Poljen tells the tale of how the Blaze first came together, defeating a necromancer, and decided the silvered blades would figure in their name.  After the dwarf's turn, he regales the assembled group with the fight for Greenest.  He looks wistful when describing how Cahleth fell in battle, and tries to remember to ask how he is doing when next they are back near Waterdeep.  And as usual, he does not shy from the details of the fight.  He describes how well he fought, but always makes sure the rest of Blaze get plenty of mention.  In fact it becomes clear that he is making the others in the Blaze stand as at least his equals, and on occasion more critical to a fight than his own contribution.  He underplays his fighting prowess, shrugging off his tenacity as being, "too stupid, too stubborn to die."  Of his brief stint as the leader of the Blaze, he lays out the facts.  He made many good decisions, especially when some wanted to attack the entire army on the road, and he overruled them.  But he also admits to his mistakes as leader, and his relief when others took over.

After the dwarf tells a tale of actually outwitting a group of drow in the Underdark, Poljen tells of their recent rematch with Cyanwrath, finally eliminating the problematic half-dragon.  Morgaine and Mari are pointed to when he describes their skill at arms.   The dwarf counters with a story of retrieving an artifact from a tomb, and being pursued for days by guardians of the tomb, both living and undead, before finally ending them upon reaching the surface and using daylight to their advantage.  So Poljen beaks out what he considers their greatest victory.  After running the cult out of the keep in the swamp, they pursued the black mask through a portal, to a flying castle, filled with enemies of all sorts, from run-of-the-mill guards and wizards up to fire giants, a vampire and ultimately Glazhael, the white dragon.

Velon listens intently to Lawrance's wealth of knowledge on the issue, finishing more than one glass of wine if offered.  At the end, however, he sighs.  "Ugh, I had hoped there would be more ways of living longer that didn't all involve dying first!  Plus, I don't want a different body.  That can't be too easy on your family and the one you love.  The spells you speak of, like polymorph, sound a bit more promising, although I don't really understand them.  I thought they only lasted minutes, hours at best."

"Well, thank you Lawrance.  I need to talk to Lia and will think on this some more.  Ah, um, while I'm here, how are you doing?  Is there anything I can do for you?"

Morgiane listens with intent and awe as Poljen tells of the tales of the Silver Blaze. She looks and watches him as he tells the wondrous tales of the dragons and such that he and the others have fought before her arrival. When he tells the tale of their latest tale and mentioned Mari and herself; she adds what she can to the skills and deeds of the others. She spare nothing of the details and she talks of battle. She also adds how she was the one that took down the Dragon Warrior with a mighty a blow with her sword. Once she is done, she sips her ale and stays quiet as the dwarf tells his tale and Poljen tells of how they acquired the Sky Castle and the battle that bestowed it upon The Silver Blaze. 

Morgaine enjoys the time with Poljen and Mari and drinks almost as much as he does during the time they spend in the  establishment.

  Mari looks with increasing horror upon Poljen and Morgaine . She tries to get them to stop subtly but they keep speaking . Looking around the tavern she knows these tales may quite possibly reach the wrong people here . Having only had a couple of drinks she scowls and stands up.  She mouths silently to the others , " We have a lot of enemies . You are putting an even bigger target upon our backs. " She heads towards the door.  Her glare will meet anyone that looks at her. She keeps her swords loose in their sheaths.  Mari pays careful attention to her surroundings as she heads back to the others. The assassin thinks it highly likely they will have drawn some unwelcome attention . 

The dwarf before Penelope grins, "You came to the right place. I am skilled with such, though it is my father who is the true master of the art."

He opens the door wide, brushing aside his son who still seemed reluctant to let the stranger in. "Come on in, and tell us of how you earned these spoils, I don't suppose you managed to preserve the Draconis Fundamentum? We have been looking for one from a green for quite some time now."

As Mari exits the bar, a dwarven man follows, he is waving and obviously trying to get her attention.

As he gets close, he says, "Hey, Mari was it? You know, you're really beautiful, and strong too from the sound of it. Can I ask you something?"

The man does not seem to have any weapon save for a simple belt knife.

    Mari stops as he gets her attention.  Time seems to slow as many thoughts race through her mind. Why did he give out her name ? She was dead as far as the Zhents were concerned.  Now they would find out and hunt her.  She looks at the man coldly. " Thank you . What can I help you with? " She angles her right side away from him and draws her short sword partially out . Mari scans the area with her peripheral vision.  

The dwarf smiles, "Listen, there aren't many women around here quite like you, believe me, I have been looking. It doesn't look like you are involved with the big guy in there, so I was wondering if you would like to go dancing with me? There is a song hall not far from here, the music tonight is expected to be particularly beautiful."

"If not dancing, then perhaps something else? I would love to see you smile."

  She blushes for a monent before regaining her icy mask . " Thank you for your interest. I have enemies and am not too trusting.  Maybe some other time and place.  " Mari keeps her sword ready and turns to resume her walk. 

Penelope walks inside and takes a look around before sitting down. She smiles at the older dwarf and relays the story, but is careful not to mention any specific names of places or people, "We dealt with a green that terrorized the elven forests to the west. She was bad news, and even took elven children as prisoners." Penelope looks down to the ground wearing a guilty expression before continuing, "We weren't...able to save all of them." Suddenly, she looks back up and locks eyes with the elder dwarf, "It was terrible, but we avenged them! She will never hurt anyone ever again!"

Pulling herself back together, she says, "Anyways, I'm not sure on the Draco...Fubar...thing...you mentioned. A friend of mine did the harvesting. Here's what I've got." She pulls out the harvested green dragon bone, then continues, "It has a nice green tint to it, doesn't it? I was hoping to get a scimitar made, something like this." She snaps her fingers and creates an illusion of what she wants in the air. She spins it around to show it from various angles.

"Can you make something like that from this?" 

Penelope finds the house spacious and well appointed, it seems as if the family business is quite lucrative.

The dwarf taps his chest, "Draconis Fundamentum. It is a hardened organ located near the lungs, just behind the crest of the breastbone. It produces the materials needed for a dragon to breathe out fire, acid, or in this case poison. If preserved, they can be used to keep producing that breath weapon on demand. We find the green ones particularly useful for sterilizing infested tunnels. Clears out mold, spiders, and lesser vermin like goblins in a snap."

"If you're ever in the position again to try taking and keeping one intact, I suggest doing so. They really are valuable to those of us who know what to do with them."

"As to the blade, certainly we could make something like that. There are some details that need changing though, even dragon bone is brittle if made that thin. I will need to either thicken the spine, or reinforce it with a bit of metal, likely mithral."

Elsewhere, Mari's would be suitor looks disappointed for a moment, but then catches up again. "Okay then, let me help watch for trouble on your way to... wherever you're going. My name's Gunther Oreseeker, I know these streets and the people here like few others do."

In spite of his offer to keep watch, the young dwarf seems to be more interested in watching Mari's face.

"Keeping your same body, you are subject to the life span the Gods granted us as humans. There's not a lot of ways around that limit. Think of it this way - you as an Elf would just be you with slightly different features like pointed ears. You'd still essentially be 'you'" 

Sipping from his own drink as they chat, he relaxes into the chair further, taking advantage of the break in his tasks. On the last question, he responds "This tower left by the former owner has been very well equipped for my work. Beyond a few traps and such that I've had to clear out, it has everything I needed to set up shop. Perry is currently getting some things I need to continue my research, but I am mainly working on a spell to protect us against dragon abilities. Once complete, i can ward us any time we face such creatures, giving us an advantage over their depredations. It's going slow, but worthwhile. So, as far as it goes, I'm doing very well, thank you."

Penelope takes notes in her small songbook about the Draco Thingy. "Oooh, the mithral reinforcement sounds good. I like mithral. It's one of my favorite metals ever, definitely in my top three. Anyway, I will definitely keep an eye out for your Draco Thingy for next time! It sounds like it could be very useful."

She pauses for a moment and grins, then scribbles some more in her songbook. 

"Oh, um, how much would do I owe you to make it? I can leave the bone here with you now if you don't mind and pick it up later if that sounds good?"

"Glad to hear it Lawrance.  Thank you for your help.  I have a lot to think about."  At that Velon takes his leave and winds his way back down the tower.

This is when he finally makes it to the markets and asks around until he arrives at the temple of Tiamat.  The temple is impressive to say the least, and upon entering the paladin of the platinum god he can feel His presence, not unlike how he can feel it when he has a Bless or Shield of Faith spell upon him.  He stands in the center of the main chamber for a while just looking around at the architecture and taking it all in.  Eventually the plate clad warrior walks toward the front and kneels, praying to Bahamut.

Velon thanks Him for giving him purpose, for the ability to fight the evil the realm faces, and the power to help save his friends thus far.  He promises to keep up the fight until Tiamat's return is stopped, she is defeated, his body gives out on him, or he is simply dead.  He tells Tiamat that he had been searching for his purpose, and found more than he could have asked for with the Blaze, and with Lia.  He tells his God that the overabundance of wealth in this area is greatly appreciated, but does come with a price.  He fears of losing it, or of Lia losing him as he ages rapidly in comparison to her.  He tells Bahamut that if he does all he can and succeeds, with the help of his friends and all who are good in the realms that come to aid them, in defeating Tiamat and her followers that he would trade all other boons given to him to live out the rest of his life at Lia's pace, dying of old age together when the time comes, assuming no other true cause makes an earlier sacrifice the right choice instead.  Alternatively he would gladly serve Bahamut for all of this long life, as long a he could remain true to the family he hopes to have at the same time.  He says that he trusts in his God to understand the need for both to keep one's heart true.  Once again he thanks Bahamut for his blessings and his strengths, and simply promises to do his best.  At that he takes his leave from the temple, walks back through the market, and returns to Castle Skyreach.

  Mari stares at him for a moment.  " Fine.  You are persistent. I'll give you that . Let's go dancing. You can point in the general direction but I'm picking the bar.  If you try to trick me or inform on me or my friends I will kill you.  I promise you that. " She grins at this . " Let's go ..if you are feeling brave . " 

The dwarven craftsman says to Penelope, "Well now, that depends. Was it just the one blade you wished for? If so, there's more than enough bone here for that. I could take it all off your hands, craft you the scimitar in trade, and pay you besides for the remaining value of the materials. But you said you were part of a group, was it really just the one weapon needed?"

Gunther grins at Mari's comment, apparently taking the threat in stride, "Who said anything about a bar? Not everything we dwarves get up to is done with a tankard in hand you know." His smile broadens as he jokes, "Just maybe nine out of ten things. In any case, I don't know what you're so jumpy about, but the songhall's about as safe as it gets, too open and there are too many eyes for anything to happen. Let me show you, and you can decide for yourself."

The young dwarf leads the rogue to a large open building. A strange lilting music envelops the area as a troupe of musicians play. It is uplifting, if somewhat strange. spectators sit and listen, and others dance in a large open space apparently reserved for such.

In the temple, as he makes his dedication clear, Velon feels a surge of heat coming from the scale he bears, it comes with a sense of... contentment perhaps, or satisfaction.

Poljen and Morgaine are plied with drinks as the dwarves try to pry more out of the pair.

Penelope thinks for a moment, "Hmm, not for now. A few of our group who wanted items made had to leave to take care of other things. But I'm sure there will be future business opportunities! Oooh, I have this idea to make a cloak out of every chromatic color of dragon scale. I have no idea if it will be any good for magical enchantment, but it sure will be pretty! Anyway, um, if there's some bone left, could you make a longbow with the rest? If that's too much, then perhaps either a shortsword or a dagger. You can keep the rest after that. I can pay for half now and then half when I come pick it up later, does that sound okay?"

After the transaction is complete, Penelope heads back to the castle waving goodbye to her new dwarven friends. "Oh before I forget, what was your name, master dwarf of Clan Redhammer? Thank you SO MUCH again for doing this!"

Poljen has learned from the bards he knows personally that you should leave an audience wanting more.  So he drains his pitcher and says, "When next we have earned more glory, we will return and tell the story of our feats of daring!  Until then, we bid you good evening!"

Velon leaves the temple a bit more at peace, having felt the presence of Bahamut there and a response from the heart scale, or perhaps simply from the platinum God himself.  He returns to the market and then the castle, looking forward to hearing what Lia and the others have been up to.

When Perry eventually finds his way back to his room, there is a small, thin gift box on his bed.  It is wrapped in purple parchment and has a note attached.  "Perry, this may not be quite your style, but I think it will be useful in your theater, or perhaps the next time we fight a dragon.  Thank you for watching over all of us, and for adding some flare to the Blaze, my friend.  -V"  Inside the box is a Wand of Conducting. 

On Mari's bed she finds a large, flat box wrapped in silver.  A note reads "Mari, some feared you might stab us in the back, but there is no one I'd trust more to have mine.  Thank you for always watching over Lia, myself and the rest.  I sleep better at night knowing you always have one eye open looking for danger.  I hope this gift, in turn, protects you as well, my friend. -V"   Inside the box is Velon's old Cloak of Displacement.

On Lia's bed are two boxes.  One is tiny and is wrapped in silver with a red ribbon.  Inside is a Cleansing Stone.  The note reads "You don't need my help living up to the standards of Sune, but this may be handy in a pinch, if not for you than surely for me. -V"  The other box is long and is wrapped in silver with green ribbon.  Inside it is packed with roses and lying in the center of the roses is a shiny dragon slaying arrow.  Another note reads "Let's finish this war, together, shall we?  I look forward to our adventures afterwards.  Perhaps they will be small, quiet ones in the forests of your elven home.  I'd like that.  Love, Velon."

Cratol spends a lot of time shopping with Sylmae and getting her some nice jewelry with Morgaine, Mari and Lia.  Then at another shop finding her some ribbons for her hair to go with the dresses.  Soon they find their way back to the castle and Cratol's room to store their stuff in their proper places.