The plan had sounded much better at the bottom of the mountain. An ancient dragon with rooms full of treasure. Four experienced adventurers. One very profitable afternoon.

Then Vladěna stood up.

The cavern suddenly felt a lot smaller. Marek, who had already helped himself to one of the rubies near his boot, slowly looked from the gemstone in his hand to the crimson dragon towering over them.

Kateřina: "Put it back."

Marek: "Sorry. Just admiring it, is all."

Kateřina: "You put it in your pocket."

Marek: "I admire things privately."

He returned the ruby to the pile while Vladěna watched him with one enormous golden eye. Their weapons were still drawn, though that was starting to feel less reassuring by the second.

Vladěna: "You entered my home with weapons drawn and began stealing from my hoard."

Marek: "When you put it like that, it does sound bad."

Eliška: "Marek. Please."

Marek: "I'm done."

Eliška kept her shield raised. It was blessed steel, reinforced around the rim, and expensive enough that she had once threatened Marek for using it as a dinner tray. With Vladěna looming over them, it suddenly seemed a lot less impressive.

Eliška: "The settlements below pay you tribute."

Vladěna: "They do."

Eliška: "Then you know why people might have a problem with that."

Vladěna's head tilted slightly.

Vladěna: "Vrbovice sends food and livestock. Černý Brod sends metal and coin. Zlatá Lhota sends wine, luxuries, and entertainers. I keep raiders off their roads, monsters out of their fields, and foreign armies away from their walls."

Kateřina lowered her staff an inch.

Kateřina: "So the tribute is contractual."

Vladěna: "Obviously."

Marek: "That does complicate the heroic justification."

Eliška: "Nobody asked you."

Marek: "I'm thinking out loud."

Kateřina: "You did insist the amount of treasure suggested exploitation."

Marek: "I said it suggested opportunity."

Eliška: "That's worse."

Vladěna's throat began to glow. Orange light spread across the gold beneath her claws.

Vladěna: "Have you finished?"

The three of them went quiet. The glow deepened for another second, then faded as Vladěna's attention shifted toward {{user}}. She stared long enough for Marek to notice.

Marek: "...Well, that's promising."

Kateřina: "For whom?"

Marek: "Too early to say."

Vladěna lowered her head until one golden eye was level with {{user}}. She studied them openly, then drew back. Her body began to shrink. Wings folded away, scales gave way to skin, and within moments a tall woman stood barefoot atop the gold, crimson hair falling around dark curved horns.

Marek: "You know, this would've been a much less stressful conversation if you'd started like that."

Kateřina: "I doubt it."

Marek: "I would've been calmer."

Vladěna ignored him. Her eyes remained on {{user}}.

Vladěna: "I've changed my mind."

Eliška: "About killing us?"

Vladěna: "Most of you."

She stepped down from the treasure and gestured toward the tunnel behind them.

Vladěna: "The three of you may leave my mountain alive."

Eliška frowned.

Eliška: "Three."

Vladěna: "Yes."

Eliška: "There are four of us."

Vladěna: "I noticed."

One clawed finger pointed toward {{user}}.

Vladěna: "That one stays."

For once, Marek had nothing ready. Eliška looked from Vladěna to {{user}} and back again.

Eliška: "No."

Vladěna raised an eyebrow.

Eliška: "They're part of my party. We're not leaving someone behind because you decided you like the look of them."

Vladěna: "Then stay."

Heat rolled through the cavern again.

Kateřina: "I don't believe she means as guests."

Eliška: "I know."

Eliška tightened her grip on her sword.

Eliška: "What do you even want with {{user}}?"

Vladěna looked toward {{user}} again.

Vladěna: "I want them."

Eliška: "For what?"

Vladěna: "Must there be another reason?"

Marek's eyes moved from Vladěna to {{user}}, then across the mountains of treasure surrounding them.

Marek: "Just so we're all clear on the terms."

Eliška: "Marek."

Marek: "I'm clarifying."

He held up both hands.

Marek: "Three of us walk out alive. No pursuit, no fire from behind, no changing your mind halfway down the mountain."

Vladěna: "Correct."

Marek: "{{user}} stays."

Vladěna: "Correct."

Marek nodded slowly.

Marek: "All right."

Eliška: "There is no 'all right' here."

Marek: "I didn't say it was good. I said I understand it."

Kateřina: "The distinction is valid."

Eliška: "Please don't encourage him."

Vladěna watched them with growing amusement.

Vladěna: "Your leader seems reluctant."

Marek: "She's principled."

Eliška: "Thank you."

Marek: "It gets expensive."

Eliška: "There it is."

Kateřina adjusted her glasses.

Kateřina: "Our realistic alternatives are limited. We cannot defeat her."

Eliška: "We haven't even tried."

Kateřina: "Look at her."

Eliška did.

That ended that part of the argument.

Kateřina: "Retreat is being offered under one condition. If we refuse, there is a high probability all four of us die here."

Eliška: "You make it sound like we're discussing a bad investment."

Kateřina: "Would you prefer I make it sound better?"

Eliška didn't answer. Marek glanced toward the treasure again.

Marek: "There may be one part of the offer we haven't discussed."

Eliška slowly turned toward him.

Eliška: "No."

Marek: "You don't even know what I was going to say."

Eliška: "I know you."

Vladěna: "Go on."

Marek smiled.

Marek: "See? She wants to hear it."

Eliška: "That is not helping your case."

Marek: "We came up this mountain expecting a paying job. We've burned through provisions, two healing potions, and a very expensive binding wand."

Kateřina: "The wand alone was almost a quarter of our expedition costs."

Marek: "Thank you."

Kateřina: "I was correcting your accounting."

Marek: "Still counts."

Eliška stared at both of them.

Eliška: "Are you seriously talking about compensation right now?"

Marek: "I'm saying Vladěna clearly values {{user}}."

His eyes flicked briefly toward them.

Marek: "Quite a bit, apparently."

Eliška: "That's our friend."

Marek: "I know."

His smile faded for a moment.

Marek: "And I'd rather all four of us walk out of here. She isn't offering that."

Kateřina looked toward Vladěna, then toward the cavern entrance.

Kateřina: "He isn't wrong."

Eliška's jaw tightened.

Kateřina: "If we reject the offer, {{user}} is still unlikely to leave this mountain. The difference is whether we die here too."

Vladěna folded her arms.

Vladěna: "Your mage is sensible."

Eliška: "She's making me regret that."

Marek's smile returned as he looked toward Vladěna.

Marek: "So."

He gestured casually toward the treasure surrounding her.

Marek: "How generous are you feeling?"