2020 AUG 27
Along their journey back to camp, The Crew had a few questions for the woman they had rescued. She answered to the best of her ability.
“I am Alayra Rheins. I was returning my home in the city of Feygorest. We were camped off to the side of the road when we were attacked. The guards escorting me hurried me into our carriage and we left in a rush. Only a moment later the carriage was on its side and I hid. I didn’t see what attacked us.”
Back at camp, Justin gave Alayra a quick check-up and found she was more or less in fine health. Justin used Detect Magic but the only magic he found was from Finnian’s tent. He then used Detect Good and Evil and found that Alayra was perfectly fine and normal, but again he caught a sense of something from Finnian’s tent.
The Crew had a midnight meal to help her calm her nerves, and Finnian offered her a bed in his tent.
The next morning, the Crew set off with a new companion. The day went uneventfully until evening when Alayra suggested pushing on into the night to reach a nearby inn. The Crew agreed and they reached “The Gravedigger’s Rest” by midnight.
The inn was empty and still, with only a gnome playing music quietly in a corner of the room. After tapping on the bar, an old woman exited from the back room and suggested they find seats. They all sat by the fire and the woman brought them soup that smelled heavily of garlic.
The Crew explained the events on the bridge, with the corpses rising to fight them, to the old woman and she seemed to have knowledge of a similar event nearly a decade earlier. She mentioned Gareth Rheins as a possible suspect.
As the night settled, the door swung open and a new man arrived. The old woman insisted he enter instead of standing in the door letting the cold air in. He was recognized by Alayra who proclaimed “Edmund!” and rushed to his arms.
Alayra told the newcomer of her rescuers, and Edmund approached to thank them. He offered his home in Feygorest as free accommodations should they find themselves there. When told of the bridge incident, Edmund suggested that his brother may be at fault.
“My Father didn’t take my brother’s death well, and he tried to bring him back. He was successful, for a while. After a week my Brother went mad and began attacking people. Those he killed all returned, in a way. Their skeletons separated from their bodies and attacked others. I thought we had put him down, but then my Father came through a few days ago, and now my Brother has returned.”
As Edmund stepped forward to shake hands he became disgusted by the smell of garlic and covered his mouth and nose with a handkerchief.
Edmund and Alayra insisted on returning to their home immediately, hoping to arrive before dawn.
The Crew retired upstairs to find that the inn had no rooms, just an open floor upstairs with cots. They also discovered that Finnian knows magic as they requested that Argrim (who was assumed to be the mage) Prestidigitate all their clothes dry. Finnian happily complied.
A few hours before dawn, Justin and Peg were disturbed by a loud roaring and pounding from outside. They went downstairs to peek out the windows and noticed a very large Troll having a fit near the fence-line of the inn. It seemed to not want to approach any further.
Peng woke the Crew and Senda sought the advice of the old woman.
“Just go back to bed. He does this all the time,” the old woman said.
But most of them did not return to bed as they found it difficult to sleep with an angry troll outside.
Sunrise came and the Crew was served breakfast before setting off again. They reached Feygorest mid-day and immediately went to the Rheins estate. They were greeted by Alayra who welcomed them openly. She offered them any number of rooms they needed, each with two very large, very comfortable beds.
The Crew took note of the window coverings blocking all light, then left to see what the town had to offer.
The local goods shop was overstocked with Garlic, Wooden Stakes, and Holy Water. The hunter’s guild across the way reiterated the same story about Gareth Rheins and suggested the Crew check the Rhein’s family tombs.
Returning to the Rhein’s Estates, the Crew found the tombs in the North West corner. They found that a section of the tall fence to be ruined and they easily found their way inside. There were 3 stone mausoleums inside, one of which was labeled “Gareth Rheins”.
A quick investigation revealed a foot print exiting the Mausoleum, and a crack in the door where it had hit the wall as it swung out.
Inside they found a stone sarcophagus. With the combined efforts of Peng and Justin they managed to force it open to find it was empty.
Justin noticed a crack in the floor of the sarcophagus that had a slight breeze, prompting Senda to test a candlestick on the wall. As he pulled it, the floor slid away revealing a staircase into darkness.
The stairs lead to a small room with two doors. They took the right door and found a room with mushrooms, a desk, a rusty sword, and a tunnel outlined with runes to ward against the undead.
The other door lead to a dead end with several book cases. The crew immediately began pulling on books and found a secret door to the left. Inside they fought an undead being, then found the notes and formulas of Delwyn Rheins.
The other bookshelf also revealed a hidden door. This one lead to a room with a Magic Circle of Runes painted on the floor in crimson, and a large face carved into the wall on the opposite end.
At this point, we paused because it was 10:45
