Giles nodded "word of things spreads fast round the fort... it wouldn't surprise me even if the horses knew by now" he said with a shrug.

He listened intently to Brashear, focused more on the pain down his side than anything, but could still recall the words and understand the flow of conversation despite his relative lack of attention.

Repeating, he said "Okay, so, we find where the woods is from, where it's going and what's getting done with it.

The question I have is this. What will we do about it? If we find out where it's coming from, a supply chain like that could add threat to the entire border. Knowing where they intend to strike might not be enough by itself. If it keeps coming, they might end up having multiple locations where these devices are being created... then he paused a moment and stroked his thickly stubbled chin ... I know it's early days yet, in theory, and perhaps i'm getting ahead of myself - but this is a new threat and one that feels like it is not singular.

Giles shuffled from one foot to the other and then stifled a wince at the shooting feeling he felt run down his leg. Absently, he wondered whether the pain was real or just a phantom of the real horror that had crystallised in his mind so clearly. It didn't matter though.

"I'll go. Heading up river seems to be the best bet. Though, if it is coming directly from the great forest, I'll hit the border of Wazif or Caithness before reaching it... he mused. ... though less likely to get killed on sight in Caithness." came the wry comment.

OOC:

Right, he's ready and willing to go.


As for poker, aye - massive investment, but a great pay off if you're not emotional or stupid. I much prefer putting my 'win potential' into things that can be favourable, and aren't just based on random chance. Also, there's a skill and competitiveness to poker that I like.

I was in Vegas a year or so ago, managed to come back with more money that I took because of pokwer (at least the money I gambled) in terms of spending and drinking and enjoying the 'glories' of Vegas, i haemorrhaged cash.

Alright ramblers, lets get ramblign.
This message was lightly edited by the GM at 16:20, Sat 13 June 2020.

When Giles asks what to do if they actually find where the wood is coming from, Brashear shakes his head.  "What we need is information.  For now I would say, if you can find it, bring back what information you can.  How bit the operation is, how far, how many people.  Things like that.  The last thing we need though is for you to try and do too much and get captured or worse."

Brashear nods as Giles mentions just following the river Westward.  "You're probably right.  I can't think of any better way.  Just be careful.  We've already seen how hostile the Wazifis can be and I'm fairly certain that Caithness is still wracked in civil war.  Be careful Giles."

OOC:  Before I fast forward, look at your equipment and give some thought to what you want to bring.  Most all of what you want will be provided by the fort, so long as they have it.  Unfortunately, due to the shortage of people you'll be limited to one other person to come along.  You may choose Edenburg if you wish, or otherwise you can pick a single skill you want your cohort to have at 15, or you can choose 2 skills at level 12.

"I'd think it's better to stay on the Megalan side as much as possible. Though I'll cross if there are no fords for a long time. If they're using the river, and it's not too wide, it should be easy enough to spot from either bank.

Once we see the activity we can push deeper to see where the wood is coming from. he said, stifling a grimace at the idea of being captured by Wazifi forces.

"i'll do what I can... I'm just glad they're using the river at all. It will lead us right to their operation, I think. Either way, i'll find what I can and relay the information back here.


OOC:

The 'most' important skill is outdoorsy/tracking/stealth. Ranger-type skills are probably most needed - so anyone with the most abundance of that kind of thing. Giles can kind of do some, but I wouldn't count on his ability to survive in the wild for any length of time on his own - at least not in difficult terrain.

Naturally riding is important too. And some form of fighting skill, should it be required (though this is tertiary). IF there's another mage, maybe 'divining'.


Equipment, we'll be initially taking the north (megalan) side of the river, and I expect most of the river bank on either side is fairly green, with copses of trees and bush.

Equipment:

Chakram
Wolf Statue
Armour
Shield (medium)
Horse
Sword, Knife x2
'Survival stuff'
Money

Does the fort hold anything like poison? Or 'mass effect' type things?



Before heading off, he'll take time to memorise
"The Warrior's Code"
and
"The Masters: A study of great warriors (Wazifi)"
7:59, Today: Giles 'J'naeth' Hind rolled 6 using 3d6.  IQ+5.

He will also take the time to Memorise the most detaild maps the fort has.
18:00, Today: Giles 'J'naeth' Hind rolled 8 using 3d6.  IQ+5.
17:59, Today: Giles 'J'naeth' Hind rolled 8 using 3d6.  IQ+5.

The morning dawns bright and warm... tipping on hot, an ill sign, especially when the previous day had been scorching with heat by the late morning, approaching unbearable by the early afternoon.  It was not the right time of year to start this expedition.  Right in the middle of the summer when the heat was at its peak and the days lasted long enough that it never cooled down enough at night.

Still, a job was a job, and Giles couldn't ask for a more reasonable person to be taking the trip with.  Edenburg was completely healed from the fight at the fort, though he still had a nasty scar of the slash down his leg.  He didn't seem to let it get to him however, and often told the story of standing on the top of the hill, taking the brunt of the attack with Giles as the horsemen charged their position, cutting a few of them down before he was injured by three of them attacking him at once.  It was a story which had garnered him some attention and admiration within the ranks.

The two had left early two mornings ago, taking a pair of horses, Firebrand and Sage, starting along the normal patrol route which had not been swept since the beginning of the fort's troubles.  They hadn't overexerted themselves, letting the horses stop often for water and grazing, while the two men searched the hills for any sign of disturbed vegetation.

As the sun rises in the East, it illuminates the badlands to the South and marks a few high columns of rising stone in the distance that were not nearly as clear the previous evening.

"The pillars of Heaven."  Edenburg remarks to Giles as the latter routs himself from the tent.  "Never seen 'em myself, but there are a few of the guys who've talked about coming out this far.  They say there are some crazy monks that live up at the top of em."

Edenburg passes Giles a slab of dried meat from their rations.  "So what's the plan boss, just keep on cruising along the river?"

OOC:  Ok, I think I'm done with all of the admin stuff I needed before moving your thread along.  Sorry I stopped you again here, but I wanted to make sure I cleared a couple of points and asked a few questions before we went too far.

Giles:

I expect most of the river bank on either side is fairly green, with copses of trees and bush.

The bank itself is green, with some scrub that grows close to the edge, but we are in the middle of the dry season, and the river has ebbed significantly with some healthier grasses growing in places where there would be water flowing in wetter times.  You don't need to move far from the bank though before things dry out almost completely.  There is scrub brush and high, amber grasses, and that's about it.

Giles:

Does the fort hold anything like poison? Or 'mass effect' type things?

No.

Your equipment has been edited on your character sheet, with those items that have been checked out of inventory noted.  Edenburg has also taken bandages, a two person tent, and rations for your trip.  As for the study, your look into the two books refreshed some of your knowledge on soldiering and tactics, and gave some insight into strategy.  You earned one point into the Strategy skill.

What are your plans for the movement?  Do you want to just keep moving along the northern bank going Westward until you see a forested area on one side or the other?  I'm not suggesting there is a better option, just want to make sure I have your intent clear.


A much closer shot of what the Pillars of Heaven may look like

Everything seemed calm out in the open. It was a familiar feeling to Giles and as he breathed deep in the hot summer air, feeling the scents of the world touch him, a sense of calm passed.
"Nice to be away from the fort, for a time isn't it Edenburg" he said casually as he stopped a moment to let his horse eat grass.

After Edenburg spoke Giles looked at the arid land, noting the rockiness that was so different from the place he grew up, full of yellows and ochres rather than the greens and browns and blues of North East Megalos.
"Me neither, they look very strange to my eye. It could be here, but this river leads to the great forest and it isn't so much further.

It wouldn't surprise me that the wood be passed through this area, but given the climate, and the ease of which to transport wood in the river i'm inclined to say we keep along the Makaram until we make for more wooded areas. My sense would have me believe that the most logical decision he said, raising his hand to his eyes to shield from the sun and get a better look at the surrounding areas.

While scanning the area Giles said again "Under normal circumstances, i'd suggest we go visit the monks and see what they're about.. but maybe this is a bad idea at the moment" a grin came to his lips.

"At least lets find somewhere to cross, and then move along the river on that side..."


OOC:

We'll  keep moving up the river, it seems the most reasonable course of action - but we'll cross at the next easy fording spot.

Taking the time to admire the sights of the pillars of heaven from afar, Giles presses Firebrand forward, looking over at the river to find a gentle enough spot for fording.

As luck would have it, the dry season gives Giles plenty of opportunity, and within only a few miles, Giles finds a wide, shallow section of the river that seems to be running slowly enough for an easy crossing.  Giles and Edenburg push themselves across, making easy work of the waters which barely rise up past the horses' bellies.

An hour or so later, as Giles is riding, he notices the mana draining from the air around him...  He had heard that the farther West one traveled, the weaker the mana got, though this was his first time really experiencing such a change.  Perhaps it was a lucky thing that Giles had not come to be very reliant on his magic, for he was not sure exactly what sort of differences this environment would make.

The two soldiers make relatively good time.  Giles keeps his eyes out for woods or forrest, though for the most part all of the terrain to the south remains the hilly badlands and scrub that Giles has become used to for al-Wazif.  While the North side of the river does seem to get a little greener, most of the changes seem to be livelier grasses and small bushes.

On their fourth day of travel, Giles is beginning to wonder just how much farther the great forest could be.

The day is clear and blue... and swelteringly hot.  Even before the horses had been set with the saddle pad, they had already begun to sweat, a sign which makes things clear to Giles that they will have to have another easy day of riding.  It wouldn't do to exhaust the horses in this heat.  Lord knew that if they lost one of the horses to heat exhaustion, things would be significantly more difficult.

At least they had the river to plunge into and cool themselves off Giles mused to himself.

But just then, a small shadow crosses near him in the sky, and Giles searches between the wisps of clouds to find a thick-bodied bird with massive wings, high above them.  Giles is no expert on animals, though the beast appears to be just doing circles.

His hips rocked with the gait of Firebrand as he lowered down to the level of the river began to ford. The coolness of the water was too much to resist, and he leaned over and splashed some water in his face, and then onto the neck of the horse while they crossed.

"The water is good" he said to break the silence.

It was a small respite that the man revelled in throughout their journey. Every camping site was close enough to the river that he could cool himself off after the heat. He was beginning to feel it deep in his skin, like the other times he'd crossed to Wazif. Coming from the northern parts of Megalos, Giles had grown up in colder climates, where winter was marked with thick snow and ice in the seas and rivers. After such a life, he could never quite get comfortable with the temperature of the southern empire but Al-Wazif was a different beast and almost an hour after sunrise Giles sweated worse than his horse.

---

When the sensation of magic first hit Giles, he thought maybe he had just not eaten enough, or that the sun was affecting him a little too much, it took him an embarrassingly long time to realise that magical energies had dropped - though when he realised, it became so obvious. He was just unused to the sensation of something that had been so intertwined in his life until that point.

"We're in Caithness, or at least very close..." he said to Edenburg. "... I would guess heading north now would take us deeper into their lands, but it means the Great Forest must be close by....


As he spoke, Giles glanced up and saw a large bird soared across the sky, notable due to its size and distance, that the man couldn't quite fathom. "Look at that... Can you tell what kind of bird it is? Circling means there's something nearby, right? Dead or food or even a body of water? he asked, with Edenburg being more outdoorsy than he.


OOC:
18:29, Today: Giles 'J'naeth' Hind rolled 12 using 3d6.  observation.

Edenburg glances upwards, shielding his eyes from the sun.

"Yeah."  The corporal responds, staring for another few moments before he clarifies his thoughts.

"Look at the thing's backend.  Doesn't look like a normal tail... more like it's hanging its feet out the back...  Whatever it is, it's big."

Giles asks his question and Edenburg answers with a little hesitation.  "Yeah, carrion birds circle.  I'm not much of a bird expert...  You think it's looking for something?

Giles covered his eyes to block the sun and kept looking at the flying creature. He wasn't sure but it did look a little too big to be a bird, or at least a lot bigger than the ones he'd see before. He wondered wryly whether his initial assumptions had been off, and rather than signalling the enemy it might just be hunting the only game in the immediate area... him and Edenburg.

"Lets just hope it doesn't see us as prey, eh?" he said with a light chuckle, shrugging at the fatalism he felt in that moment.

"Birds are usually drawn to things, seagulls often near the coast, vultures near carrion and corposes, and lots of other animals are drawn to places of watering. But if neither of us can tell the kind of animal it is then maybe it's not worth considering.

For now, lets just keep an eye on it and keep moving. despite his unwillingness to share much information about his magical background, Edenburg was as close to him as anyone in the fort and Giles didn't mind mentioning it every now and then.

"There's no spell I know that could help reveal what it is, and as we're this close to Caithness, if not there already, I don't think I could draw enough power to be successful even if I knew the right spell.



OOC: I am right in thinking Giles has a -5 to cast penalty now, right?

Giles decides to simply keep moving along, keeping an eye on the situation.  However, the day is so exceedingly hot, especially in his armor, that Giles finds that the slog of riding is wearying almost immediately.  After only an hour and a half or so Firebrand is lathered in a thick coat of sweat and Giles feels much the same, his clothing steeped in sweat underneath the chain links of his armor.

"Doesn't look like it's getting any farther away from us does it?"  Edenburg asks, gazing into the clear, blue sky as he takes a long draw of water from his skin.

Indeed, the creatures has only seemed to get closer.  Giles takes another closer look and can now more clearly see the beast as it circles away from the sun.  It has a massive wingspan, he would guess twelve feet or more and thick, muscular legs that trail behind as it glides lazily in circles above.

"I don't like this."  Edenburg replaces his skin, his face tensing into a grimace.  "The horses aren't going to last long in this heat.  We're going to have to rest and water them soon...  and that thing still won't leave us alone."

OOC:  Yes, you are at -5 for spell casting due to the low mana area.  Critical failures do not produce spectacular results as normal though, so apart from the one fatigue from a failed spell, you can cast with near impunity.

It is 1030 on the 4th of September.  Roll vs. HT-2.  For every point you miss by you are down 1 point of fatigue from the rather brief ride.  The flying beast seems to be following you.  Feel free to take any sort of precaution or action you wish.  If you wish to find some sort of shelter, you can roll vs. Survival: Mountains +2 or Survival: Plains.  Otherwise you can look to water the horses at the river or anything else you can think of.

Giles nodded as he wiped a thick torrent of sweat from his brow. The heat is ungodly he said, taking pains to look up at the airborne creature again.

"Alright, we can't keep like this, lets water the horses as best we can and then go find some shelter. There will be some caves around here i'm sure, or some shade we can find until the sun passes its worst  he said pausing, and tugging at his mail to readjust the clothes underneath that felt sodden and were clinging to his body.

"Lets get to the water..." he said, having an idea.

Upon arrival, he glanced up at the flying creature again and squinted trying to figure out if it might be them it was waiting for. Perhaps waiting for them to falter under the sun.

Reaching down to the Wolf statue, Giles closed his eyes and concentrated a moment, speaking the words he had before, and then hoping that they could listen to him, or had some vague intelligence. When they arrived, he would point the direction he indicated and speak "find men, and return when you see them please". It was worth a shot, he reconsidered a moment, wondering just what connection he might have to the wolves that emerged from the device, but was fairly sure they would not attack him.


17:39, Today: Giles 'J'naeth' Hind rolled 9 using 3d6.  HT-2.
//pass

Ah, i was going to cast a spell, but there's almost no chance of him actually succeeding.

Survival:
17:43, Today: Giles 'J'naeth' Hind rolled 11 using 3d6.  survival.

//pass

Giles decides to water the horses first, and then get to some shelter to wait out the the creature that seems to be stalking them.  But first thing was first.

Giles takes out his small totem, the wooden statue of the five wolves and speaks quietly to it.  Instantly the thing grows and comes to life, five full sized adult wolves which lope in circles and loll out their tongues in the afternoon heat.

Chaos immediately ensues.

Firebrand panics, rearing back as he paws the air with his fore-hooves.  Sage too, whinnies as she quick steps backwards, her ears immediately back.  Giles grips onto Firebrand with his heels, trying desperately to keep from falling, pulling back perhaps over hard on the reigns as he looks for any hold to keep himself upright.  Firebrand lands and rears again, and Giles slips ever so slightly, nearly falling off the saddle as he grips the front with his other hand.  Mercifully, <i>Firebrand calms enough that Giles can reseat himself and renew his grip while he attempts his best soothing voice towards the animal.

One of the wolves yips in Giles's direction before the five run off.  With their absence, Giles manages to calm Firebrand down enough to dismount, and let the horse drink.

Of course, in all the commotion, Giles had not paid much attention to their visitor.  Looking over his shoulder, Giles nearly panics again as he sees the thing in a dive, close enough that its whole body is now plainly in view.  It is an incredible beast, with the body and wings of a giant eagle, and the aft body of some jungle cat.

Panic courses through Giles for a moment before the thing's motion across the horizon makes him realize that the beast cannot be diving at them.  Though in the next moments, things become more clear.

Effortlessly, the beast plucks one of Giles's wolves off the ground mid-stride.  The wolf yips as it is carried off the ground twisting futilely in the thing's grasp.  Giles watches the two struggle for a moment as they grow smaller in the distance.  And then they are gone.

"I guess that's one way to get rid of it..."  Edenburg offers, watching just as intently himself as he blocks the sun from his eyes with a hand.

OOC:  Firebrand failed a will roll when you called the wolves, which set you into a several second long battle for control that took all of your concentration.  Though you managed to keep from falling off, there wasn't anything you could to recognize or stop one of your wolves from getting picked off.  The good news is that the wolf snack seemed to satisfy the Gryphon's appetite.  I'm assuming that you are going to water the horses, rest and then just keep moving along.  However, the direction you pointed for the wolves to go is fairly important.  You can see the Pillars of Heaven still just off to the Southwest (closer than previously), and you can see some hilly country rising up towards the West and Northwest.  The river is directly north, and most of the Eastward directions go back into the scrub lands that you have been traveling through the last few days.  Please give me a cardinal or sub-cardinal direction that you pointed for the wolves to go.  Or if you'd rather, you can take back your 'pointing' in which case they will go out semirandomly.


The Bird

He cursed when the Gryphon swooped and took one of his wolves, and Giles secretly hoped that the magical creature wasn't permanently gone. The man had barely been able to keep his saddle though when it had swooped, and he fantasised momentarily about people he'd heard of who had fallen from a horse and damaged themselves beyond repair. He was glad it wasn't him, again.

"Glad it wasn't us..." he said sheepishly, as he re-adjusted his seating and then looked down at the wolves, and gestured out west in an arc to give them more understanding of his intention.

OOC:

The goal is to have at least one push along the river, to see if we can spot the location where the wood is getting loaded into the water, the others should fan out south-westerly, to essentially cover parallel tracks at something like:

100m-> 1500m, 2500m 3500m away from the river, parallel.

I assume that this will take them into the great forest, and give us the best 'coverage' of ground south of the river to see a logging camp or transportation. Should they pick up the scent, it needs to be relayed back to us.

However, Giles intention is to keep the pack within range of each other. It's kinda like doing a sweep through forest, set at wide distance (still within visual range of each other, fo humans, but perhaps audible for the wolves).

Giles gives his direction quickly the the wolves, who fan out towards the South and West, paralleling the river at various distances.  No longer seeing any reason to seek shelter with the Gryphon gone in the distance, Giles takes his time to refresh himself and the horses in the cool water of the Makarem.

It is less than a half of an hour later when the wolves return.

Somewhat more sensitive to the effect the wolves have on the horses, Giles moves away from the equines to meet them.  They yip and loll their tongues, signs which Giles don't seem to easily translate for Giles, though they can only seem to mean that the wolves found something since they are back.

Edenburg rounds up the horses and follows at a distance, a somewhat less convenient arrangement than riding, though the slower speed more than made up for the danger of spooking the horses.

Perhaps an hour goes by before the wolves stop, sitting on the edge of the river, their tongues dripping from the sides of their mouths like hanging sausages.

It takes Giles a moment to realize what they have found, though as he glances across the river, he notes a darkened grove of trees that seem to climb out of the plain in the distance.  As he looks closer, just on the opposite bank, he notes a well worn track of mud and ruined grass four or five feet wide that seems to trail up in the same direction as the grove.

"What is it?"  Edenburg calls from several dozen yards back.

Giles patted the horse when the wolves returned and gave it hushed, soothing whispers to alleviate some of its concern. "There's a good boy, don't worry they're on our side..." he continued, placating the animal as best he could.

Following the pack, Giles kept distance too so he didn't kill himself when the horse inevitably bucked, but noted that it didn't appear to be war trained in the slightest, and so should any conflict occur, he'd have to ensure he'd be unhorsed first before engaging.

---

Some time passed, as they followed and Giles wondered whether he was right to trust the creatures, or even if they understood what he wanted. "Maybe I'm being stupid, who ever knew anyone to talk any sense to and from wolves. If anyone back home knew of this they'd think me a bloody loon and have me locked in a dungeon somewhere. Maybe that spear to the gut should have been a hammer to the head to knock some damn sense into.... he paused, and unconsciously let his mouth drop open and loll in the mimicry of the wolves.

What is it? Edenburg asked, but all Giles could manage while squinting to see more clearly was point in its direction.

"Look, you see that track? It looks too wide for a game trail.... This could be it, but I was sure it'd be on this side of the river... he said, confusion obvious in his tone.

"Well, I guess we should go look... Lets find somewhere to cross and we'll make our way along the trail"

It takes a moment for Edenburg to catch up to Giles, and in the meantime, the wolves, apparently with no further tasking shrink back into the small statue.  Giles notes with a certain pang in his gut that the totem now has four wolves, rather than the original five.  When Edenburg does arrive, he immediately notices the same hewn path.  He places his hand against his forehead, blocking out the worst of the midday sun.

"Yeah, I guess that's about as good of a clue as we are going to get... and looks like there's a wood on that hill over there.  This is the wilderness part of Caithness, I don't think there's many settlements other than a few farms here and there.  All the cities and towns are way up to the North."

Giles decides for the two to ford the river again, and finds a shallow enough trough for the two to ride across.  They trace their way back to the area where the grass has been trodden down, and slowly follow the path away from the shore.

The woods turns out not to be that far away from the shore, less than a mile certainly, though Giles stops a few hundred yards short as he admires the trees from a distance.

Hundreds of trees spring up from the plain, with the outer rim seeming to consist of fir and pine, though a thick layer of brush and bramble leak out of the edges of the wood, spilling out from the edges of the trees like a wave before crashing into the plains grasses, where they stop abruptly.

With his eyes, Giles follows the path up towards the forrest, ending in a small area where the bramble and wood have been cut away, where the trees seem to open up into a black maw.  Above, the canopy reconnects, leaving the entire area in darkness.

It is 1400 on the 4th of September.  You are about a quarter mile from the wood, and don't see any particular activity in the area.  The wood is thick and there is no obvious way in other than straight ahead along the path.

Giles frowned as he looked upon the wooded area, the abrupt stop made him think that the whole place could have been made with magic but he wondered just what kind of mage would be able to create such a den in this land; each time he focused on his own internal power he felt it stifled somehow, followed quickly by an irritable itch that told him of supressed energies.

He cocked a wry grin at Edenburg and spoke, while looking at the woods "Well at least if we're in Caithness we're not going to be instantly identified as infidels eh? But perhaps this place will be just as unwelcoming. he glanced around and kicked his heels and led the group closer, trying to stick to the most concealed areas so he could get better vantage.

The grown grew deeper and he felt a pit in his stomach develop, leaving him with an ill sensation and a shock that ran through his back and down his leg. Giles twitched at the memory of the spear impaling him and felt his lower back throb with the dread he could feel when considering entry to the dark entrance of the wooded area.

He pointed at the entrance How do you feel about that Edenburg? Awfully welcoming isn't it?" he said with a mirthless grin.

At Edenburg's acknowledgement Giles felt his insides tighten with fear as he set his horse to a slow walk into what he felt was a heart of darkness.

"I guess there's something to that."  Edenburg responds to Giles's comment about being in Caithness, his own eyes glancing around the rim of the forest, looking just as skeptical as Giles.

"It sure doesn't seem natural does it?  Though I guess the Great Forest isn't that far off, maybe it's just natural spread... just seems weird being this close to home where there isn't shit that grows."

The two trot on, making a slow and careful progress towards the neat opening in the tree line.

The wood climbs like a mountain in front of them, the canopy seeming to grow higher and taller at each step closer they take.  Before they have reached halfway there, it seems that only the front line of trees are visible at all, their thick branches and thin leaves reaching out towards the oppressive heat of the day.

Though the signs of recent activity are prevalent, there does not seem to be a single being in sight.

The two make it all the way to the mouth of the forest before they stop to take stock.  Here, it seems obvious that men were here and quite recently.  Freshly hewn stumps are prevalent.  Though grown over with vine and moss, the cuts are still lightly colored and the stump is dry.

Here and there, fresh shoots of pine and spruce float up from the coat of needles, already beginning a cycle of rebirth.

Ahead, the dark maw of the wood radiates an empty, foreboding shadow.

"You think they're still around here somewhere?"  Edenburg offers, glancing towards the wood with an uncertain expression.

OOC:  If you wish to search the area more closely, roll vs. Perception.  Otherwise, you can take any action you wish.

As they approached Giles wiped sweat away from his forehead, unsure whether it was caused by the overwhelming heat or simply is burgeoning panic at the thought of being killed so nearly yet again. The trees infront, and indeed everything about the place that he and Edenburg approached seemed ominous and unnatural.

"Too dense, too clean..." he muttered as his anxiety grew but he was paused when he saw the trappings of human interaction and recent growth. Giles blinked twice and looked around the area.
"Well, it seems this is where the wood is coming from... but look at that. It's already growing back. There's definitely something odd about the place" he mused thoughtfully with a furrowed brow.

"These tracks and cuts look recent to me, even if there is regrowth about the place. Let me try something..." he said and kicked his horse to a light trot to the area inside the perimeter that had some of the speedy recovery.

The man looked around, glancing into the area to check his surroundings before holding a hand, palm up, out. He muttered some words and took extra time to be careful about the gestures, thoughts and pronunciation of the spell.






15:33, Today: Giles 'J'naeth' Hind rolled 6 using 3d6 with rolls of 3,1,2.  perception.

15:37, Today: Giles 'J'naeth' Hind rolled 11 using 3d6 with rolls of 6,1,4.  shape air.

// he'll just create a spinning sphere of air, like a mini tornado that's round in shape.

Giles trots his horse closer, wondering if perhaps there is something he missed.  He Gestures intently, saying a few words of power as he tries to conjure a small ball of whirling air... though the magic does not seem to come.  It seems this place is truly sucked dry of mana.

But as he is casting, something catches Giles's eye, an oddly straight line that peers out of the brush closer to the edge of the forrest.  Giles dismounts and approaches, his hand straying towards his sword as a precaution.

For the moment at least, it seems that nothing lurks out of the shadows of the forest.

Giles nudges the bit of earth he was eyeing with his foot and he kicks up the long blade of a logging saw, some seven or eight feet in all.  The whole of the steel blade is percolated with rust bubbles, ranging from brownish red to white.  The wooden handles seem to have fallen off, for they are not attached to the metal blade, though there is no sign of them  around the underbrush.  As Giles lays the thing back down with his foot, the thing breaks under the stress of its own weight, and the two pieces fall back down into the brush, the fresh new edge a powdery white rather than the shiny grey of steel.

This did not seem like a tool that had been left a few months ago at most.

OOC:  Shape air spell failed, and you are down 1 fatigue from the effort.

Confused Giles looked around the area, hoping his eyes could be drawn to something that might explain what he was seeing. Recently cut trees but with ground and tools that looked years old. "what could this be, if not magic?" he asked himself. He couldn't quite bring anything to mind, but he was sur ethat there might be something that could do this.

After a few mimnutes locked in an intense battle of his own mind trying, and failing, to recall some of his readings at the library - the annoyance only being enflamed by the clarity of all things happening since his rebirth back at the fort.

Giles cursed aloud. "I don't know what could do this..." he said to Edenburg simply "... but it is odd. New cuttings, old tools does not make for a good omen. But I feel that the knowledge of what may have happened  lays in this area" he continued, resisting the urge to state outright that deeper was the way to go, or so his gut told him.

"See what your tracker eyes can make of this... lets take a moment's rest and in ten minutes, we'll go deeper." he said, feeling an involuntary shiver spread down his back, sparking a spasm of pain from his recent wound.




OOC:

I think imigh thave an inkling as a player. "what doesn't like iron but might also consider chopping down trees as an abhorrent act?" So I don't know if Giles would have heard of such things, but it's probably worthy of a roll.

15:53, Today: Giles 'J'naeth' Hind rolled 12 using 3d6 with rolls of 2,6,4.  thaum.
I guess it's a skill here, to 'remember things' Im not sure in this case eidetic memory would help, but?
This message was last edited by the player at 16:00, Sun 01 Nov 2020.

Giles put his mind to work, trying to sort through the various readings he had devoured as he was a student of the magic college.  He had a good mind to remember these sorts of things, sometimes whole pages would jump to his mind completely unaltered as if he were looking at the book itself rather than the memory of it, but alas, for now at least, Giles cannot think of anything that would cause such odd behavior of the trees and the tools.  Nothing other than Magic at least... which seemed like the wrong answer at first glance.

Though the more Giles thought on it, the more Magic seemed to be a real possibility.  After all, while magic was not easy in Caithness, it was certainly possible.  For there were many battles in the Caithness war where wizards were used quite extensively.  Of course, Caithness wizards seemed to have the edge - for they were used to the lack of mana in the environment where Megalan wizards found it something new and onerous.

Giles sits down for a moment as Edenburg searches the area, looking at the saw blade and immediate surroundings.

"There's more here."  Edenburg grunts after a moment.  "An axe that's nearly been rotted through.  Some other tools, can't even tell what they are, but looks like the earth's tried to swallow them whole."  Edenburg pauses, looking back at Giles.  "It's weird is what it is.  Looks like this place hasn't seen anybody in years, but all of the trees seem like they weren't cut more than a few months ago... Squares up with what we would expect from the Wazifis...  But what happened?"

Edenburg thinks for a moment, dropping down to the ground where he shifts through some of the sprawling creeper vines.

"I guess the important think is though that it doesn't seem like they are using it anymore...  It's been at least a month since anything's been cut, and I'm not sure any of these tools are fit to be used anymore anyway."

OOC:  No dice on your roll for more information, but the above is for clarity.  Magic is possible here, just more difficult.

"Well, I suppose we'll find out soon enough, lets get to seeing if there are any other tracks around and we'll treat everything else as normal. I'd also like to go deeper into these woods and see if there's anything around of note." he suggested with a shrug.

Either way, he thought, it looked like the logging had stopped. So perhaps there was no growing of force to move against the Fort.


"At least it seems like they've stopped logging, or changed location."

Edenburg nods to Giles, and for several moments the two search the area for any newer prints or signs of life.  However, the two have no luck in their search.

Not satisfied for the moment, Giles decides to move on into the forest, if only a short way in and for a short time.  Taking extra precaution, he moves slowly first to the tree line, then tentatively a few steps beyond, and finds that in the gaping maw between the trees a clearing of sorts, with more signs of life and recent occupation.

Moss, lichen, and fungus spread wide across the clearing floor so there is not so much as a speck of brown earth visible through the underbrush.  Here and there the greenery pops up in small little protuberances which poke out of the earth like carpeted rocks.  Off to the side, the remnants of an enormous canvas carpet the clearing floor, though the cloth is obviously eaten away and tattered with age.  A few yards closer to the center of the clearing, a large pit, a circle some two yards across and a yard deep has been dug, it's center lined with white and grey, though the greenery hangs over its edge, already dipping its tendrils down to overwhelm the feature.

OOC:  Make a roll vs. Perception.  Nothing else that you noted outside the forrest, so I had you just move in for now.  Do you plan on leaving the horses outside the forrest, riding them in, or leading them while you walk?
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:59, Fri 13 Nov 2020.

Giles was awestruck, it was hard to even imagine such a life-filled area and he was quite certain that he'd never encountered such a rich greenery in his life. "Have you ever seen anywhere quite as... blooming as this?" he said to Edenburg while slowly making his way into the area.

Despite the lustrousness of the area, something was still tickling the back of his mind, like a little poking splinter that struck a dissonant chord with him. This was enhanced when he saw what remained of a camp.

"look, that's a canvas, probably from a tent. That hole over there might be a latrine. It looks like some people may have camped here but suffered the same fate... rapid decay. "

Giles shrugged off a chill and then wondered what information they could gather from the area. " Okay, let's search the area see if we can find anything that could give some idea about what happened or if the logging operation occurred in more than one area. Though, I'd say whatever happened here is long finished, and there's something a touch unusual about it.

Reminds me of stories my older brothers used to tell me about spirits of trees seeking revenge on those that failed to respect the wild places - though he never mentioned anything of decay like this.


OOC: If the woods looked too thick, then they would dismount and walk with them. If the woods were sparse enough to let a rider meander their way slowly through then they'd just ride.

23:17, Today: Giles 'J'naeth' Hind rolled 6 using 3d6 with rolls of 2,2,2.  perception.