Starday, 11th Pharast
At the end of our time with Falchos and Tyressia I am sorry to say Thistle flew away. But I have not stopped thinking of the beautiful griffon since we parted.
When we left our new friends, Chahana suggested that perhaps we should explore the area surrounding the rhododendron thicket where we had slain the hangman tree, then go north to the pit trap where we found the thylacine to see if the trapper had removed the animal. She proposed that if the thylacine was still in the pit we should release it. Afterward we should go on to explore some of the territory between this part of the forest and Lorewynd that we have not visited up to now. We all agreed to this plan.
12th Pharast, Sunday
The rhododendrons have begun to bloom, making the thicket a much more pleasant place than it was when the tree occupied it.
We found our way to another river, neither part of the Thorn nor the Skunk. Chahana recalled that it is called the Murk River, which leads farther south beyond the territory we have been given claim to.
13th Pharast, Moonday
This day we discovered a logging camp near the river where it widened and grew deeper to form a pool of slower water. We discovered it at first by hearing angry voices in the forest. This led us to a group of men by the river bank. With these men was a young woman standing in the water near two of the men, whose demeanor indicated that they were protective of her. The other men were calling out to her to let those men go. We all realized at once that this young woman was a nixie.
One of the men said something to a large man and called him Kerax. Kerax warned us to stay away and confirmed our belief that the nixie had used her magic to enchant the two men. Maria then began to address the nixie in a friendly manner, trying to persuade her to release the lumbermen. The nixie argued that because the loggers had cut down trees surrounding her pool, it was only fair that she take some of the men for herself. Chahana joined Maria and they spoke for coming to a friendly compromise. The nixie seemed to be somewhat amendable to this.
Kerax at first was not so favorable to this idea, instead contending that we ought to get rid of fey creatures rather than try to befriend them. It took the combined efforts of all of us to turn him from this thought. In the end it was Zander who found the best solution: he offered to donate the tree token Tyressia had given him to the nixie, whose name is Melianse, to replace the trees the loggers had cut. When he gave a token to her she was delighted with it, and when it grew instantly into an large tree she was entranced. Zander then gave her his second token, and following his example the rest of us handed over our own tokens as well.
To further remove any opportunity for disagreement, Zander suggested that the loggers take over the former bandit camp along the Thorn River, as there is a good ford there and plenty of trees. Kerax and his men finally agreed to this, though at first they were reluctant to cooperate or to submit to our authority despite that they intended to sell their lumber to Neotellus. It was helpful that Zander and Reislin also mentioned to them a grove of coach trees in which they were quite interested.
Before we parted from Melianse she promised to notify us of any troubles along the river, and we took our leave with the hope that we had made new friends and resolved a dispute. Chahana took the opportunity first to ask if the loggers knew who had made the pit trap, and they responded that it was a trapper they knew as Old Clements. She asked that if they encountered him they warn him to check his traps more often and not leave any animal in a trap to suffer for days.
14th Pharast, Toilday
When we approached the pit we could hear pitiful yelping from within. The thylacine remained trapped at the bottom just as we had left it near a week earlier. At first we thought that we might create an earthen ramp for the creature to climb out on its own, but we had only a single shovel amongst us. Then we realized that the earth that had been removed to create the pit lay nearby. Our decision then was for Zander to attempt to calm the thylacine while we poured the earth back into the pit to allow it to climb out, after which we partly refilled the pit so that any animal with the misfortune to fall into it would be able to climb out unaided.
The last we saw of the half-starved thylacine was its tail as it rushed away from us when it had escaped the pit. Perhaps we will need to issue an edict advising local hunters and trappers to amend their ways to avoid causing undue suffering to the beasts they pursue.
15th Pharast, Wealday
As we made our way back toward Lorewynd, our attention was attracted by sounds of anxious shouting and the panicked screams of horses near the river. We rushed to the bank to find that a small and very colorful wagon had got caught midstream at a fording point, its wheels wedged against the stones in a swift current. The two ponies drawing the wagon were terrified at being trapped in the rushing water. On the opposite bank were two more wagons and a group of very anxious gnomes. One gnome who had been in a fight by his look stood atop a boulder shouting directions to others who were attempting to pull the wagon free with ropes.
The gnome on the rock shouted at us to help, and without hesitation I dropped my weapons and shield and plunged into the water. Zander, Maria, and Chahana joined me. With the four of us hauling at the ropes we eventually managed to free the wagon, much to the gratitude of the gnomes.
When that was done and we were on the shore drying ourselves, I realized that the gnomes had been encamped on the river bank and had been attacked by kobolds, several of which they had slain. These were not from the Sootscale tribe, however, for they lacked the dark scales of those kobolds and instead had red and violet scales similar to the foul mage we had disposed of when we befriended the Sootscales.
The leader who had been shouting from the rock introduced himself to us as Jubilost Narthropple and explained that he and his clan are explorers and cartographers. He was offended when Zander asked if they were treasure hunters. Reislin was of course very interested in his maps and showed him some of her own, which he did not seem to find very admirable.
I used some of the Dawnflower's blessings to heal as many of the gnomes' injuries as I could, although it appeared that they had a goodly supply of potions and salves of their own. Jubilost told us that his clan were in this area seeking an ancient dwarven ruin. While he and Reislin discussed maps he pointed out an ancient burial site to the east that perhaps we will seek out at some point in future. Some of the other gnomes mentioned having encountered some other beings of our size to the south, but could not come to any agreement what manner of beings they had seen; some argued that these were tribal folk wearing serpent-like helmets, while others insisted they were lizardfolk.
Out of curiosity, Zander suddenly asked Jubilost if he had ever heard of a place like that the fey Knight of the Winter Craft had spoken of. Jubilost immediately divined that a fey creature must have given this description, and opined that such a description shouldn't be taken literally as it was given by one of the fey, and in his words "they think sideways."
After we parted from the Narthropple clan, we searched the area for more evidence of this other tribe of kobolds. We must do what we can to protect the people of Neotellus and travelers through our lands from this danger.
15th Sarenith, Oathday
We returned to Lorewynd to a busy period of activity. In that time, Lorewynd has acquired more houses and Neotellus more farmsteads. There is a school now, and a sewage system to keep our new capital hygienic. I have used some of our shared funds to establish a shrine to the gods of good. Narthropple and his clan have been hired to further explore and map the lands to the east that we have not had the time to investigate ourselves, though as of yet they have not found anything of great interest or concern. But the clan have made their way to a river that lies close to the mountains, which we had hoped might be useful for transport of goods. Unfortunately there is a waterfall that blocks passage, which can only be overcome by constructing something to allow boats to pass over it.
In addition to expansion of Lorewynd, Oleg's Trading Post has ascended to the status of a village, which has been given the name of Leveton in honor of its founders Oleg and Svetlana. Leveton has acquired an inn to house the travelers coming there and a stable for their horses.
These advances have not been without challenge. Some folk who have come to claim land within the confines of Neotellus have misunderstood the conditions under which they can do so, and have considered their lands outside the limits of our governance. Thus far we have been able to convince them with wise words that they are mistaken and that paying small taxes to for the common good is preferable to being entirely on their own without access to all the advantages sharing with us can grant them. Of course were they endangered we would still come to their aid, but this way we can assure that we have the necessary resources to help them should some misfortune befall them. I pray that the Dawnflower grant them safety and good health so that no harm comes to them. We are glad to welcome them into Neotellus.
Next: part 15, Growing Pains
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