Welcome BACK, dear readers!
The exciting adventures in Greymoor continue…but first:
Carlos: Half-Elf LG Storm Sorcerer (Anderson)
Andraste: Wood Elf CG Monk (Jenny)
Thro’Viloanna Hlaendeth AKA Vilya: High Elf NG Wizard (of the Divination School) and her snake, Astraeya (Maddy)
Brynja of the Shadowaxe Clan: Dwarf CG Twilight Cleric (Heather)
Thack: Dwarf NG Barbarian (Brent)
Two issues are at the forefront of the party’s minds on this new day in Greymoor: 1.) Finding the blacksmith’s daughter, Erin and 2.) The town’s Full Moon Festival (tomorrow night). But, as the group treks down the stairs of the Greymoor Bend, they find sadness and despondency in the air.
The innkeeper, Sagh says, “Suppose you’ll be wantin’ breakfast?” However, she speaks in such a morose manner that it is obvious that she wants to do anything but prepare breakfast for her guests. When Brynja inquires about her emotional state, Sagh informs them that Xalyth, the town’s locksmith, was found dead early this morning. Cause of death? FREAKING HUGE SLASH MARKS. So, exsanguination, then? Anyway. Eldarial (the local apothecary) discovered the body early this morning and the key was in the door, the door was locked, and it was that way when Eldarial found her (Inside job? Did Xalyth know her murderer?).
Also, Sagh divulges a tidbit of great interest: Xalyth and George (the guy murdered yesterday) had been collaborating on a project. Huh. How about them apples?
Our heroes break their fast in quite a subdued state, as you can imagine would be the case when there’s a brutal serial killer on the loose. And no real leads on the culprit. After the bellies are full, the party decides to investigate the locksmith’s residence. Scribe’s notes indicate the door is open (Eldarial? Dude, close the freaking door, man.) The drow elf’s body is facedown at the bottom of the stairs, and indeed, Xalyth’s back is shredded by what appears to be “claws of immense size” (DM’s vivid description after Brynja’s very high Nature roll). Further investigations by the party turn up the following:
1. In addition to the pool of blood around Xalyth’s body, there is also blood on the stairs, indicating she was killed at the top of the stairs before she tumbled down them.
2. There are tracks outside a window located at the top of the stairs. This is the only sign in the house of tracks other than the elf footprints. Thus, it seems likely the killer leapt/climbed/jumped to the second-story window to gain entry.
3. As with all of the other dead bodies, the tracks that lead away from them become muddled and mixed up, making it hard to discern the whereabouts of the assassin.
Vilya scopes out the locksmith’s desk, finding notes and ledgers detailing jobs, work-related sketches, etc. The Investigation check the elf wizard makes (with Guidance from the dwarf cleric) is high enough to also unearth notes about a special lock project Xalyth had been working on for Father Derigor and the Chapel of Selune – a project she’d been working on with – wait for it…
GEORGE!
Apparently, the lock was created by George and to be installed by Xalyth to lock the chapel from the inside, as if to protect whomever was within the chapel’s stone walls. And now, both of those people are dead.
As there seems to be nothing else to be gleaned here, Brynja covers the body with a quilt and performs the last rites. On a side note, the group is perplexed by not only the murders themselves, but also by the fact that there’s really nobody in town to, you know, take care of the bodies. That would have likely fallen to Sir Thames, but alas, he’s dead too, so…
Looks like it’s off to the apothecary’s shop. Not for drugs, but for information. As Eldarial was the body-discoverer, he’s likely to have some of the deets. Eldarial’s demeanor is much like everyone else in town when the group enters: sorrowful, fearful…but mostly, just waiting around for someone to save the day. After Brynja asks, he confirms that yes, Xalyth and George were working on the Great Chapel Lock project together. Andraste and Carlos ask about potions, and Eldarial states he mostly does household work: tinctures, salves, and the like. Vilya asks about Erin, and Eldarial describes the girl as a sweet and quiet 17-year-old. Brynja then asks what thoughts the apothecary has about these killings, to which Eldarial answers that he is shocked about the murders, as Greymoor is a quiet, nice village that is now unprotected since Sir THames’ passing. Brynja replies that there is now a barbarian among them, and protection is here (as she gestures to Thack).
And perhaps Eldarial is tired of all the questions, because he’s got one now for Thack: So where were you last night, then? To which Thack replies:
I’m only a Level One.
Eldarial has nothing much else to offer in terms of information and the daylight is a-burnin’. Notes do not indicate whose idea it is, but a visit to some kind of local weapons guy is in order. As it turns out, the only type of weapons guy in Greymoor is Victor Alphear, whose inventory falls more in the realm of hunting equipment than battle gear. He also has very few answers, about anything, really…and not certainly not about deer-slaying, which breaks Thack’s heart.
And now, it’s Chapel Time. The last time the party visited the Chapel of Selune, the staff was smack in the middle of Moon Festival Preparations. And guess what? They are still at it. The party easily locates Father Derigor amid the activity and he informs them that this is no regular full moon. Nay, nay, he say. This full moon coincides with its alignment with the illustrious Xenos constellation – an event that occurs every 100 years.
Okay, that seems significant. It makes one wonder if the killings have anything to do with that…
Anyway, onto other topics, like: Big Door, Big Lock. Father D says that yes, the lock is finished and installed. He also goes on to mention that because of a roving band of gnolls, Curia (which is, like, the church’s governing body??) ordered him to install the lock. However, the lock was requested by Curia long before the killings began.
So, what took Father Derigor or Xalyth or George so long to get ‘er done? Just wondering.
Incidentally, it is also reported here that Father Derigor is tall and wears black robes. This is only interesting because it has been noted and recorded elsewhere that George, the blacksmith, was seen conversing with a tall man in black robes (before his death, of course). Oooooooh. Because the party is perhaps a little distressed and desperate, they cast suspicions on Father Derigor for the murder for no other reason than he’s tall, wears black, and seems sus. Then, this little conversation happens:
Group: Hey, Father, everyone connected with this lock thing has died…what if we stay here with you, in your room, to protect you? You might be next.
FD: No. Get the killer.
There’s lots of back and forth but the gist is this: while FD seems concerned about people dying, he’s not so concerned that he fears for his own safety. In fact, he’s actually more worried about his stupid festival bunting getting put up than helping the townspeople. Huh. Oh, and here’s another gem of a conversation (began after Vilya reminds Thack about his crop issues):
Thack: Did you know fields outside are bad?
Father D: Uh. No, I do not know of what you speak.
T: Burned. Ruined. I show you.
FD: Someone killed the fields?
T: I think it was deer.
Father Derigor seems unmoved by this (again, more preoccupied by party decor than anything) and for a reason that has something to do with providing a distraction, Vilya sets Astraeya loose in the chapel. People scream. People chase after the reptile with bags. Father Derigor is done speaking with the group at present, and the party decides to try a new tack. Splitting up for info-gathering purposes.
Vilya, Thack, and Brynja head to Victor’s Hunting Shop again and Andraste and Carlos makes their way to the inn to touch base with Oswald.
At Victor’s:
Thack: So, tell us, have you heard about crops?
Victor looks incredibly puzzled.
Thack: No? How’s hunting?
Victor: Deer are a big problem.
Brynja: Have you seen any kind of upswing in weapon sales here?
Victor: No. I deal in small arms.
Brynja: Really? Have you seen an upswing in MURDERS?
Victor: Yes.
There are mental headslaps all the around for our noble heroes. Again with the pervasive lethargy in the village about protecting themselves. *Sigh*
Thack: Thank you, Victor. You good friend. Lock doors and windows. Get Pella windows too. Safer.
Meanwhile, at the Greymoor Bend:
Sagh pulls Carlos and Andraste aside. She’s serving up more than lunch: it’s another blue plate special – Bad News with a side of Horrific Mystery. Another body has been found. And they aren’t going to like who it is. She informs them that Kelkian, an elf merchant, found the body. Of the person of whom the party won’t like who it is. There’s really is only one person at this point who kinda fits that bill: Oswald.
Carlos and Andraste hasten immediately to Oswald’s room. It is messy, disheveled, as if he’d packed to go somewhere, but it also looks like Oswald had every intention of returning to his room at some point.
Carlos then orders the venison for lunch while they wait for the others to return. There is also some discussion about charging meals to the likely-dead Oswald.
As it turns out, the body was discovered in a barn about a half-hour’s walk from Greymoor. And when Brynja, Thack, and Vilya return, the sorcerer and the monk relate the bad news. The entire party then begins the late-afternoon trek to Death Barn(tm). The party journeys southward and the sun sinks quickly into the western skies. It is quite dark as the group nears the structure reported to contain the dead body.
Indeed, it is Oswald. And it is a grisly discovery. The other bodies appear to have just been slashed in the back, but Oswald’s wounds are different. It is obvious his killer was bent on utter savagery. The group comes upon Oswald’s body…well, not really his whole body, per se, but pieces of it.
Andraste is curious: How many pieces?
It’s not a horrible question, really. However, the DM provides no response that recorded here.
As the party moves in further to investigate, the barn doors suddenly slam shut and lock. Before the players have time to get their bearings, flames and smoke begin to envelope them. It’s a grave of fire!
Thack the Quick-Thinking moves to chop down the immense door, and it takes him two tries. Amid sparks and flames, the heroes follow the barbarian out into the moonlit night. As they notice and begin to follow the large tracks that lead away from the barn, the aforementioned structure collapses.
A collective sigh of great relief is exhaled, just before the party notices a pair of yellow eyes glaring at them from several yards away. They then disappear, and Brynja attempts to cast Faerie Fire on the eyes’ owner, illuminating only what appears to be a raccoon. The questers give chase, only to find that the tracks become unrecognizable as they disappear into the rocky hills. Despite the late hour, the party opts to return to Greymoor, wishing to remain here not one second more.
However, they aren’t the only ones out and about at the witching hour…as the party nears Greymoor, another group of travelers are rushing on to meet them. It’s Sagh, the Greymoor Bend owner, and she’s got some friends: Victor, Eldarian, and someone called Henriette. Who’s not present? Erin, Father Derigor, or Grimmand.
Sagh: Are you okay? We saw fire (from that far away?)!
Party answers they are well. Then, someone asks where this Kelkian guy is.
Sagh: He’s gone. He left. Says it’s unsafe. (Smart guy.)
Party: Oswald is dead. Why was he going? Where to?
Sagh: Don’t know.
As the parties are talking, an owl lands on a nearby tree and hoots softly. Henriette exclaims, “It has a letter!” The owl then drops the letter and as it flutters to the earth, Carlos rushes to pick it up. It contains four words:
Send them to me.
Henriette must recognize the handwriting or the symbol or something because she exclaims that the letter is from someone called Old Lady Sybil. The group of townspeople describe her as “a hermit-type” and a “scary witch lady”.
No offense, Sagh & Co, but she already sounds a whole lot cooler and knowledgeable than the rest of y’all.
Henriette has the directions to the abode of this Old Lady Sybil and hey, guess what? It’s a 12-hour journey east from Greymoor there and back.
So. Here’s how it all stands: the Full Moon Festival is tomorrow night. Something exciting is probably gonna happen there. But, a 12-hour journey is now on the docket tomorrow as well. Looks like it’s going to be another busy day for our valiant champions, because this needs to happen:
1. Party arises and leaves for Sybil’s well before daybreak. Well before daybreak.
2. Six hours’ journey passes quickly and uneventfully.
3. Sybil says what she needs to say as expediently as possible.
4. Another six hours’ travel back to Greymoor.
5. Eat, maybe rest, maybe…before Full Moon Party in town.
Solid plan. No problem. No problem.
Maybe the party opts NOT to go see Scary Witch Lady? That is an option, you know?
On a personal note, I cannot help but feel apprehensive for our heroes. The odds are stacked against them, it would seem, and there are forces at work far beyond the comprehension of the everyday laypeople like ourselves. My hope is that the next time I write to you, it is with words of victory and success and brave feats such as the like this world has never known.
Forever your scribe,
Heather