Previously in NWC-
Reno continues to laze around the clinic bed, nothing much going on. That is until he meets CeCe, the merchant who does all external business for Bambadale. She wastes no time in attempting to employ Reno's help. She claims to possibly know where a power shard is, offering Reno a proposition...
"A proposition, you say?" Reno's heart feels like it's going to explode with suspense.
"That's right! You're a certain someone who needs a certain something. And I'm a certain someone who's looking to help with that something, in exchange for something of my own!" CeCe continues to smile, but it's less devious and more passive at this point.
"Look, man. You can't sit here and say shit like that and expect me to be mature about it."
CeCe's eyes scrunch with confusion before she finally bursts out with laughter. "God, you boys are all idiots, I swear." She recollects herself, her cheeks red from laughter. "Get your mind out of the gutter, perv!" CeCe manages to continue on despite Reno's comment. "I need help with something. From what I heard; you held your own in a fight. I need someone who's skillset is more geared towards combat. Are you interested in hearing more?"
Reno puts his hand on his head, thinking. He scratches his head before finally responding. "You said you may or may not know where the thing is. At this point I need all the help I can get. I'll listen to what you have to say."
CeCe nods her head and smiles, already knowing what the outcome would be. "Alright! First, let's lay out what we hope to gain from this conversation, okay? You want to know where the strange shared is, and I need help that may require the help of a combatant. Does that sound about right?"
"That about sums it up, yes."
"Great! Now, let's talk. I said I might need the help of a combatant, but I didn't tell you with what. I'm not a horrible person, so I'll at least give you as many details as I have. The place I would be asking you to go is the ruins of an underground civilization that failed centuries ago. The reason I need someone who can fight is because there is most definitely going to be nasty undead crawling all over the place. Any questions so far?"
"You said you may or may not know where what I'm looking for is. What did you mean by this? Do you, for a fact, know where it is."
"I do not. I've heard rumors about it, but the sources of those rumors are quite reputable. In the event that we don't find it, I'll pay you 1,000 dulls next month when I come to Bambadale again."
Reno's eyebrow begins to furrow. "So if I don't get what I want then I not only leave empty handed, but have to wait an entire month to get paid? That seems like a bit of a gamble on my part."
"I understand, and I wouldn't be opposed to sweetening the deal if you wanted." CeCe sighs, but not a frustrated sigh. "Look. I love this adorable little town, and I'm just as happy that you protected it as anyone else. I don't want to give you my life savings, but I'm willing to make extra deals with you. As a merchant, that's the last thing I want to do, but I'll happily make an exception. You don't seem very savvy in terms of business, so I'll help you, 'kay?"
Reno scratches his head again. "Okay, I guess."
"Great! Now, you brought up a great point. It is a gamble for you and at the very worst you're out of luck for a month. A way to avoid losing out on 100% of the profits, you could ask for more money, or even an advance."
"Oh, I get it." Reno clears his throat, backtracking. "That's a bit of a gamble. I'm going to need half of the payment up front before I commit to anything."
CeCe giggles as she pulls out a small pouch. "Of course!"
"There is no way you have 500 in that tiny ass ba-" Reno's voice is cut off as he watches CeCe pull out 500 coins from a bag that should only be able to hold 20. "What the fuck?!"
CeCe laughs at his sudden outburst. "It's a spatial bag. I presume it's your time seeing one, which isn't uncommon. When you work in trade you happen upon some cool stuff!" CeCe flashes a playful smirk as she puts all 500 dulls on display. "I have the down payment on hand. I'd be able to get the remainder next month. Are you still interested?"
Reno's heart races at seeing this amount of money in front of him. "I might be. What exactly are you looking for in these ruin, exactly?"
"My sources have reason to suspect that a treasury might be around down there, and with it, a large sum of money."
"How much money?"
"I don't know an exact number, but it will easily cover the costs involved with everything."
Reno thinks to himself. "(I have no other leads on another power shard. Even if there's no power shard I at least get 1,000 dulls and some experience. But can I really fight undead? I only made it out alive because the old man was there. How long would I be gone? I should ask her.) So, roughly how long would this trip take?"
"The total length of time, considering the fact that I need to run orders from Bambadale, would be about a month. Two weeks for travel for me to complete orders, at least 2 days of preparation before we leave, and 4 days of travel to and from the ruins. I was thinking we could have 3 days to set up camp, explore the ruins and the surrounding area, and then get what we came for. It's only 23 days, but just in case we run into any problems we have that 7-day buffer to reach the one-month mark."
"(So, I'd be gone from three to four weeks? I can't really expect Luna and Medusa to be in the forest all alone like that. I wish I knew what to do with them. What if I just bring them? I wonder if CeCe is the kind of person to rat someone out? If we brought Medusa then fighting would be infinitely easier.)" Reno begins to get lost in thought as he contemplates his options. "So, let me ask you a hypothetical question."
"Shoot!"
"What if someone you met had a weirds unidentifiable creature that had a bunch of vines and could easily fight?"
"I'd probably look at them like they were crazy, but it's not really my business what people choose to keep around as a pet."
"So, hypothetically, if I had one and brought her, would you tell anyone?"
CeCe is confused by his question but manages to answer it. "Not unless the thing being around was a hazard to other people."
"Okay, okay. And what if they had a floating ball of light that talks?"
CeCe looks at Reno with a bit of worry in her eyes. "Your party members sound quite… eccentric."
"Look man, I took what I could get."
CeCe clears her throat before speaking again. "Well, I won't judge you, but I definitely need to meet these two before I agree to anything. You were going to ask if they could come along, were you not?"
"Yeah, I was. I don't feel comfortable just leaving them for that long. Oh, and one thing; please do not tell anyone. I made a huge risk just by telling you this."
CeCe laughs playfully. "Your secret is safe with me! I'll take it to the grave if I have too!"
Finally happy with the outcome, Reno nods his head. "You've got a deal. 500 now then the other 500 later. Do I get to keep the money even if we find the shard?"
"Of course! Every honest job deserves honest payment. I'll make sure you get everything that's owed to you, I promise."
Seemingly pleased with her response, Reno nods his head. "Alright then. When do you leave Bambadale to start your orders?"
"I'll leave here in three days. I believe that should be enough time to let me get all the orders and set out. Do you know when you're going to be better? I get that you were stabbed, but I'm very much looking forward to getting this done. I've been looking for help for awhile now, so this is quite the opportunity."
Reno looks at his body that is still heavily wrapped in bandages. "Honestly, I feel fine right now, just a bit sluggish from all the sleeping. I think the doc was gonna let me leave today or tomorrow, so I should have enough time to get stretched out and make sure I'm 100 percent before we leave."
"Great! I love it when plans come to fruition!" CeCe shakes happily as her excitement begins swelling. "In that case, I'll leave you to it! I'll leave in a couple days, then come back roughly a week later. I'll check up on you when I come back if I don't see you by the time I leave. Goodbye for now, Reno!" CeCe excitedly stuffs the coins back in her pouch and leaves the room, going about her business.
TO BE CONTINUED...