NOW LIVE! Today's the day you meet your new best friend. You don’t have to leave Wolfy behind... In 'Pets & Sidekicks' your companions level up with you!

Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Lazybones" data-source="post: 1282017" data-attributes="member: 143">Thanks for the suggestions, guys.  I have been to Amsterdam, actually... very interesting city, among my favorites in Europe.  Interesting juxtapositions abound with the Red doors and centuries-old churches just a few blocks apart.  What struck me about the city was how drugs and sex were openly presented in a manner that wasn't seedy or unsafe, as it would be in any big American city's vice district. Heh, actually I will be in London on the 3rd, but I can just see myself trying to convince my wife to go to a Lord of the Rings exhibition on our only full day in London (Fri and Sun we're traveling on the train for a good part of the day)rather than the British Museum... Just getting her to go to the movie on opening night used up a fair amount of bonus points. <img src="https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/joypixels/assets/8.0/png/unicode/64/1f609.png" class="smilie smilie--emoji" loading="lazy" width="64" height="64" alt=";)" title="Wink    ;)"  data-smilie="2"data-shortname=";)" />  Maybe I can promote the "science" angle and pretend surprise when we see the LotR exhibit...* * * * * Chapter 91The Cusp of Sunrise was a considerable, cross-shaped building covered in ivy, with a great central tower that rose as high as the city walls.  As they drew nearer, they could see an engraved sign upon the ironbound door that said, “C.o.S.—Members Only.”  The faint sounds of laughter and music could be heard from within over the background noise of the city. “Looks like this is the place!” Mole exclaimed, hopping up the stairs to knock firmly on the heavy oaken door. The door opened promptly, revealing an older gentleman clad in simple but exceptionally cut garments, with graying hair that had been trained until not a single strand seemed out of place.  He looked down at the four adventurers with a featureless expression that seemed clearly well-schooled.  “Yes?”“We’re here for a meeting with Celeste,” Dannel said. The man raised an eyebrow, but didn’t speak nor move from his position until the elf proffered the card that the woman had given him.  He scanned it and nodded to himself.  “Ah, the umber hulk people,” he told them.  “I am Renjin.  Come inside, if you please.”He proceeded them into a marble foyer that would have served in itself as a comfortable home for a family of four.  An elaborately woven carpet that was probably worth more than most of the homes in the city was sprawled across the center of the foyer, beneath a many-armed chandelier that shone with what was probably genuine gold, rather than just gilding.  Three tall arches offered access to different wings of the structure, but Renjin again held up their progress as he took up a blocking position beside a large mahogany desk that had a look of great age about it—as well as a buffed shine that was so perfect that it could likely serve as a mirror in a pinch.  “Was there something else?” Dannel asked. The butler seemed nonplussed.  “The members of the Cusp of Sunrise are accustomed to a certain... decorum... in their guests, sir.”Zenna took a good look at herself and her companions, and understood immediately what the man was getting at.  They’d all had enough time to have most of their clothes repaired after their multiple delvings into places that were Terribly Dangerous.  But standing there, clad in armor and with weapons and fat pouches dangling off of them every which way, they looked like nothing else than what they were.  Adventurers.  The Stormblades could pull off making that look good, but for the four of them...Arun opened his mouth to say something that would no doubt be devastating to their cause, but Dannel stepped in smoothly.  “I am sure that we will conduct ourselves with the utmost in restraint, Renjin, and do nothing to upset the sensibilities of your guests.”  The elf smiled but shot a not-quite-covert look at Arun, and reluctantly—so it seemed to Zenna—subsided. Renjin wasn’t quite satisfied, though.  “There are no stags to be hunted in the Great Library, sir,” he added, with a look at Dannel’s bow.   The elf nodded, and with a sudden snap of his wrist launched the bow across the foyer, to settle perfectly onto a rack sparsely populated with a few outdoor coats and cloaks.  “Try to make sure it doesn’t wander off,” he couldn’t resist adding as a jab, appreciating the offended look that flashed briefly across the butler’s smooth façade.  Zenna glanced back at Mole, and started slightly in surprise.  Somehow the gnome’s weapons, even her crossbow, had vanished, and she now wore a pair of earings set with chips of blue lapis, complemented by a silver necklace that bore a trio of wedge-cut moonstones.  And while she wasn’t one hundred percent sure, Zenna thought that the blouse her diminutive friend was wearing—a flowing V-cut of soft blue silk—wasn’t the same one she’d seen on her when they’d left the Morkoth... and how had she managed that!Mole met her incredulous look and merely smiled, offering a clearly disingenuous shrug. Well fine then, Zenna thought to herself, after all, she could play games as well...Zenna briefly concentrated upon her magical hat.  When she turned around, her appearance had subtly but noticeably changed.  Her red hair was no longer tucked haphazardly under the simple cap that was the natural form of the hat of disguise, but now neatly caught up in an ivory comb studded with bands of shining platinum.  Her features were highlighted with just enough makeup to avoid drawing attention to it—that was a lesson that her stepmother had given her—while her often-repaired tunic was now silk, like Mole’s, with the repaired rents now appearing as decorative designs in thread-of-gold.  Even her component pouches looked stylish, trimmed with ermine and the occasional gold buckle. Dannel slipped a glance at her, then forgot himself and stared.  Even Renjin was clearly taken aback for a moment, but he recovered quickly and turned to Arun.  Even before the man could open his mouth, the dwarf was already shaking his head. “Don’t even think about it,” he said.  “This hammer and my armor are sacred articles of my faith, signs of my devotion to the All-Father.  I’d sooner mash your head down into your gut than hand either over to the likes of you.”  As he finished, he tightened his grip on the haft of his hammer, as if contemplating whether to go ahead with his own suggestion. Renjin huffed slightly, as if dealing with uncouth dwarves was just a part of his many burdens, then turned and gestured toward the far archway.  “Miss Celeste will join you in the Great Library,” he said dismissively.As they moved past, Zenna whispered to Arun, “Quite diplomatic of you.”Arun harrumphed. The Great Library was impressive, Zenna had to admit, as they stepped from the foyer into the huge, vaulted chamber.  The room appeared to comprise the entirety of the tower that they’d seen from outside, with walls twelve feet high topped by a dome that rose to a vaulted height easily forty feet above their heads.  Long, narrow windows punctuated the dome near its base, filling the room with slivers of light that were augmented by at least a dozen bright brass lamps hanging on chains about the perimeter of the room.  A long bar with dozens if not hundreds of bottles in organized rows on shelves behind it ran inconspicuously along the edge of the room to their left, and tall bookshelves accompanied by metal-frame ladders mounted to the wall on rollers ran around the entire circumference of the chamber.  The spacious interior of the room was filled with comfortable-looking padded chairs, small tables where a number of well-dressed patrons were gaming with dice, and even a harpsichord sitting alone to one side.  The room was filled to about half its apparent occupancy with a representative sample of Faerûn’s races and genders, all clad in expensive raiment that made Zenna feel her even illusion-enhanced appearance to be shabby and cheap by contrast.  A few glanced up at them as they entered with mild curiosity, but most remained focused on their conversations or games, not deigning to notice them.“Didn’t think a little town like this one could support so much foppery,” Arun growled.  At least he had the presence of mind to keep his voice low, she thought, as the dwarf sauntered over to the nearest chair that was at least a dozen paces from any of the gathered nobles, and sat down, the chair creaking alarmingly as it adjusted to his considerable armor-enhanced weight.  The look on his face made it clear that he welcomed no idle chatter. Dannel moved gracefully to another chair, and drew out his flute, assembling it in a practiced motion.  He didn’t play to draw attention, but rather began testing out a few complex melodies quietly.  Zenna recognized that by attempting not to draw focus to himself, he was already doing so, and in fact a few nobles moved closer, to better hear what he was doing.  She sighed, feeling torn and undecided, feelings that she had never been comfortable with.  She and Dannel had not spoken of what had happened at Esbar’s place that morning, before the battle with the umber hulk attack.  Clearly the elf was comfortable with what had happened between them, his kissing her, just a lark, perhaps.  The elf was clearly comfortable around women, she’d seen that already.  No doubt she was just the last in a long line that he’d set his eyes upon for a casual dalliance... Zenna felt herself coloring and a growing surge of anger that threatened to strip away her reason.  Blast the man!  Blast all men!  She spun and moved away, nearly trampling a surprised young noble who swallowed his complaint when he saw the look on her face.  Zenna instead turned her attention to the bookshelves, walking around the perimeter of the room examining the titles—or at least pretending to, until she was able to master her unpredictable and raging emotions. Mole, of course, seemed blissfully unaware of the various subtexts going on around her, and headed directly for the gaming tables.  It looked like all three tables were playing the same game, a dice-tossing affair that used small metal dice of a variety of shapes.  The only difference seemed to be the stakes; gold coins at one table, platinum at the next, and what looked like small platinum bars at the last.  Her gaze lingered at that one; she knew enough about precious metals to estimate that the small piles of bars beside the players at that table had to be worth over a thousand gold pieces!She gravitated to the “gold” table, where four players were playing.  They included a young human male, an elderly elven woman, a balding human male with one eye covered with a gem-studded patch, and a halfling man clad in a fur cloak that looked to contain the skins of a good half-dozen assorted creatures.  The halfling and the young human nodded at her in greeting as she approached.  There was a long padded bench a short distance back from the table for spectators, so she hopped up there to get a better look. It didn’t take her long to figure out what was going on; apparently chatter was a big part of the game and the nobles seemed welcoming enough of a potential new player.  The game was called “gemsnatcher,” and the young man—Evran Durst, his name was—explained the rules in between his tosses.  It seemed that the game started with everyone rolling the pyramidal dice, the one with four sides.  Once a player rolled a “one” on that die, they graduated up to the next larger size for the next toss.  This continued until someone made it up to the largest die, a fat, nearly spherical bronze slug nearly the size of a sling bullet.  When that die, which Mole guessed had about 20 facets, was cast, then everyone who didn’t roll a “one” in that toss had to pay the caster of the bronze die that number of coins showing on its face.  “And then you buy the table a round from your winnings!” Durst editorialized with a sweeping gesture—apparently he’d already consumed a number of such victory toasts.  “The purchase of libations is strictly optional,” the elvish woman, a good-natured matron named Talia Emberleaf, added. The game concluded with Talia rolling a “four” on the big die.  Evran, who’d gotten up to the twelve-sided die quickly before rolling ten straight throws without a one, cursed but smiled as he handed over the coins desultorily.  Mole realized that none of these four really worried about the money; just the jewelry that each wore was probably worth at least a hundred times the total stakes at the table. The older man stood.  “I have an errand in the city... you may have my table, madam,” he said, with a nod to Mole.  The halfling also rose.  “Alas, I must also depart,” he said, nodding to each of them before sliding his coins into his purse and exiting. “Well blast it, it’s bad luck to play gemsnatcher with less than four,” Evran said.  “Perhaps one of your friends would join us, Mole?”Mole glanced over at where Dannel was playing, Arun was scowling, and Zenna was trying to ignore the lot of them, her nose in a book.  “Um...”“If you need a fourth, I would be willing to play a round,” someone said.  Mole jumped slightly—she hadn’t heard the newcomer come up from behind her.  She felt a nasty twinge as she recognized the voice, which was confirmed a moment later as he walked around her, sliding easily into the vacant seat.“Vanderboren,” Evran said, his tone indicating that he bore the young rake little affection.  If Todd Vanderboren cared, he didn’t show it, laying out a small pile of golden coins in front of him with a sweep of his hand.  Mole glanced around the room, to see if any of the other Stormblades had entered, but apparently Vanderboren was alone.  His face twisted into an expression just short of a leer—his face really did resemble a rat’s, or maybe a weasel’s, Mole thought—before his hand shot out and swept up the dice left by one of the departing players.  “Feeling lucky today?” he asked, even his voice sounding like a sneer, his eyes on Mole.</blockquote>

Verification