Felix dines on the soup. He'll poke at what's in it and examine each bite to see if he can figure out what it is he's eating. Mostly out of curiosity. See if he can't identify stuff he's not yet seen. If there's any bread he'll break it into pieces and dip it into the soup to soak the broth up and give the bread flavor before he eats it.

"We'd have to be really persuasive in those arguments," Felix says, looking up from his dissection/consumption. "The paranoid will think that getting them all together would present a target too delicious to ignore."

Arkady shrugs. "It may be one too dangerous to hit. 9 patriarchs, one of them the head of a knightly order? That sort of thing precipitates schisms and can be getting whoever benefits publicly assassinated."

"If we tell them there's a few Church Knights staying here," opines Sparhawk, "then it's probable that several of them will turn up, quietly. We have an excellent martial reputation; they'll probably feel a lot safer with us than without us."

Felix suspects that there's a lot of beef in the stew, along with a hefty dose of potatoes, carrots, and some spices he can't identify. As it happens, there is also bread.

"So, that's the plan, then?" asks Talen. "I take this letter to the Patriarch's who haven't been bribed yet, and try to let the ones in hiding know that there are Church Knights and... other measures to protect them at Dolmant's estate?"

Arkady grins. "'Other measures'. I am hoping we will not be having to convince them all that magic exists." He eats some bread, then looks around. "Unless I am missing something, that will deadlock the election. We may want to be thinking on how we can make Raven lose."

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it," Felix says. "Right now we gotta get to the ones we can now. Once we've got them on our side, we can try to persuade the others. If we build up a strong base of support we can use that as a means to rally the others around us. But first we need that position of strength."

Felix sighs.

"Let's get on with it."

Arkady finishes his stew. "Good enough. Let's start copying that letter. He does so.

With the plan being agreed on, it is swiftly put into action. Several copies of the letter are made, and Talen heads off to both discreetly deliver the letters, and whisper in a few ears that there are Church Knights on Dolmant's estate who are interested in protecting a few of the hidden Patriarchs.

Felix: Rapport: Total: +6 (previously rolled)

Before long, Talen returns with the news that the one of the eleven as-yet unbribed Patriarchs will meet you shortly after sunset at the inn with the deaf innkeeper; he'll hear you out and take a report back to the others. (It seems that they don't particularly want to all be caught in one place, either).

He also puts out the word for the hidden Patriarchs to step forward:

Talen: Contacting: +4 Roll: +0 Total: +4 Target: +6

...would anyone like to spend a Fate point nudging the rumours along a bit?

I'll spend a fate point to nudge it up by two points. Fortune Roulette if I'm allowed to tag my own aspects.

I'll tag the Rumours aspect. That seems easiest.

The rumours running rampant through the city encourage everyone to keep their ears open, and follow-up rumours spread further and faster as a result. The words Talen drops into an ear here and there ripple into a listening city...

Talen: Contacts: Total: +6 Target: +6 Success!

By the time you get back from your meeting with the Unbribed Patriarchs, the results of this success will turn up.

Felix has three FATE points remaining.

--------------

That evening, you meet with one of the eleven patriarchs holding out for a higher bribe. The room is private, the innkeeper deaf. None of the Church Knights will accompany you into this meeting, though Sir Ulath will hang about outside the door in case of trouble - not that a single Patriarch is likely to cause a physical altercation with you at all (and Piper does come along, which will doubtless prove useful in case of magical shenanigans).

Felix prepares for the meeting and seats himself, his assistant Theresa by his side with notes on hand ready to advise him of anything he forgets.

Arkady comes in carrying much the same stuff as he was in the morning session of the conclave. He's idly wondering how long it would take to grow coffee cherry trees, tea trees, or cacao trees even with Piper's help.

"Good evening, your Grace. Thank you for agreeing to meet with us."

"Good evening," says the Patriarch, in clipped tones. "I am Patriarch Undul. And I believe you have a proposal to put forward?"

Arkady, being the master of the Cold Read that he is, takes in what he can from Undul's body language.

Arkady: Empathy: +5 Roll: +0 Total: +5
Undul: Resolve: +4 Roll: +2 Total: +6

Undul's inner self is shut away behind a mask of iron. He is firm, he is controlled; he betrays nothing.

Almost nothing.

Arkady's always been a great proponent of doing things personally. And... he can see something in the edges of Patriarch Undul's eyes, something he has seen before.

Arkady: Aspect invoked: +2 Total: +7 Success
Stunt: Heart's Secret: Always finds the Aspect most personally important to the target

It's been said that Every Man Has His Price. And Arkady knows that that's not always true; at least, not when the 'price' is measured in terms of money. There are some people who cannot be bought at any price.

These people are exceedingly rare.

Far, far more common are the people who do have a price - but, until they are offered it (or something close to it), they live their entire lives in blissful ignorance. And then someone makes them an offer. Betray all that's important to you - destroy something you hold dear - and you will be given your price, an amount of money, or goods, or valuables so great that you know you're going to accept it, even if it means you'll never be able to meet the eyes of the reflection in your new gold-plated diamond mirrors.

Discovering that you have a price, when you went through your entire life thinking yourself unbribable, can be traumatic. And it's the edges of that trauma that Arkady can see, through Undul's iron mask.

Someone has recently make Undul an offer, and it's an offer that shook Undul to his core... because he already almost accepted it...

Undul's aspect: Every Man Has His Price

Arkady nods. "First, let me introduce us." Arkady tells him who everyone is. Then he continues: "Now I know you have heard from Patriarch Vanire about his 'trial' and that you have seen the posters. And I am being quite sure you were not shocked by what you learned. Now if you were the sort of man who is easy to buy then you'd be one of Raven's creatures already; so whatever it was that Raven offered you must have been much more tempting than you ever thought it could be. Otherwise you would be voting against him. So what do you need not to be the man who took what he is offering? Raven is not the only one in this city with unusual resources, you know; especially now that the road back to his city has been cut."