As you all go about your seperate tasks each of you hears a voice in your head - obviously a Sivis message sending: Message from Delgo. Asking group to come immediately to Weeders Tavern, Tumbledown Ward. Fate of city at stake. The family needs you". "On my way, boss", replies Dresk "Family First. Count me in. Be there soon", replies Dusty. "Too dangerous to do. Could be followed as rest of the crew has a city watch death warrant. Will try a way to communicate", replies Ashana. Topsy gets the message while sitting in a first class lighting rail carriage heading away from Sharn. He does not reply. He has his schema for a creation forge as well as schema for other ancient hobgoblin items. He is heading for Zilargo to try and find the resources and privacy to build. Chronk is at the forge, grabbing the soar sled and some supplies before heading to hide in the lower city. He ignores the message. He plans to lay low for a few days and then leave the city, returning to Darguun to follow the map that he found below the forge. Topsy and Chronk have exited the game Ashana is first on the scene, but holds back in case she has been followed or if the tavern is a trap. She finds a safe place to watch the tavern from, just in time to see Dresk arrive. She uses telepathy to speak in Dresk's mind: ""Dresk do not look around. I am released free and unharmed. Unfortunately, you and whoever else didn't accept the summons has now got a death warrant and if captured in Sharn will be executed. I don't know if I am under surveillance. I will stay hidden and watch what this call to meet is about." Dresk pauses, nods, and then enters the tavern. The tavern is full of halflings and as Dresk enters he sees many of them put hands on weapons. Everyone watches him with hostility as he approaches the bar. He introduces himself to the barkeep and answers a couple of questions. The barkeep signals the patrons who visably relax and go back to drinking. He then escorts Dresk into the kitchen and shows him a trapdoor to climb through. Meanwhile Dusty arrives at the bar, having stopped to pick up some snacks and to send Sargeant Vilroy a coded message, warning her of trouble. He hears the same message from Ashana, but ignores it and enters the bar. He is also led to the trapdoor. The trapdoor reveals a ladder leading down to what looks like a large saferoom. There are sleeping cots, backpacks, and crates with supplies thereabout. There are also a collection of people waiting here. As well as Dresk and Dusty there is Delgo, three other halflings and a pale half elf. Delgo introduces everyone: A female halfling is wearing fine clothes and a golden tiara with a shiny emerald. She is Councilor Ilyra Boromar, currently in hiding as she fears that the Mayor and his followers would like her dead. A middle aged halfling wearing dark leather armour looks at you with cunning and cruel eyes. He is the boss of Clan Boromar, Saidan Boromar. A worried looking halfling, swaying as he stands with a mug of beer in his hand. This is Norm, an unlikely hero, but a direct cousin of Saiden and trusted by him. He may not look like much but is famed for his almost unnatural luck. Norm is Simon's new character - replacing Chronk The pale half-elf stands, watching you enter. She looks very capable, beautiful and scary. Her name is Sylviel Oathshadow, but she is known as 'The White Widow'. She is more than an Boromar enforcer. If you do wrong to the Boromar clan, her face will often be the last thing you see. Sylviel is Shun's new character - replacing Topsy "Hey youse guys, thanks for coming", says Delgo, "it's times like this we find out who our friends really are, and it's slim pickings right now. We are in real trouble guys. The mayor has turned the council against us and we've heard that Daask are gearing up to take on our bars and safehouses. There's some irony in saying that if we want to survive we need the law on our side". "Thank you Delgo", says Ilyra, "my cousin is exactly right. We need the council to protect us, and at the moment the scales are evenly balanced. The mayor has turned many councillors against me and the vote is currently tied. Our only hope is councillor Borian Haldorak. He has long been an ally of mine but he has not been at council for some weeks. It is reported that he is fighting an illness. We must check that he has not been neutralised by the other side". "That's where youse comes in", says Saiden in a sneering and nasty voice,, "we needs ya to go and check on him and get him safely to the council chambers. Even if he is sick, this is too important. I wants ya to check that he's still loyal to the cause though, and if he's not then you do what needs to be done". "What, try to convince him to your point of view?", asks Dresk. "Nah. Kill em", replies Saiden. "My apologies", Ilyra interrupts, "murder is not something the Boromar clan normally partakes in. However sometimes there is a need to take drastic action, and this may be one of these times. We will leave it to your discretion. Delgo speaks highly of you and I think highly of Delgo's judgement". Delgo turns to Dresk and tells him he has a different mission. He knows that Dresk had dealt with the gnome, Sundry, in the past and asks him to track down a broach that Sundry often wore using his particular abilities to find lost objects. Sundry was doing some work in Khyber's Gate for Delgo and has gone missing. Delgo suspects he knows what has happened but wants Delgo to pinpoint where the broach is and then report back. The rest of you all head up to the upper towers where Borian Haldorak lives. Mostly dwarves live in Highhold, so you get some funny looks as you make your way to the address provided. You make your way down a long hallway to a door right at the end. You try to open it but it is locked. After 3 tries you manage to pick the lock and enter a chamber where the lavish lifestyle of Councilor Borian Haldorak is obvious. The stone walls are carved with epic scenes of dwarves fighting hordes of orcs and giants. The wooden furniture is sturdy and fine. There is an unfinished statue of Councilor Borian in the middle of the room. It is still bare rock from the waist down. Exquisite carpets and vases decorate the room. A large red curtain separates the living area from the bedroom. Dusty hears a noise from behind the curtains so goes up and takes a peek. Behind the curtain he sees the dwarven councillor Borian Haldorak, along with 3 of the cockroach creature emerging from the bodies of guards. The floor is also swarming with what looks like some sort of larvae. He ducks back, but too late - he has been seen. "GET OUT OF MY HOUSE", roars the councillor as the roaches pour from the room, but he does not seem to be giving you a chance to do so. Sylviel summons an illusion of fog to surround her and throws bolts of psychic energy at the enemy. Norm appears to be in the depths of the enemy, but somehow in his drunken stumbling the enemy has trouble landing a blow. His quarterstaff and feet kick and swing randomly but always seem to luckily hit a target. After a couple of hits Haldoran reveals his true nature as another cockroach rips him apart from the inside and joins the battle. You are able to defeat this enemy, but it ain't easy. After this you search the apartment, finding a secret room with a chest as well as documents on his workdesk. The most significant objects you find are: You also find a stained piece of parchament. It doesn't look like much but Dusty's keen nose picks out that there are subtle variations of scent across the page. Could it be a message written in pheromones? You return to Weeders tavern and the saferoom. Ilyra and Saidan have gone, but Delgo is there with Dresk. He is worried to hear about what had happened to Haldorak and you discuss the possibility of more people holding cockroaches within. Dresk tells you about his mission where he followed the trail of Sundry's broach, but found it led to something that looked like the top of a termite mound. A moist organic tunnel led underground vertically with an acrid smell emerging from the depths. Dresk felt nervous about going down there by himself so came back. Delgo suggests that you all go together, examine it and consider bug extermination if it is the lair of the cockroaches. He then leaves to inform Ilyra of what you have told him. He tells you to return here when you are concluded.
