Family Rissolio

Year: 1491, Month: Tarsakh, Date: 22nd

Family Rissolio

The Rissolio home is a large, lavish residence in the Noble quarter of Yartar.  When we arrive, the entrance is closed, but there is a bell hanging by the door, so I grab hold and ring vigourously.  As there doesn't seem to be anyone coming, I keep ringing the bell, and ringing, and ringing ...  What is wrong with the people of Yartar?  It seems as though everyone wants to make us wait at their pleasure.  Or may be it is just Nobles?

The Majordomo

Eventually the door is opened by a thin, rather austere looking, middle-aged man.   

He immediately puts me in mind of an assassin, and seems quite dangerous.  Cielo asks if he is Arten, but he indicates no with a curt nod of his head, and asks how he may help us?  We explain we are investigating some strange events happening around Yartar, and having spoken to The Waterbaron, we have come to see if Arten can help us with our enquiries.  He thinks for a moment, then says that Arten is not well, but he will enquire of Lady Rissolio whether we can speak with him.  He then gestures for us to follow him, and he leads up through some beautiful, well tended gardens at the end of which is a huge imposing house, and into an opulent room, where he bids us to make ourselves comfortable and wait.  Clearly, judging by these surroundings, the Rissolio's must be one of the foremost and richest families in all of Yartar.

I am relieved Zook isn't here with us - for a Monk, he seemed strangely fond of valuable things.

A short time later he returns.  He tells us that Mrs. Rissolio will see us now, provided we agree to her conditions.  He informs us that Arten is gravely ill, and Mrs. Rissolio will only allow us to see him on the condition that we do not speak to him, and all questions are addressed to her.  Due to Arten's ill health we will not be permitted an audience for very long.  We agree to the conditions and he beckons us to follow him.  

He leads us through a number of rooms, and up a grand staircase, and into a long hallway.  I hear a faint scratching noise behind me.  I glance back, and see Enna has a faint smile on her face.  What mischief is she up to?  I hope it is nothing Tyr woud disapprove of.  He knocks lightly at one of the doors, and waits.  I faintly hear a female voice say "Come if you must", and the majordomo opens the door and quietly says, "Mrs. Rissolio will see you now", before ushering us into a huge bedroom.

The bedroom

Inside there is a huge four poster bed in the centre of the room.  Sat at one side is an immaculately dressed lady, who is caring for the person in the bed, who I presume to be Arten. 

She is very carefully and methodically dabbing his skin with a wet cloth, as if she has been doing this for some time, dab, dab, dab, dab, dab, dip cloth in bowl of water, dab, dab, dab, dab, dab, dip ... 

As we move closer and I get my first look at the bedridden fellow, I momentarily stop in my tracks.  

During my time at the Hall of Justice, I have seen many horrific injuries, and horrifying diseases from those seeking  healing with the Clerics of Tyr, but nothing like the poor fellow who lay in the bed before us.  From a distance he looked almost normal, but as you come close you see the skin all over his body seems to have transformed into a translucent, ooze like substance, pale blue or green in hue.  The poor young fellow has his eyes closed, and his breaths are coming in short, ragged, gasps.  What could have happened to him, he looks like he is turning into a jelly fish?

After what seems a long period of silence, the lady looks up at us and says, "What do yo want?  Can't you leave poor Arten in peace, he is suffering enough!".  She does not sound pleased that we are there.

To be honest, I am fascinated by what he looks like, and can't take my eyes from him.  I barely listen to the hushed conversation going on between Celery, Leotard, Cielo and Lady Rissolio, and take no part.  I catch snippets of the conversation.  Something about Arten and his friend Timothy went out one evening and disappeared...Arten found some days later in a cocoon...side of the river outside Yartar...this condition ever since...does not respond to any healing by the Clerics of Tymora try.  There is a pause in the conversation.  Lady Rissolio seems to be considering something, then bends close to Arten and whispers something in his ear.  His eyes open weakly, and she beckons Celery, "Show him, but be quick about it!".  

Celery draws forth the coin with the Kraken inscription from her purse and shows it to Arten.  He immediately recognises it, and explains that was the token one uses to gain entry to the Grand Dame.  Grand Dame?  The Grand Dame he explains is an exclusive pleasure boat for the wealthy.  That is where he and his friend Timothy were the night they went missing.  No, he couldn't remember anything about it.  He and Timothy had been to the Grand Dame many times, it is The place to socialise in Yartar, if one had the means to afford it.  

With that Arten closes his eyes again and takes several deep breaths.  Lady Rissolio says "Enough, leave now!", and goes back to dabbing Arten's skin and takes no more notice of us.

An unexpected offer

As we exit the bedroom, the majordomo closes the door, then draws us to the side.  He says he overheard the conversation on the Grand Dame, and maybe he could help us.

He explains that Revelers join the boat around dusk, and the boat departs as the sun sets and heads upriver.  On the boat, there are many 'fun' activities to partake of - drinking, gambling, and dancing, to name a few. This goes on all night, until the boat returns to Yartar around dawn, and the revelers disembark.  There is nothing like this in Neverwinter I am sure.  Only the very wealthy can afford the Grand Dame, and can enter only with a token inscribed with a Kraken.  He says he cannot get us all on the boat, but he would be willing to loan Arten's brothers Kraken token to us if that would be helpful.  He is sad seeing his Lady reduced to a nursemaid for her foolish boy, and he is willing to help to find out what happened to Arten and bring him back to normal.

We gratefully accept the offer of the token, and ask if there is somewhere we can go to think through what we might do next.  He takes us to another room in the house...