It's Written in the STARS pt6

Not being follwoed can't hurt, given the threat the Kobolds represent, and you're finally beginning to reach the mountain in question that you know the girl is going to.

In the distance, you hear whickering. A horse! Could you have finally come upon her?!

...well, you found her horse, anyway, and her tracks heading up into mot reacherous, less horsefrinedly grounds. She left her horse tied to a stump and with plenty of food and a nearby puddle to drink from.

She's at least a little thoughtful.

Burai looks at the girl's horse. His gaze follows along the line to where it's tied off to the stump. And then back to the horse. Next he turns his head slowly and examines each of the party's horses. "I don't advise us to do the same with our horses," he remarks. "Better to leave them untied...we should be able to find them again. If we return this way," he adds. Because you never can be certain.

Sabina sighs. "Is there a way to figure out how long it's been tied here? I'd like to know how far we are behind if possible. It seems to me fate and luck have been giving this girl.. woman.. a hand. If we're going to catch up we need to figure out a new stratgey unless she's just a few hours ahead."

"Look for the poop," Lysos suggests, guiding her horse around and dismounting, draping the reins over the stump but not tying them.

GAME: Lysos rolls survival+2: (9)+1+2: 12

GAME: Burai rolls survival: (7)+11: 18

GAME: Sabina rolls survival: (4)+3: 7

"I could change into an eagle and fly after her," Burai offers. As if only now recalling that he could do that. After all, he just recently discovered he can hurl proper fireballs...and it's still got that 'new spell feeling' for him. "If I see her, I can return and report what I find to the rest of you." He thinks about it a bit longer and then adds. "So long as there are no wyverns, or rocs, or other flying monsters around."

Lysos looks at the poop... and promptly decides she has absolutely not idea how much poop this particular breed might eject over any period of time, then shrugs. She starts picking a few things out of her saddlebags to stuff into her pack. She grins at Sabina while she does so. "Well, we have the perfect person along to try and negate her luck, don't you think?" Then she snaps her head at Burai. "You can do that? That's amazing!"

"You're able to see far distances with your eyes as an eagle? Perhaps you can stay with us but above us? Range out so far and scout for us then?" Sabina asks and then gives Lysos a grin. "Once we catch up to her we have have you go hug her." She jests at the other woman.

Some searching reveals a bit of poop, so you've definitely closed in on her. There's not enough for the horse to have been here all that long, with all that was left for it to eat.

She's not in sight, but she will be soon. She has to be, assuming nothing has happened to her. But it looks like yuou're heading up the mountain.

Burai climbs down off of his horse. Over the hours that stretched to days of travel...they've come to something of an understanding. And so Burai doesn't tie it to the stump. But he does give it a stern, knowing look. 'Don't make me regret this' it seems to say. Then he turns and scans the skies for wyverns. He adjusts a green band he wears over his chest, like a sash. He takes a deep breath and relaxes his arms at his sides. Then a thought occurs to him. "I won't be able to talk, as an eagle," he warns. "Perhaps we can work out signal. One shriek for yes, two shrieks for no. Three shrieks means 'danger'."

GAME: Edinaz rolls athletics: (4)+6: 10

Lysos laughs... seeming, at least on the outside, to have gotten over her bad string of luck this trip. Though her clothes still maintain evidence of the mud and the stink, despite the magical cleaning attempts, and her hair is not what one might wear to a dance. "Just hug her. That's my job," she agrees with Sabina. Then she looks over at Burai. "Sounds perfect! As long as there aren't any other eagles shrieking around, right?"

Edinaz looks up, up, and up. He closes his eyes, then starts trying to find foot and hand holds. He whispers, "witness," under his breath.

Bina /does not/ want to climb this stupid mountian after a young woman who thinks she's going to marry a dragon. And at this point Bina believes that said marraige may actually happen with all the crazed happenings on this trip. Sighing she follows along with the others and tries her best not to fall and die.

GAME: Sabina rolls athletics: (8)+0: 8

GAME: Lysos rolls athletics: (14)+0: 14

Lysos's laughing good cheer promptely fades when she realizes that those who cannot turn into an eagle are going to actually have to climb. "Uh... no?" she asks, but people start climbing anyways. She wastes a few seconds watching Sabina and Edinaz... then sighs. "This is really not going to end well," she promises, then after taking a few more moments to make sure her pack is secure, she starts to follow.

True to his word, Burai transforms into a slighly oversized eagle and flies above the party as they climb. He moves rather slowly but of course he doesn't have to struggle with the climb. Every so often he emits a single shriek. Yes? Is he saying yes? Perhaps to encourage them?

GAME: Burai rolls perception: (17)+11: 28

This part of the climb is easy enoiugh, and you're starting to see more signs of the girl's passage. A candy wrapper, for example, from hard candies. A small fire from where she cooked her lunch that's only recently burned oiut. A ledge she treacherously managed to climb. Who knew the girl could be this competent in the mountain when she can barely ride a horse?

Then again, it could be that she's just blithely unawar3e of the danger, as it's seemed the entire time. Confidence in destiyn can do a lot, can't it? Just ask Lysos.

Burai has found no sign of her *yet*, but you've only just begun and he is staying closer. No sign of danger.

Yet.

But it is getting a little chillier in the mountains, even in the summer.

"Of course ..it's getting colder..we're going up. Just never thought that ..we'd actualyl get to the ..damn mountian." Sabina pants as she climbs up after the girl. "I'm a plains kinda gal!" She shouts at the top of her lungs and then sighs, trudging onward.

Burai emits a single shriek at Sabina's words. He does what he can to help the party. Landing on ledges that look broad enough to make good holds. Pointing out when he finds any signs of the girl's passing. He no longer emits shrieks of encouragement, if that's what he was actually doing earlier. Perhaps now he's starting to feel guilty.

GAME: Sabina rolls athletics: (19)+0: 19

GAME: Edinaz rolls athletics: (12)+6: 18

"Tell me about it," Lysos agrees with the other Tsuran with not quite chattering teeth. One hand is doing its best to hold her ragged cloak about her while the other keeps working at handholds to try and keep from sliding back down the mountain.

GAME: Lysos rolls athletics: (3)+0: 3

Edinaz keeps climbing, slowly figuring out how to climb-and-not-die. He slowly goes faster, not listening to people talking as he keeps going upwards. Don't look down (down down).

It's like *every* possibly rock finds itsself in the way for Lysos to trip over.

Every.

Possible.

Rock. Every time she has to climb a slope, the slope gives way.

Every time she needs secure footing, the ground gives way.

In the end, you're having to spend a lot of time making sure the poor girl doesn't fall down a slope (again) and mangle something.

Fucking slopes how do they work.

Finally, Burai locates what seems to be a cave. A cave with a little light eminating from it. Coiuld this be where your target is camped out? It's hard to see without getting too close and probaly startling her, and it might even be dangerous! Thus, it is waited for everyon to FINALLY reach the cave.

Where now you can all hear someone singing.

Singing quite cheerfully, actually, about dragons and their capacity to drink ale.

Burai changes back into his half-oruch form as the others reach the cave. He's still a novice when it comes to flying, and more importatntly, it's clear that this is no time for shrieks. He pauses with his head tilted to one side as he listens to the singing.

When Sabina gets close enough to the singing to understand it she sighs. Moving the last few feet towards some safer ground she composes herself and then, damn it all, she starts singing the song too as she takes those last few steps towards the cave enterence.

Edinaz gets to a place where he can think about horizontal-ish movement and takes a moment. Then... singing? He closes his eyes, and murmurs, "I do not think this is my area of expertise." He turns, and busies himself with hauling Lysos up by the rope. This? This he can do. Grunt grunt.

Lysos is scraped. Lysos is a bit banged up. Lysos is also embarassed. Yet when she finally gets hauled up to the cave's entrance by Edinaz and the rope, she claps her hands together and announces, "Made it!" Is her smile a little bit forced? Maybe. Is her eye twiching a little? Maybe. Is she considering tossing a certain young woman back down the hill? Maybe! But the smile is there. She's trying.

The voice of song raises a ruckus from inside. A clatter.

A girl comes rushing outside, then she looks disappointed. Immediately.

"...who are you?! What are ytou doing out here?! Don't you know it's COLD? Gosh! Come over by my fire."

This is the girl. The one you've been sent to rescue and she seems perfectly okay.

She's not even bruised.

"Vala! There you are!" Lysos pushes past everyone, her arms spreading so she might enfold the girl in a big hug. Looks like she's taking Sabina's joke of a suggestion seriously... maybe some part of this twisted journey actually has her believing she might be some sort of counterpart to Vala at this point. "Thank you so much! We have had the grandest adventure, all thanks to you!"

Sabina smiles, laughs even, as the girl arrives and berates them. "Hello Vala, blessed of Tarien." She says in greeting. Then some blinking behind her coyote maske and a wry grin. "She's right. We've had a strange time following after you. Thank you for inviting us in and to your fire."

Edinaz casually steps between Lysos and the edge of the cliff, juuust in case that hug turns into a hurl. Better safe than sorry. "Hello, Vala. Thank you for the fire."

Burai eyes the fire with interest. Then he nods approvingly at the girl. "Well lit," he compliments her. "What was that song we heard earlier? Was that your singing? Something about..." he tries his best to mimic the lyrics he heard, about dragons drinking ale. It sounds horrible.

"B-because of me?" says Vala, confused, to Lysos as she's hugged. She pats her on the back. Vala is a slender, willowy girl who doesn't look out of her teenage years at all.

"Why were you following me?" She asks, confused. "Waaaait. Did my DAD send you?!"

Sabina sighs again and nods. "Yes, we've been chasing after you. Yes, your father was more then a little worried and sent us after you. But i didn't know how blessed you've been by Tarien or I might have told him not to worry. Still, we've been asked to bring you back."

"Gosh! An adventure? Following me? But it was so peaceful all the way here!"

Vala stares at the lot of you with abject confusion.

Edinaz levels his gaze at Vala. "You left chaos in your wake."

Burai returns the stare evenly. For a moment. Then he blurts, "Peaceful! It was peaceful? Did you not encounter the kobold sappers? The dire wolves? The shocking lizards?!" He rubs the bridge of his nose. Then he shakes his head. He takes a deep breath. "And all of that pales to the danger you may face if you actually encounter a dragon."

Lysos lets the girl go, then starts patting at her skirts and shirt, knocking the most recent dirt and hill dust off. Most. "Don't forget the rain! And the mud. And the holes. And the ogre," Lysos reminds.

"...what?" says Vala, confused.

"You can't be serious. There was absolutely nothing like that! This is some kind of joke, right? PLEASE. Kobolds?! An ogre?! I would've just gone home if I'd seen anything like TGHAT." She laughs. Vala laughs, because that sounds so ridiculous. "And a DRAGON? Well, of COURSE I'm gonna meet a dragon. I see him all the time in my dreams. He's very romantic."

Bina nods to the list of things and then calmly listens to Vala rant. "And to us that seems laughable. That you might meet a dragon from your dreams. Having met a baby dragon I'd say that you're way out of your depth if it's true. And if it's something else sending you dreams then you're in trouble and danger at the same time." She says with continued calm and reasonable tone.

Lysos sits rather unceremoniously at the fire, holding her hands out over it to warm them up a little bit faster. "Well! It's a good thing that everything we see in our dreams is always real, right?"

Burai purses his lips. "If someone is sending these dreams..." he begins asking the girl, carefully. "What led you to come here? Did you see this place in your dreams? Is this where the dragon makes its lair?"

"Well, that's what the *astrology* says," says Vala, cheerfully.

"I mean, there could be nothing up here. I *told* dad I'd be fien but nooo he had to send you all. Gosh, I'm SO sorry for the trouble." She peers at Bina like she's grown another head. "But the signs!"

"The signs that you saw. The dreams that you had. I don't want to talk you out of following your heart, Vala, but there are such things as doing so safely. A second opinion on the signs with someone of more experience. The priests of the faith you follow. Even perhaps a mage to see if you've been affected by magics that mean you harm. You've had very good luck out here. We've had not so good luck. If you had bad luck we might have found you dead instead of you offering your fire. So I'm asking, will you come back with us?" Bina continues on with her calm voice, "Burai's questions are vaild too. If you can answer them."

First dreams, and now Astrology. Burai is mostly sure Vala is insane...but only mostly sure. He looks at the others in the party, trying to gauge their reactions. Could there be anything to the girl's wild tales?

Edinaz's arms fold across his chest, then he refolds them. He looks disbelieving, irritated. "Signs are unreliable. I was the subject of portents; now look at me."

Blink. Blink.

"But... I was safe," she says.

And she was.

Until you got here.

Because just outside the cave, there's a big old roar.

"...that doesn't sound like a dragon," muses Vala.