Gary extracts the corpse from the Halewatch basement, but stirs up enough noise that the soldiers within are awakened. Finian moves to cover for him with some nonsense story, but the guards don't trust him, and soon they face Captain Caiman and his men in the street, with the two drained corpses present. Caiman seems ignorant of following up on the murders, so he grants the PCs the bodies to do with as they wish, and they return them to Ofra, who positively identifies them. There is mention of a strange necromancer named 'Silester Strex' who was in the area at the time of the murders, with some silent companions. They decide they need to head back once again to Floivin Keep to report this, even though Ofra sends a messenger raven ahead. They fetch Gubbily from his chamber and head to Camm's Bit & Bridle where they speak with Pinyon, who also shows them the location where the barrel of corpses was find. They find a pair of thick 'rubber' gloves there, then get some rations from The Blind Vixen and steer their wagon back to the city.
They stop at some stables to inquire about the 'undead' horses that drove Silester's cart, and then head over to report all their findings to Major Winch, and how they resemble the corpse drainings they discovered early on when working for Lester Cretch. They visit Teven the Worm and trade him a libram of magical findings from the Dwarf Lord's Rest, in order for the location of the Flabbergast Manor, where they have heard Silester Strex has a membership. He uses divination to find the place, which is currently moored below the local bowyer, and they even earn some credit to use later. They head off to Bowyer Bigstrings, asking for the 'triple crossbow', and end up inside the Manor, where they speak to Edlund the receptionist of the Arkana Arkiva, and Dean Schnoo the Sorcerous himself. They know little of Strex's personal life, only that he's a paid member who once studied necromancy there for a few terms. They also hear that Strex was stopping by the area for a business opportunity involving the Gnarlbottoms and some relics they've uncovered.
The PCs feel these must have been the creepy urns they have encountered numerous times, first the ones given to Cretch before he left for Stavewulf, and later in the Saint's Acre and the Dwarf Lord's Rest. Gary uses his occult knowledge to discern that Strex's amulet, which had been described to him by Ofra, means he's a member of the Cult of the Unspared, followers of Tomas the Unspared, ruler of Vhorinyr, a frightful kingdom to the north of Wintersbreath, who had a hand not only in the taking of that province but an unsuccessful invasion of Floivin Province those same two decades ago. The PCs head to the Seven Floods Inn to speak with Url Gnarlbottom, who confirms that the man Silester Strex purchased several of the urns that his clan excavated from the Rest after the PCs had cleared it.
PCs: Finian, Gary, Indrid
NPCs
Private Elsmuth (human male): A middle aged, grumpy soldier with graying hair who serves under Captain Caiman in Halehusk, wears a sword to the exclusion of other standard issue Last Eidolorn weaponry.
NPCs
Private Elsmuth (human male): A middle aged, grumpy soldier with graying hair who serves under Captain Caiman in Halehusk, wears a sword to the exclusion of other standard issue Last Eidolorn weaponry.
