Wednesday, October 4th, 2017
—
The harrowing battle continues. Nualia, bent over Silas’s unconscious body, pulls up her sword to rest directly beneath Silas’s exposed throat. She presents the party with a simple choice – leave Thistletop now or Silas dies. After a brief conversation in which Niko requests to take Silas with them, it slowly dawns on the party that their beloved barbarian friend is doomed.
Krask fires an arrow, which sails over Nualia’s head as she slices Silas’s throat. Fobias desperately attempts to pull Silas from danger, but is unsuccessful. Silas dies.
Wrought with remorse, and feeling partially responsible for Silas’s death, Niko charges into the fray and leads the emotional party in their second wave of attacks. Still numb from the death of their comrade, Fobias and Krask watch in horror as Niko is also struck unconscious. As Fobias runs from the battle, Krask stays behind to try and save his friend. Using every bit of healing at his disposal, including a wand and a potion, Krask slowly begins to drag Niko’s body out into the hallway.
Nualia laughs, her voice echoing throughout the circular chamber as the room suddenly begins to fill with a dense, white fog. Fobias rushes back to assist Krask in his heroic endeavor, mindful of the deadly trap that is complicating the situation even further.
With the yeth hound bearing down on Niko, raking his fragile body, Richard grabs Krask and pulls him back into the nearby chamber, triggering the trap. On the edge of the seeping fog, the yeth hound begins to feast on Niko’s body just as the portcullis drops. Fobias looks on.
But there is no time to waste on mourning. Fobias, Krask, and Richard take advantage of the opportunity to distance themselves from the psychotic woman and her quadrupedal counterpart. So, they run. They run back up the stairs to the stockade and past the bodies of goblins and dogs. In the twilight, they leave Thistletop, and their fallen brothers, behind.
As dawn begins to creep in, the two survivors finally decide to rest, exhausted from battle, hunger, and emotional fatigue. They decide to head back to Sandpoint to collect their thoughts, regroup, and possibly find some war-hardened companions to fill out their depleted ranks.
Just outside Sandpoint, the path converges with another one from the south, and they spot a finely dressed halfling man, strutting confidently towards the city. He is a jovial fellow, who instantly does his best to cheer up the party after noticing their glum expressions. This man is clearly excited to finally be arriving in Sandpoint.
Krask decides to wait just outside the city gates with Richard while Fobias and the halfling continue onwards. Up ahead, a sizeable crowd has formed in front of the cathedral where the Swallowtail Festival had commenced only a week prior…before this entire mess of goblins and demonic transformations had begun. Mayor Deverin, Father Zantus, and several other prominent clergy and council members are waiting at the top of the stairs, with a pale, thin man standing stoically between them.
This man, Mayor Deverin explains, was Theophilus Whitby, an ex-professor who had confessed to several surprising charges including aiding an evil entity, obstruction of justice, and endangering Sandpoint’s citizens. Much to the crowd’s surprise, he is banished from Sandpoint.
How will Krask deal with the loss of his closest friends? Is Professor Whitby connected to Nualia and the events in the Catacombs? Will Fobias be carrying this halfling on his shoulders forever?