CA2 - S2E6 - A New Place

## Recap

Haldor greets Paladin Kormir of the church of Aeyr and tells how he was chosen during his fight with the orcs. Kormir says how he stayed in the city when the rest of his companions went to fight the undead and found glory in death. He also says there may be undead in the city because there had been a necromancer who fled on a ship made of bones. There was a skeletal Minotaur which may have been the same one Haldor slew. Kormir asks about Barry’s scar, and Barry is finally able to tell what happened. But he stumbles on his words and says something about a secret before which makes Xavier and Katos start eavesdropping from nearby, so he stops the story again. When they start to leave, Kotas interrupts them to talk logistics about Saturday’s performance and tells Barry to get a shirt so he can actually strip.

The party goes to their new mansion in a district of row houses and trendy shops. Lox is overwhelmed by the wealth and Lolloch crashes on a couch in the foyer to dream. A thump and the sound of running feet above them interrupts their investigation, and they all run upstairs to see an open window. Barry and Haldor jump down while Lox grabs Isa and uses feather fall, but they don’t see anyone suspicious. Stopping to buy a dragon claw pastry, a bystander says they saw a skinny dwarf with red braids run by, but there’s no sign of him now.

Inside, the whole upstairs has been tossed as if someone was looking for something specific. They don’t find anything interesting except a seal for the Kingdom of Thoria, and spend the rest of the day fixing up the manor. As they clean, they discuss secrets.

Lox says he has a gut uncertainty about Albey, saying he remembers him having other kids do sorts of reconnaissance. They realize Albey came to all of them as young teens and taught skills like threat assessment and situational awareness. Isa reveals to the group that she’s a sorcerer. In Magehaven she had to keep it a secret and it’s strange having everyone around now tell her that she’s safe. She doesn’t even know where home is anymore since she fled. Barry says his village had once had the Axe of the Dwarf Lords there secretly, and a thief had taken it, giving Barry his scar in the process.

At dusk, they find a secret door that leads to a room filled with journals of Albey’s teachings that show he was definitely up to something. It lists children and teens he taught skills that would be useful in information gathering on noble houses, governments, and military's across the continent. The information itself isn’t there, but there’s records of 50 years teaching kids to spy, including the party members. Isa’s entry says she might be a divine sorcerer, something no one should know. Barry is said to be a fine specimen, and Haldor was infuriating until Albey gave up and just taught him Dwarvish.

Lox goes pale when he finds his entry and reluctantly says he trusts the group so he reveals his secret. He’s actually a 21 year old changeling, not a 12 year old boy. He’s traveled as a “weird little street kid” who no one pays attention to, which makes him realize there was a weird little street kid when they bought the pastry. Could it have been a changeling or someone using magic to alter their appearance? There’s no way that a dwarf could have outrun Barry.

Just then, Lolloch walks in rubbing sleep from his eyes and asks what he missed.