"I'd like to see him try to survive a week on his own downstairs! I bet he thinks he's too good for two-headed fish, too."

"...Are those safe to eat?"

"Sure, as long as you bring them to Dyra first. Otherwise it can go either way."

"I am only confused that he perceives a large differential between an inn room shared with three other people and sleeping down here considering what he's accustomed to."

It makes sense to him, even if he were an obnoxious rich count he'd rather have a bed with a mattress than a patch of floor, but he doesn't really want to defend the guy. 

Before he sleeps, Irabeth will furnish him with a list of requested spells to prepare for operations at the Tower of Estrod tomorrow. (They want him allocating a Weapons Against Evil, a Burst of Radiance, a communal Protection from Evil, and a Prayer to the operation; his other spells can be allocated freely towards other operations unless she notifies him otherwise in the morning, which she might. She provides lists to the wizards as well.)

Are any specific other operations anticipated?

In addition to existing priorities surrounding recruitment, she recently received several new leads on locations of cultist activity, some of which may be sufficiently urgent to justify prioritization; she's planning on working out which ones to target overnight. 

"Understood." The listed spells and cultist-appropriate ones, then, with enough Oh Shit to cover roaming minor demons.

He goes and finds an appropriate corner to curl up and sleep.

(The Count stalks indignantly away from his conversation with Fiducia Dyra, muttering something about foreign Abadarans under his breath. He approaches one of the relatively desirable patches of floor and casts a glance around at the family that currently occupies it; they obligingly move out of his way.)

Anevia shakes Blai away a few minutes before dawn. "Morning. Beth said to tell you that after the Tower she wants your group dealing with a suspected necromancer. Any questions?"

Yawn. "Any other information on the necromancer?"

"Reportedly he's a gnome, at least third-circle but maybe fourth. He runs a shop that sells spell components, nothing really fancy. He's working with the Baphomites but our source thinks he's mostly just loyal to the principle that he should be able to raise anyone he wants as a zombie."

Blai nods. Gets in line for the privy before dawn strikes. Assembles for prayers.

Less than a minute after dawn, Seelah bolts up from where she's sleeping and makes her way across the tavern to join the prayer group, dodging the people still sleeping on the floor.

"Congratulations," Blai murmurs to her.

She beams at him (and clasps her hand and starts praying extra hard, in case all the praying she did when she first woke up and walked over here somehow didn't count).

Here's the sitrep. He hopes he didn't screw up anything horrendously with Woljif. Or, uh, with Daeran. He has been asked for this list of spells, all things he had yesterday, and might wind up fighting zombies, which are not very tough but he might want two Bursts of Radiance to spare one to make it easier to bludgeon his way through a crowd of them. - oh he has another first circle slot. Figures. It would be better if the crisis ended before it pushed him and Seelah and presumably the others any harder but at least it makes them more able to deal with things, and so far he hasn't heard tell of cultists achieving major victories that would give them the same advantage - though that wouldn't necessarily make it to their ears, if the cultists are having infighting issues and circling up that way, would it - he needs a Weapons Against Evil, and Bless again, maybe two of each of those because there's not much amazing at first circle. And a Detect Undead in case they're hidey. All the usual domain spells. He was asked for a Communal Protection from Evil, and might want two of those also. He'll take another Greater Hide from Undead in case there's something worse than a zombie featured in the necromancer's lair and... how about a summon, that's pretty all-purpose. Should he learn to give sermons? Should he learn to write sermons? It sounds really hard and there are probably people better at it than him but he has not even visited the physical temple of Iomedae to, like, check. Is he delinquent in some responsibility not having done that -

Iomedae does not settle these questions for him. (She does provide the requested spells.)

And Irabeth has a briefing for them! She's sending several paladin-archers and one member of the Order of the Flaming Lance to accompany them. They will first send in an Order member's familiar, under an Invisibility, to confirm various details (the familiar is a talking bird). Presuming everything is as expected, they will cast the following minute buffs, and Nenio will then cast an Invisibility Sphere. They will invisibly move in, with round buffs being cast at this location (she has it marked on a map of the Tower of Estrod, sketched out based on his scouting reports) where they expect to be able to avoid being heard. They will then advance to this location, at which point the paladin-archers and Lann will focus-fire the arcane caster, presuming he is present (here are their guidelines for choosing an alternative target if necessary). At this point the casters will cast various spells to target the remaining group of demons and cultists (this is where Blai is intended to use his Burst of Radiance), and the melee fighters will move in to help mop up while the archers continue to pick off targets from range.

Any questions?

Is she aware of the tremendous indignity that was visited upon him last night?

Tremendous enough that he's not helping and she needs to pull someone else in for the buffs he's supposed to do?

He didn't say that.

Great. Any serious questions?

What kind of bird is the wizard's familiar? Can she interview it for her encyclopedia?