I - The Shark Hunter
The voyage has been long.
It began in Gralund, the bustling seaport on the coast of the Kingdom of Keoland. There, amidst workers loading and unloading cargo and ships being repaired from perilous encounters on the water, the adventurers made the acquaintance of Mertos Kai, the gray haired captain of the Siorc Sealgaire, a sixty foot, single masted vessel which had been traveling the seas of the Flanaess for the past six years, its Old Oeridian name translating to The Shark Hunter in the common tongue. Captain Kai made the journey from Gralund to Lendore Isle several times each year, and was intimately familiar with the Azure Sea, the narrow Tilva Strait, and the waters of the Oljatt beyond it. He was, the adventurers learned, an honest, plain spoken man who gave them a fair price for their berths, one that was adjusted in their favor by their stouter members agreeing to assist with shipboard chores, and those capable of healing providing help to sailors who became injured.
The Shark Hunter’s ultimate destination, the town of Restenford on the western coast of Lendore Isle, had captured the attention of the adventurers not long after they learned of it. A fishing and farming community, the settlement was young by the standards of much of the Flanaess, having existed for only seventy years.
Kimba Durgen, the Hunter’s First Mate, had made her home in Restenford for several years, and spoke of the settlement one evening at supper. ”They are good folk in Restenford. Honest laborers, the lot. Grellus, the Baron of Restenford, keeps to himself most of the time. Stays in his stronghold with his family. Seems to be content to let folk live as they will. But he takes the protection of the town quite serious. Does his best to keep his people safe.” At this, she had paused and frowned. ”They need watching over. There’s much of that island that no one knows anything of. Ancient ruins whose beginnings are lost to memory. Deep forests where terrible beasts dwell. The wise stay in the village and hold to the road if they ever have to travel.”
It was this last that had captured the adventurers’ imaginations. What few manuscripts addressed the history of Lendore Isle were mostly conjecture. Tales of warlords who had settled the land after winning immense spoils in forgotten wars. Lost houses of the dwarves who had uncovered fantastic treasures deep within the island’s mountain range. Hidden places where fearless workers of magic had unraveled eldritch mysteries and created spells of terrible power. Legends, in the main, but repeated often enough to suggest that there was some truth to the tales.
”There’s a long abandoned castle west of Restenford. On a barren rise called Bone Hill. Said to be haunted. Those that have drawn close in the evening hours say they can see shadowed figures moving about the grounds. None have been brave enough to explore it.”
The neighboring islands in the Spindrift chain were also cloaked in mystery, said to be the centuries old home to an ancient order of gray elven mages, rumored to wield enormous arcane might. The stories of the order had been sufficient to keep their neighbors, the Sea Barons and the Lordship of the Isles, from ever seriously considering an invasion of the Spindrifts.
The winds had been favorable throughout the crossing of the Azure Sea. It was the first days of the month of Readying, the lands awakening from the stillness of winter, warmth returning to the air as all across Oerik, animals stirred from hibernation and plants began to bloom. Captain Kai had been pleased with his ship’s progress, arriving at the first port, Gryrax, a day ahead of schedule.
Rain found the vessel as it entered the Tilva Strait, a veil of spring moisture whose presence proved beneficial, as midway through the difficult crossing, a pirate vessel began to give chase. Kai had warned his passengers of the possibility, the lawless holdings of the Scarlet Brotherhood to the north having no interest in keeping order in their coastal waters. The captain’s experience prevailed in the end, the speed of his navigation through the strait eventually prompting the pirates to fade away over the horizon.
The Shark Hunter picked up other passengers at other ports it anchored at, but by the time it reached Sulward, the next to last stop on the voyage, the only berths that remained occupied were those of the adventurers.
Captain Kai sent word by way of Lurrden, the boatswain, asking that the adventurers join him on deck after breakfast. It is Earthday, the first week of Coldeven.
When they arrive, the company members can sense they have come upon a tense scene. A sullen sailor named Zesstig, who has faced increasing discipline as the voyage has gone on, is moving away from Captain Kai, his jaw clenched, a deep scowl on his face. He steps over to a trio of young seamen, whispering to them in an angry tone.
As they approach the captain, the group overhear the last portion of his conversation with his First Mate. ”…be rid of him when we reach in Restenford. He’s trouble. I’m certain of it,” Durgen says.
Kai nods and smiles. ”You and I were young and proud once. We can see how things stand when we’ve spent a few days in port.”
Greeting the adventurers, Kai says, ”You’ve had a long voyage, all of you. I’d warrant that this is the longest some of you have ever been at sea. But it will end tomorrow. The wind has kept steady since yesterday and I don’t see sign of it lessening. We should reach Restenford just after dawn.”
