[PRP] - Counselor Conscription

[Buzzwulf]

A young barrister of New Hemisect answers a mysterious knock on his door.

 

[Buzzwulf]

The new clothes were claustrophobic. It had been several months since Engrav had... since his accident. He'd spent most of that time resting and planning, but with so much free time, too many things had whirled in his head, possibilities that could undo him or his plans like so much gossamer. He'd decided that there was only one real option: complete reinvention. Starting with a prosthetic of his own creation.

Still, the pants were a little tight.

Ah well. If Engrav was going to get used to being a little more public, he'd have to get used to them, even if the shoes did pinch just a little bit. The whole ensemble was far more beetles than he usually would have considered spending, but he had a specific air he wanted to put forward now. He would be confident. Or, not just confident, but visionary.

Engrav had spent a little time rehearsing, but he'd never met this troll before. In fact, he'd never tried to hire ANYONE before. Deep breath. First time for everything. He clenched the list he'd pilfered from the library in his left hand. Hopefully the lawyer would have a large enough head that he wouldn't ask how Engrav had found him in the first place... but if he didn't, Engrav wasn't going to lie. The library checkout list had been childishly easy to get a copy of, and Kwelin's name had been on by far the most checkout slips from the law section.

The building's hallway seemed to stretch forever, but eventually Engrav came to an unassuming door which simply stated "Tourny Law Office" in large typeset letters. Engrav nodded quietly to himself. This must be it.

Steeling himself, he knocked, the wood ringing slightly from the impact of his prosthetic arm. Engrav winced. He wasn't trying to scare anyone.

Yamashii

 

[Yamashii]

The first knock caught his attention. The second held it. It was incredibly loud, as if someone lacking social graces was knocking with the hilt of a blade or something. Kwelin quietly tucked his papers back in a folder, dropping them into the bottom right drawer of his desk. He cleared his throat and answered.

"Come in." It came out sharper than he had intended. He quickly tried to soften it with a "Good evening." Kwelin was not used to visitors to his office yet. It was hard to get anyone to take him seriously when there were older more experienced trolls to hire out there. And the trial by combat cases were definitely passing over him until he earned a record of success.

The first thing he noticed was the eye. Or lack of one. Was it rude to comment on it? No, he was a lawyer. Engrav had probably come here to make some kind of injury lawsuit.

"I would be happy to take your case. How did the injury happen?" Kwelin motioned at the seat in front of his desk for Engrav to sit. He pulled a water bottle out of the left bottom drawer of his desk and placed it next to the yellowblood as a complimentary beverage. Someday when the office was better off, maybe he'd be able to offer coffee.

Buzzwulf

Sorry this is so late! ; A;

 

[Buzzwulf]

Engrav crossed the office at the young blueblood's request, and sat carefully, folding his legs in an elegant posture. Well, he was pretty sure it was elegant. If he was looking at himself, he was pretty sure that's how he would describe it. The yellowblood grabbed the water bottle with his left hand and outstretched his prosthetic for a business-like handshake. "Engrav Setlar," he said to the young lawyer.

He glanced down at the water bottle in his hand. Off brand. Pretty old too. Engrav set it back down on the desk. The young troll had some trouble with cases. In fact, if Engrav had to guess, he'd have guessed that the little wiggler might not have handled a single actual case yet. There were no photos on the walls, no certificates, not a single placard commemorating some achievement, regardless of the size. There wasn't even a coffee pot.

Kwelin was perfect.

Engrav shifted his hair from the scar where his eye had been, staring straight at the young blueblood. It was a casual movement, but also designed to make him just the slightest bit uncomfortable. "This? This was my own fault." Engrav watched carefully for any flinch, any sign of weakness. He needed a GOOD lawyer, but also one who was maybe just the tiniest bit desperate. "I'm not interested in a quick payday. I'm looking to put a lawyer on retainer for several small tasks, and possibly for long-term service."

A sharktooth grin cut across the yellowblood's face. "I'm looking into several barristers in the area, but something tells me you might be interested in the opportunity to get some real-life experience." The grin faded like it had never been as he leaned back in the chair, uncrossed his legs, and folded them back in the other direction. "Of course, I wouldn't expect you to work for me without any specifics. What would you like to know about my proposal?

Yamashii

We gotta see about getting poor kwelin a french press or something. this is just sad sweatdrop

 

[Yamashii]

Kwelin raised an eyebrow at Engrav's admission that the injuries were self inflicted. He sure had done a fantastic job if that had been on purpose. The boy leaned forward to listen as the yellowblood launched into a vague description about the job. It was intriguing precisely because he didn't understand what Engrav was asking for. The older boy was obviously being guarded on purpose which meant he had something worth hiding.

"I'm definitely interested. I don't have experience yet but what I do have is flexibility and a problem solving mindset." He tapped the notepad on his desk with a pen as he thought over questions to ask.

"I suppose we should start with the most important thing. Is your work illegal?" He talked low and quiet to keep anyone outside from overhearing this part of the conversation. "I'm not judging you, I just need to know what kinds of legal recourse and services you will need." It was clear that Kwelin was certainly desperate enough to take on any job, so long as he knew the right information to keep them both out of trouble. Just knowing the truth was enough. Justice didn't interest him.

Buzzwulf

 

[Buzzwulf]

Engrav snorted a little at the implication of illegal activity. He'd had a pretty good guess that Kwelin would be desperate for work, but he hadn't expected him to be quite THAT desperate. "Illegal?" Engrav said, dropping his voice just a notch. "Not in the slightest. And even if it was, I'd be a poor employer if I expected my peers to throw in with that kind of risk."

The yellowblood paused for a second. He hadn't really said his whole plan out loud yet, but he guessed that this was finally the time to do it. The yellowblood was a little worried it would just sound stupid once he finally had. Engrav had spent so much time hiding everything about himself from threats real and imagined that now, when he actually wanted to get out information, he found himself still being reserved. There was certainly reason to be; he didn't want anyone stealing his ideas out from under him, or affecting his timetable in unforseen ways. That didn't mean that he had to play spy all the time, though. He was public now.

"No," Engrav continued, business-like. "Nothing like that. I'm more of an entrepreneur. Or maybe a futurist? I'm hoping to put together some like-minded individuals to work on a few projects, none of which should be suspicious in the slightest. I believe the technical term for it is a 'syndicate', although that sounds very cloak and dagger. I'm going with 'consortium' for now."

He pointed to the young lawyer. "Your job would be to help in three specific areas. Although if you're interested in more work, I'd almost certainly be able to find it for you assuming a good start to the business. First of all, I need someone to run products and ideas by so that I can make sure they comply with the law as it's currently on the books. That's very important: I don't want to run into any legal trouble I would otherwise be able to avoid just because I don't know the system well enough."

He paused again. "Please don't take any notes of this for now, by the way. I know all of this is above-board, but I like being a very private individual. Just humor me for now. I'd be happy to go over any of it again with you if you have questions. Sorry," the yellowblood said, with a small smile. "Should have led with that."

"The second thing I'd need you for is contracts. Specifically, I have a number of trolls I need to invite to this... consortium. I want them to be aware that these contracts are non-binding, and can be dissolved any time they see fit. They'll simply have a rundown of what each member can expect to receive from the group, and terms for sudden termination if someone is caught in illicit activities. You know, cooperation with unsavory elements or such. I'd write the contracts myself, but... my creations tend to get a little, ah, labyrinthine. I'd really like to keep these simple, to-the-point, and nonthreatening if possible." The yellowblood paused again, letting the point sink in. That would still be a pretty hefty chunk of work.

"Finally, and this is the thorny one: at a certain point, we're going to have to cooperate with the government, and I'd rather get out ahead of it. That means that I need you to get me a meeting with someone high up that I can convince to let us continue operations. That's very important, but if you feel you can't do it, I'd also appreciate a reference to someone you think can." The yellowblood finally wound down, his piece said. That was the whole pitch, at least for now.

"If you can get that done for me, I can see about getting you a nice office somewhere. Preferably with a view." Engrav reached back to the desk, uncapped the bottled water and took a swig. The yellowblood grimaced at the sour taste, his sniffnub wrinking involuntarily. "And a coffeemaker? Anyway. Let me know if you have any questions. That was a lot of information to remember."

Yamashii

Geez, sorry for the manifesto. You asked for it, though.