Location: Ptolus, Docks district.
Participating characters:
Alcott - Half-Elf Rogue, level 1
Crispin Ellindril - Elf Ranger, level 1
Quinn Farshore - Human Fighter (Magical Adept), level 1
Alcott, Crispin, and Quinn had made their way down the cliff road and into the Docks district. They had taken Bay Street to the piers and were nearly at Wharf Road when the alarm bell rang out with urgency. They rounded the corner to find themselves at the edge of an attack by Sahuagin.
The city watch had already engaged the sea devils, and there was much running about by sailors, merchants and others. Out on one of the piers a lone Assarai (lizardman) had been sunning himself when he was attacked and thrown into the harbor to be immediately set upon by a shark.
A short distance away 4 laborers were wrestling with a large crate, dropping it to flee from the attacking monsters. Crashing to the ground, the crate broke open releasing a man-sized giant centipede. The creature instantly leapt upon the nearest man, biting and poisoning him, leaving him immobilized on the cobblestones. The owner of this dangerous cargo began shouting, "Capture it, there's a reward!"
Quinn began making his way along the docks planning to join the fray against the Sahuagin when he found himself in combat with the escaping centipede. It raced toward him, biting another of the fleeing laborers. Quinn's swift rapier strike subdued the skittering menace. Meanwhile Crispin and Alcott began peppering the sea devils with arrows, seriously wounding and driving some back into the water.
The city watch had managed to stand their ground, confining other monsters to the piers, and eventually the defenders drove off the remaining enemy.
With sea devils driven off, Quinn and Alcott gathered some rope and planking to secure the stunned centipede. Meanwhile Crispin approached Captain Tomlin of the watch to get information about the attack and inquire about the three young thieves they were seeking. He learned that daylight raids like this one are very rare as the fiends prefer to enter the city at night to kidnap people. Tomlin surmised that the beasts must have been after something important. As he was returning to fill in the group, Quinn collected the 60 gold piece reward from Orbal.
Orbal explained to Quinn that he is a collector of fine art, primarily statues, and paintings. He had contracted with Xel's Creatures to bring him the giant centipede as a guardian for his vault.
Crispin informed the group of what he learned, both about the attack and the three troublemakers. According to Captain Tomlin the gang members were seen down by Sard's Boats.
The party approached and spoke with Sard, learning that punks destroyed a box of his after doing something with an amulet and complaining that it doesn't work. The three then went to Pridwin's Esoterica shop just a street over.
In the event that the gang members were concealed within, Crispin moved to the alley behind the shop while Alcott and Quinn entered. Standing on a chair behind the counter was a gnome wearing what passed as a uniform bearing gold braids on the shoulders and a green sash across the chest. "How can I help you fellows?" Pridwin asked.
Conversation covered a few topics, always leading back to the gang. During the discussion the party learned that the kids had been there, tried to sell the amulet, "Not interested," Pointing to his glass case full of necklaces, bracelets, earrings, hat pins, rings, hairpins, broaches, and assorted other shiny objects, "Sailors come in and buy these to impress the girls at Essers. The girls then bring them to me to make a few extra coins. The cycle repeats. An ugly hunk of brass wasn't going to sell. They then set their eyes on three used short swords which they bought with platinum pieces and traded in their clubs." With the offer of 5 gold, Alcott was able to learn where the thugs had possibly gone from there. "I heard them say they were going to buy some Ayorith, probably from Gil, behind the Savage Shark."
Regrouping out back, the decision was made that Crispin would work his way closer while keeping watch in the alley, and Quinn and Alcott would repeat scouting inside the business.
Entering the Shark through the front, Quinn and Alcott paused to let their eyes adjust and to scan the crowd. Several patrons looked their way and told them to stop staring and get a beer.
The beer was cheap, and tasted so. Everything about this bar looked the part of a seedy environment. Broaching the subject of the kids the bartender said he hadn't seen them, "but it's always busy in here, ain't got time to study everyone that comes in." Quinn paid for his beer with a gold piece and asked about Gil. "Where can I find him?" The bartender pocketed the coin and slid a warm beer across the bar. "That cheapskate? Never spends a penny in here. Always out back."
Quinn and Alcott go out back and see a guy standing in the alley wearing a long leather coat, saying nothing and ignoring them. Not seeing the punks they've been pursuing they go back inside and ask the bartender about Gill. Bartender asks "Didn't you just see him out back?"
They go out back again, and are this time joined by Crispin. "You must be Gil. Have you seen three teenagers wearing green?" Gil states that if he has he doesn't rat on customers. Two gold pieces and a promise of more, draws out a grunt and Gil points a short distance down the alley. "Flop house."
Rooms was written on the door to the rather non-descript two-story building. In the front room sat an elderly lady beside a mop, broom, and other cleaning supplies. A quick bribe later and the party were kicking in the door of a room the punks were getting high in.
Quinn was first inside. He said nothing, instead starring at the kids as he stepped aside to allow his companions entrance. Alcott strides past him, right up to the now armed punks as if he owns the place and Crispin follows him in, drawing his two swords. With confidence tells them how things are going to happen. "You messed with the wrong person. You're going to put your weapons down and place what you stole on the table."
Alcott's persuasive effort is very effective. The punks disarm, believing the trio to be members of the Balacazar crime family despite the party never acknowledging Tibb's question. The gang members answer every query about what happened, why they mugged the woman, etc.
Alcott offers them unspecified work. With a little manipulation they learn Kelcan's father is a carpenter. Ordering them to take him to the man, Alcott, stolen amulet and remaining money in hand, leads out of the door, with Quinn following the three cowed gang members, while Crispin gathers their swords.
In North Market, the party are introduced to Edward, Kelcan's father who currently is out of work. Edward accepts the job, paid for by Alcott, to go fix the old woman's window in the apartment next to gang hangout. Realizing their affiliation will be found out, the kid's all look nervous.
That business arranged, Alcott takes them to a flophouse for a while for them to come down from their Ayorith high. Quinn goes to Midtown to find a wizard he knows at Danbury's bar in Delver's Square. Crispin goes back to Windship's Fine Fabrics to check up on the woman he helped earlier.
Crispin learns the young woman was taken to the Church of the Lawgiver (a temple of Lothian) in North Market. He goes and speaks with Brother Thadeus Bravon who then introduces him to Maryanne, the victim. She thanks him for what he did and is relieved to hear that she will soon have her amulet back. Crispin offers her the remainder of her mon ey as well, but Maryanne declines. "I suspect I am better off than those that robbed me, and you have earned every coin."
Quinn sits down with the wizard Yardley and asks him to look at the amulet. Quinn had interpreted the writing on the back to be phonetic for either or both a Draconic or Giantish word. In Draconic it could mean Open or Pass, and in Giant it means Give. Yardley examines it and points out that the symbol on the front, of a box with arrows passing through it in opposing directions, indicates its purpose to be a swap or trade of some kind. His further investigation reveals it to be a form of minor teleportation. "It involves containers. Place something in one and send it to another. Use it to open one to retrieve something. Nothing bigger than the containers involved can be transferred."
Within the hour the group meet up and go to the temple to return the amulet, trade in their rat tails for the reward and get Quinn cured of disease. They then each go to tend to personal business with plans to meet at Quinn's later.
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