DMZ

Forgotten Realms: Tales of the Dead

@SigilAha, you thought of that?

Well, I am sure there is some paying work to be done in a city preparing for battle, work that a monk in his prime could do for some extra money...

Forgotten Realms: Tales of the Dead

Before Keystone left, Meriv nodded enthusiastically and wrote down a name on a note, then handed it to the monk:

"Check this tomorrow, it will have a time for you to come speak to one of our junior historians, who will be much less heavy on your pouch, I assure you. Expect to spend only a few hundred gold coins to get a good amount of time with them." He ushered the monk out of the establishment as the sun set, wishing him safety in the evening streets and reminding to read the scrap of paper tomorrow.

On the paper, written in some odd chalk, spelled out a name, 'Arwan Yrsan' and was empty besides the name.

Forgotten Realms: Tales of the Dead

@SigilYou have this wonderful Time Stop scroll, and as the shopkeeper said, free id if you sell to em.

Forgotten Realms: Tales of the Dead

Meriv happily accepted the Fireball scroll and handed over the 90 gold, as previously agreed. The thin man kept his wide smile ever beaming as he waved away Keystone's hand, mumbling something about wards. His animated expression returned when Keystone continued to talk business:

"But of course good sir. Anything and everything you say within the walls of this fine establishment will remain between you and us." The mention of the Undead Knight set the salesman on his heels a bit:

"That is certainly an odd request. While we have many tomes on the creation of powerful warriors, none of them would be considered knights by any ruling party, not even the archmage. He himself is very knowledgeable on the subject of liches and other forms of undead, but I do not know if we have the information you are requesting readily...." the man stopped mid-sentence, as if he realized the absurdity of his own words. "I mean, I do not doubt that the Archmage would know something about the subject you seek, but I fear his prices are befitting his stature, and his schedule is rather full...I imagine, if you would be willing to gift him something powerful, like that scroll of Time Stop, that he would be appeased enough to grant you a few minutes of his time." he finished, looking up at Keystone with a slightly sour expression.

"I fear that if you wish to speak with the archmage, that you will have to do so tomorrow, as there will be essential business to attend to later in the day and the rest of the week," he added with an even sadder expression. "A meeting well worth your time, I assure you!" Meriv was once again his bubbly self.

Forgotten Realms: Tales of the Dead

@SigilThe townsfolk mention is exclusively the folk from Two Stars Keystone escaped with, not the Telflamm people.

Forgotten Realms: Tales of the Dead

Meriv bowed to the monk with the widest of smiles, but didn't seem overly pleased with his decision:

"I can assure you, nobody gives better prices than we do. All of our establishments within the area will tell you the same I just did. On the topic of information, shall I arrange a meeting with an interested party to seek the information you desire? If you decide now, I am sure I can convince some of the higher masters to give a bit more of their time for the same coin!" he retorted.

Within Keystone's head, Kaylee was nowhere to be found.

When the monk exited the Thay Enclave, he found that despite only being in the establishment for a relatively short amount of time, evening had set upon Telflamm, the sun slowly setting, the last lazy beams of yellow-green light coursing across the sky. The Merchant's Fortress, bathed in deep red, yellow and green tones, appeared like a magical castle, shining with all colours of the rainbow as the beams hit its walls.

In the city streets, taverns opened for the night, many patrons and sailors coming back from a hard day at work, filling the streets with a dark mob of people, walking, running, laughing, riding horses and various other creatures.

Forgotten Realms: Tales of the Dead

@SigilAh, shite. I meant the Two Stars townfolk you escaped with, not the Telflamm cityfolk.

Darn it, I should elaborate things more.

Forgotten Realms: Tales of the Dead

@SigilI mentioned he was known in Telflamm? Where?

Forgotten Realms: Tales of the Dead

Meriv's eyes briefly widened to the size of teacups when he saw the timestop scroll, but he quickly resumed his normal, if even more excited, posture. He examined the scrolls with trembling hands, carefully laying the out for inspection. With a large magnifying glass, the man studied each and every fold on the parchments, grunting here and there.

"Yes yes, the scrolls are worth a fair sum of gold, to be sure. For the Fireball scroll we would be more than willing to offer you 90 gold pieces, and as for this magnificent piece of work, Time Stop, I am sure I can make you happy with 1500 gold pieces! Good price, yes? Of course it is!" he mused as he unsheathed the dagger and inspected it. Meriv kept looking at Keystone, and the dagger, Keystone, dagger. Finally, he put the dagger down and gave the monk his friendliest smile:
"I sense some tension in you, good sir. Relax, we are all friends here. You shall do no harm to us, and we shall do no harm to you! It would be terrible business to make our clients feel uncomfortable." He looked back at the dagger, as if slightly disappointed:
"This weapon is of a fine craft, but nothing I feel comfortable asking more than a hundred gold pieces to identify. By all appearanaces it is a simple echantment. I can assure you the price is a bargain, and remember, if you sell it to us, the identification and appraisal are free!" he mused.

In Keystone's mind, he felt sheer horror from the now so tiny spirit, trying to hide away in her imaginary cage as best she could. Kaylee was afraid of him, possibly moreso than she feared her previous residence. The presence quickly faded away, becoming almost imperceptible to the mind.

Forgotten Realms: Tales of the Dead

@SigilYou have now made it infuriatingly difficult to write for Kaylee. Holy shit, that mental scarring. Glith suddenly seems like a far better option.

Also, I was focusing more on the 'did not want to be the man dispatching such a wizard'.