Hanging out in Cordoba and the City of Pain
We arrive in Cordoba in two shifts. A woeful augury forces the Harald, Ailyll, druidlings contingent to land 100 miles off target. We show up in the middle of a hooka party. Luckily, the party has been going on for long enough that we can explain our sudden appearance without too much trouble. We get on some phantom steeds and head in to town. On our way we pass the palace of Ez-zarah, the home of the current vizier Al-Mansur.
In Cordoba, we try to get an audience with the Caliph Hisham. While we wait for one of Ailyll's new friends to get us past the red tape, we do some library research and enjoy the surprisingly unexciting attractions of the greatest city in the west. We look up info on the City of Pain and some other stuff.
We also meet with the learned Dinash and Hassadi, the two contenders for the title of the wisest of the cabbalists. We offer to trade Solomon's Torah for an interpretation of the number table on the front, and maybe some other favors. Hassadi seems to recognize Harald, who he mistakes for a different friend of the Jews from Bethsida who has promised to rebuild the temple in a letter to Hassadi.
After a few days we receive an audience with the Caliph. We are asked to remove all weapons and magic items, and have all our various ongoing spells dispelled. We go back to our inn to drop off the stuff with our friends, but Harald decides to risk casting Nondetection on himself and coming back. It works, so he gets to keep his various items and enchantments. We are taken into an elaborately decorated room with a very tall throne, upon which sits a splendidly dressed young man. When we address our respects to him as Caliph he laughs and proclaims "Caliph?! I am but the slave of his slave!" and directs us to the next room, where we meet an even more grandiosely attired slave, who sends us to the garden where the true Umayyid Caliph, Hisham sits. He is a simply dressed half-elf, and before him there is just a sword, a book and a fire. He turns out to be quite friendly, and very interested in tales of our travels. Turns out he doesn't get out much as, because of his half-elven heritage, the Vizir Al-Mansur does not believe he is yet old enough to rule. Harald is moved by the Caliph's obvious desire for adventure, and offers to take him with us on some of our nearby endeavors. The Caliph is enthusiastic, but says it will never work, he is too closely guarded and even now we are being watched. A quick teleport fixes that, and we find ourselves outside of the City of Pain. Too bad we left all our weapons and items back at the inn....
