Eldor, you hear a brustling noise from the woods to your back.  With your elfin ears and years of experience you can tell it is still at least a hundred yards away but coming gradually in your direction.  It appears to be something big.

Brejgun was growing weary. The day had been long and hard, and he longed to get out of the cold and into a warm place once again. He still saw no sign of pursuit, but he still remained uneasy. The reality of the events of the last days were all to clear now, the vulnerability of solitude and disconnectedness.

Also, he was beginnig to feel that all was not right with these woods, that the trees acted funny, but that still took a back seat to the more pressing concerns about finding somewhere he could hole up.

And was that suddenly becoming a possibility? The woods seemed to open up into a clearing where stood a hut - could he be that lucky? Finally some favour from the gods?

Eldor quietly put down his axe and picked up his bow. Moving into the shadows of the trees just behind his position he notched an arrow and waited the arrival of his mysterious guest.

[ooc: please give me a 2d10 roll each of you]

( OOC:07:45, Today: Eldor Leaf-fall rolled 5 using 2d10. 2d 10 dice roll.)

[OOC: Brejgun Kregnason rolled 8 using 2d10.]
This message was last edited by the player at 10:42, Wed 01 Apr 2009.

[Private to Eldor Leaf-fall: You catch sight of a big human, rather bedraggled, pushing his way through the woods to the clearing.  He does not see you.   He hits the clearing a few yards from your position and you manage to line your bow up nicely with his neck.]

Brejgun bursts into the clearing, looking about himself warily.   The gloaming light shines in his eyes a little as the sun has sunk to kiss the treetops.

[Private to GM: Eldor will keep his bow aimed at the new arrival and watch to see what he will do. If he move off in the direction of the old woman's hut he will then step out and confront the stranger.]

(OOC: in answer to GM2's message)

Not seeing anyone about outside, Brejgun decides to appraoach the hut to see who resides there.

[Private to Eldor Leaf-fall: Eldor please post your actions now]

As you step towards the hut you begin to hear voices in the distance.   They appear to be coming from some way beyond the hut, which blocks your view.

" Stop where you are kind sir and do not turn round." Eldor said as he stepped out of the shadows of the trees behind the new comer.

"If you do not wish to have an arrow between your shoulders I suggest you state your business quickly and be gone. My mother hates visitors that turn up unannounced." Eldor moves a little further out into the clearing to get a better line on the stranger.

" And please keep your hands where they can easily be seen. I'm very good with my bow and I don't tend to miss." he added in a calm and matter of fact voice.

OOC: What language is being spoken?

OOC: the one that you will understand human :o)

[ooc: you were all brought up in some corner of Thuland so you all speak Visic pretty fluently.   The bowman's southern accent may sound strange to Brejgun's ears but added to the physical gestures I think he would get the message!]

Brejgun is just about to veer to get a look at the people he can hear when the voice comes from behind. He freezes just an instant, then slowly brings up his hands to hold them chest high and a bit out to each side.

"Easy there, friend.", he says as he slowly turns. "Your mother need not be conc ...".

Brejgun stops talking as he lays eyes on the person behind him.

An Elf! What Devilry is this!?

The thought flashes through Brejgun's mind and his eyes dart worriedly about the trees in front of him.

Out of the frying pan and into the fire! Just my luck of late!

Brejgun takes a slow step back ...

Eldor notices the look, he's seen it hundreds of times before, humans they're all the same.

" Firstly I'm not your friend as I don't know you, secondly you are on my mother's land thus you wish to speak with her."

He levels his bow with the man's chest " and thirdly you are creeping round like a murderer not a visitor. State your intent or I add you to the fertilizer I intend to spread on our vegetable patch later today."

"Had I known that this cottage contained uncouth elfkind, I might have been "creeping" as you elegantly put it. But now I know the lay of the land, I shall remove myself, so as to not be the aim point of an arrows tip ... friend!", Brejgun says, a bit of hotness creeping into his voice. He still takes another step back, though.

Almost as he said it he felt the disheartning sting of the prospect of further blundering around outside, mouth dry and stomach rumbling. Not a welcome perspective for one used to the hearth of the long-house!
This message was last edited by the player at 15:28, Fri 03 Apr 2009.

Eldor noticed the man licking his lips after he spoke. He'd been in the woods for a long time by the look of it.

His attitude towards elves was what Eldor had come to expect but he decided to keep the man in front of him guessing his intentions.

" I see you are thirsty, must be hard work for a human to wonder these woods with out the skill and knowledge of an elf."

He swung his bos slightly to the left where his bag was laying on the ground.

"In there is a canteen of water from a near by spring, fress and still cold and you will find some bread too. In the leaf pack is waxed honey break it open if you like."

And with that he lowered his bow but kept it ready in case the man tried anything.

Brejgun looks at the elf as he speaks and lowers the bow some. Well, maybe this wasn't quite like the last encounter. Still, to trust an elf outright is a stretch, and one who's been pointing a bow at you something else again. But the prospect of food and water is compelling, and Brejgun finds hs mind making allowances for conduct not entirely safe.

He steps around to the pack and looks inside. He takes the canteen and uncorks it, trying to discreetly sniff it before he drinks deeply. Then he breaks off some bread, saluting his ... adversary?

"Well, I thank you for this, and apologize if my words before were hasty. I must confess to being rattled by recent events, and too many sharp and pointed things have been around of late."

He stands. "Brejgun. Brejgun Kregnason, of the hird of the late Lord Thorkell ... which is to say of no particular hird these days ...", he finishes with an expression that can only be construed as sad.

Watching the man eat Eldor started to believe him to be just what he looked like, a human in need of help lost in the forest.

He lowered his bow and leaned it against the tree. His two long daggers still easy to unsheath across his back if the man turned out to main the old woman harm.

" Well met then Brejgun, I am Eldor Leaf-fall of no lord apart from myself and this is my glade that I share with my mother who lives in the hut yonder."

He seated himself on a tree stump "you are welcome to stay awhile if that suits you and then I will guide you to one of your well traveled human roads that cut throught the forest if that is what you would wish."

With that he picked up a second canteen that was sitting behind the stump in the shade and took a long sip.

Brejgun chewed and sipped for a while, casting a glance at the elf once in a while.

"So.", he said after a silence: "You live here with your mother?", he asked with a wry smile, not sure if the human quib would register with an Elf.

"Yes the human you may know as the Olga the old woman of the woods, she is my mother..." He fell silent for a moment "the only mother I know anyway. She took me in on the request of my father after my mother died giving birth to me."

He stood and started to but his things away then pick up the wood he'd spent the last hour cutting. "In return for all she has done for me I protect her as best I can."

Olga the old ... ?

PFRRRTSH!

Out comes bread and water, followed by violent coughing.

"Olga ... HARK ... the Witch ... HRRRROUGH ... is your ... GASP ... MOTHER!!!?!?!"

Brejgun sinks his head into his hands, shaking it.

"What I have done to draw the Wrath of Loki I do not know, but this day is just becoming too much to bear!"

He looks up again, at no one in particular and comes to his knees. "I give up! World, do with me what you will, just do not torment me this way any longer. From vampires to false Barons to brigands, forest spirits, elves and now - witches! Wotan, I beseech thee! Have mercy on your poor servant and curb the Trickster that his power over me may pass!"

Brejgun hangs his head for a few moments, staring at the ground. Then he starts to laugh.

"I'm glad you have a sense of humor that is good if you are to meet my mother...she so does like a laugh" Eldor said with a slight smile playing across his lips.

Grabbing one of the tide up piles of wood he thrust it into Brejgun's arms as he passed by. "Well come on human I understand you hate vampires well you never know what lurks in these woods after dark."

And he moves off towards the hut. "at least in there you will have a warm meal in your stomach and a soft mat to lay your head on while they sip your blood." this time it was Eldor's turn to laugh a rich sound like a running river on a summer day.

Brejgun noticed somethnig strange as he walked behind the elf, as he passed over the ground the grass sprang back up straight leaving no trail that could be followed.

Brejgun has no will left to resist any of the strange happening that pile upon him this day. He holds on to the firewood and follows the elven son of a human witch. Had anyone heard a hint of madness in that laugh, it probly wasn't entirely wrong. Still, it would take a bit more to decisively rattle a huscarl from Lord Thorkells band ... wouldn't it?

He trots along beind the elf.

[Private to Eldor Leaf-fall: Will you take Brejgun to where Olga is confabbing with the others? Or just to the hut.  I need to know so I can put people in the right groups]

Eldor leads Brejgun up to the hut.  Close up you see that it is pretty small, but in good repair.   A thin spiral of smoke comes from a chimney of green wood that pokes out one side.

[Private to GM: to the hut]

Eldor takes Brejgun to the back door of the hut and enters. From inside he turns " Just drop the wood inside the door on the left I'll deal with it later."

Looking round he grabs the fire iron and stokes the embers still burning in the grate.

"Sit yourself down I will put on a herb tea for you to help get your strength back." While he talks he looks out the window towards the front.

He has no real worry about his mother, she was a talented lady and could take care of herself but he kept one ear pealed for any sign of trouble while he tended to his guest.

"Mother should be back soo nand then I will heat the soup. but why not tell me your tale. A man in the woods, alone and in need of food and water must have a story to tell."

Brejgun shrugged his pack and the big sword, leaning it against the wall. Then he sat down. He'd never been in a witches hut before, and for all his triedness, he still looked around, taking the place in before answering.

OOC: What's the place like inside?

The hut is now rather dark inside.  Brejgun sits precariously on a small stool offered by the elf, who watches his every move intently.

The hut appears to have other rooms, reach by curtains made of wooden beads.  In fact there seem to be a surprising number of doorways given how small the hut seems to be.

Eldor taps his foot and Brejgun remembers that he had asked to hear his story.

"Hmmm ... yes, he has. Where to begin ... Are you familiar with the tales of the late Lord Thorkell?", Brejgun says.

Eldor looked up from the fire " Sadly having spent all my life here in the woods  know little of the workings of the outside world"

With that he went back to stoking the fire and waited silently for his guest to enlighten him.

"Allright. Lord Thorkell was my liege and I as such on of his hird-men - a soldier, if you like.

Some time ago, Lord Thorkell got caught up in a nasty business involving a Vampire witch of sorts ... the long story short is that he ended up dead. I was one of those who stayed on the fief - and I count myself lucky about that! - so we had to do some waiting around to see what would happen. Nothing did for a while, but then some day some stranger fellow shows up with letters from the king and takes over. We were all a bit surprised. We had expected the clan council to convene, or for the matter to be taken up at Thing - and at the very least that it would be some relative of Thorkells who would take over - but that did not happen. Brewed a lot of discontent and strife between us old hands and the new bunch. Things just wasn't right anymore. I might still be a man of the Lord in name, but no longer in practice. So in the end I just took the consequense of the state of things and left - wasn't much support in it for me anymore anyways.

So I have been wandering, doing odd jobs and such. It has been a whole new world, and not a pleasant one at that. A good example is the brigands I ran into last night - that was what caused me to flee this way, through the woods. There's little safety in the world for lone men travelling.", Brejgun pauses with a sigh.

Eldor looked at Brejgun as he talked and knew he spoke the truth.

"It is a sad tale indeed my friend. Rest yourself here awhile brigands will not come into this area they know better than to mess with mother." and as an after thought "Or me" he said.

He poured a dark looking liquid out of a pan into two earthenware mugs. "Here drink this it will refresh you at least and give you a good night's sleep."

He added quickly and with a smile "Do not fear it is no drug to make you sleep it is a asimple herb infusion to rest your nerves. Now in your wonderings through the woods were you hurt in anyway I can tend to any cuts you may have to stop them going bad."

Brejgun was beginning to sense - or at least he really wanted to believe it! - that sitting in the hut of a witch being served herbal brew by an elf was not a dangerous thing ... well, not dangerous enough not to do it, anyway.

He was beginning to feel more comfortable and the warmth of both hut and tea was clearing his head a bit. He thought about his trek through the woods.

"No, I was not hurt, fortunately - I am just tired ..."

Brejgun sits in thought for a coupe of moments.

"It was a bit strange, though, that trip trough the forest. I almost had the feeling at times that the woods wer closing up behind me, maybe trying to trap me or something. I tried to put it off as my tired head beginnig to paly tricks on me, but ending up here has made me wonder ..."

While Brejgun is talking, an old lady appears inside the door of the hut, from one moment to the next.  She does not say anything and in fact does not appear to move much either.

[Private to Eldor Leaf-fall: This is one of your adopted mother's tricks.  She has cast an illusion of herself as a quick way to summon you to her presence.  She must be wanting you outside.]

Eldor's face suddenly becomes serious withthe appearance of his mother. dropping his mug on the table he reaches for his bow and has an arrow notched and heading for the door.

"If you wish to repay my kindness of food and water now would be the time. I could use a strong arm in case my mother needs assistance."

Not waiting to see if Brejgun is following Eldor sweaps out of the hut and across the clearing, bow up eyes darting from side to side as he move quietly but quickly over all to familiar ground. Drawn towards his mothers side.

What the????!! Will this day never end!!?!

Brejgun curses under his breath, gets up and draws out his sword. He takes a long look at the woman in the doorway as he comes up to her, worry on his face, then moves out after the elf.

As Brejgun brushes past the woman she disappears completely.  Leaving the doorway, Brejgun is just in time to see Eldor go round the side of the hut and head for the main part of the clearing.

Brejgun jumps as the woman dissappears. He tries to collect himslef and keep up with the Elf.

Eldor rounded the corner bow at the ready scanning every tree, bush and shadow. He sensed Brejgun behind him so felt a little more confident that he'd not be crept upon from behind.

He knew his mother wouldn't have called him thus if she did not need his assistance so he sped on into the clearing and towards the woman that had raised him as her own.

Eldor stalks towards the main part of the clearing and his elf-eyes quickly make out his mother standing around the large outdoor fireplace with a group of people.  The people sit down around the fire one after the other - none of them make any threatening movements.  Only one, a large figure, stands off to the side, looking down at the ground.

Suddenly Olga points a finger at the wood laid on the bonfire and a stream of bright flame shoots out, igniting the pile, which catches rapidly.  At that moment Brejgun who is now slightly behind and to the left of Eldor, is also able to make out the people, silhouetted against the fire.

She cackles and raises her voice to address Eldor, without turning her head.  "There you are, my dear.  With these old bones I found it tiring to come and call you.  Please come and join us - your new acquaintance too.

[ooc: you two please continue posting here: link to a message in this game]