Exploring Milleadh: The Whispering Woods - September VSS
They have tasked me to explore this planet called Milleadh. I’ve set out from Banar Kitting, the smell of petrichor the only evidence of last night's rain. I’ll start in Passen, and grab a bag of supplies. Time moves differently on this planet than Banar Kitting. Faster almost. The city is already bustling, kids bossing each other around, the wisp of freshly baked bread on the breeze. It reminds me of home...
After leaving Passen I will head through the woods to the southwest. There are legends of creatures grabbing any who dare enter these woods. To get to my desired location, this is the quickest path, though.
Only one of the local merchants was nice enough to not call me foolhardy. Traversing the woods seems impossible too many, but I know it’s possible.
No land shall remain unknown.
That is our motto at the guild, and one that I take to heart. I, Petoria Okenolf, shall be the first to explore these woods and will return triumphantly to Passen with a map firmly in my grasp.
I've declined the help of a guide, preferring to travel with just a map and the constellations as my companions. Creating a map of the Whispering woods and their secrets, this is all I need. The woods are so different then any I’ve been in before. So dark, almost like something large was destroyed here, or there was a battle of some kind. The land is scared. There are indications where settlements existed for a stint.
by MandoMc Designs (via MidJourney)
On my second day in the woods I saw a large monolith just over the crest of a hill. By the time I reached the area it was gone, almost like it had been erased. Are the woods playing a trick on me? It took a day but I found the monolith. Only it wasn’t a monolith, it was a large dungeon. Just outside the entrance was a single name scratched in the stone: “Frank”.
by MandoMc Designs (via MidJourney)
I dared to enter the dungeon, and I can’t say I was disappointed. By the time I reached the end of the structure I can confidently say a variety of small animals chased me. I even found a new companion a ferret that I have taken to calling Alsogen. I can tell that this is going to be the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
Banar Kintin has left Milleadh. Officially the city teleported without warning. There's a cause that we don't learn about until later. I do hope that those children who were studying could get out in time.
I've been scanning the woods with Alsogen for days now, no sign of anything dangerous. Not to brag, but we might actually be the first to accomplish this task. The woods have become denser, the landscape darker as we move further in. I had to spend what felt like hours yelling for Alsogen yesterday. We're only 5 days into the forest.
The light from the sun barely shines through the branches. I hope I have enough forms of light, and if not I shall have to find another means to help light our way. Even the lights we purchased in Passen weren't enough on what I believe is our 10th day traversing these woods. I plummeted down into a ravine at some point. Grateful that I didn't break a bone. On my way down, I ended up losing my compass, and my last pencil. Smashed a good deal of my food containers as well. Scavenging may be my only option to survive.
I'm determined to find a way back up or out of the forest. So we've started heading in what I believe is West, which should be the fastest way out of the woods.
We've traversed for three days, and while the light is finally playing through the leaves of the trees, we still haven't found an end to the forest. If my memory serves there was talk of creatures living in these woods, and I presume I just stumbled upon the den of one. It seems to be a monarch of some sort, to many of the small creatures here.
After analyzing this strange settlement, I can only assume that the language they are chanting in is akin to what I know as Draconic. I keep forgetting why I was here, I'm thankful for this journal.
The formula for their language is interesting, there are so many common words between the Draconic I know and what they're speaking. Translating and understanding could be a full-time job.
They call this place Weepingmere. The monarch's partner Xorag, advised that the edge of the forest is but a two day journey to the West. By following the edge of the forest we should be back in Passen within 3 weeks. I talked with him for several hours about his foray into the woods, and how he ended up here himself. Xorag came from the city of Khogvon in Qezzubia Kingdom, which borders the western edge of the forest. He handed me a ship that he crafted which will help grant me passage along the woods and back to Passen.
I made it out of the forest in less than two days following the map Xorag provided me. Passage through Quezzubia has been handled by Umog a relative of Xorag's. She is accompanying me back to the city.
We've followed the forest north, till it shifted to me needing to head East. Umog left me as I traveled across a salt bed, what seems to have once been a stream.
I made it back to Passan where I took a vacation in the water ward. The spa's they have are beyond relaxing, something that I haven't experienced on any other world. By the fates I can't believe how amazing it is.
Since Banar Kinting left without me I've decided to explore this planet, with no particular destination in mind. I can only hope that one day they return to collect my logs, and information of my fall.
by MandoMc Designs (via MidJourney)
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