5th April, Wild Coast, Highport, early afternoon.
The party decide to Feodor's shop in the hope it still contains herbs they can steal to cure Aurin. Along the way they see a group of slaves under the direction of some task masters clearing one of the partially rubbled buildings for re-occupation. Before the group get within sight of the shop Rondo and Tellius continue on while the rest of the group stay out of sight dispersed in a narrow alley.
Tellius and Rondo approach the shop. The healers sign has been ripped down and lies in the gutter. Near the shop in the middle of a street intersection three orcs and one human have been each been nailed to a crude wooden cross. Each of the orcs belong to a different tribe whose territory borders the intersection. Tellius and Rondo walk by the shop and hear orc voices inside but it is too dark to see inside. They case the alley behind the shop and note the shop has a rear entrance but when they encounter an orc traversing the alley they move on to avoid drawing attention and return to the party.
In the narrow alley a lone half-orc cautiously approaches Lucien and Saab and offers to sell them herbs. Saab is skilled in herb-lore and instantly recognises the worth of the half-orcs merchandise. Lucien and Saab talk price and it is quickly apparent that half-orc has no idea of their value. Unfortunately neither Saab or Lucien have any funds. When the half-orc finds out finds out he slinks away.
Edgaar takes a turn casing Feodor's shop. He takes the direct approach of entering the shop. Inside he discovers two orcs ordering slaves about. The slaves are re-arranging the inside of the shop and throwing out a few items into the street. Edgaar enquires after Feodor. One of the orcs snarls at Edgaar "The healer is dead. Get lost!". Edgaar returns to the party. It is decided Lucien will attempt to sneak into the rear of the shop and search for herbs. A risky plan with the orcs in the front room.
Edgaar goes to pick through the rubbish the slaves are dumping on the street as an excuse to keep a close eye on the front of the shop while Lucien attempts the break-in. While lingering Edgaar notices slaves carrying crates into the shop.Lucien makes his way to the alley behind the shop and tries the door. It is barred from the inside and there is no lock. After a quick examination Lucien knows he can lift the bar with some twine and hook. He goes and purchases the necessary items, returns and breaks into the back of the shop. The backroom of the shop is dark. Lights spills out from under a door leading to the front, the light intermittently broken by movement. Lucien searches the room in near complete darkness. His keen senses determine that the room has been ransacked. There is no sign of any herbs.
Meanwhile in the alley half a dozen orcs with the the death rune insignia confront the party asking them why they are lingering. Aurin sinks deeper into his heavy robes trying to hide his heritage. Tellius claims they are waiting for friends to arrive. The orcs tell them to wait somewhere else and the party is forced to relocate across the road to another tribes territory. Tellius and Lucien rejoin the party and they decide to try and track down the half-orc selling herbs in the alley. The party have not eaten a decent meal for a long time so while walking the streets they spend some of their few remaining silver on some grilled meat on a stick from a street vendor.
Tellius and Lucien use their street skills to pick up the trail of the half-orc but in the process one of the strangers sees through Aurin's disguise. Marcus runs after him to "take care of things" while Saab and Edgaar wait for Marcus. Tellius Aurin and Lucien continue tracking the half-orc lest the trail run cold. They all agree to meet back at the hideout. Marcus returns some time later and reports "it's done". Tellius notices a small splatter of blood on Marcus's boots.
Tellius, Lucien and Aurin close in on the half-orc but Aurin cannot maintain his disguise as a stooped old man and keep up with the others. To avoid slowing them down Aurin tells Lucien and Tellius he will go back to the hideout and disappears down a side street. Lucien and Tellius continue on and eventually overtake the half-orc. They discover he only has a few herbs left he sold most of them to Fek the healer or on the street. They buy two doses of Draf
The party regroup at the hideout and discover Aurin is missing. After waiting a while they go back and walk the streets from where Tellius and Lucien last saw him back to the hideout. When Marcus raises the question whether Aurin would sell out the party abandon the hideout and hire rooms in a seedy inn near the citadel in the Dripping Blade quarter. Edgaar leaves the inn and goes to see if the Ghoul is still in port. The Ghoul is not there. Another slave ship is in it's place. Edgaar returns to the inn.
The party eat in the common room to try and pick up information on the citadel. From a drunken local they learn that the slavers reside somewhere in the citadel and have some sort of arrangement with the dominant Evil Eye tribe. The slavers do not appear to have a large force so it is a bit of a mystery why the Evil Eye answer to them. Upon arrival slaves are taken to the citadel. The lesser quality slaves are sold in the slave markets in the city. Private auctions are also held in the citadel as rich slave traders are seen entering the citadel and leaving with slaves. The party retire to their rooms to discuss their next step. They also learn that a slaver in the company of some Evil Eye orcs questioned Fek about Feodor's death. Later that night Lucien becomes ill. Something he recently ate plays havoc with his stomach.