The party hurries towards Puddlewick in order to get the scepter, before they have to rush towards Ashvale to find Thoralf before he falls to the assassin. Hurrying through the enchanted forest after saying the magical phrase, they knock on Puddlewick’s door, who greets them, curious as to how he can help them. Raenerys shows him her scepter, asking if he can help improve it or get a better one. He takes a brief look at it, before offering to boost it up. He steps inside, and after 15 minutes or so he returns with the scepter, having added some gold inlays and a couple of crystals. Raenerys pays him, and then apologizes as they have to leave as soon as possible to save a life. He understands, and hopes they come to visit again if they find themselves in the area.
The party makes haste across the open fields and meadows, reaching the road leading northwest, getting some directions from passing travelers. Quill takes a moment to write a letter to Andrex, telling him that they will not be returning for the moment, paying a traveler to bring it to the inn. They turn left after several hours, journeying through a forest on a shortcut to Ashvale, coming across a fallen tree. Seeing the obvious trap, Gaia wanders forward, telling whoever is hiding that they are making a mistake. A group of teenagers, looking disappointed, emerges, asking if it was very obvious. The party scolds them, telling them that if they continue in this way they will end up getting killed. Gaia gives them an apple and some coin, telling them to grow some apple trees and make something of themselves, before continuing onwards.
The sun goes low in the sky, eventually disappearing beneath the horizon, but the party finally sees light up ahead from a village. They have reached their destination after a full day of travel, and the horses are tired. The clock is close to midnight, but they can still hear that the village is still very much awake, with the most busy place being the only inn, The Wise Shirt. The party hitches their horses outside wherever they can find space, and make their way inside the densely packed tavern.
𐡸
The inside is filled to the brim with patrons. Drinking, fighting, gambling and laughing is all around, and it’s impossible to get a clear view. There are several people that might match the description of the one they were asked, but they aren’t the right one. Raenerys tries to make her way through the crowd to get to the innkeeper behind the bar, who is busy filling out orders of drinks. When Raenerys asks for a room she is told rather sternly that there are no available vacancies, and that she will have to make due however she can. She doesn’t accept this, and starts arguing with the innkeeper, while the others look around for their target.
Miryks and Quill, being rather short of statue, have a hard time seeing anything, so Quill jumps on top of the bar to get an overview, while Gaia has already found someone who might fit the description. She makes her way over to a table where they are playing a dice game, and overhears the name Thoralf being spoken. She gets the attention of the rest of her group, waving them over, and they all go to confront him.
Thoralf is in the middle of an important game apparently, and has little time to speak with them, but the party doesn’t give up, trying to make him stop playing so they can have a chat together in private. He asks if “Larissa” sent them, but before they get to answer, the door of the tavern bursts open, and all the lights are blown out. The tavern goes silent, while a lone patron chuckles, and walks over to close the door. The patron is suddenly suspended in mid air, and thrown aside. Another patron tries to attack whatever is there, and in return is lifted to the ceiling by an invisible force, before their neck is broken. As the patron falls to the floor, dead, the whole tavern erupts into panic. The party tells Thoralf that it is coming for him, and that they should escape.
Thoralf, being frozen from fear, does not move, so the party tries to slow it down, with Quill walking over to try to reveal what it is using a spell, but all she gets is a brief glimpse of a vague humanoid shape, before it grabs her by the throat, throwing her back towards a wall, causing her great pain. The others try to attack it by having roots erupt from below to keep it in place, while Gaia fires a bolt of light at it, illuminating it. It keeps its attention fixed on Thoralf, who by this point is being led out the back by Quill, but the being, which Quill recognizes as an invisible stalker, retreats to lick its wounds.
Taking the opportunity, the party tries again to explain the situation to Thoralf, but the innkeeper, believing the party to be the cause of the commotion, demands that they leave, with several remaining patrons taking out weapons to force them. The party grabs Thoralf, escaping out the back door, where they encounter, to their great surprise, Kael. She tells the party that they have probably met her friend, seeing as they’re there with Thoralf, and Quill responds that she now understands why Kael had a hard time explaining what her friend was.
Not wanting to waste time, Kael has brought a cart from another village that she was at before she got notified by her friend that she had to make her way to Ashvale. They put Thoralf on the cart, grab their horses, and escape due west, where Kael claims there is a stronghold with a mage that can help them protect Thoralf.
𐡸
After about an hour and a half of traveling at full speed, they come to an old, but still stationed, fortress in the woods, a bit away from the road. They disembark their horses, and walk up to the doors, asking to be let inside. Thoralf, who during their journey has told them that he has no idea who might have sent an assassin to kill him, is frustrated with the whole situation, wanting the whole ordeal to be over. The guards eventually, reluctantly, let them inside, where they are met with the entire fortress aiming their arrows at them, with a single infernis wearing distinctive wizard robes looking stern at them.
The infernis, introducing himself as Ojamar, demands to know what is happening, as he has gotten word from the village that someone matching their description was killing people indiscriminately in the local tavern. The party says that it wasn’t them, but an invisible stalker, and they were just protecting themselves and Thoralf. Ojamar believes them to speak the truth, as he is very familiar with the stalkers, and demands them to explain themselves fully in his office, before he helps them. The guards hold out their swords, demanding them to hand over their weapons which will be returned to them later.
Being led by sword to his office, they sit down, with Ojamar demanding to know why an invisible stalker is sent to kill Thoralf. Thoralf yet again says he has no idea, as he is just a scientist, a researcher, and has done no harm to anyone as far as he knows. The party asks who Larissa is, and he tells them that she’s his boss, and that he was supposed to return back to his home, but he decided to take a short vacation first.
They then ask if he has made any notable discoveries lately, seeing as he is a researcher, and the only thing he can think of is that he discovered a tomb some weeks ago, hundreds of miles away, which he has told some of his colleagues about, but he refuses to divulge where it is, as it is “proprietary” knowledge, and he wants him and his group to own the site. He describes a door leading to the tomb, which he didn’t open, but is willing, after being pressured, to make a drawing of the door, as it had a weird language on it.
He gets a parchment and chalk from Ojamar, and begins drawing a door with two figures standing worshipping something. There is a text that is indecipherable between them, as well as a large mass, but before he can add more detail, they begin to hear a commotion from the courtyard. Ojamar tells them to stay in the office while he goes to check, but shortly after, one of the guards runs inside the office, carrying their weapons, telling them to flee. They grab Thoralf, making their way down the hallway to the back entrance, seeing a guard being thrown inside against the wall from the courtyard, with Ojamar holding back something using his spells. His throat is suddenly slit, however, and he collapses, with the invisible figure moving towards them disturbing the dust that has been thrown up by the commotion.
The party opens the back door, seeing a large carriage with two horses on it, so they jump onto it, trying to escape from the stalker. Raenerys and Quill take the reins, while Gaia, Miryks and Kael stay in the back to protect them from the stalker if he gets close. Thoralf keeps drawing in more details, and the party sees the distinct figure of a large brain being worshipped by two figures that have tentacles protruding from their mouths. Raenerys recognizes them as illithids when she is shown the drawing, or mind flayers as they’re also known. She’s never encountered them herself, but has heard of them.
Kael throws a few bottles of alchemist fire, allowing them to see the outline of the stalker disturbing the flames, while Quill throws up smokescreens to do the same. There are a few close calls in the forest, with Raenerys barely managing to avoid the obstacles, but after a while, they see a light up ahead.
𐡸
The group reaches what appears to be a mine that’s on fire from within, and Thoralf is surprised, having heard about it being lit aflame many years ago, causing it to become abandoned. They break through the gates of the mine, as Gaia uses a forceful push to open it, and in the courtyard, between the three openings of the mine, they feel the heat. They quickly make a plan to have the stalker follow them inside, and then closing the opening on it, while they escape, hopefully killing it for good.
Quill quickly drenches herself and Thoralf in water from their waterskins, while Raenerys quickly starts breaking the other entrances. Miryks and Gaia position themselves near the opening to push the stalker inside and hopefully restrain him with roots. The opening looks flimsy, only being held open by a single rope, which they plan to cut. Kael runs outside the gate to buy them some time, and they soon see her being flung through the air by the stalker who is now making its way through the gates.
Thoralf is pushed inside the blazing inferno by Quill who follows him. The heat is unbearable, and they stand there, clothes being lit on fire, waiting for the stalker to make its way inside. Raenerys has managed to close the other openings, and when the stalker gets to the entrance, Gaia uses another forceful push to fling it inside towards Thoralf, while Miryks uses her roots to try to keep it restrained.
Quill, through the pain, opens a portal, pushing Thoralf through it to safety. The stalker bursts free from its restrains, and turns to look at the opening. Quill opens another portal, which the stalker notices, as it moves up to her, trying to strike her down and escape through it, but she manages to push it back, jumping through the portal, which disappears. Gaia quickly cuts the rope of the mine, causing the whole place to rumble, as the roof collapses, blowing hot air out towards the party. Silence follows, and then screams from within, with the stalker feeling the pain of the heat. An invisible hand suddenly bursts through the rubble, before it disappears into nothing. The stalker has been killed.
𐡸
Thoralf, lying on the floor, clothes still on fire, is quickly extinguished by the party, who helps him to his feet, but he’s acting… different. His gaze is distant, and he smiles at the party. The entity speaks through his mouth, thanking the party for making sure Thoralf survived. The party asks to know what is happening, with the entity telling them that Thoralf had important information that it needed, but the infection wasn’t complete, so it wanted someone to protect him until it could take over his mind. The party shares a concerned look, before asking for the entity’s name. It gives a chilling response.
“We have been called many things, but you may call us… Legion.”
Legion then walks over to where Kael lies wounded, taking out some bandages from Thoralf’s pouch, patching up Kael. Gaia leans down to heal her as well, causing Kael to wake up. She is helped up by Thoralf/Legion, and then is happy to see that her friend has returned. Legion tells Kael that she can take over Thoralf’s room in the inn, if only to make sure that his research doesn’t fall into the wrong hands.
The party wants to know why someone sent an assassin to kill Thoralf, with Legion replying that it was probably to stop them from learning what Thoralf knows. They have a few ideas on who it might be, deducing that it is most likely Thervan Avalast, a wizard from Rexendell, that has been a thorn in Legion’s side for a while now. Quill’s heart beats faster, hearing the name of one of her icons, but composes herself. Legion then says that they will probably see each other again, and that they have already sent someone towards the tomb to get whatever is inside, as they now have the location, and then disappears. Thoralf collapses, and the party is stunned to find that he has died.
Kael says “that tends to happen”, explaining that she’s seen it once before, but heard of her friend doing it when it is necessary to protect their interests. The party wants to know what Kael means, and how she feels about the whole thing, but Kael is surprisingly okay with everything, saying that Legion only wants to help. She doesn’t think that her friend is taking away anyone's free will, as it only intervenes when it is necessary to stop people from hurting themselves. For instance, her friend, Legion, can take control of a general to have an entire army stand down, preventing thousands of deaths. People who can’t or won’t change are dealt with, but in her own words, “if you want to make an omelet, you have to break a few eggs…”
The party gets the impression that she’s not under Legion’s control, but is completely brainwashed by them. Kael looks down at Thoralf’s corpse, asking if they should bury him, but Gaia instead leans down, touching his chest, casting a spell to let them ask one last question from him. He gasps, animating, but with dead eyes. Gaia asks where the tomb he found is located. He tells them it's in the mountains, around 100 miles west of Frostleaf, and gives a description of a valley with a distinctive peak, in a cave. His body then begins to deteriorate, crumbling to dust, leaving only his clothes and supplies behind.
Kael thinks that’s nifty, and cheerfully offers them a ride back to the stronghold in order to get their horses. The party grabs Thoralf’s supplies, then reluctantly gets on, with Kael driving them through the forest. The party has a sinking feeling in their stomach, worrying if they have helped the wrong person and what this will mean. Kael is ever so happy to have new friends, but doesn’t say much, being tired from the night's events.
They eventually reach the stronghold, and are met by Ojamar who is greatly wounded by the cut on his throat, but Gaia heals him, closing the wound. He offers them a place to stay for the night, but the party realizes that they should get their hands on the research of Thoralf before Kael has a chance to dispose of it, so Gaia takes off in flight, beelining towards Ashvale. Kael says that she’s heading back to Ashvale herself to get some sleep, and even though the rest of the party tries to convince her to stay in the stronghold, she’s unconvinced, and soon after takes her leave in her cart. The party discuss whether to follow or not, deciding to head back to Ashvale themselves as Gaia might need help, saying goodbye to Ojamar, who tells them that he has spoken to his contact in Ashvale and relayed the truth about the attack, so they should not be unwelcome anymore.
Gaia flies at full speed towards the town, seeing the cart of Kael following her far below. She makes it there first, landing on the steps of the tavern, running inside to say that she’s been given Thoralf’s old room. The innkeeper says that he was expecting an orc, but Gaia manages to convince him that she’s part of Kael’s group. He doesn’t think much of it, giving her the key and telling her where the room is. She runs upstairs, unlocking the door, grabbing the satchel filled with Thoralf’s research, then escaping by flying out the window. Safely outside, she sees Kael calmly parking her cart, feeding her horse, before walking inside, yawning. Not wanting to stick around, she flies back towards the stronghold, but sees her group riding towards the town below, so she descends to meet them.
When the group reunites, they discuss what to do, wanting to find a place to rest, asking a drunk passerby where one can find a safe place to sleep. He says that they lost a few people during the hunt, so there’s probably an empty tent somewhere. When asked what they’re hunting, the party learns that there have been several dangerous beasts released in the forest, among them a displacer beast and a fierce owlbear which are still at large, but that someone managed to kill the chimera. The party thanks him, then make their way to the fields of tents, finding one that has been empty for a couple of days, claiming it for themselves.
As the sun has already risen, with them being busy all night long, they head inside the tent to try to get some sleep. Quill immediately falls asleep, while Raenerys takes out a rubbing of the door, seeing the large brain and two illithids in more detail now, and the script being familiar as the language of mind flayers. There is also a journal in the satchel, but it is written in code. Raenerys thinks that she might be able to decrypt it, but it is much more advanced, so it will take longer. In either case, they should tell someone about what has happened, with the most obvious lead being one of the Elder Archmages who lives in the area, Elara Shadowfoot, who might be able to relay what has happened to Thervan, but they don’t know where she is, so they will have to find someone who does.