Nel gives Mazra a strange look. "What are you talking about, Mazra? She's still alive, unless you smothered her to death with a pillow just now." Nel speaks as she rights a table, before pushing in the less damaged chairs and moving onto the next step. "We still need to find the missing key to the safe and ensure that the papers to the goblin don't fall into the wrong hands. After we're done with disposal of the bodies, we need to then conduct interviews to fill the majority of our vacant staff, and ensure that Zincher won't come try to attack us again. Hopefully with Saul out of the way, we can bury the hatchet." Listing off the tasks at hand, Nel makes a tsking noise, as she realizes the paperwork involved in restarting the gambling den.
Ianez clears his throat. "I might be able to do something about the safe, unless it's very well-made"
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She has on her:
+1 mithral chainmail
buckler
+1 hand crossbow
masterwork bayonet
masterwork short sword
ring of feather falling
slippers of spider climbing
In her workshop was an adamantine chisel (ignores hardness of up to 20 and is an excellent tool for the use of breaking down objects. Using it increases the time needed to make a break check by 1 round, but grants a +2 circumstance bonus on the roll) worth 1000 gp.
The workbench also has a leather book on it. The book is written in Undercommon and is Depora’s journal. Some of the book seems to be a ledger of sorts that lists all of the money Saul had been funneling to her, along with several notes of what that money was spent on (mostly alchemical supplies, spell components, and exotic food to be shipped to Devil’s Elbow—these shipments were always made at night and by different sailors from whom Depora was careful to hide her true nature). Most of the book seems to be a list of all of the strange and exotic weather effects and other unusual phenomena that have occurred in Riddleport over the past several months. All of these, including the Blot itself, are indicated in the journal as “strange and eldritch side-effects from the charging of the glyphs on Devil’s Elbow,” and that “It would do to further refine the glyphs to minimize such blatant displays lest the enemy receive further warning of the impending apocalypse than we wish to reveal.” The journal goes on to theorize that as soon as the “glyphs are activated and the star is plucked,” the strange side effects such as the shadow in the sky should vanish immediately. The last journal entry indicates that Depora suspects that this event could occur as soon as tonight.
At this point, the Blot in the sky over Riddleport has disappeared.
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On hiring for the Goblin, I will wait for Nel's input. Mazra would prefer non-evils.
Concerning the Drow, search her thoroughly. Then put her in one the cages around the Octohedron, wearing only her skivvies. We will need to set up a guard for her. Mazra will volunteer for first watch. We should question her while Mazra has up a Zone of Truth. We could ask her about this Devil's Elbow.
Tamiro sheaths his blades, catching his breath as the woman collapses.
Letting Nel gather up the woman, he follows the group back back up tot he Gold Goblin. Taking in the mess from the night, he whistles, "I had forgotten what a mess we made. Its our now though huh?"
Making his way to the bar, he bends down and sets a stool up right, and plops down after fishing some whisky from behind the bar. He is about to take a drink from the bottle when the cry of Gildi draws his attention. Stepping outside, his eyes widen at the sight of the growing ball of fire.
"Ten ga watashitachi no sekai ni geraku s%#$e imasu!" he yells, as the ball of fire passes overhead and the horizon explodes.
Turning to the others for a brief moment before the hot air and trembling ground hits him, catching him by surprise, he collapses to the ground. "The Heavens are angry about something."
Standing up, he steadies himself on the wall of the Gold Goblin, listening to the cries of frustration and surprise, only appearing to grow as once again, the water begins to recede from the shore.
"Be warned, I think the water again may surge!" he yells.
As he yells this, moments later the wall of water comes crashing into the port districts, as he Tamiro grits his teeth.
"Nani ga, subete no yōso ga okotte iru koto ga okotte imasu. Kore wa, kurai hada no Erufu to wa nanika o motte imasu ka? Pluck! Where is that elf of yours? Does he have answers?"
"Mazra, just because she expects to be treated like an animal doesn't mean that we should rise to her expectations. She's a sentient creature and is in our custody for the moment. I say we keep her where I put her, and hopefully she cannot cast spells without a holy symbol or a spell component pouch." Pulling out the container which Nel has stashed all of Depora's possessions, she spins the ring between her fingers before putting it back.
"Feel free to help yourselves to her possession; I don't have any want or need for any of this." As Mazra approaches her with a list of suggested traits that any employee should have, Nel merely shrugs and approves of it.
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The woman comes to a few hours later, groaning and swearing loudly in Undercommon. Whenever anyone comes near her, she demands in Undercommon that anyone present release a noble lady of House Arinzae or face her wrath.
What sort of questions would you like to ask her? It will take about three days for Kwava to arrive, so you have enough time for a few rounds of interrogation on your end.
"I don't speak the language, but I can use that spell to understand her answers if one of you will ask her questions for me."
"I can help ask the questions. It seems like a lot of coincidence to have this mention in her journal about an event that might happen tonight and that explosion. Maybe we should start there?"
Ianez will have Pluck translate questions for him, and will cast comprehend languages so he can understand her answers.
"Why should we be threatened by House Azrinae? You're a prisoner, and you have no friends here."
Hearing some sort of commotion coming from downstairs, Nel drags herself out from Saul's old office where she was looking for any applications the sketchy rogue had on file. "Uh, what's going on here guys?" Staring quizzically at Ianez and Pluck, Nel pulls up a chair.
"We're having a talk with her." The archaeologist shows Nel his notes, then jots under them I'm trying to find out what I can from her. She may know some Common, though, so I don't want to say that out loud.
Nel raises a brow at the note. "I see. Do you need my help? I can translate, if you'd like." Taking a swig from her waterskin, Nel slides it over to the woman. "Via nomo estas Depora, dekstra? Mia nomo estas Nel Sandhal. Kion vi faris en tiu kaverno? Se vi estas en dangero, ni povas helpi vin, sed nur se vi diru al ni kio okazas." Slouching forward, Nel rests her chin on the palm of her hand, attempting to read the drow's reaction.
Three days after notifying Kwava that a drow was captured, he returns with a small party of other Lantern Bearers and a wagon with a covered cage installed on its back. The elves work quickly to cover the woman completely, bind her with adamantine locks and chains, and bring the wagon behind the building. After tossing her in the cage and re-covering it, the elves depart as quickly as they came, leaving the Gold Goblin quiet once more.
Kwava, however, calls Pluck, Tamiro and Nel into one of the Gold Goblin's private as his allies work. With an rare, energetic smile, he buzzes, "You did great work capturing one of those creatures. We haven't been able to take one alive yet. We'll question her, but I need to know what you got out of her first. What do you know? Why was she in Riddleport? Does she have allies?"
"We haven't learned as much as we'd like Kwava. She keeps saying something about House Azrinae and something about someone named Allevrah having plans for us. We learned the most from her journals though. She's been doing something on an island named Devil's Elbow. Something with glyphs and it was supposed to culminate with a star being plucked a few days ago. The same day the huge wave hit Riddleport."
Nodding to Pluck, Tamiro adds, "She is tight lipped. The sky falling onto the island and her journals paints a picture though that is far from a coincidence."
Crossing his arms, looking around at the elves and Kwava, "This seems to be an elf problem, I might suggest you and your kind should deal with it before too much more trouble happens."
"I don't know Tamiro. If she really did manage to bring a star down from the sky...which still seems a little hard to believe even the the evidence suggests it is true, what's to say one of her friends doesn't do the same to Riddleport now that we've stopped her. I think we're all involved, elf or not, whether we like it or not. Kwava, do you know anything of this House Azrinae?"
Nel greets Kwava with a tight smile and a curt nod. "Here, I've taken the liberty to translate the journal into elvish." Holding out a small leather journal to the dark skinned elf, Nel is barely able to stifle a yawn. Dark circles now rest under blue eyes, and black ink stains the tips of her fingers and her left cheek. "I don't know how helpful she will be, she didn't seem too keen on giving answers, just cryptic promises."
*Knock! Knock!*
"Hello? Anyone there?"
"Sounds like we have visitors. Shall we see who is here before we continue our conversation? I can help get rid of them if you want me to."
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Kwava says, "While you meet with them, I will contact my superiors and let them know what was found out. Once you have this all sorted, we can talk about next steps."
"Tamiro, Pluck speaks true. If what you say is happening is happening, you will likely find this spreading beyond the elves. All of the Shin'Rakorath are standing vigil. I will let you know what the next steps are."
He turns and leaves, his footsteps leaving no trace in the sawdust on the Gold Goblin's floor.
"Nel, what do you want me to do with our visitors? Want me to see about getting rid of them or do you all want to come and see who is here?"
An extravagantly dressed albino man softly speaks up from a few paces behind the elven woman. His high collar partially obscures his face and thin scars crisscross his cheeks and forehead. "I believe you must knock harder my dear, or I fear they will never hear you. Here, allow me to help."
Setzer glances around and quickly locates a suitable object. He concentrates a moment and a fair-sized rock levitates up into the air and slowly moves toward the door. It accelerates just before colliding with the firm wood, and a deep resounding thud echoes across the empty street. It repeats this motion a handful of times before gently returning to the ground. "There now, that should increase our odds of being heard. Always do what you can to increase the odds in your favor." He says with a smirk and a wink.
"Making problems for us all." Tamiro says as he heads back into the Gold Goblin. Grabbing a bottle of rum from behind the bar, he pops the cork and takes a quick drink before he hears the rock hitting door.
The Tian man grabs his bottle and walks over to the group grumbling, "Why are you smashing a rock against this business??? Who are you all and what do you want? I am a bit angry right now and would enjoy an excuse for a fight. Give me one!"
"Thank you. I feel as if I have been alone out here for days. I am Rilia and you are?" Rilia says extending out a hand as Setzer of course does not need one to knock on the door.
Nel lets out a heavy sigh as Kwava vanishes with Depora and his lantern barriers, feeling that her life was about to get far more complicated. Collapsing into a chair Nel slowly counts to ten as Pluck mentions the knocking and hears Tamrio confront someone. "Gaozari sânge, nu pot ei doar da-mi o bucată de momente?" Nel moans out in her native tongue before pushing herself out of her seat. Plastering on an enthusiastic smile, Nel clutches the folder of the Gold Goblin's finances close to her chest as she goes to see what trouble Tamiro is causing now.
"Let's go see who it is Pluck, I've posted some fliers about looking for new employees, since Mazra has left for Sandpoint. This might be some of the new employees." Seeing Tamiro confront two finely dressed people, Nel rolls her eyes at the samurai's empty threats. "Tamiro, inishiachibu o tori, noizu o chōsa s#$!e itadaki arigatōgozaimasu. Anata ga s#%@ai baai, watashi wa, koko kara sore o hikitsugu koto ga dekimasu. Watashi wa yori ōku no jūgyōin o sagashite, kōkoku o dashite kita, korera no 2tsu no katto o s@&#a ikutsu ka o s#!~e iru mono." Speaking in Tamiro's native languate, the half-varisian hopes to head off Tamrio's temper before knocks off yet another door off its hinges. Placing a calming hand on Tamiro's shoulder, Nel offers an amused smile to her friend before turning her attention to the new comers.
"Oh, hello!" Nel speaks in an overly cheerful tone, "You must be Setzer and Rilia. Come on in, we were just about to discuss The Gold Goblin's finances and possible new ventures." Leading the two new employees into the semi-dark gambling hall, everything looks worse for wear. In some places sword marks can be seen clearly on gambling tables, while a section of the bar looks to be stained. The only thing in the gloomy gambling hall that appears to be well maintained is a small shrine near the back of the hall decorated with small trinkets and various small wooden butterflies. "Sorry about the mess, we're in the process of redecorating."
Looking over to Nel, he raises an eyebrow, and grumbles to Nel, "Korera wa anata no ōbo ga arimasu ka? Sono hitotsu wa, wareware wa jūbun'na Erufu no mondai o motte, Erufudesu."
Grumbling inaudibly, Tamiro takes a drink from the rum, and tosses it at the far wall, stomping off into the back, "I'll take care of the horses! Korera futatsu wa, karera ga shigoto to karera wa sore o kurīn'appu suru koto ga dekimasu shōmei s@~*e moraimasu."
Rilia takes in the low-light conditions with her elven eyes and politely sits with poise across from the half-human. She discusses her role. What is expected of her and what her compensation will be (amenities, pay, board, free time, etc...). She makes good eye contact, smiles politely at anything she likes, and makes sure to touch her would-be employer at least once during the conversation and her own hair and lips as well.
A look of recognition dawns on Setzer’s face. He doesn’t hesitate to chime in, calling after the grumbling man, “Watashi no shazai watashi no yūjin - Tamiro wa, soredatta - ? Watashi wa kono appu posuto sokkō o kirei ni shimasu! Watashitachi o mukaeru tame ni anata no isogashī tsuitachi no uchi no jikan o saite itadaki arigatōgozaimasu.”
Turning to the woman, ”Yes, Setzer Gabbiani, a pleasure to meet you.” He extends a pale white hand to shake. ”Finances, you say? Ah, I am afraid I am not good with money. It seems to find it’s own way out of my pockets. It’s the damnedest thing…” Setzer shakes his head with a smirk. Motioning for the elven woman to follow ahead of him, he brings up the rear, taking in the disarray with a good-natured disposition. ”Hmmm, this looks frigtheningly similar to how I left the Sun-Dappled Serpent back in Ravenmoor. Horrible thing, that.” His smile breaks as a pang of anguish flashes across his face. It doesn’t linger, however, and his optimistic smile is quick to return.
Pluck smirks when Rilia reverses the interview, "Not from around here? I think Tamiro and Nel have managed all right. Up to Nel really what you get paid, but I'd be wary of crossing her and Tamiro. Last man who did wound up with his head on the bar." He nods to Setzer. "You might want to follow his lead. At least he's willing to clean up. Plenty of opportunity for that."
About eight hours later, Kwava returns to the Gold Goblin mid-interview. He looks over Rilia, Nel, and Pluck before giving a smirk.
"How interesting," the elf says, "but I must interrupt. Nel, Pluck, Tamiro, I must speak with you about our plans. I apologize, madame."
After waiting patiently for the woman to leave, he checks the door to ensure that no eavesdroppers are nearby , and smiles.
"Good news," Kwava says, his brows furrowed as he looks over the trio. "The Shin’Rakorath are financing an additional expedition to the Devil's Elbow. They think there may be more," Kwava pauses as he looks around for eavesdroppers , "drow on the island. We've arranged passage for you, your animals and any additional crew you may need to examine the area. Of course, you will be paid."
"Our agents are a bit tied up in other matters at the moment, so this falls to you. Let me know if you need anything. When you're ready, find The Flying Cloud. The captain will take you to the Devil's Elbow as soon as you ready. Don't wait too long, though. It seems to be a popular destination at this time."
Pluck has ties to the Cyphermages and is rumored to be under Elias Tammerhawk's thumb. Nel is a knight of the Order of the Tome and is rather rude to full-blooded elves despite being a half-elf herself. Tamiro is rumored to be exiled from Minkai after pulling a man's eye out with his bare hands. Nel and Tamiro's horses are stabled at a nearby business, not the Gold Goblin itself.
The statue of the Gold Goblin that stands in the entrance way is made of bronze, not the Gold the building claims.
"Of course." Rilia smiles pleasantly and takes her leave, but takes note of the elf trying to place his accent.
"You're too kind, Pluck is it? Thank you. It is true I do need the work. I'm down to my last forty silver and have been on the road so long." Seeing him nod to Setzer and hearing the note of servility in gambler's voice Rilia paints a worried look upon her face.
"Oh dear." She gulps.
She steps away from the quartet straining to hear, needing to know, but ultimately knowing it will be useless. 'Nel' certainly does not like elves so why meet with one so readily twice in one day?
She heads over to where Setzer is cleaning. "Hello again. Have the owners already hired you? Can I help?"
"It's strange, the rest of this place has seen a good tossing, but your bar has both survived unscathed and is in fact quite respectably stocked. This brandy, for instance-" a woman stands up from behind the bar, and while taking a long swig steps out into the floor, "has aged for 15 years, presents with a vibrant bouquet, and has many lingering afternotes... Even if it was made in Cheliax."
She takes a final sip, sighs, then turns to Nel, Pluck, and Ramiro and bows slightly. "Nel, pardon my delay but I got distracted with inventorying the Goblin's cure product, I hope you don't mind me taking initiative with the task, but when I arrived no one was around. Now, did I just hear something about an expedition? "
Sneers at Setzer as he is addressed in Tien and leaves to take care of the animals. Upon Kwava's arrival, he follows the three of them into the offices, listening to what the elf has to say. Hearing of the promise of money, his demeanor becomes more interested.
"The Devils Elbow you say? Will anymore of the sky be falling there? I cannot imagine after that blast much is left?" he says, stroking his chin and thinking.
Leaving the room, Tamiro will spy the woman drinking the brandy and shuffling around the drinks, testing them, his eyes growing wide in suprise and rage, he yells, "What are you doing drinking our stock girl?! Anata wa watashitachi kara dare o nusumu tame ni s+*+e imasu ka??! Who are you to be stealing? Suana o sora ni shi, sudeni ratto ga sore o hikitsugimasu!"
Turning to Nel, he says,"Ken otome! I am seeing my mother! There is an heirloom I must pick up before we depart, when I return, if these gaichu are still here, I am going to cut them into pieces!"
Storming out, Tamiro growls angrily, punching his way through people who do not readily move along the street as he heads for the tailoring shops.
Nel sighs in exasperation as Tamiro throws his tantrum and smashes yet another bottle against wall, adding another stain to the old wallpaper. "Dammit Tamiro." she grumbles at the retreating back of the samurai, before taking a seat with Pluck and Rilia. As Rilia asks about Tamiro and her upbringing, Nel's eyebrows raise and shifts from her exhausted slump to sitting up properly. "Tamiro speaks common, he just difficult and sometimes refuses to speak it. As for me, what are you talking about? I'm Varisian, I've lived in Varisa for all of my life and in Riddleport for the past five years." Nel narrows her blue eyes to take in her new employee, unable to figure out the point to Rilia's questioning.
As the conversation continues onward, Nel appears to be completely unphased by Rilia's attempts at seduction on herself and Pluck. "As for compensation, we are willing to take you on as a junior partner. You will get one sixth of the profits that the goblin brings in, and if last quarter was any indication, it should be about 50-200 gold pieces a week, depending on how quickly we can get the goblin turned around and opened up for the public. I have an agg-" Nel stands abruptly as Kwava saunters into the room. "I'm sorry Rilia, we'll have to finish these negotiations later. Something come up. Setzer, could you be a dear and tell Tamiro that I need him in the dead geezer's office?"
This time, Nel is unable to mask her annoyance as she leads the dark skinned elf up to Saul's old office. She waits until the original junior members of the goblin are assembled before closing the door with a loud crack. "What the hell, Kwava? You don't get to barge in here and order people around." she snarls at him, clearly tired and stressed. As the elf explains the situation, the sour look on Nel's face melts to one of excitement and determination. "What do we know about our enemies? Also, how much compensation are we to expect?" Even as Nel speaks her mind is whirling with the list of things necessary to take this trip to the small island. "At what point can we let our new companions in on this mission? I don't think we'll be able to keep it a secret for long."
As Nel walks over to Saul's personal bar to grab some of the good stuff, Nel raises an eyebrow as Lina appears. "I rest my case, Kwava." Smirking that Kwava missed something this important, Nel feels a sense of pride in her new hire. "Everyone, this is Lina Ashenval. She comes highly recommended from the Publician House and by Mazra." As Tamiro storms out of the office, Nel shakes her head bemusedly and calls out at his retreating back. "Oh, tell your mother that I'm still good for oathday tea!"
As Tamiro unleashes his tirade, Lina's expression changes drastically. While her eyes go wide suggesting shock or fear, a careful observer will note that she is biting her lips shut, as though holding back a sound... laughter perhaps?
As Tamiro storms off, she turns toward Nel. "Umm, I take it he is the Tien gentleman you said I would be tasked with keeping alive? Could you kindly let him know I am much better at keeping him alive if he does not kill me? And I apologize but perhaps I misunderstood - I thought that when I am not tending to the wounded I would be tending the bar? I need to know all the products so I can promote, sell, and otherwise tend to them, and that starts with an inventory. You said the former owner was rather unsavory, so he may have done disreputable things, like pour crap booze into the bottles of high quality spirits. With both my reputation and the budding renown of the Gold Goblin at stake, I would prefer we not earn any bad press from being unwittingly associated with any such underhanded practices."
A big grin growing across her face, she looks at the elf Nel referred to as Kwava. "Now, to this expedition? I take it this is what Nel needs a skilled healer for?"
Before entering the Gold Goblin, Setzer concentrates for a moment and the rock and the small pile of dust and chipped paint hover over into an alley and out of sight. Setzer glances at the small blemish on the door for a moment before reaching into his scarf and pulling out a small tool. He leans in and after a short moments work, nods to himself and puts the tool away, following the women into the common room. A small carving of a pair of dice showing 6s and an ace of each suit fanned out behind covers up the dent from the rock.
Setzer gladly concedes the first interview to Rilia, having great interest in looking around the room in more detail. But he didn’t stand up to do this. No, instead his chair lifts effortlessly off of the ground and he begins to hover around the room, taking in the vast bar, the stains, and the shrine. He halts in mid-flight at Nel’s request. ”At once, my lady.” Setzer floats off into the back of the compound quickly locating the Tien man, Watashi no yūjin! Redīneru wa, anata no sonzai o hitsuyō to shimasu. Sore wa hijō ni jūyōdearu to omowa remasu. Erufu no gurūpu ga tōchaku shi, kaigi o yōkyū s&!@e imasu.” Hovering back into the common room, he takes the time to clean up the place a bit, floating bottles back into their respective slots on the wall.
He smiles at Rilia as she approaches, ”Hired already? No, I am here to apply, same as you. I was just waiting my turn, as a gentleman should. Help if you wish, for I am just passing the time while they have their meeting.” He smiles down at her, ”I couldn’t help but overhear that you were quite adamant in your demands. What talents do you bring to this fine establishment? I am a card dealer of no small renown.” He gives a slight bow from the waist from upon his floating throne.