The party, having found a previous ruin related to the stone fragment they had found before, sought to find more details on the “eight” they had uncovered. They had heard, through multiple rumours from wanders, and traders, that a scholar like archaeologist was headed through Crater Coast. The party went to find this individual, but found his camp site abandoned for around a week with signs of a struggle. They tracked the trail to a settlement with very heavy guard presence. After trying diplomacy, they instead eliminated each guard present, from archer, to mage. After entering the largest building, and finding nothing, they found a hidden trap door, disabled the magic on it, and Brand ventured down first. They found the archaeologist in a cell, with a malnourished and decaying vampire interrogating him. After a bit of magic and combat, the vampire was slain, and the archaeologist was healed and saved, offering a site he knew the presence of has he wanted to search it on his return journey, and another one he had found reference to in old parchment pointing to the north west of the Northern Wastes.