>>5387611>>5387629>>5387624>>5387675>>5387782You decide to pay a visit to the Geologist’s Daughter… or, perhaps more appropriately, the Engineer? You’re actually a little surprised to hear that a so-called ‘architect-in-the-making’ (as her father called her) is capable of making a workable prosthesis. Your imagination wanders. What wonders or horrors might she construct for your war-effort? Perhaps some sort of… Cannon-arm?
“Absolute nonsense.”
The Engineer’s response, when you find her in her technically-not-a-cell quarters, gives you pause. Her father is presently cataloguing and appraising the ores and elements accessible through this fortification, and going over some of the reports from the other company-towns with the South-Merchant and the Blackmantle Delegate, leaving only the two of you and her technically-not-jailers.
“My Fleshweaver ssugessted otherwisse,” you note.
“And what does that creature know of my work?” the Engineer counters. “If you want a new hand for your Duergar butcher to hold his traitor’s blade, you’ll have to find someone else to do it.”
You aren’t certain, in fairness, but it would be quite unlike the Novice Fleshweaver to send you on a wild goose-chase. There is your usual back-and-forth teasing, and then there’s INEFFICIANCY, which the Novice abhors on principle. Indeed, you see around her quarters various small mechanical apparatuses, albeit mostly small models of mining and construction devices if you are any judge.
By her words and prickly demeanour, you infer that it is more likely that this dwarf is feigning ignorance in this field to avoid helping the Throat-singer, who she views as a race traitor… Or you, who she openly detests as a monster.
Well, you suppose that makes sense.
The question is what to do about it. You cannot force her hand without giving lie to your arrangement—that she and her father are contracted employees, alchemical mercenaries, rather than salves, and likely getting an inferior grade of work from them in the future. Then again, can you really allow her to get away with this sort of brazen undermining of your authority?
What will you do?
>Attempt to reason with her, logically and philosophically [how?]>Threaten her father’s life, and her own freedom, should she continue this pitiful rebellion>Go through her father—who seems much more amenable to your will—and get HIM to get HER to do as you ask>Give up on asking for anything more just now—instead, attempt to build a rapport, and to better understand her>Let the matter lie—you and the Novice will fleshweave a replacement limb for the Throat-singer instead>Write-in 