The Keys of Telku / Heathen pt. 4 / Vish the 25th through 27th, 3592 CE / 6-23-19

In the middle of the night, the Adventurers find themselves in the midst of a pitched battle with the hobgoblin cultists of the Hand of Naraash, who are attacking the farmhouse of Perren Auldwyl. The heroes have already managed to slay several enemies, and after setting the farmouse on fire, two of the hobgoblins flee into the night. The rest are slain except for the one previously knocked unconscious by Henry. Roisyll and Fiora then proceed to put out the fires through magical means before they can cause further damage to the farmhouse. After the battle, the corpses are looted, including a strange holy symbol resembling an eye, the jeweled center of which dissipates when the amulet is removed from the corpse of the hobgoblin cleric. Deciding that the likelihood of further attacks in the same night are unlikely, the party retires once again, this time Nari taking her retinue to the barn, while Moss resumes his position as a tree in the yard. Inside the farmhouse, Roisyll and Henry discuss the possibility of torturing the unconscious hobgoblin they are keeping captive for information, but decide to put it off until morning. However as the party members within the farmhouse rise with the dawn, they see that Perren Auldwyl does not appear to have slept a wink, as he brews them a cup of coffee. He then proceeds to confide in Henry, Roisyll, and Sara the true secret of Erstlin: the villagers have been cooperating with the Hand of Naraash in exchange for their continued safety, using the town as drop point for weapons being smuggled from the Southlands. The hobgoblin and bugbear cultists were most likely in town to collect the cache of weapons, and, after finding out about the interloping Adventurers, sought to silence them to protect the secrecy of their operation. At that moment, the sound of voices and a crowd assembling outside diverts the attention of the heroes in the farmhouse. The crowd cries out for them to release their hobgoblin prisoner. Moss moves from his position as a tree to address the crowd, backed by Roisyll and Henry. Nari, who has busied herself that morning gathering eggs from Perren Auldwyl's chickens, appears not to hear the commotion from the barn. Moss is rebuked as an obvious outsider by the angry townfolk, but then Henry speaks forcefully, temporarily reasserting peace. He gets the townsfolk to agree to allow the Adventurers to leave with the captive hobgoblin in tow, but rebukes them for demanding that Perren also be forced to leave the village. However, he knows that his intimidating tactics will only hold for so long, and that Perren's time in Erstlin is at an end. As Henry dispurses the crowd, Perren begins packing up his belongings, while Nari, who has now been briefed on the morning's occurrences, prepares a hearty breakfast for the party before they set out. Moss, taking Perren aside, gets him to agree to sell the seedling druid his property for 5 gold and a magic potion, though Perren re-asserts that the contract will be made worthless by the designs of the other townsfolk. Moss, however, is undeterred, and sets a trap on the door of the farmhouse after Perren is done packing his wagon. The party's departure is temporarily delayed by arguments over what to do with their hobgoblin prisoner, but the discussion is cut short by Sara, frustrated with the lack of action toward recovering her missing comrade, summarily executing the prisoner, stating that no quarter can be given towards fanatical followers of an evil deity like Anubhak. As the party reaches the edge of town, they part ways with Perren Auldwyl, who states that he will be heading west to Lemora. As a parting thank you for protecting him from both cultists and townsfolk, he draws a map for the party, confiding that he once tracked the cultists into the foothills of the Grey Mountains, though his nerve gave out before they could lead him to their base. Nonetheless, his map of their trail through the foothills, which he tells them the cultists refer to as the "Black March," gives the party further insight. That map, along with the one drawn for them by the Light of the Sun, is kept with Fiora, whose skills at cartography will aid the party in staying on course. After parting with Perren, the party continues to follow the trail laid out for them, finally reaching the foothills of the Grey Mountains the next day. As dusk falls on their second day of travel since leaving Erstlin, they reach the ruins of an ancient shrine within a copse of trees. Especially intriguing are the six pillars which surround the ruin, a possible reference to the "Pillars of Midnight." As the Adventurers begin to investigate the site, Moss hears a commotion from beyond the trees, and suddenly a half-elf bursts from the undergrowth, running straight for them. Unfortunately, he does not seem to notice the ten foot drop to the site's original foundation, and plummets to the dirt. Raising his head, he shouts "They're coming!" As the party begins to prepare, the source of his fear makes its presence known, as four ghouls emerge from the trees and engage the party in combat. Though Nari seems to give them pause by referencing Arham, the powerful ghoul sorcerer who has been pursuing his friend Adrienne, it does not stop the undead creatures from paralyzing Jozu as well as attacking or scaring off several of the party's horses. With a powerful channel of positive energy, Sara Djemel is able to destroy one of the ghouls, but with three remaining, the Adventurer's fate appears uncertain unless the tide of battle can turn quickly in their favor.