[coronatiger]

We sat in relative silence around the campfire for more than half an hour, before a company of four riders approached. One of them was the officer we met near Bottle Dregs, who had provided two men to escort us towards Ur. He commented that we hadn’t traveled very far, but I told him we had some business in Ur. I wasn’t about to tell him what we had been up to, and it didn’t seem like he wanted to know either.

I asked if he could help us locate Lord Mir. He answered that some things should be kept secret, but revealed that Lord Mir had traveled towards Sam, but because of the workmen’s strike there, he turned north, along the river, and then his army vanished. Wolfram claimed that Lord Mir needed us, and that it was urgent. The officer replied that in that case, we shouldn’t linger here, for Lord Mir wouldn’t come this way in a long time, if ever.

I proposed that we went to Sam and hired a boat to take us upriver towards Talan. The officer doubted the wisdom of that, for he believed that the “swamp people” controlled Sam, or what was left to control, considering the strike. I knew I could get information in Sam, possibly even concerning Lord Mir’s whereabouts. Could we get our weapons back and leave? The officer asked if we wouldn’t rather stay the night in camp, but we explained that we preferred to travel through the desert while the sun wasn’t scorching us. We had already begun shifting our daily rhythm. The officer recommended staying away from the main road, and that we used torches to scare away the nocturnal threats, bats and wild dogs, mostly.

Wolfram was convinced that we would find Lord Mir if we traveled due east into Larma land. I tried pointing out that Lord Mir going north from Sam could be a diversion. After making his army disappear, he could very well have turned south. Wolfram was having none of it. Lord Mir couldn’t cross the river unnoticed, and not the road between Sam and Ur either. He had to be in the north. Grogg sent Kraa to check, unnerving the soldiers, who couldn’t locate the source of the crowing and wing-flapping.

Xipil looked at our map and noticed the mark of stone circles, straight east of here, and said he wanted to go there, but I managed to convince him there was nothing for us there; we would learn more in Sam. He went over to the scouts to get tips for desert travel.

Wolfram and I argued for a long time, before agreeing to vote. Xipil and I voted for Sam, and Wolfram for going straight east. Nujan was happy as long as we didn’t return to Ur, and Grogg postponed giving his opinion until Kraa returned. Yana remained silent as usual. Since Kraa could be gone for days, I suggested we began moving. No matter what we decided, we would have to go straight east for a bit, first. Sam lay to the south-east, but the road curved, and we didn’t want to go near where Larma patrolled.

Four scouts with horses and torches accompanied us. After a while, we could hear bats ahead, and the scouts took us around that area. Around midnight, they asked how long we planned to walk before resting. Two more hours.

When those two hours had almost passed, the scouts told us they knew a campsite nearby, which we could use. They wanted us not to talk to anyone but them while we were there, and we agreed. The people there kept their distance. Xipil found a rock and climbed it to study the stars. There were tents in the camp, but I still erected mine. Yana and I preferred to sleep apart from the men. We had a bit to eat, prepared for bed, and went to sleep.

O Ashtar! We surrender our lives to Your coils. Take us while we sleep, or grant us another day in Your service, as You will.


24th of Rama, year 412

O Ashtar, Mother of Snakes, Keeper of Death’s Door, hear my confession!

The scouts woke Wolfram early in the morning as requested, and he woke the rest of us. We had breakfast watching the sky turn brighter in the east, and Kraa returned. The spirit raven gifted Grogg with a white silk handkerchief with an embroidered “L” and “eternally loyal”. Grogg pointed eastward and declared that Kraa found the Larma army there. I asked Grogg where he wanted to go, and he asked the bloody bird, who apparently wanted us to go east. Grogg asked Nujan what he thought about it, and Nujan leaned towards going to Sam.

Grogg offered ale to everyone, and our scouts accepted. The other residents at the camp looked longingly at the brew while those of us who like ale drank – Xipil and I didn’t partake – and we continued discussing where to go. Eventually we just had to compromise, since I wasn’t able to convince Wolfram to come to Sam. I think his fear of crowds weighed too heavy on his mind. We agreed to head for the river, between Sam in the south-east and the stone circle directly east of us.

When the desert heat became uncomfortable, we made camp, had lunch, and tried to get some sleep. We woke again in the evening and continued our trek. The scouts expertly led us around the bats we heard distantly, but we saw no signs of those wild dogs. We camped again in the early morning.

O Ashtar! We surrender our lives to Your coils. Take us while we sleep, or grant us another day in Your service, as You will.


25th of Rama, year 412

O Ashtar, Mother of Snakes, Keeper of Death’s Door, hear my confession!

We woke in the afternoon and had breakfast. Wolfram went through his weapon training routine, and then we left. After a long walk, I spotted a riderless horse to the left. I pointed it out, but nobody else could see it in the dark. I offered to go check it out, but the scouts indicated that it was another Aldera scout camp, and they probably didn’t want visitors, so we continued.

Grogg eventually started slowing down, as he hadn’t slept since giving up the needle. The needle’s magical slumber makes it harder to get real sleep afterwards. It works wonders healing injuries, but the side effect can be bothersome. Grogg insisted we keep walking, so we did.

Night turned to morning, and while Grogg wanted to trudge on, the rest of us wanted to make camp and get some sleep. Wolfram offered to exhaust Grogg with weapon training, so he’d be able to sleep, and Xipil joined them. Yana and I went to bed.

O Ashtar! We surrender our lives to Your coils. Take us while we sleep, or grant us another day in Your service, as You will.