Winter's End [ Dawnguard ]

[Vakarian]

Winter Comes to its Close.​

The snow fells heavily upon the peaks east of the Falls of Crystal, coating the ancient structure that had existed seemingly nearly as long as the peaks themselves; so seamless was the construction of the structure into the geography of the peaks that it appeared as though the mountain itself had birthed it. Thus was the building considered to, at one point in time, be the most well defended structure in the Northmark. It had once stood as the esteemed headquarters for the Valkyri clan, Shield-Arm but had eventually -- as all things must, succumbed to the relentless hordes of Vinterbound that called the North their home. Of course this was prior to the great war that had all but wiped the semi-sentient creatures from the wintry surface of the planet Midvinter. However, as evil was won't to do, it seemed to have found a hole to slink back into and lick its wounds until it was ready to rise and strike once more at the beings that dwelt comfortably in the peace that was Light and Good.

Usually evil would take centuries upon centuries to find the strength to marshal its powers against the denizens of Light, however with a champion that could easily further its cause and wreak utter havoc, it had managed to build its power within weeks of their defeat at the hands of the varied peoples that called Midvinter home and the champions of the Light; the Jedi. The location was chosen well, as history had forgotten the location of the ancient Hall and there were none alive that would remember the secret paths that led to the ruined bastion that once held back the very beings that now took up residence within its walls. A place once flowing with Light and Life was now as dead and dark as the creatures that had taken up ownership of it. The creatures would not have found the place on their own however, instead they had been guided by a creature of darkness far more powerful than they themselves had been; one that was easily able to exert its malevolent will upon the mindless creatures that now served it.

His skin was as sandpaper and held much the same color as the sea of snow that continually fell upon the region. His eyes being shimmering and infinite depths of sapphire that seemed to radiate hatred and the lust for power, his every step made with clear intent and a single guiding purpose that was known only to him. What little hair he did have was as wisps of silk that swayed in the wind that would cut any living being, that had not grown up in it, to the bone. Fortunately, he was neither alive nor fully dead; instead being a creature stuck in the limbo between thus retaining his comprehension of language and his ability to reason and excel in strategy. It was his will alone that had allowed this last pocket of Vinterbound to escape the notice of the battle that had destroyed the rest of his kin; that foolish sith that had thought to command the dead had held no sway on this particular creature -- for his will was as strong in death as it was in his life; for he was Endrik Shield-Arm, final patriarch of Clan Shield-Arm.

He had inherited ownership of the Hall from his father who had inherited it from his father and so on from the initial founding of the structure. So, it should have passed to his son when Endrik himself was slain in battle; but his own son was slain thereafter and thus the hall held no master; at least as far as the undead patriarch believed. There was still a nagging sense that the Hall owed its allegiance to another and even now the Hall was calling to its master through dreams and the Force. It was not that Shield-Arm Hall was sentient, it was more the history and blood that permeated the ground and very foundations of the mountain-stronghold; a history of such strong willed men and women that called to the scion of their clan, a young man who was currently unconscious several miles below the peaks, buried beneath several hundred feet of snow and ice --- only protected by the very flow of energy that called to him through his dreams.

"The time is soon upon us." Endrik spoke to himself and the elements around him, his voice as rough and ancient as his skin appeared to be, ".. even now the Hall calls to him, the last true master of the grounds." Sapphire hardened as he finished his thoughts, his grip tightening on the deadly blade that had an equally malicious aura as the man that was its master. Let the boy come and try to challenge him for the rights to the Hall. He would show him the error of coming to this place and then the Northmark would be the first to discover the true power of the Vinterbound that had remained hidden for so long under a conjured blizzard that seemed to never end.

-----​

The warmth of the sun warmed the boy to his core and the sound hammers beating anvils rang out across the empty peaks. Conversations were prevalent all around him and when he opened his eyes, he found himself to be standing in the courtyard of a magnificent Hall, torches alight with a blue fire that only seemed to add to the majesty of the building. Several hands patted him on the back and many more faces blurred in the haziness of the dream world. His own happiness radiated outwardly among the Force, spreading through the air as though it were a spore cloud form a field of wildflowers, seeping into the very earth itself. The young Valkyr warrior had set out several years ago in search of his family stronghold and had found it, only to be repelled by the elements and had succumbed to the darkness that surrounded the structure several miles above him.

It was through the power of his ancestors spirits on the grounds and the very power of his own will that he had managed to keep himself in a form of stasis that he was unable to awake from on his own. He knew that he was in a dream world and that his own body was among the elements beyond the protective borders of his own mind, though he was unaware of the damage that was slowly beginning to take effect, for though his will was strong and the power of his ancestors was indeed stronger, the years had been taxing in stasis and the reserves of power were dwindling increasingly fast.

Thus the hall had begun to reach beyond the peaks and across the Northmark, in search of one who would heed its call and come to revive its slumbering master upon the slopes and liberate it from the darkness that held it so tightly within its grasp. It was a force for good and to have denizens of evil within its walls was sacrilege and against everything that it stood for. It would not permit them to remain.

Spoiler

If this is not to your liking, feel free to let me know. I was admittedly quite tired as I wrote it so if you need some points explained, I would be happy to do so.

[member="Coci Heavenshield"]

 

[Coci Heavenshield]

In the early hours of the morning, Coci had awoken with a start. Sitting upright in her bed she turned to see the window had been blown open and the gust of cold night air showered the room in fresh fallen snow. The deadly chill ran through her body as the cold pieced her skin and quickly she went to the window to close it tight. It was still very dark outside, she did not know what the time was but dawn surely was not far off. The howling wind quietened somewhat, whistling passed the pane onward to it journey south, strange how sound was both chilling and soothing. She climbed back under the covers of fur, gone cold from her absence, and she tried to sleep once more.

Coci did not return to deep sleep.


--------------------

Around her the sound of battle, so many Vinterbound had circled the Jedi, Thurion was in the distance his sword, Snowfall, cutting the air as it sliced through the enemy and one by one they fell to his blade. She was in a trance, pulling the force to her, creating an illusion of them all to disorientate the Vinterbound and it worked.

The sound of the horn ringing out the advance of the Vinterbound on the walls of Thainbroek called from the keep. There was so many of them as she looked out from the Westgate as she stood atop the wall next to her husband. From the thousands rode a lone figure, dark as the night sky and pointed his sword toward the main gates of the city, the order issued the Vinterbound advanced without any thought of mercy and none was given that day.

Her landscape, a dreamscape, filled with the horrid past of so many lives lost to Midvinter. The Vinterbound the walking reminder of souls lost to darkness. All she could see was the eye of blue as cold as the colour captured in the ice caps to the north. The north something was there trapped in ice, a long forgot dream? It was impossible for her to tell.

----------------------


The morning of her departure had finally arrived with the bursting open of her bedroom door and in rushed Thora, her granddaughter, jumping on her bed and snuggling under the covers of fur. She did not want Coci to go, begging for her to stay a little longer, but she reassumed her Thora that as soon as she can she will return. It had been wonderful spending time with her, Théo and Ylva but duty had its requirements too. After their farewells, Coci headed to the docks to take a long boat south and from there, to the west.

It was a busy morning, the mist of the fens burning away with the morning sun and the boatmen loading lumber and goods to travel along Whitwandle Run, to all corners of Midvinter. As she sat waiting, she could not shake the dreams from the night from her thoughts, why had the memories of the past come to visit her now? Coci had put them to rest, at least she had thought, but they were there again but something in her mind told her it was for a different reasons. Her head turned to the north, north east in fact and although her view was limited to the mountains shielding Norvegr-fen something called to her from beyond the rock.

She picked up her bag, and walked toward a long boat about to leave from north to the Falls of Crystals and she got on board. Today she would let the force guide her, following a sense of the familiar both of good and evil, there was a cloud of darkness covering something or someone that was in danger.

The best part of a day had passed before she disembarked the long boat at a small village at the base of the mountains, the long boat proceeded onward until reaching the Falls and now she would continue her journey on horseback. It would be a slow journey through the thickest of snow, the cold she had ever felt on Midvinter and the further north she rode, the sense of this purpose grew stronger.

She was close now ..

[member="Máni"]​

 

[Vakarian]

"A Shield-Arm should never carry doubts, my son.." came a feminine but proud voice that brought tears to the young warriors eyes. A voice that seemed to confirm that he was indeed in a dream world for that voice had passed from the world of the living and was one that he believed he would never hear again. His sharp eyes turned in the very direction that the voice had come from and his heart stopped as the world around him dropped away to center his being on the single figure that held such meaning to him; his mother, Brunhildr Shield-Arm. Her features were heavy with history and her very presence radiated a power not often felt among the members of the Valkyr that called Shield-Arm Hall their home, and her power was evident in the reverence that the other spirits showed her through the diverting of eyes to even the humbled bow. She was not royalty, nor was she of noble blood, but it was her power that afforded her the respect that she was being shown -- a power as potent now as when she had walked the ice-devoured land of Midvinter.

Even by Valkyri standards she was a beautiful woman, her eyes the very color of the deepest glacier and as equally sharp. Her skin was the color of vibrant oak and her features almost elfin, in that they were angular and sharp as well as nearly flawless. Her garb was that of a warrior, an exotic mixture of form-fitting chainmail and furs that blended easily together. Her face carried within every line or scar a history of her life and the adventures that she had enjoyed whilst alive. The most notable feature, however, was the shield that she carried on her back; a heavy shield of the strongest wood, a shield decorated with many dents and cuts from the meeting of a vast number of hostile blades. She was a Shield-Arm in the truest definition, "Wipe your tears. They are not befitting of such noble lineage." she scolded gently even while the smile as bright as the artificial sunlight that surrounded them formed around her lips and spread to the entirety of her face, lighting her features considerable and shedding years off of her visage.

"You have done well, my boy." came a gruff and booming voice that echoed of age and strength. Mani knew before he even turned that he would find his father waiting for him, a man of lesser stature than himself but far more powerful and filled with surety. "You have been missed and we have watched your trials from beyond. You have done us proud and you are so very close to your desired objective. You cannot allow him to keep the Hall within his grasp, as we speak his presence perverts and twists it beyond what it was meant to be. You must release it from his grasp and claim ownership of it in the name of the Gods once more. Helm is with you, my boy. Do not fail him." his father ended his speech with a smile and a firm hug before turning and fading from view, leaving Mani with his mother once more.

"Your father loves you, Mani, as do I. But, you cannot linger here. Even now he searches for you, his minions are very near and they will take you to him. You must awaken, the Hall has done what it can for you, but now you must rely on your own strength and will to do what needs to be done. Your fathers' fathers' father was a force to be reckoned with in life, and his power has grown that much more in his re-awakening. He seeks to kill you my son, to fully claim ownership of the Hall and to make war on those that reside in the North. You are all that stands in his way, for while you are alive the Hall still dwells within the Light, no matter how small it may be, you are what it keeping its powers from perversion." she grabbed her son in a powerful hug and a single tear slipped from her right eye as she kissed his forehead. A move that sent the Valkyr warrior spinning into the infinite space beyond the dreamworld.

-----​

​

Endrik stood upon the bridge that spanned the gap between the doors that were the entrance of the Hall itself, an interior which had not seen the presence of another living being in untold centuries. Endrik had been the last of the Shield-Arms to call the Hall their home prior to the battle which led to its fall to the Vinterbound. It was centuries later that he found himself reawakened by the foolish Sith and to his further amusement, the Sith had actually thought that it had held sway over him. He chuckled aloud, a sound that was akin to sandpaper rubbing together in synchronous motion. As he turned to pace the length of the bridge once more, he noticed two of the lesser creatures that had come to serve him ambling towards him at their predictable and unthinking pace.

They stopped several hundred yards from their leader and looked directly to him, their skin tightening as they moved to look in his direction. As their eyes met, Endrik understood the creatures as if they had used words to speak. They had found the boy shrouded several miles below in the snow and protected by the very powers of the Hall, a thought to which the undead patriarch growled menacingly as he turned his eyes back towards the Hall in defiance, "You have protected him for as long as you can. Your power has dwindled so much so that now we have found him. You will be mine soon enough." he grinned his menacing grin as he sent his will towards the forces of the Vinterbound that had been scattered across the mountain in search of his elusive prey, Bring me the boy. He is the key to our dominion of the North. The blizzard seemed to intensify in response to this command, as though the force that powered it were excited at the prospect of taking another life for the darkness.

----​

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The Hall itself seemed to react only slightly, sending a tremor through the Force in what would be an intense urging to any that had answered its call; an urging to quicken pace and reach its master before the creature found him defenseless and as it sent out that final tremor, the Hall's power was thoroughly spent. The Light dimmed even further for those that would be able to see it, and the darkness encroached ever further into its recesses threatening to overcome it should it try to exert its will any further.

[member="Coci Heavenshield"]

 

[Coci Heavenshield]

It was a strange language, this message on the wind that spoke to her, words not heard but felt within her core as she ploughed through the snow. Coci had given her horse its head and released it to return to the river, she would travel the rest of the way on foot as the blizzard kicked up a sense of defiance against her presence. She stumbled several times, got up every time to continue on, something out in all this was calling her. It was almost impossible to see anything in the white shroud of wind and snow, her fur cloak fighting against the wind and she was cold even with the use of the force to keep her from freezing.

There was a flash of brilliant white on the horizon high up in the mountains, and then extinguished and that feeling of connection gone. But no matter she knew she was close. So was something else, a sense through the force she had not felt in a long time, the dread of the dead, it could not be? They are all but lost to Midvinter but there was no mistaking them.

From atop a hill, she looked down into a valley bereft of life, not a tree stood in this tundra among the peaks of smaller mountains, and thousands of years of battling against the raging elements had worn them down and beyond them to the shores of the Great Maw, the tundra flat and lifeless. Well, of anything life she had ever seen on Midvinter.

Small cuts on her cheeks issued drops of blood as the ice cut against her, the elements trying to push her back as if guided by an invisible hand, she almost fell was a wall of wind pushed her but it was not this that made her fall to the snow for on the tundra she could see grey figures coming across the waste land. It was impossible to make out numbers, or what they were but she knew regardless, and it was hard for her to believe that they were here, they were back. More came from different directions all converging on a single spot in the ice.

If she could see them, they would be able to see her if they looked. But they didn’t, the Vinterbound had purpose in their mindless gait. Coci held close to anything that would provide her cover and she made her way closer and watched from behind a rock as the Vinterbound dug at the snow. Had they found another relic?

She pressed her back against the rock, her eyes closed as she focused her mind beneath the ice searching for what they seek. There was darkness surrounding the ice, the swirling tendrils of evil linking these servants of dead to each other and beyond the blizzard to the mountains, something or someone was commanding them, controlling them just like before. They were single focused on the task, never once faulting in their determination of retrieve the … person. Her eyes flashed open with the realisation.

How was it possible that someone was buried there? Well there was only really one answer to that and so she searched through her surroundings touching her presence through the ice and found him. Immediately she recognised the man thought to have been lost to the galaxy, to the Jedi ..

He was alive, although his life and strength waning and she would have to move if he was to be saved not only from the elements but what these Vinterbound had instore for him. She looked back to see that over the course of time, they had dug deep into the ice as if by some unnatural power of progress and she walked toward them as they pulled a body from the ice and laid it unceremoniously to the ground.

Her purple lightsabre snapped into life, the blazing blade hissing as ice fell on it and the heads of the undead turned to her and for a moment they paused without direction but they knew her to be a threat to them and their master and they came for her. The sabre would make short work of them, she knew this from experience but Coci had a weapon far greater, more powerful to dispatch the undead and send them on their way to rest and into death arms.

The force powered through her veins, embedded in her every fibre and as she reached her hand toward them, the purest white light streamed from her palm, the light side of the force formed in a wall and hit them shattering them into pieces of bone and rotted flesh, and what little fabric that clung to their animated corpses burned. Those that escaped the fire of the light did not stop for fear of it, but attacked her only to be cut down with her blade.

Once the immediate danger had been removed, she ran to the body looked down into his face as her warm hand pressed against his cold cheek, "Máni". For the moment they were safe, but more would come and she needed to get him out of here.

@Máni ​

​

 

[Vakarian]

There was nothing but darkness and a chilling sense of the familiar as the boy returned to his body, the Hall no longer having the power to protect him. His senses were dulled as they had not been used in some time and his own motor functions were as equally useless for the moment. After what seemed an eternity to the boy, for who could stand to feel as though they had no control of their body whatsoever, he began to hear once more. It was the first of his senses to return to him and as he listened to the wind howling around him on the edge of the mountain, he found that he could hear an all too familiar shuffling of feet and the stench of rot as the wind carried the truth of what was coming towards him; the Vinterbound!

Panic began to well within his being, though he would never openly admit that he had felt such an emotion, for he had not resumed control of his ability to move or see and he was utterly defenseless as the creatures slowly closed in on him. His mind spread out far around him, searching for a source of hope, and in a matter of minutes a light entered his mental vision - one that he had not felt in a great while. He could not be sure that it was who he thought it was, but he remained hopeful that the Gods had sent him aid during his time of need. That hope was confirmed when he felt the familiar energy draw nearer to him and the unmistakable sound of intense heat from a lightsaber being ignited and reacting to the icy winds of the mountain.

The sound of the saber igniting seemed to fuel his own frustrations and he twitched ever so slightly, sending a painful and encompassing tingle through his entire body. He winced internally and ceased all movement, giving his body a moment to recover from the alien movement that it was no longer use to. He relied on his hearing to tell him what was happening and it wasn't so much as he heard but he felt the full force of the Light bear down upon the Vinterbound and the hiss of skin and body vaporizing into nothing near instantly, the only remainder that the creatures had ever existed was the lingering scent of burning rotted flesh that was quickly taken by the biting winds and off into some distant corner of the mountain range.

If he had had any doubts about who was on the mountain with him, they were erased as the woman drew near to him and touched his face -- his relief obscuring the fact that he had regained his sense of touch. Her voice was as music to his ears and sent his heart fluttering quickly, forcing blood into parts of his body once more - slowly warming his interior temperature once more. He drew strength from her presence and though he could not answer her in this moment, he felt confident that she would notice the gradual improvement of his condition, if only she looked close enough. Which, if he knew her as he thought he did, she would noticed rather quickly.

[member="Coci Heavenshield"]

 

[Coci Heavenshield]

“Máni”, she repeated and with more authority in her voice as she saw signs of life returning to his all but frozen body. The strength of the man incredible considering his situation and who knew how long he had been under the ice. There was other forces at play which she could not account for but so much is still a mystery on Midvinter and little by little revealing her secrets.

Coci placed her hand on his chest feeding the force through his body to give him energy from her and warmth to fuel the blood further. His limbs twitching gently as nerves seemed to be finding their purpose once more and hopefully he will be able to get up. She looked around only to find nothing that would be able to help her in getting him to safety. Soon the others sent to find him would arrive and time was of the essence.

As much as she tried to pull him up off his bed of snow, he was dead weight and like all Valkyri he was big. “You have to help me Máni, I can’t lift you”, she urged hoping he would have some understanding. She cursed herself for letting the horse go, but it would not have survived the conditions up here in the tundra. Coci pulled on his legs, trying her best to drag him but she only managed a few inches.

A wall of wind and ice hit her again, something was through the elements toward her trying to prevent this rescue, she shielded her eyes with her arms and dug her feet deep as she could into the snow and leaned against the assault. This was impossible without help, and there was no way she would leave Máni here, Coci would rather give her own life to save his if that was the price. Then the ground around her trembled, a slow rhythmic pace like a soft beat of a drum. As best she could, see looked through squinting eyes only to make out large dark objects coming toward her, and then the loudest sound trumpeted through the air, snorting and pitching cries.

She could see seven of them, all sizes but the largest led the way as they came to her. Coci was stunned by the sight these creatures, the likes she has never seen anywhere but they did not mean harm, nothing in their presence suggested they would although their long tusks were are formidable weapon. Each one of them mattered with snow and ice on thick fur and strangely there was no scent to them, not that she could tell. Not that she was going to go and smell one.

The largest stopped before Máni’s body lifted a long trunk into the air and bellowed which caused Coci to cover her ears. She backed away unsure of what to do, and she could only watch as the large one scooped up Máni’s body and began to walk away leading the others to follow. “Sithspit”, Coci spat, what was she going to do now? Follow them of course, not that she had a choice.

[member="Máni"]​

 

[Vakarian]

He felt the energy through the force that Coci was giving him, and it was indeed jump-starting his healing. He could almost feel the very energy that flowed around him seeping into his skin and gifting him with yet another sense, Sight. It was not a lie to say that he was overly joyed to be able to see what was going on around him once more. The last thing that he could remember prior to the darkness was a faint glimpse of deadly sapphire eyes an aged skin with a texture akin to sandpaper. Even though he found he still had the inability to fully move his arms or legs, he felt his sense of feeling returning in measured increments, which of course meant it was going to be a little while before he was fully recovered and able to move on his own.

"You have to help me, Mani, I can't lift you." came the stressed voice of Coci Heavenshield and his glacier-colored eyes turned towards the woman filled with gratitude and regret. He had not left the Silver Jedi Order in the proper way that last time, he had not said goodbye to the woman who he had come to respect a great deal in his time with them. And yet, here she was, helping him in the frozen north; risking her own life in the process. He would never be able to repay her as she deserved, but he made a vow to himself that if ever she needed his aid, for anything at all, he would come to her. No questions asked. He owed the woman that much and more.

As she worked to lift him and struggled under his weight his eyes turned upwards towards the peak of the mountains and the faint shadow of the Hall, barely noticeable if one did not know where to look, and even more noticeable were the eyes that were staring intently at him, a cruel look about them. The storm intensified tremendously casting wind and snow in all directions, cutting to the bone with its deadly chill. It was then that he turned to look at Coci once more, but something drew his attention beyond and he saw seven lumbering shadows tearing through the snow in an even, unhurried, pace. His eyes widened and limbs that had not moved in ages began to twitch as if they had finally found the motivation they needed to function once more. Of course, this was not what had happened. He was still to remain immobile as the creatures meandered up to him and the largest of the group casually picked him up with its trunk.

He was in wonder of these creatures, a creature that he had never seen before, in all his life in the Northmark. The thought did cross his mind that perhaps the Lady of the Hunt had indeed favored him from the time of his birth. It must have been her that brought forth these unknown beasts from the wilds of the planet, what else could have brought them? He had much time to think and process information as the great beasts carried him towards the sheltered outcropping a few short miles further down the mountain and away from the dark presence that had claimed the peaks. The creature lay him gently upon the ground and then went off to the others of its kind, but did not move far away from the vicinity of the Valkyr boy and the Lady Heavenshield.

He turned his eyes towards [member="Coci Heavenshield"] and the creatures and upon inspection, they would be seen to be filled with gratitude and a sense of long-missing calm.

 

[Coci Heavenshield]

As soon as the creature placed Máni to the ground and moved away, Coci ran to him to make sure he was not harmed by them. There was nothing, in fact the large mammoth were gentle and a life saving presences to both of them, she looked toward the largest of them with a sense of gratefulness, as if they had answered a silent prayer. They were still in danger but this made brought her valuable time, little did Coci know that the Vinterbound sent to find Máni had been recalled to the stronghold, whoever was commanding them, saw all that had transpired and was regrouping. A minor victory against him at this point, having thwarted his plan to capture Máni and take the stronghold once and for all.

First things first, Máni had to regain strength, to recover from a lengthy stasis which would take time. She smiled down into his face as his eyes met hers with more life and sparkle in them which was very encouraging, "That was a close call", she said, "And I think you have made some friends", she smiled wider mentioning his encounter with the mammoths.

There was only one solution to their lack of transport, Théo. "I will contact my son, Théo and he will bring his ship and we will get you out of here to safety". Which she did, through her comm and it would only take Théo an hour to find them. It would be the longest hour, with the cold and constant threat that Vinterbound would attack their position but she would deal with that as the situation changed. For now, she removed her fun cloak and placed it over Máni to keep him warm and she sat waiting watching the herd of Mammoths grazing nearby,

"Well that is a sight I have never seen", she said her thoughts out loud.

​

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[member="Máni"]​

 

[Théodred Heavenshield]

It was hard dirty work on the docks of Norvegr-fen, Théo, shirtless and covered in muck, pulled on the thick ropes to help secure the load of lumber bound for the Crownlands. Wherever possible he would help his people, either through his leadership or with brute power in their when need requires it. It was getting close to knock off time when he would head home to New Himmeldal for a well earned bath and good food and ale. The best part of the day was enjoying [member="Ylva Heavenshield"]'s cooking, after all it was her turn tonight, the load of mundane house work was shared by them and he had the day off.

The sweat of the days work was wiped across his brow with a dirty hand added to the muck already there and after bidding good afternoon to the ships captain, Théo grabbed his wayward shirt and started heading back home. Winter was well and truly here, the rivers of the fens had began to freeze and snow fell on a more regular basis and sat heavy on the roofs of all the buildings. For Théo, it was a wonderful time of year, and besides it would help the fish stocks re-establish after the virus's devastation.

Around the corner of the main street leading up to the Hall, one of his guards was running toward him and a sense of urgency fell around his gait. "Lord Heavenshield, urgent message from Lady Heavenshield", he informed him on approach. Initially thinking it was Ylva, Théo's face turned from that feeling of satisfaction of doing a good hard day's work, to worry as he looked at the holomessage. It was from his mother.

He was somewhat confused as she had left them this morning to head home to Fridheim but these co-ordinates were located further north of here, what was she even doing up there? However, the message was brief calling for assistance and Théo would go to her. He pulled his shirt around his shoulders and turned back this time heading to the only place in Norvegr-fen able to house his ship, The Tarly. "Tell my wife I will be late", he called over his shoulder to the guard.

The co-ordinates were located on the tundra, a place Théo had only visited once and that was some years ago, little is known of these parts, at least by him and he suspected his father and uncle had not ventured this way before. He still wondered what had taken his mother this way, he would soon find out as the Tarly touched down in a field of ice and snow engines kicking up a white sheet of it. He grabbed his fur cloak as he left and strode out across the field among the cutting wind. He could sense his mother ahead although unable to see her, and another presence. Théo picked up his pace and ran toward her and saw the body of a young man about the same age as himself. His mother stood and hugged him most happy to see her son and quickly informed him that this Máni needed to get to safety, he would ask questions later now was not the time.

"Hey I'm Théo", he said to the young man as he kneed down by his side and was met with ice blue eyes. "Lets get you to your feet", with that Théo took hold of him and lifted Máni to his feet and threw his arm around his own shoulders. It did not take long to get the man out of trouble and into somewhere warmer, he felt like solid ice to the touch. "How did you two get all the way up here?", he asked them both as Máni was placed in one of the seats.

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[member="Máni"]​