On the Wonders of Ironpeak: Chapter 16

As our travel progresses, Ironpeak certainly holds up to its reputation of a wild, untamed land with many mysteries to discover. Shortly after departing from Diobri, the weather worsened and it is apparent that winter is approaching quickly, accelerated into the less temperate regions of the realm. During our travel eastwards, following the compass we acquired what feels like ages ago, we entered the woods and reached a tree that looked entirely mundane at the first glance. Quickly however, a hidden compartment was discovered and we procured some treasures. Most interesting among them was a compass matching ours (which we quickly identified to be a pair of twin compasses, always pointing towards each other), a new compass, an half-filled map and a handwritten note supposedly written and signed by one Mr. Flint Pebbleback (yes, dear reader, precisely the one you heard all the amazing stories about as a child).
 
We quickly returned to the main caravan route and continued our journey for 3 days without noteworthy events. Then, the new compass urged us to detour from the main road shared with fellow travelers and traders and instead we departed into a marshy, half-frozen wilderness. We were ambushed by a Barbstirker (Aculeothrax sagittifer), but were able to dispose of it quickly and without injury. I feel that our prowess as a team in combat is steadily improving, which will certainly become essential in the following weeks.
 
We ventured deeper into the marsh, reaching the next compass location. An inscription demanded of us to complete the map. I started to do so with great enthusiasm and enjoyment, but was quickly interrupted when we encountered the rest of the Barbstriker colony. While the combat itself was equally uneventful, something concerning happened to Bean right afterwards. Her own spell attacked and choked the poor witch. In the aftermath of this impressive event, she revealed to us that some curse was bestowed on her that she intends to get rid of, but on the other hand provides her magic powers. As not even Kniv was surprised about this development, it is safe to say that truly everyone in our party saw something like this coming.