[WFRP] The Bloody Crown X

[RossN]

Adelbert

"Maybe if we got some priests to..." Ludo waved his hands in a gesture approximating a religious service "... to consecrate it or something. But I don't know if that would work. Look at what happened to Hieronymous."

A delighted smile appeared on Adelbert's face. 'My thoughts exactly Herr Stubbs!' With visible effort he tried to calm himself to a state of merely utter excitement. 'Oh I grant it would be an immense undertaking trying to consecrate an entire pyramid. It might even be beyond the Temple, but by the gods if we could do we might be striking a death blow against Klammenburg. There is so much I'll have to discuss and research about this...'

[Thragka]

Urgrim was now treating Adelbert to the sort of look you gave the local shieldbreaker who was recruiting an expedition to go take back Karak Eight Peaks: careful, and with no sudden changes of expression, within the boundaries of politesse.

"Is Heironymous another of your companions?"

[RossN]

Adelbert

'He is the senior priest of the goddess Verena.' Adelbert explained. He beamed at the dwarf. 'I'll have to arrange a meeting with the Temple where you can explain what you have seen the others. The sooner we can get back to the pyramid the better.'

[Thragka]

Urgrim's mouth opened, but for a moment, no sound came out. He looked to Stubbs.

"... ah yes, Skorgrund mentioned the Temple was safeguarding the book. Of course, I'll be happy to speak with them."

[-Sentinel-]

Urgrim hesitated in front of the wild-looking woman. "Ah, you'd prefer I call you by that name? Beatrix Hildebrand," he repeated, practising.

Elsa was taken aback. "Well, that's... the name I gave Captain Sforza when he hired me. But my real name is Elsabeth." She threw Ludo a very brief scowl.

'Well it seems we must make an expedition to the pyramid then. Beatrix, could our enemy still be drawing some sort of power from the pyramid?'

"Entirely possible, yes," she said. She was unenthusiastic about the idea of an expedition, as she was not sure what they could accomplish there. Besides, even if they wanted to go, it was unlikely that Sforza would let his wizard run off to the other side of the Broken Reaches while the war was still going on. He still did not take the Nahorek threat as seriously as he should.

"Maybe if we got some priests to..." Ludo waved his hands in a gesture approximating a religious service "... to consecrate it or something. But I don't know if that would work. Look at what happened to Hieronymous."

Elsa snorted. "It can't possibly be that easy. Don't you think the ancient people who imprisoned Nahorek had priests? Didn't stop Klammenberg."

[LeSwordfish]

"Well, I'm busy this week." Ludo said, wondering if dwarves had sarcasm. "But I'll try and clear my schedule to walk through a desert and watch all the priests die by the end of the month."

[RossN]

Adelbert

Adelbert gave Ludo an odd look. 'You do recall you brought up consecration in the first place Herr Stubbs.

He looked at Elsa and grinned ruefully. 'I am intrigued that you consider what even I have called an immense undertaking 'easy'. But that aside for the moment Elsa raises another excellent reason to mount an expedition. Plainly there were wards placed on the pyramid. By studying them we can see what might have held Nahorek in check... for some centuries at least.

[LeSwordfish]

"It was mostly the dwarves that sealed it, though. Will that help, if we don't have any runesmiths?" Ludo asked, looking between Elsa and Urgrim.

[Thragka]

"It's worth mentioning Skorgrund is no fan of you. I thought it was better to give him your real name than have him figure out he was lied to."

"Aye, it's something of a ... cultural distaste for magicking, among dwarves," Urgrim said diplomatically. He hadn't seemed confused by Ludo's use of sarcasm, but perhaps he was just guarding his expression carefully.

He took the opportunity to at least angle the subject away from Elsa's name and profession. "The gate to the pyramid was rune-warded, and they still held. But whoever had broken in did it through the walls, not the gate. And if there were wards in the burial chamber, whatever magicks were done there had certainly broken them."

[LeSwordfish]

"This, uh, shadowstone." Ludo said. "You said it was high up on the pyramid. How big was it? I'm wondering if it could have been that comet that fell, back at the start of last year."

[RossN]

Adelbert

'It's possible there weren't wards in the actual burial chamber if no one expected an intruder to enter via the exterior wall,' Adelbert said. The priest seemed positively buoyant at the opportunity to theorise. 'Or at least not strong ones. However I have another theory. We know the Nekarans worshipped their own pantheon of gods, but I have always believed that the deities - at least the primal deities who rule over nature and the natural process - have a singular identity even as they are known by different names. It is not merely possible but likely that the ancients knew Morr by a different name and perhaps even a different form. Wards directed in that that name may no longer have the power they did, not because the deity has ceased to be because they have turned to another form.'

He turned to Urgrim and smiled ruefully. 'It seems that dwarvish sense of tradition - and excellent craftsmanship - kept the main door seals potent. I am given to understand Herr Jotunsson that Khazalid is a conservative language, even more so in its written form, though I confess I have very little personal experience of the tongue.'

[LeSwordfish]

"Oh indeed." Ludo said, agreeing. "I'm not an expert but I think the old saying goes, <sorry, he's not normally like this.>"

[Thragka]

Urgrim thought back. "The stone was about half the size of me. It was smooth and melted on one side ... and it had been buried deep in the sands, for some time. Undisturbed, apart from the chunk someone had picked out of it." He nodded. "It could have been there a year."

When he turned to Adelbert, his face again took on the carefully blank layer of etiquette. "It's a straightforward language."

[RossN]

Adelbert

'Exactly,' Adelbert replied happily to Urgrim's comment. 'Still I can see I have a lot more research to do before we follow Ludo's plan of consecration. '

[TheSummoner]

Sieghard

"When you've researched a way to stop everyone dying of thirst along the way, be sure to let us know," Sieghard deadpanned.

[LCP]

With plenty of new questions, but few answers, the five of them went their separate ways for the evening. Ludo departed the following day, having settled as much of the militia’s business in Savonne as he could. He took with him a much larger squad than those who’d accompanied him on his previous trip, hoping for similar success in drumming up new recruits in the parts of the Downs they had yet to visit. They would follow the river south, and rendezvous with Sussman’s first shipment of supplies in Ravenskird.

Adelbert, meanwhile, had taken up possession of the house in Half Moon Alley. Unpacking his meagre possessions in the rickety old building, he felt a certain sense of tranquility at being able to lay his head down in a home he owed to no-one else. It reminded him of Krucke’s attic room back in Last Water, before he had become so entangled in the affairs of dukes and daemons.

Of course, those affairs would not leave him alone just because he wished it. While Elsa and Urgrim took it upon themselves to inspect his new dwellings in minute detail, he buried himself in his books. He had two among his collection that he thought might shed some new light on what the dwarfs had found: The Life and Words of Abdul ben Raschid, and Traugott's Treatises on the Undead. Perhaps with time to consult Hieronymus’ library he might find some there too.

Elsa and Urgrim came back from their searching empty-handed, or at least without Johannes Klammenberg in chains. Elsa said she could feel the shadow that seemed to have settled over Savonne more strongly in these winding streets, the winds of Shyish and Ulgu hanging in the close air like a fog. For a district that had been so recently visited by plague, perhaps the presence of the Amethyst wind was to be expected, but the strength of the wind of Shadow seemed to hint at some misdirection at play.

---

Festag, 17th Vorgeheim

Elsa

It only took two days after Elsa had returned to her studies for the lady Sforza to decide to interrupt them. She was on her way back from being measured at a fancy tailor’s in Rockshadow - the tailor had said her new clothes would take a few weeks to finish - when one of the castle servants brought her the summons, scuttling off in fear before she could reply.

“Hildebrand,” snapped Irene, stalking up and down in her chambers like a caged leopard. “Would you care to explain to me why the dwarfs in that great lump of rock are writing me letters about your book?”

Picking up the letter, she thrust it into Elsa’s hands. There, in Elmendrin’s own close-written, angular hand, was Clan Dwimmulson’s offer of help.

“How do you expect us to keep the wretched thing a secret if you insist on telling everyone? I mean, dwarfs, Hildebrand.” She said ‘dwarfs’ as she might have said ‘dung collectors’. “Of all the troublesome, uncultured… dwarfs.”

---

Aubentag, 19th Vorgeheim

Adelbert

With the benefit of seclusion in his new quarters, Adelbert had spent every moment not occupied by his duties at the Temple consumed by his reading on lost Nehekhara. Not for the first time, he found himself cursing the backwater isolation of the Reaches. That ancient civilisation had passed out of recorded history more than a millennium before the rise of Sigmar, and left nothing but their enigmatic picture-script to tell their story. Reliable sources on their empire were as rare as gold dust, even by the standards of his old researches on the Varagoths.

Between his and Hieronymus’ books, he managed to piece together enough information to put together a few pages of notes. The most useful volume was the Life and Words - though it steered clear of the sorcerous knowledge that had apparently driven its subject mad, it spent some time on Abdul ben Raschid’s travels in the Land of the Dead. From that account, he drew out the names of five of their gods:

Spoiler: Nehekharan Gods

Show

Ptra, god of the sun and highest of the pantheon. His symbol was the winged sun which Adelbert had seen carved on the walls of Kheneb-Ptra-Urush.
Asaph, goddess of magic, beauty and vengeance. Often depicted in the form of an asp.
Basth, goddess of grace and love. Often depicted in the form of a panther.
Sokth, god of thieves and poisoners. Often depicted in the form of a scorpion.
Djaf, god of death. Often depicted in the form of a jackal.

The last caused both him and Hieronymus considerable excitement, though they could find little more about Djaf than his name.

Whether it was his research or the shadows that still seemed to linger in Half Moon Alley, Adelbert found Nehekhara haunting his sleep as well as his waking thoughts. In his dreams, he saw pillared palaces and temples swallowed under shifting sands, shining halls of alabaster empty but for the bleached bones of the dead. Sometimes the buildings seemed to change, becoming the familiar streets and buildings of Savonne, similarly ruined and choked with sand. In all the lifeless expanse, no voices spoke, no birds sang. The only sound was the dry whisper of the desert wind. It whispered the name Nagash.

Waking in a sweat from such a dream in the early hours of Aubentag, he went to the upstairs window to try to get some fresh air. The night outside was scarcely cooler than the stuffy interior of the house. Hanging low in the sky, the two moons loomed large over the rooftops of the city, waxing together. Geheimnisnacht was on the way - soon it would be a full year since they had brought the book back into the world. Not for the first time, Adelbert wondered if that had been entirely the right thing to do.

---

Sieghard & Urgrim

Leaving the training of the new recruits largely to Hanna, Sieghard took Ingwald with him for several visits to the Old Town, working through Adelbert’s list of those who had been afflicted with the plague. Most of them told the same story as the survivors they had questioned outside the quarantined district - that they had been struck down suddenly with a painful and increasing thirst, but with the help of the Shallyans or their family, they had recovered.

Those who told a different story were those who had suffered what Ioana had described as the more severe manifestation of the disease. Two claimed to have seen the apparition of a ghostly hound stalking them before the Shallyans took them in, which according to Reaches tradition they had interpreted as an omen of impending death. Another spoke of a ‘terrible old man’, wrapped in cloths like a leper, who they were convinced had found a way to enter their house in the small hours of the night. The strength of their conviction was evidenced in the new locks and shutters they had had fitted to every door and window.

These were also the only people who had anything but a firm ‘no’ to the question of whether they had seen anyone resembling Klammenberg. A seamstress about a block down from Adelbert’s house told them that during her sickness she had been visited by an educated doctor, who wore a protective mask but spoke with an accent that sounded Imperial. He had advised her that fresh air was the best cure, and that she should leave her windows open and take down the ‘superstitious’ charms she had hung above the door. Not trusting his advice, she had taken herself to the Shallyans and made a speedy recovery. She had not seen the doctor again since, but heard that her friend Marta, who died of the sickness, had also received treatment from him.

“He wrote something, too, without telling,” she said. “I found it in chalk on the doorframe when I came back from the hospital, written real small. Doctor’s script or something, with all funny little pictures of birds and plants.” She pointed out the spot where it had been. “I washed it off soon as I found it. Didn’t like that man.”

Unfortunately, the business of Sforza’s war would not leave Sieghard completely alone to continue his investigation. The last of Burhan’s barges had arrived in the docks to be ready for the arrival of the first shipment, and Burhan himself was very eager to discuss with Sieghard the details of exactly what was to be loaded at what place and time. Sieghard was on his way from the Old Town to the docks when he was accosted by a thick-necked man with a shaven head and a face full of scars.

“You the one they call the Commander?” asked the man, in a slow, rough voice. When Sieghard confirmed that he was, the man grunted. “Boss Dragos wants to know if you got his message. On account of how he hasn’t got no reply.”

---

Ludo

Heading down the west bank of the Azril, Ludo found the going very different from his previous journey. The farmsteads here were groaning under the weight of people driven east by Sforza’s raids, and at each new farm the revelation that the Captain’s men were here to take rather than give went down about as well as if Ludo had told them he was there to personally piss in their beer.

Everywhere he went, he heard new stories of trouble to the west. There was a wild man gathering the dispossessed to himself in the burnt lands, preaching that the wars were judgement from his god. There was a beast in the Giant’s Teeth that descended to take sheep and cattle in the night, leaving only bloody pieces behind. Even the marsh goblins were growing bolder, and had tried to steal Rihard’s geese before his dog drove them off.

The surplus of men without homes or steady work did at least give Ludo an angle on which to recruit, although he found that most of them remembered all too well who it was who had driven them out of their homes in the first place. Already feeling mentally exhausted by his efforts, he told the men to make camp by the riverside a day out from Ravenskird, finding some peace in watching the water flow by. The wagons were still largely empty. Sussman and the eastern farms had better come through, or they might be coming up noticeably short on Abdul’s list…

OOC:

Spoiler

Show

Ludo snags 8 more recruits.

[-Sentinel-]

Elsa said she could feel the shadow that seemed to have settled over Savonne more strongly in these winding streets, the winds of Shyish and Ulgu hanging in the close air like a fog. For a district that had been so recently visited by plague, perhaps the presence of the Amethyst wind was to be expected, but the strength of the wind of Shadow seemed to hint at some misdirection at play.

One night, drinking with her friends while sharing what they had heard, Elsa perked up when Sieghard mentioned the reported visions of the hound and the old leper. "There are illusion spells at work," she blurted out, as if she just had an epiphany. "That's why the shadow wind is so strong. Now, if only we could track down their source..."

Of course, for all they knew, the source could be Nahorek itself. And given what had happened to Astoria, illusions were not the only things stalking the streets.

---

"How do you expect us to keep the wretched thing a secret if you insist on telling everyone? I mean, dwarfs, Hildebrand."

"I told the dwarfs nothing," said Elsa defensively. "We're not exactly on good terms; I wouldn't even discuss the weather with them, let alone magic. Must have been someone else."

Most likely Ludo, but she was no rat.

[LCP]

Elsa, 17th Vorgeheim

"Of course," drawled Irene, her words dripping sarcasm. "And I'm sure their sudden interest in your little bête noire Klammenbauer just came to them out of the blue."

Snatching the letter back from Elsa's hands, she rolled it up into a tight scroll. "I hope you understand I have more important things to be doing than worrying about your crusty old books of witchcraft." She sighed. "If the dwarfs want to throw their money at a manhunt, I can let them, but I'll be damned before I let them post their own guards in the temple. That book is our property, Hildebrand. If you keep spreading the news of it as this rate then they'll be talking about it in the bath-houses of Miragliano by next week."

[RossN]

Adelbert

Before moving into his new home Adelbert had solemnly lit a candle in the shrine of Morr in honour of the previous inhabitant. He'd never met the old man but that did not mean he deserved any less respect or remembrance.

Then it was to business. Even with delving into such unpleasant material Adelbert was never quite as comfortable as he was with a book in his hands and fresh parchment and ink to take notes. By the evening of Wellentag he believed he was beginning to form a theory.

Ptra seemed an obvious link with the sun god Adelbert knew as Söll and the Kislevites called Dazh but part of him was still willing to consider the deity a primordial interpretation of Taal, who was often seen as king of the gods. Asaph reminded Adelbert unpleasantly of one of the Ruinous Powers, the one known as the Dark Prince. Basth (a rather more likable deity!) did not immediately strike Adelbert as having a modern analogue. Possibly Shallya, though the dove was quite the shift from the panther!

That left Sokth and Djaf. The former was quite unlike the amiable Ranald Adelbert knew so well from stories but that was little problem as it was widely known that Ranald was an ascended mortal and thus need share no link with the loathsome Sokth. Djaf also bore scant resemblance to Morr and that was troubling... was the god of the dead really so different to the ancients?

Or perhaps he had erred and the deity that Adelbert should think of was not Morr but Khaine... now that was an unwelcome thought!

~

The dreams that haunted him left him almost as tired as if he had no sleep at all.

'Well let the wind whisper,' he said to himself as he looked out the window, enjoying the coolness. Though even with the brave words he couldn't help look to the moons.

Illusion magic Elsa had said. Well then, that answered many questions even if it created more. He'd have to speak with her further about that. With a sigh Adelbert retreated to bed and hopefully an hour or two of sleep. In the morning he'd speak with the others and see if they had managed to find out anything further.

[TheSummoner]

Sieghard - Speaking with survivors

And the "doctor" is probably the reason your friend died.

"About this doctor," Sieghard said "Did he visit you during the quarantine, or was that before? And how did you meet him?"

---

Drinking with the others

"Shadow wind, of course," Sieghard muttered, pretending to understand what that meant. "And then there's that doctor. I'd bet my sword it's Klammenberg; Trying to get folk to drop their guard so they can be killed and make it look like disease took 'em."

---

Docks

"Dragos..." he repeated slowly, pretending to have forgotten the name. "Wanted an audience with Captain Sforza, right?" He gave the man a moment to confirm it. "Yeah, I could arrange that. You can tell him that if he's interested, I have an offer to discuss with him."

[LCP]

Speaking with survivors

"Before. He just came knocking. Said he'd heard I wasn't well, that maybe he could help." She paused. "But I heard from some others that he was still here when the cordon went up."

OOC:

Spoiler

Show

Your list is a list of people treated at the Shallyans' infirmary, so everyone on it got out of the district before the quarantine was imposed.

---

19th Vorgeheim, Docks

The burly man looked a little thrown off-balance by Sieghard's agreement. "Where?" he asked.

[RossN]

Adelbert

One night, drinking with her friends while sharing what they had heard, Elsa perked up when Sieghard mentioned the reported visions of the hound and the old leper. "There are illusion spells at work," she blurted out, as if she just had an epiphany. "That's why the shadow wind is so strong. Now, if only we could track down their source..."

Adelbert swirled his cup thoughtfully. 'That is interesting, and somewhat unexpected. I'd associate illusions more with traditional wizards or perhaps the followers of Ranald than with necromancers.'

He took a sip of his ale. 'My research turned up nothing Nahorek precisely but I did discover that the Nekharans had a god of death named Djaf who often took the form of the jackal. It is possible that our friend Nahorek is a shrunken fragment of a once genuine deity, diminished into little more than a hungry spirit. If so he might see possession of Nagash's book as a way to reclaim a portion of his old power.'

[B]Sieghard"Shadow wind, of course," Sieghard muttered, pretending to understand what that meant. "And then there's that doctor. I'd bet my sword it's Klammenberg; Trying to get folk to drop their guard so they can be killed and make it look like disease took 'em."

Adelbert nodded. 'I think so too. I always thought this disease was no regular illness.'

[TheSummoner]

Sieghard - Speaking with survivors

Sieghard nodded, refraining from making a comment on how odd it was that the man had just appeared on his own.

"And he was wearing a mask, you said? Could you tell me what it looked like? And his clothes as well."

---

Drinking with the others

"If he's going after the sick, we may be able to set a trap for him. Important thing is to not tip him off that we're on to him," Sieghard said

---

Docks

"Here?" Sieghard replied, giving the man a funny look. "Doesn't matter much to me. If there's somewhere he'd prefer, I'll meet him where he wants."

[LCP]

Speaking with survivors

"And he was wearing a mask, you said? Could you tell me what it looked like? And his clothes as well."

The seamstress shrugged. "I wasn't too well at the time. I think he was middling height. Dressed well, dark clothes, dark coat. You might find more from whoever was putting him up," she added. "If I was stuck here after the quarantine he must've been lodging somewhere."

---

19th Vorgeheim, Docks

The big man sniffed. "The Fat Fish," he suggested, "tonight. No funny business."

OOC:

Spoiler

Show

If you accept the invitation I'd like to know who's coming with you.

---

Marktag, 20th Vorgeheim

Ludo

The following morning, Ludo and his little convoy rolled into Ravenskird. They were not a moment too soon - in the opposite direction, the first wagons had been sighted on the Thornwood road. They would arrive within the hour.

There were five wagons in total. Two were loaded with milled wheat flour, two with root vegetables, and one with chickens. it looked like Sussman at least had not come up short. Sussman himself was not to be seen among the wagon-drivers - instead, the caravan master was a portly, whiskered man who claimed to work for Ardelean the miller.

"Captain better know what he's doing with all this," grumbled the man, as the last wagon rumbled over Sieghard's wooden bridge. He glowered at the villagers who were watching the wagons with hungry eyes. "Never known a Ravenskirder who didn't tend to the thieving when the opportunity knocks. Oi! You! Hands off!"

[TheSummoner]

Sieghard - Docks

Sieghard couldn't help but find that amusing. They had sought him out (twice) and now that he agreed to speak with their boss, they were worried about some kind of trap. He turned to Urgrim after the man had left. "Feel like joining me for a drink later tonight?" he asked. "Can't imagine the beer is any good at the sort of place men like him go to, but you're welcome to come with."

Spoiler

Show

Urgrim is the only one Sieghard is specifically inviting. He'll mention he's going to Elsa and ask her to have Morrslieb watch the place from outside and see where the men go after they leave. (Ludo had mentioned that Dragos has no nose, so that should make him easy enough to pick out.) He's not actually asking her to come with, but if she asks to, he won't refuse. Sieghard figures Adelbert wouldn't be able to hide his distaste for known criminals and thugs, so Sieghard won't mention it to him. That said, this is the same place that Sutter is performing, so if RossN wants Adelbert to be in the same place, he can always choose tonight to catch a play.

[LeSwordfish]

"It's going straight through to Alvarran." Ludo said, bouyed by Sussman's success. "Feeding the iron company. My thanks, herr...?"

"Some of my men will be here within an hour or so, but we can watch the carts from now, if you want some time seeing the sights." He gestured at the "sights" of ravenskird, all of which were visible from here.

[Thragka]

Urgrim (and Sieghard)

Speaking to survivors

"When did your friend ... pass?" Urgrim asked. "And can you tell us where she lived?"

At the docks

Urgrim nodded, something like amusement surfacing on his broken face. "Aye, I could do that. Anything I should be worried about in advance?"

Later, drinking

Urgrim mostly sat in attentive silence, nodding along to everyone's theory about the sinister doctor figure. "A trap sounds like a strong approach. D'ye think he knows who's getting sick in advance - or just takes advantage of anyone it spreads to?"

[LCP]

Speaking with survivors

"When did your friend ... pass?" Urgrim asked. "And can you tell us where she lived?"

"She lived with her mother and cousins," she said, "round the corner on Memmet's Lane. I don't know when it was she passed on - I only got back after they lifted the cordon."

---

19th Vorgeheim

Sieghard & Urgrim

The Fat Fish was a large establishment by the riverside, a painted sign in the shape of its namesake hanging over its front door. It had seen some damage in the first siege, but its position in the heart of the docks clearly made it well worth the repairs. Boatmen and stevedore beat a steady path to its door.

Dragos was waiting for them in a back room, with four associates and a large mastiff on a chain. The dog strained on its leash as the two of them entered, sniffing Urgrim’s face with rather more interest than Urgrim would have liked.

“Commander Sieghard,” said Dragos. There was no chance of mistaking him for his cronies - the brass prosthetic he wore to hide his ruined nose clearly marked him out, though it didn’t entirely hide the ugly scar that creased its way all the way up to his scalp. His voice too was quite distinctive, probably as a result of the same injury. “Jorg tells me you’ve got an offer to make us. We’re all ears.”

---

20th Vorgeheim

Ludo

"It's going straight through to Alvarran." Ludo said, bouyed by Sussman's success. "Feeding the iron company. My thanks, herr...?"

“Friderik,” said the caravan master, still keeping one eye on the wagons. “You can call me Friderik.”

"Some of my men will be here within an hour or so, but we can watch the carts from now, if you want some time seeing the sights." He gestured at the "sights" of Ravenskird, all of which were visible from here.

“And what a pretty sight it is,” rasped Friderik, with some humour at least. He shook his head. “We’ve got nowhere to be. Soon as your lot are ready we’ll shift this stuff over and be on our way.”

[TheSummoner]

Sieghard - Docks

"Dragos is a thuggish sort and prone to violence from what I hear," Sieghard replied. "So just don't give him reason."

Drinking With Friends

"Haven't got a clue," he said. "Neither one would surprise me."

The Fat Fish

"There's a man I want found," Sieghard began. "He's a careful sort... Would quickly suspect something and flee if I set my own men to looking for him." For the moment, he careful to keep things vague. He gestured to Dragos's four thugs. "I imagine your friends know the city pretty well, and he wouldn't be as quick to notice them. After the man's been found and the war is over, I could arrange a meeting with the Captain. Maybe even whisper in his ear a bit about whatever it is you want from him." He paused. "What is it that you want from him anyways?"

[LCP]

The Fat Fish, 19th Vorgeheim

There was a long pause.

"I'm sorry," said Dragos, "I thought we were here to talk business. Your 'offer' is you want us to run an errand for you?" He stared at Sieghard, waiting a beat to make sure he had it right. "And you say you'll get me my meeting after the war is over. Which is when, by the way?"

He shook his head.

"I thought you were a serious man, commander. We've seen the boats coming in. Like my man told you, nothing moves in the docks without my say-so. So you've got a choice." He placed his hand flat on the table. "You can do right by us, and everything goes smooth. Or you can make yourself a whole boatload of trouble."