Rapid Recap
- Back at Kolat Towers, the party sifted through dead Manshoon's remains and notes, and Fearonuh finally shared the full story of her disappearance, piecing together that Manshoon's had all but confirmed he was the mysterious figure who appeared in her dream
- Returning to Yellowspire the next morning, invisible imps ambushed the party in an attempt to steal the Unknown — Metatronia's Faerie Fire exposed the fleeing thief and Vonna's Hammer of Judgement knocked it from the sky, recovering the relic
- The party returned to Lost and Found Tavern to find broken windows, Grinda Garloth missing, and three letters waiting — a ransom note demanding the Stone for Grinda's return, a dinner invitation from Jarlaxle, and a tea invitation from the Cassalanters
- Wary of missing it, the party chose to prioritize that night's Zhentarim leadership election over the competing invitations, sending vague notes to postpone both Jarlaxle and the Cassalanters
- Fearonuh sent the sea eagle she had befriended out to scout the suspected devil-cult locations mentioned in Manshoon's notes.
- At the Zhentarim warehouse, Fearonuh faced down Bram Culter and a skeptical crowd with a stump speech on leadership, and though suspicion lingered that her crew was in league with the drow, Kaevja Cynavern's revelation of Manshoon's endorsement overrode the doubt and secured her election as the new head of the Zhentarim
Back at Kolat Towers
- Following the events of WoW S.15 Manshoon's Ultimatum, the party picked through the wreckage of the fourth floor chamber where Fjera had burned Manshoon's simulacrum to ash. All that remained was a charred robe sitting in a puddle, a prosthetic arm, an amulet, and a teleportation ring, which the party collected.
- Kaevja Cynavern warned the party that they wouldn't be safe as long as they carried the Stone — it needed to be kept out of sight of scrying magic, and their home base at the tavern was likely no longer secure either.
- With everyone finally gathered and safe, Fearonuh gave the party the full account of where she'd vanished to after the Zhentarim election was first called in WoW S.13 The Prospect of Leadership. She described the cloaked figure that had appeared standing over her bed in the night — the same one Ziraj had spotted while secretly keeping watch on the party. She didnt remember leaving the note saying she needed to clear her head before the vote.
- She recounted the vivid dream that followed: a starless void, memories surging through her of her mother's death, her bloody rise and fall as an orc warchief, and the relic shard at her belt pulsing with every vision. A faceless, robed figure made of shifting starlight had appeared, urging her to reconnect with the orc goddess Luthic, whom she'd turned her back on long ago along with Gruumsh.
- Fearonuh explained she'd woken twenty-four hours later at the Terasse House of Healing, poisoned. Lutra Terasse told her she'd been chosen by Luthic, and in her palm she'd found a new eye for the Unknown.
- She described rushing back to the tavern, and being overcome by a compulsion to pull the Stone from the portable hole despite Grinda's frantic warnings, and pressing the new eye into its socket — which woke the relic's voice in her head and summoned the swarm of imps that chased her all the way to Yellowspire, as seen in WoW S.14 Assault on Kolat Towers.
- As she finished her account they put it together: Manshoon's own words — his talk of taking "a special interest in people like you," — echoed almost exactly what the robed figure had told Fearonuh in her dream. It was all but confirmed: Manshoon had been the presence standing over her bed that night.
- Given Kaevja's warning and the lingering questions about who was watching them, the party decided it was safest to stay the night within the defensible walls of Kolat Towers rather than risk the trip home in the dark.
A Restless Night
- TMM05 took first watch while the rest of the party settled in among the ruined tower rooms.
- In the dead of night, TMM05 noticed Fearonuh rise from her bedroll and begin walking toward another part of the tower, eyes open but unresponsive — sleepwalking. TMM05 shouted an alert that woke the rest of the party.
- Unsure at first how to handle it, Metatronia gently shook Fearonuh awake. She came to disoriented, with no memory of dreaming or moving at all. The party exchanged uneasy glances but decided to let it go and returned to bed.
Emerge at Yellowspire
- The next morning, the party used the teleportation circle to travel back from Kolat Towers to Yellowspire.
- The place reeked of smoke, and the basement was flooded with nearly a foot of standing water — a fire from the imp attack in WoW S.14 Assault on Kolat Towers had clearly been put out in a hurry. Blood was spattered across the walls.
- A junior City Guard posted at the scene was startled to see the party emerge from the basement. He demanded a way to contact them in case they were needed for questioning in the ongoing investigation, and the party gave him the tavern's address.
- Without warning, a swarm of invisible imps descended on the party, grasping for the Stone tucked in Fearonuh's pouch.
- One imp managed to snatch the Stone but was cut down almost immediately — only for another to scoop it up from its dead comrade and take off, invisible, out of the tower.
- Pyper cast fly and gave chase, and though she couldn't see the imp, she worked out its likely flight path from the geometry of the alley and called it out to Metatronia.
- Metatronia loosed an arrow from the Crescent Moonbow and lit the area with Faerie Fire, and the pink glow caught the imp mid-flight, breaking its invisibility.
- Vonna hurled her Hammer of Judgement, striking the imp dead out of the sky. It hit the cobblestones below, and the party recovered the Stone while the rest mopped up the remaining imps.
Return to Tavern — Survey the Damage
- Back at Lost and Found Tavern, the party found broken windows and the Street Urchins shaken but safe, having weathered an imp attack of their own the previous night.
- Grinda Garloth was nowhere to be found, and the party feared the worst.
- Three letters awaited them (full text at the bottom of this page):
- A ransom note demanding the Stone in exchange for Grinda's safe return, instructing the party to await further word. It was safe to assume this came from the devil cult.
- A thank-you note from Jarlaxle, inviting them to dinner that evening at the Sea Maiden's Faire, and offering a safe place to stay if the tavern no longer felt secure.
- An invitation to afternoon tea that same day at the Cassalanter villa, signed by Victorio Cassalanter.
- A repair crew arrived not long after to fix the broken windows, courtesy of Jarlaxle.
Weighing Their Options
- The party weighed how to spend the rest of their day, with three competing engagements pulling at them: tea with the Cassalanters, dinner with Jarlaxle, and that night's Zhentarim leadership election.
- Wary of missing their shot at the election, the party ultimately decided to prioritize it over the other two invitations. They sent each host a polite note requesting another day, deliberately vague on timing and giving no update on where things stood with the Grand Game — leaving both Jarlaxle and the Cassalanters wanting more.
Eagle Surveillance
- Before the election, Fearonuh sent her eagle ally out to keep watch on the suspected devil-worshiping cult locations uncovered in Manshoon's notes, hoping to learn more about the group and any leads on Grinda's location.
The Zhentarim Election
- That night the party gathered at the Zhentarim warehouse alongside roughly two dozen enforcers, runners, and fixers — the room thick with the memory of Urstul Floxin's death there days before.
- Kaevja Cynavern took the floor and opened nominations for the chapter's new leader.
- Bram Culter stepped forward first. A six-year veteran of the chapter's enforcement arm, he made his pitch plainly: he knew the contacts, the streets, and which palms needed greasing. Nothing fancy, just the job done right. A few murmurs of approval went around the room.
- Fearonuh stepped forward next, and the room's mood shifted to open skepticism. Jeers went up — "Grizzly grannie?" "Didn't she kill Urstul?" "Granny's going to run enforcement?" Fearonuh let the laughter die on its own.
- Then she spoke:
"I know what you see when you look at me—an outsider. A peasant. An battered old woman.
And you're right. I didn't rise through the Zhentarim ranks. I don't carry the same history, the same rivalries, or the same habits.
But that isn't a weakness—it's perspective.
Because sometimes it takes an outsider to see what others have stopped noticing. To ask the questions no one else is asking. To recognize when something isn't working anymore.
And yes—you've noticed my age. I'm 66 years old, and I stand by every year of it. I've spent a lifetime learning how people think, what they fear, what they value—and how quickly everything can fall apart when leadership fails.
Leadership isn't about appearances. It's about judgment. It's about making the right decision when the pressure is highest.
And I've done that. Again and again. That's why I'm still here.
You don't have to take my word for it - Look at the company I keep.
The Lost and Found has accomplished what many thought impossible. Together we stood against Xanathar himself—and we prevailed.
That wasn't luck.
It was planning. Trust. Adaptability. Every member of our company had a role to play, every voice mattered, and every decision was made with the mission—not our pride—in mind.
Many of you were there the night Urstul died. You felt it—the moment control slipped. When uncertainty took hold, and people were forced to choose sides before they even understood the fight.
What followed wasn't strength. It was instability.
Urstul tried to lead through force alone. And when force was all he had left, it failed him.
That's not the future I want for any of you.
You've also heard about Yellowspire. And yes—what people are saying is true. It ended in loss.
But what matters is why. Control was already breaking down. Too many moving pieces, not enough coordination, not enough clarity.
That's what happens without structure. Without steady leadership.
I won't promise you perfection. No one can.
But I will promise you this: I understand how quickly things can go wrong—and how to keep them from getting there.
For the past ten years, I've run a jewlery business in the Trades Ward. A real one. One that's endured without being robbed blind or shut down. That's not luck. That's structure.
That doesn't happen by accident. It happens through consistency. Through clear expectations. Through fairness.
And that's exactly what I'm offering you.
Not empty promises of one big score—but steady, reliable work. Waterdeep is full of opportunities for those who know where to look.
You'll be paid fairly. Clearly. Consistently. Risk will be rewarded. Initiative will be recognized.
And if you bring opportunity to the table, you'll share in its success—no questions, no bargaining, no uncertainty.
Because stability isn't just safer—it's more profitable.
Under my leadership, you'll know where you stand. You'll know what you earn. And you'll know that the person giving the orders understands the cost of every decision.
No chaos. No confusion. No unnecessary risk.
Just structure. Opportunity. Survival—and success.
Now, I know trust isn't given freely. And I'm not asking for it all at once.
Trust is built. Over time. Through results.
So don't take my words on faith - Watch what I do.
Stand with me, and we build something stronger. Something reliable. Something that lasts.
Walk away—and you return to uncertainty.
The choice is yours." - Bram was unimpressed. He pressed her: "How many men have you gotten killed? Making a call that cost someone their life because the job required it. How many times?" A grunt chimed in: "Yeah." Another: "We're not a craft guild, love."
- Fearonuh revealed details of her past she'd only revealed own friends — that she had once risen to lead her orc tribe as warchief, commanding them into battle against a rival tribe. Sent hundreds to their death, killed hundreds more with her bare hands. Bram was unmoved: "That was a long time ago. In a tribe. This is Waterdeep." She reminded them again that the Lost and Found had taken out Xanathar when Urstul couldn't, that theyve been making connections all over the city. She named her proposed executive committee — Metatronia as Vice President, Bartholomew as Master of Coin, Bruce as Master of Arms, and Pyper as Master of Recruitment. A grunt in the back muttered: "Never heard of any of them." Another: "At least we've heard of Bram."
- Bram pressed her further. "One of the last things Urstul did before you killed him was accuse your crew of working with the drow. What do you have to say to that?"
- "You've all heard the rumors. Yes, we've dealt with the drow. That much is true. But rumors have a way of turning every conversation into a conspiracy. Look at Metatronia - She's drow. Has she betrayed us? Has she stolen from you? Has she raised a blade against the Zhentarim? No. She's earned her place beside us through her actions, not her blood. The rest of the drow haven't earned that same trust. Some may become allies. Some may become enemies. Until they prove otherwise, they're simply another power vying for this city's future. The Zhentarim, and each of you, remain my first priority. If the drow help us strengthen our position, we'll work with them. If they threaten what we've built, we'll stand against them. We will not hand this city to anyone—not the nobles, not the Watch, and not the drow." The response seemed to quiet the tension in the room.
- Bram looked at Kaevja, reading her face, getting nothing back. "Kaevja. You called this meeting. Where do you stand?" The room went quiet for the real question, the drow accusation still hanging unaddressed.
- Kaevja reached into her coat and set a folded letter on a crate beside her: "With her. This letter is from Manshoon. His seal. His hand." The letter passed hand to hand around the room, confirming the seal was genuine and revealing to most of the rank and file for the first time that the high command had been monitoring things in Waterdeep. Whatever doubts remained about the drow rumor were swept aside by the weight of that endorsement — no one in the room was prepared to second-guess Manshoon's judgment. By the time the letter reached Bram, there was little left to argue. He read it, folded it, and stepped back to the wall: "Fine."
- Kaevja called the vote. It wasn't unanimous — only a little over half voted for Fearonuh. Bram's hand stayed down, along with a handful of others, revealing the potential for continued tension. But the result- Fearonuh had been elected the new leader of the Zhentarim.
- TO BE CONTINUED...
Letters Received
Jarlaxle's Thank You Letter:
"To the Lost and Found,
I heard what you did yesterday. You have my genuine gratitude — and I do not use that word lightly. My people are everything to me.
I also heard about the mess they made at your tavern. I have already sent someone to see to the windows.
I'd love to catch up and thank you personally. Come down to the Faire, join me for dinner. If your tavern doesn't feel safe…
I look forward to seeing you.
Yours in good faith and better humor,
Captain Zord"
Cassalanter Invitation:
"To our dear friends of the Lost and Found,
It has been some time since we last had the pleasure of your company, and we find ourselves hoping all is well. The days have a way of slipping past, and we realize we have not been in touch as much as we would like.
Ammalia and I would be delighted to welcome you for afternoon tea at the Villa. Nothing elaborate — simply good company, and a chance to catch up properly. Perhaps this afternoon?
We have been thinking of you and are eager to hear how things stand. There is much we would like to discuss at your convenience.
The twins send their regards.
Warmly,
Victorio Cassalanter"