Session 19 - Vellsten and Disappearances

With the sun setting, we decide to travel through the Sherbian Wetland only for an hour until my Water Walk spell wears off. Once it does, we rest for the rest of the night. During the night, we notice a orange glow coming from a small pond 50 feet or so away. In the morning we go take a look and as Ape pulls the object, it's revealed to us to be a bulbous golden amber, egg shaped plant of some kind.
 
A few hours into our first proper day of travel through the Sherbian Wetland, we walk across quick mud, which acts similar to quick sand, but thanks for Water Walk, we walk straight across it and don't sink. About 4 hours in, we see a dead looking tree, and in the tree, is a skeletal body with a rucksack on it's back.
 
Ape notices another orange glow, and as he reaches in, he pulls out a leech looking creature which attaches to him, and quite a few more jump out of the pond and attack us. They had a strange ability to redirect spells we used if they avoided them. During the fight, I notice each of these creatures have a aura surrounding them, and at the end of the fight, I decide to use my elemental gift and in turn, I manage to pull some of the creatures energy into me, upgrading my elemental gift.
 
A few more hours of travel, and we make our way around the banks of the Groomba Pond, and eventually, we arrive at Vellsten, surrounded by spiked wooden walls and no one there manning the gate. Roads are unkept, just earthy paths. As we're walking through the town, there is no one around. In the centre of Vellsten, there is an odd structure, looks like a pit of some kind with a pulley crane above it. Next to the pit, are large cube squares wrapped in a tarp. No light coming from quite a few of the houses, only some seem to have lights coming from within. Across the way from the pit, is a sloped building, looks like it's worse for wear, and a painted sign hanging outside that says "Live or I", which I assume is the Olive Gord Inn.
 
I approach the building, the door itself is locked, but a faint orange glow inside. I call out and ask about Kurash to deliver the dagger, and he says there is no Kurash here. He opens the door and pokes his out, a human male, he looks past us looking for something. He allows us in thankfully and offers us drinks. Salt pita/Nitre is an export of Vellsten in the mines. Mainly used by mixing with charcoal and sulphur it creates gunpowder. Urgwell Mines further east are main exporters of Nitre. The leeches that attacked us are called Nettle Drakes.
 
Benjin, potential owner of the Olive Gord Inn. Tells us, a month ago, a woman called Molly disappeared, most in Vellsten thought she drowned or got taken by a creature. A few days pass, Ulen then disappeared, a big guy himself. Then recounted that many others suddenly started going missing in the nights. The bounty we picked up before going to Laelos was for disappearances in Vellsten, and the person who sent the bounty out went missing a week ago. We have 4 days left until the deadline to deliver the dagger to Kurash. Norman got the commission to make the dagger roughly a month ago, which lines up with when the disappearances started in Vellsten.
 
The next day, we start our investigation. Myself, Austar and Raskin make our way to Molly and Ulen's house. In the room, the wall behind a cabinet is a long scratch, looks more like a claw than a weapon. The room likely moved around to hide the scratch. Behind the wardrobe in the room, are 3 claw marks as well.
 
Ape and Malaphor mentioned tiny specks of Nitre in the house they investigated. I noticed small specks of nitre in the barracks as well matching the same situation in the house Ape and Malaphor searched. Things seem to be pointing to the mine, or mine workers as potential suspects. We went to the Minstra's house, and are greeted by a Tiefling butler, called Gorgion? We investigate the room where the Minstra went missing and find nothing. We speak to Benjin and mention meeting the butler, and he doesn't recognize the name and says a different name and a slender human, not a tiefling. We rush back and don't find the Tiefling anywhere.
 
Benjin says Lochlin went into the mines. Lochlin, a dwarf who is the mineshaft quartermaster, seems fishy based on the answers he gave to Malaphor and Ape's questioning. We see a form in the mine after we broke in and Ape makes chase who ends up being Lochlin. He tells us he was paid by the "them", one of which is the Tiefling we met to have access to the mine and to be quiet.
 
While grappled by Ape, we get Lochlin to guide us to where we need to go to find them, we're lead to a dead end, but he tells us to push the stone in front, which opens up into a tunnel.
 
One blue tiefling with horn.
Long hair, blue eyes, patchy moustache and beard. loads of scars on his face. Pointed yellow teeth. Maybe human called Kurash.
 
It takes us 9 hours to get through the tunnel, and we appear back at the bog, south of Vellsten. I use Locate Creature and get a ping for Kurash to the right. We make our way through the clearing and in front of us is a stone structure, 3 line claw marks on the stone. Large cages, and put out camp fires. Kurash I know is moving around behind us, we move in to the clearing as Kurash is speaking to us. We notice dozens of yellow eyes in the bushes surrounding us and Kurash starts to transform, elongating his limbs and gaining a snout.