25 Arodus, 4718 (Starday)
As the tall, slender figure approached us they pulled down their hood revealing the sharp features of an elf. I’m not entirely sure how they managed to hide their long, flowing silver hair underneath that hood. They knew our names, and when pressed, said they were an associate of Lady Morilla’s and had been tasked by Martella to keep a watch on the Senate Building for our exit. They introduced themselves as Liria, and said Martella was supposed to send a message when she had secured a safe place for our elven friend to take us to.We told them there was a good chance that Martella was in danger, and they offered to take us to Lady Morilla instead.
I wasn’t surprised when Liria led us to the Westpark District of the city. It was where the nobility of Oppara kept their estates, and the best cafes and eateries in the city could be found there as well. I also wasn’t surprised when we arrived at the Gilded Griffin Inn, the most luxurious inn in the city. The building was akin to a noble estate, and a statue of a griffin adorned the front of the building. I gave Oliver a nudge, warning him to watch out. He played along, joking that the creature was back for its revenge.
With the state of our bloody clothes, I’m honestly surprised we were allowed entrance to the building at all, but the guards seemed to either recognize Liria or were told they would be coming. The innkeep was wearing fine livery that could have rivaled some of the lesser nobles’ clothing at the gala. He quickly greeted us, blocking our access to the stairs leading up to a lounge where we could hear voices and smell the scent of cherry tobacco.
When we told him we were there to see Lady Morilla, he instead escorted us to a beautiful garden, filled with exotic birds, flowers, and gorgeous lawn furniture gilt in gold. I almost felt bad sitting on it in my current disheveled state. Almost.
We spoke with Liria while we waited for Lady Morilla to arrive. They danced around our questions regarding their association with the Pathfinder Society. It seems that some in the city have decided that the Pathfinder organization is behind the attack on the senate. Where some of these ridiculous rumors come from I’ll never know, but they spread like wildfire among the nobility.
We chatted for a few moments while serving staff brought in trays filled with various pastries and finger sandwiches and took our drink order. I didn’t realize how hungry I was until the food was placed before us, and I eagerly picked out a few sandwiches. Not long after this, Lady Morilla arrived in the garden.
Oliver had been the only one among us to really converse with her last night, even though we had been seated in the balcony together during the vote. Quick, formal introductions were made before we told her of the situation with Martella. Lady Morilla wasn’t aware that Martella had the magical senate badges, so we quickly explained how they worked to her. She agreed that Martella had likely been attacked while sending us the message.
Lady Morilla told us what happened to her during the attack. She had some associates with her, and I remembered Martella mentioning that in one of her messages. While we had come to the conclusion that whoever the halfling assassins had been working for knew of the plan, Morilla believed that there were senators who were also aware of what was going to transpire. She said there were a great many traitors that night, including Vernisant, who tried to kill Princess Eutropia and those with her. When we asked if he had simply taken advantage of the chaos, she mentioned that he had been wearing Arnisant’s platemail armor. Lady Morilla told us that he had been dealt with, and I cannot say that I am sorry about that outcome.
Once they made their escape, Lady Morilla took Princess Eutropia somewhere safe. My brother and Senator Zespire had taken their leave, going to see what they could do to assist the guards. I imagine that Remilliard is back in the Senate Building, doing what he can to help. They had come across a group of the serving staff hiding from the sellswords, and Martella had taken them with her when she and Lady Morilla parted ways.
We told Lady Morilla of our encounter with the assassins, and showed her the note that we had found. It seems for certain now that one, or possibly more, of the “servants” Martella took with her were actually members of the assassins and attacked her once they reached her safe house.
We asked Lady Morilla if she had any idea where the “dig” location could be.She told us that there are a great number of places in Oppara that have words such as dignity in their names. However, Morilla knows several of Martella’s aliases, and that she owns property in the city. She agreed to use her contacts to try and narrow down our search. She bid us to meet her again in three hours, and she should have something for us.
As we were leaving, she said “nobility united” and it stirred something in my memory about this being a phrase used in one of the many secret societies among the Taldane nobility. I didn’t really think much of it, until Oliver exclaimed “the Sovereign Court!” loud enough to startle me. Lady Morilla explained that she is part of this organization that is working to unite the nobility of various nations to a common cause, for the good of them all. It seems like quite the undertaking, and I wish her luck. Verity almost seemed insulted that none of us had been invited to join such a group, but Morilla mentioned that none of us are really “movers and shakers” among the nobility, and she is quite right. I have spent nearly the last two decades focusing on raising my son.
Lady Morilla was kind enough to offer us the use of her carriage to take us back to the Silent Horse Inn, and once we arrived we all split off to our own rooms. I enjoyed a long shower, and put on a fresh pair of clothes, far more suited to “adventuring” than what I was wearing at the Gala. I did take advantage of the inn’s services to have a stylist come do my hair. I can do it myself, but quite frankly after last night and this morning I felt like being a little pampered.
When it was nearing the time to return to Lady Morilla, we all gathered together back in the lobby. Everyone had freshened up, and Verity had recovered the glaive she had been missing as we made our way through the archives.
In the carriage, we had a discussion about the heir to the throne. The senate did pass the motion to revoke primogeniture, but it wasn’t ratified. If Stavian has adopted the High Strategos, he also has a claim to the throne. The senate would need to vote to name him the heir, but they could easily vote to ratify the new law. As it stands, both Princess Eutropia and the High Strategos would be on equal footing. To complicate matters further, there are at least twenty-five families who have members of their house that could make a claim on the throne. I thought for a moment, counting down on my fingers, before informing Oliver that technically he had a claim to the throne as well. The head of House Darahan is a woman, if the law to change primogeniture isn’t passed, she couldn’t claim the throne, but Oliver could. He seemed to mildly panic at this idea, which made me smile.
I am very concerned about the future of our nation. As far as anyone in the public knows, Princess Eutropia has vanished, while the High Strategos has rallied the Phalanx guards and restored order to the city. Verity pointed out that this is his job, and yes, it is, but is that how the people will see it? Perception is everything.
I can only hope that Lady Morilla has found some clues to where we can find Martella. The sooner we can save her, the soon we can begin to help Princess Eutropia, and all of Taldor.