It was indeed an auspicious time as the sunshine rose uninhibited by clouds above the hills of the Great Weald, bathing the battered and sun starved lands in a glorious explosion of yellow and gold. The vast open moors of rolling hills where spotted with patches of dark green and black, spoiled here and there by bright green patches of fen, stretching to the horizon. Many leagues to the North the snowcapped peaks of the Felmurg Mountains stood out starkly against a pure blue sky. Trickling brooks took on the appearance of frothing streams cutting between the hills in boggy lowlands of peat, heather, and and even the wind stunted junipers seemed to stand taller in the sunlight. Soft hills and green ridges crowned with plump carpets of moss highlighted the large and unusual caravan that now snaked its way into the Vampire lands. 

The Dwarves were staring about them in wonder at the land that had once been their home and the various human guards had propped their helmets on their saddle horns, there was no danger of a Vampire atack on day like this. Even the slaver, made more hideous by the arrival of pure daylight, managed to looked both pleased and surprised. The whimpering from his wagons had even died away as bruised faces pressed themselves to the bars. 

"I c'nay think o'a toime t'was so sunny 'ere..." He was enjoying the heat on his face, surprisingly strong now that the clouds had burned away and the sun beat down with a vengeance on a land long deprived of its life giving powers. Several of his thugs, and a few Vampire Hunters, all voiced their agreement. Solomon said nothing, just nodded. 

They crested a small rise and standing before them, tendrils of mist still clinging stubbornly to its turrets, was the keep of Felboge, in sight at last. It was a redoubtable structure to be sure. Built upon the only true "hill" in the Moor, it was surrounded on all sides by a rampart of local cobblestone, buttressed by a moat of sharpened stakes while the green covered moor lapped against it like an unmoving ocean. Dozens of leathery hides of flayed prisoners pierced on iron nails hammered into the joints between the cobblestones. As if warning the garrison of their arrival, the wind kicked up from a gentle breeze and a heavy gust hurled itself against the high stones, tearing one of the affixed skins from its mooring and blowing it out into the distant moor. There might be a monster inside, but another monster now stalked the moors. 

Guards, squinting heavily against the bright sunlight, greeted the caravan at the bottom of the hill before the road began to climb toward the fortress. The Dwarves bustled forward first, eager to receive the documents allowing them to continue their diggings in the east. Their permission received, they turned away from the Keep and began their march East, a song breaking out from their ranks as they went. 

The slaver was permitted to turn aside to the town that huddled in the shadow of the Keep. The market grounds, long a barren and empty place, were already alive with colour and the swirl of trade as other merchants who had swarmed across the newly opened border sold their wares to an amazed local populace. This left the Vampire Hunters and a swarm of hopeful supplicants looking for leave to begin other businesses. 

"You gentlemen will have to give up your weapons." Stated the guard commander, indicating the items carried now by Kane and his compatriots. 

"This is not possible." Kane replied quietly. The guard commander looked stumped, never in his living memory had anyone refused an order from one of Baron Ulrek's soldiers. 

"'Fraid I cannot let you in then. Baron's orders are simple: no weapons past the gate. Leave em with me or turn around." 

Kane nodded and then looked around at his gaggle of fellow hunters. Some were not even trying to hide their weapons. He had at least made an effort save for the longsword that hung at his waist. "Alright then soldier, how about we put down the long arms and you take this small gift to forget we even have a couple of daggers? A stranger in a strange land feels a bit more like a man when he can have some steel at his waist, eh?"  

The guard commander's only response to Kane's proposal was a tacit glance over each shoulder, ensuring that his comrades were out of earshot and not looking in their direction. A brief beckoning gesture of his chainmail-clad fingers gave proof that the commander was amenable to Kane's bribe.

"That's right, swords and pikes with me," the guard announced for the benefit of any of his comrades. "Very good, come on through," he crowed, stealthily accepting a small coin purse from Kane as he strode past. 

The Vampire hunters deposited their long weapons and stepped onto the drawbridge that spanned the stake-laden moat. Their footsteps sounded hollow on the drawbridge before echoing as they walked through a crumbling gateway framed by snarling gargoyles. The gateway opened onto a cobblestone parade ground surrounding the entrance to the keep itself. A number of attendants and soldiers stood before the doors of the keep, awaiting the arrival of the strange assembly. 

Despite the sunny the keep walls were high enough to throw a deep shadow across much of the courtyard. The torches, obviously needed most days of the year, were still burning despite the heat of the day and Solomon's mouth twitched in some approximation of a smile. He could feel the fear and hatred of the place, so many people crammed together to serve their undead lord. He was certain he would one day have to kill his potential employer as well. 

A concerned looking chamberlin looked them over before hustling them into the keep where all hint of daylight vanished behind thick stone walls and heavy curtains drawn across the few windows. Solomon paused long enough for his eyes to adjust to the blackness before following at the tail end of the group. The big man who he had first addressed the previous week led the way into the main audience chamber.