Pembroke Courier and Shopping Trip

Pembroke was close enough for convenient travel, its underbelly reflecting the Daystar at Duquesne in the evening hours.  Meurig, Aranel, and Maghris were at breakfast with Block Lamtand at one end of the long table, and he was waxing eloquent about how he was going to travel to Gemhallow and pick up a dire corgi mount.  Sabah and Murai were at the other end of the table, but Block's enthusiasm was drawing their attention.

Block looked up to see Arnari standing at his shoulder, tapping it.  "It's the Pembroke conjunction, and I've heard you wanted to go buy a dire corgi, so why don't you come to my office and I'll send you over to Einkil with a courier pouch," she said.  A thought crossed her face, and she said to the whole table, "Anyone else for courier mission?"  Maghris and Aranel looked at each other, as if to say, a skylith we've never visited, and the others rose and followed Arnari and Block up to Arnari's office.

Arnari's office was locked, and she unlocked it to let everyone in.  On her desk, along with the papers, was a slim saddlebag.  Possibly fewer papers as well.  The others all arranged themselves.

Sabah sat on the bearskin rug
Block sat in a chair sized for a small person.  He stood up in embarrassment, looked around, then sat back down awkwardly
Maghris sat in a backless chair again because of his fluffy tails, one of which looked a little ragged
Meurig knocked his feet together in salute to Arnari, then… stayed there
Murai sat in a red chair sized for a larger person
Aranel just sat in an appropriate sized chair, bemused

Arnari glanced at a piece of paper that sported her own writing.  "I have arranged transport on the Tugendhat, with Captain Leticia Herohouse," she began, and handed Meurig the saddlebag.

Arnari:  please get this safely to Einkil!
Meurig:  I will make sure on my life!
Arnari:  it's not worth your life!  If it comes to that, I prefer you alive!
Meurig:  very well.
<At this point Meurig glances behind himself and realizes the others are seated behind him.>
Arnari:  Einkil will likely have a return pouch, but will take 2-3 days; so since Block, at least, wants to get a dire corgi, that could be done.  <pause of satisfaction>  I have arranged transport back that can accommodate cargo space for it.
Sabah:  am also interested [in dire corgi]
Arnari:  will have the cargo space.  But, Tugendhat will leave in an hour.

Maghris looked alarmed at that.  He had just acquired a brown & tan agate, vaguely shaped like a real human heart, and was learning how to shape an artificer's homunculus servant from it.  Leaving in an hour meant this activity would have to wait. 

Meurig turned to the others and declared, "Block is a weather expert!"  He continued, politely, "Do you know what weather I should prepare for, in Pembroke?"  Block looked out the window consideringly, and smiled.  "Gemhallow is entirely underground," he replied gently, "but, flying there will initially be clear view of the Daystar, followed by afternoon showers."

The Freelancers rose to gather their things and head to the docks.

On the way to the docks, Meurig considered the saddlebag he was carrying, and wondered about mishaps.

Meurig:  should we look at the letters, so we know in case they go missing?
Sabah:  no, let's not just lose them.

The airship Tugendhat, captained by Letitia Herohouse, a female human, was propelled by an air elemental, and despite the elemental being in the prow, the airship looked like it had a mini tornado aft, pushing it forward.  It did not really have passenger cabins, being designed for shorter flights, although there were areas belowdecks in which passengers could rest.

A team of draft pegasi towed it away from the Cliffshadow docks, and just as the team unhitched, a human on a peregrine gryphon landed on the bow of the ship.  They dismounted and started consulting with the captain and the navigator even before they finished tying the gryphon to a nearby tiedown.  The gryphon was sleek, with blue and grey feathers.

Pembroke was visible a little to starboard, and inward; it would swing around to port and outward over the course of the day.  The Tugendhat thus turned a little away from where the big skylith was, to fly towards where it would be.  The pilot stayed on the airship until it crossed the Duquesne boundary, bouncing and shuddering with the forces involved.  Then it was through, and the pilot took off winging towards another airship inbound to Cliffshadow.

The trip took 12 hours, and was pretty uneventful.  The group rested belowdecks, but came out on the observation deck to look at the Pembroke approach.  By now the Tugendhat was approaching it from behind, coming up below the following tornadoes.  A dwarf pilot arrived on an owl gryphon to navigate the tunnels to Gemhallow.  Once the ship crossed the Pembroke boundary, under the pilot's direction it slowed and turned towards what appeared to be a small hole.

As they approached the hole, it became obvious that it was actually an enormous cavern entrance, 1000 feet tall and 2000 feet wide.  The airship slowed more, and the outer edge of the wings lit with a red and green glow, as they entered the cavern.  The cavern walls were marked with veins of quartz, alternating flame coloured and white, from light sources unseen, allowing pilots to avoid hazards.  Other veins of quarter occasionally lit up from light below.

The tunnels forked, switched back, and did so again.  The airship was going up.  At various points, enormous doors could be seen, ready to repel storms or invaders.  Finally they emerged northward into an absolutely enormous cavern, and slowed again.   A team of owl gryphons took the Tugendhat all the way to the docks.  The airship was settled on a docking shelf, and the owl gryphon team detached and flew a bit southward.  The dwarf told the captain, "Good seein' ya," and took off for an airship just pulling out of a dock.

The passengers debarked, Murai looking around in wonder at the glowing sidewalks, and Meuric leading JollyHopper, his hippogryph.

"Let's look for dogs," Block suggested, as if this idea had just occurred to him.  Sabah glanced at Meurig and countered, "Let's drop off at Freelancers, then we can ask at the tavern if anyone knows where to go."  That seemed to make sense, so the Freelancers headed towards the tavern.  The problem of course, was nobody was familiar with Gemhallow at all.

Block was too busy asking passerby about where to acquire dire corgis to be paying attention where he was going.  Aranel and Murai were no help; the former was looking for any postings of theatre or performances, and the Wind sagani was just entirely distracted by the different jewels glowing in the sidewalks.  (Really, it was quartz.)  In the end, they ended up not at the Freelancers Tavern, but in the central market square.

Meurig was hungry, and looked around for street food; he found a vendor selling wok-fried glowworms and mushrooms, in a folded paper, for 4 cp.  Of course Block asked the vendor about the dire corgis, and in addition to a paper cone full of noodles, he found out about Rusin Maer, a Rocklit dwarf breeder, and Inna Lang, a Rock sagani lady, both of whom bred corgis and dire corgis.  Block thanked the vendor enthusiastically.

Sabah recollected that the Cliffshadow Freelancers Tavern generally got their Freelancers to acquire ice wine from Coldstream via Gemhallow's Market, and Aranel, delighted with the idea of such an exotic drink, exclaimed, "Let's look!"  As the Freelancers looked, Sabah promptly got distracted by a vendor selling very nice studded leather, with flames worked into the design.  It was a 30% premium over normal-priced stuffed leather.

Aranel, however, spotted a couple of Cloud elves in the Market, moving with purpose, and followed them to a stall vending the pricey beverage.  Finally, an item that drew Block's attention from the corgis!  Block and Aranel bartered for it, and got them down to 100gp/cask.  Block could not afford that, and simply filled a vial with ice wine from a tapped cask for 1gp.  Aranel of course had this coin, and bought two casks.

While they were bargaining, Meurig spotted a nearby vendor and bought a tabard, emblazoned with a silhouette of skylith Pembroke, and words inscribed underneath:  I went to Pembroke and only got this tabard.  He paid 15sp for it.

Maghris wandered off looking for artificery shops, but … glowworm noodles and mushrooms are not, actually, the natural prey of a nekomata.  He found himself desperately hunting for a privy instead, as his digestive system went into everybody OUT mode.  Fortunately the Gemhallow Market was well supplied with public privies; afterall they were underground.  Aranel did not see where he'd gone, and after a while, became concerned, but he returned to the others in due time.

At this, Meurig finally remembered he was carrying the courier packet, and exclaimed "Ha!"

Meurig:  I think we should do our mission, first!
Maghris:   don't they have a couple of days to put a reply together?  Let's look [for the corgis] after

Gemhallow Freelancers Tavern was actually fairly easy to find from the Market, and the visiting arrived there rather quickly.  Its layout was different than the Cliffshadow tavern; the stables,  and taverns were street level, but the rest of the complex was carved out of the rock below.  Meurig saw to JollyHopper's stabling and then they went into the back tavern.  Almost all the Freelancers there were dwarves, gnomes, halflings, or sagani of such extraction.  Meurig towered over them all.

Einkil Logehr, the leader of the Gemhallow Freelancers, was also there, a Rocklit dwarf with light brown skin, brown hair, and grey eyes.  Meurig saluted him smartly, then dropped to a knee so the Black dragonborn would be eye level.  Unwilling to do business like this in the back tavern, Einkil waved all the visitors downstairs to his office.  The ceilings were high enough, although Meurig had to duck through the doorways.

Einkil's office kind of reminded them of Tomtom's.  Maps of Gemhallow and the surface of Pembroke were on the walls.  A couple heads of big game were mounted as were a couple very large crossbows.  Lamps of continual flame lit the room, augmenting the glowing crystal in the floors.

Einkil accepted the courier pouch from Meurig, flipped through it quickly, then grunted.  He pulled out a handheld vault and said, "Bring out your badges," then put 100gp each for them on their Freelancer badge.  Then he scanned the papers a little more closely, halting in surprise as he got partway through.  "By tomorrow evening, I will have a return packet," he said thoughtfully.

Magris <in Dwarvish>:  what do you recommend we check out in town, while we wait?
<Einkil raised an eyebrow.>
Einkil <in Dwarvish>:  honestly, the most exciting thing right now is the Market; things are arriving from Duquesne and it's hoppin'.
Maghris <in Dwarvish, somewhat plaintively>:  any way to tell good glowworm noodles?
Einkil <in Dwarvish>:  you might not want to eat that on the Market.  We have it here; it is good.  The Market is... street food.
<Block had learned all the dog commands in Dwarvish, in advance.>
Block <in Dwarvish, to Einkil>:  shake!
<Einkil politely ignored Block.>
Aranel:  might we know what you're saying?
Einkil:  sure...
Maghris:  was just asking if there's cool stuff in town.  I sometimes fall into Dwarvish sometimes because of my uncle.
Einkil:  most of interest is in the Market right now.  You all are welcome to some bunks.
Aranel:  our compatriot here <gestured at Block> is looking to acquire a tunnel dog.
Einkil <thought briefly, then shook head>:  ask in the tavern.

At that they took their leave, Einkil shaking his head slightly, then turning to read Arnari's report of the damage wrought on the Church of Storms more carefully.

The Freelancers made themselves at home, since after all they were home, in the back tavern, and started asking around about dog breeders.  Meurig did not get far, as he was distracted by someone's lifelike dog pendant.  Maghris also ended up talking to some others about how he became a Freelancer because of his dwarf "uncle".  Block asked everyone "Do you know where I can find a good dog?" where "good dog" was in Dwarvish.

Aranel and Sabah had more pleasant and interesting conversations.  A couple Rocklit dwarves told them Jarg Iudenval was a reputable breeder of regular corgis and mastiffs, and Block's face fell.  Aranel gently corrected and explained the interest was in tunnel dogs or dire corgis, and another Freelancer, a male Rock sagani named Sighard, interjected that they should go visit Inna Lang.

They group got the directions to Inna Lang, finished their drinks, and headed out, leaving both the ice wine casks and JollyHopper at the Freelancers Tavern.

The Freelancers made their uneventful way to Inna Lang's house, in the eastern part of Gemhallow.  Block was almost bouncing.  By this time the sidewalks were glowing much more brightly, but still not as bright as the daylight on the surface.

Inna Lang's house was built into a natural tunnel wall, like the houses they had been walking past.  The sidewalks here were smoky-quartz, glowing underfoot, to Murai's intense interest.  Past the house, the sidewalks ended, and the tunnel sort of opened up into caverns lit with veins of quartz.  Looking into the more open area, the Freelancers could see a paddock-like area with very large corgis running around.

Meurig:  where are the tunnels ‒
Block <pointing>:  see tunnels leaving?  They are for mining; these dogs carry your stuff, for mining.

Block looked at the other Freelancers, the cast guidance on himself, and inspected the playing dire corgis.  Which one was the alpha?  He saw a couple dogs in different paddocks, and could not tell which was the boss-dog.  One was glowing almost golden, the other, in the farther paddock, was speckled.

Block cast speak with animals, then said to the dogs, "Which one is a 'good dog'?" again saying "good dog" in Dwarvish.  The dire corgi in the farther paddock sat and wagged its tail, then howled, "I'm the best dog!" The dire corgi in the closest paddock growled, "I'm the baddest dog!  I'm the best dog!  Screw you, hippie!" and all the dogs started barking.

The door to the house opened, and a young-ish Rock sagani emerged.  At the sight of all the Freelancers, he tilted his head.

Rock sagani:  can I help you?
Block:  I would like to buy that dog, the one that's sitting.
Rock sagani:  <nodded>  why don't I, uh, take you to talk to Ina, and you can get sorted out.

The Rock sagani did not bring the Freelancers into the house, but around the side.  They got to a kennel with large stalls on the right, and extra big stalls on the left with puppies, or very pregnant bitches.  ¾ of the way down the row, a female Rock sagani was peering into one of the extra big stall, murmuring.

Rock sagani:  Ina!  These, uh, fine people, would like to buy a, uh, dire corgi.
<Ina turned, and wiped her hands on her pants.>
Ina:  so, I hear you want to buy a dire corgi
Block:  meeeee
<Murai stepped forward.>
Murai <politely>:  me as well
<Sabah stepped forward.>
Ina:  350gp!  We also sell bridle and saddle.
Aranel:  how does 'bridle' work on a dog?
Ina:  more like a hackamore.  It not a muzzle; they are trained for battle.

The other Rock sagani had left while they spoke, past others in stalls, which she explained are in training.  A male Rock sagani was working with them, and she mentioned he was her husband Inna.  Then they were to the paddocks; there were three.  The center one, in front of them, had the speckled dog who'd told Block he was a good dog.  The paddock to the left had the golden dog, and to the right had younger dogs; their head were still too small.

Ina pointed to the right paddock, and said, "That paddock, they are still growing up, if you want untrained."  But at that moment, the speckled dog came bounding up to Block, covering his face in dog kisses.  Block was so happy, and he cast beast bond on the dire corgi.

Sabah and Murai looked at each other, while the other Freelancers looked on, amused.  They both went to the paddock to the left.   The golden dire corgi bounded over to Murai, then noticed Maghris with all his long cat hair.  The dog skidded to a halt, ruffling up at the nekomata.  Nobody could tell if Maghris ruffled up in response; he was too fluffy.  Murai, however, was rather taken with how golden and contrary the dire corgi was.

Sabah wandered through the paddock, while Ina watched closely.  Some of the dire corgis sniffed and wandered off, disinterested.  Some almost knocked them over.  One headbutted them for pets, and rolled on her back to get belly rubs.  Sabah picked that one.

The three Freelancers bought the dire corgis, along with saddle and bridle.  They all got papers for the dogs, whose name had the appellation of Dire Lang, since Inna Lang had possession of a Royal Writ as a corgi dealer.  Block's speckled good-dog was Boötes, Murai's prickly golden corgi was Dudley, and Sabah's sweet-tempered girl was Juru.

By the time they got back to Freelancers, which was a slight challenge, as the golden dire corgi was rather restive, the Freelancers were exhausted, and took up Einkil on his offer of bunks, and passed out.

The next day found the Freelancers at loose ends as they waited for Einkil to prepare his responses to Arnari's packet.

Maghris went looking for artificery "stuff."  He found two shops; one sold bardificery instruments, including a "keytaur" that he really wanted, but could not afford.  Another shop sold… "Bits & Bobs & Other Supplies" … he poked around the shop, happy and indecisive.  Finally he bought a "grab bag" with washers, bolts, insect-like metal legs, and a wooden box with holes in it.

Murai, short of time to get it themselves, looked for any purple mournlode in the Market.  Nobody had any.  "It's hard to get," one supplier explained, "Someone uses it as soon as we get a supply of it."

Meurig looked for anything made with purple mournlode.  He found someone selling a small daggar with it, for 250gp.  He bought the daggar, and asked if they could engrave it with a crest, which they did.

Sabah looked for a park.  They found one, but most of the living things in it was bioluminescent moss and lichens.  They found it oddly restful, and meditated.

Aranel looked for some sort of performance, ideally theatre.  She found an operatic performance, but the music was more rock opera, with bardificery instruments.  The venue was in the Royal quarter in a large cavern conducive to such performances.  An interesting aspect of it was the box seats in various stalactites.

Block took Boötes of Dire Lang for a walk, and bought the glowworm noodles.  They ate them together, each with one end of the glowworm.

That evening, right before dinner, Einkil handed Meurig another saddlebag, with various papers to go back to Arnari.  "Take care of it, keep it safe," he admonished the paladin.  "You have passage on the Pandion, a fire elemental airship."

While that was happening, Murai and Aranel tried having the glowworm noodles for dinner at Freelancers Tavern, and they were actually pretty good.  Maghris could not deal with any.  As they headed to the airship docks, Meurig grabbed some from a street vendor again.  "If I don't trust it, I will just spit acid on it," he told the others confidently.

The Pandion was fast, but the weather was kind of gross:  windy, overcast, spitting rain.  All the passengers stayed belowdecks, until they arrived at Cliffshadow some 10 hours later, in the late afternoon.

The dire corgis were installed in the hippogryph stables; Sovelai had the stalls for them already set up.  Arnari was happy to receive the documents from Meurig, and paid them the 100gp fee.

Then, Aranel declared, "Sabah suggested we procure these casks of ice wine," and Arnari was much happier.  She paid 150gp per cask!

• Aranel →lvl2!