Summary
Leaving Whitecap behind, the party heads south toward Dawnspire to trace the source of the arcane shards. The road brings new travelers, strange discoveries, and a dark reminder that the black sludge still lingers in the world.
Key Events
As the group travels the coast road, they pass scattered settlers who’ve abandoned Whitecap after the attack. Some are thankful, while others blame the heroes for what happened.
Late on the second day, they spot a bright tent marked “Biscuit’s Bountiful Boons.” Inside, a cheerful halfling named Biscuit sells snacks, teas, and potions.
The party buys several healing draughts and receives a bonus vial: an inky-black night-vision potion.
Biscuit explains he stays near Mosswater Vale to gather ingredients and avoid Dawnspire’s strict trade fees. He mentions heavy traffic heading south from Whitecap due to an incident at the townsite, but doesn’t know details.
When the group describes the sludge attack, Biscuit grows uneasy and asks to trade back the black potion, claiming it “needs more testing.” Pressed, he admits it includes a new ingredient: a strange black sludge found along the road.
He demonstrates its volatile reactions with an alchemy kit. One mixture hisses violently, another seems to neutralize it. He shares a sample of the neutralizing agent for further testing and warns he already sold another vial to an old man heading south about an hour earlier.
The party sets off quickly to find the old man. Fhino and Shepherd scout ahead but lose the trail as night falls.
Other travelers mention the man turned east into Mosswater Vale. Following, Shepherd consults a squirrel who confirms a human passed that way.
The group follows into deepening dark, torches lit. The sound of a voice ahead leads them to the old man, arguing with a tree he insists is alive. He also points out “living” objects among their gear, indicating various magical items.
Fhino studies the tree. Its bark seems to shift, as though breathing. When Winston snatches the potion vial from the man, the Ribbet shows a sample of sludge, and a root lashes out to seize it.
Blackness spreads up the trunk as the old man laughs madly. Rustling shapes close in from all sides. The party fights through the encroaching undergrowth with steel and flame, escaping as the laughter fades and the old man vanishes in a puff of leaves.
Closing
The road to Dawnspire grows stranger by the mile. Whatever the sludge is, it seems to be changing things.