The two men look back at you with the same surprise as if you had just slammed a heavy book on their table.  

"What..." begins one. 

The other looks at you closely, spotting the tattoo on your elbow.  Instinctively he looks down at his arm and, seeing his own tattoo exposed, pulls his sleeve back down, covering it.  "Gods, woman, watch your volume," he hisses.  He scoot over a seat and motions for you to sit down.  "We're supposed to be keeping a low profile."

The first man, apparently the slower of the two, begins to put things together.  "Ah.  You cut through the Wood, eh?  We kept to the roads.  Smooth sailing, all the way."

"I'm Moltar," says the tattoed man.  "And this is Brak," he adds, motioning to the other.  

Then as one, with hushed but reverent voices, both men hold a closed fist over their hearts.  "May she rise."

   "May she rise," Finn says mimicking the gesture and the phrasing.  (Performance: 11...  13 if you would want Deception instead.)

     Finn moves over to the offered seat and makes a show of covering her own tattoo.  "I'm Nuala. Sorry, I saw that and you two were so comfortable I thought maybe this had been declared a safe spot," she explains with a smile.  "Things change quick sometimes, yeah?  I got through Wyrm's Crossing just before it got shut down or something.  Not even sure what was happening there, some kind of labor strife maybe but it made a mess of things.  Closed off the whole crossing.  Hope it doesn't trouble us any..."

     Finn is first hanging back to see if she messed up any entry code and then to see if these two want to take the lead and talk about cult goings on before she presses too much for information.  

8   3   8

15   2   1

These two set out on a long walk across the city toward the two most prominent libraries.  Those would be, Yeshil is well aware, the Unrolling Scroll (the local temple of Oghma, god of inspiration, invention, and knowledge) and the High Hall, the center of government in Baldur's Gate.  Of the two, the Unrolling Scroll is probably the more promising of the two.  While the High Hall contains many floors of libraries, they are said to be centered on the business of the city itself, with registries of deeds, tax records, and genealogies of the many prominent noble families who call the city home.  The Unrolling Scroll is said to have a much broader scope of subjects under its roof, ranging from histories and songbooks, to the arcane, to more obscure occult materials.  In any case, the Unrolling Scroll is on the way to the High Hall, so you select that as your first destination. 

Leaving the Blade and Stars, you begin walking west, and downhill, in the direction of the docks.  It is not long before they pass by a popular Baldur's Gate destination... the Elfsong Tavern.  Both would have likely heard of if, even if they haven't been there personally.  It is a large tavern and has a reputation as something of a tourist trap.  The legends say the tavern is haunted by the ghost of an elven maid, who sings a disembodied lament at irregular times.  They say you can't count a visit to Baldur's Gate complete if you haven't made sure to hear the ghostly music of the Elfsong.  Even now, at mid-morning, it seems there is a small crowd inside.  Interestingly, a squad of Flaming Fist is working the door in place of bouncers.

Moving on, you follow the harbor west toward the upper city.  You soon pass by a modest converted warehouse along the docks.  A steady stream of patrons come and go through the double doors, though they are not dressed like the other dock workers and longshoremen you see about you.  A sign over the doors reads "Baldur's Mouth" and a rack of papers is set aside the door, with a teenage boy hawking copies for 1sp.  At a glance, you can see it is a smaller paper than the Baldur's Gate Gazetteer, and from what you can see of the headlines it looks to be more akin to a gossip rag than a proper newsletter.

Just past the harbor, the ground rises sharply uphill as you approach the Upper City.  Climbing up a set of stone stairs that rises more than three stories, you join a crowd waiting to pass through the Old Wall.  Once, this was the curtain wall that protected the original settlement here, before it expanded to include the Lower City.  Now, the Old Wall separates the wealth and nobility of the Upper City from the grime and lawlessness of the rest of Baldur's Gate.  And speaking of which, as you slowly follow the crowd, you soon see the gate from which the city takes its name.  Baldur's Gate - the Baldur's Gate - is actually quite a bit less impressive than the other gates you have passed through.  Indeed, it is little more than a wide stone archway passing through the Old Wall.  As you reach the gate, you are questioned to confirm you aren't carrying goods for sale and then allowed to pass through.  These are not Flaming Fist, you notice.  Instead, these guards all wear banded mail with cloaks of blue and gold trim.  They hand you each small wooden discs marked "day pass" and remind you that visitors must leave the Upper City before nightfall, under pain of arrest.

Passing through Baldur's Gate, you enter the Wide.  By law, any merchant without a brick-and mortar-business, or a permanent lease for vending space on a street corner, is limited to conducting business here in the Wide.  Already, there is barely room to move through this wide square, as it is packed full of carts, stands and makeshift shop tables, with patrons and gawkers moving shoulder to shoulder between them.  It is a vibrant, crowded market where fortune-tellers and missionaries sit beside dealers hawking spices, fish, furs, perfumes, and seemingly every other mundane and luxury good to be found across the continent and beyond.

The spired roof of the Temple of Oghma is visible at the western end of the square, and you both turn that direction.

It is at this moment you both hear something strange.  Over the din of commerce taking place in the square around you, you both hear ominous, disembodied whispering.  The words are difficult to understand, but you have the impression it is asking the two of you to follow it somewhere...

Tylaerys and Jirel hastily make their way back to the Cup of Coins Lending House, bypassing most of the busier streets to make better time.

Arriving at the location, the door is closed and a sign in the window says it is closed.  A brisk knock on the door brings a tired, "We're closed!" in the voice of the dwarf from inside.  Another knock, and the door opens a crack.  "I said... Oh.  Its you."  He closes the door again without further comment.

As you are about to knock a third time, the door opens again.  "Here," the dwarf says, extending a letter.  "This was left for you.  Now begone."  He shuts the door again, with finality.  

Stepping over to a nearby bench and looking at the letter, Tylaerys sees it is written in a simple Harpers cypher.  The note reads:

Agent,

Unavailable today.  Working a lead on the matter you are investigating.  Will contact you via stone if we learn anything.

- VF

As you translate the message for Jirel, you both notice a strange figure standing near the bench, staring at Jirel.  He leans on a gnarled staff, his body old and hunched, short even for a dwarf.  His bald head is painted with blue runes and sylvan symbols, and his long white beard drags on the cobblestone street.   A chipmunk perches on his left shoulder, busily snacking on seeds and looking at you curiously.

Moltar nods.  He answers, quietly, "Aye, the business in the outer city has everything fouled up this morning.  We're too spread out... not even sure who has made it to Baldur's Gate and who is still trapped outside.  Our wearer of purple asked us to hang out here, near the docks, and see if any of the faithful were trying to cross over by barge and get around that nonsense outside the gates.  But you're the first friendly face we've seen, so far."

Brak shakes his head.  "Everyone's on edge.  This city is full of criminals and cutpurses... the longer we hang out here, the more they fear the Hoard is going to get nicked and pilfered."

"How about your crew?" Moltar asks.  "Where are you holing up?  Which wearer of purple do you report to?"

"Jirel Nalakekali," says the old dwarf.  "Queen.  Outcast.  Wanderer.  I am called Torimesh.  I tend the park.  The Tree calls for you... bids me to bring you to it.  Please, follow me."  He turns and begins to walk, looking back.  "Your companion may come as well, though I cannot say if the tree has anything for her to see."

Tylaerys, you are not alone in the street, but those passersby who are around do not seem to be paying you much attention.

     "My crew is gone...  I'm the last," Finn offers.  "The camp in the Wood of Sharp Teeth wasn't very defended to we were told to take it out.  All was going great until reinforcements for them showed up out of nowhere. Rot their eyes..."

     Finn sighs and takes a moment before continuing.  "Had just started looting when they attacked.  I woke up a day later buried under a half collapsed hut.  I didn't take time to sort through all the corpses, I just high-tailed it out of there and made my way here..."

     "But anyway, Cyanrath wore the purple...  Not that I reported to him directly, I was always kept at a bit of a distance... And now I'm here knowing nothing but that the Gate was our destination.  Thank the Lady I found you two or I would still be roaming the streets aimlessly."

Jirel bows her head in respectful greeting when Torimesh addresses her and presents his name. While she did not know this dwarf directly, he knew her. Or at least plenty of her. The giantess also dips her head in greeting to his little companion on his shoulder. Naturally, she wondered how he knew what he knew, what else he knows, and what he had to show her. 

“Come.” Reaching out a hand around to her back, Jirel gently guides Tylaerys along with her. She wasn’t going to leave her behind while she followed a stranger to a park to meet The Tree.

(Does Jirel recognize any of the runes/symbols on Torimesh?)
(Does Torimesh where any indicators of the Emerald Enclave or confirm that he’s a druid and what circle he may be with?)
(Would Jirel know anything about The Tree, or understand it’s significance?)