The hunched, limping, odd-eyed dwarf scampers over when he sees Farrukh approaching. "Ah, what wonderful news! Norebo is a fickle god, but he always comes through when it matters if we keep the faith. Super zombies, you say? How fascinating. Never a dull moment in an adventurer's life, eh?"
"Yeah, that's true. So anyway, what's new around here? Been out of the loop for a little bit. Doing anything special for the Games commemoration thingy?"
Having been enamoured with her new enchanted mithril chain shirt, Carina only looks up at Tanith when he reports back. She lets out a tired sigh.
"Oh, well. Sure, why not?" She stretches as she speaks, trying to loosen up her fatigued body.
After arriving back at the Crooked House, Tanith inquires on the possibilities of a large tub and some nice hot water.
Seeing the approaching group of what he can only assume are kneebreakers, Eben matches the elven woman's smile with one of his own, then stops where he stands and casually raises his hands. One of those hands makes a surreptitious pass at his backpack before going in the air, but a slight scuffle of his feet and a flourish of the other hand helps to conceal it.
"Okay, I was expecting company sooner or later, but I'll admit I'd thought it would take you guys a bit longer. But that's okay. I'm ready to have a conversation. Right here. I would be much, much more inclined to do that instead of pulling another vanishing act if the lot of you would maybe stop ten paces away?"
Cuetzpalli notes Astraden's concern with his own, and follows quickly along behind her. He leave his trident on his back for now, but holds his hand near the haft, ready for trouble. He commands Spiny to wait for them outside. Hopefully his size will be enough to dissuade anyone from f$#&ing with him. All we need is for Spiny to bite some kid's head off for poking him too much.
"Is this where it gets bloody?" he asks Astraden.
"I f$~$ing hope not," she says, hammering on the door.
"F*~%, a visitor?!" Astraden grabs Cuetzpalli by the hand and runs upstairs to her godfather's room, rapier drawn.
Astraden and Cuetzpalli find the door to be locked.
"Yeah, that's true. So anyway, what's new around here? Been out of the loop for a little bit. Doing anything special for the Games commemoration thingy?"
"Oh, aye. Gambling on battles isn't so much our scene—it's not exactly luck, you see—but we do a special draw. People can pay to put their money on a randomly-determined contestant in the Games." The dwarf grins. "That way, everyone won't just bet on Auric, eh? Loris Raknian himself suggested the system—back when he was the Champion, that is."
"Okay, I was expecting company sooner or later, but I'll admit I'd thought it would take you guys a bit longer. But that's okay. I'm ready to have a conversation. Right here. I would be much, much more inclined to do that instead of pulling another vanishing act if the lot of you would maybe stop ten paces away?"
The elf winks. "MacTeague, I'm getting the sad impression you don't trust us. Fine, fine." She waves the other four off, though Eben can't help but notice that "ten paces" doesn't seem very far away for the half-ogre's long arms.
"I don't know why you assume we're here to fight, MacTeague." The elf rolls her eyes. "This isn't the King's forest. We don't draw-and-quarter poachers. We're just...curious." Her eyes glint mischievously. "The Assistant Guildmaster himself expressed great surprise at your frequent presence here. You didn't seem the type to return to old hunting grounds."
After arriving back at the Crooked House, Tanith inquires on the possibilities of a large tub and some nice hot water.
Tarquin Shortstone XXIV, the owner of the Crooked House (and, needless to say, a gnome), discretely directs Tanith and Carina to another crooked room. The bathtub isn't quite level, either, but the water is hot.
Another dose of night tea. Because, well...
Once her concoction is brewed, she drinks the whole thing and winces at the taste. She puts her gear away in her haversack in time for Tanith and Tarquin to lead her to the baths.
------------
The sight of the bath brings a smile to Carina's face. The heat of the water fills the room.
"Oh, I've been waiting for this all day!" She says, already setting her haversack and new chain shirt aside and taking off her boots. She holds one boot up and shakes several loose pebbles from it.
"Get it open!" Astraden slams her body against the door and steps back, her face a grim mask.
Cuetzpalli grabs his trident, and begins bashing the door down.
The door holds.
The door smashes down. Beyond, Astraden and Cuetzpalli see an exceedingly messy room. Worse than before, Astraden knows. The desk has had one of its legs broken off, and the papers that had been stuck to the wall are instead lying in a jumble on the floor.
The masked man sits on the bed, already drawing his crossbow. He looks at Cuetzpalli with narrowed eyes, then notices Astraden.
The crossbow lowers. Slightly.
"Astraden. What creature was it that had hurt..." He pauses, thinking. "...Svenser and Rindi when we had our second meeting?"
Astraden's godfather is wearing his mask, but it's not hard to tell that he's seen better days. He's wearing a mithral chain shirt missing many links, andninesix daggers—each with a different-colored gem at the pommel—hang from his bandolier. His rapier is at his belt. His hair is a matted mess.
"No man can wear a mask all the time!" Astraden says, sending a pulse of strength into her companion's hand. She watches her godfather carefully. "That's what I agreed to say. And they were mountain goats," she says, glancing sideways at Cuetzpalli.
Eben keeps his hands peacefully away from his weapons. "Oh, this isn't a 'hunting' trip. My 'hunting' days are all behind me. Well, mostly. I might have recently participated in the redistribution of a mine in Diamond Lake, to be honest. But even that was just a side project from my new and much more lucrative line of work, and was more for the benefit of my last employer than me. No, I'm just here for the shopping." He jiggles a shoulder slightly to make his recent arrow purchases rattle in their new home a bit. "Try and get some decent mithral in the sticks, y'know?"
"...right. That is what we agreed on." Beneath his mask, the man's eyes are impossible to read. "That was before I knew who you spoke with before coming up here before. A yellow-eyed man, wasn't it?"
"What, is he rotten?" Astraden leans uneasily on her rapier. "Tell me what you were supposed to reply. Tell me."
Tanith passes the waddling proprietor a few silvers for his help and closes the door behind them. Filthy and tired or not, he smirks as Carina disrobes and then quickly does the same.
”I have to say Red, this was a good idea”, the big Kordite adds as he slips into the steaming water first. ”…a really good idea.”
With another smirk he beckons for the very nude undine to join him. ”You think the others are having this good of a time right now?”
Carina slips into the tub with Tanith and lets the hot water refresh her. She lets out a happy sigh as she feels the heat of the water relaxing her aching back and legs.
"Ohhhhhh... I do wonder. I hope they are." She arches her back and stretches out her arms, taking a bar of soap and scooting next to Tanith.
"Right." The godfather slowly lowers the crossbow. "'Or he will lose the face beneath.' I then followed by asking if it sounded poetic enough, I believe." The priest of Olidammara sighs. "Sorry, girl. As you can see, that man made a bit of a mess of things when he dropped by. I wasn't sure he'd not managed to eavesdrop on our conversation.
"So, how'd the worm stuff go?"
Eben keeps his hands peacefully away from his weapons. "Oh, this isn't a 'hunting' trip. My 'hunting' days are all behind me. Well, mostly. I might have recently participated in the redistribution of a mine in Diamond Lake, to be honest. But even that was just a side project from my new and much more lucrative line of work, and was more for the benefit of my last employer than me. No, I'm just here for the shopping." He jiggles a shoulder slightly to make his recent arrow purchases rattle in their new home a bit. "Try and get some decent mithral in the sticks, y'know?"
[dice=Sense Motive]1d20+15
As far as Eben can tell, the elf doesn't seem particularly unfriendly. She seems genuinely intrigued, though there may be an ulterior motive beneath it all.
"Really?" Her head tilts. "No more hunting, you say? So you haven't had any dealings with a group of...shifty characters?"
"Yeah, that's true. So anyway, what's new around here? Been out of the loop for a little bit. Doing anything special for the Games commemoration thingy?""Oh, aye. Gambling on battles isn't so much our scene—it's not exactly luck, you see—but we do a special draw. People can pay to put their money on a randomly-determined contestant in the Games." The dwarf grins. "That way, everyone won't just bet on Auric, eh? Loris Raknian himself suggested the system—back when he was the Champion, that is."
** spoiler omitted **
"Yeah, Raknian. I know of him. Sure.
"That sounds interesting though. When are you doing the drawing? Though, uh, I had toyed with the idea of joining myself. Not sure if that would disqualify me or not.
The priestess sheathes her rapier and steps forward to pull the man up with her extra hand. She suddenly realizes she's been holding Cuetzpalli's the entire time, and awkwardly breaks both grips. "I can't tell you how glad I am to see you." She looks at the mess. "Worm stuff's going okay. We fought some kind of undead in the basement of Blackwall Keep - the spawn of Kyuss, I think - and then stopped the things from burning down Lambere. How's the doppelganger stuff going? Was that golden-eyed man one of them?"
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Cuetzpalli poses as an avatar of fierceness while Astraden and the man converse, his trident leveled at the disheveled priest's throat. When Astraden relaxes, so does he. "Sorry about your door..." he mutters, embarrassed.
Carina leans next to Tanith and starts lathering up her arms, a dopey smile on her face the whole time.
"I believe you said earlier that Kord believes that warm baths make a mean weak... I respectfully disagree." She rests her head on Tanith's meaty shoulder.
Tanith isn't shy about helping Carina with the lathering.
"You might be right again Red. I'm feeling plenty strong", he says with a smirk as he leans in to steal a kiss.
"Hm. Yeah, we're gonna have to go door-shopping."
"Really?" Her head tilts. "No more hunting, you say? So you haven't had any dealings with a group of...shifty characters?"
Eben's hands continue to make their way down to a more relaxed state as he becomes less nervous about the 'kneebreaker' meeting. But they pause for a moment in pure surprise at the elf's words.
Well, it can't be that surprising, if doppelgangers are muscling in on guild territory they'd know about it as sure as Astraden's godfather does... still, it's not like these are people I can trust... not going to just start spilling what I know. Maybe just spike the coy ball right back over the net at her...
"Nope, can't say I have..." he says, finally bringing his hands all the way down and tucking the potion vial close at hand in his belt. "But... the thing about... really, really two-faced people is that sometimes you don't know you've been having dealings with them till after the fact. And not always even then. So... 'not to the best of my knowledge', would be the completely honest answer."
Carina turns around and entwines her arms around Tanith's neck as he pulls her into a kiss. She giggles into his mouth, his beard tickling her chin.
She pulls back for air, still holding onto the bar of soap. Taking it in her hands, she works up a good lather before she starts soaping up the Kordite's chest with an 'innocent' look.
"Yeah, I can tell."
With a perfunctory growl, Tanith slides Carina up onto his lap. "I'll show you..."
"Hm. Yeah, we're gonna have to go door-shopping."
"You seemed pretty handy with wood when we were working on the Land place. Why don't we just make him a new door? I can buy the materials, and you can show me how to do it. Probably wouldn't take that long..." Cuetzpalli replies.
Carina has absolutely no objection to Tanith pulling her into his lap, or anything else he has planned...
----------------
Some time later, she rests against Tanith's shoulder, panting and grinning.
"Yep... I think Kord was wrong about hot baths. Definitely, definitely wrong." She whispers, still holding tightly onto him. Her legs are trembling a little.
The dwarf raises an eyebrow. "Sorry, yeah, it probably would. You sure you want in on that? I hear it's a nasty crop this year."
Astraden's godfather shrugs at Cuetzpalli. "Not a problem. Cuetzpalli, isn't it? Those were some nice moves. I'd hate to be that door." He pauses. "But seriously, you're paying for that. S@*#'s expensive."
He turns to Astraden. "That man's one of the doppelgangers, yeah. I don't think he's their leader, but he's definitely got some authority. Clever bastard, too. Good in a fight." He rubs his knee, though there's no apparent injury there. "He pretended to be you. Almost had me fooled, but the knife to my leg tipped me off. Put up some sort of silencing spell and gave me a sound thrashing, like they say."
The elf frowns. She seems to be considering Eben's words.
The elf frowns. She seems to be considering Eben's words.
'I know about the situation, but haven't met any myself that I know of to date.'
The big man only answers Carina with a smug grin as he holds her close.
"I think it's time my friends and I joined your investigation, then. By the way, sir, this is Cuetzpalli, a fierce warrior." Astraden looks at the door again. "You know, I do have a spell for this." She hunches down over the shards of door and begins slowly patching it together, muttering.
The dwarf raises an eyebrow. "Sorry, yeah, it probably would. You sure you want in on that? I hear it's a nasty crop this year."
Farrukh's eyebrows draw together.
"What do you mean?"
Carina reluctantly slides herself off of Tanith's lap and begins washing herself anew. She glances at the Kordite's collarbone before paling a little and letting out a small nervous giggle.
"Um... Tanith, I don't mean to alarm you, but I... well, I... may or may not have, um... bit you a little too hard..."
Tanith follows Carina’s gaze down to the bloody marks on his collar and laughs. He considers using a touch of Kord’s divine might to mend the injury but decides against it. The wound would make a good memento.
”I’d say I’m surprised but I’m not”, the Kordite says with another smug grin. ”It’s a scar I’ll wear with pride.”
Carina gives Tanith a warm smile and kisses him again. "I didn't mean to... but thanks for being understanding."
She steps out of the tub onto the floor, dripping water everywhere. Her legs wobble and she holds onto the side of the tub. "Oh my."
Tanith emerges from the water with significantly less grace than Carina but is quick to slip a strong hand around her naked hips to help steady her. ”Easy there. It’s slippery in here.”
”I’d say we should wait to eat dinner with the others but there’s no telling when they’ll be back and I’m starved. How about you?”
"Actually, I agree." Astraden's godfather frowns. "This is getting too much for one guy, and I trust you, Astraden. I just need a few days. I need to set up a way to get out of this place without them seeing, I need to set up some 'surprises' if they try and check the room, and I need to put my affairs in order with the clergy. I'll meet with you in...five days? If you need more time, that's fine and good. I'm in no rush as long as it gets done. Anyway, midnight, Sodden Hold."
The elf considers his words, then shrugs. "Well, I hear ya. If you do see any of that sort, might consider leaving a note for us. Stick it in a green bottle and toss it in the well by the palace." She smirks. "We always hate bothering fellow hunters, but the Assistant Guildmaster was worried they might be sticking their thumbs in the wrong pies. If you learn anything of their dealings...well, it might work out well for you to send us a letter."
Nerof Gasgal is the Lord Mayor of the Free City of Greyhawk, also known as Greyhawk City. He has held this position since 570 CY. He is also the Assistant Guildmaster of Greyhawk's Guild of Thieves.
"Oh, well, I shouldn't say too much. Spoil the surprise, an' all that." The dwarf raises one eyebrow. "But aside from Auric—and you can never afford to underestimate that guy—we've got folk from all over the land showing up this year. Genies, exiled elf princesses, Kord's Teeth—oh, wait, didn't they drop out? Never know with that lot. Always showing up late, or drunk, or forgetting to show up altogether." He chuckles. "Kordians, am I right?"
Farrukh laughs, perhaps a little too loudly.
"I know what you mean. I travel with a warrior priest of Kord myself. Nice guy but a little...Kord-y."
"But it sounds interesting though. I never figured such exotic people would be joining an Arena fight. I may need to join just to see who's on."
"Or uh, make nice with a genie if nothing else."
"Well, just pray extra hard to Norebo first." The dwarf grins. "Most of the groups in that ring play for keeps. Even the 'good' guys."
"Sure. But remind me . . . where's Sodden Hold?"
"Also, any way I can help with the immediate escape issue? I've got an invisibility spell today."
Carina rest a hand over Tanith's as he holds her up.
"I think I'd like that, Tanith. I'd like that a lot." She nods and smiles up at him before carefully bending over and getting a towel to dry herself off with.
"Well, that's something I'll likely do if needed. In fact... let me get a head start on that. Might be nothing, might not be nothing. Last time I was living in the city, I'd been given to understand that the Free City Snatchers were an... ex-operation. Too dumb to live, you might say. That still the case? Because... well, a bunch of folks using their gear made a move on a friend in Diamond Lake. And they were led by a distinctive-looking individual who I know for a fact wasn't actually within 50 miles of the Lake at the time. Now, if this is just... business, well, then it's none of my business and I'll keep my nose clean of it..."
"...But I think you can see how that might potentially be what one would call a shifty kind of 'wrong pie' situation."
Cuetzpalli watches as Astraden fixes the door and finishes her conversation with her godfather.