The winter wind cut through the streets of Leilon as the Voxels & Valor party trudged into town, their ranks lighter than when they had left Wave Echo Cave. Larn had chosen to stay behind in Phandalin to manage the Forge of Spells, and Akkira had vanished quietly in the night, leaving only the embers of the campfire and a brief note in her place. In their stead, the party picked up a temporary traveling companion—Bobby, a Barbarian—whose exuberance at the tavern promised both trouble and entertainment.

Snowflakes clung to cloaks and hair as the group came upon a strange scene just inside town: a funeral pyre burning in the slush. The body laid upon it was not consumed with the stillness of death but frozen solid, frost clinging stubbornly even in the flames. Watching over the grim ceremony was Elro Aldataur, head of the Leilon town council, who quickly invited the adventurers to join him for drinks and answers.

Over mugs of steaming cider, Elro shared the tale. The victim was Urgon Wenth, a halfling wanderer who had recently returned from the Mere of Dead Men. Within days of his arrival, his skin turned pale, veins like icy rivers tracing up his arms, his movements slowing until he could barely lift a cup. No cleric, spell, or ritual could halt the sickness. He froze from the inside out, and, even in death, the pyre could not break the frost.

Elro’s real concern was a dwarf woman named Tugli Lutan, spotted just days ago showing similar symptoms as Urgon. She refused all help and barricaded herself in her cabin. If this sickness was spreading, it needed to be contained—and investigated. For 100 gold upfront and 250 more on resolution, Elro tasked the party with finding the source.

A Tavern Fight for Warmth

Before they could begin, an insult from a drunken orc in the tavern set tempers flaring. What followed was less a fight and more a quick display of adventuring efficiency: a dagger flashed across the room, martial strikes cracked ribs, and a conjured ball of flame seared the orc’s pride along with his face. The man slumped to the floor, unconscious but alive, and the tavern’s murmurs turned to laughter and respect.

Urgon’s Home

The party split their efforts. One group, accompanied by Bobby, went to investigate Ergon’s locked cabin. Zend solved the door problem in his usual way—battleaxe first—startling a wood elf guard named Mela Teno. Once reassured, she allowed the search to continue.

Inside, the one-room home was in disarray, its contents scattered as though someone had ransacked it. In spilled flour, the group found halfling-sized footprints leading out the back door toward the south. Among the debris were a halfling-sized suit of armor, a silvered maul, adventuring gear, and—hidden inside a book—a receipt from Pelk’s Curiosities, dated two months ago. It listed a dagger, scroll case, jade statuette, quiver of arrows, silver ring, and two blue glass vials sold for 1,000 gold. Yami, quick-handed as ever, slipped the receipt away before the guard could notice. Detect Magic revealed no lingering enchantments.

Tugli’s Cabin

Meanwhile, the other half of the party found Tugli’s home on the town’s eastern edge. The shutters were closed, smoke poured from the chimney, and the door was firmly locked. Their knocks were met with a weak voice telling them to “go away” and “let me die in peace.” After some persuasion, the door cracked open to reveal a dwarven woman swaddled in layers, her face pale and webbed with the same blue frost-veins as Urgon.

Inside, the cabin was sweltering, the hearth roaring in an effort to fight the creeping cold in her bones. The air was thick with smoke. Tugli admitted her symptoms had begun three or four days ago but offered no clue as to the cause—only that she could not help them.

Loose Threads in the Snow: As the session closed, the group weighed their next steps. Southward footprints from Urgon’s ransacked home hinted at a lead. Tugli’s worsening condition might hold another. And in the shadows between these two mysteries lurked a deeper truth: whatever had killed Urgon was still moving through Leilon, and it would not stop at the town gates.