Into the Underdark

20 March. In-world, the 32nd of Autumn onward. Kvothe, Agatha, Ubo, Dravona, with Sylvara and Caldris.

South, past Fastormel

Heading back toward Broken Spire Keep, the party passed near Fastormel and saw that a stone wall was going up around the town.

Gulthias has halted his campaign. He has not stopped consolidating.

At the edge of the Spiderfell they met up with Caldris, who had travelled separately. His presence visibly unsettled both Sylvara and Agatha.

The keep

Everything was repaired. The battle damage was gone, the guards were performing well, and it had been quiet the whole time they were away.

Agatha sent to Bogani:

"We are headed into the Underdark to investigate further. Do you have any news or helpful information you want to share?"

"Good that you are back. Tensions are high. Some sort of conflict between the insane dwarves. Much fighting. Be careful."

The Derro split Sylvara first heard about as a captive is now open warfare.

Caldris is not given the run of the keep

Agatha asked Caldris to cover his eyes to be walked through the keep. He refused.

So she refused him entry and told him to use another way in. He turned and headed for Goblintown to come at the tunnels from the far side.

Separately, Sylvara had been watching him. Agatha saw her slip back in through the front gate after shadowing him. Caldris had simply stood there, and she did not think he had made her.

The party's security posture toward Caldris is established here, before any outside warning reached them. They already did not trust him.

The fire giants

Two days' travel took them to the cavern where they had shattered the Derro portal. Caldris caught up, bringing two goblin zombies with him — they had, he said, got in the way.

Sylvara came back from scouting ahead of two fire giants coming down the tunnel toward them.

They were not surprised to see the party. In the fight they were heard giving the order the party have now heard repeatedly from this enemy: keep the spellcasters alive, kill the rest.

Both giants died.

The letter

Each giant carried a bag with 750 gold in it, marked with a trident and tentacles — kuo-toa issue.

Folded up with the coin were written orders. Agatha read them out. The party were the target, and the orders contained considerably more detail about them than anyone expected — including that Caldris was travelling with them.

The letter also carried a warning about trusting Caldris inside the keep.

Two things follow, and both are bad:

The enemy has current, specific intelligence on the party's composition and movements. Somebody is feeding them.
Whoever wrote it either knows what Caldris is, or wants the party to think so.

The party had already denied Caldris the keep before the letter was recovered. It did not cause that decision. It confirmed it.