11. Many Splendored

Love Is A Many Splendored Thing (Drunken Dwarven Ladies - Maybe Not So Much)

Treasure

Summary

On their way back from the Field Ward, after their encounter with the wayward nimblewright, the party received a message from a flying snake asking them to meet Istrid Horn at Ahghairon’s statue in the City of the Dead the following day at highsun. They party decided to return to the House of Inspired Hands to let the priestess, Valetta, know about about what had become of their errant automaton. Valetta was glad to have the matter solved and rewarded the party with 500 gp and a few inventions from the temple’s stocks.

Having some free time in the morning, the party decided to drop in on the Cassalanter’s home to let them know that Elzerina’s box had had its curse removed and to check up on their well being. The home made Aradaine uncomfortable, so he was only too glad to leave with Grick, who said he was going to check on Nim at the House of Inspired Hands. While the rest of the party sat and smoked and drank with Lord Cassalanter, speaking about local goings-on, such as the apparent attack on the Gralhund Villa the day before, Grick made his way to a local library to do some research.

He was looking for more information on what might be the cause of Kael’s condition as displayed at the Villa, when ghostly, bony wings formed around his frightening visage. But luck was not to grace him that day, as all he could find was variations on the knowledge he already had. Perhaps he was looking in the wrong places? Not convinced yet that all was fine, he and Aradaine left the library in order to meet up with the rest of the party outside the City of the Dead.

At the statue, the party met with Istrid, who was decked in a full suit of plate mail with a helmet covering her face. She seemed generally rather anxious, looking over their shoulders at what little foot traffic was to be found in the park on a cloudy winter’s day. She thanked the party and gave them 10pp just for showing up. She told them that Davil Starsong had been picked up by the City Watch in connection with whatever had happened at Gralhund Villa. It seems the attackers on the Villa were Zhentarim agents. They were working for the faction opposing Davil’s side, but the Watch didn’t make any distinction between the two.

Istrid said that she had an additional 40pp to deliver to them if they could hide her for a tenday - half up front and half at the end of her stay. She wanted to keep a low profile in case the Watch came looking for her and decided the party’s tavern would make a safe place to do her hiding. The party talked it over and they were divided on the idea. Aradaine didn’t like the idea of hiding a possible criminal in their own tavern, possibly risking their own safety in the bargain. Grick was torn between helping a damsel in distress and possibly harboring a fugitive. Kael thought it was easy money and had no reason to doubt the dwarf’s sincerity. Hamidal wasn’t sure about having her stay at the tavern either, but wasn’t so quick to judge her character as they had been nothing but honest with the party so far.

Istrid put her helmet back on when she saw a patrol of Watch walking their beat. The party decided that any decision on what to do with Istrid was probably better made in the tavern rather than out in the open where they put everyone at further risk, so they brought Istrid back home with them. Grick was unsure of the idea of having a woman in their ‘barracks’. Kael, sensing his reservations, tried to pay Istrid to stand naked in Grick’s bedroom. She bargained for drink instead of money and sopped up a good amount of the tavern’s ale.

After Grick had gone off to bed for the evening, Istrid strode into his room and disrobed. Grick, thinking her an intruder, attempted to grapple her. Realizing that the intruder was actually Istrid, he backed into the corner of the room, not sure what to do with himself. Istrid ignored his pawing and climbed into Grick’s (now warm) bed to pass out. Grick jumped out the window onto the balcony, coming back in the balcony door to get to his bedroom door, thus avoiding having to walk by the bed. After telling the rest of the party, who was still in the tavern drinking, about his ordeal, he quickly came to realize that he was set up.

Thinking to turn the tables, Grick pretended to have sex with Istrid in order to satisfy his team’s notion of manliness before sleeping on the floor next to Istrid. In the morning he asked Istrid to pretend that they’d had sex, even though they hadn’t. She gladly played along with the ruse, laughing to herself at the boy’s innocence.

Now stuck in the tavern for a tenday, Istrid was unable to complete one of her prior commitments and asked the party to complete it for her. A friend of hers, an alchemist named Skeemo, was creating some Potions of Mind Reading for an unnamed client. The job was simply to pick up the potions and deliver them to the client, pocketing the fee she gave them for the potions as their reward. The party was wary, but Istrid assured them it was necessary to keep her good reputation after all of the business with the Watch blew over, and that she would be further indebted to them for all of the help they’d provided.

Suddenly, Grick turned bright red and, saying that he was flushed and heated, ran away muttering something about “Australian summers”, whatever that meant…