Adam and his cohorts followed Lotag, who led them through a mountain path. The Iyrmen seemed to be familiar with the area, pushing aside brushes confidently. They allowed the group to move through the land with ease, until even Ylra could spot signs of life. 

They slipped into a cave and passed through it, before their trek led them to an open space. The space was littered  with temporary shelters of wood and foliage, some covered in blankets like the Iyrmen. 

There were a hundred figures all around, and another few dozen children who remained near the centre. A woman walked over towards Lotag, eyeing up Adam and his party with a suspicious eye. She was going to say something until she spotted Jon.

"Jon, you're back!" she exclaimed, scampering up to the boy and embracing him tightly.

"Aunty, mother and father are gone." Jon wrapped his arms around her in a gentle hug. 

"Gone? Gone where?"she asked, pulling back to look up at Jon. She held onto his face, staring into his eyes.

Jon frowned. "I don't know." His voice quivered, betraying his true thoughts on the matter.  

"Come, let's get you fed and…" She looked over the boy, confusion falling across her face. "You're… you don't look like you've been out in the wild for weeks."

Jon shook his head. "Adam and Redboulder and Rojer and Elowen and Ylra have been looking after me."

"Jon!" An old man appeared. "By the gods, you've returned!" He walked over and embraced the boy as well. 

"Let us speak over food," Lotag said. "There is much to discuss."

"Yes, yes!" The old man nodded his head. "Come." 

The villagers parted for the strangers, allowing them to sit at their flames in the centre of the village. The children all gazed at the strangers with curious eyes, whispering between one another from afar. 

The elder of the village was a lean man, as tall as any tree around. He had thin white hair and a thick beard, like leaves of white sprouting from his jaw. When he ate his facial hair parted, with experienced precision, to allow the sliver of food to enter. 

“It’s always a pleasure to see the Iyrmen,” the elder said with his low gravelly voice. His eyes then fell onto Lady Elowen and the rest of her group, nodding his head to each of them. “We thank you as well, oh great strangers. From where do you hail?”

“Myself and my compatriots hail from the lands far east,” Elowen replied. “We met Adam near Ironhall.”

“I’m from a small village in the middle of nowhere in particular,” Adam said. “I joined the adventuring guild in Red Oak, though I’ve spent more time in the Iyr than I have in the other towns.”

“You’ve been to the Iyr?” the elder asked. 

“I have. I went to show my respects, and then remained due to a certain matter. I assisted the Iyrmen with a few tasks too.”

“You assisted the Iyrmen?” The elder raised his brow. “Ah, excuse me, I don't mean to be so rude! I am Forgul, the elder of the village.” 

Adam nodded his head. “Well… there were some strange happenings nearby and I went to assist in scouting for the source.”

The elder looked to Lotag, who nodded his head. “It seems you speak the truth,” Forgul said. “I hadn’t expected a young, bronze ranked adventurer to be of much use, but that may be my old way of thinking.” He chuckled.

“It is a great wisdom you have,” Adam replied. “I did my best to represent an adventurer from Red Oak, there wasn’t much to it. Plus, I was able to accompany some Iyrmen, and the experience was worth its weight in gold.”

“Even the young have such wisdom!” Forgul laughed. “Would you be willing to tell me how you met with Jon?” His eyes fell across everyone else too.

Elowen looked to Ylra and then Adam, the pair who had found the giant, and Ylra nodded to Adam. Adam spoke of how he had seen Jon, and then how they had looked after him since. 

“He seems to be in great shape,” Forgul said, rubbing his thick beard. “You all do.”

“Well…” Adam looked to Elowen and then the Iyrmen. “We have our ways to keep some of the comforts of civilisation with us.”

Forgul nodded his head and then brushed his thick beard with a hand, narrowing his eyes in thought. He spent a long moment in thought like this. 

“We should speak of the giants,” Lotag said. “They are still a menace to the region, and no doubt they will have found another village by now.”

“There isn’t much any of us can do,” Forgul said. “The time to rally to another village has gone for our village, and so we remain in hiding, like rats in our little cage. We can only hope for starvation to set as we pray for aid."

Adam’s brows raised in alarm. Forgul had said it so bluntly, without any hint of hatred or sorrow. The elder continued to brush his beard, his eyes distant.

“We have managed to slay three mud giants ourselves,” Lotag said. “Elowen and her group have slain another three.”

“Oh? Is that the case?” Forgul looked to Elowen and the rest of her party once more, his eyes lingering on Adam. “Then, perhaps, there is something we can do.”

“Actually, if it’s no disrespect to say…” Adam looked to Elowen, who looked back in confusion. “We were expecting to meet a member of Jon’s kind.”

Forgul hummed and nodded. “I was wondering when you’d ask.” He sighed and continued to brush his beard. “His mother had found the tiny little thing far in the Snowlands, where the sun barely peeks through the clouds. He was alone, in a giant’s bag, crying for help. Bruta brought him back, for she holds some giant’s blood in her veins from generations ago, and no doubt pitied the poor thing.”

Adam nodded his head. It seemed as though Bruta, Jon's mother, was a decent fellow.

Forgul sipped on a tiny sliver of soup. “We know not why he was abandoned, even now. We have very little dealings with the frost giants of the north, only Bruta can speak with them due to her lineage.”

“What of his father?” Adam asked, curious of the other half of Jon’s parents.

“My nephew,” Forgul said. “He is one of our best hunters, along with Bruta. If Rikul and Bruta are both missing, then there isn’t much we can do.”

“Why did they take Jon with them?" Adam asked. "Jon said that they had gone to hunt something, but why would they go so far when the mud giants were around?” Something wasn’t adding up.

Forgul sighed again. “They were not hunting anything,” he admitted. “They had gone to take Jon north, to the frost giants, and to seek for their assistance in the matter of these other giants. I have no idea why Jon was alone, and I can only assume the worst for our best hunters.” 

“We have some business with the frost giants,” Elowen said. “If you can direct us to where they are, we could also speak with them of this matter.”

“They are to the north. We don’t know their exact location, but we do know that you can find them if you follow the mountain range. They have made their home on the other side of the mountain. We know little else.”

“How long would it take us to get there?” Adam asked.

“Two weeks or so. Bruta and Rikul had left some time ago, and they had taken a quicker path to avoid the mud giants and whatever dangers the mountains possess.”

“What dangers do they possess?” Adam leaned in. He had been too busy talking than eating, so when he sipped his soup, it was growing cold.

“Beasts of all manner, such as those of wolves and bears, and wyverns.”

Adam exchanged another look to Elowen. They could handle beasts of all manner and wyverns, or at least, that’s the kind of look Elowen had given to him. 

“So as long as we follow the mountain range, we’ll find them?” Adam asked.

“You will.” Forgul nodded. “I am certain of it.”

“We would like to stay the night, if it is alright with you, dear elder?” Elowen asked.

“For the return of our child, we welcome you. Unfortunately, we have little else to offer in these trying times.”

“Your assistance in our quest is more than appreciated,” Elowen replied.

“We will remain until the threat is dealt with,” Lotag said. “If the village receives assistance from the frost giants, we will leave.”

The elder nodded. "It was our request. As always, thank you." 

The group continued to eat. The soup was light, but the villagers had offered some bread too. The meal was peaceful, the kind of meal one would have with family on any given day.

Adam and his cohorts were led to a small area where some shelter had been set up for them. It was an open aired tent, the top covered with a blanket, though the walls were bare for air to pass through. 

“It seems we’re following the right track,” Adam said. “Are we heading out in the morning?” 

“Yes,” Elowen replied. “We will seek the frosted ones, and we will ask for their aid on behalf of the village.”

“What about Jon?” Adam asked.

“What of him?”

“We’re not going to take him with us, are we?”

“No.” Elowen shook her head. “The path is too dangerous to bring him along.”

Adam nodded. “Alright.” He had wanted to make sure, hearing her say it had comforted him.

He looked around the area. The rocky walls surrounded them, keeping out invaders and providing them with the comfort of their safety. There were a handful of paths which led out, and Adam could spy a handful of people leaving and returning now and again. 

There were dozens of children nearby, and a few adults who tried to shoo them away, failing to dissipate the tiny group. He could see it in their eyes, the child-like curiosity as they gazed across the strangers in their village. 

Perception
D20 + 5 = 6 (1)

Adam’s ears twitched as he tried to listen in to their mutterings, but they were too far away. Whatever gossip flooding through them remained between one another. Soon the children all left, leaving the strangers be. 

“Hey,” called a voice. It was a tall man with a lean build, dark hair and dark eyes. At his side were a pair of daggers, and slung over his shoulder was a bow and a quiver. “You lot brought back my brother, ey?”

“Your brother?” Adam replied back, looking at him. 

“Jon. I heard that the strangers with the half-elves and the dwarf brought him back.” His eyes flashed across them. “I’ve never met a half-elf or a dwarf, but you lot don’t seem to be too bad.”

“Thanks.”

“Heard you’re heading up to find the frost giants, is that right?”

Adam looked to Elowen, who bowed her head. “Yes, we are,” she said.

“I’ll accompany you there,” he said. “I’ve got a bit of giant’s blood in me, the Yspeks, if what my mother tells me is the truth. I’m not sure how you’re planning on meeting with them, but with me coming along, you’ve got a higher chance of speaking with them.”

Adam eyed up the bow and the daggers and then looked to Ylra. They already had some connection with the giants with her, and she was already their designated scout and ranger. Would it be rude to have him tagging along?

“We thank you for the offer,” Elowen said, “though we must discuss with one another before we welcome another to our fold.”

The man nodded. “I’m Rikta. Let me know before the night is out so I can prepare.” He turned and left them be, leaving as suddenly as he had arrived.

“His offer is good, but we can’t allow anyone else into our group, especially not someone we have just met.” Elowen shook her head. “We have our secrets we must keep.”

Adam wondered what she had meant by that. Jon already knew about the princess, so there was no way he hadn’t spoken to his family about her. They hadn’t spoken of their task up north either, and as far as the boy was concerned they had wanted to meet with his tribe. 

“I’ll defer to you in this judgement,” Adam said. “I’m here to accompany you, not to impose my will onto the group.”

“You imposed Jon onto us,” Elowen joked, the corners of her lips trailing upward.

“Rikta is not a little boy who needs our help.” Adam shrugged his shoulders. “This, and that, are two different things.”

“It may be useful to have someone of giant’s blood with us,” Ylra said. "The giants will be hospitable towards any who hold such blood."

“Aye, ah cannaeh agree more.” Redboulder nodded his head. “Tha boy already knows about ahr princess and Adam.”

“Me?” Adam asked, more surprised they mentioned him than Redboulder agreeing with Ylra. “What about me?”

“How yer ah swordsman with great magic. Ain't maneh who can do what yeh do.”

Adam was going to protest, but he paused for a moment. Jon had seen Adam summon three Fireballs, and also tank two straight to the face. 

“Right.”

“They may believe he is speaking tall tales, as children often do,” Elowen said. “If we allow Rikta to join us, the stories will hold more credibility. The less people who we are close to, the better our journey will run.”

“I will have to agree,” Rojer said. “Though his assistance would be well, we have enough to worry about on our journey. I’m sure he’s a capable warrior, but the dangers we face, they are too great to simply allow someone to come with us as thanks.”

“Should I go and tell him?” Adam asked. 

“In a short while,” Elowen said. 

Adam did, asking around until he found Rikta with three others. One was Jon, who looked up and smiled when he saw Adam. The other were a pair of twins, both younger than Rikta, seemingly in their lat teens. They had piercing blue-grey eyes, dark hair, and had similar lean builds to Rikta. Each held a pair of daggers at their side,  and a quiver, along with a short bow, over their shoulders.

“What decision have you come to?” Rikta asked, though he held a knowing smile on his face.

“We thank you for the offer, but we graciously decline.”

“May I know why?”

“We have some reasons of our own, which we’d prefer to keep secret.”

“I figured." Rikta sighed. "No ordinary people seek the frost giants."

“Something like that,” Adam smiled. “Plus, it’s best that Jon is with his family right now.”

Jon looked up to Adam sheepishly. “So you’re leaving?”

“For a little while.”

“Will you come back?”

“One day. I can’t make any promises, but I’m sure our paths will cross again.”

Jon nodded. “Will you teach me magic when you come back?”

“I can try, but I don’t think I’m that good of a teacher.” Adam chuckled.

He waved at the young giant and turned to make his way back. As he did, he stopped, finding one of the most terrifying creatures in the world blocking his path. There, standing a few metres away from him, was a tiny girl. She stood with her feet planted firmly in the ground, her dark hair cut short, her eyes glaring at the half-elf. A cold sweat ran across Adam’s forehead, and flashbacks to the small girl at the Iyr went through his mind.  

“You’re adventurer,” she accused, pointing up at his chest.

“Yes,” Adam replied.

“You help?”

“Yes?” Adam replied.

“Come.” She reached out a hand, beckoning him with her fingers. “Come.”

Adam walked closer to her, throwing a glance back over his shoulder. Rikta was watching with curious eyes, interested in what was happening.

The girl reached into her pocket and then withdrew a small button and a ribbon. “Here.”

“What?”

“Here!” She thrust out her hand, holding onto the button and the ribbon. 

Adam reached out for them. “You want me to have them?”

“Yes. You help for treasure. This my treasure.”

“Okay…” Adam took her button and her ribbon. “Uh…”

“You help, okay?”

“Yes, I understand.”

“Okay.” The girl waddled away, leaving Adam alone in his thoughts.

 

[[ Zabish 2.0 stops Adam in his path. I originally planned it to be a much more bitter sweet moment, but I couldn't do it. ]]