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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Gina" data-source="post: 1533834" data-attributes="member: 10990">Session 32: The Kobald Warren, Eaglesford, and the Road to Three OaksJohnson Farm: The Kobold WarrenJuly 17th Morning in the Kobold Warren found us alive but our magic somewhat depleted. Upon thinking about the shadow we had fought the night before, we realized that it looked like a troll, but did not move the same way, did not attack as rapidly as a troll might. Perhaps this comes of it being made a shadow, perhaps not. One of the Kobolds had been sent to scout above. He reported that there were corpse-ravens circling the area around the farm. Previously they had stayed above Eaglesford and the immediate area around it. This being an outlying farm, they had only passed over occasionally. So, we decided to stay for a while, venturing out after dark, since we couldn’t figure out any way to get out without being noticed and we certainly didn’t want to bring the orcish army down upon the kobolds, or us for that matter. So, we spent a quiet day. Mor’Elandi and Tieran scribed scrolls, Thaile helped tend to the wounded, Hara knitted, Reena slept and sharpened her weapons.  Kefk and Kytum-up, being at home, spent the day in various activities.  Graystone and I discussed the orcs and their preference for birds. Seems odd that they choose a corpse-raven to change to when an eagle is a better choice in so many ways. The bird swarms were also odd, not magical, but probably trained birds. It would take a long while and a great deal of skill to train birds to swarm like that. I wonder if perhaps the orcs are bound to birds as a totem of some kind....could their animals masters specialize in a certain kind of creature? It would be nice to capture one of them and ask some questions, though I doubt that they would give much information. We also briefly discussed my rebirth and its ramifications. The people of Eaglesford, particularly the pious ones will never understand, so the consensus was that I should choose a different name to use in public. For now, I am River. I will come up with a more permanent name later, though to myself, I will always be Rowan. Maybe I should keep Rowan and instead call myself Aldersborn rather than Clearwater, since Rowan is not such an unusual name. Evening came and with it, rain. Between the darkness and the rain, we felt safe to venture out and toward Eaglesford, planning to spend the night in Graystone’s cottage and the relative safety that it would bring. Graystone seemed less convinced of its safety than we were, telling us that he had found a new place, on the other side of the river where it would be safer to live. So, we continued down the lane, hedgerows rising on both sides of us, throwing the road into even deeper darkness, their shadows pressing in upon us. Luckily, most of us are very familiar with the area, so finding our way was not a problem. As we walked, we talked quietly among ourselves, those of us in the lead not noticing anything amiss until we heard a shout from behind us. Black shapes had materialized out of the hedges on either side of the road and moved toward those at the rear of our group, Kefk, Tieran, Kytum-up, and Mor’Elandi. Before any of us could react, the shadows reached out and touched Kytum-up, weakening him almost to the point of death. They touched Mor’Elandi and Tieran as well, weakening them both greatly, Mor’Elandi more seriously than Tieran. Thaile was the first among us to regain her senses and do something. She turned the shadows. They fled into the night and we fled in the opposite direction, Reena carrying Mor’Elandi and Kytum-up. These shadows had once been orcs. We arrived, breathless, at Graystone’s small cottage and set up watches for the remainder of the night. July 18thWe awakened and worked on restoring Tieran, Kytum-up, and Mor’Elandi to health. Between Graystone, Hara, and myself, we managed to do so. Then, we began loading Graystone’s belongings into Hara’s wagon for transport to his new home. His living furniture was a bit of a shock to some of the others, though I am used to it now, but Kefk in particular seemed surprised when the chair he sat in needed to be watered!When we approached Eaglesford, we were surprised at the changes in only a few days. The flags flying over the town indicated that the legions had indeed arrived. There was much more activity, farmers who couldn’t be in their fields had been put to work, building fortifications. There were soldiers standing, arms at the ready, farmers and townsfolk hauling timber and wood. They seem to be taking down some of the farmhouses near town and using the wood to build the barricades they are working on around the fjord and the mill. They are digging a ditch and driving stakes into the ground, using some overturned carts as cover while they work on it all. They are also clearing trees and brush nearby, presumably to eliminate cover for approaching forces. There were many fewer birds flying above the town and they still flew well out of arrow range. I suspect that they are so high because Mor’Elandi cast a spell once, a while ago, which enabled him to hit one of them at a very great distance indeed! It was really quite impressive.As we approached, we were challenged by a legionnaire. He asked us who we were and what our business was here. Thaile, Tieran, Reena, and Graystone said that they live here, vouching for the rest of us as friends. Hara, being...well...herself, began to harangue and berate the young soldier for daring to ask us who we were. The young soldier called over several others to guard us while he went to get an officer. Graystone pleaded with Hara to keep her mouth shut when they returned. So, we waited until he brought back three other soldiers to speak with us. Two officers and a cleric of the Great Church. The captain of the legions and one of his officers spoke to us briefly, during which Hara was mercifully silent, and bade us move on and be about our business. The cleric, introduced as Matthew, seemed especially interested in Thaile. Apparently, he likes to convert other clerics to the Great Church. While it is none of my concern, Thaile seemed discomfited by him and inclined to avoid him.  We entered town noting even more changes. Some of the town’s wall has new sections of tone. We were told that an empire wizard showed up, erected the walls magically and then was gone. Planned, the Captain of the legions assured the townsfolk, nothing to be concerned over. There is activity at the gatehouse too, they are doing something which requires a master carpenter’s services, so I know that my father is there. I saw my brother, Janek working there and wished that I could go and greet him and see father. I didn’t approach though, they would not even know me. I don’t think that anyone has even told them of my death. My rebirth would be troubling to them, I think. I wish that there was time to see my mother, but we have so much to do and we need to return to the tests as soon as we can. Eaglesford does not even seem the same town we left only a few days ago. It is certainly not the sleepy little village it was only a month or two ago when we first went out in search of adventure. Hara declared that she was not remaining in this town one day more with the legions here, so off to her home we went to collect her belongings. Lucky Graystone, she has determined to go and live with him! That should be interesting. So, we loaded her belongings. There were many very odd items indeed included in these. Most of them smelled very strange. I don’t even want to know what was in some of the parcels and bundles we loaded into that wagon. In time, though, we were underway again, headed out of town and West. As we moved slowly through the countryside, we noticed that this side of the river was much as it had been before the attacks began. Farmers worked their fields, houses and barns dotted the landscape and all was peaceful and as it should be. What a contrast it is to the abandoned farms on the other side of the river. Graystone’s new grove was marked by a small shack. It seemed even smaller by the time we had unloaded all of both Hara’s and Graystone’s things into it. I hope that they can get a larger place built soon, or they will drive one another crazy!Oh, as we were leaving an odd thing happened. Thaile prayed to Darmon for a good journey as she always does, but when she finished and returned to us, she seemed different, odd. Then, as we left town, she seemed much more friendly to this Brother Matthew than she had been before, no longer uncomfortable around him. He spoke to her, saying: I hope to see you again, soon.” Oh well, I know precious little of the workings of the pious mind!By the time we finished unloading, it was getting near dark, so we decided to stay overnight and leave at first light for Three Oaks. Most of us stayed outdoors, though Tieran managed talk himself into a spot on the floor inside the hut. Deep in the night, on third watch, I was awakened by Kefk. He head heard some kind of animal roaring or howling. I didn’t hear anything and, after a few minutes of listening, went back to my bedroll. As I was nearing sleep, the roar sounded again. A large bestial creature, I think, not one we have encountered before. I shall have to think on it more and perhaps I will know what it was. July 19thWe bade good bye to Graystone, Hara, and Reena and set off toward Three Oaks in the early morning. Around midday, Mor’Elandi and Thaile noticed a large group of goblins ahead of us on the road, weapons drawn, panting and winded. I sent an entangle spell to them, to keep them from rushing us. Tieran cast a thunder ball, which killed a bunch of them, while Thaile and Mor’Elandi pulled out their bows to pick a few off. As they were attacked, the goblins shouted warnings to one another. “They’re back! Watch out for their acid balls!” “Watch out for the big bastard!” and “Where’s the big one?”They were panicking as we approached, some running off, the entangled ones struggling to get free, presumably to run off after their fellows. A few moved into the brush and shot arrows as they attempted to defend their tribesmen against us. It didn’t take us long to subdue the goblins. Most of them ran off into the woods, though we did kill several of them. We examined one of the wounded ones, noting that he had been damaged by a Briar Web spell. He told us that he and his tribe had been attacked by “bad humans” who were attacking and killing them. His tribe is the Hungry Crevice. I felt sorry for the little fellow. He is a goblin, true, and they generally cannot be trusted, but they still have a place in the natural order and should not be hunted for sport. We let him go and he soon faded into the forest, running as fast as he could. We heard sounds of battle down the road, maybe ½ mile, so we moved on, to see what was happening. As we approached, the sounds of battle died and we saw several humanoids on the road. A robed mage, two gnomes with weapons, wearing drab colors, a large human in dull gray plate armor, and a female elf, wearing plate as well. After a moment, we recognized them. Leiden and his group. I never liked him, nor do I much life Kales Burlywire. Of the others I know very little except that they have the bad taste to associate with Leiden. Eric is the fighter, Chalton the mage, Erkey the other gnome, and Drashi the elf woman is an apostle of Zheenkeef, as I recall. We made introductions. I forgot for a moment that I look so different, but then was introduced as River. Leiden and his group also had two goblins that they were holding captive. Apparently, their plan is to use them as slaves. They were mistreating them already. We conversed with them for a short while. Leiden taunting us about our lack of wealth and his and his companions’ fine equipment. We mentioned the spiders and the farms and he did not even have the good grace to feel sympathy for those killed as a result of their actions. We did get a few useful pieces of information from them though. The creature we heard was an Owlbear that has been menacing the farmers in the area, attacking the farms and killing the farmers. He and his friends seemed to be a little afraid of the creature, not wanting to run into it. In Three Oaks there is a wizard named Zamet, from the South who makes items for sale. Leiden referred to him as a “crazy bastard”. If Leiden dislikes him, perhaps he is a good man.</blockquote>

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