A soft knock at the open door signals the arrival of the bursar: a portly dwarvish woman with a soft face and mahogany skin dusted with darker freckles on her arms and cheeks. "Wellby said to come up, sir?" she asks, her polite voice a rich baritone timbre.
"Thank you, Enid, yes," Luther says, nodding for the woman to come in. "Eight, please. For Laerdya."
The woman pushes her way easily past the group, finds an ottoman to sink into, and begins pulling items in a businesslike fashion from two big bags she'd brought in slung over each shoulder. The array of parcels and packages she draws from the bags quickly take up more space, in total, than should be present in the bags. Magic, apparently, is at work again.
First: There are sample bottles. Locks of hair are stored for those party members who will allow the storage, and the bottles are carefully labeled by the bursar and under-signed by the person who gave the sample. (A little paper receipt is printed in fine ink and given to each person, though what they are supposed to do with the receipt is never explained.) The samples are then gently packed back away in the magic bags.
Second: Money bags are drawn out and handed around to each member. These have a nice heft, each the size of a man's fist. Enid informs them that the contents contain 100 gold apiece for a week's wages, plus a bonus of 50 gold for coming to the job interview. This is a princely sum; an artisan selling wares at the market would be lucky to earn 10 gold a week. The coins in the bags contain a strong mix of silver and copper, which is a kindness; only a fool would flash a bag full of gold around back home in the slums.
Third: Enid withdraws eight metal emblems which look like an eight-pointed stars wrought from a silver alloy; the symbol can mean several things in Brilight iconography, but often generically signifies magic. Carved on one side of the star is a stylized L in a thin thread of gold, while a tiny chip of sapphire bisects the length of the L. The emblem is tiny enough that the materials themselves would bring no great price on the market; the value lies in who is associated with the emblem. "If you show that to Captain Callahan," Luther explains, "he will know I gave it to you and he should make time to answer any reasonable questions. However, please remember he is doing so as a courtesy to me; I do not hold direct political power over him or his office."
Fourth: She pulls out eight identical necklaces which look like nothing any of them have ever seen before. They aren't silver or gold; instead, they seem to be woven from thin glittering strands of the palest copper in existence. The necklaces are long in length and can be looped over the head twice for a double strand to wear at the neck, or can be left in a single strand to disappear within the clothes. They are lighter than fabric and faintly warm against the skin. "Laerdya made these," Luther says as the necklaces are passed around. "Please wear them at all times, or at least keep them on your person. If you find Gwyn, or find someone you think might be Gwyn, toss the necklace over her head. If the target is Gwyn, the metal will glow. If it's someone made to look like her--with magic or by artifice--the metal will not react."
Fifth: Packages of something soft wrapped in paper are produced and handed around; unlike everything else so far, these are addressed to each party member by name. "Cover stories for why you were called to the tower today, and why you may attend the tower in the future," Luther explains. Each package has a sheaf of brief instructions--which are to be left with the bursar after reading--and clothing which fits the wearer. Each party member now has a "job" at the tower which they are in no way required to attend, but which can give them a plausible reason for coming and going as needed.
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Jarek Riptide and Thimblewhick Riptide are given official Feytower stable-hand tunics. Their cover story is that the Feytower has acquired some specialty mounts which they are trying to train for wizards to ride upon, and the Riptides were hired because of their experience handling magical animals.
Sithani Molana and Ellowyn Naninger are given student robes. Their cover story is that they have been accepted for study at the Feytower to learn arcane magic (in Sithani's case) and the history of divine magic (in Ellowyn's case). This is a great honor and an expensive one; Sithani's tuition is supposedly being paid by her mother, while Ellowyn's sponsor is Marta.
Ka'Ri Af Osprem is given a servant's tunic. Her cover story is that she has taken a job in the kitchens as a scullery maid. This isn't glamorous work, but it's steady and pays reasonably better than she'd receive in the slums. It is also the sort of low-profile job a thief might acquire in order to case a place prior to a theft.
Sunrise is given the sash of an adjunct teacher, though her paper carefully explains she is not a teacher; instead, she has been given a temporary job in the main library. This is an enormous sprawling world of books, scrolls, and parchment--a place of wonder and chaos badly in need of organization. This job fits Sunrise's earlier internship at the courthouse: the work is not hard and the potential to meet the city's movers and shakers is unparalleled.
Glynlen Liadon and Rik Templeborn are given belts and over-the-armor tunics in the colors and insignia of the tower guard. They are "on loan" from their respective posts to the Feytower guard while administration tightens up the holes in security which led to Gwynnestri being kidnapped in the first place. They have been assigned posts at different towers, and there is no reason for anyone to assume that they are working together or working to find Gwyn.