With the Troupe walking up the Duergar wrought passage from Thulmur to the fortress in Opal, Ravenna decides to teleport back to Opal to warn the Duergar that the Thulmur Duergar are coming.
She also orders wine from the wine witch to be delivered to the Duergar enclave to help build a celebratory atmosphere and to offer a gift of homecoming to the Duergar.
August 24, 7762
The Duergar “from Below” are united with “the Surface Folk”. What follows is days of story swapping and reminiscing as the two groups of Duergar assimilate into the strange and dynamic heirarchy of their folk. While this is happening, and fearing future mischief, Mar’Khabazza kicks Malacoda out of the group in an attempt to avoid future conflict with what he believes to be a fell demon.
She smiles a grim smile and says as she departs, “It’s a big wide world with many unexplored corners, but the worst place to be is on my bad side.”
August 26, 7762
As a token of their gratitude, Duergar appear out of the earth surrounding the Salt House and begin fusing the stone of the structure and plumb it with hot running water from the waterworks. This work continues every night with 8-10 Duergar arriving after night falls and when the construction is complete, the Salt House will be made of a single piece of solid granite- smooth, featureless and impervious to the unforgiving Upheaval winter.
Mar’Khabazza takes his first bath with piping hot water and enjoys the fruits of their labor. He decides to do a tour of the leaders of Opal to ensure he keeps tabs on sentiment within the city.
August 27, 7762
As is his custom, Magnus pays a visit to Lady Catriona and gives her a Duergar magic trinket he retrieved from the Duergar treasury.
Later, Mar’Khabazza invites Catriona over for dinner who subsequently prods him for information regarding the Duergar. She is concerned that her success of this summer was based on the theft of the Imperial letter and is looking to keep her competitive advantage.
She recommends kicking off a public relations campaign for the newly arrived Duergar “from Below” so they are accepted by Opal and in doing so should arrange it so they would be willing to work for him (and her by proxy).
August 28, 7762
Mar’Khabazza invites the town council for dinner to check in on current events. Postmaster Malowne and Speaker Margrom report that an Imperial Legate has arrived in town with her entourage and has taken over every room and suite of the Captain’s Table as her abode, ordering the removal of all other occupants. She is here to better understand the winter elf assault in Beryl and why Opal is exceeding shipping volumes of iron and steel. Mar’Khabazza gives an abbreviated version of the events that freed the Duergar and the town council gives feedback on his proposal to integrate the new Duergar into Opal:
The Council’s opinions:
Speaker Mar’grom – “I am all for whatever actions keep the town calm”
Postmaster Malown – “The new Duergar from Thulmur are interesting and should be studied”
Overseer Dathrohan – “The Legate should go away so I can get back to running the mine smoothly”
Justiciar Mariel Trueheart – “Mar’khabazza continues to be reckless with the future of Opal.”
Inquisitor Caleras – “The Duergar are worthless. We should focus on Making Opal Great Again.”
Senator Mehr Stonehallow – “Mar’Khabazza has led us this though turmoil and strife. We should follow his lead.”
August 29, 7762
Mar’Khabazza organizes a lunch with the Sept of the Serpent in the blue house. The Sept pays its respect to Ravenna as her powers as the Lady of Knowledge grow. Mar’Khabazza tells them a more arcane, but still incomplete, version of the liberation of Duergar, spinning himself as their liberator and saviour. The Sept tell him that the Legate has been interviewing the leaders of the trade houses and the town itself to build a picture of mining and trade operations in Opal. In addition the Sept reveals more of the details of the civil war Emperor Utuhesh II and his brother Haust the Usurper.
Justiciar Muriel Trueheart warns that Mar’Khabazza is to be summoned to the Legate in his role as senator, stating “The Emperor thinks of nothing but winning the civil war and probably won’t meddle this far north as long as the ore comes. Whatever the Legate is doing, regarding anything non-ore-related, is probably off-script.”
The Sept:
Postmaster Malowne
Merajit the Alchemist
Justiciar Mariel Trueheart
Savenia Loresong
Kelemis the Lost (dead)
Mondaleth the Sage (in the monastery)
Mar’Khabazza, planning for the worst, decides to cache some of the Salt House wealth somewhere remote. Ravenna teleports a small chest of bullion, gems and coins to Camp Two of the climb to the Temple of Eternal Sunshine near a rock formation they dub the Ship’s Prow.
August 30, 7762
Mar’Khabazza is sumoned to the Captain’s Table for a meeting with legatus Augusti pro praetore Kazimira Kupala and her entourage of seven including an ancient pair of twins:
The Legate presses Mar’Khabazza for information about the origin of the Salt House as a formidable trade house, its alliance with House Indi, House Terelaen, and House Thesper, the Battle at the Library, and the Razzik threat. The two dance a dance of words, neither revealing any more than necessary and Mar’Khabazza seems to hold his own. The Legate appears to come to a conclusion and, “In the name of Emperor Utuhesh II” confers the title of Imperial Regent upon Mar’Khabazza. This rank and privilege comes at a price- the Legate demands a 9,000 silver tribute. The Regency consists of the three Jewell Cities: Opal, Garnet and Beryl with the Salt House designated the demesne of Lord Regent Mar’Khabazza.
Legate will also want to talk to Ravenna and Rowan McNabb: Ravenna about being the God of Knowledge and Rowan McNabb about his visit to Tothkubad.
Magnus pays a visit to the Tempest and says hello to Andrea Halloran the bartender. As he flirts with her, Arlaina Darkmoon sidles up to him asking to talk.
She looks healthy and rested, but a little bit haunted and as they sit at a table she tells him that she fears “a threat from Tothkubad” and wants to meet with Mar’Khabazza. He sets up a meet for tomorrow night at the Crow Club.
August 31, 7762
After arranging a private space in the Crow Club from Drelna the Sage, Mar’Khabazza meets with Arlaina. From the inside of her furs she produces a heart-shaped diamond the size of her fist.
Mar’Khabazza recognizes it as the type of diamond heart that is used to create a Shapeless One of the type the group fought below the mines in the Duergar temple in their pursuit of the Duergar shaman Gorboto. She says that this is an upgraded diamond heart that could create a Greater Shapeless One. Magnus offer to house her in the Salt House which she accepts.
September 1, 7762
Visit Duergar keep to determine origins of Shapeless One Heart. Wilda, upon inspecting the heart says only, “This is a craft perfected”.
Asked about how things are, Earthcaller Franzahl reports that there is tension between the two groups: those “from below” and “the surface folk”.
Ravenna suggests that those who are dissatisfied can move to Beryl to help the rebuilding effort.
September 2, 7762
Deciding to help remove the friction between the developing two groups of Duergar, Ravenna teleports herself and Magnus to Beryl to meet with Davian Vaclav. She proposes to him that any Duergar dissatisfied with Opal could move to Beryl to provide aid rebuilding the mining effort. He meets the proposal with enthusiasm and the two work out the details of numbers, arrival dates and other details of logistics. Business concluded, Ravenna has many drinks, gets falling-down drunk and Magnus puts her to bed.