Tanith nods and then retrieve the pouch containing Filge’s bloody tooth. He tosses it to the ugly half-orc. ”It’s not eyes but it’s a keepsake that’ll last.”
Kullen weighs this, then shrugs. "Guess you have a point. Be pretty f%+%in' gross to have a couple rotting eyeballs on a necklace, anyways.
"But Smenk wants to speak with y'all now."
With Carina along, Astraden decides not to look for Tanith. She will look for the others, though.
"He does? Where should we meet him?"
[dice=Knowledge (religion)]1d20+7
"He's at The Hungry Gar. We'll take ye there."
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Kullen considers it, then shrugs. "Just get the exercises done soon an' meet us at the Gar. I'll tell 'im you were in bed with someone. He'll respect that." He gestures. "C'mon, fishmonger."
Kullen and Rastophan take Robin out and to the next building over. The Hungry Gar is a small restaurant. Its owner, Guld Tortikan, claims to sell the finest meal on the Vein (the main road in Diamond Lake).
The place is completely empty now, save for five armed men in the corner. They surround the only person sitting down, the corpulent elemental of corruption and bad taste himself, Balabar Smenk.
Smenk gives a wide smile. "Well, well, well. If it isn't...whoever you are." His smile drops slightly. "Who the hell are you? Where are the others?"
Kullen clears his throat. "On their way, Boss. Rest of the boys are gettin' them. This one was right next door."
[dice=Diplomacy]1d20+2
Robin cuts a pose and grins. "Robin, of Clan O'Haranson." He pauses. "I'm guessing you're Smenk? Don't worry about the others; I'm the only really important one."
He pauses, and taps his quiver expectantly. "We'll be awfully bored terribly quickly unless you give me something to say."
"...ah." Smenk chuckles. "Diamond Lake's one and only remaining fisherman. Of course. And you've been having dealings with men who cost an old friend of mine a tooth. And a worm.
"I'm going to be honest with you, Mister O'Haranson." Smenk starts digging into his mashed potatoes, carving a volcano with his fork as he speaks. "I am not pleased with you or your band. Have you got anything to say about that?"
Navius beckons. "You come with us now."
His hand clasps his holy symbol of Fharlanghn in readiness. Behind him, Merovinn and Todrik appear to brace themselves.
Tanith gives the towering Orc a nod of thanks and takes off for the outskirts of town.
A nice long run helps get the massive Kordite’s blood pumping after the torpor of sleep and a series of grueling bodyweight exercises helps the big man get a good sweat going. The effort leaves him feeling tired but stronger for it and a bit of his lost confidence is restored. He also feels that familiar closeness to the Brawler himself that brought with it, some measure of Kord’s power.
Done with his morning errands, the bare-chested sweat-sheened Tanith heads toward the Gar.
"We managed to swindle your attention, though." Robin's grin is evident from ear to ear.
"I'm sorry you feel that way, Smenk. I have some wine I'd be willing to share, if it cures you."
Tanith sees Farrukh in the square.
Meanwhile, Smenk waves his hand dismissively. "Pah! I don't need your cheap drink. What I need..." He stuffs a big piece of steak in his mouth. Little pieces of meat and spit fly everywhere as he chews with an open mouth.
Finally, he swallows. "...is someone to solve a little problem I have. This town has. I believe Filge told you of the Ebon Triad?"
"Oi! Tanith! I'm going to go out on a limb and say you got a message from Smenk too? Any idea what he wants?"
"Possibly." Robin edges away from the food with disdain.
"Why? Are you looking for us to be your...removal team?"
"Yes, okay, hellaciously." Astraden, hood down, follows the thugs back up the Vein to the Gar.
She walks in behind Robin, folding her arms and evaluating the fighters around Smenk. "Wine in the morning? Robin, I'm sure Smenk isn't that much of a slob."
"You're sharper than you dress, Robin." Smenk takes a heavy drought of wine. "Ugh. The food here's shit."
Smenk wipes his dripping chins of wine that didn't quite reach his mouth. "Ah. Straighten up, lads. We've got a lady present."
"We were already planning on taking them out. Does Dourstone even know about all this?"
”Yeah. Kullen came for me”, the brawny Suel says between deep breathes. ”I’m already late. Let’s go.”
"Ha! What I know about that old badger would peel the paint off your mask, woman!" Smenk grins, but then his demeanor darkens. "Ragnolin's been compromised. That dwarf has secrets, and the Triad knows 'em. That's why you don't want to get the attention of Vecnans.
"About two weeks ago, Dourstone makes me this sweet offer of alliance. He says he found a special chamber under his copper mine, and a cadre of students and mystics had set up shop there at his invitation. He asks me to run secret food shipments down, without letting the Mayor or Garrison get wind of it."
He takes another drink of wine. "So I say yeah, sure. It was a fair contract, and he's giving three nice obsidian rings from this chamber—the 'Black Cathedral', he calls it. I say yeah, but only if I can take a look at the place with my own eyes."
He shudders. "What I saw there...it scared me. And I haven't been scared since I strangled my first city watchman."
”Yeah. Kullen came for me”, the brawny Suel says between deep breathes. ”I’m already late. Let’s go.”
"Sure."
Farrukh follows Tanith to the restaurant.
Carina goes with Astraden, remaining as quiet as ever.
Her mood turns rather frosty when she sees Tanith again, but she keeps quiet while Smenk speaks.
"And, let me guess... he's threatening to sell you out unless you play along, and you want us to get him out of your way." She folds her arms, her tail lashing about.
"And there's almost everyone!" Smenk raises his arms in greeting. "Creed, my old chum! And the Kethite with the sharp klar. Then it's just the Olman missing. Probably roosting in a tree somewhere."
He quickly recounts what he's just said and waits for a reaction.
On the other hand, Tanith smiles when he spots Carina. For a moment, the previous night’s debacle is almost forgotten.
Until Smenk speaks.
Astraden purses her lips when Tanith barrels in.
"Smenk, do you have a way of getting us inside? We're not going to take a battering ram to the walls, if that's what you're wanting."
"Tanith, we need to talk about treasure after this. Carina may not have gotten her fair share."
She slightly draws out certain syllables, making slightly odd facial expressions; Tanith gets the impression that she wants him to talk to Carina after this.
Carina arches an eyebrow at Astraden when she mentions treasure, and that she might not have received a fair share.
What? I was there when we divvied up the loot. That doesn't...
Something is nagging at her to keep quiet, though. She doesn't say a word.
Tanith catches on to Astraden’s innuendo and glances at Carina. The tiefling girl looked alright. Was something wrong?
Lumbering forward, the sweaty Kordite takes a seat adjacent to her. Hoping to alleviate Carina’s discomfort, he gives her a rugged smirk before returning his attention to the slimy mine boss. ”So what do you want from us? Does Red have it right?”
It's a trait that gives me a +2 on Charisma checks having to do with an individual when I know what religion that individual has and succeed on a DC 20 Knowledge (religion) check.
Cuetzpalli wanders in a moment after Astraden and Carina. "Sorry, my dino had to take a dump. Figure you don't want that on your floor," he says, patting Spiny's back. "So you want us to go to this "Black Cathedral" and wipe out the cultists? Amazing! That's what I want too."
Carina goes with Astraden, remaining as quiet as ever.
Her mood turns rather frosty when she sees Tanith again, but she keeps quiet while Smenk speaks.
"And, let me guess... he's threatening to sell you out unless you play along, and you want us to get him out of your way." She folds her arms, her tail lashing about.
"Just about, sweetie. The Cathedral's central chamber had a lot of robed figures ringing the pool, bowing before something with twitching tails and oily black feathers." Smenk stops playing with his food for a moment, deep in thought. "Their chants echoed off basalt walls like a chorus of croaking frogs and screaming children. And Dourstone...he didn't even see anything wrong with it all. 'All must be prepared,' he said. Not even blinking. 'For the Age of Worms is upon us.'
"I managed to snag that worm with some quick thinking while we were touring some lab. Then I met the Faceless One. He had some new ideas about our deal." Smenk scowls. "Now, I was all set to bow out then, believe me. But he had other ideas. So I told him, 'Dream on! This is my town, and you have gone too far!'"
Shoveling mashed potatoes into his mouth with one hand, he picks up a small sack with the other and lays it on the table. The sack is dripping a dark red liquid.
"Found the head of my right-hand man on my bed four days ago. Poor son of a b*&!@ served me for twelve years, and he...he deserved better." Smenk lowers the fork, glaring at all assembled. "I need that cult dealt with. Immediately. You lot won't make it five steps without my information."
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Cuetzpalli wanders in a moment after Astraden and Carina. "Sorry, my dino had to take a dump. Figure you don't want that on your floor," he says, patting Spiny's back. "So you want us to go to this "Black Cathedral" and wipe out the cultists? Amazing! That's what I want too."
"So I've heard. Start taking notes—assuming you can read, that is." Smenk pretends to think. "On second thought, someone else take notes. Someone handy with a pen. I hear tail girl there has nice, slender, nimble fingers—from her potionmaking, 'course."
Smenk straightens slightly in his chair. His plate is clear, and he only has to glare at it for two seconds before one of the men notices and rushes to the kitchen to harass poor Guld Tortikan. "And tell him his food tastes like otyugh!" Smenk calls after the thug.
He turns back and continues as if nothing happened, smiling at the adventurers. "Dourstone's a shrewd little midget, but he's also kind of dumb. If you keep track of what I've told you, it'll be a cakewalk.
"First, the entrance is an elevator in the mines. The mines are dark, since Dourstone's too cheap to keep them well-lit, but you should be alright. You go maybe forty feet from the main entrance, then cut down and left off the main tunnel. It's quite a ways after, but just go straight down. Can't miss it.
"The elevator's tricky to control, from what I saw." Smenk sniggers. "Three of 'em at once had to handle the rig when I was boarding. Dourstone had to ride after.
"Second, Dourstone's employees. If you think I'm popular in this town, you'll never imagine how beloved that little mole gets down there. He got the idea that he could save on paying the workers by paying guards extra to keep everyone in-line. The miners will happily help you if you work at it—and it never hurts to gild their palms a bit.
"The guards and foremen will be harder. Twenty-four guards, half day, half night. The night ones are dwarves like Dourstone. It's gonna take a lot of yellow metal in their hands to get them to turn away, but a bit of gray metal in their gullets will do the trick." Smenk grins.
"We're not going to murder guards for you, Smenk." Carina's reply is immediate, fixing the sleazy mine boss with a cold glare. There may be a bit of misplaced anger in her eyes, but it's anger all the same.
"Even you should understand that bodies leave a blood trail. If we start killing guards, our job will simply become that much harder. And here I thought you'd actually be smart about this." It's obvious that Carina could care less for Smenk's whining and posturing.
Forty feet from the entrance, down, to the left, keep going until you find the elevator.
Smenk's grin just widens. "You've got sass, but it takes more than sass and a pretty face to frazzle me, Red. Anyways, Dourstone's guards won't follow you down past the elevator—they're under strict orders to let the Cathedral's guards handle it. As long as you get down quick, you've got nothing to worry about. Of course, I'm not unbiased—I'd just as soon see you butcher Dourstone while you're there." He laughs uproariously. [b]"It's all up to you."
The brawny Kordite nods in agreement with Carina. "I meant it when I said it before Smenk. I'm not hurting anyone else on your behalf. I'll knockout the guards myself if it comes to that but we're not butchers."
Suddenly realizing how much better breaking the slimy bastard's nose would make him feel, Tanith struggles to keep his composure.
"I assume you're paying us for this?"
Hearing Smenk use his nickname for Carina, angers the big man further. "Her name's Carina. You should call her that", he growls.
Hearing Tanith come to her defense makes Carina feel a bit better. She glances at him briefly before turning her gaze back at Smenk.
You still have one helluva hole to get yourself out of, Tanith Creed. But it's... a start, I guess.
"I assume you're paying us for this?"
Smenk smirks. "Eeeno. Creed, bastard son of Kord, you're going to do this anyways. You were going to do it even before I called you here. I'm just lending a helping hand."
He scratches one of his chins. "If you're willing to do some dirty work, though, the discretely offered head of Ragnolin Dourstone might have this old buzzard singing a different tune."
Hearing Smenk use his nickname for Carina, angers the big man further. "Her name's Carina. You should call her that", he growls.
Smenk looks over the party, his own men, and Tanith in particular before raising his hand politely. "Do I get to choose what she calls me?"
Tanith cocks an eyebrow and climbs to his feet. ”That’s up to her. Crook, coward, or eunuch are all a good fit”, the big man growls.
"Hyeh! Crook, am I?" Smenk nods his thanks as another platter of food is placed before him. "And you lot are so different. You know it's a crime to break and enter, right? I read about it once. And Tanith...bless me, Tanith, but you worked for me before. I know what you'd do for coin."
As he rips a chunk from a turkey drumstick, Smenk actually sounds miffed. He speaks through a mouthful of food. "So don' go spoutin' yer mangled, self-righteoush ideas of chivalry at me, Tanith. I din' come here to trade hypocrazhies."
Tanith huffs and puts one of his big hands on Carina's shoulder. "Come on guys. We've learned everything we're going to learn from this bastard. We should get some supplies if we're going down into those mines."
Astraden thinks this sounds like a good idea. We might be able to get Dourstone's head and then inform on Smenk about it later.
"Could you draw us a map to Dourstone's quarters? I don't know about Tanith, but that sounds like a fair job to me."
"Who is the Faceless One? Does he really have no face?"
Carina shrugs off Tanith's hand and leaves. If she stayed any longer, Smenk would've had a bomb thrown in his face and the rest of the team would be utterly trounced.
Her tail isn't lashing anymore. It's utterly still.
Catching on that Carina was upset, and done with Smenk, Tanith follows the tiefling outside.
When Carina gets outside, seeing that Tanith is following her, she turns and glares at him, folding her arms. Her tail is starting to lash again.
"What did you do with Tirra yesterday?" She asks, her voice calm.
Tanith is surprised at the question but unclear on the context.
”What do you mean? Not much. The elf was a big tease”, the big Kordite explains with a frown.
Carina steps closer, still glaring.
"Would you kindly define 'not much', please? She walked in, wearing a slinky dress, gave you a flirty smile and a wink and headed to her room. You went in there with her. Somehow, I don't think the two of you were planning to share exercise tips." Her voice is still calm. She sniffs, blinking a couple of times.