The party discovered that Finain, a minotaur paladin of Pelor, was last seen going into the keep that is currently overrun with monsters. Nobody has seen him in the 10 years since he went to the defense of the keep.
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This information was given to you by Dalia, a psionically powerful elderly woman who had direct contact with Ella's mother. The amulet that Ella wears was described as a portion of a shardmind's brain, something that could only really be found at the legendary Shardmind's Graveyard. Dalia also regaled tales of listening to stories that Ella's mother told her about Ella and her brother Austin. It seems the oldest and youngest of her children were bright beacons of hope that kept her from undergoing "goblinization."
10 years ago (2 years after the women first arrived on the island), the vast majority of goblin, orc, and minotaur citizenry went ballistic. They attacked the other citizens and were driven out of the new part of the city. Just before this happened, Ella's mother bid farewell to Dalia, whispered "stay safe" into her ear and left for parts unknown. It was also revealed that Ella's mother seems to bear the guilt for the destruction of Egesa. When asked if Ella's mother had any enemies, Dalia replied that the woman was well liked and her skills as a seamstress were often sought out by many in the city.
After the conversation, while walking back to the upper city, there was a strange incident where someone humanoid-shaped (roughly human-sized) bumped into a barrel and was pulled into an adjacent alley by a gloved had that was displaying light-colored fur. Talek thought he smelled Ylrish's stink in the air and though everyone searched, they found no real trace of Ylrish nor the person who was pulled into the alley.
Once this commotion calmed down, the captain of the guard summoned them for questioning pertaining to the death of Dalia. After several hours of "kind interrogation," the priests in the city determined that there was no foul play and that Dalia had died of natural causes (heart attack). No poison had been found in her system, though a small puncture wound was discovered at the base of her skull, near the brain stem. It was about the size of a fishhook, needle, or tiny rapier (seeing as the party counts a sprite as one of it's members). Bobo was consulted as a poison's expert due to Talek's answers during questioning. Talek also warned against another poison user, Ylrish. Later that evening, Ella noticed that her amulet was glowing ever-so-softly (Talek had seen this while they were being questioned).
Finally, the following day, the quest to clear the slums continued. The party faced off against 8 goblin minions and two powerful tainted goblins. The party was victorious but had witnessed one of the goblins exploding into a mist of caustic disease. Ella and Bobo were nauseous when they were exposed to the swirling, black cloud of ash and disease. No goblins were left alive.
Bobo was able to hear the goblins arguing about an old woman who was marked for death on "the boss's" command. The assassination was to take place within the next few days. This old woman was reportedly powerful.
Also of note, the elven cleric that helped investigate the sewers had disappeared, almost directly after the revelation of what happened to the townsfolk.
