The Kettle

NOTORIOUS HOT SPRING OF ILL REPUTE

One of the three hot springs found within the redbrick dome of the Guilforge, the Kettle is a notorious haunt for the seedier elements of the Harshlands. The vein of molten earth deep beneath the Guilforge’s foundation heats the water to a balmy degree, giving it a pleasant temperature which has attracted the inhabitants of the Harshlands for centuries before the great forge was built. After the openings of the Three of Wheels pub and the nearby Black Ithacat cabaret however, the clientele of the Kettle took a significant downturn. Vrogan, proprietor of the Three of Wheels, often conducts his shady business deals from a private offshoot of the spring directly behind his pub. The dancing girls of the Black Ithacat are said to be instructed by Mademoiselle Ziyadah to fleece their admirers of every last crescent while taking a dip in the steaming waters of the Kettle. It is not uncommon for bathers in the spring to encounter members of such disreputable groups of scofflaws as the Bludlow Boys, the Gleddon Gang, the Castle Crew and the Plug Dusters. Even infamous pirates of the Asphodel Sharum and slavers of the Borzoi Syndicate have been known to luxuriate in the thermal waters.

In the time of Chamberlane’s administration of the Guilforge, a vicious war erupted between two rival bandit gangs, the Scrimshaws and the Lanternholders, with the testy waters of the Kettle being fought over for several months. Some say the conflict started when Svetlana, lead dancer at the Black Ithacat spurned the advances of the Scrimshaw chief, Ratz, and sought comfort in the arms of Ambrose, top man of the Lanternholders. Whatever the origin of the feud, it wasn’t long before Ratz found himself drowned at the bottom of the Slagpool and Ambrose was strung up from the long disused pillories atop the Lord Administer’s Tower with a dozen new knife wounds in tow. Svetlana, however, fared substantially better, secreting away to the island city of Camisado with a young cavalier by the name of Timoteo, who would go on to become the Delfino of Camisado, with Svetlana as his dutiful bride.

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{thuh KET-l}

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