Malta Session 21: 01/02/2018 Dogtown, Jabari’s #7, and the Seafoam Embassy

We begin this week’s session late evening about an hour after Lex’s side plan of getting associated with the local criminal underground to garner information on the Balor and its mysteries. Lex’s conspirators provide him meager rations and bananas as appreciation along with four ‘sea gods’ silver necklaces (20 – 30 gp each). Not long after Lex reunites with the rest of the characters at the North dock.

Our characters decide on a late meal at a street café run by halflings that has dog races in the back called “dogtown”. Lete arranges a couple wheels of cheese for the crew of the Bonded Mind and gambles a bit with Jabari on the dog races. We travel on to the Gypsy’s Heart and pass a statue of two lovers in front of an elite brothel called Ishtar’s Blessing that steals Lete’s attention and 100 gp for the rest of the evening.

At the Gypsy’s Heart Tazed pulls the characters aside and asks for Lete but confides with the rest of the characters that there are in fact two individuals looking for our group. One is at the restaurant, an older fellow he describes as Garamaldi; the other one is a tiefling our characters correctly assume to be Sciortino. Carlo tips Tazed 10 gold for his astute attention to detail.

Garamaldi is not amused. 

The character’s catch up with Garamaldi as Jabari, armed with a divination, detected no illusionary magic thereby confirming the man is Garamaldi and very much alive. Garamaldi explains that he was not at his residence at the time of the pirate attack on Paola. He was able to track the Bonded Mind to Bugibba and logic led him to the Gypsy’s Heart. He has not returned to Paola and believes he and our characters have been targeted and thought it would be best at this time is that everyone thinks he is dead. Garamaldi is very suspicions of Zallas who he believes controls the Tengu there. It was pointed out she was quick to support accusations against us. In Bugibba Garamaldi has allies he can stay with but wanted to make contact with our characters first. Jabari states our intentions on sailing to Selmunett and offers such passage to Garamaldi; he asks the night to ponder on it. Our talk wanes to who our enemies are: Zallas and the tengu, as well as the Hunter and grey warriors and whoever is the Hunter’s client are- Lex intuits that it is likely High Priest Rudjek and Kasok.

Sciortino

After a time the characters enter the Giraffe’s Respite and the company of Sciortino. There are about twenty individuals who are being entertained by the tiefling who seems adept at telling stories. Our entrance attracts a couple of waitress but does not draw overt attention from Sciortino at first but soon excuses himself to a more private setting for a palaver. After indroductions are made our characters expressed curiosity about beating the portal at the Seven Churches three times, “we’ll I was innocent” he maintains. He asks if we are familiar with Ghallis rock? Here he found a solution and purchased magics that ‘blanks his mind’ and used that before attempting the portal and each time it did not take him. And he has never seen it not take someone. We inform him of the conspiracy facing us in Paola and our near run in with the portal. We learn the tengu are usually found on the other side of Malta somewhere between Dingli and Hagar Qim. Sciortino says his passage to Selmunett and length of stay depends on the first night, however offers his services as a guide in the meantime. Before departing we arrange a way of identifying each other.

Later, Jabari keeps watch using the Keep Watch spell and is awake when Lete is delivered at 6 am thoroughly fatigued. In private Jabari returns to Dogtown to heal the injured animal and gets to name a puppy as Jabari’s #7. The rest of the characters awake around 8 am. Carlo has a meeting with an engineer Elding, Jabari checks the docks for the Bonded Mind, Marco intends on visiting Ripae and the embassies there.

In a meeting with Elding the gnome, Carlo learns the mechanics of the fourth and fifth floor of the Gypsy’s Heart at one time had a correlation to the stars and somehow a time cycle. There were several maker’s marks on the device and the gnome believes it to be an ancient creation.

Meanwhile Jabari finds the Bonded Mind was being brought in and will be in berth at midday; Moonshadow is berthed where she was expected.

A short time later Marco, Carlo and Lex head to Ripae and the Italian Embassy looking for Metas at the Seafoam Embassy. Marco inquiries about messenger services equipped with a ready authored letter to Marco’s father in Italy. Carlo grills Metas on the mechanisms on the Gypsy’s Heart, the gnome indicates the Gypsy’s Heart was here before Malta was an island and part of a larger land mass. Talk wanes to an elven makers mark, a mark Metas last seen was in Stormhaven. What’s it purpose? The gnome produces a sketch book where he points out is an elven letter “N” but does not know the original purpose. Bohinest he owns the gypsy’s heart and has expressed interest in selling the business because of its upkeep. Metas believes the Architect to still be alive but thinks he is the most powerful singular being on Earth.

Lex informs Metas of our future travels and a short time later Metas gives Lex a message to a Addelmy and Esterhat and to bring Esterhat back, he believes she will be wanting to return to Malta, its believe she’s in a debtor’s prison- he promises to reward us with 1,000 gp (her debt is 500).

Meanwhile back at the docks, the crew of the Bonded Mind are delighted to find Jabari waiting for them. They tell him they Bonded Mind was tracked for a length but believed they lost the two fast ships around some rocks. Jabari promptly pays the crew their gold and before long the rest of the characters arrive to discuss our next plans: first we exchange our money and leave the next day, this gives the crew a day off.

Going to the Bank at Ripae we exchange 2000 gold Egyptian coins, 2000 silver Egyptian coins 4 Platinum bars each valued at 1000gp, 50 Gold Bars each valued at 100gp, 50 Silver Bars each valued at 10gp, each bar has an Egyptian stamp with cuts that include the crew as an equal share. 10,530 gp total (-10% figured). 2,000 gp each, Evagara gets 530 gp and for ship payment which is 100 gold a week for the entire crew. Later, Metas pays 6,000 for 200 +1 blessed bolts. 3,000 to the crew and 600 split to the characters. All coin are Carthaginian.

When we begin next session it will be the next morning, we plan on leaving for Selmunett tomorrow morning.