Ubaron’s long awaited magic mithril hauberk was finally ready. Yspadadden rode the Night Wind to Chittagong with Ranulf to deliver it. They found Ubaron with Wilf and Jason, who were planning a cruise in their new river trader. It was mid-summer and the only time this year that the weather was likely to be clement enough to sail up the West Otanga. They knew that a branch of the West Otanga curved northwards along the foothils of the Edgewere Mountains. They had been this way before with Grettir and there had been good treasure. They had an idea that if you followed it far enough then it might go all the way to the Inland Sea. They wanted to test this hypothesis. Yspadadden was not too keen on boats but had recently learned the spells Fly Dawn till Dusk and Fly Dusk till Dawn and it seemed a good opportunity to try them out. Ranulf had no fear of the water since his trip to Vulcanheim (E10). The boat came with a crew of six oarsmen and a sailing master called Galiena. They would need the crew if it came to rowing – it was upstream all the way – but they had high hopes of favourable winds since Girindor too had expressed an interest in joining them.
They set off one sunny day in early June. With Girindor’s mage-wind they can sail up-stream for twelve hours a day with little need for oars. The eldritch dwarf flying tirelessly above them is a strange sight, but proves its worth when Yspadadden spots and Ubaron takes down a huge aurochs that will feed the crew fresh meat for days. They pull over to the banks for the night, as there are always semi-submerged logs and other hazards floating downstream that might damage a hull if not spotted in the dark. It does, however, open them to attack by things that lurk on the bank as well as the denizens of the river. Their first real encounter is with a band of goblins who are easily dealt with, followed by a remarkably persistent river troll. The troll is not a great threat to heroes, but is a real danger to the oarsmen. However, it seems fixated on trying to get Ranulf unawares and pitching him into the river no doubt to drown him and pick his corpse clean of flesh and treasure on the riverbed. This turns out to be a mistake and on its second attempt to grapple the sturdy dwarf it pays with its head.
They follow its trail. They find a cave behind a waterfall, which looks promising, but this is not exactly where the tracks lead. casting around, they find a tunnel below the waterline in the riverbank. It is small but not too small for the dwarves. Yspadadden casts Airy Water upon himself and Ranulf so that they can breathe underwater. They follow the tunnel into the cave behind the waterfall where they surprise a band of goblins. They slay some, including their leader and the rest surrender. They point out a further small passage to where they say the trolls they serve have their quarters. The dwarves follow it to another cave, where a troll awaits. It drops a huge boulder upon Yspadadden as he enters. Luckily the dwarf wears a Protection from Stone amulet: though pinned by the rock he is unharmed. The troll celebrates by jumping up and down on the rock while the dwarf feigns cries of agony. When Yspadadden manages to wriggle out from underneath, it does not go well for the troll, especially when Ranulf joins the fray. There is much treasure in the cave, including the top half of a set of Imperial plate, that looks like an interesting project to Yspadadden.
Sailing on upstream Yspadadden is engaged in conversation by a couple of chatty harpies as he flies above the ship. They assure him that the they will indeed reach the great lake by this route. They fly off but return at night. This time they are singing and have to be chased off by Ubaron with his socks in his ears. A few days later the river becomes a long, narrow lake that they feel confident enough to sail upon through the night. Those of the crew that have been here before say that it was called Lake Salrod by Grettir, after his huscarle took a fancy to the idea of having somewhere named after himself. It is over 200 miles long (though never more than 10 miles wide) and takes nearly three days to traverse. On the first day they are attacked by a large river serpent that tries to wrap itself around and crush the boat. Wilf fetches it a mighty blow amidships and all but cuts it in two. It loses interest after this. Its corpse bobs to the surfaces and they help themselves to trophies.
After Lake Salrod, the going gets more difficult, as the river beyond is narrower and faster. They would have made no headway had they just been rowing without the magewind. One day when they are about a fortnight out of Chittagong, Yspadadden, still flying above the boat, spots a group of at least half a dozen large figures around a substantial fire. Ubaron, Yspaddadden and Girindor fly Jason, Ranulf and Wilf in to investigate. Seven ogres and two hill giants sit around a bonfire barbecuing what appears to be a horse. There are also half a dozen six dire wolves lurking around, no doubt hoping for scraps. None of them live to eat their dinner as the heroes land amongst them. The horse upon the spit is actually a centaur. Another centaur, a female called Isanna, is trussed up nearby. They release her and return her kit, which they find amongst the considerable loot they take from the ogres and giants. She knows Yspadadden’s friend Fingolwyn – as she knows all the centaurs in the Northlands – and has heard of Yspadadden. She tells them that the Harpies were wrong (or perhaps misunderstood the question) – there is no river route into the Inland Sea except from the East. She also tells them that this year being the coldest in the cycle, the rivers and lakes will be frozen solid by September. Frost Giants use them as a road to come down from the North and raid human lands.
Parting with Isanna, they continue up the river for another day and past another confluence. It is becoming increasingly difficult and the water is getting whiter. They discuss the possibility of a portage to get the boat beyond the white water Though the crew do not look enthusast. The adventurers leave the crew with the boat and fly up the river a spell to find another large lake. They land on a high promontary that overlooks it. There are strange spiral carvings upon the rock of its summit and Ubaron studies them with a view to memorising them for a return by teleport. There is a discussion amongst the humans about perhaps coming back here to ambush the Frost Giants as they come South. (Privately Yspadadden and Ranulf would prefer to ambush them on the way home when they were laden with treasure.)
They fly back to the boat, turn it around and sail it home. Downstream all the way, the return journey is much faster.
F-28
OE Date: June 694
Characters: Yspadadden, Ranulf, Wilf, Ubaron, Jason, Girindor NPCs: Galiena and six other crewmen, Isanna
Real World: June 2003 ; Where: Surbiton?
See also Ubaron’s Diaries