting his Green silk cloak, Embroiled with Three Boars, the Coat of arms of Velio and looked back out over the Ocean.

[The Selkie]

Velio, Island of Jadia,
North/South Jadius Border, Kingdom of Airkhaos.
As always Velio was bustling with activity,
Great Caracks and multiple Caravels lined the docks, men and women alike unloading their precious Cargoes of Silks and Spices. The City it's self was rather large, spanning both sides of the River Kirill, the low built house's roofs painted a assortment of Bright Colors, except for the huge fortress towering over the port in the Hilltops, which only bore a cluster of bright colored ribbons waving in the wind. The rolling hills around the City where covered in Grape Vines and specked with Olive Trees, two signature exports of the Island. Velio was an extremely important City, as it sat at the mouth of the River Kiril the only way for ships to reach the Airkhaosi Capital of Jadius. Hence many ships would stop at Velio to refill food supplies and or drop off more...

Rowdy Cargo.

--

Three men stood at the end of Velio's main Harbor, too any outsiders their appearance would mean nothing, however the people of Velio knew that if the Conte and his men where waiting on the Docks, Someone or Something important was coming. Conte Leonardo Pasquale was a patient man, his Comandante however was not.

"With no disrespect, Sire we have been waiting here since Sunbreak, Are you sure this 'Selkie' is truthfully coming?"

The Lord of Velio turned, his brown eyes calm. "I am indeed certain that Slave Trader will arrive soon, his kind will do anything for a bag of Silvers, he won't miss this opportunity, anyway it's not like he can turn away from this, he's selling slaves to King Argo, for Imraos' sake."

The Comandante grunted, adjusting his Green silk cloak, Embroiled with Three Boars, the Coat of arms of Velio and looked back out over the Ocean.

At last, Jadia came in sight. And with it: Velio.
Their target. The place they wanted to go to. The call from the crow's nest was salvation for the Selkie - dry land under the feet again, sleeping on a good bed with pleasant company.
The company was the important part.
Sclábhaíocht smiled as he saw the harbour approaching. At the end, men were already waiting for them.
"Get me a boat into the water!", he ordered, giving a wave to their welcoming comittee as they passed. "We are already expected!"
A few minutes later, the oarsmen were working pretty hard, while the Rover was continuing onwards, preparing to dock, while their captain was off to meet their business partners. He would come ashore before them, but business was business and everyone knew, that he knew.
He indeed was already expected. Silk coats, three men - they were important looking, showing the coat of arms of Velio, three boars. Business was about to begin, Sclábhaíocht knew, as his boat met the shore, these men were his contacts.

[Airkhaos]

The three men watched as the Selkie trader came ashore, his kind were not often seen here, the man's pale skin and light hair standing in stark contrast to the Airkhaosi's Olive skin and black curly hair. The Conte gave a sly smile before proudly greeting the man.

"Greeting, Trader! I am Conte Leonardo Pasquale, Lord of Velio, Guardian of the River Kiril." He spoke with a heavy accent, it felt odd to him not speaking his native tongue, but for gaining a good reputation with the King was far more important than little things like Languages.

The Lord's Commandante grumbled, before exclaiming in Airkhaosi, "Why must you speak this foreigner's tongue, We're in Airkhaos, Surely he should speak the language of he lands he is visiting.

The Conte rolled his eyes, Motioning for his Commandante to be quite. "Pardon my Captain, he is a tad protective when it comes to deals with Smugglers, but honestly, we're all Smugglers here.

[The Selkie]

The three men watched as the Selkie trader came ashore, his kind were not often seen here, the man's pale skin and light hair standing in stark contrast to the Airkhaosi's Olive skin and black curly hair. The Conte gave a sly smile before proudly greeting the man.

"Greeting, Trader! I am Conte Leonardo Pasquale, Lord of Velio, Guardian of the River Kiril." He spoke with a heavy accent, it felt odd to him not speaking his native tongue, but for gaining a good reputation with the King was far more important than little things like Languages.

The Lord's Commandante grumbled, before exclaiming in Airkhaosi, "Why must you speak this foreigner's tongue, We're in Airkhaos, Surely he should speak the language of he lands he is visiting.

The Conte rolled his eyes, Motioning for his Commandante to be quite. "Pardon my Captain, he is a tad protective when it comes to deals with Smugglers, but honestly, we're all Smugglers here.

The Selkie placed his hand over his heart and lowered his head towards Pasquale. "It is a pleasure, Conte.", he replied, before he rose with a flourish. "I am Captain Shane Sclábhaíocht of the Tribe of Wicklow, Captain of the fine vessel Rover, hailing from the far-away town of Silverport. I am here to do business - and if I understand you correctly, your laws don't really like my merchandise?"
He let it sound like a question, hanging a bit in the air. He was, by Selkie Law, or at least Silverport's Law, a fully legal merchant with fully legal merchandise, as none of his cargo were Selkie or below age. For the Conte, it would mean little, maybe a raise in his price, slightly, as a compensation for the risks he faced, if he was in a bad mood.
Currently, Shane was quite well. He mourned, that he left his translator aboard the Rover, but that was a thing for later, when the agreement was formalized.

[Airkhaos]

The Conte took a second to think before explaining to the Selkie.
"You see, in our fine lands, slavery has always been the means of labor. However things have recently..." he paused for a second glancing at the third man, a rather short silent many with his Cloak's hood pulled up over his head, before continuing.
"Taken are more complicated turn with the rise of the Catalani dynasty, you see King Argo has taken an foreign wife, who despises slavery. Hence for most of the Kingdom slavery has been outlawed by the Queen, despite Argo's best attempts to stop it from happening.
Luckily for you Velio is still a Free Port for all goods. So down to business, you've brought what we've asked for, no?"
The Conte spread his arms in a questioning manner.

[The Selkie]

The Conte took a second to think before explaining to the Selkie.
"You see, in our fine lands, slavery has always been the means of labor. However things have recently..." he paused for a second glancing at the third man, a rather short silent many with his Cloak's hood pulled up over his head, before continuing.
"Taken are more complicated turn with the rise of the Catalani dynasty, you see King Argo has taken an foreign wife, who despises slavery. Hence for most of the Kingdom slavery has been outlawed by the Queen, despite Argo's best attempts to stop it from happening.
Luckily for you Velio is still a Free Port for all goods. So down to business, you've brought what we've asked for, no?"
The Conte spread his arms in a questioning manner.

Shane nodded. "I have merchandise, yes.", he said, smiling as he waved two of his oarsmen forward.
The younger Selkie, a wary eye on the hooded figure, gave Shane a document, parchment written on with Selkie-runes. Luckily, it wasn't for their business partners, as it was a businesss-only document. A list of everything they had onboard and wanted to sell, including short handed descriptions of the merchandise, which would bring him the most profit.
A duplicate was in the hands of one of the oarsmen, who held it out towards the Comte from a safe distance, so that no one would feel threatened. It was essentially the same document, except two things: First, this one was more document intended for being handed out, not for business usage. Second, this document was written in a common tongue. From its contents, though, it was identical with the parchment, which Shane unrolled.
"Ninety slaves in total, eighty men between fifteen and thirty springs, eight women of youth, two older men. All of the category 'origin not relevant'." Shane looked up from his list. "No children. Most of the men look like normal, everyday men, while we have a few rather... strong looking fellows, which will need a bit of persuasion to do their work, whatever they will end up with. They were all fed enough to survive during our merry little jouney." Shane grinned at the Conte. "So... what's your offer for the men?"

[Airkhaos]

Shane nodded. "I have merchandise, yes.", he said, smiling as he waved two of his oarsmen forward.
The younger Selkie, a wary eye on the hooded figure, gave Shane a document, parchment written on with Selkie-runes. Luckily, it wasn't for their business partners, as it was a businesss-only document. A list of everything they had onboard and wanted to sell, including short handed descriptions of the merchandise, which would bring him the most profit.
A duplicate was in the hands of one of the oarsmen, who held it out towards the Comte from a safe distance, so that no one would feel threatened. It was essentially the same document, except two things: First, this one was more document intended for being handed out, not for business usage. Second, this document was written in a common tongue. From its contents, though, it was identical with the parchment, which Shane unrolled.
"Ninety slaves in total, eighty men between fifteen and thirty springs, eight women of youth, two older men. All of the category 'origin not relevant'." Shane looked up from his list. "No children. Most of the men look like normal, everyday men, while we have a few rather... strong looking fellows, which will need a bit of persuasion to do their work, whatever they will end up with. They were all fed enough to survive during our merry little jouney." Shane grinned at the Conte. "So... what's your offer for the men?"

The Conte looked through the list, making mental notes as he went along.
He then stopped, running his hand through his neatly trimmed Goatee as he thought.
He then looked up at the Trader and spoke.
"How's this for an offer? I'll take your 50 best working slaves for 5000 Airkhaosi Denars, and as for Customs, I'll buy a woman of your choosing to accompany you while you stay with in my home in Fortress Boar, unless a part of your Culture denies you for taking one."

[The Selkie]

Shane nodded. "I have merchandise, yes.", he said, smiling as he waved two of his oarsmen forward.
The younger Selkie, a wary eye on the hooded figure, gave Shane a document, parchment written on with Selkie-runes. Luckily, it wasn't for their business partners, as it was a businesss-only document. A list of everything they had onboard and wanted to sell, including short handed descriptions of the merchandise, which would bring him the most profit.
A duplicate was in the hands of one of the oarsmen, who held it out towards the Comte from a safe distance, so that no one would feel threatened. It was essentially the same document, except two things: First, this one was more document intended for being handed out, not for business usage. Second, this document was written in a common tongue. From its contents, though, it was identical with the parchment, which Shane unrolled.
"Ninety slaves in total, eighty men between fifteen and thirty springs, eight women of youth, two older men. All of the category 'origin not relevant'." Shane looked up from his list. "No children. Most of the men look like normal, everyday men, while we have a few rather... strong looking fellows, which will need a bit of persuasion to do their work, whatever they will end up with. They were all fed enough to survive during our merry little jouney." Shane grinned at the Conte. "So... what's your offer for the men?"

The Conte looked through the list, making mental notes as he went along.
He then stopped, running his hand through his neatly trimmed Goatee as he thought.
He then looked up at the Trader and spoke.
"How's this for an offer? I'll take your 50 best working slaves for 5000 Airkhaosi Denars, and as for Customs, I'll buy a woman of your choosing to accompany you while you stay with in my home in Fortress Boar, unless a part of your Culture denies you for taking one."

Note: Quote modified by removal of spoiler-tags.

"I think, we have a deal.", Shane replied with a grin, not so much because of the promise for a woman to accompany him, but much rather due to the 5000 Airkhaosi Denars. Sure, half of it would be for the original capturer, the remains would be either for his crew, ship maintenance and a chunk of the ship's supplies, depending on how much these cost here. But on the bright side, these costs were already covered and he still had a lot of slaves left.
This was more, then he hoped for.
Plus, his crew would be quite happy to have their payment already.
He would have to find other slave traders here, though. Still, Shane extended his hand, ready to seal the deal.