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.No doubt the opened brainpan of the first mate would set tongues wagging.Exactly as Azriim planned.If the priest of Mask and his allies were following them, Azriim wanted to ensure they followed along the path he marked.Back to the ship now, he projected to Dolgan.Our assassin should be arriving soon.And we are setting sail tonight.CHAPTER 6: FISHINGCale procured a single room for the three of them in a dockside, two-story inn called The Murky Depths.The inn served wealthy itinerant merchants who did not want to spend their evenings aboard ship while they were in port.Well-dressed men and women filled the common room, chatting and laughing.Several subdued games of draughts, sava, and scales and blades went on at various tables.Business negotiations went on at others.Dice were not in evidence.The sweet smell of quality pipeleaf filled the room and bluish smoke circled the roof joists.A large kettle of fish stew simmered over thelarger of the taproom's two hearths.The Depths had only a few windows, all tightly shuttered.Dim glowglobes in the corners shed cerulean light of varying intensity, giving the taproom a deep-sea feel.Permanent illusions of small sharks, dolphins, jellyfish, marlins, and other exotic fish "swam" through the air between tables, between the roof rafters.An auditory illusion kept up a soothing chorus of distant whalesong.Permanent visual illusions made the floor appear to be transparent with a sea floor far below.Kelp, giant clams, and anemones dotted the sandy bottom, and schools of fish swam lazily under the feet of the patrons.Cale could imagine the expense the proprietor must have spent on hired illusionists.The three comrades sat in a shadowed corner of the taproom at a sturdy round table edged with an inset shell border.Ceramic tankards filled with quality house ale sat before them."Hardly our kind of place," Jak said, eyeing the clientele.He reached out to touch a bright red illusory fish coasting past their table.It darted away from his touch and into the depths below the floorboards.Cale agreed.Other than dinner knives and a couple of obviously ceremonial cutlasses that hung from the hips of two overweight merchants, the three comrades wore the only weapons in the room.The Depths was a place to which Cale might have accompanied Thamalon to close a trade deal.Cale said, "I wanted us to have—"The patrons scattered as an illusory shark burst out of the floor chasing a large silver fish.Prey and predator swam a frenetic course over three tables before knifing neatly back into the floorboards' depths.Eventually the fish found shelter in a cave on the sea floor and the shark went hungry.Laughter and clapping followed.Cale, Jak, and Magadon shared a look.All three had pushed back their chairs, half stood, and put hands to hilts.Cale had Weaveshear halfway from its scabbard.Sheepishly, they released their blades and settled backat their table.Some of the nearby patrons eyed them and whispered behind their hands.Cale ignored them and took a sip of ale."As I was saying, I wanted us to have a peaceful place from which to operate.One with few distractions." He thought of the tavern back in Skullport, when he and Riven had fought off some mercenaries.That would have been a pointless distraction too, had it not led to him meeting Varra.He put thoughts of her from his mind."I also figured it might as well be a nice place.We could use a reprieve, even if temporary."Jak tilted his head and raised his glass in a salute.A trio of golden fish swam near their table and Jak snapped out his free hand to grab at one.The little man proved faster than the illusion and all three illusory fish vanished at his touch.They reappeared, swimming peacefully, near the ceiling across the room."Got you," Jak said to them, smiling, and took a long, congratulatory draw on his ale.Magadon returned them to their task."Sakkors is underwater.We know that.Hopefully, we can catch the slaadi and Riven aboard ship, but if not.""Then we go under," Jak said, and looked down through the floorboards
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