KINGMAKER:
The Wardens of the Greenbelt
Entry 10.
The Trouble With Kobolds, A Cure For T'Lef
& More Exploring
Before they left the Mites' tunnels the Wardens destroyed the eggs they had found. Ion & William recognised them as Mite and Giant Centipede eggs. Using the information they had gained from the Mite's map room they set of south towards the Kobold's lair. The land around here was more hilly but progress was easy and the early Summer sun gave the area a pleasant feel.
Grabbles had been put under the care of Jarn as a number of the Wardens had wanted a more bloody fate for the mite leader. At the next camp two large worgs approached, snarling at the Wardens as they prepared their meal. Ione was able to speak with them and ascertained they were seeking food. Luckily Havrik had earlier caught a few rabbits and these were thrown to the worgs who thanked Ione and left the Wardens in peace.
The course they were following lead them back to the Shrike river where, just down stream, they discovered the river cascaded over a ten foot waterfall. This would make trade up and down the river a good deal harder though not impossible. They followed the riverbank for a short while before moving back into the hills in search of the kobolds. At that moment they spied a figure on the hillside above them. Havrik set off after the figure which then bolted. Ione cast a 'longstrider' spell on Havrik and he began to catch up to the figure which could now be identified as a kobold scout. They exchanged missile fire but neither was very effective. He was finally caught at the entrance to an old silver mine and was quickly dispatched.
On searching the area the Wardens found a juvenile mite held prisoner in a cage, as a warning to any mites that might approach. At this point the Wardens decided to release Grabbles and the young mite on condition that they left the area and did not continue their life of crime. The Wardens also found a key hidden behind the cage. This opened the wooden door that led into the old mine. A sign identified it as the Old Oak Silver Mine. The passage into the mine was narrow so the Wardens could only enter in single file with T'lef leading the way. At a junction in the passage T'lef and Havrik found a small alcove. Examining the ropes and pegs in the small room they managed to disarm three pit traps in the main passage. They continued deeper into the mine. Suddenly two kobolds dropped down behind Jarn & William at the back of the line. Thankfully they were able to quickly kill the ambushers and the party kept going. The passage opened out into a complex of larger rooms. In the first one they examined they found what appeared to be a temple of some kind. The walls were covered in pictograms and an altar seemed to hold a depression in which an idol should stand. On closer examination Jarn was fairly certain that the pictograms showed a religion and practice which had ben altered to put the priest at the centre of the cult rather than a deity.
They left that room and almost immediately came upon the rest of the kobolds arguing amongst themselves and therefore taken by surprise when the Wardens appeared. Their chief demanded to know what they were doing in his caves. He also asked whether they were the ones who had released Mikmek from the mites. The conversation didn't last long as T'lef didn't like Chief Sootscales attitude. The kobolds proved no match for the party of Wardens. Only one escaped; up a very narrow passage that the Wardens were unable to enter.
The Wardens pressed on into the mine. They entered a room unlike the others they had passed through. The walls of the room were lined with wooden panels adorned with banners and scraps of blankets. These were covered in more of the quasi-religious pictograms. A large cauldron sat upon a blazing fire in the centre of the room and behind that stood the kobold's priest Tartuk. He cast spells as they entered causing T'lef to fear him. His 'detect thoughts' spell had prepared him for their approach and he protected himself with 'shield'. But none of this was enough to save him from the wrath of the Wardens and he soon perished. His room proved to hold a considerable amount of treasure. The priest had gathered all the useful and valuable items that the kobolds had accumulated. This included large sum of coins, a number of magic items and a plain brass wedding ring which matched the one that had been stolen from Svetlana.
As they emerged from the mine they saw the kobold that had escaped and Mikmek sat on the hillside opposite. They greeted them and approached. As they had no where to go they asked if they could join the Wardens. Ione and the Wardens instead offered them a treaty. If the kobolds cleaned out the mine and looked after it in the name of the Wardens then they would let the nearest village, Gunther's Den, know that the kobolds would cause them no further trouble. Two treaty plaques were made and signed by both kobolds and the Wardens. The Wardens also let them know that they might send miners to reopen the mine in the future. The kobolds pointed the party in the direction of the village and the Wardens set of again.
Gunther's Den was a substantial village. It sat beside the river over looked by an ancient hillfort which had been palisaded around the summit, along with a watchtower. The innkeeper was very friendly and advised the party to visit Gunther who lived in his longhouse within the palisade. With gifts of beer and food the party did just that. Gunther was elderly and explained that a combination of the deprevations of bandits and kobolds had left him unable to defend the surrounding lands. However the size of the hillfort had proved enough to dissuade either of those groups from visiting the village. The Wardens updated him on the situation with the kobolds and that they intended to remove the Stag Lord's threat shortly. They told him to contact them through Oleg's trading post if he wished.
From there the Wardens decided to explore back up the river. This led them through areas they had already visited. At the edge of the area designated in their charter they found a sparsely populated land but they did come across one farmer. He expalined that his neighbours had deserted the countryside within the last couple of years due to the bandit's demands. The Warden's tried to assure him that better times were ahead but he said if nothing improved he would be heading over the mountains to Varnhold.
The Wardens continued, moving north east, and they soon reached the head waters of the Shrike river. Nearby was the village of Oldenfield where they had been told an old woman Martha could prepare an antidote to T'lef's lycanthrope condition. However t,hey soon discovered that the local cleric, Toumas, was a priest of Asmodeus. Jarn was all for charging in and removing the evil priest but he was finally persuaded that T'lef's cure was more important and that the priest could be dealt with later.
Ione, Havrik and William accompanied T'lef to the old woman's cottage just before dusk. This left Anza and Jarn to secure the wagon a safe distance away from the village. Somewhat disturbingly Old Martha seemed to know their purpose. She was guarded by a large number of cats one of which accompanied each of the visitors. They went into the cottage where Blind Dana sat beside the fire. Martha took the wolfsbane from the Wardens and passed it to Dana whilst T'lef sat before her. The next few minutes took on a strange aura with the blind woman manipulating her potions until she handed a small phial to T'lef which he drank down. Without further ado the Wardens were hurried from the cottage and sent on their way. Their appointed cats following them until they were clear of the village.
As soon as T'lef reached Jarn & Anza he fell into a deep sleep in the back of the wagon. The Wardens moved away from the village before making camp and securing it. Upon waking in the morning he immediately reported that he felt so much better. However Ione had not slept well. She had a vision dream in which she had seen Jedhail captured within a ball of power. He was attempting to change into the form of a bear but was unable to. A tall beautiful woman, perhaps a fey princess, appeared to be torturing him. She then turned to Ione and issued her a threat, that she would be dealt with too.
Ione discussed this with William and the rest of the Wardens. They resolved to try to identify the woman when they could research the vision in more depth. From what they could remember there was a legend of a mad princess from the First World but they were unsure of any further detail.
The Wardens then set off down the Shrike River following the track beside it that they had followed before. It met with the Thorn River just further on from where their explorations had previously ended. A few miles up the Thorn River they found a ford where the river broadened as it passed over a rocky shelf. Although the waters ran swift here it was easy for travellers to cross.
The Wardens then decided to head down the Shrike River to find the Stag Lord's fortress where the river entered the lake. Once they had found it they decided to carry out a reconnaissance. Ione took to her eagle form whilst the other checked out an abandoned village at the foot of the fortress. The fort itself was a wooden structure built upon the remains of a stone tower; the whole structure sitting upon a low hill. There only seemed to be one entrance but a path led around the hill about half way up. There appeared to be only a dozen bandits it the fort itself and they seemed relaxed and not particularly alert. A few more bandits camped in the village ruins.
It was time to make plans.
