Having cleared their names with the local authorities--courtesy of Raven and the thieves guild--the heroes spent one last night in the den eating, drinking, and being merry. Talos' strange disappearance was noticed by the party momentarily, but sleep seemed more of a pressing matter than finding their pretty-boy mage, so they turned in for the night.
Talos, meanwhile, had a run-in with the local prankster being talked about all over town. A fountain became a towering pillar of water drawing the attention of some Iron Gate guards, and Talos decided he'd be better off hidden in a nearby alleyway. It was in this alley that he came face to face with the prankster, a metallic purple, cat-sized faerie dragon who took quite an interest in his abilities. After a mostly useless conversation with the dragon, Talos was polymorphed into a dog and then compelled to chase an illusory cat straight into the Gate barracks, rudely awakening them. While pleading his case (as a dog) to the irritated guards, two of them got into a heated brawl. Talos used this opportunity to get out of Dodge. Once the polymorph wore off, he headed to the trail leading up to the mages guild and was met with yet another prankster trick. This time, the entire hillside transformed into a lush forest, making it difficult for him to find his way out. Using his keen sense of direction, however, Talos managed to get to the guild in just under an hour.
Talos engaged two acolytes standing in the guild courtyard in idle conversation, showing them his mysterious glass sphere and asking to speak with Reeser about it. They brought him to Reeser's quarters, had a little chit-chat, and then Talos spent the rest of the night with a summoner who bound the sphere's inhabitant--an imp--to his soul (at the cost of some Constitution).
In the morning, Talos and his new pet met up with Reeser and a few other guild mages in the dining hall for breakfast. They discussed Quar Jezz't and his request to consume Talos' ex-mentor's soul (Weshryn), where to find Weshryn, and a task that the guild asks in exchange for said information.
Meanwhile, the rest of the heroes awoke in the thieves guild fairly rested--except for Fhasys who woke up face-down in a food dish. During the night, Vyreth overheard some folks discussing recent happenings with a missing lumber shipment from a local camp and his curiosity was piqued. Noticing that Talos was still missing, the lot decided it was likely that he'd be at the mages guild... so they headed out to meet up with him.
Once at the mages guild, they inquired about their elven friend and were lead up into the dining hall where Reeser & co. were finishing up breakfast. Introductions were made, information was shared, items identified (werewolf tooth for Fhasys, Cannesh slave ring for Vyreth, and amulet of regeneration for Doc), and at a hefty expense, Fhasys finally had the aboleth's curse lifted from her shoulders. The heroes agreed to the exchange of services--investigate a strange exposed tomb deep in the desert of Olais in exchange for magically sealing the Embershale mine--and a covered wagon was dispatched to meet them outside of town for the journey.
Leaving the mages guild, the lot decided to take a small shopping detour whereupon Doc became enthralled by the faerie dragon. A magical glade suddenly sprung up in the seedier area of Quanlo, drawing Doc's attention and compelling him to wander inside, where he met a talking bunny who mentioned Peter. As the rest of the party caught up, Doc explained that they needed dessert and shiny trinkets for the dragon in exchange for more information on Peter. They decided to hit the bazaar.
Quite a few cakes were purchased from a baker, Vyreth found some spoiled pastries and a large fishing net--presumably to catch the dragon--and Doc stumbled into a mysterious tattooed vendor selling odd bits 'n pieces from a local ruin. Despite being given any real information on the various artifacts being sold, Doc purchased a platinum coin and a glass ring which radiated warmth when held. Shortly thereafter, Doc began to catch his mind wondering to the Ruins of Enra, imagining just how awesome it'd be to go exploring there.
The heroes reconvened outside of the bazaar with their newfound treats and trinkets, and paused for a moment to decide what to do next.
