The Gothenburg Festival

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The party continued their battle against the crimson-clad cultists.

Bramble concocted a plan. To buy her enough time, her companions kept their enemies busy: Barefoot tangled with the shadow-posessed Dwarf while Aurora set a searing serpent upon the orc cultist, covering her in flames. Tanis took aim at the leading cultist - a bald, tattooed human - and hobbled him with an arrow to the knee. After relentlessly attacking his foe, holy man Aerik the Cleric savagely beheaded the Vulpine villain. Witnessing the brutal kill, Barefoot’s countenance turned dark and stormy, a malevolent smile twisting across her face.

Taking advantage of the chaos, Bramble drew from the runic circle’s dark power and cast a ritual. All stood rigid, enraptured by the spell - save for Bramble herself and the Dwarven woman. Bramble quickly grabbed the texts from the cultists, stuffing one in her hat and tucking the other into Aurora’s long leather coat.

A moment later, the affected parties broke free. Amidst the bedlam, the Orc, tamping out the fire, slipped away through a hidden passage. The Human cultist faced off against the collected heroes, but ultimately fell just as he tried to escape through the same passage.

There was one foe left, but instead of finishing the Dwarf off, the party charmed her. Under the magic’s thrall, the woman treated Bramble as a close friend. Though, apparently unaffected by the charm, the shadow being within her body tried ceaselessly to escape.

Upon inspecting the room, the team discovered a hidden compartment containing several more books, all comedic plays, but no two the same. They found ink and, with a glance through the plays, saw that the cultists had written runic symbols on seemingly random pages. The heroes also noticed that the body of the tattooed cultist, who had collapsed in the secret passage, had disappeared.

Deciding that time was of the essence, the party left the castle promptly. But, before they made the trek back to Gothenburgh, they thought it prudent to make camp and rest up. Aerik erected a magical shelter, allowing the group to recover in safety. Questioning the captive Dwarf, Rita, the team learned of her complicity in the cult’s dark scheme. She then divulged a hint to the Twilight Fool’s motivations: to get rid of all the spookies.

Taking advantage of the momentary peace, Aurora crafted for Barefoot a Vulpine token, a replacement for the one she had accidentally destroyed.

The next morning they began their descent. As the village of Gothenburgh came into view, enshrouded by mist, an unexpected site caught the adventurers’ eyes. Two distinct companies were visible. The first, a small group clad in bright green and lead by a shining silver figure, entered the settlement on horseback. The second company, much larger, was in fact an army, stationed in the hills some way to the east of Gothenburg, their colours and banners identifying them as The Expedition.