laneys.info Beware of Yankees, drunks, and loose women.

Traversing the foothills of the Black Mountains the following four days, the pair survived on the flora and fauna. Relying on her own survival training and years of experience, Adgertesse' was amazed at the wealth that the nearly forgotten eastern forests held not of only legumes but also of herbs of which she found a wealth while waiting for Brittany to rise. Much which would be needed once they entered enemy territory and foraging freedom was limited. Up the steeply rising border to the forbidden kingdom, they pushed themselves, using as little magic as possible knowing that their enemy's eyes and ears may reach long from their perimeter.

After another week of climbing, they began to notice a thickening fog which hugged the peaks above denoting what Adgertesse' had remembered Allaster and Lericanin talk about in their own failed attempt to enter the Shadow Range from the south.

"Now's when this gets interesting," Tess mentioned as she motioned to the moonlit shroud hanging above them.

"I can smell strong body odor up there," Brittany pointed towards the right. "Good concentration of those nadlac things. I won't forget that stench anytime soon."

"Good," the nightblade grinned knowing that intelligence would save their lives and led to the left and soon between a shallow pass whose soupy air clung to them, limiting visibility considerably as they moved inward. As they moved, the rough pathway strewn with rocks soon opened up to a well traveled road which made her nervous. Not being able to see more than a few feet could prove hazardous as they quickly continued across and into more rough terrain. Brittany's natural mist form allowed her to glide silently as Adgertesse's own stealth ability helped them move beyond search towers and relay posts until finding a cavern to rest in for the day. Once inside, the fog dissipated with distance allowing her to finally see her surroundings clearly which filled her vision with natural rock formations of deep grey.

'Here's a good spot,' Brittany informed mentally as she climbed upward towards the back of a rounded alcove and disappeared into a narrow, long crease in the wall as Tess found another, wider opening just beyond. Facing the entrance, she would be able to see intruders before she was spotted. Keeping her backpack behind her, she fully wrapped herself inside her blanket which melded into her background which allowed the resting dark elf to disappear.

* * *

Waking to movement, her orange eyes peered through the small opening in her woolen covering to notice a trio of goblins make their way towards the far right of the cavern and soon stoop behind several wide, round boulders. Huddled together, they seemed intent on something until rising, she noticed one of them stuff a small pouch into his jacket pocket. Hearing the jingle, she knew they had stashed some money into this cave for some reason. Perhaps booty from a past raid she thought as they headed back out towards the entrance and disappeared behind the narrow walls and large rocks. Waiting to make sure they didn't decide to return for more, she lay there unmoving for several long moments until she finally climbed out of her blanket and quickly folded it up. After draping it over her backpack, she crept down the slope and then between boulders to reach the near corner of their alcove. Listening, she noted several large, four-legged animals who jogged away and to the west. Hopefully, they didn't decide to return anytime soon. The shiver up her spine announced her companion whose presence behind her revealed the rested vampire.

'How many?'

'Three goblins. We're going to have to be careful, especially while you're feeding. Let me go with you, I don't want us splitting up.'

'Okay, get your things.'

Once gathering her gear, she returned to the awaiting mentalist. 'Did you happen to notice what they were riding,' Adgertesse' inquired, knowing her friend's other senses were more attuned at distance than her own.

'Worgs.'

'Good to know,' Tess nodded as they then moved out into the cool night, air still murky with fog which allowed the range to keep it's unnatural aura and instil fear in most interlopers. The smart ones anyway. Soon, Tess noted Brittany on the hunt and find what she desired, then crept up and pounced on the intended victim which kept the nightblade on edge while her friend fed and was amazed how quickly the vampire finished. Now done, they continued northward and hoped that some indication of where Idanac's fortress lay would emerge and keep them from moving blind.

'You know, we're going to have to find someone that can tell us where he lives. We can take someone on patrol or hit an outpost or something and get what we need.'

'Okay. I'll keep my ears open.'

After a full night's run, she noted that the fog soon thinned and then virtually vanished altogether allowing them full view of the rugged mountains and valleys around them. Sparse trees and shrubs greeted them on the lower slopes and in the river gorges which funneled whitewater surges to the south and west. Up ahead, they finally noticed torchlight sputtering and rising from a tower which rested precariously along a long ridge which faced a long valley which cut northeast to southwest. Low, the smaller stone building sat quietly as the duo stealthfully approached, keeping all movement past windows mentally noted and Tess figured four occupants. Three downstairs and one up. Hopefully that's all that would be encountered.

'Upstairs, through the window.'

'Alright, keep an eye on the grounds until I get back.'

Surprised, Adgertesse' hadn't planned on having Brittany go in alone as the thin, dark cloud rose and entered the room while the nightblade crouched near a large wagon, containing several coils of rope. Soon, the vague form drifted back towards her and soon morphed into the infiltrator.

'Follow the road below this tower to the northeast for three days and it will lead us to the front gate. There's a long bridge which fronts the underground fortress, it's full of grey dwarves and other things.'

Tess nodded, not totally optimistic of infiltrating somewhere that had no open windows or other avenues of escape other than one main gate. Hopefully, the demon lord would be smarter than that. But, they would deal with that once they got there. Continuing on, they made good progress as she kept the road in sight below them as they climbed and traversed the upper slopes sparsely dotted with trees growing out of the rich soil and between rocks. After two days of maneuvering and avoiding patrols which became more frequent as time progressed, she wondered if the group had decided on another tactic as it seemed odd that so many troops were available for more than frontier defense. No matter, they would slip through all of it and let the orc and goblin commanders have to explain why Idanac's prize vanished. Tess had come too far to turn back now, they were in the heart of enemy territory and wouldn't stop until they reached their goal.

As they rounded the high mountainside the following night, they noticed the road hugged the side and soon reached the long bridge which spanned nearly a league and rose over the deep river gorge which fell more than a thousand feet and emptied into what had to be the largest lake to their west that she had ever seen. Surrounded by grey rock, the fortress was indeed within the mountain but, the good thing was there were also three other round towers that protruded from the mountain which all had to be connected to what had to be an immense dwarven city which was now hosting a demon. Adgertesse' surmised that this same Idanac was the one that commanded the army that destroyed Warwick so long ago and was slowly wishing they could kill this demon while rescuing the others as an added bonus. Time would tell.