Day two and three - Happenstance is happy

 Exploration Phase Cards Drawn:

[10♣, 9♣, 6♣, 6♥]

When Brer woke it was full darkness once more; she had slept the afternoon and evening away. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes and crawled carefully to the brook, slaking her thirst with the cool sweet water. The brazier far above was dimmed almost to nothing but there was enough light, particularly as her eyes adjusted, for her to make out Thud stood motionless a few feet off and the rugged terrain stretching away in front of her.

Sleeping under a tree

With a yawn she decided that travelling at night was a bad idea and crawled back into the hidden place beneath the tree. Lazily she practiced communicating with Thud, working to get the link between them more efficient, and just as she was starting to drift back off to sleep she checked in with Bea who was roosting in the tree above her head. There was nothing approaching, no sign of life anywhere, so she allowed her subconscious to drift off and started dreaming her dream of gigantic flying rooks...

She had an old cutlass

The next time Brer woke the brazier was just starting to brighten and a cool breeze was blowing down from the high ground ahead, chilling her in her nest. She broke her fast with some biscuits washed down with more fresh water and then headed on into the hills. It was hard going with lots of rock scrambles over ridges and down into gullies and by mid morning she was feeling tired. It was far more difficult because she only had one functional arm; the words of the crone who had bandaged her arm were still very clear to her "Leave the bandage on for 2 whole days, and do not use your arm, and it will be fully recovered by the 3rd morning". Fortunately Thud was proving very useful supporting her if she struggled; he was small but immensely strong and could easily carry her over short distances.

The Abandoned City (10♣)

Regular rests were very important and it was during one of these, late morning but not quite lunch time, that a slightly more regular arrangement of rocks and gullies in the next valley resolved itself on closer inspection to be a ruined city. Brer could make out buildings and the outer walls but from this vantage point no greater details than that. She traced her eyes from what she guessed was the city gatehouse and could just about make out the remains of a path; it lead zig a zag zig up towards where she was sitting. That would make a much easier descent.

It took until lunch time to cross the rough terrain between her rest spot and the road even though it was only a few hundred yards away so she took another rest, had a bite, and then began making her way along the broken slabs and cobbles of what was obviously a pretty major road in ages past. The mid afternoon light was slanting in over her shoulder when she finally reached the broken gates into the city and the quiet that had settled over the land the closer she got to it was starting to make her feel nervous. Bea had been flying scouting missions and reported no sign of life, no movement of any kind, but Brer could not shake the feeling that she was being watched by something.

Is it a grave? (6♣)

Inside the gates was a wide open space, maybe an area used as a market or a parade ground for troops. Trees now grew here, pushing and cracking the paving until it stood at awkward angles like the bones of some ancient creature. On the other side of this space were the remains of stone walls, old buildings now long collapsed into themselves. Brer cautiously made her way between the trees, again noting the lack of small creatures or even birdsong, and crouched down behind the first wall keeping out of sight of what, she didn't know. The wait stretched on until she felt foolish and with a jerk she stood and rolled over the top of the wall into the room on the other side. There was another jerk when she landed as the slab she landed on shuddered, rocked then pivotted neatly about itself, allowing Brer to fall straight through into a space underneath. With a sigh the stone returned to its previous position and Brer was in darkness, alone, with Bea sending panicked messages from above ground and Thud pounding the stone but unable to make it rotate again.

Brer was trapped!

It took a fair few minutes before Brer calmed herself enough to start thinking again; at first she beat her fists on the slab just a foot or so above her head and shreaked. Finally she ran out of energy, sat down, and took stock. She was unhurt, that was a massive bonus, but the dark was nearly total - so dark that she could not see her hand when she held it in front of her face.

Her pack was still on her back, apparently undamaged, so she rummaged through and found a match; it gave a sputtering light initially but then settled and illuminated the stone coffin that Brer was currently entombed within. No more than a few paces from where she was sat was a dark opening in the floor, a quick look revealed no stair or ladder and a cold wind rising from it. Thanking her lucky stars that she had not fallen straight down that deep hole she looked the other way and saw some scratches and marks on the wall, and the skeleton of a human, dried to a husk and so disintegrated she couldn't tell if it had been male or female. A previous inhabitant of the trap, it seems, and it did not give much hope for eventual escape.

Buried alive

Once she had calmed herself again she lit a second match and investigated every inch of the space. There was nothing else to see. Outside Bea was letting her know that the night was drawing in and there was still no sign of any other living creature. Thud had stopped beating the ground and was now trying to smash the stone with his Rookling magic but though he could disintegrate every other slab in the room, the one above Brer was impervious.

As she sat in the dark, the second match having burned down to her fingers (and anyway she didn't want to use all the air up, though the hole appeared to be providing a breeze) Brer felt the cold starting to seep into her bones. She could not work out how to escape this stony tomb. Going down the hole would be tantamount to suicide while the stone above was not moving no matter what she, or her friends above, tried. Eventually she fell into a shallow and very troubled sleep.

A friend when you're in need... (6♥)

She was jolted awake by a shout from Bea - she had maybe been asleep for an hour and was cold and stiff from laying on the hard stone. But what was it Bea had shouted? Bea was no longer in range, or wasn't replying, which made the panic rise even further.

After what felt like hours, but was more likely only a few minutes, the welcome intelligence of Bea intruded once more into her mind "WE HAVE FRIEND!" and then a mental image of a ghostly figure dressed in a blue flowing dress walking through the ruins ahead of Bea. The girl, for it appeared to be human, approached the place where Brer was trapped (recognisable for the damage that Thud had done to all the flagstones) and knelt next to the one remaining whole stone. After a pause of a few seconds she pressed in one particular place and stepped back. There was a groan, a creak and a sigh and the stone rotated again. Without giving it a chance to swing back Brer grabbed the edge of the hole and hauled herself up, rolling away as fast as possible from the trap. There she lay for a few minutes before sitting up and looking over at her mysterious saviour.

Natalya

There was something very ghostly about the figure, revealed as she was in the dim light of the nighttime brazier; she had very very pale skin and bright red lips with golden hair that was blowing in the breeze, flowing out like a living creature. Her clothing was very strange looking, certainly like nothing Brer had ever seen before, a beautiful blue with some designs sewn into one side. She had a very thick belt around her waist but her hands and feet were hidden inside the robe, for robe it was - not dress. She was stood now, no longer kneeling, and looking calmly back at Brer. There was no threat emanating from her, in fact Brer felt instinctively safer and more at home than she had for a long time, maybe ever.

Finally the silence was broken by the newcomer: "Hello, traveller. You are lucky your flying Rookling found me. I do not visit this old place very much any more and I doubt there are any yet alive who could have opened the TombTrap for you. Lucky indeed". Her voice was low, calm and musical. "What brings you here, and wherefore do you go?"

... is a friend when you need it (9♣)

Brer took a deep breath and then answered with complete truthfullness; telling the lady (whose name was Natalya) about the Flying Rook that Brer was hunting, in the hope of learning more about Bea. She described the adventures she had already had, and showed the map given her by the friendly villagers. Natalya took it all in calmly, interupting only a couple of times to clarify some points, only looking slightly surprised during the tale of Brer's personal mission.

Finally the tale was told and silence returned. Brer did not feel like questioning this stranger and other than her name Natalya had given nothing away. The pause continued for so long that Brer felt herself starting to drift back to sleep. Then quietly Natalya spoke. "I know of this Dragon Rook of which you speak. I myself have seen it. It was far from where we are now but not always; indeed the ruin you see here is its work. I am the sole survivor of this tragedy, none of my kith and kin are yet alive. It is a great evil that you hunt, an evil that will destroy you and everything you know if you fail to defeat it. And there are greater than you who have attempted such a feat. Far greater...." Natalya's low voice drifted into silence but then began again, more strongly. "Yet you have the flying Rookling; this is something I've never heard tell of. And your luck is strong - stronger than maybe even you realise. Maybe it is time..." Again a pause, this one longer, but when she began talking once more Natalya also stood and beckoned to Brer. "Yes. I will come with you. Maybe my return to this fated place was not so random after all. Come, let us set off at once; we must sleep outside the city gates for I fear the ghosts this place yet holds". And with that she walked, almost floating her steps were so small, out of the building, across the courtyard, and through the gates. Brer scrambled to get up, gather her stuff and follow.

Maybe her quest had just taken a turn for the better.

Links and Credits for pictures:

Asleep under a tree: https://www.deviantart.com/blacklbutterfly/art/Sleeping-Under-The-Tree-430609298

Buried alive: https://www.deviantart.com/bleistiftmensch/art/buried-alive-818294174

Day one (part 3) - ... and into a friendship

 Exploration Phase Cards Drawn:

[K♣, 5◆, 9◆, 10◆, Q♥]

She could see nothing at all from her vantage point, no movement now from where her ears had told her to expect it. Bea could also see nothing and the mental link to Thud had not had enough time to bed in and become constant so Brer actually wasn't sure what he saw or even where exactly he was.

Captured! (10◆)

A hand grasped her free wrist from behind, then another went across her mouth so quickly she was not even able to gasp let alone scream. Her mental shout caused Bea to scoot up out of reach and slip away unnoticed into the darkness but as more hands grabbed her, threw her to the ground, and efficiently tied her arms and legs with a thick cord Brer knew that she would have no such luck.

Finally her hidden assailants were satisfied the there was no way their prize would escape and Brer was lifted and flung over a large man's shoulder and carried out of the skull, down the hill she had so laboriously climbed just that short time ago, and then off to the right a short way until finally she was deposited unceremoniously onto the ground and could take a proper look around. The land here dipped slighly to form a depression that was deep enough to prevent the glow from a small fire, burning in the centre, from illuminating the surrounding vegetation. Sat around the fire, all of them looking at her, were five ragged looking men with straggly beards and ripped clothes. Further back, in the shadows, the wide eyes of a few children glinted in the firelight and their mothers were stood protectively nearby dressed no better than the menfolk.

No word was spoken. Brer watched her captors and her captors watched her back.

The silence lengthened and still no one made a move.

Just as Brer was starting to wonder if she had been captured by a group of mutes one of the women stepped forward from the the shadows and into the fitful light of the fire. She walked over and stood in front of Brer, looking down at her with haunted eyes. "What business did you have with the Skull Gang?" Her voice was low but had a modicum of force behind it.

Brer looked back into those haunting eyes and considered her reply. Finally she decided honesty was the best policy "I do not even know who they are? I was merely passing through, an innocent traveller looking for shelter".

The answer, spoken with conviction and a quiver of fear, triggered no outward reaction. Once more silence reigned with The Questioner standing still and just watching. Brer looked back, not sure what to do next.

"There are few innocent travelers in these parts." The voice came from by the fire as one of the men stood and strolled over very casually. "Mostly because they do not survive for long. Your arm; what happened to it?" This man was tall and wiry, he looked strong but was not well fed. Once again she considered honesty was best and explained how she had been beset at the ford by a Rumble Rook and had stumbled up the hill attempting to get away from its body. This story drew a few muffled gasps from the surrounding crowd and Brer saw some respect enter the first Questioner's eyes.

With her story told once more there was quiet however it did not last long. "Untie her, bind her wounds. I believe her". This from the lady and immediately Brer felt her bonds cut and she was drawn to the firelight where an old lady, appearing out of the shadows where the women hid, chewed up some herbs and tied the smelly mixture very tightly to her wrist. "In two days, your arm will be healed" she croaked, and hobbled away before Brer could do more than mutter thanks.

From then on the night was a blur of introductions and conversation. Brer learned that this ragged group of individuals was all that remained of the free people who had populated this land before the Skull Gang had arrived and destroyed everything. They lived now as nomads returning to this spot only rarely to see if the gang had left and they could return to their homes. Brer told them of the land on the other side of the Coral (which these people called The Rush).

When morning came and the light of the brazier woke Brer from her slumber by the fire she felt part of the clan. Their entreaties for her to join them and help them rebuild their homes (the disquiet at meeting her had been caused by this being the fourth year in a row their return revealed no evidence of Gang activity only for them to discover her right at the heart of the outlaw camp) were tempting but her quest drew her on so after saying farewell and accepting the gift of a roughly drawn map, leading her all the way to a Doorway several days further South, Brer departed promising to visit on her return.

Giants in the Distance (K♣)

Brer made her way back up the slope, followed by Thud and with Bea buzzing around her head, and considered the plight of those kind people. Something should be done about the brigands, she thought, it isn't right for innocents to be displaced like this. She determined that on return she would help them.

Mid morning saw her still climbing, having left the Skeleton far behind, and the terrain was changing from smooth slopes with scattered fir trees to a much more broken ground, rocky crags and cliffs stretching off into the distance. As she topped one rise, this one covered in short grass and quite comfortable to walk up, she froze. There was a huge shape moving along the next valley, a massive Rook, the size of ten houses stacked on one another. Brer readied herself to fight or to run but the creature had other purposes and didn't even appear to notice her, continuing on its way until it went into a ravine that was deeper than even its leviathan height.

Brer sighed with relief and sank to her knees. The drama and stress of the past 24 hours finally catching up with her. Bea buzzed over and landed next to her, projecting images of a willow tree just down the next slope beneath which would be shade and cover. With a shudder Brer hauled herself upright once more and followed the loyal Rookling while Thud continued in the position it had made its own during the morning walk; slight behind and slightly to the right of Brer.

The glade with the tree in it had a spring of fresh water which Brer splashed into her face, drank a little, before crawling into the safe space and falling straight into a deep and dreamless sleep.

Links and Credits for pictures:

Sitting round the fire:https://www.deviantart.com/temarinde/art/Campfire-353291793

The Distant Rook: https://nushiyama.tumblr.com/post/141864421233/giant-monster-in-the-distance