The roads of East Port were so full of noise, with hundreds of cityfolk making their way through, going to work, ing back from woing to meet a friend, leaving their meeting with a friend, making their way to the tax office to pay their taxes, making their way to the tax offipin about how they had already paid their tax and have the receipts to prove it.

  Adam spotted a rge number of dogs, cats, and even goats, most being led around by their owners, save for many of the cats, who zed around freely. Whatever droppings of the animals were quickly swept away to the side, or near an alley, though some particurly det cityfolk swept them into a small sack full of hay or dead greehey had filled the sack with in order to prevent the excrement from leaking through.

  ‘Damn, that’s a lot of-,’

  Adam heard a squeal of shock beside him, snapping his head to find Kitool holding up a boy of seven ht, whled against the Iyrman’s grip.

  “Let go a’ me, ya bloody tieves! What’cha doin’ catg a good likkle kid loik me?” the young boy said, still trying tle against the Iyrman, who had so suddenly appeared to snatch him up.

  As the boy pined, several dirty looking children all swarmed around the group, pining towards them, all the while acg them of being outsiders.

  “Let go of the gem,” Kitool said, her voice low and stern.

  The young boy let it go, and while the hands of the nearby urs blurred, they could not match the speed of the Iyrman, who had also felt the boy’s muscles rex, giving her a head start in snatg the falling gem.

  “What a bunch of cute kids,” Adam said, eyeing up the little ones. ‘Damn, Kitool wasn’t messing around when she said she knew a way to catch them quickly. That’s Iyrmen for you…’

  The young boy stopped struggling, noting the woman’s attire, as well as her tattoo. “Ain’t got no business wiv ya, miss. Was jus’ pi’ up tha’ gem the mista dropped, tha’s all.”

  “Well, I appreciate that,” Adam replied, his eyes sing across the children’s faces, some of them scattering away, not wanting any business. “Now that we’re speaking face to face, I’d like to meet with your boss.”

  “Sum kinda mistake here, mista, we ain’t got no boss.”

  “You’ve got no boss like I haven’t got no gems,” Adam said. “I would appreciate it if you could brio your boss, since I have some business I’d like to discuss.”

  “Ain’t got no boss, but what kinda business are ya wantin’ ta discuss?”

  “The business of gold, young man,” Adam replied, fshing a polite smile.

  Persuasion Check (Charisma)D20 + 6 = 12 (6)

  “Like I says, ain’t got no boss, mista,” the boy said, pulling himself away from Kitool, nodding his head to the trio, before bag away and scattering. The other children scattered too, all save for one child, a child who seemed to be about seven or so held out his hand.

  “You takio the boss?”

  “Ain’t got no boss, but ah’ll take ya to ‘im.”

  Adam held out a silver . “You take me to the boss properly and I’ll hand you a gold once I’m done speaking with him.”

  “ht.”

  Adam slipped the silver into the boy’s hand before the boy quickly began to scamper away, though not too quickly, allowing the group to follow him, though at a quicker pace. They made their way through many alleyways, dug and dodging all kinds of clotheslines, as well as stepping aside various barrels and crates, and homeless figures, whicreased before they finally came across an alley filled with tents.

  As the young boy led them, the unmistakeable sound of a young woman crashing against a tent filled the area, causing some of the homeless to scatter. Adam gnced over, noting a pair of thuggish fellows, heavily wounded, gring at a young woman who anting, also heavily bruised. She was half scious, having beeen quite terribly until she was almost blue.

  The young boy stopped.

  One of the thuggish men, wearing an earring over his left ear, eyed up the trio of newers, who were far too to be around these parts. He reached down to his club. “Who in the under realms are you?”

  “I’m Adam, pleasure to meet you,” Adam replied, almost smirking as the fellow reached for his club.

  The fellow narrowed his eyes, before noting the appearance of the Iyrman, and then the amulet around the other woman’s chest, that of Mother Soza. “Nothing to see here. Move along.”

  “Actually, I’m here to speak with your boss,” Adam said, eyeing up the pair of thugs, who seemed quite capable, sidering they wore thick clothing, carried clubs, and were built almost as wide as Nobby. ‘They’re probably not sckers, at the least. I mean, damn, look at those arms! Wider than people’s thighs!’

  “You got an appoi?”

  “Obviously not,” Adam replied, gng at the young woman. “She did a number on you?”

  “You looking for trouble, Aswadian?”

  “I’m no Aswadian,” Adam replied.

  The fellow gnced up at the scarf around Adam’s head, keeping his ears hidden, ailted his head. “You’re in the wrong neighbourhood, I think.”

  “Look,” Adam said, tossing over an obsidian gem. “Keep an eye on her, I think she might be what I’m looking for. Now, are you going to take me to your boss, or are you going to expin to him why you let a man with a pouch full of gems go without emptying it.”

  “You empty it now and head on your way.”

  Adam smiled, reag up to his neck, before pulling on the of his amulet, before revealing the obsidian symbol of Baktu, letting it y over his shirt. He crossed his hands over his navel, eyeing up the thug before him. “Go ahead. Try it.”

  Kitool he way the homeless were eyeing Adam up, though made no move to step forward, as they had spotted the young woman’s tattoos. The thugs also gnced around to the women, the Iyrman and priest, and narrowed their eyes towards Adam. This erhaps the most fusiing they had ever had. Some guy wao meet with their boss, with an Iyrman bodyguard, which made sense, but also a Priest of Life?

  “…”

  The thug felt the gem within his hand, squeezing it tight in hand. His eyes remained focused on Adam’s expet gaze. The young man was rexed, too rexed. Did he not uand they were outnumbered at least three to ohere was the Iyrman, he supposed, but the group were all unarmed, save for the priest, who wore a mace at her side, and carried a shield on her back, though her cloak hid its fabsp;

  “I’m sorry to show you such a terrible sight,” the thug finally said. “She came to cause trouble, but we dealt with it.”

  “Keep her to one side, I’d like to speak with her ter,” Adam said. “I’ll pay your boss accly.”

  This young man smelled of trouble, but that was fine. Once he was inside, he’d be surrounded by far more capable fellows, and he’d have to ge his tune once he uood his position.

  “I’ll take you to the greeting area, mister…”

  “Adam,” Adam replied. ‘Mister sounds kind of like a cool ame. The Mister.’ Adam pulled out his book, writing it down, the thugs around him giving him a queer look.

  Adam followed the thug ihe other thug following behind Kitool, whht up the rear. They made their way through one room of a building into another, where Adam spotted about ten unscrupulous fellows, six men, four women. They all wore thick clothing, while a couple wore leather with metal discs, and one wore . Each carried clubs, daggers, or axes. The woman in carried a shortsword, keeping a hand over the hilt. There was also a young boy, perhaps nine or ten years old, who sat quietly beside a desk.

  “Would you mind bringing a pair of seats for the dies?” Adam asked.

  The thugs gnced between one another, still noting the pyful tone of voice Adam held, even while surrounded by ten others. One of them locked the door from behind, the tension in the air growing thibsp;

  “Sister Vonda, do you have Spirit Sentinels prepared?”

  “Yes,” she firmed.

  “Mnn,” Adam replied, affirmatively. “A great spell for such close spaces, just like Fireball.”

  “No killing, Adam.”

  Adam gnced back towards her, and then her amulet, before smirking to the others. He brushed along his own amulet. “The sheer audacity of a Priest of Life telling a Priest of Death not to kill. It’s alright, I’ve got a few diamonds t a couple of them back.”

  “No need for such threats, mister Adam,” the thug said, the fusion filling him. “I’ll be getting the boss now.”

  “Careful with your words, boy, unless you want to be losing that tongue of yours,” the woman with the said.

  “No offence, but you’re not paid enough to be threatening me.”

  “Paid more than you.” She eyed Adam up. His clothing was det, but not anything special. Except, it did seem to be of Iyrman design, just like the woman beside him.

  “Yeah? How much?”

  “None of your business.”

  “Like I said, not enough.”

  The woman stood up, but the door opened, revealing an ht felloore heavy fur coat over his breastpte made of scale. They weren’t any scales, but hydra scales, with silver along the trim. Rivers of golden neckces fell down across his breastpte, and at his side was a bde, with a gem set within the pommel. He had a shaven face, his hair long and thick, his eyes dark, but full of greed, and a smile which revealed his arrogance, and a silver tooth.

  “I heard we had guests!”

  Mister Trouble?