"The following morning, we were met at the inn by Amyria, who had an urgent request: She wanted us to make an appearance at a coalition of powerful leaders she had assembled. Apparently she hopes our notoriety, neutrality, and (in Mayim's case, at least) ferocity would help her in wrangling some unruly bureaucrats. This sounded like something I was specifically well-prepared for, but I feigned disinterest, following the rest of the party there anyway in their efforts to help out in any way they could. I imagine this strange, helpful attitude I see signs of every now an again is, in some way, a sort of penance for just how brutal they are in combat. Perhaps all of the mercy they don't deign to show their enemies is offloaded onto nearby townsfolk and people in need...
Regardless, we were on our way, and en route to the University where this coalition was meeting, Amyria discussed the people we would be meeting. Sadly, most were not technically nobility so much as they were people of power. That subtle distinction makes much larger differences in the circles I am accustomed to... Nevertheless, I made note of their names (and particularly the fact that the ruler of Nefelus had not shown up) an we arrived in due course.
The other Copper Fang members (I belatedly realize that I called our little gang the 'Bronze' Fang in my last entry. Mayim claims that Copper is the correct name. We shall have to settle this at some point) seemed to recognize a few of the people in attendance here. Specifically a Dwarf by the name of Kalad and a Githzerai named Odos, who sat apart from the other assembled leaders for some reason... I recognized the latter myself, as he had been at the meeting in the warehouse not long ago, but I had not previously caught his name. Amyria introduced everyone in a round, we explained our presence and status as freelance heroes, and the meeting began.
As is so often the case when people of 'real' power come together, petty squabbles sprung up almost instantly. The purpose of this meeting, it seemed, was to create a sort of multinational truce and joint military force with which to hold off all that might threaten the realm, and at the moment the odd Githyanki uprising that had been taking place of late outside of the city's walls. Apparently the prospect of relinquishing direct control of their military might unto a collaborative force did not sit well with several people, despite the fact that they themselves would be a part of this force. Mayim, again taking point as the mouth of our party, did an admirable job talking the shouting members down without losing her nerve. With some prodding from myself, Alin, and Nathaniel, we even helped her to convince them that such a treaty might be beneficial to them as individuals, as well as to the region as a whole. While many of those assembled seemed to care very little that some small towns might be taken over by Githyanki, the point that the loss of a non-ally could very quickly lead to the rise of an immediate enemy convinced at least a few of them very quickly. The largest sticking point taken care of, Amyria brought up a second point. One which could sink such a venture before it even began: Who would lead this assembly?
To my surprise, the usual explosion of noise and self-nomination managed to limit itself to a more polite mentioning that such arguments so often end in stalemates as every party votes for themselves. Even more surprising, Mayim had an answer. We, as freelancers, made a perfect swing vote for such an event and (to cut off an uppity elf woman who attempted to cut in with a snarky retort about us nominating ourselves) Amyria would make for an excellent leader. She was not in a position of real power, unlike the others seated here, her only real allegiance was to the safety of the realm, and she had no particular stake in the status of any one nation. Several of the leaders eyed Amyria more carefully at this. Before she had simply been the officiator of this meeting. As the head of a multinational coalition, though... How would she stack up? "Additionally," I spoke up, "should you find her lacking information or insight that you find truly important to such a role... She would have each and every one of you as personal advisers to the cause." Plenty of say on matters of state, none of the responsibility. That got them. I admit to being slightly smug as the assembled leaders nodded their heads and agreed that such a situation pleased them greatly. Nobility, as I well knew, were incredibly easy to sway with the promise of power without repercussions... Before we left the meeting, we took a moment to help the group brainstorm a name for their organization. The Lord of Sayre, who still seemed slightly worried about the prospect of losing some control over his town's forces, was quite pleased with the name that was eventually settled on. To commemorate where this deal had been made and where its seat of power currently rested, it was dubbed the Sayre Coalition for Planar Defense. Everyone seemed pleased with this moniker, and we quickly left, as it was nearly time for our previously-arranged meeting with Telicanthus, the Githzerai noble who seemed quite interested in our presence here.
Arriving at the manor, we were met by an elderly man who announced himself to be Baranor the Black, once an adventurer like ourselves, but sorely brought low in his prime when an arrow had lodged itself in his knee. (Alin chuckled at this, for some reason) Nathaniel offered to help the man's knee with some of his knowledge of healing (how the man was not a Paladin I do not know), hoping to get some information about Telicanthus from him. We got plenty of information, that is for certain, but most of it was squarely focused on Baranor's adventures of old. Not caring whether or not these tales were true, we positioned Alin at the forefront of the man's barrage of anecdotes and continued into the manor itself. Telicanthus greeted us briefly, and we split up to mingle with the guests and see what we could overhear. At one point, a servant by the name of Pennel, who the rest of the party had apparently met soon before my joining them, was seen eyeing us intently. Interested, Mayim and I both made our way over to him, to see if perhaps he was trying to get our attention. He quickly denied anything and slipped away. We were both quite suspicious, but Mayim seemed content to leave him be and continue hovering near Telicanthus himself in hopes of learning something important. I was less easy about the man. The things servants in a house such as this often know could bring entire kingdoms to their knees... I excused myself and slipped into a side room. There, I assumed my rat form and emerged into the hallway where Pennel had been.
He was still at the end of the hall, entering a room with a wary glance in both directions. I made my way towards him, but was forced to quickly hide under a different door as he emerged again, stowed away a small key, and hurriedly moved in my direction. I went unnoticed, and I approached the door he had entered. The thing was quite secure, being so low as to prevent my entry even in this small form. Peering around carefully lest I be spotted, I assumed hybrid form (I had arrived as a human, and as such I might not be immediately recognized if spotted), picked the lock, slipped through the door, shut it behind me, and resumed rat form. It appeared to be some kind of study. Sure that I hadn't been spotted entering, I began snooping. Everything seemed to be in order. No furniture seemingly disturbed, no incriminating documents lying around... Even the journal left open on the desk was one of guest lists and planned construction elsewhere in the manor. Defeated, I prepared to leave the room, when suddenly I noticed something. This room, when compared to the room adjacent to it, where I had hidden when Pennel passed by, was several feet too thin. Even assuming that this building had very thick walls, there was the space of a small hallway between this room and that, without any such feature existing from the outside! I investigated further...
As I suspected, the wall that should bordered the neighboring room held a particularly ugly mirror. The decorative trimming of the thing was so overblown that it almost made it difficult to pay attention to the very image the mirror displayed. Clambering up the side of the hideous thing, I carefully checked it for any signs of a mechanism or switch. Eventually, I pressed the right inlaid jewel, and the glass of the mirror flickered out. Pleased with myself, I immediately entered, giving no thought to the fact that my companions might find this sort of thing interesting as well. The small tunnel on the other side of the mirror was rough, with the same look of recent excavation as the beggar tunnels, albeit with signs of a more skillful hand throughout. At the end of this tunnel was a ladder down, and at the bottom of that, yet another tunnel. Dark as it was, I was still perfectly capable of seeing a larger room at the end of this one, though it was not empty. Two Githyanki stood at the entrance to the next room, unaware of the rat watching them from the tunnel. I was sorely tempted to give them the surprise of their lives (shortly before ending those miserable things), but there was a great chance of more of their ilk being elsewhere in whatever complex this was, and I thought better of it. I retraced my steps, carefully left Telicanthus' study, entered the library at the other end of the hall, and retook human form. I joined the party again in the parlor with the excuse that I had simply gone to peruse Telicanthus' book collection, as you can tell a lot about a man from the books he keeps. It's quite true, and I was certainly curious, but it was an investigation that would have to wait. That said, the party was quite clearly not convinced with my story (which I had expected) and we adjourned to a small balcony so that I could tell them what I'd found.
While they had kept tabs of Telicanthus himself, witnessing him discussing the state of the city's food stores with a worried noblewoman (worth noting, perhaps, but not the intel we sought), very little had been gleaned from the Gith's conversation. Everyone seemed quite curious about what truly hid in the tunnels beneath the manor, and we agreed that we would canvas the area that night and look for an alternate entrance to the same system. If an old town truly lay beneath this one, there was a good chance that many of these tunnels eventually connected. Even better, Telicanthus had recently requested that the usual town guard avoid the streets around his home, instead having them be patrolled by his personal guard. This mean that we would be freer to explore without chance of awkward talks with the night watchmen. Things were looking quite good for us, for once.
On a bit of a side note, I was quite saddened by this little party scene. Not only had I gotten very little time to socialize once again with people of my own status, I found that, after so much time away from it all, I'd lost much of my taste for the business... Mercenaries, townsfolk, soldiers, barbarians; they all spoke plainly and directly, if not always politely. The double-talk and sarcasm and hidden plots of the nobility... If only a short time among them, the cloistering stench of plotting and scheming and inevitable betrayal flooded back, and I found that I no longer enjoyed the intrigue as I once had. It had become... petty. Petty, empty, and full of negative energy. Such energies may keep me animated these days, but it seems I simply can't stomach them in a social setting... My dreams of one day rejoining the lavish noble lifestyle, and of once again holding a position of privilege and power... I have much thinking to do.
- Nehl Brisby"
At this point, the handwriting and language of the entries change dramatically. It seems someone else got their hands on this journal for at least a short while... Did Nehl abandon the book, or was it stolen from him? I shall have to translate... It's been so long that I've worked on this goblin-esque script, I need to remember how to begin!
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