Codename: Sleeping Alley, Report the Eighteenth

General Summary

We met the Alley Sleepers in the bubbling canal of danger, having just set foot in the dangerous town of Kinhall. This town is ruled by gangs, each with a particularly powerful warlord. Inadvertedly or not, by choosing the docks in Habbub's Drift, our heroes have communicated their intentions to see what The Burnt Lions, the second most powerful gang in Kinhall, are all about. Turns out what they're about is immediately escorting them to their headquarters for an audience with the leader of the Lions, Author. 
Now, since our crew hit the road after "murdering" Zethergyll, some of them have selected to use a different name, as they "died in the explosion." Thus, Aletha of the Flintclaw has become Ziore of the Sunguides and Hama vu Farlight, perhaps in a nod to his future endeavors, has become Icenberg. Nice! Gonna fool everyone.

Two days with the Lions

So, Author wanted to know what, exactly, the crew was doing in Kinhall. Since the Sleepers are here to see about The Worm and The Crescent, it was decided that Svo'Kool should take the lead here. And lead he did, by telling Author exactly what was up--"y'all heard of The Worm? Know where a fella can find said Worm?" This raised all kinds of eyebrows and Author insisted that they enjoy his hospitality tonight with a feast in their honor, after which they can talk more about this situation.
There were still a couple of hours to kill before feasttime, so the Sleepers asked two of the Lions, Fay Morningfall and Stedver Covengloom to show them around the town. And they did, well, to a point. The Ramshackle and Greenwind neighborhoods are under the control of The Returned and considered a no-go zone for the Lions. Oh well. Now what? Well, how about Fay's favorite bakery and Stedvar's gambling den? A quick trip to Bob's Pickaxes (with a thriving basement casino) enabled Grex the Indomitable to use his loquacious stylings on Stedvar. Svo'Kool managed to resist his baser tendencies and win some gold against a formidable opponent.
By then, it was time to head back for the feast. And feast they did, with Grex and Svo'Kool chatting up all those in earshot at the table of honor, while Rieta, Hama, and Aletha hung back with the common folk. A good night, for sure.
The next morning was about business, though. And our Sleepers were summoned before Author. Svo'Kool wasted no time in insulting Author, and also being insulted himself, and our gang made a quick exit, advised not to show their faces around either Sandsmoke or Habbub's Drift again. Yikes! Probably could have chilled that out, but that's not Svo'Kool's leadership style.
So, our adventurers decided to seek greener pastures up in Ramshackle. On the way there, though, they were confronted by several strong hobgoblins, loyal to the Lions, who didn't like how they treated their leader. A fight commenced and the Sleepers emerged victorious. Definitely time to go, though.
But go where? It is clear that our crew needs some assistance in gaining intel, but who to befriend to do so? A chance encounter at the Delirious Flower, a dive-y tavern in Ramshackle, offered one option--Ominous End. Apparently the End--a minor gang affiliated with The Returned--has something they can do to get some information: obtain an item currently held by Kinhall Custodians. But, before our crew could ponder that opportunity, The Returned came calling.

They Come Back in Fire

Much like the Lions, the visit with The Returned was not optional. Our heroes were escorted to an opulent villa under armed guard. Hama did his best to persuade Svo'Kool to maybe not just burn every bridge in this town, to "play nice." Svo'Kool assured Hama that he would tell the others to behave. So, that's great. After a brief wait and some watermelon juice, the Sleepers had an audience with Clemporus, the leader of The Returned. Svo'Kool decided that, hey, let's just lay it all out for these folks, too. So he did, telling Clemporus alllll about The Worm. She decided that she needed some time to think about what to do next, but that the Sleepers were welcome to acquaint themselves with her hospitality. They got the decided feeling that this wasn't a request.

A Fancy Jail Cell and a Fight

Our adventurers had the whole night to ponder their fate in some lush digs--a bunch of overstuffed pillows and all the watermelon juice they could drink. It was agreed, thenceforth, that maybe whole Worm thing should be secret again. A sound idea! 
The morning brought a nice breakfast and another audience with Clemporus. She informed the crew that she decided against selling them to The Worm, and, because of this gesture, they owed her. Namely, they are to fight in The Hall--the gladiatorial arena in which some clan disputes are resolved through combat--against whatever the Lions can cook up. With little choice, the Sleepers agreed and met with Mauglath Masterbearer Malukakanu, martial master of The Returned. He told them all about the history and importance of the Hall and that they might be fighting anyone or anything. 
That "anything" turned out to be a couple of venom trolls. Those trolls, with their brutal poison attacks and damaging blood, almost did for our heroes, but they triumphed, bringing honor and glory to The Returned and fulfilling their debt. To assist her new affiliates further, Clemporus gave the Sleepers the best approximation of a map of The Snakeghost available and told them that they probably need to check out the Wormhole in the southeast. Others might be able to give them more information, though, should they choose to seek that out.

"Tell Me How You Die."

That seemed like solid advice, so the Sleepers went back to the Delirious Flower and to the Ominous End. After the usual exchange of pleasantries--"how do you die?"--Featherson gave some more details about what he can offer and what he needs in return. Well, the thing needed was already stated--the object that is currently held by the Custodians. Turns out that object is a shiny white hat. Oooookay. What he can offer is a broken compass, which, at first, seemed pretty shitty. Then he revealed that it points toward the Wormhole. Might come in handy! So, it sounds like it might be heist time.
And that's where we left it. We'll see how this heist goes during our next session.

Character(s) interacted with

Fay Morningfall of The Burnt Lions
Stedver Covengloom of The Burnt Lions
Author, leader of The Burnt Lions
Iyel Featherson, leader of Ominous End
Clemporus, leader of The Returned
Mauglath Masterbearer Malukakanu, martial master of The Returned

Report Date

31 Jan 2021

Primary Location

Kinhall

Secondary Location

The Hall