A funny thing happened to me on the way to Riverhaven. No, seriously, despite the sound of some cliched joke, something funny DID happen. If only it had happened due to less serious set of happenstances.

I had just finished hunting the Blue-bellied Crocodile, the beast that glides through the swamps just across the Faldesu River south of Riverhaven. It had been a good hunt, with the man-sized reptile proving itself quite unshy. There will be days when one can wander the trackless swamp with not a single Crocodile to be seen, and others where they seem to seek YOU out. They had been plentiful, and after the first serious battle to fulfill my quest's requirements, I actually spent some rare time enjoying the battle.

Like most "natural" creatures I have faced, the danger in Crocodiles comes from their heavy bite and not necessarily their resistance to damage. Without armor, they fall quickly to a few well placed blows. If you have learned all you can from Rock Trolls, the Crocodile would be a good place to continue your training. They still teach me quite well but do not quite challenge enough to keep my interest. I have a tendency to wrestle with them.

Their skins are well worth the effort to lug out of the morass of reeds, and the best skinners can make a gold or three (often more) easily per load. You may have cause to regret the weight of multiple bundles as you attempt to rediscover the stone road that led you into the swamp in the first place. A Ranger can be very useful here, but for the rest of us. it is necessary to learn the hard routes based on the one or two lonely landmarks available. There are as many different ways to get out as there are hunters within, so I strongly suggest asking those you find there their methods of escape. I use the well known, but little recommended, run-around-blindly-with-arms-outstretched method: Eventually somebody takes mercy on you and points you out.

Once I had had my fill of attempting to pummel the Blue-Bellied Crocodile into submission, I stumbled my way to the stone road and decided itwould be a good time to reach Riverhaven. I would like to say my mind was devoutly going over prayers of thanks for another completion of a task for the quest. In truth, however, my thoughts had already drifted toward the other side of the river to contemplate where and when I would meet Damaria. Wrapped in such pleasant musings, I missed the flotsam and detritus of raging battle that was going on as I came closer to where the ferry could be boarded.

Blithely and blindly, I stepped toward the ferry, only to near break my nose upon a barricade set across the roadway. I stared at it numbly for a few seconds, rubbing my oft-bruised nose, and suddenly came to the stunning realization that not all was as it should be. The makeshift barricade had been my first clue; the second was the Goblin horde shouting curses from behind its protection. A bolt through my left arm woke me fully, and I scrambled back a few steps to reassess the situation.

Riverhaven was under siege by goblin forces intent on ransacking and looting all within its walls. Later, I was to hear that the walls had indeed been breeched, but the Goblins were thrown back in a great (as I would later hear Ammara call it) "Stomping of the Green." This was no small feat, as one might think when one pictures the rather pitiable specimens common to the west of Crossings. These goblins were much more tenacious, better equipped, and well trained. Raiders, berserkers, archers, and thrice-cursed bowman goblins kept the Zoluren forces contained upon the south shore of the Faldesu.

There were few clerics and empaths upon our side of the barricade, and the attack came in conjunction with a night of no moons to power Moongates. This meant the dead lay where they were until the battle paused enough to allow the corpses to be collected. A fine paladin by the name of Glemm was among the defenders who helped keep the goblins from pushing further down the Northern Trade road. He and I began to drag bodies to where succor could be found for them.

The barricade was withdrawn when the losses suffered by the goblin forces became too much even for that prolific race. They were seen to board waiting ships, and I had to wonder if they were being used by the Red Sash pirates in some meager attempt at revenge. Time will surely tell.

With the barricade down, the bodies were eventually sorted and dealt with by kind clerics and empaths who traveled across from Riverhaven. Curse my oft-bruised brain, but I was not in the presence of mind to record their names. Jolinda does stand out as a kind and able empath. Glemm and I stayed until the very last ex-corpse was reunited with its possessions and then traveled to Riverhaven at last.

If you ever want information on brawling, I would suggest seeking out this Gor'tog Paladin. Glemm gave me several pointers on fisticuffs that I will use gladly the next time I am brawling. We spent some time telling tales at the Pierless, and then did some "field study" work in Swamp Trolls and Ogres to practice what he had taught.

While in Ogres I came across another species of large rodents known as the Water Rat. Probably the smallest of all such I'd faced so far, it offered no more resistance than its Crossings brethren. The pelt it produces is not quite worth the danger of being stomped on by Ogres or shot by the Ogre Scouts. At the best, it is a nuisance akin to the skunks that wander in the Monastery Fields of Zoluren.

It has been a busy day, and my nose has finally healed under Damaria's deft touch. 'Tis just the price one pays for trying to add a little humor into the world, I suspect. I pray that this rather long entry finds you just as whole and hale as I feel at the moment, good Reader.