Westward Ho!

The caravan left shortly after dawn and I settled in on one of the many wagons in the train as this was expected to be a three day trip.  I did not inquire as to the cargo - though it seemed that there was nothing too valuable to attract attention of bandits and their ilk.  Even still I had to wonder at the rather large number of additional guards that signed on.

While there was the usual assortment of drivers, men-at-arms, animal handlers and such, there were a handful that caught my attention as being cut from a different cloth than most.

• Sliver Elmwalker - An elven ranger that for reasons he has kept to himself has decided to leave his home and travel the world.  While I find his presence on the caravan a bit odd for a feykind, he seemed to be an agreeable sort.
• Eldacar - A halfling whom I suspect of being a rogue.  He spent far too much time poking his head into this wagon or that to be idle curiousity.  I suspect he is casing the caravan for any easily acquired loot and will keep and eye on him.  And the other eye on my own belongings...
• Elladen Paeris Halladan - Such a long, pretentious name for an eladrin, but then I suppose that goes with being a spellsword and a feykind.  I kept my distance from him as while I was familiar with elves, elladen and their motives were unknown to me.
• Valgar Talean - Another spellsword - they must travel in packs - but this one was a dragonborn - another race I do not have any recollection of.  If nothing else, he was large and brutish and so I found ways to not be in the same place at the same time.
• Uhlk - A human warrior.  Common enough.  But there was something...  erratic about him that I did not entirely trust.
• Extell - A human ranger.  Hmm, spellswords and rangers travelling in packs.  How odd.  He seemed to disappear for hours on end so I'll have to be mindful that he could be lurking at any given time.

If there is going to be any trouble from bandits, I should think that these six will be the ones to watch.  Though, if there is any trouble from within the the caravan I suspect these would also be the ones to watch - particularly that halfling.  Well, I shall have to keep my guard up and eyes open this trip...

The Fiveleague House

The caravan from Nenlast made slow but steady progress through The Old Hills.  The caravan seemed fairly typical - no notable personalities so I kept to myself for the most part.  While the journey only took a couple days, it seemed rather tedious.  I suppose I should be thankful for it - a kobold raid would certainly be exciting, but not in a good way.  

We pulled up to the wooden pallisade of the Fiveleague House and were greeted by a large man who called himself Barton, master of the Fiveleague Inn as he calls it.  We were ushered inside the protective walls and soon found ourselves in the inn enjoying good food and the company of fellow travellers.  My contract with the caravan done, I made my own arrangements for lodgings for the night.

As I laid in the corner of the common room, I contempated what steps I needed to take next.  My resources were running low and I had travelled a great distance - yet I felt I must move further away still.  Obviously the next step would be to take a paying job on a caravan.  This would allow me to replentish my funds as well as continuing to move me further from that past which lain behind me.

Come the morning I looked about to see if there was work to be had on any caravans heading east towards the dwarven hold Hammerfast.  Unfortunately none that I spoke with had a position for an old man - or maybe because I couldn't speak a lick of dwarf.  Either way, it looked like the next step of my journey would have to be west.

The fates must have looked kindly upon me as there was a large caravan bound for Fallcrest that very day.  While the caravan master already had a number of able hands available, he seemed thankful to have a knowledgeable person on hand that might be able to help with matters both medical and arcane.  With a generous offer of 25 gold upon arrival in Fallcrest, I accepted his offer and gathered my things....

Southward Bound

I travelled for days through a dense forest - I think they were called the Winterbole Forest.  Thankfully I managed to avoid the barbarians that Wolfgang told me about. While I do not think these Tigerclaws would have been particularly hostile, until my mind clears more fully, the fewer people I have to deal with the better.

Finally I came upon civilization!  Well, a small human settlement really, but the closest thing I've yet seen to the real thing.  While I got a few odd looks at first, the folk here did not seem to pay me much mind.  I guess that many make a living here trading with the dwarves and the local barbarian tribes, so not much startles these people.  I manage to secure a room with what passes for an inn here.  It will be good to sleep in a proper bed and get a hot meal for a change.

I spend a couple days checking out the locals and trying to get a sense of how much time had passed or what events had transpired since before I awoke.  Unfortunately most of the local talk surrounded the weather or how the fishing on Lake Nen has been.  Despite that, I did find one useful bit of information.  Apparently the local fishermen send a caravan of smoked fish down to trade with the dwarves in Hammerfast now and again.

Armed with this knowledge, I make some inquiries about town and manage to find out when the next caravan was leaving.  As luck would have it, they were leaving in just a few days.  I approached the trader and offered my services in exchange for meals and the privilege of accompanying him.  He seemed skeptical at first, but when I mentioned my encounter with Wolfgang, he figured that I must be alright.  With arrangements made, I spend the last couple days in Nenlast restocking my supplies and preparing for my journey to my new life.