They found the crumbling span led to the shadowy slit of an ancient tunnel entrance, but after a few anxious steps found that it opened almost right away back onto the gorge; the river must take a winding path, while the old road is carved straight though.
The bridges from here on were in better shape, and some even seemed to show signs of use; not completely overgrown, and even what seemed like footprints where the mud had collected enough to show them.
A bit further, with sunset now deeply setting in, they came to see they were approaching a good sized keep. At first it seemed completely dark, but as they stared they noticed faint lights here and there, particularly at the highest point of a spindly tower. Someone, or something, surely lived there. And if they lived in a castle, they must be…civilized? Right? Or so they wondered. The strange noises from the corridor still haunted their ears.
The castle was built directly out of and into solid rock that jutted sharp from the tumbling stream below. Their way led them across a narrow bridge to a tiny door set in the natural stone, which opened onto a slender stairway leading upwards. Soon they came to a hall that ended in a ladder leading up to a trapdoor in the ceiling, and a single door branching off just beforehand.
Slowly pushing the door open, expecting the awful wail of rusty hinges at any moment, they were instead greeted by an almost cozy sight- a somewhat crude larder, nearly overflowing with enticing foodstuffs.
They couldn’t help themselves. Hunger had been a thought off an on, but life threatening danger had been occupying their minds the most lately. Finally, they had found a quiet space, with plentiful food- they stopped for a meal.
Amazingly, no one came to fetch anything the whole time they ate, and after stuffing a couple cheese wheels and a loaf of bread in their packs, they moved back into the hall. Now it was time to discover where this trap door led.
Easing the hatch upward, they found they were in a completely empty corridor. Creeping along, they came through several vacant hallways and lonely staircases. Every so often a dim sound reached their ears; a sort of subdued clamor, but dim and seemingly far off.
Unsure of where they were headed, they began to move faster, less careful. They were now nearly sure the castle was, in fact, abandoned- at least for the moment.
Opening the next door, they came face to face with evidence that this was not, in fact, the case.
The thick stone walls of the keeps’ Great Hall had kept the cacophony of carousing orcs and goblins to a whisper in the halls beyond. They stood there a moment, dumbfounded to suddenly face the scene before them.
Dozens of orcs, goblins, and other beast men were packed in the dining hall, engaged in a mighty feast. One by one they turned to face the intruders, almost equally stunned at the equally unexpected sight.
An awkward pause ensued as each considered the other. Finally, one of the more piggish looking of them stood up, raises its hands to indicate the absence of threat, and let out a hideously garbled word that surely resembled “Friend?”
Soon the adventurers were feasting at the table with their new friends. It was relayed to them that a powerful mage lived in the tower at the top of the castle; but the wizard only let the monsters live there to keep away the skeletons and zombies that roamed the wilderness beyond. The wizard was currently away, they didn’t know where. The monsters wouldn’t stop the travelers from breaking into his room- they feared and hated the mage and would rather have the whole castle to themselves.
They couldn’t believe their luck. No traps or enchanted beasts guarded the passages to the tower chamber; once inside, they were nearly overwhelmed with the myriad arcana scrambled before them. A series of self-illuminating books stood on ornate stands through the center of the room; shelves lined the walls, crammed to the edges with bottles, jars, skulls, and candles, while every perceivable space between was crammed with stacks of heavy books, crates of bottles of every color and shape, amulets and pendants strewn across the floor or hanging from whatever served as a hook. The windows were open, and led directly out into a wild starlight vista beyond- they had the somewhat chilling sense that whoever lived here, they came and went by flying through those windows rather than taking the stairs.
Before deciding what to steal first, they checked as thoroughly as they could manage for anything that might be the actual treasure they sought. The description was vague; no one really knew what it looked like exactly except Nequmus and Illus themselves. Any of these impressive items could be it, or none of them.
When nothing seemed to leap out as obvious, they began deciding what to loot. The treasures they left with ended up including; a variety of potions that looked useful, a sturdy steel blade that didn’t seem magically but HAD to be, a small glass sphere that looked like a green reptile eye, a book that was mostly blank except for an exceptionally cryptic first page, several scrolls of varying use, as well as nine gold bars, two emeralds, and an impressive diamond. Then they fled the chamber, and the castle, as fast as they could. They might not find the Charm of Hrath, but at least they had enough treasure to live pleasantly on for years to come.
If, of course, any of them survived that long.
Next they were faced with a choice of leaving out through the front door of the castle that opened onto a rugged woodland, or out a smaller rear exit that led further along the wild gorge.
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