The root path opens onto the blockhouse. Massive river pebbles, black with bitumen, rise in a squat wall ahead. Above it, smoke tightens into a grey-black sigil, pulsing like a cold heartbeat.
The air around the sign goes still. Even the jungle sounds seem to fall away, leaving Hhannvis with the scrape of his own boots and Sefru’s sharp intake of breath.
Sefru
Do not stare too long. That mark is not a warning for us alone.
Huryol
A signal, then. Or a seal. Either way, somebody keeps this place watched.
Hhannvis
The smoke mark is stronger than the hearth below it.
Hhannvis studies the sigil from the safety of the roots. The symbol hangs over the fortress like a gate in the air, tied to the blockhouse and the people inside it.
Sefru
We skirt the front. If they see you, they will ask what you are before they ask why you came.
The route is clear now, and so is the lead. To reach the tribes, Hhannvis must first get past the fortress and learn who sends the smoke-mark over its roof.
✓ Quest Accepted
Observe the symbol of smoke