Fourthmonth, Eleventhday
The Road North
The adventurers, their mercenaries, and Lec and her guards leave Alice around 8:00 am, heading north on the North Road. It's relatively well maintained, at least to start, with big flat paving stones laid in low places where it no doubt gets boggy after rains. About six miles* north of Alice the adventurers come across another clearing, much smaller, but filled with activity. A score of guards in the Baron's livery stand around, peering into the woods, whilst at least three score more men and women work at rebuilding what look to be residences. An earthen berm surrounds the entire complex, and more work is being done building a wooden palisade atop the packed earth.
"This was one of the villages that was lost," says Lec, "they're just now starting to rebuild it. Most of the former inhabitants are in Alice, now, with their new lives, and there's no telling if they'll actually want to return." The party is hailed by guards as they pass through, who advise them that all is calm up ahead. "There's another village some six miles that way," says the company Captain, "and more folks at work, but we're further along than they are, I daresay. They might have more recent news than we about what you'll encounter."
Sure enough, around midday the party enters another clearing**. There are fewer workers, and soldiers, and they seem to be involved mostly in clearing; the glade is dotted with undergrowth -- brambles and blackberries, blueberries and thistle, as well as sapling trees, some as thick as a man's thigh. The remnants of buildings -- mostly stone foundations, some scarred by fire -- can seen here and there.
"Hail!" calls out one of the guards, "You're near the borders of Civilization! Threee miles north of here the Principality ends, although in reality we've already passed it. Where are you folk heading? You've certainly got enough blades with you, that's for sure!"
