Final words...


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zook looks around " who needs food when you have an excellent code to decipher" Zook continues befudled as to how people can be uncontent with knowledge so close at hand
 

" Really, Zook, " says Bhalag, sounding a little annoyed, " You'll be plenty able to keep searching for clues while the rest of us have a bite to eat and discuss things. No one ever became a hero by starving, you know. "
 

Bhalag, there's a place called Mafty Blues a few blocks away.
Decent food, live music, a little dancing. It's popular with the university crowd and very inexpensive.
 

Bhalag scratches his head, then says, " Actually, now that I think of it I've heard of a place that might make for a nice evening. Everyone, follow me! "

Bhalag leads the group down the street and over a bridge or two, heading for the Mafty Blues. Assuming there is no reason they can't go in, like a sudden attack by alien assassins from the 13th moon, he goes in and asks for a table for the five of them.
 


The hostess tells you impeturbably that the assassins from the 13th moon never show up until the band starts its third set, and that sets the tone for dinner.

Mafty Blues would be Bohemian if there had ever been a Bohemia on Khorvaire. It's painted all blue and has a dining room with a bandstand, a bar, and a smoking room with tables and books that just seems like the perfect place for Zook to do some decoding. The clientele is university students with a strong addition of "adventuring chic": leather armor composed entirely of buckles, pewter bracers pierced to show tanned skin to good effect, and discreet blades tucked into tunics or boots.
The term used to describe them in the Shard would be "followers". Possibly "poseurs".

Mafty himself is a rotund Jorasco halfling who dresses entirely in blue of various shades. He bounds around the restaraunt like a manic grape making sure everyone is comfortable.

The special of the day is red beans and rice with a green salad.
The band is halfway through their first song, telling someone how it's gonna be, that you're gonna give your lovin' to me.
Rethlin is drawing a few looks because he's wearing more real armor than the rest of the bar put together.
Kae's spear is getting in the way: finally Mafty asks if he can put that in the coat check for the evening. He seems magnificently unconcerned that the spear is twice his size.

Zook goes off to the smoking room and begins to decrypt the notes in the book, which yield easily to him.

But the rest of you have time for dinner and a chat while he works. Or dancing.
 

Bhalag orders himself some light fare and a mug of cider when the the server comes around to take their orders.

" So, " he says, " Looks like we've found ourselves a few problems today. While the gnome entertains himself with deciphering that text, maybe you guys would like to speculate with me on the cause of ol' Rethlin's split personality. "

Bhalag glances briefly towards Ambra, concerned about her strange silence...
 

"That'd be just lovely," Kae agrees with a gracious smile to the halfling landlord as she hands over her spear.

This place suits her pretty well. She gets comfortable, sipping a glass of wine and surveying her surroundings approvingly.

"Maybe he had a troubled childhood," she quips grinningly in answer to Bhalag's invitation to speculate.
 

"I can assure you all that assaulting townsfolk has not been on my itinerary since arriving in Sharn" Rethlin retorts. "Some foul deception is at work here. Slanderous, I tell you, slanderous!" Rethlin appears quite distressed.

"Tracking down such deceivers could prove to be quite difficult, I'm thinking we should follow up on other clues like the McCallack Brothers Forge and try to find some answers".
 
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