The members of the party met in the wilderness just north of the Vast Swamp. Oleg, on a retrieval mission for a wealthy noble, got lost and was headed towards the swamp when West encountered him. West was in the area investigating a recent increase in the number of aberations released by the Scarlet Brotherhood. Instead, they found Gronk, a half-orc pit fighter escaping to his freedom. After holding off the goblins sent after Gronk, the trio made their way back to Irongate.
At the gate, they were met by the ever-vigilant city guard. After some suspicious questioning and magical examination, they allowed the party in. They did warn Gronk, however, that as he was only the second orc allowed into the city, he'd be easy to find if he created any trouble. "Really?" Gronk replied, genuinely curious. "Where other one?" The scowling guard misunderstood, and ignored him.
After delivering a box he'd recovered for his patron, the trio headed to the adventurer's guild, looking for work. Just outside the entrance, they were met by a thin dwarf with an odd look in his eye. He offered them a thousand gold coins each to meet up with a caravan and escort it into town. The caravan held a particular crate owned by his master, and given that the lands around Irongate were becoming more dangerous by the day, he felt the addition security was warranted. The party was to escort the box to an address he supplied them with. The party agreed, and he gave them a symbol to show the merchant leader as proof of their identities.
After a lone good night's sleep, the group eagerly set forth to intercept the caravan. With West's superior outdoorsmanship, they made excellent time. On the evening of their second day's travel, the trio intercepted the caravan, led by Doigan Longbeard. After showing him their credentials, they were welcomed to the dinner fire. Doigan expressed misgivings about the box, feeling that wizards were not to be trusted. He also explained the meeting where he was given it to deliver. Although he came out of the meeting with misgivings, the party didn't find anything overly suspicious in his tale.
The next morning, barely an hour after the caravan had started moving, it was waylaid by ambushing savages. Light skinned and dark haired, the savages had been imported from the jungle islands south of Brotherhood lands. Though armed with crude weapons and armor, they put up a solid fight, and were a serious threat. West's bear, especially, was effective in the melee, tearing a swathe through the lightly-armored warriors. After a few minutes fighting, the raiders broke and fled back south. The party allowed them to flee, and focused on helping Doigan reform the caravan.
After regrouping, the caravan continued on its way. The rest of that day and all of the next passed uneventfully. When the group stopped for lunch on the third day, however, Oleg noticed a scratching noise coming from the box they'd been tasked with guarding. After alerting the rest of the party, he rapped firmly on the lid. In reply, the cover of the wooden box shattered open, and several tiny, insectlike creatures leapt out. The five creatures were chitinous, with vestigial arms and hugely disproportional mouths. One took a firm bite on Oleg's nose, while others leapt onto his shoulders or the ground nearby.
The battle was on! This time, Gronk shined, grabbing kythons left and right. Two he smashed into each other with a sickening crunch. A third he ripped off of Oleg's face and shook violently until it was still. Meanwhile, Oleg and West handled the remaining two. After the brief melee, the party was left with a shattered box, dead and unconscious kythons, and more than a few unanswered questions.