Nobody openly rejected the idea of the group traveling which wasn't all that surprising. She did not think anyone here was stupid. They knew the chances of surviving in the North were better in numbers. When the guard called down Sage whipped her head up to get a clear look at the guards on the wall. With the directions given the group began to move towards the opening gates.

Sage was thrilled to finally be going inside. Not so thrilled that she would be meeting with Lord Cross. She had heard rumors, as everyone else had, she was sure. She did not know if she should be apprehensive about this meeting but she was. Something didn't sit right with her. What care did Lord Cross have with their affairs?

As she filed in line behind the woman with the different colored eyes..or journalist..she hadn't decided what to call her yet, Sage was sure to walk a little off to the side so as not to have Four Swords completely out of view. Not that this was a necessary measure, what with the armed guards and all, but it was an instinct she'd adopted long ago, more of a compulsive need really, to be completely aware of her surroundings.

"Lord Cross?!" Al gasped, following after the group.
"You don't mean the Lord Cross? The guy who... who..." he looked downwards at his feet, crossing over from snow covered dirt to snow covered cobblestone.
"I don't know who Lord Cross is. I don't think I've ever been here before, actually." he scratched the back of his head. It struck him as odd for the lord of a town to demand an audience with what appeared to be mostly vagrants, woodsmen, and, if the blonde man was any indicator, very fashionable jesters. Well, he supposed the last one would make sense.

That still left only vague ideas what might befall the wanderers.
"...This isn't gonna get weird, is it?"

One of the guardsmen, a bulky man standing at the side of what might have been a captain, turned his head towards Al. “Is this some kind of joke? Have you never heard of Lord Cross?” His eyes, scanning the man's face from within, apparently was adequately convinced that this man, wherever he might have been from, was genuinely ignorant on the subject. With a gravelly voice, the man spoke. “Lord Cross is the Lord of the Castle, and of this entire territory, and has been for many years.” With a slightly different voice, he added, “And I imagine it'll only get as weird as you make it.”

Elizabeth hopped down from the boulder she had made her seat as the guard directed them to follow. She walked along with the party, drifting in somewhere towards the middle of the group, with Noah joining at her side. The question of what exactly Cross wanted with them weighed heavily on her mind. After all, if local legends were to be believed, he was more monster than man. He had, allegedly, crucified the former ruler of the realm atop his city's highest spire as a show of force. Such a man was not necessarily one she wanted to cross paths with. It was all the more surprising, then, when the group entered the city. The interior of Vulture's Roost was not the harsh foreign environment she had been expecting. The guards led them first through a small residential district, comprised mostly of small houses made of stone. The homes, though quaint, seemed fairly well built, and the city's builders seemed to have done well at maintaining the roads. Occasionally, a pair of eyes would peek out of a window at the curiosity that had just entered their city, but otherwise the district seemed rather comfy, or, as comfy as Gris could be.

As the party progressed onward, they reached what appeared to be a market district. People milled about the marketplace, and a variety of sounds and smells arose from the town's center. Various stalls were set up, peddling a number of different wares. Tools, meats, clothing, and a variety of oddities filled the stalls of the different merchants. The people dressed primarily in furs from the assorted wildlife, and seemed quite diverse. People of different age, sizes, and even races could be seen going about their daily lives. Elizabeth was reminded of the city's past ownership of a large number of slaves, and theorized this accounted for the diversity. Noah's pace slowed as he took in what the city had to offer. "This isn't what I was expecting at all. This is... familiar, I guess. Not like the other cities at all." Elizabeth nudged him forward in an attempt to keep the child from slowing down the group. The people of the city seemed curious about the band of foreigners, and a number of eyes remained trained on them as they passed. Even so, the people continued their everyday business, haggling prices or talking of rumors. A few guards, all in the same black armor, stood nearby, keeping a keen eye on the public.

Pausing for a moment, the guard who had been leading them turned to speak, his poleaxe still propped against his shoulder. "This is the marketplace. After your meeting you can come back here to buy whatever you might need for this journey. We don't get a lot of traders, so most of what you'll find here is local. Not too fancy, but it'll keep you warm, fed, and alive." The guard motioned ahead of them. "The great hall's in the castle, just up ahead. I'll remind you before we get there that being welcomed into the Lord's Court is a great honor. I'd recommend you all stay respectful, if you want to keep your heads." The way the guard spoke, losing one's head wasn't such an unusual occurrence. After a moment, the guard turned around and continued leading them forward, speaking as he walked. "Any stories you've heard about Lord Cross are probably true, though there's certainly more to him than the bastards in the south would have you believe."

Ira followed along with the group, giving a amused smile with Four Swords gave away that he had not heard of Lord Cross, doing his best to fit in with the group. Ira kept close to Noah and Elizabeth, the only two in the group he could consider to be potential friends. After the guard gave his warning to be respectful, Ira glanced down at Noah and gave a reassuring smile, "Don't let those harsh words affect you, Noah. It's all just face." Ira whispered, hoping that his words would calm the child. In truth, Ira had done enough research on Cross to know what the man would do. He probably knew more about Cross than his own guards, possessing knowledge even as far back as when Cross was nothing more than a prisoner of the Castle of Tears. Ira would be careful to keep this secret knowledge to himself, however. Cross likely didn't take kindly to strangers knowing so much about him, and if one man in the world that Ira would prefer not to be alone with -- Cross was that man. However, it wasn't Cross that put a hole in the bottom of Ira's stomach. It was whom Lord Cross chose as personal bodyguards.

Ashley walked idly behind most the group, keeping a distance of a few yards. His eyes darted and flick through the scenery, watching for anything out of place. So caught up in his constant scanning, Ashley forgo listening to whatever the others had caught themselves up in. It wasn't until the guard had stopped to speak to them that Ashley stopped his 360 awareness. Listening to the guard, Ashley wondered just how trained he was. While the army of Vulture's Roost looked far larger than it should for a region as small as it was, it also was largely diverse. Ashley wasn't as lucky as Ira, forfeiting his chance to learn about Gris and Vulture's Roost, but it was no doubt a slave force, although they didn't quite appear to be a normal slave force. Narrowing his eyes to squint up at the highest spire of Vulture's Roost, Ashley could not help but think that the entire meeting was a farce. Keeping himself alert, Ashley continued to scan around, waiting for the unexpected knife or arrow to sling from nothingness to start Ashley's expected ambush.

Lexine didn't bother looking around, it wouldn't have done her much good anyway. The only thing worse than being an obvious tourist was an obvious tourist struggling to discern between two discordant eyes. The city had enough activity coursing through it to warrant a differentiated market and residential section, at the very least. There was much of Vulture's Roost that their little tour couldn't take them through, and she wouldn't have enough time to familiarize herself with the city before they left. That was fine, she didn't expect any major incidents before they, whoever that group happened to finally be, departed for the far north. She kept the pace, despite the continued protest of her legs. To make it that far, she had been walking for a period of time she was no longer confident in putting a definite length to. Inside the walls, shielded from the winds and somewhat removed from the cold, she could feel her forced show of endurance beginning to break down. It was far from what she usually called home, but it was pleasant nonetheless to stand amid the normal people. The drone of marketplace conversations and the aroma of distantly cooking food both work to pull her attentions away from what currently mattered. Before the liveliness of Vulture's Roost could pull her away from the group, however, the group stopped.

She looked to the guard as he began to speak, taking note of the directions he gave in the event that they were being left to approach the castle on their own. That wasn't the case, she soon discovered, as they were once again moving. She had no intention of losing her head here, of all places. Her train of thought was interrupted by a nauseating sense of repetition. It was, indeed, a sentiment she had held shortly before almost losing her life. Lexine's face involuntarily scrunched into a frown as she turned her mind away from the topic. The rest of the group apparently had no qualms with visiting Lord Cross either, as they were resolutely holding to silence. They'd have plenty of time to drum up conversation with each other after he had given his speech, anyway. As they went along, she wondered what was important enough about their predicament to warrant Alec Cross himself, rather than a member of his staff or whatever the people of this frigid land called their governmental organs.

Sage followed the group as she watched the people of the marketplace. The everyday hustle and bustle of the merchants was a welcome sight after her trek here from the last town. She couldn't wait to get back here and see what this diverse bunch had to offer. Even if she didn't have much to spend. Vulture's Roost's normal activity was comforting. ~How did such a vicious man come to be their leader?~ she found herself wondering. Having lived in Southern Gris for the last 5 years and loving to travel like she did, Sage found it hard to believe she had not visited this place sooner. Not that it was anything spectacular. Only that it was one of the very few places she had yet to see.

When the guard spoke she was reminded once again of Lord Cross's reputation. She wasn't disrespectful though and normally would have no reason to worry about losing her head. However, this was Alec Cross. She might "offend" him without ever knowing it. Sage vowed to keep quiet and thus hopefully depart with her head, and all other body parts, safely intact.

Galant carried himself with a mix of confidence and grace as the guards began to lead the way into Vulture's Roost. His boots barely made a sound in the snow, as that was how light he was on his feet, not to mention he was used to walking on it. It hadn't changed in the past few months since he had been here, so the scholar was a bit more familiar with everything than the others must have been. He saw the faces peeking out of windows as they walked past the houses, and he simply smiled at them. Unless somebody attacked him, he was perfectly harmless. There was no way he was going to go around starting fights in Lord Cross' territory.

The scholar was a little less familiar with the market than he was the residential area. He didn't have to supplies quite as often as he went through the other area. But he still knew his way around a little bit. He wondered briefly if any of the others were any good at haggling, he was, but the merchants here could be pretty stubborn when it came to their goods. At least when dealing with travelers. They were always fair with the residents of Vulture's Roost. Sometimes not even Galant's smooth voice could get them to lower their prices for him, and trading for knowledge didn't work with these folks.

Galant was kind of looking forward to seeing Lord Cross again. The man most certainly was interesting. While the rumors of the man may have been true, there was always more than one side to someone. Galant huffed when the guard leading them mentioned the bastards from the south. "This bastard from the south has met Lord Cross before and knows that the rumors don't do him justice." He said in a slightly scolding tone. Galant wasn't worried about losing his head in the slightest though. As long as he didn't do anything to purposely offend Lord Cross, he would be fine. It worked the first time and it would work again.

Noah turned his eyes towards Ira, still following along with the group. “You're right. I'm sure it will be fine.” The boy pointed back towards the marketplace behind them. “I mean, the people here seem reasonably happy, right? So he can't be all that bad.” He kept walking, falling silent for a moment. Evidently, the boy was fashioning some sort of explanation for his feelings on the matter. His eyes glanced to Elizabeth for a moment before he continued. “People say lots of bad things about other people... But sometimes people are wrong, y'know? You never know how someone really is until you meet them for yourself. That's how I look at it anyway.” The boy smiled, and continued following the group as the neared the castle.

The guard leading the group spoke up at Galant's reply. “I wasn't trying to direct that towards you, scholar, but you know how it is down there. You mention the Roost and the southerners don't know when to shut up. That's why we don't get many visitors. Not that it bothers me any.” As the guard was making his reply, the group reached the gate of the castle. The building, like most of the city, was nearly entirely constructed of stone bricks. Its grey walls seemed nigh impenetrable, especially in conjunction with the heavy iron doors that creaked open as they arrived. Red banners emblazoned with the image of a great black bird flew from every battlement, a reminder of the castle's owner. As they passed through the gates, they were greeted by a large courtyard paved with granite. On one end of the courtyard, soldiers drilled, paying no attention to the group as they entered. The castle itself was quite large, housing the city's barracks, armory, great hall, and library, as well as the lord's personal residence. The guard led them up to another set of iron doors, these notably smaller. “Welcome to the Great Hall. Lord Cross is waiting inside."

The guard pushed the great doors open, beckoning the party to follow. Elizabeth crossed the threshold into the room, taking a moment to adjust to the darker lighting. As the rest of the party entered, the woman stopped for a moment to take in the entire room. It was somewhat dark, despite rows of windows on either side. A long rectangular table carved from ash lay in the room's center, with a number of seats place around it. On the table sat a rather generous amount of food and drink, illuminated by a row of iron candlesticks. At the end of the room was a great throne. A man sat upon the throne, his bright pink eyes drawn to the party as they entered. His flesh was rather pale, though not the snow white that most Grisians bore. His head was covered in thick black hair, nearly reaching his shoulders. A few streaks of grey stood out amongst the inky mane. He was dressed entirely in black, with a great mantle of black feathers wrapped about his shoulders. The man had a well groomed beard, and might have appeared somewhat handsome, were it not for two great x-shaped scars on his cheeks. An empty chair sat next to the man, and behind him and to his left, in a smaller seat, sat a young girl. The girl, who couldn't have been older than twelve, had brilliant red hair, carefully braided and hanging over her shoulder. Her skin was as pale as the moon, standing in stark contrast to the black dress, also decorated with feathers, that she wore. For a moment, Elizabeth pondered who the girl could be, until she noted a pair of curious pink eyes watching them. A daughter? On either side of the throne stood a pair of gargantuan figures, covered from head to toe in armor and standing nearly nine feet in height. Their helmets, unlike the other soldiers of Vulture's Roost, were rounded, with their visors molded to look like human faces. Both figures held great weapons, one a massive two handed sword, the other a warhammer of gargantuan proportions. With their stillness, one might have misidentified these titans as statues, but as the doors to the Great Hall closed, Lord Cross rose from his seat, and his guardians both fell into a kneeling position. Dazed, Noah murmured out a question that he, and everyone in the room already had the answer to. “Are those... really... giants?”

Alec stepped down from his throne, his cloak flapping slightly as he approached them. His eyes scanned down the line with vague interest, stopping for a moment at Galant. “Ah, the scholar. I wondered if... no, when, you would get involved in this.” He glanced down the row again, his eyes were piercing, as if he was staring into a person's very mind. “Greetings, all of you. Sit, eat, we have a great deal to discuss.” The man's voice, though he was seemingly welcoming them, lacked any sort of warmth. It was difficult to say it conveyed any sort of emotion. As he spoke, the glint of gold could be seen within his mouth, likely replacements for broken teeth. He motioned toward the table, and the array of food upon it.

Alec stood in silence for a moment, waiting for everyone to take their seats. The giants still knelt, completely still in their positions, though with the speed at which they had reacted to their lord rising, it was likely they could break their act at any time. The young girl still sat in her chair, watching curiously as the spectacle before her unfolded. After everyone had sat down at the table, Alec strode over to its head, his boots clacking against the marble floor in the uncomfortable silence. He stood at the head of the table, again peering through his guests, before finally speaking. “A man, a professor, or so I'm told, writes a book. A few months later, drawn by the fanciful descriptions in this book, would-be adventurers begin showing up at my door. Some come alone, others bring small groups, and each of them give me a number of reasons that they wish to pass through my city and head North.” The man's voice had a strange smoothness to it that somehow made his words soothing and unnerving at the same time. “In the past few months, more and more adventurers have knocked at my door, all of them heading North, all of them enthralled by this professor, Tikkis I believe his name was, and his tale of some ancient temple.” He paused for a moment, again looking over his guests.

Elizabeth's stomach tightened. So, they weren't the first to come here. Not even close by the sound of things. Before she had come to terms with this fact, however, Alec continued. “All of these adventurers, many of them seemingly well prepared, have passed through my city. There were mercenaries, travelers, explorers... Would you like to know how many have come back through?” A small smile crossed the Lord's face, exposing a pair of golden canines. “Not one. I haven't heard a word from any of them. Now, another group of adventurers comes before me.” His eyes went down the line. “A scholar, a child, a cripple, a man with far too many swords...” His eyes stopped on the brothers for a moment, and then moved on to Lexine. “A pair... no, perhaps a trio, of professionals, and...” His eyes came to rest on Sage. “Hmm... not quite a professional, unless my eyes deceive me. Maybe someone with a bit to prove?” He chuckled softly. It was a laugh lacking any sort of mirth. “And I'm certain all of you intend to survive this journey. If the last few have been any indication, however, you will likely die.” He made the statement as if it were a matter of fact.

“But, on the off chance that luck does happen to shine on you... I have a request. If you do happen to find this temple, that is, if it even exists... I'd like to know about it. I have no interest in any artifacts, or, if this enigmatic professor is to be believed... 'gods' within this temple, but if the professor's ramblings prove to be even somewhat accurate, there will likely be quite a few more knocking at my gates. Very few will risk life and limb to chase fables, but if there is money to be made, all the world will turn their eyes towards the North. As the last settlement before the Wastes, those people will have to pass through my gates. You can see why I would like a bit of warning before a horde of gold-hungry dogs come barking at my door.” He paused again, glancing around the party. “Should you agree to such a small request, I will grant you all the supplies you might need, as well as all the information I have about the Wastes. It seems a fair trade, no?” Alec crossed his arms, awaiting a response from the party before him.

"I'll have you know that these swords break a lot, thank you very much." Al interjected, thrusting his hand aside.
"A lot." he repeated, his face growing serious.

"Also, they're bigger than throwing knives. Also, they're cool. Why would you have one cool thing when you could have three? Answer me that, mister man. And for the record, we don't need you-" this sentence was cut off by a loud grumbling. "We need your charity. I'll check out the weird stuff for you for free food. Deal?"

Ira took his seat, and listened intently to what Lord Cross had to say, showing respect as much respect as a listener can. Ira smiled slightly, as Cross correctly identified him and Ashley as professionals, along with Lexine. It seemed that Lord Cross wasn't as dim as he was violent, which was good news. Ira, nodding his head to confirm he agreed to the terms Cross posed to them, let out a chuckle as Al interjected, along with his stomach. Ira hoped that Cross wouldn't overreact to Four Swords, whom seemed was raised in the wild, and by the wild. Speaking up, before Al's words hung in the air too long, Ira intended to put Cross in a good, or better, mood, "I appreciate you receiving us, Lord Cross, into your formidable home. We, as a group, would deeply appreciate all the help you're willing to give to us." Ira, reached and picked up a cup from the table, along with a pitcher of what appeared to be wine, and poured himself a glass. Gingerly raising it, and tentatively raised the cup, looking over his companions and giving them a chance to also pour a cup in order to conduct a kind of toast to Cross. After a moment, Ira turned his head towards Lord Cross and nodded, "To the generous Lord Cross."

Once Ashley entered the Great Hall, his eyes immediately fixated on the pair of mountainous guardians that were ready to act on Cross's command at any second. Ashley listened absentmindedly, but did not take a seat with the rest of the group. Standing slightly away from the group, Ashley gazed around the castle, waiting for Cross and his group to finish indulging themselves before heading North, while also periodically turning his gaze back to the giants. It was unlikely Ashley could even take one of them, considering the quickness that they seemed to react with, and the obvious strength they had. It probably wouldn't be difficult to avoid them, but Ashley didn't necessarily want to do that song and dance. He had fought big men before, some taller than 7 feet, but none that boomed with muscle as much as the giants did. Turning his gaze back around to look around the castle, Ashley was still on high alert. To the man, he was in the lion's den, and would treat it as such. Even though Ashley hid any type of worry from his face, it would be somewhat clear to a studious observer that Ashley was scanning the Great Hall for possible dangers, points of exit, and other items of interest.

It was a lot of information she'd be just been given. It was no longer a question why they had been left with their weapons. In her case she simply wasn't as great at using them as she supposedly used to be, but in any case they were simply woefully unequipped to kill Alec Cross in his own castle. If she was reading the locale properly, that wasn't a very uncommon occurrence either. Lexine took her seat as bidden, finding renewed liveliness in her stride as she raced over to the table. Her long coat crumpled as she sat down, although she had no intention of removing the ankle length winter cover no matter how warm the interior was. Granted, a man openly bearing four swords had been admitted without concern, she felt more than a little uncomfortable about possibly revealing her hidden weaponry. It wasn't a thing that garnered much trust. As soon as she made contact with the chair, faint aches ran up her back and legs. She shrugged, adjusting her pose slightly but more or less ignoring the pain in favor of finally sitting down. As much as she trusted the furniture, Lexine did not partake in the food set out by Cross. As he went on, he made it clear that there were no survivors among those who had gone north, and she wondered as to what the cause of that was. Conventional knowledge provided that the environment, however harsh, was merely a set of conditions humans had been dealing with for years innumerable. She was habitually skeptical, but in suspecting there was more to the dangers of Gris' wild she felt wholly justified.

Slowly arching her neck, she thought about their situation as Lord Cross gave his conditions. Information was something they simply couldn't turn down. Being bound to one route of egress, however, was not something that agreed with her gut. Her glare finally settled on Cross, interrogating the man from where she sat. The black clad vulture towered over the head of the table, and she couldn't help but feel as though she was (once more) carrion. His form bounced and weaved in her troubled vision, and as she slowly closed her poor eye to get a better look, she realized there wasn't much to be read on the man's face. None of them had any way of knowing the intent of his terms, of course they were couched in some notion that they were for Vulture's Roost's safety. It wasn't a fair trade by any means, it was too good to be true. Her analysis came shattering down around her and her eye fluttered open in surprise as the swordsman spoke up. She couldn't bear to look. After so much posturing about respect and stately manner before the lord of the castle, this was to be their group's first reply. It was unbearably bad chance. Her frown sunk further as she broke her eyes from Cross and glanced around the table.

One of their number was chuckling. Her dissatisfied face lingered on the man, one of the duo, in the hopes that she could be in on what about their gaffe was so funny. As was becoming a trend, she didn't find what she was looking for. Instead, the man did one better. She didn't mind the obvious play at power in the way he represented the group, because for now it was getting them out of a bind. Her eyes fell on a local vessel of wine as a toast was proposed. She couldn't drink, but that sort of display was a step in the right direction. The aristocracy of her homeland ate it up, she imagined a Grisian would be more stoic or dismissive of such gestures but receptive nonetheless. Following Ira's lead, she stood up from her comfortable chair and plucked a glass from the table. She poured herself a measure of water, wondering to what level she was disrespecting the local culture, and raised her cup as well.
"I see no problem accepting such generous conditions," Lexine said. She glanced around, hoping the others would follow suit or at least voice their agreement. In particular, she shot a lengthy, pleading stare in Al's direction, motioning slightly with her cup in case she wasn't exactly clear. It wasn't as if he was a problem, rather, having someone with such fire in the group would keep them thinking. It was just essential that he play along for these ten crucial seconds. She didn't see Cross accepting one man's word for them all. Seeing as they were now a group it fell to them to support the man courageous enough to speak up.

Sage looked around the massive room and her eyes landed on the giants. She'd never seen men so big and to move so quickly made her gut churn with anxiety. She watched Lord Cross stand up and address them. He even looked like a cruel man. Every part of him screamed intimidation. She slowly made her way toward the table, eyeing the delicious spread. As Four Swords spoke up her mouth formed an O and her eyebrows shot up. Was he deaf? Or maybe he didn't know what respectful meant. She was thankful that one of the twins spoke up quickly. However. she was soon scowling in his direction as he spoke on behalf of the "group." She did not like people speaking for her. Nonetheless she filled her cup with wine and raised it in the Lords direction shortly after the woman with the bad eye. "Aye" she found herself saying in response to the previous offers to accept such terms. She did this not to approve of the twin's attempt to take control but only to make up for Four Swords' blundering. An attempt to keep her head. Sage took a moment to consider the fact that nobody had returned from their attempts in the waste. She was indeed going to personally accept Cross' offer if the twin hadn't beaten her to it. The information about the area they were fixing venture into could be useful. That and supplies in return for only information? The longer she pondered it the more she wondered about its truthfulness. That seemed like a lot of stuff to just give away for a simple verification of truth.

Galant had to agree with the guard who was leading them. If he hadn't been to Vulture's Roost before, and met Lord Cross in person, then he would have been the same way as most of the others. It was only after meeting the man that he had even an idea of what the man was truly like. Galant stayed quiet as they were led into the Great Hall, finally coming face to face with Lord Cross himself. Galant scanned around the room briefly, noting the presence of Lord Cross' personal guard, as well as the red haired girl. He dipped his head when Lord Cross addressed him personally, and took a seat when asked to.

He sat, listening as Lord Cross gave them his proposal. The scholar was honestly surprised that all the man wanted if they survived was to tell him what was there. He had expected more than that, but then again Lord Cross had already proved that he was full of surprises. His face went blank, the ever present smile disappearing when the man with far too many swords spoke up. So far he had guessed that the boy was going to be the first to die, but now he wasn't so sure. The man with too many swords had far less intelligence than the boy did. Galant almost wanted Lord Cross to execute the man. Adventuring with him would be a huge pain.

One of the twins tried to fix things by talking for the whole group, which Galant didn't like. They were many voices, not one. And he for one didn't make a move as the twin tried to get them to toast. As a Grisian, he wasn't impressed by the attempt to take charge and assume leadership. "Lord Cross, before I agree or disagree with the terms you set, I have a question. Why not ask for more? I understand why you are asking for what you are asking, but we are entirely at your mercy right now. I only ask because I would want more if I was in your shoes." Galant spoke up, genuinely curious about how the man would reply.

If it was Galant in Lord Cross' place, he would request silence from all returning adventurers. To keep their findings secret until they could be studied by scholars who cared about whatever it was. And if the treasure hunter types refused, he'd have them executed. Of course he knew that all types of people existed for a reason, but the type of person he hated most was the greedy kind that wanted to keep artifacts on shelves and not allow people to study them and understand what they truly are.

Alec's eyes fell upon Al without the slightest quiver of emotion. He looked at the man for a moment. One of the guards that had led them in moved slightly from his position near the entrance, his hand reaching towards his hip. The Lord's hand flashed outward like the crack of a whip, beckoning the guard to hold his position. The giants remained as still as death. Alec's eyes remained on the swordsman for a few uncomfortable seconds before Ira broke the silence. Alec's eyes managed to pry themselves from the offender as the more vocal of the two brothers expressed the party's gratitude and offered a toast. The lord nodded, his expression retaining its composure. His eyes followed along as the others voiced their opinions on the matter.

Elizabeth had half expected the swordsman to lose his head. Nothing about Alec Cross struck her as particularly merciful, even if he was being oddly generous at the moment. Ira's announcement of the group's appreciation didn't come as much of a surprise, though she sincerely hoped he wasn't considering himself their leader. From the glances some of the others seemed to be throwing at him, they weren't very fond of such an idea. Personally, it didn't bother her. There was little argument to be made. They needed supplies, and Cross was offering them at the low price of a return visit. The woman poured a small amount of wine into her glass. She wasn't very fond of the beverage, due in no small part to her past, but for the gesture it seemed appropriate. She raised the vessel with a nod. "Sounds reasonable." Noah reciprocated the gesture with a happy "To Lord Cross." Everyone seemed to be in complete agreement, that was, until the scholar threw in his piece. Elizabeth slowly turned towards him. Sure, she was certain there was a catch hidden somewhere, but reminding the Vulture that they were at his mercy and that he could conceivably ask anything of them at the moment seemed akin to teasing a viper.

Alec's gaze cut towards Galant as he asked his question. A slight smirk crept across the lord's lips. "Few men would question someone volunteering as their benefactor... but if you insist." He began pacing the table. "As I mentioned, little about this temple interests me, excepting its existence, of course. Consider, for a moment, the fact that to reach the Wastes by land, travelers must pass through my territory. Consider also the fact the no lord has claim over the Wastes. Now, this is primarily because they are quite dangerous, and not conducive to agriculture or industry of any kind. However, if someone were to find something valuable... Then a number of opportunities open up for myself and my people." He stopped pacing for a moment. "As for the payment for your task, Vulture's Roost, though you might think otherwise, has access to more than enough resources to sustain itself. Thus, I lose very little in sponsoring your cause." He turned to face Galant. "Now, does that address your concerns, scholar?"

The young girl, who had previously been quietly watching the discussion at the table, had turned her attention to the one member of the party who had refused to sit with the rest. He seemed rather observant of everything around him, as if he expected danger to be lurking around every corner. With a smirk, the girl rose from her chair and strode down the length of the hall towards the man. As she walked, the dress of feathers swayed about her. When she walked by, one of the giants seemed to move his head ever so slightly, watching the girl carefully. She stopped a few feet away from Ashley, looking up at him as her bright pink eyes scanned his face. "You know, if my father intended to kill you, you would know by now. There's no need to stand about preparing for something that isn't going to happen." The girl spoke playfully, almost taunting the stranger.

Ashley turned his head slowly to the child, meeting her gaze with his own. After a moment of silence between the two, the man spoke up for the first time since he had been with the group, "No. Not yet. He wouldn't until we raided the temple for him." Ashley responded, in his gravelly voice, monotonous in tone. Ashley knew more cruel men then he could count, and most of them preferred having others, unsuspecting individuals, do the dirty work for them, before tying up the loose ends. Why would the man who just clearly stated that the temple was technically his allow strangers to leave his land with his treasures? Ashley gave a quick glance to the giants, before returning to his scanning of the Great Hall, committing every inch of the place to his memory, almost as if his life depended on it, ignoring the girl's presence, for now.

Ira tensed as the girl made his way over to Ashley, wondering how his brother would react to the girl approaching him. Much to his surprise, Ashley responded to the girl before going back to his dutiful scanning of the castle. Gulping down the wine he drank from the toast with a strained groan, Ira tore his gaze away from Ashley and back towards Lord Cross, hoping he ignored Ashley's words, "Perhaps we'll sample everything Vulture's Roost has to offer before setting out." Ira said, with a polite smile aimed at Lord Cross, "Being the most beautiful gem of Gris, I'm sure there's more than a few ends and odds here that travelers like us can be well to taste." Ira nodded, taking another gulp from his wine, this one much smoother than the last.

The unforgiving cold and crunch of the snow under Haruka's feet brought fond memories of her mountaintop temple home. She had heard further south about how horrible Gris was, but honestly, it was much like the mountain except the air was almost stifling in its generous thickness. Her lungs were full with air, and her face was full with smiles. She would find the temple spoken of by Professor Tick... Teeks... Tikka... something like that. Anyways, she'd find the temple with her strong body and fists the way other adventurers could not.

Once she'd had that locked down, she could trade information for information. The best brokers in the business would kneel in front of her and ask her to please tell them about the amazing northern temple and she would tell them that she needed to know about the swordsman. He was a westerner, he was skilled, and he had disemboweled her master with a western blade of blackest obsidian. That last one, she had assumed, was most likely to get her guy.

But first, she needed to stock up on supplies. Learning the secrets of an ancient temple would do her no good if she starved to death or something. Finally having come to a settlement, the place closest to her destination she had heard, she called out to the guards manning the gates.

"Hello! I am of need to have supplies for travel! May I please come in?"

She still wasn't excellent at the language they used in the west, but for the most part, westerners seemed to understand her just fine.

Galant laughed, "Yes well, I am not like most men am I? My quest for knowledge trumps common sense." When Lord Cross was finished answering his question, Galant dipped his head. "Yes, thank you." He said, now understanding what Lord Cross had to gain from this. "I can now accept your terms without any doubt in my mind." As a scholar he was always seeking knowledge, and this satisfied his desire to learn something knew everyday. He learned about Grisian politics today. And about the foolishness of foreigners. He still did not raise a glass to toast with the chatty twin who fancied himself their leader. If the man continued to do this out in the wilds, they were going to have some problems. Each person had something to bring to the group, and would be better to lead them in various situations. They would only be successful if they all worked together.

Galant poured himself a glass of wine, respecting Lord Cross by accepting his hospitality. He took a sip, sighing into his glass as the chatty twin spoke up once again. Yup, they were going to have a problem if this kept up. Galant shook his head, casting a cold, stereotypical Grisian look at the chatty twin. As much as he enjoyed speaking with Lord Cross, and pushing his buttons a little bit, Galant did wonder how much longer this was going to take. He really did want to go to the tavern tell some stories. Seeing the looks on people's faces when he told his tales was very satisfying.

The scholar quickly drained his glass of wine, but didn't pour himself another. He didn't want to drink too much if they were leaving tomorrow. He couldn't help but smile when he saw Lord Cross' daughter taunting the quiet, grumpy looking, twin. She really did take after her father in terms of a fearless nature. A smirk danced across his features as the thought of her defeating the twins in combat popped into his head. Wouldn't that be a sight to see?

One of the guards stood at his position above the gate. His brothers-in-arms had taken the previous group of adventurers into the castle, so he'd been left alone to man the gate. Ordinarily, it was a boring job, but with the volume of travelers they'd had lately it was a bit more interesting. Still, he'd zoned out slightly, watching the clouds move above the landscape, when he heard a voice from the foot of the wall. He leaned over the battlement, peering out of his helmet. Supplies... had they missed one? No, this girl hadn't been with the others. After a deep breath, the guard called down. "Right, then. I'll open the gate for you, but if you're headed north, then you're going to have to speak with the lord before you do anything else. Once again, the gate opened with a mighty creak. The guard descended the wall, stopping at the city's threshold. He carried a spear about six feet and length. "Hello there Miss. Like I sai-" He stopped for a moment, realizing the woman he was speaking to had ears similar to those of a dog. Thankfully, his helmet hid the look of utter confusion emblazoned across his face. "Um, right. Like I said, Miss, if you're heading north, you're going to need to go see Lord Cross at the castle. There are a few others there already, I think." The guard was quietly rationalizing the woman before him. Giants existed, he saw two of them on a regular basis. So what was so outlandish about a dog girl? He motioned towards the street leading through the city. "I'll escort you to the castle. We should probably hurry, though."

Jack Silver shuffled quietly through the snow, poking suspicious snowdrifts with his cane. He had almost reached the beginning of his final adventure: Vulture's Roost. Spying a pair about to enter the gates, he gave a call for them to hold door. He shuffled closer, making out the forms of one bird-helmeted soldier and a vaguely canine woman.

The old man waved to the guard, "Ah, good, good, I'm glad I got here in time. I hate seeing a closed door. Going in?" he asked the woman, linking arms with her as the guard ushered them in.

As they walked down the street to the castle, Jack tried to strike up a conversation with the young woman who had the misfortune of being there when he had arrived, "You know, I've been all over and I don't think I've ever spoken with someone who looked quite like you. What brings a young girl such as yourself to a place Hades himself could use as an icebox?"

Haruka stared patiently up at the confused guard as he explained the situation. She didn't really understand why the lord needed to see a commoner such as herself just because she was heading north, but it would be incredibly rude of her to decline such an invitation. She supposed she could at the very least pay her respect to the man, considering it was his land in which she trudged.

"Yes, I under-"

Then, an older gentleman called out. He seemed to want inside as well, and ended up linking arms with Haruka. Of course, many of the monks were older men who had trouble getting around, and so the girl had some practice with this. Oddly enough, however, the old man really didn't seem to need help at all. In fact, it was almost as if he was the one leading her around!

Or, Haruka was such a good helper that it felt that way. Probably the latter. Anyways, the man struck up a conversation and the friendly Haruka was ready to oblige.

"I do not know the Hades, but it is normal here. It is not too much cold! I am here for Tikka's temple. I will gain many informations, and trade for other informations! I am more worried about you, old man. Even master's joints ached on colder days! Are you well?"