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Patiently you wait for the storm to abate. When finally the wind drops and the air sheds its dust, you are able to see the vast forest of Helkona stretching away to the northern horizon. It is a forbidding sight, a lifeless expanse of petrified trees that have been destroyed by poisons leeched from the blighted soil of the Darklands. You magnify your vision and you notice a crimson speck of light in the far distance. It emanates from the towers of Gazad Helkona, which you estimate to be no more than thirty miles away. The pinpoint glow of this blood-red light tells you that the fortress is occupied.

It is a dark and cloudy night, but you have little difficulty making your way down the trail to the bottom of the hilly ridge. Even in the dead of night the skies above this region are dully illuminated by the reflection of volcanic fires that rage amidst the surrounding mountains. When you look to the east you can see the lava streams of the Kagazitzaga Range; to the west, the fiery spouts of the Kokozritzaga. As you press on towards the petrified timberland of Helkona, you can feel the tremor of their constant eruptions vibrating beneath your feet.

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