by: Maerel "Merry Minstrelress" Shael date: 1477 DR source: Bury Elminster Deep In Waterdeep, where shadows lie, The Masked Lords fall, the echoes cry. Laurel’s wits must weave the thread, To quell the whispers of the dead, As daggers gleam and secrets fly. [Chorus] Be ready, O thou minstrels To raise thy cheerful song, For blood will stain the carpets When revels go all wrong. Within the courts, the masks conceal, The truth that only death reveals. Zhentarim plots in alleys deep, Where treachery and shadows creep, The Palace will be brought to heel. [Chorus] Be ready, O thou minstrels To raise thy cheerful song, For blood will stain the carpets When revels go all wrong. Elminster walks the cobbled street, A wizard’s wrath, both calm and fleet. To find the foe, to pierce the guise, He casts his gaze through hidden lies, Where friend and foe alike may meet. [Bridge] Mert the Moneylender schemes, His laughter hiding darker dreams. Beneath the Yawning Portal’s stone, A thousand plots are not his own, Yet his coin fuels bloody streams. [Chorus] Be ready, O thou minstrels To raise thy cheerful song, For blood will stain the carpets When revels go all wrong. Its gaze commands, its agents weave, Illusions spun to deceive. Through magic wrought in darkness deep, Its secrets grow while others sleep, In Xanathar you must believe. Heroes rise as darkness wanes, The Open Lord will break her chains. Though plots endure and powers vie, The city thrives where secrets lie, Amidst the carnage, hope remains.
