Thoradin can hear the oars of the boat and the applause from the audience. He looks up the post and sees the lamps illuminating the deck. Further along is the dance hall where the others are.
Upstairs in the dimly lit dancehall, Shuki Bigballs and Bendy Wendy have the audience in raptures after the performance.
Faylor Swiftsong is unhappy and storms off. Bendy Wendy does a somersault. Shuki sings a version of Innocent man (innocent cat). Bendy Wendy begins to play the horn.
Miss Moss slinks to the back of the room and notices that she can’t see Thoradin. She looks between peoples legs to see if she can see Thoradin’s legs. She can’t. She sees no sign of any croupiers of staff being allowed to watch. She starts looking around to find him. She spots one of the halflings and gets a twinge. On the side of the room, Pow Ming is looking at Miss Moss.
Lia distracts and some of the crowd tries to get her to join in dancing. Whoo yeah! Pow Ming looks around. Miss Moss sneaks away and comes to two security guards who stop her. She tells them she’s looking for the bathroom then is directed back downstairs. She goes out onto the deck to see what else is happening and begins to look around. She creeps around and puts her ear to the roof as she gets further along. She hears nothing.
Meanwhile, Thoradin tries to climb up to see if he can find a way into the room. Looking in he sees purple curtains and portraits hanging on the wall, as well as one tasteful nude tapestry. He hoists himself gracefully through the window into the room behind the curtain. He hears someone moving and footsteps with someone heading in his direction. Thoradin begins talking, the other man in the room shouts “Demon!”
Thoradin steps out and sees Dryland with the Octopus sitting on his shoulder. He looks very worn out. There are papers with scrawled writing. Thoradin produces a small flask of whiskey and offers it to Dryland.
In the centre of the room is an aquarium with a reef set up inside it, sitting on a table in the middle of the room. It’s the house of the octopus. There are several tasteful nude tapestries in the room and many portraits of austere, serious faces. On the other side of the room is a silk hammock. There is a hibachi style stove with a jerry rigged chimney. He picks up the chair he was sitting on, spins around and throws it at Thoradin. It is a feeble throw and they continue to talk.
As they talk, he says has had his octopus for many years, maybe twenty. They talk. Dryland says that the Queen is dead, murdered by the Kraken. King Hecaton is shackled to the foul ship the Malkoth, you’ll find him on board. It floats endlessly in the trackless sea.
Dryland says he is ready to die, he begins to vomit all over Thoradin then gets a blood nose and collapses dead.
Thoradin takes the curtains and tries to clean himself up.
Back in the dance hall, Leshanna and Gunther notice a disturbance in the room. Pow Ming begins to run towards the hallway. Leshanna moves in the same direction. Gunther starts making random code bird calls. All the crowd joins in. Bendy Wendy begins playing her horn and they free-style a rap. The message was that something is amiss, but the crowd is right into it now.
Pow Ming signals at the guardsman and one draws a sword. She turns and looks at Leshanna and gestures to the guards. Pow Ming enters the room and stares at Thoradin in horror – he is just rifling through the drawers and Dryland is dead.
Leshanna is in the corridor, Thoradin casts calm emotions and the guardsman and Pow Ming all become indifferent and Pow Ming says, “Oh that’s a shame.”
In the corridor the guardsman discourage Leshanna from going through, then get the munchies.
Shuki continues performing and is happy to be there for at least twenty songs. Londer makes his way to the hallway. Bendy Wendy blends into the crowd. Miss Moss bird calls from the roof to try to work out where everyone is. She thought about the bird call, then did the call and definitely heard it. No-one else did except Lia, who was getting a bit antsy and sick of being Bendy Wendy. She goes to find Miss Moss and is hoping to get her weapons back. She scales out on the roof to join Miss Moss.
Shuki continues doing Billy Joel covers.
Londer meets Leshanna on her way back towards the ball room, in the corridor as the guardsman are walking away to get something to eat.
Pow Ming remains calm but still wants an explanation. Thoradin commands her to hide and be as quiet and still as a statue behind the curtain. She remains indifferent and then goes and hides behind the curtain, being as quiet and still as a statue. Thoradin continues looting the corpse.
Dryland has a very fancy bejewelled dagger with an octopus hilt, gemstones in a pouch, amounting to about 500g. Under the aquarium, Thoradin sees a shelf built into the table with a chest. It’s locked.
Leshanna and Londer sneak into the room. Londer walks over to the aquarium and attempts scoop the octopus, Skreg out, Skreg attacks and the aquarium fills with ink.
Thoradin begins to try to pry the chest open with his dagger. Suddenly a needle shoots out and pierces him, he’s poisoned. He takes some antivenom. About half an hour later, Thoradin finally opens the chest and finds treasure to the value of 2000g.
Pow Ming is behind the curtain for 30 days.
The night is coming to an end, the vessel is making its way back to Yartar. With a pocket full of gold pieces and some prized information, they prepare to leave but Londer wants to be friends with this octopus.
Leshanna messages Gunther who is bowing to the crowd to ask him to come in to charm the octopus.
The octopus is confused. Gunther tries to charm him. He begins to ask some questions.
The octopus reminds them that King Hecaton is in the ship in the northern islands of the trackless sea. The octopus will not answer any more questions.
Gunther kidnaps the octopus.
A little deadman’s chest in the bottom of the aquarium has the key to the chest that Thoradin broke.
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They are all back at Beldabar’s rest, it is close to 4am and they are sitting around ready for the next step.