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Grimes - Fighter

Grimes, seeing his Siren friend shivering quickly rifles through his pack and retrieves his blanket, offering it to her. "Well, what do you think, start walking toward that light, or camp for the night and head out bright and early? I don't have a problem hiking a bit now if need be." Grimes glances about and his mind wanders, thinking of a warm fire and he says "Then again, a fire and some rest is nice too."

OOC: Whatever. Walk or sleep. Either is fine.

Castinus looks toward the light in the distance, then slumps his shoulders despite the cold. "I ain't walking 20 miles in the dark," he grumbles. Let's just get out of here, and then get some sleep.

OC: Give the guy a break! He's old now, remember?

Dieter - Mage

Slapping Castinus on the back as they start to walk away from the tomb: Sorry about Shae, she will be missed. At least you are a good looking old man.

The party trudges in the dark towards the light in the distance. The crunching of boots on frozen reeds and grasses is often the only sound you hear. You are obviously walking on a fen, now that the mound that held the Tomb of Horrors is behind you, although even the muddy, brackish water is frozen solid.

After nearly an hour of hiking, you are on "dry" land. The hoarfrost covers everything but you are able to get a fire started. It is so cold that even the heat of the fire seems to be sucked away by the air.

Aquaire tells you of her lands on the sea. Of mermen and dolphins. Of sandy beaches and the heat of the sun. The tales warm you a bit, as do the descriptions of lands you've never dreamed of.

Watch is set and kept, and you sleep fitfully through the night. Tending the fire is more danger than the threat of invaders: like Shae's killer, the cold is relentless. Castinus wakes with tears frozen on his eyes and in his white beard and hair.

Hours pass but dawn never seems to come. The moon sets but the sun does not rise. The cold feels even worse.

With the setting of the moon, the lights in the distance dim tho do not extinguish.

Actions?

Hit points and marching order
Grimes 46/46
--Furuk 59/59
Dieter 19/31 < remove curse, lightning bolt, continual light, auditory illusion, magic missile x2, floating disc >
--Dandy 33/33 < CLW x6, Hold Person, Find Traps, Remove Curse, Dispel Magic, Exorcise >
Castinus 34/34

Grimes - Fighter

Grimes drifts off to sleep, dreaming of swimming around with pretty sirens and mermaids and all the beauty of the ocean.

He awakens to the cold and dark and grumbles. "Will all this madness never end? Uprooted cities, pyramids in the nether regions, demons who pluck eyeballs, and stupid lich tombs? Now darkness and cold. I'm about through with this."

Grimes spends a few minutes praying to Poseidon, thanking him for letting him live through the tomb, and asking for guidance to get Acquaire home, and find out what's causing this cold and darkness. Once the party is ready to move, he trudges along with them, asking Acquaire if she has some innate knowledge of where we are at the moment, or where her people are.

Dieter - Mage

Maybe we can go home... Dieter pulls out the Realm Shard while sitting by the fire. He'll do his best to raise one of the entities that sent them here and give them a report.

Castinus watches Dieter work his magic. "As soon as we reach the village," he sighs, "it's off to my new castle. And I won't be leaving it any time soon, I can tell you that."

Dandy will provide warmth, food and water as needed for the group.

Dieter tries to activate the realm shard. A smoke writhes from the sliver of crystal but then blows away in the icy breeze. Something has broken the connection or worse...

The party trudges through the crunching hoarfrost towards the glow in the distance. Aquaire is happy to be freed and, although she misses home, is enjoying traveling with you all. She tries to cheer up Grimes when he gets dour and is sad for Castinus when she notices his grief.

Dandy takes a protector role, providing nourishment and warmth for the group as he can.

When you stop for lunch, Aquaire points out that she can see that the town glow is increasing. She swears she can see the outlines of buildings, but even Furuk's keen eyes cannot make them out.

Meteors streak the sky and the stars blaze in the clearness as you continue on. Although there is frost everywhere and many plants are frozen dead, the snow has stopped completely and little coats the ground.

Within an hour the party can now see what Aquaire saw: the outlines of buildings and wall of the city. Hours later, you pass a few farm houses: crops frozen and the earth hard. Herd animals close together for warmth, their breath clear to your starlight adjusted eyes. The farm buildings are closed tightly and only some smoke can be seen, as if every window is covered to preserve as much heat as possible within.

A few hours later, your toes no longer discernible in your boots, for your feet feel like solid frozen stone, you come to the town. There is a wall and gate, but no guard. The gates are open and a frosty, rutted road leads in.

You see few people about, bundled and hurriedly moving towards their destinations. There are many buildings about, including one with lights and music and a sign with what looks to be a knife crossed with a stick.

Actions?

Hit points and marching order
Grimes 46/46
--Furuk 59/59
Dieter 19/31 < remove curse, lightning bolt, continual light, auditory illusion, magic missile x2, floating disc >
--Dandy 33/33 < CLW x6, Hold Person, Find Traps, Remove Curse, Dispel Magic, Exorcise >
Castinus 34/34