Exposition!
or a moment, I thought he might still balk at actually telling me anything, but he nodded brusquely and called to the halflings. “Le! Ev! Could you go topside, please?” He waited until they did, then turned back. Even then there was hesitation, but Bigwave visibly clamped it down. “What we’re looking for is an…”
“…Old American helmet, or crown, or maybe a really heavy circlet,” I finished for him, just to see him gawk at me. “I’m a trained professional, Captain Bigwave. That means my guesses really are educated. What you said was light enough to be worn, about the size of a human’s head, and made out of stainless steel. Greater Hershey only started making that stuff in bulk again fifteen years ago, so it’s got to be Old American.”
Bigwave sighed. “Henderson’s Burdensome Coronet started as an Old American helmet, yes.” He cocked an eye at me. “You don’t recognize the name?” he asked, honestly sounding surprised.
“The artifact name? No.” I shook my head. “Although it sounds like something out of the First Age. Especially since ‘Henderson’s’ in the title. Half the artifacts on the hidden market claim to be the personal salt shaker or whatever of the first Supreme Archmage.”