Aurelia Rising

"Whiles I am a beggar, I will rail and say there is no sin but to be rich; and being rich, my virtue then shall be to say there is no vice but beggary"

- William Shakespeare, The Life and Death of King John.

"Ughh! Why are we out here already again? I thought we'd have at least a week off before getting ourselves into more foolishness." Said Junia as she dragged her feet behind Aurelia and Thessa, slumping her shoulders and walking with an exaggerated gait. Highlighting just how displeased she was with being up this early.

"Because existing costs money, and sitting on our asses is a great way to be tempted into taking stupid jobs!" Responded Aurelia. It was two days after they had returned to Rome. They had spend most of yesterday sleeping in, cleaning themselves in actual Roman baths and eating good food. Aurelia felt like a new woman, and she knew Thessa felt the same. Junia probably would have, but she had decided to try and "celebrate" their recent success with Monin. There were plenty of lessons to be learned at the bottom of a cup, most of them regretful.

"Then why are we spending all our money today?" Whined Junia. "We just earned it."

"Oh quit your whining, think of it as investments in our futures. And besides, not all of us have families to send money back to."

"It was only a portion!"

Junia had sent roughly a third of her earnings to her family. Apparently, she wanted to convince her father that her adventuring was really viable for her, and not some young woman's fancy. Plus, if Aurelia could read between the lines, Junia probably felt a little guilty about being away from her household, even if she could now help contribute financially.

Walking the narrow streets of Rome was both comfortingly familiar, and oddly uncomfortable. The city was growing faster than the builders could handle, but as they made their way closer to the more developed centre, the roads became wider and cleaner. The trio of women received plenty of looks, but no one impeded them this time. Aurelia saw glimpses of movement in dark side alleys as they walked, the gaps between buildings small enough that little light reached the bottom. Discontent was brewing within the city walls, news of the greenskin menace to the eastward interior had spread to the common populace, and word of success or glory from the southern war had yet to grace their ears. Disparate peoples from the countryside had made their way into the safety of the cities. Not true desperation yet, but tensions were rising. She could feel it. And wherever discontent rose, there would always be those who sought to take advantage. They had only been back a short while, but they could already feel this shift in undertone.

"Where is that dwarf?" Muttered Aurelia, tapping her foot. Her wings ruffled unconsciously as the three of them waited outside a rather unique looking building among all the brick and terra-cotta. It was large, squat looking, and had an exotic style of façade along it's sides. All straight lines and right angles. A large adorned sign heading it all read "Cromaldi Bank and Loan" and emblazoned upon it was the image of a hammer and odd coins.

"Monin should be here already." Said Thessa. "Maybe he's already waiting inside?"

The interior followed a similar aesthetic to the outside, starkly different from the customs of Roman construction. But the most striking difference was one of people. Dwarves manned every station, from the guards in shining heavy armor standing by doorways, to the clerks behind the large desk which dominated the far side of the long entranceway.

"Weapons off at the door!" Declared a stout dwarf as they stood in the entryway. Like the others, he wore shining metal armor which covered him from head to toe. Only his face and long, braided beard exposed. He leaned on a long, heavy looking axe which looked like it could split stone as easily as skulls.

They complied, they weren't bearing their adventuring ensemble anyway. Thessa dutifully offered her crook, and Junia unbuckled her sword scabbard from her belt. Aurelia liberated the knife from her own waist without complaint. She hadn't carried her spear with her this morning. Openly carrying weapons had been cracked down upon by the city guard, at least for the plebeians. Though they tended to let small daggers slide so long as you weren't being an idiot and flashing them in their faces.

Once unarmed, Aurelia stepped forward into the bank, Junia and Thessa in tow.

"Back again?" Said the clerk from behind a wide desk which dominated one side of the room. The dwarf's bald head shone like a mirror, and his beard hung down to his belly. Thick robes of deep brown and bright yellow rested on his shoulders. He seemed to look down his nose at her, an impressive feat considering the difference between their heights. "I'm afraid we still cannot assist you. Perhaps if you brought your husband next time he might be able to sort this out, hmm?"

Junia's face lit up red. She stepped forward, placed her hands on the wide desk and inhaled loud enough for Aurelia to hear.

"Now listen here, you little-"

The sound of heavy footfalls behind her made Aurelia turn her head around. Striding in came Monin. His face was a little green, but his keen eyes quickly surveyed the room as he stopped to stand beside Aurelia.

"-our money fair and square. By the gods if you don't bring it all out right this instant I'll-" Junia's tirade was interrupted by Monin deeply clearing his throat. Aurelia reached out and rested a hand on her shoulder, rubbing gently. She still had her mouth open mid tirade, but seeing Monin stilled her ire.

"Ye must excuse ma interruption, ladies. I'm sorry I missed our earlier arrangement. A proper dwarf always keeps his word. I was... otherwise engaged."

Aurelia crinkled her nose, at the smell of him standing close to her. Otherwise engaged, indeed.

Monin turned his attention to the shiny-headed clerk. "Now, what seems te be the problem, cousin? These fine women are friends a mine, even did the same job together." He looked pointedly between them. 'The same job that I had no problem being payed out for when I last stopped by yesterday..."

"I'm afraid I must apologize, my good sir. But the Cromaldi Bank is not in the habit of working with... clientele of unscrupulous origin."

"Unscrupulous origin?! You daft?! Some sort a sodden headed milk-drinker?!" Monin all but shouted in response. "I'll have none of this slanderous talk about friends 'o mine!" He pointed a finger at the clerk, looking oddly like Junia just moments ago. "Let me tell ye what yer going to do. Yer going to go back there, and bring Thrum Cromaldi out here himself."

"I'm afraid Mr. Cromaldi isn't available at the moment" Said the clerk, a shit eating grin spread across his face. "But I'll be sure to leave a message for him."

"The fuck you will you lard-licking goat-fucker!" This time, Monin truly did shout. Aurelia flinched at the sound, not expecting the booming voice to come from the short dwarf. They had the attention of the room now, dwarves stopped in their tracks, turning their heads to look at the commotion. The guards in the room had moved their hands closer to the pommels of their weapons.

Just when it seemed like the situation was going to spiral further, another booming voice swept through the room as a new dwarf entered the room through a thick oak door behind the main desk. He wore a vibrant crimson sash over an undershirt interwoven with golden thread. His presence announced itself like a visible wave which spread through the room. His booming voice only matched by the stretch of his waistline.

"What do I pay you louts for if I have to step out here anytime someone needs their ass wiped?!"

The clerk began to splutter "Sir, I was just informing these-".

"Quiet, weasel!"

The rotund dwarf made his way around the edge of the desk. The room was still as the sounds of his heavy footfalls and heavier breaths rung through the chamber. He stopped when he was on our side of the large desk. He looking Monin up and down, followed by the three of us. His eyes snagged on the make of Junia's clothes, the small horns poking out from Thessa's hair, and the sheen of Aurelia's wings. He then returned his gaze to Monin, who still stood front and centre from his confrontation with the clerk.

The two stared at each other for a long moment, before the fat dwarf in red broke the silence.

"You look like you've put on a few stone since the last time I saw you." He said. "All that galivanting around can't keep the flab from your bones eh?" Though he was no longer shouting, his voice still resonated through the room. If banking took a turn for the worst, he'd never be out of a job as a town crier, Aurelia thought.

"I thought I smelled a woman's perfume." Said Monin. "Ye reek of Roman wine. Have ye found anything interesting at the bottom of the bottle?"

You could have heard a pin drop as everyone held their breath to see what would happen next. But to Aurelia's perplexion, the two began to laugh, and embraced each other.

"Hello dear cuz." Said the dwarf in red, smiling. "I am so occupied with papers and pennies nowadays that I barely see the sun. I never thought I would be complaining about something like that! You should really stop by more often."

"I did just yesterday ye fuck! But I suppose ye were too busy kissing Roman arse to spare time for family. And today this arsewipe seems to be getting his rocks off with the little power ye've bestowed upon him." Monin said, gesturing towards the clerk who seemed to be shrinking into himself in an attempt to shy away from the dwarf in red's eyes.

"Is that so eh?" Said the dwarf. Who was this Thrum Cromaldi person, apparently. "Mayhap I'm not as bright as Dwalin the Brilliance, and we might be far away from the nearest true Hold as we stand here, but I'd have thought that dwarven hospitality would have carried wherever the People of the Mountains go?"

As he said those last words, the onlookers who had paused in their duties swiftly sprung back unto motion, and the offending clerk looked so green in the face Aurelia could have confused him for a tree.

"Come, allow me to guide you to my personal office." Said Mr. Cromaldi, after the bank had been kicked back into motion. "Any friends of Monin's are friends of mine."

Three fat sacks of coin plopped heavily onto the thick wooden desk. Mr. Cromaldi brushed his hands across it's smooth, lacquered surface absentmindedly as he thanked the attendant who had brought the payment. The dwarf sat in a high backed, plushily cushioned chair. Junia, Thessa, and Monin sat in similarly comfortable, but lower chairs in front of the desk. Aurelia didn't fit, so she stood instead. The dwarf's desk was clean and immaculate, a neat stack of scrolls near one corner and an abacus near the other. After the soft thud of the door closing, he opened his mouth and began to speak.

"A hefty contract, as far as those things go. Am I correct in assuming this is the first of it's kind you fine ladies have completed?" He asked. Receiving nods from the three of them. "Well then, am I also correct in assuming this is the first time any of you have had access to this much coin at one time?" Again, three nods. "Well then, allow me to recommend this fine establishment you find yourselves in." He said with a broad magnimonious sweep of his hands. "We're proud to boast much success in recent days of establishing partnerships with... industrious adventurers like yourselves. I would like to welcome you to-"

"Shut it!" Barked Monin. "Sling your honey somewhere else."

Cromaldi looked somewhat surprised at the interruption from his fellow dwarf, but quickly recovered and cleared his throat before starting again.

"Perhaps my cousin is right. It seems the opportunity to talk on that will arrive on a different day. But regardless, congratulations on your completed contract. I'm sure we have many fortuitous years to look forward to."

The girls' eyes were bug-eyed at the coin in front of them. The sacks dwarfed the amounts they had received earlier, making them seem almost paltry in comparison. It made nearly dying a dozen times almost bearable. Aurelia thought.

"I've always been a dwarf who puts business before pleasure." Said Cromaldi. "So, in that vein: Is there anything more any of you three need before Monin and I obliterate my liquor cabinet?"

"Yes, actually." Said Aurelia. Cromaldi and Monin both blinked at her in surprise. She pointed a finger at Junia, who was positively squirming in her seat. " I think she wants to say something."

"I do!" Said Junia enthusiastically. "Earlier, Monin, you called that stupid clerk cousin. But then you went and called Mr. Cromaldi here your cousin as well. I though you only had one cousin who worked at the bank?"

The both dwarves chuckled, a deep, rich sound.

"Aye, Lass. I did." Said Monin. "Ye see, dwarves tend to call each other cousin, in greeting. Even ones who've never met before. You'd have to be a right cunt to be called somethin else."

"So then you and Mr. Cromaldi here...?"

"We're actually cousins, lass. Me uncle fucked his mum right and good."

Cromaldi coughed, and waved his hand to stop Monin from going any further.

"What my eloquent friend is trying to say here, is that: While dwarves call each other cousin in greeting. It is only when they continue to call each other by that name that it gains any true meaning."

"Huh." Junia said.

"Was that all...?" Asked Cromaldi with a raised eyebrow. "Or can I pop a bottle?"

"Not quite" Said Aurelia. "I really did have some things to speak with you about."

"How flexible are you with giving out loans?"

While the trio hadn't yet had The Talk™, they had all agreed that they wanted to continue together as a group for at least the foreseeable future. A group which didn't necessarily have to be under Gregorios' wing. And if they were going to continue to be adventurers together, they'd need gear and equipment and all sorts of expensive things. And even though they had been paid quite a lot for their last job, Aurelia's bout of tentative inquiries and window shopping yesterday had quickly dashed her hopes of being able to afford it all.

At least, not without help.

Even with Gregorios' experienced leadership, they had found themselves in dire straights. And starting out on their own would mean having to pay for everything themselves. They all needed clothing suited to wet weather and colder temperatures, and spares in case they got ruined. They needed to repair or replace their broken weapons and tools. They would need better protection now that they wouldn't have the men to soak up the attention of enemies. They needed a much much larger tent than the one they had, cooking equipment, and a hundred and one other smaller miscellaneous items all involved with prolonged ventures away from civilization. Already that would wipe away any earnings, especially if they wanted to purchase good quality goods.

And that wasn't even half of it.

It was Thessa who had had the idea after seeing a passing merchant on their way back to Rome. The biggest single problem with going out and doing long, multi day jobs was that you couldn't possibly be prepared for everything. Gregorios had rented one mule to carry supplies because that was all the original plan had called for. A few days to get there, a few days to get back. He had no way of knowing we'd be chased by orks and driven off-course, taking many days longer to return than intended.

Thessa's proposal was a simple one: Buy a wagon which can store all our stuff for us on the move. We were shooting for a larger, four wheeled wagon. More of a carriage, really. But depending on how willing Cromaldi was to part with his coin, a smaller, two wheeled style would be enough for now.

The problem wasn't actually the wagon, it would be expensive enough, but not even remotely comparable to the price of the animals to pull the damn thing. Donkey's would be too small, a mule or two might do for a smaller two wheeled cart, but what they were aiming for were horses. For a larger carriage, one full of cargo, two strong horses would likely be needed. After speaking with Junia a bit, it became clear that the horses would cost more than the entire rest of their purchases combined. Including the cart. It would take an normal freemen years of work to be able to afford two such beasts, and that was if they didn't eat or drink throughout. Needless to say, it was a lot of money.

Cromaldi's head had drooped initially when it became clear his camaraderie with Monin would be delayed further, but as the girls explained what they were after, his eyes became brighter and brighter. He had started rubbing his hands together as they spoke nodding along. His face broke out into a wide smile when they arrived at the cart and horses.

"Yes, yes, a most pragmatic endeavor." He said. "But there are, of course, certain... risks associated with this business. Yes? Not only are horses animals, and susceptible to disease and other nastiness, but you three ply a trade in which... people have a habit of suddenly being unable to pay back their debts."

Aurelia didn't have all that much experience dealing with merchants and moneychangers, just the exchanges buying her original equipment. But even she could see that Cromaldi's words and his face told two difference stories.

"Have no fear, the Cromaldi Bank and Loan is generous, and more than willing to finance such noble efforts in these trying times. However, we will have to insist upon some... perfectly reasonable terms."

What followed was a flurry of words and terms and commitments which flew straight over Aurelia's head, and Junia quickly took over when it became clear Aurelia was outmatched. As they spoke, Aurelia began to fear they had bitten off more than they could chew. She had stared down rampaging orks now, but the battle now being fought quickly grew larger and more ferocious than any melee. Their only saving grace was Monin, who tapped in when Junia fell before Cromaldi's smiles and soft words. The two went back and forth, debating interest rates, payment terms, and other gobbledygook. Unlike with the girls, these negotiations had a lot more cursing involved.

It was only when Monin had described every part of Cromaldi's body as "lard soaked greed wrapped in flesh" that they shook hands.

"Done!" The banker said. His smile had dimmed somewhat, but it was still present. Monin was breathing heavily. The only other time Aurelia had seen the dwarf so focused was when he had misplaced a flagon of dwarven ale when they had been on the road.

Thessa leaned over and whispered up to Aurelia. "I just hope we didn't lose all of our souls in the bargain."