Of Drunks and Doctors

Silas: Captain Gremis: Believes that a foul creature of some kind with a degree of intelligence about it is the culprit. Avoids detection and leaving a trail. Can leave quickly, quietly and unnoticed. A theory is that the children go willingly and go outside and then are taken. Dale the town drunk in the alleys always has something to say, it is often crazy. Captain Gremis doesn’t like talking to him, he scares the children with his stories. “Take what he says with a grain or two of salt.”
Educated in monsters. He measured lupidregs which isn’t commonly known about.
 
Jin sees some hunters/trappers going off to gather food for the day. The morning isn’t jubilant, but it is busy as people get ready for the day.
 
Jaya in the Swillshot, Room 8: Rikkon
He contacted the order last year when he needed them after his little brother went missing in Scientia.
He started investigating himself because the order wasn’t fast enough.
No other children went missing in Scientia.
He tracked the creature from Scientia to Hemsfirth.
The creature is not human. He describes it as a vaguely humanoid figure, arms too long for its body, razor sharp claws. Almost wanted to pass as human. Long cape and top hat. Looked at him over its shoulder with glowing eyes and smoke coming out of it then it vanished. Definitely not a wretch or werewolf.
He heard the children’s rhyme back in scientia before his brother went missing.
He let the dad of the missing kid hit him because he did the same thing when his brother was taken (hurt someone out of anger)
He tracks it, he sees signs of it, nobody knows what it is, nobody really believes him. He is very passionate and frustrated.
He feels it’s almost good the priest got killed because it brought help into the town to figure out the issue.
He usually goes out at sundown and doesn’t stay out much past midnight.
 
Drunk Dale:
He sees the children play during the day then the shadow comes and swoops them away. He tried to help, but couldn’t stop it. It was outside the building, then it was inside the building.
Bedrooms: Where dreams come and go.
He never sees the shadow during the day. Only at night. Shifting from here to there, never in a straight line.
He saw the lanterns go out and the shadow grows, a shadow within a shadow. It reached its arm out, a silhouette of something that isn’t there. Then it faded away and it came out of the corner of the dark room, reaching over the bed, coming down over the bed and then the child was gone.
 
Silas, Vinny and Jin @ Doctor’s Office:
Asked the doctor for help brewing tonic with herbs they foraged on the way into town.
Coroner came through with a large bag he was dragging. He says it is his laundry.
He did not cure the virus, but treated the symptoms until the body fought it off.
Doctor came from Scientia. He left because he was not an inventor. Also, his stutter annoyed people. He came upon Hemsfirth on his way to Joan’Stella. He liked how small it was and was able to help them, so it just worked out for him.
 
Jaya and Garruk @ Doctor’s Home:
Comfortable, lived in.
In the kitchen: Garruk finds an alchemy set in the cabinet similar to the one in the clinic. Also finds a second set of boots tucked away in the back. They are destroyed, not wearable, the front is very worn and dirty. Leather roll of tools: similar to priest pack but mixed with stuff, chalk, flint striker, small candles, scalpel, forceps, definitely custom made for whatever he is doing. (Vinny says that perhaps it is made for house visits. Jin says that the things -other than medical tools- remind him of things used to have a ceremony)
In the bedroom:
Foot Locker has casual wear, slippers, other side is empty.
Nightstand has been moved, There is a floorboard that is able to be opened up but is currently empty. 5”wide 1 ft long 1 ½ ft deep. Smell of leather. (reminded Jin of a big leather book that was on the Doctor’s desk that fit the dimensions)
 
Timing of Child disappearances:
Verfini 5, 12, 19, 26
Priest Died:
Verfini 19
 
The group pays Drunk Dale to fake a medical emergency to get the doctor out of the office so they can snag the book out of his office.
The book contains information about the doctor’s experiments with viruses.
 
Jaya slips a note under the door to Rikkon’s room to let him know that they are going to be patrolling in case he wishes to join and not have to go it alone this time.
 
Jin meditates over the unconscious body of Dale.
 
The book Vinny is holding starts to change. Almost like it is burning, but in reverse. The words and text change into a language Vinny has never seen before. The texture of the cover changes. There are images in the book of a ritual sacrifice that requires 5.
There is a scream down the street. The group gets there to see a dead(?) guard and down the alley comes Rikkon who has a large slash across his armor and side. He falls unconscious. Vinny and Silas go to help him as Jaya takes a defensive position. Then the lights start going out and the creature that was described comes down the alley scraping his claws across the walls and clicking his jaw.