HOME | DD

Description

  “I don’t know about this, Charon,” Niinen mused. The path ahead of them was almost completely whited out with snow and ice. They were used to treacherous terrain, but the way the wind was whipping around and the loose snow was flying right in their eyes, it didn’t seem like the best time to go out investigating. “Showing someone the way through the woods is a lot different than going on a wild goose chase of a scavenger hunt in the middle of a blizzard.”
  Niinen’s steed didn’t seem to share his concern. With a snort and some impatient pawing, Charon made it known he wanted to push on.
  “Think of the payout,” he retorted. “All we have to do is find a couple of loose horses and we get a nice, fat pouch of kronor to take home. How hard could it really be? They’re herd animals anyway. They all stick together.”
  A groan fell from Niinen’s mouth. Kronor was tempting, but so was being alive.
  “I’ll tell you what,” he said finally, pulling the front of his shirt closed against another gust of wind, “let’s go get the guy on the farm we passed. He had all sorts of pelts and whatnot outside of his house. I bet he’ll know this place like the back of his hand.” Niinen paused, running a hand through his hair and sighing. “He probably has much more experience with tracking things down than we do, too.”
  The fae didn’t have to be looking at the brown bull below him to see him roll his eyes.
  “Fine. Hopefully he’s friendly. Some people aren’t, you know.”

  No light emitted from the house’s windows - a bad sign for Niinen and Charon. Frost painted each window pane and smooth snow surrounded the structure. There was no sign of anyone being there since the latest snow storm had rolled in. There wasn’t even a wisp of smoke coming from the chimney to show that the occupant was merely hunkering down. Charon twitched his ears, hoping for a sign that they weren’t on their own. Niinen might not want to continue on their quest while the weather was so daunting, but Charon wasn’t planning to back down from the challenge they’d been given. Aside from that, who knew how long the loose horses would be able to hold their own against such a heavy storm? They were tamed and used to having someone take care of them. Food, hay, a warm stable, that was their normal housing. They were not used to harsh conditions and scarce resources like this.
  Barely audible over the wind, Charon thought he could hear a sound coming from the barn in the near distance.
  “Did you hear that?” He asked, straining his ears in the direction it’d come from. “I think there’s someone in the barn.”
  “Let’s go see, then.” Niinen replied, urging the rukaan forward.
  It took a few minutes for the duo to get through the thick snow, but with each step it was apparent that the occupants of the small farm were located in the barn. The soft glow of a lantern could be seen from the path and the scent of a fire and thin stream of smoke became more and more apparent the closer they got. The sound of a horse nickering solidified their suspicions.
  “Wait here,” Niinen said firmly, dismounting a few feet from the barn door. “I’ll go and make sure he’s friendly since you’re so concerned about it.” Charon snorted, replying with a roll of his eyes, but otherwise did as Niinen wanted. He really did worry more than a mother hen sometimes.
  A white haired man opened the door before Niinen even reached it. Quickly, the fae blinked away his surprise and put on a charming smile.
  “Can I help you?” Dawson asked, cutting off Niinen’s greeting before he could even start it. In the opening of the door, Niinen could see at least one curious Rukaan looking at them. “It’s a hell of a storm to be out in.”
  “Actually, we were hoping that you could.”

  “So tell me again just how you thought you could get these horses back on your own?” Dawson, though he seemed unwelcoming, hadn’t needed much persuading before he agreed to help Niinen and Charon with their task. “If your description is right, they’re part of Ken Ellington’s herd. He lives pretty far north, so deep in the Howling Range he’s almost on the other side. It’s a fools errand to bring those horses back in a storm like this.”
  Niinen and Charon shared a look. They hadn’t been given that information when they accepted the task. The other side of the blizzard peaks was a strange land that surrounded the territory housing the world tree. It was hard to get to and harder to survive in. The land there was sick and provided few resources to survive on long term.
  “The person who hired us left that detail out,” Niinen admitted. Charon, for all of the go-get-em energy he’d had before, remained silent.
  “Don’t mind him,” Shannon, the farm owner’s mount,” said softly to Charon. “Dawson is a bit prickly on the outside, but he doesn’t want them to be left out their anymore than you or I do.” The gentle looking rukaan cow offered a small look of reassurance as they moved toward their destination. “I think that as long as we don’t come across any trolls and the weather doesn’t get any worse, we’ll be able to find them and bring them back to our farm until the weather eases up.” Shannon’s talking ended as Dawson urged her to pick up the pace. Even though Dawson had fixed lanterns to leather breast collars on both rukaans, they would do little to light the way if it got truly dark out. Darkness came quickly in the northern winters.
  “Did they give you any other information?” Dawson called over the wind.
  “We were told that the horses broke loose and ran off when a spirit wandered through their paddock.” Now that Niinen thought of it, that story did sound a little questionable. What spirit wandered to new places without an object bringing them there?
  “Well hopefully they didn’t run too far.”
  Dawson led the way through a thick grove of trees, taking Shannon up a barely visible path that had been worn through the brush. The trees provided a brief respite from the wind and deep snow, and the group used it to move into a brisk canter. The faster they arrived, the less time they’d have to be in the elements.
  For a while they travelled in silence, broken only when one of them spotted a sign that the horses had been there. Sometimes they’d see a few strands of hair caught on a branch, another time they found a pile of excremate that hadn’t quite frozen over. That meant they were getting closer. The four stopped just before the trees ended.
  “It’ll be dark before we get back. Do you want to push on or make camp and go on in the morning?” Dawson would rather keep going, but he didn’t know the preferences of the others. He didn’t want to force them into an uncomfortable position.
  “We can keep going,” Niinen and Charon said almost simultaneously.
  “Alright, let’s move out then.” Dawson and Shannon picked up a steady canter and made their way back into the open tundra.
  Niinen and Charon, wanting to talk between themselves, let a small gap form between them.
  “What do you think, Char? Do you trust this guy?” Niinen leaned low over the rukaan’s neck, keeping his face out of the wind as much as possible.
  “He’s not bad,” the rukaan huffed in response, trying to follow in Shannon’s footsteps so he wouldn’t have to forge a path through the thick snow. He didn’t know how she made it look so easy to move through deep snow like she did. “Seems like he prefers to keep to himself, but he wouldn’t be helping us if he was a bad guy.”
  Niinen couldn’t argue with that. Gradually, the caught up to the others, cresting a hill to catch a bleak ray of sun as it poked through the seemingly endless clouds. It was then that they realized the storm had given them a brief respite.
  “Let’s stop for a minute,” Dawson called, halting Shannon. He pointed to the ground ahead of them. “They shouldn’t be much farther. These tracks have to be fresh or the wind would have buried them.”
  Niinen was almost embarrassed that he hadn’t noticed the tracks. Investigating and tracking definitely were an art he and Charon were still perfecting.
  “We should go a bit slower now, right? So we don’t spook them?” Charon asked.
  “Correct,” Shannon confirmed. “Horses are pretty easy to spook. That’s why Dawson didn’t bring Kygo this time. Anytime we come across trolls, Kygo gets too nervous to move past them without drawing attention.”
  “Why does he use a horse, then? Does he not like going with you?” Charon wasn’t judging the man, but he was curious.
  “It’s because I allow my rukaans to migrate every year,” Dawson answered. “They can come and go as they please. Alviss especially likes to go and visit the herd he was part of when he was still wild.” Dawson patted Shannon’s neck fondly. “Shannon doesn’t leave as often, but I have no problem with it when she does. While they’re gone, I use the horses to get around.”
  “That is a respectful thing to do,” Niinen replied, somewhat surprised. “Not many people would.”
  “No, but not every rukaan would, either.” Dawson nodded toward the distance. “Looks like we found our missing horses. Why don’t we round them up and get back? The pauses in these storms never lasts too long. I’ll make us some hot chow when we get back.”
  “Sounds good to me,” Niinen chirped. Who could say no to a hot meal after an adventure like this?

For Kalik-ing-Away

Import Link: Charon - Also referred to as bull rukaan
Link to Rune Mark Tracker: Tracker
Rune Mark points and bonuses: Sociable, Literature (1,673 words), Lore Location (Blizzard Peaks/Howling Range)

Import Link: R-0315 Shannon
Link to Rune Mark Tracker: Tracker
Rune Mark points and bonuses: Literature (1,673 words BY OWNER), Lore Location (Blizzard Peaks/Howling Range)

Description

  “I don’t know about this, Charon,” Niinen mused. The path ahead of them was almost completely whited out with snow and ice. They were used to treacherous terrain, but the way the wind was whipping around and the loose snow was flying right in their eyes, it didn’t seem like the best time to go out investigating. “Showing someone the way through the woods is a lot different than going on a wild goose chase of a scavenger hunt in the middle of a blizzard.”
  Niinen’s steed didn’t seem to share his concern. With a snort and some impatient pawing, Charon made it known he wanted to push on.
  “Think of the payout,” he retorted. “All we have to do is find a couple of loose horses and we get a nice, fat pouch of kronor to take home. How hard could it really be? They’re herd animals anyway. They all stick together.”
  A groan fell from Niinen’s mouth. Kronor was tempting, but so was being alive.
  “I’ll tell you what,” he said finally, pulling the front of his shirt closed against another gust of wind, “let’s go get the guy on the farm we passed. He had all sorts of pelts and whatnot outside of his house. I bet he’ll know this place like the back of his hand.” Niinen paused, running a hand through his hair and sighing. “He probably has much more experience with tracking things down than we do, too.”
  The fae didn’t have to be looking at the brown bull below him to see him roll his eyes.
  “Fine. Hopefully he’s friendly. Some people aren’t, you know.”

  No light emitted from the house’s windows - a bad sign for Niinen and Charon. Frost painted each window pane and smooth snow surrounded the structure. There was no sign of anyone being there since the latest snow storm had rolled in. There wasn’t even a wisp of smoke coming from the chimney to show that the occupant was merely hunkering down. Charon twitched his ears, hoping for a sign that they weren’t on their own. Niinen might not want to continue on their quest while the weather was so daunting, but Charon wasn’t planning to back down from the challenge they’d been given. Aside from that, who knew how long the loose horses would be able to hold their own against such a heavy storm? They were tamed and used to having someone take care of them. Food, hay, a warm stable, that was their normal housing. They were not used to harsh conditions and scarce resources like this.
  Barely audible over the wind, Charon thought he could hear a sound coming from the barn in the near distance.
  “Did you hear that?” He asked, straining his ears in the direction it’d come from. “I think there’s someone in the barn.”
  “Let’s go see, then.” Niinen replied, urging the rukaan forward.
  It took a few minutes for the duo to get through the thick snow, but with each step it was apparent that the occupants of the small farm were located in the barn. The soft glow of a lantern could be seen from the path and the scent of a fire and thin stream of smoke became more and more apparent the closer they got. The sound of a horse nickering solidified their suspicions.
  “Wait here,” Niinen said firmly, dismounting a few feet from the barn door. “I’ll go and make sure he’s friendly since you’re so concerned about it.” Charon snorted, replying with a roll of his eyes, but otherwise did as Niinen wanted. He really did worry more than a mother hen sometimes.
  A white haired man opened the door before Niinen even reached it. Quickly, the fae blinked away his surprise and put on a charming smile.
  “Can I help you?” Dawson asked, cutting off Niinen’s greeting before he could even start it. In the opening of the door, Niinen could see at least one curious Rukaan looking at them. “It’s a hell of a storm to be out in.”
  “Actually, we were hoping that you could.”

  “So tell me again just how you thought you could get these horses back on your own?” Dawson, though he seemed unwelcoming, hadn’t needed much persuading before he agreed to help Niinen and Charon with their task. “If your description is right, they’re part of Ken Ellington’s herd. He lives pretty far north, so deep in the Howling Range he’s almost on the other side. It’s a fools errand to bring those horses back in a storm like this.”
  Niinen and Charon shared a look. They hadn’t been given that information when they accepted the task. The other side of the blizzard peaks was a strange land that surrounded the territory housing the world tree. It was hard to get to and harder to survive in. The land there was sick and provided few resources to survive on long term.
  “The person who hired us left that detail out,” Niinen admitted. Charon, for all of the go-get-em energy he’d had before, remained silent.
  “Don’t mind him,” Shannon, the farm owner’s mount,” said softly to Charon. “Dawson is a bit prickly on the outside, but he doesn’t want them to be left out their anymore than you or I do.” The gentle looking rukaan cow offered a small look of reassurance as they moved toward their destination. “I think that as long as we don’t come across any trolls and the weather doesn’t get any worse, we’ll be able to find them and bring them back to our farm until the weather eases up.” Shannon’s talking ended as Dawson urged her to pick up the pace. Even though Dawson had fixed lanterns to leather breast collars on both rukaans, they would do little to light the way if it got truly dark out. Darkness came quickly in the northern winters.
  “Did they give you any other information?” Dawson called over the wind.
  “We were told that the horses broke loose and ran off when a spirit wandered through their paddock.” Now that Niinen thought of it, that story did sound a little questionable. What spirit wandered to new places without an object bringing them there?
  “Well hopefully they didn’t run too far.”
  Dawson led the way through a thick grove of trees, taking Shannon up a barely visible path that had been worn through the brush. The trees provided a brief respite from the wind and deep snow, and the group used it to move into a brisk canter. The faster they arrived, the less time they’d have to be in the elements.
  For a while they travelled in silence, broken only when one of them spotted a sign that the horses had been there. Sometimes they’d see a few strands of hair caught on a branch, another time they found a pile of excremate that hadn’t quite frozen over. That meant they were getting closer. The four stopped just before the trees ended.
  “It’ll be dark before we get back. Do you want to push on or make camp and go on in the morning?” Dawson would rather keep going, but he didn’t know the preferences of the others. He didn’t want to force them into an uncomfortable position.
  “We can keep going,” Niinen and Charon said almost simultaneously.
  “Alright, let’s move out then.” Dawson and Shannon picked up a steady canter and made their way back into the open tundra.
  Niinen and Charon, wanting to talk between themselves, let a small gap form between them.
  “What do you think, Char? Do you trust this guy?” Niinen leaned low over the rukaan’s neck, keeping his face out of the wind as much as possible.
  “He’s not bad,” the rukaan huffed in response, trying to follow in Shannon’s footsteps so he wouldn’t have to forge a path through the thick snow. He didn’t know how she made it look so easy to move through deep snow like she did. “Seems like he prefers to keep to himself, but he wouldn’t be helping us if he was a bad guy.”
  Niinen couldn’t argue with that. Gradually, the caught up to the others, cresting a hill to catch a bleak ray of sun as it poked through the seemingly endless clouds. It was then that they realized the storm had given them a brief respite.
  “Let’s stop for a minute,” Dawson called, halting Shannon. He pointed to the ground ahead of them. “They shouldn’t be much farther. These tracks have to be fresh or the wind would have buried them.”
  Niinen was almost embarrassed that he hadn’t noticed the tracks. Investigating and tracking definitely were an art he and Charon were still perfecting.
  “We should go a bit slower now, right? So we don’t spook them?” Charon asked.
  “Correct,” Shannon confirmed. “Horses are pretty easy to spook. That’s why Dawson didn’t bring Kygo this time. Anytime we come across trolls, Kygo gets too nervous to move past them without drawing attention.”
  “Why does he use a horse, then? Does he not like going with you?” Charon wasn’t judging the man, but he was curious.
  “It’s because I allow my rukaans to migrate every year,” Dawson answered. “They can come and go as they please. Alviss especially likes to go and visit the herd he was part of when he was still wild.” Dawson patted Shannon’s neck fondly. “Shannon doesn’t leave as often, but I have no problem with it when she does. While they’re gone, I use the horses to get around.”
  “That is a respectful thing to do,” Niinen replied, somewhat surprised. “Not many people would.”
  “No, but not every rukaan would, either.” Dawson nodded toward the distance. “Looks like we found our missing horses. Why don’t we round them up and get back? The pauses in these storms never lasts too long. I’ll make us some hot chow when we get back.”
  “Sounds good to me,” Niinen chirped. Who could say no to a hot meal after an adventure like this?

For Kalik-ing-Away

Import Link: Charon - Also referred to as bull rukaan
Link to Rune Mark Tracker: Tracker
Rune Mark points and bonuses: Sociable, Literature (1,673 words), Lore Location (Blizzard Peaks/Howling Range)

Import Link: R-0315 Shannon
Link to Rune Mark Tracker: Tracker
Rune Mark points and bonuses: Literature (1,673 words BY OWNER), Lore Location (Blizzard Peaks/Howling Range)