"Aye as fine a readin as ever I heard!"
"Me fathers-father told me several o tha same, says though they all tell yah tah act with caution an tah figure outcha choices, since yer choices can either mean succeedin or a failin."
"I am not able tah say if this isa work o Iomedae or no, me own god is favorable to her but i canno explain them attall"
Panish grins at Donagar: "I've not encountered such as this; and it would take time to digest what she is saying. But I can tell you this: where we are going, the liquor reputed to be the strongest in Korvosa is served. Illegally, of course. Spydegut. I hear it knocks even a dwarf straight to the floor so fast that the walls in the abyss shake. But maybe that is just a tall tale."
"Aye see then indeed to miss a chance ata drink o this caliber might indeed lead to tha death an dispair tha shades has aspoken of."
"When travel and drinkin is concerned sleep an death can both wait!"
"My weapon shall be counted in this journey!"
"Ima hopin yerselves can keep up!"
"Ain't a one of ye with armor that'll stop whats acomin?"
Throughout the reading Aliandara listens intently, though with a frown on her face, desperate to find the meaning in Zellara’s words. “I am wiser than to ignore a Harrowing and from a ghost at that. The Liar is my card you say, what does that mean though? Does it speak of my past, future or my present?“
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Throughout the reading Aliandara listens intently, though with a frown on her face, desperate to find the meaning in Zellara’s words. “I am wiser than to ignore a Harrowing and from a ghost at that. The Liar is my card you say, what does that mean though? Does it speak of my past, future or my present?“
"It is your role you play in the current play, roles change from day to day, week to week, year to year, even lifetime to lifetime..."
At Drakus, with just a hint of Iomedaen church philosophy slipping in: "I think what the Harrow is saying, is that destiny is making a mockery of us all - I mean, can you picture a priest of Iomedae act the courtesan? I think we should take the reading as both a cautionary tale, and a hint of how to overcome adversity. In that sense I think 'Tyrant' is to be understood to mean resourceful and independent - but also warns to ward against isolation."
"It is a pleasure to meet you - although I'm more restrained in my celebration of food and drink than the typical cleric of the Grape Lord, I'm sure we'll have ample opportunity to enjoy the subtler and more delicious things in life. I'm Panish, representing the Church of Iomedae. It is an honor and a great bolster to the party to have you join us. I hope you'll be able to aid Korvosa as we do in this time of her need."
"Indeed one o Iomedae is as one o my own! Not fer sayin Ima understandin things about Iomedae, but when yer in a battle side by side with another then yer tah knowin enough fer me!"
"Ima tah be aiden an no chains ner shackles can hold me back!"
"Ive never made such a claim again the ale, not one time, fer good ale sometimes I stay over long than I shoulda been astayin!"
"He is indisposed, family business. But fortunately we have both you and Donagar to swell our ranks.""Oh I shan't be going in with you, I'm merely escorting you to the docks, the Lord of Spiders and I wouldn't get along well."
"Well an good! How far tah Eel's End?"
"Not too far, a brisk evening walk..."
Sgt. Drakus looks at Panish.
"OK, face man. How do you want us to carry the bribe money? Openly, in a chest, or secretly, in our packs?"
Vencarlo's eyes narrow at the slight given by Drakus, obviously not used to being given a nick-name by a guardsman. "That decision is yours to make, just as Cressida indicated."
Panish takes one of the packed rolls and gives it a jiggle; then whistles at the lack of clink. "Not bad, not bad at all. Sergeant, I take it you have had experience with smugglers in the past?" Handing a roll to Donagar: "You'll be glad to hear that whatever we don't payout to the King of Spiders, we get to keep. That should be enough for one banger of a party."
With a bit of handwaving and good conversation in which Vercarlo seems to spend a bit too much time speaking to Aliadara, but has a heartening little chat with each of you, including an exceptionally lively chat with Marra on the Virtues of a means of justice
Moving right along...Standing 10 yards from the end of the pier.
The sound of carousing booms from the elegantly painted ships
moored to this long pier. Large signs painted in several languages
hang from ropes slung between ships or are nailed to pilings. The
closest ship to the east bears a sign that says, “The Twin Tigers—
Take the Tiger by the Tail and Try Your Luck!” Opposite that, to the
west, a barge’s sign says, “Welcome to the Goldenhawk—No Safer
Stay in Old Korvosa!” Further to the southeast is “Dragon’s Breath
Corridor —Dream the Dragon’s Dreams at Affordable Prices!”,
while opposite that is the “House of Clouds—The Caress of Our
Lovelies Will Take You Straight to Heaven!” Only the largest ship, to
the south, bears no signage at all. Short rope bridges or gangplanks
provide access to the decks of these ships from the pier, or from the
decks of other ships. Sailors, thugs, drunkards, prostitutes, and what
could even be a few well-dressed nobles carouse on the pier and
the decks of all five ships, seemingly oblivious to Korvosa’s recent
troubles. Here and there, large men dressed in chainmail patrol the
area, grim faces in a sea of revelry.
The largest of the five ships tied off to the pier is a warship bearing
the name Eel’s End, its figurehead a coiling eel with a woman’s
head. Several drunkards, sailors, and revelers dance and drink
on the large open main deck here, while the aft deck is relatively
clear. A pair of large double doors bearing a complex painting of a
spider allows entrance into the stern section of the main deck.
This single-masted Chelish sailing ship has seen countless
crude repairs—it’s doubtful it’s very seaworthy, but lashed
as it is to the pier, it seems stable enough. The nameplate
proclaims it to be the Goldenhawk.
This once proud vessel, the Dragon’s Breath, has been painted
in gaudy red. A sign at the aft entrance reads simply, “Pass
Into the Dreams of the Dragon.”
Last and definitely least, the Twin Tigers shouldn't even have a name. Two hut-like structures sit atop this barge, the raucous
sound of laughter and periodic roars of victory sounding
from within.
Panish laughs: "A festering series of floating pits that shackle the weak and drowns them in maelstrom of chancy greed, unkempt lust and callous debauchery - at least, according to the matron. And her strict lectures have ensured that I knew where to find the most damning of dances and most devilish of delights."