The First of Four Months

War has recently broken out between the kingdoms of Zerine and Saria. Our first take is to take the princess of Saria to neutral Rheathe, which is practically on the other side of the world. Normally we would need to cross the Teal Sea, but because of the newfound fighting (as well as the dangerous isle of Tartarus) we will take a roundabout trip via land to avoid naval combat using the land bridge between the two continents.
 
One of the most dangerous parts of the journey will be through the Yornja Pass (think freezing mountain pass). It also happens to be full of megafauna.


After Yornja Pass are the Calmlands, a region notably dangerous due to the unnatural quiet that covers the area. Since the dwarven kingdom there has fallen the place is considered unsafe and very, very dangerous.
 
Beeatrice and I are from northern lower Saria, with the forests we grew up in.
 
Our first stop, on our way to Yornja Pass, will be the Twin Cities. Known for their magical culture, the two are currently hosting their annual "Games of the Cities" festival (think Olympics). There, we can restock and double-check our path towards Theathe.
 

Trouress, the human capital of Saria

 
The first day was aboard a small ship, to take us from the First Monastery to Trouress. The capital is notably know for its ironwork, and the buildings are supported (popularly) with iron framing and designs
 
Upon landing, we met our dignitary greeting party -- a very large one, at that -- and were basically informed that news has already been made public of the princess leaving Trouress and Saria in general; no real attempt was made to hide our mission (however we may feel about it). Some side comments were made about "chimera" (camera) stone.
 
As we made our way to the castle the crowds grew. The journey was otherwise uneventful.
 
To the castle, then to the throneroom. There's so much going on in the receiving room -- but upon our entrance King Moriarty silences the room. We bow. Princess Leah is stunning, of course.
 

A Feast In Our Honor

 
To celebrate the beginning of our journey and the princess leaving, a huge feast and celebration to last the rest of the day was thrownin our honor.
 
At the table, we (with a drunk Jarek) discussed when to leave. He was the only one to argue for leaving in the morning... but the party just waited for the alochol to take effect, and put a passed-out-and-drunk Jarek on a horse with the rest of the party at the royal stables.
 
[h2[On the road
 
It's about 1-2 weeks from Trouress to the Twin Cities in Saria
 

Road Stories

Milo's story of love: the halfling knew the daughter of a wealthy man; as a shepherd boy he could only think to make her a home-cooked stew. When he went to fetch water for his gift of food, he drank from an enchanted spring of sorts (one that scared Molly [both she and Milo "became" a sorcerer in that sense]).

Tiberius' story of a scar: once out on assignment, Tiberius and the men he served with encountered a creature in the shape of a woman -- one that killed many of those he was with, but Tiberius and another escaped (with the scar).

Jarek's tale of loss: I spoke of a girl I knew well (Bonnie) in the village, who became terrified of Jarek and Bee once she saw them together with their mother.

Bee's tale of (being) lost: once out with Jarek, climbing a tree, she could not find home; Jarek and Bee took days to find the house once more, and when they did Baba was quite upset.

Sera tale of a lost bird: (a thinly-veiled story about herself) a bird who's nest was empty, whose parents were missing. The bird learned how to fly on it's own, "until it found a problem it could not solve on its own -- a chimera".

Leah's story of friendship: the princess told a story of a servant she worked with and the "joy" of learning to spearfish. Sera made a comment of teaching Leah "high octane hunting".
 
 

A brief stop in the mountains

 
We stopped for a bit in Ironridge. Trns out people have been going missing out of the mine there, and with our good-nature we figured we can investigate.
 
On our way up, we were ambushed by goblins hiding in bushes. We dispatched of them easily, and continued on until we reached the mouth of the cave. It was caved in, and we first rescued a man buried in the rubble before we took the rest of the hour to clear the rocks away and free those people inside the mine (about 15 men and women). We carried the injured back down to the village, and enjoyed a hot meal and some respite before continuing our journey.