Session 0035 : The Rot Within

Sammstag, 26 Weißhexe 3023  

Morning at The Merry Mug

The adventurers awoke at The Merry Mug Inn feeling uncharacteristically refreshed after their journey. Despite their exhaustion the night before, each rose before 8 AM. The inn itself seemed to possess restorative qualities, as if sleep within its walls were enchanted. Lilly Genrill, the Halfling druid and proprietor of the inn, emerged early and resumed her place at her desk. Farrah, her loyal innkeeper, approached her privately to deliver troubling news: the inn was operating at a deficit of 165 gold pieces. Farrah explained that the deficit resulted not from a singular disaster but from a series of unfortunate events, the largest of which included an incident involving a donkey brought indoors by Gerry Underleaf, which destroyed three tables. Farrah had replaced the tables on credit, and between sluggish business due to troubling rumors in town, and covering staff shortfalls from dwindling tips, the inn's coffers had dried up.     Lilly took this news to heart and immediately set off on a goodwill circuit of the village, armed with a modest amount of coin and several bottles of mid-tier wine. Her goal: pay down the inn's debts and gather information.  

Vendor Visits & Village Rumors

    1. Brannick Tovlin (Carpenter - Tables) Owed: 50 gold Paid: 25 gold   Agreement: Half now, remainder by harvest's end. Response to the Table Incident: “Farah described it clear enough. Beast went mad, splintered one of my best works. I’d thank you not to rent the place out to idiots with hooves again.” About Oakhaven Lately: “Wood’s wrong. Grain patterns spiral inward. Trees groan like they’re whisperin’ things to each other. I’ve stopped taking lumber from anything growing near the North Copse”   2. Bennick Roslow (Ale and Cider) Owed: 25 gold Paid: 13 gold Agreement: Remainder due by next new moon (~18 days). Response to the Table Incident: “Oh aye, the infamous donkey night. Farah weren’t wrong, Gerry brought that beast in—claimed it was a service animal or some nonsense. Drunken fool even tried to dance with it. Thing slipped on spilled cider and knocked into a serving wench, who hit a table leg, which snapped like a dry twig.” About Oakhaven Lately: “It’s been tense. Babies born with strange eyes. Claw-like fingers. Town midwife’s been whisperin’ to the apothecary. Also, the night air’s gone still—no crickets. That ain’t right.”   3. Orla Fenmoss (Specialty Spirits)   Owed: 20 gold Paid: 10 gold (offered forgiveness but Lilly insisted) Response to the Table Incident: “I saw it with my own eyes. Gerry had that poor beast tied to the back railin'. A bard started playin’ and the animal panicked—ran inside, broke two chairs and a table. Farah was redder than a cherry liqueur.” About Oakhaven Lately: “More fights. Real short tempers. Even old Emmer Tathlen yelled at a priest—and he’s usually polite as plum pudding. Something’s off. And don’t get me started on the stillbirths. That ain’t just bad luck.”   4. Tammerick "Tam" Dullow (Salted Meats & Pickled Goods)   Owed: 30 gold Paid: 15 gold Agreement: Barter deal: next payment in pickles. Response to the Table Incident: “Farah’s exaggerating. Donkey or not, that table already had a wobbly leg. I seen it. But yeah, Gerry didn’t help—he tried to ride the beast inside. Broke two legs and a bench in the scuffle.” About Oakhaven Lately: “The well by the old orchard went dry, for one. A goat gave birth to a litter of… not-goats. Black eyes and too many toes and some with scales. And I swear I saw smoke comin’ up from the ground near the woods last week—ground, not trees.”   5. Jaspen Yarrick (Produce, Cheese, Herbs) Owed: 20 gold Paid: 0 gold (Jaspen waived payment, bartered in exchange for pub tab) Response to the Table Incident: “Honestly? I think Gerry was tryin’ to impress someone. A bard or Farah maybe. The donkey was just the punchline. Farah yelled, donkey bucked, table snapped. End of story.” About Oakhaven Lately: “Farmers’ve been whispering about blighted crops. Not rot, just… changed.”   6. Marda "Redtooth" Grinnel (Breads, Butters, Dried Fruit) Owed: 15 gold Paid: 15 gold (Paid in full due to prior generosity from Jaspen) Response to the Table Incident: “I told you not to let that fool Gerry run wild. If I’d been there, I’d’ve kicked him and the donkey out. I’m sure it was his fault—he’s all flash and no sense. Broke a table and then had the nerve to flirt with Farah after.” About Oakhaven Lately: “Children aren’t right, Lilly. Babies are born lookin’… wrong. The druid at the Starfall shrine left town without a word. And last market day, two pigs just keeled over—stone dead, black slime out their snouts. No one’s talking about it aloud, but everyone knows something foul is happening.”   At the Inn: Cathlynn, Lev, Brewyn, and Dorian   While Lilly conducted her diplomatic mission, Cathlynn, Lev, and Dorian remained at the inn. Brewyn came downstairs briefly around 10 AM, nibbling on fruit and keeping to herself. She changed the subject any time Verbena was mentioned.   Cathlynn used the quiet morning to connect with Lev, attempting to get to know the Eladrin cleric. They shared a heartfelt conversation about family, chosen kin, and the price of Cathlynn's resurrection. She disclosed a pact—half-remembered—with Fey beings who told her the price of her resurrection -- to find a missing bracelet that belong to Verenestra Herself. Though Cathlynn felt she had been let off the hook, Lev—being native to The Feywild—sensed otherwise.   In the middle of this discussion, a walking stick insect from The Feywild emerged from Lev's shirt and leapt toward Cathlynn. Lev caught it mid-air, but Cathlynn allowed it to land on her thumb. Upon contact, the Walking Stick disappeared, the thumb turned to wood and felt arthritic. Lev identified the phenomenon as a consequence of invoking Verenestra's name and unfinished pact. He warned Cathlynn that the Fey do not grant favors without extracting a price.    

Preparing for Investigation

Lilly returned around 1 PM and gathered the party to relay her findings. The group reviewed the strange happenings:  

• Copse trees were growing unnaturally.

• The orchard's well had gone dry.

• Animals were being born deformed.

• The local druid had mysteriously disappeared.

  The group decided to investigate North Copse first, with plans to check the dry well and potentially dig into the goat incident afterward. Cathlynn and Lev, both readers and interpreters of all things metaphysical, agreed to lend their insight into the corrupted woods. Dorian agreed to accompany them.   Before they left, Lev brought up an idea: to use the documented contamination and magical disturbances as leverage to gain deeper access to research resources at the grand library in Mythan Belanore. Cathlynn agreed. They resolved to compile as much firsthand information as possible.   Notes  

• Total Paid by Lilly: 88 gold (25 to Brannick, 13 to Bennick, 10 to Orla, 15 to Tammerick, 15 to Marda, 0 to Jaspen)

• Remaining Debt: 77 gold (25 to Brannick, 12 to Bennick, 10 to Orla, 15 to Tammerick, 15 to Marda)

• Notable NPCs: Gerry Underleaf, Brannick Tovlin, Bennick Roslow, Orla Fenmoss, Tammerick "Tam" Dullow, Jaspen Yarrick, Marda "Redtooth" Grinnel

 

TRAIL INTO TWISTED WOODS

The party entered the North Copse along an informal logging trail. As they stepped into the forest, both druids, Lilly and Cathlynn, immediately noticed a disturbing stillness. The usual chirping of birds and buzzing of insects had vanished. The woods were too quiet. The trees flanking the trail were twisted and gnarled, their bark split and curled. Some bore knot-like protrusions resembling sentient faces, though they were not treants. A cloying, rotted sweetness hung in the air. Moss on the forest floor pulsed faintly. Brannick Tovlin had warned Lilly of strange tree formations, and she now saw them firsthand. Brambles formed unnatural spirals, and the roots of trees glowed faintly with Lev's detect magic, revealing transmutation magic. The moss pulsed with necromantic energy.   Lilly's perception picked up subtle sounds—a chittering, as if tiny things were skittering beneath the bark, and occasional creaks of trees flexing unnaturally. Her Speech of the Woods could not decipher the sounds; no animals were present. Even the soil near the tree roots felt unnaturally loose and warm.   Dorian inspected the soil and confirmed signs of "hot rot"—a rapid, unnatural decomposition likely caused by magic. Probing deeper with a dagger, he unearthed a shred of buried linen. The group debated whether to investigate further.     Lilly placed her hands on one of the warped trees and discovered soft galls—tumorous growths that resembled fruit but were rooted in the tree bark. Lev’s Detect Magic still sensed necromantic and transmutation auras.     Lilly cast Mold Earth to shift soil around the cloth without disturbing it directly. Beneath the soil was a child's or a Halfling’s tunic, stained and ruined. Mold spread across it in clusters, twelve in total. At the center of each mold patch was a small, iridescent eye. As the group stared in horror, all twelve eyes blinked.     Suddenly, the mold patch spewed forth a fine mist of black spores. Both Lilly and Dorian were in the cloud of spores and each had to roll to make a Constitution saving throw. Lilly succeeded in her saving throw, however Dorian did not, and he breathed in a whole lung full. The spores released by the eyes sent him into a hallucination. The dirt became flesh. He heard a child's voice crying for help and saw a vision of a child being lowered into a ritual circle. Compelled, Dorian dropped to his knees and began digging furiously.   Cathlynn, still in wild shape as an Axe Beak, attempted to drag him back using his backpack. She managed briefly but Dorian overpowered her and continued digging. On the next Constitution save, Dorian rolled a 22. He snapped out of the trance, his fingers cracked and bleeding. Shaken, Dorian moved away from the cloth and described his hallucination to the group. The decision was made to re-bury the tunic and move on.  

APPROACHING THE LUMBER CAMP

Knowing a lumberjack camp lay ahead, Lilly led the group north. From a distance of ~70 feet, she paused and used perception. She heard: A rhythmic squeak-snap sound—like a rope swinging against bark. Metallic clinking—not rhythmic, unpleasant. A gravelly, settling sound—as if dirt shifted under pressure.     The party moved forward cautiously. In the camp, a clothesline hung with drying garments vibrated at odd intervals, not from wind, but from some internal force. Tools stacked nearby shifted occasionally, producing the metallic sound. Lev cast Detect Poison and Disease but found no traces of either. The group confirmed the trees in the camp were just as twisted and diseased as those earlier. Dorian Greymantle then summoned Brutus to scout. The wolf circled the camp, pausing near the vibrating clothesline with fur bristling. He sniffed the campfire and consumed something. Near the tools, he began scratching at the earth before suddenly retreating. He paused again further along, watching the ground. Dorian noticed the earth trembled in a line extending beyond the map, in unison—as if something huge moved beneath it. Brutus returned. Lilly used Speech of the Woods to question him. The wolf relayed: "Something small, not seen, close, under."   He fled the tool pile due to "angry metal." Clothes smelled of "wet fur... little one... gone long ago." The rope "sings... not wind." Something smelled of "milk, smoke, ash, bark, scales... and thunder before it breaks but inside the skin." This last description unnerved the group. Lilly noted that these were her woods, and these trees had never appeared this way before. Lev's detect magic picked up: Necromancy throughout the camp Conjuration below the ground Abjuration magic near the clothesline   Cathlynn questioned whether these signs pointed to the Kult Drachen. Cathlynn confirmed that dragons—specifically black dragons—were being summoned back from another dimension, and these magical traces could be related.  

DECISION AT THE NORTH COPSE

Standing on the edge of the twisted woods near the lumber camp, The Heretic party considered their next steps. The day was advancing—around 2:30 PM—and The Traveler's light, though still shining, was slowly fading. Lilly proposed leaving the eerie North Copse behind for now, suggesting instead they investigate troubling rumors from a nearby goat farm about strange births.  

ARRIVAL AT THORNE FARM

Lilly confidently guided the group to the Thorne Farm, familiar territory where she knew the occupants: Eddric Thorne and his son Thann. The farm appeared worn but maintained, reflective of the difficult life led by those who worked the land. Eddric Thorne (48, Human) greeted the party with wary skepticism, tempered by respect for Lilly's presence. His leathery skin and dark, gray-streaked beard marked years of hard living. He limped slightly from an old injury, always carrying his curved shearing knife close at hand.     When questioned about the unusual occurrences, Eddric spoke gravely: “Wasn’t like this last season. First one come out with no eyes. Then another with scales instead of hooves. Third was born with normal head and front legs, but the rest below that was a long, snake-like body.” His words lingered ominously, hinting at a deeper corruption. Eddric revealed troubling news about Thalewen Mossmantle, the Shrine-Warden near The Starfall Trade Route, who had mysteriously disappeared. “I tried to fetch him, y’know, the old elf who watched the shrine. Mirla Junebriar wanted him to see about burying her child properly under his guidance. But he vanished one day. Nobody heard him say why or saw him leave. Folks whisper he went north, quiet as a shadow, won’t speak to anyone.”  

THANN'S SECRET

Young Thann Thorne (12, Human) approached the party excited to see Lilly, but suspicious of everyone else. His thin frame and straw-blonde hair made him appear even younger than his years. Wide-eyed and gentle, he held protectively to a small feed bucket. After an exchange of greetings and salutations, Lilly asked about how things were with their goats. Thann whispered to Lilly that h “One of ‘em’s still alive. I hid it from Da. Please don’t say anything, dad will kill him!”, Thann pleaded. Lilly asked Thann if he could show everyone the goat. Thann assessed everyone’s face, and decided he could only trust Cathlynn and Lilly. Leading them discreetly about 200 yards north of the farm to a small abandoned structure that once served as a hay barn, Thann pulled open the door. There, in a small, makeshift pen, stood the goat kid. It was clearly excited to see Thann and joyfully bounced to him, allowing Thann to hug and pet him. “Her name is Pebble. She don’t cry like the others. Just hums... and she looks at me like she understands. Thann made Cathlynn and Lilly promise not to tell anyone about Pebble, especially his father, fearing Eddric would kill her immediately.  

EXAMINING PEBBLE

Inside the pen stood Pebble, clearly changed from what nature intended. Tiny horn buds protruded, slightly curved like those of a drake. Thin, black scales covered parts of her legs and spine. One eye shone golden, its pupil slit vertically, while the other was clouded over.     When touched gently, she emitted a low, harmonic vibration—a resonant purr that filled the air with an unsettling yet mesmerizing melody.   Thann again made Cathlynn and Lilly promise not to reveal Pebble’s existence to anyone outside of The Heretic, especially to his dad. They agreed and followed Thann back to the farm. Lilly invited Eddric and Thann to The Merry Mug Inn that evening, suggesting that Brewyn's performance might provide a welcome distraction. They agreed it could be beneficial.  

INVESTIGATING THE DRY WELL

After leaving the Thorne Farm, the party traveled to the dried well mentioned by one of Lilly’s vendors. The well was large, 18 feet in diameter, its wooden scaffolding collapsed, and the bucket cracked and discarded. The stones of the well were covered in soot-colored streaks like veins of ink or ichor.   Lev cast Detect Magic, immediately sensing a disturbing confluence of magical energies, particularly from below. Cathlynn Wildshaped into a spider, carefully descending into the well. Her investigation revealed magical runes, unnerving remains, strange claw marks, and mysterious spider inhabitants – hundreds of smaller “regular sized” spiders and at least 3 giant spiders, spanning the breadth of the well’s interior, which made them at least 10 to 12 feet in diameter.     Upon returning, the party agreed on the necessity of sealing the well. Lilly commissioned a sturdy, iron-reinforced pine lid from Brannock Tovlin for 40 gp, to be completed and installed within five days.  

EVENING AT The Merry Mug

  Returning to Oakhaven by sunset, the party gathered at The Merry Mug. Brewyn's captivating performance filled the tavern, drawing a large, lively crowd. Lilly's heartfelt plea for donations raised 26 gp from the villagers toward the cost of sealing the cursed well. Cathlynn, worn from the day's trials, chose to spend the evening drinking by Brewyn's side.   The evening concluded with camaraderie and uneasy thoughts of the challenges ahead.