Episode 15: "Bidding" Our Time

**Episode 15: "Bidding" Our Time** (C1E15) is the fifteenth episode of the first campaign of The Table is Yours: A Role-playing Adventure Show. The Faded Fates are auctioned off to a very lucky patron after Balthazar's reveal of a dead body...

## Synopsis

### Vorano's Dead

The Faded Fates anxiously stare out at the crowd, waiting for someone to offer a bid for their patronage. Lady Serafima Rousseau lifts her veil and makes a bid: 30,000 gold. The group is shocked. Balthazar calls out, “going once!”. The party frantically scours the crowd to see if anyone else will dare to outbid Lady Serafima, but the other attendees are silent. Codex tries to speak to Balthazar in his mind; she asks him to bid on us as well to hopefully encourage others to go for it. He just scoffs a bit and speaks again, “going twice!”. The group accepts their fate as Balthazar calls out, “sold to Lady Serafima Rousseau!”. The crowd applauds politely as Lady Serafima approaches the center of the courtyard. She delivers an emotional speech about how she is honored to represent such fine heroes who are so dedicated to protecting the Burg. She is especially proud to be the patron of her own niece; at this moment, her Polished Wall guards surround One and grab her by the arm to guide her up front. Serafima continues and proclaims she is so happy to be reunited as a family with her lovely niece, Cornelia Rousseau. She locks eyes with One in that moment as a glint of orange glosses over her pupils, which One knows to read as a threat. When Serafima finally arrives at the center of everything, she is met by Isa who offers her a bow and a hand to thank her for her donation, but Serafima insists that she should be bowing for them, and as she does this, the rest of the crowd bow with her.

Lop Teh takes over for Balthazar as the crowd disperses. One is immediately dragged away by Lady Serafima, and the rest of the group is left standing, in shock, around the corpse of Vorano. Terrance stares at his old boss for a moment, taking in the fact that he is actually dead, or at least looks like he is. Terrace notes he isn’t wearing his usual jacket. The jacket Vorano typically wore had his symbol on it, and Terrance is surprised he isn’t wearing it now. All things considered, Vorano is dressed rather well for someone who was executed for terrorism. As Terrance leans in for closer inspection, the lid snaps shut as Balthazar appears in frame. He condescendingly congratulates Terrance and the rest of the party for a job well done and makes his way inside. Suddenly, from behind Isa, Cazamir appears. He introduces himself as Balthazar and Fiara’s brother and as Isa’s boyfriend, at her request, and tells them he will probably be seeing them around. Unsettled, Shae, Wash, and Terrance decide to head outside for some fresh air. Isa stays with Cazamir, and Codex runs off to speak with Balthazar again.

Codex finds Balthazar drinking a dark red wine by the bar. She speaks with him about the “deal” they had made. She says she never really agreed to anything, so she isn’t sure if she owes him a favor, especially since she just asked him to kill Vorano. He tells her she doesn’t necessarily owe him anything, since there was never a “formal agreement”, however, it would be awfully disappointing to do something for someone and not receive anything in return. Something like that may prevent him from wanting to help that person in the future; he gives a side glance to Codex, who is processing what this means for herself and the party. She twists her hands together and glances around the room when she feels Balthazar’s hand on her chin forcing her to look him in the eyes. He tells her that Vorano is dead because of her, and that is a good thing. Now it is just a matter of what she is willing to give in return. He isn’t asking for it now, but when that time comes, it will test the trust they have in each other. He gives her a wicked smile and tells her he is going to enjoy the event.

### It's a Family Event

One is guided by Lady Serafima for a private conversation to a hidden room somewhere else in the venue. Upon entering, the handle of the door and the latches on the windows all flare up with red heat, sealing them to the outside. One, or Cornelia at this moment, is still carrying the dress that Darrien had given her, so once they enter the room, she begins to change into it. Serafima looks at her and asks what name she is going by these days; Adelaide, Cornelia, or should she call her One? Does that make Axel “Two” considering the circumstances? Connie glares as she pulls up her dress, and Serafima makes a note of her leg as she does so. Serafima looks at her niece and tells her that she owns The Faded Fates and, by proxy, she owns her. They don’t have to be enemies, though; she explains that she just wants to be a family again, and suggests that’s what Ezra would’ve wanted. Connie finally breaks and tells her that she destroyed their family, and anything bad that happened can be traced back to something horrible that Lady Serafima had done. Serafima looks at Connie with a smile and says that the only one who destroyed the family was her, that Connie pushed the snowball down the hill until it was too big to stop, and eventually, it crashed and that was her fault. Connie says if that is the case, then Serafima was the snow, that she killed her own daughter to save face, and even then it didn’t fix anything. Serafima tosses her hair and says that Adelaide was a traitor to the Burg and deserved to be hanged. Regardless, Serafima informs Connie that they can do this the easy way or the hard way, and considering she owns her niece's little adventuring party, she hopes that Connie will choose the easy way. Connie stands still for a moment and eventually, with a sigh, agrees as long as she leaves her friends out of it. Serafima grins and calls Connie a good girl as the two leave the room.

Isa, eager to cover her tracks after so publicly being announced as an adventurer, finds her parents in the cocktail area, and they quickly embrace her. She doesn’t even have a chance to lie before they come up with a story for her. They rant and rave about how impressed they are with her ability to balance a triple major and extracurricular adventuring, and they can’t imagine how busy she is. She laughs awkwardly and tells them that she is just doing her best and wants to make them proud. She tells them she wants to be a Holy Knight like her father. Salvador’s eyes well with tears at her lie. He is so proud of his daughter and pulls her in for another hug. Wiping away his tears, he wonders how she ever has time for herself with everything she’s doing. Elena chimes in to say that she hopes she makes enough time to see her boyfriend. Isa winces a bit and looks over at Cazamir. She tells them that she should probably make some time for him right now and that they can meet him another time… he’s a little shy. They give their daughter one last embrace as she makes her way to Cazamir.

Isa thanks him for playing the part of her boyfriend for the night, saying she didn’t know who else to ask. Ever blunt, he asks if her parents don’t know that her lover is dead. Isa winces again and tells him they do not know he is dead. It is easier to pretend that someone else is her partner than to deal with their questions. Changing the subject, she asks again why he is keeping such a close eye on her adventuring party. He tells her it is simple: Balthazar is interested in them for some reason and is clearly making moves to use them. Keeping an eye on The Faded Fates is easier and safer than trying to keep watch over Balthazar. As he starts to further explain, Cazamir’s arm is grabbed by Fiara as she tells him they need to talk. He gives Isa a farewell nod as he is escorted away by his sister.

### Quick Convos

While everyone else is on the dance floor trying to stay calm and wrap their heads around the night's events, Terrance sits at the bar with v2. Someone sits down next to him and asks how he is doing. He starts to say how parties aren’t usually his thing as he looks up to see the legend and hero, Nova Infernus, in the seat next to him. He stammers for a moment, surprised that this legendary hero is speaking to him. She smiles and tells him parties aren’t really her thing either, especially nowadays. Terrance shifts in his seat awkwardly as she continues. She noticed that his party seemed a bit surprised by the events of the evening. He half-heartedly agrees, unsure of whether to give away his actual feelings about the night, and he settles on telling her that it was unexpected for sure. Nova pauses for a moment and then asks if she can offer him some advice. He accepts, and she tells him to trust his gut; she doesn’t know what is going on, and she doesn’t get involved with things like this anymore, but she sensed some tension. She tells him the best thing to do as an adventurer is to trust yourself; if your gut is telling you something is wrong or right, listen to it. Terrance chuckles and says he’s been having a lot of gut feelings recently. He asks Nova if it was hard for her to trust her party initially. She lets out a wistful sigh like she is deep in her memories, and she says it takes time to trust people in such dramatic and intense situations, but it will happen when you least expect it. Everyone has their secrets, and they will be revealed if they need to be, but until then, you have to trust yourself the most. At this point, her husband, Kleptarus Dhenozath, approaches and tells her they would need to be leaving shortly. Nova and Terrance say their goodbyes as Kleptar also gives a word of congratulations to Terrance. Terrance continues to watch his party members from the comfort of the bar until they gather towards the end of the night. Isa, Shae, and Codex are approached by Cazamir who offers, although declining isn’t really an option, a meeting with his sister the following day. He tells them that Fiara has much to discuss with them.

As the event begins to disperse, the group decides to make their way back to the Echochamber for some rest and to report back to Big T the events of the evening. Before they depart completely, however, Isa stops to speak with Maude. Avoiding all pleasantries, Isa jumps straight into telling her that Balthazar has an undead army. Maude reacts as expected. She asks if this information is credible, and Isa tells her it is. After thinking on it for a moment, Maude asks if Isa will still be in contact with them, or if she is out of the Red Raven Adventuring Guild entirely. Isa wants to keep in contact with Maude and the guild, and she suggests Maude speak with Shawm because she has a feeling he knows more than he leads on. Maude agrees, and expresses her concerns with the guild leader. Before his reluctance to share information didn’t seem like a big deal, but at this point it makes her suspicious. Maude asks what information Isa wants her to pass on to him. Isa doesn’t want him to know much, just a basic report. They decide to keep their knowledge of the undead army to themselves, seeing as they believe Shawm is already aware of this fact. Maude requests that Isa stay in contact because her trust in Shawm is wavering. Maude gives Isa a silver-banded ring with a ruby stone, a sending ring, and two part after an awkward hug as Isa rushes to catch up with the rest of the group.

### Problems

Upon their arrival at The Lost & Found, the group sees Darrien already debriefing Big T on what happened, so they decide to grab a round and head to Codex’s room to have a team meeting of sorts, or a “friendship evening” in Codex’s words. Much to her behest, the first topic of discussion is asking her why the hell she invited Balthazar to the fundraiser. She tells them she thought the best way to learn information was straight from the source, and she felt that she could get that information from him. One asks why he responded to her, and Codex shrugs and gestures to herself with a smile. She also refers to their first meeting at the gala because it was a fairly confusing first conversation, and she thought that piqued his interest. She then tells the group that her main goal with inviting him was so she could bargain with him about killing Vorano. This surprises the rest of the party and prompts many questions, and Codex reveals that she did have this conversation with Balthazar before Vorano turned up dead.

At this point, One requests a pause to discuss what everyone knows about Balthazar. Terrance rambles off the information that they know and what they can assume; Balthazar is a vampire, he is almost certainly involved with the infestation in the Tenth, and he is using Terrance’s serum as a base and incorporating necromancy, as seen on the brutes outside of Kirik’s. Shae mentions they also know that he is the brother of Cazamir and Fiara, Bull of the Neremont Society. Terrance then brings up, for Codex and One who weren’t there, that Cazamir approached the group and told them Fiara wanted to speak with them the following day. Cazamir hadn’t said why, but Terrance asks Isa if she has an idea because she is closer to him. She tells them that she has a feeling Fiara wants to speak with One and Codex specifically, but there is a possibility that she will want to speak to everyone. The party knows that Cazamir and Fiara probably aren’t close with Balthazar, from Cazamir’s word, and from seeing Fiara and Balthazar fighting at the gala. Codex then asks, if they do meet with Fiara, what will they tell her, because with Darrien and Shawm, they seemed to tell them everything. Terrance says he trusts Darrien to an extent because they are already familiar with the pockets and Murkside. Shawm is a guild leader, so Terrance assumes he can be trusted. He then asks if they are still working for the RRAG at this point, and no one is able to answer that question. One then poses the question, “why do we care?”. As in, about Balthazar. The party was never assigned to kill him or even learn about him, and he just got in their way. Now their mission is completed, and Vorano is dead, assumedly, so why should they care? Isa speaks up and says that they should care because he is clearly tied to everything, not to mention the power play of killing Vorano and then aiding Lady Serafima in purchasing The Faded Fates. It is safest to keep eyes on him.

Terrance redirects to One/Connie and asks if she is cool with working for her aunt. She says she isn’t and that they just need to stay in their lane and out of trouble because her aunt is dangerous. At the end of the day, they need to treat this like it is a normal patronage and mind their business. One tells them that Lady Serafima killed her own daughter, and she isn’t above killing anyone else. Shae asks if this was Adelaide and asks why she was killed. One tells the group that Adelaide was publicly executed for releasing criminals who were a danger to society. The party agrees not to look into the Ninth Precinct, but if they do, to tread lightly and keep it to themselves.

Codex brings one more thing to the table before everyone makes their leave. She requests a numerical list of all of their problems so that everyone has a firm grasp on what they are dealing with. For example, she references Vorano being dead which, even if they don’t believe he is fully dead, solves one of their problems. So the party goes through all of what they might be concerned about, but One makes it very clear, to Codex specifically, that their only real problems right now are Balthazar, Vorano if he’s not actually dead, and nothing else. This statement shuts Codex up and alerts the party that there may be something going on that they aren’t talking about, but Codex covers her tracks pretty well. With that, One takes it upon herself to dismiss the meeting, and everyone goes their separate ways.

### They Know

Isa corners Codex as everyone leaves her room. Isa requests that this conversation is had using the Message spell so there isn’t a chance of being overheard. Isa decides to be as straightforward as possible and tells Codex that Fiara knows she stole the Darkroot Diamond and that she also knows that One was involved. Codex is shocked to say the least, and she asks why Fiara knows about all of this, but Isa doesn't have an answer. She tells Codex that she just wants to share the information so that she will be mentally prepared for their meeting with Fiara the following day. Codex, who is still overwhelmed by this reveal, says that now that she knows that they know, she is going to be even more nervous at the meeting and will be more tempted to say things that she probably shouldn’t say. Codex breathes for a moment and tells Isa that if she doesn’t want her to say something, she just needs to tell her. Codex continues that she’s capable of keeping secrets but gets frustrated because she can’t do that if she doesn’t know it is a secret in the first place. Isa understands and doesn’t think Codex needs to hide anything about this if she doesn’t want to. Isa tells her that she doesn’t care that Codex stole this diamond, but Fiara clearly does, and she wants to make that known before we walk into her domain.

Isa also trusts that Codex will let her know if they are in any danger because of this event. Codex says that they are, obviously, and now because Fiara knows, they may have the Neremont Society and the Onyx Obscurity after them. Isa reels from this and asks who she stole the diamond for to which Codex tells her that it was stolen for the Bull of the Onyx Obscurity. Before Isa can say anything more, Codex continues and tells her that this was her “trial” mission for Shawm and the Red Ravens. This makes Isa falter. Codex rambles on and tells Isa about the mission. She says it was easy, she just had to show up, take the diamond, and then hand it over to the lady from the Onyx Obscurity. Codex explains that she didn’t really know the extent of her mission because she was just doing as Shawm told her. Isa asks if that was the last time she saw the Bull, but Codex tells her that the party saw her before the gala when One left with her. Codex also mentions that she drank Almond’s Apple, the drink that makes people forget a certain amount of time, but she remembers everything that she did, so if she did forget something, she couldn’t remember what that would be. Isa pauses, takes in everything she was told, and wraps up the conversation. Codex says that she will try to keep her cool at the meeting the next day by channeling Wash, but that she appreciates Isa telling her Fiara knows.

### A Reading Lesson

Codex then takes off to Wash’s room to try and expedite the learning to read process, but unfortunately she has more trouble than either of them anticipated. Wash tells her he will try to come up with a better lesson plan to help her through this. Codex is frustrated, so she asks Wash to give her a fun fact about himself and then she will leave. He is slightly taken aback by this request, but eventually tells her that he was homeschooled, which may be why he’s not the best teacher for her. She accepts this fun fact and goes up for a high-five, which he reluctantly reciprocates. She smacks his hand way too hard and then makes her way back to her room.

### Science Team Secrets

Meanwhile, One, Shae, and Terrance make their way to One’s room for some science experiments. As they enter, One takes her armor off and asks Terrance what languages he speaks. He speaks Common and some Elvish but can read both. She then uses Elvish to create a code that only she and Terrance are able to read. One then asks Shae about her shadow-gating abilities. Shae moves in and out of smaller and smaller shadows until they are too small for her to step through. All the while, Terrance is observing and writing down what they are learning. After some experimenting, One tells Shae that she can potentially make a device that casts shadows for her to move through. Terrance expresses interest in this endeavor and says that although he isn’t practiced in her line of work, he can at least follow a blueprint. One is excited by this and is curious to know more about his alchemical works, but Terrance scours at the word “alchemy.” He explains that what he does is a lot like alchemy, however, what he is doing involves no magic.

This surprises Shae and One tremendously. Terrance explains that he has no magical or arcane abilities, besides the innate magic that exists in mortals. He continues to say that everything has an innate magic to it, which is why some components for spells aren’t magical by themselves, but are able to be used to cast. His serums use items that are not magical by themselves, but when used together, create a reaction. Alchemy is the idea of taking something and transforming it into something new, and his practice focuses more on the effects of different combinations. He tells them that his creations started out harmless. He wanted to create a serum that increased muscle mass and changed the body over time with continuous consumption, but that is a difficult feat for a teenager, especially with the resources he had access to. The reason Terrance started to work for Vorano in the first place was because he supplied Terrance with the materials he needed to achieve his goals. One asks Terrance if his experiments and serums are like brewing. He lights up and declares that it is a perfect example of what he is doing because the brewing process is a lot like alchemy, but nothing is being transformed into something new; it is all chemical reactions. If the “Al” in alchemy is in reference to the arcane, then he is utilizing the chemical portion of the process. After rambling for a while, he caves into himself and apologizes for taking up so much time. One, however, is intrigued and hopes that they can work together to create things in the future. Shae agrees that their collaboration could bear interesting results, and she also offers to gather ingredients for Terrance.

After a pause in their experiments and other scientific ramblings, One takes a moment to ask Shae a question. She asks Shae if she is from the Grove; she explains that she had seen magic like Shae’s before. Shae raises an eyebrow and asks who she had seen with this magic. Terrance understands this is going to be a one-on-one conversation and excuses himself for the night. One asks if Shae is familiar with the name Kuzon. One doesn’t know much else about this person, but he looked human and he used the same magic. One and Kuzon worked together, and at first he seemed trustworthy, but she didn’t know how he acquired the magic that he had. One then asks Shae rapid-fire questions: she asks Shae where she learned this magic, to which she responds that she has had it since she was born, but she doesn’t wish to speak of her parents. One asks Shae if she knows any people of power in the Grove, and Shae says she does.

She shifts topics to ask what is under the tree in the center of the Grove, and Shae says there are lots of things under the tree. Cutting straight to the chase, while still being very vague, One tells Shae that she knows what is under the tree. Shae asks how she knows about that, to which One replies, “circumstance,” but elaborates to say that she has never been there. One then asks Shae if she knows that, “one of them was missing.” Shae furrows her brow and thinks for a moment. She essentially asks if One didn’t steal it, then who? One redirects by asking Shae if she knows what “they” are. Shae knows, so One asks what “they” are. Shae says that she can’t tell her, plus One already knows what they are. Shae asks if One knows where “it” is and One tells her no but makes a face that expresses that she is clearly lying. Shae’s face turns dark and serious as she asks her next question, “did you steal it from the museum two years ago? If not, do you know who did?”. One, unlike the previous question, answers solidly with a no despite it being untrue. After all of the vague conversation, the two agree to find it together. Shae explains that she had a job when she was young and she failed, and “it” missing is a reminder of that. The two shake hands and One offers an, “I’m sorry” to which Shae responds, “you should be”.

### Surprise!

The following day, Cazamir arrives outside the June Box to escort the Faded Fates to their meeting with Fiara. As he walks through the streets, illusory magic makes him look more human and makes Cower, his displacer beast companion, look like a normal rottweiler. He leads them to the front of the Aurel Envoys office and then asks the party to agree to be transported into the Neremont Society. Eventually everyone agrees, especially after Cazamir says it will be painful if they don’t agree. Cazamir strums a spectral guitar and, as shadows pour out of it, they are transported to a pristine, white office. At the center of this round office, with books lining the walls, is an obsidian desk, and at it sits Fiara.

Fiara is pale with off-white hair, rose-colored irises and sunglasses to match. She swivels around in her chair as everyone approaches her desk. She wastes no time and cuts right to the chase. She explains that she matched Serafima’s bid to be the patron of the Faded Fates, so she will be supporting them alongside her. Shae asks why she did this and if she is associated with Serafima. Fiara says that she is, but not by choice. Lady Serafima is associated with her brother, Balthazar, so by default she is also involved. The two had struck a deal to share the patronage. Fiara gets to keep the Faded Fates in the Third instead of the Ninth, but they will still have to report to Serafima for work on occasion. If the two patrons give the party opposing tasks, they will take Fiara’s without question because she is a Bull and overall has more power and say. After a moment's pause, and Fiara’s prompt for questions, Terrance chimes in to ask what her plans are for the party.

Fiara wants them to stop Balthazar, but not to kill him. Despite his wrongdoings, he is still her brother, and she wants him alive. She isn’t fully aware of his plans at the moment, but most of what they are looking into already is his doing. She flashes her fangs to display that she, too, is a vampire. Since their transformation, Balthazar was never willing to comply with social norms. Now, given his freedom, she believes he is beyond saving, but still wants him to stay alive, even if he has to be locked away. Wash asks Fiara what he is capable of. She doesn’t answer his question, but instead asks if they have mutual trust. The party agrees, seeing that their goals are aligned and that she can’t be much worse than Serafima. With that agreement, Fiara waves her hands a bit as her visage shifts into that of Phoebe.