Set in

We discuss the plan for acquiring the sword and the abbey. Izar proposes buying the sword now, with Agnus keeping the money and returning it if we come back with the deed. Agnus agrees to sell the sword for 80,000 credits, prays to Gliton, and gives us the sword after the payment clears. Izar hands out fire liquor to celebrate. Dorinda asks Agnus about the phoenixes' nesting habits and the abbey’s old sections, learning about a stained glass window moved to the orphanage and the sigil of Gliton, an eight-pointed star engulfed in flames. We head to Ankhor bistro for a lunch meeting with Vashnu, the Tiger Guard commander. The bistro is upscale, and Vashnu, a battle-scarred salamander, invites us to eat. He mentions a task: retrieving a shield with red eyes from the Tiger Guard armory to help find a cure for Ibi, the Empress's son. We accept and discuss our plan. We scout the imperial grounds. Dorinda gets coffee, and Ego prepares to impersonate a salamander. Izar blinks to the ethereal plane to locate the armory. We notice the guards' changing pattern and Izar follows a dismissed guard to the armory entrance. Izar, still in the ethereal plane, explores the armory, noticing guards and an ornamental shield with red eyes behind a glass case. He waits for an opportunity to retrieve the shield.