The Shrieking Mire
Arc 10.
Into the swamp
Riding southwest, the party noticed something that looked like a gnoll watching them from the hills. At the swamp's edge they found the site of a battle with no bodies left — the corpses had been dragged up into the hills. The approach tracks came from the north and led into the swamp: a day or two old, the battle about a week.
They followed them south.
Scouting ahead past a small river, a leshy came at them. They fought it off and it fled.
The ruined temple
They found the ruin: a circle of standing stones around a partially complete black iron ring.
A man in a dark cloak and armour walked out of the brush, examined the circle's edge, and
looked straight up at Scorch, Kvothe's familiar. Pale face, dark sunken eyes.
This was Varnak the Hollow, vampire lieutenant of Gulthias.
He asked why they were there. Mid-conversation, boggarts came out of the swamp, and Varnak gave a very specific order: keep Agatha alive, kill the rest.
The party fought boggarts, two large tree creatures, and Varnak himself — and killed him. Why he wanted Agatha alive was never explained, and he did not survive to be asked.
The dragon
During the battle a stone the party had recovered was set into the place in the circle it clearly belonged. Loud noises followed, and a black dragon landed inside the ring. Not very big. It seized Varnak's body, told them to go away, and flew off toward the ruins.
This was Zytherion.
Spying on the High Circle
The party hid near the circle and watched. From the north came a squad of Iron Circle soldiers and two men, then a second squad. One was ranger-like — leather, shortbow, cloak. The other was a red-skinned tiefling in robes carrying a staff with a flame burning on the end: Zorath the Ember.
The dragon returned and landed in the centre of the circle. "You are on time. That is good."
The tiefling asked after Varnak. The dragon said Varnak was dead — people came and killed him, and the dragon took the body. It said it could hold the pact until the men could speak to the Mist Lord directly. They discussed the ritual stone, the soldiers began setting it, and the tiefling started preparing.
The battle at the temple
Kvothe opened with Faerie Fire across the whole group, and shouted.
The fight was large. The party killed many soldiers. Zorath teleported away when it turned against him. The dragon nearly killed one of the party, and after a tense negotiation the party withdrew.
Zytherion's parting instruction: do not come back.
The contract
On a short rest heading toward Hammerfast, they found a scroll case bearing the Iron Circle emblem. Inside: a signed contract between the Mist Lord Gulthias and the Iron Circle.
Preparations for war
In Hammerfast. Kvothe's performances covered the inn. Agatha sold the dwarven mithril coffer for 1,500 gold and the petrified hand with the ruby for 1,000, split among the party. They bought weapons and shields. Jocelin gained a follower — Gilda Stoneheart, a dwarf healer. They learned a dwarven stonemason, Gorrim Taelwyn, was already on the road to the keep.
In Fallcrest. They showed Banner the contract and told him everything. They paid 4,500 gold up front for the keep repairs. Once the keep is fixed, it will need a road and a staff.
At the keep. Freya, the guards and the goblins were in place. Gorrim had arrived, was unimpressed with the state of the place, and started taking measurements. Sharwyn and Braford came along.