The Ravens
The Ravens
1/20/998rw (rending war)(29 day lunar cycle)
The dark foreboding sky promised more snow as the first flakes start to fall on the deep snow pack already piled on the ground from the long winter storms. A dense fog obscures vision to a mere stones throw. The small party rides silently, clutching thick hides, hoods pulled down over hunched shoulders, horses plodding through the knee deep drifts. The horsemen continue on, enduring the elements.
Moving into a clearing the riders see through the snow a shadowy opening. Drawing closer, the outline of a moderate sized castle is revealed. The castle’s stonework is of a fashion used in more recent years, blocks and chain still shine new. Following the lead rider, the group clomps across a lowered drawbridge into a small courtyard. A young steward approaches and gathers your reins pledging assurances of good care for the mounts. The leader beckons you inside through a wrought iron double doorway into a large hall. Stark walls and bare floor are revealed by the weak light from a single torch burning in a sconce on the wall to your left. Waiting for everyone to get inside the leader then proceeds down the hall for a dozen steps and turns left, you see torches burning on either side of another double door. You have felt little warmth in the castle but as the leader opens these doors a blast of heat is felt flowing into the hall out of the chamber before you. As you enter the room an eerie flickering light draws your eyes to the middle of the room where a large round table sits with a dozen or so chairs flanked about it. In the center of the table, apparently cushioned by the discharges of blue lightning, a ball of smoky blackness floats in the air about the height of a man in radius. As you drag your eyes away from this apparition you see the leader point to the chairs, encouraging you to take a seat at the table. Following these instructions you move to take a seat, nearing the table you feel a force move through your body, similar to the feeling of being impaled by a sword all over your body without the pain or blow back. You seem to suck this energy into the core of you being, a new strength flows through your veins and the weariness of the hard travel leaves your bones.
A strong male voice speaking in common Porithian the language common to many of the regions locally including Aquilonia, Corinthia, Nemedia and Zingara, "Welcome warriors. I am Crendon, the owner of this castle and caretaker of the surrounding lands, known affectionately to locals as the "Dales". I have summoned you here for a task that requires your skills and will test your character in the eyes of the almighty Odin, Father of the gods." Sitting as you are, in from the cold and feeling pretty darn good you decide this is worth a listen. Slowly an image starts to form in the black circle before you. At first it looks like a smoky outline of a deformed person but, as the image sharpens you see two ravens, black as the night, in a cage of silver lined bars. "As you can see the birds are captured. They must be freed so the eyes of Odin may be opened once again. You are to be sent to a place far from here where these Ravens are being held against their will. The image changes and you see an ugly hag of a woman, bent over a large pot, stirring it with a large rod. "That is the witch who is holding the Ravens against their will. I have designed a map that will lead you to her location in the "Black Mountains". Slowly the image fades to black and the room is flooded with light as five large candelabra are lit simultaneously. As your eyes adjust to this new light you see you are in a large room with several workbenches with all sorts of alchemy and arcane devices sitting about. Shelves line the walls containing jars, books and chests full of who knows what. Standing on the far side of the room is a old man wearing a dark purple scintillating robe. He has long white hair falling over his shoulders. You also note the blue electrical light display has dissipated and in the middle of the table sits a small pile of ash. "Gentlemen", says the old man, "I am Crendon, have you any questions of me? You may rest here as long as you like."
OOC] You are somewhere in central Corinthia. You know of the Black Mountains and figure they lie some forty leagues to the southeast of your present location. (one league equals 5 miles)
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