Leaving the rangers and the soldiers behind to guard their bounty, the troupe heads north and after a day’s travel northwards along the thin path through the unnamed forest, they reach a strange border in the vegetation. As if the forest has been split with a knife, forest noises completely cease and the vegetation suddenly changes- becoming darker, fetid, and rank and as they move forward, Mar’Khabazza and Ravenna fall ill with nausea and tingling in their extremities.
Pressing onwards into the blight, the troupe is attacked by animated bushes that lash out with thorny fronds but are quickly destroyed by Ravenna’s shock bolts and the soldiers’ broadswords.
Undaunted, the troupe continues to follow the path and discover four slain sudaar that we killed by large blades. Although none are capable of reading the tale left on the ground, it is obvious that they were slain by creatures with long and narrow, almost bird-like, feet.
The path leads to a small clearing in the center of which is a massive grey stone surrounded by more of the slender birdlike footprints.
The nausea plaguing Mar’Khabazza and Ravenna becomes almost overpowering as they approach the stone, and clearly this boulder is the focus of the blight. Approaching the stone, Ravenna discovers that it is made of the same material as the stone she recovered off of the sudaar shaman back in the river valley. Curious, she tries to attune to the boulder and immediately collapses unconscious after giving a slight cry of pain and surprise.
Unsure of what to do now, Mar’Khabazza and Magnus decide to spend the night here, perhaps goading whatever slew the sudaar to appear but nothing presents itself.
June 4, 7761
After an uncomfortable night with Magnus standing watch and Mar’Khabazza fighting the effects of this strange nausea, Ravenna regains consciousness and immediately takes a drink “to calm her nerves”.
Mar’Khabazza looks around and says simply, “The way is closed to us.”
Ravenna pulls out her recovered stone and throws it angrily against the boulder. And they return from whence they came.
June 8, 7761
After journeying south to the river valley to gather up the troops, Feldspar and their booty, the next few days are spent cutting directly east through the unnamed forest to the open plains and then south to the Great Road. From there it is an uphill journey into the foreboding barrier of the Malpara Mountains, crossing the mountain pass and descending to the crossroads on the morning of the eleventh.
