The Red Hand had been made aware of Demetrius' return to Quanlo and had planned an elaborate scheme to profit off of his misfortunes. Since Doc was wanted in the murder of Draven Hensely--the head of a local strong arm organization called Slabtown--a sizable bounty was out for his arrest and the guild wanted a cut. A letter was drafted to a key witness in the murder, Orin Thren, aimed at using him to clear Doc's name in exchange for the bounty. Unfortunately, Doc had since become wrapped-up in a group of unlikely compatriots who took it upon themselves to stir up even more trouble with the Iron Gate by murdering a caravan of slavers and subsequently evading arrest. The Iron Gate was now on full alert and new bounties had been posted for each suspect, including one "mysteriously disappeared" mage (Talos). Needless to say, things had quickly become very complicated and the potential for profit quadrupled for the Red Hand.
Raven had dispatched Levin to secure Demetrius, but got a bit more than he'd bargained for. He decided to come clean with the (now defunct) plan to clear Doc's name in exchange for the bounty, trusting that the ragtag group had enough sense to invent a contingency plan. Putting the guilds' bargaining chips on the table--loaner equipment, contacts and information, access to the group's stolen belongings, and desire for both gold from the bounties as well as insider leverage into Slabtown (courtesy of Doc)--Raven asked that the party come up with a proposal in exchange for clearing all of their names. Finishing dinner, Raven offered to also return with a writ detailing the specific accusations and bounties within an hour's time and left the heroes to huddle.
This was clearly a complex and befuddling set of circumstances for the heroes. They sat around the table for a good hour, first learning more about Demetrius' history with Quanlo and Slabtown and then detailing their options. The first thing discussed was gold; specifically, how much of their own bounties they wanted for themselves once the deal was done. Doc quickly decided that he would be more than willing to provide insight into Slabtown as the primary bargaining chip, seeing as he wanted nothing to do with the seedy organization, and Vyreth expressed deep concerns over the authenticity of the Red Hand's offer. Vyreth asked for some sort of guarantee or collateral just in case the guild decided to pull a fast one over on them, and decided that their missing equipment could play such a role. An hour or so had passed by this time, at which point Raven returned to the table with the writ of accusations totaling nearly 1,700gp in total bounties! The group had a few questions answered and points clarified, then Raven retired for the night leaving them to finalize their proposal.
As the party slept, Fhasys' keen ears woke her to the sound of a muffled conversation involving some strange occurrences around town. It seemed as though pranks were being played on the townsfolk by some unseen creature or force, causing mischief and completely befuddling the local authorities.
Come morning, the group made their way out of the dirty common "cavern" space where they'd slept back into the dim lighting of the central chamber and found Raven awaiting them at a table. Over breakfast, they discussed the terms of their freedom. Demetrius was nominated as the chief negotiator, proposing that the party offer the following in exchange for clearing their names:
- The Red Hand would first secure the party's equipment from the Iron Gate barracks as a down-payment on the deal.
- The heroes (except for Doc) would hand deliver the guild's letter to Orin, forcing his hand in admitting guilt for the murder of Draven and thus clearing Doc of the murder charges.
- Demetrius would remain in the den during this time and divulge the inner-workings of Slabtown so that the Red Hand could assume control of the organization.
- The party would take a 90/10 cut of the bounties (in their favor).
- The Red Hand would work their magic in clearing all remaining crimes.
Raven thought the supplies request made sense and immediately agreed to that provision, and salivated over the thought of being basically handed Slabtown on a silver platter, but the cut of the bounties was essentially the opposite of what he'd been thinking. After all, the guild's primary interest in orchestrating this whole deal was gold. Raven and Doc argued over the bounties for a good long while, both posturing and intimidating to gain advantage, but--taking advantage of a slip in Doc's resolve, Raven made a play which forced him to second-guess their position. In the end, the group agreed to a 50/50 split in addition to details on Slabtown, Raven drafted a contract which the party signed, and fetched the sealed letter for Orin.
The heroes (sans Demetrius) headed out to deliver the letter while Doc stayed behind to have a chat with Raven. Talos took the lead some 20' ahead of Vyreth and Fhasys, all under cover of Vyreth's magical shroud. They encountered a heavily armored Gate guard along the way, accompanied by some type of mage, who seemed to notice Talos approaching. Talos, in a moment of fast-thinking, used Suggestion to motivate their hasty retreat and they made their way to Orin's home. Fhasys scouted the perimeter looking for alternate means of entry while Talos and Vyreth stood watch. All she ended up finding was a half-open window on the second story. Fhasys convinced Vyreth to give her a boost but she missed and the two collapsed to the ground. Determined to try again, Vyreth gave her another boost in which she barely hung on to the window sill and pulled herself inside.
Meanwhile, back in the den of the Red Hand, Doc had finished explaining which buttons and levers to pull in order to assume control of Slabtown to Raven. The two continued conversations over drinks talking about Quanlo, the Iron Gate, and catching up on current events and rumors. Doc was given more detail regarding the "Quanlo prankster" and, to his surprise, his old friend Peter. Some scouts that had come back from a lumber camp in the nearby Ragneron forest had stumbled upon the man strolling through a particularly pretty glade, whistling to himself and looking happy as can be. They positively identified Peter, but remained hidden until he'd passed so didn't have a chance to speak with him. As their conversation wound down, Doc was finally given access to the Red Hand equipment stores (at a discount) and was handed a gold religious medallion of mysterious origin that radiated warmth when hung from his neck.
Fhasys discovered a ransacked and mostly quiet second floor, but heard faint whispers and shuffling coming from downstairs. She descended to the first floor which, again looked as if it'd been ransacked, and proceeded to snoop around for hidden doors. Discovering a latched basement door beneath a rug, Fhasys finally opened the front door and let the others inside. She yanked the door open to the surprise of two guards standing at the base of the stairs (who immediately scattered), Talos sent a light-bubble into the darkness, and Vyreth cast sleep on... somebody.
Fhasys cautiously headed down the stairs and discovered four guards--two standing shaken, weapons partially drawn, and two trying to wake up the (now sleeping) Orin. Dialogue ensued. Fhasys repeatedly attempted to intimidate the guards to hand over Orin, while the guards postured to obtain the letter first. Hitting a stand-off, Vyreth pulled out his big guns and transformed into a bear, letting out a loud roar after poking his upper torso into the entrance. The roar was enough to snap Orin out of it, and he approached Fhasys to read the letter. Understanding what must be done, Orin sent one of the guards out to notify the Iron Gate of his whereabouts and the heroes headed back to the den to report to Raven.
On the way back to the thieves guild, the crew was nearly spotted by another regiment of guards, but something very odd happened as they walked past... In the blink of an eye, the well armored lot was reduced to their undergarments by some unseen force who then let out a devious cackle. The guards, in a moment of clear shock and embarrassment, took off running leaving the party completely confused.
The crew reassembled in the den, explained the goings-on to Raven who in turn gave them their equipment and supplies as-per the plan. Raven advised them to lay low for the rest of the day and through the night until word of their innocence made it up the food chain, so they ate and drank in good spirits. Talos slipped off at some point during the festivities to "go to the bathroom", and a couple hours later Fhasys begun to notice his absence. But, for the most part, the now inebriated lot really could care less and let him be. Talos, under a cloak of invisibility, made his way through town and to the gates of the mages guild to speak with Reeser about his strange little glass sphere.
