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Tempest didn’t get assigned the first shift right off the bat, which was nice, it gave her a chance to clean up best she could and rest. She was still humming with nervous energy, so sleep wasn’t entirely an option. She took the chance to watch the noul on watch before her and get an idea of what to do. It seemed it was a quiet shift for the noul. Not everyone seemed easy going down for sleep either. A couple seemed interested in Isra, Tempest fought the need to question the buck wanting to stay on Viltalta’s good side. So she casually listened in.

The first night watch shift passed and came to an end, meaning it was time for Tempest to rise and stretch. Shaking the dust from her pelt, she moved to the fringes of the group, most seemed to be asleep now. Quietly she took to pacing the outer edge of the group, it was pretty dark, so Tempest mostly used her ears first. Her shift was passing without much happening, just like the first shift. But then a sound caught her ear and she paused. Both ears were up and pivoting on her head trying to best find the sound and figure out where it came from.

Were those...voices?! Who was up? But wait….they didn’t come from the group. Tempest swung her head towards the darkest part of the night, the vast chasm. She quickly stepped closer, but the voices didn’t come from below, they came from across the chasm. From the other side! Who could it possibly be? Was is Wanderlust and his crew? Was it black horns? Or was it even a noul over there? Tempest didn’t know, she couldn’t see, only hear the voices. It was maddening not knowing the answers to the questions swirling in her mind. But she didn’t think they could cross the chasm. Which hopefully meant the group was safe from whoever was out there. E

Eventually the voices quieted and vanished. Tempest stood there a moment longer to make sure they were gone before resuming her pacing for the rest of her shift.

WC: 258
Total: 2,743

[We be hearing voices across the chasm tonight.]

Isra laughed, quiet and good-natured, in response to Moon Mist’s chasm comment. He’d certainly keep his feet better about him the next time! His laughter cut off sharply at her second question.

Isra’s head fell, ears drooped against his skull. He chewed his words before answering. “I… caused some deaths. I’d rather not talk about it.”

Ralir’s approach was welcome relief. Isra greeted him with a difficult smile. “When I hadn’t seen Wanderlust for so long, I assumed they’d taken off for the cavern I found. But… it’s been so long and I’ve been worried.”

His eyes shifted furtively. “I didn’t think it would be dangerous…”

“Operating the bridge?” Isra cocked his head, concentrating. “Oh, yes, of course. You need to pull a lever down and turn a key. The bridge won’t work without the key, but I’ve only found a handful of them.”

“I think… I’m very tired now.” Ralir stood and wandered away from the pair of them. “I think I’d like to rest for a bit.”







The party’s rest was undisturbed and well-deserved. Viltalta watched the sunrise at the end of her watch, stretching her wings to catch its rays. She heard a rustle of steps behind her and turned to see Isra raising himself from slumber. Their eyes met, Viltalta’s steely and cold, Isra’s cowed. Isra lowered his head, turned, and headed away from the party at a slow trot.

“It’s time to go!” Viltalta paraded through the throng of sleeping noulicorns. “If the maps are correct, we should be close enough to reach the caves today.”

Once more Draven rose as the sun was starting to rise. He glanced over to the shelter he had set up, noting the bodies that might have been beneath. Shaking his head, he stretched and rose, giving himself a good shake off before stepping over towards the shelter he would have to bundle up.

"Rise and shine, time to get up and get a move on." he Echoed in Viltalta's voice as he took hold of the top bar of the shelter and tossed it backwards.

Exposing those that rested under the canvas, Draven pulled up one pole and tossed it to where the canvas now lay before taking up the other. Once that was done, he and Bluebell set about packing up the shelter as they ad the day before. It wasn't long before everything had returned to its place. Having a light breakfast of the food that was in his basket, he was ready to set out once again. It was just a matter of the others getting up and ready to move on.

[[ Banked rolls unused +1 ]]

Viltalta was preparing herself to head out when Aldwyn approached her. His question, his concern, was reasonable, and Viltalta stared out across the desert at the dwindling figure of Isra. She kept her voice low as she spoke.

“We don’t want him with our party, he can’t be trusted.” There were parts of Isra’s crimes she tried hard to keep from ears that didn’t belong to the council, but there were some things she could reveal. “Before his exile, he led several expeditions, but those that travelled with him rarey returned to Homewood. I will not risk this party just because Isra might serve as an able navigator.”

She wasn’t certain that he wouldn’t follow, regardless. Maybe with more noulicorns at his back. The sooner they reached Wanderlust, the better.

“I appreciate your concerns, Aldwyn.” She offered him a polite nod, then made her way to the head of the party.

They followed the meandering ravine further south with the sun beating their backs. Diminutive carrion birds cawed occasionally, circling overhead. Meals must be few and far between so deep into the barrens.

Soon, the gorge cut west across their path. Viltalta could have flown the distance across it, but she didn’t dare lose her party to do so, so she led them onward. Off course for stretches until she saw what they needed.

A bridge. The sight rankled her, made her feathers fluff indignantly. The contraption was a tall, metal beast, clearly built by the Others, and currently raised skyward like a tower. Viltalta approached with caution.

Next to the bridge stood a small metal box, covered with buttons and levers.

“We need to do something with this to activate the bridge,” said Viltalta, turning back to the party.

The heat beat down as unrelenting as it was ever was. Bluebell took to hopping on the ground this time, she needed to stretch her legs anyways as she was always riding on Draven's back. She couldn't allow herself become a burden and... Lose her figure because of not exercising. The trudge was a daunting one as they followed the ravine. When they came to what was the bridge, seems they had to make it work... Some how.

Draven took his own turn looking at the box that they were needing to make the bridge work. Seems that there was a slot for the key that he and Bluebell had found. Glancing down at the Jack Hop, "Looks like we need that key we found at the skeleton."

Bluebell gave a nod before vaulting to his back and rifling through the basket until she had found the key. Thankfully the small bit of string she had tied to it made it simple. "Here it is, let me know when you need it." She said nodding, keeping the key under a paw on his back.

[[ Banked rolls unused +1 ]]

Tsarine awoke the next day wondering what he had missed dozing off like usual. He honestly was thinking that adventuring was tedious and his system wasn't cut out for such things. Shaking his head he snorted, "No I can do this for myself and everyone. We will find Wanderlust...".

"Talking to yourself Tsarine?" his companion chuckled stretching herself out on his back soaking in the sun. She yawned lazily then continued, "Pippen is taken care of so worry yourself on this quest. No worries, right Big Boy?"

Tsarine stretched while the routine ensued of Ayala tightening the supplies successfully finished. Pippen was sleeping soundly with no qualms as usual. Whatt a peculiar little beast he was to not notice anything. As he headed out after the others his ears swiveled listening for any sounds of chaos.

Then they reached the bridge which instantly reminded him of the ruins. This was a bit more confusing but he witnessed boxes that could of had lights or needed things like Draven's keys. Tilting his head he inspected the bridge flicking an ear, "This reminds me of things in the ruins where I grew up. I'm guessing that note that torn piece of paper will give us a clue how everything goes in order?"

In truth he had no idea on how this worked but he was open to helping where he could, One thing way back in the ruins worked with one of those keys. If he could only remember what it did when he was a fawn.


Banked +1 roll. not used.

Isra answered, and Ralir nodded, thanked him, and turned away, happy to get some sleep. He arranged himself under his cloth with the little rat pup tucked under his chin. He didn't know how to care for a rat pup, though it had drunk of his supplies, so it must have been weaned enough for that.

What was he supposed to do with a dire rat?

Back home, where he had nothing but time, Ralir would have thought and worried on it for a while. Tonight, he was too exhausted to think much, and again it seemed cruel to hurt something so obviously vulnerable.

When Viltalta roused him, Isra had already begun heading away. Ralir stretched with care for the journey ahead and bundled the little rat - it had made a few miniscule squeaking sounds, barely distinguishable - in a now-empty pack. This was more secure than tying it to him, anyway, and likely more comfortable. He wrapped his cloth around himself again and turned to travel in the middle of the party again.

He made no move to socialize as they traveled, knowing he'd prefer to save his energy for obstacles they might encounter up ahead. Even Aldwyn's question of the motive for Isra's exile - well, of course it interested Ralir, but it didn't seem right to ask. Viltalta was a powerful, influential noul, and while she listened to the party's opinions, clearly she had the final say on this journey.

The sound of birds above them, unfamiliar and lonely, made it very obvious that Ralir was far from home. This...had his own mother gone this way, once? Where had she headed? What clues had she followed?

It had all been too long ago, and he didn't think Father would tell him. He moved with the pack, thinking about his own troubles rather than where they were going. They were a large enough group: they'd get around just fine.

The stop was noticeable, though, mainly because the bridge was so clearly alien. Ralir's nostrils flared as they approached - an instinctive move to get a sense of what sort of life might possibly be associated with this thing. He couldn't tell.

He moved forward as much as the other bodies near them would allow, heading right for the box with all its buttons. If this was the bridge, then the paper Adahy had discovered might come in useful - and there he was, bringing it forth. Good. Only the first step was something about inserting power, the second was the red button - right there - and Isra had said something about...pulling a lever.

There were three levers, and Ralir wasn't sure what power might be. He looked to the grey doe who'd mentioned his name, nodding at her a little nervously. "He may have underspecified, though," Ralir said with some worry. With any luck, none of the levers did something like break the bridge. "Only - that note does say to begin with inserting power..." He paused, trying to get the information in order for everyone else's benefit, in case someone else had an insight. "Ah - I remembered the note asked for four steps, in order. Isra told me the last two are pulling a lever, and then inserting a key - only, he didn't say which lever." He tilted his head. He was beginning to get the sense that Isra was not exactly given to caution, given that he'd practically goaded Wanderlust into this trip, and that he'd described this bridge operation so casually.

The slot for the key seemed quite obvious, but if power was different from a key, then where might it go? The only obvious place was the open panel Ysalone was investigating, considering all the other features had been covered. Ralir stepped forward to examine it from a different angle than she was looking from. "Does this...resemble the object you found at the skeleton, at all?" Ralir asked, remembering Viltalta had asked her to bring it along, in case it later proved useful. Could it be power? Ralir didn't really understand how Other technology worked.

He figured Ysalone might be better equipped to glean information about that contraption, though, and proceeded to instead investigate the levers. Surely there must be some indication that one of them was more oft-used, right? Or perhaps that it'd been disturbed recently, by someone who knew how operate this bridge? What positions were each of the levers currently in? Perhaps one of them had been pushed down to move the bridge into its current position, which meant that a different one needed to be pushed in order to make it functional?

Viltalta pondered the strange box in front of her. From the conversations around her, she gathered there were four steps that needed to be followed.

“Insert power…” she turned to Ysalone. “That thing you found at the skeleton? From the others, does it resemble this black contraption?”

Viltalta dipped a hoof into the open panel and kicked at it until it fell loose and tumbled to the sand. The object was black and oblong, with metal prongs and yellow dashes. Almost exactly like the thing Ysalone found.

“We should start there.” She turned to Ralir. “A red button and then a lever… that’s excellent information. Thank-you.”

And lastly, to Draven. “I believe we’ll need your key last, if Isra’s instructions are correct.”

Or to be trusted.

“Which lever should we attempt?”