Jurdes 7, 5676

The land is somewhat more rugged since we passed the western edge of the Razhin Jungle seven days ago, and are now heading north along its boundary with a massive mountain range no one has ever crossed. I think these mountains stretch west from this side of the jungle to the far side of Etnyben, and then south along the coast, all the way down to the South Pole. If we find no passage between the mountains and the jungle, we’ll head back east, but eventually I’ll probably return to explore the range.

None of us was able to ride a telef today. It is late spring down here in the southern hemisphere, and it seems to be the middle of their breeding and birthing season. In the past week, four telefs gave birth, and Rar’s bull mated with several others, including Mo’Amu. As long as we keep our distance from the animals, no one gets hurt. Today, however, several other bull telefs entered the scene. When you have two animals of such massive proportions fighting over females with their tusks, one of them is bound to get hurt. Two of the bulls were intimidated and chased away quickly. The third stood its ground. Rar’s bull eventually chased the challenger away, but only after both telefs were injured and the younger bull’s side gored open. I hope this doesn’t become the norm for our travels with the telefs. If so, we might need to leave them behind so we stay safe from their rutting.

Elendra’Tel found a square rock today, which is where we camped tonight. It certainly appears quarried, shaped, and left here on purpose. She claims the discovery supports her belief that the legendary Seven Cities of Lajolaine are somewhere in the jungle. Pelmarco claims otherwise. According to him, it’s nothing more than a permanent marker stone where travelers long ago would picket their horses and camp nearby. He claims there are several of the stones remaining throughout Etnyben, although he’d never heard of anyone traveling through this region. Even knowing what it is, we’re still left wondering why it’s here, and not along a heavier-traveled route.