A trial of brambles

So all in all, not a bad way to end a rather eventful day such as that. But of course as you already know, the party was not the end of it. Because just after midnight, as the Coline family made way to return to their home, Terrin arrived in order to deliver upon to us his cryptic message. A great secret that had already been shared to every other adult in the village. Which was very clear when each of them made sur to give us our space, in order not to disturb us. Terrin even went as far as to use magic in order to hide our conversation from preying eyes.
 
Thus he began to explain to us, the past of Tarn. Or rather the area where Tarn is located. For ages ago upon that very spot there used to be a fey kingdom by the name of Immerglade. Said kingdom was ruled by a queen whose name has sadly been lost to time. Now while this knew great prosperity, it al ended when they were invaded by a neighbouring fey kingdom named Neverhold. And now all that remains are but a few scattered ruins around the lands. Cursed by the sorrow that had been inflicted upon them. And is in fact one of these ruins that would hold our interest for the rest of the evening.
 
For you see, one of those ruins was located just outside the village. In a part of the forest that was overrun by thorn bushes appropriately named the Brambles. As you can imagine it is not a place one would happily visit. But it was in the very centre of the Brambles where the ruin of a once mighty tower of Immerglade could be found. And as tradition dictates, all youths that come of age in Tarn must go and visit the Bramble tower in order to complete a small test. This became a tradition when an Elven sorceress visited the village a long time ago. During a time in which Terrin was still a young lad. So as you can imagine a very long time ago. When she was here, she delivered unto us a prophecy. A prophecy stating that one of the champions that complete the test, will unveil themself as the rightful heir of Immerglade and restore the kingdom to its former glory. A prophecy that has filled the people of Tarn not only with hopes and dreams for the future, but also with a sense of pride. Explaining why the tradition has endured for so long.
 
That said however, this test would not be without danger. For as I said earlier, these places hold powerful curses, that even the fey avoid when possible. And while it was perfectly possible for nothing to occur at all, it was always possible for more dangerous forces to stand in our way. Then when we passed those, we would find a riddle inside the tower that we would need to solve in order to pass the test. And while I have been dealing with puzzles for a while at that point, my success rate sadly did no really give me confidence if I am honest. But Terrin did give us a hint. A small phrase that went: Forward, Backward, Upside down. Given time, same is the sound. And with that, with bellies full and hearts brimming with wonder and hope for adventure, we went forward towards the Brambles.
 
Now I feel that my earlier description of the Brambles does not really do it justice. For while I said overrun with thorn bushes, I want you to imagine a giant wall made from Thorn bushes. Where you could hardly gaze through, even with my elven eyes. That was what was blocking our path. But we were not disheartened. Instead we found a narrow path that we could follow in order to make our way through. We even managed to avoid the poisonous thorns along the way, if only barely. And after following the long, twisting path we reached our destination, the ruined tower.
 
We were however not able to catch our breath for long. As Liliana, Dadroz and Hayley were quick to alert us to the fact that the thorns had started to move. Twisting, while taking on four humanoid forms, that I later learned were blights. Plant like creatures of animal like intelligence that were fiercely territorial. Thus we readied our weapons to fend them of as they came at us. Ileas, brave Ileas decided to take charge and storm towards the enemy, meeting them head-on. Sadly his bravery was rewarded with a barrage of needles that quickly made him look like a porcupine as he fell to the ground. But rather then demoralizing us, this only served to send Liliana in a rage as she roared and charged forward cutting one of them down. Giving Alistan an opening to administer one of our last healing potions to Ileas. The rest in the meantime continued to pelter them with arrows and spells, eventually turning the tide and winning the battle.
 
Once more we attempted to catch our breath and once more we were interrupted. As Luke and Hayley alerted us that we were being watched by a newcomer. Luckily however, it was one that I knew quite well. For there was no mistaking that coat of silver, as bright as the rays of the moon. And those antlers made of solid gold, resembling glistening amber. This was Sylvesse, my oldest and most dearest friend and mentor. The one who had found me, at a mere 10 years of age, when I had sneaked of into the forest in order to play. Unaware of the dangers that surrounded me. Intrigued as he was to find one of the people so young, he decided to teach me the ways of the forest. If only to ensure that I would not end up a wolfs snack. Even taking the time to teach me a few things about elves and fey. As well as how to play the lyre. And no, I still do not know how one can play the Lyre with hooves. Naturally I greeted my friend, but he advised me to first focus on the task at hand, before exchanging pleasantries.

Following his advice, we moved towards the tower. Inside we found a large Menhir, inside a few circles. With four rocks standing around it, each depicting one phase of the sun: Dawn, Noon, Dusk and Night. Having found our riddle, we turned our heads together to discuss our options. Eventually, Hayley pointed out that the phrase we were given pointed to a Palindrome. A word that sounds the same when read from either side. This pointed to the solution being Noon. Something that was enforced when we realized that the Menhir was in fact a sundial. So Luke used his magic in order to cause the shadow to fall on the Noon-stone. This had the desired effect, causing a chest to appear in front of us. And after cautious Dadroz made sure it was not trapped, we opened it. Inside there were around 25 stones, each marked with the same rune. We then each took on of these as out prize. Now later we would learn that these stones were magically connected with each other. Allowing us to send a message to anyone holding one of these stones.
 
We then returned to Sylvesse, who was quite pleased that we managed to solve the riddle. And despite some translation issues, was eager to meet my friends and future travel companions. But sadly we had to keep our meeting short, as we were losing quickly losing the night and tomorrow would be an early day. And I must admit that I was a bit sad to say my goodbyes to him. But fortunately he assured us that he would following us from a distance for a while. In order to make sure that we would arrive safely to our destination. Thus showing once more that while fey are known as tricksters. There also those who possess a sense of nobility that rivals and dare I say even eclipses that of even the most noble of knights. So we said our goodbyes and returned home for some well-deserved rest.