Iron Realm Log Five
Year of Darkness 1123
6th - 12th day of the Wolf
The great librarian Elgir completes the creation of the magic for the quest, under the restrictions of Lord Haddon's treasury. At breakfast on the morning of the quest, the party speak to Lord Horatio Haddon himself, who gives them a letter of introduction in the hope that he can persuade Karnak - the self-proclaimed king of the barbarians - to enter talks.
Kysan'tel rejects her magical 'gift' considering it inferior and hurls the retrieved tiara to the Lord, who is tearful and says; "It was my mother's...I am even further in your debt."
Mallepus, the ranger, gathers equipment for the journey as well as memorising a map of Hell's Ridge and the surrounding area. It lies with the ranger to keep them safe and - more importantly - keep them on the right track.
Their first encounter is with an abandoned village over-run by rats. Mallepus tells them that this village, like many others, is deserted because of the barbarian's persistent attacks. Isirion gets her familiar, the black cat Abbadon, to fetch a rat, which the animal duly does. An ESP by the vampyre on the rat gains nothing of importance. Whilst Abidon enjoys an impromptu breakfast, Kysan'tel sends up his crow to scout ahead.
That night they feel they are being watched, but no amount of searching - magical or otherwise - can discern the watchers.
Next morning they head further up the pass, coming to the first sign of barbarian activity an hour before noon. The horrific sight of a dead man impaled on a spear, his head is undamaged but the spine is the only thing left of the rest of the body. There are symbols daubed in blood on the soldier's cap.
"Obviously a warning," Isirion says.
Mallepus nods and leads them further on up the steep incline. They spot a mountain lion after a while but the powerful predator seems more scared of the party than they do of it; it scurries away to an unseen lair and Mallepus leads them on.
Mallepus spots a strange iced portal in the wall of the mountain pass and the sorcerers sense magic immediately. More symbols are scrawled over the archway and despite the sorcerer's attempts they cannot open the door. It is Valorn - the archer - who gets lucky and activates it using his innate magical gifts. The door swings open to reveal the catacombs and tunnels that the barbarians use to travel.
Mallepus is first inside. The resonance and echoes of movement and conversations are evident. From these sounds Mallepus deduces that this is an extensive network, probably spanning the entire range, and the way that Karnak and his clans can move quickly and without hindrance. Isirion believes that the tunnels are magically created.
They head north using the dim light of a magical arrow, Kysan'tel's homemade compass and a Mallepus' magical sword. Enough to illuminate their way.
After an hour they sense movement in a recess in the corridor. Isirion and the battlemage Kysan'tel transform themselves into buxom barbarian women and approach the noise. They find two barbarians and a small boat along with a waterway that is yet another mode of easy transport for the barbarian hordes. Both men are enamored with the two females and both wear the symbol of the Bear Clan.
Isirion charms the first clan member but Kysan'tel fails to hypnotize the second. They introduce the rest of the party and persuade the barbarians to allow them passage.
But the first Bear Clan member becomes suspicious. He tells them that 'aliens' are not welcome and it becomes clear that he is going to be a problem when they meet other barbarians. Before the party can decide what to do the Bear Clansmen attacks without warning. In the confines of the boat it is difficult to get any leverage and the fight is awkward. Not so for Plo'Koon however, as the enormously strong warrior is able to unleash his greatsword one-handed and - with a negligent flick of the wrist - decapitate the troublesome barbarian.
Kysan'tel jams the body under the water as they head towards a junction where the water course and the tunnels meet. They hear a score of barbarians preparing to move.
Isirion, Kysan'tel, and the charmed Bear Clansman leave the party behind as they head into the junction station to get information. The two women are an instant hit with the red-blooded men. Isirion is able to glean much from them. The fact that Karnak has strange eyes that see the truth in everything is foremost amongst the information.
Eventually the barbarians disperse and the party reconvene to assimilate the latest information. With all strangers attacked on sight it is clear that they must get word to Karnak in a different way. They decide to head back to the ice door and the mountain track. However, their progress is halted when they cannot find the door!
"They move," the charmed barbarian says. "It is part of the trick."
Exasperated by the strange magic of Hell's Ridge and the tunnels in particular, they decide to write a message to Karnak, wrapped round Lord Haddon's letter and send the charmed barbarian off to Karnak.
Mallepus resolves to find a way out, whereupon they intend to send the barbarian on his way and escape from the mountain.
It takes hours for Mallepus to find another junction, similar to the one they saw before. In it is a single massive barbarian using a whetstone to sharpen an unfeasibly large greataxe, the largest the party have ever seen.
When the barbarian stands up to reveal his true enormity it seems a fight is innevitable...until Kysan'tel calmly hypnotises him: "You have seen nothing here today my friend."
The barbarian nods and sits back down to continue his sharpening in ignorance of the party's plight. Mallepus points upwards and to a series of stairs that lead out to the mountains.
The air is thin. They see a natural amphitheater, an arena deserted now but obviously the scene of barbarian games of savagery and brutality. Mallepus wastes no time in scaling the walls and the party follow. Once at the top of the bowl they realise that they are at the summit of Hell's Ridge, above the clouds. The snow covered peaks are like islands poking up from the grey swirling sea of cloud.
The ranger leads them down into the cloud and visibility becomes almost nonexistent. Before long they run into a band of Bear Clansmen.
The first they know of the attack is the bits of skull and brain from Kliton's helmet as his skull is shattered by a greataxe, killing him instantly. Isirion feels the sharp bite of a longsword that opens a hole in her chest as the battle rages.
Armour and good fortune stop the party being slaughtered in that first dangerous instant and suddenly they face five determined and skilled Bear Clansmen.
Valorn tosses a silence arrow onto the floor to suppress the ringing sound of steel on steel as Isirion fires magic missiles into the face of a barbarian.
The fizzing projectile lights up the target as Kysan'tel rams a Wildling Greatsword into the stomach of the first and slays him. Her other hand sports a scourge, which strangles a second barbarian to death in the same moment.
Plo'Koon puts another down as the barbarians begin to realise that they have met their match. Kysan'tel drives her advantage by decapitating a third barbarian and the fight is all but over. Isirion's magic missiles light up the final target as Plo'Koon chops off it's head and the battle is done...in eerie silence. Valorn picks up the silence arrow as they search for other attackers but find none.
Kysan'tel makes builds a cairn over their fallen comrade Kliton once his cooling corpse has been stripped of its magic. It is a quick ceremony, without unnecessary and time-consuming words. They are, after all, on top of a mountain full of barbarians intent on killing them...