The group found themselves at the docks, while Brandybuck resurfaced, with tears in his eyes, to deliver the news of his deceased friend tied to the dock base. The group works together to pull his body out of the water and have a closer look to find some answers. Merek had claw marks all over his body. The cause of death was quite obviously a deep gash along his throat. Lennie also noticed some previously healed scars of similar claw marks to these fresh ones. The claw marks seem to resemble size and shape to Vano’s claws, although the manner in which they are distributed and dragged across the wounds don’t match Vano’s fighting style. They are too small to match an adult (or even juvenile) dragon. Brandybuck checks Merek’s pockets and finds a leather case sealed with wax, cylindrical, made to hold a scroll and be waterproof.
The group was then approached by city guards who seemed very disturbed
by the sight of a body surrounded by this group. They were very intent on
bringing the group in for questioning, especially once they realized the body
belonged to Merek Walleye.
The guards escorted the group to the guard station, where they were aggressively
interrogated by Gili Coalgrog, Captain of the guard. Gili was especially
suspicious of Hazel, and interrogated her about the circlet on her head. Eventually
the group discovered that the circlet was a family heirloom, belonging to Gili’s
deceased brother (Mr. Bigsby). The circlet was taken away from Hazel.
The captain tried multiple times to talk the group into paying for their
freedom, unless they had a “city sponsor”. The group refused to pay, so they
were requested to relinquish their weapons (as well as Trillion) and any
metallic/suspicious objects. Hazel and Lennie managed to keep their bags of
holding, Brandybuck his thieve’s tools.
Hazel was put in a cell next to a male drow who introduced himself as “Zix”.
Zix offered a deal, in which if the group helped him with a distraction, he
could guide them into a tunnel (hidden behind a poster advertising the Ul Adar
race) he has been working on to escape the prison. He also mentioned he could
potentially set them up with a “city sponsor” within the Ravencloaks.
Too suspicious to trust Zix, the group decided to take a night’s rest and come up with a different plan. Brandybuck opened the leather case he recovered from Merek’s body, and inside found a quite revealing letter addressed to Hazel.
“Dear Hazel,
I hope the day we meet again will finally come. I can honestly say I miss the days when we worked together. Ah, you had such spunk! But if you are getting this note, it means that you are getting closer to fulfill my wish of making this happen. But worry not about the details of this meeting, I will be in contact soon to make arrangements for a more appropriate get together. You well know that I’m an extraordinary host, so allow me to prepare a PROPER meeting at a time and place that suits the occasion perfectly. Multruvia is a wonderful place for such a meeting, so I recommend you stay put for a while and perhaps see the sights. Of course, you wouldn’t be so rude as to show up to our meeting empty handed, so I fully expect to see some more of those wonderful drawings like the ones you worked on in Berisut. You know which ones. I may also have something that may be of interest to your friend Ms. Kauma, so she is welcome to join our meeting as well. Should you attempt to pursue me before I send you my specific invitation, or if you decide not to show up with the drawings I requested, I will offer the young lad to the vampires – I’m sure they will be generous in my compensation. I fully understand if you’re not interested in our exchange, your brother is a brat after all, and my patience grows short indeed. Sincerely, J’Zargo (but you are welcome to still call me Vaeri).”
Brandybuck gave the letter to Hazel, which prompted her to lose sleep and become exhausted. Zannan used a spell to float an invisible eye to check on the captain’s office, as well as along the tunnel excavated by Zix. The tunnel went underground for quite a while, until it reached a solid door with a cylinder built into it. The cylinder had 4 dials with symbols Zannan couldn’t recognize. Lennie had visions during her rest.
In the morning, Nephira came to bail out Brandybuck, and delivered him a sealed letter that she was instructed to give him, should Merek happen to die. The letter contained the proof of ownership of The Sanguine Raider (a leather piece with engraved text, and Brandybuck’s name), and a heartfelt message from Merek to Brandybuck, effectively making Brandybuck the captain of Merek’s former ship and crew. Nephira and Brandybuck walked back to the tavern, she apologized for not having enough coin to bail all of his friends, and told him she may know a contact within the Ravencloaks.
Meanwhile, Zannan convinced Gili to tell his guards to leave him alone,
so they could discuss a very lucrative “business” in private. Gili was convinced,
however one of the guards was convinced by Hazel to question that decision, and
nearly started a fight with the captain. Once the guard finally walked away,
Zannan cast Modify Memory on Gili, making him believe that the Vines of Binding
he had taken from the hag would give him the power to turn copper pieces into
platinum pieces. Seeing the incredible potential of this magical item, and overcome
with greed, the Captain took the deal, freeing the entire party and letting
them have their items back. The captain then told his guards to leave him alone
for a while, that he would be busy in his office.
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