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Travels through the Wild West: the Isle of Dread
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<blockquote data-quote="Lazybones" data-source="post: 95433" data-attributes="member: 143"><p>I like the way that scene between Dana and Delem came together. Maybe because I've been in Delem's shoes before (haven't we all) and knew how he would feel.</p><p></p><p>Horacio: yes, it hit me about halfway through the scene! I almost had Cal say, "We are now a part of the tribe!" but figured that would be a little <em>too</em> obvious.</p><p></p><p>* * * * * </p><p></p><p>Book III, Part 17</p><p></p><p>The morning brought with it a sudden shower that seemed to last just long enough to soak them all before it lifted, the heat returning with a vengeance even before the final drops made their way down to the forest floor. With grumbles and complaints, despite the hearty breakfast offered by their hosts, the companions loaded up their gear again and made their way down the rope ladder, ready to set out once again on their journey. </p><p></p><p>They saw the elder Rakos only briefly, and they exchanged only a few brief well-wishes that were not translated by another magical spell. They were joined at the base of the phanaton tree by Charek, who indicated with gestures that they companions were to follow him. They spent the bulk of that morning slogging through the jungle after the agile phanaton, who had little difficulty making his way though the lower reaches of the forest canopy above them. By the noon break they all felt worn out, the benefits of the previous night’s rest already squandered. </p><p></p><p>There was nothing to do but push on, so they did. </p><p></p><p>Delem looked perhaps the worst off, with dark rings under his eyes indicating that he hadn’t gotten much sleep. Benzan teased him a little, but the dark look that the young man shot him was enough to make even the tiefling back off. Dana remained near the front of the column, and didn’t say much to either of them. </p><p></p><p>They finally reached the end of the jungle as the sun was setting, and their guide led them to a sheltered campsite situated at the border between forest and hills. True to Rakos’s word, they could see numerous caves visible along the jagged lines of these hills, which were rougher and less overgrown than the ones further to the south that they’d already traversed. Charek indicated with gestures that most of the caves were uninhabited by hostile creatures, but they kept up a close watch anyway as they made their camp. </p><p></p><p>Nothing molested them that night, however, and with the next day they made better time even with the ruggedness of the terrain. Now that they were free of the jungle they could see that they had in fact made considerable progress in the direction of the mountains, which now dominated the horizon ahead of them to the north. Now that there were no more trees, Charek was forced to move alongside the rest of them, but the agile creature was still able to drive them to a wearying pace. </p><p></p><p>By midafternoon they could see the gap in the mountains ahead that marked the valley, and by the time that the sun had touched the western horizon they had progressed far enough to see the dense woods that filled the confines of the pass. The day had seemed almost preternaturally still, as if the very world around them slept, but none of them complained about their good fortune. For once, no strange and horrible creature had appeared to threaten them, and they were in fairly good spirits as they found another sheltered campsite and prepared for the coming night. </p><p></p><p>Their luck held, and the second consecutive night passed uneventfully. With the morning, however, Charek took his leave of them. The small phanaton indicated with gestures that the route up into the valley led straight along their current course, but before he turned to leave, he went to Cal and offered him a small ceramic vial taken from a pocket of his leather harness. </p><p></p><p>“Hágale fuerte,” the small creature said, pantomiming drinking the liquid and then flexing its muscles. </p><p></p><p>“Thank you,” Cal said, taking the potion. “Your people have been very generous to us.” Although the phanaton could not understand the words, he nodded at the gratitude in Cal’s tone, and turned to regard them one last time. </p><p></p><p>“Buena suerte,” he said, and then turned and departed, running swiftly over the hills back toward the shelter of his jungle home. </p><p></p><p>“You might as well take this,” Cal said to Lok, handing him the potion of strength. “Is everyone ready?” the gnome asked, waiting for everyone’s nod before he turned back toward the opening of the valley and led them out again. </p><p></p><p>“Ugh. I hate spiders,” Elly said, as their next challenge grew steadily nearer. </p><p></p><p>* * * * * </p><p></p><p>The hike up into the valley wasn’t that difficult, and they reached the edge of the forest by late morning. The place didn’t seem all that forbidding at first, and in fact they could hear birds singing in the boughs as they entered the outer reaches, and wildflowers grew in patches in sunny clearings between the clusters of trees. Behind them the entire southern half of the island spread out in a glorious panorama, and beyond that the blue expanse of the ocean stretched out as far as they could see to the distant horizons. </p><p></p><p>After a brief rest for lunch, they started out again. The ground here was rockier than the lowlands, and they’d gained some altitude in their hike, so the forest wasn’t as dense or verdant as the jungles they’d traveled through earlier. The ground continued to slope up as they made their way deeper into the wood, and soon all of them were sweating again despite the cooler air. </p><p></p><p>About an hour into the forest, the mood around them began to change. The forest grew noticeably darker as the boughs above them began to thicken and grow together, and the smell of rotting vegetation that carpeted the forest floor contrasted sharply with the earlier smells of the sea breeze and wildflowers. </p><p></p><p>And then they encountered the webs.</p><p></p><p>Just wisps at first, the webs quickly became thicker, the gooey strands forming walls between the trunks of adjacent trees. They weren’t enough to bar their passage, but provided a grim reminder that dark things lurked in this forest, and that they were drawing nearer to the danger that the phanatons had warned them about. </p><p></p><p>Finally, they emerged at the edge of a wide clearing dominated by three massive trees, their trunks ascending high into the sky like towers. The branches of the trees were clotted with webs, making it difficult for them to see what, if anything, might be lurking in their depths. They could just make out what looked like a small hut at the base of one of the trees, or it might have just been a pile of old dead wood and trash overgrown with exposed roots. The whole scene was quiet—too quiet. </p><p></p><p>“I don’t like the looks of this place,” Benzan said.</p><p></p><p>“Why don’t we just go around?” Lok suggested. </p><p></p><p>“If there is an enemy here, I’d just as soon not leave it at my back, as we stumble through the woods looking for the pass,” Benzan returned.</p><p></p><p>“It feels like someone—or something—is watching us,” Dana observed. </p><p></p><p>“All right then, let’s check it out,” Cal said. “But it doesn’t hurt to be prepared, of course.” He launched into his typical routine, protecting himself, Dana, and Delem with mage armor from his wand. While he did that, Dana summoned her own power to enhance Lok’s endurance once again, and Ruath added a spell of her own to boost Benzan’s strength. Thus bolstered, they headed cautiously into the clearing. </p><p></p><p>As they neared, they could make out a terrible sight, half-hidden in the shadows at the base of the largest tree. At the base of the trunk, forming a ring around its massive girth, were at least a half-dozen captives. To their horror the companions realized that the prisoners had apparently been crucified, their blood-splattered and half-naked bodies staked spread-eagled against the wood. Furthermore, the captives, though apparently human, were not of the <em>Inselfolk,</em> but by their appearances could easily have been from their own home regions in Faerûn. Most of them hung limply, held up only by the pinions driven through their bodies, but one of them looked up as they neared, his lips parting in a silent call as he tried in vain to entreat them—or warn them. </p><p></p><p>“By the gods,” Horath said, and several of the others had to fight the gorge that threatened to rise in their throats at the terrible sight. </p><p></p><p>Lok had already started forward, his jaw tightening at this abuse of thinking creatures. </p><p></p><p>“Wait,” Cal said. “It could be a trap.”</p><p></p><p>“Well, of course it’s a trap,” Benzan said, his tone betraying his own anger. “Why don’t we shake one of those trees, and see what comes out? Think you could manage one of those flame-streams from here, Delem?”</p><p></p><p>“Do what you will, I’m going to help those people,” Lok said, and he continued toward the tree with grim determination. Ruath followed him, but the others hesitated, knowing that they were probably being led to this very course by still-unseen adversaries. </p><p></p><p>“Wait here,” Cal finally said to Horath and the sailors, while he, Dana, Delem, and Benzan hurried after Lok and Ruath. </p><p></p><p>They entered the area under the massive forms of the trees, their web-shrouded branches reaching out as far as fifty paces from their trunks. The webs made a canopy of sorts directly above their heads, but nothing stirred from within them as they approached the tree where the imprisoned captives hung helplessly. </p><p></p><p>They kept alert for the slightest sign of danger, their eyes darting both around the uneven ground around the bases of the trees and up to the web-choked branches above. Lok’s attention, however, was focused entirely on the poor wretches held prisoner. Had he been less intent on rescuing them from their bonds, he might have noticed that their bodies, though marked with grievous wounds and lots of blood, all appeared to be roughly identical. </p><p></p><p>He realized his mistake, however, when he reached out to touch the broken body of the first captive, and his hand passed through empty air. </p><p></p><p>“They’re illusions!” he yelled, in warning to the others. </p><p></p><p>But the warning came too late—the attack had already begun.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Lazybones, post: 95433, member: 143"] I like the way that scene between Dana and Delem came together. Maybe because I've been in Delem's shoes before (haven't we all) and knew how he would feel. Horacio: yes, it hit me about halfway through the scene! I almost had Cal say, "We are now a part of the tribe!" but figured that would be a little [I]too[/I] obvious. * * * * * Book III, Part 17 The morning brought with it a sudden shower that seemed to last just long enough to soak them all before it lifted, the heat returning with a vengeance even before the final drops made their way down to the forest floor. With grumbles and complaints, despite the hearty breakfast offered by their hosts, the companions loaded up their gear again and made their way down the rope ladder, ready to set out once again on their journey. They saw the elder Rakos only briefly, and they exchanged only a few brief well-wishes that were not translated by another magical spell. They were joined at the base of the phanaton tree by Charek, who indicated with gestures that they companions were to follow him. They spent the bulk of that morning slogging through the jungle after the agile phanaton, who had little difficulty making his way though the lower reaches of the forest canopy above them. By the noon break they all felt worn out, the benefits of the previous night’s rest already squandered. There was nothing to do but push on, so they did. Delem looked perhaps the worst off, with dark rings under his eyes indicating that he hadn’t gotten much sleep. Benzan teased him a little, but the dark look that the young man shot him was enough to make even the tiefling back off. Dana remained near the front of the column, and didn’t say much to either of them. They finally reached the end of the jungle as the sun was setting, and their guide led them to a sheltered campsite situated at the border between forest and hills. True to Rakos’s word, they could see numerous caves visible along the jagged lines of these hills, which were rougher and less overgrown than the ones further to the south that they’d already traversed. Charek indicated with gestures that most of the caves were uninhabited by hostile creatures, but they kept up a close watch anyway as they made their camp. Nothing molested them that night, however, and with the next day they made better time even with the ruggedness of the terrain. Now that they were free of the jungle they could see that they had in fact made considerable progress in the direction of the mountains, which now dominated the horizon ahead of them to the north. Now that there were no more trees, Charek was forced to move alongside the rest of them, but the agile creature was still able to drive them to a wearying pace. By midafternoon they could see the gap in the mountains ahead that marked the valley, and by the time that the sun had touched the western horizon they had progressed far enough to see the dense woods that filled the confines of the pass. The day had seemed almost preternaturally still, as if the very world around them slept, but none of them complained about their good fortune. For once, no strange and horrible creature had appeared to threaten them, and they were in fairly good spirits as they found another sheltered campsite and prepared for the coming night. Their luck held, and the second consecutive night passed uneventfully. With the morning, however, Charek took his leave of them. The small phanaton indicated with gestures that the route up into the valley led straight along their current course, but before he turned to leave, he went to Cal and offered him a small ceramic vial taken from a pocket of his leather harness. “Hágale fuerte,” the small creature said, pantomiming drinking the liquid and then flexing its muscles. “Thank you,” Cal said, taking the potion. “Your people have been very generous to us.” Although the phanaton could not understand the words, he nodded at the gratitude in Cal’s tone, and turned to regard them one last time. “Buena suerte,” he said, and then turned and departed, running swiftly over the hills back toward the shelter of his jungle home. “You might as well take this,” Cal said to Lok, handing him the potion of strength. “Is everyone ready?” the gnome asked, waiting for everyone’s nod before he turned back toward the opening of the valley and led them out again. “Ugh. I hate spiders,” Elly said, as their next challenge grew steadily nearer. * * * * * The hike up into the valley wasn’t that difficult, and they reached the edge of the forest by late morning. The place didn’t seem all that forbidding at first, and in fact they could hear birds singing in the boughs as they entered the outer reaches, and wildflowers grew in patches in sunny clearings between the clusters of trees. Behind them the entire southern half of the island spread out in a glorious panorama, and beyond that the blue expanse of the ocean stretched out as far as they could see to the distant horizons. After a brief rest for lunch, they started out again. The ground here was rockier than the lowlands, and they’d gained some altitude in their hike, so the forest wasn’t as dense or verdant as the jungles they’d traveled through earlier. The ground continued to slope up as they made their way deeper into the wood, and soon all of them were sweating again despite the cooler air. About an hour into the forest, the mood around them began to change. The forest grew noticeably darker as the boughs above them began to thicken and grow together, and the smell of rotting vegetation that carpeted the forest floor contrasted sharply with the earlier smells of the sea breeze and wildflowers. And then they encountered the webs. Just wisps at first, the webs quickly became thicker, the gooey strands forming walls between the trunks of adjacent trees. They weren’t enough to bar their passage, but provided a grim reminder that dark things lurked in this forest, and that they were drawing nearer to the danger that the phanatons had warned them about. Finally, they emerged at the edge of a wide clearing dominated by three massive trees, their trunks ascending high into the sky like towers. The branches of the trees were clotted with webs, making it difficult for them to see what, if anything, might be lurking in their depths. They could just make out what looked like a small hut at the base of one of the trees, or it might have just been a pile of old dead wood and trash overgrown with exposed roots. The whole scene was quiet—too quiet. “I don’t like the looks of this place,” Benzan said. “Why don’t we just go around?” Lok suggested. “If there is an enemy here, I’d just as soon not leave it at my back, as we stumble through the woods looking for the pass,” Benzan returned. “It feels like someone—or something—is watching us,” Dana observed. “All right then, let’s check it out,” Cal said. “But it doesn’t hurt to be prepared, of course.” He launched into his typical routine, protecting himself, Dana, and Delem with mage armor from his wand. While he did that, Dana summoned her own power to enhance Lok’s endurance once again, and Ruath added a spell of her own to boost Benzan’s strength. Thus bolstered, they headed cautiously into the clearing. As they neared, they could make out a terrible sight, half-hidden in the shadows at the base of the largest tree. At the base of the trunk, forming a ring around its massive girth, were at least a half-dozen captives. To their horror the companions realized that the prisoners had apparently been crucified, their blood-splattered and half-naked bodies staked spread-eagled against the wood. Furthermore, the captives, though apparently human, were not of the [I]Inselfolk,[/I] but by their appearances could easily have been from their own home regions in Faerûn. Most of them hung limply, held up only by the pinions driven through their bodies, but one of them looked up as they neared, his lips parting in a silent call as he tried in vain to entreat them—or warn them. “By the gods,” Horath said, and several of the others had to fight the gorge that threatened to rise in their throats at the terrible sight. Lok had already started forward, his jaw tightening at this abuse of thinking creatures. “Wait,” Cal said. “It could be a trap.” “Well, of course it’s a trap,” Benzan said, his tone betraying his own anger. “Why don’t we shake one of those trees, and see what comes out? Think you could manage one of those flame-streams from here, Delem?” “Do what you will, I’m going to help those people,” Lok said, and he continued toward the tree with grim determination. Ruath followed him, but the others hesitated, knowing that they were probably being led to this very course by still-unseen adversaries. “Wait here,” Cal finally said to Horath and the sailors, while he, Dana, Delem, and Benzan hurried after Lok and Ruath. They entered the area under the massive forms of the trees, their web-shrouded branches reaching out as far as fifty paces from their trunks. The webs made a canopy of sorts directly above their heads, but nothing stirred from within them as they approached the tree where the imprisoned captives hung helplessly. They kept alert for the slightest sign of danger, their eyes darting both around the uneven ground around the bases of the trees and up to the web-choked branches above. Lok’s attention, however, was focused entirely on the poor wretches held prisoner. Had he been less intent on rescuing them from their bonds, he might have noticed that their bodies, though marked with grievous wounds and lots of blood, all appeared to be roughly identical. He realized his mistake, however, when he reached out to touch the broken body of the first captive, and his hand passed through empty air. “They’re illusions!” he yelled, in warning to the others. But the warning came too late—the attack had already begun. [/QUOTE]
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