Ortik feels a tickle in his beard, and he strokes the thick hair as he looks Jakob up and down. "Did you now. Well, if you're out for a pound of Lamm's flesh, you can count me in. You can call me Ortik. Where are we headed, Jakob?" He stays silent about his own invitation for now, interested to see what sort of game the Varisian is playing.
"Lancet Street," Jakob says, and turns to walk downtown again. He offers no further explanation, but walks a bit more slowly now, so the dwarf can match his pace without having to jog.
Lyla ignores Karri and Demitri as she walsk around the living room opening the drawers and touching and pushing some objects at random. She climbs up the first step of the stairway and peeps up, and then knocks hard on the wood yelling
As Demitri takes a seat at the table, he sees a small, weathered note on the table weighted down with a stone. It says:
Thank you for coming. I had to step out for a bit, but shall return shortly. Please, have a seat while you wait. The basket under the table contains bread and drink for you.
"Thanks, mister!"
Mrs. Raelk turns back and takes Alvis' hand. She nods in thanks to Jakob as well. As the two of you leave, a horse-drawn carriage pulls up to the house, and the family gets aboard.
The wind is picking up by the time you reach Lancet Street, a street with many piers leading off of it into the Jeggare River. The sun is beginning to set in the sky, and most people have returned to their homes for the coming night.
Before long, you reach 3 Lancet Street. It's a small, two-story townhouse with two windows on the south wall, and one on the east face of the house, next to its oaken front door. The front window is misted over, but the flickering of light and the movement of shadows that can be seen through it suggest that people are inside.
Lyla turns away from the stairs to see Demitri staring at a note on the table. She quickly rushes to the table, stands up on the chair next to it and snatches the note, sending the stone flying to the floor. "Food and drink? What, are we having a party now? Next item in the agenda will be trash talking Lamm as we get ourselves drunk", she says with a sneer; then, looking at Demitri, she goes on: "... not that would know anything about getting drunk, heh, chief? This one's clean as a whistle!" She then slips under the table and takes a look at the basket, checking the bread and sipping the beverage.
The bread is dry, but filling. The wine seems to have a bit more kick than others you've tasted.
The label on the bottle says: Cassomir Red 4700.
Lyla kicks back at the chair with a piece of bread in one hand and the bottle of Cassomir Red in the other. She gulps the wine and cleans her mouth with the back of her bread-holding hand, and exclaims "Well, a sip of wine can't hurt." She then whistles to draw Karri's attention and offers her the bottle "Hey sunshine, want some?" She looks at Demitri and says "Bet you're not the kind who drinks on duty, right?"
"Clean as a whistle, right. I'm not on duty, in fact I'm even part of the guard anymore." Demitri pours himself a glass and drinks it down in one go like he had done many times before.
"? How come?", Lyla asks through a mouthful of bread.
"Because they're all either cowards or on the take when it comes to Lamm. And I'm tired of it."
Marissel nods. He puts a hand on her shoulder and squeezes as if to tell her that she doesn't need to talk about it.
At her question though, he pats the pouch hanging at his belt, his card inside. I've . . . he trails off. What if it's a fraud? I can't see her hopes dashed again. Someone sent me a message. They say they have some business with me. I'm going to find out about it.
Addressing the armored man at the table, "You have a grief with Lamm?" Her gaze passes on to Lyla, silently asking the same question. Lamm you can burn. Oh Yes! Burn him and his soul... devour his pain. Breathe his anguish-Enough Karri's eyes flicker a sickly luminescent green before she asserts herself. She pulls out a chair and sits. "Girl, who would invite you to their home and then offer food while not even being here?" The scarred woman does not drink, nor eat.
"Everyone does. He destroys lives and ruins families. He took my...daughter from me. She was all I had left and he took her." The sorrow in Demitri's eyes is obvious. "I will find her and I will destroy Lamm if it is the last thing I do as a mortal."
"I did not know your child, but she is not the only person taken from us. My man was murdered by his thugs. His blood will be the payment for his" Karri's voice changes, a subtle whisper under her last word, "Violence." She smiles, a sad smile, but in it is her hope that she has found an ally in her fight against Lamm.
"A message? Wait--who sent you a message?" She asks. Her eyes widen in surprise. "What's it all about?"
Lyla trusts her earlier assessment of the food and does not mind Karri's remark about the shadiness of the whole situation. "That's ok, I've checked it. I'm sure it's not spiked." She keeps on chewing gladly.
Upon hearing about Demitri's and Karri's losses, she grows serious and sinks into the chair. "I'm sorry for you guys", she blurts out after a short silence. "Hey, 'bout your daughter - for what's worth, she's probably still alive, you know. Lamm prefers enlisting over killing, in these cases." She sips the wine again. "I would know."
Don't trust the little one! She's a LambyLambLamb! Karri frowns at the halfling's confession, "It seems we know why we were invited... but who did the inviting? And why the theatrics"
Jakob nods to the house as they approach, and climbs up the steps. Hearing voices from inside, he listens for a moment at the door before letting himself in. He glances quickly around the room.
A goggled halfling, a pair of Chelaxians, and an elf gathered around a table. Food and drink are laid out, and the discussion seems quite animated. He steps away from the door, into the room, and listens.
He is quite tall but otherwise an unremarkable Varisian, shoulders broad from a life of heavy labor. He has brown hair and a short beard, both in need of a trim, and pale blue eyes.
She turns to leave. "I should really be going. I need to get groceries for tonight. See you later!" She calls back over her shoulder as she leaves.
Continuing on your way, you reach Lancet Street without any further difficulty. 3 Lancet Street is a two-story townhouse with an oaken front door and 3 windows: one next to the front door, and 2 on the south face of the house. Glancing behind you as you approach the front door, you see a tall, brown-haired & bearded, but otherwise unremarkable Varisian with a veritable arsenal on his person, followed by a dwarf with reddish-blonde hair, clad in furs. The dwarf looks as though he's been seriously roughed up; a nasty welt is over his left eye, almost swelling it shut.
You enter the house a few seconds before they do; the room beyond has a pair of Chelish humans & a halfling with goggles talking over bread & wine. A fireplace has a warm fire behind them.
Lyla sees Marissel walk through the door and greets him tossing a piece of bread his way, mainly to tease the elf. "Think fast, grasshead!" She waits for his look of surprise to disappear before continuing the conversation. "Here we are at the weekly Lamm haters support group!", Lyla says with her arms open. " the one behind the harrowing cards, then? Hah! Got me worried for a minute there! Well, no need to tell what's your beef with Lamm - how's the brother, by the way? So, now that we're here, what's the plan?", she fires away, barely taking the time to breath.
"Lancet Street, eh?", the dwarf says, reaching into his pocket. "I'm actually headed in that direction myself." He withdraws the Harrow card and tucks it into one of the folds of his cap on the right side. "A little ratty told me I might want to head over that way around sundown. I certainly won't mind the company while we walk."
He walks through Korvosa's frigid streets, and snorts when he sees Marissel enter 3 Lancet Street's door. "This day keeps getting stranger and stranger. Though I can't say I'm surprised to see him here..." He adjusts his hat to make sure the card is visible to the entrants - not to mention anyone who might be watching from above - and opens the door. "After you, Jakob."
"That is a small comfort if it is true. Thank you."
Marissel stares at Lyla, barely comprehending the barrage as he comes through the door. When she finishes, he only smiles, pulling the card out of his pouch and flashing it to the room. No, it is not me who sent them. I suppose that means that he is not here? he only pauses for a moment. No, he wouldn't be if you thought it was me. He enters looking around at the others in the room, obviously skipping over the question of his brother. Marissel nods to Ortik as the dwarf enters the room. And he greets Demitri, recognizing him from the guard. I knew Ortik had occasion against Lamm, but you Lyla. Demitri. Whoever it was that brought us together obviously knows quite a bit.
How strange...this many enemies of Lamm in one place? Karri settles down, but doesn't lower her guard. At least there are two friendly faces...to cut! She nods at the green haired elf's assessment of the mystery host's knowledge, "Too much, maybe? Who is our host? I don't want to sound paranoidBut you are!! but what if it was Lamm himself that brought us here? He has the power to do what he likes, and seemingly when he likes...I can give you power too... No! I can give it to the fleshling! let me out!!! Karri's arms fairly twitch, as she pushes down her sleeves over her hands in a physical effort to stop the movement.
Listening to the others talk, Jakob smiled. The thought that Lamm had brought them all was troubling, but it didn't fit with what he knew of the man. Lamm was a criminal, a thief and a dealer, with connections. He wasn't the sort of man who magicked cards into mugs of ale, though.
"I am Jakob," he said. "It seems we have a common purpose."
He stepped towards the table, picked up a roll, and bit into it.
"Hey, Jakob. How youn doin'", Lyla replies. "I thought it could be Lamm behind this, but, to be honest, the sleazeball has a poorer taste in wine", she concludes taking another sip from the bottle. She looks around the group paying close attention to the people, and squints her eyes. She points at Jakob, and says "Wait... I've seen you around. Ain't you the one asking 'bout... who was it... your daughter? No! Your sister, isn't it?" She moves her stare to the dwarf, the only one whose reason to be here she still ignores.
"Well, it's pretty clear you've all been screwed over by Lamm... just out of curiosity, have any of you ever seen or spoken the man? 'Cause let me tell you somethin', he won't be afraid of a bunch of ragtags like us, if that's what you guys are thinkin'."
As you all settle in, the fire in the hearth does an admirable job of fighting the cold. The tapestries on the walls glow slightly in the fire's light, and the smoke from the braziers on the walls give the room a slightly bluish haze.
Only a couple of minutes pass before the door opens again, bringing in a howling breeze with the new arrival. In steps an attractive, middle-aged Varisian woman, with olive skin & brown hair. She's wrapped in a brightly patterned skirt and a dirt brown blouse, with a red kerchief holding her hair back.
She gives you all a warm smile as she enters, shutting the door behind her. "My apologies for keeping you all waiting, but something came up. I should really thank you all for coming to visit; I wasn't certain you got my messages."
She crosses the room to the table, and takes a seat behind it. As she does so, she takes a deck of cards out from a pocket in her skirt and begins shuffling them.
Her card-shuffling technique is impeccable; the cards seem to float and dance over the table as she manipulates them.
"What is the meaning of all this. Why have you gathered us here?"
Karri says in a cool voice, "I got your message. And the message in that, as well." She pauses listening to the cacophony raging in her head, then continues, "But, you can tell me about that later. For now, why have you brought so many enemies of Gaedren Lamm together? And especially ones that seem to know each other, too."
Ortik nodded in kind to Marissel, making his way to the table, stuffing a few rolls in his pockets before taking a fourth to nibble at by the fire. "Now that's more like it," he said as he warmed his hands, beginning to feel his fingers again after several hours spent in the cold. "Whoever said revenge is best served cold hasn't been out in this, the damned piker. And the thought did cross my mind, about Lamm calling us all here. This isn't his style, though. He's a cold-hearted bastard, and he wouldn't hesitate to put a shiv in any of our chests, but this?" He inclines his head to show off the card in the brim of his hat. "That's theatre. Lamm's too much business to do theatre."
He glances over to Lyla, chewing on the yeasty roll provided. "And that's the best part of being of the rag-tag, child. They ignore you until it's too late." He returns to enjoying the warmth of the fire and food in his belly - once that was dealt with, the real plotting could begin.
When the door opens again, Ortik puts the remaining half of the roll in his pocket, followed quickly by his hands. "Did you get a different message than me, child?", he asks Karri. "For one reason or another, we all hate Lamm, and there are to be words about bringing him to 'justice,' which is just a gussied up way of saying 'executed'. Personally, I don't want him dead. At least, not until he confesses that he set up the Old Man for Maxis Opertung's murder. After that, you can feed him to the rats for all I care." He folds his arms across his chest. "But I am interested in knowing more. Not the least of which is who you are. I was interested in knowing how you found out about us, but I can hazard a guess now." He watches her shuffle the deck with consummate skill - clearly, she knew her way around a Harrow deck.
Lyla leans over the table and crosses her arms above it, resting her head over her forearms, eyes fixed on Ortik. “Well, I personally wouldn’t mind if Lamm was pushing up daisies” , Lyla mutters. Sitting back up, she picks up the card from the back pocket and throws it on the table, with the picture side up. “Let’s cut to the chase, woman. Who the heck are you and what’s the deal with the funny cards?”
To Ortik: "No, just a very well informed message." She smirks, maybe an attempt to smile or soften the sharpness of her reply.
The woman pauses in her card shuffling, listening to your questions.
"Yes, I should introduce myself. After all, it would be a poor way for a host to treat guests, would it not?"
She begins shuffling again. "You may call me Zellara. The locals call me Madame Zellara, but I've never been one for formality. And you must be..." She points at each of you in succession. "...Lyla, Karri, Demitri, Ortik, Jakob & Marissel. And before you ask how I know your names..." She stops shuffling. She draws a card, lets it sit in the palm of her hand.
The card rises into the air above her hand. It spins several times, then faces you.
"...it's a kind of magic."
An enigmatic smile appears on her face.
It soon disappears, replaced with a serious look. She gestures to the others still standing at the chairs laid out; there's enough to seat all of you.
"Would you like to have a seat?"
"Yes, my sister," he says to the halfling, when she paused long enough for him to speak.
When the strange woman indicates the seats, he sits, his eyes attentive as he listens to the others. When he finishes the mouthful of bread, he says, "Thank you Madame"
She nods at Jakob as he takes a seat, then turns to address Demitri & Lyla.
"To answer your question, Lyla, these 'funny cards', so called, are my Harrow deck. I use them to predict the future, and occasionally I use them for card games." She chuckles a bit.
"As for your question, Demitri... I think everyone here knows why I gathered you all here." She pauses.
"Gaedren Lamm."
She straightens herself and stops shuffling her cards. "Alone, he has eluded every one of you. But together..." Her smile appears again, more sinister than last time. "...he can't hide from you all together."
"As for what Gaedren has done to me... first, it was not enough that he stole my deck from me." She starts picking through her deck, looking for something. "He also had the audacity to murder my son." Her hands start trembling.
"Where the Guard failed me, my Harrow deck has not." She looks up from her cards. Anger, desperation, and anticipation are all over her face.
"I know where he is."
The expression on her face was a familiar one. One that Demitri himself had exhibited many times. The anger, the frustration, the rage. "Lamm has taken her child too. But there is still a chance for my little girl."
"I assume you have a plan then? Everyone with different talents and sets of skills, along with a role to play?"
Jakob listens closely to what the woman says, his expression blank until he hears her say that Lamm stole her cards from her. He lays the card he received on the table with a knowing smile.
"Your son will be avenged," he says.
Lyla watches Madame Zellara skeptically as she introduces herself. Her eyes then go to Demitri and Jakob as each man enable the fortune-teller in what Lyla considers to be a delusion. She holds back a fit of laughter, trying to keep her lips shut, but the air gets out anyway. "Pfffffff!"
Lyla is already expecting the admonishing stares when she leans forward again and, placing both palms over the table, explains her reaction.
"C'mon, fellas. You realize it's freakin' you're talking about? The guy's been around for what, decades, and nobody's done nothin' 'bout it... because he's freakin' - unless you count being smacked around as 'touching'. Now, miss 'fortune-teller' here lost her son", she emphasizes "fortune-teller" using air quotes, "and suddenly knows where to find the guy. No offense, miss, but I've seen the act before, and I'm not buyin' this whole divination thing - props for the stunt with the deck, though. As for 'different talents', chief" - she turns to Demitri - "sure, I can mix and blow up stuff and sneak around pretty good, maybe pick a lock or two, but unless you guys got some pretty amazing tricks up your sleeves, I'm gonna take this card for its face value and call this meeting by what it looks like", she concludes, pointing to the card she received earlier, now lying on the table - The Joke.
Zellara says nothing as she watches Lyla go on. A half-smirk, half-smile appears on her face.
"You know, you remind me so much of Eran. Headstrong. Brash. Foolish."
She leans forward. "He also refused to take this seriously."
She turns to the rest of the meeting. "Oh, rest assured, I did not choose you all lightly. I kept my ears open; I looked for a specific group of people."
She turns to Karri. "You have the look of a mage about you; driven and talented. You may not be much now, but give it time. Odds are, you'll discover heights of power beyond anyone here."
Then to Ortik. "I've seen you once or twice, Ortik. I've seen you speak with the rats on the street. Now, seeing beggars talk with rats is commonplace here, but it is truly rare to find someone with whom the rats will speak in return." She smiles at you. "Hartleby chose his student well, I think."
She looks to Marissel. "You were easy enough to learn of--after all, how many blue elves are in this city? And considering your weapon of choice--" She nods at your belt, where your pistol is kept. "--it was even easier to learn of you. That weapon of yours is not something Gaedren will be expecting."
She looks to Jakob & Demitri. "The two of you are strong of body & mind, and have searched without pause for too long. It's about time your diligence was rewarded."
She turns back to Lyla. "And you... I suppose you know Lamm better than anyone. Have you, perchance, heard of the most recent murder? A Gartaman Raelk, slain in broad daylight and left on his family's doorstep as a reminder to those who stand against Lamm. You've been under his heel for so long. Surely YOU, of all people, would know if such a thing is becoming of him."
"She's right. Murdering people in broad daylight isn't his M.O. He's getting sloppy, like he's scared of something or someone."
"Can it be? Is this woman the answer to ending that cur and to finding my daughter?"
"Now for once, take this seriously." He says looking at Lyla.
"There's all sorts of truths you learn living on the streets," the dwarf says, sitting down at Zellara's table at last, "Back a rat into a corner, give him nowhere to scrabble away to, and he'll come out all teeth and claws. And Raelk's my fault. I found the fisherman, sussed the truth out of him, and Lamm's bully boys came and ended him faster than one of the Savored Sting's flock. So, if you know where he is, Madame, then let's have out with it. The sooner this bastard breathes his last, the better for everyone."
Jakob picks up Lyla's card and looks at the back of it, seeing that she got the same message as he did.
"If you came to warn us away from him, you're still doing his work," he says. He sets the card back on the table.
Lyla sinks back in her chair, reflecting on Madame Zellara's and Demitri's reprimands, and listens carefully to Ortik's account of the attack against Gartaman Raelk. However, it is Jacob's statement that really unsettles her. For once, it looks like she has ran out of words.
"I... hmm... no. No. I'll never do that pig's work again. Ever", she swears under her breath, looking down with a frown. She looks back up, meeting Jacob's eyes.
"Alright. Yeah, it's true. Raelk's murder was a mess. Who knows, maybe all your asking around did spook Lamm. I can't imagine why on earth he'd feel cornered like that, but okay, I'll indulge your fancy. If you folks can really do what Ma'm Z says you can... so, how's this gonna go down? I mean, if you can see the future, then you should know what happens next", she challenges Zellara. "What does your flashy deck say about it?"
Marissel listens to the exchange, refusing to give anything away as he does. Finally, he nods, seeming to come to a decision. I'm skeptical of any divination, this last comes out with a sneer, but I don't have any better leads, and I want him to pay. He pauses. I'm in.
Yes, power...you will be more! Let us work! let us savor Lamm's burningtearing! Karri's eye's take on the sickly dim luminescence from earlier as she listens to what promises to be a chance for her to exact revenge...and the voices clamoring to make Lamm pay a harsh price. Enough. I decide how you touch the world. But, you don't decide when we touch you... Karri flinches as the tittering laugh in her head escalates as the host joins in.
Karri addresses Madame Zellara, "My skills are yours. Lamm's death will be quick" Not to the Legion's likings, I'm afraid! To the others assembled she says, "It seems some of us have better access to Lamm's secrets than others. Where should we start our hunt?"
Zellara leans back in her chair, satisfied with your answers.
"I thank you all for listening to me. Lamm's hideout is--" She reaches into another pocket in her skirt and pulls out what appears to be a map of Midland. Her home is indicated on the map, as well as a pier several streets to the north of her home. She lays it out on the table for someone to take.
"--Westpier 17, in an old fishery. It's a ramshackle place, but its previous owner died without leaving it to anyone. Gaedren uses it because it technically belongs to the city now. Free lodging, and a place to lay low."
Her eyes light up. "As to what the future holds, Ms. Lyla..." She begins shuffling her deck with renewed vigor.
"...I'm glad you asked."
Her deck appears to be full; checking your possessions, you see the cards she gave you are no longer among them. She gives you an enigmatic smile.
She takes 9 cards from the deck, shuffles them, and spreads them on the table before you, face down.
"Please, all of you. Choose one, and then I can begin."
Jakob gives Lyla a friendly, no-harm-done smile. He studies her for a moment, putting pieces together.
"You might be right." He speaks softly to the halfling. "It may be hopeless, but I can't leave Hannah there. You of all people know why I have to try to get her back."
As Zellara deals her cards, he smiles. She is strange, but the simple fact that she has brought all of them here, all people who have reason to hate Gaedren Lamm, says that she has some power of divination. The place she says he's hiding makes sense. It would be a place nobody in their right mind would want to be, so nobody would look there. Clever Lamm.
He takes the seventh card.
Power of three! No! Pick 6! Ignoring the voices Karri touches the first card. Settling back into her chair she says nothing.
Lyla stretches her hand and palms the fifth card, dragging it closer. She pulls back her hand leaving the card face down in front of her, and then sits back again.
Demitri will take the ninth card.