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Cassiopia smiles and speaks up.
"Well, I do know quite a bit about the Kortos Consortium! Listen...."
She looks at Valsrin and speaks up.
"Lord Captain, what can you tell us about the Consortium, and about the Aspis. I have heard some rumours and tales, but no one has more indepth knowledge. What dangers and challenges will await us?"
The venture-captain sighs.“The Aspis Consortium is a ruthless mercantile organization. While some of its operations are aboveboard, at the end of the day, profit is its only concern. It considers no business venture off limits, from the trafficking of slaves to war profiteering. The consortium storms through priceless historical sites, caring only for how it can translate their history into wealth.”
“It pretends to be a legitimate merchant guild dedicated to stamping out smugglers, but it participates in its fair share of illegal activities. It is powerful enough to rival Diobel’s teriarch, or governor, Lord Avid. A fair number of prominent people in Diobel are in the Kortos Consortium’s pockets, or are prominent members of the guild themselves. If possible, try not to get on the group’s bad side."
Captain Zendrani and the crew of the sleek Sixwing Drake steer the ship up to the massive barrier of broken war-barges, crumbling walls, and jetties of iron and wood that protect the port of Diobel. “Well, here we are,” says the captain. “I’ll make sure everything is in order with Diobel’s inspectors and charter you a barge to the port. You aren’t carrying anything particularly valuable, so you shouldn’t draw much attention from the inspectors or pilots, so long as you don’t run your mouth. My crew and I will wait here with the ship. You can return here to rest, if you need to, but remember—there isn’t much time!”
Captain Zendrani is right that the PCs do not have much time to accomplish their tasks. They arrive in Diobel during sunrise on Oathday. Zendrani slips a barge captain several gold pieces as a sign of good faith. She asks him if he could do her the favor of sticking around on shore for the day in case the PCs need to return to the ship. The captain is a stocky middle-aged man with weather-beaten skin and calloused hands. His name is Markus Karbie, and he accepts Zendrani’s deal. The barge journey from the barrier to the coast is uneventful; the barge captain respects Zendrani’s gold and doesn’t ask the PCs questions. If the PCs try to talk to him, he politely but firmly insists that he “isn’t being paid to make conversation."
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Skarlit turns green(er) when the boat sets sail and at first is positively insistent that they return to dry land 'this instant!' but eventually the ocean breeze perks her up. By the end of the journey she is dangling her tendrils in the boat's wake and remarking to anyone who will listen how deliciously refreshing the salt water tastes.
Skarlit is amenable to trying any of Magali's tasks, but since the last of them - Laszo the alchemist - likely involves a trip to the sewers, she advocates for either of the first two jobs instead. "I couldn't possibly take this gown down into the filthy sewers - it would be ruined!"
The Overflowing Oyster is a dirty, broken-looking building that barely fits between the fishing tackle shop to its north and the junk shop to its south. Hanging over the door is a creaky sign that shows a painted oyster with pearls spilling from its gaping shell.
The interior of the Overflowing Oyster displays a mix of rickety furniture and gaudy decorations, from strands of obviously fake pearls hanging over the kitchen’s entrance to wooden carvings of sultry mermaids and cheap paintings of ships at sea.
You notice that the Oyster is far from overflowing. Being that it is morning, it is empty except for the bar keep and his assistant.
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Brog will remove his helmet, stow it in his pack (or on the outside of his pack) and enter the bar.
His face uncovered is a sight to behold. Ringing his thick throat are welts and ugly scars in the distinctive shape of chain links. His nose has clearly been broken sometime in the past and was never set properly as the bridge of his nose veers off to the left partway down. The notches and chunks missing from his ears are obvious and his left ear shows signs of cauliflower and is puffed up.
He walks up to the bar and orders a drink. One morning stout please.
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Skarlit quails inwardly when she sees the venue, before plastering her best debutante smile on. "I'll have a tall glass of your finest sparkling water. On the rocks, if you don't mind. And with a twist of bacon too." She then embarks on a dazzling demonstration of witty repartee, alternating flattering the bartender and then the assistant, all the while batting her leafy tendrils most coquettishly. Finally, she laughs uproariously at anything that either of them says that could possibly be interpreted as a joke, and pats the bar with her fronds. "Oh me oh my, I can't believe I've never been in your establishment before! I'm going to be sure to write you up in Gyelp and give you an amazing review! All my friends will be coming here soon, you can be sure of that, though I do wonder if you don't want a bit of my advice about those curtains..."
The man behind the bar looks at the group and smirks. You be an odd bunch." He turns his head and shouts toward the back, "Gregon, see if you can scrounge up some food." He then turns back to the others and sets a few mugs down. "I am not sure about sparkling water, but stout we have, and since it is morning, I guess it is morning stout." He pours everyone a half cup full of a dark amber liquid.
A few moments later another male, who shares a familial resemblance to the barman, emerges from a door that leads to what you believe is a kitchen. The new male sets a tray of bread, cheese and a few pieces of dehydrated meats on the counter. He nods and then heads back through the door.
Cassi is able to overhear how the Overflowing Oyster and the pearls they try to sell are fake. He was selling the fakes to a member of the Kortos Consortium and in exchange for the business, the Oyster became a front for the meetings of shady dealings.
Cassi corners the man, he starts stammering and stuttering, " Um...oh...we take bits of rock that looks a bit like a pearl...and...and... make them look like pearls. He then finds some resolve and states. "A lot of good it will do you. The town guard is on the pay roll."
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Sadaf looks at Cassiopia and smiles.
He jumps up and leaves the tavern to find a guard that will listen.
”Guard is your title right? Perfect. Look. There is crime I need you to investigate. I know you might think False Pearls are none of your business but I care. I am a merchant that cannot endure a forgery! Please ... this oyster place needs to be checked out! The whole town’s economy depends on stable trade and of course some trafficking but forgeries?! No!“
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When Sadaf leaves to find a town guard, he is soon joined by Skarlit, who has returned from her long visit to the facilities. The Twisted Tulip is nowhere to be seen.
Skarlit echoes Sadaf's commentary, while peppering it with name dropping and other allusions to her connections in high society, in case the guard has any doubts about the importance of listening to such important people. "Well, it has been lovely chatting with you and you can be sure that I'll be putting in a good word for you the next time I see the High Chamberpotlain's wife's cousin's accountant at my canasta game!"
The town guard looks down at Sadaf and smiles. "An honorable merchant in town. Didn't know you all existed in this town." He then shrugs "Might as well investigate it, nothing else to do today."
About an hour later, a group of guards approach The Overflowing Oyster and place a scroll of parchment on the door.
With the meeting officially disrupted, the agents need to handle the next task.
A maze of broken ships forms an artificial reef blocking Diobel’s harbor. This treacherous and erratic terrain teems with laborers, barge masters, pilots, and port inspectors, who busily conduct their business ferrying goods to and from the Bristles. Beyond the Trawl, seagoing ships wait their turn to offload cargo or pick up new goods. One ship stands out among the others—the freshly touched-up paint on its hull, blue with streaks of white lightning along the hull, marks it as the Blue Dragon’s Bite. It sits moored to a dock jutting from the Trawl, with several crates already offloaded nearby, and many more waiting piled on its deck.
You see many dock workers unloading cargo off the ship, being overseen by two men standing on top, by the plank.
Sadaf notices that the two figures up top are overseeing the dockworkers. You notice that they do not pay to much attention to the workers. The actual crew members are on shore for leave.
The male seems to be part of the crew, but for some reason has been left behind. While the other, who is actually a female, seems to be talking to the male and checking things off on a peace of parchment. You believe that she is here on business.
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By the time the group reaches the docks, Skarlit is once again nowhere to be seen, but the Twisted Tulip has rejoined the group and she now surveys the scene.
"Hmm, well I can easily take the form of a vine and just cling to the side of the ship, but I can't move while I'm in vine form. But when I'm in my present form I can climb just like a vine. Do you think I could fit through one of the portholes? I could use my writhing eye to make sure the captain's cabin was empty before climbing in. What do you all think?"
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Sadaf openly walks to the two men.
”Hello, dear gentlemen. My name is Sadaf. I am seriously interested in this ship. Especially because I am a merchant of honour and I have heard that this ship is a smuggling ship which is an unbelievable embarrassment for any honorable merchant! I am therefore here to talk with you and will be conducting a ‘citizen’s arrest’ if you really are smuggling! But please do not believe me to have any proof ... I want to discuss this matter with you as a merchant to merchant!!“