Acquisitions Incorporated: The H Team.
Chapter 2: Eye for quality.
The rebuilding of Acquisitions Incorporated took business from all different kinds of people. One of them was a Nebelun priest that had shown up about two weeks after the destruction of the headquarters on the rumour that there was a vessel in the company's employ that was capable of negotiating the crystal spheres.
The gnome was keen-eyed and had a habit of darting his eyes around the room when he was talking to someone. This meeting was no exception and a tiefling clerk was taking him through his options.
"No Artificer Murnig, we aren't selling extra-Toril exploration equipment," A surprisingly warm smile flourished across her magenta features. "Though we are starting a waiting list for people who want to rent it."
The ruins of the Acquisitions Incorporated offices still had scattered desks and stationary allowing the clerk to whip out a quill and ink pot to start the waiting list. As the clerk added the gnome's fourth moniker a trepidacious, feminine voice cut in.
"Father? Have we found the paperwork for the ship yet?"
The voice came from a coppery metallic face with gently glowing orbs where the eyes should be. The eyes were illuminated as if with green flame, and it reflected well on her features, with articulated eyebrows, eyelids and mouth. The rest of her human-sized form was covered by a saffron robe and a sun hat strapped against her back marking her as a follower of Nebelum. Her hands and bare feet were smooth, the joints suffused with a barely-perceptible green glow. If you looked closely enough you could almost see tiny gears and clockwork whirling in the glow.
The clerk raised an eyebrow without interrupting her writing. "This is one of your parishioners?"
"Elemental Manipulator Advanced, come in here and meet Orianna." The construct sheepishly moved forward. "She is a true gift from Nebelum. My parish has never had the pleasure of something so magnificently complex dropping into our place of worship. Now about that ship..."
"Well sir," Orianna was suddenly opening the door to the shattered ruins of the building. "We will be giving people full length renderings of their ship or ships for amounts to be announced. We'll send updates from Mister Darkmagic's office as they're made available." Orianna had been speaking as she was subtly guiding them through the hallways of broken buildings, ending amidst the fragments of the training centre.
"Now the way back to the street is through this hallway. Would you mind if I left you to see yourselves out? We've got a lot of people who want to get on the list." With a smile she shut the substantial door that sealed the cracked hallway. The damage to the roof let in moderate amounts of light, and the walls were full of smeared paintings and cracked masonry.
As the automaton and her father walked down the hallway a loud rumble proceeded a pipe embedded in the wall bursting through its surface and starting a torrential flood of cold water down into a half meter wide crack in the floor. The initial blast of water bashed the abandoned table beneath it to splinters.
"Uh, Emma, would you be a dear and give me a hand with that water?" The gnome asked sheepishly. The automaton walked up to the water gushing from the pipe and braced her stance. She then punched her open palms forward at the gushing water with a rush of cold air. The pipe creaked dangerously as ice started growing around the edges of the breach. After a few moments the breach iced over and the water stopped flowing.
"I have stopped the water father. The management should be notified before the ice melts." It was barely-perceptible, yet the glow around her body had dimmed slightly.
"Yes dear. Now lets see if we can find someone at the front desk who canAURGH!" The gnome recoiled as a webbed hand reached up from the cracked floor. The sound of falling stone splashing in water accompanied the bulging eyes and sharp-toothed mouth of what looked like a fish that had been crudely grafted onto a human's up through the weakened floor.
It's words were in an incomprehensible language of burbling and shrieking, and it flourished a dark whip that bristled with spikes of bone. Moved toward the pair, striking at the gnome. Emma swept him out of the way and spun around to take a lashing from the enraged creature. (She could infer this from the rising pitch of it's burbling.)
As the whip was drawn back the green glow in her eyes intensified. She put the holy gnome down and spun to deliver a strong kick to the creatures chest. When the piscine attacker staggered back, his yellow eyes bulging still further out of his head, she leapt effortlessly into the air, kicking the whip out of it's hand and landing as she grabbed it's arm to twist it and lead the creature away.
Walking toward the end of the hallway with the stunned creature before her and the retrieved Artificer behind she found the simple exit. The door didn't open, though it did yield to a powerful blow that blew out the knob. Opening the door caused a boldly-coloured sign that read "Caution! Kuo-Toa infestation." to fall onto the ground.
The daylight was a sharp contrast to the dim corridor, and the hastily-assembled merchandise table selling the remaining Acquisitions Incorporated extra-Torril merchandise was a contrast with the dingy, damaged corridor. Orianna, the clerk from before clapped her hands to her face.
"Goodness! The newest trainee has emerged from our accelerated training program!" She walked over with a smile gracing her plum-coloured features. "Looks like you're ready to be the newest member of our.."
"Wait!" The gnome's saffron-clad arm shot out. "She's a journeymember of our congregation! She can't just..."
"We'll throw in the rendering of the ship for half price." Orianna muttered.
"Leave without saying goodbye." The gnome crashed against the construct. "This is what Nebelun wants, and I believe you can show his will to the crystal spheres!"