ASSASSINS!

• Characters: Alyssic, Aramir, Gallipolas, Lazbin, Mariel, Rathgillian
• NPCs: Circle of Holundi leaders, Gorbin Nolt, Loothum, Ninove, Saluth
• Synopsis: After hearing the grim news from Zedrick Neely, the Defenders gather at the Verse to plan their operation to infiltrate Westgate. Over the waning hours, they are soon alone as all of the other patrons have left on this snowy night. The blasting of a battle horn alerts them to the floating horseman drifting past the windows of the establishment. Springing to action, the group prepares for an assult via the front door only to be ambushed from behind. The coziness and charm of the Verse is now an obstacle between the attackers and the Defenders as the mass of tables and chairs proves to impede them. Another assassin emerges from a rented room and targets Lazbin for death, poisoning him with a dagger strike. Gorbin Nolt joins the fray, defending his bar by shifting to bear form. The assassins are wittled away, one at a time. Order is restored and Gorbin presents facts from the rented room. One of the assassins, Gish, was using Westgate ledgers for payment, ledgers from House Dhostar. The other three assassins were staying at the Cracked Helm, and asking around town about certain adventurers. Outside Rathgillian confronts Ninove who begs for secrecy and addresses the Defenders. She planned for the illfated attack by underselling the abilities of the Defenders, insuring the use of ill-prepared and inexperience hirelings. Finding the Dhostar ledger, she informs the group that House Dhostar fell, replaced by House Cormaeril. Lord Targeth Cormaeril heads that house; he must have hired the assassins. She says that only Houses loyal to the Dragon Coast Coalition are receiving benefits, as the entire leading faction of Westgate has been subplanted by the Coalition. Many of the once-powerful merchant class are now left fighting for scraps. In order to retain her status as a spy, Ninove needs to be successful in returning Saluth to the protection of Westgate. As her cover has potential to be exposed the longer she is with the Defenders, Ninove requests that Saluth be freed as he is the master scryer. His abilities are now useless if the Defenders are adorned with Mikailis’ amulets of non-detection. The group agrees to release Saluth, with the caviat that he experience Lazbin’s touch of the feeble-mind. They trudge through the snow to the Disden farmstead and present their case to Mikailis and Loothum. The gnome goes wide-eyed and vanishes from sight. Merty is instructed to release an incapacitated Saluth, who is immediately preyed upon by the blood mage, Lazbin. Drooling and incoherent, Saluth is brought back to the Verse where Loothum and Ninove are is a deep lovers embrace. Through tears and rejected pleas and bargains, Ninove gathers Saluth and vanishes. Loothum explains their romantic history and the reveal that they both believed each other dead. The gnome wizard’s long-lost love is now an agent of the enemy.
• Encounters: four bard assassins
• Achievements: thwarted their own assassination attempts, uncovered the attackers benefactor, bolstered Ninove’s value to the forces of Mystenaculis and gained working knowledge of the new political structure of Westgate.