OOC:
Still unpacking, but things are calming down. Thanks for bearing with me!
The creak of the front door opening cuts the conversation short. Against the mid-morning sunlight, you see the silhouette of a woman short of stature and thin of build: Lady Calypso Argus. The door shuts, showing that her brown skin is perfectly dry despite the balmy weather outside. She gives you all a single nod.
"Apologies for my tardiness."
The woman crosses the stone floor quickly and takes a seat at the head of the long, wooden table. You take spots on the benches running the length of the table. Your employer then lets out a sigh.
"I pride myself on my punctuality. But our mayor... He has a different idea of time. He came calling early this morning. Seems an old brigand we've had in the town jail has escaped, and he wants me to help find him. We certainly live in interesting times. But that's my task for the moment. For the six of you, I have something I hope will be a bit... simpler."
The lady pours herself a glass of water from a decanter on the table and takes a sip.
"This heat!" She sits up straighter and continues.
"I'd like the six of you to take on a different inquiry. The client is a noblewoman named Olarie Dribbage. She's lived in Tamalir all her life, but for the past few weeks, she's been living in her uncle's place just outside Nornholt. Seems her uncle is missing. His name is Vizeron Dribbage. Been gone from the property for nearly a year. She says someone broke in a couple nights ago, so she ought to take ownership of the place to keep it safe. But to do that, she has to prove her uncle's truly gone--whether that means he's no longer sound of mind or body... or something worse. Your job, then, is to find out what happened to the uncle. Where is Vizeron Dribbage? Is he still alive?"
"You all, of course, know how to do this job. But some ideas might be to try the Nornholt Library or the Church of St. Durbin to dig up information on the property. Seems it's a lucrative little farm; the family allowed the Order of St. Durbin to locate a cemetery on the land and gets rents from the church to this day. Not bad when none of the farms 'round here are worth a squat after the Dragon Wars ravaged this area. The burglary might be another thread to pull. You might try the constabulary to learn more. Or maybe the folks in the Lower City have heard rumors about it. And I wager you'll be wanting to visit the house itself. You'll find it not far from the town's northern wall. Just take the Hills Gate and take the path east."
She looks across the table and makes eye contact with each one of you in turn.
"I don't expect this inquiry to take you more than a few days to resolve. For a few of you, this will be your first case, or close to it." She looks to Mengus, Hildar, and Nera.
"But if I didn't think you were up to it, you wouldn't be here." She then looks to Nekurr, Barvek, and Tronus.
"As for you veterans, I trust you old hands to see that these newcomers are treated as equals, you hear me?"
"Any questions?"