Taken Away

Northing starts a morning faster than hearing shouts that someone has been murdered. I hustled downstairs as quickly as my walking stick would take me, only to find the Tavern empty. Outside we could hear coughing and shouting. I thought perhaps there had been a fire. However, upon peeking out the front door, the air was filled with the spores of the corruption. I slammed the door shut and discussed with Tina and Jade what to do. Just then, Tobias entered the Tavern, saying that he had heard that an elderly woman had been murdered in the abandoned manor. The guards walking around outside did not seem to be dropping dead from the spores, so Tina and Jade huddled around me and we hurried to the manor, protected by my spores.
 
The manor had a dozen town guards surrounding it. No chance of sneaking past, so we would have to get creative. Jade charmed a guard named William and convinced him that the murdered woman may be her grandmother. She gave a perfect performance of scared and grief-stricken granddaughter--I was thoroughly impressed. Guard William escorted her inside while Tina and I waited. When she returned--and we were safely out of earshot of the guards--she reported:
 

The dead woman inside was head nun Meredith.

Stab wound in her back, but no sign of struggle.

"Please forgive me. She did not suffer." carved in wall above the body.

Corruption was very high in the room. (Same upstairs room that Berry was hiding in yesterday)

There is also significant corruption at the lake

It was pretty clear that our next stop was the lake. The corruption was thick here, and as we walked we noticed a sunburst pattern on the ground off to the side.
 
Suddenly I couldn't move and everything went dark, like some corrupted alternate reality. A voice from behind me asked if I wanted to play a game. I most certainly did not, but I did want to get information so that I could figure out how to get out of there. The creature said that this is not the first time that it has spoken with me. It claimed that it brought me back to life the first time. This was nonsense. I have no memory of speaking to this creature. But...in the fight at the Monastery, I was knocked out, stabilized by Jade, and then woke up to discover that I had spores swirling around me. I had just assumed that the near-death experience had brought me closer to nature and unlocked a new Druid power. Was this creature trying to tell me that I am tied to or a part of the corruption somehow?
 
The creature continued, explaining that I had made a deal: I get to live, but the creature will have access to Pepperwell. If I lose the game this time, the creature will have access to Pepperwell much sooner than their first agreement. The game was for me to guess the name of the creature. And just like that, I was back with Jade and Tina. I quickly explained the situation and that I had only five minutes to guess the creature's name. We racked our minds. The Deliverer? Jesus? Tobias? The Weaver? Bajock? With no clear answer, my time was up and I found myself back with the creature.
 
At this point I was so irritated that I refused to play the game at all. Why would I ever agree to sacrifice Pepperwell for my own life? I have already lived my life! So much so that I would not be surprised if my spores are circling like vultures waiting for me to die so that they can decompose my body. And that's fine with me, because I am OLD! But I cannot die until I know that Pepperwell is safe. The greatest fallacy of evil is that it perpetually underestimates the power of love. So, with that, the creature said that it will go play with someone else.
 
With corruption spreading in town and an evil creature on the loose, we needed to gather more information. We noticed a number of town guard heading toward the Tavern so we followed. The guard was accusing Tobias of the murder, but Tobias stated that he wasn't attuned to it and hadn't even opened the box yet. Tobias has been looking so tired and stressed lately.
 
Unable to do much for Tobias, we went to the Church to ask about Meredith. Apparently she went on a walk around midnight, just like she did every night. You could feel the deep sorrow in that room--Meredith seemed like a truly kind-hearted person. I mumbled to Tina that she should offer a prayer. She did, and everyone seemed to find solace and comfort in her words.
 
Next stop, Jade wanted to go to the Caravan. The little Gnome boy Tunick popped up. He apologized for his sister Berry, which I thought was very sweet but sad that he felt the need to apologize on her behalf. Tunick explained that Berry can sense magical items, and this attracted the attention of the Zhentarim in Magaford. Berry sensed that Pepperwell had a magical item, and befriended her to figure out what it was. Berry stole the invisibility ring the day BEFORE Pepperwell's house was ransacked. Tunick also said he overheard men in Stothum looking for a "troublesome gnome" in the forest. I was loosely familiar with the existence of Zhentarim in Stothum (staying far clear of their shady business dealings of course) and had heard that they were in most cities. I was intrigued to to learn from Tunick that the Zhentarim were not in Hygrim because the Duke does not allow it. Tunick also said that he saw Meredith by the lake watching fireworks around midnight before she died. We thanked Tunick for being so helpful, and Jade gave him one of the mechanical marbles she had picked up from the Noresha Temple. I hope that he will become one of the good people of the world, and not turn out like his sister.
 
Wanting to know more about the night of the fireworks, we went to the barracks to talk to Tunick's father. As we were arriving, he was being released from jail. Tina went to talk to the Triple Fang while Jade and I walked with the Gnome. Unlike his son, he would provide information for a price. A fair but cold exchange. What we learned:
 

(5 gold) When did the gnome meet the Duke? 55 years ago, on a business trip when he was with his father. The father wanted the Gnome to entertain his son and the town every year. In return, the caravan would get exclusive merchant access for two days.

(5 gold) Knowledge of the man who won/lost the invisibility ring? Nothing. The Duke is not allowed to purchase items from the Caravan--it's bad for the economy and enjoyment of the town.

(20 gold) The Duke has many enemies outside of Hygrim. The other dukes don't like him. Zhentarim want to buy Hygrim because the forest has direct connection to the Feywild. A lot of value and profit in that. The corruption in the forest makes it far less valuable. Corruption is worst in the northwest and is moving from west to east. The Duke has no idea how to stop it. He is throwing money at it and will be bankrupt soon. The Gnome gave him a loan, in fact. The same sunburst shape in the locations where Jonas and Meredith were murdered.

Jade and I returned to the Barracks in time to overhear the guards talking about how Jade's three Wood Elf "friends" are top suspects for the murder. They plan to track them down. Then suddenly we saw the eyes of the guard Charlie--the one who ate the psychedelic pie--turn black. It looked like the evil creature had found its next victim.
 
[PAUSE FOR DRAMATIC EFFECT. SEE NEXT PAGE]