(2021-12-14) An Unsettling Meeting

Details

Author:	Alli
Summary:	Sidhanei Ambersong shows up early (and in Booty Bay) for a meeting with Captain Jo Sparkwire, arranged via a letter from Celaven Evensong.
Rating:	T for Teen

Jo sat at her combination desk and workbench, peering through a magnifier at a particularly troublesome spot in her latest creation. What it might be was anyone’s guess at this point, as it looked like nothing more than a pile of articulated metal joints. Glancing once up at the slant of the sun through her window, she sighed and pushed back from the desk.

“Almost time to head out to Ironforge,” she murmured to herself, checking over her purple robes for any grease smudges. There were none. She picked up the letter again, and scanned over it thoughtfully.

A sudden knock at the door drew her gaze sharply upward in surprise. Setting the letter aside, she walked over to open it, stepping back when she saw the tall figure outside.

The dark figure made her way through the door, covered in a midnight cloak that wrapped itself around her form like a mourner's veil. Her hood remained up, cladding her features in shadows. And only the haunting glow of amber eyes from within hinted at the person beneath.

"No guards?" The feminine voice, a mix of being singsong in pitch but gravely in resonance, mused as she stepped into the room, "That is bold. Living in a place like Booty Bay, one can never be sure what stranger might walk in." The woman reached a hand up to withdraw her hood back, revealing an aged elven face of scars and long silvered hair. "But at least this stranger had an appointment."

Jo looked up at the ancient kaldorei woman a little uneasily and said, “This is a bit sooner than I’d expected. And a bit farther south. Though if you’re thinking that you’ve caught me unarmed, I’d have to point out that’s a common misconception.” She looked around at her cluttered apartment, and gestured to two thankfully empty chairs near her workbench. “Please have a seat. Would you like an apple?”

The tall elf gave a low chuckle, although what she found amusing was anyone's guess. "It is a lovely home you have here." She raised a hand, "But I am fine standing," her amber eyes drifted downward to meet the mage's. Studying the gnome and even more intensely, the air around the mage. "And I am not hungry."

"I merely want to discuss some business with you…Captain, is it? Or do you prefer Jocoza in a setting like this?" She asked as she paced around the room, taking in the small details of the home this gnome had constructed for herself. A particular interest was taken in the tomes, as she looked through the various authors and subjects.

The room around her was cluttered with half-finished projects of engineering, the arcane, and a mixture of the two. Several small devices on a shelf looked noticeably like various forms of Silithid, complete with appropriate paint for markings. One shelf was packed with books, ranging on topics from electricity to sympathetic magic, including one “Correspondence, Distance, and Dynamic Arcanum" by Vilfert Brahe. There was also a stretch of several notebooks on another shelf, next to one slim, faded sketchbook, and a smattering of romance novels (several by Steelbloom).

“Jo is fine,” Jo answered simply, watching the taller woman pace. “I’m usually not big on titles and such. Do I call you Sidhanei? Or do you have a title I should use?” Jo pronounced the name roughly the same way Elohad did at the talent show.

The elf quickly corrected the pronunciation of her name. "And I no longer hold any titles. It is just Sidhanei these days." She leaned a tome on the shelf to get a better look at it and frowned, "Fair warning, this Arch Abjurer Abad Zwiard is a fraud. Those re-discoveries he took credit for were actually made by his apprentices—oh my, a fifth edition Meitre ON THE NATURE OF THE ARCANE?" The distracted elf made a sound more appropriate for someone tasting a delicacy as she pulled a different, old textbook on basic arcana off the shelf and began carefully flipping through the pages. "I did not realize mortals still had anything before the seventh printing. Must have cost you a small fortune. Or was quite the inheritance."

“Not an inheritance,” Jo glanced at the book, and gave a brief smile. “I’m from a tinker family by trade, not a magical one. That particular book was on loan, originally, but the library it came from isn’t around anymore. I didn’t realize it was so expensive. I just knew it was useful.”

"Meitre was the sorcerer whose work forms the basis of most modern day spellcasting because it drew from the surroundings and not the Well of Eternity." She gingerly put the book back, overtly indulging in both pleasant and sorrowful memories of the man, "And he was a good mentor."

Sidhanei quickly turned her attention back to the gnome, "Alas, that is not why I'm here."

“Can’t say as I ever had the opportunity to test out the difference,” Jo said dryly. “So why are you here, exactly? Not that I’m not always happy to speak with new people, but Celaven didn’t really give me much of a hint. Were you wanting to hire Cobalt to go after some rare arcane book?”

Sidhanei slowly closed the distance with her pacing, "A small acquisition from a certain Lich you and your merry little band have run across recently." She twirled her finger as she spoke, as though discussing children on a playground.

Jo moves one foot to step back, but then stands her ground instead, looking up at the elf. “Which Lich? Araj the Summoner should be dead now, and if not you’ll have to take it up with the bronze dragonflight. Ras Frostwhisper should be following in his footsteps relatively soon– preparations have been made.” She narrows her eyes, and adds, “And what would a lich have that someone like you or I would value?”

As Sidhanei approached, the dampening magic field around Jocoza slowly began to evaporate. Unraveling itself as though invisible hands pulled at the magical threads. There was no obvious gesture or spoken incantation, save the echoing of footsteps of the spellbreaker.

"Ras Frostwhisper," Sidhanei named the target. "What of his we may value is irrelevant, although I would not turn your attention too greatly to what you are retrieving. You see, this job is for the lord I serve, and not a personal whim."

The elven woman stopped, towering over the captain, and looking down at the small gnome. "We believe he has attained knowledge and power from his Master, Kel'Thuzad—power and knowledge that we do not want spread in this world, much less, in his hands."

Jo did take a step back then, to her workbench, where she placed a hand on a knapsack behind her as if to reassure herself. “I can’t disagree with stopping his power and knowledge from spreading, but… I am a mercenary captain, not a courier,” Jo said, meeting Sidhanei’s gaze without flinching. “And my people aren’t fond of being manipulated by shadowy organizations. If you want us to do this for you, or for your lord, you’re going to have to tell me what it is you want, who it’s for, and what you’re offering in exchange.”

Sidhanei chuckled and rolled her eyes, "My dear, asking politely is a form of manipulation. There was no way around that. Still," she mused, "rather pointed questions for someone who forgot to lock their own front door."

The elven woman stood still, save for the shake of her head in a silent laugh, allowing the captain to get a good look at her. "I serve my Lord Malygos, Aspect of Magic and leader of the Blue dragonflight, as one of his dragonsworn." She informed the gnome with no small amount of pride in her voice.

At that, Jo stared at her in surprise and said without thinking, “Lord Malygos? But I read that he…” she trailed off as she looked at Sidhanei more closely and a bit more warily. “Um, never mind that. And as for the rest of it?”

Sid turned to lean back on Jocoza's desk. "I was prepared to offer you gold, but," she looks around the room. "Not one for luxury, are you?" The elf smirked, "Never bothered to appraise your own belongings." She turned to look at Jocoza and mimicked, word for word and tone for tone, what the gnome had said about the rare tome. "I just knew it was useful."

She leaned in toward the captain, "You value knowledge more than gold." Her voice lowered but remained sharp. "So we trade knowledge: Bring me Ras' spellbook, and any tomes on magic he safeguards close to him or has locked, and in turn," she gave a predatory grin, "I will provide you with my consultation services in the future."

Jo winced at the mimicry, but replied levelly, “I see you understand me well enough. It’s true that I don’t see the point in accumulating wealth and luxury, when all of this,” she gestured around at her cozy apartment, “could disappear at any moment. I’d think your people would understand that. But knowledge matters. If we have more run-ins with dragons in the future, I would value your advice.”

Jo paused to think, drumming her fingers against the table. “I know what you want me to say, but I need to consult with my people. Maybe dragonsworn run things differently, but my officers would have to be on board with something like this, and I’d also like to talk to Gerho…” Jo cut herself off, and then continued, “That is, I have one other condition. Any spellbooks or tomes we find near Frostwhisper would go first to my ally at the Kirin Tor. Don’t worry, he’s trustworthy - not likely to create another Duskwood or anything. I’m not doing this ‘don’t look too closely and give me the magic books’ deal. If they’re too dangerous to be out in the world, they’re too dangerous for me to blindly hand to the first person who asks. If that works for you, I can give you an answer before the end of the week.”

The elf snorted. "The Kirin Tor? The Kirin Tor are childish mages prancing around as if they understand the forces they play with. They desire magic, but they are not it's guardians."

"Nonetheless, you played the game well," Sid cackled. "Yes, there is something specific we are looking for. As you may know, there have been necromancers and armies of undead before but nothing like the Scourge. They are the result of magic from another realm—a realm of death. And as the world's defender in regards to magic, stopping more of this power from coming into our world falls squarely in Lord Malygos' domain." She narrowed her eyes, "Anything dealing with otherworldly necromancy, Ras' Lich masters, or a realm called the Shadowlands goes to me. Take the rest if you must. But those powers do not belong in our world." The spellbreaker pointed a warning finger at Jocoza. "Keep anything you should not, however, and I—or another member of the Blue flight—will be forced to take it from you."

Jo raises both her eyebrows at that characterization of the Kirin Tor, and mutters, very quietly, “Well, somebody here sure thinks a lot of…”

She clears throat, smiles, and continues in a normal voice, “I can guarantee you that I have no interest in bringing more death magic into Azeroth. If I take your request, I’ll look through what we find and make sure the appropriate items make their way safely to you. No threats should be necessary.” She looks up at Sidhanei and adds, almost as an afterthought, “Though perhaps you ought to have a chat with the Kirin Tor Hawk about the dark powers that lurk at the edges of our reality. You might be surprised.”

Sidhanei chuckled. "We are aware of much, but we are not as numerous as mortal organizations. Priorities must be made." She stood up and moved to the center of the room with an elven grace, "And the Kirin Tor have kept what they should not have more than once in their long history. Ras' own master, Kel'Thuzad, was one of their members who did just that. And is now a thorn in the world's side for us all. But I would rather not kill more archmages if it is not required." She grinned and took a shallow, almost mocking bow, "Especially not those who are a delight to talk to."

"Take it from me, Captain, magic greed is a temptation best avoided." The elf gave a low cackle as the magical energies flashed and snapped around her in the blink of an eye. Once again, no verbal incantation or somatic gestures were seemingly made by the caster, save the echoing laughter lingering a long moment after.