Sapphire:Sessions:20171118

Shawna casts Trace Teleport followed by See Invisible. Seeing tracks leading away, she shifts into hawk form and follows them.

Feeling hungry, Ahn-Lee (still in his Chalker Jackson guise) and Dain start toward the Boar's Head, a ten-minute walk away. Ahn-Lee observes a number of older Copper Kids hanging around, and a priest of Asseraah who is watching "Chalker" closely.

In the area of the Mercenary Guild hall, Shawna sees a darkened building with a door ajar. She lands, resumes her elf form, draws her sword, and enters. She turns and casts Glue in front of the doorway, just in case. She is in a pottery shop. A faint bacony aroma lingers in the air. There are noises from above, like someone with a hand over their mouth struggling to call out. She casts Invisibility and ascends the stairs. She kicks open a door. Near an open window stands a tall man (TM) with bright eyes, right hand wielding a knife, left hand clamped over a struggling man's face. Shawna strikes TM in the neck and a dark liquid oozes out. TM releases the other man and dives out the window, with Shawna right behind him. TM bounces off an awning, lands on his feet in the street, then stumbles. Shawna knocks TM down. His eyes are shiny, metallic-looking; she concludes that TM is a construct of some sort. It carries coins minted in Gateway. The initials CBL are tattooed behind its left ear, and on its shoulder another tattoo reads H I G H. She says the word "high" aloud and TM opens its eyes as if in response to its name.

Calling some city guards to stand watch over High, Shawna runs back upstairs and heals the injured civilian. When she returns, the guards are standing around staring at a dark puddle. A guard explains, "He -- it -- just melted away." Shawna soaks up the liquid with a strip of cloth, dismisses the guards, and heads for Envoy Manor.

At the Boar's Head, Ahn-Lee observes a "new" mercenary (human, 6'2", 182#) who stares at Dain a little too long. Ahn-Lee orders a Bajeeter Special for Dain, then waves at the merc, saying "Hey, c'mere!" The merc gives the name Stanley Sharp and says he's looking for "a large dwarf man." "I meant no harm. They're going to try to kill you anyway." Ahn-Lee: "Feel free to follow us!" SS: "There's no bounty on you in Sapphire." SS looks around the dining room and it seems everyone is watching him. Intimidated, he takes his leave, saying "I'll go to my room at The Soldier's Friend."

Ahn-Lee to Dain: "Next time you be Chalker." Dain: "I don't know the man." Ahn-Lee: "Even better. He'll think it's hilarious!"

After bathing and putting on fresh clothes, Shawna meets with Sybonne and Relinda and shows them the strip of cloth. Using her Divination skills, Relinda relates the that "High" and its twin, "Lee", are golems owned by CBL. The dark liquid is a magical substance that when poured into a humanoid form turns the form into a golem. The properties of the liquid, which acts as the golem's blood, are such that the longer the golem is "alive" the more it learns and the more human it becomes. "It is an old method. I knew of it back in Idria." Relinda will work on a Seeker-type spell specific to such golems.

Chalker writes in the journey book: I'm on trial. They're trying to take my stuff. Relatives suck. Especially the ones that marry in. It's a power grab. Shawna replies: I can tell you're nervous, Chalker.

Ahn-Lee and Dain arrive at the manor. Jeeves pointedly (though politely) steers Ahn-Lee away from Chalker's room.

At breakfast the next morning, Relinda remarks that she has never seen a racial combination like Dain's. Dain claims to have some Dwarven ancestry.

Jeeves admits Ambassador Frederick's son, Prince Nedwin, and a man named Victor Ward (formerly Baron Ward of Silene). They seem to be asking Shawna (in her capacity as Envoy pro tempore) to allow Ward to transport troops across Dolyenan territory into Bicarn. Shawna explains that they would need to petition the royal court of Dolyena for such permission.

Ahn-Lee, Dain, and Shawna go to the marketplace, where they learn that Stanley Sharp was killed last night by two arrows to the chest, one of which pierced the heart; they had been fired from different directions.

Delta Blue ("Molly") walks up to Ahn-Lee and hands him a purse containing 20gp. "That's your payment for Drogo." Shawna tells Delta "I'm putting out a hit on CBL."

A Copper Kid tells Ahn-Lee that the merchant with a two-masted ship embroidered on his shirt is named Gak Sultan. He has a small shop on the high end of the pier where he sells potions, wands, and charms.