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An Adventure in Five Acts (AD&D 2E) (Final Update 25 Feb 2023)
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<blockquote data-quote="ilgatto" data-source="post: 8868106" data-attributes="member: 86051"><p style="text-align: center"><strong><span style="font-size: 22px">An Adventure in Five Acts, </span></strong><span style="font-size: 22px"><strong>Act III: The Sword of Shadows</strong></span></p><p></p><p><span style="font-size: 12px">In which the DM informs our noble heroes that the conversation Sir Suvali had with Loremaster Fist only took ten minutes; that it was a dream sequence rather than an actual conversation; that the acorn amulet is a standard DMG <em>amulet of life saving</em> and that it allows the Loremaster only a very limited amount of time to communicate; that <em>The Black Owl</em> has sailed on through the night; that there are 14 crew on board (12 sailors, one cook, one captain) and that they work in three shifts of four.</span></p><p></p><p><strong>Day 7, continued</strong>: Sir Suvali announces that he will spend the rest of the day below decks to study Loremaster Fist’s notebook some more. It isn’t much later when Captain Gomma informs Sir Oengus that <em>The Black Owl</em> is to commence its risky approach to the island.</p><p>“There be only one chance to get it right,” he says. “A miss’ll blow her to port and onto the rocks o’ the straights the one way or to starboard and past the isle the other.”</p><p>Sir Oengus doesn’t seem worried. Indeed, he looks like he can hardly wait for the operation to begin.</p><p>“The danger ain’t over even if she’d be gettin’ the straight current,” the captain continues. “She be fighting wind and waves fer four glasses and’d be havin’ to come about handsomely to get into the lee o’ the isle. One mistake and the currents’ll hit her broadside and be drivin’ her onto the rocks. Arr! I wish I had charged ye her full price!”</p><p>“The hands say you be the only man livin’ as can get us to the isle in one piece,” Sir Oengus says. “I’m sure we’ll make it.”</p><p>The captain shouts his orders and the crew start running to and fro. This continues for about half an hour, with the ship executing all kinds of maneuvers until the captain seems satisfied. For the next two hours, the ride is even more violent than it was before: the current seems to push the ship to ever greater speeds and the crew have to work hard to keep her in check.</p><p></p><p>At some point, the Isle of Bread appears on the horizon at a slight angle to the ship. As they get closer, our noble heroes see that it must be about half a mile long, 300 yards wide, and 100 yards high. Huge colonies of seabirds – giant albatrosses, seagulls, terns – hover and dance in the wind above the island and sharp rocks jut from the waters to the left of it: the Shark Straights.</p><p>“See that?,” Sir Suvali says to Navarre, pointing to the straights. “I’ve been told that the island was once connected to the mainland. The rocks are supposed to be what remains of a land bridge.”</p><p>If anything, the closer <em>The Black Owl</em> gets to the island, the faster she seems to go. Furious winds and high waves toss the ship hither and to and then, with the island as close as it can be, the captain’s orders become even more urgent: he points and shouts and hollers and the crew hasten to take up positions all over the ship.</p><p>Finally, at what seems to be the last possible moment, <em>The Black Owl</em> turns sharply left. Almost immediately, the howling winds are gone and the ship starts slowing down.</p><p></p><p>From this side, the Isle of Bread looks much like a rotting tooth: a gaping hole in its duskward side is flanked by two rocky promontories jutting into the sea, a steep cliff between them at the back of the hole reaching all the way to the top of the island. As the crew keep maneuvering the ship ever closer to the island, a beach comes into view at the foot of the cliff, caught between the promontories to either side.</p><p>On the bow, Navarre and Sir Suvali are discussing how they could get to the top of the island. They notice what appears to be a fault line running from the lower right to the upper left corner of the cliff, much like its upper and lower halves have shifted relative to each other. About half way up the fault, a fall of water comes tumbling down from the top of the cliff.</p><p>“What’s that on the beach?,” Sir Eber asks, approaching with the rest of our noble heroes. “Boats?</p><p>Sure enough, on the beach are what appear to be the remains of perhaps three vessels. The one to the left seems to be a small, reasonably intact craft with a single mast. Little remains of the vessel next to it, although enough so that our noble heroes can see that it must have been the largest ship any of them has ever seen – by far. It must have had three masts and its condition suggests that it has been on the beach for quite some time. The third ‘vessel’ is in even worse condition, being little more than a collection of beams jutting from the sand. It doesn’t resemble any barge, boat, or ship our noble heroes have ever seen.</p><p>“It is a raft,” Sir Oengus says. “A big one.”</p><p>The <em>chevalier</em> has been peering at the cliff at the back of the beach with a worried look on his face.</p><p>“Is there no <em>escalier?,”</em> he wonders. “Are we expected to climb up that cliff <em>comme des chèvres?”</em></p><p>When the ship gets as close to the island as the captain can take it, the crew drop the anchor. In effect, <em>The Black Owl</em> is now in a sheltered, bay-like area and presently Captain Gomma joins our noble heroes.</p><p>“Lords,” he says. “Take the pinnace and do what ye must on the isle. Mind that ye’ll run out of coin in four days and that ye be back aboard before that.”</p><p></p><p>The pinnace is lowered into the water and our noble heroes row to the beach. The <em>chevalier</em> is the first to jump into the surf and he immediately wanders off, leaving his noble fellows to pull the pinnace onto the sand. When they are done, Navarre, Sir Suvali, and Sir Eber walk up the beach to the base of the cliff where the fault starts.</p><p>Sir Oengus and Sir Oerknal move to the left to inspect the small vessel, which turns out to be a small sailing boat with a single mast. Although it was obviously well-built, it is now in bad repair and it appears to have been on the beach for perhaps a decade. When they find nothing of much interest, they walk back to the remains of the largest ship. Although most of it is gone, it is quite obvious that it must have been an enormous vessel.</p><p>“A giant ship,” Sir Oengus says. “The ice giants exist.”</p><p>When the noble duo get to the third wreck, they recognize only some beams and what looks like a mast half buried in the sand.</p><p>“Most of it is gone,” Sir Oengus says. “It’s probably been here for some twenty years. But look at those beams! It must have been at least eight yards square! A giant raft?”</p><p></p><p>Duringst the meanwhile, Navarre, Sir Suvali, and Sir Eber have found that the fault appears to be a combination of a natural phenomenon and the handiwork of some uncommonly large stone cutter: steps have been cut into the rock at various locations on the way to the top, most of them about a three feet high.</p><p>“Giant ships, giant steps,” Navarre muses, looking at the top of the cliff. “It would seem that there is good chance that we will run into some giants up there.”</p><p>With Sir Oengus and Sir Oerknal now approaching, Sir Suvali procures a largish bag and starts filling it with some sand.</p><p>“It’s going to be slippery up there with that water,” he sorcerer explains. “Let’s go.”</p><p></p><p>It takes our noble heroes some twenty minutes to climb the giant steps and it is shortly past noon when they have their first view of the top of the island. Before them, a plateau stretches all the way to the other side of the island, a trickle of water running down the middle and effectively dividing it into two halves, each a gentle slope upwards to the edges. The entire plateau is covered with tall, pale grasses. To their right, the small stream disappears over the edge of the cliff, tumbling to the beach below. Right in front of them is a low, circular dry-stone wall, while a single, cabin-like structure sits at the far end of the plateau. Ferocious winds tear and rip at everything on the plateau, whipping up feathers and debris. High overhead, seabirds scream.</p><p></p><p>Our noble heroes spread out, Sir Eber and Sir Oerknal moving to the dry-stone circle and their noble fellows starting down the slope to get out of the wind. Thistles and scattered clumps of grass grow within the dry-stone circle, revealing sections of blackened bedrock. The construct is obviously a fireplace of some kind although Sir Eber concludes that no fires have burnt in it for a long time. Bow in hand, he turns his attention to the plateau again.</p><p>“No nests?,” he growls. “Where are the beasts?”</p><p>“There they are!,” Sir Oerknal yells, pointing to the left. The ranger turns and sees heads of numerous giant albatrosses staring at him from just over the edge of the plateau, watching his every move.</p><p>“They nest just over the edge,” he growls. “Abominations! They must die!”</p><p>With this, he and Sir Oerknal start past the fireplace and up the slope – until they suddenly stop in their tracks.</p><p>“Hey!,” Sir Eber yells to his noble fellows some distance down the slope. “Over here!”</p><p></p><p>Before him in the grass lies the desiccated corpse of a giant that must have stood at least 18 feet tall – making it two heads taller than the one that killed the King. The cadaver has a dark skin, stretched tightly over its skeletal frame, and it is clad in what seem to be shorts and a shirt. An ornate brass bracer is around its right wrist and in its left ear is a gold earring.</p><p>Sir Suvali, who has hurried to join the noble duo and is always the first when there’s some treasure to be collected, gets down on his knees and removes the brass bracer. It features runes and markings in bas-relief, which obviously refer to fire, volcanoes, and the sun.</p><p>“He died fighting,” Sir Eber says, prodding the corpse with his bow. “Cuts and stains on the shirt and skin. Looks to be dead at least a year.”</p><p>“<em>Mes amis!,”</em> the <em>chevalier</em> suddenly cries, gesticulating nervously and a bit paler than usual. “We must prepare for a speedy retreat! We must lower ropes over the edge for when we have get to the beach in all haste!”</p><p>“My dear fellow,” Navarre says. “We are six trained men armed to the teeth. I’d say we can handle some albatrosses.”</p><p>The <em>chevalier</em> flushes.</p><p>“Of course!,” he cries hastily. “Let us continue!”</p><p>“Besides,” Sir Suvali says. “We only have twenty feet of rope. The beach is at least a hundred yards down.”</p><p>“So it is!,” the <em>chevalier</em> cries, flushing some more and now looking distinctly uneasy. “Excellent! That solves that then! <em>Mon Dieu!</em> What is that?”</p><p>He seems to be pointing at the dry-stone wall.</p><p>“A lighthouse?,” Sir Eber says.</p><p>Realizing that he’s only making things worse, the <em>chevalier</em> turns his attention to the giant corpse.</p><p>“<span style="font-family: 'arial'">[Not fit for print without context, ed.]</span>!,” he exclaims, uttering a high-pitched laugh.</p><p>Not entirely sure what his noble friend could possibly mean by that, Navarre decides to sit down on a rock for a while.</p><p>Now, the <em>chevalier</em> gets down on his knees and removes the gold earring from the ear of the corpse. He raises it to the sun and tuts approvingly.</p><p>Sir Oerknal has not taken his eyes off the object during all of this.</p><p>“Where’s my gold?,” he inquires.</p><p>Startled, the <em>chevalier</em> hands the ring to Sir Oerknal, who immediately puts it on his head.</p><p>“My crown!,” he roars.</p><p></p><p>Navarre turns his attention to the structure at the far end of the plateau. No smoke seems to come from the chimney and, as far as he can see, the structure appears to have a stone foundation, with the upper part consisting of wooden planks. After looking at it for some time, he realizes that it may very well be a lot larger than it would seem at first. The giant’s home?</p><p>“We seem to have stumbled upon a mystery,” he says, to no one in particular. “Was the giant shipwrecked here? Was the fire meant to attract attention? Why hasn’t it ever been seen from the mainland? Or by passing ships?”</p><p>“Because nobody lives there?,” Sir Eber suggests.</p><p>“Because no ships ever get close enough to the island to see it?,” Sir Oengus adds.</p><p>Navarre has to admit that there is merit to the suggestions of his noble fellows.</p><p>“So Magus Seaworthy ended up living here with the giant,” Sir Suvali says.</p><p>Navarre isn’t so sure.</p><p>“Hmm…,” he says. “Perhaps the giant killed the Magus the very moment he set foot on the island. So far, giants have not proven to be overly fond of Kings and sorcerers.”</p><p>“What do we know about Magus Seaworthy?,” Sir Eber asks.</p><p>“He makes ships fly through the air,” Sir Suvali says.</p><p>Sir Eber casts the sorcerer a stony-faced look.</p><p>“And when did he get to the island?”</p><p>The sorcerer procures Loremaster Fist’s notebook and flips some pages.</p><p>“It must have been about twelve years ago,” he says.</p><p>“So the small vessel on the beach could have been his,” Navarre muses.</p><p>“<em>Mes amis!,”</em> the <em>chevalier</em> cries from the top of the steps. <em>“Ici!</em> Dried blood!”</p><p>Some heads turn but nobody moves.</p><p>“So the giant made a stand at the top of the steps and crawled here to die,” Sir Eber says.</p><p>“That is assuming a lot,” Navarre says. “Who says the blood is the giant’s?”</p><p>“If the Magus came with the small vessel, the giant may have came with the raft,” Sir Suvali suggests.</p><p>“There is no way of knowing,” Navarre says. “Much will depend on who that giant was. It may have been part of some crew that sailed the huge three-master. I say we head for the hut over there and see if anybody is home.”</p><p>And so the noble quartet start for the hut, leaving the <em>chevalier</em> to hurry after them.</p><p></p><p>When they get to small stream, Navarre tastes some of the water and finds it to be fresh. He fills his wine skin and starts after his fellows again. Just when the <em>chevalier</em> comes speeding past him in all haste, he catches up with Sir Suvali, himself some distance behind Sir Eber and Sir Oerknal, who seem to be discussing killing albatrosses again – both repeatedly aim their bows at the creatures and are obviously enjoying themselves immensely.</p><p>When our noble heroes get closer to the hut, it becomes apparent that it probably was built for a giant – albeit perhaps a small one. It is a haphazard collection of stones and rocks and planks and all manner of similar debris but it seems sturdy enough and it was obviously built by a skilled craftsman.</p><p>The closer our noble heroes get, the more it seems that the hut is indeed deserted: there is no smoke in the chimney, no tools lie about, the shutters are closed, and the grass has grown high. Still, the hut seems to be in good repair: the roof and shutters are intact and there are no obvious holes or missing planks in the superstructure.</p><p>“I’d say it hasn’t been empty that long,” Navarre.</p><p>“A year?,” Sir Suvali suggests. “That could mean that the giant did live there.”</p><p>“It would seem so,” Navarre muses. “What about that trail to the door?”</p><p>“It’s ajar,” Sir Suvali says. “Albatrosses?”</p><p>“We have come close enough,” Navarre says, when they get to within 50 yards of the hut. “I will announce our arrival.”</p><p>But he is too late. Sir Eber and the <em>chevalier</em> have already advanced and presently take up positions to the left and right of the entrance to the hut. Sir Eber knocks an arrow and pushes the door open with his foot. He has a quick look inside and signals the <em>chevalier,</em> who charges into the hut without further ado. Raising his bow, the ranger charges in right after him.</p><p>It is half an hour past midday.</p><p></p><p>When their eyes have adjusted to the darkness, the intrepid noble duo see that they are in a room that takes up all of the ground floor. To their left are a table and some chairs and a rough kitchen table stands against the wall in the far left corner, with some drawers in it and a cabinet on top of it. A stove and chimney are against the back wall and, to their right, a flight of steps leads to the second floor.</p><p>Taking up most of the floor is a huge magical diagram – a five-pointed star in a circle.</p><p>When the <em>chevalier</em> starts for the steps, taking care to avoid the diagram, Sir Eber stops him.</p><p>“Wait!,” he hisses, pointing at the diagram. “I’ll get the mage!”</p><p>He gets back to the door and beckons Sir Suvali, who has remained at Navarre’s side.</p><p>The sorcerer excuses himself, rather uncharacteristically it must be said, and starts for the cabin. When he is about halfway, he stops and announces his arrival in a formal manner. When there is no reply, he moves past Sir Eber into the hut, to find himself alone in the room. He notices that the furniture, while originally made for a giant, has obviously been modified later so that a man-sized individual could use it as well: a plank has been attached the legs of the table some three-quarters of the way up; a raised, man-sized chair sits in front of it; a smaller set of steps has been added to the stairs.</p><p>He turns his attention to the magical diagram on the floor and notices that it has been carved into the bedrock with care – an undertaking that must have taken many months. He procures some paper and a pencil and starts copying the diagram.</p><p></p><p>After Sir Eber told him to wait, the <em>chevalier</em> did indeed manage to restrain himself for about a second before he resumed his sprint up the steps and entered an attic-like room directly underneath the roof. To his left is a huge bed and there is a smaller one to his right, three sturdy chests in between them. A pony-sized dog lies sleeping on the large bed.</p><p>He has to look at the creature twice before he gets to grips with what he sees – and once more to convince himself that the creature is, indeed, sound asleep. He tiptoes back down, where he finds Sir Suvali at the bottom of the steps. He puts a finger to his lips and makes a hissing sound.</p><p>Annoyed, the sorcerer looks up from his notes.</p><p>“What?”</p><p>“There is a giant dog,” the <em>chevalier</em> whispers, pointing up the stairs.</p><p>“Giant?,” Sir Eber growls from the doorway. “A giant dog? It must die.”</p><p>“What?,” Sir Suvali says, startled. “Why?”</p><p>“It is an unnatural creature,” the ranger says. “I must kill it.”</p><p>But the sorcerer will have nothing of it.</p><p>“Wait here until I’ve had a look,” he says, starting for the stairs.</p><p>The <em>chevalier</em> is right behind him on the steps when he reaches the attic, where he finds the giant dog wide awake. The creature must be quite old and it obviously hasn’t been eating well. Its eyes remain fixed on the sorcerer when he approaches – slowly so as not to upset the monster – and he ends up with the creature gently gnawing on his arm.</p><p>He opens his pack, slowly, takes out all the dog food he can find, lets the dog have a sniff and tosses it on the floor next to the small bed. Slowly, its eyes always on the intruders, the giant dog gets down from the bed, moves to the other side of the room and starts gulping down the food.</p><p>Emboldened, the <em>chevalier</em> enters the room and starts patting the dog.</p><p>Now, the sorcerer turns his attention to the three chests. He opens the smallest of the three, which contains a collection of weathered, well-worn, good-quality, man-sized clothes. The second chest contains what seem to be rags.</p><p>When he gets to the third chest, Sir Eber appears. The ranger glowers at the giant dog for some time but then seems to restrain himself. Indeed, he even attempts to befriend the creature – and fails. He turns around and sees Sir Suvali take a couple of old, well-used giant-sized tools from the third chest, obviously the tool set of a skilled ship’s carpenter. He moves over and picks up a giant mallet, weighs it in his hand for a bit and then puts it on his back.</p><p>“Always wanted a war hammer,” he says, grinning widely.</p><p></p><p>Outside, Sir Oengus has moved to the right of the hut and he presently discovers a pyramid-like pile of rocks at the back of it. He approaches and notices a slab of stone embedded in one side of the pile, a number of runes crudely etched into it. When he turns to call his noble fellows, Navarre is just coming around the corner.</p><p>“Can you read this?,” Sir Oengus asks, pointing to the slab.</p><p>Navarre approaches and looks at the runes.</p><p>“The runes are unfamiliar to me,” he says. “There seem to be three rows, the middle row somewhat pronounced, see? A gravestone? An old grave? See the grass growing through the stones?”</p><p>He takes a few steps back.</p><p>“It would appear that Magus Seaworthy is no more,” he resumes. “I will get Suvali. Maybe he can read the runes.”</p><p>He hasn’t taken two steps when Sir Oengus starts hollering the sorcerer’s name. He shrugs, turns around again and continues his tour around the hut. He doesn’t find anything of interest and, when he gets back to the front door again, Sir Oerknal is the only one there.</p><p>“Nothing?”</p><p>“Nothing,” Sir Oerknal says.</p><p>Navarre has a look inside the hut for himself just when Sir Suvali is coming down the steps again.</p><p>“Nothing?,” he asks. “No corpses up there?”</p><p>“No corpses,” the sorcerer says. “Some chests, two beds. Looks like the Magus lived here with the giant for some time. Ah. And there is a giant dog up there. Sir Eber is playing with it. The cavalier is searching the room.”</p><p>Navarre lifts an eyebrow.</p><p>“Searching the room?,” he asks. “Whatever for?”</p><p>“Was that Oengus calling?,” the sorcerer says, ignoring the question.</p><p>“Ah, yes,” Navarre says. “There appears to be a tumulus behind the house. Perhaps you can read the runes on it.”</p><p>“Let’s have a look,” the sorcerer says.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="ilgatto, post: 8868106, member: 86051"] [CENTER][B][SIZE=6]An Adventure in Five Acts, [/SIZE][/B][SIZE=6][B]Act III: The Sword of Shadows[/B][/SIZE][/CENTER] [SIZE=3]In which the DM informs our noble heroes that the conversation Sir Suvali had with Loremaster Fist only took ten minutes; that it was a dream sequence rather than an actual conversation; that the acorn amulet is a standard DMG [I]amulet of life saving[/I] and that it allows the Loremaster only a very limited amount of time to communicate; that [I]The Black Owl[/I] has sailed on through the night; that there are 14 crew on board (12 sailors, one cook, one captain) and that they work in three shifts of four.[/SIZE] [B]Day 7, continued[/B]: Sir Suvali announces that he will spend the rest of the day below decks to study Loremaster Fist’s notebook some more. It isn’t much later when Captain Gomma informs Sir Oengus that [I]The Black Owl[/I] is to commence its risky approach to the island. “There be only one chance to get it right,” he says. “A miss’ll blow her to port and onto the rocks o’ the straights the one way or to starboard and past the isle the other.” Sir Oengus doesn’t seem worried. Indeed, he looks like he can hardly wait for the operation to begin. “The danger ain’t over even if she’d be gettin’ the straight current,” the captain continues. “She be fighting wind and waves fer four glasses and’d be havin’ to come about handsomely to get into the lee o’ the isle. One mistake and the currents’ll hit her broadside and be drivin’ her onto the rocks. Arr! I wish I had charged ye her full price!” “The hands say you be the only man livin’ as can get us to the isle in one piece,” Sir Oengus says. “I’m sure we’ll make it.” The captain shouts his orders and the crew start running to and fro. This continues for about half an hour, with the ship executing all kinds of maneuvers until the captain seems satisfied. For the next two hours, the ride is even more violent than it was before: the current seems to push the ship to ever greater speeds and the crew have to work hard to keep her in check. At some point, the Isle of Bread appears on the horizon at a slight angle to the ship. As they get closer, our noble heroes see that it must be about half a mile long, 300 yards wide, and 100 yards high. Huge colonies of seabirds – giant albatrosses, seagulls, terns – hover and dance in the wind above the island and sharp rocks jut from the waters to the left of it: the Shark Straights. “See that?,” Sir Suvali says to Navarre, pointing to the straights. “I’ve been told that the island was once connected to the mainland. The rocks are supposed to be what remains of a land bridge.” If anything, the closer [I]The Black Owl[/I] gets to the island, the faster she seems to go. Furious winds and high waves toss the ship hither and to and then, with the island as close as it can be, the captain’s orders become even more urgent: he points and shouts and hollers and the crew hasten to take up positions all over the ship. Finally, at what seems to be the last possible moment, [I]The Black Owl[/I] turns sharply left. Almost immediately, the howling winds are gone and the ship starts slowing down. From this side, the Isle of Bread looks much like a rotting tooth: a gaping hole in its duskward side is flanked by two rocky promontories jutting into the sea, a steep cliff between them at the back of the hole reaching all the way to the top of the island. As the crew keep maneuvering the ship ever closer to the island, a beach comes into view at the foot of the cliff, caught between the promontories to either side. On the bow, Navarre and Sir Suvali are discussing how they could get to the top of the island. They notice what appears to be a fault line running from the lower right to the upper left corner of the cliff, much like its upper and lower halves have shifted relative to each other. About half way up the fault, a fall of water comes tumbling down from the top of the cliff. “What’s that on the beach?,” Sir Eber asks, approaching with the rest of our noble heroes. “Boats? Sure enough, on the beach are what appear to be the remains of perhaps three vessels. The one to the left seems to be a small, reasonably intact craft with a single mast. Little remains of the vessel next to it, although enough so that our noble heroes can see that it must have been the largest ship any of them has ever seen – by far. It must have had three masts and its condition suggests that it has been on the beach for quite some time. The third ‘vessel’ is in even worse condition, being little more than a collection of beams jutting from the sand. It doesn’t resemble any barge, boat, or ship our noble heroes have ever seen. “It is a raft,” Sir Oengus says. “A big one.” The [I]chevalier[/I] has been peering at the cliff at the back of the beach with a worried look on his face. “Is there no [I]escalier?,”[/I] he wonders. “Are we expected to climb up that cliff [I]comme des chèvres?”[/I] When the ship gets as close to the island as the captain can take it, the crew drop the anchor. In effect, [I]The Black Owl[/I] is now in a sheltered, bay-like area and presently Captain Gomma joins our noble heroes. “Lords,” he says. “Take the pinnace and do what ye must on the isle. Mind that ye’ll run out of coin in four days and that ye be back aboard before that.” The pinnace is lowered into the water and our noble heroes row to the beach. The [I]chevalier[/I] is the first to jump into the surf and he immediately wanders off, leaving his noble fellows to pull the pinnace onto the sand. When they are done, Navarre, Sir Suvali, and Sir Eber walk up the beach to the base of the cliff where the fault starts. Sir Oengus and Sir Oerknal move to the left to inspect the small vessel, which turns out to be a small sailing boat with a single mast. Although it was obviously well-built, it is now in bad repair and it appears to have been on the beach for perhaps a decade. When they find nothing of much interest, they walk back to the remains of the largest ship. Although most of it is gone, it is quite obvious that it must have been an enormous vessel. “A giant ship,” Sir Oengus says. “The ice giants exist.” When the noble duo get to the third wreck, they recognize only some beams and what looks like a mast half buried in the sand. “Most of it is gone,” Sir Oengus says. “It’s probably been here for some twenty years. But look at those beams! It must have been at least eight yards square! A giant raft?” Duringst the meanwhile, Navarre, Sir Suvali, and Sir Eber have found that the fault appears to be a combination of a natural phenomenon and the handiwork of some uncommonly large stone cutter: steps have been cut into the rock at various locations on the way to the top, most of them about a three feet high. “Giant ships, giant steps,” Navarre muses, looking at the top of the cliff. “It would seem that there is good chance that we will run into some giants up there.” With Sir Oengus and Sir Oerknal now approaching, Sir Suvali procures a largish bag and starts filling it with some sand. “It’s going to be slippery up there with that water,” he sorcerer explains. “Let’s go.” It takes our noble heroes some twenty minutes to climb the giant steps and it is shortly past noon when they have their first view of the top of the island. Before them, a plateau stretches all the way to the other side of the island, a trickle of water running down the middle and effectively dividing it into two halves, each a gentle slope upwards to the edges. The entire plateau is covered with tall, pale grasses. To their right, the small stream disappears over the edge of the cliff, tumbling to the beach below. Right in front of them is a low, circular dry-stone wall, while a single, cabin-like structure sits at the far end of the plateau. Ferocious winds tear and rip at everything on the plateau, whipping up feathers and debris. High overhead, seabirds scream. Our noble heroes spread out, Sir Eber and Sir Oerknal moving to the dry-stone circle and their noble fellows starting down the slope to get out of the wind. Thistles and scattered clumps of grass grow within the dry-stone circle, revealing sections of blackened bedrock. The construct is obviously a fireplace of some kind although Sir Eber concludes that no fires have burnt in it for a long time. Bow in hand, he turns his attention to the plateau again. “No nests?,” he growls. “Where are the beasts?” “There they are!,” Sir Oerknal yells, pointing to the left. The ranger turns and sees heads of numerous giant albatrosses staring at him from just over the edge of the plateau, watching his every move. “They nest just over the edge,” he growls. “Abominations! They must die!” With this, he and Sir Oerknal start past the fireplace and up the slope – until they suddenly stop in their tracks. “Hey!,” Sir Eber yells to his noble fellows some distance down the slope. “Over here!” Before him in the grass lies the desiccated corpse of a giant that must have stood at least 18 feet tall – making it two heads taller than the one that killed the King. The cadaver has a dark skin, stretched tightly over its skeletal frame, and it is clad in what seem to be shorts and a shirt. An ornate brass bracer is around its right wrist and in its left ear is a gold earring. Sir Suvali, who has hurried to join the noble duo and is always the first when there’s some treasure to be collected, gets down on his knees and removes the brass bracer. It features runes and markings in bas-relief, which obviously refer to fire, volcanoes, and the sun. “He died fighting,” Sir Eber says, prodding the corpse with his bow. “Cuts and stains on the shirt and skin. Looks to be dead at least a year.” “[I]Mes amis!,”[/I] the [I]chevalier[/I] suddenly cries, gesticulating nervously and a bit paler than usual. “We must prepare for a speedy retreat! We must lower ropes over the edge for when we have get to the beach in all haste!” “My dear fellow,” Navarre says. “We are six trained men armed to the teeth. I’d say we can handle some albatrosses.” The [I]chevalier[/I] flushes. “Of course!,” he cries hastily. “Let us continue!” “Besides,” Sir Suvali says. “We only have twenty feet of rope. The beach is at least a hundred yards down.” “So it is!,” the [I]chevalier[/I] cries, flushing some more and now looking distinctly uneasy. “Excellent! That solves that then! [I]Mon Dieu![/I] What is that?” He seems to be pointing at the dry-stone wall. “A lighthouse?,” Sir Eber says. Realizing that he’s only making things worse, the [I]chevalier[/I] turns his attention to the giant corpse. “[FONT=arial][Not fit for print without context, ed.][/FONT]!,” he exclaims, uttering a high-pitched laugh. Not entirely sure what his noble friend could possibly mean by that, Navarre decides to sit down on a rock for a while. Now, the [I]chevalier[/I] gets down on his knees and removes the gold earring from the ear of the corpse. He raises it to the sun and tuts approvingly. Sir Oerknal has not taken his eyes off the object during all of this. “Where’s my gold?,” he inquires. Startled, the [I]chevalier[/I] hands the ring to Sir Oerknal, who immediately puts it on his head. “My crown!,” he roars. Navarre turns his attention to the structure at the far end of the plateau. No smoke seems to come from the chimney and, as far as he can see, the structure appears to have a stone foundation, with the upper part consisting of wooden planks. After looking at it for some time, he realizes that it may very well be a lot larger than it would seem at first. The giant’s home? “We seem to have stumbled upon a mystery,” he says, to no one in particular. “Was the giant shipwrecked here? Was the fire meant to attract attention? Why hasn’t it ever been seen from the mainland? Or by passing ships?” “Because nobody lives there?,” Sir Eber suggests. “Because no ships ever get close enough to the island to see it?,” Sir Oengus adds. Navarre has to admit that there is merit to the suggestions of his noble fellows. “So Magus Seaworthy ended up living here with the giant,” Sir Suvali says. Navarre isn’t so sure. “Hmm…,” he says. “Perhaps the giant killed the Magus the very moment he set foot on the island. So far, giants have not proven to be overly fond of Kings and sorcerers.” “What do we know about Magus Seaworthy?,” Sir Eber asks. “He makes ships fly through the air,” Sir Suvali says. Sir Eber casts the sorcerer a stony-faced look. “And when did he get to the island?” The sorcerer procures Loremaster Fist’s notebook and flips some pages. “It must have been about twelve years ago,” he says. “So the small vessel on the beach could have been his,” Navarre muses. “[I]Mes amis!,”[/I] the [I]chevalier[/I] cries from the top of the steps. [I]“Ici![/I] Dried blood!” Some heads turn but nobody moves. “So the giant made a stand at the top of the steps and crawled here to die,” Sir Eber says. “That is assuming a lot,” Navarre says. “Who says the blood is the giant’s?” “If the Magus came with the small vessel, the giant may have came with the raft,” Sir Suvali suggests. “There is no way of knowing,” Navarre says. “Much will depend on who that giant was. It may have been part of some crew that sailed the huge three-master. I say we head for the hut over there and see if anybody is home.” And so the noble quartet start for the hut, leaving the [I]chevalier[/I] to hurry after them. When they get to small stream, Navarre tastes some of the water and finds it to be fresh. He fills his wine skin and starts after his fellows again. Just when the [I]chevalier[/I] comes speeding past him in all haste, he catches up with Sir Suvali, himself some distance behind Sir Eber and Sir Oerknal, who seem to be discussing killing albatrosses again – both repeatedly aim their bows at the creatures and are obviously enjoying themselves immensely. When our noble heroes get closer to the hut, it becomes apparent that it probably was built for a giant – albeit perhaps a small one. It is a haphazard collection of stones and rocks and planks and all manner of similar debris but it seems sturdy enough and it was obviously built by a skilled craftsman. The closer our noble heroes get, the more it seems that the hut is indeed deserted: there is no smoke in the chimney, no tools lie about, the shutters are closed, and the grass has grown high. Still, the hut seems to be in good repair: the roof and shutters are intact and there are no obvious holes or missing planks in the superstructure. “I’d say it hasn’t been empty that long,” Navarre. “A year?,” Sir Suvali suggests. “That could mean that the giant did live there.” “It would seem so,” Navarre muses. “What about that trail to the door?” “It’s ajar,” Sir Suvali says. “Albatrosses?” “We have come close enough,” Navarre says, when they get to within 50 yards of the hut. “I will announce our arrival.” But he is too late. Sir Eber and the [I]chevalier[/I] have already advanced and presently take up positions to the left and right of the entrance to the hut. Sir Eber knocks an arrow and pushes the door open with his foot. He has a quick look inside and signals the [I]chevalier,[/I] who charges into the hut without further ado. Raising his bow, the ranger charges in right after him. It is half an hour past midday. When their eyes have adjusted to the darkness, the intrepid noble duo see that they are in a room that takes up all of the ground floor. To their left are a table and some chairs and a rough kitchen table stands against the wall in the far left corner, with some drawers in it and a cabinet on top of it. A stove and chimney are against the back wall and, to their right, a flight of steps leads to the second floor. Taking up most of the floor is a huge magical diagram – a five-pointed star in a circle. When the [I]chevalier[/I] starts for the steps, taking care to avoid the diagram, Sir Eber stops him. “Wait!,” he hisses, pointing at the diagram. “I’ll get the mage!” He gets back to the door and beckons Sir Suvali, who has remained at Navarre’s side. The sorcerer excuses himself, rather uncharacteristically it must be said, and starts for the cabin. When he is about halfway, he stops and announces his arrival in a formal manner. When there is no reply, he moves past Sir Eber into the hut, to find himself alone in the room. He notices that the furniture, while originally made for a giant, has obviously been modified later so that a man-sized individual could use it as well: a plank has been attached the legs of the table some three-quarters of the way up; a raised, man-sized chair sits in front of it; a smaller set of steps has been added to the stairs. He turns his attention to the magical diagram on the floor and notices that it has been carved into the bedrock with care – an undertaking that must have taken many months. He procures some paper and a pencil and starts copying the diagram. After Sir Eber told him to wait, the [I]chevalier[/I] did indeed manage to restrain himself for about a second before he resumed his sprint up the steps and entered an attic-like room directly underneath the roof. To his left is a huge bed and there is a smaller one to his right, three sturdy chests in between them. A pony-sized dog lies sleeping on the large bed. He has to look at the creature twice before he gets to grips with what he sees – and once more to convince himself that the creature is, indeed, sound asleep. He tiptoes back down, where he finds Sir Suvali at the bottom of the steps. He puts a finger to his lips and makes a hissing sound. Annoyed, the sorcerer looks up from his notes. “What?” “There is a giant dog,” the [I]chevalier[/I] whispers, pointing up the stairs. “Giant?,” Sir Eber growls from the doorway. “A giant dog? It must die.” “What?,” Sir Suvali says, startled. “Why?” “It is an unnatural creature,” the ranger says. “I must kill it.” But the sorcerer will have nothing of it. “Wait here until I’ve had a look,” he says, starting for the stairs. The [I]chevalier[/I] is right behind him on the steps when he reaches the attic, where he finds the giant dog wide awake. The creature must be quite old and it obviously hasn’t been eating well. Its eyes remain fixed on the sorcerer when he approaches – slowly so as not to upset the monster – and he ends up with the creature gently gnawing on his arm. He opens his pack, slowly, takes out all the dog food he can find, lets the dog have a sniff and tosses it on the floor next to the small bed. Slowly, its eyes always on the intruders, the giant dog gets down from the bed, moves to the other side of the room and starts gulping down the food. Emboldened, the [I]chevalier[/I] enters the room and starts patting the dog. Now, the sorcerer turns his attention to the three chests. He opens the smallest of the three, which contains a collection of weathered, well-worn, good-quality, man-sized clothes. The second chest contains what seem to be rags. When he gets to the third chest, Sir Eber appears. The ranger glowers at the giant dog for some time but then seems to restrain himself. Indeed, he even attempts to befriend the creature – and fails. He turns around and sees Sir Suvali take a couple of old, well-used giant-sized tools from the third chest, obviously the tool set of a skilled ship’s carpenter. He moves over and picks up a giant mallet, weighs it in his hand for a bit and then puts it on his back. “Always wanted a war hammer,” he says, grinning widely. Outside, Sir Oengus has moved to the right of the hut and he presently discovers a pyramid-like pile of rocks at the back of it. He approaches and notices a slab of stone embedded in one side of the pile, a number of runes crudely etched into it. When he turns to call his noble fellows, Navarre is just coming around the corner. “Can you read this?,” Sir Oengus asks, pointing to the slab. Navarre approaches and looks at the runes. “The runes are unfamiliar to me,” he says. “There seem to be three rows, the middle row somewhat pronounced, see? A gravestone? An old grave? See the grass growing through the stones?” He takes a few steps back. “It would appear that Magus Seaworthy is no more,” he resumes. “I will get Suvali. Maybe he can read the runes.” He hasn’t taken two steps when Sir Oengus starts hollering the sorcerer’s name. He shrugs, turns around again and continues his tour around the hut. He doesn’t find anything of interest and, when he gets back to the front door again, Sir Oerknal is the only one there. “Nothing?” “Nothing,” Sir Oerknal says. Navarre has a look inside the hut for himself just when Sir Suvali is coming down the steps again. “Nothing?,” he asks. “No corpses up there?” “No corpses,” the sorcerer says. “Some chests, two beds. Looks like the Magus lived here with the giant for some time. Ah. And there is a giant dog up there. Sir Eber is playing with it. The cavalier is searching the room.” Navarre lifts an eyebrow. “Searching the room?,” he asks. “Whatever for?” “Was that Oengus calling?,” the sorcerer says, ignoring the question. “Ah, yes,” Navarre says. “There appears to be a tumulus behind the house. Perhaps you can read the runes on it.” “Let’s have a look,” the sorcerer says. [/QUOTE]
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