Application: Rihana Sayar of Tradewinds:Legends

[trader_sayar]

((If you don't know the Tradewinds games, they're frightfully addictive. I enjoyed playing Rihana so much that I thought I'd app her here. She's from Tradewinds: Legends by Sandlot Games

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[trader_sayar]

Rihana was swiftly warming up to this woman. Really, the, erm, gills? around her head weren't that distracting, and she obviously appreciated a good ship when she saw one.

"She's the Yuan Lin, my personal flagship and the pride of my fleet," said Rihana. "I suppose what you say about beauty being useful is true--the more impressive your fleet looks, the more respect you get as a captain and trader. And really, there's nothing better than the morning sun glinting off her prow as you sail among the clouds." She was wistful for the sea for a moment, but being dead-center practical at heart, didn't let it distract her.

"Oh, I've traded a little of everything. Salt, tea, wine, amber, oil, weaponry, parchment, indigo, rugs and gunpowder. I make most of my money off wine, oil and parchment these days. Rugs and gunpowder are lucrative, but far too risky. Odds are even they'll be seized at the port and you'll be out of luck." She gave a sly grin. "Though if you've got some in a warehouse while they're contraband in port, the prices they'll fetch can be truly hilarious."

[entilzha_delenn]

"Oh yes. You would enjoy the place I've lately left, I think. Babylon 5 is a port of call open to ships of all the younger races, and a staging area for military operations, and a gathering place for diplomats like myself." Delenn grinned, and brushed a lock of hair away from her bone crest. "The ships are quite different, but in many ways, a port is still a port in whatever time or place. My friend Mr. Garibaldi headed the local security force, and his tales could be colorful, to say the very least."

[trader_sayar]

Rihana has no clue where "Babylon Five" is, though it sounds to her like a suburb of Babeleh. Not that she'll admit as much, of course; you don't get far as a trader by acting like you don't know what the other person is talking about.

"I hear you," she says. "Your friend is a port officer? I can imagine what kind of tales he'd tell. More often than not, I have to bail at least one of my men out of the local jail before we leave a port. Most of them are young, away from home for the first time and drunk on freedom--and the local brews, of course. They get a stern talking-to by my sergeant-at-arms and some unpleasant chores, and most of them come around. If not, sooner or later, they'll stay in whatever jail they've landed in while the rest of us sail off. I can't keep walking liabilities on board.

"But I'm only talking about myself. Pardon me, Lady, but I've neglected to ask your name and where you come from. You say you're a diplomat? I've ferried a few diplomats on the Yuan Lin in my time."

[entilzha_delenn]

"Yes indeed - life aboard a port station has been quite the education for a sheltered Religious Caste girl like myself." Delenn laughed.

"That's quite all right, Captain, this place disorients even the calmest of us at first." She inclined her head. "I am Ambassador Delenn, representative of the Minbari people on Babylon 5. My home is...very far away, and of little importance here politically at this point in time. That is likely to change...in the future."

[trader_sayar]

"Aboard a port station" was a very odd turn of phrase, to Rihana's ears. The mention of "Religious Caste" made her think this woman must be some sort of mystic, and given her earlier statement about "the younger races," Rihana was almost positive she was of the djinnfolk. That was good information. Like all folk, the djinn could be good or bad--it was simply that the bad ones could create so very much damage. But Delenn didn't appear to be evil or destructive. On the contrary, to this point, she'd been the very soul of courtesy.

Rihana bowed. "Then it's a pleasure to meet you, Ambassador Delenn. My hometown is also very far away, but I've come to think of the Yuan Lin as my home. A merchant can't be overly fond of a single port. But, speaking of merchants, to business: What can I offer you?"

[entilzha_delenn]

"Ah, indeed. I believe I could use a crate of that green tea, if you please," Delenn said with a smile. "I'm sure you'll continue to reside upon your ship, but for form's sake we must elect you to one of the school's Houses. Would you have any objection to Hufflepuff? It is the home of the useful, the loyal and the hardworking, and I can think of little more useful than a hardworking, practical-minded merchant."

[trader_sayar]

Rihana nodded, and a house elf went to fetch the tea. "Done, and done. I'm told it's an excellent blend--I prefer black tea, myself--and it always fetches a good price on the open market." She considered Delenn's statement about the Houses. "I'll defer to your judgment on which House I should be in, and I certainly hope I meet that standard. Though you're right; I'll likely continue to live on my ship. It's where I'm most comfortable. Thank you, Lady Ambassador, and doubly thanks for your courtesy."