The sun was about to set on Balthazar’s pond, but unlike usual, there was no calm in the air. Instead, the murmuring of voices and the shuffling of multiple figures filled the bazaar as crates were pushed and tables moved around.

  “Alright, that’s good. Put it there,” the crab said to the golem, who was carrying a rge round table in his two massive hands.

  “Tell yolem to be careful with it. That’s some fine wood. I don’t want to see it getting scratched,” said John, the carpenter, sitting in a chair by the er, smoking his trusty pipe.

  “You don’t o tell me to tell him,” Balthazar said. “He may only say one word, but he uands most things just fine.”

  “Friend,” Bouldy said, smiling at the crab as he gently pced the table at the very ter of the deck.

  “Boss, boss!” Druma called, running in through the frorance. “Miss baker and her boyfriend are here!”

  “Good, just on time, too,” the crab said. “And I told you, don’t refer to Rye as her boyfriehe damn boy is too shy to ask her, and we shouldn’t pressure them.”

  Just as he finished correg the goblin, the two just-really-good-friends walked in through the gate.

  Madeleine was wearing her usual baker outfit, nearly all white, some remnants of flour still left on her apron, hinting that she had likely left directly from her baking to there with no time to get a ge of clothes. Her face, while still gentle, showed the clear signs of someoing far too much work and too little rest, with slight circles f under her green eyes, and her usual jovial smile taking a leave of absence, repced by an expression of someone who dearly missed their bed.

  Rye, following right behind her, looked nearly the same as always. Green and white clothes, with some pieces of light leather armor c his torso, his hunting bow and quiver tightly fit against his back. His light facial hair still looked like it hadn’t grown any further in the weeks since he had started letting it grow, but Balthazar noticed the hair on his head was a fair bit longer, now tied bato a short ponytail. The crab frowned and, for whatever reason, found himself wishing he could snip it with his pincer.

  “Balthazar!” the baker excimed, opening her arms before dropping them against the sides of her thighs. “Do you mind telling us what in the gods' names was sent you’d have us e dowhis te? I have so much work to do bae. I ’t be running down here whenever you fanother fvor of pie.”

  “Don’t worry, Madeleihe cheerful crab said. “I know you’ve had to work very hard tely, and that is part of the reason I called you down here. But let’s wait for everyoo arrive before I expin. Did y what I requested, by the way?”

  The girl raised an eyebrow at the crab, but replied without posing further questions. “Yes, it was a bit st minute, but we brought it.”

  She turo Rye, who stepped forward with a rge carton box in his hands and pced it on the edge of the tral table. “Right here, bud.”

  “Hmm, my, that smells delicious,” the old carpenter said from his er, taking the smoking pipe off his mouth and closing his eyes in delight as he took a sniff of the air.

  The two ret arrivals turheir heads to him, notig his presence for the first time.

  “Right, guess you might not know each other,” Balthazar said. “This is John, the carpenter who helped us build this roof above our heads. John, this is Madeleihe baker I told you about, and Rye, her, uh… basket carrier.”

  They all each other before the craftsman spoke again. “Don’t bother asking me what’s this all about, because I also ain’t got a clue. I got called down here same as you, and since I had nothier to do, I just figured I’d e check it out.”

  Madeleine sighed and shrugged. “Well, I trust you’ll have a good reason t us all out here tonight, but since I’m already here, I might as well make the most of it…”

  She smiled and stepped around the table, approag the rge red cushion where Blue rested.

  The drake lifted her head and immediately weled the girl's touch as she started petting the back of her head, tail waggily against the floorboards.

  “Heeeeey! Everyone here yet?” a happily inebriated voice asked.

  Tristan stepped up onto the deck from the back, with Hea hopping behind him.

  The drunkard was wearing a different, more ornate vest under his regur jacket, both still very worn out and missing a few buttons. His usual u graying hair shoddily pulled bato some kind of slick mullet, face still unshaven, with light stubble c his baggy cheeks. Despite his appearance, he looked happy and ready to celebrate something.

  “Ah, damn, more introdus to make,” Balthazar grumbled.

  But before he could say another word, the former mert was already taking Madeleine’s hand into his and shaking it vigorously.

  “I’m Tristan, Balthazar’s new associate. Delighted to meet you at st after hearing so much about you!”

  “Hey! I never said—” the crab started, but before he could finish, the drunk had somehow already slipped around him and was now giving Rye a firm handshake.

  “You as well, dear boy. It’s great to finally put a face to the name!”

  The young adventurer nodded and smiled awkwardly, taken aback by the sudden vigorous greeting.

  Tristauro the toad, who was still by the steps.

  “Well, go on, don’t be shy, Hea! Say hello to them.”

  “Hi, hello,” the toad said, in a timid voice, raising a f.

  “Oh, my gods!” Madeleine excimed in a high-pitched voice. “Did that toad just talk?”

  “Y-yes?” Hea responded.

  The baker rushed towards the toad and crouched dowo her. “I loved frogs and toads when I was a little girl! I always wished they could talk to me whenever I saw one.”

  “Didn’t see you making such a big fuss the first time you saw me talking,” the crab muttered under his breath.

  The toad quickly ged to a more rexed demeanor and the two quickly engaged in versation, pletely ign everything else around them.

  Balthazar, Tristan, and Rye exged gnces and shrugged at one another before the crab spoke. “You guys mind helping pull up the chairs to the table?”

  The group started grabbing chairs and moving them o the round table while the two dies tinued happily chatting on the side, when suddenly Madelei out a scream that startled everyone in the bazaar.

  The girl stood up, horror on her face, finger pointing to the entrance. “A… a skeleton!”

  Everyone else turheir heads in unison to the front gate, except for the crab, who had to turn his whole shell, for ck of a proper head and neck.

  There stood a skeleton with a sack over one shoulder and a walking stick with a ntern hanging from it over the other. He had a bck wide brim hat on his skull, resembling what an uaker might wear, and c his skeletal figure he wore a dark brown jacket and trousers, both old and full of moth holes. His outfit almost made Tristan’s look like fine couture. Druma walked io him shortly after.

  “Uhh… Hello?” Tom said, with a quick wave of his bony hand. “Your boy Druma here told me to e on in, buuut… I think I might have arrived at a bad time?”

  “No, no, it’s fine! I was expeg you,” Balthazar hurriedly said, movio the skeleton. “Everyone, please, o worry. Tom here is a skeleton, but he’s not a threat. I know him.”

  Madeleine finally lowered her arm, but tio look at the traveling mert with a look of distrust, while Rye slowly slid the arrow he had already reached for bato his quiver.

  “What the hell, Balthazar?” Tom whispered, leaning down slightly. “This is way too many humans for my taste. I thought you’d know that.”

  “Rex, they’re all people I trust, and I hem here—as well as you—for what I’m about to discuss.”

  The skeleton gave the other mert the side-eye socket but did not protest further.

  “Alright!” Tristan excimed, his booming voice breaking the icy silehat had settled in the bazaar. “Is that everyone now? we start?”

  “No, not everyone,” Balthazar said. “We’re still missing—”

  The crab paused as three rge figures appeared on the door frame behind Tom.

  “The orcs,” Balthazar finished.

  The chieftain, Khargolmazornyarmarz, stepped inside, his posture fident but his gaze looking around with suspi.

  Once again, the room froze, everyoaring at the imposing warrior.

  Madeleine covered her mouth with a hand.

  The toad gulped.

  Rye’s hand hovered near his bow, unsure if he should draw it or not.

  John remained seated in his chair, blowing circles of smoke from his pipe, appearing to find the entire se very eaining.

  Tristan looked around at everyone else as if searg for any cues on how to react.

  Tom finally broke the silence. “Khargol, my orc! How’s it going? Didn’t expect to find you here, too.”

  The chieftain gave the skeleton an aowledging nod. “Greetings. I, too, did not expect to enter you here tonight. Or all these people, for that matter.” He turned his scowl to Balthazar. “Care to expin, crab?”

  “Oh, rex, dour face,” said the crab. “Not every human attacks or sight, as you see.”

  “It is not our safety you should be ed about if they did,” the stern orc responded.

  Balthazar turned and faced the group. “Everyone, let’s all take a seat at the table, get to know each other better, and I’ll expihing. It will all make sense and you won’t regret it, I promise.”

  Turning to Bouldy, the crab spoke in a lower voice. “Go stand watch by the road, make sure no one shows up unannounced, alright?”

  The golem nodded ahrough the front gate. Khargol turo his two warrior-brothers that were still by the entrand gave them a nod that arently enough of an instru, as they stood guard by the door without saying a word.

  Slowly aantly, everyoarted taking a seat around the table at the ter of the bazaar. Balthazar climbed up to his stool, overseeing the table.

  Madeleiill keeping an eye on the skeleton, slid into the chair to the right of the crab, while Rye sat on the chair o hers.

  To Balthazar’s left, Tristan sat in his chair, nearly missing and falling to the floor at first.

  In the space after him was a wooden stool, which Hea hopped onto.

  Finally deg to stand up, John grabbed the back of his chair and brought it o Rye’s, taking a spot at the table as well.

  Clearly feeling out of pce, Tom sat on one of the chairs opposite of Balthazar, furthest from everyone else.

  Still scowling at the group, Khargol decided to take the seat between Tom and the toad, the wooden chair creaking unfortably as the heavy orc sat on it.

  “About damn time! we finally get to eating?” A muffled voice said from the darkest er of the bazaar.

  Everyourheir attention to the source of the protest, where a verdant bush quietly sat, looking slightly out of p the wooden floor.

  “Did that shrub just talk?” asked Rye.

  “Ah, right, I pletely fot about him,” said Balthazar, scratg the space between his eye stalks with the tip of a pincer. “That’s Rob. He’s my… let’s say ‘underworld e’ in town. He’s more or less trustworthy, just maybe be mindful of the tents of your pockets before you leave here tonight. e on, Rob, join us at the table. We’re ready to begin.”

  The bush shuffled forward until it reached the open space between the skeleton and the carpenter, where it pself back down.

  Khargol sniffed loudly as he crossed his arms. “I knew he was there the whole time.”

  “Is he… going to stay hidden in that bush?” said Rye, looking at the shrub o the table with a puzzled expression.

  “Hmm, yes, Rob, you know you e out of that nht?” Balthazar said.

  “I’d prefer to stay as I am, thanks,” the thief said from within his leafy disguise. “You have a lot of people here, most of them I don’t even know. I think it will be safer for me if they don’t know what I look like. It’s too risky. Better to stay anonymous.”

  “We already know your name is Rob, genius,” said the carpenter sittio him.

  “No, you don’t!” Rob quickly retorted. “What if I cleverly had Balthazar say that o throw you all off? My name could be Bob instead!”

  “In that case, why would you tell us that now and make everyone aware of the lie?” asked Hea from across the table.

  “Alright, alright, enough of that!” the crab excimed. “This isn’t important right now. Let Bob Rob over there stay in his bush if he wants. What matters is that everyone is present.”

  “Fine by me,” said Tom. “ we just finally get to the expnation of what we’re all doing here?”

  “Absolutely,” Balthazar said. “But before we begi’s get the first order of business out of the ie!”

  H0st