Dalnor/Campaign1/session-11
Small Victories
Session Date: January 17, 2009
A friend is one who has the same enemies as you have. -Abraham Lincoln
Harvest 22, 53
The party rests in the kobold cave. They rest with no further interruptions.
Harvest 23, 53
Party departs kobold cave complex to return to the Honeycomb..
At the intersection where they left Yikyik, they find Yikyik's corpse. It appears that Yikyik had been killed by the mercenaries that had tried to kill the party in the kobold caves. The party decides to navigate back on their own. About half way back, the party sleeps in the tunnel.
Harvest 24, 53
The party finishes navigating from the lower tunnels to the Honeycomb.
First thing, the party decides to go find Soolian. The general assumption that if Soolian claims he doesn't have the money and can't pay for the poison, he hired the party and will have to die. No one really stops to consider what to do if Soolian hadn't hired the assassins.
Safiria enters the Dripping Stalagtite and crosses over to Stan, who is wiping down the bar and looking at her expectantly. Safiria asks if there have been any messages left for her, and Stan indicates that there have been no messages since she left a few days ago. Safiria glances over at Soolian, who is sitting at a table by himself, and then turns back to Stan: "Give me two glasses of your highest proof liquor... something... flammable in potency."
Stan regards her warily, "I know that look on your face Safiria... I've seen you with it before, and it usually means bloodshed."
"Indeed." Safiria gives Stan a dark twisted smile. "You know me so well."
Stan leans forward, his voice soft to avoid being overheard, but stern, "You know what sort of place I run here. Theres no trouble here in my place, and I mean to keep it that way. Do we understand each other?"
"Of course, my dear Stan." Safiria smiles again in a way that says she understands, but might not agree. "Two glasses, if you would."
Stan disappears into the back and returns a moment later with a stone bottle with a wiresprung stopper, which hisses slightly when it pops open. Stan pours two fingers of the deceptively clear liquid into each glass, his eyes darting from the pour back to Safiria. "Thirty gold"
Safiria pays him forty, gives him a wry smile and takes the two glasses over to Soolian. She sits down across from him, presenting him with one glass, and warming the other between her two hands, rolling it back and forth. Soolian regards Safiria for a moment and asks "How did your other business work out?"
"Fine, fine, no problems." Safiria shifts in her seat, studying Soolian, "we found what we were looking for, and managed to acquire it with not too much trouble."
"Glad to hear it."
"So I'm back to celebrate our good fortune, and to conclude our business" Safiria's gaze at Soolian is unwavering as she studies his reactions. The two of them discuss the terms for the remainder of the poison, and they agree that the balance due is 3800 gold for the remaining 6 bottles. Safiria agrees to wait the 20 minutes or so while Soolian sends for a runner to fetch the remainder of the payment. They make small talk and Safiria asks him about merchants she might contact for various... exotic magical items that she now has the money to acquire. Soon the runner returns with a bulging leather pouch, and Soolian produces a walnut-sized emerald from within. Safiria calls Alex over to inspect the emeral, which he assesses to be worth 500 gold. Soolian produces 7 more gems of roughly the same size and places them on the table in front of him. Safiria pushes the box containing the 6 bottles of dragon poison to Soolian and Alex collects the 8 gems and leaves.
Safiria smiles. "It's been very good doing business with you Soolian. I hope we can do more in the future."
Soolian nods, but it is clear from his body language he is now interested in leaving quickly with his new acquisition. Safiria shifts in her seat, studying Soolian with a fiery intensity, "You didn't tell anyone about the poison or that box did you?"
"No, of course not" Soolian scoffed, as if to imply that only an idiot would do such a thing.
Safiria nods, and raises the warm glass of liquor and offers a toast to Soolian. "To profitable business concluded." They both drink, but while Soolian has little outward reaction, Safiria gasps for breath with the scorching firewater she has just consumed.
She rasps "thats stronger than I thought!"
She and Soolian rise, and she sways a bit as the load of the alcohol hits her empty stomach and then spreads warmth throughout her body. "I've just got to say one more thing before you go..."
Safiria sways again, and her twisted smile takes on a rather mirthful aspect, "... don't ever send an assassin squad after us, you won't like the results..."
Soolien's hand snaps out and grabs Safiria by the neck, pulling her face to face with him, his reactions stone sober while Safiria continues to loosen up with the alcohol now coursing through her willowy frame. "What did you say? Are you implying something?"
"I'm sshaying thah littul band duf shites shent to killus engit tha box uff poyshuns... thehey dint do show well."
Bearing his teeth in a snarl, Soolien's face now almost touching Safirias as he hisses, "Is this how it's going to be? Am I going to have to fight my way out of here?"
Pouting out her lip and swinging her head, which seems far too heavy now for her neck, from side to side, Safiria slurs "nohh, you mishunderstan. eff youdint shend them, shomeone ells did."
"What are you talking about?"
"Badasses. Shent tokill ush. Knew about tha boxsh. Shaid a drow shent dem." Safiria's lips spread into a wide, goofy smile that looks wholly unnatural on her. "Eff youdint shend dem, then someone knowsabout tha boxsh anshey wantit... BUT dontwanna paay."
Soolian's eyes shift back and forth, seeing Safiria manifest full-blotto as he decrypts her sloppy speech and understands the implication even as Safiria says it. "Ish your prahblum now... iss gah nothen to do wih ussh..." and Safiria's eyes roll into the back of her head as she loses her grip on conciousness. Soolien grunts and drops her unceremoniously on the ground, picks up the box and stalks out of the Stalactite unmolested.
Exit honeycomb
Camp in the forest.
Harvest 24, 53
Party walks home.
Go straight to the temple, round up the usual suspects. Drop off the BRYAN CLERIC at the temple.
Rescue girl, big fantasy laser gun. Girl has some Eladrin side effects. Safiria collects the bracelet bits.
Party initially goes home and then decides to goto the pub when they realize that Alex has slipped out.
The party meats up at home.
They find a note on top of a scrupulously clean dresser.
Lady Safiria----- marked with an image of a Skull, crown and raven. Party thinks - raven queen etc etc etc
Safiria sends a return note to arrange a meet.
Party decides to spend some of their ill gotten gains with the dwarves. The party buys some things, orders some things and gets a letter of introduction to a local "soft goods" dealer. Rozzan, the jeweler
The "soft goods" dealer is a gem merchant that also carrys a small selection of enchanted leather goods.
Party has lunch and dinner, chills out. They begin to realize they have had the whole day off with nothing to do.
Safiria has a meeting in the park. The other attendee is human looking, but over the course of the meeting, Safiria realizes that this person is more likely a Shadar-kai. The shadar-kai offers to "delay execution of the contract" if the party can obtain some of the smoke from the fortress for them. a vessel will be provided later
Awaken late at night.
Missing elven delegation, stories of the end of the world. People eating horses. People standing in bonfires to stay warm. Party is sent to investigate.
Ride out immediately. Kredick, the temple leader, sends one of his junior clerics out with the party to help fight the undead.
Harvest 25, 53
Arrive a ranger station. Have a brief rest. Leave in the afternoon.
Arrive at the outskirts of the town in later evening.
Party sees a roving patrol of undead, a gravedigger with assisstants (also undead). There are also a large number of shambling undead with no direction, just sort of hanging out or wandering purposelessly.
Party plans their super secret attack to destroy the legions of evil while still looking heroic
Previously: Mopping Up
Continued in: Large Victories
Campaign 1 Index
NOTE: While the character Winyar did not actually start play until session 12, he is RETCONNED into place as noted above.
