A. Freeing Broc.

Broc awakes, still tied up, to find a mage inscribing a rune on the back of his right shoulder. When he struggles, the mage calls two compatriots in to hold Broc down. Meanwhile, back in Tarrish, Vermillion passes the hours until the meeting trying to find out about the Shal woman – he learns that she had been gathering info first about Athron (since he gave his name on the beach when Toinet first met him), then Boeden.

Athron, Boeden and Vermillion make their separate ways to the burned out farm. After taking an invisibility potion, Vermillion sneaks into the rickety barn through the hayloft, successfully slipping past the guard on the roof. He jumps down to the lower floor and cuts Broc’s bonds. Outside, Boeden approaches from the side, pretending to attempt to conceal himself. Athron approaches openly from the front and is hailed by the fighter, Dorath Kir, on the roof. Dorath tells Boeden to stop, and offers to trade Broc for information on Maeva.

Before the conversation can proceed any further, however, the noise of a fight breaks out inside the barn. Varimer, the blonde Shal woman, was inside watching Broc and saw his bonds mysteriously separate. Vermillion attacks, she fires a crossbow and then flees up the shaky stairs to the hayloft. Vermillion and Broc – who is barely able to move –follow her. Outside, Dorath climbs back through the roof to cover her escape and Athron tells Boeden to tear open the door.

Varimer jumps out the hayloft opening and speeds away, calling over her shoulder “Clear!.” Boeden crashes through the back door and gives chase. Under attack from both Vermillion and Broc (both of whom he injures), Dorath backs up to the opening and prepares to jump. Athron, who awaits outside, is prepared to cast a spell – but finds himself hit by a lightning bolt cast by the until-now invisible mage, Enchilios. For his trouble in trying to help Dorath escape, Enchilios gets a close introduction to Athron’s mace, and is nearly killed before using Expeditious Retreat to flee. Boeden slams Dorath into the rear wall of the barn, and in turn experiences a critical hit by the fighter’s longsword. Eventually, Dorath is able to flee as well.

B. Following to Halveet.

Broc asks to speak with Athron alone, and tells him that their opponents know that the party went to Halveet. He asks [:4547 | Athron]] whether Maeva is safe and protected. Athron tells him that they gave her to a former soldier. Athron also reassures Broc that the Eye of Hamal is on its way to Hatham. Broc further expresses concern that his kidnapers knew Vermillion’s real name, but Vermillion merely shrugs.

While Vermillion scouts around the docks trying to find out if the kidnapers have fled, Athron takes an unwilling Broc back to the local Hamal chapterhouse after finding a magical rune on Broc’s right shoulder. There, Pater Aubin confirms that Broc has been marked, but he is unable to remove the sigil. Athron must instead take Broc to the Vind Hall and hire an arcanist to examine the mark. A bookish middle-aged woman with glasses examines the mark, tells them it would allow the inscriber to follow Broc, and then spits on Broc’s shoulder and wipes the mark away with an Erase spell.

In the interim, Vermillion has learned that a group of four people, including the blonde Shal woman, had chartered a small passenger boat to wait for them, ready to leave at a moment’s notice. It left, reportedly for Halveet, about 90 minutes after the fight at the barn ended. Vermillion quickly books passage for all the PCs on the next ship headed straight for Halveet, and sends word for everyone to meet him on the docks. When they arrive, Athron thinks to examine Broc’s sword and finds another arcance mark on the blade – however, there is no time left to have it removed. On the way, the PCs joke about Duran’s wanted status.

C. Arrival in Halveet.

1. The hunters on the trail.

Upon docketing in Halveet, Vermillion decides to shop on one of the finer streets of the city – expecting to be followed by the bad guys, he hopes to flush out one or more of them. He manages to do so when he spots a bald, clean-shaven man lingering too long outside a leather goods shop. The man continues to follow, failing to blend into the crowd.

Since Broc refuses to part with his marked sword, Athron and Boeden decide to keep him at the Jotunn ship-building yard, with Yardmaster Berrin, while Athron goes to see Ethan Seer at the Hamal chapterhouse in Halveet. Broc has no patience for his baby-sitter, and slips away from Boeden. Boeden yells for guards, accusing Broc of attempted theft; however, though guards follow Broc down an alleyway, they cannot find him.

Athron does not realize that he is followed by one of the hunters, Varimer, the Shal woman (no longer blonde) who had captured Broc in Halveet. Additionally, Broc – carrying his arcane-marked sword – heads to the chapterhouse as well. Finally, the mage Enchilios has sensed the arrival of the marked sword in Halveet and tracks it to the chapterhouse.

At the chapterhouse, Athron is warmly welcomed by Seer’s acolyte, Joy, who tells him that their congregation is still small. Before Athron can speak with Seer, Boeden shows up and tells Athron that Broc slipped away from him. Boeden then leaves, to sell some of his loot. Athron goes back to see Seer, and tells him that Maeva is in danger, that word needs to be sent quickly and quietly. Seer summons Joy, who has greeted a new visitor to the temple seeking who spiritual help.

Seer tells Joy to take a message to Daned Thand: “It is time to go with Hamal.” Athron watches her leaves, but does not notice the mage Enchilios, who has cast Alter Self upon himself to follow Joy to James Laibrook’s jewelry and gem shop, where Seer surmises Thand is most likely working during the day.

2. The bad guys make their first moves.

Enchilios follows Joy into the shop, pretending to be a customer looking for a jewelry gift for his wife, and watches and listens as Joy passes the message to Laibrook’s receptionist and tells her to deliver it to Thand. Enchilios buys a bracelet, and then exits the shop, summons his familiar – a crow – and has his familiar seek out Dorath Kir (who was assigned the task of trailing Duran) to lead him to Enchilios. Enchilios believes – wrongly – that Thand must be on the premises, and wants to move quickly rather than wait for all the others to gather.

When the crow and Dorath return, Enchilios sends his familiar out again in search of Smannet. He then uses his wand of Alter Self to disuise himself as Maeva and Dorath as Ethan Seer – by this ruse, they manage to gain access to the back room of the shop without setting off any alarms, and manage to take both the receptionist and the one guard captive.

Meanwhile, back at the chapterhouse: Inside, Seer takes the newcomer back to his office, telling Athron to wait for Joy to return while Seer counsels the visitor. While Athron waits, Broc arrives at the chapterhouse. Broc demands to know why the other PCs left him in Halveet, still tied up and defenseless. Athron realizes that the “Broc” who traveled to Halveet with them was someone else.

Down the hall, Ethan Seer is about to learn that his potential convert is actually Smannet, a doppelganger who had taken Broc’s place back in Tarrish so be “rescued” by the PCs.

DM’s note: The surprise reveal about the doppelganger who impersonated Broc would have been more startling to the other players if Chris – Broc’s player – had more of a poker face. From Chris’s behavior (passing notes to me, etc.), Nick (Athron’s player) was clearly suspicious that something was up. Nick checked for tracking devices, and also thought that perhaps Broc was under some sort of geas or mind control. To Nick’s credit, he did not use his out-of-character knowledge of Chris’s behavior to affect how Athron acted.

Ruined barn is this photograph. I’ll confess, I’m looking for places where I can use more of this photographer’s Creatively Commoned licensed work—I love it.