"Oh, no. Mancino will not make a fool of me. His offer is as unappealing as that great, crumbling ruin of an inn he owns. Take it back to him and tell him he'll need to be a great deal more clever to pull one over on Ceryl. Now unless you intend to buy something, I suggest you leave." The smile returns to his face, gold tooth flashing.
"I see. I thank you, sir, for this timely delivery." He fishes around in the pouch at his belt and hands you a silver coin. "For your troubles. There will be another for you if you will abide while I write a note in return and deliver it back to your mistress."
"Var-- rather, the aforementioned personage can be summed up by this particular story. As one of the most powerful wizards in Fardusk, perhaps the most powerful, depending on who is ranking them, he is quite used to doing what he likes, when he likes, without care to whom he causes displeasure. It is said that a few years ago he violated a certain monastery, devoted to the Queen of Air and Darkness. As a goddess of vengeance, it is not surprising that retribution was swift and harsh. It is said that he was cursed with a terrible wasting disease. No healer could halt its progress, and no cleric could counter the magic, save the followers of the goddess herself. No cleric of Hers would do so until Var--he atoned for his crime. It is said he left the city and was gone for months, searching for a way to lift the curse without bowing to the will of Mitras. Now it's said he's returned and the curse no longer has power over him. I don't know if that's true, but strange lights and sounds have been seen from the windows of his tower on the heights, which have been dark since he left, so he certainly has returned."
"With pleasure.", he says before stepping back out into the street. He turns to Pliska. "Did you see Jon around here?"
"That... would make sense. When I last heard of him, he was still in the Iron Marches. And that curse of his... Wait. His tower? It is here?" he asks suddenly, raising a brow.
"I hear they serve good tea, if yer one what can afford it." There's a long pause, as she seems occupied with a stone she's nudging with the toe of her shoe. "If ye wanted to wait fer yer friend there, I kin run that letter back to the Six, get him here an' be sure you know when he shows."
"Is Fardusk a sovereign entity? Are there other cities like it in this region?"
"South of here, the Tindal empties into the ocean. West of that point are what some call the Jewel Cities." He snorts. Bit of wishful thinking if you ask me. They cling to the coastline of a stinking morass of a swamp, surviving mostly through trade with us and other more fortunate places. Why the folk there never moved to more hospitable climes is beyond me."[/b]
Not much later, a large, beefy fellow with a bald head and crooked nose comes up and introduces himself as Ham. He leads you out to the side of the building where a handcart awaits and offers for you to sit in it while he hauls it down to the docks.
Once she leaves and he's reunited with Jon, Auric breathes a sigh of relief. "You're a sight for sore eyes, Jon. How was your introduction to Fardusk? I wound up at the Six, but the innkeeper sent me out with a cursed box and now I'm stuck with it. I'm figuring his wife got you to warn the rug merchant?"
He gives the druid the three ceramic chits.
"Pliska was fit t'be tied after you gave her these! She thought you were trying to mess with her or something- must be pretty valuable."
"I got a curse now, even though I can't feel anything. Welcome to Fardusk, huh?"
"Speaking of, is there much talk of the Iron Marches this far out?" Stilgar asks, his thoughts turning back to home. "And you mentioned Mitras before, but does Baal have much of a presence here in Fardusk?"
"All I know is it's bad luck and apparently everyone in town knows enough not to take it. Not that I'd push it on someone else, of course. So we gotta see about getting the curse removed and just getting the darn box off the street."
"So what happened out here, Pliska said you had to use your plant magic?"
"Baal? Ah, we call him Baalok here. He is well known. The Crafters Guild in particular are fond of him. We are a city of many peoples, hence many gods are represented on the Street of Gods. Temples and shrines exist in abundance. If you have spiritual needs to attend, you will have no problem doing so."
This is a line break to test something. For some reason, spoilers that come second in line don't seem to want to open when I do the preview. I'm putting this in to bump the others down a bit and see if that helps. Yes, it did. Apparently I just have to bump the second one down below my avatar.
Your progress seems to be all downhill. Eventually, the ride levels out and the mixture of smells in the air is dominated by fish. Merchants sell it; fresh, smoked, pickled, kippered, they yell to be heard over the clamor of the others as well as the general noise of the docks.
Ham pulls the cart to a stop near the doors of a large, long building.
"Here's my stop, ma'am. The Six is just down this road on the left. Big stone and timber building. Sign is wood with the six wit' eight tails burned into it. I wouldn't mind wetting my whistle, so you can either wait while I do my business here and I kin' take you over so's I can have a pint before heading back, or you can head there now. I don't mind either way."
Auric finds a corner in the tea tent to have a seat with Jon, ordering an affordable morning drink. After the waiter has come and gone, he pulls out the box from Mancino.
"Can you tell anything magical about it? He told me not to open the box as well, so let's just start with the outside."
After following the porter's directions, Kalaya indeed finds a large building built on the docks, with a wooden sign hanging on chains above the doors. No words are scribed there, just a single image burned into the wood.
Coming through the door, you take a moment for your eyes to adjust to the dimmer interior, as there only appear to be windows to either side of the door to let light into the common room. Many long trestle tables and benches take up most of the space, with wrought iron chandeliers holding candles hanging above. Seated at the end a long bar is a familiar looking dwarf, mug in hand, having a conversation with a man behind the bar.
"I can feel its evil- a strong presence. No wonder it's been passed around for so long. It'll be a task to take it out for good..."
Auric puts it back into his backpack.
"Want to head back to the inn?"
Auric walks across the common room the end of the bar, a relieved smile on his face. He clasps the familiar dwarf and the woman with the owl on the shoulder.
"Fancy running into you here, strangers! Where's Magnus, fixing up some more trouble?"
Before he can give Kalaya the disappointing news, Stilgar feels Auric's hand on his shoulder and spins around. "Auric! Jon!" he exclaims, quickly spotting the druid. "I did not expect to run into both of you at once, but I am not one to complain about good fortune."
The priest grimaces at Auric's mention of Magnus, leaving alone the fact that this entire debacle had been his fault. He merely sighs, resigned to the gnome's eccentricities. Being friends with him would be impossible, otherwise.
"So you have not seen him either. This place must be like a paradise for him; he could be anywhere."
Jon smiles and nods. "It's a wonder we found each other. This city is a maze."