The Origin's Pyre
The Veiled Vanguard return to Illnerya, the place where it all began. They find the city a veritable ghost town, locked down in the midst of a Plague. The party regroup with an old ally and set off to find the source of the Plauge before it's too late. The strain of recent events begin to fray the Veiled Vanguard's cohesion even further.
Returning to Illnerya via the College of Mages, the Vanguard found the fog-shrouded city under strict lockdown due to the "Brimstone Pox"—a deadly plague causing boiling, soot-like pustules and explosive purple flames. Reunited with Lieutenant Mathias of the Sunkeepers, the party was deputized and sent to Cog-Bottom to investigate the outbreak's origin. At the Alchemists Guild, Madame Sayora explained that Frostvale mycelium could yield a cure, though imprecise dosages crystallized victims, and suggested the infection linked to the Underdark and Baldonea, goddess of illness. During their trek through Cog-Bottom, Diablo contracted the disease, but Naoki cured him using Greater Restoration with diamond dust provided by Percy and Sanasha.
Searching the Architect’s abandoned laboratory—where an illusion of Emperor Contras briefly taunted them—the party prepared to descend into the nearby mines, resting inside Naoki's mirror-dais Tiny Hut. During watches, Diablo confessed his fears of disappointing his family's legacy, while Emelyne and Naoki bonded over shared parental trauma, wine, and cigarettes. The following morning, tensions flared when Emelyne attempted to execute a plague victim to prevent an explosion, prompting Percy to block the attack and Sanasha to slap Emelyne. Pushing past the confrontation, the Vanguard reached the Altar of Blugarod, where they discovered a cloaked figure arguing with a tear in space—a terrifying, purple-glowing mass of eyes that lashed at Emelyne’s mind. Shaking off the psychic assault, Emelyne alerted the Vanguard as they abandoned stealth to charge the altar.