Melianthe grabs Segang by the arm to go shopping for antitoxin.
Seren will specifically try to find out the kind of folks that are in the area and see if he can gather intel on the best type of disguise to blend in.
Before the group sets off for Eel's End, Absinthe tries to find a good mask; one which covers all of her face.
"One is known as a former member of the Dead Fish gang," she explains. "If violence erupts, one would rather not cause strife for one's old comrades. They do not deserve that."
By the time you travel to Old Korvosa and find Eel's End, it is well after dark. A sprawl of light and sound marks the first pier of Old Korvosa. Glowing lanterns in the shape of dream spiders and god's eyes hang from pilings and lampposts, flickering throughout the night.
The sound of carousing booms from the elegantly painted ships moored to the end of the 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 reads, "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 and gangplanks provide access to the decks of these ships from the pier and between the 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 troubles. Here and there, large men dressed in chainmail patrol the area, grim-set faces in a sea of revelry.
Seren will cast disguise self with the aid of a use of his disguise kit to look like a human sailor before we go much further. He'll separate himself from the rest of the group as we enter.
"Where to first?" Demitri asks the remaining party.
Rosa is clearly eyeing the Clouds as a destination...
Demitri shakes his head when he sees where Rosa's eyeing. "Of course, silly me."
Can we start at the inn and then maybe the gambling hall? You know, work our way up the vice chain.
Rosa gives Segang a blank stare for a moment. "...but wouldn't that put the gambling hall last?"
Melianthe pokes at the dream spider lanterns in a 'you don't scare me' sort of way, her doctor's mask stowed away to let her grey-silver skin gleam in the lamplight. "Ah, it feels good to be out and about at the right time of night," she says happily. "Regarding destinations, do you suppose Barvasi is a business first, pleasure second type person, meaning he'd be at the Clouds a bit later on? No need to rush things, Rosa," she says merrily, "It's always nice to have dinner and a show first. I'm fine with the Goldenhawk as well."
"The inn it is then. Sorry Rosa." Demitri leads what's left of the party to the inn.
"One reminds you we are in the territory of a powerful crimelord," Absinthe says, her voice an octave deeper and slightly muffled because of the mask. "Say nothing of our mission where anyone might hear. Be attentive and cautious."
My mission is to get drunk and find a wench. Segang proclaims loud enough for those around him to hear and then he walks into the Goldenhawk.
Seren will enter wherever the group does and stay apart from them but somewhere visible, making like a man that's been working all day and looking for a drink and some fellowship.
"You could have just borrowed mine, you know," says Melianthe with a smirk, sticking close to the Shoanti. "My mission is to have a pan of cold water ready to toss on Segang. Wenches, drenches, they tend to go together--and no joking about dunking witches in water, you all. I've drunk enough harbor water for one season."
"Oh, I don't know..." Rosa smirks. I could stand to see you in much cleaner water than the harbor provides..."
You approach the floating inn, crossing the gangplank to the 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.
As you board the ship, you see two men dragging their besotted friend belowdecks, presumably to sleep off his night's excesses. A wall-eyed gnome with a crumpled hat, patchy beard, and massive ring holding scores of keys approaches you, smiling. "Welcome to the Goldenhawk, friendth. Do you need a room to sthay?" he asks in a lisping voice.
"A round of drinks for now, good sir," says Melianthe, "You have a common room?"
The gnome's smile flickers. "Ah, my apologiesh. You must have confused the inn for a tavern. If you seek drinksh or other 'refreshments', I recommend the Twin Tigerss or Dragon'ss Breath Corridor. Or, if you have an invitation, the Eel'ss End." He bows his head slightly, grinning. "Later, if you require a bed, then Tugginsh ish your man."
Absinthe's mask is a smooth oval, with a single, crimson line shaped like a smile, slits for eyes and two blue lines for eyebrows, raised in humorous surprise.
Invitation ... note to self: see what it takes to get one
Seren will stand nearby for a bit wondering why the party doesn't move to the nearest tavern, but after a moment or two will walk tiredly towards one of the aforementioned drinking holes looking for a place at a bar with some sociable folks.
Melianthe makes a moue, then nods and ducks back out of the Goldenhawk.
"An inn without drinks? In this place?" she exclaims to the group in general. "Not to mention most of those rooms must rent by the hour," she grumbles. "Well, I have no great ideas as to how to ask around about...our person. He's no doubt here not under his real name, and as disguised as Abby is."
She swings a grey arm at the ships. "Do we crouch at the Tiger, or hide at the Dragon?"
"I would guess he'd be at the Dragon, so let's head there."
Rosa blinks, startled by Demitri's declaration. "Wait, you were just going to talk straight to him? I thought you wanted to check things out first."
"No, I was planning on observing his behavior and then using that information for our benefit. Unless you have a better idea?"
Rosa shrugs. "Oh, is that all? I know where he is.". she leads the group back out and a bit away from the boats before speaking further. "This isn't a common criminal, Demitri. I believe Absinthe mentioned already, but he's kind of a big deal around here. He'll be on the Eel's End itself. I thought we were fishing around for a more discreet invitation than announcing ourselves.
"Well do you have a plan for getting an invitation?"
Saying we're here to see him would probably do the trick, especially if we pay off the doorman too. Other than that we can try plans and see if we hear anything about him on the other ships."
"Lead the way then. You're better at this than I am."
Demitri keeps an eye out for anything of interest.
Melianthe doesn't quite help out Rosa.
Segang seems quite at home in the bar area, proving once again that he is an "urban" barbarian, and begins to make friends and acquire information.
Absinthe keeps her eyes open for anyone she may remember who has access to the King of Spiders and his little 'court', the better to direct the others' efforts.
Once she has found such a person, she adds her own persuasive gifts to the pool.
Altogether, you spend a couple hours carousing through the Eel's End entertainments. The gambling hall inside the Twin Tigers is the busiest and liveliest of them all, and the easiest for you to spread out and listen up. You learn that Devargo Barvasi spends most of his evenings on the Eel's End ship, holding 'court' to a train of sycophants, lick-spittles, informants and henchmen. The man occasionally goes out into the city during the day, but those forays are infrequent and unpredictable.
Gaining an invitation to meet him is relatively easy -- just a simple bribe will get you in the door. However, you note that all who speak of him do so with uneasy tones. An invitation to join Devargo in his throne room s both a blessing and a threat to an up-and-coming thief, since attendance is no guarantee of alliance and often results in torture, torment and death.
"Given all of this, one recommends we be at our most diplomatic," Absinthe murmurs, "and - businesslike. Show no emotion."
Seren will also look for a way to get an invitation, impressing on his newfound bar "friends" that he doesn't have the money for a bribe necessarily but he'd like to get in to see what all the fuss is about, on a dare from a sailor friend of his.