A Deep And Creeping Darkness

**A Deep And Creeping Darkness** was the sixth chapter of Candlekeep Mysteries.

## Background

In the weeks since the incident at the Temple of the Restful Lily, Audri Undertree, Sirius Idris, and Tethu Zildac spent a lot of time carrying out self directed research in Candlekeep. Audri primarily studied druidism, noting many texts which described druidic magic in a very different way to the magic she could utilise. Sirius read about the history of the great libraries of Faerûn, with the Vault of the Sages in Silverymoon particularly catching his eye. Tethu read into the nature of the Shadowfell, learning about the prison demiplane known as the Domains of Dread, which he theorised might be where Jon Irenicus was trapped.

## Synopsis

Tethu held a small concert in one of the study rooms of Candlekeep, which Sirius and Audri enjoyed and which Parmak also attended. After it was over, the three adventurers and Parmak discussed music and adventuring and their interests for a while before Bookwyrm arrived. Bookwyrm advised them that there was a man who was looking for some adventurers to help him with a problem, and so he asked the trio to meet with the man.

Sirius, Audri, and Tethu met with the man, Matreous, in one of the study rooms. Matreous explained he was looking for his friend Fistandia in her mansion in a demiplane, the portal to which was located in a book in Candlekeep. However in the mansion he accidentally ingested some mysterious spores, and passed out for an indeterminate amount of time before being rescued by some adventurers he never met. He now wished to pick back up the trail, with his main lead being a book he found in Fistandia's mansion, *A Deep And Creeping Darkness*. *A Deep And Creeping Darkness* told the story of the town of Vermeillon, a mountain town which suffered a collapse in its mine which killed a number of its residents. In the weeks and months following the incident, survivors of the accident and other residents of the town began to mysteriously disappear, until eventually the town was abandoned. It seemed to Matreous that Fistandia was looking for Vermeillon for some reason, and seemed to establish its rough location as being somewhere in the Cloud Peaks. The trio of adventurers agreed to help Matreous find Fistandia.

The next day, the party set off for Vermeillon. On the way, Matreous told the adventurers of his history with Fistandia- how they had met in Balathor's Hall, and had remained friends until he lost contact with her some months ago. They also talked about his thesis (on magical flight) and his career in academia.

After a couple of days they arrived in Vermeillon, and immediately got to exploring. First, the party came across a stonemason's workshop full of unfinished gravestones. They then investigated the office of the Vermeillon Mining Company. Sirius was able to find a report investigating the mine collapse. Its conclusion was that the accident was caused by the improper installation and maintenance of supports within the mine. The writer of the report then hypothesised that the incident caused whatever was assailing the town to come forth, but that it was not unearthed in the mine and did not cause the collapse itself. Sirius took the report, and the party camped for the night in Tethu's *Leomund's Tiny Hut*. That night, both Sirius and Audri dreamed of being trapped somewhere dark.

The following day, the party continued exploring. In an old storehouse, they came across what looked like Fistandia's camp. They found a bedspread, notes discussing a gateway of some sort and something named Rhadwyn, a map with the town mine marked, and sigils etched into the floor. Most concerningly though, the interior of the storehouse was covered in mould and fungus, which then congealed together into a hobbling mass which attacked the party. The adventurers however were quickly able to defeat it.

The party then discovered a schoolhouse, with a long division sum and some rules written on the blackboard: "STAY INSIDE AT NIGHT", "TRAVEL IN GROUPS", and "IGNORE THE WHISPERS". They then went to the mayor's house, where they stole a bunch of stuff before finding a journal detailing fey creatures in it library. The journal was opened on a listing for meenlocks- corrupted fey creatures born from trauma in places where the barrier with the Feywild is thin. Meenlocks cause hallucinations and transform humanoids into new meenlocks. Pledging to return for the library's books, the party made their way to the mine.

Exploring the mine, Matreous attempted to run off as he thought he heard Fistandia's voice. Audri was able to subdue him before he got far, and for the rest of their time in the mine everyone heard various voices calling to them. They soon came across a meenlock, who by its ring they identified as formerly being the mayor, Lei Duvezin. They killed it, and journeyed further into the mine.

Beside the site of the mine collapse, the party found a circular tunnel, with walls coated in black moss. This led to a new network of tunnels, all coated with black moss, which eventually led to the meenlock's lair. There they came across six more meenlocks, which after a time they were able to defeat.

The party then left the tunnels, and had a sleep free of nightmares. The next day, Matreous suggested they ask the Avowed to send a research team to try and locate the fey crossing. They filled their cart up with books, and returned to Candlekeep.

## Player Characters

* Audri Undertree
* Sirius Idris
* Tethu Zildac

## NPCs

* Parmak
* Bookwyrm
* Matreous
* Festy
* Lyle
* Lei Duvezin
* Pak Lowfield (mentioned only)

## Locations

* Candlekeep
* Vermeillon
* Waterdeep (mentioned only)
	+ Balathor's Hall (mentioned only)