3/1/4712: On a drizzly winter afternoon, Sheila Heidmarch summons a group of Pathfinders to Heidmarch Manor for their latest mission - to find the next part of the Shattered Star! Group decides to take ship to the Lady's Light; on the way to the docks to meet the Captain they run into a dodgy busker Keelan recognises as Sambin Turshaw of Riddleport, and his youthful companions (Marlan & Shevy Grindsmord) who are picking the crowd's pockets... Gedout interrupts things, Sephiria loosens a lute screw, ending the peformance, and Keelan extorts half of Sambin's donations. Four sailors from the good ship Wanton Ways escort the party on deck; they speak with her captain Yarnelle Fessender and arrange transit to the Lady's Light.
5/1/4712: The Wanton Ways sets sail at dawn. Sheila has provided 2 weeks of iron rations. That night fellow passenger Dialla Marteme slits the throat of Chubby Sewel, the unpopular second mate (brother of first mate Pockeye Sewel), but when caught she persuades the group he had it coming for murdering her 13 year old sister back in Kaer Maga 17 months ago. Chubby's corpse is thrown overboard with the ship's boat, Dialla assumes his appearance.
6/1/4712: Next morning at breakfast everyone comments how much nicer Chubby is. The ship comes in close to shore northwest of the Lady's Light to let down the party's boat. Dialla hands over a dragonstooth dagger & ring of protection to Keelan in thanks/payment.
The Wanton Ways will be coming back this way in two weeks (20/1/4712) - the party can light a signal fire if they want picked up then.
With Quillax swimming alongside in shark form the boat rows in to shore, to a mossy hut atop a small island, home of Maroux, a one-eyed half-orc witch. Her seaweed, rat and swamp water broth does not sit well with Keelan or Quillax - Gedout enjoys the home-style cooking. After some bickering the party agree to fetch her Kelpie's Hair seaweed from the wreck of the Impdrake - shark-Quillax does so, despite the objections of the skeleton crew. Maroux tells them of the Gray Maidens that have come to the Lady's Light under Captain Oriana. Sephiria Kaddren recalls the tale of Oriana's many deaths at the hands (arrows) of Naglatha, a follower of Good King Tsadok Arabasti, who three years ago liberated the city of Korvosa from the tyrant Queen Ileosa and her Gray Maiden warrior knights. Not all the Maidens surrendered to King Tsadok's just mercy, some have become outlaws and mercenaries. According to Maroux, ten days ago Oriana visited Marou claiming that Sorshen, Thassilon's Runelord of Lust, had risen again in the Lady's Light. Oriana tried to recruit Maroux, who declined. Anastasia interrogates Maroux, who admits that there was a faint sulphurous stench around Oriana that time. Anastasia suspects a Succubus is at work.
That evening the party return again to the wreck to destroy the skeletons & seize the dead captain's enchanted rapier. Maroux lets them rest in her hut overnight. She seems to quite fancy Gedout, but declines his offer of 'help around the hut'.
7/1/4712: The party head south over Maroux's skull-bedecked bridge, through woods and around Lake Gaulos, to the scene of a recent battle between troglodytes and bullywugs. Amidst the carnage they find a filth-fever infected dagger and a trog holy symbol of their demon-god, Zevgavizeb.
Reaching the trog lair west of the lake, the party detect the trap in the trogs' oil-drenched barricade. Negotiations prove inconclusive until Anastasia appears as 'Emissary of Zevgavizeb' and is taken into the foul-smelling lair. Confronted by the trog priest Uggilo, she summons a great mass of writhing tentacles, apparently convincing the reptile-men of her bona fides. The others are permitted entrance. Anastasia demands and receives the service of Uggilo's giant crocodile, while Sephiria chats with a spell-tranced trog who reveals the back entrance tunnel to the lair, and Quillax cures several filth-fevered trogs; also teaching the trogs a brew that should help cure the disease.
8/1/4712: The group rest overnight in the dune-grass of the hillocks above the trog lair. Two trogs succumb to filth fever overnight. Next morning the party make plans to continue their quest, now with allies...
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