The return trip to the manor is strange and eventful, yet uneventful. Upon arriving, the group discovers a stable full of abominations. Strange tentacle cows and other terrible things prompts the party to set fire to the building and roast the offenses to nature. A bit of further investigation reveals the Malthen family crypt – which leads to the underground passages the group has trodden before. Well…that seems to be that. Game, set, match to the party.
A brief debriefing with the locals and the group returns to Immersea. After debriefing the spymaster of Cormyr and the sharing of knowledge with the Swimming Swans, they return to the Tormite compound to oversee the final stages of construction. Indeed, the main quarters have just been completed and the guest tower is nearly finished. Furniture and furnishings are arriving from Arabel, and among the wagons are several chests of fine furs and exquisite silverware donated by the jewellers of Arabel, along with a note releasing the party from their contract as it has been purchased by none other than the spymaster, who will hereafter be their patron. Everyone enjoys a month of relative calm as they settle into the rhythm of Immersea life.
During that time they receive several messages from the patron. He reduces the cost of commission to 2% of the gross take from adventures, but they are not required to pay more than the normal taxes on any business you might choose to bankroll. They also receive a single vote in the Immersea council – the same as each of the three noble houses who run the place. They receive a special dispensation to command city guards and request assistance from war-wizards in matters pertaining to the defence of Cormyr to an immediate and localized threat. They can request loans from the crown, requiring only 10% in collateral with generous repayment terms.
Malchor is invited to give a talk to the council of mages about the strange hybrid creatures that were encountered.
The party’s stock has clearly risen, but increased visibility is not without its risks. You can add the Malthen clan to an ever growing number of powerful foes they have managed to inconvenience in the short time since they have arrived: Lord Arliss, Melkerech the Lich, Milo Malthen and his family of deranged psychopaths and whatever evil they worship are all out there somewhere. In addition, the dilution of the power of the noble houses of Immersea is not without some risk as well, but the fact that the cleric of Torm is the figure nominated to the council keeps the tension manageable.
It is against this backdrop that a message is delivered by a pair of WarWizards atop the royal hippogriffs. The first arrives in the morning and delivers a sealed envelope which contains a silver key about an inch long and half as wide. A few hours later, a second wizard flies in and delivers a sealed tube with a lock set into one end. Inside, a scroll.
The spymaster has news from Urmlaspyr, a Sembian coastal city near the border with Cormyr.
The members of the Bard’s Gate Company had business in the city and came across information that might have something to do with the events in and around althen manor. Apparently there have been a recurring number of gruesome murders in Urmlaspyr, stretching back several years. The murders occur each Midsummer and the victims are all young girls and the locals are unable or unwilling to put a stop to it. It might be that the local nobility, clergy or merchants guild are somehow involved in subverting any potential investigations. Having been no match for the Malthens, the group did not investigate further, but instead made contact with a garrison near the Vast Swamp to relay the information.
Working through various channels, the spymaster has managed to confirm some of the tale, but the folk of the city are reluctant to speak of the yearly horror, or it may be that the killings are not public knowledge – which might give weight to the concern that one of the local power factions is involved. Inquiries have not resulted in many details, though they have yielded a potential contact: Pearsay of Pennmorgh.
This Pearsay has been seeking to make contact with a certain Sir Bartol that travelled with one of the northern trading costers taking goods over the Thunderstone Pass. That knight is believed to be dead in a rockfall that wiped out a large caravan a year or so back, but was a holy warrior for Tyr and known for championing justice. The messages mention ‘the yearly horror’ but do not speak directly of the killings.
After hearing of the terrors visited upon the folk of the Wailing Fog and the economic disruption that came with it, it would not do to have the Malthens or their ilk set up shop anywhere near Cormyr. So, regardless of the potential risk to the crown’s reputation he feels an investigation and subsequent action – read pre-emptive strike – might be just the thing to calm the Thunderpeaks region. The party will be in Sembia as independent operators, not representatives of Cormyr.
The spymaster suggests making contact with Pearsay to get as much of a handle on the local situation as possible. Directions to his tower (2 miles from the walls, along the Southvale road) are included. He leaves it in their capable hands, but urges swift action as Midsummer is not far away.
The group arrives and makes contact with the local wizard, who informs them that lodgings have been obtained in the city. They leave him and spend a bit of time investigating on their own before retiring to their quarters. Their benefactor has thoughtfully reserved a room with a heavily screened balcony from which the group may come and go unobserved. Daytime investigations become nighttime investigations and although a red-robed cultist is prevented from snatching a girl that evening, the group sees it vanish into the sewer system. Things are learned – but there are still gaps in the knowledge.
The following morning sees the party split – and while the cleric and paladin stay behind the rest go out to try and gather information. The clergy are summoned to a stronghold of the City Watch and are given some intelligence to aid them in their mission. The group reunites later in the day and sets about making and executing an action plan. The sword of detection is wielded by an invisible cleric who flies around looking for some of the clues shared by the City Watch. Near a sewer grate, the sword indicated that there are red robes about.
The mage scouts the sewers with his magic eyeball and the group starts investigating. Soon they find a secret door that opens on to a room full of traps. Bypassing those, the intrepid adventurers press on, slaying eight defenders in the next chamber. They pause briefly to inspect a guardroom nearby and then resume their assault.
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