At the Barrel & Bucket, the Soul Survivors lingered with Symphona, who shared her knowledge of Vuldohr’s tensions and the reclusive amethyst dragonborn known as Vildash. Days ago, he had told them that should another of his kind ever arrive, he wished to meet them. They pointed the adventurers toward his cottage in the Emerald Enclave quarter. After a round of drinks, free signed posters, and Willa’s heartfelt thanks, the Soul Survivors set off into the night for some answers.

The city’s lamps burned low as they made their way through Vuldohr’s narrow streets. A young blonde-haired girl crying about her lost parents and a hurt dog named Pancake, stumbled into their path, clutching a teddy bear. Willa knelt in concern, but Gemma’s suspicions proved right – the child was a goblin warlock, a trickster, part of a gang lying in wait. Led down a dark alley, it erupted in violence as thugs poured from the shadows. Spells and blades struck hard: Willa briefly fell prey to hold monster until Gemma’s dispel magic freed her, and Anton smote with newfound radiant fire. Together, they broke the ambush, leaving several foes unconscious. Choosing not to leave them to the streets, the party dragged one of the captured thugs to the city guard, who were grateful for their service.

Pressing onward, the group reached the stone cottage of Vildash, where they were welcomed by the aged amethyst dragonborn himself. His deep violet scales glimmered faintly in the lamplight, his voice carrying the weight of years. He recognized Willa instantly as kin – and, more importantly, as Jezra, the Pangenan lost so many years ago. Over tea and firelight, he told his story: once a youth in service to the Itza, a shamanic order dedicated to Sardior, now he lived quietly in Vuldohr, ever watchful, serving and speaking to the Voice of the Ruby Dragon.

The dragonborn told Willa about her parents, named Shilma and Thiryas Lorrakryn, who still live, serving in isolation in Uxmal, the Pangenan capital. If Willa wished to finally meet them, she would first need to save the Emerald Gem, known as a Heartstone, from the Cindersworn, the cult in Khorir – lest they drown it in fire and disrupt Sardior’s balance.

Vildash also revealed a quest: a pair of bracers within Vuldohr’s abandoned tunnels. If recovered, he believed they would grant Willa protection and prove a test for her worth in the fight against the cult ahead. He urged them to continue to Melkurdor, but also counseled patience: rest first, then research in the Scribes’ Guild library, and only then brave the tunnels beneath the city.

With much to think on, the Soul Survivors accepted his offer of rest. As they walked back to the inn for the night, the weight of revelations hung heavy: Willa’s lineage stretching back to Pangenan’s lost legacy, the cult’s spreading corruption, and the promise of answers waiting in Vuldohr’s forgotten depths.