Behind the Waterfall
From Aput's journal
Year of the Eagle
Saturn, 28 Scorpius: "After helping Zotis conduct a ceremony of consecration focused on the sunken part of the Nordic ship (with hopes of sending the foul spirit onward), the adventurers set a watch and sleep through an uneventful evening." "In the morning, Zotis & Hallr had other tasks to complete that prevented their joining the party, so Tonrar, Hebear, & I (Aput) along with the lizardmen trio (Yullock, Zik, & Yoxly) gathered their gear, intent on exploring what might lie behind the waters falling from the mountains shielding the island's northeastern coast. Mysteries await."
"It didn't take us long to find a path leading behind the falls, making our way cautiously along the water-slicked stones until we slipped behind the tumbling veil, discovering an archway leading back into the cliff. We paused briefly, to arm ourselves, as there would be creatures lurking in the darkness beyond that arch, which began to glow as we approached. Tonrar conjured an illusion, masking himself from sight & I called on the boreal winds to envelop me in a suit of icy armor. " "The glowing runes on the arch were most likely a trap & while Tonrar focused his skills on finding a means to disable them, closer examination left me thinking that they were of Viking origin. I was only able to mark a few in my journal before they faded, evidence of Tonrar's success. Losing the glow from the runes made me happy that we had a hooded lantern to light our way. Weapons in hand, we moved deeper into the secluded complex."
"The hallway beyond the arch passed between a trio of paired alcoves, each with a time-worn statue nestled in place. Except for the last statue on the left, that is - that statue lay on the floor, broken into pieces (we did discover a pair of rubies in that rubble, so searching wasn't a total waste of time). We searched (unsuccessfully) for hidden spaces around the statues & in the alcoves & then moved on to the door at the end of the hall, located about 6 paces distant from the arch."
"The door was sealed, but Tonrar's skills proved successful, opening the door revealing a woodworker's workshop, complete with wooden mannequins standing in each of 4 alcoves. All the casters noticed in passing some bit of magic as the door opened, a ripple in time akin to the release of a stasis field. Sadly, we lost the chance for a closer examination as the mannequins stepped forward to fight us."
"We tried to engage them, but the narrow hall opened into a narrow room (5 paces by 3) & hampered our movement, making it hard for us to move & strike, Yoxly, being the last into the room, found himself flanked & suffered a pair of powerful blows - one from each side. Somehow, he remained standing, though only briefly. Another foe landed a punch & down went Yoxly. The final wooden warrior moved to engage another of our party, but Tonrar landed a blow from the stealth of his illusion & a massive blow by Yullock smashed it to kindling. Our shock at the power of their blows against Yoxly turned to hope that we'd prevail as the first one fell."
"And prevail we did. Hebear had avoided the mob in the room & focused instead on summoning some insectile allies - four massive ants came to our aid & the constructs fell in short order. While they attacked, Yullock focused his shaman's power on Yoxly, awakening him from the brink of death."
"We paused for a moment, hoping to catch our breath & search the workshop. Unfortunately, we'd missed a hidden portal in the hallway (behind the sundered statue). A tall, green emaciated brute made its presence known from a secret hallway, striking out with vicious claws & a mouthful of jagged teeth. Hebear's ant squad drew its ire, but that allowed the rest of us to gain better attack positions. Several spells & volleyed arrows proved to be enough to lay it low. Fortunately, someone recognized the monster as a troll & recalled that fire would negate its ability to regenerate - fortunate for us since those wounds had started to heal before some lamp oil spelled its final doom." "Before we moved into its hidden lair, we searched the festering corpse & discovered that it wore a strange necklace (a dark metal chain with six black stones attached) & paired bracers that distorted its form beyond more than a pace or two. We planned to evaluate them later, once we'd cleared the troll's lair."
(more later...)
"Humid with a foul stench would best describe the hidden area behind the pulverized statue. A passage of about 5 paces in length opened into a smallish cavern. Sized about 5 paces by 4, the troll's bed-nest was found along one wall with a fetid pool festering in an opposite corner of the room. "
"A search of the bedding revealed a chest full of silver & gold coins, four silver plates & cup sets, a gold-chased ivory horn, an emerald necklace, a dagger of fine make, & a set of slightly green steel gauntlets crafted with a warty texture. Shining the bullseye lantern into the pool failed to draw the attention of any aquatic predators, though it did reveal a metallic box staked to the pool’s bottom. Fortunately for us, the lizardfolk are aquatic & strong as well. Yoxly recovered the box & suffered no ill effects from his swim in the pool. “Brackish - tastes bad” were his comments. The box proved full of ancient platinum coins bearing the Hyperborean sigils that we'd seen elsewhere as well as a magical ring. "
"After identifying the items, we split them along with the gems & coins among the group. Again, the scaly trio opted out of the coins & gems. None of the items seemed to appeal either - we'll need to find something for them later. For now, though, we decided to head back to our camp before we continue deeper into the complex."

• this completes Aput's second mission record