Tuesday 16th September Asi van Dit - Male Halfling Thief 2 - Adrian McKinnon Finn Finnegan - Male Halfling Thug 2 - NPC Flung Chow Wong - Male Human Monk 2 (FW TF) - Ian Luxton Halcyon - Female Priestess of Panadine 2 - Matt Carr Jack Rabbit - Male Halfling Thief 2 - Darryl Sherwood Mel Licious - Dwarf Psionicist 1 - Steven Krijnen Polly Ester - Female Human Bard 3 - Andrew Earl DM - Jeff Clendon
"What I'd do," he confided in me one day. "Is to go to da Merchants' Asotiation and da Teaves Guild and get dem boat to compromise.
"At the moment it is costing da merchants money to pay for dere guards. At the moment da teaves is getting nothing.
"If da merchants took half of da guard money and, instead, paid it to da teaves, den dey'd be happy, and da teaves would be getting some money again so dey'd be happy too.
"Make it a win-win situation.
"Since dey don't trust each other too much, dey will need a turd party to do da money transfer. And dat turd party can be us!"
"I don't know..." I muttered. "Sounds dangerous."
"No, it is brilliant!"
Jack wandered off to make arrangements. That was the last time I ever saw him.
Evidently, he went and saw his business acquaintance Bert Earnie, and I heard later that he had met with Morten Frond (of the TG). We never found his body.
I sat in Morten's office. It was later that afternoon.
"You mean assassination?" I asked.
"You betcha, girl."
"Hmmm..." I said dubiously. "I'll get back to you." And wandered off.
Tricking Lawful Good Flung and Halcyon into working for the TG in a purely information-mode is one thing, but killing for money? How could the Benign Benefactors of the Order of REAL possibly sanction that? What possible argument could I give to Flung to make him kill someone in cold blood?
"Oh, well, information is the source of all greed," I muttered to myself. "And in sodden times, the girl with the onion can sow parched paddocks."
There were ten names on the Merchants' Association Board List. I closed my eyes and chose one randomly: Ferdinand Cock.
Ferdinand turned out to be a chandler and had offices in the dock area (shared with his associate Simon Ball). So I tarted myself up, made an appointment, and went and saw him.
I am Lady Peony, spell component merchant out of Specularum.
His guards were negligible, but his homely secretary implied that the guards were hidden or there was magical support. I saw nothing.
Ferdinand Cock was a nice enough sort of middle-aged fellow. When he heard that I was selling cockatrice feathers — by the kilo — his eyes popped out of his head. He slobbered and gibbered as the imaginary gold pieces rolled around in his head.
I left it at that, and told him I'd be back.
That evening, I met up with Flung and Halcyon after their boring day working guarding the MA shops.
"What do you think about evil animals?" I asked innocently.
"Evil animals?" said Halcyon, creases of worry on her pretty face.
"Yeah, cockatrices," I continued. "Evil birds. One peck turns you to stone."
"Not very nice," said Flung. "But they part of nature."
Nonplussed, I continued: "What if I told you that there was a merchant, an evil merchant, in town who trafficked in the evil feathers of these evil birds. The feathers of which can be used to make evil potions that turn people to stone!"
Halcyon gasped.
"I go see him now," stated Flung. "I correct his wor'd-view. Where he rive?"
"Dock area," I said. "Mister Ferdinand Cock, of Cock & Ball Chandlers."
Flung strode off.
Later that evening he returned.
"I now rook for merchant rady," began Flung determinedly. "Rady Peony. She sellw feathers to Mister Cock. She need wor'd-view correction."
"Oh," I said wanly. "Do you know where she is staying?"
"No, but I find out."
So much for that idea.
We looked around.
"Und zey are looking for volunteers to help."
"This job for us," Flung said. "We teach thieves good lesson!"
"I'd better go too," said Halcyon. "There may be injured who need my healing."
"I'll be back," I said hurriedly and skulked off.
I found Asi, who was loitering around with the Emerald whores, and told him about the raid. We shot off and found Morten to warn him. Morten was not at all worried in fact his gung-ho attitude seemed to imply that he wanted the attack.
We headed back to the MA HQ just as the rabble of twenty thugs was leaving, carrying torches, pitch forks and rakes. Flung, Halcyon and Mel among them. Asi and I followed surrepticously in the shadows.
They knew exactly which building was the TG — a worry in itself. This place was supposed to be top secret. They soon broke their way in and a large fight ensued. Flung waded in, too, with the MA men.
The defending thieves had set up some form of pathetic barricade in the large warehouse area. They let loose with a volley of crossbow bolts at the first MA thugs who entered the door.
However, the MA had magical support: Protection From Normal Missiles had been cast on the first two soldiers by Lumpkin (MA wizard). Thus the quarrels bounced off harmlessly.
It was all over in a minute or so. One MA man wounded. Fifteen thief thugs killed. A massacre. One captive.
However, that was only the first of the TG rooms. What other traps lay in wait, deeper in the Guild?