After a much-needed night’s rest, the party returned to Bixby Wizzlethorpe, where they handed over a chittering cricket leg, one of the rare ingredients he had requested. Delighted, the eccentric alchemist brewed another of his infamous alchemical cocktails—a drink that granted Lirielle enhanced speed for the day.
Their conversation was interrupted by the arrival of Mira Fallbrook, Wizzlethorpe’s assistant. The party attempted to subtly ask Wizzlethorpe about her, but his naïve and trusting nature led him to ask her directly about the alchemical ingredients they had found in the mines.
Mira froze, then apologized before casting a pre-prepared spell. Wizzlethorpe was instantly sucked into a glass bottle in her hands, and at the same time, three animated armors and a flying sword materialized to attack the party. She fled into the back office, closing the door behind her.
A chaotic battle erupted, shaking the alchemist’s shop as spells and weapons tore through the enchanted constructs. Flasks shattered and bookshelves collapsed. After defeating the constructs, Dravencoles opened the door to the backroom, where he found Mira frantically scanning through books.
Cornered, she cast Thunderwave, sending shockwaves through the room, but the fight was already lost. Just as Lirielle’s sorcery brought her to the brink of defeat, Mira pulled out a small red vial and drank it.
The moment the elixir touched her lips, she burst into flames. The bottle holding Wizzlethorpe shattered, freeing him. Mira’s body vanished, leaving only scorched clothing and papers behind.
Horrified, Wizzlethorpe identified the elixir as a Flamejump Potion: an alchemical horror that requires torturing phoenixes to create. How Mira had come to possess such a thing, he could not say, but the discovery left him deeply shaken.
As the party searched the wreckage, Momeline deciphered a ledger, revealing shipments sent to “Duskwatch.” The name rang a bell for Wizzlethorpe, but he couldn’t recall its meaning. He promised to investigate further with Roswin Brambletoe in the town library.
With no further leads, the party settled into a quiet routine in Southaven, but their respite was short-lived.
At a dinner at the keep, the party met Lord Kael’s distant cousin, Lord Elric Kael, an arrogant noble from Seawatch who had overstayed his welcome. They later bonded with Brenlan Kael over their mutual dislike of him at Rusty’s Tavern. The night before Mule Days festivals, Dr. Bixby Wizzlethorpe approached them at Rusty’s Tavern with crucial news. He and Roswin had finally determined the approximate location of Duskwatch Keep, a five-day journey north into the Pale Mountains. The discovery confirmed that the keep was real, though its precise purpose and inhabitants remained unknown.
Their night took a darker turn when a mysterious man named Donavar Reddmark approached them. He had kidnapped Leonard Chesterwolfe, offering to return it only if they stole Lord Elric’s signet ring. Before leaving, he ominously told them to “wait and see what happens tonight.”
As they debated, chaos erupted at the town festival. Hooded figures rushed into a tent, then escaped in a carriage. The party gave chase, managing to shoot a horse and destroy the carriage’s wheels.
They killed two of the assailants and captured a third, but when they opened the carriage, they found it empty.
Brenlan was gone.