Adrastus Thorn awaits you within the cabin, seated behind an ornate wooden desk. He is a bald human of what appears to be late middle age, and true to the title he has claimed, wears robes of a religious bent. Unlike a true Cardinal of Mitra, however, his are red and burgundy in hue, and the silver icon around his neck is the Asmodean pentacle, rather than the Mitran sunburst. He smiles warmly at you as you come in.

"Ah, my loyal Nessian knot. It is good to see you once more. You have served me faithfully, and I have rewarded you in treasure and vengeance. But our work is not yet done, and while the Fire-Axe's hordes shall be our sword to wield against Talingarde, so too must we ready the poison dagger to slip into it's heart. The acquisition of that weapon is your next task.

Tomorrow, this boat docks at Farholde, the northernmost settlement in the realm. It is, to be frank, a worthless backwater. However, it does border the Caer Byr, the largest forest in Talingarde, and it is there that I am sending you. Hidden within is the Horn of Abaddon, the fortress temple of a death cult called the Sons of the Pale Horseman. Eighty years ago, King Markadian the Victorious put the cult to the sword, banished the daemon prince that led them, and placed a holy seal on the place so that none might summon him again.

I have learned that the King took such a thorough step not out of piety, but out of fear. The daemon prince, Vetra-Kali Eats-the-Eyes, had just completed work on a plague so virulent that it could bring the country to it's knees. It was called the Tears of Achlys, and I want it.

You, my ninth knot, are going to find the Horn, break the seal, summon Vetra-Kali back to the mortal plane, and from him claim the Tears of Achlys.

Any questions?" he finishes, looking quite content.