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[howandwhy99]

[DAY 100 – Weddingday, Sceptre 4th, CY 81]

Rose was the first to awake. Outside the stable she saw a beautiful sunrise come up over the eastern mountains. When she entered The Wyvern she found a large, gourmet breakfast set up on the tables in the common room. Grog was already eating everything in sight. Rose took a few nice, red apples and walked upstairs to wake the others. They were all still asleep, exhausted from the struggles of the night before. Their feather beds looked exceedingly comfortable and she wished she was able to enjoy one too. Back downstairs she asked the innkeeper for a block of sugar. He handed her a small cup of white cubes. Rose tested one just to be sure. When she arrived at the stables again a number of stablehands were already busy with customers. Surreptitiously, she walked over to Pixie’s stall and dropped the apples and sugar cubes inside.

Later, the rest of the team upstairs slowly woke up and dressed. Father Ben hid under the covers until Kayla and Diedre left. Then he untied his ropes and began his morning prayers. “Ooohh, my head,” moaned Dalin as he walked downstairs with the others. Surprisingly, Dram had no ill effects from the ale at all. Everyone partook of the wonderful breakfast laid out. There were many juices, fruits, roast pheasant, (nearly) poached eggs, and a number of dishes Grog had already finished. The innkeeper pulled Darius aside when he saw the paladin speaking to Grog. Another five gold was needed to keep the half ogre inside.

Without much of a plan, the team split up to explore different parts of the city. Darius and Pax walked down the thoroughfare towards a small castle in the center. “Do you think Lavinia was sent by your enemies in Harling to kill you?” asked Pax. He was worried about his mentor.
“Doubtful,” replied Darius. “Unless she somehow knew we were turning east to Kera and moved to cut us off. But that wasn’t decided until we reached Kustler. In truth, I don’t think she knows who we are.” The pair stopped at a local store and Darius chatted up the owner to learn more about the city. Many guilds operated throughout: the lost key guild, the wheat and flour guild, the guild of the locked box. The storeowner listed quite a few, but there were more than he could remember. “Ahhh,” nodded Darius. “But what I really need is some help around the home.” He paused. “If you know what I mean?” The storeowner held his hands behind his back. Pax saw his palm was open. He fed it. “I will give you some directions to a small building. When you reach it, knock on the window and ask for Bob. Tell him, ‘Zonter sent you’”.

Dram walked off alone. He was looking for local smiths and metalworkers. The side streets were confusing, but he eventually found his way to a district in the city where many craftsmen plied their trade. Dram walked around looking at the shops and inspected their conditions. As he explored he scanned faces looking for his brother Tankurd. The journeymen smiths only complained about long hours and being overworked. Dram asked the headsmith about smiths passing through the city or possibly looking for work. “None,” the headsmith snapped back brushing him off. Dram looked through the swords checking their quality when the headsmith walked up to him again. “Where did you get that sword, might I ask?” He was pointing at the blade he found in Quesquaton. The dwarven mark was showing on its pommel. “Family heirloom,” lied Dram as he pulled his cloak tighter to cover the Elven chain beneath.

Kayla and Diedre found Rose outside studying the street around the stables. She had left Ormand inside to keep watch. “Do you want to come shopping with us?” they asked. Rose was delighted to go. Kayla headed back down towards the citygate where she had seen the store with the boiling cauldron sign. Through a large display window to the street, they saw a perfect crystal ball. A clawed hand grasped the ball holding it up like a stand. The dried up, thin hand was severed at its wrist. They asked about it inside. “Yes. I have received many inquiries about that piece,” said the owner. She was finely dressed and had a unique aura of intelligence about her. “It is one of my favorites.”
“Diedre can tell fortunes,” blurted out Rose. “Maybe she can look at it and tell you about where it’s from?” The owner smiled politely.
”How much?” asked Diedre.
“The crystal ball is six hundred gold.” She said nothing about the hand. Diedre stayed calm and said she would keep it in mind. The rest of the shop held an assortment of goods, exotic powders, bizarre liquids, paper, parchment, ink, glassware, cauldrons, mortar and pestles, and more. Most of the items appeared to have little purpose whatsoever, but Kayla cleaned up on components for her spells.