Ianric rolls his neck and flexes his fingers a bit, flicking a couple small pieces of broken beak out of his knuckles. The strangely hued Goliath looks at his companions with a raised eyebrow "You are ok with simply tying up the others instead of killing them and leaving no witness and no one to follow behind us?" With a semi confused shrug Ianric retrieves his weapon, simply hanging it on his belt while he assists to likely have an easier time moving aside boxes, keeping his shield in one hand as he does so.

Cami decides to answer Ianric's question. "I don't know for sure, but while they're tied up, we have all the time in the world to choose and think this through. I'd rather not kill unnecessarily, so if we can find any other solutions, I'd vote in favor of those."

The boxes are moved easily enough. The door to this back room hangs loosely on broken hinges. The cramped chamber beyond smells strongly of sour fish and vinegar. It is filled with discarded ropes, canvas tarpaulins, and splintered wood from smashed barrels. Within, you all spot a human man with long reddish-blonde hair and fine clothes - at least, they must have been fine once. Now they are grimy and reek of pickled herring. He appears to be just in the process of trying slip from the bindings he is trapped in, then looks up and spots you all and cocks an eyebrow.

"... Well, I suppose you aren't Zhents. Or the Xanathar's goons. Would you kindly give me a hand here?" He says, his speech articulate and his accent graceful. He points at the ropes around his wrists and ankles with his nose.

Kassar unsheathes the curved blade hanging at his hip, but hesitates before removing the restraints.

"Before we release you, perhaps you could tell us who you are, at least. We have had... below average experience meeting strangers this evening."

"Fair enough," He huffs. "I'm Renaer Neverember. Yes, of those Neverembers."

Vyrax walks forward, looking at the man. "You look surprisingly similar to Floon, Floon Blagmaar, you know? We were looking for him, and our search led us here. Would you know where he might be?" 

"Yes... poor Floon. The Zhents caught us unawares after we left the Dragon, then the Xanathar's thugs swept through this place. I fear they mistook Floon for me. They moved him somewhere else and left me here... Why, are you looking for Floon? If so, I will gladly join you in the effort. Once you free me from my binds, of course. I won't be much good against the Xanathar Guild with my sword-hand bound. And my legs."

"Yep yep. One sec." Topaz kneels down next to Renaer and cuts his restraints off.

"Mr. Volo sent us to find Floon. Glad you're alright... but they - the Xanathar people we found - they mentioned 'taking the pretty boy' into the sewers, to their boss. We might have to hurry if we're to find him in one piece."

"Nothing personal Renaer, but I'll crush your skull to pulp if you try to stop us or hurt us in any way. I have worked for too many to not give a customary warning to someone I know little to nothing of! Don't hurt or hinder, welcome aboard!" Ianric's smile never seemed to falter, even when making such a promise/threat to their newfound acquaintance. The Goliath held out his hand to Ranaer to offer him help and as a symbolic agreement to those simplistic terms.

Renaer blinks hard. "Ah, well, judging by the size of your hands, I am guessing you would have little difficulty with that, so... Consider myself properly warned!"

"Speaking of swords... you'll need one where we're going." Topaz says, finding the swords of one of the fallen Zhent soldiers and handing it to Renaer.

"Now... they said to follow the yellow marks in the sewers. I guess we're to find a sewer grate and climb down. Prepare your noses, I guess." Topaz heads outside, leading the group, as they start to search for one.

"Ah yes. This way, this way." Kassar leads the group to the nearest entrance to the sewers as he searches his memories as to whether any of the describe yellow markers have caught his attention in his comings and goings.

History: 0

"If Volo sent you, then you have earned my trust even more. Thanks, friend," Renaer replies, giving the rapier Topaz handed him a good swing or two. "A well-made weapon. Light as a feather, but with enough force to pack a punch. Let's be off to find Floon."

Kassar has never encountered these strange yellow markings before, which is odd considering how much time he has spent navigating the sewers beneath Waterdeep. As you all step out of the warehouse, though, immediately you are caught by surprise by a group of figures holding lanterns and clubs in the freezing dark. A dozen members of the City Watch stand before you, blocking your path. Leading them is a tall, middle-aged human man who addresses you all.

"Halt in the name of the Watch! Drop your weapons and come peacefully, or we will have no choice but to-" He stops short when he spots Renaer Neverember, a glint of recognition in his eyes. A few members of the watch whisper to one another; Renaer's name is on their lips. He clears his throat. "Officers, secure the warehouse. I'll question these folks. Go on, move it!"

The officers push past all of you and begin securing the warehouse as the commander approaches you. "Captain Hyustus Staget. I recognize you from court, Lord Neverember-"

"Just call me Renaer, Captain Staget. My family doesn't command much respect in Waterdeep anymore."

"... Well, regardless, I'm going to have to take your names down for the record and ask a few questions. Gwillim, a light, if you please," Staget barks to a young Watch officer, who holds their lantern ready as the captain takes out a pen and a pad of parchment. "So, who are you people, and for what purpose did you raid this Zhent warehouse?"

So far, the watch have not been aware of his mischiefs. Vyrax doesn't plan to get on their bad side now, of all times. "Hello! I'm Vyrax, Vyrax Lestat. We were looking for a friend of ours and our search had lead us to this warehouse. We couldn't find our friend, but we did find this one being held captive. I know one should not be a vigilante, but leaving poor Renaer tied in there seemed like a cruel move. We didn't kill those inside, though. They were dead before we arrives. Those we happened to fight against were only knocked unconscious, nothing more." On second thought, that sounded very wrong. Well, he was always better at lying then persuading, but since he was already speaking the truth, there was no reason to diviate from it now. "Since we hadn't found our friend yet, however, we decided to keep following the clues we found. We didn't want to return to Volo empty-handed."

Persuasion, if needed: 14.

Topaz gives a friendly wave as he leans against the wall. "I'm Topaz. We were looking for a friend of a friend who went missing. The guys on the floor were dead when we got here; but these kenku here might be able to tell you what they did, isn't that right?" he gestures with his head to the kenku.

"But yeah, the one we were originally looking for, a Mr. Floon, they took him somewhere else and we're finding him, Captain."

Cami had stayed mostly to herself, both during the group's decisions regarding Floon and the meeting with this city guard. The question seemed to be to the group in general, though, and she also noticed some blank spaces the others might've left out, so she speaks up. "My name is Cami Steelaxe. Our group has no affiliations, except Volothamp Geddarn, the chronicler, if you'd call it that. They didn't mention yet that the warehouse was under Zhent ownership, yes, but it was under Xanathar control. They fought their way in and left these Kenku guarding the place and the captive Renaer."

"Bearhug Ianric. You likely have at least someone who knows of me, whether due to my skin or my handling of drink and brawls!" The Goliath says with a belt of laughter. Though he was making a joke of it between some nights of drinking and his mercenary jobs here and there the Watch likely knew decently enough who he was. If for no other reason than a magenta hued Goliath wasn't commonplace even in the diverse area of Waterdeep.

"This one is called Kassar." He bows his head slightly, acknowledging the captain.

Gwillim, the young guard with Staget, does look up at Ianric with recognition. They are a little bit starstruck, and their torch drifts away from the notepad due to them not paying attention. "Gwillim, the light?" Staget huffs, and Gwillim returns the light to its original position. The captain takes all your names down on his paper and listens to each of your accounts. "I see. Well... normally I'd have to take you all in for trespassing, but... Seeing as you rescued Lord Neverember here-"

"Renaer."

"- I'm willing to let this go. But some quick words of advice. It's for the best you civilians don't meddle in criminal matters. Not every Watch officer is going to be as... understanding as me concerning your involvement. I'm sorry for your friend, but I'd strongly advise you don't insert yourself in this Xanathar-Zhentarim feud any further. It's growing bloodier by the day, as you have probably seen. Whatever you do, just keep the blood off the streets, okay?"

Those of you native to Waterdeep understand that last phrase. It's a common saying among officials of the City Watch, who care more about what is happening in the city above rather than the sewers below. Renaer clears his throat. 

"Anything else, Captain?"

"No, you're free to go. And you lot, take this," Staget says, handing each of you a folded pamphlet. It is a copy of the Code Legal, a document that outlines various criminal offenses in the city of Waterdeep and states the typical punishment suffered by the culprits, ranging from fines and edicts to exile and death. "Keep your noses clean and watch out for trouble. If you find any, call the Watch. Come, Gwillim."

The guards go inside, and Renaer turns to all of you. "Well, that went better than I expected. So, shall we head to the sewers and find Floon immediately, or do you need a breather? Some of you look a little worse for wear after that scuffle with the kenku, and I'd hate to make you join me on this quest to rescue my friend when you are not at your best. We could afford an hour or so of respite, I believe, but I think it would be unwise to tarry longer than that. It's only a matter of time before the Xanathar thugs figure out that Floon isn't me, and once they do, I fear what they may do to him. 

"So, rest for a spell and find Floon after, or head for the sewers now?" Renaer asks.  

"I took a bit of a nasty hit from one of them - resting up might be the better option. Thanks for having our backs during that." Topaz replies, giving Renaer a thumbs-up.

He takes it easy during their hour of rest, mostly just wandering the warehouse and looking around. Perception: 10

Hit Die: 9, back to full health. (rolls in dice log)