Even though he was threatened by Clegg Zincher, Saul refused to leave Riddleport. At the same time, it became clear that he didn't plan on going after the crime lord yet. Sarek thought such a choice was the smart one to make. He didn't think that he and his friends were ready to take on Zincher and the criminals he led. It was safer to act defensively against any threats and wait for the right time to strike.
The day after Clegg's visit, Saul called his business partners to meet him in the staff lounge. Larur joined them for the meeting when it became apparent that the group was getting paid. Aside from dealing with Clegg and the cindersnake, they had yet to act as Saul's operatives, but their boss insisted on paying them. Sarek took a seat on one of the uncomfortable chairs to count out how much he was paid. He frowned for a moment and Keya stood up from her seat to voice what he noticed.
"Ten gold?!" Keya exclaimed. "That wasn't our deal!"
Belar cracked his knuckles and stood up as well. "Is there going to be a problem here?"
Madia shook her head, stood up, and positioned herself between Saul and her friends. "Let's not act hasty. I'm sure Saul has a perfect explanation for us."
Tess, who was seated next to Sarek, looked over to her friend with worry about a fight breaking out. The sorcerer nodded and looked over his shoulder at Ryland, who hadn't taken a seat and was leaned up against the wall. Sarek couldn't tell what the man was thinking but figured that he would listen to reason.
"I am following through on our deal," Saul told the group and Sarek flinched to hear the disappointment in his voice. "Ten gold plus a cut of the Gold Goblin's profit. Unfortunately, despite your best efforts, my business has only made enough to pay for the typical expenses, hence why I can only pay you all ten gold each."
Keya narrowed her eyes on Saul. "Are you saying that we're at fault for your business suffering?"
"I'm saying that I thought you could do more," Saul said. "The truth of the matter is that the Gold Goblin hasn't brought in a lot of customers, and some of the customers that are thrown out don't want to come back."
"But we've had some returning patrons," Larur quickly added. "A few women have been coming by each day since we've opened. They've been taken in by the charm of Sarek."
"Good work on that, Sarek," Saul said, offering the sorcerer a quick smile.
"Thanks, Saul," Sarek couldn't help himself from grinning.
"You can't pin all the blame on us," Belar grumbled.
"I have to take the side of your new partners, Saul," Larur said, surprising mostly everyone in the room. "The truth is that none of them have worked at a gambling hall before. It's a much harder task than many people would think and we can't put all of the blame on them just because they're inexperienced."
"And what would you suggest we do?" Saul asked Larur.
"I'd say give them a day off tomorrow," Larur answered. "Everyone can take time to think over how they're doing, what they can do to improve, and, if necessary, if working at the Gold Goblin is the kind of job they want."
"Well, all of you have been working hard," Saul slowly nodded. "Go get some sleep and take tomorrow off. We'll see if that helps your performance next week."
The prospect of having the day off was enough to calm down Keya and Belar with no one voicing any disagreements over a break. Sarek looked up to Saul but admitted that Larur deserved some respect as well for treating the employees of the Gold Goblin fairly. Saul left with the floor manager to his office to discuss business, leaving the other business partners alone for the night.
Sarek made his way to the stairs behind Belar and alongside Tess, but before he could climb up, Keya grabbed him by an arm.
"Before we call it a night, I'd like to get you a drink," Keya told the sorcerer with a smirk.
"Okay," Sarek nodded, taken aback by Keya's sudden invitation.
"You want to drink this late?" Tess questioned.
"I won't keep him from you for long," Keya said in a teasing tone. "You should get some sleep."
"I'll be right up, Tess," Sarek told the druid. "I think this is Keya's way of saying she wants to talk."
Tess nodded and turned away from the pair. Sarek thought that her cheeks were red for a moment but dismissed the thought. The druid made her way upstairs and Keya led the way toward the bar. Sarek followed after the half-elf, curious as to what she had in mind. The two had become friends during their time working at the Gold Goblin and he could tell that there was something on her mind.
Arriving at the bar, Keya hopped over the counter and examined the different kegs. She grabbed two glasses and started to fill them both up with Riddleport Brandy. Sarek took a seat at the bar and decided that he was going to save any drinking for tomorrow. Keya placed the two glasses down on the counter and crossed her arms.
"It's up to us to turn the Gold Goblin around," Keya declared. "We need to work together for that."
Sarek nodded. "I'm listening."
"Tomorrow, I think we should check in on some of our friends and see if we can figure out solutions to improving the casino's business," Keya continued and reached for one of the glasses. "Madia's nice but I know that she's completely new to advertising and Belar's actions as a bouncer have been more than problematic. I imagine that Tess is trying her hardest but she isn't as well-received as a greeter as you are."
Sarek nodded again although he didn't want to speak ill of his friend. "And what about Ryland?"
"I don't care to see him at all," Keya answered after taking a sip from her drink. "I say we keep him up in the catwalk and out of sight. That's where he belongs."
"I can agree to that, but with that said, I'd still like to help."
Sarek and Keya jumped up in their respective spots with the latter spilling her drink at the voice. They turned toward the hall leading to the casino floor to find Ryland leaning against the doorframe. If he was insulted by the way Keya talked about him, he didn't show any anger on his face.
Keya groaned. "I never took you as someone to crash a date, Ryland. This is a private meeting."
"Clearly it isn't," Ryland said matter-of-factly
"Why do you want to help?" Sarek asked. "No offense but you seem fine keeping to yourself."
"Be that as it may, the more successful the Gold Goblin is, the less likely Saul will find reason to fall into old habits," Ryland explained. "It is my best interest to do what I can to help his business succeed so he remains on a good path."
Sarek turned to look back at Keya. "Your disagreements aside, it'd be better to have him work with us than act on his own."
"What disagreements?" Ryland questioned.
Keya rolled her eyes and placed her empty glass on the counter. "Fine. He can help."
"Excellent," Sarek said and pushed the glass meant to him toward Keya. "Then we have a plan. The three of us will check in with Madia, Belar, and Tess and do what we can do to help."
"It's not a perfect plan but it's the one we've got," Keya took Sarek's glass and raised it toward the air. "To the success of the Gold Goblin!"
The next day, the trio put their plan into motion. At Keya's suggestion, they agreed to start with Madia. The half-elf assured the two men that the halfling would be most willing to hear them out and take their suggestions to heart. Sarek only had a chance to speak with Madia during meals and after their shifts were over but he agreed with Keya's assessment. He imagined that Belar wasn't so eager to hear any kind of criticism and he wasn't sure what he could suggest to Tess to help her out.
They found Madia early in the next morning in the kitchen with the group trying their best not to get in the way of the cooks. The halfling was busy collecting meat in a bowl, a fact that surprised Sarek until he remembered that she had a dog that the Gold Goblin currently housed. Although Madia was set on her task, she ran into several difficulties such as the food being placed too high for her to reach. Keya stepped forward, leading the way for the other two, and held out her hand.
"Mind if I help?" Keya asked her friend with a smile.
Madia looked up and smiled widely. "Not at all! I'm just making sure that Marlowe and Cassiel have enough food and water."
"Does Tess know you're feeding Cassiel?" Sarek asked as Keya took the bowl from Madia.
"It was my idea and she approved," Madia answered with a nod. "I just wanted to do what I can to help."
"Like how you're working at the Gold Goblin now," Keya noted and started to fill up the bowl with more cuts of meat. "I appreciate that, by the way. I know it's not your first choice to work at but I like having you around."
"And that's why I wanted to work with you," Madia told Keya but a sigh escaped from her lips. "I just wished I could do a better job at getting people to come to the Gold Goblin."
"How are you struggling with that?" Sarek asked. "It should be easy enough to tell people about a casino."
"No one wants to listen to me," Madia shook her head. "Anytime I try to speak up, I'm ignored, and I don't know why."
"It's likely because they don't notice you since you're short," Ryland commented.
Sarek had to hold back a laugh at Ryland's bluntness and noted that Keya was already glaring at the two of them. Madia frowned and looked down at the ground, more depressed than she was mad at Ryland's words. Realizing that he needed to smooth over the situation, an idea came to the sorcerer's mind on how to best help Madia.
"Why not take Marlowe out when you're out advertising for the Gold Goblin," Sarek quickly suggested. "People notice dogs and they like them. It could help people notice you."
"You can even ride on top of Marlowe like you do during some of the fights we've gotten into," Keya quickly added, smiling when she caught onto Sarek's idea.
"I'm not much taller even when I'm on top of Marlowe though," Madia pointed out but she did lift her head up.
"Someone riding on top of a dog is a spectacle though," Sarek pointed out. "Look at Saul. He's short for a human but people notice him because he puts on a show. You can do a lot following his example."
"I think you might be right," Madia said, her earlier cheer returning. "That's a wonderful idea. I'll be sure to try it out when we go back to work tomorrow. Thank you so much, all of you!"
"It's no problem," Keya matched Madia's big smile with one of her own. "Come on. I'll come downstairs with you. Sarek, would you mind talking with Ryland about you-know-what."
"Sure thing," Sarek nodded.
Sarek's gaze followed Keya and Madia as they made their way towards the cellar entrance. The two seemed to be the unlikeliest of pairs but he couldn't deny how close the two friends were. Madia was always eager to help someone in need, and in particular, did her best to look out for Keya. In turn, it appeared as though Keya was actively trying to be a better person like she thought her friend was. She even held back on her anger against Ryland from his comment because it would likely upset Madia.
When Sarek's thoughts turned to Ryland, he turned to face him. Ryland watched the sorcerer expectantly, waiting for him to say anything. Sarek knew what Keya meant by talking to him, but truth be told, without his comment, they wouldn't have made a breakthrough with Madia as fast as they had. Still, there was something on Sarek's mind that he needed to address before they continued with their plan.
"Don't tell Belar he's short," Sarek told Ryland.
"Even though he is, his height has little to do with his performance as a bouncer," Ryland nodded. "I won't bring it up unless asked."
"Good. While we're talking about Belar, do me a favor and let me do all of the talking when we meet him. The last thing we want is to upset him."
Belar had yet to leave the group's quarters by the time they found him. With how fast they had helped Madia, they were able to find the dwarf during his morning workout. Sarek knew how seriously the dwarf treated honing his strength, and although he was worried about interrupting him during a workout, he didn't think there was any good time to talk to him about his performance. The sooner they had the conversation, the sooner they could move on.
Yet, seeing Belar wearing only a pair of trousers as he did pull-ups on the bunk bed that he shared with Ryland was almost enough to change the sorcerer's mind.
Belar didn't consider that there was anything wrong with how aggressive he was as a bouncer. However, there was no denying that the customers he roughly threw out weren't interested in coming back to the Gold Goblin. Being a bouncer required a more delicate perspective than one would think was involved and Sarek wasn't sure if Belar would share the opinion. It didn't help that the dwarf was known to act first and think about the consequences later.
Sarek realized that Keya and Ryland were both looking at him. While Ryland did so with the knowledge of their previous conversation, Keya had a worried expression. Even she wasn't sure if it was possible to convince Belar to change his methods without a fight breaking out. Sarek had to try to convince him for the good of the Gold Goblin.
"Good morning," Sarek greeted, pushing his nervousness down. "How's the workout?"
"Fine," Belar answered with a grunt. "Just a few more reps and I'll be finished."
"That's good to hear," Sarek said, and after a moment of silence, continued. "I was hoping to talk about last night."
"What about last night?" Belar asked, dropping down to the ground with a thud. He had worked up quite the sweat during his workout and reached for a wet rag to clean himself off.
"Have you put any thought into how you could do better as a bouncer?" Sarek asked, trying to be delicate as he could be.
"Not at all," Belar shook his head and wrapped the rag around the back of his neck. "It's my job to throw people out. I do that well enough."
"But the people you throw out don't come back," Sarek pointed out.
"It's because they're cheaters," Belar argued and crossed his bulky arms. "We don't want them showing up again, do we?"
"You've also thrown out people who've gotten too drunk or lost all of their earnings," Keya countered, finally mustering the courage to join Sarek. "We're not asking for much, just that you're more considerate."
"Do you think that you'd do a better job at being a bouncer?" Belar questioned harshly. "Is that it?"
"That's not what Keya and I meant," Sarek quickly said and Belar stepped forward.
"Answer with a yes or no," Belar asked, and when the two hesitated, he cracked his knuckles. "Alright. I see how it is. Let me show you why I'm the better bouncer."
Sarek and Keya both stepped back, wide-eyed to see Belar approach them in anger. It was the last thing either of them wanted but the outcome they expected to happen. Even though he possessed magic, the sorcerer knew that if Belar was able to get close, there'd be little he could do to defend himself from the beatdown he expected.
Surprisingly enough, Ryland stepped forward, placing himself in the middle of the conflict. His presence was enough for Belar to stop his advance but the anger didn't fade away. Sarek knew that Belar thought of Ryland as a friend even if he didn't think the same of the dwarf. He wondered if that one-sided friendship would be enough to stop a fight before it happened. If it wasn't, Sarek didn't like Ryland's odds of winning. He hadn't pulled out his longsword, and by the time he needed to, Belar likely would be throwing punches.
"Back off," Ryland told Belar.
"Ryland, I like you, but I've got business to take care of," Belar said and shook his head. "Get out of my way before I throw you down a set of stairs."
Ryland didn't back down and instead fell down to one knee to match Belar's height and looked him in the eyes. "Back. Off."
Although Ryland's words weren't any more intense than before, Belar instinctively took a step back, much to his own surprise. The dwarf looked away from Ryland, struggling to meet his gaze. Finally, he dropped his hands at his side, showing that he had no intention of fighting.
"Sorry about that," Belar grumbled under his breath. "I lost my temper. I do that more than I should."
"You do," Ryland said and stood up.
Belar chuckled, not insulted by Ryland's comment. "That I do."
Keya looked at Sarek with a grin forming on her face. "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"
"I think so," Sarek nodded and turned to look at Belar. "Do you think that you'd be able to spot any cheaters from the catwalk?"
"Well, I've got a sharp eye, but looking for cheaters is Ryland's job," Belar pointed out.
"Not if you two swap positions," Keya said and snapped her fingers at the idea. "Think about it. Ryland can intimidate anyone with just his words and a hard stare alone. He doesn't need to move a muscle to get people to do what he wants."
"I get your point," Belar nodded slowly. "And you think that if we do swap, that'll be good for business?"
"It may, and if so, it'll mean that we make more gold," Sarek told Belar.
Belar sighed. "I don't like it but I'm willing to swap for a week and see if that works. If it doesn't, then I go back to being the bouncer. Got it?"
"Understood," Ryland said. "I have no problem with this deal."
"Great!" Keya stepped forward and patted Ryland on the back, a gesture that caught Sarek by surprise. "How about the two of you share tips for your new jobs. Sarek and I should meet with Tess."
"Sounds like a good idea," Belar said. "Just let me get dressed…"
Keya didn't stick around any longer and left the room with Sarek following behind her. Ryland stayed behind and the sorcerer couldn't believe that they were able to help Belar without a fight breaking out. He hadn't thought of swapping Ryland and Belar's jobs but he thought that the reasoning was sound. Sarek turned to Keya and couldn't help himself but grin at their luck.
"That was a close call," Sarek chuckled. "Good idea for letting Ryland take over as the bouncer."
"And the best part is that we don't have to worry about Ryland following us around for the rest of the day," Keya added with a smirk. "I was starting to get tired of him."
"And here I thought you were ready to move on from hating him."
"It's hard to hold a grudge against someone who doesn't even notice but that won't stop me from trying," Keya said. "Come on. Let's see what we can do to help Tess."
After searching for Tess upstairs without any luck, Keya and Sarek ran into a complication when they arrived downstairs.. Before they could find the elf, an attractive half-elf woman with red hair approached and tattoos across her face approached the sorcerer. Keya didn't pay too much attention to the conversation, trying to keep an eye out for Tess, but heard enough to know that the woman was hoping to get a job at the Gold Goblin and wanted to meet with Saul. Sarek offered to lead her to him, and whether it was because he was attracted to her or because he wanted to stay in Saul's good graces, Keya couldn't say.
Regardless of his reasons, Sarek left Keya alone, which was disappointing to her. She believed that Sarek had the best chance of helping Tess given that the two of them were friends before coming to work at the Gold Goblin. Still, Keya recognized that she needed to do something to contribute to her own plan. Sarek and even Ryland had done more than her and it was time to change that.
Keya didn't think Tess would have left the Gold Goblin. It was no secret that the druid struggled adapting to her urban environment and hardly left the building. The half-elf briefly thought that she should search the kennels when she spotted Tess at the bar, trying to strike up a conversation with a man seated next to her. Keya questioned why the elf did so and came to the conclusion that she was actively trying to improve her social skills so that she could do better at being a greeter.
Although Keya was impressed with Tess taking the initiative, it became apparent that the man wasn't interested in the conversation, and soon later, stood up and left. The druid sighed and turned away, disappointed in her work. Tess could try as hard as she could but there were some things that improving her skills wouldn't fix. Keya remembered that many people thought that elves were off-putting and there was little Tess could do to fix the way her strange eyes looked.
It was going to be a tough conversation but one that Keya thought Tess needed to have. The half-elf joined her friend at the bar, taking the open seat.
"Barkeep!" Keya called out. "Two glasses of something strong. Put it on Saul's tab."
Tess shook her head. "No thanks, Keya. I didn't come here to drink."
"Lighten up a little," Keya said. "It's our day off and a single drink won't kill you. What's to stop us from having fun?"
"You might have a point," Tess sighed. "But I can't get over what Larur and Saul said. I'm trying to be as good of a greeter as Sarek is but no one wants to talk to me. Hardly anyone looks me in the eyes."
"Some people are like that," Keya shrugged, turning to look at Tess, or rather, her eyes. "You can call those people jerks, and if you want a harsher word to call them, I have plenty to suggest."
An amused smile flickered across Tess' face. "I have a feeling that you'd be a better greeter than I am."
"Probably," Keya couldn't help but nod. "But I'm a better dealer than I am a greeter. There's no harm in folding and waiting for a better hand."
"Huh?" Tess blinked in confusion. "I don't understand what you mean."
"I really need to teach you some card games," Keya chuckled at herself. "I mean that maybe you'd be better off helping out the Gold Goblin another way."
"Like how?" Tess questioned. "I run into the same problems I do now if I join Madia and Belar and Ryland do a good enough job on their own. They don't need my help."
"Maybe something behind the scenes would be best for you," Keya suggested. "How good of an artist are you?"
"Not very," Tess admitted. "I'd be willing to learn though."
"Then here's the plan. Keep working as a greeter for the next week or two. Sarek can pick up the pace for the two of you. In your free time, try to practice painting. The Gold Goblin could use some posters around Riddleport for advertisement. Once you feel confident in your skills, you shift over to making posters full time. How does that sound?"
"That's not a bad plan," Tess said, nodding along. "I think I'll give it a try, and if it doesn't work out, being a greeter isn't so bad."
"Sorry about the wait, ladies," the barkeeper arrived with two full glasses. "Here you go."
The barkeeper knew that Keya and Tess were Saul's partners and didn't charge them for the drinks. He left to continue the rest of his business. Keya took a moment to look over the Gold Goblin. She knew that running a casino was a difficult job but she could see herself running one in the future. She enjoyed gambling well enough and knew that she could turn a profit with the lessons she learned from working.
But for now, she had friends at the Gold Goblin that she wasn't willing to leave yet.
"Now that we have a plan, we're going to spend the rest of the day having fun," Keya declared and grabbed her glass. "Drink up and follow me. I'm going to teach you how to play Golem."
Tess hesitated for a moment but grabbed the glass Keya offered. "Thank you. I'm not sure how well I'll do though."
"I have a feeling you'll do better than you think," Keya told Tess with a smile. "And since it's your first time playing, I'll help you out."
"That would mean a lot," Tess smiled back. "Once again, thank you."
"It's not a problem," Keya said and tapped her glass against Tess' glass. "That's what friends are for."
A/N: This was a chapter I was excited for because I enjoy writing character interactions the most. This was a chapter full of them that I knew to expect ahead of time and there's more coming.
Things might be slowing down but we'll get back into some action soon enough.
And for those of you who've noticed that I'm posting earlier than I typically do, I'm trying something new. I've decided that Tuesdays would be days I set aside solely for writing. I'm hoping that it'll also give me a chance to work on other stories, including Seven Days to the Grave.
Until next time.