Characters
Doctor Pendleton Torst, rogue "anatomist"
Dalton Thayer, explorer and collector of antiquities
Geradd, disreputable swashbuckler
Raoul Carathis, occultist and necromancer
Events
All four characters had been enjoying safe haven in Lachryma under the auspices of Belle Silvra, the leader of the Cult of Scylla. However, it had now come time to offer Belle a little repayment for her hospitality. The group was summoned to a meeting with Belle, where she outlined a task she wanted them to undertake on her behalf. The Cult of Scylla had been making inroads into bringing their faith to the isolated folk of the Idlecross Islands.
However, Palistraza, one of the villages on the islands, had recently been struck by a mysterious illness that was possibly supernatural in origin. Belle wanted the group to travel to Palistraza and determine the cause and cure of the disease in hopes of illustrating the cult's beneficence. After all, Pendleton was a doctor and Raoul was an occultist, so between the two of them they should be well-equipped to deal with the issue. Geradd and Dalton were to accompany them as muscle, as needed.
Pendleton inquired about the fate of Captain Laurant, who was aboard the last ship that he had exploded and sank. Belle smiled. Captain Laurant had survived the blast, she explained, and saw her miraculous survival of two shipwrecks as evidence that the Scylla had a greater purpose for her in mind. Captain Laurant would be in charge of the ship, a vessel called the Relentless, that would be taking them to Palistaza.
The group were rowed ashore from the Relentless to the small fishing village of Palistraza, where they were quickly directed to the jail of Constable Sevda. Sevda took them to examine the corpses of those who had fallen prey to the outbreak of illness. The bodies were being kept in the local ice house; they were draped with old sails as their shrouds. Pulling back the shroud of one of the victims revealed a number of horrors: the man's skin was alabaster white, and his veins stood out in dark blue beneath his skin. More disturbing were the clusters of icicles that had erupted from his eyes, mouth, and the left side of his chest.
As a necromancer, Raoul could tell that the "illness" was a combination of disease and magical curse. Unfortunately, when Pendleton examined the corpse, he carelessly knocked a chunk of a blue substance from the man's eye socket and onto his hand. Pendleton feared he had just infected himself; Raoul used his magic to repress any symptoms for the time being.
Dalton recognized the man as Yurgen Wenislav, a fellow explorer. Constable Sevda told them that Yurgen had recently returned from Harkenvault, a long-abandoned Vlaakish site, with artifacts recovered from its ruins. Surmising that the illness was related to the theft of the artifacts, the group began to plan a trip to Harkenvault. Constable Sevda offered them a key to Yurgen's cabins so they might look for any relevant clues.
The group discovered that someone had already rifled Yurgen's cabin. Geradd found footprints in the mud leading up to and away from the cabin's window, so he and Dalton decided to follow them. Meanwhile, Raoul and Pendleton went through the items scatted across the floor. Within a book of maps they found a receipt: Yurgen had sold a number of artifacts recovered from Harkenvault to a business called Pelan's Curiosity shop. Among the artifacts listed on the receipt were two blue glass vials--the color of which made them suspect they were connected to the blue residue that Pendleton had touched.
Dalton and Geradd found that the tracks led to another cabin deeper in the woods at the outskirts of Palistraza. The group reconvened and made their way to the other cabin. At first, the woman inside refused to speak to them and certainly wasn't interested in opening the door to them. However, when the artifacts that Yurgen had brought back to Palistraza were mentioned, she did at last unlock and open the door. She was clearly in the early stages of the illness--her skin was unnaturally pale and her elfin beauty was marred by the prominent blue veins beneath her skin. She admitted to being the one who had broken into Yurgen's cabin; she said she was looking for a cure among his belongings.
She also admitted that she and her associates had been stationed in Palistraza to get ahold of any Vlaakish artifacts that had been brought back from Harkenvault. When questioned, she admitted that her compatriots were hiding out in the nearby Carag Cavern in the foothills. The group was now working under the assumption that the way to remove the curse or disease that was afflicting Pendleton was to obtain the pilfered artifacts and return them to Harkenvault.
Dalton scouted Carag Cavern and found that it was guarded by strange creatures that had the bodies of dogs and canine skulls for their heads. The group attacked the guardian creatures, who were soon joined by three black-clad thugs who were lurking near the entrance to the cave. The group dealt with them handily, and Raoul animated one of the thugs as a zombie servitor.
Within the cave, they discovered a blasphemous shrine to Cain, the first murderer, which revealed exactly who the group were up against: the thugs and thieves operating in Palistraza were agents of the Scarabasca, a criminal organization infamous for dealing in alchemical drugs and summoning demons as assassins. In another chamber they found ten bedrolls arranged around a fire pit, indicating that there were more Scarabasca about then they really wanted to deal with. Geradd stationed himself at the cave's entrance to wait for any thugs returning to the cavern; the rest of the group pressed on, desperate to get their hands on the stolen artifacts.
Further in the depths of the cavern, they found the leader of the Scarabasca thugs and her greasy-haired lieutenant. She was the twin sister of the woman encountered in the cabin earlier, and she was also clearly stricken with the strange sickness. The Scarabasca were all too eager for the party to open a chest in the chamber, but Raoul wisely had his zombie servitor lift the lid. When it did so, they heard the sound of glass breaking and a cloud of blue particles filled the air--the Scarabasca had weaponized one of the blue glass vials that were part of Yurgen's haul from Harkenvault.
The group sprang into action and slew the leader and her lackey. Inside the chest they found the stolen artifacts and resolved to take them back to Harkenvault. They were particularly concerned with a statuette depicting an inhuman Vlaakish figure. We'll see what transpires during the expedition to Harkenvault next time.
