The next morning, as the repairmen arrived to fix the place up, Duelo noticed a message written on the mirror: “Last Call!” We talked it over and decided Greemus should use the Nimblewright Detector to search for the “children’s toy” from the horse’s tale. He flew over the city as a raven for a couple of hours, but there was nothing. Meanwhile, Duelo went to Steam and Steel to check on the weapon he was having made.
With no other leads, we decided to visit Renaer Neverember at his estate. He told us about a gnome spy named Dalakhar who his family trusted and who was looking for the Stone of Golorr, but who had recently disappeared. Renaer said he had stolen the stone from the Xanathar himself and that his body would likely be at the Temple of Kelemvor. Toshi told him our suspicions about House Gralhund, and Renaer said they’d recently become friendly with House Cassalanter.
We convinced Renaer to go with us to the Temple of Kelemvor. We made a donation and asked if we could speak with Dalakhar’s spirit. Once we were with the body, we asked our questions.
What was your objective at the time of your death? He said he was trying to deliver a powerful artifact to Trollskull Manor.
Why us? He said our group had saved Renaer and that we were to deliver it to the true Open Lord of Waterdeep.
What did you remember just before you died? He said he was being pursued by three Zhentarim when a great searing pain consumed him.
Where did you get the Stone of Golorr? He had managed to infiltrate the Xanathar’s lair and take it himself.
What part did the Gralhunds play? They wanted the stone to present to House Cassalanter.
The pieces were falling into place. The Stone of Golorr was originally with the Xanathar. Dalakhar stole it, but the Zhentarim were also looking for it. They found Dalakhar, who was working for Dagult Neverember, and went after him. On the day of the fireball, he was being pursued by Urstul Floxin and two other Zhentarim. All three of them died in the explosion. Urstul was burned but survived, grabbed the stone from Dalakhar’s corpse, and fled to Gralhund Villa. The fireball was cast by a Nimblewright, which we now also believed had fled to the Villa.
We concluded that House Gralhund was double-crossing the Zhentarim, planning to present the Stone of Golorr to House Cassalanter. The Zhents then showed up at Gralhund Villa, and it’s possible the Nimblewright was supposed to kill Urstul.
We went back to Trollskull Manor to discuss our next move. The workers were just finishing up the repairs on the doors and windows. We decided to check out Cassalanter Villa. As we walked toward the Villa, Toshi used the detector to see if we could find the Nimblewright. It alerted as we got closer. Greemus turned into a spider and flew on his familiar to find it. He eventually located it in a very narrow alleyway between two buildings.
As soon as we found the Nimblewright, it attacked. Toshi tried to reason with it, but it wouldn’t respond. We were forced to disable it, and when we did, we found a map of the City of the Dead with an “X” on it and the word “Cassalanter” written on the back. We bagged up the machine and set off for the graveyard.
The map led us to a mausoleum that had clearly been disturbed. We entered quietly and found two bodies on the floor and a woman in the corner with a big gash in her stomach. Melandran inspected the corpses and found a symbol of Asmodeus on them.
The woman told us her name was Vaelle Lurval, a follower of Asmodeus who had been betrayed by two senior members of her cult, Arn Xalrondar and Seffia Naelryke. She said they were probably at an Abandoned Windmill in the Southern Ward. She also identified her dead associates as her boyfriend, Holiver Tornrudder, and Kaeth Warloon. She said a cloaked figure with metal arms and legs handed Holiver a stone.
Toshi used Prestidigitation to clean her up and gave her some gold, encouraging her to leave Waterdeep and start a new life in Neverwinter. Melandran gave her some supplies, and Greemus gave her some acorns. I wrote the location of Trollskull Manor on a piece of paper using my Emerald Pen in Illusory Script that only she could read, and I told her to find us if she ever needed help. We gathered some of the cultist robes and left for the Abandoned Windmill.
We headed to the windmill, hoping to catch the cultists. As we snuck in, we were met by several homeless people. A woman gave us some information about robed individuals who had been frequenting the place. We went upstairs and heard two people talking. One said they had “the stone,” and we knew we were in the right place.
The battle began, and suddenly, a flying creature came through a window, snatched the stone, and flew away. We gave chase and managed to kill it, but its partner picked up the stone and fled. We chased them back into the city streets. We came across a carriage with a Tiefling rider, a driver, and a house guard. The creature handed the stone to the Tiefling, and we engaged them in battle. As we fought, several demonic beings joined the fray, but we banished them back to the hells as we defeated them.
We managed to stop the carriage by damaging the wheels and, sadly, killing the innocent driver. The Tiefling tried to flee with the stone on foot, but Toshi killed him. The body transformed into a Doppelganger, and Toshi immediately grabbed the package it had been carrying. The City Watch arrived, and we managed to deflect our part in the driver’s death by planting some cultist evidence on his corpse and twisting the facts. We then did some quick shopping and returned to Trollskull Manor.
We gathered to examine the Stone of Golorr. Greemus had his familiar lick it, and it immediately disappeared, accompanied by a sharp pain in his head. Toshi, having held it for an extended time, began to feel a pull of attunement. The Stone had a mind of its own.