Inspection and Messages

The party awakens from a night’s rest, periodically interrupted by the rattling of the singular window and the howling of the blizzard outside. Now, it seems a thick fog has descended upon termalaine. As the party exits the Eastside Inn, the freezing fog bites at any exposed skin. They go to the Blue Clam for another meal, having a hearty breakfast of porridge. 

The party meets up with Speaker Masthew and begins the short trek to the tourmaline mine. There, they find that the kobolds have been working all night to prove themselves to masthew, offering up several decently sized gems. Speaker Masthew thanks them as he and the party continue their inspection, making sure that the bridge has been fixed before walking upon it. The party finds nothing out of the ordinary, and Speaker Masthew congratulates them on a job well done, assuring them that because the kobolds are hard workers, they will find a home in Termalaine.

Needing to send various messages to Bryn Shander, they seek out a courier office. They find a small building with attached housing for sled dogs. Inside, a woman with long, wavy, black hair and smooth dark skin sits behind a desk. Barely filled sacks with the names of different towns are strewn about the room. The party pays to send a letter to Dimble Knackle, the jeweler who tasked them with opening the Termalaine tourmaline mine back up. Enclosed is Maddy’s pebble sized tourmaline as proof. Eddie also sends 9 gold to Leth Lackman, working to pay off his debt.

Concluding their business in Termalaine, the party departs for Lonelywood.

Lonelywood

The journey to Lonelywood is short. The party travels between the shore of Maer Dualdon and a treeline composed of tall dark pines, both barely visible through the thick, freezing fog that settles around you. After some time, they see distant lantern lights through the fog, growing closer and closer as the party arrives at the small town of Lonelywood. 

The party members native to Ten-Towns know that this town was founded by a Sembian family from Urmlaspyr. Lonelywood is a quiet town of loggers, fishers, and scrimshanders scratching out a living on the edge of the world, but for as long as Ten-Towns has existed, this town has attracted the region’s shadiest element, from unrepentant thieves to cold-hearted killers. The thick forest looming behind it conceals the dark and sordid dealings that sometimes transpire there.

Now, the party sees figures in the fog, going about their daily business, and in the distance, they can hear the chopping of wood. As the party enters town, they notice that many of the buildings and docks bear carvings of dragons, lions, and goats, and Maddy recognizes them as remnants from the founder’s original family crest, that of a chimera.

The party remembers that Vernon said the town speaker was offering a reward for the White Moose that has been terrorizing this town, so they set off to find the speaker’s house. It doesn’t take long, as through the fog, they see a two story house, older than the ones around it with warm light pouring out of every window, cutting through the fog. As the party approaches, they can smell hints of fresh baked goods and ginger.

Ghailiegh knocks on the wooden door.

A small halfling child opens it, a bead of snot running down from his button nose. He has a mop of curly red hair, and as he stares up at the heavily armed and armored adventurers standing before him he hollers back into the house, “Mooooom! There’s some people here to see you!”

Looking past him and into the house, the party can see it was clearly built for humans, but most of the furniture is sized for halflings, with a few big chairs for visitors of taller stock. Three more halfling children scamper from room to room and climb a ladder up to the loft, chasing one another with wooden swords.

A sturdy halfling woman with curly graying hair and an apron walks briskly out of what appears to be a kitchen holding a tray of freshly baked cookies. She looks out the door at the party and shouts, “Oh! Adventurers! Please please, come in!”

The halfling speaker, Nimsy Huddle, ushers the party into a cluttered kitchen, strewn with recently used baking supplies. She sets the tray of cookies on top of a warm wood fired oven. A fire crackles in the hearth.

The party inquires about the rumors of the moose.

“Our loggers are being terrorized by a white moose,” explains Speaker Huddle, “and the beast has eluded the hunters we’ve sent to kill it. We depend on the forest for our survival, and I wouldn’t be a very good town speaker if I let a dumb moose get the better of us. Will you help?”

Inquiring about a reward, the party is met with Speaker Huddle offering some of her freshly baked cookies, and while they agree that this would be a good reward, they also explain that they might also want a monetary reward.

“OK then, how does… 100 gold sound?”

Maddy and Ghaileigh can tell that the Speaker may have more to offer based on the tone of her voice, but Eddie is unable to get anything else out of her.

 “Of course,” she adds with a smile, “if our hunters get the moose first, the rewards will be theirs!”

She explains that the moose has killed 5 people and injured a dozen more. Two hunters remain missing after going into the forest to look for it. This has all occurred within the past fifteen days.

The party asks her about an inn, and she replies that there is no inn in Lonelywood.

“We used to have one, the Ramshackle it was called. It closed up about a year ago.”

The party inquires as to why it closed, and Speaker Huddle warns that it is a grisly and grim topic. The party pushes further.

“The owner hung himself in the common room. Some people think that it’s a coverup for a murder though.”

The party thanks her for the information and goes to the town’s tavern, the Lucky Liar, to see if they can get more information from any hunters who have returned.

Strange Interactions

As the party passes through a row of shops, one sign catches Devi’s eye. It reads: “The Happy Scrimshander”. The sign appears damaged to the untrained eye, with two vertical scratches running through the first “p” in “happy”; however, Devi sees it as a circle with 2 vertical lines running through it, the common symbol for “Fence” in thieves cant.

Fig. 1: Thieves Cant sample

A small bell heralds your entry into the shop. Needles and knives in a wide array of shapes and sizes and inks in a rainbow of colors sit proudly on display. Additionally, several varieties of waxes are available, presumably for sealing the finished scrimshaw. Behind a counter in the back of the shop, sits a doughy elderly woman reading a book. She looks up briefly, acknowledging you before going back to reading. 

“If you can’t find what you’re looking for, I can always check the back.”

Devi approaches, and strikes up a rather odd conversation.

“Hello madam, I was hoping to inquire about whether you buy art here, or perhaps you sell some of your own?”

“I do buy fine art, but I also sell fine tools. If you want, you can come check the back with me; I have some special tools back there. There are many scrimshanders who might be jealous of the art you make with my tools. While even the trout would marvel at your art, I wouldn’t want to offend them with tools to carve their skulls. You don’t have any trout with you, do you?”

Devi understands. Come to the back, I have gear that would make other criminals jealous. But first, you don’t have any squares with you, right?

“Nope, no trout here. I would like to peruse your fine selection of tools.”

The rest of the party looks on confused as the shopkeeper leads them into the back, only to reveal a variety of poisons and tools for criminals. The party doesn’t buy anything at this time, as this contraband is a little too expensive, and they don’t really have a use for it at the moment.

They continue on to the Lucky Liar, where they eat a lunch of trout pies and meet a man with cropped, gray hair and cyan eyes. He has suntanned skin and stands at about 5’8″ tall with a beefy build. Thick winter gear is layered below a dark green cloak, with a pin that looks like a sun. He identifies himself as Dain Morningfall, and the party recognizes him as Vernon Braig’s hunter friend. They talk with him about the moose and about a ghost story, and he leaves to go hunt it about thirty minutes before the party.

The Hunt

The Lonelywood forest stands before the party, the snow-capped trees loom as tall, dark forms from out of the fog. Twigs snapping and wings fluttering echo through the pines; snowy owls call out to each other, and the distant howling of wolves hangs ominously in the air. The smell of pine carries through the numbingly cold air. Brarr, with the party’s assistance, quickly finds a set of moose tracks, and the party begins following them.

The snow crunches beneath the party’s snowshoes. They have been following this set of moose tracks for about two hours, when they hear the crackling and snapping of wood ahead. They notice a large dark shape rubbing up against a tree about thirty feet away. With a thump, the shape returns to four legs, and a low, rumbling growl issues forth from the great maw of the grizzly bear. 

Thinking quickly, Ghaileigh reaches into her pack and throws out a handful of rations, distracting the bear as the party retreats and navigates around it.

Following the tracks for another two hours, the party sees a tall four legged beast, looming out of the fog, two great antlers sticking out of either side of a large head. As the party moves closer, they see the distinctly brown coloration of its fur, suggesting that this is not the moose they are looking for.

It takes the party another two hours before they find another set of moose tracks. They follow these tracks for three hours. Then, they see it, another large form, with two wide antlers stretching out from the sides of its head. It seems to be laying down, and may be asleep. From this distance, the party can make out white fur.

As Brarr moves in, he realizes the white coloration is due to a blanket of snow. With a snap of a branch underfoot, the moose startles and bolts back into the fog. Once again, the white moose eludes the party.

The party decides that it would be best to get a good night’s sleep and try again the next day, as they make the journey back to town, sleeping in Speaker Huddle’s warm but unfurnished attic.

The next day, the party decides to use rations for their meals, heading out into the forest early. The fog has lifted, leaving the party with a clear day ahead.

Brarr finds a set of tracks within the first hour, and the party follows them for another half an hour, when they hear the howling of wolves nearby. The party can hear the snapping of twigs and crunching of snow all around you, and they realize that they are being encircled by a pack of wolves. Coming from the North and West, they leap out of the brush to attack.

Brarr Charges towards 3 of the wolves coming from the North; he roars with rage and plants his battle axe in the back of one of the wolves, killing it instantly.

The other two charge in, snapping at Brarr, but to little effect. Two wolves charge Devi, knocking her down and tearing at her flesh. Devi goes unconscious, and it looks like the wolves may run away with her lifeless body. One of the two remaining wolves charges Maddy, and the other charges Ghaileigh, its fangs piercing through her armor.

Eddie draws his hands apart, an arc of electricity playing between them. He shocks the wolf closest to him, and it begins twitching, lessening its reaction time. Maddy Places her thumbs together and sprays a sheet of fire through two of the wolves, melting the nearby snow in a fifteen foot cone of flame. This seems to dredge up dark memories within her as the wolves char and burn to death, letting out horrible yelping noises. Ghaileigh shouts a prayer to Lathander, and pours life into Devi once more. Brarr swings his axe, chopping into the side of one of the wolves as it turns to flee.

The wolves, sensing that the tide has turned, begin to retreat, prompting Ghaileigh, Devi, Maddy, and Brarr to take swings at the canines. Brarr makes contact with the wolf he wounded earlier, sending its corpse flying into a nearby, snow-covered bush. The party breathes a sigh of relief, as the dangerous wildlife runs back into the woods.

New Friends

As the party settles down to rest amongst the pines, Devi and Ghaileigh, notice that a few extra bodies have joined the party. Several tiny masked figures, dressed in cloaks of dried pine-needles and colorful ribbons and beads, peer at you from out of the snow-laden brush. One of them on a branch above Brarr, swinging its tiny legs while watching Ghaileigh say her prayers. Another one hides behind a snow bank, watching Brarr chop wood in an attempt to draw out the white moose. The final masked figure watches as Eddie sits up against a tree and prestidigitates the sound of wood being chopped. Ghaigleigh alerts the party, and Eddie recognizes them as chwingas, tiny nature spirits who follow and mimic humanoids who they find interesting; if they are treated well, they may help out the humanoid and bestow gifts upon them.

Maddy produces a cloud of blue smoke and embers that smells like gingerbread in an attempt to draw in one of these spirits. The one observing Eddie is drawn into the smoke and begins dancing and playing. Eddie steps up his game, playing music and dancing. The chwinga begins mimicking him, still in the cloud of smoke. Maddy and Eddie continue to battle for its attention, with Maddy eventually proving the victor. At the end of the rest, the chwingas embrace their chosen party members, and impart mystical charms upon them.

Fig 2. & Fig. 3: Chwingas

The party continues to follow the tracks for about an hour before they see yet another towering, four legged form lumbering through the pines. This one however, is very obviously not the culprit, as it lacks any antlers. The moose cow continues to move through the forest, seemingly not noticing the party.

Brarr picks up on another moose trail, and after about an hour, the party sees a fox with a white coat moving to strike a snowy hare. The fox leaps forward and grabs the rabbit by its neck, staining white fur a deep crimson as it shakes it violently. Seeing you, it runs off, taking its prize with it and leaving only red-stained snow

Following these tracks for another two and a half hours, the party finds a grisly reminder of why they hunt the white moose. A broken corpse leans up against a tree that has been snapped in half. A shattered bow lays in the snow nearby, and spilled arrows are scattered about this scene. 

Getting closer to the body, they realize the body has been bludgeoned and crushed with great force. Crimson has bled through thick winter gear, where a shard of bone pokes out of the chest. The face has been disfigured to be almost unrecognizable. Almost. After some inspection, the party realizes that this is the bloody and broken corpse of Dain Morningfall, the hunter you met before in the Lucky Liar, and Vernon Braig’s friend.

The corpse looks fresh, less than an hour old. The party is getting closer to their prey.

They cover up the corpse with snow, and take his cloak pin to take back to town.

After another half hour of following the bloody tracks, the party comes across a structure. They approach from the North, and see a circular indentation in a snowy hillside. Rising from the middle of this circle, they can just make out the tip of a triangular gnomon of beautifully carved crystal that stands sticks out ten feet above the ten-foot-high berm hugging the circle’s eastern edge. The berm has evergreens growing around and atop it, sheltering what looks like a sarcophagus buried under snow and enclosed by a half-circle of pale blue crystal pillars. North of the berm is a delicately carved gazebo made of marble. The party begins making plans, as they stand outside of this mysterious structure.