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When the halflings tell of more prisoners, Dennis dons his captain's hat proudly and shouts, "To the crew quarters!" Following Mimi, he notices she's still injured. He pulls on her flowing coat to get her attention, "I have a healing potion I got from the Society. If you need it, you can have it." He retrieves the potion from his bandolier.
Turning to Qen, he whispers excitedly, "I can't wait to see you make the ship explode. If you need any help ..." Dennis has plenty of experience with bombs and generally enjoys being involved in mayhem.
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Sunshine mounts herself back to Upuan, her legchair. Seeing that Dennis offers Mimi a lesser healing potion, she thinks it is enough to bring her to full health.
"Mimi's right, let's rescue who are needed to be rescued and leave this d*mn place." she says with a curse. "And we must check if everyone is out before we bring it down and burn it." she adds and motions them to also check out the deck above lest they forget.
There are people here chained in groups of four. The captives are resting after a long shift bailing water.
Half a dozen figures lie in the crew’s hammocks while a few figures lie in a corner, massaging tired muscles and comforting one another. Their movements fill the room with the jingle of chains that bind them to each
other.
"Well hello there," says a Garundi woman as the Pathfinders enter, "am I to assume you're the reason all the noise got even louder and then abruptly stopped? Hi, I'm Karija. I was a sailor on the Rose of Sutra. The people here were mostly my crewmates, when we had a crew. I'm hoping you're here to rescue us, and that you've already met the four who were working for the quartermaster? There's one more. A dwarf that the captain wanted to speak to. Upstairs, I suspect."
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With lots of hand gestures BK tells them the friendly news.
"Unfriendly sorts, but we were more unfriendly. of course, you could be our friends in which case we would be more friendly. And, if we were friends, then we would unlock your chains and free you. Provided we can find the key. Do you know where the unfriendly key is?"
"I don't know. Check the quartermaster? He was sending crew to swap us out, so he probably has it."
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Mimi curses herself for not searching the bodies of the crew they'd just dispatched. She returns to the aft cabin and looks for the keys. Finding them, and whatever else of value the dead pirates were carrying, she returns to the bow and holds up the keys she found. "I beleeve deez are de keys ve are lookeeng for." She frees the prisoners. "pleeze reejoin your friends in de boat moored alongside dees sinkeeng ship. I expect dat teengs are about to become veree 'ot in 'ere." She then heads for the stairs to the main deck. "Let us see vhat surprises lie behind de doeur leadeeng under de forecastel deck."
The grateful captives make their way up the stairs, but between Zoha, Ganthur, and the four captives already rescued, Zoha's boat looks a little small--particularly if the Pathfinders still intend to leave that way themselves.
Karija stops rubbing her raw wrists long enough to jerk a thumb towards a life boat. "We're exhausted, underfed, and sore, but most of us are sailors and I think we can manage a little rowing." She smirks. "And the ship is sinking, so it's not even stealing."
Turning, she calls out to the milling rescuees. "You lot! We're takin' the pirates' lifeboats. Passengers, split up so sailors can help you and do the rowin'!"
They immediately start following her directions. Nodding, she says, "Thank you for your help. I think we've got it from here. Go to work!"
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When Karija introduces herself, Dennis bows clumsily in his splint mail and almost falls over. Demonstrating impossible dexterity, he somehow manages to keep his captain's hat on his head. "Hi Karija. As I said, I'm Dennis. We're Pathfinders. We're here to help. We already freed Ganthur. We found his special dwarven dagger. He's our friend. You seem nice." Dennis comes up for air.
When Mimi goes off to find the keys to the chains, Dennis pulls out some lockpicks and confidently sets to work on the chains.
The fighter frowns, "It's much easier to pick practice locks. Like the ones in my boxes of morning oats. This one is tricky." He finds a different looking lock and tries again.
"That's more like it! Who's next?" About that time, Mimi (thankfully) returns with the keys. Dennis cheerily welcomes her back, "I saved some for you!" And then he admits to her quietly, "I need more practice."
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While the evacuation continues, Qen lays out the gunpowder in the most ideal places for combustion and sets up the fuse.
Once everyone (including most of the Pathfidners) are out, she shows Dennis where to light, and then hustles the two of them onto the last boat out so they can watch from a distance.
It's no drive plume, but it will have to do for now.
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While the evacuation continues, Qen lays out the gunpowder in the most ideal places for combustion and sets up the fuse.
Once everyone (including most of the Pathfidners) are out, she shows Dennis where to light, and then hustles the two of them onto the last boat out so they can watch from a distance.
It's no drive plume, but it will have to do for now.
As the former prisoners commence their evacuation and Qen prepares a fuse, the Pathfinders can hear a sound from the remaining unexplored rooms. Goblin song, or something like it. Somewhat less hostile than often expected.
"Boil the cheese and stew the meat,
Serve up something good to eat!
Captain locks the dwarf away,
'Cuz the captain can be mean,
Insist I feed him anyway
Lest he nevermore be seen!
Never cooked for dwarves before,
But I know that they like rocks!
So's I've used the rocks you eat
And I'll knock him off his socks!
Sometimes the captain can be cruel
And he'd keep the captive lean,
But I won't feed the pris'ner gruel,
I'm the cook! And not so mean.
Keeps his knowledge secret hid,
Captain's gonna blow his lid,
He'd never think of playing nice;
I'll have his secret in a trice!"
The door under the forecastle reveals a short hallway, with doors on the left, right, and at the end. The sounds of noisy cooking, clanging pots, and discordant singing come from the right.
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Heading toward the discordant singing, Dennis bursts into the room and begins talking quickly. "Hi! I'm Dennis. I like your song. Will you sign my hat?" The lad doffs his captain's hat and holds out one of his colored wax pencils. Then, as an afterthought, he adds, "Oh, and the ship is gonna blow up soon, so you should probably leave."
Dennis finds the galley (that is, the ship's kitchen)! Pungent spices and the smell of stew fill the sweltering air.
Perched on a three-legged stool, a goblin stirs an iron cauldron twice his size with a large wooden spoon. As Dennis enters, he pulls a small vial from the bandolier draped across his chest and shatters it at the base of the cauldron, cackling as the flames grow and burn hotter.
"Hi Dennis!" says the goblin, "I'm Nar! I don't know you--are you friends with the captain? Oh, you have his hat. He never lets me wear his--wait, blow up?"
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Mimi eyes the goblin, pleased that it has stopped its caterwauling. She decides that unlike the hobgoblin pirates, this creature seems otherwise harmless and does not run the cook through out of hand. She decides to try and convince him to leave the ship before they blow it up. "Ah, monsieur goblin, you are de chef on de ship, no? No doubt you are veree good at your vork, but I fear dat your employer ees no longer of dees vorld and you are out of a job. I suggest stronglee dat you leeve dees ship immediatelee as eet vill soon go de vay of de capitaine and cease to exeest in a rather violent explosion. By de vay, ees dere anyone else around 'ere dat vould like to survive de explosion?"
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"So the one goblin that smelly dwarf was complaining about was his chef!"
"Nice to meet you Nar, you a Licktoad? Birdcruncher? Ever been to Thistletop?"
"Anyway yeah this boat is going be not-very-seaworthy soon, I think we need to finish the meal and head off"
"Goblins burn and goblins bite
Set this stupid ship alight
Torch it well and torch it right
Torch it til it flares up bright!"
"SING IT WITH ME NAR!"
"Goblins burn and goblins bite
Set this stupid ship alight
Torch it well and torch it right
Torch it til it flares up bright!"
Penny starts looking for flammable things with that goblin sparkle in his eyes...!
Nar stares blankly at Mimi. "You talk funny!" he says with a laugh. He takes a moment to try to process what Mimi has told him. "Oh, you're raiders. Hm. Well, I should probably be mad, but I guess fair play. The crew just did that to another ship a few days ago, so they can't complain! Let's see... there's a dwarf near the captain's quarters. I made a special stew for him, so I wanna make sure he gets it."
He points across the hall. "Vaggas--he's kind of both the quartermaster and the boat-sun--and I share those rooms. I shouldn't complain 'cuz I get more room than most of the crew, but Vaggas isn't a great roommate. He's always accusing me of wanting to break into his stupid chest, so he put some kind of snare on it. I don't think there's any money in there, because he gave it all to the crew members buying supplies for repairs, but he's probably got some good stuff."
Nar ladles stew into a few bowls. "Here try this. Do you think it has enough salt? I know dwarves love rocks, and salt is the only eatable rock I have." Without waiting for an answer, he drops a shocking quantity of salt into the pot before resuming stirring. "We're gonna be out of salt, but I guess it doesn't matter if the ship blows up. Can I help? I got some good explosives! I gotta use 'em soon anyway because they are not stable." He cackles as he continues stirring his stew.
Nar grins gleefully at Pennypockets's song. Lugging his massive stewpot off the stove, he leaves it burning and casually tosses his apron over the open flame. "There's some dry stuff in there!" he says, "Just let me load some of this up..." He furiously ladles stew into a smaller, more portable pot.
Two hammocks—one big and one small—are draped in the corners of the room. Opposite the door, papers bearing the sigil of Sedeq’s port authority and a well-used abacus rest on a small table. A thick tome lays open in the middle, its pages filled with dates and numbers written by a heavy hand. A large chest rests under the table.
Mimi sets off the snare! ...but it turns out to be a crude alarm. Opening the chest sets off a loud clatter of bells that scatter over the desk and fall to the floor, making quite the cacophony--but with no one left to hear it, no harm is done.
Inside she finds two feathers. They are somewhat large feathers, and brightly colorful, and she isn't sure what kind of birds produced them. She does note that the ends of the shafts have been dipped in gold, and a tiny rune is etched on each. Perhaps magic items of some kind?
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Upon their return, Mary recounts their success to Safe. "...and vonce all de prisoners vere safelee off de ship. Boom! No more ship. Ve vill now go and take care of de other two tasks you 'ave set for us." She turns to the group. "'Ow about ve go visit monsieur Bashemi next. I like notheeng more dan a good feest. Too bad ve vill 'ave to ruin 'ees festivities."
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Dennis is about to offer Mimi some help in opening the chest, because as he explains, "I still need more practice." But as she opens the chest quite easily, he is legitimately impressed. Barely noticing the bells and noise and alarms, he compliments her, "That was great. It opened right up!" When he sees the colorful feathers inside, he turns to the bards. "Penny or BK, are these magic?"
Dennis has no opinion on the group's next adventure, and he happily walks beside Mimi to the feast. Along the way, he annoys her with questions, "Were your lockpicks expensive? Mine weren't. How are you so good at it?" He takes notes while doing his best to keep up with her.
As the boat returns to shore, the pirate ship burning behind them, Zoha laughs. "I'm sorry, this was spontaneous so I don't have any reward prepared for you." He pulls from his pocket a handful of assorted coinage. "Here, take what I have. I promise that Ganthur and I will help them get in contact with their families."
* * *
Safa isn't waiting at the lodge, but a voice that might be carried by the wind breathes, "Oh well done! The binder can't complain unfortunately, and all the victims are safe. You even set the fire!" The wind seems to laugh.
The two feathers turn out to be feather tokens, a bird and a chest.
* * *
The daylong public feast not far from the abandoned lodge, making it easy for the Pathfinders to spot the considerable crowd amassing around tall and wide tents. Music and laughter fill the air, accompanied by excited chatter about the upcoming performances.
In the middle of a sprawling public park, colorful tents surround a wide area filled with expensive pillows. A middle-aged Qadiran man with jet-black hair smiles widely as he raises his hands, and the crowd’s murmur ends.
"Friends, I trust you have enjoyed the day’s festivities thus far! What a feast we have in store for you yet! I, Azam, am not one to boast, but the marvels you will see pale only to those created by Sulesh the Great and his army of genies," the man says.
"Our past is filled with stories that speak of our might and bravery. But where has that might gone? Who trembles at the sound of Qadiran steps approaching their borders? Too long we have been complacent." He sighs, shaking his head as he retrieves a small stone from his elegant robe.
"But now is the time for celebration and marvel," his voice again loud and boisterous. Azam claps his hands, and the barren soil twists and shifts until water rushes in to create a perfect oasis between the tall palm trees.
Azam speaks one last time before sitting on a large pillow.
"Delight in the festivities. Endless refreshments and wonderful performances are yours to enjoy as we await the arrival of the illustrious Avisha al-Isman, who shall honor us with her presence soon. I hope she finds my gift to be a worthy symbol of her great accomplishments," Azam says, patting a small ornate chest sitting on a pillow next to him.
"And if you are of keen intellect and refined taste, sit with me for a traditional rendition of the great epic, The Tale of Al-Yazan the Wanderer, so that we shall remember the history of the empire as we hope for its future."
Mingling with the crowd might help gain some insight and useful clues.
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Society
"The Tale of Al-Yazan the Wanderer? That's an epic tale! Two hours of talking about war and imperialism - I love a good bit of theatre, can't wait to see what they've done with it!"
***
Pennypockets goes mingling with people...
Diplomacy
But they don't seem to be 'goblin enthusiasts'
"Probably that Banterknell warning them off me, he's been looking at me funny since the boat - must be feeling like the second best bard. Where has that Nar gone, there was a good potential buddy" the Goblin mutters to nobody in particular.
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Dennis loves parties. Especially outdoor affairs. With all the activity, he has trouble focusing. But when Pennypockets discusses the Tale of Al-Yazan, the youngster feigns a yawn. "Two hours of talking? No thank you. I'm busy during story time. Doing anything else. Let me know when it's over." Dennis decides to wander through the crowd and chat with the guests.
Alas, there are too many distractions for him to concentrate.
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When Dennis inquires about her lock picking skills, Mary brushes off his compliments. "Bof, eet vas notheeng. I do not teenk eet vas locked even. I 'ave alveys been good vith my 'ands and de pickeeng of locks ees a 'obby I indulge in vhen I am bored." She shows Dennis her picks; they have been anodized black so as not to reflect any light. "I 'ad deez especiallee mede for me back in Gralton. Dey vere quaite expensive but 'ave alreadee paid for demselves many times over."
Once at the feast, Mimi snags the occasional canapé from the trays of the passing servers and stuffs them in her mouth. "<Mmmph!> You never know vhen your next meal might be. Better to profeet vhen de occasion présents itself. <Munch!, Gulp!>" When Azam mentions the gift and indicates the small chest to his side, Mimi's eyes immediately examine it in detail, as well as its surroundings. She suspects it will fall on her to make the switch that Safa mentioned.
Mimi is more of a loner than her flamboyant presence would suggest and she finds mingling in crowds and endless small talk a tiring exercise. As such, she tends to keep moving and making herself as inconspicuous as possible while observing the area for possible opportunities for distraction that will give her the opportunity to get to the chest unobserved and make the switch.
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Wars and genies are not in BKs wheelhouse. Now fey tricksters he know a bit about. A two hour monolog about a power hungry king and, probably, his genie is not something BK cares to sit through.
"Say, we need to swap our little toy with his little toy. And maybe use that feather chest Safa gave us to hide it. Who volunteers to pick his chest and make the swap while we provide a distraction? Let's check around to see what opportunities might present itself." BK rubs his hands together gleefully at the thought of providing distractions.
Yea right, talk about distractions and being distracted! Never much of one for sticking to a plan, BK is drawn into a puppet show and stands there mesmerized for the longest time.
While none of the Pathfinders are able to make any particular friends, finding out a few things about the scheduled entertainment from the crowd is not difficult. These include a flaming dance by the famous Twisting Embers, a troupe of geniekin working to pay off a debt to Azam,
and an archery demonstration by Murad ibn Sahab, Azam’s godson who trained in the camel cavalry unit in the fortress city of Omash.
While there could ultimately be any number of creative solutions for the party's objectives, a few particular opportunities do present themselves.
Interrupted Tales: Azam spends time talking about each story in The Tale of Al-Yazan the Wanderer during the performance, often leaving his oud unattended on a nearby pillow. Someone could distract him with ridiculous questions about the tale . Alternatively they could sabotage or steal the instrument .
Spoiled Refreshments: A well-stocked tent contains all kinds of chilled refreshments for the many guests. Despite the intense heat, the beverages remain pleasantly cold.
When someone goes to get a drink, a small, high voice squeaks out from under the table. "Help me, would ya? Safa said you might be sympathetic to my sitiation. My name's Vix, and I'm an ice mephit. That jerk has me sealed in a box under the table just to keep his... well, I dunno what they got up there. But to keep something cold! It's dark in here and I can barely move!"
One could easily slip under the tablecloth. And if one were to pick the lock or force the box open...
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Deception
Pennypockets starts asking earnest but inane questions "Why camels? Aurochs are better and they taste nice too", "Did the camels have one hump or two?", "The Twisting Embers are based on Goblins love of burning things - are you sure this story hasn't just been changed?", "Why do the genies owe a debt? Was it for the camels?", "Wouldn't the camels humps get in the way of archery?"...and on, and on, and on...
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Steering clear of the boring tales, Dennis finds himself at the refreshment tent. He tries several different drinks, and says to no one in particular, "Mmmm...the grape one is the best! I like grape."
Just then, he hears the ice mephit. The youngster easily slips underneath the table. "Hi Vix. I'm Dennis. I've never met a mephit. You know Safa? She's my friend. Azam has you locked up? He's mean. I'll help you. Maybe we can be friends when you're free!" Dennis pulls out a crowbar from his pack and uses it to force open the box.
"Because camels were what they had," hisses one of the other people watching the epic.
"Does that matter? Pipe down!" says another.
"The Twisting Embers are the dancers here! Azam has them bound to perform at his parties for three years and three days to pay a debt. They're not in the story!"
"Just listen. It's a recitation, it's all there."
"What? No. Have you ever seen a camel? No."
Azam continues resolutely droning. Pennypockets didn't notice his eye twitching like that before his questions, though.
The metal box bursts open, and out zips a tiny creature that looks something like an ice sculpture of an imp. "Thanks kid!" he says gleefully, before zipping out from under the tablecloth.
Vix takes a moment to dart around the tent cackling and startling nearby party-goers before taking off away from the party at full speed, but the real effect of his escape is felt some time later when the table of cold refreshments has become a warm, dripping mess.
An Explosive Performance: A group of ifrit, mostly humans wearing matching gold and orange and red dance costumes, is setting up a stage. One of you catches a bit of griping. "Do we really have to do this again Abina? He's not even paying us!"
"He paid us in advance! Sort of. The contract says we have to perform at all of his parties for two more years."
"I think he's throwing more parties just to take advantage of that," says a third voice.
"He is not!" says Abina, rolling he eyes, "Probably."
"You should have negotiated a number of performances!"
"I didn't have a lot of choice in the matter! If you have any ideas for getting out of it now..."[/b]
It seems someone might be able to convince Abina to throw their performance.
Rumors and Stories: The Pathfinders don't have that much information to go on about Azam--but does it really have to be true to be distracting? Spreading some rumors might be strategic.
Or directly competing with the planned events by staging impromptu performances !
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As Mimi passes by the ifrit performers, she can't help but overhear their complaints about Azam and his treatment of them. She stops to introduce herself. "'Ello dere my fieree friends. Mimi de Valence at your service." She takes her hat off and swishing it across her chest bows to the group before her. Replacing the hat back on her head, she continues. "I could not help but overhear your discussion about the unfairness of your contract." She glances over at Azam and notices that Pennypockets' antics are starting to get to him. "Eet seems dat our 'ost ees a leetel on edge right now. If you vere to be less dan perfect in your performence I beleeve eet might be enough to push 'eem over dat edge. I for von vould be most interested to see vhat 'appens den. Perhaps you are of a like mind?"
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Naturally BK is attracted to the nice instrument of Azad's, the oud. Once Azad is away from it, BK will casually wander over and start playing it, making his way through the crowd. If Azad tries to take it back, he will start a rebellion.
I mean, with a performance like that the crowd would prefer for BK to continue playing, right?
Mimi is able to learn a bit more information from the crowd. Azam’s outspoken approval of slavery and war have become a growing embarrassment amongst higher circles; his attachment to the past is seen
as an implicit condemnation of the present. People in the crowd heard Azam boast about the beautiful gift that is sure to change Avisha’s mind about his devotion to the satrapy and the empire.
As for her suggestion to her suggestion regarding the Twisting Embers' performance, Adina looks aghast. "You think I would sabotage my own performance?" Her face settles into a less dramatic look and she adds dully, "Besides, it would be obvious I was doing it. But if someone were to happen to drop some of this stuff into the pond during our performance while everyone's eyes are on us, things might go badly." She slips a vial of a silvery powder into Mimi's hand. "So I'd best keep it safe with you, yeah?"
Shortly after that, the performers take the stage with some flashy pyrotechnics.
"That's very nice child," says a frustrated Azam, "but I'm doing my recitation now. Where are you parents?" He attempts to retrieve his instrument, but some laughter from the crowd seems to make him realize he's making a bigger scene by engaging. "A gift then!" his smile is forced. He snaps at a nearby servant, "Bring me another oud!"
For a short while he just stands there, stewing.
Raging Bull: Azam’s godson, Murad, promised he would use his mounted archery skills to entertain the crowd. His godfather secured an impressive camel, but the bull is young and stubborn. If someone can spook the animal ]ooc](with a successful Nature check[/ooc]), or distract Murad long enough to cut the reins and free the bull, it would surely cause no small amount of mayhem.
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Qen approackes Murad as he preps for his performance. "Pardon me, but I represent the Jadnura Trading Consortium. No, you haven't heard of us before. We're from... up north. But we do know a thing or two about archery, and I think I have something that you would like to see..."
"...which I seem to have left in my other satchel. Excuse me, I'll be right back."
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Mimi looks down at the vial of a silvery powder that Adina just put in her hand. With a smile, she closes her hand and tucks the vial away in her pocket. Looking back into Adina's face, her smile widens. "Do not vorree. Eet vill be perfectlee safe vith me. Perhaps after de festivités are over ve might meet again and exchange stories over a few mugs of good bière, assumeeng such can be found in dees cité. I vould veree much like to get to know you a lot better." And with a wink, Mimi turns and heads to the pond, into which she surreptitiously empties the vial.
"Sure, of course," says Adina, her focus returning to her troupe, "Sure!"
It's not clear if she caught Mimi's intent, but her intent with the powder is much clearer. When the swashbuckler adds the powder to the water, it begins to bubble like it's boiling.
Mimi manages to step to a somewhat less suspicious location before the pond begins to swell and overflow. Nearby party guests overreact dramatically to getting a bit wet, and scatter away from the spilling water in a comical display of panic.
Azam hurries over to investigate. "Oh just--stop. Just stop!" he shouts distractedly at the dancers, who have been carrying on their performance as though they had not noticed the minor disaster.
Adina is delighted. "What's that, Sir Azam?" she says, beaming, "Are you, how does the contract phrase it? 'intentionally interrupting' our performance?" Azam turns towards her, startled. "Then I invoke the, uh, the whatever-it-is clause. You have asserted that our debt is paid, and so I our agreement."
The entire troupe stops abruptly and simply turns to leave, to the apparent shock of other guests.
Meanwhile, Qen is unable to distract Murad away from her actions. If anything he seems to find her suspicious and keeps a close eye on her. "Who did you say you were?"
This turns out to be convenient for Sunshine of Happiness, who approaches the obstinate animal unnoticed and unimpeded. And spooks him.
He bursts away from his restraints and knocks over a handler. Murad loses interest in Quaddennilia completely, chasing after his animal as it rampages into the middle of the party and knocks over a large cake.
By this time, all eyes are... well, all over the place. Azam tries to restore order, complaining overheated guests try to stay away from the rampaging camel and the overflowing pond, and the planned entertainment has entirely fallen off the schedule.
Absolutely nobody is paying any attention to Azam's gift still sitting by his pillow.
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As Azam loses control of the situation, Dennis sidles up to several of the disgruntled guests and says, "Parties are supposed to be fun. This is the opposite of fun. Do you think Azam is a good host?" He points to the frazzled leader and continues. "Just look at him. Is his goatee even real? I've seen more believable beards in the makeup kits at the Sedeq Children's Playhouse. How embarrassing!"
When he sees his friend Pennypockets approach the gift chest, Dennis quickly pulls out the toy soldier that Safa gave him for safekeeping. He looks sadly at it, "I wish I could keep you. But I'm on a mission." He bumps into Penny and slips him the solider with some practiced sleight of hand.
Once the deed is done, he and the goblin casually leave the scene. "This was fun! Did you have fun? I had a blast. Best. Party. Ever."
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Mimi watches all the chaos they've caused with some amusement and waits for the perfect time to quickly approach the gift box to make the switch. By the time she gets there, Pennypockets is already at work. She stops and places herself in the main line of sight to distract any casual observers from what Pennypockets is doing.
She then joins Pennypockets and Dennis as the casually disperse into the agitated crowd.