Ain't nothin to it but to do it.
So this whole 'landing' thing is new to Lia. "What does this entail?" she asks Creesey as she envisions swimming, rocks, pain. "And where are we headed? I mean, what are our priorities? I didn't come here for skymetal -- I came for a little revenge." She ponders how this might sound to the others and then decides she doesn't much care. "Are we headed for this Witchtower? And I'm thinking the journal we have probably doesn't say anything like 'turn right at the tower and go down three streets'. I mean, how does anyone find anything on an island? I'm used to streets and noise and people..." Lia trails off as she realizes she is rambling. Who knew she was this nervous outside of a town?
Kwava lays a hand on Lia's shoulder. "No worries my friend. Creesey's boys will put us right on the shore. And once on the island, we'll pick up some trails if there are folks on this island. To hear Creesey tell it, there's only one way on or off the rock, so as long as he's standing off shore, no one's getting away. As long as Brenin and I are with you, we'll find what we seek."
"You may feel out of your element, but we're just entering ours." He looks over to Brenin for agreement.
True to Kwava's word, The Flying Cloud stands right in to the dilapidated port. As the ship approaches, you take turns with Creesey's viewing glass. The crumbling remains of the two lighthouses, one on either end of the island are visible from the water. As well, the more substantial remains of a tower on the crest of the island may also be seen, standing out among the other ruins of the island's one town.
The island itself is barely five miles from end to end and significantly narrower across the waist. The landscape rises pretty significantly with a precipitous drop on the south side. The waters in every direction are lined with white breakers marking deadly shoals that inhibit a landing anywhere else along the coast. Not that it matters much, as most of the coastline is a sheer drop to sharp rocks.
Dominating the north slope of the island is a monstrous black crater. The stone appears to have dropped directly onto the forested northern slope. The trees lie where they were leveled in a pattern that radiates out from the crater. The cliffs nearest the crater collapsed in ruin and slid into the sea, leaving a huge waste zone.
A map of the island may be found here.
The Cloud drops its bower right in the road leading to the tiny harbor. A boat is lowered over the side and the party is helped down into it. The best mate steps the mast of the little cutter and runs you into shore himself.
The harbor is a sad wreck. Pilings mark where quays once stood. Several wrecked buildings stand around a squat ruin of a tower. Possibly a customs house of some sort. An overgrown track leads away from the waterfront, up the slope in a winding course towards the town above.
Brenin nods in agreement to Kwava's assesment of the situation. "This island isn't that big. We'll sort it out."
Lia is morbidly fascinated by the whole boat process and can't resist leaning over to watch the water lap at the sides of the boat while they are run in shore. She muses out loud for any Clouds to hear, "So you do this because you like it? No solid ground under you feet and creatures below you that you can't even see?" And with that last thought of unseen sea creatures, she quickly rights herself and stops looking to the water and stares intently toward the land. "Grass trails aren't streets, but they must be better than this." She is determined to keep up with Brenin and Kwava. The thought of being lost on an island chills her blood.
The mate hooks on to one of the pilings and helps hand folks down into two feet of very mild surf. The group trudges up to shore together.
"The Cloud's going to stay within visual contact of the shoreline until we hear back from you. I'll come back in and pick you up off the shore when you're ready. If it's dark, signal us by light - three sharp bursts from here and we'll send the cutter in to pick you up."
Together Kwava and Brenin spot all kinds of confusing tracks along the shore. Clearly at least one large group came ashore at this same spot. To Brenin, it seems that the islands in this little archipelago are part of the same range of submerged hills. Some ancient calamity raised them from the sea bed, and now a new one has tried to lat this particular island low again.
On the far side of the ramshackle port is a collection of refuse - possibly a small abandoned camp of some kind.
"Let's start with these shacks and the immediate area. Then we'll move towards the crater. If there's any of Zincher's men or the dwarves left alive, let's see what they're about. If not, maybe we can tell what killed them.
Brenin heads towards the nearest shack. He keeps his bow ready as he searches.
There's little to find among the ruined buildings. As your search reaches the farther part of the little settlement, nearer the ruined stone structure you spot a body lying in the road.
Even a girl raised in the city can tell that's a clue.
Gabbro keeps wearing his scizore on land, using his free hand as needed to sift through the debris. He looks around, slightly morose. He shakes his head as he approaches the stone structure, biting his lip. A small rock, about the size of a child's fist, seems to leap from the rubble and speed toward Gabbro; he catches it in his free hand without a thought. Looking at it he whispers, "The time approaches."
Worrying the stone, Gabbro joins Lia at the body. "What do you see?"
Brenin casts a doubtful glance at his metal companion, then quietly says to Kwava, "We need to keep an eye on that one. There might be a bolt loose in his armor."
Brenin approaches the body carefully surveying the surrounding area.
Still just lookin pretty. I'm more of a follower for this kind of stuff. I decide to try and hang with Kwava to see if some of his nature s*** rubs off.
The customs house sat astride the road with a stone structure to either side. One side has completely collapsed. The other retains its cylindrical shape, part of an internal stair and one corner of a second story floor. The body lies among the general rubble. As the party approaches, the smell gets rapidly worse. Brenin notices a lack of flies, but doesn't get close enough to really examine the body before he starts seeing others lying around the rubble. There was a massacre here.
The closest body jerks violently as Brenin gets closer. It's definitely the wrong color and its hands and feet are wrong, wierdly elongated and clawed.
Map is here. I'm keeping the island map up to date with links as well.
Eww, thats gross. Night of the living dead turned zombie animals part 3. My init is a 16+3=19
Just in case they haven't spotted us yet. These creeps or anyone else on the island. I think I'll show them how we roll....better to deal with these guys from far away then close up in my opinion.
The little bead of fire floats from the wand tip and past Samaritha's shoulder. You watch her face turn from curiosity to recognition to mild terror as it passes her. It floats to the middle of the ruined road and explodes among the rising dead. Two of the corpses are blown to flaming pieces and strewn across the road. Another burns as it attempts to stand.
Samaritha recovers her dignity and crosses over behind Gabbro and Brenin casting a protective spell as she goes.
Gabbro rushes across the field for the flaming zombie, slashing furiously.
(Charging, attack with scizore)
Lia draws her rapier and moves to intercept those that are not flaming. "Dang, girl," she says to Rees. "You are one scary woman."
Kwava fires an arrow but misjudges the monsters' speed. They don't move like a 'normal' animated undead at all. These creatures are much faster than the shambling thing that guarded Rondo. Kwava's arrow misses and the monsters charge - one at Lia and the second at Gabbro.
The zombies claw at their targets. Up close, the essential difference between these and 'normal' zombies comes clear. Their fibrous tongues loll out of their mouths, stretching to ridiculous lengths to swipe at Lia and Gabbro. Lia dodges the monster's attacks, but Gabbro is wounded by his adversary's wicked claws.
A picture of the nasties may be found here.
"Great job Rees. Now let's finish the rest of these freaks."
The arrow punches into the zombie's shoulder as it charges and remains lodged there.
I run straight towards Kwava(space7). Hoping to help Gabbro I throw my hands out and scream like the crazy woman I am. Now cut his head off Gabbro!
The sickly red ray washes over the zombie, sapping away some of its unnatural strength.
Samaritha moves up next to Brenin brandishing a long knife that she nicked from the Flying Cloud. She touches Brenin's shoulder and he gains divine insight.
Gabbro watches as the tiefling saps his enemy's strength--an enemy who is now out of position. Make this count, he thinks, as he slashes out against it.
Gabbro beheads the zombie. The body falls to the ground inert while the head with its vile tongue flies into the bushes.
Brenin is suprised by Samaritha's sudden touch. For a brief moment time stands still and he remembers the night spent on the roof as the world fell apart. The sound of Lia engaged with the zombie snaps him out of his reverie and he bolts forward, inspired.
"Back to hell with you!"
The arrow explodes through the creatures head, dropping him instantly.
There's movement out in the brush on the west flank. A parting of foliage and the rustle of grass, but no other sounds. Then suddenly wild spasms of colored light that reflect off the tree trunks in the same direction. There's a flash of more lights, further into the woods, then nothing.
The corpses lie in ruin all over the road. One of the tongues has detached from its corpse and wriggles around to no purpose.
Hoorahhhhhh! Well that was fun. Should we check out the bushes?
Kwava grins at Rees standing beside him as he lowers and unbends his bow.
"Weren't you the one concerned about the noise of the cannon? We should have brought it with us. You blew those things to the hells."
His grin fades as he walks over to one of the smoldering arms and toes it with his boot. The clawed hand is hideous. The bones of the fingers stretched into weapons. He looks over at the tongue in the road.
"Some witchery of the drow?" Kwava suggests.
"Nothing like anything I've ever seen. They would certainly scare off most visitors and serve to keep people from landing on the island. Let's see what the rest of this island holds."
Brenin moves towards the bushes and starts looking for signs or tracks.
Lia is disgusted by the tongue. She gets closer to Brenin and Kwava. She looks around too, but is unsure what is a hint and what is just part of the island's natural charm.
The corpses bear wounds consistent with being mauled by a large predator. A search in the brush reveals signs of one or more heavy animals with clawed feet.
Kwava shakes his head at the tracks, unsure what to make of it.
"Like a jungle tiger in size?" he guesses, standing up from an examination of a set of tracks Brenin found.
Lions and tigers and bears..oh my.
"Whatever they are, I think we're better off meeting them on the road than in the bush. Let's move and see else we can find."
"Out in the open is better, I agree," Gabbro replies. He heads up the trail with everyone else.
The island's slope is a steep one and the trail climbs up the near side of the rise in a series of switchbacks. The woods to either side of the road are low and scrawny. Kwava whistles and Ganymede glides in from a nearby tree to light on his arm. He speaks softly to the bird as your group gathers at the road, then urges him into the sky. Up above the ridge and the tower at its height.
The bird flies up in ever increasing circles to take in the local terrain. Kwava falls back to bring up the rear of the party, eyes scanning the woods to either side of the path.
The path itself looks like it's been used recently, but not much prior to that. Here and there a scrub tree that stood in the road has been trampled or hacked down. In several spots along the road you find similar tracks to the ones by the old docks.
Samaritha strays near Rees making quiet small talk as you walk up the path. "You know, I like traveling with you." She lets that statement hang there for a minute, then continues. "Normally I stand out in a crowd," she gestures to the graceful black tattoo on her temple and cheek, "but with you lot, I feel quite at home. Normal even."
By the time you crest the ridge, the sun is beginning its descent. There's maybe two hours until nightfall. Out in the bay to the north the Flying Cloud and the departing Black Bunyip make a noble and reassuring sight.
As you approach what's left of the town of Witchlight the tower dominates your view. A chance breeze shift carries the stench of death to you from somewhere ahead in the town.
Brenin drifts off to the right and ahead as the group approaches the old town.
The buildings of the town are in roughly the same state as the buildings by the docks. Some of them look like they've recently burned. The tower stands at the west end of the town. The crossing path stretches through the town and runs out along the ridgeline in either direction.