But... are we going to get paid?

Liliana has spent 6 weeks in a terrarium after getting sucked into a chest with a portal in it. It took her to the under water Cerulean empire, far deep a mile below the surface in a deep, deep, trench, where she was kept in a zoo. The urge to shout ‘do you know who I am’ a thousands times a day was killing her. They even put her in the human enclosure, rather than the elven enclosure. The shame!
 
A mild amnesiant. was used on all the inhabitants but Liliana’s previous life rendered her immune. Realising she was trapped beyond her means to escape, with the crushing pressure outside this dome inescapable without a craft, she quietly studied, meaning to gain in power and effect her escape in full and take her revenger.
 
The others met Gaius Politanus AKA Gil – a politician like merdude who asked them to give a speech on his behalf . The granite in the zoo was from Paxander, which was raised to the ground during the elven purge and then pilfered by the seafolk, the way we took antiquities from classical cultures. The Cerulean empire is basically the British Museum of elven culture.
 
Hearing and seeing them through the door, Liliana cast mage hand to tap Shadow on the shoulder.
 
In annoyance she attracted his attention and engaged in conversations with his fellows. One of them was a masked and hooded, hench orc 6 ft 8, runic symbols in black paint covered their forehead and armed, they wore a chestplate and carried a maul. Their name was Kasemir (they/he). Ziomori (she/her) was 5 6 thick curly black hair. Humanoid (also known as elvenoid), gold skin, dressed like a flashy adventurer in very fitted clothes with a scimitar on each hip. They wanted to know why Liliana hadn’t used magic to escape, she explained she was biding her time to get out because she needed to be powerful enough to escape the trench. Ziomori mentioned they had a sub marinous vehicle offered to them.
 
Politanus entered and started to talk to them, he mentioned the warden and Liliana’s blood began to boil. The Warden from the Zoo is on her list. He wandered off to get the warden and Liliana turned to Ziomori and said.
 
"Get me out of here. Get. Me. Out. Of. Here."
 
Kasemir began to try and pull the bars away to free her. She couldn’t quite the bars enough so Liliana cas reduce on herself and squeezed through and then at Kassemir’s suggestion, climbed into her rucksack, though she looked mortified to be doing so. She hid just in time to escape the notice of Politanus’s return. He led them to their craft.
 
One minute later, Liliana returned to mornal size in Kassemir’s back pack, he flung his cloak over his shoulder to cover her, looking like he had suddenly grown a hunch back. Liliana tried not to groan despite being suddenly very squished.
 
They approached the transport, which was known as a Pluaspede. The captain was called Scully and he didn’t seem impressed with Politanus though Politanus didn’t seem to even be aware of Scully.
 
Once Politanus left and they set off, Kassemir let Liliana out of the bag, she was stiff and had a real crick in her neck but grateful and surprised that Ziomori and Kassemir would go out on a limb for someone they didn’t know. She told Shadow it was good to see him again and expressed her surprise that two people who didn’t know her would help. K said breaking people out of prison was always fun.
 
“Even if you did call me a piece of shit.” Ziomori said.
 
“Ah. Yes. It was stressful there.”
 
Later they were called up to the bridge to watch a beautiful display of boil luminescent jellyfish dancing. It was beautiful. But Liliana was more interested in her books. The journey took 24 hours, during which Liliana asked the others to fill her in on how they had come across Shadow. It turned out Kassemir had been on the ship the whole time (and seen Liliana Mind spike Mike!) but Liliana had never registered this. Awks. Kassemir made Liliana aware of Mind Spike Mike’s issues. Apparently, he could no longer eat soup unaided, liquid food was difficult for him since the mind spiking, which really upset him as he used to love soup. He’d started writing odes and poetry to soup, but they weren’t great. Liliana added a note in her book of people to kill/get revenge on with ‘Help Mike enjoy soup again.’ It was the first time she had been confronted with the repercussions of her actions for something like this and it was an interesting experience for her.
 
They arrived at their destination, a pressured dome containing the Mezzofathom. The entrance to the city of Mezzofathom, where they wanted to raise their profile to get the attention of the Emperor. Scully said Politanus is the head of the Garren, and would want the bag o dicks to get on the emperor’s good side. The other political party is the Worcesters, who spread the word of Umba Lee, ‘the way the word of Umba Lee is meant to be spread,’ She is the goddess of the sea. Sailors make little sacrifices to her, burning tobacco making little alters etc, they are afraid of her. But down here, this society treat her as the saviour.

Shadow filled L in on what had happened to him since she last saw her including a near death experience, a hag, a lighthouse, a door with water pressure, a tunnel, an airlock a city and someone who said ‘will you infiltrate this emperor bastard person.” She asked what had happened with their two quests:
 
"Are we going to get paid?
 
And learned that Aglathal had ‘fucked off’ on their return and that Lady Emma 'wasn’t there' when they got back ‘there had been a mushroom cloud but don’t worry about it’. Liliana did know what to make about this and became annoyed about not getting paid. She added Lady Emma to her list, in case she was still alive and had run off without paying, and added Aglathal too, as both of them owed her A LOT of money. She asked what they were doing now and if THAT paid and learned that Politanus had said he would pay them handsomely for racketeering for him. She was utterly perplexed and infuriated by the whole thing but wanted to get paid, agreed to go along with it.
 
Her head bursting with all this news, she heard the sound of many voices, families having picnics. The park was beautiful, and dedicated to Umba Lee. The park was framed with many arched concentric walls in squares, everything beautiful but looked like the material was looted from Paxander, including two ornamental fountains. At the centre was a giant shell and a podium at one end elevated speakers to speak to the masses, the current speaker was Gauis Tophim. Someone approached the group informing them that they had been told they were speaking and that the Bago’dicks were expected to speak next.
 
Gaius’ speech went as follows:
 
Your attention here is so ordered! Listen to the will of the tempestuous Umberlee! Four thousand two hundred and seven years ago, Hando and Mandollo Cerullo brought forth in this trench, a new nation, conceived in obedience, and dedicated to the proposition that all merfolk are the subjects of Umberlee. Now we are engaged in a great war against turpitude! Testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for the lies and misdirection told so that others may live gilded lives. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this. But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate -- we can not consecrate -- we can not hallow -- this ground. Only Umberlee, the tempest herself, could consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget the lies constantly told here. It is for us, the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who spoke here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great Umberlee -- that rather for these plain Aquans to take increased control of that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion -- that we here highly resolve that these deceivers shall not have plainly fooled us all -- that this nation, under Umberlee, shall have a new birth of strict pious devotion -- and that government of the people, by the people, and for the people, while not perfect, is far superior to a bloviated windbag in a toga. We need to rise up in solidarity, and overthrow the apostate. Umberlee demands it! Amen.
 
Before they knew what was happening Kassemir found themselves ushered up to speak next, being pulled away looking very reluctant about it. They found themselves lifted into the air on the platform. They stood there awkwardly. They tapped the magical amplification device.
 
“Uh… hello.”
 
The crowd cheered.
 
“You are easily pleased people. Wow.” They then spoke about the Emperor as ‘the guy to go to if you want to do things’ but also said ‘I’m not entirely convinced about democracy as a concept’
 
After the speech, the platform lowered, people clapping politely. Kassemir said,
 
“If I did a speech, then you all have to too. I will carry you over there myself if you like.”
 
Liliana went up and stood there, Evita style, greeting the crowd whilst getting the lay of the land. The light was blue, the vibe was downtown, this was clearly the entranceway to the city, the popular hang out, defined spaces for worshipping Umber Lee, an ancient nautilus shell surrounded by chained pillars clearly it meant something to the Ceruleans. She made a speech of rhetoric, speaking of more that unites and divides, saying nothing at all while saying a lot, speaking of the emperor in such a way that people would think, ‘yeah she’s got a point!’ getting swept along with the vibe she was giving out, even though she was saying very, very little. She ended her speech with a grandiose:
 
“And I look out at you all, and I am so inspired!”
 
Shadow stepped up next.
 
“Umba Lee. The Emperor. Why choose? Kill them both.” And shot the most important person he could see with his crossbow.
 
Ziomori looked like the wind had been taken out of her sails, so ready to have put on the performance of her life for these people and now seeing that this wouldn’t have happened. He loosed the crossbow bolt and just decimated a Cerulean senator, the man with the clipboard who had invited them to speak, the leader of this event, with a bolt to the head.
 
"Well shit," Liliana thought. "Now we will not get paid."
 
“Seize the power of the day. We don’t have to be ruled by these people.”
 
He set the platform to descend amid the sounds of screams. The body was removed. No one seemed to know what to do.
 
“It’s your turn now.” He said to Ziomori.
 
Someone ascended the platform to give a eulogy.
 
“Yep. Fine. I can follow that. I can make this work.” Ziomori said. She ascended the platform.
 
“Mefolk, Cerulean, People of the trench we are here as representatives of the dry landers You have seen many aspects of us during these talks. Do you truly know the person who is telling us what to do. Your leader is no longer here, and you have lost yourself. Do you know if the Emperor is helping you or not?”
 
Liliana looked confused, she thought they had been intending to big up the Emperor.
 
A politician and his body guards approached. They looked they had once been gladiatorial.
 
“Excuse me, could you please not kill any senators?” He asked calmly.
 
“I can’t make any promises.” Shadow said.
 
The politician started to offer them ‘women, men people’ and Ziomori started to see if he was down for an uprising, he asked if she meant an orgy.
 
“Like that but more violent.”
 
“Ooh I like that. Who brings the sharks?”
 
Liliana tried to ask Ziomori what was going on and Shadow said by starting unrest the Emperor would notice them and invite them for a meeting. He then tried to persuade one of the body guards, Marius to stab his boss, looking at him he realised that Marius already had the inclination to stab him.
 
Liliana stood there utterly confused.
 
“I have gone mad,” she said, “I am in the terrarium still and I am sat there with all of them looking at me, gibbering.”