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Zellar

"Perhaps we should veer further south. There's no saying how far out the orcish patrols range. But if we give ourselves a good six miles, we should avoid running into any hunting or foraging bands, and we can then make all haste north directly into their territory."

Alwen Nar

While the caravan is on the move, Nar will dig deeper into the mysteries of throan. He asks the merchants and caravan guards if they've ever clashed with the throan beetles, wondering what sort of battle might be fought if the creatures are aggressive.

With the caravan heading north
Goshawk
Not the loudest voice in the group, Goshawk is content to ride nearby and listen to the stories of throan. After a while, he rides up to Matts and asks, "So when you aren't blazing trails northward, where does your caravan head to? I'm mostly curious where the paths of trade in these lands go...never really been into many of the commercial businesses myself..."

Newton

"I think moving further south is a good idea, more chance of surprising them"

Ribar travels with Matts, bow within easy reach. On seeing the state of the guards, he does his best to hide a disapproving look.

Fifthmonth, Twentyfourthday
The Orc Hunters

The strategy decided, the adventurers break camp and head out, Newton and Valru leading. For the most part the woods remain the same: light forest of mostly hardwoods, the leaves now just loosing the emerald green of spring and darkening towards the dust and heat of summer. Shortly before noon, as they travel west, a curious thing occurs; despite being nearly cloudless, the sun darkens, rapidly, until it as dark as dusk. For a brief instant the sounds of night emerge, spring peepers and crickets, owls hooting into the false night. Looking up, the adventurers see through the sparse canopy that the sun seems to have been swallowed by a disc of darkness!

However, the disc quickly moves, revealing the sun once more, and the creatures of the night return to their slumber, as the eclipse ends just as quickly as it begins. Sumer, of all the party, is the only one who feels anything strange; her arms are covered in gooseflesh, and there is a strange, coppery taste in her mouth. It seems to her that there may be more to this than a simple solar phenomena!

Fifthmonth, Twentyfourthday
The Caravan Guards

The strategy decided, the adventurers break camp and head out. The pace is slow, almost painfully so, as the wagons are pulled slowly along by straining draft horses. Shortly before noon, as they travel west, a curious thing occurs; despite being nearly cloudless, the sun darkens, rapidly, until it as dark as dusk. For a brief instant the sounds of night emerge, spring peepers and crickets, owls hooting into the false night. Looking up, the adventurers can't quite tell what may have darkened the sky.

However, within a minute the sky begins to lighten as quickly as it darkened, and the creatures of the night return to their slumber. The guards begin to grumble and exchange meaningful looks. The adventurers hear snatches of conversation. "Bad omens," says one; "I've got a bad feeling about this," mutters another.

Feargus with the orc hunters
"...that's one for a new poem Mardan Cy, any of you ever hear of anything like that happening before?"

Goshawk with the caravan
"What in the hells was that?" He immediately is scanning the treelines and looking for enemies.

thirdkingdom wrote:Fifthmonth, Twentyfourthday
The Orc Hunters

The strategy decided, the adventurers break camp and head out, Newton and Valru leading. For the most part the woods remain the same: light forest of mostly hardwoods, the leaves now just loosing the emerald green of spring and darkening towards the dust and heat of summer. Shortly before noon, as they travel west, a curious thing occurs; despite being nearly cloudless, the sun darkens, rapidly, until it as dark as dusk. For a brief instant the sounds of night emerge, spring peepers and crickets, owls hooting into the false night. Looking up, the adventurers see through the sparse canopy that the sun seems to have been swallowed by a disc of darkness!

However, the disc quickly moves, revealing the sun once more, and the creatures of the night return to their slumber, as the eclipse ends just as quickly as it begins. Sumer, of all the party, is the only one who feels anything strange; her arms are covered in gooseflesh, and there is a strange, coppery taste in her mouth. It seems to her that there may be more to this than a simple solar phenomena!

Sumer - The Orc Hunters

Sumer looks above and all around her as the eclipse occurs with a thrilled alarm. "What an interesting phenomenon! I wonder if this has happened before and what it meant. ...must mean something." She seems deep in thought about this as.

PresGas wrote:

thirdkingdom wrote:Fifthmonth, Twentyfourthday
The Orc Hunters

The strategy decided, the adventurers break camp and head out, Newton and Valru leading. For the most part the woods remain the same: light forest of mostly hardwoods, the leaves now just loosing the emerald green of spring and darkening towards the dust and heat of summer. Shortly before noon, as they travel west, a curious thing occurs; despite being nearly cloudless, the sun darkens, rapidly, until it as dark as dusk. For a brief instant the sounds of night emerge, spring peepers and crickets, owls hooting into the false night. Looking up, the adventurers see through the sparse canopy that the sun seems to have been swallowed by a disc of darkness!

However, the disc quickly moves, revealing the sun once more, and the creatures of the night return to their slumber, as the eclipse ends just as quickly as it begins. Sumer, of all the party, is the only one who feels anything strange; her arms are covered in gooseflesh, and there is a strange, coppery taste in her mouth. It seems to her that there may be more to this than a simple solar phenomena!

Sumer - The Orc Hunters

Sumer looks above and all around her as the eclipse occurs with a thrilled alarm. "What an interesting phenomenon! I wonder if this has happened before and what it meant. ...must mean something." She seems deep in thought about this as.

I assume we can get something from History about this, but maybe not magical engineering (unless this is NOT cyclical for the area). What does she know about this and what it may portend? Is there a significance to the coppery taste besides blood?

As a matter of fact, she has felt the same way exactly one other time. Almost exactly two month prior, on the Twentythirdday of the Thirdmonth, the star Nerathil, the Jewel of the Circlet, also called the Lady's Ruby, disappeared from the sky. Sages determined that its absence heralded a period of time when the barriers between the worlds would thin, and creatures from other places would have an easier time slipping through the Veil that separates the planes. She felt exactly the same way then as she did now, when the moon passed before the sun, darkening the sky.

The_Wanderer wrote:

This isn't ominous or anything. I mean nothing really happened last time so certainly it won't happen this time, right?

The_Wanderer wrote:

This isn't ominous or anything. I mean nothing really happened last time so certainly it won't happen this time, right?

Sumer - The Orc Hunters

Sumer relays her remembrance to the group. "Considering what we experienced in the village, this could be something important. ...and I hope it isn't the village itself."

Zellar

"This is ominous news, Sumer Seskin. We are blessed to count you and your erudition among our number.

"All of you, take heed! When darkness falls amid daylight, it bodes well for the things of chaos. We must be sharp as winter's zephyr, quick as the hawk that descends upon the fieldmouse, wise as these trees that have seen civilizations rise and fall. Burnnkenkrayn and the Broken Tusks have received a benighted benison. It will take all our vim and vigour to see this thing through, I know it."


Sigmari An

"Perhaps a bit of darkness might be a help and not just a hindrance for us, Zellar; we intend to lay an ambush, after all. I only regret that it has gone too soon."


Alwen Nar

"Now who's taking the piss with that spectacle?"

Newton

"Not a good omen, I just hope it's nothing at the village, and whatever it means is elsewhere"

Ribar

"Such omens, very rarely bode for weal, I have found. We should be extra alert" he looks at Matts and the others, concern on his face.

Gardo

"I don't really know what that means for us right now. Maybe the sun going dark was signaling the middle of the time this barrier is weak. Probably means I get a chance to kill more chaos spawn as well. Also, those orcs might be a bit scared with that happening as well. Let's continue on with haste, we may catch them more unawares now."

Fifthmonth, Twentyfourthday
The Orc Hunters

With the mystery still unsolved, the adventurers continue westward, traveling through mostly uninteresting forest-land. It seems as though the land is becoming gradually more hilly the further west one travels, as would make sense, as the Dorre Hills -- the mineral rich hill country north of Junction, is getting closer. About an hour before it is time to call for a rest the adventurers come across a small river, or perhaps a wide stream. It's about twenty feet wide, and looks to be no more than two or three feet deep. The water looks cool and inviting.

In the middle of the small river or wide stream is a large brown bear, staring directly at the adventurers, what looks to be a bloodied fish hanging from her mount. A pair of cubs, perhaps no more than three or four months old, stand on the opposite bank, watching their mother.

Fifthmonth, Twentyfourthday
The Caravan Crew

The adventurers continue onwards. They reach the settlement of Pont as night is setting, an extremely slow pace compared to what the trio are used to. The laboring settlers and guards both look up at their approach, all cheering. It seems as if the arrival of the caravan is cause for celebration.

Throughout the journey Alwen Nar rides alongside Matts. She asks many questions about throan, but finds that while Matts may be knowledgeable about the product itself, he is largely ignorant of its production. "I think the beetles themselves are not very large," he says, "though I have never seen them. They are apparently difficult to domesticate and farm. The large beetles I have heard off -- the size of horses -- may exist in some sort of symbiotic relationship with them, or perhaps it is just a coincidence."

The_Wanderer wrote:With the caravan heading north
Goshawk
Not the loudest voice in the group, Goshawk is content to ride nearby and listen to the stories of throan. After a while, he rides up to Matts and asks, "So when you aren't blazing trails northward, where does your caravan head to? I'm mostly curious where the paths of trade in these lands go...never really been into many of the commercial businesses myself..."

Matts

"We largely trade laterally, I suppose, west and east of here, with the villages and towns that line the border, and back down south. There are those brave enough, or foolhardy enough, to venture over the border even in the times of trouble to cut timber, or trap beaver and mink. We take those goods south, to the Ford, and bring back finished supplies. Alice is booming, as you can see, and there is plenty of profit to be made. We have also made several trips northwards, to the Violet Kingdom, and places such as Gifukrum. In days past we would reach those places along this road, but in recent years have had to swing far to the east, a journey of twice as long, but twice the safety, as well."

Newton The Orc Hunters

Newton gestures for the group to halt

"A mother and it's children, she will defend them if pressed. We should let them make there own way"

shaidar wrote:Newton The Orc Hunters

Newton gestures for the group to halt

"A mother and it's children, she will defend them if pressed. We should let them make there own way"

Hopefully I'm right, is there a roll, 'naturalist' or 'wilderness creatures' I can make?

Fifthmonth, Twentyfourthday
The Orc Hunters

After a few minutes the mama bear climbs out of the water and back onto the bank, and leads her cubs away without so much of a backwards glance at the adventurers. It takes the party another half hour before they find a suitable campsite, but one is eventually located and a camp established.
Fifthmonth, Twentyfifthday
The Orc Hunters
Hex 230.124

Wolves howl in the distance during the night, but morning comes uneventfully. The adventurers may once again contact Madame Fleur, and they now have to make the decision of how to proceed. "This is the largest river in the area that I know of," says Valru, "and it flows north, like the captive says. I think if we follow it we will likely come across their encampment."

Fifthmonth, Twentyfifthday
Pont

The caravan is loaded up and ready to go in the early morning, much to the chagrin of some of the guards and one or two merchants, who all seem to be nursing hangovers. The adventurers note that the Prince's men do not appear worse for the wear; they mostly stayed to themselves the previous night, as well as on the road.

Feargus

Feargus looks on as the bear walks away and sees a small movement to his side. Looking over, he sees Mardan Cy aiming his shortbow at the bear. Feargus open palm smacks the shortbow down. "What are you doing waving that thing around? It's just a bear. Don't always think with your manhood...it will get even the strongest warrior in trouble." He rides off shaking his head, leaving Mardan Cy staring down river.

"Yeah, let's follow the river. We can stick to the treeline easy enough. Might be best if we go more slowly to allow the scouts to do their work. We'll want to find the camp and then also determine a best angle and time of approach."

Sumer - The Orc Hunters

Sumer is fascinated by the bears and scenery. She agrees following the river is a good plan.