The date is Monday, 22nd May
Travel onwards for another 4 days, following the east bank of the river all the while.
The date is Friday, 26th May
Make our usual camp. During the night two
Sabre-Toothed Tigers attack us and our tasty flock of reindeer. One reindeer dies before we deal with the tigers. The others scatter into the night. Track down a couple of nearby reindeer.
The date is Saturday, 27th May
Spend a couple of hours tracking down the rest of our missing reindeer. Take the tiger skins and teeth in case they are valuable. Butcher the dead reindeer for tasty trail snacks.
The date is Saturday, 3rd June
The sun never sets at night at this time of year. Still following the same river northwards.
The river slows and meanders along. The stony riverbed is replaced with mud, the river bank flattens and vanishes into the reeds. Underfoot the ground becomes increasingly boggy. As evening draws in frogs can be heard calling from mist-shrouded pools.
We appear to have entered
Bullfrog Bog.
Ahead, in the dim twilight between curtains of mist, what looks like the prow of a boat pokes up out of the mud.
Go and investigate. On closer inspection the boat is rotted and broken, a skeletal hand can be seen sticking out of the water nearby, a golden ring on one finger. We retrieve the skeleton and as we try to remove the ring it
animates and attacks , along with several others emerging from the nearby swamp! We've never encountered undead before!
Along with the sound of the bullfrogs is a sudden inhuman call that makes you stop and listen, a more distant call seems to reply. Several strange creatures (later identified as Ghouls) appear and attack.
The way ahead seems even swampier. Wander on as best we can. Find a place to rest for the night. Realise the golden ring is magical and provides resistance to fire.
Skirt the bog, and get back on track following the river.
The date is Wednesday, 7th June
Spot a group of
four stone buildings ahead, the largest of which is domed. Very fancy architecture compared to what we know. Call of crows. Some kind of mausoleum complex? Go and have a nose around. Find symbols of
Odin and an inscription:
"Here lie the bones of Athanaric, king of the Gothi, slain in battle, who now walks in Valhalla. Cursed is the one who desecrates this tomb."
Find an arched door which was forced open long ago and is slightly ajar. It is made from hardwood, is weathered and has claw marks on it. It has dropped on its hinges so that it now scrapes along the floor.
Rows of stone sarcophagi line the walls. There is a gallery 10' above and a stairway to the right of the door leading up to it. At each end of the room is a large, heavy, arched door. On the floor are the desiccated remains of many large cockroaches which crunch loudly underfoot.
Investigation shows that all of the sarcophagi have been tampered with in the past and the bones inside them disturbed. A jade sarcophagus contains a headless skeleton with a very decayed piece of wood sticking out of its ribcage. In fact, it looks so decayed that a strong breeze might cause it to crumble.
In an otherwise quiet room, attacked by a
Giant Spider. Skeletons lie in niches in the walls, stacked 3 high in this 10' high room. A close examination of the room reveals that one of the lower niches has one body with two skulls. One of the skulls has a silver disc with a pale blue great-sword emblem on it (the holy symbol of
Frey) in its mouth, and has quite pronounced canine teeth.
The narrow door has been forced and lies wide open. Inside is a small shrine to Hel that has been ransacked, perhaps some years ago. All that remains are some faded wall paintings.
This building has partially collapsed, but there is no obvious way in.
The door of this tomb is forced open. Inside are six sarcophagi of fine workmanship, all have been opened and ransacked. On the lid of one sarcophagus is carved writing in strange symbols.
Lifting the trapdoor reveals a steep set of spiral steps descending into inky blackness.
Find a pillared room.
Idris inadvertently sets off a magical blast of cold.
Turning north you can see a large, circular, domed chamber, illuminated by many torches fixed on stone columns. Six large bronze figures stare impassively at the distance. Here and there, dusty cobwebs festoon the place. Six stone sarcophagi ring the room, each with a stone figure carved on top. A dusty bookshelf fills the space between two columns at the northern end of the room.
Sigmund opens a sarcophagus lid, drawing forth an angelic-looking spirit.
