Chapter15

"Well... it was pleasant meeting you... um... Garooog." Kendrik shook hands awkwardly with the half orc. With the threat of the dragon far away now, everyone was able to breathe a bit easier, and proper introductions were in order.

"Yub, yub... Gahrugh pleezed tu meet yu tu, hummie. And yu laydee..." Gahrugh flashed a toothy grin in Kendra's direction. "Enytym da Solebaynz need help, Gahrugh be glad tu."

"Hey... how did you...?" Kendrik and Kendra turned to look at each other, then back at the strange bard.

"Har har! Sillee hummies! Da naym on da syn owtsyd sez 'Howse ub Solebayn' on it! Har har!!"

"Oh... right... How clever. " Kendrik deadpanned as he glared at his sister, who looked away embarrassed.

"Well... Gahrugh hafta be goin now... see wutz left ub da fort." The orc-man sighed. "Glug, Kendrik..."

"Hey... now waitaminute! How'd you know my first name?!" The thief looked incredulous.

Gahrugh simply gave a guttural chuckle. "Hu nub no bowt Kendrik Solebayn? Yur pikchur iz in ebry city bank, wantid by da king! Un millyun shinies fer yur hed. Yu lukky dat yu sabed Gahrugh, or else Gahrugh be bery rich orc rite now... har har!!"
With that, the enormous bard turned and left, heading slowly back to his fort.

"Poor guy," Kendra remarked. "He lost almost his entire clan it looks like..."

"Are you kidding me? Orcs multiply like mongbats, sis... that fort will be packed in no time again." The twins went back into the cabin, locking up behind them.

"OK... so now that that little bit of excitement is over... what now?" Kendra plopped down on a pile of pillows in the corner.

"Well... you're going to have to run an errand or two for me... If my mug is up on every bank on the mainland, I have got to have a disguise before going anywhere. Even the island cities aren't safe since mainlanders pass through there all the time."

"What about the frontierlands... Delucia or Papua...?"

"Nahh... still too dangerous. There's that passage to Delucia near Trinsic and that damn advisor of British's set up a teleporter between the Moonglow and Papua mage shops. Mainlanders have access there, too. Although once I'm in disguise, either would be a good place to lay low." Kendrik sighed and joined his sister on the pile of pillows. "I'm going to need you to get me a disguise kit and some different clothes."

"Mmm... alright. Where can I get a kit? I've got plenty of clothes here..."

"Well, normally you can't buy a kit in any shop. But you can get one from the Thief Guildmasters in town... as long as they know you belong to the thieves guild. Here... we have a code that we use to communicate to each other that we're in the guild." Kendrik reached for a nearby scroll and pen. He hastily scribbled a few notes on the parchment, then handed it to his sister.

"Now... when you go to buy a kit, they'll ask you one of three questions in riddle form. Those there are the correct answers, but I can't honestly remember the riddles they ask. It's been forever since I had to buy one thanks to my stash..."

Kendra looked at her brother's mongbat scratch, studying the responses. She nodded slowly, memorizing them and stood. "Alright... where should I start?"

"Try Cove - less people around generally. And talk to Jonas... he usually hangs out near the docks. Blue pants, gray shirt, and almost always playing around with a dagger. Sometimes a bandana..." Kendrik stood up and handed her his pouch of gold. "Careful, sis... the name Soulbane isn't exactly a good one to carry around right about now."

"I know... I'll be careful." Kendra smiled and Recalled to the coastal city of Cove.

Kendrik looked doubtful.

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