Session 16: Isulf's Quest to Find Lilladenau

General Summary

In the weeks that the Storm Eaters quested for the last breath of a dragon in the ruins of the Elvish Gardens, their former companions, Isulf and Aela, were upon a quest of their own. The dreams the Sleeping Queen visited upon them beckoned them to bring the head of Freyeth to Lilladenau, the ruins of an ancient Elven city where the entire population vanished without a trace nearly 900 years ago. Power was promised in the dreams. Power and a life beyond imagining.
After parting ways with the Storm Eaters, Isulf and Aela sailed east across Coldlight Fjord toward Lilladenau. Both were unaware that the Third Plague had just begun, with hordes of Wormborn laying siege to Blackwater Keep, and that their former companions were venturing straight into the eye of that maelstrom.
After the short and uneventful voyage across the no longer haunted waters of Coldlight Fjord, Aela and Isulf hid their ship in a remote cove on the eastern shore of the fjord. They would continue on foot the rest of the way to Lilladenau. Neither of them knew where the cursed ruins were exactly, but Aela was driven by dreams of the mystical place, pulling her eastward through the Thu'um woods along the southern edge of the Toes Mountains. But she did not dream alone. Isulf also found his dreams intruded upon by the call of Lilladenau, whispering promises of power and glory to him if he continues the quest of bringing the head of Freyeth to the Sleeping Queen, should Aela fall along the way.

Little more than a day on their trek inland Aela and Isulf (neither of them experienced woodsmen) found themselves struggling to keep their bearings in the rugged and thick forested hills of the Thu'um Woods. And then, as if their unspoken prayers were suddenly answered by the Crows or the Sleeping Queen, they crossed paths with Obi the tomte ranger and his faithful companion Ori, a one-horned ruen ruen. Actually, "crossed paths" isn't quite accurate, as Obi had been tracking them for hours, and sensing they were lost by their wandering trail, decided to aid them as tomte are wont to do.

Obi told Aela and Isulf that he was a well-travelled soul that, until recently, had served as a guide, huntsman, and forager for a group of mages from the Lodge Eldritch on their many treks to the far north. A few weeks ago, his wizarding companions had been summoned back to the Lodge for some secret emergency they would not speak a word of. They had hastily hired the fastest vessel they could find to return to the Lodge, taking Obi and Ori with them. Upon nearing Blackwater Keep the fortress exploded in a massive burst, causing their ship to capsize in the deadly waves created by the explosion! Obi and Ori were fortunate to find bits of flotsam to keep them afloat. They drifted for days until finally washing ashore north of Draugr's Run. The crafty woodsman expertly procured food, fresh water, and shelter for himself and Ori, nursing themselves back to health after their harrowing ordeal at sea. But now, with no companions to serve, the tomte ranger felt lost and without purpose. He wondered what he should do. Perhaps he should seek his old companions at the Lodge, if they survived? But then while foraging he came across the meandering tracks of Aela and Isulf, and decided maybe these poor lost souls needed him more.

Now with an expert woodsman and guide, the trio (calling themselves the Bloodkrakens) made steady progress eastward through the forests, hills, and valleys of the treacherous Thu'um Woods, loosely guided by Aela's dreams of the ruins of Lilladenau.

Some days later while traversing a deep wooded valley, the Bloodkrakens had a near fatal encounter with a massive, half-crazed cave bear covered with old scars. Even a portion of cave bear's scalp had been hacked away long ago to reveal part of the skull beneath, protruding like a bony crown. The battle was hard fought, and the three Bloodkrakens barely survived. After the beast was slain the Bloodkrakens were resting and tending to their wounds when they were approached by a well-muscled and heavily armored trollock (also known as a half orc in the southern regions of Valkheim) with a massive war hammer. The trollock introduced himself as Kiadux, a follower of Ragnarr, the mighty and terrible god of war and storms. He said he had been seeking that particular cave bear for days now. It was called "Ol' Skull Thane" by the Splintered Folk, and it was a man-eating terror that all the hunters of the region feared. He had hoped to kill it and claim the glory for his god, Ragnarr, but was apparently too late.

Kiadux knew the Bloodkrakens had to be formidable indeed to kill Ol' Skull Thane, and after talking to them for just a few moments could sense that they were on a path littered with battle and glory. Without even knowing their true quest or purpose, the trollock asked if he could join them. He said Ragnarr had no doubt guided him to them, and together they were meant to wade through seas of blood and Elja. Aela asked what they had to gain by letting him join their band. Kiadux said he didn't know where they were going, but they were in the Thu'um Woods, a very dangerous place he called home. He gave details about every tribe of the Splintered Folk. He spoke of the raiding habits of the local Ogn Troll warbands. He knew the land, the peoples, and the dangers of where they were and potentially where they were going. Impressed, Aela said that they sought a great treasure in the ruins of Lilladenau, but she didn't know exactly where the ruins were. Kiadux admitted that he did not either, but suggested that they go to Two Lakes, a rendezvous point where many tribes and races trade goods and information. Their best chance of finding someone who knew of the location of Lilladenau would be there, and they could also get supplies and potentially hire more muscle for any dangers that awaited them in the ruins. Aela found Kiadux to be knowledgeable, well-spoken, and most of all useful to her goals, so she welcomed the trollock into the ranks of the Bloodkrakens. Now four strong, the band made their way to the settlement of Two Lakes.

Now calling Two Lakes a settlement is an overstatement to be sure. Rather, it is a rendezvous point for the many separate tribes of the Splintered Folk (as well as some of the less violent Ogn Troll bands in the region and even the wild elves of the Hollaevla Hills) to trade both goods and information. There are only a few permanent structures there, and these are crudely built long halls in rough condition. The size of the mostly transitory population of Two Lakes depends on how many nomadic factions happen to be trading there at any given time, generally varying from a few dozen to a few hundred.

In Two Lakes the Bloodkrakens inquired about Lilladenau and its possible location. They learned from the folk of Two Lakes that another wanderer had recently been inquiring about the cursed elven city. This "curious" man had come into Two Lakes about a week ago, bartered for supplies and spouted tales that damned the gods and any fools that feared them. His tales made some folk uncomfortable, fearing a wandering god might hear his damnations and come to Two Lakes seeking retribution. The locals said the curious man then took up a camp in some woods just outside Two Lakes, pleasing many that he was leaving the settlement, but not by much as he didn't "leave" nearly far enough.

The locals of Two Lakes said the curious man cuts down a big tree every day and then starts a massive bonfire every night with its wood, just outside the settlement, calling for others to join him in the warmth. None do. Superstitious tales abounded. Was this stranger some trickster or monster in man skin, trying to lure folks to their doom in the heat of his bonfires, burning living wood that many folk hold sacred in Valkheim as they are brothers and sisters to the great tree Valdryssil? Yet paradoxically, the locals also told tales of the curious man bringing fresh-cut firewood to the old and weak folk in the settlement, as if trying to help them? Some took his aid, albeit reluctantly, and their campfires gave off the dark, wet smoke of burning green wood.

The Bloodkrakens decided to investigate this curious man who was also interested in Lilladenau. They learned he was Kenard Greenwood, a wanderer, a warrior, and a skald who wished to spread a message of change to Valkheim, a message that spurned the gods and the fear that men had of them. Kenard was drawn to Lilladenau because he had heard interesting tales about why the elves of that city had vanished nearly nine centuries ago. Some said that the gods were responsible, but others said the elves of Lilladenau had found a way to leave Valkheim for a paradise beyond the pain and cold of this dying world. Both possibilities fascinated Kenard, and he wished to go to the ruins to learn more. Aela found Kenard just as fascinating as the tales he wove and invited him to join them on their quest to Lilladenau, which he accepted.

In addition to looking for information about Lilladenau while in Two Lakes, Aela wanted to acquire some more muscle for the quest, should there be unknown danger in the ruined city. She hired a pair of local mercenaries with a reputation for splitting skulls and not asking questions: The Shadythorns. Rook and Cikaac Shadythorn are brothers, or more accurately, half-brothers that share a passion for shiny gold, dangerous deeds, and even more dangerous women.

Before the Shadythorns could depart for Lilladeanu with the Bloodkrakens, a local trader by the name of Hakkar Honeytongued asked a quick favor of them. Hakkar was once a Splintered Folk hunter (not a very good one he admits) that had settled in Two Lakes and established a trading post. He deals in food, drink, steel, fur and flesh. Whenever their travels take them to Two Lakes, the Shadythorns always find what they are looking for with Hakkar, be it work, drink, or pleasure, and over the years they have formed a rough kinship with the bombastic trader. Out of this sense of kinship, the Shadythorns agreed to complete this quick favor before they departed with the Bloodkrakens. Aela ordered Isulf and Kenard to help the Shadythorns with this job, hoping that it would be done faster, and thus they could depart for Lilladenau sooner. Meanwhile, she, Obi, and Kiadux continued to gather information and supplies in Two Lakes, preparing for the group's quest to Lilladenau.

Hakkar asked the party to investigate the possible disappearance of a local volva, called Dog, who lived not far from Two Lakes and was famous for making an exceptional whiskey she claimed she squeezed from stones. Hakkar traded thralls and livestock to the volva for her whiskey, which he then sold for a nice profit, and her possible disappearance was cutting into his sales. He had already sent one of his men, Torm, to investigate two days ago, and he had not returned, which made Hakkar suspect there was trouble. Hakkar had another of his employees, a clever wood tomte named Trin, accompany the party on this job to make sure things were done with his best interest in mind.

After acquiring horses for all to ride from Hakkar (and Isulf summoning a magical, crooked steed called "Carrion"), the party made the short trek south to the volva's sod and rock hovel. A decrepit outhouse stood nearby, next to a pile of broken wood. Encircling the hovel and outhouse were a ring of oil-soaked wood, and just inside that a ring of salt. A handaxe with a silvered blade hung over the hide flap of the hovel. There were no signs of the volva or Torm. The party investigated the strange rings and the silvered axe but couldn't discern what their purpose was. Meanwhile Kenard, driven by his curious relationship with wood, began nicely stacking the pile of broken wood that laid near the outhouse. He was completely caught off guard when the outhouse moved and transformed, with eyes, teeth, and powerful tendrils sprouting from it! It was a massive mimic!

The mimic pummeled the surprised Kenard with its tendrils and then pulled him into its mouth to begin chewing on him. The party burst into action, coming to Kenard's aid. Cikaac punched the mimic ferociously, the rune tattoos on his neck now glowing, imbuing his fists with strange, savage power. But the elf was shocked to discover that his fists were now stuck to the mimic, and the beast began to tear into him with tendrils and teeth as well! Rook grabbed the silvered axe and attacked the mimic, getting the strange weapon stuck as well. Then, with a burst of rage, the ogn elf sprouted the tail of a wyrm, which he used to defend himself from the mimic's tendril attacks! Isulf's magic sword cut right through the mimic's sticky flesh as the dark paladin joined the fight. Trin stayed at a safe distance, firing her crossbow into the treacherous shapeshifter with deadly precision.

Fighting to stay alive, Kenard summoned the power of some runes he had learned from giants in his wanderings, his body expanding to massive proportions, making him over ten feet tall with all the weight to match. But the hungry mimic was not deterred, and it continued to chew on his now gigantic frame, causing Kenard to pass out from the pain and blood loss. Near death himself with many wounds, a bloodied Cikaac got free of the sticky mimic and dashed away to safety. Isulf, Rook, and Trin kept up the attack on the monstrosity until they finally reduced it to a bleeding mass of tentacles of teeth. Isulf quickly healed Kenard, who teetered on death's door, and the rest of the party took stock of the situation. Did this massive mimic have anything to do with the volva's disappearance?

The party harvested the mimic for various parts, then investigated both inside and outside the hovel for hours. They found no sign of the volva or Torm, other than some tracks leading to the outhouse that were probably Torm's from a few days ago. They surmised he was devoured by the mimic when he arrived. The party also gathered that the pile of broken wood near the outhouse was most likely the former real outhouse, before the mimic had destroyed it and taken its shape. They also found a pair of very strange tracks, made by two small beasts each with dozens of small legs, that led from the outhouse mimic into the hovel. Speaking of which, inside the hovel the party discovered an overturned table that had broken ropes and manacles fixed to it, along with blood stains all over the table and floor surrounding it. They also discovered a cellar dug out beneath the hovel which held the partially transmuted corpses of dozens of thralls and animals in various states of decay and change (an oozy tentacle where an arm should be, a baby's head sprouting from an open mouth, teeth where no teeth should be, etc). They also found the volva's cryptic and nearly indecipherable notes written on pelts, a score of alchemical reagents in small bottles, a pile of empty whiskey bottles, and two full whiskey bottles. Rook took the alchemical reagents, hoping some of them might be magical potions. Cikaac took the two full whiskey bottles to sell to Hakkar, as the trader had specifically requested. Trin studied and took the volva's notes. She couldn't make them out completely but got the feeling the volva was doing transmutation experiments of some sort, and the dozens of bodies in the cellar were the failed results.

With nothing left to investigate the party decided to return to Two Lakes, but Isulf's intuition was screaming that they were missing something. The paladin lingered longer than the rest, trying to figure out what had happened here, before finally mounting Carrion to follow the others in dismay. The party's best guess was that the volva had been doing transmutation experiments for unknown reasons and one of them had resulted in the creation of a massive mimic (by design or accident they couldn't discern), which somehow got loose, devoured the volva, and then took the shape of her outhouse to lure in future prey (like Torm). They never figured out what the rings of firewood and salt, or the silvered axe over the door, were about.

The party returned to Hakkar and told him what they had discovered, along with selling him the two bottles of whiskey, the volva's notes, and most of the alchemical reagents (Rook had discovered one was a magic potion and kept it). They then said farewell to Trin, rejoined Aela and the other Bloodkrakens, and made final preparations for tomorrow's departure while Kenard told a rousing collection of tales about Lilladenau around his bonfire, fascinating all who listened.

The Bloodkrakens left Two Lakes the following morning, but not before overhearing that one of Hakkar's employees, a man named Sven, had been gruesomely killed in the night, his body partially devoured by something. Although this was very intriguing, and the party wondered if it was somehow related to their encounter at the volva's hovel, Aela did not wish to tarry any longerin Two Lakes. She led the Bloodkrakens, now seven strong, northeast into the slopes of the Toes Mountains where the information they had gathered suggested Lilladenau to be.

As the Bloodkrakens made their way higher into the mountains, the weather became foul despite being less than a month past Midsommar. Snowstorms blanketed the high slopes they traversed with an early blanket of white. Winds swirled through the mountain passes, driving the snow into deep drifts that made the trek far more difficult. Additionally, as they neared where they believed Lilladenau to be, Isulf noticed that fewer and fewer crows came to roost upon his stooped shoulders. Was it the nasty weather that drove them away, or was it a sign that the paladin was moving further and further from the purpose he has sworn himself to? Aela's dreams also started to change. She had visions of a doorway, covered in bit of colored glass that formed a pattern that looked like the number 8, but laying on its side, as if it were sleeping.

As the sun sets on the 18th day past Midsommar, the Bloodkrakens believe they are about a day's travel from where Lilladenau should be according to the tales they heard in Two Lakes. They have been climbing higher and deeper into these mountains for the past two days, fighting snow squalls and harsh winds, yet still more jagged white peaks rise up before them, endlessly mocking their progress. Despite all being hardy, seasoned travelers, they are all tired of climbing and tired of shivering and perhaps tired of each other. Tempers and patience run short. Hopefully Lilladenau isn't much farther...

Report Date

15 Dec 2022