Pestilence

Thalenir enters, letting in the warm evening breeze. He seems none the worse for wear from an extended stay in Quito, though he seems preoccupied. He orders "anything without fish in it" from Holly in a distant, clipped fashion and finds a seat, where he proceeds to dust the sand off his robe.

Delvin tromps through the doorway grumbling something to himself, and immediately stopping as the scent crawled through his mustache and up his nostrils. The dwarf sputtered at the scent, "oi, not gonna be able to warsh that stench outta me beard for a mest, urgh!" He glanced over the patrons swiftly and spied Thalenir, the cringing dwarf made his way towards his friend and plopped down.

"Oi, Thalenir. First I've seen'o'yer face since landing here, what ye make of all this?" He asked, then lowered his tone a bit as he leaned in to whisper, " and what if the storm sees fit to follow us here?"

Thalenir seems not to notice Delvin for a few moments, then blinks as he becomes aware of his surroundings. "Delvin, yes. Glad to see you made it out in one piece. Charming place, isn't it? Honestly, to hear everyone go on about it so much, I fail to see the attraction."

His eyes grow distant again. "Speaking of the 'storm,' something has been puzzling me lately. It's clear that Secronus is unable to take full possession of the Nexus. Something about finishing the job is eluding him. Perhaps more interestingly, he would have us believe that he just destroyed the best possible place to find an answer to that problem."

Thalenir shrugs. "Anyway, it's just a thought. He certainly has the power to make Jastrey seem destroyed, so I know there's no way to test it. All the same, the prospect is troubling. Where better to hide a secret than in a place thought to no longer exist?"

Some time after the men from Jastrey entered, the tavern doors opened again, but this time for the small Uordeq woman. Binx was without her cloak tonight, mask covering her face aside from her eyes and a tuft of red hair. She did not lift her gaze as she headed for the seat and the end of the bar that she had taken up in previous visits to the tavern. Her own stay in Rica hadn't been as uneventful as she had planned, and the sun and sailors left her in as foul a mood as ever.

Behind the rogue, enters Treyskip. He scans the tavern and frowns when he notices Thalenir.  He sashays to the counter next to the wizard.  "Thank you for leaving me in the desert with no water, elf." he tells Thalenir. 

Delvin offered a hearty little laugh as Thalenir spoke of their surroundings. "Not sure if that rancid scent is comin' from the ocean or the nethers of some of these...", he eyed a particularly skeevy looking lass near the window and gave another cringe, "ladies" he gave a little chuckle, "gotta use the old sniff test if ye want to find somethin' that won't rot yer jibblies" he gave a shrug.
 
His typical lighthearted demeanor vanished once more as the storm returned to the forefront of their conversation, "Aye, it would seem that Jastrey is lost for now, driftin' in the void as it may be, but simple logic leads me to believe that Jastrey wouldn't actually hold those clues. We may be demoralized but I've not lost hope just yet" he gave a wry little grin, "the way I see it is this, why would ye hide the answers to the riddle right next to the riddle itself?" he gave a look of waiting towards Thalenir to see if he was catching on before continuing.
 
"I feel the answers lie scattered throughout the land, preserved on the shards. I'm not entirely certain that Secronus sent us here on his own volition, perhaps it was the nexus acting in self defense, maybe we're here for a reason, to find an answer? Or maybe Keg was feelin' frisky an his desires shaped our path, who knows?" He gave another little laugh. "on a less speculative train of thought, something has occured to me. Secronus has his own army, that was partly why he was able to achieve his victory in Jastrey. I'm thinkin' it might be high time we start forming our own, win the hearts of these people and convert them to our cause. Perhaps even win a few followers for our immortals along the way, those who fight for our immortals fight for our cause". Delvin relaxed in his seat, one hand stroking his beard as he nodded to Treygard in greeting.

Thalenir wrinkles his nose at Delvin's crudeness but allows it to pass without comment. As Delvin discusses more serious matters, he shrugs. "I have a feeling the way forward will be made clear to us if we remain patient. Idle speculation is about as satisfying as… well, the food here, for starters."

Thalenir turns to Treyskip. "In the desert with no water? What ever do you mean?"

The Avalancher stroll into the tavern, uses at the door sniffs the aira procedsto the kitchen.

A pair of locals sitting nearby are staring at the Urdeq. "Thats one of them. Its not just the sailors. I hear its spreading through town. In a few days there won't be anyone left". The man leans in close and whispers to his companion. The pair get up and move to a table on the other side of the tavern. "Holly do we really have to drink with this type? Never thought  I'd see the day, an Urdeq welcomed at the Shady Lady. Your losing your edge Holly"?

Thalenir's elven ears perk up at the locals' words. He casts a meaningful look to Delvin and Treyskip, then rises and moves to sit next to Binx.

"Good evening, Binx. Good to see you're still with us after the last time I saw you. Do I recall correctly that you'd wanted to discuss some business with me involving an enchantment for a ring?"

While his words and demeanor convey nothing out of the ordinary, Thalenir makes a point of catching Binx's gaze. He then gives a very slight nod in the direction of the locals speaking with Holly.

Clouds of smoke rise from Barbaal's pipe as he sits quietly at his table. He stares at two drinks on the table, a mug of ale that is half empty and a glass of red wine that hasn't been touched at all. He spins around at the mention of Binx's name, puffing faster and harder on his pipe. He adjusts his armor and plays with his hair to make sure they look presentable. Finally he musters up the voice to hail the armor clad Uordeq. "Binx!" he calls and motions to the seat across from him with the glass of wine. 

While the rudeness of the locals hadn't gone unnoticed by the pale woman either, Binx had been exposed to dwarves enough at this point to ignore them without batting an eye. She rested her elbows on the bar while she patiently waited to get Holly's attention. Thalenir joining her, however, was a bit of a surprise. She blinked yellow eyes at him a few times as she realized what he was up to. "Yes, actually..." She began to answer, appreciating his efforts, but was cut short by Barbaal calling her. Her shoulders visibly tensed and she squeezed her eyes closed, muttering a few expletives quietely into the fabric over her mouth before turning halfway around in her seat to see him. She had paid no mind to who was already occupying the tavern when she walked in. The sight of the two glasses in front of her left her without words. Thankfully, her silence was nothing unusual.

"Aye, though without insight we may miss an opportunity. Bold as I may be I still don't like going into all this blind" he shrugged his shoulders with a slight clank. "Faith is required I s'pose, yer more of the thinkin sort than I" he gave a little laugh that died as he heard the locals' hushed worry. He nodded to Thalenir before the elf stood to join Binx.

Delvin turned on his stool and put his back against the table and in a surprisingly fluid motion he brought his massive sword up to rest on his shoulder, a broad and cheerfully sinister smile spreading across his features as he watched the locals with one part curiosity and two parts vigilance.

"Triple mezcal, "  Treyskip calls over to the nearest barmaid. As he waits for his drink, he returns his attention to Thalenir. "You left me with a crew of prima donnas and reckless Made.  And..." Treyskip leans in so only the elf can hear.
 
"We already have an  new enemy." he whispers.