04: The Believers

  

Constable Harburk

The adventurers' return to Red Larch was met with wary glances and hushed whispers. The townsfolk, unnerved by Rotharr's disappearance and Gark's past antics, eyed them with suspicion. Rowan's keen lip-reading picked up fearful murmurs: "Do you think they did it?" and "The Constable will know what to do."

Constable Harburk immediately confronted them about Rotharr and his child being missing, noting the forced entry to his home. Pleading their innocence, the group agreed to help investigate, hoping to clear their names in the eyes of the cautious villagers.

At Rotharr's home, Gark made himself comfortable with some basement wine while the others searched. They discovered a hidden compartment in Rotharr's wardrobe, revealing a robe with a strange symbol, a stone mask, a purse of gold, and several notes. One crumpled note from "Larrakh" expressed fury at Rotharr for trying to kill Gark. It also hinted at "Bringers," "Believers," and "consulting stones"—terms the group hadn't heard before. Under the child's bed, they found a small, mysterious object with hovering stones, its purpose perplexing them.

Armed with Larrakh's letter, they returned to the Constable, proving Gark was a target, not a killer. With this new evidence and their previous findings about the masked men, they marched to the Quarry with the Constable and his guards. Gark quickly spotted the "Bringers," who scattered and ran. Four were captured, while two managed to escape the barrage of spells and Rowan's relentless pursuit.

At the jail, the adventurers were eager to interrogate the captured "Bringers." Gark, however, had a more refined approach, using Charm magic to loosen one cultist's tongue. The charmed "Bringer" confessed everything: they were the Bringers of Woe, a group of thugs. Their leader, Larrakh, resided in the Tomb of Moving Stones beneath the town, with an entrance hidden at Waelvur's. The "Believers," he revealed, were village elders corrupted by Larrakh into his Cult of the Black Earth. The sheer scale of the conspiracy overwhelmed the Constable, who needed a moment to process the shocking revelations.

Map of the Tomb of Moving Stones

While the Constable reeled, the group extracted another secret: a second entrance to the Tomb lay hidden at the Quarry. They used this entrance, removing a pile of loose stones they'd previously overlooked. A steep decline led them to a revolving door, opening into a vast chamber that mirrored the strange stone object found under Rotharr's child's bed. Massive, impossibly balanced stones stood upright, and in the distance, a lantern illuminated Larrakh, clad in stone scale mail and robes, with the two escaped Bringers. Their driftglobe gave away their position, and combat erupted.

Larrakh

Larrakh proved a formidable opponent, unleashing concussive magical blasts that caused the colossal stones to hover. Arrows deflected off his magical shield, yet his luck failed in combat. As his health dwindled, he tried to escape with a burst of speed, but Gark, transformed into a Dire Wolf, easily matched his pace. The Earth Priest's rule ended abruptly as the Dire Wolf's jaws clamped around his neck.

Exploring the ancient Dwarven Tomb, they found a shrine filled with wealth and a dagger. Another room with chains and levers revealed a curious cage trap. But the most somber discovery was Rotharr's child, Braelen, held captive under a prison of rocks, too weak to move them. He had tragically succumbed to dehydration. Rowan carefully lifted the child's body and carried it back to the Constable.

Aerego Bethunder

Back at the jail, the cells were now even more crowded with grumpy, flustered village elders joining the captured cultists. Constable Harburk informed the group that Aerego Bethunder, one of the elders, was eager to confess and assist. Aerego, taken to his storage business for privacy, explained that the Believers started with good intentions, but Larrakh's influence, using the stones to guide them, had twisted their purpose. When murder became an option, Aerego had stopped attending meetings, feigning involvement to avoid becoming a target. He now revealed that Grund and Elak Dornen had brought Rotharr Hatherhand's corpse to his storage, its skull marked with the Black Earth Cult's sigil. With the truth revealed, Aerego was returned to his cell, though the Constable promised to consider his cooperation.

With the Black Earth Cult seemingly dismantled, the group turned their attention to the missing Mirabar Delegation. They learned the Delegation's composition and the substantial reward offered for their recovery. As evening approached, Gark made himself at home in Rotharr's now-vacant house, enjoying the remaining wine, while the others settled at the Inn.

At the Inn, they gathered more clues about the Delegation. A female Half-Orc admitted to a past fight with them near the Stone Bridge fifteen days prior. A Priest of Lathander had spoken to them twenty days ago in Beliard, where they mentioned heading south to return a fallen Knight's corpse to Summit Hall. Bessok's recently purchased book was revealed to be part of the Delegation's collection, originally from a shady keelboat skipper in Womford. There were also rumors of strange graves on a nearby hill.

As some went to bed, Bessok celebrated with his bagpipes and copious drinking. The next morning, he awoke to the entire village shaking from a brief earthquake, a final unsettling touch to their time in Red Larch.

Deciding Beliard was their next destination, the group purchased supplies, a wagon, and two mules. They also decided to empty Rotharr's wine cellar before it was sealed, planning to sell the wine in Beliard—a risky venture, given the Half-Orc's warning about disappearing wagons.

With the sun rising, they left Red Larch behind, their journey taking a new turn from adventurers to enterprising traders, and into the heart of the Sumber Hills' wider mysteries.