An uneventful evening perched on a wall outside of the Kormallis Manor comes to a suitably uneventful end when the lights in the windows go out and the patrolling guards become less frequent. It is clear to both Finn and Farraine that nothing of interest is going to be happening tonight and they should head back to Trollskull Manor where there is ale in desperate need of being drunk. Finn whispers to an invisible Imp by his side to stay behind and keep an eye out for anything unusual, something that surely won't get completely forgotten about. The two mischievous friends walk through the doors of a bustling Trollskull Manor, Ozen sees them as they enter and immediately grabs their tankards from beneath the bar and proceeds to pour them a nice cold ale, handing them over with a courteous nod as they pass and take their seats at their usual table with the rest of the party. The hustle and bustle of the tavern slowly ebbs away with each ale consumed and Ozen finally slides the locks into place across the large oak doors, and our party head upstairs to their rooms, bidding the barkeep a good night en route.
The Sun slowly creeps above the horizon as another fresh day dawns, our heroes rise from their slumber and make their way down stairs where Ozen has once again prepared a mighty breakfast. Farraine, Garrick, Sigrid, Lucian and Finn sit at the table and discuss the events of the previous day. As Ozen tops up Finn's coffee the Halfling asks him if he has made any progress on the samples of food he managed to sneak out of the Jade Jug, "All is going well sir, a few missteps but I'll get there". "I'm sure you will Ozen, you are a fine chef and an excellent jailer". The burly barkeep gives a grateful nod and returns to the bar to resume the endless polishing of tankards with his ragged cloth. Conversation turns to Lord Edgar Kormallis who the party agree poses the greatest and most immediate threat. Sigrid asks Garrick and Lucian how their occult preparations have gone.
"Well I have managed to learn something that should be of great assistance to us" Replies Garrick, " I should be able to create an area or 'zone' where anyone within that space is unable to knowingly tell a lie"
"Would have been useful to have that yesterday" says the halfling with a more than a hint of sarcasm in his voice. Garrick gives him a stern look that quickly melts into a knowing smile.
"I've also been hitting the old books" says Lucian "and I should be able to offer another element of magical suggestion should it be required."
Finn gives the Cleric and the Wizard a thumbs up and turns to Sigrid "And how did your investigations go?"
The Druid has a somewhat puzzled expression on her face, "Er, what was I supposed to be doing?"
"You were supposed to be getting hold of a herbalist kit or something and see if you could come up with some kind of truth potion or something" says Finn in a rather exasperated manner.
"Oh, I'll see what I can do later"
Finn shakes his head, Garrick changes the subject quickly and suggests that it would be wise for them to report in with Sister Garaele to make sure that using magic to illicit the truth from Lord Kormallis falls within the party's remit of investigative powers. The rest of the group agrees as they would rather not have to face the penalty usually reserved for those who cause harm on the nobles of Waterdeep. With that they head out of Trollskull Manor and head off to see Sister Garaele. Walking through the early morning streets of the City, the sounds of vociferous commerce is only starting to build towards it's mid afternoon crescendo. It is not long before they are at the steps of Sister Garaele's abode and they are ushered inside. Sister Garaele glides down the ornate staircase and bids them welcome "To what do I owe this pleasure?" she asks.
Garrick proceeds to explain that they intend to visit Lord Kormallis and will be planning on using some magical means to ensure that during his questioning he tells nothing but the truth. However we have concerns that some of these magical conjuring's may fall outside of our allowances granted by our investigatory powers. Sister Garaele ponders for a moment, pacing back and forth slowly before confirming that our party's plan is sound and they shall be permitted to perform their duties provided they remain within the ethical bounds of their purpose and the limits of their authority. This seems like as close to a 'yes' as they are going to get so with a polite farewell the group head off in the direction of Kormallis' Manor. As they walk through the bustling streets our heroes discuss their strategy, it is a long and intricate conversation covering many different options to cause a distraction to enable the conjuring of Garrick's spell without Kormallis overhearing it's invocation. Options such as intricate illusions, feisty familiars each as complex as the other. It appears that Sigrid also has some ideas of her own as once again and for the first time since the Party left Trollskull, they notice that she, once more, in possession of a rather large houseplant. Farraine even suggests that they all bring a plant to gift to the Lord but Garrick quickly shuts down this idea as it is only like to annoy Kormallis and make their task even harder than it already poses to be. Getting back onto the subject of the plan of action, discussion moves to the various options available based on probable locations for the desired interrogation. What if Kormallis is not alone? What if he is? How high are the ceilings? Every single permutation is pondered over as they slowly walk through the city streets. Eventually they find themselves outside the gates of the Kormallis mansion, a guard recognises them and escorts them down the path, past a discarded, familiar looking houseplant and and through the large oak doors. They await in the entrance hall for a few moments until they are met by Lord Kormallis himself. The noble looks somewhat tired or strained as he leads them through the labyrinthine corridors towards his private study. Ushering them into a room whose walls are lined with books, he closes the door behind them and all of the previous discussed and agreed plans for a diversion are thrown out of the window when Finn spies a Grand Piano in the corner of the room. Without hesitation the halfling bounds over to the instrument and proceeds to play a rather talentless tune. Garrick is quick on the uptake and amid the din, casts his zone of truth surrounding Lord Kormallis.
A barrage of questions is hurled at the noble who is somewhat confused by both the ferocity and his own willingness to answer them truthfully. In the interests of narrative fluidity it is probably best to simply note what our party learned as a result. It seems that Kormallis has been suffering from headaches for the past month or so and to combat these has been taking a potion he procured from The Old Xoblob Shop. Lucian tells the party that it sounds like the noble has been the victim of a modify memory spell and that it would account for his recent behaviour and current demeanour. A servant enters the room with a tray of drinks. The party hold a quick conference and decide that these recent findings need to be explained to Sister Garaele who may also be able to assist with the removal of the spell. Sigrid heads out of the room and into the mansion's gardens where she communicates with a small bird. Using her natural magic she asks the bird to send a message to Sister Garaele, asking her to come quickly.
Back in Kormallis' study, Sigrid asks Kormallis what he thinks of Lady Ithana. Still under the influence of the Cleric's spell Kormallis tells them that she is difficult to read, which is ironic given the amount of time she spends tucked away in her own library. Her normal reclusive nature has, however, been getting steadily more so in recent weeks. Garrick moves into a corner of the room and enters a state of deep prayer communicating directly with his deity. After a few moments he tells the party that he has confirmed that Lady Ithana Irlingstar is not working with the Cult of the Dragon, The Servant knows nothing of the Cult and it is unclear if Lord Malthos Roznar is working with them also.
It is not long before Sister Garaele arrives in the Study, Garrick explains the situation to her and asks for her assistance in both keeping an eye on Lord Kormallis and seeking a way to restore his memory and release any external control it may be under. It is clear that there is a path of investigation that the Party must pursue and the next location on their list is that of the Old Xoblob Shop. With Sister Garaele taking care of Kormallis the party turn to leave but not before Sigrid convinces the Lord to take better care of his gifted foliage.
Once again our heroes are walking through the city streets in the direction of the magical shop. Finn and Farraine leading the way, after all, they have been there before many, many months ago when this whole adventure first started. Soon, they find themselves outside of the odd looking shop, purple smoke billowing from the open doorway. Stepping inside the party a greeted with an overwhelming presence of purple and the diminutive and eccentric Gnome, Xoblob himself. Bidding him hello Garrick is quickly into his role as chief Investigator and asks the Gnome for information on the potion that was sold to Lord Kormallis. At first, Xoblob is reluctant to divulge information on his clients but a quick flash of the writ of Investigative authority soon changes his mind. He tells them that the exchange was brokered by a Half-Elf female called Lyreth, as well as the potion some Dragon artefacts were also procured through her as well - the same artefacts now in the possession of Lord Malthos Roznar. During their last meeting Lyreth was in the company of a mysterious man who was particularly interested in his sales ledger. Garrick asks to see the ledger and notices that for the items under investigation the details of the seller are unfortunately noted as "Unknown". Xoblob continues to explain that Lyreth can often be found in The Copper Cup one of the more salubrious establishments of Waterdeep.
Armed with this information it would be normal to expect that our heroes headed off immediate in pursuit of their latest line of investigation. However, dear reader, it is also important to remember that they are currently in a shop and Xoblob is quick to resume his role as shop keeper. A couple of hours later Finn, Farraine, Garrick, Lucian and Sigrid emerge through the purple haze of the doorway and into the darkening city streets, pockets bulging with newly acquired items and significantly less gold than when they first entered. Before they head for the Copper Cup they decide it best to head back to Sister Garaele and let her know what they have managed to uncover.
Progress update delivered it is time for our heroes to seek out the mysterious Lyreth and the infamous Copper Cup. Once again the party head through the now moonlit streets of Waterdeep in search of their quarry, arriving at the steps of the Copper Cup, sounds of merriment spill onto the cobblestones. Entering the building the party are immediately struck by it's popularity, ladies of negotiable affection are dotted around the establishment giving a more than a hint as to why that may be the case. Private booths scatter the perimeter, unholy sounds drift from more than one of them as the Party make their way up the stairs to the upper balcony. Finn's eyes are wide open in a mixture of shock and lust, why is this the first time he has been to this place? Scanning the patrons they notice a lone Half-Elf woman sat in one of the corners of the mezzanine level and they make their way over to her. Garrick introduces himself and after a brief exchange of gold manages to ascertain that Lyreth was approached by someone known as Siressa who brokered the deal and that she was directed to go with Mavryn to amend the ledger of Old Xoblob. Finn asks that should she be approached by Siressa again she is to contact them as soon as possible. She nods and says "If the price is right, certainly" As she turns to leave, the Halfling pulls her to one side and asks quietly "You don't happen to have a boyfriend do you?", "Not yet she replies, smiling".
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