Session 11 Report

General Summary

After the previous night's revelry, the party wakes up late in the morning, slightly hungover but well rested. Big Richard summons the essence of his beast companion into a new form-- that of a goose that he calls Lil D. Lephnut steals all of the breakfast pastries downstairs. Valqinor and Big Richard meet the bartender and host on duty, Rembrandt, who sports a very nice mustache. Big Richard strikes up conversation with him under the guise of learning about mustache maintenance, but it quickly turns to a search for information. Rembrandt explains the current affairs going on-- civil war seems inevitable as Lord Fallon seems to be making a play for the throne while also reigniting old conflicts with Lord Elwyn, who in the wake of the king's death, seems to be retreating his elven people back into the seclusion they enjoyed before becoming part of Ostren. Meanwhile, Lady Anna seems to be entertaining a delegation from Genos, which some have found strange as the relationship between Ostren and Genos is rocky given their history of war. Rembrandt also comments on some rumors surrounding the king's death-- such as assassination by various parties instead of the official explanation of a sudden disease. Big Richard attempts to turn Rembrandt to atheism and plants some seeds of doubt in the gods' ability, as Rembrandt has been somewhat dismayed that they would let the chaos engulfing the land happen. Rembrandt says he will try to pray on Spirits' Day, which will occur soon on October 31 (current date October 26), as that is when it is said that the gods' presence is felt more clearly on this plane. The party asks for some direction in finding jobs and a way to meet Lady Anna. Rembrandt mentions there's a notice board in city square for jobs and that sometimes high profile guests hang do visit the Innocent Doe, so they should try their luck that way. The party thanks the well-mustached man and depart to explore the city. They visit a nearby megastore that has sections for armor, weapons, clothing, and general goods all in one. While talking to the armorer Norad, they discover some interesting tidbits of information. One is that while sale of magic items is heavily regulated in Cressen, the store does employ an on-call wizard with some level of magic knowledge and ability, and the other that there may be a certain place they could buy some magic items. After a bit of bribery, they learn from Norad that there is a ship at the docks named the Marianne that is known for their amazing "carp," which the party resolves to visit. As Big Richard sells some items to the leatherworker in the shop, he tries to commission some custom armor fit for a bear. Unfortunately the old man is more of a reseller than a crafter himself, but does mention that the huntsman Dubar in Distow makes great leatherwork. After wracking his mind a bit, he also mentions that he knows of another, more local hunter, an elven woman named Murriel that might also be able to do the job, but does not currently know where she is. The group heads to the docks to look for "carp." With nothing to go by other than a name, they are unable to find the location of the Marianne. They do however find a ship crewed by tattooed and seedy looking sailors. While trying to see if this ship sells "carp," they are angrily refused by one of the crewmen, who curses the Marianne and says this ship is the Magpie. After some vague threats from the sailor, the party leaves, uncertain exactly what cargo the Magpie holds, but with an idea that they might want to return later for business. They then head to the Lying Goose tavern for information and find that the place seems staffed entirely by orcs-- from the bartender to the bouncer, even to some of the clientele. They try to press the bartender for information on the Marianne and "carp" but the bartender is aloof and gets the group to buy some "tuna" instead-- which turns out to be an actual tuna pie made by the cook. The bartender passes a note to Jett hidden in her drink, which directs her to go to the back room. Excusing herself to the restroom, Jett meets an orc that looks exactly like the one she met in Distow. The orc says to call him Eight, and she had met his brother Seven. Eight pays her the rest of the agreed sum and reveals that the letter she delivered had nothing written on it, it was simply a test to find someone willing to take on a job with no questions asked and he is pleased that she was not tempted to open the letter beforehand. He offers her another job, which she is initially reluctant to accept, as Eight is unwilling to divulge more details unless Jett accepts the job first. Jett relents and agrees to take the job, at which point Eight provides a disturbing amount of detail: there is a merchant, a dark-skinned human in his 50s-- 52 to be precise-- with long, curly hair and a scruffy beard, wears a shawl at most times, and who is not in the greatest shape and walks with a slight hobble from a riding accident incurred when he was 14 that needs to be stopped from doing his usual routine in two days (October 28). Every day, the man visits the night market between the hours of 6 and 7 and spends roughly 15 minutes buying oysters from a local stall, and then heads onto a ship captained by the halfling captain Leila for some time, before returning home. Eight provides an advanced payment of gold for the job and promises access to the "carp" the group is looking for upon completion-- mentioning that they are attracting notice by speaking often and loudly of things they are looking for. Jett does not reveal this meeting to the rest of the group when she returns, and confused by the day's events, the party heads back to the city square to figure out their next move...