Ravenloft - Barovia
Black pools of water stand like dark mirrors about the muddy roadway. A pall of thick cold mist spreads over the ground. Giant tree trunks stand guard on both sides of the road, their branches clawing at the mists. In every direction the fog grows thicker and the forest seems more oppressive.
The mists and failing light do not hamper your vision, certainly no more than the twists and turns of the road which limit your direct line of sight. Nor does the seemingly relentless march weary you overmuch, though the conditions conspire to make tracking the passage of time difficult.
The Paladin rides ahead for a while, joined by Arafarafarfa and Oooh'Awww, much to the horse's distaste, the Halfling seemingly unwilling to yield the foremost place. But after a mile or two of hearing naught but the clatter of his own horse's hooves and the steady, unlaboured panting of the big cat, he drops back to rejoin you ... and Arafarafarfa is pleased to slow enough to allow you to catch up, though she retains her position in the front.
And so you trudge on, and on ...
Grey in the fog, high stone pillars loom up from the grey impenetrable woods on both sides of the road. Huge iron gates hang from the stonework, dew clinging to their rusting bars. Standing before the pillars are two stone statues of armed guardians with wicked polearms. Their carved heads lie among the weeds at their feet, neatly broken from the stone shoulders.
As you approach, the gates screech slowly open ...
