[TTC] (Council Meeting) Trading with Xandran Arms

[The Inventor]

Transmocon, Outlands was the location of the First Trading Company Bank. This building was the place were Invetisto made had the concept for The Trading Company as well as where he convinced the banks of every Outlands town to join together to form The Trading Company Bank. The bank itself was decent size. It stood in the center of the city. It was a two story building plus a basement where the vault was located. The first floor was the face of the company, this is where the bank teller put in and took out money for people. The vault door down in the basement was actually a portal to the main vault located in a secret location out in the middle of nowhere.

Invetisto clanked his way to the door that lead to the second floor. The second floor was the place where meeting where held, whether it was to discuss a lone or an important meeting between the banks it was done here. In the back was a special room specifically for The Trading Company Council. This is where Invetisto headed. As he entered the room he noticed that no one else had arrived. The room itself was rectangular. It's ceiling was at 20' to accommodate giants that might decide to join the council. However, that was about the only thing unusual about it. It was made of the same red brick that the rest of the building was made of and it had a heavy mahogany table able to sit two normal people on each side. There was also another table that was meant for the bigger members of the council if they ever got any. Invetisto then wet around and put three sheets of paper in front of three chair then stood at the head of the table to wait for the rest of the council.

[Brand]

Brand walked into the room, and sat down, looking over the file he had been given by a rather suspicious man in a cloak marked with the companies symbol.

"So. An arms dealer, skilled in haggling. It seems we might have quite a profit here Investio."

He looked over the file one last time, before picking up the paper, signing it with a pen that he had specially designed for this place and reading it slowly.

[The Inventor]

As Invetisto was about to reply, a teller ran into the room and handed Invetisto a note. He read over the note then turned to Brand. "Seems that Kyle Xandran himself has decided that he would like to negotiate right here in main bank." He then turned to the teller and said, "Send them in."

[Kyle Xandran]

Without much fanfare, the large wooden door opened and Reese Jarrek and his associates, Zarkin Talker and Dannaluth Grey, were ushered into the conference room. Jarrek was a fairly tall man with neatly combed hair and a goatee. He wore a long wool cloak with a light brown business suit underneath. It was a carefully chosen, non-confrontational, outfit that Jarrek frequently wore to business meetings. According to his stylist, it made other people feel more comfortable around him. He had nothing on him except for a briefcase that contained the details of his proposal for the Trading Company.

Reese Jarrek was CEO of Alerar Shipping, Inc., the front for the underground arms dealer, Xandran Arms. While Xandran was the namesake, Jarrek was it's public face. With a smile, he walked to Brand and offered his hand. "My name is Reese Jarrek, CEO of Alerar Shipping. These are my associates Zarkin and Dannaluth. It's a pleasure to meet you." Out of the corner of his eye, he saw what could only be explained as a giant bipedal clock. Unsure if it was a sentient creature or not, Jarrek offered it a nod, then turned back to Brand.

[Brand]

Brand leafed through the file set in front of him by Mr. Jarrek, and his eyebrows raised substantially, as he pulled out a large notebook, where he turned to a new page, jotted down a few numbers and did some math...

"50%! I think not! Sir, i have banks to keep in check, and that is just too much to remain with enough production. Eugh!" His coat rustled lightly as he stood up slowly, and paced up and down the room, with an intense look on his face that gave away his anger like a young child shouting. His eyes flickered in their strange, coal like fashion.

He shook he head at Investio, who was unmoving in his hissing and grinding machine, and the sighed to himself.

"Unless my fellow members agree with your deal, i propose 20%.

[Elthas_Belthasar]

Elthas carefully made his way to the meeting spot.

He'd received word late, but it wasn't anybody's fault. He'd been on an away mission, and that was a matter he would have rather not discussed in public. As he arrived at the bank, he nodded to various individuals, employees of The Trading Company, that he directly knew about. Elthas was an Officer of The Trading Company, and as such, made it a point to attend all of the necessary meetings. Elthas narrowed his eyes as he saw the the suit in the chamber. The man, well dressed, was an outsider and was not aware of Trading Company policies and etiquette.

Elthas entered the room. He was also finely dressed, wearing a simple green cloak with The Trading Company emblem patched upon it. Elthas was a council member, and had the title of quest monitor. He basically oversaw the jobs that were handed out to Trading Company members of all skill levels. Taking his seat at the table, Elthas tipped his hat towards the stranger in a friendly fashion. He removed his hat shortly after that and placed it on the table. Elthas wore a single cute, two breasted suit in the traditional Radasanth style of dress. The tailormanship was modern Radasanthi in style. Sitting down, Elthas looked over to Invetisto, and then over towards the guest of the hour.

"Forgive me for being late gentlemen." Elthas began. "I was held up by a matter I do not wish to discuss." Elthas looked at Brand and nodded to the other fellow council member, they'd met on a previous job. Then he turned his attention towards their guest. "Is the meeting underway yet?" Elthas asked.

[Brand]

"Yes, it is..." Brand growled, shoving a paper down in front of his fellow, and a good friend from when the twins "went away". His eyes almost sparking into flame in pure fury, his notebook was being filled at an alarming pace, as he wrote down notes quickly, in his strange, breakneck handwriting.

"50%! That is what this man wants!" Brand mumbled under his breath, sitting down in his chair with a thud, and wringing his hands slowly. He smiled lightly, with an obvious fake happiness. He allowed himself to slouch, wrinkling his perfect suit, and shadowing his already baggy eyes, weary from sleepless nights...

"I do hope Madison gets here soon...." He said slowly, focusing on each word, as if they were precious gems.

He looked over to Elthas, then Investio, and just hoped...

[Kyle Xandran]

Jarrek raised his eyebrow when Brand suddenly exploded. After listening to his counteroffer, the purchaser frowned. The golem must not have understood what Xandran Arms was offering, which was fine. This was a complicated deal that would make both organizations very rich, very quickly.

Before Jarrek could reply, a third man entered the room. Like him, this man wore a more casual suit than the golem. Jarrek waited for them to finish their conversation then turned to face all of those present. He placed his briefcase on the table, but did not sit.

"Gentleman, quills and parchment cannot explain all intricacies of this deal. Alerar Shipping intends to make money, and to do so quickly. As a trade organization, your company employs miners, loggers, artisans and smiths that we do not. You would benefit by having a quick way to unload the raw materials. Running through the Radasanth Bazaar takes time and is not very efficient. By selling your materials to us, we can instantly turn them into cash."

Jarrek cleared his throat and turned to Brand. "We are not looking to share in profits with you. We seek the right of first refusal to purchase 50% of what you sell. This means that if your mine produces 500 pieces of iron and you intend to sell them all, you offer to sell us 250 pieces before you look to another buyer. We are willing to buy those raw materials for 20% above the cost of the bazaar."

"Let me give you an example. Currently the bazaar sells iron for 25 GP per piece. If your mine produces 500 pieces of iron, you can sell that material to the bazaar for 12500 GP. If you sell half of them to us and half to the bazaar you can make 13750 GP. That is risk free net profit for you of 1250 GP. If you reduce the amount we can purchase to 20% you only make 500 GP. Are you willing to turn down a 250% increase in profit?"

"In our eyes, it's win/win."

[The Inventor]

Invetisto frowned inside his mettle body. Things aren't going as smoothly as expected. He then faced Brand. "Brand, while I agree that that is a large amount of our product. If he is paying more then average then I think it is reasonable. However," he turned to Mr. Jarrek, "know that any attempt to merge our companies will result in an instant nullification of our contract and you being put on our blacklist. Also, would you be willing to raise to 25% above cost of bazaar for free transport of the resources. That will bring our net total to 20313 gp and you don't have to worry about shipping the material or paying our 500 gp for the first container plus the 100 gp for the other containers in each shipment."

"So lets go with the last example."

"If we were to go with your current offer and we happen to mine and put up to sell 500 pieces of iron and we sell you half you pay us 7500gp add on the 6250gp that we get from what we sell to the bazaar that brings the total to 1,562,500gp which is a net profit of 1250gp.

Now of course we also have our shipping prices. You my good sir would pay us for 5 containers of 50 pieces of iron which costs 900gp bringing your total to 8400gp.

Now lets say you were to take my counter offer. You still get 50% of our material, however you pay us 25% and get free shipping. This means that you would still get the 250 pieces of iron but only pay 7813 for the entire bundle and wouldn't have to worry about shipping it."

And with this deal if we were to make maybe 1000 pieces of iron we would be the ones to make more then if they were to just pay for shipping. A profit which we could put to making more shops to make more jobs to boost the economy, Invetisto thought as he waited for Mr. Jarrek's reply.

[Kyle Xandran]

When the giant clock spoke, Jarrek was glad he acknowledged him earlier. He was not happy about what was said, though. "Why would a shipping company pay for shipping?" He asked rather matter-of-factly.

Shipping charges are out. While I could still profit if you were producing 500 pieces worth of iron, realistically we'll be looking at 10 pieces per 10 post thread. I'm not interested in razor thin margins when I can just hire mining characters for much less.

[Elthas_Belthasar]

Elthas listened to the entire transaction.

Though he had a relatively minor role in company negotiations, he felt relatively uncomfortable about what was being proposed. What Elthas KNEW was that The Trading Company offered a place for ANY laborer to work and not worry about having to forcibly sell product. Elthas was rubbing his chin thoughtfully and listened very carefully to everything the man said. The man dressed the part, and acted the part, but something about the whole event did not sit well with Elthas. Elthas's problem was in letting an outsider basically TAKE their hard earned materials. Elthas himself was a resource gatherer, he could skin small monsters and animals for their pelts and hides. Further, he knew the basics of gathering ore, and in turn, processing them to ingots and such.

Once boss had spoken, Elthas sighed. He turned to look at the handsome dressed fellow, then at boss for a moment. Then he looked at Brand. "Gentlemen." Elthas suddenly said. "I think we should take a quick break whilst we let this man's proposal sit in our minds for a moment." Elthas was trying really hard to be the voice of reason. Elthas looked at Jarrek for a long moment and nodded. "Sir. If you would, I would like to have a word with you in private."

[The Inventor]

Invetisto looked over at Elthas then at Brand, "I guess it would be a good idea to let brand cool down. Alright, we shall take a break." Invetisto walked over Brand, grabbed him, then dragged him out in order to get him a cold glass of water to cool him off.

[Kyle Xandran]

Jarrek watched in silence as everyone but Elthas left the room. He truly hoped this deal was not a loss. When the two were alone, Jarrek forced a smile and turned to the other man. "I do hope that we can come to some sort of arrangement."

[Brand]

"Sir! I respect you, but, still 50% of our production? That leaves us barely anything to work with. We barely have ANY production right now!" Brand argued as Investio, the supposedly "gentle trade leader" rather forcefully grabbed him, and dragged him out of the room. With a shove, he fell into the break room, where his boss gave him some water from a spigot in the wall, and he drank it, and put on his best friendly smile.

"Thanks, sir, i needed that. "

He turned around on the stool he was sitting on, frowning, and started absentmindedly, verbally carving the bar. His thoughts drifted back to the time when he joined the company. It was, a simple affair, just a few words and a quest. His frown softened into a real smile. His hand traced the work he had made, an eagle. Soaring high above the northern pines, with his mate far behind, tending to the nest as he hunted.

"A team, like, clockwork...."

[Elthas_Belthasar]

Elthas looked at Jarrek with a sympathetic expression on his face.

"I apologize for my comrades." Elthas said. "We are very careful when it comes to the items we gather and produce here. Please understand why some of us are very hesitant to agree to such a deal." Elthas stood up. There were drinks and snacks on the table prepared beforehand. Elthas took a goblet and poured some vintage wine imported from Raiaera. It was a good year and label as well. He walked over towards Jarrek with the drink and handed it to him. (Minor bunny, I hope you don't mind that.) "I understand in principle what you are saying. You are offering us a better deal than The Bazaar would. Also you just want FIRST SHOT at our goods before anybody else, am I correct in that assumption?" Elthas was generally a really agreeable person, he just wanted what was best for The Trading Company. "If you would allow it, I think I can better explain your intentions here to my comrades." Elthas wanted to be certain SOME sort of a deal was reached.

Jarrek was a good guy, Elthas could tell. They could have just as easily attempted a hostile take over. Elthas looked Jarrek square in the eyes, and saw something there. What it was, he wasn't quite sure. But he did SEE SOMETHING. Perhaps that was the whole reason that Elthas was inclined to trust the man. The others would just need a little bit of convincing.

[Kyle Xandran]

Jarrek took a sip from the goblet, then placed it on the table. The wine was bitter, but it had aged well. Maintaining his manners, Jarrek reached into his pocket and pulled out a small handkerchief. He wiped his face, then tucked the cloth back into his suit.

"Yes," Jarrek replied. "I think I've identified the miscommunication here." The purchaser cleared his throat, as the bitter taste of the wine was still lingering. "Alerar Freight is not seeking 50% of the materials that you PRODUCE, but rather the right of first refusal to purchase materials that you SELL. So, say you produce 500 iron pieces but only choose to sell 200 of them, by our agreement you will give us the first opportunity to purchase 100 of those 200 before anyone else."

Right now, the only real competition was the Radasanth Bazaar, but Jarrek also wanted this alliance in place in case some other merchant group came to power in the near future. The Ice Reavers and Red Hand were only one nostalgic former member away from being reborn at anytime, after all.

"Obviously there's not a lot of choice buyers on the market. While this agreement might seem like a windfall to the Trading Company now, by securing this agreement early Alerar Freight will be in an ideal situation if another group is looking to purchase ore. Does that make sense to you?"

[Brand]

In some time, with a few minutes, and a minute or two of talking, Brand took out his briefcase, and a pen where he then took out the deal that Xandran Arms wanted to have, he looked over it one more time before then coming along to himself and asking Investio, who looked at him in turn.

"We both agree on this?"

Investio nodded slowly, and the Financial Manager, with a look of resent, as if he would regret this later, slowly laid his pen to the paper and signed it, in the trademark, black ink laced with white, which shone on the parchment. He finished of the signature with a slow, careful stroke, before laying his personal seal next to his name... He walked back to the meeting room, which housed Elthas and Jarrek. The doors, polished oak, shone with the carefully laid magelights throughout the bank reflecting on the surface... He strode in, and read over the final conditions once more.

"By authority of Investio, Head of the Company, and Brand, Financial Manager, The Trading Company reserves all right to revoke all trade in all forms due to sudden changes in clauses. Brand retains the right, along with Investio, to revoke all future trade, and the such, on a moment's notice. If any of these clauses are broken, they can be punished by immediate removal from The Trading Company, hereby also known as TTC, Trading Company, and TC. This clause can only be activated by word of mouth from the head of Xandran arms or TTC.


Signed and Sealed, by ink,

Brand Phoenixeye

With a final twinge of doubt, Brand handed the document to Mr. Jarrek, and then sat down. He just thought, once more that it went as planned....

"That should cover it all, 50%, no shipping fees, so on, to the point. Please also read the final clauses. The red ink"

In the fine print, in ink that blended quite well with the paper, barely noticeable to the naked eye, where nobody, unless they took a magnifying glass to it, would be able to read the last clause "TTC, reserves all rights to revoke all communication of any sort relating to Xandran Arms, therefore closing all trade from there on until the council comes to a unanimous decision to reopen the possibility of trade and communication. Signed and written by Brand Phoenixeye, final, and non negotiable."

[The Inventor]

"I'm sorry for all the trouble that has happened here," said Invetisto as he went and stood at the head of the table. "Brand here is really bull headed and refuses to change his mind. I personally would like to continue negotiations so we can continue. I will have to lay down some rules though as I'm the founder of this company."

"First off, The Trading Company keeps at least 10% of all the products we make to keep in our material bank for future use in our company as well as emergency resources if we have a slow season in production."

"Second, if you want I will accept the 50% at 20% over the Bazaar price. But that is 50% of what we decide to sell not of what we produce."

"Third, we go with a majority in this council. If the majority decides to cut ties then we will."

"I will also be watching to make sure there is no merging of our companies as there is a difference in objectives. What we in the trading company are looking for is to stabilize the economy in the outlands. If anything was to happen to hamper this goal we will fight it."

"Now can we continue on with this meeting as I would like to finalize this bill as soon as possible?"

As soon as he finished his eyes were in the eyes of Mr. Jarrek. In fact, if Mr. Jarrek was to perceptive enough he would have noticed the millipede like creature that resided in the head of the machine.

[Brand]

Brand hastily scrawled the new conditions on a new form, taking the other one from Jarrek, and then looking over the new one, which echoed the old one, with a few different clauses.

"Boss, that all?"

Brand turned to Investio, and raised his eyebrow

[The Inventor]

Invetisto just said, "That is all I have personally, no wait, if there is an attemted merger then we will blacklist your company making it impossible to make any kind of contracts with you for a month. Now that's it. Of course it is up to Mr. Jarrek here to decide if he wants to finalize it as well as if he has anything to add, especially terms of termination."

[Elthas_Belthasar]

(This is my conclusion post.)

Elthas waited outside of the chamber whilst the trio deliberated.

He did not have a say in Trading Company policies, therefore, his signature was not necessary in the document that Invetisto and Brand cooked up. He folded his arms across his chest, and sat in a relaxed position. He leaned casually against a wall and took an inhale of the smoking pipe he liked the most. He currently smoked cannibus herb and the sweet scent filled the hallway. He did the best he could to keep the peace, but in the end, it was all up to boss. Elthas held the lit smoking pipe aloft with one hand and had his eyes closed. He was thinking. When Elthas took the time to really analyze things, he could come up with the necessary planning and strategy to overcome most obstacles.

He LIKED Jarrek, but that was a moot point now. Some of The Trading Company members would show hostility towards him and the faction that he represented. Elthas wondered exactly what type of a deal would end up being produced, but he would not participate in the rest of the proceedings. He'd said his peace. Elthas hoped that the group of folks could hash out a deal that would prove beneficial to all parties involved. Taking a deep inhalation of the cannibus herb, Elthas exhaled through his nostrils. Then, he stepped forward from leaning against the wall, and decided to leave the premises. He had done his part, the rest was up to Brand and Invetisto. Elthas had other matters he needed to take care of as well, so he decided to go where he was needed. That was what, in his mind, would be best for the rest of the group. If he simply kept himself busy with work.

~FIN~

[The Inventor]

Mr. Jarrek stood there doing nothing for quite some time. Invetisto had noticed Elthas leave but didn't make a fuss. Invetisto was going to run this specific negotiation. He was also going to have to call another council meeting at a later date to talk council meeting conduct. This one got out of control way too quickly.

After a few more minutes of waiting Invetisto decided it was time to get the mans attention. "Mr. Jarrek, if you wouldn't mind looking over revised version of the trade agreement and putting in any additions you might need so we can continue with the negotiations. It would be appreciated."

[The Inventor]

After a while of Mr. Jarrek did not respond so Invetisto called security and had him dragged out of the room. "Brand, it seams the negotiations failed." He then left with Brand right behind him.


Negotiations failed.
Xander Arms, please try again in January.

[Brand]

Brand nodded and followed him out, marking down a few things, then casually tossing the notebook in his bag. As they walked out, well, scurried for the Head of the Company, Brand looked at the bank again.

"Sorta sad, that we couldn't get the last deal, I do suppose my outburst had something to do with it, but still. "

With a regretful nod, Brand looked over at his friend and boss.

"Investio, there a tavern somewhere near here? Drinks on me if there is. "

[Mordelain]

Thread Title: Council Meeting
Judgment Type: Basic Commentary
Participants: Kyle Xandran, Elthas Balthazar, the Inventor, Brand

Plot: 6/30

Strength: Drawing on canon material always connects the reader with the bigger picture. Each person represented his or her faction well, and the stakes felt appropriately considered and dangerous. A logical narrative and development in the exchange left little room for doubt and the continuity of each post flows into the next.

Weakness: Though conventional day-to-day activities can make good stories, do not be afraid to do it in unconventional ways. You could have the agreement signed under duress. You could have a disturbance occur in the background, forcing your new client to ‘prove’ his worth literally. Brand, intense over use of run-on sentences, though not mechanically wrong, were a small upend of the thread’s pacing.

Character: 10/30

Strength: Good use of jargon appropriate for businesspersons conducting a business transaction. Kyle’s debonair, calm façade really shone here. Amongst a backdrop that was, to say the least bare, his charisma painted a picture of a glib, quick-witted, and dangerous man to cross.

Weakness: No sense of character beyond the dialogue. A lot of a man’s measure is not in what he says, but what he does. Whilst each post need not be an epic ode to development, a little flick of a fringe here, an indecisive quiver there would have built better pictures of how your characters were handling the bartering table.

Prose: 8/30

Strength: Simple, concise, and purposeful dialogue developed the exchange well. Clear, easy, and directed exchange meant the thread was understandable, and clear. Simple shifts in register (style) can also have good effects. Writing the letter out in the correct format was a well-executed way of adding detail to the agreement, and is a simple way you can continue to build technique in the future.

Weakness: Though posts were short, there are repeated mechanical errors. This category is often the easiest to improve, but the most difficult to master. I would recommend beginning with punctuation (never forget full stops!) and capitalisation. This in itself would afford you several points in mechanics alone. If a sentence in dialogue ends with him said, as is the same clause, then it should appear:

I’m going to the shop,” he said happily.

Not like:

I’m going to the shop.” He said happily.

Wildcard: 2/10 – difficulty always arises when one member of a thread leaves. Whatever the reason, you should never end the thread before trying to contact the concerned party. For the sake of the story, try to continue it appropriately in their absence, as the deadpan ending is blunt, unneeded, and should Kyle return with good cause, it would appear rude.

Final Score: 26/100

Elthas receives 225 experience and 75 gold.
Each other participant receives 150 experience and 50 gold.

[Mordelain]

Experience and gold added.