Session Preface
Despite the persistent drizzle of cold rain which rolled in from the hills over night and has yet to disperse, the Fishyard remains filled with energy and activity. Fragments of offers overlap one another, creating a cacophony of transactions, rolling like the occasional thunder overhead.
"Fresh Eel! 2 copper a head! Pulled from the Subrin this morning!" a woman shouts.
"Perfume made from the sweet nectars of Calimshan!" a gruff voice calls out.
"Oddities and curiosities, learn secrets of the world, all within these trinkets available to you today only!" another offers.
Immediately around you, the crowd parts for a moment as a trio of children, caked in sweat and dust of the city, dart between the towering adults, chasing and tagging one another and reversing direction once more. Their laughter like bursts of sporadic lightning crackling through the busy overtones of the market.
The rich multi-colored fabric awnings overhead hang low, water pooling and occasionally sloshing about overhead when the wind picks up.
For most around you, this late morning is as any other, just with the added dreariness of the lingering rain. They buy and sell and think of dinner plans or prepare to make their way back onto the long road ahead. Not many give thought to the society of fanatics within the city walls. Most worry not about the thieves skulking somewhere under the city, cutting purses of strangers in broad daylight. Fewer still worry of the threat of giants beyond their walls, perhaps unwisely.
Standing idly amongst the crowds, the knowledge, experiences, and concerns each of you carry, so drastically different from those around you, feel particularly apparent. You could pontificate further on these musing, but you're brought back to the scene before you when a sudden gust of wind catches an awning, knocking it over, and in turn toppling a fruit cart over into the middle of the walkway. Rich, vibrant oranges and deep red apples roll through the Fishyard in all directions. A soaking wet gnome gives chase, shouting "Someone stop that fruit!"
For a moment, chaos erupts in the market as nearby vendors move to help, children grab pieces of the wet and dirty fruit thankful for an unexpected lunch, and visitors funnel around the still toppled cart and increasingly frantic gnome.
Session Summary
Recreating the circumstances under which Emmyth found himself robbed of the majority of his coinage, Thaust and Emmyth enjoyed exploring the Fishyard, purchasing some small trinkets and meeting a friendly and flamboyant purfumer representing the Pleasure Palace Perfume franchise who presented Emmyth with a rare fragrance by the name Snowflake's Caress. During this time, Hawk observed the original two thieves from the day prior, following them into the sewers below. Through winding turns and dark stone pathways, the party discovered an entrance to the Wink & Kiss, the
Hand of Yartar's subterranean hideout. Not wishing to face an entire tavern of thieves at once, the adventurers decide to wait and learn more information at another time and return to the inn to prepare for their trip to the Grand Dame to confront Lord Khaspere. As the party prepares to depart, a pair of Hand members exit and Hawk overhears mention of "the third one this month" and the individuals blaming it on "those snakes."
Before exiting the sewers, however, Thaust is startled by a pair of rats which seem to have their brain exposed. When using his ability to speak to the rats, he is struck to discover they understand and telepathically speak Common, speaking to him with a chorus of voices "We have been summoned! We have been summoned!" The party pursues the strange rats to a dead in where the sewer descends to a deeper level beneath the city. The party finds themselves surrounded by hoards of these rats with light flickering within their brains as they seem to telepathically reach out to the adventurers in unison. A deep and haunting voice reaches out to Emmyth, inquiring about their purpose. When it doesn't gain any insight from the half-elf, it speaks directly to Thaust, asking about the age of the party members. The voice then summons the rat hoardes as well as a number of humanoid wererats to descend upon the party.
Following a series of Emmyth's fireballs to clear out the swarming beasts as well as a brief stint of Thaust succumbing to temporary mind control and powerful psychic damage dealt to the party by an unseen source, Hawk discovers a weakened wall which had been magically repaired. Using his new dwarven hammer, Thaust smashes the wall, revealing a hidden hollowed-out colum containing three sets of humanoid remains. As dozens of rats swarm away from the bodies, the adventurers discover the half-gnawed remains of an elven woman, the disgusting corpse seemingly rapidly aged. Finding a sash with a symbol in thieves' cant on her person, the party concludes she belong to the Hand and prepare to return with evidence of their findings, the rats, and hope the truth of their wild tale wins out.
Upon arriving back at the door of the Wink & Kiss, the party is allowed entrance to the foyer upon revealing the sash and dead cranium rat and wererat brought as proof. Tensions fly quickly in the underground tavern as the halfing leader Kestrel and the two women who stole from Emmyth the day before, Haliyra and Naaren, harshly disagree on how to handle this unexpected incursion. While Kestrel asks for proof and clarity as to the situation, the other two interrupt, accusing the party of being Zhentarim spies looking to lead the Hand into an ambush after already killing three of their members. To convince them of the situation at hand, Thaust uses a Zone of Truth in which Hawk recounts the story as well as reveals Haliyra and Naaren's deceit as to how much gold was stolen from Emmyth. The party and several members of the Hand then return to the dead end to further investigate the new secrets unfolding beneath the city of Yartar.
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