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"Its rather being beholden to someone." Arei shrugs, "But we are better off with their help." Returning to the Inn she slips back onto the table by the door.

Once everyone meets back up at the inn, they set out. "C'mon, I'll show you to my farm. Ya can start there," Chester offers.

It's a clear and sunny day as the party departs the town and walks through the farmland toward Chester's place. There are row after row of fresh vegetables and fruits on each acre of the farmland. It appears there will be a good harvest this year. Although it's hot out, there's a nice breeze coming in from the sea that keeps the party refreshed.

As they walk, Chester talks about agriculture and animal husbandry, boring the party with tales of his mundane and otherwise uninteresting life. It seems being robbed by large birdmen is probably the most exciting thing that has ever happened upon the man. He never married or had kids, and he inherited the farm from his father, who got it from his father.

After almost an hour and a half of walking, Chester's house comes into view. It's a rustic place surrounded by a dilapidated fence that holds on a couple of cows and a handful of chickens. "Been meaning to fix that fence," he says. "But I've been more worried about those damned birdmen than anything else." He points to the mountains behind his place. "There, that's where they come from. Head that way, and you should find a trail leading up. You'll see the stone markers when you're getting close to their territory."

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The party travels through 2 miles of farmland in 80 minutes, using up 1 point of movement. They have 11 points remaining. It is now 2:20 PM.

"Thank you Chester, you have been most kind." Arei smiles, looking towards the mountains. "This is a long way from the Sea...." She comments to Ouragana, her eyes darting around.

"Shall we head up there then?" She glances at the group, then at the mountains "Is it cold up there?" She asks Chester.

"The further up ya go, the colder it gets," Chester says. "But the birdmen don't seem to like the cold much, so they ain't that high up."

"Indeed it is far from the sea, and I notice I'm not really used to walking. Especially not with such a heavy backpack on" Ouragana grimaces and massages her shoulder.

She looks around closely, trying to memorise the environment. "I know how to make maps" she tells the group. "Now and again, I will stop and note the progress we have made since this farm."

"That would be most useful, we are strangers to this area, a map would be handy." Arei still watches the mountains with concern. "Right, lets get moving, quicker we get up there the quicker we can find out what is going on."

"Alright, lets go." Dahn says, leading almost impatiently ahead of the rest.

Val marvels at the view, not so use to the scenery. As she walks she tries to reposition her bow for easy access after dropping her trident, if the circumstances warrent.

"This is a long way from the sea." She says offhand

Chester arches a brow. "Yer the third one of the group to say that. Ya kids afraid of dry land or somethin'? Anyway, we're only a couple of miles inland. Once you get higher, you'll be able to see the water easily enough." He shrugs. "I'll be waiting here for ya. Good luck, and keep yer eyes on the skies, lest those feathered varmints swoop down on ya."

Ouragana takes a sheet of parchment out of her backpack. With her ink vial and quill in hand, an idea occurs to her. "Sir, could there be a partially burned stick or something similar in your fireplace? That would be easier to use on the road than ink and quill."

With either charcoal or ink and quill, Ouragana will take summary notes of their path. Having neither the time nor the equipment for full cartography, she will draw a line in the approximate direction they are heading. At every junction, she adds the number of roads, trails and paths that meet there and the approximate distance from the last juncion. She will also add landmarks like water they cross, big rocks or noticeable trees.

Arei moves alongside the sorceress, her hand on her sabre hilt. "Thank you again Chester." she calls back.

"This land is dangerous, stay beside me." her fingers touch the badge, why did she do that.?

Leading the group in the direction indicted she glances behind, checking on the others.

Val follows in line, keeping her eyes on the sky

"Hmm, lemme check," Chester says. He heads inside, then returns a few moments later with a charred stick just the right size for drawing. "Here you are, missy."

Dahn takes the lead, wishing to scout ahead. Although his short legs force everyone else to take their time, lest they pass him right by. Consequently, their progress is fairly slow.

Ouragana and Areilon follow, the former making notations on her parchment and mapping out landmarks whenever the party pauses for more than a moment.

Jocelyn and Val take up the rear. The half-orc keeps her eyes on the skies, but does not see anything yet other than a lone hawk that flies overhead, searching for a meal.

The mountains so far are fairly low, as mountains go, and the trail is easy enough to follow, even for salty seadogs who are unaccustomed to mountains. After awhile, they can easily see the ocean from their vantage point, a few miles off in the other direction. If it were darker, they might even be able to see the shining lighthouse that sits in the town they just departed.

The weather, at least, is clear and enjoyable. The sun shines brightly and there are plenty of fluffy white clouds afloat in the perfectly azure sky. The refreshing sea breeze thins out, but there's plenty of shade, so it more or less balances out.

After almost two and a half hours of traveling, Dahn spots an obviously man-made stone marker ahead of them. It bears no markings of any kind, but is clearly not natural.
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The party travels through 1 mile of low mountains on a trail in 2 hours, 24 minutes, using up 2 points of movement. They have 9 points remaining. It is now 4:36 PM.

Dahn pulls out one of his daggers and goes to investigate this landmark.

While Dahn investigates the marker, the others catch up to him.