Heading out, she and Verner go to the fort, a cracked and burned edifice of rough stone, seemingly made by natives of some sort. Heading inside through a pair of ruined doors, she quickly finds herself headed downwards to a subterranean level. There, she sees an altar of some sort. Before it stands Halipha, swearing loudly as whatever spell she's attempting fails. Looking around, Vizelle fails to see the book.
Elena chuckled. She decided against making any hostile moves, maybe a meeting would settle the entire matter. Madame Dubernay was a stepping stone, and there was no reason to spend too much attention on her. If she decided to work with her spies for the emperor - it was good. But should she become a problem, she would deal with her. Elena arrived with four armed female bodyguards of the order - all wearing clothes of the order guard... that was quite revealing. Still, they were brainwashed, fanatically loyal and armed. Trained as well. The training they went through, was almost on par with Empire's veteran troopers. Nowhere near the elites - the order lacked that kind of personnel. Of course, she had at least two dozens of normal guards waiting in backup and a couple of spies in the area. Just in case. Elena sat in one of the booths, her guards waiting outside. She placed an order for some tea and biscuits. She would pay for that pleasure with a training session and some light self flogging - just as the doctrine of the order has demanded. Now, she just has to wait for the Madame.
After Elena and her guards get into position, the priestess sees the madame approach, seemingly alone. Showing no particular interest in keeping herself hidden, she sidles into the booth across from Elena, and nearly all eyes are pinned on the two buxom women. "You wished to meet, priestess?" The woman's voice is soft and pleasant.
"How interesting." Vizelle cooed, motioning for Verner to stay hidden as they entered the fort. She smiles as she sees Halipha, though not finding the book was a unfortunate. But still, now she merely needs to bait, and reel in the twins into her eternal service. "Greetings, young one." The sorceress called out, ready to deflect any spells that might be thrown her way. "I take it you're attempting whatever is in the book you retrieved, yes?"
"Indeed." Elena smiled. "Tea?" She asked, as she offered a cup. "They have excellent tea here... I can't say the same about cookies." When the greeting was done, she took another sip of tea. She enabled the anti listening device, then turned back to Madam and smiled pleasantly. "You have gone dark after the death of the Emperor, and have been out of the neet since. The new Emperor, cannot any longer overlook it." She said shortly, her voice pleasant, despite her ominous words.
She spins around as she hears Vizelle's voice. "Who dares-", she stops as she begins to feel the psionic power radiating off of the other sorceress. "Who are you?"
"Ah, yes, I'd thought that this might happen." She takes a sip. "To put it simply, I served Emperor Agammemnon because I owed him greatly. Now that he's dead, however, my debts are repaid. I don't see that just because I helped the father, I must now help his son."
"Hello, Halipha. I am Vizelle from the Order." She introduces herself, "But don't worry, I'm not really interested in bringing you back to the order. No, I'm here to offer you... my services." Vizelle's yellow eyes glow slightly. "You seek power, yet you don't have the innate talent like your brother does. But what if I told you there's way to enhance your abilities, without relying on some ancient book."
"What, you're just going to 'enhance my abilities' out of the goodness of your heart?" She holds up a hand, and fire appears in her palm. Clearly, she's not going to believe Vizelle without proof or a good pitch.
"Of course not. The world isn't that kind, especially not to us." Vizelle cooed, holding out a hand to prepare the same spell Halipha was using. "But still, it is hard to believe a random stranger. So. Verner, please come here." She then calls her hidden disciple, "This is is my first student. He was a simple boy, and here he is now." Vizelle puts down her hand, "Dear, do show her what you've learned... just don't kill her."
Elena humms, nodding her head. "I understand," she said softly. "There are several reasons for you to work with the Emperor." She started "First, you would work for the realm... and would be rewarded handsomely. Second, you would have the Emperor's protection. Third, you would have access to information and resources you would normally would not get..." Elena started speaking to her, using her skills in persuasion to convince the woman. She of course left out, that the Emperor would not allow her organisation to continue unchecked to work right in the capital. That was unnecessary. "There are also privileges that you could use to your advantage as well. Power, riches, sex, access to latest trends and technologies." She paused. Then smiled. "But, you already know all of that. We are not here to spin the offer, which you already know." She nodded in understanding. It all clicked. The woman was no full, she knew that if she refused, Emperor would crash her. "We are here to renegotiate your contract." She concluded.
And you. So if someone were to read your mind, the way I did earlier... Eanne kept the thought to herself and smiled at the maid. “Wonderful, simply wonderful.” She leaned closer and kissed Felicia's neck. “So, what now? How, exactly, do things work in this fine establishment?” She inquired, wanting to avoid any “misunderstandings”.
Spoiler: Verner attack roll D100: 41+15 (Order of Sorcerers)=56 (Pass) Halipha cries out in pain as Verner uses a telepathic attack on the sorceress.
Spoiler: Persuasion Roll D100: 60+15 (Demagogue)= 75 (Pass) Dubernay smiles. "You do have a way of making it sound awfully tempting." As Elena comes to her conclusion, the smile turns into a grin. "Yes, renogotiating the contract. Indeed, that's why I'm here. You're quicker on the uptake than most of the emperor's servants."
Once Halipha was down, Vizelle moves closer. "Convinced now, young one?" She asked, "What do you say? Would you like to break through your limits as well?" The sorceress asked, with a little help of her telepathy invading the young woman's mind.
Spoiler: Seduction Roll D100: 89+15 (Seduction skill)=104 (Crit) Felicia gives a cute little moan as Eanne begins to kiss her, and slides a hand up the noble's thigh. "Well, normally, you and I would make an arrangement." Her free hand goes to Eanne's breasts. "But now that I think about it, taking payment for a night with you seems a little bit like theft, since I'd do it for free." She chuckles. "I think we can skip to the fun part."
"Fuck you." She groans, after Verner hits her with the blast of telepathic energy. Spoiler: Telepathy Roll D100: 20+15 (Order of Sorcerers)=35 (Fail) Surprisingly, the young woman is able to resist Vizelle's attempt to invade her mind. She begins to get up.
“Ooohhh...” Eanne moaned in pleasure as the maid started groping her. “Such a naughty girl... today must be my lucky day, to get you as my maid...” She grinned lustfully, her hand moving from Felicia's knee and sliding down her thigh instead. Reaching with her other hand the noblewoman turned the maid's face toward her and began kissing her passionately, her tongue invading the maid's mouth. After a few moments her hand moved to Felicia's breasts, beginning to grope them, doing to the maid what she was doing to her.
"Thank you." Elena nodded with a soft smile. Flattery was one of the tools to be used in negotiations. "So, let's hear it." She said softly, curious, to what conditions the Madam would present her with. She could not accept something outrageous... But she was sure, she could convince the woman.
"Ah, to be young." Vizelle cooed, acting as if her attempt at messing with Halipha's mind didn't happen at all. "Still, it is quite unfortunate. You hold all the ambition, yet none of the talent. While your brother could easily reach the top, yet he'd do nothing with such talent. Does it not irk you? Living in his shadow, asking him to help you in your path?" The sorceress continued speaking, trying to whittle down the young woman's mental wall.
