Rystro will follow the half-orc out of there moments after him. He was getting a bit bored from waiting around.

As Rystro and Vaargurr leave the tavern they meet Brin and Ashes outside in the street as they approach the tavern door from around the corner.

Trusting in the instincts of his more experienced companion, Merka waited to see how closely the boat would approach their own.  He moved to the point on the rail at which the other boat would pass most closely and adopted a nonchalant pose.  If the boat passed closely enough, he would look for any magic aboard.  His voluminous hood would easily conceal his lips as he murmured the spell, and he could pull his hand inside his robe to conceal the required gesture.  How long the boat stayed within range would determine how much information he could gather.

How nonchalant can a mage in robes on board the deck of a ship possibly appear in the best of circumstances?

At the Spirit

The sloop sails to the end of the dock that the Spirit is tied to.  It does not pass by, stopping and docking about 40 feet away from the Spirit, with the Spirit between them and land.

The three men go about securing the sails and other items on the deck, very similar to what Dalton did when they were docking earlier that day.

At the Tavern

As the four heroes get together outside the tavern, they see Captain Dell come striding by. He stops for a moment as if getting his bearings and make a small follow me motion and heads toward the Moonsea gate in the outer wall.
This message was last edited by the GM at 19:29, Tue 30 Nov 2004.

Moving his hand under his robe in an arcane pattern, Merka spoke as softly as a butterfly flapping her wings. "In brightest day, in darkest night, no magic shall escape my sight."
This message was last edited by the player at 22:43, Tue 30 Nov 2004.

Brin makes eye contact with his companions, then follows the Captain without a word other than a short, sharp whistle to call Krais to his side.
This message was last edited by the player at 04:41, Wed 01 Dec 2004.

At the Spirit

Merka your detect magic spell is not noticed by the sailors on the other ship.  However due to the distance involved, your spell does not cover the complete length of the sloop but about half of it.  There are not direct magic items in view about the sloop, but you are able to determine that a moderate Aura is within the hull.  Perhaps below the deck.  You can not determine which type of magic or school the magic is from.

On the Streets of Malvant

As the group follows Captain Dell, it is soom apparent that he is heading back to the Spirit.

"Brin we have a shadow.  Don't look, it's a beggar.", he whispers to Brin.

At The Spirit

After standing for several moments at the rail, Merka walked unhurriedly back to Korgan.  As he did, he glanced at the two derelicts on the dock to see if they had taken an interest in this new arrival.

"Friend Korgan, there is indeed the presence of something of a significant magical nature on the ship.  This would support, but not conclusively, your supposition that it, its contents, or its passengers might be of interest to us.  I regret I could not provide more detailed information."

Glancing from the new ship to the dock, he added, "Now we are presented with two fronts.  A difficult situation, militarily speaking."

Korgan smiles. "I'm not sorry worried about the fighting. Our opponents will think they're attacking three defenseless sailors, so they're in for a nasty surprize."

He smiles.

"And about the magic onboard the other ship, you'll have plenty of time to search it after we've kicked them intop the water.

At The Spirit

Merka chuckled at Korgan's bravado.  And from the looks of Korgan, he had the ability to "put his coin where his mouth was."

"Then we will have two ships with which to ply our newly begun gem trading endeavors.  I like the way you do business, Korgan.  Rapid expansion with an eye for acquisition opportunities.  You would fit right in where I come from."

Merka held up his hands, pretending to read a sign. "Merka and Friends Trading Company.  No, no... Merka and Friends Merchant Fleet.  No, not fleet...NAVY!"
This message was last edited by the player at 21:02, Wed 01 Dec 2004.

Korgan chuckles. "Where did you come from again? It sounds like merchant place. And I don't know about Merka and friends, I think I prefer Korgan and Co."

Brin nods casually to Ashes, saying out loud, "Why yes, Ashes, it does look like rain tomorrow...".  Otherwise he acts as if they are not being observed.

Captain Dell continues past the Moonsea Gate and on toward the Spirit.  The beggar following the party goes past the gate and stops once it is apparent that the party is heading back toward their ship.

The old one-eyed beggar is still sitting in the shade of the crates across from the Spirit and there is another one down opposite a sloop that has docked farther along the dock from the Moonsea Gate than the Spirit.

Once Captain Dell is on board, he tells Dalton to stay topside and keep watch.  He looks at the others and says, "Down below, it is important!"  Looking at the two loaded heavy crossbows that Dalton has hidden on the deck, he nods at Dalton and goes below.

"Korgan and Company...?  Hmm.  It has alliteration, true.  But Merka and Friends instills more confidence in the customer, I believe.  And customer confidence is more important than cute consonant combinations.  Sembians have a good sense for these things, Korgan.  Actually, you may not know it, but the name Merka, literally translated from Chondathan means virtue.  And, in a humorous coincidence, Korgan very closely resembles the Mulhorandi word for...  Oh, look, it's Captain Dell."

The arrival of Captain Dell interrupted Korgan's lesson in Sembian marketing lore.  The significant glance at the crossbows was not lost on Merka, and he obeyed the captain's order to go below without speaking a word.
This message was last edited by the player at 05:00, Thu 02 Dec 2004.

Happy that he didn't have to hear what Korgan really meant in Mulhorandi (it didn't sound very valiant the way Merka had sounded), Korgan hurried under deck when he had the opportunity.

Vaargurr's smile returns to his face once more he's on board the ship. The city life has never been his best suit and he quite dislike the fact knowing many humans living tightly together considering how many of them regarded half-orcs. He walks up to Korgan, slaps him across the shoulder and says:

What's new?

Korgan shrugs. "Nothing much. We've been practicing and chatting. Also, another ship just like ours has arrived. Merka says there's something magical about it, but he cannot say more. And of course, I think somebody's planning to ambush us, but the last bit is just a hunch."

Captain Dell answers, ”Aye, ambush or worst.  I just had an interesting conversation with the Harbor-Master.  It appears he thinks that we are Zhent Agents.  This sloop comes every month to Malvaunt.  He gets 50 gold to look the other way and not inspect the sloop too closely.  The man is expecting his 50 gold.  Me I just played stupid and told him that I have been hired to sail the Spirit for you."

"Plus he told me that there is a network of Zhent agents here also and the sloop delivers their monthly funds.  So you can expect visits from at least two groups that I know of that are expecting a pouch of gold."

"I do not know what you did or how you got this sloop, but it is known here as a Zhent special courier.  I have been followed by a series of beggars since I got off the sloop.  In all my years of working this port, this has never happen.  I have a really bad feeling about this.  Plus if we get into a fight here, we are on their home ground with respect to the guard and judges. Who knows they may have some of the local guards and nobles within their ranks.“

"We know that the Harbor-Master is on their payroll and he can call the city guards on us at any time. I know I signed on to sail the Spirit for you, but I never expected this.  It could get a man killed or thrown in chains for sell at the slave market.  I think we need to sail now, while we can."

Korgan has been listening to the captains ecplanation, now he says "What about the dwarves? We have to find out about the dwarves. That's our mission."

At the mention of the Zhentarim, Merka hands and feet turned cold.  There had been Zhent agents in Sembia, but neither he nor anyone he knew had fallen victim to (or been the beneficiary of) any of their infamously sinister and often deadly plots.

"Is there any hope in talking to the Harbor Master to explain things to him?  To clear up the misconception?  I am probably not the best choice to do so, but I would be willing to try.  Are any of us especially talented at negotiation or experienced in things diplomatic?"

"And for that matter, if this ship is associated with the Zhentarim, the beggars who have kept such a close eye could possibly be friendly, or at least no threat.  I believe it was the great Elminster who once said, 'The foe of my foe is my ally.'  Perhaps, given what we know now, we should also approach one of these beggars."



"Ah, friend Korgan, that is an excellent point. It's possible these beggars are also surveilling for information on the disappearance of the dwarves.  Perhaps we should speak to one, rather than continuing to assume they are a threat."
This message was last edited by the player at 14:29, Thu 02 Dec 2004.

Rystro nodded, "Merka's got a point. They think we're Zhents." He hehs, "No wonder why people have been giving us strange looks." He hms, "I think we should approach one of them, although I have a feeling they'll deny following us."

Brin responds the 'dwarf question', letting the others know what their contact had told them.

"Our harper contact has told us the dwarves around here do not know much about what is happening.  He told us the name of one who might talk to us regarding this mystery, but I have a feeling we may have to continue our merchant disguise and buy a few iron ingots off of him to gain access.

As far as these 'little birds' flocking around us, perhaps we should force their hand to some extent, though I do not know how.  We do have funds to keep the harbormaster quiet, and I suggest we do so with him thinking of us what he will.  There is no sense having someone so liberal with his ethics knowing any more about us than he already does."
This message was last edited by the player at 00:51, Fri 03 Dec 2004.

It is now about mid-afternoon.  The hottest part of the day, but this far north, the temperature is quite comfortable with a cool steady wind blowing in from the Moonsea.

Dalton calls down from the deck, ”The Harbor-Master is coming, looks like he is meeting the sloop that just docked.  Other than his two guards, no one else is moving on the dock.”

Captain Dell looks up, ”You need to decide what you going to do.  Good chance he will stop by after he checks out the other sloop.  Plus in about an hour or two, the wind is going to reverse and start coming off of the land, good time to sail out of here.”

Geth had been silent as the others had discussed options. He was interested in how they handled things as he was new to the group and used to work alone. Finally, after thinking a few things over and the harbour master on his way he decided to speak up.

"Merka and Rystro seem intent on making contact with the beggars so this might be worth discussing. As they sat watching the boat I read their lips from a distance. I was able to determine they know this is a courier, but none of us gave them the 'sign' they were expecting. I beleive that is a Zhent sign of some sort. They know a new name has been painted on but it is the same sloop that came here last month. They also know that not one of the old group crewing this sloop has been seen since we arrived and they think something has happened to them. One of them told the other to pass the message on and their suspicions which he went off to do while I maintained watch on the other."

With that he went silent again.