#2: The Old Cedar Tree - Colostle
Day 2
Day 2
Hello and welcome! If you have not read the first chapter of my Colostle adventure then I highly encourage you to do so. Please click the link below.
First, let’s go ahead and pull our set of 3 exploration cards for the day.
8 of Diamonds - event, small settlement
Ace of Clubs - evidence of attempted raid
7 of Clubs - deep and hard to climb into.
Second, I will resolve the event card found in prompt 8 of diamonds.
Question of Hearts - hunger sets in
I awoke, early in the morning, covered in a pool of sweat and drizzle. My muscles aching, still not recovered from the previous adventures. The weather has worsened and I need to travel quicker to keep up with the impending downpour. If i’m lucky I can make it back to the village by sunset.
Near half a day passed as I slowly made progress. The rain picking up more intensely dropping down like plump grapes ripe from the vine. Behind me lay the remnants of the deserted castle no longer visible. The taste of the salty sea air still lingered on my mouth. I entered the protection of the Thalcorn Forest, one of the larger forests surrounding the outskirts of Mid Room.
Daylight grew less abundant, the sun was setting. Shadows from the rooms great pillars and walls encapsulated the land. Mid Room was a beautiful place, if one ever stop, paused and observed it.
“Snap! Crunch… Crunch.. CRUNCH!” I stopped. Someone or something was very near. I sought protection next to tree and peeked out the side. Roughly 100 yards away stood a massive old cedar tree. A shack was built into the inside of the tree. Scattered amongst the area were figures in leather armor wielding weapons. They looked rather unfriendly.
The group was loading cargo into a a large wagon filled with boxes, goods, weapons and armor. When the last box was added the wagon briskly strolled away without a moments hesitation.
“Were they bandits?” I questioned.
I sat in silence slowing my breath for what felt like an eternity. The last of the individuals had packed up and left on their mounts. I decided to check it out. The shack was deserted and nothing of any real interest was in side. A few spare books, some parchment paper and stale bread blanketed the floor.
“It’s almost like they just cleaned up and left. I don’t see how they could have even fit all those barrels in this room.” I stated out loud.
Further poking around I uncovered an old dirty sheet draped hastily over a crawl space door.
“If there is one thing I hate its, the dark and I certainly hate tight spaces.” I sighed. “Perhaps there is something of interest down there or something that will at least give me a hint into what the heck is going on."
I opened the door and stepped down a very long latter. What I expected was a basement with wine, cheeses and dried meats. Instead I found a very long and deep tunnel. Torches hung sporadically amongst the stone walls.
I further explored the tunnels until I finally came to a room. Deep underground and easily a half an hour had passed. The room and tunnel was littered with broken barrels of fresh and rotten food. At the far end of the room was a single wooden door with… blood.
I entered the door which eventually lead me down a large pantry that connected to another crawl space. Inside was a shop with a kitchen. Broken glassware, pots and pans littered the area.
“Please, just leave us be you’ve taken all of our food and treasure already. We have nothing of value anymore!” The old voice of a woman shouted.
I jumped in surprise and found a woman slouching over a chair blood dripping slowly down her arm. The wound wasn't too deep, she would surely survive if she received some basic medical support. “I’m sorry, I am not with the others. I’m with the Order of the Knights. Were… were those bandits? What happened here? Are you alright?” I asked.
“Please, please you must help us. Do you have any food to spare! They ran off with everything, our weapons, armor and fresh foods. They even took some of our live stock!” The woman started to cry. “A few days ago, an adventurer came into town. We don’t often get many folk around here since we are so far from Parapette. She was a kind and sweet girl, some kind of Rook hunter they say. Anyway, when she left, a slew of bandits came raging in afterwards. Their leader cut down our elder and looted the town. Apparently, they had been tracking the girl but she lead them right to our settlement instead.” The woman was now shaking.
“Okay, okay please just calm down. Everything will be okay they are gone and took what they wanted. You’re safe now.” I reassured her. “There aren’t any bandits left in the village are there?” I asked.
“No, I don’t think so.” she said.
I asked, “You mentioned the elder was murdered. Is there someone else in charge I can speak with?” She replied, “Go speak with the elders grandson he can give you any details you need. He is up near the north side of the village.”
I found the elder’s grandson sleeping under a cherry tree on top of a dirt mound.
I approached the young man and said, “Hello, i’m sorry to wake you and I am so sorry for what’s happened here. I learned from the cook that the town was raided. If there is anything I can do to help i’ll try my best. I am looking for someone to help repair my Arm.”
The man looked up at me with a smile and said, “Oh, it’s you again. Hello adventurer.” I smiled, back and said, “hello again.”
He replied, “You know, I come from a family of adventurers too. My father died when I was young exploring the Room Lands. Some say it was a rook while others say he was lost in the cracks or taken by gargoyles.”
He paused then continued as if he was recalling a memory. “My grandfather though, he was very brave. He was a rook hunter just like you. Anyway, eventually, my grandmother convinced him to retire and move out here. They built this farm and further developed it into a small settlement. She always wanted to live a peaceful life while he wanted adventure.” He laughed. “That didn’t’ work out to well but I think my grandfather enjoyed living here.”
“Was that his sword?” I asked, pointing at the weapon in the ground.
“Yes, this sword and box are his… I guess, they were his.” He looked up at the tree, observing the beautiful white blooms and said, “Hey, you know i’m not much of an adventurer. I enjoy farming and I want to help build up this village again. I know my grandfather would like that and my grandmother could use the help.”
He paused again, conflicted and said. “Here take this box. I think it will help you on your journey. Inside, is a map of my grandfathers adventures and some old trinkets. I know the map will help as there are directions back to Parapette. The trinkets I hope will fix your arm, though I’m sorry I don’t know who can do that sort of thing.”
“Are you sure?” I asked. I was shocked. Apparently I had brought doom on this village yet he was being so kind.
He smiled again and handed me the box, “Yes, I am. Our village will be fine, thankfully no one but my grandfather was killed and we have a local healer to look after the rest of the townsfolk.”
“Thank you.” I said as I took the box. “If there is anything the Order of the Knights can do, just please reach out to us. Perhaps we can send a small contingent out to track down those bandits.”
“That’s okay,” he said. Take care of yourself and please do good by those trinkets.
I spent a night with the villagers, helping where I could. Lying in bed I went through the contents of the box. “Well look at that, a rook gear! This is exactly what I need to repair the broken arm!” It was hard to keep my composure I was so excited.
+1 permanent bonus to exploration phase (Ace of Clubs)Further digging through the box reveled some old pictures of the elder, his wife and some of the rooks he had hunted. Under the photos, sure enough was a map of the known Roomlands. Within was helpful directions to Parapette.
Finally, I could track down an artisan to help fix the arm. “Huh, that’s interesting.” I thought. “North Door and the Barren Room were both circled in red ink. Off to the side the words DANGER, ROOK! were scribbled down.”
The image of “the known room lands” is provided by ©2021 Nich Angell and Colostle and was altered to meet the story in this post.
Thank you for following along! If you’d like to read the next chapter in my adventure, check out the story below!
Note:
Art in this post was generated using DALL-E-3. My intention is to bring life and inspiration to my actual plays (AP) for my own consumption and enjoyment. I support the use of independent artists and their creative work.