Yuri_Aurelius
New Member
You'd hear this story on a rainy night in any random tavern from one of the strangers. Buy him some ale, share a drink and ask him if he ever heard of a town Fang Creek.
Fang Creek... Few recognize the name nowadays. To some - an old forgotten town in the marshes of Garama. To others - a bedtime story for children about a strange kingdom in a strange place. And to some - a dark place with dark secrets... I cannot say I have rich knowledge of it. Having found fascination in this half mythical city, I decided to take travel to Garama and find it myself. Why did I look for it? My relatives told me on countless occasions how my ancestors are from the swamps of Garama, Fang Creek and that I was... well... connected to the Swamp kind.
My travel began in the unwelcoming swamps of Garama. My first thought was "How could someone want to live here?" and "How by the gods could my ancestors even want to live here?" The smell, the bugs, the humid marsh air... First day of searching has brought little. All I got was wet, dirty and exhausted trying to travel the unwelcoming swamps. As night crept I made refuge in a small cave under some large trees. The night was frightening... Lights of swamp gasses flickered in the night, strange moaning like noises echoed though the skies... I am no stranger to the foul things that walk this land and how to fight it (or else I would have abandoned this quest long ago)
Menacing figures masked by the night shambled in the distance... Who were they? Drowned travelers? Killed merchants? Unlucky adventurers? Or Fang Creeks old citizens...? I avoid sleeping - for the marsh is treaturous.
The next day brought few luck as well. The searching went by without result. Wet, tired and hungry I sat to make a fire to warm up my food supplies and think of my further actions... As I sat, my attention was caught by the sound of trees behind me creaking loudly. As I turned and looked up, chills went down my spine... A massive swamp spider the size of a horse had just crawled out of its nest, probably bothered by my presence. I quietly and quickly left. I have no intention to fight on a hungry stomach and get killed before finding anything. Besides, before my journey I took the time to prepare and read about the local fauna and flora. ''Baron" swamp spiders are not hostile unless provoked. Mostly night hunters... My search continues.
...
A few days went by without result. I had gotten lost several times, almost gotten myself killed by the "wonderful" creatures of Garama, almost drowned on several occasions and just as I had decided that it was the last straw and it was time to take leave of this unfriendly place - I saw it... Randomly, out of nowhere - a large tall wall emerged right as I crossed over a hill... It stood tall and ruinous amidst a large foggy lake. A massive stone structure of cyclopean form, crumbling to pieces , covered in vines and growing vegetation. It looked powerful, despite the harsh effects of time... The walls were full of gapes and holes big enough for anyone to enter. I had found it, Fang Creek... Once known as the Kingdom of the Swamps.
It was getting dark and I decided to spare my desire of exploration until dawn and spend the night in the ruins. That seemed unwise. Being a man who mostly ridicules the supernatural I merely expected to find some ruined huts, some broken pottery, maybe a relic or two and that's about it. To my surprise the town was a magnet to the undead. In no time I found myself followed by numerous amounts of the dead. They all aimlessly walked around the lake, some walking into the waters towards the fortress. The deceased citizens of the city? Fallen armies? Killed pillagers, marauders? Who were they? Perhaps guards of the city, restless and unwilling to give away what remains of their once precious home? And why were there so many of them here? Perhaps there is something more dark to this...
With haste I climbed through the massive walls almost drowning in the current of swamp waters that poured into the inner sections and entered the realm of Fang. It was an inner lake that had all sorts of decaying buildings in it whilst in the middle stood the fortress-city. The stone had given away with the countless centuries and massive holes and fallen sections revealed themselves all over the city wall surfaces. In them - the menacing darkness of a dead city stared back. Nature slowly attempted to retake the city - vines and vegetation had its way with all possible structures and surfaces. How long has it been since the city perished? What caused it to die? Surely something this big and majestic wouldn't just... stop existing? Would it?
I made way for a small guardhouse just outside the fortress. I'll stay the night there.
...
The night went by fine. I found heaps of rubbish to barricade the entrance from the undead. Despite the light stench of the swamp waters, the cold of the mossy stones and the occasional gurgling of the dead things were fine. I made a small fire to keep me warm. I slept sound despite all of my excitement - I guess the exhaustion finally gave in. At dawn I freed the entrance and stepped out. It was rather dim and foggy. But what can one expect by living in the marsh. Time for some exploration of Fang Creek... I looked around at the ruins. There was even a small ship towed at the port like area... Probably derelict. Never to sail ever again...
I finally entered Fang Creek itself only to discover it as dark as night in it... The city had a roof like level that blocked out the sun for the lower section completely. No doubt the ground floor had some form of illumination in its days but not anymore. One could see the crumbling ceiling with pockets of light coming down on the empty streets. It's only a matter of time until the entire top level collapses on itself. Surprised it's still standing after all these years or maybe even centuries... Vines and roots hang down giving the city a more wild and lost look. A sad sight. The town itself was partially drowned. I found that by tripping into a muddy hole in the ground whilst inspecting the ceiling. The streets, paths, roads had missing areas, sections. Entire houses had fallen under their weight and were submerged into the swamp.
All buildings had come to such a poor state that they seemed beyond repair. Wooden frames and floors rotting away and crumbling from the slightest touch, stone foundations and pillars were giving away their strength and turning to pebbles and sand. The city was void of any life except for an occasional undead wheezing and spider hissing - since it is a dark haven for the beasts. But I was in for some more surprises. As I inspected the streets, something flew by my head with a loud whistling noise. I quickly turned in time to be able to avoid getting hit by a few arrows launched in my direction. There were several figures walking towards me, from a nearby street, as well as more of them on the roof of a nearby building and a balcony. Skeletal archers, ancient and hollow, reanimated for unknown purposes. But my death was certainly one of them.
I evaded the arrows and began to flee - if I had known of the ordeals that I would come across in these ruins I would have certainly hired some mercenaries to assist me... or maybe I'd just stay away from the place at all... After running a few streets I decided to hide in one of the old houses. I smashed into the doorway of one of the buildings with ease and...
(The lone traveler abruptly stops, clears his throat and looks into his empty cup and ponders for a while "You won't mind if we have another pint? It's been a long day..." I'll tell you what happened right after that)
Fang Creek... Few recognize the name nowadays. To some - an old forgotten town in the marshes of Garama. To others - a bedtime story for children about a strange kingdom in a strange place. And to some - a dark place with dark secrets... I cannot say I have rich knowledge of it. Having found fascination in this half mythical city, I decided to take travel to Garama and find it myself. Why did I look for it? My relatives told me on countless occasions how my ancestors are from the swamps of Garama, Fang Creek and that I was... well... connected to the Swamp kind.
My travel began in the unwelcoming swamps of Garama. My first thought was "How could someone want to live here?" and "How by the gods could my ancestors even want to live here?" The smell, the bugs, the humid marsh air... First day of searching has brought little. All I got was wet, dirty and exhausted trying to travel the unwelcoming swamps. As night crept I made refuge in a small cave under some large trees. The night was frightening... Lights of swamp gasses flickered in the night, strange moaning like noises echoed though the skies... I am no stranger to the foul things that walk this land and how to fight it (or else I would have abandoned this quest long ago)
Menacing figures masked by the night shambled in the distance... Who were they? Drowned travelers? Killed merchants? Unlucky adventurers? Or Fang Creeks old citizens...? I avoid sleeping - for the marsh is treaturous.
The next day brought few luck as well. The searching went by without result. Wet, tired and hungry I sat to make a fire to warm up my food supplies and think of my further actions... As I sat, my attention was caught by the sound of trees behind me creaking loudly. As I turned and looked up, chills went down my spine... A massive swamp spider the size of a horse had just crawled out of its nest, probably bothered by my presence. I quietly and quickly left. I have no intention to fight on a hungry stomach and get killed before finding anything. Besides, before my journey I took the time to prepare and read about the local fauna and flora. ''Baron" swamp spiders are not hostile unless provoked. Mostly night hunters... My search continues.
...
A few days went by without result. I had gotten lost several times, almost gotten myself killed by the "wonderful" creatures of Garama, almost drowned on several occasions and just as I had decided that it was the last straw and it was time to take leave of this unfriendly place - I saw it... Randomly, out of nowhere - a large tall wall emerged right as I crossed over a hill... It stood tall and ruinous amidst a large foggy lake. A massive stone structure of cyclopean form, crumbling to pieces , covered in vines and growing vegetation. It looked powerful, despite the harsh effects of time... The walls were full of gapes and holes big enough for anyone to enter. I had found it, Fang Creek... Once known as the Kingdom of the Swamps.
It was getting dark and I decided to spare my desire of exploration until dawn and spend the night in the ruins. That seemed unwise. Being a man who mostly ridicules the supernatural I merely expected to find some ruined huts, some broken pottery, maybe a relic or two and that's about it. To my surprise the town was a magnet to the undead. In no time I found myself followed by numerous amounts of the dead. They all aimlessly walked around the lake, some walking into the waters towards the fortress. The deceased citizens of the city? Fallen armies? Killed pillagers, marauders? Who were they? Perhaps guards of the city, restless and unwilling to give away what remains of their once precious home? And why were there so many of them here? Perhaps there is something more dark to this...
With haste I climbed through the massive walls almost drowning in the current of swamp waters that poured into the inner sections and entered the realm of Fang. It was an inner lake that had all sorts of decaying buildings in it whilst in the middle stood the fortress-city. The stone had given away with the countless centuries and massive holes and fallen sections revealed themselves all over the city wall surfaces. In them - the menacing darkness of a dead city stared back. Nature slowly attempted to retake the city - vines and vegetation had its way with all possible structures and surfaces. How long has it been since the city perished? What caused it to die? Surely something this big and majestic wouldn't just... stop existing? Would it?
I made way for a small guardhouse just outside the fortress. I'll stay the night there.
...
The night went by fine. I found heaps of rubbish to barricade the entrance from the undead. Despite the light stench of the swamp waters, the cold of the mossy stones and the occasional gurgling of the dead things were fine. I made a small fire to keep me warm. I slept sound despite all of my excitement - I guess the exhaustion finally gave in. At dawn I freed the entrance and stepped out. It was rather dim and foggy. But what can one expect by living in the marsh. Time for some exploration of Fang Creek... I looked around at the ruins. There was even a small ship towed at the port like area... Probably derelict. Never to sail ever again...
I finally entered Fang Creek itself only to discover it as dark as night in it... The city had a roof like level that blocked out the sun for the lower section completely. No doubt the ground floor had some form of illumination in its days but not anymore. One could see the crumbling ceiling with pockets of light coming down on the empty streets. It's only a matter of time until the entire top level collapses on itself. Surprised it's still standing after all these years or maybe even centuries... Vines and roots hang down giving the city a more wild and lost look. A sad sight. The town itself was partially drowned. I found that by tripping into a muddy hole in the ground whilst inspecting the ceiling. The streets, paths, roads had missing areas, sections. Entire houses had fallen under their weight and were submerged into the swamp.
All buildings had come to such a poor state that they seemed beyond repair. Wooden frames and floors rotting away and crumbling from the slightest touch, stone foundations and pillars were giving away their strength and turning to pebbles and sand. The city was void of any life except for an occasional undead wheezing and spider hissing - since it is a dark haven for the beasts. But I was in for some more surprises. As I inspected the streets, something flew by my head with a loud whistling noise. I quickly turned in time to be able to avoid getting hit by a few arrows launched in my direction. There were several figures walking towards me, from a nearby street, as well as more of them on the roof of a nearby building and a balcony. Skeletal archers, ancient and hollow, reanimated for unknown purposes. But my death was certainly one of them.
I evaded the arrows and began to flee - if I had known of the ordeals that I would come across in these ruins I would have certainly hired some mercenaries to assist me... or maybe I'd just stay away from the place at all... After running a few streets I decided to hide in one of the old houses. I smashed into the doorway of one of the buildings with ease and...
(The lone traveler abruptly stops, clears his throat and looks into his empty cup and ponders for a while "You won't mind if we have another pint? It's been a long day..." I'll tell you what happened right after that)
