Lowlife, Scoundrel, Bandit Queen

Off to the circus I am then. Except where there exactly will I find our friendly neighborhood dragon? Or should I even go looking for him? Considering he isn't home I probably shouldn't make a nuisance of myself. Yes, I really shouldn't disrupt his time with Sezemat. I'm still curious what exactly their relationship is though. It's a good thing that I don't have to ask the two in person to find out. Well, Probably don't have to. Thus I change my course slightly and head to the downstream waterfront and the tavern there. There is bound to be someone there who ought to know after all.

This other side of the town is quite different. Nothing of the lull I experience upstream is noticeable here. The docks here are as busy as ever in the morning and the tavern is clearly not abandoned either. I head inside and order myself a beer the moment I step through the door. I plan to get something to eat at one of the stalls of the caravan later, but I really need something to tide me over for now. The hearty beer here will do nicely in that regard. Before I can even reach the table in the back I'm one penny poorer but at least I have a full mug in exchange.

The table that is my target is not abandoned either, which is a good thing, now that I come to think of it. Considering that Jerzy and his brother seem fond of sticking others with the job of holding down the fort here. I flash Wiktor, who has the honor to sit around here today, a smile as I sit down with him.

"Wiktor! So good to see you! Everyone else busy again?"

He snorts and laughs.

"You say that almost like I'm not plenty busy myself. Say, I couldn't per chance interest you in taking over for me? Free beer and all?"

That actually isn't the worst offer and I'm already about to say something, but I close my mouth again at the last moment to think about it some more. Would I want this kind of job? Sylwia, while not fond of it, does take over the occasional shift here, in hopes of moving up within the guild. But is that really the right path? Is the job everyone seems to want to stick to someone else the way up? Do I want to be the face of the guild? Or would I rather be the eminence in shadow who sticks others with jobs like this one?

Questions over questions and precious few answers. Who delegated this job to Wiktor? The answer to that one is easy. It probably was Jerzy. Who on the other hand made the man sit here as the face of the guild? I get the feeling I might be on to something here. Who is the actual man or woman in the background, pulling the strings? Is it actually one of those sitting here from time to time? Or is it someone else?

I shake my head again, take a sip from my beer and smile.

"Maybe I'll feel like it one of this days. Probably to poke fun at someone. For the time being though, thanks, but no thanks."

Wiktor sighs and holds his hands to his heart as if I just mortally wounded him only to promptly snort and break into laughter.

"All my hopes, dashed. So anyway, if you aren't here to rescue me from this chore, what else brings you here?"

Now it's my turn to snort in amusement.

"Asking doesn't hurt."

"Unless it does?"

Oh goodness gracious. He is a barrel full of laughs today. I almost choke on my beer this time around, as I fight not to break into laughter mid sip.

"You would have noticed if that were the case. Never mind though. I was just over at the other end of town and ran into one of Barandon's lads near the Paws and Pawn. He let me know that Beldragor was out seeing Sezemet. And while I don't want to disturb the two by making a nuisance of myself, I can't help but realize that I don't even know what exactly the relationship of these two is."

That of course is not quite true, I learned from Rysia a little while ago, that Sezemat supposedly is Beldragor's nagging older sister. I just want to confirm it through another source. Oh and the casual little white lie earns me some progress with my [Bluff] skill too. Well, I'll take what I can get.

If Wiktor notices he doesn't let on to it. It's either that he doesn't notice or maybe he doesn't really care. He just shrugs and provides an equally casual answer.

"She is his older sister. Half sister by the same mother, probably, but don't quote me on that. She is the overprotective nagging kind. It's stressing him a little, but I'm sure she means well."

He takes a sip from his own beer to wet his lips before he continues.

"Our scaly little friend feels a little inadequate when in her presence too. When someone compares him to her too. You have seen the caravan setting up camp just outside town, yes?"

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I nod and drink a sip too and he is quick to continue.

"Well, then you probably don't have a hard time guessing that she is wildly successful. And while Beldragor is doing quite well for himself he doesn't think he can compare."

I take another sip and sigh.

"Maybe he really shouldn't compare himself to her? I mean, she is the big sister, right? She had a head start."

Wiktor nods with enthusiasm.

"Right? My words! But I guess that just isn't how he is. Or maybe it isn't how dragons are in general. I'm not quite sure. Anyway, it's probably for the best not to bring that up with him too much."

For a brief moment we both drink in silence. Before I can think too much on what else I could inquire about though, Wiktor turns the conversation around.

"So, you were out of town for a bit? Business for the other guild? Come across anything good?"

Of course he would be interested. One way or another it's his job when sitting here to coordinate the exchange of information after all. Or at least that is part of his job anyway. And my quest and its outcome certainly could be of interest to him or rather the thieves guild in general.

Since I'm not opposed to participating in this little dance I decide to not hold back. I'm a pretty good dancer after all. Well in the figurative sense anyway. In the literal sense, I have no actual clue what dancing is about around here. I probably should change that given the chance. Maybe lady Izolda wouldn't mind some formal dancing lessons in addition to the lessons on swordsmanship? The young lord certainly could benefit from it. Never mind though, that's a topic for another day. I need to focus on the questions at hand.

I cover up my little slip by taking another sip from my beer, then I begin.

"Well, you probably already are aware of the construction of that new granary, right? The surprising number of bricks that seems to take? Well, someone on the city council wanted an old quarry out in the woods investigated too. I think it was last used when the wall around the inner city here was built? I'm tempted to think that someone has more than just the construction of a new granary in mind. But you'd probably best talk to someone who is an expert on that."

Wiktor nods and orders himself a fresh beer. His old mug is empty it seems.

"Yes, there are some ongoing discussions about what could be behind this. That the council agreed to get an architect from elsewhere instead of someone local is a little suspicious too. So, this quarry?"

I take another small sip from my mug, drinking much slower than Wiktor. I want to make it last after all and I don't want to end up drunk first thing in the morning either.

"Right, the quarry. Turns out there is another little spot of trouble out there. Measuring perhaps twenty paces, give or take, from the snout to the very tip of the stinger at its tail, with wings about half again as wide. Claws, teeth, thorny scales and not nearly as cultured and well mannered as our local pawnshop dragon."

Wiktor almost chokes on his beer, delivered just in time by one of the serving girls, as I finish. He breaks into a coughing fit and I give him the time he needs to recover, having a sip from my own mug in the meantime.

"A wyvern … for real?"

I simply nod in confirmation.

"Including nest and eggs. The adventurer's guild already has a quest to capture it and the eggs up. As far as I can tell, the local lords and ladies of the frontier were in a serious bidding war during the night. Might be that most of them didn't get a whole lot of sleep. Seems Sera Sonia of Starshard won in the end, only after Ser Sewerin of Silver Lining drove the reward up sky high though."

Wiktor nods but takes another moment to properly catch his breath before he answers.

"That sounds likely. These two are nurturing a serious grudge. The guild wouldn't stop them either. Their fees are a share of the reward after all. The higher the better as far as they are concerned. You mentioned, eggs. How many? And it's not an emergency quest this time?"

I answer without beating around the bush this time around. I already had my fun with him after all.

"Three eggs. And no, it's not an emergency quest. Seems there are more than enough capable adventurers in town and the reward is more than a little tempting. It probably won't be long before a group sets out to take care of the issue."

I sigh.

"You know, I actually feel a little sorry for the wyvern. I mean, sure it's damn scary. I wouldn't want to be caught out in the open by it. This close to town and the outlying farms it's probably only a matter of time until there is some serious trouble. I still feel bad thinking about it being caged together with the young ones, just so some lady can have some aerial cavalry."

Wiktor snorts. That snort does not just express amusement though.

"I'm not sure about being sorry about it being caged. You are right though, this close to town it's a disaster just waiting to happen. About that other thing … that's troublesome too. Ser Sewerin with his gryphon knights is already upsetting the balance of the frontier in troubling ways. If Sera Sonia gets her wyvern cavalry in turn, that would further upset the scales of power around here. All the other free cities would be at a serious disadvantage."

It's his turn to sigh.

"I just don't think we can easily do anything about it. Sure, it might be in our best interest, if the wyvern were to maybe break free on the road, someplace far from the nearest town. I doubt that would go over without bloodshed though. Interfering that way now would put us at odds with the adventurers' guild. That's not a desirable prospect either."

He scratches the back of his head.

"Say, you are probably going to see the sights and wonders of Sezemat's caravan, right? If you run into Jerzy or Jurand, his brother, could you pass along a request for a formal meeting? I think we have some talking to do, to figure out how to best go about this."

I finish my mug and get back up.

"Sure thing. I'll let them know if I run into them. Do you want anyone else to be in the know too?"

He shakes his head, already lost in though.

"No, just the two. If they want to involve anyone else they'll pass along the word on their own. You just pass along the request if you see either and otherwise simply enjoy the wonders of Sezemat's caravan."