We awoke early enough to get a fast breakfast before making it to the Docks on the west end of Fort Guido. Here, Teela and her crew of 2 met us with 2 signal logs. We paid the 10 crowns for the passage now knowing that we’d have to pay 10 crowns on the way back. The goblinoid girl made sure we were all ready before she lifted the small sail and they began rowing. It was slow going crossing the icy current of the River Shrill but we made the far end and then made our way northward to the North Beach.
They helped us unload and after making sure we understood the signaling process again to come back, she wished us well and we watched them paddle back to the current and make their way into the fog. We dug out 2 of the 3 boats we had stashed here and then ported them north into the woods and eventually to the stream there. We split into 2 sets, Gun’s and Hrimvar’s and took to paddling our way west in the miniscule current. It was only 2 hours before we came to the turn in the river and before the first falls where the ogre’s camp had been.
We stashed the boats here and checked it out. The Ogre’s were gone but it was obvious they had come a few days ago after we had stolen the boats. Lots of prints and dumped over timber. But they were gone. We followed the water, relying on Cara’s memory to track our way. We went up the carved steps in the cliffs, along the shores of the long lake, and then behind the 2nd waterfall.
Beyond here it was getting darker but we wanted to make the same camp we had taken when we left. Eventually in the gloom of twilight we found it, heading north 80’ off the trail, and set up our camp again. No fire. Cold food. We huddled for warmth and fell asleep. Most of us woke up tired the next day but healthy. Carl mentioned that he had heard skeletons during the night but they never approached the camp.
On Icemonth the 8th we went back to the falls to fill our skins and then went west. We arrived at the major clearing by 1 and walked through the snow northward. The thought was to check out the graveyard we did not go into before. So we cut thorn and sticker bushes out of the way and got to the wall. Vines and trees and time had worn the gates and fencing aside. We climbed over and began to look. The graves were fairly close together and about 3 rows in, looking through the worn tombstones, we found 2 that were dumped over and the ground around them disturbed in the snow.
Yander detected evil, and the paladin got hundreds of pings all below him. Skeletons. But dormant now. We fanned out and eventually found it. Ritual markings had been set up around the cemetery. The clerics in the group let the party know this was a 6 month ritual spell set up and the bodies below would eventually rise. But only when the last trigger was enacted. Someone somewhere has something that will get the undead up. Maybe that Moray Vaco guy? Even if we disturbed the markings here, it wouldn’t change anything.
Ok, we left here, checked the box with the shields, and took a few before we closed it up and went up the sloping trail up the hill to the Monastery…where the Horror on the Hill dwells. It was about 3:30. Not wanting to get into the monastery at this point, we checked out the garden (our cuts and harvesting was still in place), no one had been to the garrison, and we went in there closing and locking it from within. We had another cold night (no risk of a fire) and ate cold rations. But we slept well and no one was bothering us.
Icemonth the 9th, 7 AM. We ate, broke our fast, and studied and prayed. By 8 we were ready to go. Lots of fresh snow and according to Hrimvar, more will be coming later. We took a circuitous route to the monastery to throw off where we had come from. The doors had been opened during the night (snow shoved aside), but no foot prints. We opened up and looked in. One major change? The 2 weapon racks from the Ogre’s room had been dragged here. It had about a dozen sharpened crude spears and a few that had survived the fire in the store room. We were going to mess with them but figured that it was better to leave it for now.
We went to the back of the sanctuary and noticed both secret doors were open. We went to the north one first. The dust room was open and the hall had sticky dried blood piles and some reddish grey chunks of meat. Entering the hall would make footprints. We decided to avoid it and go south out that secret door.
It too was open. There was a 6 diameter of rope set up like a noose, with 4 silver pieces stacked in the center of it. We checked it out, Fjord assuring us it was not trapped – the noose went nowhere. Eventually it was decided to step around the noose, and Nevah did that. As he walked around it though the group all noticed the bottom of his boots were died a dark brown – and would be making a trail.
“Damn it,” the gnome said. He sat down and went to take out his towel when the group all said, NO. He sat in more dye – even outside the circle. Damn it. Now his right leg to his ass, and his right hand. He was going to make a lot of a mess. We called him back. Then he stripped off his stained clothes and the party had a good idea. The group each took him under his arm, lifted him up, and placed him into the bag of holding (it was empty). Then they took him to the front door, opened it to the snow, and dumped him out.
It was cold and he scrubbed his skin and boots until the dye wasn’t obviously coming off. But he was stained and would be for many days. He put on a spare set of clothes and by 10, we were ready once again. Looking at Gun’s map, the room with the goblin’s might be pretty big. The paladin detected evil and got 12 pings – 6 hob, 6 goblin.
We came up with a plan, everyone had a part to play, and the door was opened fast. Hrimvar fired off a bless spell and then Altas shot off his sleep spell – getting a chunk in the middle. It seemed that this was a dormitory too and 6 of the gobs and hobs were just sleeping in here. But there were 4 more goblins that had been outside the paladin’s range in the back.
Arrows and crossbows were shot, the missile weapons targeting those in the back of the room (closest to the door there), taking 2 of them out and wounding a 3rd. The melee hitters slammed in and engaged the front, the bless spell making our blows more accurate. A hob well, and then a goblin. Thobar made sure the door was shut as Cara went to the sleeping goblin in the nearest bed and beat the unsuspecting greenskin to death.
The battle continued on and a few blows were hit back. The distant goblin tried to make for the door and 3 more missiles shot out, tearing him to pieces. As we spread out to do more damage, the tide of battle was turning real fast. The hobgoblin dropped weapons and said, “Surrender. Parley. We give up!”
As we were accepting their surrender, Nevah, Atlas, and Cara were going to kill more sleeping ones when Yander was like, “Whoa! Whoa the fuck up! Battle is over! We don’t kill those who gave up!”
Much thongs and tying followed and some talk to the hobs and the group all about. When Yander did cut off his warrior’s knot, the hobgoblin was wroth. A nemesis was made this day. Fuknha, of the Ahshit clan, was going to accept the loss and be led out of the monastery. But if he survived the cold, he would remember the “Round Ear’s” face and his name. Most of the group came about or accepted that with a paladin in the party, sometime law and good is the price to be adhered to. Nevah and Carl? Nope – not a chance. Let the monster’s die. A discussion for another time. We took keys, treasure, and whatever we could find.
We led Fuknha and his remaining clanmates to the snow, and with no other clothes or weapons, led them to the edge of the monastery and told them to walk. They were lost in the distance and we returned. It seems that a 4 count of Rock Baboons had come from somewhere and were in the goblin room, eating dead bodies and trashing the place. Not wanting to fight them, we hid back around the corner and waited 20 minutes for them to grow bored, head out, and go east to the garden behind the secret door. We had eaten lunch and by 12:30, were ready to go back in and make our way downstairs to the 1st level of the hobgoblin lair.
Icemonth the 9th, 12:30 AM
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