After the trading is done in the main port of Tabor, Grettir and the crew of the Kistin decide to take some rest and recuperation on the pleasant island and spend some time exploring its wild jungle interior. Two discrete adventures ensue.
A: Top-Cat
The party take a commission to aid a merchant, one Deinarion, whose “pleasure slave”, Mishka has disappeared. After some careful quizzing it seems that the Mishka foolishly put on a magic cloak, that wrought a transformation so that the slave turned into a tiger and ran off into the jungle. Deinarion is willing to pay them Mishka’s weight in gold if returned alive and unharmed. Separately, they also learn of a tiger that is haunting the island of Tabor and has a reward on its head. Nothing delights a party of adventurers more than the thought that they might claim a double payment for their efforts.
The party sail in the Kistin to another part of the island to a town called Suba where the most recent tiger-related death had been reported. With the two elves, Girindor and Lorandil, tracking the tiger from the site of its most recent kill is easy. However, the tiger is cunning and twice manages to ambush the party. On the second ambush it finds them better prepared. Elin blows the paralysing dust of the purple lotus in its face to slow it down; Grettir cracks it over the head and drops it in its tracks; Lorandil casts a Dispell Magic upon it. On the ground lies a young boy, naked but for a cloak – which is carefully removed. Although Grettir had deliberately turned his blade when he struck, he had still cracked Mishka’s skull and it takes all Girindor’s healing powers to revive him and bring him back to health.
They return to Suba to tell their tale and claim the bounty. Meanwhile the merchant Deinarion turns up to claim his pleasure slave back. He makes an attempt to cheat the party with debased gold, but Grettir is almost as experienced a trader by now as he is a warrior, and is wise to the deception. Denarion is forced to pay in purer gold and to tip the scales with some other items, including pearls and a fire-proof sail.
The town are delighted with the exploits of the heroes who have rescued them from the dreaded tiger. They throw a great feast to celebrate during which certain party members manage to disgrace themselves (Lorandil dances drunkenly on tables; Salrod inappropriately tries to proposition one of the town councillors). Grettir meanwhile is considering their next destination. He notices one of the guest wearing a string of fabulous pearls and asks where they came from.
B: The Lady of the Lake
The Kistin sails round Tabor to the township of Kokos – the reported source of the huge pearls. Their reputation precedes them and they are warmly welcomed. They are told of a lake some miles inland, that is the source of the huge pearls, but are warned that it is haunted and dangerous. When they reach the lake Girindor decides to commune with nature (as he often does). He wades into the lake and disappears under the water. There he meets an eldritch woman – the spirit of this enchanted lake and enjoys many hours of passion with her beneath the quiet waters. She wants him to stay (he is almost persuaded) but eventually lets him go, giving him a large and lustrous pearl as a parting gift.
The rest of the party are not so polite and while Girindor distracts its Guardian, they immediately start searching the lake for pearls. Elin and Lorandil gather up giant oysters, while Grettir and Salrod battle the monstrous lobsters and giant eels that would disturb their foraging. By the time Girindor returns they have gathered another 11 huge pearls. They realise that there is a huge storm brewing, as the Lady of the Lake discovers that she is the victim of a distraction burglary. Girindor uses his powers to dissipate his erstwhile lover’s tempest and they hurriedly depart. Returning to Kokos, the party cast off quickly and return once more to Cos.
D-18
OE Date: August 688
Characters: Grettir, Salrod, Girindor, Lorandil NPCs: Elin, Atelius
Real World: September 1992; Where – Berkeley
See also Salrod’s Diaries