Nordak grumbled to himself as he walked the streets of Phlan. Although he was a stranger to the city, he had become familiar with the layout over the past few weeks. As he was staying with the Kelemvorites in Phlan until his business was concluded, it was only right he knew the city as best as he could. So, his free time was spent exploring Phlan.

It was quiet in Phlan. Nordak took it as an opportunity to perform his clerical duties at the temple. He assisted in the ceremonies, performed rites over the dead, and even led a funeral procession. Most of his time in service to the temple was maintenance, such as cleaning the floors in the temple and pulling weeds out at the graveyard. The dwarf didn't mind being a servant at times. It was all part of his duty to Kelemvor.

Though, when Doomguide Yorvir approached Nordak with a special task, he was relieved to have something better to do with mopping.

"What de ye need me te de?" Nordak had asked upon meeting with his superior.

"There is a task involving restless spirits outside of Phlan," Doomguide Yorvir explained. "I will explain more, but there is one thing you must set out to do first."

"Aye?"

"The task will take more than yourself, and as of now, the Kelemvorites have little with your experience. You mentioned having worked with adventurers before, so bring them to me. You will work with them and I will explain the task when you are together."

And with that exchange, Nordak was already starting to miss his role as a caretaker in the temple.

Nordak was a skilled undead hunter and his line of work took him far from home. Some may consider him an adventurer, but to the dwarf, that was an insult. Adventurers worked for coin and were often not the sanest individuals around who often made questionable decisions. Although Nordak recognized that adventurers could get a lot accomplished, he hated to be viewed as one. He was working for a worthy cause. To delve into tombs to loot them was not his line of work.

Yet, Nordak was respectful of the Doomguide's wishes, and sought out to find a group of adventurers he came to know.

It had only been a little over a week since Nordak investigated rumors of a haunting at Sokol Keep, just off the coast of Phlan. What should have been a relatively easy job was made difficult with the presence of four adventurers. At first, there was conflict between the group, as Nordak saw when he landed at Sokol Keep only to find them trying to kill each other. The dwarf had to keep them all on a close leash as they worked together, clearing out Sokol Keep of the undead.

Apparently, that was enough for the adventurers to forget that they tried to kill each other, and the next day, they were planning on sticking together. Of course, Nordak didn't want to be part of their little band. He wasn't an adventurer. Still, he promised that if he found work and needed help, he would get in touch with them. And he already knew where they would meet: the Laughing Goblin Inn.

Nordak stepped into the inn, and after a quick glance through the patrons, saw the adventurers sitting at a booth together. A triton and a dark elf stuck out in Phlan, so it was an easy search. The dwarf remembered his former companions well enough. Nalos the triton druid, Arannis the dark elf warrior, Pallas the half-elf brawler, and Hana the sorceress. They were all in common clothing and enjoying themselves. Nordak inhaled, hoping to make this quick before being drawn into their antics. He walked forward, grabbing a chair from an empty table, and placed it at the end of their table.

The adventurers turned to look at him with expressions of surprise and joy.

"Nordak!" Nalos and Pallas yelled out in unison.

"It's good to see you again," Hana smiled kindly.

"And ye as well," Nordak nodded in agreement as he took a seat. Out of the group, Hana was probably the closest he had to a friend.

"We're just catching up on what we've done throughout the week," Arannis told Nordak. "What have you been up to?"

"Workin' in th' temple," Nordak answered bluntly. "I have a job fer ye lot, like we talked about."

"And we'll be happy to hear about the job once we're done here," Pallas shrugged, taking a sip from his cup.

Nordak tried to protest, but was quickly overshadowed by Arannis. "Pallas, are you drinking water?"

"I am."

"That's a first," Arannis chuckled.

"Well, it's not really to my liking. But this morning, I woke up, thinking to myself, 'I'm pretty sure I broke the law last night, but I can't remember what I did,' so I'm taking a break from my usual drinking habits."

Nordak resisted the urge to facepalm as Pallas took another sip from his water. Nalos spoke up. "Last night sure was crazy. Between whatever Pallas did and me getting married, it was a wild party."

There was an immediate reaction to Nalos' story. Arannis and Hana looked at him in shock. Pallas dropped his cup down to the ground and was choking on his water. Nordak sighed and covered his face with his hand. Adventurers like Pallas and Nalos were exactly the reasons he stayed away from adventurers.

"Nalos, you can't just marry someone you just met!" Hana exclaimed.

"Especially while you two were probably both drunk," Arannis added quickly.

"Why not?" Nalos asked. "Pallas said that I should learn to get more intimate with a woman."

"That's not what I meant," Pallas wheezed, slamming a fist to his chest. "I'm choking to death here!"

"Marriage is a union between two people who are in love," Hana explained.

"Or between two strangers as part of an arranged marriage in nobles," Arannis pointed out.

"Well, that too."

"Or, in some cases, it could be with two people who are not in love, but one has a crossbow aimed at their back after sleeping with their future bride," Pallas joined in, taking deep breaths.

Hana sighed. "You two are not helping my argument at all."

"Well, our marriage wasn't like the last two examples," Nalos thought out loud. "I guess I must be in love with her!"

"That's not how that works," Hana grunted.

Finally, Nordak spoke up. "Look, eventually, Nalos is goin' te meet his bride again. When they do, they're either goin' te stay with each other, or separate. Let's put a pin in this conversation until then."

"Sounds like a plan to me," Pallas quickly nodded. He then grabbed Arannis' drink and chugged it down.

"Pallas, I had ale," Arannis reminded his friend.

"You did," Pallas slammed down an empty mug. "And so did Nalos. So much for a day of being sober."

Pallas reached over to Nalos' mug and started to chug it down as well. Nordak held back a sigh and wished he could go back to mopping the temple floor. Anything was better than dealing with adventurers for as long as he would have to.

"So, we've said our stories," Pallas slammed down another mug and hiccuped. "How about you two?"

"I've been trying to translate Moonsea Cults to Common but have had little luck in the manner," Hana said, disappointed. "I have a feeling that it will be important with whatever threats we may face next."

"We can help translate," Nalos offered with a smile.

"I doubt you or Pallas can help," Hana shook her head.

"Maybe I can, lass," Nordak offered. "If yer interested, we can discuss a meetin' time after th' job I have fer all o' ye."
"Now, that sounds like a better plan," Hana nodded. "I'd be happy to talk about that."

"And how goes the pit fighting, Arannis?" Pallas asked. "Do you have a winning streak going on?"

"Not really, no."

"Losing streak?" Nalos asked.

Arannis hesitated, then nodded. Both Pallas and Nalos burst out into laughter.

"You should leave the fist fighting to me!" Pallas chuckled. "Just bet on me and you'll be rich. That is if I ever bothered with fist fighting."

"Nordak, I am ready to hear your job offer," Arannis sighed.

"As am I," Nordak stood up from his chair. "Th' rest o' ye can come with or stay here. No guarantees that I'll be back."

"I'm ready," Hana joined Arannis and Nordak.

"Damn," Pallas muttered and stood up. "I was hoping to get another drink before leaving."

"And that's everyone," Nalos followed after the group. "Nordak, I have a question."

"Aye, lad?"

"Are you ever going to come by for our reunions? We'd love to have you."

The other adventurers nodded in agreement and Nordak held back a wanted to see him as one of their own, an adventurer. He wanted nothing to do with their lifestyle and yet they were insistent on dragging them into it. After this job, he was going to have to look into staying within the temple or working by myself.

"'Fraid not,'' Nordak shook his head, much to the disappointment of the others. "I don't have any interestin' stories to share. Now, let's go meet with th' Doomguide for information on yer quest."

A/N: So, unlike my previous two updates that were completely new, it turns out that I had this (and the next chapter) written out already. Why I didn't upload it already is beyond me.

Much like with the case of the characters from Defense in Greenest, I have chosen to update the current character sheets. Nothing that is too big of a change, honestly, aside from a change to Arranis' fighter archetype, but not only is it difficult to show most fighter's archetypes to begin with, I don't recall ever establishing what his is in the narrative, so I think I can get away with it.

If you've enjoyed the story, feel free to follow it and leave a review if you're compelled to.

Until next time.