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Freyja listens to the story, enjoying it as much as the kids do. When its over she starts to sing in a low and sleepy voice.
The sky is dark and the hills are white
As the storm-king speeds from the north to-night;
And this is the song the storm-king sings,
As over the world his cloak he flings:
"Sleep, sleep, little one, sleep;"
He rustles his wings and gruffly sings:
"Sleep, little one, sleep."
On yonder mountain-side a vine
Clings at the foot of a mother pine;
The tree bends over the trembling thing,
And only the vine can hear her sing:
"Sleep, sleep, little one, sleep;
What shall you fear when I am here?
Sleep, little one, sleep."
The king may sing in his bitter flight,
The pine may croon to the vine to-night,
But the little snowflake at my breast
Liketh the song I sing the best, ---
"Sleep, sleep, little one, sleep;
Weary thou art, anext my heart;
Sleep, little one, sleep."
"Anyone wanna do a little sparring?" she asked hopefully, "Them goblins got me twice today...So, I think my dodgin' is getting a bit sloppy..."
Maddy nods, gets to her feet, and stretches some kinks out of her back. "Consider me always willing. It's good exercise and I can always use the practice."
Exhausted after being put through her paces by the incredibly fast swashbuckler, Maddy is more than willing to let Martok take watch. She curls up close to Matty and Maggie before quickly falling asleep.
Evelina grins widely when Maddie agrees to spar. "Ok! But I ain't gonna go easy on you!" Evelina's eagerness is obvious as she participates in the practice bouts with absolute enthusiasm. However, by the end she is obviously knackered. She collapses into Maddie, declaring, "Too tired!" Sliding down dramatically, she falls forward into the ground. "Ok. Time for bed.." can barely be heard as a muffled noise through the snow.
The stories, songs, and sparring bring a satisfying end to the day's adventure, and with Martok keeping watch, the party soon drifts off into the quiet of the night. While the dwarf feels no need for rest beyond quiet contemplation, the quiet lulls him into a placid, comfortable calm.
, nope, nada
With the sheep asleep and the wolves at bay, Martok breathes out some of boredom while he waits for dawn to come...
Everyone sleeps soundly through the night, Martok comfortable in his place by the tent's door wrapped in a blanket. Until he begins to notice a strange smell...
As the sun's first light begins to stain the horizon, the reek grows stronger and stronger. Soon, it's enough to wake everyone, even Cithembi. And it doesn't take much looking to figure out where it's coming from - the air around the sled is so thick with scent that it's nearly unbearable, and the covering on it is rent asunder and scattered in pieces. Nadya approaches, scarf pulled over her nose, and peels back one of the wrappings...to find that the packets of dried meat inside are shriveled and swarming with maggots. A sack of potatoes is soft to the touch, and a wretched brown fluid seeps from it with a new wave of stink. Bread is hard and covered in splotches of mold, and the cheese too is speckled with it. Even the water in the waterskins is rank and filthy.
What...I don't understand... Nadya stammers, staring in horror at the heap of ruined supplies.
Cithembi shudders a little bit as he awakens, then wrinkles his nose. He follows Nadya over to the sled.
"I may be able to help with that, friends," he manages to choke out.
He cautiously approaches and waves a hand over the food.
Maddy wakes up to herself gagging on the stench wafting in from the sleds. She stumbles out with the others and covers her nose and mouth with her scarf to try and block out the smell. "That's definitely not natural." She's instantly on guard and looks around to see if whoever was responsible was still around planning something worse.
Freyja rises and wrinkles her nose at the unpleasant smell from the rotting food. After examining the spoiled food and water she concludes We have been attacked during the night with putrefy food and drink spell. I hope Cithembi's magic can reverse it. I have heard stories of witches who could despoil food at a touch and we fight witches. She tries to assist Cithembi by cleaning up any remaining mess with Prestidigitation.
Evelina just looked confused, "So they used magic to mess up all our food?" She grumpily tosses a moldy loaf of bread to the floor. "Those jerks." She thinks for a moment, before asking, "How'dya think they did it without us seeing?"
Evelina just looked confused, "So they used magic to mess up all our food?" She grumpily tosses a moldy loaf of bread to the floor. "Those jerks." She thinks for a moment, before asking, "How'dya think they did it without us seeing?"
Martok looked ashamed, "That would be me. I was keeping watch but I never saw nor heard anyone."
This made him worry, "Is everyone OK? I'm sorry."
Matt examined the spoiled food as best he could, without getting too close to it. "This is almost certainly the same thing that happened to those two items we found in the other camp. I would assume there are some nasty creatures nearby who like to do this to any passing through."
As Cithembi fixed up the supplies, Matt sat quietly against the wall of the cavern with Maggie, studying his spellbook.
"Oh..." Evelina replied to Martok, looking a little guilty. Trying to reassure him, she comments, "It's okay. Do y'know how many times I've fallen asleep at work before. Must've been boring being up all alone. Maybe we should take shifts again, 'stead of making you stay up all night."
Cithembi reaches for the heap of rotting food, waving a paw-like hand over it - but as he does, a wave of nausea washes over him and a cold, clammy feeling seeps into his skin, as if his fur were coated in a wet slime. And worse, the warm, wholesome energy of the spell he casts can't seem to get past that cold...instead, the bubbling energy goes lukewarm and dank at his fingertips, and the food remains putrid and unpleasant, made even more so by the dashing of hopes.
I'm sorry, but...help how? Nadya finally ventures timidly, clearly trying to be polite even through frustration and despair. Was something supposed to happen?
Cithembi shudders and shakes his head. "Something is blocking my magic," he states.
The dwarf had no idea what was going on.
He thanked Evelina and stood up from self-pity, "This is my fault and I'll fix it."
He called on the spirits, the green, life-giving spirits, and blessed the spoiled food.
------------
HP 49/49
AC 15, touch 11, flat-footed 14
Conditions: n/a
Melee (+1 spear): +4 = +1(magic) +3(base)
Melee Damage (+1 spear): 1d8+1, x2
4/5 mythic pool, 4/4 touch of flame, 2/2 channel energy
Spell used: n/a
Maddy felt bad for having let Martok take watch all night. "Evelina's right. It's not your fault. We shouldn't have made you keep watch all night on your own. From now on, I'll split part of the watch with you. Even if you don't want to sleep, I'll at least keep you company and that'll help pass the time. I've had to watch over sheep during the night before and it's hard work when you're all by yourself."
Matt looked up from his spellbook in time to see Cithembi fumble his spell. Alarmed, the wizard moved to the catfolk, laying a hand on him, trying to determine the trouble.
"I think it's a curse, Cithembi. Something specifically designed to stop you from helping with the rotten food. It's not something I can help you with, I'm afraid. Martok, be careful, it's possible you've been cursed as well."
"Who would do such a thing?" Cithembi laments, seeming shocked that anyone would be so cruel.
Yes, it could be a curse, I guess. I am not totally sure. Freyja says. Then she pats Cithembi on a furry shoulder and add But if it is a curse we will get it removed!
Evelina's eyes fill with concern. "Cursed? How do we remove it?" Anxiously, she tugs at her own arm "Think we should get moving 'fore they come back?"
With some trepidation, Martok casts his spell, worried that Matthew's words are true - but it seems the night-time nuisances either overlooked or purposely skipped the dwarf. Calling upon Baba Yaga's mantle to broaden his mind, he speaks an incantation that erupts in his mind, willing the Witch Queen to keep the party underway. A shower of icy white motes fall from his hand onto the ruined supplies; blue and white crystals freeze over the heap, and when they melt away into nothingness a moment later, the party's stockpile is restored.
With the supplies made wholesome again (and with Nadya visibly relieved), the camp is hastily packed up again, and another day of travel begins. Fortunately, for now no goblins or mysterious witch-creatures appear, and the party travels without confrontation. Except from within - it seems that, in the confusion of the morning, one of the twins managed to swipe a few squishy potatoes from the sled before Martok's restorative spell. A few miles into the day's walking, Mjoli suddenly lets out a sharp cry; Nadya, panicked, turns suddenly, only to see the unfortunate boy with the entire back of his jacket splattered with rot and Orm giggling from the other side of the sled dog team. A quick spell from Freyja cleans up the mucky jacket, but Orm's repayment isn't so quickly handled - he spends the rest of the morning bouncing among the parcels on the sled, sulking at not being allowed to run and play.
As midday draws near and Orm scampers among the packed supplies to withdraw food for a walking lunch, Nadya, peering ahead, suddenly lets out a small gasp and signals to Cithembi. You're a traveler, she murmurs once he faces her. What do you see ahead? Following her gesture, the catfolk looks ahead to the horizon...and what he sees is baffling. Ahead, straddling the ribbon of road, is a patch of forest - but instead of fighting to hold up heavy snow, the fir trees stand proud and bare of their white coats. There are even areas where a different green can be seen, not the deep color of fir needles but the light yellow-green of new birch leaves! The horizon in every other direction is covered in snow, but it seems that ahead is one tiny pocket of summer, breaking forth from the endless freeze.
Cithembi pauses, seeming confused by the question.
"It is a forest," he states, puzzled. Then slowly realization dawns on him as he realizes why this sight would be so out-of-place here. "A living forest, free of snow, yes? I have heard of places where hot water wells up from the ground and warms the air. Perhaps there is one such here that keeps these trees green and melts the snow? Let us go see!"
Eagerly the catfolk advances, walking lightly on top of the snow, wanting to be the first to see this new thing.
Eager herself to explore such a place Freyja still warns Its such an inviting place in this cold wasteland. Surely it is inhabited. I pray that they will be friendly but we best not plan on that.
Turning to Nadia, Matt asked, "Have you traveled this way before? Is this new?"
Evelina's eyes widen at the clear skies ahead. "It looks...warm..." she says as a smile grows. "Warm!" she repeats with even more enthusiasm, hopping up and down a little bit. "That's the way we are going, right!?!"
Maddy takes a sharp intake of breath as she sees the lush forest along with everyone else. As much as the absence of snow is preferable for Maddy, she's instantly wary. "That doesn't seem natural. It would take an awful lot of hot water to keep that much snow away."
Her voice follows Cithembi, "Be careful. Just because there's no snow, it doesn't mean it's safe."
A very protective Martok echoed the overall sentiment, "That doesn't look right so it's magical and this is a land of witches so we should be careful."
He checked on the food again to make sure it was still good and had not reverted to rotten. He chewed very quickly and swallowed his meals for fear they would turn in his mouth.
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With equal parts excitement and wariness, the group continues ahead toward the strange patch of thaw. The space is nearly three miles wide and about twice as long. As you cross its edge, the temperature lifts considerably; while it's not nearly so warm as the Taldane summer you left behind, it's as warm as a spring afternoon, enough that soon everyone perspires beneath their heavy winter clothing. Kashka sighs contentedly, removing a glove and massaging at a gnarled hand. Isn't this a fine thing? she murmurs; it's a stark reminder that most Irriseni have never known a day above freezing.
It seems you aren't the only life drawn to the pocket of warmth; bird song sounds from the trees, and rabbits and mice rustle in the small grass. As you pass a copse of birch trees, budding pale green in the sunlight, you even see an elk of monstrous size - nearly six feet tall at the shoulder and sturdy enough for a human to ride, with horns that spread nearly as wide as the road you tread. When it sees you approach, it backs up slightly, clearly wary and skittish at the approach of newcomers.
Cithembi laughs, joyful at this strange discovery, and starts to turn back to speak with his companions. But something catches his eye as he begins to turn, and he stops and slowly points.
"It seems that nature is alive and well here, friends," he says in an even but wary voice. "The cycle of life continues as it does in other lands."
Freyja marvels at the elk but does nothing to spook it and even moves back away from it. Lovely. Worthy of a song.
Matt walked into the summery grove with great trepidation. As lovely as it was, it just felt wrong to him. He looked at it with narrowed eyes, trying to figure out if the whole area was under some sort of enchantment.
Even with Cithembi pointing, Matt wasn't able to see what he was talking about.
Maddy starts to sweat with the increase in heat and she pulls off her toque and scarf. She stops in her tracks when she spots the ginormous elk. She is so focused on its size and trying to decide whether or not it's a natural creature that she doesn't see the canine stalkers until Cithembi points them out.
Martok was also taken by the magnificent specimen of elk before him to notice anything else.
He turned to the Cithembi, [b]"What do you mean by the cycle of life?"
Evelina is thrilled by the warm weather and the peaceful wildlife. However, CIthembi's comment causes her cheeriness to drop slightly. "Aw...Why? You think those doggy things are gonna kill it?" she asks, as she points to the bushes.
"Yes, the wolves hunt," Cithembi agrees to Evelina's question.
With the party keeping still and well back, the giant elk relaxes slightly, withdrawing a few feet into the forest and taking a mouthful of grass. Its eyes still gaze upward at the party, though, and it's clear the creature is far from calm; its stance still carries a hint of belligerence, and further movement could still startle it. The wolves in the brush, too, remain motionless, as if wary of exposing themselves to the gigantic elk...or to the party...
Matt began to smile as the warmth and innate goodness of this place started to seep into him. He began to pull off his jacket, saying, "I can't quite put my finger on what it is, but the magic that keeps the winter away here feels good and fair. It's nothing I could do, probably not with a lifetime of training, but there are other types of magic in the world. Perhaps a druid lives here, one who might be an ally in the fight against the witches."
Maddy has never seen a king stag before and stands, almost in reverence, not wanting to disturb it more than they already had. In a whisper she says, "That king stag is somewhat far from home, just like we are. They have been known to be domesticated but I don't see anyone."
Having spent most of her young life being wary of wolves and other predators as she took care of their village's sheep, she finds it difficult to just watch the wolves stalk the elk. "It would be a shame should those wolves attack it."
Finally noticing the wolves, Matt got a bad feeling. "I don't think we should allow that." Moving slowly towards the elk, hands out, he spoke as if it could understand. "It's not safe here, my friend. Behind you are predators. Best you should move on."
Trying to help Matt, Evelina also talks at the creature. "Yeah. C'mon run away big guy! Or you're gonna end up someone's dinner!"
Maddy worries that her brother's inexperience with animals may get himself hurt so she follows to help. "Matty, your body language is wrong. Try to match mine." She calmly moves towards the king stag, putting herself between the wolves and their quarry.
Freyja watches, understanding the desire to protect the stag but unsure it its the right thing to do. Wolves have to eat too.]/b] she notes. [b]Besides that animal is large and strong. I doubt normal wolves could bring it down. Don't they usually go for the weak or young?
Cithembi shrugs slightly. "That depends on who is luckier. Still, the wolves must be desparate to attack a strong, healthy creature," he says, thinking of his home in the jungle.