Whirlass listens politely and nods. "I see. Is this brother of yours a big man as well?" He asks with a smile that indicates a sense of humor. "16 Days ago a lone traveler, big and tall such as yourself, passed us near the northern terminus of the road. He did not stop, just waved with a big smile. I might not have made notice at all had the circumstances been different. The Greenbelt was suffering from one of its weather fluctuations and the heat was unbearable that day. We had set up tents and created ice for the teamsters, but this man walked by without a drop of sweat upon his brow."
"Did you see his general direction? Where was he heading?"
"North." He replies, extending a huge arm to point in the direction of Candlemere.
"Don't suppose there has been much other traffic heading that way recently, has there?"
"The occasional trapper or merchant train, but little else. We used to see quite a bit of the Baron along this route, but since defeating the trolls he has been mounting fewer expeditions in this area."
"It seems our path is clear." Troxell says to his group, striking the ground with the end of his quarterstaff decisively.
While the others finish the conversation he watches the road crew work, keeping his thoughts about the progress of civilization through forested lands to himself.
"We do have to go. Pleasure seeing the group again," Teena nods toward Whirlass.
Myhm heads off with the group.
"Clear skies to you." Whirlass bows in farewell, then returns to the road crew.
As you pass, the sorceress casts a spell and the blocks of stone seem to melt and flatten, molding into the stone of the finished road and slowly stretching south to renew the old empire road.
****
Around noon you reach the northern terminus of the new road and step off into the broken remnants of the old road that soon leads you into a wooded area. After a couple hours you emerge from the woods at the shores of Lake Candlemere. Extending into the water are old and rotten timbers - the remains of a ferry dock long since abandoned and rotted. Across the misty waters, about halfway to the far side of the lake, an island rises the ruins of Candlemere tower.
"Well, I believe we have located our query. Now, how to get there? I hope we don't have to swim again."
"Hmpf." The druid utters as he stares across the water, "If you don't want to get wet, Lady Teena, then I could build a raft. Perhaps I should scout the water first, whatever curse the tower holds could have spread into the surroundings."
With that, he wildshapes into a water elemental and takes a look around under the water.
Troxell scouts the waters, but finds nothing dangerous around the island. By the time he returns the sun is nearing the horizon.
"The waters are safe. I suggest we wait until morning to cross over to the island, however. We would be better served resting and dealing with whatever is in the tower in the daylight."
If there are no objections, Troxell attempts to build a raft and some oars with his dagger and whatever resources the forest provides.
”Myhm get a tree”, he unslings his axe and head for the nearest and biggest timber he can find, the idea is to fall a big log so the others can climb on while he swims it along to the island. Mhym tries to hides smile as he rips into the massive trunk; smiling because chopping trees was his sole profession for most of his life - simple and understood. Doing good, he thinks to himself.
Teena finds a comfortable spot to rest as she watches the boys put together a raft. "You any good at that sort of thing, Mikmik? I'd just get in their way. Best thing I can do is stay over here."
if the kobold comes and sits next to h ere, she will strike up a quiet conversation with him. "I couldn't help but notice you didn't seem very interested in heading back to the tribe. If you want to stay with us for a while, that is fine. We've got some work to do out here that will keep us busy for a bit. I know we could find something for you to do and make it worth your while with some of the gold we come upon."
Mikmik nods quietly as Teena talks, but his eyes focus on Candlemere Tower. He looks worried. "Chief Sootscale not liking Mikmik much lately. When Baron come to free tribe from bad Shaman, Mikmik given strong name - Mikmik the Firejumper. Don't think Chief liking others having strong name."
You spend the rest of the day cutting down a couple trees and preparing them to lash together into a raft. Evening falls with the job about half-done. Resign the night on shores of the lack all notice that as the light from the sun dims, another light becomes more apparent from within the ruins on the island. A pale light glows from within the structure and rises in a beam from the open top, illuminating low clouds passing overhead. Occasionally it seems like the light shift and flutters.
The night passes without incident, and you spend the majority of the morning putting the raft together and settling it in the water. When it is done, there is enough room for everyone, including Myhm, to sit on dry wood. Crossing the lack is slow going though, and it is well after noon by the time you reach Candlemere Island and step ashore next to the remnants of an ancient stone dock, now reduced to a few crumbling pillars and rubble.
The ruins rise before you, ending in a jagged ridge about 60 feet up. To the side lies the top of the tower, having broken free and tumbled to the ground sometime long ago. The tower itself has one arched doorway, opening to darkness within.
The island itself is covered with a low growth of brambles and stinging nettles that must be crossed to approach the tower.
Will
"I sense a presence waiting for us in the tower." The druid announces gravely, "Steel yourselves."
Afterwards, Troxell casts Barkskin on himself. He then takes a moment to scrutinize the ruins.
Standing on the shore, Mhym frowns at the tower. Since reuniting with his younger brother, chasing Brue down meant smashing heads of cruel men. ”Why Brue come here?”, his mitts tightens.
The unpleasant feeling seeps into the subconscious of Myhm and Xerexis, making them both tense and jumpy.
Teena and Troxell resist the strange feeling and their will holds strong. Surprisingly, Mikmik swallows his fear and stands firm as well.
Troxell is quite knowledgeable about the natural hazards of bramble and the debilitating effects of stinging nettle. He will be able to cross without problem, but the others will more than likely suffer scratches and stings.
"We could probably cut through the brambles and nettles, but that would take some time. Burning through them is also an option if we could generate enough fire." Troxell suggests.
Troxell explains what he knows about the dangerous/annoying plant life around the tower.
"Let's burn through the first part of it and hack through the rest. We don't know what's waiting for us in the tower, we shouldn't waste a large amount of resources on a minor annoyance."
With a little magic and a little old fashioned elbow grease, the group clears a path to the tower entrance.
"This place scary." Mikmik says, staring at the entrance. He readies his crossbow and looks to Myhm for leadership, even though the big man has displayed very little on the journey.
"Ok, we need a plan for the building. Who is going in first? I'm probably better toward the rear. Last thing I need is to be surprised by a Zombje swinging an axe or something! If you spot a lock, let me know and I might be able to open if, if I get lucky."
Troxell nods in acknowledgement of Teena's statements, "I'll go first to keep an accurate eye on things, followed by Myhm, Xerexis, then you and Mikmik in the back." He then casts Light on his quarterstaff and approaches the tower.
With caution the party enters Candlemere Tower. Troxell's keen eyes notice ancient script around the doorway, but it is too weathered to make out more than a few symbols, which appear to be some mixed form of sylvan and another language.
Inside the tower is a 30 foot diameter chamber. At one time there must have been additional levels above, but now the top is open to the sky. The ground below is stone tiles littered with rubble, dirt, and dead vegetation. More of the script seen around the doorway circles the walls inside.
Knowledge Planes
"There's fresh dirt there on that side of the chamber." The druid points, "It appears to have been recently disturbed."
Myhm steps headlong towards the front doors, then is stopped by Troxell's instruction to to stand behind. He nods in understanding that this is a quiet-like approach and tries his best to remain small.
Despite the unnerving feeling that something bad is about to happen, nothing does as the group enters the tower and begins examining the interior. While Troxell makes note of the disturbed dirt, Teena looks around at the writing on the walls.
"Mites write this?" Mikmik asks, stepping up next to Teena. His toothy face sneers at the thought. "Never seen one smart enough to do more than scribble-scrabble on tree and stone. Usually bad words."
There has been much talk in Kragis'Aer about the Feralwood Forest. There is a belief that there are places in the Feralwood Forest where the barrier between the prime material plane and a mysterious realm called the First World is thin. Only fairy tales and legends exist of the First World. It is a place of the fey and many magical creatures, and most depictions describe it as a realm where nature runs wild. Theories are that these thin barriers might explain the fey population and the reason why the forest grows so rapidly and wild. You also recall that while Sylvan is the native tongue of the Fey, some denizens of the First World are thought to speak Aklo.
This place has seen very few visitors. You guess that the earth was disturbed some time ago - perhaps few months ago. You also find a couple large footprints near the edge, but they are newer - maybe a couple weeks old.
Warm feeling - good, Myhm steps closer to the center of the tower.
::sniff::sniff::