Winterstorm

[Rezantis]

Rez blinks once . . . then twice . . . and grins widely.

He claps the stormrider walking next to him on the shoulder and points at the moon, then yells calls out loudly to his troops, "Those at the keep have slain the first of the generals!  Let us make haste, my brothers - we aren't going to let them have all the fun, are we?"

[Brian]

This does, in fact, do a lot to cheer the men up, and they eagerly prepare to march further north -- though the trench to the east of you doesn't look like it plans on ending any time soon.

[Rezantis]

Kick their goddamn asses, guys.

Rez continues marching north with, well, his army. They'll either find a damn trench, or if they're lucky find another supply caravan.

The alternative isn't a very pleasant one.

[Brian]

After a few hours of the moon climbing higher in the sky, Eric approaches you, breathless and excited.  "Sir Shuker!" he calls.  "Good news!"

[Rezantis]

Rez perks up.  "Good news is . . . well, good I guess, Eric," he grins, "What'd you find?"

[Brian]

Erik shakes his head.  "Wardmaster Mattias," he says.  "The Wardmaster was afraid of Lord Bloom and yourself after Lord Bloom and Markham came to blows.  He then entrusted me with this," he explains, pulling a small, flat, oval-shaped stone from a belt pouch.  It looks like it's nearly the perfect skipping stone.  It's carved with some sort of shape on it, which you imagine is a rune of some sort ... it looks confusing, at least.

"It's a speaking stone," he adds.  "Wardmaster Mattias says that he and those with him have safely reached the false pass, as planned.  He plans on freeing Gatemaster Eske, though says that it may take him a while.  Once this is done, and Gatemaster Eske is recovered, we should be able to enter the keep.

"The only news I can offer of other supplies is that our scouts ran down a small number of orcs -- a dozen of them -- and an additional wagon.  It appears that the rest of their train fell...."  He hesitates here, and looks very uncomfortable.  "Beneath the ice."

[Rezantis]

Rez gives Erik a respectful nod.  

"Understandable, I guess.  Thank you for trusting me enough to reveal it now.  Hm . . ."

"This is good and bad . . . good because it means we've utterly massacred the dreadmarch supply lines, and bad because it means that finding food is going to be a problem. Hopefully Eske won't be more than a few days. For now, we have to keep moving north.  There'll be more caravans as we go, and not all of them have been moving through the trench thus far.  The dreadmarch will have no hope of catching us from the south, so we're untroubled on that score. Let's keep moving."

[Brian]

Erik looks at the stone.  "You can speak with Mattias through this, if you'd like," says.  "Otherwise, I will continue scouting."

[Rezantis]

Rez blinks.

"Handy. In that case, could you wait a couple of minutes while I do so?"

[Brian]

"Certianly," he says amiably, offering you the stone.

[Rezantis]

Rez takes it and turns it over in his hands.

"So, er . . . how do you use it?"

[Brian]

"Like that," Mattias's voice replies from the stone.  "Sir Shuker?"

[Rezantis]

"Ahh.  I am he, Wardmaster.  How goes your work in freeing Eske?"

[Brian]

"I cannot break the seal binding him, so it goes slowly.  I expect to have him free before the moon rises, though.  I've also found out about the seal ... it was placed by another master of the lore ... but the collegate has not promoted another Lorkeeper to mastery of wards in centuries.  I fear that the Dreadmarch may have devised some way to empower their own servants.

"I tell you this in case the worst happens, because fore-warned is fore-armed.  I hope that it is not the case ... but Radagast sends me word that the Dreadmarch has succored allies aside from the few humans who are seduced by the promises of wealth and glory."

[Rezantis]

"That is unpleasant news. They've certainly been better prepared than we expected - but what other allies does Radagast believe they have?"