Oona shrieks as the elementals grab her. ”Eek! Let me go!”
Terana whirls her glaive menacingly, although she's not entirely sure who she should be defending right now, or from what...
Gideon takes a quick breaststroke forward, raising his voice.
"Whoever's controlling the elementals, please release her! We don't want a fight here; hang around if you want, but the fight's over!" he shouts, lowering his weapon to a non-threatening position but not putting it away.
Assuming that they do release the cecaelia, Gideon shakes his head at her request. "There is a saying among humans: 'Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.' You fooled us once, Oona, and that one's on you. Fortunately for you, our position in the city is tenuous enough as it is and we don't need any of the heat that would come out of us doing anything beyond defending ourselves from an ambush."
"I will not, however, risk being fooled or tricked again; I get the feeling that my companions will feel the same way. If your boss is really that interested in meeting us, she'll no doubt have way of getting in touch with us. Now, if you'll excuse us, we have a dinner to get ready for."
The elementals look from the human speaking to the open water where a school of fish swim lazily by some coral. They then release Oona and dissipate into the sea.
Oona sighs in relief when the elementals vanish. She nods once. "Very well. I will relay your message to the boss." And with that, she swims away as fast as she can.
With Oona gone, Gideon releases a sigh of relief, then once more turns his attention to the immediate surroundings.
"That might've gone all kinds of sideways without your help. You have our sincere thanks! You needn't be afraid of us. Please, allow us to thank you in person!"
A small yellow fish with black stripes swims away from the group of fish, heading over to just in front of Gideon. It looks at him a moment before swimming right up to his nose and nibbling on it lightly before playfully swimming all around him and the est of the group.
"You must be the most powerful fish I've ever met." Terana says, completely free of irony as she watches the small fish.
The scholar can't help but querk an eyebrow upward when the small fish swims directly up to nibble his nose, causing him to start slightly before a lopsided grin crosses his face. "So we have you to thank, do we? Then it is our thanks you have! You'll forgive me for being a bit skeptical of your present appearance, I hope."
The fish...winks? It then begins growing and shifting until it turns into a beautiful blue haired mermaid with gleaming blue scales like sapphires on its tail. In her hand is a ceremonial trident that is clearly more for show than a weapon.
”Clever land-walker. So...tell me...why would this misfit see fit to go through the trouble of ambushing you lot?” she asks in common.
Gideon's eyes widen, though only for a moment, upon seeing the mermaid's true form. "Well now! Look what the catfish dragged in!" he says, still grinning. "I jest, of course. Again, thank you for your help in that scuffle. We were in a real spot for a moment there and I'm not sure that would've ended in our favor if you hadn't stepped...that is, swam...in."
"As for their purpose, I can only assume that she thought we would be an easy mark for her thugs. The opinion that the citizens of this city seems to have of surface-dwellers like us is...less than favorable."
"Though that does beg the question: Why did you step in and help us?" he asks, his tone one of curiosity and not accusation.
Terana meanwhile kicks forwards and offers the mermaid her arm. "Nice to see a fellow sea-dweller." She says with a grin. "And thank you for saving us. We owe you."
Arianda smiles at Terana and hooks her arm with Terana’s. She then turns to Gideon and her eyes narrow in confusion. ”Catfish don’t drag their prey about...they tend to chomp them down whole as quickly as possible...sometimes still alive.”
”Anyway...I’d been suspecting Oona of being a bad clutch of sturgeon eggs for quite some time now. When I noticed her preparing this ambush, I knew I had to step in and learn why. So...why?” she asks again.
The grin disappears from his face at the reply, replaced by a thoughtful expression. "Huh...I suppose that's true. Perhaps not the best transliteration of a surface-dweller joke. Anyway..."
"I really wish I knew why she targeted us. My first suspicion is that she and her ilk have little experience with people from the surface and so figured we could be very easily beaten and robbed in an alleyway. She said that we might be particularly interested in a market called the 'Undertow'. After discussing it, we decided to at least see what it was. On the way there, her goons ambushed us."
Arianda breathes in with a hiss. ”Unless you are wanting to do business with the worst of the worst here in Talasantri, then you’d best think twice about that. Nothing dwells in those caverns but the thieves, murderers, and crime lords. You are as likely to buy something there as you are to get a barb in the eye.”
"Sounds like something we could well avoid." Terana suggests, not enamored of heading into a black market just to spend time with criminals.
"Agree completely. If that ambush hadn't turned me off to it, you definitely have. We appreciate the warning."
You start to make your way back to Anemora’s house, but before you get there, the cecaelia Oona nervously approaches again. ”My boss told me to give you this to prove that she does not hold what happened in the alley against you.” She presents you with a black pearl worth 1,500 gp. ”Jurix has formally invited you to meet with her in the Undertow. She promises no harm will come to you whether or not you accept the invitation—she only wishes to talk.”
Arianda recognizes the name Jurix. She is the biggest crime boss in Talasantri.
"She can meet us somewhere else. Somewhere public." Terana says, looking sideways at Gideon to see if she's being sensible. "After last time I don't trust her."
Arianda swims in front of Oona, hands on her hips. ”And why should they trust a bottom feeder like you. Or your handler, for that matter?”
”Jurix has a lot of wealth and influence in the city. She has a rather lucrative business proposal for you, if you are willing to hear her out.”
"The influence of a known deviant just may not be the type of influence we're looking to cater. Either way, as has been stated, the ball is in her court. If she's that interested, she'll have to come to us, in a public place. End of story."
Oona nods. "Very well. I will relay your message. I hope you don't mind me saying that I hope that I don't ever see any of you lot again." The cecaelia quickly makes herself scarce.
Without further interruptions, you make your way back to Anemora's house in time for the dinner. The matronly mermaid greets you warmly as you return, then looks curiously at Arianda. "A new friend of yours? Well, the more the merrier, I suppose. I've taken the liberty of inviting some other guests who are eager to meet you all!"
Anemora leads you to her dining room. A long, stone table, piled with platters and large scallop shells full of freshly cut fish and other undersea delicacies, fills the center of this rectangular room. Aside from Drecissa, three other people are around the table, snacking on hors d'oeuvres. "May I introduce you all to Merysyd, an up-and-coming poet," Anemora says, gesturing to a sullen-looking mermaid with purple hair, "Osarte, a bounty hunter who hunts down criminals and threats to the city," she continues, indicating a stern-looking aquatic elf, "and Tolajo, a local storyteller and songwriter known for his historical epics," she finishes, pointing out a smiling aquatic elf.
"My chef is putting the finishing touches on the main course as we speak. In the meantime, please feel free to mingle!"
Arianda swims inside, finding herself some soft sponges to stretch out on after collecting a shell of treats to take with her. She swishes her tail languidly as she watches how these mostly surface dwellers treat with those of her kin...
As soon as the introductions are done, Gideon almost immediately makes his way over to the smiling aquatic elf. "Storyteller and writer of historical epics!" he begins, his eyes alight.
"That sounds terribly interesting! On the surface, I am an archaeologist and scholar, myself! I'd love to hear about anything that you're presently working on!" he says excitedly.
"Merysyd. I'm always delighted to meet artists. Shelyn loves all forms of art." Terana says, moving easily through the water to speak to the grumpy mermaid. "Would you recite something? It's been so long since I was under the sea, I've forgotten how wonderful things sound down here."
"Of course," Tolajo says. "It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance. Allow me to regale you with the tale of the founding of Talasantri!" The aquatic elf begins to recite the legend:
A merfolk community on the outskirts of sahuagin territory, led by the druid Seyskellin, fought against the sahuagin at every opportunity. A great coral bed lay between the two forces, and Seyskellin used a powerful artifact to shape a hidden bunker within the coral growth. The merfolk used the bunker as a place to conceal troops, and peaceful traders learned they could find shelter with the merfolk in their hold. The merfolk forces welcomed traders, offering them protection in exchange for weapons and supplies.
Skirmishes between the merfolk and the sahuagin continued for over a year, until a massive tremor interrupted the fighting. A huge rent opened in the seafloor several miles from the merfolk base, displacing a community of aquatic elves. The fleeing elves explained that the quake had released a terrifying living ruin—the plankta Ruinquake—that could easily destroy all living creatures in the area. Seyskellin offered the aquatic elves sanctuary, and the two forces remained hidden while the plankta brought destruction down on the sahuagin.
When the plankta’s rampage ended, the creature sank down into the rift once more, and the merfolk and aquatic elves emerged from their bunker. The sahuagin forces had been broken and scattered, and Seyskellin seized the opportunity to destroy the remaining troops in the area. With the region now secured, the merfolk and aquatic elves worked together to expand their bunker into a settlement. And that settlement grew into the city of Talasantri!
Meanwhile, Merysyd gives Terana a moody glare. "Is it the acoustics that interest you so, or my actual work?" she mutters. "Fine, I'll indulge you." Despite her cynical comments, the poem she recites is actually quite beautiful and uplifting.
"That was wonderful!" Terana says when the performance is done, clapping heartily. "The words were perfect and your delivery was just... fantastic. You're truly talented! Tell me please, how do you actually compose a poem? I can't even pick a rhyme."
"Well, first you get a stylus and tablet," Merysyd explains with mock patience. "Then you write the words down until all of them are on the tablet. Then you've composed a poem. Did you get it, or would you like me to explain again?"
"What an interesting history! This 'Ruinquake' sounds like quite a formidable beast! I know there were some doom-criers in the city shouting about the creature's return. It's fascinating that, in a way, the entire city and all those who have called it home owe their way of life to the thing and the destruction it wrought when it last awakened."
"I and my friends definitely understand the issues with the sahuagin, though. We've had a number of our own run-ins with the vile things."
The evening continues for a bit with pleasant conversation and good food. During the main course, though, Gideon hears a faint sound coming from the kitchen. It's hard to tell, but it sounded like a muffled scream...
"Bloody hells...Terana, Tobar, kitchen! Ari, you too!" Gideon shouts, gracing the edges of his mantra ray cloak to speed his movement toward the muffled scream.
"Eh?"
Tobar is rather startled and then knocks his chair backward as he gets up from the table and runs to the kitchen, armed only with a salad fork.
Terana kicks into motion and heads for the kitchen, thanking Shelyn for her scabbard as she pulls her glaive from thin air.
Arianda shifts into a small fish once again before chasing off after the scream.
You quickly rush through the kitchen and into an adjacent storeroom filled with crates and barrels. There, you see a deep merfolk assassin with his sabre buried in belly of a merfolk chef! Frowning over his shoulder, the assassin yanks his blade free of his victim and turns towards you as the unfortunate chef begins to bleed out!
The assassin makes a beeline for Terana, slicing her with his sabre!
With the assassin distracted, the little fish that is Arianda quickly swims to the dying chef and offers a bit of healing to him to keep him alive for the moment!
Terana performs the kind of maneuver that is only possible in water and bends her body in half to reverse her momentum, bringing her enchanted glaive up in the process although she still sadly lacks any of the divine energy needed to heal herself.
Realizing the importance of trying to keep the assailant alive, Gideon uses a spell of holding on the merfolk rather than going for immediate damage.
While Terana fails to hit the deep merfolk, Gideon's spell works wonders, causing the assassin to freeze up, paralyzed! Arianda swims over and heals the dying chef, stabilizing him.
Tovar briefly considers using his fish fork, but he instead settles for balling up a fist and trying to knock the menfolk out.
Tobar punches the merfolk in the chin, but unfortunately, the assassin proves to be quite tough and resists the knockout blow. He recovers from the paralysis!
The fish swims over to Terana and brushes up behind her neck, and a significant number of her injuries close up!
Terana, healed by the magical fish once again, sets to work.
Left with little in the way of offensive magic to use, Gideon opts to go into melee, closing awhile drawing his rapier.
Gideon misses with his attacks, but Terana scores two powerful hits, smiting the evil merfolk. He snarls and tries to look for a way past the paladin. Seeing none, he feints a strike, but Terana is not fooled. The merfolk settles for just slicing her with his sabre!
Gideon makes whatever small movement he can to further cut off any means of escape, then strikes again.
---------
Tobar withdraws to the dining room, since he didn't sit down at the dinner table with his armor and weapons and he sure doesn't want to try to poke this guy to death with a fork.
Terana is too well versed in underwater combat to fall for the mer's ruse (above water is another matter...) and she retaliates full force, well aware that without Shelyn's gifts this is not a fight she is likely to win.