[Great Bazaar] Just Business (solo)

[Colin Oliver]

21st of Winter, 511 AV Stormhold Castle, Syliras As Colin strode towards the Great Bazaar, he felt a tingle of excitement run up and down his spine. Whereas other men would have opted for the Nettle district and the companionship found within the walls of the Golden Dragon, Colin had chosen to engage in an entirely different set of sights and sounds. He couldn’t really explain it, but ever since he had been young, he had been captivated by the sight of people grouped together, some selling wares, some buying them, and some merely looking. There was just something oddly thrilling about money and goods switching hands. As Colin walked, he contemplated why so many people were enthralled by sex, going so far as to treat it as a commodity. Wasn’t the physical union of two people supposed to be something sacred? A material testament to the emotional proximity two people felt for each other? Colin shook his head, attempting to clear the confusion. Sure he had noticed that the companions of the Golden Dragon had above-average beauty and were occasionally exotic and enticing, but he felt no need to pay for sexual satisfaction. In his opinion, the men who had become regular customers of the Golden Dragon must suffer from exorbitant amounts of pent-up sexual frustration. Colin suffered from different frustrations. He had been in town for several days now and had gotten so sidetracked that he hadn’t managed to do his job very well. He was now plagued with an overwhelming guilt, knowing that he needed to sell or barter his goods. Inartan glassworks and weapons were famous and relatively rare outside of Wind Reach; if he could just find the right place to set up, he could easily sell his goods. Colin pulled his pack tighter as he entered the Great Bazaar and went in search of the person in charge.

[Colin Oliver]

Colin stood at the front of the bazaar, furtively peering around for a place where he could set up shop. Suddenly a large booth caught his eye and he knew that this was where he needed to go. Colin was lost staring at the multitude of papers tacked to the walls of the booth when a voice interrupted his reverie, “What is it that you need, son?” asked the man in the booth. Colin smiled charmingly at the man and replied, “I need a booth. Something on a corner preferably, or with a lot of light.” If he couldn’t get the exposure of a corner spot, he needed someplace with enough light so that his Inartan glassware could advertise itself in the language of shininess and colour. As the man turned around to look for a layout of the bazaar, Colin was reading the pamphlets and ads on the walls again. “Son! Priskil grant you light. If you’re going to space out like that all the time, you’ll find that your wares will quickly disappear.” Colin nodded bashfully, feeling his cheeks redden. He made a mental note to keep his rampant curiosity in check. “Anyways, I think I’ve found you the perfect spot. It’s a bit far back, but you’ll get enough traffic.” Colin watched as the man pointed out the spot on the map. “I’ll circle it out for you on this map, you can keep it. And don't lose it.” Colin’s head bobbed up and down almost frantically. It was a wonder that he didn’t die of excitement right there and then. Colin reached in his pouch, pulled out two gold coins, and handed them to the man, “Twenty days please.” The man took his money and handed him the map and a key to the booth. “Good luck, son!”

[Colin Oliver]

Colin had found his spot and was setting up his booth. Jerom Sendrick had been right and Colin had been lucky, this really was the perfect spot. Opening the booth, he quickly started setting up his items. The booth was a rather simplistic box. There was a door on the left and a small cabinet on the right. The wall behind Colin was lined with shelves and the front of the booth was completely open, housing only a long counter. Outside the front of the booth sat a long bench for displaying any extra goods. Colin set up the weapons first, placing them on stands on the shelves behind him. Better to keep those in the dark. Colin stepped out of the booth to set up the frontal display. The largest and most valuable Inartan glasswares sat on the counter where he could keep an eye on them at all times. On the bench, Colin placed down jars of marbles, bright perfume bottles, and tiny glass trinkets and toys. A stand of earrings went up on the counter as did a tray of bracelets and rings. Colin lit a few tall candles and placed them between the glass items, so that the flickering flame caused the glassware to project a dancing rainbow of colours. That would definitely grab any potential customer’s attention. Yet after all this, Colin had one more way to lure a customer’s attention. At the counter there was still a two foot long space. Here Colin placed a shining Talon Sword and a finely crafted Inartan Bow. The beautiful weapons were impossible to ignore. Now all that was left was to sit and wait.

[Colin Oliver]

Day 1: A beautiful start. It was well into the evening when a group of women wandered into Colin’s aisle. They were laden down with fabrics of every color and texture imaginable. A highly-transparent silk dress floated behind one woman, another woman carried a shawl made of bright red furs, several of them carried skirts embroidered in gold, and all of them had their hands full. They moved closer and closer and soon Colin could see their gaudy makeup, another few steps and he could hear their high-pitched and giggly voices, and when they were close enough that Colin could practically see a cloud of perfume around them, he called out to them. “Ladies! Why not rest a bit over here. I’ll fetch you some wine, and all I ask in return is the company of you beautiful madams.” The group made their way over, beguiled by Colin’s charming words, free wine, and the chance to sit down. Colin set out a few fine crystal glasses and poured, filling them generously with the inhibition-lowering liquid. “I see you ladies have a fine eye for good clothing. It takes a certain beauty to pull off clothes like that, and I must admit that, on any other women, clothing like that would seem like poor costume wear. An imitation of your true exquisiteness.” Most of the women blushed, enjoying the compliments, but one of them spoke up, “Do you really think that? Or are you just saying that so we’ll buy some of your trinkets?” Colin feigned hurtfulness, but unabashed by her cynic questions, he replied. “Madam, do you honestly think I could trick all of you? I merely wish to enjoy your company and, if by chance you do buy my trinkets, I’d be overjoyed to have any of you wear my wares.” Some of the other women quickly jumped on the pessimist. “Carla, you seriously can’t think that this innocent boy would have ill intentions?” Another woman, the one with the bright red furs, turned to Colin. “That wasn’t fair of her. You merely gave us a chance to rest, and you offered us free wine on top of that. Here, I’ll buy something as an apology.” The woman pulled out her purse and chose a silver necklace with a purple cross made of glass. Colin shook his head fervently, “You really shouldn’t have to, but if you do choose something, how about this? I’ve been saving it for someone special.” Colin pulled out a tray and placed down a necklace with a large red rose. “Only the best for you. That tiny pendant would make you seem cheap, you deserve an item that would make you shine even brighter. And I’ll even charge you the same price.” When the other women saw the necklace they crowded even closer to the counter, and when they heard Colin say he would charge at a discounted rate, they went crazy. Soon Colin was dealing with a flood of questions and requests. “Do you have anything that would go with this scarf?” “What do you think would bring out the colour of my eyes?” “Which of these do you think is better?” After an hour, Colin finally dealt with the last of them. He watched as the women walked away, now adorned with shining bracelets, earrings, necklaces, hairclips, and rings. He hadn’t actually given them a discounted price, in fact, he had even overcharged some of them, but they would never know that. Women like that rolled around in money. In a few days, the items they’d bought would be placed in their jewelry boxes, and the next time the women saw the accessories, they wouldn’t even remember where they had gotten them. Colin rearranged his display, making the most of what he had left. After he finished, he moved everything into the booth. He slid the heavy wood partition over the display window, indicating that he was done for the day. Padlocking the screen, Colin sat down to count through his profit. Splitting the coins into like groups, he quickly organized several piles of money. Pulling out a heavy and well-worn book, Colin began to calculate and record how much money he owed those who had commissioned him and how much money he had earned for doing his job. Finishing his log, Colin tossed the coin bag from hand to hand, feeling its weight as it collided with his palms. Dinner would be good today.

[Colin Oliver]

Day 4: An intriguing customer. Business had been slow this particular day. Colin had managed to sell a bag of cat’s-eyes marbles to a father looking for a birthday gift for his son and a shady figure that Colin assumed was a thief had paid a good amount for a large jar of plain blue marbles. Colin had a feeling that one day those particular marbles would end up helping the man escape from a tenacious pursuer. After all, he had offered 8 silver mizas for a large jar of marbles, but Colin had managed to drive the deal up to a single gold miza. The man left with all the marbles, incuding the jar they came in and a bonus in the form of a smaller sack of marbles. As Colin sat down to record his sales, a woman walked up to his booth. “Do you remember me?” she asked, in a tiny voice, “I was here the other night with my friends?” Colin stood up and placed his log book away. He looked into the woman’s eyes and, feigning familiarity, replied, “Of course I do! How could I forget a face that beautiful?” Colin saw the woman blush and felt a tiny pang of guilt, he was about to confess his unfamiliarity but his inner-businessman won out. Although he truly and honestly could not remember the woman, her questions led him to suspect that she hadn’t expected him to. “Well, what can I help you with?” The girl looked into Colin’s eyes with a fierce intensity. “I need to be beautiful. More than the others. I need you to make me look like a goddess.” Colin was taken aback by the girl’s sudden forcefulness. It was clear from her demands that she felt inferior to her friends and wanted to be acknowledged and respected. This woman was desperate. And Colin could take advantage of a desperate woman with deep pockets, but his conscience wouldn’t allow him to completely deceive her. He needed to come up with a plan to make the most money out of the situation and help the lady with her self-esteem issues. Colin nodded knowingly, stepping back to assess her. Truth be told, the woman was quite beautiful. She just lacked confidence, and that was something that Colin could help with. “I have what you want, but it comes at a price.” The woman remained determined, “I’ll pay it, however much you want. I’ll pay it.” Colin went back in the booth and brought out an ivory mirror and a gold comb. “I have it on good authority that these items are blessed by the great goddess Priskil.” Colin was making this up, but he managed to maintain a tone a seriousness, “Rumor has it that if you comb your hair in this mirror every morning, your beauty will increase in the eyes of others.” The girl absorbed every single word, like a desperate kitten with a bowl of milk. “There is one condition though. You should know that no deity grants gifts without asking for a sacrifice. If you want Priskil’s blessing to take effect, you must help yourself before She helps you.” The woman nodded briskly, “Does she need an offering? A prayer? I’ll go the church every day. And if that isn’t enough - ” Colin held up a hand, silencing the woman, “All you need to do is help yourself. First of all, if you look in that mirror and you believe you are ugly, then Priskil cannot help you. You must first believe that you are beautiful, and trust me, you are. Secondly, beauty starts from within. Like the goddess Priskil, you must be willing to uphold a modest dignity. Only after this, will these items help you.” A look of doubt passed over the woman’s face, and Colin could tell that she wasn’t sure of her ability to fulfill these two requirements. Unwilling to let such a promising customer pass by, Colin pushed on, handing her the mirror and the comb. As he watched the woman tentatively stare at her own reflection, he suddenly remembered who she was. She was the last person to leave his booth the other day, and Colin remembered one of her friends grabbing her arm and saying, “Let’s go, Adrianna!” The woman finally pulled the comb through her hair, and looked towards Colin. Her eyes clearly asking if the items had worked their magic. Leaning forwards and grabbing the mirror and comb out of her hand, Colin sat back down and pulled out his log book. “It’s 30 gold mizas for the comb and another 30 for the mirror. But if you’re buying both, I’ll let you have them for 50 gold mizas.” Colin looked up from the log book to see a wide-eyed look of shock frozen upon her face, “And if you weren’t sure, they really do work… Adrianna.” At the mention of her name, the woman’s pallid face filled with colour. “You actually remembered me.” Placing the money on the table, Adrianna leaned across the counter and tightly embraced Colin. And before he could even respond, she had grabbed the mirror and comb and had blended back into the crowd. Colin knew he had questionable morals, and even more questionable methods. Yet, while recording the fifty golf rimmed mizas, any sense of guilt or pride quickly disappeared. Business was business, and Colin had made an amazing deal.