Îrwadri - Blue Mountains

"From afar we could see the bluish shimmer that emanated from the Îrwadri and which gave these mountains a special aura. At the same time, there was an eerie ghost hidden behind them, at least if the goblins were to be believed. Powerful monsters are said to have once lived here, the first goblins had attacked the large settlement several times in the Age of Myths and Shadows. But the goblins found the courage to lure these beasts into a trap and lock them up in these mountains forever.
I had read about it in an old book of Brictaelgian legends, but thought the myth was just an old wives' tale. On our way west via Stonecrown to the Blue Mountains, we repeatedly met locals who warned us not to continue our planned journey. This further strengthened our curiosity. In addition, I had learned very little about the region during my research and a lot seemed to be still undiscovered, so my companions and I were determined to be the first to study the mountains and their flora and fauna in more detail. There was very little map material that we could use. According to the residents, only two roads led directly through the mountains, but these would be nothing more than major trails.
We had already left Shadowshield, the last town miles from the mountains, two days ago. The sun was nearing its end and so we looked for a suitable place to sleep. At the fire we had a direct view of the mountain range that rose to the southwest and did not look like threatening black shadows in the dark, as usual, but instead emitted this light blue light. It was fascinating and it wouldn't be long before we discovered the secret behind it."

Syrta Khîm, expedition leader -

At a glance

Highest mountain: Îrwu Cogoin 5,263 m (Wadrîvi)
Temperature: 15°C
Species: Eyed Tintling, Moss Eater, Blue grotto sea urchins
Special features: Bluish shimmer, vibrations, eerie aura, mountain lake with crystals

The Îrwadri or Blue Mountains lie to the west of Brictaelgis and form the natural border between Âdocôris and Wadrîvî. They owe their name to the bluish light, which is visible for miles, especially in the dark.
Due to the legend of the mountain shadows, these mountains have remained largely unexplored. Syrta Khîm and her team were the first to explore a small part of the region.
Unfortunately, there is also a grain of truth in many legends. As beautiful and magical as the mountains seem from afar, they are just as eerie when travelers are near them or venture through them.

Lonely path to the Irwadri by Blue Fairy 74 - Midjourney-Collage

Khîm's team didn't stay in these mountains for very long, but they did get to the bottom of the blue glow. At the end of their journey, the researchers viewed these mountains as the actual living thing on which animals as well as plants and fungi such as microbes would live on humanoid "skin". Despite the desire of some researchers and adventurous goblins to explore the mountains better, further expeditions have so far been unsuccessful.

Ecosystem

„Our team reached one of the two paths that would lead through the mountains on Tênkai 10, 1,615 AEC. For about half a day's walk we had felt slight vibrations that repeated themselves over and over again at a rhythm of about one to two hours. I had already experienced earthquakes and volcanic eruptions near the epicenters and was afraid that we might find ourselves in an extremely dangerous situation. I also noticed with the team that this didn't seem natural to them. All my geological measuring instruments went crazy during the vibrations, either stopping completely or not showing a single movement. So I tried to write down my observations and put forward a few theories.“

Notes from Nektus Phikaryn, Téshànian geologist -

"Arrrgghhh, that tingling sensation. It's everywhere! Like biting ants. And the air - smells somehow - charged. No bird chirping or leaves rustling to be heard. Especially when the mountains are pulsating. I don't like that! Nobody is allowed to stray too far from the camp! Listen? No one!"

Thurian Grayrod, Brictaelgian commander for the group -

„This fairyelf has really been abandoned by all the good earth spirits and has given us this damned soup. Every goblin knows that these mountains are not to be trifled with and yet here we are, setting up a camp. We had already passed the entrance to the mountains yesterday and this vibration-oscillation thing, as the stone hunter calls it, is scary to me. Every time the mountains “swing” the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. Well at least we found this ledge and as soon as our fire is lit it will feel a little more homey and I hope it will scare away this - gggrrrhhhh whatever it is!“

Berrin Oakleaf, Brictaelgian field master to the commander -

„Everything seems to be growing much faster and looking unusually fascinatingly creepy. The day before yesterday I observed a few new mushrooms that shot up from the ground after vibrating in fast motion and wore strange caps with a black dot in the middle and an outer light blue ring.

Since my discovery yesterday we have had about eleven shocks and when I checked on the mushrooms again yesterday they were twice as big as me. Their hats had become balls and now I realized that huge eyeballs were staring back at me. The fungi also secreted a black ink-like liquid that smelled of decay and attracted small wandering balls of moss. Only at second glance did I realize that they were caterpillars attacking the mushrooms. And as quickly as the mushrooms had grown, they were eaten again by these cute predators.“

Excerpt from the travel diary of Fâlyn Ravalis, Téshànian botanist -

„This is probably the most animal-free landscape I have ever seen. While Fâlyn dances for joy over the strange mushrooms and plants, I'm almost bored out of my mind here. Apart from these moss caterpillars and a few sea urchins that live in one of the caves near our camp, there are no large animals to be discovered. Maybe they are afraid of the vibrations or feel the eerie aura of this place. As we all know, animals are much more sensitive than we are.“

Wandile Sikawu, Layidian zoologist observing-

„So what do we have here? This looks like a damn thing to me like some ancient glyphs or something. Unfortunately not in any language that I know. Who left you pretty ones here? So inconspicuous - and yet found! The measurement says 50 by 100. Hmmm - perhaps ancient Draelgit. Where are my blueprints? Maybe the two goblins can help decipher it.“

Makan Liuxian, Téshànian cartographer -

"We couldn't stand it for long and had to break camp after just four weeks. Most of us complained more and more every day about headaches, the increasing tingling, discomfort and the feeling of despair. In the end, we hadn't discovered much - at least, As far as the flora and fauna were concerned, the aura that surrounded the place was magical from the outside. But especially the commander Thurian and our goblin field master Berrin were happy when we stopped the expedition in this region.

I didn't want to go back and avoid the mountains, but straight through them. We didn't know how long it would take. The sources were thin and some spoke of journeys lasting between eight and twelve days. But we had to try.

The further we ventured, the stronger the shocks and our sensations became. We started arguing and I was afraid that it might get more serious. At the end of the sixth day we came to a small mountain lake that shimmered as turquoise as the rock lines of the mountains. The water was clear and we saw crystals at the bottom. Suddenly there was another vibration and the water began to bubble and the crystals lit up - like a wave, the crystals gave off their power to the rock lines of the mountains and made them glow.

Nektus begged me to collect one of the crystals and jumped in. He was lucky and hid a small crystal. When he reached the surface, the water became completely calm and not the slightest wave splashed onto the shore of the lake. This was scarier than before and so we quickly made our way out of these mountains.

Glyphs appeared more and more often here and there on the walls of the rocks, which, when viewed from the Wete, revealed moving beasts and monsters. It was as if they were literally trying to drive us away. We stopped taking breaks because we were terrified that something terrible would happen to us. After eleven days we finally found the exit.

Every biologist claims that stones are lifeless and it is actually flora and fauna that bring a place to life. But here it is the mountains that live."

Syrta Khîm, expedition leader -

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In response to Tyrdal's unofficial challenge

The longest journey - A traveller’s challenge Part II