The reformed Whistledrop Crew made their way down the Grandport to the Pixis Palace, an old fishing shack concealing a lavish fairy mansion. There they met Don Coriander Thorn, who conjured Merben from thin air and left him hanging by a rope, bruised and clearly beaten. As the Don smoked his oversized cigar, Merben explained his failed scheme: having heard of a party at the Port-Lord's manor, he convinced the Glitterati to attempt a heist on the goods brought in the prior night. As usual, it had all went wrong, resulting in the death of one of Don Coriander's enforcers.
After negotiating for Merben’s life, the Don offered the party a bargain: through his criminal contacts, he had learned of a "50,000 gold treasure hoarded by an evil cult". This hoard was sealed behind a magical door, only openable by a single key. Supposedly, one individual had knowledge of that key’s location, but they were currently imprisoned across the sea. If the party returned within a month with information about the key, Thorn would release Merben and grant them one percent of the treasure. When Merc attempted to negotiate for a larger share, Thorn lifted a sewing needle between Merben's eyelid and his eye; the party accepted the terms before Nessa's grandson was tortured in front of them.
As the Don told them to find the "Plot Hook" on Igneos Isle, Ellenor noticed that Snapdragon Poplarchop, Coriander's Giantborn fairy lieutenant, seemed sympathetic to Merben. Using Poons and Nessa's acting chops as a distraction, she signaled to Snapdragon and arranged a private meeting with him. They learned that Captain Jolly of the Jolly Dodger owed Snapdragon a favor, allowing the party to secure a sailing ship at a significantly reduced price. Captain Jolly, already canvassing the Grandport for passengers, agreed to take them across the Gulf of the Maw, though was unhappy the Snapdragon called in an owed favor while he was personally low on funds.
The party took a quick merchant stop, then departed across the Shifting Blue. After five days at sea, they arrived at the ramshackle port of Farrozandmar and were brought to the Plot and Hook, where they met the tavern’s owner, Hollyhock Barrowes. She was a former member of the Glitterati who had served ten years in Bleak End after a failed heist. After her sentence, the Crossborn tried to establish a successful life in the primarily-Human Farrozandmar, but even on the remote island, she could not escape Don Coriander's requests.
Hollyhock possessed a magically-inlaid sapphire that split into six pieces; each piece could project a holographic map of Bleak End per her knowledge, and functioned as a key to its arcane locks. She identified the party’s target as "Prisoner 13", a long-term inmate held there since near the prison’s founding. Hollyhock also had information on Bleak End's panopticon layout, anti-magic cells, patrol routes, and the daily routines of guards and cooks. Moreover, she formed a possible plan of entry: she had stolen a list of names, twenty-two guards and two cooks scheduled to head to Aone Island, set to replace Bleak End of its guards the following morning.
Using her information, the party set their plan in motion. They would keep their gear in Ellenor's Bag of Holding, alongside a fake set of armor to allow Nessa to pose as a guard while not weighed down by the splint mail. Punmiri and Ellenor crafted the false armor and finalized their disguises, and got a bulk discount to buy a ship's crew worth of cold-weather clothing. Meanwhile, under cover of night, Nessa, Merc, and Hollyhock abducted four of the listed recruits, then carried them to Farrozandmar's docks. They convinced Captain Jolly to follow them to Bleak End and hold the captured staff in the hull of the Jolly Dodger; he was cut into their plan as their getaway, though they had to nearly double their fee to convince him.
In the morning, Mercy was no longer himself, but was the cook Mica Langelo; Poons the guard Yula Stormwhistle; Ellenor the cook Keke Palmer; and Nessa the Halfling guard Persimmon Copperpot. Praying that none recognized their stolen identities, the group assumed their new names and boarded the Rocking Seal, their cold-weather convoy.
Three days later, their bleak end was in sight.
Word count: 704
