When Mery saw Joth she said, “Aren’t you a fright? I can’t believe the children didn’t run in terror. Come here.” She motioned him over and performed the mend spell on his robe. “I leave you to….” She waved her hand in a circle to indicate his bloody face. “Deal with the rest. Bathroom off the kitchen there.”

“What did you find?” asked Isa.

“Nothing quite as thrilling as lucky dice, I’m afraid.” Mery smiled at Wat, who was opening a barrel.

“How will you divide it all up? I mean I guess I want enough to give Ealda a tip - donation? - for reading the scroll for us. So can I have maybe….” Isa pulled out her coin pouch and peered inside. “Maybe 35 gold?”

Mery began to laugh. “We’ll split it 4 ways. You can take your part.” She shrugged. “Or leave some here, in case ya come back.”

“I don’t know how I got here, so I don’t know how I’d come back.”

“Magic, of course.” Mery laughed again and gestured toward Joth who was coming back. “Yon wizard should be good for something.”

“I don’t think there’s magic in my world.” Isa sighed. “Sad but true.”

“I don’t believe it.” Mery stood up and slapped her thighs. “Now then, we’ve found a few pretty things,” she said to the group. “Mostly I think we should sell them and divide the gold. It’s hard to say until the moneylenders paw through it all; probably though we have 8 or 9 thousand to divide. That’s beside the jewelry. Rose had a good eye for jewelry, and I think - if you want it - we could each take a piece of that as a memento of our, ah, of our adventure.”

She’d laid 5 rings and a gold chain on top of one of the crates. Two of the rings had green stones. One was almost rectangular with facets cut in it. The setting was simple and clean. The other was larger; the stone sat as a semicircle atop a small nest of sparkly gems. “Are those diamonds?” Isa asked.

“You like that one?” Mery said.

“No!” Isa said and then laughed. “It’s a little busy for my taste.”

“And I’m not sure green is your color.” Mery picked up a silver ring with a golden stone in the center. Two thin bands of metal held the square stone in place. “But this, this could be worthy to sit on your hand.” She took Isa’s right hand and slipped the ring on her middle finger. “What do you think?”

“Wat,” Joth said, “would you like the gold chain? Or perhaps that emerald dripping with diamonds?”

Wat shrugged. “It’s pretty I guess.”

“It will get you noticed,” Isa said. She picked up the emerald ring and handed it to Wat. She was thankful to have something to do besides look at Mery just then.

“I like that,” said Wat. “A bard needs to be noticed, doesn’t he?” He slipped the ring over his forefinger.

“They’ll start calling you Wat Greenstone.” Mery tousled his hair.

Joth put the gold chain around his neck, and Mery picked up a small gold ring with a dark stone. It looked black until Mery flashed it toward the light, and then Isa could see that it was a deep purple.

“It’s beautiful. Unexpected.” Isa’s eyes met Mery’s.

“Just a trick of the light is all,” Mery kept her eyes on the ring.

“I think,” Isa replied, “that there’s something special there.”

Joth coughed. Mery slipped the ring on her finger and said, “Well then, that’s nice. A little reminder of our time.” Mery looked at the gloomy warehouse. “Not a cheery place for goodbyes is it? Let’s go to the Crow’s Nest, eh? A drink to comrades victorious and foes vanquished.”

“I think,” said Joth, “that the boy and I will pass. We both got pretty banged up.”

Wat shook his head. “I could see my way to a pint!”

“The boy’s a bard alright,” Mery said with a laugh.

“We can have a drink - a quick drink - at Cooper’s. Let’s let these two have a little time.” Joth put a hand on Wat’s shoulder.

“Well if you’re going that way, and it looks like ya are, tell ‘em to get a fire going in my room, lad.” She smiled and nodded at Wat. To Joth she softly said, “Well done, wizard.”

“Thanks, Joth.” Isa waved at Wat. “See you in the morning.”

Isa and Mery started toward the exit, walking slowly to let the other 2 get ahead. More for something to say than any real curiosity, Isa said, “Is there really a bar called the Crow’s Nest? Is that not a total cliche?”

“Sailor’s aren’t known for their originality, Isa. Navigating by the stars sounds poetic but, it’s not for poets and dreamers.”

Isa looked up at the sky. There were so many more stars in the sky than back home. But that wasn’t true, was it? They’re there; you just can’t see them for all the light. And life in Portland, with all its obligations, expectations, entanglements, it’s all light. There’s no place for mystery and shadow in modern life. Best to leave that uncertainty here so poets can have something to write about.

“What are you thinking so hard about?” Mery’s voice broke through Isa’s reverie.

“I was thinking that no one back home is going to believe me. This place - it’s just too…. Unbelievable.” She laughed. “You can tell I’m not a poet.”

“You might surprise yourself. And as to your friends, who knows? You have quite a tale to tell, quite a tale.”

Isa leaned over and kissed her. “I’m not very thirsty, are you?”

“I like a lass who knows her mind. I know a place with a nice warm fire - if a certain young man has fulfilled his obligation to his elders.”

Isa threaded her arm through Mery’s “That’s the best offer I’ve had all night.”

Spoiler: Isa's Character Sheet

Name: Isa Chamberlin

Race: Human

Height & Weight: 5ft 6inches / 120 lbs

Class: Fighter Level: 4

Alignment: Chaotic Good

Background: Stranger in a Strange Land

Hit Points: 26 AC: 15

Current Hit Points: 24

Combat: +5 to Hit / +6 on the Quarterstaff

Weapons: Rapier (left hand) 1d8 +3 / Quarterstaff +1 (right hand) 1d6 +3 (bludgeoning)

Potion of Healing

STR

11

0

DEX

16

+3

CON

11

0

INT

13

+1

WIS

13

+1

CHA

12

+1

Saving Throws: Str and Con +2

5

Acrobatics* (Dex)

1

Medicine (Wis)

1

Animal Handling (Wis)

1

Nature (Int)

1

Arcana (Int)

3

Perception* (Wis)

0

Athletics (Str)

1

Performance (Cha)

1

Deception (Cha)

1

Persuasion (Cha)

3

History* (Int)

1

Religion (Int)

3

Insight* (Wis)

3

Sleight of Hand (Dex)

1

Intimidation (Cha)

3

Stealth (Dex)

1

Investigation (Int)

1

Survival (Wis)

Special Attack: Two weapon fighting. When you engage in two-weapon fighting, you can add your ability modifier to the damage of the second attack.

Class Features:

Second Wind - On your turn, you can use a Bonus Action to regain hit points equal to 5 + your fighter level. Short or Long Rest before you can use it again.

USED Action Surge - On your turn, you can take one additional action on top of your regular action and a possible Bonus Action. You must finish a short or Long Rest before using it again.

Martial Archetype: Surgical Fighter

3rd level - Clinical Eye: Spend 1 combat turn studying your enemy and learn one of the following: if the enemy is equal to or stronger than you in strength, dexterity, or constitution. Can spend up to 3 turns to discern all 3. Can be used outside of combat as a free action - spend 1 minute to learn all three.