There is a castle so huge no one has walked from one side to the other and returned to tell the tale. It houses forests, mountains and seas, rooms within rooms, and cities and civilisation that has never gone beyond the four walls of their room. Beyond the villages, towns and cities there are the vast wildernesses of the Roomlands where dwell many dangers, including the walking towers known as the Rooks that are mysterious and strange. And beyond that the Empire of Kyodania with its own breed of Rooks and other monsters.
Welcome to the world of Colostle.
Previously: The gang reach the city of Pyrrah and go shopping.
Malek’s Journal Entry #17:
Dear journal,
We woke in the Crackway to the soft glow of Pod’s plants, which seemed to brighten as we began to day. I hope this means Pod can control the glow in case we ever need to switch it off to sneak around, but I’ll leave that to Pod to figure out.
Coming out of the Crackway we were still within the Fangs of Fire Mountains and Akemi had an idea where we’d gotten ourselves to. She keeps talking about a city called Yara, the City of Dancing Lights, but we could be days away depending on where we get ourselves to. As we descended into a small valley lit by lava we found a Rook attacking another traveller, so Akemi and I swapped places and Pod and I rode to the rescue. This little guy was ducking and weaving around the lightning blasts but was backed into a corner. We caught the Rook’s attention by yelling a battle cry as we charged and narrowly missed a rock flung by the small catapult atop the beast as Pod flung out a tendril of vines to whip the beast. Pod can use the plant stone! We were clipped by the next boulder as I distracted Pod with my whoop, but as the Rook began to charge its lightning bolt I flung myself on top it to scramble up the cracked stone of its back and brought the Gearblade down onto its head. I felt it stumble under me and fall to its knees and I was thrown to the ground as it died. I must confess to feeling guilty for having killed it, but it was going to kill someone else and the Knightly Code is quite clear on that matter. As Pod checked Sachio for wounds, I retrieved my blade from the monster, only to find a small Rookling trapped inside the body amongst the broken shards of the Rookstone I’d destroyed. This little guy seemed terrified and clung to my legs after I pulled away the rubble, so I tried to comfort it as best I could. Akemi eventually came to find me and found me with the Rookling curled up in my lap like a dog, sleeping. It snores with a gurgling like water running over pebbles and seems to have a small door in its belly that I don’t want to open. Sachio (the guy we rescued) was immensely grateful for our aid (which helps me feel a bit better for killing the Rook) and gave us directions to another interesting cavern that Akemi decided we should explore.
When we entered I knew at once we were back in the Shrines of Memory (don’t ask me how I knew, but I just did), so I was reluctant to explore too far inside in case we found another gateway. Akemi called me a big baby and Pod, for once, sided with her (which is so unfair!). So we went inside and found some mechanisms that opened a door somewhere, a lava river I didn’t intend to cross, some more runes that I noted down to trade someone in future, and an Imperial soldier that looked just as lost as I felt. They tried to get past us to run, drawing a blade and darted past me to attack Akemi, but she sidestepped quicker than I’ve seen her ever do, and whacked them on the head with her stick. And then she proceeded to rifle their pockets, so I decided it was time for us to get out of there.
We’re posting a watch tonight with Imperials in the area and Pod is yet to figure out how to glow less green, but hopefully we’ll be ok. Our new friend is asleep in my lap as it doesn’t want anyone else to carry it, and I’m trying to write the journal without smashing it into its face (hence the worse than normal handwriting). Pod and I are going to have a chat about what I’ve learnt and see where we go from here. Hopefully we’ll still be friends.
Goodnight journal. Goodnight Pod. Goodnight Akemi. Goodnight little one. Maybe tomorrow we’ll find the City of Dancing Lights.
This adventure was generated using the solo journalling game Colostle, created by Nich Angell. The game is played using a notebook, your imagination and playing cards to create prompts during your Exploration phase and to resolve Conflict should it arise. For more information or to purchase your own digital or hardcopy of the rules, visit Colostle.com. Further modules are available through the Colostle Patreon, and in the expansions “The Roomlands” or “Kyodaina“.
Wolfish Written 
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