The Fog of War

In the spring of 8076, Isolde, the Water Genasi Cleric, and Thalia, a Paladin, meet up with Marcilla "Marcy" Beauregard, who has asked for assistance. Marcy explains that she has lost contact with her sister and uncle, who live on a small hunting commune called Red Tail Village on an island of the coast of her home in the Old Elvish Mountains. The trio set off to investigate, with the journey to Aurora Point island taking the entire day.   When they arrive, the trio finds another individual washed up on the shore, an Alois warlock of Rak’Satur named Odette Bérange. They introduce themselves, with Odette revealing little about herself. They explore Red Tail Village together, finding no life. They do find the body of Ferren Humphrey, a halfling who lived in the village that has been hanged, as well as the body of Tycho Rimwater, the village’s mayor, who has drank himself to death in his wine cellar. In addition to the two bodies, the group finds several documents detailing a descent into mentally dangerous states over the period of a few days by various villagers. There is also mention of a Makovai mining settlement on the opposite side of the island. Lastly, the documents mention something in the woods watching them, and two boys, Ito and Iktino, who spend a lot of time in the ruins of a fishery elsewhere on the island. The group heads there next.   When our heroes arrive at the fishery ruins, before they can do much, Odette is pulled into the sea by her patron, the kraken Rak’Satur. Rak’satur at first berates her for going off on her own, but then excuses her and warns that no gods remain on the island; only “the hellish creations of mortals.” After this, the group finds in the ruins Ito and Iktino; but something has turned them into husks, robbed of their correct lives. Ito and Iktino attack the group, and Ito is killed, despite Marcy’s warning, while Iktino is knocked out. The group leaves and heads for Sunshine Beach, arriving at dawn.   Throughout their time on the island, the group endures psychological trauma at several distinct points, suffering damage to their mental capacities.   At Sunshine Beach, the group finds the body of Pherusa of Kallimonia, which has washed up on shore, along with a wrecked rowboat. They camp near there, sleeping through the day, and each of them suffer bad dreams in which they see the monstrous being that has haunted the island. They head west. During the journey, Marcy opens up to Thalia about how scared she is to learn the fate of her uncle and sister. Odette also tells more about herself; to honor her patron, she has a history of destroying various seafaring vessels. Marcy and Odette maintain a hostile relationship with each other.   Arriving at a hunting cabin in the middle of the island, Marcy is too nervous to go inside, and the group goes inside for her. There, they find the body of Rhoadin Frederson, the woman who killed and hanged Ferren in a fit of rage. She herself was killed in a violent fight via conventional methods, and left a note in which she apologized for her actions.   Our heroes journey to the mining settlement on the other side of the island, where they find the desecrated bodies of several Makovai dwarves. There’s little else to the settlement, other than a few shacks and the mine itself. The group opens the door to the mine and ventures into the cave.   It isn’t long before they come across a large container, almost the size of a small house. In every language are written the words “MALEVOLENCE FIVE - DO NOT OPEN - CONTACT GOVERNMENT OF THE TREBAI ASCENDANCY IF FOUND - DO NOT OPEN - EXTREMELY DANGEROUS”. Something’s amiss, however; in Dwarvish, the words “HIGH KINGDOM OF ATLA VERA - GOLD RESERVE” are written. The container has also sustained heavy damage from the inside, and bears a large hole. Inside the container is a manual, with only one readable page.   The manual tells our heroes of Malevolence 5, a magical construct created by Andromeda Corporation, a subsidiary of the Sunlit Isles Trading Company. The construct was created for the Trebai Ascendancy in The Twenty-Year War, and was designed to instill supernatural terror into enemies. Malevolence 5’s abilities are listed as stalking, instilling fear, turning enemies into husks, and attacking with its Phantasmal Sword.   The group also notices a small, Daphnea experimental recording device. Playing it back, they learn that the container was not supposed to be labeled as gold for dwarvish individuals, but the Corporation Officer in charge did not have time to fix things; they instead attempted to seal off the cave.   Marcy notices that the cave goes on, and follows a trail of bloodstains down. For a brief time, the group swims through a part of the cave that has been flooded with water. When they emerge, they find Marcy’s sister, Clara , and her uncle, Hoagy - alive. Marcy is overjoyed, but the group feels the presence of Malevolence 5. When they exit the cave, the monstrosity is there, waiting for them, staring at the group with its abyssal eyes. But out heroes overcome their fears, and destroy the machine. Isolde makes the finishing blow, summoning the power of her god, Lakotos, who destroys Malevolence Five once and for all in the form of a swarm of fireflies. The construct explodes in a magical ball of fire and smoke.   The group retrieves Clara and Uncle Hoagy, and makes their way back to Red Tail Village, where their boat is docked. To their surprise, someone else has come to the island; Trebai Ascendancy Agents, who have come to ensure that no witnesses of the power of Malevolence 5 leave the island alive. However, Odette and Isolde convince the agents not to fight them, as they have just destroyed their machine. The agents are convinced, and, worried what their superiors will do to them, go away with Marcy. Our heroes sail back to the mainland, though Odette dives into the water to return to the service of Rak’Satur. Marcy tells stories of her adventures to Isolde and Thalia on the voyage back, and Clara and Uncle Hoagy eventually recover from their experiences.