Chapter 1A Sense of DirectionIn the late evening from the densely wooded foothills of the Lands Untamed five foxes -
Faer,
Martingold,
Viri,
Rev and
Whiskers - emerge a respectable distance apart under the cover of dusk after a month-long trek from the distant Altar of the Fox God, and note that the woods further along appear to have been cut down, stumps uprooted and lands cleared, marking their entrance into the realms of the lesser races. And what an entrance it is, for the frontier village of Crawlinghome lies in the distance, a considerable collection of unusual pyramidal wooden buildings enclosed by a tall palisade of sharpened logs, the top of something oddly white, large and spherical in its middle visible even from a great distance, like some form of land-bound cloud.
Closer to the new arrivals are slightly smaller pyramids outside of the compound spaced evenly along the borders of the wood, each one surrounded by concentric circles of tall fungi of many shapes and colors, most of them with the characteristic mushroom shape, all of them completely unfamiliar to any of the watching foxes. Next to one of the pyramids further away from the village, the shapes of three squat humanoids one can after a bit of consideration recognize as dwarves can be seen. Presumably they are conversing. Further away, a considerably larger group of dwarves, perhaps two dozen or so, are busily deforesting a particular patch of the primordial wood with what is no doubt perverse satisfaction.
It seems, then, that there is no shortage of potential approaches for the foxes present. Dwarves who would settle in a place like this have no doubt traveled far outside of their usual territories, and though they are highly unlikely to know much in the way of curative magic, they
are likely to have far-reaching information on the surrounding lands. But what approach would be most productive to get it out of them?
An important thing to remember is that the questing foxes don't really know each other very well, what with the generally solitary nature of their existence. As a corollary to that, you're not strictly a single party, either, and are merely sharing your initial approach to the lesser lands, so feel free to split up as much as you like.
Can this be the theme song?
Fox on the Run might be more thematically appropriate.