The party (except for Eilenos) cleans themselves off, trying to get rid of the dragon’s slime that he had expelled onto them. They are feeling slighly sick. They take a look around and find more and more gold, but they can take no more.

We come out of the cavern and see below us, at the bottom of the cavern, is a huge pool of stagnant and fetid water. It smells horrible. We go back and ascend the tunnel, there is a platform there. We carefully walk out onto it and see that it is deserted. However there are weapons lying all around.

Eilenos discovers a magical hand-axe among the scattered weapons. It is very cold; Eilenos gives it to Krodmich. We continue climbing until we reach another platform. Some of us hear moaning coming from above. We take the path up and look around, but see nothing. Porodo dons his “cloak of eyes” and takes a look, but still sees nothing. Eilenos notices that when he puts it back on the second time, different eyes appear.

We come out and see we have ascended to ground level. It is eerily quiet, and almost night. We decide that we will camp here for the night using part of the tree’s trunk. Eilenos heals those who are wounded, but we still feel a bit sick.

We take watch and see nothing during the night. Sarthisis rests to regain his spell power. In the morning, Porodo looks around the area and up in the tree using his cloak. Krodmich fixes the lizard’s ring armor.

The party leaves and travels east and then south, along the border of the Five Kingdoms towards Hovelton. After we get a mile or so out of the Phantom Hollow, we notice that there is unnatural growth around. Vines protrude from the forest, however they look veiny and fleshy. Eilenos pokes it with his sword and a vile ooze trickles out. The party is distracted as a lumbering green mound, appearing like a moss-covered zombie, comes out of the forest near us.

Eilenos jumps from his horse and begins to charge the creature, however as he gets nearer to it he sees a large green cloud protrude from it. He holds his breath and charges through, slashing at it. He takes off an arm with his stroke. The others rush in and attack as well. Krodmich attacks with a torch, attempting to burn the creature. It catches aflame and falls to the ground, no longer moving.

There is moss on the ground near the creature, and we notice that it is quivering. Eilenos doesn’t seem to know what to do about it, but Nadia rushes forward and attacks it with her sword. Sarthisis douses it with oil and Krodmich throws a torch on, starting it on fire. We flee and see that the fire is extending into the forest as we go. The vines are also engulfed. The moss explodes in a huge cloud of spores. We take our cart and leave quickly. We can see the smoke in the distance.

As we travel further south over the next couple of days, we still see the vines everywhere. In several places there are carts by the side of the road that contain dead people and animals. They don’t necessarily look diseased, just as if they died quickly.

Two days later we reach Hovelton, a very small and poor-looking shanty town and farmlands. People and animals all around are dead, lying on the ground. As we come into the town we see someone standing at the center. He is wearing a tattered brown cloak with a hood drawn over his face. He is bent over a dead body, leaning on a gnarled staff. We come closer and Porodo jumps off of his horse to come up behind him. When Porodo is only a few feet away, Eilenos says “Ho there!” in a loud voice. The man turns around and we see that it is Josephus.

“I have much to explain, my friends,” he says. “But first let us give these people proper burials.” We all help him dig a large grave and we put the bodies into it. Josephus says a few words for them.

Afterwards he suggests that we rest in one of the nearby buildings and discuss the matters at hand. He comments about the plague and says that it is our fault. By visiting Phantom Hollow, we have unleashed this plague — apparently it is one of Galignan’s largest strongholds, and the slime dragon one of his pets. Josephus has been in Dakar since we returned from Mulkra. Galignan has assumed mortal form as King Randar of Salgrin, training and strengthening his forces in Dakar. The disease he created is transferred by spores, and is meant to infect men’s minds. This is how he has gained control over Salgran. We tipped him off to our presence by entering Phantom Hollow, and he has infected everything east of the Tarkin River with the plague, causing most everything to perish.

Josephus feels that we must go to Dakar and finish Galignan, which should be possible because he now resides in mortal form. However before that he will need us to follow instructions. He says as an aside, “Why did you travel there?” Eilenos says that it was the easiest way to get to Hovelton while avoiding the forest and Dakar, and he thought that by clearing that area of evil they would be striking a blow against Grom.

Josephus continues, and says that we must travel into Dakar and avoid his army, even before we adventure for Grom’s Bane. As it is, Galignan is only going to get stronger so we must strike now. Reinforcements are on their way and will be here within a few days and our purpose here will be clear. If we do not succeed, Kith-Katal (the lizard kingtom) will likely be his next target.