Dead Dogs

William Gates Keeting (named after noblity from the past) is a noble in Burlington. His expertise is research and collecting information from before the Deluge. He was recently on an expedition that was attacked by spirits of nightmare. Long arms and jagged claws reached out of the rain and people panicked, but not William. His calm demeanor let him see through the chaos of the attack to realize that running would not work. He had to fight, so he did. Using a relic axe, he single-handedly fought off the spirits. From that point on, he has been rethinking his role as a scholar.

William was called to an audience with Governor Welch. She told him about Allison Limoge's expedition. She wanted him to take command of the expedition in her name. While she approved of Limoge's hope for trade rather than conflict, she did not appreciate being kept out of the loop. William was to support Anna Flynn, but also to remind everyone that Welch was the Governor, not Limoge. William heard that the boy who had run through Winooski had been approached by Flynn, so he went to speak with him.

William found Spit in the Common Tales, obviously flustered and angry at one of the merchants who had been making fun of his name. William intervened and the two got to talking about why Spit had come to Burlington. Spit showed him the photo and the two went to the library so William could study the piece better. While he didn't recognize anyone in the photo, he could pin down the place: St Francis Xavier, in Winooski.

A crash from down the hall interrupted the study. William went to investigate, with Spit cautiously following. They were totally surprised when a dead dog walked out of the kitchen and silently attacked them. It leaped on William and forced him down. Spit stabbed at it, pushing it back, and William shook and ripped the feeble thing apart.

They went through the library, wondering how the dog had got in. As they passed the front doors, they saw through the glass that someone had been caught and killed by more dead dogs. The body was propped up against the door, blocking it. William and Spit went after the dogs and discovered a small pack of them. The two fought them off and warned the militia of the threat. The man at the doors, killed by the dogs, was one of William's assistants.

The two were taken to the Healer's Hall and patched up from their fight. The next day they will set off for Winooski.