| 287 After only a moment of hesitation you urge Pallenten forward and enter Kal Murda through its broken, rotting gates. Why you are taking this chance you are not quite sure. It would be just as easy to ride around the village, however your curiosity cannot let you leave such a challenge unanswered. As you pass under the arch of the village's eastern gates you are able to get a better impression of what the village must have been like. Unlike most fortified settlements, Kal Murda was not particularly big, probably no more than 200 metres from east to west. It was a thriving point of trade though, vibrant and busy, servicing most of the surrounding plains and recognised as an important link between the Stone Kingdoms to the west and the larger towns of central Kalborea to the south. There must have been a number of wealthy merchants who used the village as a base for their trade, the ruins of some large villa-style homes line the main thoroughfare, and the streets still show evidence of the well-laid paving stones that once would have carried large volumes of traffic along them. The village is earily quiet. As Pallenten trots cautiously along the road all you can hear is the echoes of her horse-shoes on the paving and the low rush of the wind as it makes its way about the crumbling, deserted buildings. By the time you reach the centre of Kal Murda the wind has picked up markedly. Stopping for a moment you look carefully to the sky and find that the storm is now too close to be avoided. The dark wall of cloud hangs to the north, a veil of gloom that rushes towards you, full of menace and hidden violence. Within a few minutes the wind strengthens to a stiff gale that rushes and moans its way through the village, it is a low mournful sound that sends a cold shiver down your spine. Nudging Pallenten forward you quicken her gait. It is then, by some silent trigger, that the village comes to life. There are no shapes or ghostly moving forms, just the wind and the imagined cries of a thousand butchered souls, that echo quietly from every corner of the deserted village, manifesting themselves as furtive movements at the corner of your eye. You see nothing that shows this village to be haunted, but you hurry Pallenten on even faster, quickly making your exit through the western gate. You are very glad to be out of Kal Murda and equally glad that you made your journey through the village in daylight.
| Turn to section 301.
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