[Togami gave him a week, so it sounds like he won't have any grumpy rich kids biting his head off any time soon. To the question, he hums thoughtfully, thinking back on it. Again he doesn't have any reason not to tell Rideaux, when everyone stands to benefit from this kind of information.]
Ah, well... It was pretty derelict. I snooped around an old office and found some old accounting stuff. The others in my group found another room with an empty cage, where it sounds like they were doin' experiments on monsters whenever the place was in use. There were other rooms, but I haven't been able to get outta the little scamp that made it there about what she saw.
[She's not the most eloquent, for one, and he's not about to press an eleven-year-old girl to relive what are likely traumatic memories. Maybe later down the line it'll happen, but not anytime soon.]
After that I was in a bad way, so I'm a little fuzzy on the details, but we found a room with lotsa screens and machines. That was when the others found a bunch of vials like the one I just gave you. We figured we'd just get the one tested for now.
[And if this one is damaged or mysteriously goes missing, at least they won't have given them all away at once.]
[ a week might be cutting it close, honestly, given how little desire he has to go out like this, but we'll see. ]
So biological experiments, then. In that case, we can at least expect that it's intended to have some effect on organic matter.
[ he is curious about those other rooms... as far as he's concerned if they can't get the information out of the kid they're just not trying hard enough. there are more important things here than some little girl's feelings. besides, children are resilient -- he's certainly living proof of that. ]
I say "for now" 'cause we're not about ta just hand out all the samples at once. Y'know what they say about eggs and baskets.
[He still doesn't know much about Rideaux, so even paying him off isn't guarantee a lot of valuable stuff would be safe in one pair of hands, especially after the risks they took to get it in the first place. And even if Rideaux proves trustworthy, CERES could always decide they wanted to reclaim any of what was stolen by force.]
Maybe some other time we could go back down there... But it ain't worth it unless we had antidotes or a skilled healer around.
[ so had they brought back more than one, then? the eggs and baskets remark isn't necessarily the greatest vote of confidence, but it's fair. he never trusts anyone else either. ]
Of course. So you still know how to find it?
[ the exit his group had escaped from had disappeared as soon as they'd made it out, so he doesn't know how he could find it again if he wanted to.
he's also tempted to point out that he's a skilled healer, but thinks better of it -- it would hardly look convincing right now when he can't even fix his own broken limb. which is exceedingly frustrating, because back in elympios, he'd been publicly known for his skill at saving lives and treating injuries. now that he's here in this world where spyrix is useless, though, after all his talk about the superiority of elympion medical technology, healing arte users like ludger's rieze maxian friends have him beat. it's humiliating, and it really pisses him off.
[Raven would offer to try and help heal Rideaux's leg a little, but he's no Estelle, so the most it'd do would alleviate a little of the discomfort. And Rideaux seems like the proud, stubborn kind of guy who would rather just get by on his own than accept Raven's sweet, sweet arrows filled with love.
Oh well.]
Sure, unless CERES decided to block it off since then. [It's a guess, considering he never actually made it out himself.] Then again, if they have more of their little test subjects in there, they might decide those are a better deterrent for anyone who wants ta snoop.
Interesting, the exit we took seemed to disappear as soon as we were out.
[ he'd imagined it would have been the same for everyone who'd been in a similar situation -- like CERES had just been waiting for them to leave so they could patch up the exits and pretend it had never happened. it's a little curious, though, that they hadn't just transported everyone back out immediately if they didn't want them there. were those underground areas somehow out of their reach? ]
But all right, then. I'll work on analyzing this, and you work on getting me your friend's blastia. Does that sound good?
Sure thing. You want part of the payment now for all the bother, or how about I pay it all off when we're done?
[Neither of them really know just how long either job will take, when both are big question marks, so Raven is wondering if maybe it's better to wait and pay according to that. The blastia in particular is likely to take some serious work, moreso than identifying the sample.
But then, Rideaux's payment preferences might be a little different to how guilds back home strike deals, so he's willing to go with whatever he's happy with.]
Afterward is fine, so we can more accurately calculate the true costs and the value of the results. With that said, though, you wouldn't object to signing a little something agreeing to pay when the research is completed, right?
[ this is his payment preference -- bleeding people dry once he's already performed his services for them so that they can't decide to take their business somewhere less expensive. though in this case, he doesn't have any intention of charging anything too exorbitant. bisley isn't directing him to intentionally trap anyone in debt this time, obviously, and studying the blastia aligns with his own interests enough that he doesn't want to drive away the person who can give him access to it.
anyway, who knows if a piece of paper like that would actually be considered legally binding here, but he can sure give it a try. ]
Ah, I already miss the days when a guild member could be taken at their word.
[He says it like it's been years already, when he's only been around these parts for a few weeks. But it's still a huge difference, when he's used to relying on the honour of the guilds and the Union in doing business. Especially right at the top in Altosk.
He expected something like this, though, so he won't be too offended. Raven shrugs.]
So long as ya put nothin' objectionable in the fine print, then sure. [He's not that desperate. If Rideaux is angling to bleed him dry, he'd sooner just take his chances with CERES or find someone else.]
[ for all the similarities in their technology, their worlds are very different when it comes to this sort of thing. he lives in a world of corporate lawyers and debt collectors. accepting a verbal contract on the basis of honor is something few people in elympios would be naive enough to do these days.
he takes a pen and prescription pad from the end table beside him and starts to write: With my signature I acknowledge that I have entered into a binding agreement with Rideaux Zek Rugievit. In exchange for professional analysis of a chemical sample I agree to reimburse his services at a reasonable and customary hourly rate, yet to be determined.
at some point before finishing though, there's a slight pause, and his pen briefly stops moving. ]
Out of curiosity, what side effects do blastia have on their users?
[Raven waits patiently while he writes, polishing off the last of his drink. It wasn't bad compensation, for having to air out all his dirty laundry to a stranger like this. He sets down the empty glass before responding.]
Normally they're harmless, so long as ya don't fool around with 'em. [Which goes without saying, like working with any kind of delicate equipment...] I guess the only thing I could think of is if ya used too many artes, then you'd get tired out real fast, even without a blastia like mine.
And with one like yours, there's no persistent pain associated with it, or anything like that?
[ the daily cocktail of drugs he's been taking to manage his own pain for more than a decade has done enough damage to his remaining organs by this point that he doesn't know how much good it would do him to consider the possibility of using a different technology now. but it's still tempting to try, if he can figure out how to do it. ]
Ah, well... [He hesitates. Even to Yuri he wouldn't talk about this kind of thing, at least to avoid causing more worry than he already does, so this is the first time he's ever been asked. Still--] It ain't comfortable at the best of times, but I'm used to that. It's only when I strain it too much that it hurts.
[In other words, it's nothing too debilitating that he can't go about his everyday life unaided, unlike Rideaux. He just has less by way of stamina.]
Oh yeah? [The remark, followed by the lack of elaboration, both get a raised eyebrow from Raven. But he doesn't say anything more, taking the paper. He reads and rereads it, just to make sure there's nothing in the phrasing that'll catch him out later.
Then he signs (no surname or titles, just 'Raven', for whatever that's worth), adds the date, and hands it back to Rideaux.]
There. Here's hoping this'll be a useful arrangement for both of us, eh?
[ rideaux glances down at the signature, and wonders if that's truly this man's full name. he doesn't like being associated with his family name himself, and avoids giving it out for the most part, but he still uses it on official documents and contracts. but whatever, this is a fairly casual agreement, so he'll let it go.
he folds the paper neatly in half and slips it under the vial on the table. ]
I'll be in touch once I have some results to report, then.
[ the "please show yourself out" is assumed to be understood. ]
[And here Raven was ready to curl up on Rideaux's couch and take a nap. ...Except not really, since the frosty reception makes him eager to get going now they don't have anything more to discuss.
He gets to his feet.]
Right. And I'll let ya know as soon as I can pin down a bodhi blastia. [He turns, then, and is halfway to the door when he figures he should check...] Ya gonna be all right getting everything together?
[What with the leg injury and all. He doesn't look like he has anyone on hand to just help him out with things, either.]
[ that's accurate; since ivar didn't follow him here, he hasn't had anyone around to help him with anything since he arrived. as annoying as it is having to do menial tasks himself, though, it's hardly as if he doesn't know how to fend for himself. ]
I appreciate the concern, but I'll manage.
[ having your subordinates do things for you on your orders is one thing, but relying on someone else to help you when they aren't contractually obligated to do so shifts the balance of power, and is somehow humiliating instead of empowering. ]
Do tell me if something starts to feel different than usual in the meantime.
Sure thing. [He won't push the matter any further. No point denting the guy's pride more than it already has been, especially when he does seem to be able to get around to an extent.]
See ya around then, buddy.
[He gives a lazy wave, and leaves. Aren't you so excited to be this loser's best buddy and pal?]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ahh gotcha! I haven't found many good resources for translated doujins yet, tbh
[Togami gave him a week, so it sounds like he won't have any grumpy rich kids biting his head off any time soon. To the question, he hums thoughtfully, thinking back on it. Again he doesn't have any reason not to tell Rideaux, when everyone stands to benefit from this kind of information.]
Ah, well... It was pretty derelict. I snooped around an old office and found some old accounting stuff. The others in my group found another room with an empty cage, where it sounds like they were doin' experiments on monsters whenever the place was in use. There were other rooms, but I haven't been able to get outta the little scamp that made it there about what she saw.
[She's not the most eloquent, for one, and he's not about to press an eleven-year-old girl to relive what are likely traumatic memories. Maybe later down the line it'll happen, but not anytime soon.]
After that I was in a bad way, so I'm a little fuzzy on the details, but we found a room with lotsa screens and machines. That was when the others found a bunch of vials like the one I just gave you. We figured we'd just get the one tested for now.
[And if this one is damaged or mysteriously goes missing, at least they won't have given them all away at once.]
no subject
So biological experiments, then. In that case, we can at least expect that it's intended to have some effect on organic matter.
[ he is curious about those other rooms... as far as he's concerned if they can't get the information out of the kid they're just not trying hard enough. there are more important things here than some little girl's feelings. besides, children are resilient -- he's certainly living proof of that. ]
You say "for now" like you have plans to go back.
no subject
[He still doesn't know much about Rideaux, so even paying him off isn't guarantee a lot of valuable stuff would be safe in one pair of hands, especially after the risks they took to get it in the first place. And even if Rideaux proves trustworthy, CERES could always decide they wanted to reclaim any of what was stolen by force.]
Maybe some other time we could go back down there... But it ain't worth it unless we had antidotes or a skilled healer around.
no subject
Of course. So you still know how to find it?
[ the exit his group had escaped from had disappeared as soon as they'd made it out, so he doesn't know how he could find it again if he wanted to.
he's also tempted to point out that he's a skilled healer, but thinks better of it -- it would hardly look convincing right now when he can't even fix his own broken limb. which is exceedingly frustrating, because back in elympios, he'd been publicly known for his skill at saving lives and treating injuries. now that he's here in this world where spyrix is useless, though, after all his talk about the superiority of elympion medical technology, healing arte users like ludger's rieze maxian friends have him beat. it's humiliating, and it really pisses him off.
he takes another drink. ]
no subject
Oh well.]
Sure, unless CERES decided to block it off since then. [It's a guess, considering he never actually made it out himself.] Then again, if they have more of their little test subjects in there, they might decide those are a better deterrent for anyone who wants ta snoop.
no subject
[ he'd imagined it would have been the same for everyone who'd been in a similar situation -- like CERES had just been waiting for them to leave so they could patch up the exits and pretend it had never happened. it's a little curious, though, that they hadn't just transported everyone back out immediately if they didn't want them there. were those underground areas somehow out of their reach? ]
But all right, then. I'll work on analyzing this, and you work on getting me your friend's blastia. Does that sound good?
no subject
[Neither of them really know just how long either job will take, when both are big question marks, so Raven is wondering if maybe it's better to wait and pay according to that. The blastia in particular is likely to take some serious work, moreso than identifying the sample.
But then, Rideaux's payment preferences might be a little different to how guilds back home strike deals, so he's willing to go with whatever he's happy with.]
no subject
[ this is his payment preference -- bleeding people dry once he's already performed his services for them so that they can't decide to take their business somewhere less expensive. though in this case, he doesn't have any intention of charging anything too exorbitant. bisley isn't directing him to intentionally trap anyone in debt this time, obviously, and studying the blastia aligns with his own interests enough that he doesn't want to drive away the person who can give him access to it.
anyway, who knows if a piece of paper like that would actually be considered legally binding here, but he can sure give it a try. ]
Nothing personal.
no subject
[He says it like it's been years already, when he's only been around these parts for a few weeks. But it's still a huge difference, when he's used to relying on the honour of the guilds and the Union in doing business. Especially right at the top in Altosk.
He expected something like this, though, so he won't be too offended. Raven shrugs.]
So long as ya put nothin' objectionable in the fine print, then sure. [He's not that desperate. If Rideaux is angling to bleed him dry, he'd sooner just take his chances with CERES or find someone else.]
no subject
[ for all the similarities in their technology, their worlds are very different when it comes to this sort of thing. he lives in a world of corporate lawyers and debt collectors. accepting a verbal contract on the basis of honor is something few people in elympios would be naive enough to do these days.
he takes a pen and prescription pad from the end table beside him and starts to write: With my signature I acknowledge that I have entered into a binding agreement with Rideaux Zek Rugievit. In exchange for professional analysis of a chemical sample I agree to reimburse his services at a reasonable and customary hourly rate, yet to be determined.
at some point before finishing though, there's a slight pause, and his pen briefly stops moving. ]
Out of curiosity, what side effects do blastia have on their users?
no subject
Normally they're harmless, so long as ya don't fool around with 'em. [Which goes without saying, like working with any kind of delicate equipment...] I guess the only thing I could think of is if ya used too many artes, then you'd get tired out real fast, even without a blastia like mine.
no subject
[ the daily cocktail of drugs he's been taking to manage his own pain for more than a decade has done enough damage to his remaining organs by this point that he doesn't know how much good it would do him to consider the possibility of using a different technology now. but it's still tempting to try, if he can figure out how to do it. ]
no subject
[In other words, it's nothing too debilitating that he can't go about his everyday life unaided, unlike Rideaux. He just has less by way of stamina.]
no subject
[ he doesn't elaborate on that remark, but finishes what he's writing and tears the page from the pad. ]
Just sign and date.
[ he hands the piece of paper over along with the pen. ]
no subject
Then he signs (no surname or titles, just 'Raven', for whatever that's worth), adds the date, and hands it back to Rideaux.]
There. Here's hoping this'll be a useful arrangement for both of us, eh?
no subject
[ rideaux glances down at the signature, and wonders if that's truly this man's full name. he doesn't like being associated with his family name himself, and avoids giving it out for the most part, but he still uses it on official documents and contracts. but whatever, this is a fairly casual agreement, so he'll let it go.
he folds the paper neatly in half and slips it under the vial on the table. ]
I'll be in touch once I have some results to report, then.
[ the "please show yourself out" is assumed to be understood. ]
no subject
He gets to his feet.]
Right. And I'll let ya know as soon as I can pin down a bodhi blastia. [He turns, then, and is halfway to the door when he figures he should check...] Ya gonna be all right getting everything together?
[What with the leg injury and all. He doesn't look like he has anyone on hand to just help him out with things, either.]
no subject
I appreciate the concern, but I'll manage.
[ having your subordinates do things for you on your orders is one thing, but relying on someone else to help you when they aren't contractually obligated to do so shifts the balance of power, and is somehow humiliating instead of empowering. ]
Do tell me if something starts to feel different than usual in the meantime.
no subject
See ya around then, buddy.
[He gives a lazy wave, and leaves. Aren't you so excited to be this loser's best buddy and pal?]