I woke up this morning feeling deathly ill. Hard to say if I picked something up from crawling through the filth with open wounds or from getting bitten by a rodent of unusual size. I suppose it doesn’t much matter. Nevertheless I hauled myself out of bed – no rest for the righteous as they say.
I stopped in to check on Elth at the Alento manor. She’s as happy as one of her prize hogs wallowing in its own filth back home. I would have been stuck there half the day if I had not been able to claim, legitimately, that I was feeling poorly – it takes rich people three hours to do anything. Before I left Elth whispered to me that in two days’ time a coach was going to be leaving town carrying the payroll for the Alento staff in Charterton. I’m starting to like this girl more already.
After that I paid a call on Stek, one of the gals from the Maidens and Wenchs “event” a while back. After shooting the breeze a bit I asked her if she had heard anything about anyone planning to disrupt the events planned to celebrate the capture of Whilhye and Wickter. She said that she had heard some talk but nothing definite. I passed her a few gold to look into it for me, just between us gals. She did pass on among some other general gossip one interesting tidbit – Piltis was looking to get involved in something a little more exotic than dogfighting and he was putting it out on the street. Trying to puff up his reputation one supposes.
Armed with his information I resumed my guise as the beardless youth that had tormented him, my new cap makes this so much easier, and made the rounds to several taprooms and lowdown dives – upbraiding Piltis in absentia for killing the wrong man as “I” was just out of town on business.
After I felt that my point had been made I switched to a generic disguise and went back to the scene of yesterday’s crime – there can’t be that many alchemists in a place like Graltontown, I wondered if that slimehole was Eedraxis’ pre-exile. I wasn’t keen to go back inside but I purchased some candlerods just in case.
I started by talking to the neighbors, of which there were only a few – many of the surrounding buildings were also abandoned – but those there were eagerly told the tale of Eedraxis. There were a couple variations but the theme was the same, Eedraxis came from a family that had some hereditary malady that caused most of them to die young. His work was focused on trying to find ways to extend his life. As the years went by it began to be rumored that he was dabbling in necro-alchemy, which may or may not have been true but what was discovered is Eedraxis had been kidnapping dwarves – on account of their long lifespans presumably – and conducting experiments on them.
When the watch came for him he drove them away but a lynch mob formed and attacked his compound – forcing him to flee the city. With this knowledge I tried to remember who had told me about Eedraxis’ hideout in the first place but it was so long ago and I talk to so many people I couldn’t recall. After much hemming and hawing I finally decided to search the place at least a little. It wasn’t nearly as bad with light and not in agonizing pain but it was still bad.
What little enthusiasm I had for the venture was quickly quashed upon receiving a painful shock – I don’t even know from what. Even that short exposure took several hours to scrub off at 100 Waves. After that I did some rumormonging and slandering of the mayor before going to see Edrena. I told her about Bern and his confounded riddles, figuring that she was the kind of moony broad that would be into that sort of thing. She was indeed quite excited even before I told her that it could result in us getting something to help us with taking Piltis out.
After that I met up with Stek and several of the gals for drinks. Before we got too drunk she did tell me that several groups were planning on protesting the parade but nothing more than that. I had to come at it sideways but I did eventually learn that a fellow by the name of Rago was more interested in violent protest but hadn’t found any support. I’d need to look him up. By this point I was already almost seeing double from fever so I was out of it pretty quickly. I remember at some point Stek bare-knuckle and bare-chested brawling with some fellow with an upturned mustachio. It’s like my grandmother always said “Feed a cold, starve a flu, drink away anything else.”
__________________________________________________________
Funds: 2000 gold
XP: 10,209
Inventory: Signet ring, Ring of Many Garments, noble’s traveling outfit, thieves’ tools, disguise kit (6 uses), land deed, Bag of Tricks (rust), gold ring, masterwork light crossbow, Cap of Disguise, Secure Pocket, candlerod (9)
Revenge List: Duke Eaglevane, Piltis Swine, Rince Electrum,
watchman Gridley, White-Muzzle the worg, Percy Ringle the butler , Alice
Kinsey , “Patch”, Heroes of the Lost Sword, Claire Conrad, Erist priest
of Strider, Riselda owner of the Sage Mirror, Eedraxis, Skin-Taker tribe, Kartak, Królewna
& Bonifacja Trading Company, Hurmont Family, Androni Titus, Greasy
dreadlocks woman
Anti-Revenge List: Dorehe the maid
Rumors : Exiled noblewoman (Reoccurring), vigilante “Litheria”(80%), murderous Halfling (25%)
Graltontown Unrest – 1
Behind the curtain – Ela failed her save for filth fever, taking 2 dexterity damage and 3 constitution damage yet again.
The Errant Endeavors of Ela the Expert 